The Todd Donald Show

Brad Gage, LA Actor, Writer and much more; starting in the summer of 2019 has taken his razor-sharp skills, creative intellect and talent, putting them to use in a profoundly philanthropic/positive way. “Real Feels” is the name of a podcast and YouTube channel (also count Instagram) starting with poetry, and continuing into safe-space conversations where Brad invites people to truly see and share who they are.. I’ve not surprisingly seen people healing on it, he’s quite a warm person! Congruently with those conversations and maybe with a focus-shift for now soley to it, Brad Gage offers a series of video essays with an entertaining look/free educational take on ‘what is masculinity?’, ‘what is toxic masculinity’, ‘why haven’t we seen Mister Rogers for the masculine icon he is?’. Ultimately, this serves (I feel) to ask men to identify what their role is in creating a future (hell, why not now?) that women don’t have to feel like their lives, bodies and minds are always in harm’s way. Since I’m in full agreement on this, it was nice to just listen and appreciate Brad’s soothing voice and well-articulated thoughts, and better understand why he’s so passionate about all of it. He really is a beautiful person, was all too kind to me I’ll say, so thanks, Brad (really feely). I’ll mention at the end here that ‘Brad Gage’ the profile on Channel101 (link below), is still home to the content that introduced me to’m, and will continually bring me joy, so feel free to peruse. : )

Los Angeles Comedian, Actor, Writer, Show creator and more, Chad Rietschel is an intrinsically funny young man who I’m very glad I had the chance to chat with. If you haven’t seen him as ‘Timeloop Dad’ (aka Miles) in “The Bachelor but with Dads” on Channel 101, seriously, don’t talk to me (jk, but seriously). With 4 other gentleman known as ‘the Dads’, their voice can be seen/heard in all pre-pro-post roles, making comedy in L.A. (some, rooted in Chicago), from “Petty Theft” to “…Dads” and i’m frightfully excited for what they’ll do next. As a solo artist - Chad can be seen as funny side characters in such awesome 101 shows as “Wizards Corner”, “Binary 46” and (guest on TDS 82. KP Parker’s) “Rumspringa”! Chad’s first solo creation is in the understated yet mighty “Dan’s Dance Revolution”. In this episode we talk about how the (formerly known as) ‘Little Judd’ gang got started, creativity, comedy, Coldplay, Canada, working in a group vs. working on your own, Channel 101 of course, and more.

Victoria, BC’s Jeff Bryant, is singer/songwriter, and a human being with a beautiful and connected spirit. He came onto the show to talk about not only his new EP “The Great Unknown”, but how the metaphorical ‘picture’ both on the album art but in his life, is a representation of fragility and honesty. Contrary to the connected spirit he has now, there was a long period of disconnection, depression and distance, from his ability to willfully craft songs and want to share them with the world. The journey to get to now was plagued by those things, making this release a big personal win, and hopefully only the beginning of more! In the meantime, I’m remembering Jeff fondly from his days in the late 2000s in a duo called The Human Statues, with Zachary Stevenson. They were based out of Toronto at the time, and rocked my world as guests on my first podcast in 2008. Even then, there was an intelligent approach to their offbrand yet worldclass group of songs and stage presence. How could I say no to chatting with Jeff again, who agreed to reflect on that time, but fondly remember those days as I do, in memory? Enjoy our conversation about the music, the past, present and future, as well as some musings on life, humanity and the good ol’ creative process; paired with a few songs from ‘The Great Unknown’, a classic by The Human Statures and a rare treat from the archive!

Meet Toronto rock/pop/metal/defies classification duo, siblings Bela & Fernando Ferreira; known musically as the outrageously talented and powerful band they are, The Manic Boys and Girls Club. This is also a long-awaited catch up and having-them-on-the-podcast finally… scenario? I’m so happy we found the time, and almost equally delighted at this moment, to put it out there! The Manic Boys and Girls club is two people that aren’t afraid to be seen as the human beings, as Beautifully flawed and fragile as we really are, and as a result of that, those of us who find and can adore their music, can feel like “hey, maybe these amazing anthems are written for us!?”. According to Béla and Fernando Ferriera, that’s actually the whole point - and if i’m paraphrasing poorly, hear THEM talk about it, in this interview!; which will be coupled by music, both recorded, for 1, and 2 live-off the floor performances, that you can watch as videos on their Facebook page. In this, we chat about their headspace, music-making process, break the ice on years of touring and the experiences bands can have both ideal, and nightmarish to performers… we also talk about each other and goof off, sorry not sorry! S’my show!

Meet Toronto rock/pop/metal/defies classification duo, siblings Bela & Fernando Ferreira. This is also a long-awaited catch up and having-them-on-the-podcast finally… scenario? I’m so happy we found the time, and almost equally delighted at this moment, to put it out there! They’re two people that aren’t afraid to be seen as the human beings, as Beautifully flawed and fragile as we really are, and as a result of that, those of us who find and can adore their music, can feel like “hey, maybe these amazing anthems are written for us!?”. According to Béla and Fernando. that’s the whole point - and if i’m paraphrasing poorly, hear THEM talk about it, in this interview!; which will be coupled by music, both recorded, for 1, and 2 live performances, that you can watch as videos on their Facebook page. In this, we chat about their headspace, music-making process, break the ice on years of touring and the experiences bands can have both ideal, and nightmarish to performers… we also talk about each other and goof off, sorry not sorry! S’my show!

