Live from the Next Chapter is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts.
Nationally acclaimed Detroit journalist and economic justice standard-bearer Bankole Thompson has applauded the recent launch of a new leadership podcast by prominent Detroit business leader Dan Loepp describing the effort as a timely and a necessary contribution to public conversations surrounding leadership, responsibility and the moral obligations of influence.
Loepp, who served as President and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan for nearly two decades launched Live from the Next Chapter, a podcast exploring leadership, transition, and the lessons leaders carry forward into what comes next.
“Dan Loepp represents a model of leadership too often absent in modern public life and that is leadership grounded not only in achievement, but in seriousness, humility and a genuine concern for community,” Thompson said. “Our conversations over the years about poverty, inequality and the responsibilities attached to influence have always reflected a deeper understanding that leadership must ultimately serve something larger than personal success.”
Thompson noted that he and Loepp have maintained a longstanding and mutually respectful relationship shaped by thoughtful dialogue surrounding economic inequality, opportunity and the future of Detroit. He described Loepp as part of a generation of business leaders who understand that corporate leadership cannot remain disconnected from the moral and economic realities affecting working families and vulnerable communities.
Live from the Next Chapter is built on the premise that the most useful leadership lessons are often learned through experience, reflection, and change. Each episode features candid, long-form conversations with leaders who have navigated defining transitions in their careers and lives.
“When I retired from Blue Cross, I recognized that the lessons, the relationships, the things you learn from watching good people make hard decisions, these stay with you. I’ve been fortunate to know leaders who are thoughtful and honest about what this work really asks of people, and those conversations are too valuable not to share with others,” Loepp said. “You don’t often get to hear leaders talk this candidly about what they’ve learned. I started this podcast because I wanted to share that.”
The podcast’s first four episodes feature guests whose careers span government, business, sports, and executive development:
Governor Gretchen Whitmer, the 49th Governor of Michigan, reflects on leadership under pressure, bipartisan progress, and what drove her to choose a career in public service.
Sandy Baruah, President and CEO of the Detroit Regional Chamber who worked for 2 former U.S. Presidents, discusses the importance of resilience and the decisions that shape a region.
Kirk Gibson, World Series champion and founder of the Kirk Gibson Foundation for Parkinson’s, talks about reinvention, purpose, and building the Kirk Gibson Center for Parkinson’s Wellness in Farmington Hills.
Anne Ferrier, executive coach and Certified Positive Intelligence Coach with more than 25 years of experience, discusses trust-building, the impact of the human brain on leadership, and the emotional dimensions of career transition.
Thompson said Loepp’s decision to create a platform centered on leadership arrives at a moment when many people are increasingly skeptical of institutions and searching for voices capable of combining professional success with civic conscience.
“Every guest on this show has been through something that changed how they lead,” Loepp said. “The goal is to share what experience actually teaches, so listeners can apply it to their own work and lives.”
Live From the Next Chapter also features Michael Patrick Shiels, award-winning radio of host of Michigan’s Big Show, as a contributing host. Michael Patrick opens each episode with Dan in a candid conversation to bring listeners into the dialogue.
The show is designed for senior executives, mid-to-late career professionals navigating change, and emerging leaders looking for grounded, practical perspective on leadership. Episodes are released twice monthly and feature long-form conversations that prioritize depth over trend.
Live from the Next Chapter is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts.
Thompson is a leading journalistic voice known for confronting injustice, challenging power, and advancing a fearless vision of equity, accountability and democratic renewal. He is one of the first Black editors in the nation to conduct a series of historic exclusive sit-down interviews with former President Barack Obama, is the founder of the national anti-poverty and economic justice think tank, The PuLSE Institute, a twice-a-week opinion columnist at The Detroit News and the host of the podcast, Bankole’s Nation. He is also the founder of The Bankole Thompson Center, a newly established youth leadership empowerment initiative to help build next generation leaders.
He is the former longtime editor of the Michigan Chronicle, the state’s African American newspaper.
A member of the National Press Club of Washington D.C., Thompson is an accomplished author of several books, including “Fiery Conscience”, about his decades of speaking truth to power reviewed by Forbes and listed as a reference in the Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division of the New Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. He has appeared severally on CNN and other major news outlets. His latest book is titled, “HOPE: On The Mountain Of Fear.”
In a rare honor, the University of Michigan Bentley Historical Library in 2015, established the Bankole Thompson Papers to preserve his work alongside the papers of Michigan governors. In 2018, he received the U.S. Congressional Record of Testimonial placing his body of work into the official record of the 118th Congress.
“In an era dominated by noise, performance and superficial branding, there is growing public hunger for leadership conversations rooted in substance, reflection and ethical responsibility,” Thompson said. “The most important leaders are not simply builders of institutions. They are stewards of trust.”
The launch of Loepp’s podcast is expected to generate interest among business, civic and nonprofit audiences across the region, particularly as conversations surrounding leadership, economic inequality and public trust continue to intensify nationally.
Thompson said the new platform also represents an opportunity to elevate more thoughtful discussions around the intersection of business leadership, civic responsibility and human dignity at a time when many institutions face declining public confidence.
Thompson added, “Detroit has always been a city shaped by resilience, reinvention and uncommon leadership. Platforms that encourage serious dialogue about leadership, purpose and the human consequences of decision-making are not only valuable but necessary.”
Dan Loepp grew up on the East Side of Detroit in a middle-class neighborhood. He learned about leadership early and catalogued lessons he gained throughout his professional journey. His public service career began working alongside Michigan’s longest-serving Attorney General and continued as Chief of Staff to the Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives when democrats and republicans shared political power. That experience shaped a core belief he carried through every role that followed: leadership works best when all voices are heard at the table.
Dan went on to serve as President and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan for nearly two decades, leading a top 10 national health insurer through significant transformation, including the company’s historic conversion to a nonprofit mutual insurance company. Beyond the executive suite, Dan’s career reflects a deep commitment to civic leadership and philanthropy.
He continues to serve as chair of the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, Executive Committee member of the Michigan Thanksgiving Parade Foundation, and as an Honorary Director of the Detroit Regional Chamber. Dan, with his wife Amy co-chair the Daniel J. Loepp Family Foundation, a private, philanthropic family foundation. Dan is a multi-degree graduate of Wayne State University and the author of Sharing the Balance of Power, published by the University of Michigan Press.
