The NJ DAD Podcast
The NJ Dad Podcast is where fatherhood meets humor. Join Andrew Parise for honest conversations about parenting, marriage, work, friendships, and the everyday chaos of suburban family life. Some episodes are solo, some feature guests, but they’re all built around one idea: being a better dad doesn’t mean taking yourself too seriously. Whether you’re changing diapers, coaching Little League, navigating date night, or just trying to survive another trip to Costco, you’ll find relatable stories, practical perspective, and plenty of laughs along the way. New episodes every Thursday.
The NJ DAD Podcast
Encouraging Creativity in Your Children (with Adam Reynolds)
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SPEAKER_05You're a guy in the business who's extremely talented, extremely creative, but extremely loyal. So much so that you're talking to some schmucking jersey in his shed right now when you have all the you have a lot going on and you're talking to me. Hey, welcome to the fatherless Chee Cheap. It's your fatherless friend Andrew. And today it's a dad hang. Talking to a good buddy of mine. His name is Adam Reynolds. You may know him as producer Adam from the Rule Breakers podcast with Saraya. He's a great guy. I've been working with him for years as a colleague producing some of my projects, my writing partner and I, Matt, our project. And he's just a great guy. He's got four kids. He's working his tail off. He's super creative. He's a great photographer. He's great behind the scenes. But now on this Rule Breakers podcast, he has a little bit more of a presence as he's on camera a little bit, and he's doing great with that. And it was so nice to catch up with him. We both have a love and a history with baseball. And he tells us a little bit about his children, his career, his old man, and the connection to baseball. So I hope you enjoy it on The Fatherless Cheat Cheat. All right, welcome to the Fatherless Cheat Sheet. I am very happy to have who I consider to be a good friend. We've worked together. I think he did a line uh a line budget for me about 12 years ago, and I haven't left him alone since. Has it been that long? It's been a long time, yeah. About maybe a de a decade. Adam Reynolds, thanks for coming, dude. Of course.
SPEAKER_08It's my pleasure. Thank you for having me. It's been uh a wild journey to get to this place.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, and you've got a lot going on. We're good both personally and professionally. I want to talk about all that stuff and how you're first of all, how you doing? You hanging in there? You need a hug?
SPEAKER_08I mean, I know I'm across the country, but I mean, I can probably use a hug. Uh I I I'll start off by saying I I bit off more than I can chew. Yeah. Um, I I'm coaching my son's little league team and a bunch of I got 13 six-year-olds running around, and goddamn is it hard to figure that out. Uh I'm actually working on a uh a lineup right now and positions, and I'm thinking like, whew, we've had one practice and it's gonna be we'll see how it goes on Saturday, tomorrow for the game.
SPEAKER_05That's that's that easy. My my suggestion is just stay strong up the middle. That's what you do. Stay strong up the middle. And and stay strong. Your your constitution has to be strong. It's just hurting cats at that point. You just want them to have a good time. And but that's I mean, that's really great that you're doing that. And I I coached uh my daughter in kickball last year, and I'm gonna coach softball this year. She's about the same age, she's turning six pretty soon. And it's I think that you'd agree, it's that time spent together, the extra time. Yeah.
SPEAKER_08So, you know, it's it's the idea of like, you know, I sent out a message to the team parents and everything. I said, look, it's not about skills, it's about having fun. It's about, you know, hopefully they absorb some knowledge and some skill set and improve throughout the season. But I want them laughing, I want them smiling, I want them to show up and be like, actually want to come to the games because I've had some coaches in the past, it's like just it's uncomfortable. And you're like, wow, you're yelling at the kids. Why are you yelling at the kids right now? Like, come on, let's have fun.
SPEAKER_05So yeah, he's he's he should probably listen to the fatherless cheat sheet because I think he's working out some stuff from his childhood. If I had to think about all that stuff. It it's just it's literally just about having them have a good time and learning some stuff that they won't hurt themselves and then they get better every year. But you don't want to spoil that for them when they're six, seven, eight years old. No. So anyway, but good on you, man. You because you don't have enough going on. You have uh how old are the twins now?
SPEAKER_08Uh they are four months. Uh four months old. So I've got, yeah, I've got I've got four kids. Uh I have an 11-year-old daughter, a six-year-old son, and then a boy and girl uh twins. So I'm I'm divorced, uh 11 and six-year-old are from my my ex. Um, and we we've got a great relationship. We get on really well, we co-parent really well. Um, and that's been that's been really important, especially as we kind of get into this uh, you know, coaching space. It's without giving away too much, it's been interesting because some of the parents who are divorced have been reaching out to me and sharing just challenges of custody battles and getting kids there for practice and games. And uh it made me realize yesterday, and I talked to my kids about this, that how lucky we are to have mom and dad get on really well. Where we're like, yeah, we want the kids to be there. We're not being defensive and blocking an opportunity for them to to get into a practice or something. So that's been good.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, that's great. And I think once you can I mean that's life is is very complicated. Uh, and it sounds like you're you're doing the best you can. And I think that's the way when you put the kids first and um just figuring it out, and that's all. So again, good on you.
