Combat Divas: Combatting Everyday Life and Sharing it With Us

The Combat Divas are exactly what they sound like: incredibly strong women veterans with energetic personalities who fearlessly share their lives with the public through their podcast. On their podcast, they talk about everything from their experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq to current events to awkward sex positions. They truly hit every category. While listening, you will feel like you’re right there in the room with them laughing and crying.

SSG (Join to see) and SSG Tiffany Jackson (Retired) met in the army about 12 years ago. Tiffany J retired medically in 2017. Their mutual love of food and the boisterous conversations they had at every opportunity drew them together. After Tiffany retired, she was looking for an outlet to discuss what was going on in her life during the transition while also staying connected with her fellow servicemembers. She enlisted the help of Tonnisha and the “Combat Divas'' podcast was born.

The podcast started small but grew rapidly. It’s a safe place to talk about quite literally anything; and they truly live up to that. In a conversation with the Divas, they said the podcast was originally targeted for military women but quickly expanded to all women and now has loyal male listeners as well. They were unsure how vulnerable they wanted to be at first, however learned rapidly that everyone was dealing with their own demons and being completely open allows for others to realize they are not alone.

This notion especially helped when COVID hit. By now it's no secret that the world was turned upside down and people felt a type of loneliness and isolation that penetrated deep. The Divas recognized the need to produce content for folks to listen to in hopes to pull them out of this isolation. People needed relatable material, so they felt less alone in their uncertain reality, especially when all the TV series were watched, the banana bread was baked and the solitary sunk in. From the reviews, their social media and overall growth since COVID hit, it’s safe to say the Combat Divas podcast provided that necessary bridge.

They’re using the platform to talk about sometimes fun and sometimes uncomfortable topics as well. Two of their most popular podcasts were “Sometimes... I don’t like my kids” and “Awkward Sex Positions.” They want to use their voices to talk about conventionally hard things but put a fun spin on it which in turn increases relatability. The Divas said the feedback they receive from their listeners is imperative and encourages them to keep moving forward and to address the things we’re all thinking. It solidifies the sentiment that their voices and experiences are reaching people far and wide.

Of course, there is a good, bad and ugly side to everything. The Divas’ success was not immune to the ugly side. They said they’re beyond thankful for the wonders of social media, but they were, and still are, faced with adversity. They shared that some of the people they served with, who they were close with, showed their true colors during the Black Lives Matter protests last summer. Both Divas agreed that the Military is used to confronting race which comes with a certain threshold of camaraderie and togetherness. While on active duty, they often joked with constituents of all races and were teased back in a lighthearted fashion. However, last summer at the height of the protests, these ‘jokes’ did not feel harmless. The words were meant to cut deep and attack their race on a personal level. However, the Divas refused to relinquish their energy and continued to use their platform to speak about the injustices happening across the board in the military.

In terms of future plans, there’s a big surprise on the horizon. A silver lining of the pandemic was giving them the time to sit down and write their first book called: “Combat Divas Chronicles: Survival Guide. A Boots to Heels Journey from Trauma to Triumph.” It comes out today and can order a signed copy of it here: http://rly.pt/3tCLvEq

The Divas said women in the military are not used to making waves, but the culture is changing. Women are not making themselves smaller to fit in the existing space, they’re demanding more space. What better name than “Combat Divas'' could encapsulate this duo so perfectly?!

Listen on Spotify, iHeart Radio or Apple Podcasts: http://rly.pt/3r6EdXP