Interview #31 Mariah Bonner: From Baltimore to Buenos Aires - Her Musical Journey

Rick Barron (00:01.186)

Hi everyone, I'm Rick Barron, your host, and welcome to my podcast. That's life, I swear. My guest today is Mariah BonnerBonner. I'm really thrilled to have her on my show again.  We were just talking briefly. It's been a little over two years since we last spoke, so there's a lot to be said here in today's conversation. 

Now, Mariah Bonner has graced the stage as a ballet dancer, a model, an actress.

But more so she's captivated her listeners with her voice as a singer. But her story doesn't end there. You see, Mariah Bonner decided to take a bowl pivot. And what I mean by that is that, after building a career in the performing arts in the United States, Mariah Bonner made the extraordinary decision to leave it all behind and start a new life in Argentina. Yeah, you know, as one would do.

Now, Mariah Bonner has been living in Argentina for about three years now. And while there, she has found a new artistic voice. And I have to say, it's quite beautiful. Singing in Spanish, performing before Argentine audiences, and also she's weaving herself into the rich cultural fabric of a country most of us only dream about visiting. Now, over the years, Mariah Bonner has also been documenting her new journey in the blog post.

Mariah Bonner (00:56.744)

Yeah.

Rick Barron (01:25.384)

And if you haven't signed up for it, please do. She has lots of stories and beautiful photographs to share. And she shares her adventures, her struggles, and the ups and downs, if you will. But may I add, I am really honored to have her here on the show. And I can tell you her story has only gotten richer. 

So please join me as I have my conversation with Mariah BonnerBonner. Mariah, welcome back to the show.

Mariah Bonner (01:54.613)

Thank you so much, Rick. Great to be here.

Rick Barron (01:56.364)

It's like I said, it's been a while, gosh. And just to share with you too, I was looking at some past podcasts on YouTube, and I came across one where you did a podcast back in April with who was it? Mike and Brian.

Mariah Bonner (02:18.835)

Yes, exactly, Sanity Lounge.

Rick Barron (02:22.502)

I love that title. But I was quite happy to have met your mom in a podcast she did. And she is, you two are identical. You know, you guys look so much alike. I can't believe it. You're welcome, you're welcome. So let's get back to where we left off. When I first spoke with you back in 2024.

Mariah Bonner (02:40.479)

Well, thank you. Thank you.

Rick Barron (02:51.544)

I didn't realize you had just moved to Argentina. And I think, you know, moving to Argentina, that is a major life shift, and you know, a new language, new customs, new cultures. Can you walk us through that if you will? How did you get there?

Mariah Bonner (03:11.061)

Yeah, so we, well, you and I spoke in May of 2024. So, I had not been there for not quite a year. You know, my, my dad fell in love with Argentina over 20 years ago and brought me and my siblings and my mom down there that, that long ago now. And he bought some properties that were working ranches.

So, there is cattle ranching, and there are vineyards for growing grapes, which are then made into wine. And it came to a point where he wanted somebody to look after these properties and make sure they were moving in the right direction. And it turned out my husband was pretty qualified for the job. He loved the outdoors. He had lived in Colombia and studied farming there, and he was immediately interested in it. 

So, I liked Argentina. I just never imagined I would live there. And I said, no, sure, one moment, Rick, excuse me.

Mariah Bonner (04:25.173)

As I was saying, my husband, Adrian, was the perfect person for the job. And I said, well, sure, let's go. And I didn't really think, we're moving there and we're never coming back. I just sort of thought, maybe it'll be a year, maybe two. It'll be a fun adventure. I'd love the change, and he's really into it, so why not?

Rick Barron (04:50.222)

Mm.

Mariah Bonner (04:53.885)

A friend of mine on the phone just asked me today, do you think you'll be moving back to the States? And I said, well, I can't really picture us moving back anytime in the near future. And the truth is we like it here. And it seems to have been a good thing for us both. So that's where we may end up staying for a while.

Rick Barron (05:20.59)

Well, you know, you never know what tomorrow's going to bring and you walked out, and you go there with, you know, dreams and then those dreams are then altered, if you will, as time progresses, and who knows, maybe you decide, you know, maybe this will be my new home. You never know. You never know. What were some of the shifts that you had to go through? 

I mean, you're going through a new culture, learning the language, I would imagine too. And as I've discovered through your singing, you really have mastered the language itself.

Mariah Bonner (05:59.475)

Well, thank you, Rick. I spoke a little Spanish, I mean, wow, nowhere near as good as I think I speak now. I can fumble my way through a show explaining what the songs are in advance. I do sing in Spanish. Singing is always so much easier and different from speaking because you learn the script in advance.

Rick Barron (06:10.178)

Yeah.

Mariah Bonner (06:26.993)

It's just a different thing. But yeah, I don't know. mean, so much looking back, so much of it was just overwhelming, I think, that I couldn't really take it in. And now I see how, you know, I thought I knew Argentina, because I'd visited it practically once a year throughout my teens and then into my adult life, but living here and living in any different countries is really quite different from visiting, even if you do go and spend a month. Like it's just a different thing to live. So yeah, it's been a journey.

