the link

A couple of things led to this episode. For starters, in Episode 21, my best friends and I (the Sausage Kings of Chicago...go listen if you're curious) did a whole episode of "Would You Rather?" style questions. Of course, it was a smash hit, so we're bringing it back here, with a Thanksgiving twist.

Yes, I really brought all of my podcasting equipment to Thanksgiving, and made my family play along. They were good sports. Luckily, these are questions our family has at get togethers anyway, so it's not only a fun episode, but a real look into the psyche of why I am the way that I am, in the best possible way.

Not much else to say besides Happy Thanksgiving, enjoy the holiday season, and if you're not spreading the word to at least 5 new people to listen to the podcast after you finish it, then you are a Grinch and hate the holiday season and cheer. I don't make the rules.

For even more, as if I don't plug it enough, follow me @thelink_podcast on Twitter & Instagram.

Until next time...

--- If you're into sports, like I am, I have a second podcast/stream/YouTube channel called MikeTheMush Sports. We're doing it every weekday live on Twitch, with videos posted to YouTube right after. I'd love if you would check that out, subscribe and follow, and give us a look on Twitter & Instagram there too, because more me is always good, right? Plus who doesn't want to rant about sports?

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out.

If you've been listening to the like the past couple of weeks, you'll know that I've been putting a lot of time into two podcasts now. If you're into sports, like I am, I have a second podcast/stream/YouTube channel called MikeTheMush Sports. We're doing it every weekday live on Twitch, with videos posted to YouTube right after. I'd love if you would check that out, subscribe and follow, and give us a look on Twitter & Instagram there too, because more me is always good, right? Plus who doesn't want to rant about sports?

For this week's episode of the link, we're going full crossover like Allen Iverson (who got namedropped in the outro btw so way to work that in Mike, nice). For one of the most recent videos, I went on an entire rant and defense about why the NBA is my favorite league, why basketball is my favorite sport, the reasons, the defense, and the downfalls of the other league. We went hard in the paint like a lawyer would in a defense case (which the NFL should know all-too-well). I've had this argument with many people over the years and I wanted to bring it to the internet and give the Association the credit it so desperately deserves.

Check it out, unedited footage from the live show. If you like this, definitely subscribe to the links above, but more importantly come join in the Twitch chat and we can talk about your takes and rebuttals to the inevitable nonsense I'll throw out there (it's genius but gotta stay humble).

As always, follow me @thelink_podcast on Twitter & Instagram as well for more behind the scenes look at guests, random thoughts on movies, music, tv, and whatever else catches my fancy. Maybe a killer meme with a clever caption. Who's to say?

See you there.

Until next time, Mush out.

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out.

If it hasn't been clear from the first 38 episodes, the process of the artist fascinates me. Everyone approaches it differently. Still, throughout music, movies, TV, or the creative arts like drawing, design, or painting, there's some common thread that seems to tie everyone together. 

The idea of needing to pour your emotion out through this skill, all while trying to not only hone that skill, but also try walk the tightrope between actively giving effort and also letting your natural expression shine through...it really just makes me curious.

I've known John Federlin for a long time, but only over the past year or so did I realize he was a savant with a paintbrush. His work is honestly impeccable, and to know someone for that long and not even realize he had this immense talent was a weird feeling. We started there, and worked our way through a ton of different topics. 

We got real, we got deep, but we stayed laughing throughout, which is just the right recipe if you ask me. Suck it Colonel Sanders. I got all the spices I need, thank you very much.

We also gave a quick recap and review of a TV show I enjoyed this week in the outro: Only Murders in the Building, so stick around through the end for that.

As you're listening, since I have already directed you here with my stunningly smooth voice, check out John's work at www.johnfederlin.com, or follow him on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter. Buy some stuff while you can, before he blows up even more and (rightfully) prices out all us blue collar folk.

For even more about him and all my guests, follow me @thelink_podcast on Twitter & Instagram. 

Until next time...

