Greenpoint resident and NEXT STOP writer and creator Eric Silver
Depending on how you’re looking at it, the entertainment industry is either in a crisis or renaissance. With no concerts, theaters, or venues to patron, we’re all seeing art that’s meant to be consumed IRL now translated to the digital sphere. But some stories are being created for a medium more native to staying home and listening.
Enter the podcast NEXT STOP, written and created by the neighborhood’s Eric Silver. A product of Greenpoint’s independent podcast collective Multitude, NEXT STOP is a serial podcast that is uniquely not a news program or an interview vehicle but instead a refreshing and — during this COVID period — necessary sit-com-set-to-audio-experiencing. Original episodes about trying to move forward as your friends move on will be released weekly, and the “pilot,” if such a thing exists in podcast land, is now streaming. As this week’s Thursday Spotlight, Eric shares the inspiration behind the series and the neighborhood bakeries, barbers, and buses he owes a thanks to for its creation. Follow the podcast on Instagram here, and enjoy the series!
Greenpointers: Talk a little about the genesis for this episodic podcast; I imagine it started pre-COVID?
I wrote the first drafts of NEXT STOP more than a year ago, February/March 2019. My roommate had just moved to LA and I had recently left my office job to be a podcaster with Multitude full-time. I poured my uncertainty with my job and life into these scripts and made them as funny as I could. Now that it’s coming out, jokes and affirmations of uncertainty are even more valuable.
It is produced through Multitude Productions — as in, is that your day job and did you create it as content for the company?
Yes! Multitude is a podcast collective and studio. The business has two arms: 1) a podcast collective where a group of podcasters lean on each other for ad sales, show promotion, and other help (we have a great Slack), and 2) the production side where we consult, make shows for clients, and create new original content like NEXT STOP. I’m the Head of Creative, where I shape the structuring, scripting, writing, and live show content.
Let’s talk about the world-building: why these themes, and who did you call on to collaborate with?
Audio fiction is a growing and vibrant genre in podcasting, but there is a looming hole of slice-of-life sitcoms — set in a modern and familiar world with lots of jokes, gags, and exaggerated hijinks.
Luckily, I have collaborators that I work with every day to bring this comedic world to life: Brandon Grugle, our director and post-production guy; Julia Schfini, our assistant director and casting director; and Amanda McLoughlin, Multitude’s CEO and the exec producer.
Do you live in Brooklyn/the nabe, and how has the artistic community treated you? What have your goals been in the city?
I live in North Greenpoint and our studio is right next to Transmitter Park! None of us worked for public radio or received formal training, and we found each other at NYU or while working in the city. When we can come together again, we want our studio to be a place for podcasting to grow and thrive. We hope to do more events and panels and open the studio up for all to record.
What do you hope for the future of NEXT STOP?
The ability to do a second season! We’re a small business funding this ourselves, and it’s a priority to pay artists what they’re worth, so we need to see how this season does before another one is greenlit.
We’re also releasing a massive resource about how to make a fiction podcast for free with Patreon, so I really hope it will be helpful for people diving into the genre.
Anything else you’d like to add?
The first episode of NEXT STOP is out now and continues weekly for 10 episodes! Shoutout Ovenly! Shoutout to Greenpoint Brewery for putting NYC breweries on their back! Shoutout Baddies, the best barber in Greenpoint and I wish I could have gotten my haircut earlier! Shoutout the B43 bus!
Oscar season is upon us, and with it come opinions aplenty about the snubs (there are many), surprises (just a few), and — most importantly — the hot takes. Podcaster, neighbor, and local comedian Stewart Fullerton invites Greenpointers Arts Editor Billy McEntee on the air to discuss this year’s Academy Awards, which will be held on Sunday, February 9 at 8 PM EST.
In the hour-long episode on Stayin’ Humble with Stew— previously featured in our Thursday Spotlight series — Stewart and Billy dive into their thoughts on this year’s Best Picture nominees (why is Joker included?) and everything from the state of Rebel Wilson’s career to the armed burglary of Jennifer Lopez’ robbed Oscar. On a more poignant note, these cultural omnivores also lament the heavy and misogynist implications of the all-male nominated Best Director category. Tune in for some opinions and laughs, and listen here!
We’ve profiled myriad artists in our Thursday Spotlight series, but it’s rare we get the pleasure of speaking with a podcaster, especially one whose comedic prowess is as fierce as Stewart Fullerton’s. New to Greenpoint (but not the city), Stewart has been hosting a weekly podcast Stayin’ Humble with Stew for almost six months where she rebels against, celebrates, and (per the title) humbles pop culture and those who stir it.
The podcast is nihilistic with a life-affirming, souther gothic spin, and is rich in millennial upspeak without an ounce of irony. Stayin’ Humble with Stew highlights how New York rains on each of our parades when we step outside in Ray Bans, high on Kimmy Schmidt levels of hopeful and entrepreneurial spirit. Personal recounts pepper the episodes (a funny one follows our hostess through the Pride parade, forgetting her wallet in the gay shuffle while dizzy on stolen treats from Slack’s Narnia closet full of expensive snacks), as do tips on Venmo etiquette (it’s not that hard), how to feel about Taylor Swift (sentiments change like the weather), and who should be the face of the Me Too movement (spoiler: it’s Brad Pitt). Follow her on Insta here, and dive into her saucy responses below!