SPEAKER_08And I and I will say this that I love the twins. It's been an absolute joy to watch a boy and girl develop simultaneously. It's a it's kind of a mind fuck. Um they're my my partner, she's originally from New Zealand. So the twins are actually back in New Zealand right now, and I have a couple weeks of just uh full nights of sleep, which I I'm not gonna lie, I'm really enjoying.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, sleep's important. And you'll I was gonna say, you look, you look pretty relaxed, which is a good thing. You need a little bit.
SPEAKER_08I still need that hug though.
SPEAKER_05But yeah. Yeah, I'm gonna oh, I'm gonna give you a bear hug when I see it, when I come out there, I'll give you a nice bear hug. But uh getting now, I want to talk a little bit about again, uh how you're weaving all this together. Rule Breakers is a a huge podcast with Saraya, and you're doing it's doing great. It's really enjoyable. The chemistry is off the charts and a lot of fun. Can you tell me about the origin of it? I know you just finished season one, right?
SPEAKER_08Sure. Yeah, we just finished season one. Um, Rule Breakers with Saraya is a a very uh great project. It's a kind of a team of misfits and unlikely characters all getting together. Um, you know, before we started recording, you called out that everyone balances each other out really well and appreciate that compliment. And that's definitely something that we felt and realized we kind of have a bit of magic and lightning in a bottle, if you will, on this show. And the way it started was I was at um UTA, United Talent Agency here in Los Angeles, and I was head of their podcast division, the physical production company called Clamor Audio and RIP Clamour Audio, but we I knew it well. We um it was a really great time, and I never imagined myself as someone who would be at a talent agency, but when I started there, I realized like this is which was in the midst of the pandemic, it was this realization that talent agencies are really at the center of everything. And they are, they have their hand controlling everything and their finger on the pulse of what's gonna happen and kind of when it's gonna happen. And we, as a kind of Hail Mary pass to try and keep the production company and division alive, we were taking on internal projects with clients and starting to launch chat shows. And prior to that, we were chasing, you know, narrative, um, scripted fiction and you know, limited series shows, which the market had kind of moved past. And we were playing, trying to play catch up. And so I met Saraya um through this incubator program at UTA. We were gonna launch it internally, and then we shut down. And so Saraya was like, Well, I'd still love to work with you. And of course, in you know, traditional Hollywood fashion, I'm thinking, yeah, okay, sure. Uh, I'll it was great to know you. We'll see if that ever happens. Well, her agents, Allison and Ben, um, shout out to them who are both incredibly awesome. They're great former colleagues, they're great friends. Um, they were able to sell her show to a network and get a minimum guarantee at a time when most networks weren't putting up money. So we just finished uh basically a year ago, um, we started the show and we did 45 episodes of it. Saraya is a former wrestler, for those of you who aren't familiar, she comes from the UK. Um, and she had a really prominent rise in the WWE at the age of, I think she signed with them at 18 years old, and became a really important figure in the female space at a time when it was like blondes and big tits and everything. This was like, here's Saraya, this goth chick, and she started this entire movement and to this day is still kind of known as the OG in the space for that. And so coming back to the sale of her show, she called me up and said, Hey, um, so I'd still love to hire you as a producer. And I was just like, Wait, what? So it started as a me just coming in to run production for her through Denim Pictures, which is our production company. And then one thing led to another. And her manager at the time was like, Hey, I think she needs a co-host. Can you kind of step in? I'm like, I'm not, I'm I'm behind the camera. I'm not in front of the camera. Well, cut to 45 episodes later, and I'm now known as producer Adam. Yeah. I have my uniform, which is a blue Patagonia uh puffer jacket and an Orioles hat. Um, not this one, but got a rep rep Baltimore. And yeah, it's just been it's been really fun. She's it's it's great chemistry. Joey, who is one of her best friends and oldest friends, runs social. He's the kind of mastermind behind a lot of like creative strategy behind it. She's obviously just a force to be reckoned with and has a ton of charisma. Um, she's off the rails, and yeah, we we have so much fun together. So it's been great.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, you can and you can see it, you could feel it, and and the thing you said before about when she when Saraya said that she wanted you to produce, and you're like, uh, I don't think if I had to take a guess, I don't mean to speak out of turn, I wouldn't want her to, you know, body slam me, but I don't think she says anything that that she doesn't mean if I had to take a guess. She's very I like how honest she is. I like she doesn't seem to give a half a shit. And so I think that's why it it works. And I what I said to you before is I think that your presence on the show is a very, very calming presence, and and just you need that tether sometimes to just for the for the volley, for the back and forth works really well. So I I I think it's I think it's great, and I think it's a good I know you fairly well, and I think that you're a very creative person who has the ability and capability to present to be on camera. I've always thought that. So I think it's a great, sort of a great uh uh entry into that.
