WEBVTT - Open Mike Eagle Talks Touring, Europe, & Chicago Food 0:00:00.360 --> 0:00:03.680 Quest Love Show is a production of iHeart Radio. 0:00:18.920 --> 0:00:21.759 Open Mike Eagle. What up, sir? How are you? 0:00:22.440 --> 0:00:25.800 I'm gonna give you the real answer, Jack, I'm exhausted. 0:00:27.040 --> 0:00:29.280 Well you got reason too, and I'm gonna ask you 0:00:29.280 --> 0:00:31.160 about it in a second. But for everybody out there 0:00:31.200 --> 0:00:34.160 that's like, where is Questlove's voice? This is the Quest 0:00:34.200 --> 0:00:37.120 Love Show. This is a mini episode. I'm cousin Jake, 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:39.960 one of the producers on The Quest Love Show, and 0:00:40.000 --> 0:00:43.120 we're here with Open Mike Eagle, who is newly getting 0:00:43.159 --> 0:00:45.479 integrated with the family. And I gotta say I love it, 0:00:45.640 --> 0:00:48.760 and I think the reason you're exhausted is one of 0:00:48.760 --> 0:00:50.239 the reasons I really appreciate you. 0:00:50.120 --> 0:00:51.160 You've had a busy week. 0:00:51.479 --> 0:00:54.400 Oh yeah, man, I was doing some touring last week, 0:00:54.480 --> 0:00:59.360 so I was in Brooklyn, Montreal, Toronto, Lansing, Michigan, and 0:00:59.520 --> 0:01:03.160 Cleveland and and it. You know, got back a couple 0:01:03.120 --> 0:01:04.880 of days ago and just been hitting the ground running 0:01:04.959 --> 0:01:09.080 in between tour legs because yeah, I fly out to 0:01:09.120 --> 0:01:13.600 start the next in Amsterdam in a couple of days. 0:01:14.160 --> 0:01:14.440 Nice. 0:01:14.480 --> 0:01:16.640 Well, around the time this runs, we like to go 0:01:16.680 --> 0:01:19.240 from farm to table around here pretty quickly, so this 0:01:19.280 --> 0:01:21.360 should be up if you are part of our audience 0:01:21.520 --> 0:01:24.760 in Europe. You know, definitely check Mike on the socials. 0:01:24.800 --> 0:01:27.440 Everyone should do that anyway, but he might be swinging 0:01:27.440 --> 0:01:28.080 through your neck of. 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:31.199 The woods, and indeed, indeed that's dope. That's dope. 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:33.679 So in those you know, five or six states, you 0:01:33.800 --> 0:01:36.160 just came off of any highlights. Was there any place 0:01:36.280 --> 0:01:38.400 in the limited downtime you had that you were like, 0:01:38.440 --> 0:01:40.560 I really like this area, you. 0:01:40.520 --> 0:01:43.120 Know, I really like Montreal. I got a chance to 0:01:43.120 --> 0:01:46.440 spend a couple of days there late last year. I 0:01:46.520 --> 0:01:50.000 was on tour with a Fantagram and we had a 0:01:50.080 --> 0:01:53.600 day off, so I really just got to hang out 0:01:53.640 --> 0:01:56.600 in Montreal for a while. And it's such a beautiful 0:01:56.640 --> 0:02:02.040 city with art everywhere and good food everywhere. You know, 0:02:02.160 --> 0:02:06.800 it's and it's even though you know, most cities on 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:12.680 this hemisphere are relatively new, you know, compared to like Europe, 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:16.440 and yeah, a lot of other places, Montreal feels old 0:02:17.200 --> 0:02:18.440 and I like that about it too. 0:02:18.960 --> 0:02:22.160 I went for the first time in I think it 0:02:22.240 --> 0:02:24.800 was twenty twenty four. 0:02:25.520 --> 0:02:26.120 It's funny. 