Rick Barron (07:04.797)

Sure. I mean, so yeah. No, I can understand. I mean, you've been there longer, obviously for a good three years, but just my travels that I've taken with my wife to France, to Italy, to Portugal, the cultures are just so different. And, you know, I think like when we went to Italy, we went to go have dinner at five o'clock. We walked in, and well, the waiter was there, but he looked at me as if his look was saying, You wanna have dinner at five o'clock? So, I know. So, I quickly realized that's when my wife said, I think their culture is different here. Let’s come back in a couple of hours. 

Mariah Bonner (07:46.581)

Are you sure you don't want to have a cappuccino, maybe in a piece of vanilla?

So, we came back around nine, and it was full. I mean, we got in. We got in, but that's part of the change one has to think about. You know, it's not the same here as it is in a different country. Kind of pivoting a little bit here, I mentioned that you have been writing down your journey, and as you've been there in Argentina, have you always been a writer, or was this just something you felt like I've got to record what I'm seeing here from day to day, week to week?

Mariah Bonner (08:33.269)

Well, a little, yeah. mean, let's see. Have I always been a writer? Yes, I have because I'm the daughter of two writers and my mother encouraged me to keep a journal from an age as young as I can remember. She encouraged me to keep a journal. I don't know, I read a lot and I had been kind of recording, had a recording journal going on. 

And then when I moved down here, I just had this need to make it a regular thing and share it with more people because it helped me also feel less isolated and less apart from all the folks I knew. So, it started out as a small thing. I published it on Substack because that's where my dad publishes his work. And then he very nicely shared it with his list of readers and then some of them followed me. 

So now I reach new people. Yeah. And I get feedback. So it's really, it's really like performing. You know, you get feedback, and I realized that's one of the reasons I love performing, you get that feedback, and I really like that. Yeah.

Rick Barron (09:48.75)

That's great. Now, you kind of mentioned the word isolation. Was it a little difficult for you at first, because from what I've seen in your photographs, and I want to get back to your photographs in a second here, it appears as if you're far away from a close neighbor. I mean, it's like you have to travel ten miles just to go see someone.

Mariah Bonner (10:11.805)

Yeah, well, I was just talking to my friend about this this morning. She said, wow, you do a lot of driving. And I said, well, you know, the nearest city is a four-and-a-half-hour drive. Yeah, we do a lot of driving. you know, if maybe I had a different personality and I didn't like being in the city that much and it didn't bother me to be on a ranch that was really far from everything most of the time, then I wouldn't. But that's not me. I need to be in the city. I like hustle and hustle. And so I do drive a fair amount because of that. yeah, it's a four-and-a-half-hour drive from this ranch to the nearest city, Salta.

Rick Barron (10:56.108)

Okay, well that's a fair drive. Now your photographs I read your blog a lot and, I love your writing. The photographs that you take, I've noticed they're very measured in that you just don't take a snapshot. It's like you put a lot of thought behind what you're gonna take a picture of. I am I on the right track here? 'Cause you don't seem to rush through this.

Mariah Bonner (11:28.197)

No, I don't know. I mean, I don't take a lot of photos, interestingly. I take photos when I see something and it speaks to me and I just want to capture it. And I've even done this driving on the way to the ranch. Cause I thought, my gosh, this is an amazing shot. And I just stuck my camera out the window while I'm driving on this road that's like winding, winding.

Rick Barron (11:43.874)

Ha ha ha.

Mariah Bonner (11:57.701)

And I did it. I don't know. just, I see something, it speaks to me. I get my phone and I try to capture it. And sometimes it turns out and sometimes it doesn't, but I am glad that you enjoy them.

Rick Barron (12:16.608)

No, I do. I do. I think it really adds to the story that you’re talking about. It gives you a visualization of what you're describing.

Mariah Bonner (12:27.093)

Right, it's an illustration. It's not a drawing; it's an actual photo. I, yeah, I think that was my dad who sort of said, well, you ought to put lots of photos in your blog. And I said, yeah, okay, I'm taking lots of photos. I'll put the photos in. And now it's true that like, I talk about something and then I can say, oh, and this is what that is. It's what it looks like. This is that person. And yeah, I enjoy it. I'm glad.

Rick Barron (12:37.506)

Mm-hmm.

Mariah Bonner (12:56.341)

I'm glad you do too.

Rick Barron (12:57.518)

Right. I'll ask you one more question. I want to dive into your new mystical career. What's been the biggest adjustment for you, and if I may, what's been the biggest adjustment for your husband moving down to Argentina?

