Suzanne Navarro teamed up with her business partner to open a tiki bar in Maui, Ester's Fair Prospect, after she realized she didn't want to have a boss anymore. Before that, she bounced around Bay Area dive bars, did a stint at Miami's Sweet Liberty, and got her rum education in Chicago at Three Dots and a Dash. But the islands were calling, so she picked up her guitar and crossed the ocean to land in Maui to make her dream of opening a tiki bar come true. They survived the pandemic, have a lovely local following, and have become a stop for tiki aficionados traveling through the islands. Check out her island music here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0OrNAhbfMC9oOhs6r5zowo?si=4w-qqM5rR7WOI8Bri3fQow

Tommy Milburn fell in love with tiki when he was a kid on vacation in Hawaii, and became a bartender to support his other creative endeavors but always checked in with tropical bars wherever he was. A musical theater kid in Canada who played piano and grew up to run off to L.A. to be an actor, he eventually decided to embrace the dream of buying a spot in Gili Trawangan, Indonesia, and open up his bar, Tiki Grove. Authentically decorated in classic tiki decor, he offers traditional tiki drinks as well as home grown aloe to soothe the sunburns of those wandering up from the beach. Now that's hospitality! Check out his tropical tunes playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3UkjLcu5wx9S4IssVvgw4S?si=Lu01VY73QpqqjyjPPgu1VA

Erica Luera brought her witchy tropical vibes to the world renowned Strong Water in Anaheim, CA and is currently serving as their bar lead. She used to visit the legendary tiki palace Bahooka in Rosemead as a kid, about the time she was learning how to play violin. She graduated to working in dive bars and playing the guitar, and during the pandemic, she deeply dug into the craft of tiki drinks which eventually earned her a spot at the James Beard nominated Strong Water. She also crafts a spooky sexy playlist, which you can check out here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7BBNIp9p3de0CUKdY5TEla?si=f_po_im1TAK6Axu214h6ww

Valentino DeMartini was actually already behind the bar when he was a teen, barbacking and perfecting the martini for his family's bartending service. He started playing guitar around that time as well, inspired originally by emo but then embracing the country music of his youth. These days you can find him shaking things up at LA hotspot Donna's in the Echo Park neighborhood, while his twangy band Caravan 222 (originally formed in Chile) plays around town to an enthusiastic audience. He mixes up some music (including his band and solo stuff) here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6uPWXhO7xFTaC2D0sg1X0Q?si=I5KOrFT7TRONgSkQQA8TGg

Dylan O'Brien, owner of Oakland's Prizefighter, is a born and raised East Bay kid who always appreciated the farm to table approach of the Bay, and made that a part of his bars (he also owned SF's Bloodhound). Back in the day, he sang in vocal groups and still plays guitar, but shockingly has never done karaoke despite his singing skills! He started off working in wine, but a friend showed him that he would be much happier working with spirits (especially that "weird tequila") and he now not only oversees his bar, but also a diverse bottle shop next door. And this playlist proves he knows how to warm a crowd up for the night: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4t21rwXkkGi9VbiMZIjBIr?si=zdT9FM10S32JKH8lNhFxiQ

Aaron Post, owner of Valkyrie, St. Vitus, & Maestro (in the summer of 2025) in Tulsa, OK, started off in wine and fine dining but his joy of cocktails led him in another direction. His deep appreciation for hospitality and crafting drinks made him want to create wonderful and safe environment for others - be it a speakeasy or a dance club - and he's followed that passion in the city where he says you can do just about anything. Evidently, that included learning accordion as a kid and graduating into classical and electronic music as an adult, never losing a passion for any kind of music that makes people smile. Check out his emotional rollercoaster of a playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/72ysngg3wdc3zpDI0rfefv?si=D8k5qJzcRGGK5fD-xNRuvA

James Lawrence can be found mixing delicious cocktails at the tiny Kansas City, MO speakeasy, Swordfish Tom's. Music is important to a place named in honor of Tom Waits, but so is community, which is something James understands deeply. Whether it's the community of an intimate cocktail space, or the musical communities in the jam band and jamtronica scenes, James enjoys cultivating enjoyable environments for others to share an experience in. He loves this so much he left his role in the wine world to be able to have bartending as a permanent side hustle along with a flexible daytime gig! He also made a groovy playlist for us: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0AAWk8xmFfnskwSGPIZhgb?si=RYv9Zuo1SbSN5ahIAMXotA

Caroline Pardilla started blogging in the aughts when Los Angeles was really just getting going with a craft cocktail scene, and that soon lead to a career in spirits writing. She is now celebrating the publication of her first book, Margarita Time, which allowed her to gather recipes and stories from the likes of agave aficionado Max Reis and global humanitarian chef Jose Andres, while keeping the recipes accessible to any home bartender. She also loves to make playlists for any occasion, and created a cha cha-licious midcentury vibe with this one: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/420P8SA2H3tEXWzLxPec4r?si=MQHu1V9_Rl-mYXJO_9gimg