0:02:26.560 --> 0:02:29.560 My wife is Canadian born and I had never been 0:02:29.560 --> 0:02:32.079 to Canada until I was in my forties, which is 0:02:32.160 --> 0:02:35.040 pathetic because I grew up like you did. I grew up, 0:02:35.120 --> 0:02:36.960 you know, in the Roust Belt. You know, I'm from 0:02:36.960 --> 0:02:41.440 Pittsburgh originally, which to get to Toronto is a short drive. Yeah, 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:44.480 so shame on me. But I definitely felt like I 0:02:44.560 --> 0:02:46.520 was in an older city. And I agree with everything 0:02:46.560 --> 0:02:49.960 you said. And it's funny that you mentioned food. So 0:02:50.080 --> 0:02:53.000 when you did your episode this season as a guest, 0:02:53.480 --> 0:02:56.200 I really valued you kind of spoke about, you know, 0:02:56.400 --> 0:03:00.160 making some culinary or I should say eating miss up 0:03:00.280 --> 0:03:03.440 during the pandemic and you know, the turnaround journey you've 0:03:03.440 --> 0:03:05.920 been on since. So I wanted to ask you, you know, 0:03:06.200 --> 0:03:10.280 when you're on the road, what is your relationship with food? 0:03:10.320 --> 0:03:12.639 Because I think we all like good food, but good 0:03:12.639 --> 0:03:14.120 food isn't always good for us. 0:03:14.520 --> 0:03:18.399 It's tough. I go a lot of places where there 0:03:18.520 --> 0:03:21.280 is a lot of good food around, but I often 0:03:21.400 --> 0:03:25.400 don't get to experience it, to be honest, you know, 0:03:25.480 --> 0:03:27.840 that's one thing that people ask me all the time 0:03:29.000 --> 0:03:30.560 when you go to these cities, what do you eat? 0:03:30.560 --> 0:03:32.000 What do you eat? What do you eat? And like, 0:03:32.560 --> 0:03:36.200 I hate that. The truth is that I eat usually 0:03:36.240 --> 0:03:40.440 what's right by the venue, or usually or I play 0:03:40.440 --> 0:03:42.600 a bunch of places where there's a kitchen in house 0:03:42.640 --> 0:03:45.200 because there's a restaurant component of the venue, so whatever's 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:48.080 on there men you you know, I think one of 0:03:48.120 --> 0:03:51.480 the things that it's hard for people to understand is 0:03:51.600 --> 0:03:55.880 the schedule when you're touring, especially the way that I tour, 0:03:55.920 --> 0:03:58.040 which is typically, you know, we're in a we're in 0:03:58.040 --> 0:04:01.120 a van. We're driving day to day, so we're spending 0:04:01.920 --> 0:04:05.160 you know, five six, eight, you know, hours in a 0:04:05.280 --> 0:04:09.640 van all day, and we're often getting to the venue 0:04:10.040 --> 0:04:12.560 very close to when it's time for sound check. If 0:04:12.560 --> 0:04:15.080 we're lucky and things go smooth, there's a few hours 0:04:15.120 --> 0:04:17.760 maybe between when everything is set up and then when 0:04:17.839 --> 0:04:22.120 doors open or when it's time to play, so you know, 0:04:22.200 --> 0:04:25.160 we can get out maybe and you know, walk around 0:04:25.200 --> 0:04:28.320 a little bit for for an hour or two. That's 0:04:28.400 --> 0:04:31.440 if things go smoothly, and they do not always. But 0:04:31.600 --> 0:04:36.040 what we don't get to do is typically go find 0:04:36.160 --> 0:04:38.840 the popping spot that's got all the great yell reviews 0:04:38.880 --> 0:04:42.360 everybody tells us to go to because there's a line 0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:45.280 at those places usually and we don't have time for that, 0:04:45.400 --> 0:04:47.640 let alone to travel to get to and from and 0:04:47.720 --> 0:04:50.120 make sure where where we need to be on time, 0:04:50.200 --> 0:04:52.039 so we often have to miss out on the on 0:04:52.120 --> 0:04:52.520 the good. 0:04:52.360 --> 0:04:53.800 Food well and the other part. 0:04:53.880 --> 0:04:56.200 And I'm not a performer, but like you know, the 0:04:56.240 --> 0:04:58.640 meal that gets the love on yelp is probably not 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:00.680 the thing you want to eat before you're jumping around 0:05:00.720 --> 0:05:02.560 on stage for two and a half hours. 