Mariah Bonner (13:13.525)

Those are very good questions. For my husband, it might be that he is in a very demanding management role where he needs to oversee several different projects at once and a lot of people learning terms in a language that is not his own and even not regular Spanish, it's like Argentine Spanish, but then Argentine Spanish from a specific region, from a tiny, isolated community where they have their own words and even their own accent, which would probably be very hard to understand if you had to work with them. I don't have to work with them, so it doesn't bother me that much. But I would say that might be the biggest thing for him.

This management role has a lot of responsibility across different projects and people, and spans different locations too. So, the distances for him are even greater because he has to drive out to farmlands that are even further away from the actual house where I spend most of my time, you know. So, I would venture to say that might be his biggest adjustment. For me, I think it was goodness.

Rick Barron (14:24.707)

Wow.

Mariah Bonner (14:39.064)

Probably just the distance that it took to get home to see my family was a huge adjustment for me. And I guess I want to say, like, just the fact that I was in the same time zone, yet I was on the other side of the world. So, my world flipped. When they're up and having summer, I'm like, you know, dressed like this, you know, and when I go back at Christmas, like it's summer here, it's also the biggest time of the busiest time of the year for the farmlands here at Christmas. 

So, like our sense of having time off is different from folks back home. Yeah, I would say that might be one of the biggest adjustments.

Rick Barron (15:29.166)

Sure. Yeah, kind of on a side note, learning the language. You know, my wife is Polish, so she and her sister are learning the language; they've been taking courses, and you talk about a very difficult language. The various tones, the way you announce the Zs, the Ys, are very, very difficult. And they were wanting to go to Poland to visit some of her cousins that she has not seen in years. But, you know, due to circumstances in the world, I was getting kind of worried, and her sister was down here to visit us. And we talked about it, and they thought, let's see about going next year. Hopefully, things will kind of calm down, so to speak. But I admire her because she takes copious notes as she's going through these courses and

Mariah Bonner (15:58.293)

Yeah.

Rick Barron (16:26.214)

She and her sister are I mean, they study. They don't take it lightly. I'm so proud of her. I really am.

I mean there's so many variations of how you would say hello. And as a matter of fact, I'm going to be talking to a lady from Belarus in a couple of weeks, and our theme is she wants to talk about culture because she came here to the United States a couple of years ago. So that's gonna be our focus and how people look at different things in different lights.

Mariah Bonner (17:11.221)

Mmm.

Rick Barron (17:18.488)

How they communicate. So that's going to be an interview that I think is going to be very interesting. But anyway, let's get to your new music career. Now, I noticed over time I saw you gradually start singing songs, and then I saw you in a cafe, and then I saw you at a small venue where you were talking or singing to quite a few people. But how did you get the boat started down there to get this new career of yours and then having to learn the language to s to sing the songs. How did all this get started? Was this your goal or was it like, I got to do something and let's do what I love?

Mariah Bonner (18:03.189)

Well, yeah, I don't know, Rick. That was a tough one for me because when we came down here, I knew that my career would be affected. I did not know anything about Salta. I didn't know if I would be having to take a hiatus and then wait until I came back to the States to perform. I didn't know if there was any market for what I did. But I sort of, you know, took a couple months to get settled between June 23rd, when we got here, and in August, our lawyer's wife, it shows, you it doesn't, you don't do these things on your own. 

It takes a village because our lawyer's wife said, my daughter took singing lessons. I'm going to set you up with her teacher. And I thought, great, you know, that'll be, that'll be something.

Who knows where it'll lead, but it's something I can do that I will love. I have to do something more than write a blog twice a week. And what am I getting? So, I thought, okay, I'll start lessons. Not that I felt like I needed lessons, but I figured I had nothing to lose. 

So, I go, and I meet this lady, and we have a few lessons, and she says, " You know, my brother is a guitarist, and he had a partner, a performing partner, and who just went back to his home country of Australia, I think it was. And she said, you know, he would love to perform with you, I think. Can I introduce you? And so, she brought him to one of my lessons. Turns out he's a very respected guitarist and singer in Salta. We kind of hit it off and started working on a repertoire.

And that was in August. And so, in November, I presented my first show in a little cafe in Salta. And that was thanks to my husband, because I figured, great, I have the guitarist. Now, where do I put this show on? Well, my husband had made friends with a fellow who owns a shop that sells wine, dried fruit, specialty cheeses, and imported goods. And you can also sit down and have a glass of wine, and you can have a charcuterie board, you know, and anyway, he had made friends with this fellow. 

And so he said, " Well, I'm going to ask my friend if you can do your show there. So, I did it there. And it was so lovely because he usually closes his shop at eight, but he kept it open for me. And he put little flowers on all the tables. Had a sound system. Of course, it was all very professional. And after that, I realized, okay.

There was a great musician. Here's a venue. There are more venues. I need to do more. This was well received. So that just gave me all the confidence I needed to just kind of go out there and do more and find.

Rick Barron (21:06.358)

Yeah. Yeah, I mean, I think you had it. You just needed a spark to get you going, and I think that's what it was. Yeah.