Greenpointers: She’s new to the nabe! How has it treated you? Any fave spots yet?
Stewart Fullerton: I am absolutely loving this neighborhood. Everyone here is SO hot and the girls here wear the most creative flats I’ve ever seen. The second I moved all my stuff in I needed to go shopping for trendier clothes and a pair of clogs. I live right around the corner from Goldie’s Bar which is where I’m currently spending my paycheck. I also LOVE Three’s Brewing, best beer/ burger combo in the game. For my margaritas: Calexico, great happy hour. And shout out to Variety Coffee.
This pod has been going strong for a couple months now, I believe. What was the impetus for creating Stayin’ Humble with Stew?
People have always told me I have the perfect face for podcasting. JK. As a comedian, you have to think of yourself as your own business and do anything you can do to get your name out there. Once I realized I wanted to start a podcast I knew I wanted it to be about celebrity culture in some way. Celebrities are not from the same planet as us mere mortals and I have always been obsessed with that. I also wanted my podcast to feel like a slumber party where I am catching up with my listeners. So I just combined my two favorite things, talking bad about celebrities and updating people on the humbling things that happen in my life. Also, starting a podcast is the new gluten free: everyone’s doing it!
The Essie’s Hour of Love team (from bottom L to R)—Essie Zar, Nancy Pappas, Grace Taylor. Photo: Chris DeMairo
Ever stumble into a café on a Tuesday morning with a dozen people plugging away on their laptops and wonder, “What are you all doing and working on?” If you said “yes,” you’re not alone. And right here in Greenpoint, you may be surprised to know that a podcast is being produced right across the table from you.
No matter what your interests or where you are in the world, the topic of love is universal. For many, it’s a question with an ongoing search for an answer—and a subject that rarely has a single point of view. Australian native Essie Zar explores perspectives on and experiences of love with those from all walks of life through her podcast Essie’s Hour of Love, produced and broadcasted right from her Greenpoint ‘shack d’amour’ a.k.a flat—a.k.a apartment—on Driggs Avenue. From other fellow podcasters, to childhood friends, to strangers along her path, Essie focuses on the identities of her subjects and their individualized, unique journeys in love and life. While her interviewees talk about things like fairytale endings, headstrong partnerships or the balance between the head and the heart, Essie’s intuition always leads her to capture their most vulnerable stories. We interviewed Essie and her team finding out how they got started, where they are now and how Greenpoint has played a part in not only the podcast’s production but also in their lives.Continue reading →
Join new local podcast The Hook next Tuesday, January 10 at 7pm at Pete’s Candy Store for their inaugural episode of a new, live, one-on-one talk show. The first episode will kick off with NYC City Council member Stephen Levin for an intriguing sit-down with questions like:
“Is there hope in politics?”
“Are there other cities you are envious of, politically?”
“What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?”
And… “When you played bass for an indie- rock darling of college-radio, named after a $10 toy synthesizer, was it awesome?”
Levin is one of the city council’s youngest members and part of the 33rd District which includes Greenpoint and Williamsburg. Recently, Levin was a key player in the city’s acquisition of the final parcel of land to complete Bushwick Inlet Park, a victory which took years of hard work and collaboration between residents and local government. Though, it should be noted that the process isn’t over, and we still have a long way to go until the day we see the park fully realized on our waterfront land.
According to The Hook, it is “a new political speakeasy, in which people of idealistic distinction are interviewed before a live audience, with ample space for interaction, surprise, and discovery. Moderated by former Open City Dialogues host Jamie Hook in the venerable back-room of Pete’s Candy Store, The Hook is an experiment in the politics of the local, an incubator for new community ideas, and a subscriber to the notion that all you have to do to belong is participate. Join us!”
Audience members will have ample opportunity to ask questions and participate, so bring your best inquiries for a chance to find out what’s what from a local politician in this era of political uncertainty.
The Hook at Pete’s Candy Store (709 Lorimer Street)
7-9pm, Tuesday January 10th
Greenpointers makes a good effort to share relevant information on the local music scene, but since music is only a single aspect of what we do here, there are plenty of other sites that go way deeper. One that can’t be recommended highly enough is Square Zeros, which comes to us from Derek Hawkins (a Greenpoint resident) and Jon Mann (of East Williamsburg/Bushwick). It’s a podcast, it’s a live music source, it’s an archive, it’s full of essays, and most importantly, it’s an effort to reinforce and build community among musicians and kindred spirits. Continue reading →
Listen to Greenpointers’ first podcast when I interview Lincoln Restler who is up for reelection as State Committeeman for the 50th Assembly District for the Democratic Party in Brooklyn, which includes Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, and Wallabout. (I don’t know what Wallabout is.)
The election is tomorrow, so if you are a democrat make sure you get out and vote!
In the podcast, we talk about what Brooklyn means to Lincoln, his role as State Committeeman, the current state of the Democratic Party in Brooklyn including the controversy surrounding Vito Lopez, the environmental issues in Greenpoint and how we can clean-up our neighborhood, the homeless shelter on McGuinnes Blvd and the homeless population here, and the waterfront development and it’s impact on our sense of community.
I would like to thank Annie Russell, who is an audio and podcasting genius and made this possible!
