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Ep. #213: Cameron Esposito

Cameron Esposito is a gifted and hilarious comedian and actress who originally hails from Chicago, Illinois. She’s a beloved figure who reveals much about her personal life in her stand-up, often discussing the fact that she’s a lesbian and covering various aspects and concerns pertaining to the LGBTQ community. In fact, her 2014 stand-up record Same Sex Symbol delved deeply into such topics and was acclaimed as one of the best and smartest comedy albums of the year. Now based in Los Angeles, Esposito is an in-demand performer who has appeared on TV shows like @midnight, Conan, Maron, Drunk History, and she will soon be voicing a character on the Cartoon Network’s We Bare Bears. This December Esposito is marrying Rhea Butcher and taping her first special, a mere two days apart. She’s touring North America in the next while, including shows at the Comedy Bar in Toronto between September 10th and 12th and Comedy Mix in Vancouver between October 1st and 3rd. Here, Cameron and I discuss being prepared and winging it, the new multi-faceted face of comedy, Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld, career longevity, stand-up is the end and not a means to an end, Jay Leno’s stand-up, villainy and heroism, the Late Night wars, David Letterman’s likability, Costco, taping a special and getting married only days apart, a wedding planner, collective memory banks, how ‘merica’s doing, regionalism, Sick Kids Hospital, bullying, Donald Trump and immigration and the LGBTQ, Mexicans, alienating America’s fastest growing voting demographic, distracting the world from racism against black people by being racist towards Mexicans, figuring Trump out, women’s roles in this upcoming election, why we think Jon Stewart left The Daily Show, social media, topical humour, talking about yourself without feeling pigeonholed, inspiring others, Hari Kondabolu, the book of autobiographical essays she’s working on, the “Fighter Pilot” bit, and that was that.     

Related links: cameronesposito.com vishkhanna.com

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Ep. #210: Mick Jenkins

Mick Jenkins is a powerful, uncompromising young hip-hop artist who has spent most of his life as a citizen of Chicago, Illinois. Born in Alabama in 1991, Jenkins first received widespread attention for his 2013 mixtape Trees and Truths and followed its success up with the gritty, politically-charged masterstroke, The Water[s], which many regarded as one of the finest albums of 2014. Working at a furious pace, Jenkins is back with an excellent and vibrant new release called Wave[s], which is out via Cinematic Music Group, and has prompted Jenkins to tour right across North America, including stops at Toronto’s the Hoxton on September 1 and Ottawa’s Ritual on September 2. Here, Mick and I talk about getting his hair done on the south side of Chicago, how violence in the city has been overblown, how American media outlets sensationalize violence, Chief Keef and drill music, scapegoating, being personally impacted by this violence, the story behind the explosive video for “Ps & Qs” and alliteration, director Nathan Smith, the state of the United States of America, the ways in which humans deliberately avoid solving catastrophic problems that are easy to fix, stories from the Bible and about Jesus Christ, the bathing suit, why the world is more evil, how Satan wants you to go to hell, trying to believe politicians, Republicans and Democrats and concepts of evil and good, the election campaign cycle, how the one percent controls the ninety-nine percent, the dynamic lyrical content of Wave[s], speaking about women, what relationships teach us about ourselves, the power of water, Feel[s], The Healing Component, when Ice Cube speaks on women and N.W.A., the rise of socially aware, sensitive rappers, liking Drake and getting over his origin story, being fine with people not always getting it, not changing, being a prolific artist, bringing Wave[s] to life on-stage, not being a lawyer or being politically engaged, the song “Your Love,” and then there was slumber.

Related links: mickjenkins.com cinematicmusicgroup.com vishkhanna.com

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Ep. #95: São Paulo Underground

São Paulo Underground is a cultural and stylistic collision between electronica, tropicalia, avant garde jazz, and punk, featuring Chicago Underground Duo’s Rob Mazurek on cornet, harmonium and various effects, and São Paulo’s Guilherme Granado on keyboards, synths, sampler and vocals, and Mauricio Takara on percussion, cavaquinho and electronics. All three men were in town last September for the 2013 Guelph Jazz Festival and we had a chat at a restaurant in Guelph called Ox, where we pondered their latest and fourth album, Beija Flors Velho E Sujo. Wavelength Toronto presents Chicago Underground Duo at the Garrison on Thursday May 1 so it seemed like the right time to dig into the interview archives and present this spirited conversation in which São Paulo Underground and I discuss vocal harmonies on “G-Ball’s Fantasia,” why the band keeps returning to Guelph for the Guelph Jazz Festival, G-Ball’s cheeseburger odyssey and Canadian generosity, their new band and the ol’ dirty hummingbird, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Sun Ra, and The Wizard of Oz, making an album with Greg “the Shark” Norman at Electrical Audio in Chicago, why SPU get along so well and the wisdom of Pharoah Sanders, G-Ball’s birthday, the band’s 10th anniversary, how São Paulo Underground came together and its connection to the Chicago Underground Duo, the experimental and punk music scenes in São Paulo, the tremendous impact Fugazi had on musicians in Brazil after they played a show there, Mauricio’s collaborations with Fugazi’s Joe Lally and Sonic Youth’s Lee Ranaldo, Kenny from Wellington Brewery offers SPU an SPA, the story of Rob Mazurek, where the Exploding Star Orchestra came from, learning from elder musicians, why Chicago’s music history is out of hand and how the culture there impacted Rob’s wild aesthetic, Chicago bands like Tortoise, Sea and Cake, U.S. Maple, the For Carnation, Gastr del Sol, and the Smashing Pumpkins, bringing the ruckus, Rob’s involvement within numerous musical styles, how punk and jazz make sense together and galvanize people, punk rock free samba yoga, what’s coming up next for São Paulo Underground and Chicago Underground Duo and Rob’s love life, mental preparation before working with legends, beautiful vocal harmonies, the song “Ol’ Dirty Hummingbird” and a nice fade out.

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Related links: cuneiformrecords.com/bandshtml/saopaulo.html vishkhanna.com

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