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SPEAKER_08Yeah, I mean it's it's been fun. I've been enjoying it, and I I will say, um, just a humble kind of moment of uh it's surreal. There was a an episode that we did where we went to Universal Studios for Halloween horror nights, and we got a VIP tour around the lot. And my buddy Charles, who I've known since college, came with us, and we're 15 minutes into Universal walking around. And this woman comes up to her, I was like, Oh my god, Saraya, like I love your podcast, like I'm so excited about it. And Charles and Joey and I were kind of standing off to the side, and then she turns and sees me. She's like, It's producer Adam. And I was just like, and my friend Charles looks at me and goes, What the fuck? And I'm like, I this is strange. So yeah, it's and you know, I say all that because it's it's surreal to step into that, but it's also been really interesting to see and hear from people and fans that have written her letters that have said truly, like, you have no idea how much your show has impacted my life and helped save me from whether it be addiction or you know, domestic abuse or just just struggles and wanting to be seen and heard. And I think that's what's really rewarding is you start to hear those stories from the community. And that's like, that's cool. We're making a difference. And I think we want we want more of that. And so we're shopping for a network for season two, um, which we're aiming to kick off sometime in the spring. We don't have firm dates on that. But I will say we actually um just announced today that we are gonna be doing our first live recording at Vegas uh at the Palms Hotel on April 17th. So, right before WrestleMania, we will be in Vegas and doing something and we are really, really, really excited about it and should be a fun time uh to to jump into that. So, yeah.
SPEAKER_05That's that's really fantastic. That's gonna be a blast. Okay, I'm gonna go to uh Expedia when I get into the house. I'll run I'll run it by the boss first and see if I can get out there. Yeah. But no, that's look, that's great, and I think I think that's where things are going. And I I, you know, with with her experience with wrestling, she's absolutely optimal for a live experience. I mean, that's how she thrives, I'm sure. And I think in terms of people connecting with the show and feeling inspiration from it, when you see someone with with Sarah's outlook and attitude where nothing nothing seems to stop her whatsoever. She doesn't give a shit. People go, oh, wait, you could you could approach life like that. You know, that's really encouraging. And especially I, you know, I have two daughters and I I want them, I want them to live like that. I don't answer to anybody. Well, they maybe daddy and mommy, but yeah, you know, they don't have to answer anybody. They could live their life the way they want. I think that is really great to have that out there and that message. And I again again, the show at the end of the day, when you're washing dishes, you're folding laundry, you're driving to your job, when you could put something on that just it makes you smile and it's a good chemistry and fun, that's a positive. I don't care who's who's 100%.
SPEAKER_08And and I will say, kind of last thing, you know, Saraya is such a daddy's girl at the end of the day. And um, she has a great relationship with her father. It's been really it's been cool to see that unfold and to the voice memo exchanges that we get and the love that she has for him and how much she cares for him, and he always calls her his princess. And that's the you know, it's the type of thing is like father of two daughters. It's like you want that relationship. And of course, um, you know, I think what's been interesting too is is is she's kind of looking for someone. It's like at the end of the day, she I should she thinks she wants someone who's like her dad that's gonna be there for her. And and as tough as she presents, she's still she's she wants love and romance at heart. She's of course time.
SPEAKER_05So and you know what, that and that sets the bar. That sets the bar high. You know, you know, uh men with fathers with daughters, you are you are setting that example, and that's important to do because you don't want your daughters to accept anything less. You don't have to go crazy all the time. I think it's just you know, I I think it's just being there. I think it's presence and and the the interest you have in your children, um, even with boys as well, just to be there and to provide that presence is so important. And we talk about it on the show all the time, obviously. Because, you know, Adam, as as you know, in general, I know you have a good relationship with your dad. We'll talk about him in a little bit, but f fatherlessness has many iterations. It's not just my dad passed when I was three, grew up without an old man. You know, sometimes your old man's around and he's an absolute shithead. I've said that before. And you know, or he's just he's a sweetheart. He works 70 hours a week driving a truck across crunchy and you don't see him. And so, um, anyways, but I think that it's a lot of exciting stuff with with the show, and and I'm I'm excited for you because I tell you what, you're a guy, you're a guy in the business who's extremely talented, extremely creative, but extremely loyal, so much so that you're talking to some schmuck in Jersey in a shed right now when you have all you have a lot going on and you're talking to me because you're you're a good friend and I appreciate you.
SPEAKER_08You you're you are not a schmuck. I respect the fact that you're in a shed. That's fucking cool. I actually just built a shed over I didn't I actually didn't build it, but my my parents were out on the west coast for Christmas, and you know, we're in the midst of of trying to raise twins and adjust to that life. And you know, my my told my brother and my dad, I was like, you know what the Christmas present is I want from you guys? Just build me this aluminum shed right behind the garage, which is where I am. And uh yeah, love a good shed. You gotta have Yeah, man.
SPEAKER_05You gotta have storage. Look, there's so many things that you learn along the way as a dad, but you gotta have storage. Now let's talk, let's talk about, we're talking about the career. So aside, take money out of it for a second, take monetary out of it, because we all want to earn has has your has your uh perception of success changed since you've had your children in terms of working in the business? What you consider successful? A hundred percent.