Mariah Bonner (21:14.037)

That's it. I had it. It was all good. It was inside. It's just that, yeah, the whole move and the not knowing and not being sure and kind of like just the wondering. And then it's like anything in life and you're like, oh, yes, yes, I am good at this. Yes, I do love this. Yes, I can do it. And then you go ahead, but you need that spark, like you say.

Rick Barron (21:39.726)

Do you think part of the fear was learning the language so that you could sing the songs? Because I would have to imagine, did you find yourself having to adjust how you delivered the song in the Argentine language compared to when you did it in English?

Mariah Bonner (22:00.883)

Well, the thing is that in that first show, I think I did songs in French, English, Spanish, and I learned a song in Portuguese, which I had never done. And I remember telling my teacher, like, I don't think I can do this. Like, I have never sung in Portuguese. I don't even speak Portuguese. And she said, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. I'm going to teach you. It's a great song, and it'll go great with your voice, and it'll sound good with the guitar.

Rick Barron (22:23.213)

Ha ha.

Mariah Bonner (22:28.657)

And she did teach me and I did learn it and I did perform that song. So I did Spanish, English, French and Portuguese in that first show. Plus I had to introduce the songs in Spanish, which at that point I did not master the language at all. But with the help of my teacher, I wrote everything down that I was going to say. I memorized it and then I just did it and it worked. It was fine.

Now I still do that, but because I would do it anyway. And so, I don't know. mean, it's performing. So once you learn the words to the song, you know what they mean. Doesn't matter if it's in French or Spanish or English. You still deliver it with emotion and confidence. I felt that I was able to achieve that. And I feel like I do that.

Rick Barron (23:01.442)

Mm-hmm.

Mariah Bonner (23:27.871)

So, I would say that the singing in the different languages wasn't a problem except for the Portuguese. That was my biggest success. I was like, I'm singing in Portuguese. Okay.

Rick Barron (23:38.068)

I know. You strike me as someone who's afraid to take the dive from the springboard, but once you do it, it's like, this is a piece of cake, you know.

Mariah Bonner (23:46.613)

Yeah, I think that might be it. I was like, I don't know, I'm not sure I can do it. I think the whole, yeah, it was just sort of like a big, huge, it all seemed so overwhelming. But thanks to this lady who introduced me to the teacher, who introduced me to her brother, who helped me put the repertoire together, my husband who helped me find the venue, and it all just goes to show things do come together. And I had to.

Rick Barron (24:13.752)

Sure. Well, as you said, it takes a village. Yeah.

Mariah Bonner (24:16.371)

And it takes a village. Yeah, there are probably a few people who really do it all on their own. You need help.

Rick Barron (24:23.98)

You think the learning over these languages stems from the discipline, the skills you cultivated when you were an actress?

Mariah Bonner (24:34.867)

Yes, I do. I think part of it comes from the fact that we moved. I moved with my family at 10 years old to France, speaking like five words of French and going to a French school and having to learn. I think part of it is natural. I have a good ear. Part of it was the necessity to learn French at a young age. And then part of it was the discipline that I had from being an actress and studying in London and learning things.

Rick Barron (25:08.406)

Mm-hmm. Yeah. So that all came in handy then. It came in handy. Yeah, well, I'll never use this again.

Mariah Bonner (25:12.977)

It came in handy, didn't it? Didn't really know how that was all gonna pan out, but so far so never in my wildest dreams.

Rick Barron (25:27.884)

So you've from what I can tell from your blog, you've done a lot of singing performances and the venues have been very intimate, if if if that's the best way to describe it for me. But are you entertaining the thought of perhaps maybe singing before a much larger crowd one day down there?

Mariah Bonner (25:51.497)

Yes, I am. And in fact, have, well, I'm planning my debut in Buenos Aires. I'll just say that. Yes.

Rick Barron (26:03.476)

That is amazing. No it reminds you, you talked about Buenos Aires as reminding you of like the South American version of Paris. Why is that?

Mariah Bonner (26:25.017)

Why does it remind me of Paris? Well, first of all, it's called the Paris of South America. Not just to me, but others say that too. And if you ever visit Buenos Aires or see photos of it, it makes sense because the architecture is very Parisian, the Haussmannian homes and the wide avenues, and it's on the water, there's a river that runs through it. It's a huge river, much bigger than the Seine, because it's a lot wider. But still. And it also has that very sophisticated cafe culture, where people go, and they'll sit down, and a waiter with a bow tie and a little waistcoat might come out and ask you what you want. And, you know, it's a very gracious city and beautiful and the architecture is similar to that of Paris. 

Rick Barron (27:29.462)

Hmm. Wow. Going back to your blog, I saw some sequences where I think your parents were there, and I  believe they were at the church that your father had built.

Mariah Bonner (27:44.629)

Yes. Well, my dad did build a little chapel here at the ranch, and well, I thought, gee, we ought to inaugurate this and have it blessed by a priest, and so I organized that with the local priest, and he came, and we invited all the people from the community here.

Rick Barron (27:46.54)

That was beautiful. What would that entail? What was that all about?

