Welcome back to the “interesting people I met in Berlin” series. Now it’s been a little while I admit as the first in interview in the series came out in June! And I finally published the second one in September.
Progress is slow. But slow progress is better than none. Just a quick reminder, these are interviews I did with the cool people I met at the Language Influencer Summit in Berlin in March.
In this video, I talk to Martin, host of the Rock ‘n’ Roll English podcast, where you can improve your English listening skills while listening to Martin chat to his mates about random Buzzfeed articles.
Martin has also been living abroad in Palermo for the past 9 years. That’s 2 boxed ticked – listening skills and living abroad – which is why I thought you’d enjoy hearing from him.
From Wolf of Wall Street to Fluent Italian Speaker
Martin has had a rather surprising evolution on his path to English teacher and podcaster, fluent Italian speaker and permanent resident of Palermo. He actually started off his career as an investment banker, making a lot more money than he does now as an English teacher!
But he had always wanted to learn Italian as his grandparents are from Italy. So, in a bid to connect with his roots, he quit his job, moved to Rome and started working in a bank teaching English to the employees. After a brief stint back in the UK working for an Italian company, he got sent to their offices in Palermo where he’s been living ever since.
Martin is a huge podcast fan and used to listen to them while commuting into work in London. As an Italian learner though, he never really found the type of podcast that suited him. That’s why he decided to create his own, Rock ‘n’ Roll English, in early 2017 to help English learners and for a bit of fun!
You’ll hear us discuss:
- how Martin learnt to pronounce his own name Italian style
- the awkward moment when Martin didn’t recognise me in Berlin, despite us spending 2 days in close contact
- Martin’s transformation from investment banker to English teacher and Italian speaker
- why Martin’s podcast is “rock ‘n’ roll” even if he isn’t
- the spelling/grammar mistake in the name of Martin’s podcast
- the surprising TV series Martin watched to get fluent in Italian thank to his ex-girlfriend
- why listening is so important in language learning
- the advantages of listening to podcasts in English
- the importance of experimenting to find the right listening material for you
- Martin’s podcast and TV show recommendations
Watch the video:
Links and Resources We Mentioned
We mentioned a few different tools and resources in this video. As promised, here are the links to them:
- Martin’s website, home of the Rock ‘n’ Roll English podcast: https://rocknrollenglish.com/
- Martin’s TV series and podcast recommendations:
- After Life: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8398600/
- The Office (UK version): https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0290978/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2
- Curb Your Enthusiasm: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0264235/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
- Peep Show: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387764/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1
- Kwik Brain podcast with Jim Kwik: https://www.jimkwik.com/podcast
- Russell Brunson’s Marketing Secrets podcast: http://www.russellbrunson.com/hi
Subscribe To My Newsletter To Get Your Free Guide
Want to use your favourite movie or TV show to understand native English speakers when they talk fast? Download your free guide, Understand Movies in English.