0:05:02.560 --> 0:05:06.200 True, you don't want the fancy burger right before you 0:05:06.320 --> 0:05:08.479 go on stage. This might be a little too heavy 0:05:08.480 --> 0:05:09.920 for you in the moment. 0:05:10.800 --> 0:05:13.120 So on the subject of food, there was something else 0:05:13.160 --> 0:05:15.039 I'm talking to you about it away. Oh, let me 0:05:15.240 --> 0:05:18.159 let me ask you this, Like when you go to Europe. 0:05:18.600 --> 0:05:20.320 I know what the schedule looks like, but is there 0:05:20.400 --> 0:05:23.760 one thing that just you look forward to that's on 0:05:23.920 --> 0:05:27.080 the eating tip of things of just like when you 0:05:27.120 --> 0:05:29.040 see that and you're like, I'm I'm gonna carve out 0:05:29.040 --> 0:05:30.880 an hour, whether it's in the morning or night, for 0:05:30.960 --> 0:05:32.320 this one thing in this one place. 0:05:33.520 --> 0:05:36.920 I you know, I have a hard time eating in Europe. 0:05:37.320 --> 0:05:39.680 I really do have a hard time eating in Europe. Jake. 0:05:39.680 --> 0:05:43.480 I'm so American. I'm so American, and it's like I 0:05:43.600 --> 0:05:46.560 encounter the worst parts of myself when I'm on the 0:05:46.640 --> 0:05:51.120 road in Europe. Because I am such a creature of 0:05:51.279 --> 0:05:57.080 convenience and habit and things like breakfast options. There's a 0:05:57.120 --> 0:06:01.680 lot of places in Europe where your hotel breakfast is 0:06:01.880 --> 0:06:05.160 just like a bunch of meat and cheese on platters 0:06:05.520 --> 0:06:08.240 and it looks fancy, but that's not the breakfast I'm 0:06:08.240 --> 0:06:13.760 looking for. I'm looking for from hot eggs somewhere. Nobody's 0:06:13.800 --> 0:06:16.160 got my hot eggs. It's that sort of thing I'm 0:06:16.160 --> 0:06:18.640 sort of always negotiating with and trying to figure my 0:06:18.720 --> 0:06:22.560 way around. Is how do I find something that I 0:06:22.560 --> 0:06:24.920 feel a satisfying or come out of my comfort zone 0:06:25.000 --> 0:06:28.760 enough to feel satisfied by what's being offered to me 0:06:28.839 --> 0:06:31.240 When it's not like I have a bunch of time 0:06:31.320 --> 0:06:33.760 to sit in the same city and get used to something. 0:06:34.320 --> 0:06:36.680 I kind of got a stick and move. So it 0:06:36.720 --> 0:06:40.080 can be tough. I think in Europe especially, it can 0:06:40.120 --> 0:06:45.520 be hard, just because culturally eating is so different over 0:06:45.560 --> 0:06:46.680 there than it is over here. 0:06:47.400 --> 0:06:49.640 You mean, just in terms of the act of it, 0:06:49.839 --> 0:06:52.040 or just the way the attention to detail, or. 0:06:52.839 --> 0:06:55.440 I think it's a little bit of both. I think 0:06:55.480 --> 0:06:59.760 that in America specifically, there are a lot of options 0:06:59.880 --> 0:07:05.719 for you to like eat substantially while also like moving 0:07:05.800 --> 0:07:11.360 around and that's not even just relegated to like fast food, 0:07:12.160 --> 0:07:15.000 like the idea of a diner or something like that, 0:07:15.040 --> 0:07:17.920 where you you know, they're they're making you food, but 0:07:17.960 --> 0:07:19.920 it's not designed for you to sit there all day 0:07:20.640 --> 0:07:22.880 and eat. A diner is usually you know, you're you're 0:07:22.880 --> 0:07:25.960 stopping and getting something convenient, You're sitting at a counter, 0:07:26.160 --> 0:07:28.520 You're you get up when you're done. A lot of 0:07:28.520 --> 0:07:31.560 the places to eat that I've encountered in Europe are 0:07:32.520 --> 0:07:37.360 sit down cafes. There's tables outside, people are, you know, 0:07:37.720 --> 0:07:41.040 smoking cigarettes and talking and they have time to sit 0:07:41.120 --> 0:07:43.600 and eat. And I would imagine the picture that it 0:07:43.600 --> 0:07:45.960 paints for me is people also eat good in their homes, 