Mariah Bonner (28:11.881)

They attended a mass, we blessed the church, we inaugurated it, and dedicated it to St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music. My dad loves music, and that's where I get my love for music. And so we dedicated it to her, and then afterward we had some long tables set up in the gallery at the house, and our housekeeper and helper had made a big stew so that we could all have a nice nosh together afterward and celebrate. So that's what that was, and it was really special.

Rick Barron (28:48.012)

With your blog writing, have you ever thought of maybe one day taking all of that and then incorporating it into a book?

Mariah Bonner (29:00.765)

Yeah, sure. Sure. No, absolutely. It was a great idea. You asked me if I've always been a writer. What's funny about my family is that my mother's mother was a writer and published several books, including one of her own. She had a blog of her own, and it was published in her local paper, and she won some money. And so, her children compiled all the blog entries that she'd made and had them printed up into a little book. So, I do sometimes think, yes, maybe a book is in my future. I just don't know when, but I think that's a great idea and I'd love to.

Rick Barron (29:50.136)

No, 'cause I've come across several authors. I'm trying to get an interview w with the author who wrote the book called The Correspondent. I don't know if you've heard of that. So I'm kind of working on that, but I was really fascinated with the storyline and how it was presented and, on another tidbit, I took a course at Stanford a couple of years ago on how you create stories for podcasting. 

And one of the ladies I met, she was a writer, and she was a kind of struggling writer at that time. And I interviewed her I think about the same time frame I interviewed you, as a matter of fact. And she had some books in line ready to get published, but you know, it's a very competitive, very tight field to get into. And about three months ago, she contacted me, and she said, they're going to publish my first book. So, I said, my God, you know, so it is, you know, because she showed me kind of the rough outline of that book. And I told her, you must be numb with excitement. And she said, “I am because I've I waited so long for this moment and now it's here’.

Mariah Bonner (31:02.941)

Wow, so exciting.

Rick Barron (31:21.88)

But then on top of that, she had a second book. She had four books in total. I guess the publisher saw the second book and he said, We'll do this one next year. So, I told her, I said, you know what? Your moment has arrived. You know, you're going to be talking again about the book. I've already ordered the book, I'll be getting it in September. But that's like getting it back to you. You know, you never know what you have right there in your hands. You know, I guess it's like that springboard analogy. You know, you're kind of hesitant, but then you dive in. Well, I mean, talk to your mom, talk to your dad. I mean, I'm sure. 

But I also feel that you'll know when the time is right. I feel that way anyway. mean, I guess I've felt like so many big hurdles. I thought, I can't do it. I'm not ready. But you get some kind of sign or guidance from a person or something that makes you feel, no, I am ready.

Rick Barron (32:19.576)

That's fair.

Mariah Bonner (32:31.881)

But there are probably instances where you don't need to wait around for that. You can just go ahead and decide you're ready.

Rick Barron (32:36.366)

I think that's just I just thought I'd throw it out there and see if that was something that was in the back of your mind. But getting back to your music, I think I saw somewhere you have a new album coming out.

Mariah Bonner (32:54.997)

You know, I released a single. Yeah, it's out. It's called Wild is the Wind. It's a song written by Dimitri Tyomkin with lyrics by Ned Washington. And I recorded it with three fantastic musicians in Baltimore while I was there in April. And their names are Seth Kybell, Sean Lane, and Bob Abbott. We recorded it in a studio. And I had it mastered right away and just released it last month in May. It's called Wild is the Wind and it's on all platforms: Spotify, Deezer, YouTube, and Apple Music.

Rick Barron (33:26.669)

Wow.

Rick Barron (33:34.458)

So, is that a good way to describe you? Are you as wild as the wind? When you're performing in Argentina, do you kind of mix it up where you insert Argentine songs along with American songs? 'Cause I know you like such people as what's it, Cole Porter? Yeah.

Mariah Bonner (34:00.157)

Yes, I do. Yeah, you know what I did for, I had a show on Saturday and I did a whole show which was really the theme was Under Paris Skies. So I did a selection of American standards with French songs like Piaf tunes, Michel Legrand, but I also had Cole Porter and Gershwin. Because I wanted to include something my audience would know, I put in "Besame Mucho," which is not Argentine but is a bolero. It was written by Consuelo Velasquez. And it is from where exactly? I'm not sure, but everybody knows that. And so what was cool was

You know, they knew some of the songs I was singing, but they didn't know them well enough that they could sing along. But as I put in the title of my recent blog, Argentines love a good sing-along. I added in Besame Mucho because I was like, you know, I should have one song in Spanish and I should have one I'm certain they'll know. 

And so sure enough, I invited them all to sing with me on the chorus and they were all like, yes, Besame, I have little video of it in my recent blog too because it was such a great moment and thankfully one of the audience members had captured it and she sent it to me so I put it in there yeah I guess I like to do a mix of songs and some in Spanish some in English some in French because that's me you know I'm not just I'm not only a Latin performer I'm not only in

Rick Barron (35:34.281)

Sweet.