SPEAKER_08I would say, you know, I I when I started, and I'll give a brief kind of rundown of my trajectory. I started as a production assistant for mad TV. I, after Mad TV shut down, I was there for three seasons. I went over to the documentary space for a year, came back from the documentary space because I was like, honestly, I was bored by it. Um, I was fortunate enough to do the first three seasons of Workaholics with Comedy Central. Uh, I was a production coordinator, then production manager on that, and then from there jumped to some TV shows with Amazon. Uh, I did the Key and Peel pilot and then Warner Brothers, the whole gamut of TV. And in between TV shows, I was producing commercials because, you know, for TV, you're working for anywhere from two to four months, maybe five months at a time. You're working 40 to 60 hours a week. Uh, you don't really see your family, you don't see your partner much. It's a it's a grind, but there's that hustle and mindset of, oh, I've got to make it. And I entered the industry at a time when I think we were kind of on my two business partners and I were actually chatting about this at dinner last night. We entered a time kind of like the tail end of the golden age for television, if you will. And I'll come back to that now because it's relevant with what's happening with Paramount and the Ellisons buying Warner Brothers. But we were always chasing that like, what is the next opportunity? How do we level up? How do we become a higher production executive? How do we oversee more shows? How do we sell a show? How do we do this? It was always about that career chase. And in between TV shows, I was producing in the commercial space and kind of was with different agencies there, was finally brought in to join an agency here in LA full-time as their head of production, built out their internal production company, was doing a ton of stuff in that space at the height of the Instagram boom for advertising. And then that collapsed. And that was at the rise just before the pandemic of podcasting. And I started to get into that space. And originally it was like, podcasting is easy. It's you know, three line items compared to like 75 on a commercial or a TV show. And, you know, we kind of laughed at the space uh initially and dismissed it, but then that started to build momentum. And I actually joined UTA at the height of the pandemic, so July of 2020, and that was really interesting to take a TV production mindset, scale it down to a commercial budget, and build a podcast infrastructure and foundation that most people didn't have and they weren't thinking about it because the industry just wasn't there yet. So all of this to come back and say my version of success has gone from leveling up as a production executive to getting to UTA and having a very handsome salary while I was there with the idea of full benefits and like cool, there's a bunch. Bonus at the year end, like that's amazing. I've never had that before to where I am now, which is I'm freelance and I'm full-time with my production company, Denim Pictures. And I'm not gonna make payroll for myself this month. Just speaking transparently. And that's fucking terrifying. And I've looked at the idea of like, well, I could try to apply for full-time jobs. Like, there's a Netflix job that I'm debating whether I apply for. And, you know, frankly, it's like the salary for that ups annual salary up to $340,000 a year. That would be game changing.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, sure. Of course.
SPEAKER_08But I don't want to do that.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_08And I don't want to do that because I have the freedom and the flexibility to be present for my kids right now.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_08To be able to coach my son's little league practice at four o'clock on a Thursday, to be able to take my daughter to dance class at 4 15 on a Wednesday, to be able to, you know, take a Thursday afternoon with them and do those things. And that freedom and flexibility of being a parent and to be present, that's success. And I think that like the financial side of it is like, I don't know, I'll figure it out.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_08Like, is it terrifying? Yeah, it is, because how do you pay for the bills, especially with twins when you're spending, you know, $350 a month on formula? It's like, Jesus Christ. I'm trying to, and I'm not a religious person, but I believe in karma and I believe in the timing of things. And I will say that, you know, I was raised with a a dad who was very present during my early days, and he was there. He was my baseball coach. He taught me to never give up. And, you know, and I'll come back around in a second and we can touch on this. But the idea of a fatherless cheat sheet, what hit me in that moment, and I and I love my dad, and I have a great relationship with him. But when I went to high school, I was recruited to my high school for baseball, and he'd been there all along for baseball. And then all of a sudden, he'd taken a job. He sold his business and had taken a job for the company that bought it in upstate New York. And we lived in Baltimore. So my freshman year in high school, suddenly, like I'm going to a new high school, different people, I'm trying to fit in. And suddenly my rock, my dad, was only in my life for two days every other weekend. That is such a mind fucking disruption. And I didn't know what to do. I I was lost. And you try to find that. And I think like now it's I remember that. And I'm just trying to bring it back and be present for my kids as much as possible. Again, divorced, I'm starting a new family. Yeah. I like to think of it more as like growing the family, not starting a new family. But I just I want to, I want to be there for all those things because I missed so much of that also early days, like chasing this career of like, oh, I gotta, I gotta, I gotta hustle, I gotta be on this TV show, I gotta do this thing. No, you don't. Like, I'm sorry, but fuck that. Like that's I see there's too many relationships that have failed. One of my own, like, it's just because of that. And yeah, trying to shift priorities and just be a more present, more grounded, uh just father and and parent.