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:49.840 but when you're out and about in the world, they 0:07:49.840 --> 0:07:53.760 don't have the same options. But there is good street food. Though, 0:07:54.280 --> 0:07:56.320 there's good street food, like depending on you know, what 0:07:56.400 --> 0:07:58.080 part of town you you can't get some good street 0:07:58.080 --> 0:08:01.400 food up. There's just not a lot of restaurants. The 0:08:01.480 --> 0:08:02.920 amount is a lot less. 0:08:03.080 --> 0:08:05.640 Yeah, I got you, and I've found that. I mean 0:08:06.040 --> 0:08:06.960 sort of like Canada. 0:08:07.040 --> 0:08:07.480 I did not. 0:08:08.240 --> 0:08:12.040 I had never crossed the Atlantic Ocean until you know, 0:08:12.120 --> 0:08:15.960 I was thirty six or thirty seven years old, which 0:08:16.000 --> 0:08:17.800 was great. I mean it was a privilege. So many 0:08:17.800 --> 0:08:19.440 people never get to do that. But the food that 0:08:19.480 --> 0:08:22.040 I've found over there that I like the most is 0:08:22.320 --> 0:08:25.200 street food or like taking walk with you type food 0:08:25.640 --> 0:08:28.480 I haven't found I have, but not as the same 0:08:28.560 --> 0:08:31.320 abundance of that sit down by But it is cool 0:08:31.360 --> 0:08:34.400 to just see people at three in the afternoon hanging out, 0:08:34.440 --> 0:08:36.320 whether they're having a cup of coffee or a drink 0:08:36.440 --> 0:08:36.760 or whatever. 0:08:37.200 --> 0:08:37.480 You know. 0:08:37.840 --> 0:08:40.920 That is one of my favorite cultural differences is when 0:08:40.960 --> 0:08:43.760 you go to Europe, and I mean there's a different 0:08:43.840 --> 0:08:45.880 version of this in London, and there is in France, 0:08:45.920 --> 0:08:48.640 and there is in Amsterdam. But you especially when you're 0:08:48.679 --> 0:08:50.680 going around this time of year. So I'll be going, 0:08:50.800 --> 0:08:55.280 you know, it's May, it's nice outside. Everybody's outside eating, 0:08:56.160 --> 0:08:59.839 everybody's outside, chilling, everybody's outside and joined the weather. Every 0:09:00.000 --> 0:09:03.880 one is outside convening as human beings in a place 0:09:04.559 --> 0:09:07.480 where like there are some cities in America where that 0:09:07.640 --> 0:09:09.559 sort of built in. I think in East coast cities 0:09:09.760 --> 0:09:12.600 there's a lot more natural, organic sort of meeting spaces. 0:09:13.000 --> 0:09:15.040 Here in la they got none of that. They got 0:09:15.160 --> 0:09:17.199 none of that like, the closest you get out here 0:09:17.280 --> 0:09:20.199 is like the grove, which is just like a retail, 0:09:21.080 --> 0:09:25.760 fake place thing. Yeah, exactly, you don't really get the 0:09:25.840 --> 0:09:32.360 sort of natural organic everyone is out sitting along a river, like, 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:35.959 you know, you don't really get that out here. So 0:09:36.000 --> 0:09:37.960 that's one of the things I really do appreciate the 0:09:38.000 --> 0:09:43.160 most is human beings just convening outside and enjoying the 0:09:43.200 --> 0:09:55.360 weather and enjoying each other's company. 0:09:57.040 --> 0:09:59.440 I wanted to ask you something about home because looking 0:09:59.559 --> 0:10:02.840 at the forty or so episodes that the Questlov Show 0:10:02.840 --> 0:10:05.040 has run this year, and this is rare, you are 0:10:05.080 --> 0:10:09.040 our only guest that has Chicago roots. Really yeah, I 0:10:09.040 --> 0:10:11.520 mean it's funny because Chicago comes up a lot, like 0:10:11.920 --> 0:10:14.719 a lot of folks just reference it being musical influences 0:10:14.800 --> 0:10:17.040 or folks have I'm trying to think if anyone lived there, 0:10:17.400 --> 0:10:20.240 but the biggest Chicago reference at least if we are 0:10:20.320 --> 0:10:25.360 going off of comments on YouTube or on Spotify or 0:10:25.400 --> 0:10:29.040 you know, places people leave comments is Amir had a 0:10:29.040 --> 0:10:32.600 conversation this spring with Padma Lakshmi, who has a new show, 0:10:33.240 --> 0:10:36.280 America's Culinary Cup. I believe it just declared its winner. 