Mariah Bonner (35:53.813)

French or American. I incorporate them all because that feels right to my style and to my essence. And I do think it's also strategic because I want them to connect with at least one song where they can really be part of it. And that's fun for them and for me.

Rick Barron (36:17.27)

I think that's a good strategy to mix it up with the audience, 'cause I think it's something, I guess I would say it's refreshing to hear a different outcome of what they think they're going to hear that night. And I think they walked away with, okay, that was very interesting, and you know, I think from when you first got there to how all this unfolded to where you are today.

Mariah Bonner (36:22.962)

Thank you.

Rick Barron (36:46.846)

Imagine not only your husband but also your parents must be extremely proud of you. 

Mariah Bonner (36:51.093)

I hope so. Well, I think that maybe so.

Rick Barron (37:00.174)

Now, I noticed that sometimes you, I guess, make it a rule to go back to Maryland every Christmas.

Mariah Bonner (37:09.353)

Yeah, I generally do, and I do that because I'm from Baltimore, Maryland, and every year there's the lighting of the monument, which is a really big deal for our city, especially for my neighborhood, Mount Vernon. And my parents always have a little get together, and it's a fun way to kind of get back home and see lots of folks. And I also like to do my Christmas show tour.

Rick Barron (37:14.584)

Right.

Mariah Bonner (37:38.399)

So, I'll do a few shows while I'm there in Maryland as well. Yeah.

Rick Barron (37:42.934)

That's great. I know, kinda segue here, watching the podcast of your mother, on the show there in Maryland, she is quite the history buff.

Mariah Bonner (37:52.424)

Yeah. Yes. she is.

Rick Barron (37:59.33)

Wow, I mean, I was just astonished by what she does in Maryland, taking old homes, buildings, and then refurbishing them. And just listening to her talk to David and Brian, the history that comes out of those particular structures is amazing. It's just absolutely amazing. And how long has she been doing that?

Mariah Bonner (38:27.869)

A long time. And she has been very involved in restoring buildings, specifically in Mount Vernon, which is our neighborhood. Stanford white buildings. There are a couple of those that she has restored and beautified. I guess I would say, you know, since I was little, she was in the business of buying, refurbishing, and renting buildings in Baltimore. And so that was something she was kind of always in. And then later, when we moved to Mount Vernon, and specifically the family business headquarters, she became very invested in the neighborhood of Mount Vernon. So, it's her passion and she is darn good at it.

Rick Barron (39:21.068)

Hm. Boy, just looking at your career when I first spoke with you to where you are now, your mom, your dad's quite the entrepreneur, and your brothers, I think one of your brothers has a vineyard in Argentina.

Mariah Bonner (39:41.873)

Yeah, well, it's actually a family-owned vineyard, but he runs sales for the wine, and he has his private wine club that you can join and subscribe to, the Bonner Wine Partnership. I hope I'm right. That's how he sells the wine and yeah, he's Will Bonner and he's my oldest brother.

Rick Barron (40:11.81)

Yeah. well I guess what I'm getting at is that you and your siblings have been influenced, inspired, if you will, by your parents because you've all kind of gone in your directions of what truly is a love and a passion for you, like you in acting, singing, and then your brothers in the vineyards. Both of your parents have done quite well, and your husband. I mean, taking on that task from what you described, talk about multitasking.

Mariah Bonner (40:52.453)

I know. I don't know how he does it. Really don't. It's impressive. From where we started to where we are now, mean, gosh, he has just learned so much and gotten a handle on things, which are pretty tough. But going back to my parents, I mean, you know, you don't choose your parents, although there's a train of thought that says you do, and maybe I did choose them, I don't know. 

But they ended up being my parents, and I'm really grateful because an example of perseverance and kindness and dignity, I couldn't have gotten a better one. Plus, they're all around supportive and tell me to go for it, honey. So that's pretty great.

Rick Barron (41:40.962)

Yeah, no. Yeah. Jump, yeah, jump off that springboard. Yeah, that's right. So a couple Of little tidbits here. When you get on the stage, do you have kind of a ritual like, you know, say a quick prayer, you know, pull on your ear to kind of feel like, Okay, here I go, you know, I'm going to knock it out tonight?

Mariah Bonner (41:45.365)

Yeah, that's right. Yeah, they do. Do it. Yeah, here I go. Here I go. God, I've done the work. The rest is in your hands. I spend a day getting ready and kind of centering myself and then I just kind of go for it.

Rick Barron (42:21.016)

That's great. God. Good for you. You know, if someone were to do what you've done, to come down to Argentina or even a different country to leave, say, the States, what advice might you give them? Knowing what you've been through in the three years that you've been there. Adjusting to the culture and whatnot.

