Straight Riffin'

A special mid-week riffin session here, just one hour but an amazing one hour at that. Cedric Yarbrough tells us about his work on Reno 911, his new show “Black Dynamite”, his visits to Comic Con, some Boondocks discussions, and a bit more. Fascinating stuff, kids. Get in and get some riff on ya.

Tom Young came on through for some serious hardcore riffin. This session is one for the ages, where Teddy gets paranoid (again!) about dolphins. We get deep in the game with a riff on polite angry muggers, Mitcz makes a case for Mike Patton’s vocal skills, Tom tells some fun stories about his dad, and Teddy definitively wins the war on “strenth vs. strength” against Mitcz.

John Wesley rolled through Riffin’ Headquarters with some old school swagger. We talk about his early years, and close relationship with James Avery (“Uncle Phil” from Fresh Prince), being the first black actor in the Oregon Shakespeare festival, and oh so much more. We get DEEP into the game, and deep inside our selves. This was a real treat, and you’re gonna love it.

Our first 4-person riff, this episode goes to AMAZING depths of Hollywood culture, with Erika Alexander (of The Cosby Show and Living Single) and her husband Tony Puryear (screenwriter for Eraser, artist for Concrete Park). From discussions of so-called “black hollywood”, to double standards, to the history of various cultural milestones, and all sorts of riffin’ in between. It’s eye-opening, entertaining, and funny as hell.

Erik MacArthur came in skeptical, and left as a fan, as we delved deep into old Nickelodeon and his role on Salute Your Shorts, his upbringing in Hawaii, young Hollywood, his recent directorial efforts, his lessons from the past, and we end with a lengthy discussion about the first human trip to Mars as a reality show. You don’t wanna miss this window into awesomeness.

When Quincy Jones (not THAT Quincy Jones) swings through riffin’ studios, he and Teddy accidentally team up to make Mitcz feel whiter than ever. It’s a fast-paced thrill-ride, kids. You’ll laugh your tits off at the worlds that be collidin’ on this one.

Joe Matarese didn’t just swing through and riff with us — he was in full-on “fixing people” mode. We got deep into some great psychology of each of our pasts, our families, and our minds. It doesn’t get weepy or too serious, it’s just a damn good time and a great listen. Thanks again, Joe! Awesome guy. Also, check out his podcast “Fixing Joe”.

There’s just too much awesome for your face when we kick out the motherf***in riffs with the one and only Wayne Kramer. This is a very unorthodox episode – not much riffin, mostly interview. The first half is mostly Teddy delving deep into Wayne’s history with the MC5, while the second half is Mitcz and Teddy delving into Wayne’s political contributions, and an in-depth discussion of prison reform. This episode is going on our top shelf like a trophy.

Our old pal Harry Moroz returned from his self-imposed exile in Detroit and FINALLY makes his debut on Straight Riffin. You’re in for an epic time (don’t miss the freestyle rap session at the end!) where we discuss arcades, skits on rap albums, documentaries, the Koch brothers & other rich people conspiracies, Teddy and Mitcz take turns trying to explain “Inception” to each other, and Harry KILLS it with some freestyle rappin’.

Mike “bobby helmet” Hume brings out the HUMEn race for this riff session. We discuss sex as a revenge tactic, tupac & biggie, how commercials are evidence of corporate malfeasance, fifty shades of grey and Mitcz’s disdain for written erotica, and we have a lengthy discussion about transgendered people which leads to a riveting discussion about female artists and the male ego.

Amy WItry swings through and brings forth a wealth of hot button topics – from the “attachment parenting” national discussion to an in-depth discussion of booty texts, we even touch on late-life virgins and Mitcz describes keeping “pure” as a 17 year old and that’s just scratching the surface of this awesome episode.

We had some weird tech issues (only one of which is related to the new studio), but we got MOST of this episode recovered. We sit with Galloway Allbright to discuss the new digs, an evil clown birthday present, overeating, Galloway’s ignorance of “neu-metal” rap-metal bands like Korn, and a whole lot more.

In the absence of an all-new riffin, enjoy this bonus conversation with Stoya where we discuss her Fleshlight line, her controversial Steven Klein photoshoot (see the riffin.net post on this episode for the details), a high-profile past relationship of hers, and a whole lot more. It’s just 30 minutes, but it’s packed with juicy tidbits to hold you over until next week. Enjoy!

Richard Bain starts off blackin’ it up right out the gate – almost makin’ Teddy feel white. We also discuss Mitcz’s haunted iTunes playlist, Richard’s interesting cultural roots, there’s an upbeat discussion of religion (NOT a debate, just a discussion of curiosity), and ohh so much more. Guaranteed to give you a smile on your face or your money back.

STOYA – the Adult Entertainment and acrobatic extraordinaire – makes a stop through the Riffin Studios for some awesome riffin on her recent trip to Russia, her other trip to Japan, holographic Tupac, life “in the biz”, we get into a heated discussion about the Simpsons and the real location of Springfield, a fascinating story about an iced bag of corn… and, ohhh so much more. This isn’t silly porno-pandering, this is riffalicious.

This is some eclectic riffin’ here with Josh Waldron. Nary a moment of silence, the riff keeps going through the tunnel as we stop along at topics like the faux-pas of Josh’s disappearance, the full extent of Mitcz’s sports knowledge, the meaning of “pretty”, the right way to buy a car, scare tactics, zombie immersion environments, long distance relationships, robotic kissing mouths and oh so much more.

We got some serious riffin’ done here on Episode 55 with our special guest – comedian Jesse Case. It starts silly and wild with some crazy stories of childhood and teen years in the yuppie backwoods, moves on to an “accidental crack” story and we get real philosophical going forward. Probably one of our deepest episodes yet. And only Teddy was high! Enjoy, Riffopolis.

This episode with Jackie Monahan could be summed up with : Michael McDonald, Beyonce’s fake baby, YeVaughnie, Anal play, and fake orgasms. Oh, but there’s so much more. And it’s pure insanity. Jackie Monahan brought the riff and inspired some lovely madness.

To ring in a solid year of Riffin’, Mitcz & Teddy sit down to discuss “The State of the Riffin”, share some behind-the-scenes goings on, Mitcz gives his thoughts on advertising, and of course we riff on about a great many things : the rise of “niggling”, the upcoming Steak and “man-lovin” day, Olivia Munn, Love advice from Andrew WK and so much more. It’s a solid two-man riffin’ you’ll enjoy for years to come.

It’s like Christmas in May! Except it’s Blackuary Blackriffin in March. Also, it’s funnier. And there’s no presents. Just presence. Ignore this cheesy description — this is a rifftastic episode of riffic proportions. Jeremy Scippio joins us in riffin’ on racist dictionary terms, scary hip-hop artists, 80s videogames, the fast pace of technology, despicable mormon revisionists, fun website toys, and a heated discussion about a woman’s $9 Million lawsuit against her ex-husband’s mistress. So much riff, you’ll need a diet.