None Taken With Chris Paul

I'm Still Here! Wait. That's Joaquin's movie. I'm out of hibernation to discuss Todd Phillips' film "Joker". There are definitely some spoilers but I'm more concerned with the cultural implications and what it means to have the media/critics telling everyone it's a 'bad movie' when the fans love it and it was awarded the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. I cover bloggers in the newsroom, the constant desire to be the wokest on Twitter, incels, and the startling and consistent difference between Rotten Tomatoes critic scores vs. what the audience thinks.

The Super Bowl, Covington Catholic, the State of the Union address and the all-white outfits of the Democratic congresswomen, Ralph Northam's abortion/blackface controversies, hypocrisy, Cyntoia Brown and forgiveness, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's 'Green New Deal', and how awful the Grammys are, including how truly terrible Greta Van Fleet and Cardi B are. Buckle up.

I'm back (sort of). I rant for a while about having to move, turning 40, the awful Coachella lineup and how they jumped the shark with Beyonce last year, and people being mad at Louis CK.

Prior to recording the last released episode, Thrashbird and I spent an hour discussing his recent tag of the famed Paul Smith 'selfie wall' in West Hollywood. We discuss how he pulled that off, a bit of the fallout, why it was important to write 'f*ck ur selfie' on that iconic wall, and what social media means in relation to our identity.

Chris sits down with the street artist Thrashbird to discuss his project "The Valley of Secret Values", how identity intersects with social media, whether it's okay to bring children into the modern world, the definition of art and why RM Drake doesn't fit it, Colin Kaepernick, Kim & Kanye, and the confidence (or arrogance) necessary to put your work into the world.

Chris discusses machines replacing humans at McDonald's and the minimum wage, corporate PR, how Revolve exploits people on social media for profit (and how all companies do), how people create their personalities by associating themselves with brands, the lunacy at the Kavanaugh hearing, and the 'white power arm hold' conspiracy. 

No guest this time. Chris talks about his prolonged absence, cultural noise, viewpoint paranoia, Hollywood's transactional sexual culture, whether not Google biases search results, and chats about a weekend in Las Vegas with some good friends.

John Wood Jr was the Republican congressional candidate in CA-43 challenging Maxine Waters. We talked about how he got into politics, what made him decide to be a Republican, the congressional campaign, how the system (and Democratic politicians) are failing communities like South LA, how virtue ethics should inform our politics, and how technology has helped the atomization of culture and what can be done to repair it. 

Louis Carreon is a Los Angeles cultural staple - an artist with wild story to tell. We discuss art, the inspiration and experiences that led to his new exhibit, "Church and State", and the state of culture.

Catfish Jean is an actor on the Starz Channel's "Survivor's Remorse" and the upcoming film "Skin in the Game." Catfish is from south Florida, with Haitian heritage so we discuss Hurricane Irma, the cultural impact of natural disasters, and how people pull together during crises. The conversation then shifts to an extended discussion of mental illness, its place in society, its impacts, means of treatment, and the maintenance of a somewhat normal life.

David Smalley is the host of Dogma Debate Podcast. They discuss atheism, morality, free will, and the existence of objective truth.

Sheldon Candis is a director and producer. His latest project, the documentary “Baltimore Boys” premieres August 8th as the newest installment in ESPN’s ’30 for 30’ series. The film tells the story of the undefeated Dunbar High School basketball teams of 1981-1983 and their place in history, producing four NBA players from one legendary lineup. We go in depth about the film, its subjects, and how the story fits into a much larger cultural picture of a city in turmoil.

Paul Wesley is an actor, director, and producer who starred for eight seasons in the CW smash hit “The Vampire Diaries”. We discuss his experience on the show, finding inspiration, understanding perspectives that aren’t your own, and how to find genuine validation in the entertainment industry.

Rob Weiss is a writer, producer, and director, who’s been a big part of the HBO hit shows, “Entourage,” “How to Make it in America,” and now “Ballers,” which premiered its third season on July 23rd. We discuss his ups and downs in his introduction to Hollywood, how he got on the Entourage team and what the show meant culturally, and his role in making the new show. This is part one of a two-part, or maybe many-part, conversation...

Nick Goosen is a writer, director, and producer. Simon Rex is an entertainer, known for his acting, his social media, and his rapping alter-ego, Dirt Nasty. They are two of the main forces behind in Comedy Central’s digital series “Typical Rick” which premieres its second season on Monday 7/24. We talk about the show, creating content in the digital world, and addiction to social media. Around 50 minutes in, Nick leaves for a meeting and Chris and Simon go DEEP on the relationship landscape in Hollywood for single guys in their late 30s and beyond.

Dr. Michael Aaron, sex therapist and writer, joins None Taken via Skype from New York to talk about sex addiction, fetishes, dating, social justice warriors, and rape culture among other topics.

Chris returns from a long absence to discuss why he took so much time off, call-out culture, hot take culture, Rebecca Tuvel, the “Conceptual Penis” hoax, and what all these things means in the poisoning of the public conversation.

Dexter Tortoriello is a musician, song writer, and producer on Diplo's 'Mad Decent' record label. He achieved prominence initially with his project 'Houses,' for which he has a new album in the works, and his other project 'Dawn Golden' with the album 'Still Life.' We talk about the point of real art, darkness as a source of inspiration, making music that can be happy and sad simultaneously, and the hazards of social media and our modern information age.

Fahim Anwar is a stand up comedian whose new special "No Business Like Show Business" is out TODAY on NBC's comedy app Seeso (which you can try free for a month with the code ANWAR). We discuss the special, how he went from Boeing engineer to professional comic, road trips with our dads, living for the 'likes,' and much more.

Mike Jackson is a producer and partner at Get Lifted Film Company alongside Ty Stiklorius and John Legend. Topics include La La Land and race in Hollywood, their show on WGN, "Underground," whose season 2 premiere is 3/8, and the value of having tough conversations in our current political landscape.