Roadtrip to Burning Man 2025

The Annual Pre-Playa Planner™

It's that time again, kids! The Pre-Playa Planner is the yearly tradition where Arash delegates all the actual research to his way-more-responsible guests. This year's dialed-in crew to help you mentally prepare for your adventures ahead:

• Esquire, founder of Bubble Lounge
• Saffron aka Sara Barnett, repping Art Support Services (A.S.S.) instagram.com/cornepeli
• Shamiran, artist, musician, sonic selector and Camp YOUniversal mainstay instagram.com/saterishamiran

The crew breaks down some of the 2025 art projects we're excited to see, rituals we're bringing back, new surprises we're bracing for, and logistics that separate the veterans from the sparkle ponies.

Burner Podcast Episode 159

Recorded in Los Angeles on August 2, 2025

📅 playaevents.burningman.org

🌀 2025 Art Installations: burningman.org/event/2025-art-listings

🎧 Here Shamiran's full set here: https://on.soundcloud.com/26hAaDXocNpuuuMIWU

🛻 Your Pre-Playa Audio Toolkit: burnerpodcast.com/roadtrip

🗃️ Previous Pre-Playa Planners: burnerpodcast.com/previous-episodes/category/pre-playa-planner

Contributing Producer: Public Menace of Bubble Lounge

🏹🪽✂️

Hosted by (mr)Arash, Burner Podcast is the longest running traditional audio podcast in the global Burning Man community. Independently produced and focused on Burner consciousness and topics of intracultural interest, explore 150+ conversations at burnerpodcast.com/previous-episodes.

Burner Podcast host Arash Afshar is an Iranian-American SoCal-born (and sometimes Vegas-based) professional photographer. You can learn more at arashafshar.com and reach out directly at mrarash.com/hello.

Follow instagram.com/BurnerPodcast and facebook.com/burnerpodcast for wildly irregular updates.

And on his seventh Burn, Tyler Williams truly came Home

For his first six Burns, musician and professional Las Vegas community builder Tyler Williams attended Burning Man the millionaire way — flying in late, partying big, and heading out before the Temple burn. After the tragic death of his friend and boss, Zappos founder Tony Hsieh, Tyler returned to the playa — this time sober and with a deeper sense of intention.

In this interview memoir, Tyler shares his story of growing up in the church, landing in Las Vegas with his band, and eventually working alongside Tony during the Downtown Project's legendary revitalization of Fremont Street. Along the way, Arash and Tyler explore the lows of Ketamine and the real highs found in purpose, community, and creative contribution.

Burner Podcast | Episode 158

Recorded on Bicycle Day of 2025 in Las Vegas, NV

🔗 Tyler's LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tyler-williams-53089b20

🔗 Tyler's music: reverbnation.com/theoryofflightmusic

If this episode resonates with you, share it with a friend, and if you're feeling extra generous, check out BurnerPodcast.com for ways to support the show.

Featuring in-depth conversations with artists, leaders, and visionaries shaping Burner culture year-round, Burner Podcast is the longest-running traditional audio podcast in the global Burning Man community. Ranked among the top 5% of podcasts worldwide by Listen Notes, it has been exploring international Burner culture for over a decade.

🎧 Dive into the archive at burnerpodcast.com/previous-episodes

📲 Follow @BurnerPodcast on Instagram and facebook.com/burnerpodcast for wildly irregular updates

Burner Podcast host Arash Afshar is an Iranian-American, SoCal-born, and Las Vegas-based cultural strategist, creative director and professional photographer.

🔗 Explore his projects at arashafshar.com

📸 Follow him on Instagram: @mrarash

💌 Send love (or hate) mail: mrarash.com/hello