SPEAKER_05I that couldn't be a better North Star. And I so many of us are we're so hard on ourselves because you do need the the pragmatism to earn a living, but time is the commodity. Uh as a quick, very quick story, my wife and I went to dinner a week and a half ago or so. It was right around Valentine's Day. And not on Valentine's Day, you know, we're not amateurs, right? But but there was a couple sitting next to us because we got to we got to dinner at like 5 30, so early bird special. And so, because the girls were at home uh with grandma, but the couple next to us, we just started chatting with them. It's just sort of what we do. It happens, we're close proximity, and they said it was their 50th Valentine's Day, 50th Valentine's Day. And this guy, you know, you know, people who just look clean, like this guy just looked clean and and wealthy and stuff like that. And he looked like he worked every day of his life the whole time. And he said, you know, I I think I said something like it's always I'm always sourcing knowledge. I said, What's the secret? And we with your kids and everything. And he said, I should have worked less.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_05I should I should have worked less. And it that's that's easy to say in hindsight because I'm sure he provided what a wonderful life for those kids. Sure. But but it's true. If you could find a balance to be there, and I I think you're doing your damnedest, and you you just keep you just keep on the road, dude. You're you're a great dad and you're a good man, and and uh and all the creative will come out. And uh you're an extremely talented photographer as well. I was mentioning that before, which is I'll have everybody check out your Instagram and stuff like that. Let's talk about uh uh because you I saw that you signed in as Ken Griffey Jr. And I know that's not your I know that's not your name on your birth certificate, but let's talk about can we talk about baseball a little bit? Let's talk about baseball sort of in relation to your dad. Let's let's stick with that. Sure. And and you know, how that kind of bonded you guys over the years and where that took you.
SPEAKER_08I I'm I'm happy to get in that very quickly before we jump into that. I just want to give you a shout out and compliment. You know, you're doing it, you're doing the thing. And I think that's the biggest hurdle that a lot of people face in terms of their careers and trying to figure it out. It's like don't keep chasing the titles. Like, if there's something you want to do, go do it and start it. And like that momentum will build. And um, so a quick props to you. I know we had talked about this podcast. You're like, I think I might do it. And it's like, yeah, fucking do it. And here we are. And it's really cool to see you in that space. So shout out to you. Um in terms of like what was the question in terms of baseball?
SPEAKER_05Just you and your old man. Baseball, how that bonded you. What were what were car rides on the way home from games? What was that like? Oh, all of it. Just uh you know, highly whatever, whatever you want to share.
SPEAKER_08They were really great memories. And um baseball is a game that means a lot to me, and it's something that I definitely departed from the sport, as I feel like a lot of people do at a certain point in your your life, and you just get busy with other things. But to come back to that recently by way of my son who started T ball last year, and you know, to be living in a a city where we have a a two-time world championship team has been pretty special. But that game of baseball was that's what connected my dad and I. And he was my coach, he was my rock, he was there for me. And he always encouraged me, and he knew when he was no longer the right coach for me, he stepped back, but he was there at my games. And he I I'll never forget, he told me, he's like, Look, Adam, when the game is no longer fun anymore, it's okay if you want to step back and not play anymore. And I think especially now where we are in a culture where parents push and push and push and drive their kids so hard. And I saw that where I grew up, but I always respected my dad for saying that. And I knew that I wasn't gonna be a major league baseball player. I'm I'm 5'8 and 160 pounds. Like, yeah, you know, there's a a handful of people, players that are are that size. Yeah, Jose Altuve is one of them, and I was like, I don't like that guy. Um, but uh no, it was it was really special. And we would go to the Orioles games, we would um, you know, just that was that was it. And and I was in love with the game, and you know, Field of Dreams is a classic movie. That is still hits hard. Um, but Ken Griffey Jr. is, you know, he was my favorite player, he still is. You know, I think he's arguably had the most style points and charisma out of any player. And at a time when, you know, Albert Bell and Jose Canseco and all these guys were getting busted for performance-enhancing drugs. Here's Griffey just kind of on the side, like whether or not he did them, who knows? But like he was never charged and convicted for it. And he just had fucking talent and swagger.