0:10:36.840 --> 0:10:39.760 I saw a few episodes was great, and she's kind 0:10:39.760 --> 0:10:43.160 of elevating what she had done with Top Chef. But 0:10:43.240 --> 0:10:46.160 Amir made reference to something I wanted to ask you about, 0:10:46.200 --> 0:10:48.360 and you may or may not have answers, but he said, 0:10:48.360 --> 0:10:51.160 it is a sin, or treated as a sin in 0:10:51.280 --> 0:10:53.120 Chicago to put ketchup on a hot dog. 0:10:53.240 --> 0:10:54.320 You know anything about this. 0:10:54.600 --> 0:10:56.760 I've heard about it. I haven't eaten a hot dog 0:10:57.000 --> 0:11:00.040 since I was thirteen years old, like one of the 0:10:59.880 --> 0:11:02.320 first things I ever in my life decided I didn't 0:11:02.320 --> 0:11:05.959 want know more of. Yeah, it was hot dogs when 0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:08.880 I was a child. So I do hear that there 0:11:08.880 --> 0:11:11.720 are customs. I do hear the Chicago dogs are treated 0:11:12.000 --> 0:11:14.800 in some sacred manner, and you can perform various types 0:11:14.840 --> 0:11:18.760 of sacrilege with how you treat the Chicago hot dog. 0:11:18.840 --> 0:11:21.160 But I'm not. I'm not a part of the religion. 0:11:22.160 --> 0:11:24.920 Without getting you know, too too personal. Was there was 0:11:24.960 --> 0:11:28.000 it the ingredients? Was it just the practice of a 0:11:28.040 --> 0:11:28.480 hot dog? 0:11:28.559 --> 0:11:29.440 Like you know? Was? 0:11:29.559 --> 0:11:32.200 Are you just like listen, there's so much other things 0:11:32.240 --> 0:11:33.360 to consume in this world. 0:11:33.640 --> 0:11:37.320 I think there it was a confluence of factors. I 0:11:37.400 --> 0:11:40.560 was raised by my grandparents, who you know, were not 0:11:40.679 --> 0:11:47.320 that far removed from you know, southern migration to Chicago. 0:11:47.920 --> 0:11:53.199 So I ate a lot of like pork, a lot 0:11:53.240 --> 0:11:56.559 of pork growing up like a lot of pork. And 0:11:57.679 --> 0:12:01.400 I think I started realizing when I was relatively I 0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:03.640 just didn't like it that much, Like it all just 0:12:03.679 --> 0:12:09.160 felt too salty, uh, and not the greatest taste to me. 0:12:09.880 --> 0:12:15.920 And then when I was about thirteen, I learned how 0:12:15.960 --> 0:12:20.480 hot dogs were made, yeah, and and bolgoney and all 0:12:20.520 --> 0:12:23.000 this other stuff that I was being fed, and I 0:12:23.040 --> 0:12:25.080 was like, I don't want that anymore. I don't I 0:12:25.080 --> 0:12:31.240 don't want mechanically separated, you know, I don't want to 0:12:31.280 --> 0:12:33.320 get too I don't I don't want to use too 0:12:34.400 --> 0:12:37.280 invokes too much dirty imagery here, But it's not the 0:12:37.360 --> 0:12:40.200 parts of the animal that you want to eat. And 0:12:40.280 --> 0:12:42.959 I felt like my experience of eating it was like, yeah, 0:12:43.160 --> 0:12:45.360 that's kind of what this tastes like. It tastes like 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:49.280 amorphous gross meat. Like I don't, I don't enjoy this. 0:12:50.120 --> 0:12:55.400 And then there was another component of me really discovering 0:12:57.080 --> 0:13:02.160 hip hop and starting to understand and like the sort 0:13:02.200 --> 0:13:05.280 of five percent stuff that like the Wu Tang was 0:13:05.320 --> 0:13:08.760 talking about and and you know, so you know, I'd 0:13:08.760 --> 0:13:13.200 stop eating like skittles cause you know, the