What Am I Making is a reader-supported publication. Please consider a paid subscription today to help fund this work. Thank you so much.
It feels as though everyone has a podcast anymore. I mean, I have one and you are listening to it right now. Back in 2016, the market wasn’t quite as saturated as it is today. As the podcast boom began to gain momentum, the DC newsroom at USA Today offered a chance to produce podcasts to interested journalists on staff.
My two guests, Jim Lenahan and Patrick Foster, were nothing more than acquaintances with desks next to each other when they raised their hands and said, “Yeah, we wanna do that.”
Fast forward seven years and that simple act of saying “yes” has led to 1600+ episodes, a vibrant community of passionate people, a 24/7 radio station, a series of live festival events and a life changing friendship.
It also led to Patrick and Jim coming into my life, first as hosts on a pod I was familiar with, then as a guest and member of bands featured on the show, to playing at their Suburbs Fest Chicago 2022 with my band The Stick Arounds, eventually building a friendship with these two wonderful souls.
The best way for people to support my work is to share it with likeminded readers and listeners. If you enjoy this episode, please tell a friend, or the whole wide world. Thanks.
Like nearly every conversation that we have here on the pod, this is truly about the people and the connections behind the thing we’re discussing. We talk directly about music and culture we love, but it’s the connection those things engender that is at the heart of what Jim and Patrick are doing.
The community that exists around Rockin’ The Suburbs is truly remarkable. I have talked before about my amazing support network at Stand Up with Pete Dominick. I have found that same sort of friendship and welcoming support with the Suburbs family as well.
Despite all of the bitterness we might see outwardly in people on a daily basis, the world is full of wonderful folks with open hearts. I know that because I have managed to find two groups of amazing people like this in the first two places I spent any appreciable time and effort engaging. The lesson is do the thing, be open about what matters and good people are likely to find you.
The more I learn this lesson, the more I figure out how to run toward the conditions that lead to relationships like this. The things we say yes to, and commit ourselves fully to, have the potential to make our lives so much richer than they might otherwise be. True community requires a willingness to cede control. It requires a faith that people will surprise you in the best possible ways.
Jim and Patrick and I are all lucky enough to be living proof of that.
Cheers,Matty C