SPEAKER_05Oh my god. Oh my god. Best swing of all time. Uh that's it. Barnon. That's it. With the backwards hat, casual, like um so cool. And whoever, you know, he has a he has a uh uh his hobby, uh he's a great photographer as well. It's true. Him and Randy Johnson. I think it's a Seattle Mary Times. It must be. It must be yeah, the the air up there, you know, whatever. Yeah, but I I love it. I love that he's doing that. And then uh yeah, uh it's it's so funny because it when you you break it down to baseball, it's just it's just a game. It is, but there is there's a connective tissue within the game, and it it's just look, and I don't mean to I do this sometimes in the show. I get a little morbid because I get a little introspective, but we're past it, we're passing time between beginning and end, right? So we have to find ways to do that, and we have to find conduits to time well spent. And for my money, and again, I never had an old man, but I do remember those great trips to McDonald's between doubleheaders with my mom and my teammates, and da-da-da. And so, you know, when you have your dad and it's so special and you can have a catch with your dad, I I'm sure that was one of the most special things that you've ever done. The a la field of dreams. I mean, I don't I don't think anybody can hold it together at the end of that movie. And if you can, you're a psychopath.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_05So, you know, but uh what and now now what's your dad's name? Wayne. Wayne, okay, Wayne. And so I we uh you sort of answered the question before I asked it, and that's totally great because you're a total pro. But my old man used to say, so he he said, I love that he said that to you because and the that you also highlighted the fact that we live in this super competitive youth sports nation right now, where you're seeing people yelling at kids, arguing with umpires, throwing umpires on the ground, it's it's insane. You you don't think that's gonna spoil the kid's appetite for the sport? So I think it's wonderful that he said that and also gives insight to what what kind of man he is. And I think when you can have that, you know, strong, firm hand, obviously, you know, you have to have uh parameters for your child, and and uh, and you were raised properly and with discipline, I'm sure. But at the same time, you have to balance that out. It sounds like Wayne did that really nicely.
SPEAKER_08He he did, and we've had a few moments since those kind of last games, uh, which have been really special. There was when I first got out to LA, which was 2002, um, I think it was the following summer, I had joined a uh uh just a summer league. Because I was like, I miss the game. I was like, I'll pick it up, I'll play a little bit, it'll be fun. And um it was really cool because we had a game on Father's Day, and my dad was able to fly out and watch me play baseball as a you know 23-year-old in California, which growing up in Baltimore, it's like the dream is to play baseball in California. I don't know why, but it's just like there was that component which was really nice. And then um, more recently, when he was out here for for Christmas and the holidays, um, we have a group of people, uh, our buddy Carrie. Uh shout out to Kerry, who he he puts on these like little batting practice days and get a group of guys who go out to the field and we just take batting practice. And so my dad was able to come out and play with us for that. Uh, my brother was also there, which is really cool. That's great. I think the fucking getting emotional, but that's all right. What was really special about it was my son was a I had him take the day off from school. And so there's three generations of Reynolds on the field. And for my dad to watch Wesley play and to make some really good catches was really, really, really cool. And I think you know, Wesley loved that the idea of like, oh, cool. I'm playing with dad, his brother, and and grandpa, which was really awesome.
SPEAKER_05Of course. It lives on. He's gonna remember that. He'll remember that for his life, his lifetime that day. And good on Carrie for putting that together. That's really cool. You need a guy like you need one buddy like that that just, you know, he's he's living, he's got that yearbook ready to sign if he missed you 20 years ago.
SPEAKER_08He's got like, he's he's like, I keep a bucket of balls, some gloves, and some bats in my car. Like I'm ready to play whenever. That's the best. That's shout out to Carrie though. I just wish you'd give us a little bit more heads up than like, hey, we're playing tomorrow at 10 a.m. It's like fucking Carrie, I got calls scheduled. Give us the heads up.
SPEAKER_05We got Carrie, we got stuff going on, babe. Come on, give us a let's get like an Apple, like a Google calendar going. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. No, that's good. That's all right. But I I think that um to be able to do something like that and just and just run around and be outside and and goddamn, that weather's great out there. Oh my God. I'm bear I'm I'm freezing my ass off in here.
SPEAKER_08I could I don't complain about sweating. It's like 95 outside right now.
SPEAKER_05But okay, so I just I just want to what just what are you creatively, what's what's going on? Tell tell me a little bit about what's next for you and and uh what's in the what's in the hop or the pipeline, and then uh then I'll let you go. I don't want to take too up too much of your time.