gelatine and okay, 0:13:13.360 --> 0:13:17.880 and so you know, I had gotten really aggressive on 0:13:18.000 --> 0:13:24.120 that sort of pseudo spiritual tip of the identity that 0:13:24.160 --> 0:13:27.360 I was taking on as a young hip hopper. So 0:13:27.400 --> 0:13:29.720 that started to make me pretty stringent about what I 0:13:29.760 --> 0:13:31.600 did or didn't eat at that time too, in a 0:13:31.600 --> 0:13:34.160 way that does not persist to this day, but that 0:13:34.400 --> 0:13:36.320 was part of the thinking at the time. 0:13:36.720 --> 0:13:39.800 No, I can I can respect it and relate to 0:13:39.840 --> 0:13:42.360 it in other ways of just like, you know, it's 0:13:42.400 --> 0:13:45.920 funny how hip hop does that. So you know, I 0:13:45.960 --> 0:13:48.360 know you've obviously you spoke about it. You've lived in 0:13:48.520 --> 0:13:51.559 LA for more than a decade now, correct, right. 0:13:51.480 --> 0:13:55.040 Yep, No, it's been it'll be twenty two years. 0:13:55.160 --> 0:13:59.200 Oh twenty two damn twenty two years. That's that's crazy. 0:13:59.520 --> 0:14:01.800 First of all, when you do go back to Chicago, 0:14:01.960 --> 0:14:04.520 be it on tour or to see loved ones, is 0:14:04.559 --> 0:14:07.000 there because you're not. I mean, if you're on toy 0:14:07.040 --> 0:14:09.040 you're working, But if you have the time, is there 0:14:09.080 --> 0:14:12.680 that thing that feels like home on the food side of. 0:14:12.640 --> 0:14:14.440 The things, it really is. I really do need to 0:14:14.480 --> 0:14:16.880 go get some of that deep dish. I really really, 0:14:17.160 --> 0:14:18.160 I really do. 0:14:18.280 --> 0:14:19.720 What's your spot? 0:14:20.040 --> 0:14:22.760 I mean, yo, So like there was a spot by 0:14:22.800 --> 0:14:25.080 my crip called Rico Benny's. I don't even know if 0:14:25.080 --> 0:14:27.320 that's still around, but that's like the one I associate 0:14:27.440 --> 0:14:29.920 with the deep dish most is lou Mault Natties. If 0:14:29.920 --> 0:14:32.040 you've got time to go to a sit down nice place, 0:14:32.840 --> 0:14:37.960 people talk crap about Gierdno's. I love gier Donald's. I 0:14:37.960 --> 0:14:40.880 will always love gier Donald's. The smell of that crust, 0:14:41.320 --> 0:14:44.840 all that spinach, and that deep dish pie. I'm a 0:14:44.880 --> 0:14:48.280 big fan. I'll always love it. I do personally think 0:14:49.520 --> 0:14:52.640 it's the superior piece of style. But I can say 0:14:52.680 --> 0:14:56.720 that and also hold space for the fact that you 0:14:56.800 --> 0:15:00.240 cannot eat that all the time. Die You will die 0:15:00.600 --> 0:15:02.600 quickly if you eat that all the time. It's a 0:15:02.640 --> 0:15:06.040 special thing. Reserve especial occasions, like when you say when 0:15:06.080 --> 0:15:08.520 you have time, you have to have time to allow 0:15:08.600 --> 0:15:13.320 them to cook this. You can only really eat two 0:15:13.440 --> 0:15:16.000 slices of a day, so it takes you a while 0:15:16.000 --> 0:15:19.840 to even eat it. But it is my favorite favorite 0:15:20.240 --> 0:15:20.760 for you. 0:15:20.800 --> 0:15:23.640 Oh that it's expensive too. 0:15:23.640 --> 0:15:25.600 I went to the Loom I was, I went on 0:15:25.680 --> 0:15:27.840 tour with Rock the Bells in two thousand and eight 0:15:28.000 --> 0:15:30.280 on the media side, and I remember I took my 0:15:30.320 --> 0:15:32.960 coworkers out. I thought I was just grabbing us all nice, 0:15:33.680 --> 0:15:37.880 nice meal. And the bill came for that was that 0:15:37.960 --> 0:15:41.200 was more than I had. Yikes, that was a past 0:15:41.280 --> 0:15:44.280 due moment for sure. But one thing I wanted to 0:15:44.280 --> 0:15:46.240 ask you that I just learned about recent years, and 0:15:46.320 --> 0:15:50.240 you're a West Sider of Chicago. Sorry sounds like, excuse me, 0:15:51.600 --> 0:15:53.840 I recently learned it. But this other style of pizza, 0:15:53.880 --> 0:15:56.520 the bar, the tavern, is that a. 0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:58.920 Thing is that you're talking about When it's cut into 0:15:58.960 --> 0:15:59.720 the grid. 0:16:00.080 --> 0:16:03.360 Yeah, it looks like a jigsaw puzzle, but it's the opposite. 