--- If you're into sports, like I am, I have a second podcast/stream/YouTube channel called MikeTheMush Sports. We're doing it every weekday live on Twitch, with videos posted to YouTube right after. I'd love if you would check that out, subscribe and follow, and give us a look on Twitter & Instagram there too, because more me is always good, right? Plus who doesn't want to rant about sports?

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out.

We all love to laugh; so why is it that comedy movies seem to be dying? They're rare to even see released on a big screen anymore.

I had my good friend, and hilarious stand-up comedian Katie Orchard back on the pod to discuss whether the things I just said are even true, and if so, why? (if you didn't catch her first episode, check out E13 where we go all-out on stand-up comedy for 90 minutes. It's one of my favorites, but don't tell the other guests).

We also went on to break down our absolute favorite comedy movies, actors, and actresses, so there's a heavy dose of nostalgia for you all, AND probably some recommendations in there that you might not have seen.

Lastly, in the outro, I did a quick review of Dune, which released recently, and really impressed me (mostly).

Follow Katie @katieocomedy on Instagram, and if you're in the San Diego area, I highly recommend going to check out her set live (at least until I convince her to start going out on the road more often so ya'll can find out for yourselves).

Of course, as always, give me a follow @thelink_podcast on Twitter & Instagram for more content throughout the week.

--- If you're into sports, like I am, I have a second podcast/stream/YouTube channel called MikeTheMush Sports. We're doing it every weekday live on Twitch, with videos posted to YouTube right after. I'd love if you would check that out, subscribe and follow, and give us a look on Twitter & Instagram there too, because more me is always good, right? Plus who doesn't want to rant about sports?

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out.

Let's rock & roll.

I've known Shaun Soho for years now, because he happens to be married to one of my childhood friends. Lucky for me, he was nice enough to come on the pod and talk all about how his band, Crash Midnight, is blowing up! 

They have a brand new single named "Blackout" which I not only have been rocking out to, but is being used by the Las Vegas Golden Knights as an anthem both inside and outside the arena, during games, and on their promos this season. It really doesn't get much cooler than that. Totally badass. 

Shaun is as much of a true rockstar as anyone I've ever met. He has the look. He has the talent. He has the knowledge of the industry, and I could talk to him about it all day long. Most importantly though, he finds a way to blend his rockstar-frontman persona with his personal life, being a great dad and husband. I wanted to talk some about that too, so I brought my dear friend Bianca, his wife, onto the podcast for the last few minutes to talk about the stigma that comes with being a rocker, and get the real details on how Shaun operates both sides of his life together.

This was fun for any music fans, but there's also plenty in here about the psychology, emotion, and business of being in a successful rock band. Plus, as always, some fun stories along the way.

Check out Crash Midnight's website in the link above. If you're in the Vegas area, they're a must-see. Go to @CrashMidnight on Twitter and Instagram to see more from the band. 

Of course, also follow @thelink_podcast on Twitter and Instagram where I'll be sure to share some more Crash Midnight content throughout the week. 

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out.

What a fun story for how this episode came about, and my dad (of E15 fame, a fan favorite) can tell you a little bit more about it than I can, which we did in the intro! Congrats to pops on his 3rd appearance by the way, a feat to be celebrated.

Anyway, long story shorter, my dad was featured in a music book about the band Cream. The book documented hundreds of different fan's stories from seeing the band live over the years. It's not your normal narrative and biography of the band, it's real, unfiltered documentation of the people that were there at the time. Do they remember it correctly? Does it matter? What did it feel like to be there? What details did they remember?

It's all there, and then some. So I reached out to the author, and he was nice enough to come on and indulge me while talking about his writing process and all the books he has completed and plans to finish soon. 

If you want to check out his massive list of books that is ever-growing, and buy one or two for your coffee table (which I highly recommend...a real conversation starter, as well as a good read), head to his Amazon author page, or go to Spenwood Books to sneak right past corporate America. Want to learn more about his journey? His website is https://richardmhoughton.com/. Grab one, grab two, good luck deciding between all the awesome bands he's done so far, with some huge ones on the way, but you'll have to listen to the pod for that.