This is KP Parker!, an actor, writer & director from L.A., who creates larger-than-life characters you can’t help but cheer for, and places them in a world invariably magical yet frightening, like our own world. That’s my attempt at sounding bloggy, the point is, KP delivers an exciting, hilarious and real experience. For me, it started with KP’s scene-stealing opening scene to Ted Marsden/Nick Hurley’s “Street Cleaning” in 2017. Since then she’s ‘made partner’, exposed the ‘fraud’ and went to Albuquerque for some reason? These are all references to very well-crafted and delightful work she’s done as a performer and writer. She lights up m’screen once again with humility as Humility, a young Amish woman who may or may not have been re-programmed by our modern world, during “Rumspringa”. Now she’s on the podcast! and a wonderful guest at that! I decided not give my whole opening schpeel about what 101 is, but I still fully endorse it, and always provide links, chances are if you’re reading this, you need only scroll down a bit. As far as the conversation!, I decided to dive in with KP about the experience of making/submitting shows, crafting ideas, deadlines, and most importantly, whatever feeling there is to be had in the Channel 101 community.

Meet comedian, actor, writer, filmmaker and more, Lars Midthun! From their hometown of Minnesota, Lars and his comedic-brother Jack Kelly (who joined forces to create ‘Something Picnic’) ultimately found a 2nd home for their brilliant-meets-absurd brand of comedy, in Los Angeles. In a world of infinite YouTube channels, the brand of comedy in Something Picnic is something unique and wild, and I could only leave it to Lars, here, to start explaining - and Jack Kelly, to complete when he hopefully comes on the podcast too!, but the shit is GOLD. One of my favourite things about chatting with Lars, was that getting along with and joking with’m felt IMMEDIATELY road-tested. I can’t tell you how wonderful that is for me to interact with, let alone record a podcast… of(?). Grammar. I feel that could be said with almost anyone I might be fortunate to have on, who makes shows for ‘Channel 101’ - where you’ll find Something Picnic’s hit primetime show “Nipple Sucking Aliens”. Do watch that show… In NSA, you’ll see their style shine, and you’ll see allot of that dynamic duo’s handsome faces. (Audio clips in this podcast episode).

We go now to L.A., chatting with actor, writer, creator and more; including more recently a Channel 101 official podcast co-host... Nick Hurley! He's starred in such awesome shows such as: "Demon$", "Thiefs" and the 10-episode (with extended finale) epic "Street Cleaning", which won for best editing at the 2016 Channy Awards. Nick seems like an all-around great person, and it was a blast talking shop-and-non-shop with someone who does, and participates in making stuff, and the kind of stuff I've been a longtime fan of! We started off talking about what Channel 101 is, and get introduced into the world of what it is offline, in Los Angeles, California, where’s it’s based. We talk about where it’s been, where it’s going (in these… times… gah… y’know…). Then we talk about all things Nick Hurley; his experiences, his work, and his existential journey working while making - what feels the hustle, and what feels like the side hustle? I FOUND it all compelling, and it wasn’t the worst hosting I’ve done either! Please enjoy our chat.

Meet film-maker, actor, broadcaster, and one bodacious dude; Florida’s Aaron Sperling. After several pleasent exchanges in the most kind of many Bill & Ted fan groups over the years, I quickly realized that the person behind it was most non-heinous, and needed to be on this podcast. We are NOW (August 18th) but TEN days away, from BILL & TED FACE THE MUSIC. Here on the show to talk about Bill & Ted, 80s cinema, fandom and of course - his life experience in showbiz, is Aaron, the fb creator behind ‘Freinds of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Online Adventure’ a legacy!

Currently stationed in Montreal, the worldly artist and singer/songwriter Vienna D’Amato Hall was kind enough to chat with me once again, to update me on all musical endeavours; from the more recent and will-be fourth act of album composition, to the multi-hyphenate chorus/collective of talented, awesome people in The Female Canon, known as ‘Ellis B. House’. “Society teaches women to be seen; what if women taught society how they see?” from the Ellis B. House website. Vienna, perhaps from her background as an actor, brings a depth of drama, passion, honesty and excitement to her music that’s puts me in rarified air whenever I listen to it, it’s hard to ignore.. all of which can be experienced via her existing works ‘It’s What The Dog Saw’ (2015), ‘Red Light Temple’ (2016) and last year’s ‘Long-Stay Hotel’. In addition to all of that… I always find it exhilarating to chat 1-on-1 with this person. I always feel like their appreciation for philosophy, and ability to see the nuances of human life, experiences and the sitcom Seinfeld, always align with my own, but I still have so much to learn from them. So this time around, being the third, we deviated occasionally away from her work, to discuss the array of things she might have gotten out of growing up, living in Canada, the U.S. and Britain, her acting background, the deciding factor of her creative modus, and more!