0:16:03.400 --> 0:16:05.160 It's like it's super thin crust. 0:16:05.280 --> 0:16:05.680 Cracker. 0:16:05.760 --> 0:16:09.200 Yeah, yeah, super thin crust. That's sort of associated in 0:16:09.200 --> 0:16:11.760 my mind with the North Side. Actually it might be 0:16:11.760 --> 0:16:13.880 on the West Side too, But that is the other 0:16:13.880 --> 0:16:17.800 pizza style. Like when you know, you were in elementary 0:16:17.800 --> 0:16:19.880 school and there was a pizza party in the school 0:16:20.240 --> 0:16:23.800 brought into pizza. That's the sort of pizza that they brought. Okay, 0:16:24.680 --> 0:16:26.960 you know, cut on the grid and you know you 0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:29.880 wanted the square pieza and the mill didn't necessarily want 0:16:29.920 --> 0:16:33.360 the corners, but they was like all crust right because 0:16:33.400 --> 0:16:34.800 of the way those were cut. But yeah, I grew 0:16:34.880 --> 0:16:37.600 up eating that and I didn't even realize until I 0:16:37.640 --> 0:16:39.800 was an adult that that was like a regional thing. 0:16:41.280 --> 0:16:43.760 Yeah, I and I just learned there's a spot in 0:16:43.800 --> 0:16:46.840 Philly that runs a cheap one like every day between 0:16:46.880 --> 0:16:49.160 like four and six, like a happy hour thing, and 0:16:49.440 --> 0:16:51.920 it's top three in Philly, and that's sacrilege because Philly 0:16:51.960 --> 0:16:53.840 takes a lot of produence pizza. But I enjoyed it, 0:16:53.840 --> 0:16:56.120 and they were like, yeah, we modeled after the Chicago style. 0:16:56.160 --> 0:16:59.240 And I'm like, man, next time I'm in Chicago, I 0:16:59.240 --> 0:17:01.880 want to go to some of those, uh, some of 0:17:01.880 --> 0:17:03.760 those those places that really kicked that off. 0:17:03.880 --> 0:17:07.639 Italian Village is the is the go to spot for 0:17:07.720 --> 0:17:11.400 the for the Grid pizza and I there's some actual 0:17:11.600 --> 0:17:14.360 name for it that alludes to me right now, but yeah, 0:17:14.400 --> 0:17:15.880 but that's that's the that's. 0:17:15.680 --> 0:17:17.800 The unofficial official. 0:17:18.240 --> 0:17:20.639 Yeah, but the spot, the spot is Italian Village. 0:17:20.760 --> 0:17:24.040 Okay, that'll be my first stop. I'm just curious. 0:17:24.080 --> 0:17:26.840 You know, like people make a lot of the show 0:17:26.880 --> 0:17:28.920 The Bear and you know, at QOLS we had Robert 0:17:28.960 --> 0:17:30.680 Townsend on and this season, Jamie Lee. 0:17:30.680 --> 0:17:33.520 Curtis to Robert Townsend, He's amazing. 0:17:33.720 --> 0:17:34.480 You ever met him? 0:17:34.800 --> 0:17:37.320 Yeah, well, I've interviewed him. I didn't know that I 0:17:37.359 --> 0:17:39.639 interviewed him remotely. 0:17:40.080 --> 0:17:44.040 Nice, nice, phenomenal storyteller and like one of those things. 0:17:44.040 --> 0:17:46.120 And we'll talk about this in another mini but like 0:17:46.560 --> 0:17:48.560 when you get done speaking to him, you literally want 0:17:48.560 --> 0:17:50.040 to just put on his entire cannon. 0:17:50.400 --> 0:17:53.320 Yeah, man, Hollywood shuffle the media. Yeah, let me show 0:17:53.359 --> 0:17:55.080 you something I got right behind me because I didn't 0:17:55.080 --> 0:17:57.240 know he was going to come up. Yeah, And for 0:17:57.359 --> 0:17:59.480 the I guess this is just audio, so I'll have 0:17:59.520 --> 0:18:00.320 to describe. 