Who: David Grubb, Writer/PR Director for Dillard University (LA), Writer for Sportsnola.com, Wake Forest Alum 1997
Location: our respective houses
When: May 1, 2016
Device: Doubly recorded on Skype and Garageband…one of which failed (more on that later)
Length of interview: 2 hours
Analysis: It always helps when friends are willing to help on your projects. Also, it helps if you already know if they’re REALLY up for doing this.
Preview:
David and I hadn’t talked to each other physically since we’d both graduated from Wake (almost 20 years).
He and I had been in contact through Facebook and direct message for the past few years. I’d also been providing some infrequent help when he started getting back into his writing, here and there. Usually, contact between us had to do with how our favorite teams were sucking it up on the field, usually in sadness.
Here’s a sample from last year’s NFL season, after his Detroit Lions started to win a bunch in a row after their typical horrible start:
11/23/2015 11:32AM
Pete:
Are you guys trying to make the playoffs now or what?
David:
It's Fontes-esque what's happening right now. The Free Press (I think) put out an article about how we could win every game the rest of the way. Delusion and football...that's what Michigan does!
Pete:
It's a far cry from what Jets Nation's like: "Pessimism and football”!
David:
But you're the little brother...that's your lot. We've had the best running back of his era and arguably the best receiver of his era. That kind of talent gives you optimism. You keep hoping you'll find a way to put the pieces around them. The Jets don't have their own city or their own stadium. You're the Clippers of New York. That has to suck.
Let me put the salt back in the cabinet, since I used so much of it on your wounds. Sorry.
Pete:
You're not saying anything I haven't said to myself for 40 years about them.
Here's a sampling of words from one of my older brothers that occurs while watching Jets games:
Unwatchable
Pitiful
No awareness
This could be bad
Brutal
Same ole Jets
Not good.
David:
What's funny is that we do this week after week and year after year.
Pete:
So damn true.
David:
It's like a slot machine. I've been playing this machine for so long, I just can't get up and watch it pay off for someone else.
So, that’s the deal with our friendship. Some Lions-Jets thing, usually, gets it going. And if we’re engaged, it’s opened up other things for us to talk about.
David’s been working on his sports columns for a few years now. I already knew his opinions would be excellent. I also knew he’d be great for a podcast. He’s been on a couple of podcasts with other guys on sports (mostly college football), and honestly, he was the only thing good about those. He also steps in frequently on Ro Brown’s “Sport-a-Facts” sports show on WBOK 1230AM in Louisiana. He’s getting his reps!
And he was the guy who I wanted to have on from day 1 of thinking about making this podcast a reality.
Once we got it settled, then we just had to find a good day. And once both (1) Prince died and (2) Kobe Bryant retired, it was time to have him on, soon. (The podcast interviews are not intended to be topical, but in this case I made an exception.)
Day of podcast:
David and I get set up. We talk for about 7 minutes and do find a rhythm, and then we get started.
We covered most of the subjects I intended to. We ended up going long, and decided to save the Kobe part for a future podcast (more on that later).
But really, it was so much fun. I didn’t think we’d get to talk about my college jump shot, but we did. And we did talk about his struggles with bipolar disorder, which I was hoping to find a way to talk about, just because his FB feed frequently posts articles about it. He ended up going into it when it started to affect his life and career in his early 20s. He also allowed me to keep that discussion in the interview. I always tell my guests that, if something comes up you don’t want to talk about, I either won’t air it or will just turn off the recorder (something like this has happened in nearly all of my interviews so far).
I also double recorded it on Garageband as it was happening (my go-to spot for recording in-person interviews). That didn’t work. Apparently, recording audio from Skype directly onto Garageband has messed with the audio for my guests.
The good news, though, is that in my research before starting the podcast, it was recommended for me to purchase Call Recorder for Skype. It records Skype interviews as a Quicktime movie. The audio and video are clear and direct representations of the Skype movie. It works quite well, and the recording window shows up immediately when you open Skype. Hooray!
The other big change related in this podcast was my decision to talk about what’s been going on at Lincoln. This is the way Marc Maron opens his “WTF” podcasts, where he’ll go on about what’s going on in his life. I had no intention of doing this. But it felt right, and I plan on continuing. Others have told me it’s a good move.
Maddeningly, I’m bored listening to myself. I know this because I’ve been listening to my podcasts amidst listening to all the other podcasts I listen to, and the lack of energy is noticeable. It’s been helpful to compare and realize I need A LOT of work. A LOT!!! I’m very ready for this to move from being “a cool thing to do” to it actually being good. That’s a big step.
Through some feedback, and due to the length of the podcasts, I've been putting time markers in, starting with Episode 4 (Jason Kihle).
David and I are planning on co-hosting a sports-centered podcast in the near future. We’ll get to Kobe (and many many many more things) on that one.