Vox Management Agency

12/11/2025

Thank you to CBC for this great piece on the animation film!

Peace by Chocolate
Tareq Hadhad

A decade ago, the Hadhad family fled war-torn Syria and started a successful business in Nova Scotia. In an interview with the CBC's Amy Smith, Tareq Hadhad explains how the project came about and why he wanted to tell his family's story through animation.

12/09/2025

We have extended the Good People Crew all the way to Hollywood!! We are so excited to be working with the Rising Tides Films Team and the good people at Peace by Chocolate and the Hadhad Family to make this incredible full length animation film!!! Please follow along for more updates!

Dear friends,
Today, we are sharing the announcement of our biggest project since we started this journey, and something we never imagined possible when we first arrived in Canada.

Our family’s story is becoming an animated feature film called Shokolata, produced in Hollywood by Rising Tides Films.

The film name means chocolate in Arabic, and is being shaped by an extraordinary global team artists who have worked on some of the most iconic animated films from Disney, DreamWorks, and Sony. People who helped bring to life movies like Shrek 2, Prince of Egypt, Madagascar, Trolls, and The Super Mario Bros. Movie are now bringing our memories of Damascus and Nova Scotia, Canada to the screen.

This is a huge milestone that means so much to our community and to families who have lived through stories like ours.
Shokolata is about celebrating home, love, courage and resilience. We believe that peace can survive even in the darkest moments.

It’s also one more way we are trying to share our message: through chocolate, through storytelling, and now through animation.

Humanity is stronger than hate, and kindness can rebuild what war breaks.
We are beyond grateful for this moment, and we cannot wait for the world to experience this film with us. 🍫

12/01/2025

Thanks for the fab photos Applehead Studio Photography!!

10/22/2025

Celebrating 10 years of welcoming newcomers to Antigonish!!! So proud of the work we do with Tareq Hadhad and the team at Peace by Chocolate! Congratulations to the good people at SAFE for all the work they have done!

10/07/2025

A fantastic event for a good cause. Buy tickets today. 💐💐💐

MCHA is a registered charity, community-based agency. We believe that quality of life for each person includes basic security, freedom, and respect. This implies mutual rights that respect individual differences, social supports, opportunities, and personal privacy. We believe that everyone has the....

09/03/2025

Congrats good people!! What a milestone!!!

🎂🥳We're celebrating 20 years of The Debaters with a special anniversary episode! For the first time ever, we’re bringing you a behind-the-scenes interview with Richard Side, creator of the Debaters, and Steve Patterson, our host with the most! If you want to know the facts behind the funny, check it out here: https://link.mgln.ai/hjvrtm

06/18/2025

Let’s talk about delivering the right message.

In this special episode Stephanie sits down with her long time client and member of the Vox roster, Tareq Hadhad who arrived in Canada in December 2015. Tareq started working with Vox in early 2017 and it’s been a pretty wild ride bringing Tareq to stages all around the world, meeting leaders of countries and thousands of people. In this interview you’ll hear about the importance of getting the message right at his keynotes, the new opportunities you don’t see coming in business and the rollercoaster ride of entrepreneurship. Tareq says “Entrepreneurship is like jumping off a cliff and building a plane on the way down.” Both Stephanie and Tareq run businesses and have grown together over the last eight years as they build his speaking career that has brought him all across Canada and to many countries like Japan, Mexico, the United States and various destinations in Europe. Their life changing partnership has opened doors neither of them ever imagined and are excited for the many new opportunities to come.

https://voxtalk.podbean.com/

06/12/2025

It’s Tia Upshaw’s season!! Let’s talk about a go get ‘em, no nonsense, women in business champion, community cheerleader who is oozing in her black power. Tia is a force. The newest addition to the VOX roster, Steph and Tia sit down, meeting in real life for the first time. They talk about Tia’s life and career and how she has discovered it’s her season to blossom. You’ll hear about the value of mentors, a love of fashion and design, life goals, the highs and lows of entrepreneurship and the drive that led her to be an award winning success story. Her work has not only driven economic growth in her community but has also set a new standard for inclusive leadership and social impact. As the founder and CEO of Blk Women in Excellence, Tia has built a powerful platform dedicated to uplifting and empowering Black women entrepreneurs.

https://voxtalk.podbean.com/

Tia Upshaw
Blk Women in Excellence

Intro and Outro Song: “Freetime: by Caledonia
Produced by Mike Ryan: Michael S. Ryan

06/04/2025

Stephanie sits down to chat with one of her best friends she’s known and worked with for nearly 20 years. They reminisce of their time working with Zac’s band, Caledonia, producing the documentary Paddle to the Ocean, his speaking career as a member of the VOX roster and his newest serious leisure love of stand up comedy. Zac openly talks about living with PTSD and the stigma that still surrounds mental illness. They laugh about days on tour (pre cell phones), his relationship with religion, their early days in the music industry, growing cannabis, the importance of practicing your craft, dark humour and how his new serious leisure activity is helping him and others laugh while healing from grief and trauma. Two friends, two mics, sitting at a kitchen table where they have laughed and hung out at many times.

https://voxtalk.podbean.com/



Intro and Outro Song: “Freetime: by Caledonia

Produced by Mike Ryan: Michael S. Ryan

05/28/2025

Let’s talk about cats!! The Founder of My Grandfather’s Cat, Angela Rafuse is helping animals, seniors and terminally ill people. Through her cat content, she has amassed a record following making her charity the most followed Canadian charity on Instagram. The charity was inspired by her personal experience adopting her grandfather’s 14-year old grumpy cat, Mackenzie, when he passed away. In only a few short years the charity has helped nearly 1000 cats. Her viral content has garnered her over 645,000 followers on TikTok. Angela’s dedication has earned her national and international recognition. Her work has been featured by People Magazine, Good News Network, and countless Canadian news outlets. She has been named one of Atlantic Canada Business Magazine’s Top 30 Under 30 Innovators, received a nomination for Forbes Top 30 Under 30, and the title of Animal Nonprofit CEO of the Year by the Canadian CEO Awards.

https://voxtalk.podbean.com/

MMy Grandfather's Cat
Intro and Outro Song: “Freetime: by Caledonia

Produced by Mike Ryan: MMichael S. Ryan

05/27/2025

THANK YOU GOOD PEOPLE for tuning in! New episode drops tomorrow!! https://voxtalk.podbean.com/

05/21/2025

Season Two: Episode 1:

Steve Murphy is a beloved and respected personality in Atlantic Canada. How fun to share some time with him at the kitchen table and talk to one of our good people. Steve joined many maritimers in their homes at the dinner hour live from the CTV news desk for three decades. He is a firm believer in delivering the news based on facts and not opinions. After a lifetime of reporting news and showcasing the opinions of others, Steve now expresses his own opinions on the things he’s done and the people he’s met along the way. These days you’ll see Steve delivering keynote speeches, hosting events and a special correspondent, commentator and analyst for CTV Atlantic.

https://voxtalk.podbean.com/

Intro and Outro Song: “Freetime: by Caledonia
Produced by Michael S. Ryan