As always, please follow me @thelink_podcast on Twitter & Instagram for behind the scenes nonsense, selfless promotion, but also a laugh here and there...that's worth it, right?

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out.

If you didn't hear, there were mass flight-cancellations across the country this week. Guess who has two thumbs and got caught up in all of it!? Why is it always thumbs? I have 2 of each of my fingers...

Anywho, I was forced to cancel the scheduled recording I had ready for this week because my travel arrangements were so screwed up after a bachelor party in Texas. You can imagine how PSYCHED we all were to have to change plans on the tail end. 

Still, the show must go on one way or another, so chill with me for a half hour as I just rant over a couple things. 

As always, I would love if you could follow me @thelink_podcast on Twitter & Instagram for behind the scenes nonsense and promotional reminders to watch the pod (I'm sorry).

John Silver is extremely over, and the fans know it.

He's a member of AEW (All Elite Wrestling), which is the hottest wrestling promotion in the world right now (yes, hotter than WWE, or NJPW since I said world and not country...still stands). John is part of the "Dark Order" in AEW which is not only one of the more popular groups in all of pro wrestling, but frankly is just the most fun and funny, in addition to the wrestling chops.

We also happen to be from the same town, and the same high school, so our paths have crossed many-a-time over the years, and watching him chase his dream, pursue these lofty goals, and finally now having all of his hard work pay off, and cash in on those goals, is truly a sight to behold.

THE MAN HAS HIS OWN WRESTLING ACTION FIGURE, COME ON!

I had a million questions, so both the die-hard wrestling fans will love it from that angle, but anyone who's just curious about the come-up, and chasing your dreams, will get plenty from it also. 

You can follow John @SilverNumber1 on Instagram & Twitter. While you're at it, you can follow me @thelink_podcast on Instagram & Twitter for plenty more behind the scenes content, clips, memes, general nonsense, etc.

Make sure you stay tuned through the end for a very special outro...

--- This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out. 

I was super psyched to have one of my favorite comedians on this week: Adam Ray. Throughout the pandemic I grew to be a huge fan of his stand-up, podcast, acting roles, and overall style. Lucky for me, and all of us, he's been riding a pretty nice hot streak through Hollywood lately.

Just recently, you can find Adam in:

And, of course, go to adamraycomedy.com for all of his upcoming tour dates, and much more.

We did plenty of goofing off, but also got into the journey to where he is now, the friends he's met along the way, and a general disdain for the state of Florida, which let's face it, is deserved.

I was humbled and honored to be able to just exchange laughs with someone I admire so much, and I hope the episode feels that way.

You can follow Adam @adamraycomedy on Instagram & Twitter, and of course, you can follow me @thelink_podcast on Instagram & Twitter.

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This episode is sponsored by Ambassador. Want to be rocking the most stylish sunglasses at affordable prices? Go to www.ambassadorsun.com, fill up your cart, and enter promo code "THELINK" for 50% off at check-out. 

If you're a fan of the pod, you know that E4, and E9, are true classics, with none other than my friend and film savant, TJ Trimboli. This time, in the midst of a lot of changes to the movie industry as a whole, through covid, streaming, and just a normal summer slate of movies, we wanted to do a deep dive into what the future of the industry is like, how things are changing, and where things are going.

Of course, the rest is jam packed with silliness, movie reviews, a sneak peak at an incredible fall-movie blockbuster, and much more.

Take a spin with us around the Hollywood industry.

Give TJ a follow @omgitstjtrimboli on Instagram, and follow his other channel, The Adventure Outpost, where you can find plenty of fun content, on both Instagram and Youtube.

Of course, give me a follow and some noties @thelink_podcast on both Instagram & Twitter.

This episode is sponsored by: 

Ambassador: https://ambassadorsun.com/ where you can get the most stylish shades at 50% off by entering promo code "THELINK" at check-out!

&

Bear Wars 4: Homecoming...where Summers become...winters. Coming to a theater near you, Halloween 2021.