SPEAKER_08No, this is this is great. I'm I'm enjoying this. Before we get into that, I want to say just going back to to baseball and and passing that along. What's been really awesome is this is actually this Orioles hat is a Christmas gift for my son, and my daughter gave me a Dodgers hat because I didn't have a Dodgers hat until Christmas. And it's been really cool to A, have a World Series winning team like the Dodgers, to see them get interested in the game and wanting to go to the games and watch the games on TV. And, you know, my daughter, especially Eloise, is she is so uh her nickname is Baby Baseball, and like she helps kind of manage the little league team, and she likes, you know, after the game practice yesterday, she goes, you know, I don't know that this team has a lot of immediate potential, but I think the players, we can draw it out of them. And I'm like, this is amazing. You're 11, and we're kind of like helping with that. So I think they see that joy in in us as parents.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_08And they kind of start to express interest in that. And I would say that, you know, for any other parent that's out there that's looking at that hardship of trying to figure out and and get through the day to day, it's important to still find that joy for yourself beyond just, oh, you're my kids. It's like do those things that you still love because your kids are gonna see that. They're gonna see the joy that comes from you and the fulfillment that you feel. And sure, they're gonna want that. And, you know, I'm sure you've showed them the microphone and recording equipment and gotten them to record stuff. But I keep a mixing board on the table right here in the garage. So when the kids come over, if they want to fire up and like talk in the microphones and do some stuff, they can do it. And because they see me doing it, they know that I'm in that community. So that becomes, I think, a really important thing, just to kind of again create that safe space and opportunity for them to explore, which segues into your conversation about creative. And that's both my parents were artists. They had that opportunity for me of like, here are crayons, here's paint, here's paper, go be creative. And so I didn't have a lot of structure necessarily growing up, but I had the freedom to be creative and to explore. And I think it's important that we create that for our kids as well. Um, and that lends itself to where I am now creatively. What we're doing is um we are trying to build, and and and I shouldn't say trying, we are building what is the what I feel, the production company for this creator economy. And I say that in the sense of you you look at the larger landscape, you know, traditional television production companies or commercial production companies and studio networks like Warner Brothers or Paramount, you have some disruptors like Netflix who come in, and yeah, they're streaming platforms, but they're still following a very traditional model, if you will. And where we are in the timeline for entertainment is really interesting because we are on the cusp of Paramount buying Warner Brothers. What's gonna happen is a massive consolidation, you know, political affiliations and narratives aside, things are gonna consolidate. And in six months, when or whenever eight months, whenever this deal goes through, you're gonna have Paramount and Warner Brothers and HBO, they're gonna get in CNN, they're gonna get gutted. Yeah, you're gonna have a ton of high salary network executives that have had push jobs and they've worked their entire career to be in these positions suddenly without a sense of purpose. Yeah, and there isn't gonna be a network or studio that's gonna be able to uh hire and accommodate all of them because we don't have that infrastructure anymore. And so what is really interesting in that context is the creator economy is on the cusp of that larger boom. And so when you ask creatively, my creative fulfillment right now is is honestly being able to put together the architecture for creatives to build out their own studio initiatives, right? Like we're doing with Saraya. You know, it's not just about the podcast. That's that's the foundation. We are building a proper creator studio for her. We are building out her Patreon audience, we are building out content that gets released exclusively on Patreon through a behind a paywall. We have seen models where some of her friends are, I shit you not, they're pulling in between $300,000 to $500,000 a month in Patreon subscriptions. Now you think about that, you start to reinvest that money into original programming, original content. And suddenly you have these studios that are completely built without a major Paramount or Warner Brothers. And they're like, fuck you. You didn't give us the time of day. Sure. You gatekept us, and now we're building this more successfully and more streamlined, more efficiently than you ever could. Of course. And that to me is exciting creatively, and part of that is it's validated because these things are happening. Again, we're going to continue to see this as this deal goes through. But also, it's like we've positioned Denim, our production company, uh kind of at that very important place where we help creators bridge the gap between the system that they built and the infrastructure they've built to get to that TV proper studio commercial level. We slot ourselves in right there. And in doing that, you know, you look at the likes of Jake Shane has made that leap. Alex Earl is making that leap, Alex Cooper has made that leap. She's a client of ours. We were just in Vegas for a shoot with her.
SPEAKER_03Like, we are when you finally find your thing, you want the whole world to know about that thing. So you use a thing called Canva to make it an even bigger and better thing. Whether you want to create flyers for that thing, make presentations for that thing, or design merch for that thing, you can do anything. So people can see your thing, feel your thing, love your thing. The next thing you know, it's a thing. Canva, the thing that makes anything a thing.
SPEAKER_08And have been strategically positioning ourselves to help the creator economy get to that next level because frankly, they need it. Like, you know, just because, you know, you look at Mr. Beast, some of the stories that I've heard about their productions, it's like, oh, he still wants to hire his guy that he worked at, you know, back in the day. It's like, well, guess what? This guy doesn't know how to do this, to be honest. Yeah. And so you have a ton of production issues. That's part of the reason I think why he's investing a lot of his own money because it's like he wants that control and ownership over that. But what's going to happen is they need most creators, like I'd say Alex Cooper. Steven Bartlett, Mr. Beast, you know, a bunch of other guys, they're the top like 5%.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_08The other 95%, they need support. They need infrastructure. So we're there to help them with that. And I would say what's also been really interesting is to see this grow organically. We're now, you know, we were hired by BBC Studios to come in and do the Dancing with the Stars podcast in the fall. We just closed on the official uh American Idol companion podcast, which is going to be coming out when the season starts in the spring. Great. So it's like now you have these major studios that are now saying, like, oh, we need to have a component companion podcast. We need, how do you do this? Who are the teams to hire? And people are saying, call Adam, call Denim. And we're here, we're kind of we're grateful for it. It's not going to last forever. So creatively, what we're trying to do is, you know, we'll help you launch your show, we'll help you get this off the ground. And this is more deals with creators than it is networks, but we are getting equity percentage of ad revenue and ownership in that property that we're helping develop. And we're not trying to be a studio where we take 100% of that or 50% of that. It's like I'd rather have 10% of 25 different properties than 50% or 100% of two or three. And we're trying to be very creator economy friendly. And that to me is really exciting from a creative standpoint because it's an architecture. And you get to have fun and you get to meet people and we get to do things like this where it's like, cool, let's help open this door. And Andrew, great, you've gotten to the point where your show is getting 10,000 downloads an episode. Let's talk to this network. Let's help this network open this door and let's make those leaps and changes. So that to me is fulfilling. And again, coming back to your question earlier about success, in addition to being a present parent, helping the people that you have known along the way, that's success. And knowing that it's a team that's been there together in one version or another since the very beginning, that's success. And those are the little wins that I try to celebrate.
