When a podcast about anxiety has already racked up millions of downloads and an industry award nomination, taking it from audio to video feels less like an experiment and more like a natural evolution. Pianist and composer Chad Lawson is doing exactly that with his new on-camera series, Calm It Down Conversations, filmed at Spotify Studios in Hollywood.
LOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, November 10, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Chad Lawson, known for his work as a pianist, composer, and podcast host, announced today the launch of Calm It Down Conversations. The series is a video extension of his popular podcast Calm It Down, and it was shot at Spotify Studios in Hollywood. The debut episode, which features Jeff Krasno, premieres Wednesday, November 11, on Spotify and across all major podcast platforms.
Lawson’s original podcast, which focuses on managing stress and anxiety, has surpassed seven million downloads and earned an iHeartRadio Podcast Award nomination. With Calm It Down Conversations, the show moves in front of the camera, pairing Lawson with prominent figures in wellness, meditation, and mental health for relaxed, in-person discussions about reducing stress in daily life.
The premiere episode is titled “When There’s Nothing Left to Fix.” In it, Lawson talks with Jeff Krasno, the co-creator of Wanderlust and the co-founder and CEO of Commune, where he also hosts the Commune podcast. Krasno, who was named to Oprah’s SuperSoul100 list, is the author of Good Stress.
This conversation grapples with a universal dilemma: what do you do when someone you love needs more than you can possibly fix? Lawson and Krasno delve into themes of belonging, the compulsion to make everything better, and the power of simply being present. By revisiting childhood memories and the music that connected Krasno with his father during his final days, the two share a deeply personal exchange about grief, forgiveness, and learning to treat ourselves and others with greater grace.
“So much of Calm It Down has been about the moments when we feel we have to fix everything. Sitting across from someone changes the conversation. You catch the pause before an answer, the moment someone lets their guard down. Jeff was the right person to begin with. When he talked about the music he shared with his father at the end, there was nothing to add. Sometimes being present is the whole thing,” said Lawson.
Future episodes will feature an impressive roster of guests. Suze Yalof Schwartz, founder and CEO of Unplug Meditation—the world’s first drop-in meditation studio, who has taught more than 3 million people to meditate—is confirmed. So are Amina Zamani, an executive coach and international speaker whose work merges neuroscience, neuroplasticity, and Kundalini yoga, and Megan Monahan, a meditation teacher, former meditation director at Wanderlust, and author of Don’t Hate, Meditate!. Additional guests will be announced in the coming weeks.
New episodes of Calm It Down Conversations will be released every two weeks on Spotify and all major podcast platforms.
About Chad Lawson
Chad Lawson is a pianist and composer signed to Decca Records US, with more than 1.35 billion streams, an RIAA Gold certified single, and a No. 1 album on Billboard Classical Crossover with breathe. He is a Steinway Artist. He serves as Treasurer of the World Federation for Mental Health and on its Executive Committee, and as WFMH’s WHO Representative for the Americas, and he composed The Light Within, the official theme song for World Mental Health Day, the first ever written for the day by a musician. Lawson is double certified in breathwork through Yoga Alliance accredited training and is passionate about mindfulness, meditation, and wellbeing. He has led meditation, music, and breathwork sessions at Stanford, Emory, Auburn, and Indiana University, and for Nike, Amazon, Peloton, and Thrive Global. He hosts Calm It Down, a podcast on stress and anxiety with more than seven million downloads and an iHeartRadio Podcast Award nomination. His work has been covered by NPR, CBS Sunday Morning, Forbes, and Rolling Stone.
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Why it matters: By translating a top-tier audio podcast into a filmed interview series, Lawson is betting that the visual, face-to-face dynamic can deepen the connection listeners already feel. In an era where mental health conversations are more urgent than ever, this shift from sound to sight could make those moments of vulnerability—and the tools to manage stress—feel even more accessible to a broader audience.