Mariah Bonner (42:48.781)

I would say keep an open mind and easy does it. Keep an open mind because you are going to be so far out of your depth a lot of the time that if you can't open your mind enough to try to see their perspective or even just try to understand what's going on generally, you're going to be lost. It's not going to work. The other thing, easy does it. I say that because you need to easy does it with you because there are days you won't feel so great and you'll kind of wonder why do we do this and you'll be kind of homesick and you need to kind of realize that it's part of it and it doesn't necessarily mean it was a wrong choice or that you shouldn't have done it. It just means, yeah, it's kind of hard. And you might just need to call a friend or book a ticket for a quick trip home or something. It'll just be kind of, yeah, easy.

Rick Barron (43:58.768)

Well yeah, I mean you think about, you know, your husband getting the opportunity and then you two decide, Okay, let's do it. And there was probably a reason why you said yes. And I'm sure you're finding that out day by day right now. And I think you know, some people are afraid to do that. 

But I know of a person she came from India and the one thing she told herself she would do that when she got here to the United States is not sit in her apartment and okay I'll go out there and explore next week. I'll do it next month. She bam did it right away and went out there and that's how she started to adapt, learn the cultures, the habits, if you will. And I guess that's one way to approach it.

Mariah Bonner (44:37.621)

That's good.

Yeah, yeah, I would say it was a lot easier being together with my husband. I didn't do it alone. So, you know, he had strengths that I didn't have and vice versa. So, we helped each other. His Spanish was much better than mine when we got here. And, you know, that was something that helped me out a lot because my Spanish wasn't really good enough. And so, yeah, all kinds of things.

Rick Barron (45:15.232)

Well, you know I mean Mariah, I'm Mexican and I don't know the first way or how to speak the language.

Mariah Bonner (45:21.767)

Really?

Rick Barron (45:26.188)

You know, my parents raised me, and they would always speak to me in English. And I never just said, Hey, well, you know, can I learn some of the Spanish? You know, and we never got to that part, you know, and it just so what I get what I'm getting at hearing your story and then watching my wife, and she's even, she's even challenging me. 

I said, I want you to start learning how to speak Mexican and I said, no, no, she's my wife is petite, but boy, when she tells you to do something, you better do it. Yeah, I do. so I told her, Okay, I'll I'll take it on. I'll take it on. A friend of hers is taking a Spanish course, so I want to talk to her and see how I can get enrolled in that. I don't know if she's at the beginning stage of it, but you know, I'm going to be seventy-seven in a couple of months. 

Mariah Bonner (46:21.087)

No way. Well, congratulations.

Rick Barron (46:22.454)

Yeah, yeah. Well, I chalk it up to good Scotch. No, well, I've been blessed with some pretty good genes. My parents lived through their mid-nineties. My mother's grandfather, who was my great-grandfather, lived to be 103. So yeah, longevity in both sides of the family goes far.

Mariah Bonner (46:47.701)

Good.

Rick Barron (46:52.546)

I hope I can, you know, make it that far, but that's why I want to enjoy every day as it comes to me, because you know, when you reach my age, every day does truly become a gift. You know, it really does. 

So, I guess with that, I've done something different with my interviews now. I usually conclude our conversation with what I call a speed round of questions.

Mariah Bonner (47:19.701)

Yeah.

Rick Barron (47:20.266)

And it's just a little spontaneity, if you will. So, I've got six here. So let me ask you the first one. What was the best live concert you ever attended and why?

Mariah Bonner (47:24.159)

Okay. Maybe my first one.

Rick Barron (47:38.572)

Ha ha. Or it could be your second one. I don't know. Okay, what was the best one? Yeah, it doesn't have to be the first.

Mariah Bonner (47:45.407)

Well, friend, I think this, yeah, well, I don't know. I would just say, seeing Weezer live, yes, in California, where I had not actually been to a concert before. This was my first concert. And it was so amazing to me because here they were.

Rick Barron (47:54.764)

Weezer?

Mariah Bonner (48:09.713)

In their white suits, like bouncing around the stage. And it was so fantastic. That sticks out. But I would say, actually, that wasn't the best concert. The best concert was seeing Guns N' Roses live at Coachella on their big Comeback Together reunion tour. That was amazing. And Axl Rose was sitting in a chair for the entire concert because he'd broken his leg or injured his leg in some way. But still he's like, belting it out. That hands down the most amazing concert I have ever seen in my life.

Rick Barron (48:48.027)

Amazing in what sense?

Mariah Bonner (48:49.903)

My gosh, just the performers, the level of performance, presence, and mastery of the stage that they had, plus the music. It's like, it's such iconic music. It's iconic. And I got to see it live, and it felt like touching history. That's how it felt.

Rick Barron (49:17.326)

That's a great way to put it. I like that. my god. Okay.

What do you wish you had more time to do and why?

Mariah Bonner (49:25.929)

What do I wish I had more time to do and why? Ooh. Hmm. That's a hard question because I feel very blessed that I have time to do things that are important to me.

Rick Barron (49:28.174)

Time to do.

