Start with Your Name

Season One Wrap-Up

Here's a short look back at the first seventeen episodes from the inaugural season of the Start with Your Name podcast. We're already in production on season two and look forward to sharing many more of these stories with you.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Episode 17: "Zeyd, Part II"

Fleeing Kyiv with his girlfriend, Zeyd must decide where he wants to make a new life, away from the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Fulfilling a childhood dream, Zeyd decides that this is the moment to move to Amsterdam and embrace a life in the Netherlands.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Denys Kyshchuk, Leigh Robinson & olexandrmusic

Episode 16: "Zeyd, Part I"

Answering to the name "Zeyd" is new for this week's guest, who is originally from Azerbaijan and was studying in Kyiv when the war broke out. Zeyd's journey is an exploration of life as a refugee from his own country and from war-torn Ukraine.

Trigger warning: this episode contains discussion of domestic violence and abuse.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Denys Kyshchuk, Oleksii Kaplunskyi, Oleksii Kalyna, Sergei Chetvertnykh, Nate Loper & Rockot

Episode 15: "Lee, Part II"

Guest host Sofie van den Enk talks with Lee about the challenges of living abroad, what he's learned from other podcast guests and about their approach to naming their own child.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Dvir Silver, Laurent Buczek & Trygve Larsen

Episode 14: "Lee, Part I"

The host becomes the guest as Lee's wife and the executive producer of the podcast, Sofie van den Enk, takes the reins. Sofie speaks with Lee about the long history of their relationship, the email that changed everything and Lee's journey moving from Brooklyn, New York to the Netherlands.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Julius H., Ashot Danielyan, Pavel Bekirov, Anastasia Kir & Christian Scholl

Episode 13: "Lior, Part II"

Securing asylum in the Netherlands proves more challenging for Lior than for many others, mostly on account of her time in the U.S. military. Her path will take her into Kazakhstan and Russia before she makes her way back to the Netherlands.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Praz Khanal, Oleksii Kalyna, Ashot Danielyan, Denys Kyshchuk & Sergei Chetvertnykh

Episode 12: "Lior, Part I"

Born and raised in the capital city of Azerbaijan, Lior discovers two things at a young age: she's meant for a life abroad and she wants to know more about her Jewish roots. Our conversation is as much about her refugee story as it is her nearly lifelong pursuit of a Jewish life. After finishing her college career and spending time abroad studying in the U.S. Coast Guard, Lior returns to Azerbaijan and finds that she's no longer welcome there. She's jailed and released, seeks asylum and knows the situation will escalate if she doesn't find a way out.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Sergei Chetvertnykh, Anastasia Kir, Praz Khanal & primalhousemusic

Episode 11: "Lina Part II"

"Here. Now." This is the meaning of the tattoo that Lina bears on her right arm and the mantra that guided her through her journey away from Kyiv.

We resume Lina's story as she's fleeing her home. It's February 2022 and the war in Ukraine has begun. Lina is headed west with a group of others she's just met in a bomb shelter in Kyiv. We follow her journey into Poland and, ultimately, to the Netherlands, where she contends with insomnia, an unexpected confrontation with a fellow Ukrainian and her desire to help those in need.

Theme song by Oleksandr Savochka

Additional music by: Zakhar Valaha, Oleksii Kaplunskyi, Yevhenii Kovalenko, olexandrmusic, Denys Kyshchuk & Aleksey Chistilin