SPEAKER_05Wow, absolutely. And it's it's a it's a perfect sentiment and a a really when you can when that's the tapestry of your life, when you can have the all that entire alchemy going for you, I I think you're doing something really right and you're helping people. And I think I think it's all it's gonna work out. And and I look, I I love I loved work I've I've loved working with you over the years. Uh that Reynolds text comes through, I get all excited, that little dopamine hit. Like, all right, what do we got going on, baby? Let's go. You get me psyched up. And we, you know, well and let's hope we could do that down the road. But Adam, thank you so much for being on the show, man. I really appreciate it. And looking out for everything you're doing, and and uh and we'll talk soon, okay?
SPEAKER_08Thanks, Israel. Before we go, I do have a quick question for you. Because you obviously had a a pretty good career and background in in baseball. Were you a Rawlings guy or were you a Wilson guy?
SPEAKER_05I was a Wilson catcher Smith. Yeah, Wilson catcher's mid.
SPEAKER_08Really?
SPEAKER_05I'm gonna tell you why. I had Rawlings in high school and then Wilson in college, and you know why I had Wilson in college? They're always a little bit lighter, but I had Wilson in college because uh that's what Crash Davis used in Bull Durham. What a I know. Big nerd. That's amazing. I used to watch when I was I was that was like kids, kids now watch, I don't know, uh what do they watch at eight years old, something on Nickelodeon? I was watching Bull Durham and you know, yeah, major league. But what yeah, Rawlings is great though. I use Rawlings in high school for sure.
SPEAKER_08Well, that was the thing is I was a Rawlings guy growing up, and I actually I got my I I brought my glove collection out because I wanted to quickly go through this.
SPEAKER_05But so this is so nice.
SPEAKER_08This glove was is the the uh Rawlings Pro 1000 H. And I got this glove for Christmas, not this specific glove, but I got this glove for Christmas in high school. I think it was my freshman year.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_08My dad and I had gone to a game, an Orioles game, and I decided to leave my glove in the car for whatever reason. Okay. And after the game, we go back, my dad's car was stolen. And the glove was gone, and they stopped making the glove, and I couldn't get another one. So for the longest time, I thought about this thing, and I'm like, I I like that was the greatest glove of all time. Well, a couple months ago I went on eBay and I was just like, ah, let's see if I can find it. And I found the glove, and it is like perfectly broken in. It is so well oiled.
SPEAKER_05And then it's I see that oil thing. Yeah.
SPEAKER_08And then it sent me down this path of like, oh, because this was right around the time of like having the twins, and I'm like, I am stressed out. And I was like, well, what other good gloves are out there? So then I found this guy, another guy on eBay that had multiple gloves, and he had like he had this one, which is the Rawlings Pro 204 DCC.
SPEAKER_05That's a good that's a good glove, too, yeah.
SPEAKER_08Which is super soft, and I love this. This was great to break in. And then he also had this Pro 2004 RT, which this thing has been a beast to break in.
SPEAKER_05Look at that web. It's a lot, look at that webbing.
SPEAKER_08Yeah, well, but like this thing was was great. And he also had, he's like, dude, you gotta try the Wilson A2000 1786. And at first I was like, I don't really like this thing, but I was like, oh, I get it now. Like to your point, it's lighter, it's soft. There's something about it that's like, this is kind of a fun glove. So yeah, I I rotate between them and playing catch and everything, and that's the best time.
SPEAKER_05It's the best. And you're able to sort of go down memory lane, but live in the present as well. And I think I think that's the the toggle of fatherhood, right? Tapping into what we once were and and what our kids will be. And we pass that along as much as we can. Adam, this is really great, man. Thank you so much. Pleasure.
SPEAKER_08Thank you, Andrew.
SPEAKER_05I appreciate it. All right, thank you, brother. Bye. I hope you guys had a great time. I had a great time. I just hanging out with a friend, with a fellow dad, with a fellow creative. It's always I love talking shop. I love talking about the business, the business of show that won't let me in the front door. So I'm trying to go through the side. I'm trying my ass off. But Adam, he's doing his thing. He's doing a great job with the Rule Breakers podcast. And he's it's just so fun seeing him do his thing and hearing about his kids and talking baseball. And it was really nice catching up with him. So I hope you enjoyed it. Fatherless Cheat Cheat, new episodes every Thursday. YouTube, Spotify, Instagram, Rachel, say hey. I'll say hey back. Fatherless Chee Cheat.
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