The Messy Parts
New career advice and messy stories, every Monday.
Whether you’re at the top, or striving to get there—you may have noticed the one thing people rarely talk about: how hard it is to achieve success. The Messy Parts is the answer—a podcast where you’ll hear about the twists, turns and pivots that shape extraordinary careers. The real messy parts along the way. Host Maryam Banikarim has been through it, so she gets it. Maryam has been a transformative leader across media, hospitality and tech. Her powerhouse resume features more than 20 years in the C-Suite at companies like Hyatt, NBC, and Nextdoor—and she has a vast, influential network to match. On The Messy Parts, she brings you unparalleled access to that network. Deeply honest, vulnerable conversations with Maryam—who is never afraid to ask the questions on everyone's mind. Join us as we get real, unfiltered, and messy.
The Messy Parts
Ed Sheeran, Pizza Rat & Getting Hacked: Rick McGuire on Running Subway Creatures and Loving New York
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What does it take to build one of New York City's most recognizable social media brands — from scratch, in secret, while working a day job? Subway Creatures founder Rick McGuire tells Maryam the whole story: from working at VH1 and MTV while quietly building Subway Creatures on the side to Pizza Rat, Ed Sheeran, and a very public account hack that brought him to tears and nearly took everything. Rick gets honest about the chaos of entrepreneurship, learning to value your own work, and why New York City's subway is the greatest content machine on earth. If you're building something from nothing, this one's for you.
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Key Moments:
00:00 - The Hack That Almost Broke Everything 😱
Rick opens the episode with a gut-punch — someone took over his Subway Creatures account for months, and it was the first time he'd cried in years.
00:24 - Meet Rick McGuire 🗽
Host Maryam Banikarim introduces the man behind Subway Creatures, What Is New York, and some of NYC's most-followed social media accounts.
01:52 - How Subway Creatures Was Born 📱
Rick shares how a daily commute from New Jersey and a desire to stop annoying his friends turned into one of Instagram's most iconic accounts.
05:15 - Why the Subway is the World's Greatest Melting Pot 🚇
Rick and Maryam geek out over what makes the NYC subway so special — and why forcing millions of people underground together creates pure magic.
09:33 - From VH1 Intern to MTV Producer 🎬
Rick walks through his decade in television, the grunt work that made him grittier, and the unsustainable realities of the production world.
11:21 - The Secret Side Hustle 🤫
Rick reveals how he built Subway Creatures in the shadows while working full-time, terrified his employer would find out and wondering who actually owned what he was creating.
13:02 - The Netflix Moment 💸
Rick's first big brand deal was with Netflix for Arrested Development, and he'll be the first to tell you he grossly undercharged them.
23:14 - Ed Sheeran & the Subway Performance Nobody Saw Coming 🎸
Rick tells the story behind one of the most viral subway moments ever — and how a seasoned subway performer had no idea what was about to happen.
26:09 - The Moment Rick's Dad Finally Got It 🙌
A CBS news meeting, a phone pulled out mid-briefing, and one very shocked father — the moment the Subway Creatures curtain got pulled back for Rick's family.
37:18 - Pizza Rat Was a Stunt — and Rick Has Receipts 🐀🍕
Rick drops the bombshell that the video that put Subway Creatures on the map was an elaborate publicity stunt by a mysterious, Banksy-like figure with trained rats.
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