Mariah Bonner (49:45.492)

I guess you can never have enough time in life, and we don't ever know whether you're 77, 35, or 20. Don't know when our day will come. So I guess for me, I just like what you said, I want to take every day as a gift and I don't want to take it for granted.

Rick Barron (50:08.726)

No, that's true. No, I love that. Well

Mariah Bonner (50:11.029)

The time I have is all I have. So I hope I use it well.

Rick Barron (50:14.048)

Exactly. Yeah. What was your first paying job?

Mariah Bonner (50:19.509)

Hmm, well, first paying job that I can remember. I may have had one earlier, like helping my dad in his office in the mail room or something. I can't remember that. I can't know the real recollection of that other than bloops, and I'm not sure I actually got paid for that. 

So, I will say that, officially, my first paying job was at 14, when I was selected for the catalog of the big department store in Paris called Plain Tom. And I was their model, and that was all very exciting because it was the big department store, which they closed and then reopened. They reopened it recently. I don't know exactly when, but that would have been my first official paying job.

Rick Barron (51:16.398)

Okay, this is a good segue. Speaking of your parents, if they wrote a book about you, what would the title be, and why?

Mariah Bonner (51:29.461)

You know what? I reckon the title of the book would be, How do you solve a problem like Mariah? And that would be because, as much as they love me, they are well aware that wild is the wind. This girl is... I would say they might call me a gem. They love me dearly, but they are well aware of my character defects. So, I would say that might be the book's title. Howdy, Solomon, like Mariah.

Rick Barron (52:02.477)

I don't know if it would be a defect; it's just you. I think in some ways, they probably would look at you and say, I wish I could have that kind of spirit that she has. You know, cause some no some people l see other people and say, " Gosh, I wish I could be like that.

Mariah Bonner (52:24.629)

Yeah, I guess so. We spend a lot of our life doing that, don't we? But we don't realize that we have our own wonderful attributes that other people are probably thinking, gee, I wish I had that.

Rick Barron (52:36.782)

Okay, I got two more for you. What's your favorite comfort food?

Mariah Bonner (52:47.593)

Ooh, that's.

Rick Barron (52:48.492)

You know, you just want to sit back and just enjoy

Mariah Bonner (52:52.477)

You know, I recently told my husband that if there's one thing I've missed most, it's our local Nepalese restaurant in Baltimore. That was my favorite comfort food on a down day or a really tired day. Just go and order the momos, the chicken tikka masala, a nice naan with a cup of hot Lemon water and salt and turmeric and that is like comfort food for me. Love that.

Rick Barron (53:26.476)

I've never heard of those foods before. What type of food is that?

Mariah Bonner (53:28.617)

Nepalese food.

Rick Barron (53:31.799)

Wow.

Mariah Bonner (53:33.075)

Yeah, probably a lot of crossover with Indian food, but in our neighborhood there are a lot of Nepalese people, and there are several Nepalese restaurants there, actually. And so that's comfort food, go-to every time.

Rick Barron (53:41.704)

Okay. I learned something here. Okay, final question. What would you attempt to do if you knew you just couldn't fail? I mean it would be smooth sailing. Nothing could stop you.

Mariah Bonner (54:03.496)

Well, realistically, I would try to do a few things. I would pitch the Cologne Theater in Buenos Aires on a show with a backup orchestra. I would also pitch myself for a tour in Japan, as I am certain they would love my music.

If I was sure I couldn't fail, I would do both those things. And I reckon those things could come to pass. I think that's what I would do.

Rick Barron (54:54.722)

That's pretty grand scale.

Mariah Bonner (54:57.109)

Yeah, it is.

Rick Barron  (54:58.83)

Why? I don't hear any doubt in that.

Mariah Bonner (55:03.349)

It's in God's hands. I have to do my part.

Rick Barron (55:07.276)

Have you ever been to Japan? I have. yes. I was there when I was in the service and got to see a lot of the countryside and a lot of Tokyo. Magnificent city. I mean, I went down there at night with some of my friends, and I had never seen a city so lit up. It was just like an assault on the eyeballs. You didn't know what to look at first.

Mariah Bonner (55:12.681)

No, have you?

Mariah Bonner (55:41.092)

Well, you know, my brother went there recently and said, "Mariah, you would love it." And there are so many little intimate cabaret rooms. They love music. It would be fabulous. You should go. was like, oh, who would do that?

Rick Barron (55:51.767)

Well, Mariah, I really appreciate you taking the time, the second time, to speak with me. I mean, again, I can't imagine it's been over two years. I just thought, you know, I need to talk with her again and to see how you're doing. And I think you have a lot of dreams. I think dreams I think you can make come true, like the one with Argentina and then going to Japan. I don't know. I think I see you doing that.

Mariah Bonner (56:15.349)

Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. From your lips to God's ears.

Rick Barron (56:37.582)

Well, fingers crossed. So, listen, I want to thank you so much again, and to the guests who are listening to this episode. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. And I want to thank you for joining us, and we'll talk to you soon.