0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:00.720 Describe it. 0:18:01.160 --> 0:18:03.919 And I just happened to have this. This is the 0:18:04.000 --> 0:18:11.000 audio reels for Partners in Crime on HBO. This is 0:18:11.080 --> 0:18:15.960 the audio reel from the television production of that show. 0:18:16.160 --> 0:18:19.440 And it's very heavy, old two inch tape reels. 0:18:20.119 --> 0:18:22.840 That is, are you somebody like I know you collect things? 0:18:22.840 --> 0:18:25.240 You spoke in the episode about you know, obviously your 0:18:25.280 --> 0:18:27.960 boombox collection, But are you, like I know, a mere 0:18:28.000 --> 0:18:28.679 collects reels? 0:18:28.760 --> 0:18:29.840 Is that part of your thing? Though? 0:18:30.119 --> 0:18:33.320 No, those happened to come into my possession. There was 0:18:33.359 --> 0:18:35.199 a person who used to work for me as my 0:18:35.240 --> 0:18:39.200 assistant who had somehow those that come into his possession 0:18:39.240 --> 0:18:42.280 and he knew I was a big Robert Townsend fan, 0:18:42.440 --> 0:18:43.919 so he gave them to me. I'm in the process 0:18:43.960 --> 0:18:46.040 of getting those to Robert now because I got like 0:18:46.119 --> 0:18:49.960 four of them from different projects that he did see. 0:18:50.000 --> 0:18:51.880 I'm just trying to get him back to him because 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:54.560 when I last I spoke to him about him, he'd 0:18:54.600 --> 0:18:55.720 be very happy to have them. 0:18:55.840 --> 0:18:56.720 Yeah, that's dope. 0:18:56.720 --> 0:18:59.399 I love when you hear those stories of people help getting, 0:19:00.280 --> 0:19:03.520 you know, very crucial pieces of memorabilia back to their creators. 0:19:03.640 --> 0:19:06.040 Is there anything like that in your career that you 0:19:06.640 --> 0:19:09.040 know is out there and you not even necessarily who 0:19:09.040 --> 0:19:10.280 has it, but that you would like back. 0:19:11.400 --> 0:19:16.199 Wow, that's a great question. So I feel like I 0:19:16.320 --> 0:19:19.320 look at old videos of me performing sometimes because I'll 0:19:19.320 --> 0:19:21.399 put that stuff on my live stream to sort of 0:19:21.440 --> 0:19:23.680 start it off, Like while I'm setting up, I'll have 0:19:24.200 --> 0:19:27.399 some old video on me performing playing. And I've always 0:19:27.400 --> 0:19:28.879 had a table because I've always sort of had my 0:19:29.000 --> 0:19:32.400 own gear to trigger my beats when I'm on stage, 0:19:33.080 --> 0:19:35.760 and I used to keep a lot of like very 0:19:36.640 --> 0:19:40.879 evocative knick knacks on the table. I had a little 0:19:40.920 --> 0:19:43.560 crown that I used to pass around and have everybody 0:19:43.560 --> 0:19:46.000 in the crowd touch. I used to have this little 0:19:46.280 --> 0:19:49.800 ice king from Adventure time figure. I had a robot 0:19:49.880 --> 0:19:53.159 somebody like a Felt robot somebody had stitched for me. 0:19:53.840 --> 0:19:55.760 And it's like, I don't know where any of that 0:19:55.840 --> 0:19:59.479 stuff is now. And I don't think I lost all 0:19:59.480 --> 0:20:02.840 of these things is in one go. I think just slowly, 0:20:02.880 --> 0:20:06.040 but surely I would misplace one thing, misplaced another thing. 0:20:06.080 --> 0:20:08.680 And now I don't really even carry stuff like that anymore. 0:20:08.880 --> 0:20:11.879 But if anybody ever like found or had one of 0:20:11.920 --> 0:20:13.679 those things that brought it to me, I'd be able to. 0:20:14.560 --> 0:20:16.000 All right, let's manifest that. 0:20:16.240 --> 0:20:19.920 So one last question, just as we, you know, chit 0:20:20.000 --> 0:20:24.080 chat about food in Chicago, is there anything about Chicago 0:20:24.200 --> 0:20:27.800 food that people get That's why I started to ask 0:20:27.840 --> 0:20:28.600 with the Barracle. 0:20:28.440 --> 0:20:29.200