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10 Questions with ... Talia Schlanger
April 3, 2017
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
Since October 2016, I've been working as Contributing Host and Producer on World Cafe, produced by WXPN, the public radio service of the University of Pennsylvania. Before joining the World Cafe team, I spent three years working at CBC, Canada's public broadcaster.
I'm a proud alumna of Ryerson's Radio and Television Arts program. I'm also a professional actress, singer and voiceover artist. I spent most of 2012 performing in the first national tour of Green Day's rock opera, American Idiot, at various theatres throughout the U.S. I've also performed on stage with Mirvish Productions' original Canadian company of We Will Rock You.
1. How did you become interested in radio?
In middle school I remember thinking the world was divided into three classifications of cool -- were you KISS 92 (Pop), 102.1 The Edge (Indie Rock) or Q107 (Classic Rock)? I went through phases with all three, and would obsess over recording songs off the radio on to cassette tape. One of my favorite after-school pastimes was calling stations to request songs, and then trying to record ourselves making the requests on-air. My first interest in storytelling on radio was inspired by a Canadian show called "The Ongoing History of New Music." It started in 1993, and I caught on around '99. I listened every week religiously on Sunday nights in high school. The host, Alan Cross, would trace the history of a rock band or a genre or a scandal or an urban music legend over the course of an hour, with a mix of music and stories. It was a tremendous show and you always felt like a cooler person after listening. I think about Alan and that show often in my career now.
2. You must be excited about taking over the reins of The World Cafe!
Yes! Excited, thrilled, honored, humbled, and a healthy dose of nervous.
3. How do you plan to make the role your own?
From the moment I got here, David and the team made me feel like what I bring to the table is valuable. It's very hard to step into a role that been defined so beautifully by one person for 25 years. But the great thing about World Cafe is that it's always belonged to the audience -- it's in service of music fans. So, it's not becoming mine. It remains ours. I plan to let my curiosity about artists and love of music guide everything I do, and let the rest take care of itself.
4. What past experiences do think will help you to settle into the hosting role?
I've spent a lifetime listening to music, rabidly reading Rolling Stone, watching music docs, seeing concerts and listening to artist interviews. So that helps with the music part. My education at Ryerson University was in Radio and Television Arts, so all the production and storytelling techniques we learned there help. I made a short video documentary about a family funk band who lived in Toronto's housing projects while I was at school, and that experience taught me a ton about digging deep for the stories behind artists. And my background as a performer myself helps a ton. I get what it takes to put yourself out there as an artist, and how uncomfortable it can be sometimes to talk about your work. I keep that empathy and respect in my back pocket. Oh yeah, my time hosting at CBC helps too. My mentor there taught me to listen to my work with a critical ear, to try and make it better for the audience. That's never pleasant, but it's essential. And it definitely helps here.
5. As World Cafe passes the 25-year mark, I understand there are some strong initiatives to expand the show's footprint. Tell us about that.
There are lots of cool things we're cooking up -- all guided by the mission to bring music fans closer to artists. Our Nashville hub is hopping thanks to features by Ann Powers; we've got more Sense of Place trips in the works so we can really dig in to the sounds of artists in their natural habitats and our Latin Roots feature has exposed me to so much rich stuff that I'm looking forward to sharing.
We're getting really ambitious with producing radio pieces, bringing more sound into the mix on interviews. We're also having fun with social media. One of the most fun things I've done so far was a Facebook live session with Timothy Showalter (aka Strand of Oaks). We went to his house and he premiered a brand new song on an acoustic guitar for an audience of his cats and a live Internet audience. More stuff like that!
6. What do you foresee as your biggest challenge going forward?
Keeping up with the daily pace! David truly is the hardest working man in showbiz. Every single day he programs the music of the two-hour show, talks between songs, does an interview (which means listening through an artist's canon, reading all the prep stuff, writing the questions) and somehow has time to listen to stacks and stacks of CDs that get sent his way with new music. Don't get me wrong -- I'm a hard-working kind of a lady. But it's going to be a challenge!
7. How do you feel about the current climate of music?
It's phenomenal. We live in a musical sphere where anything is possible. For example, I recently interviewed an artist named Tash Sultana. A couple years ago, she was busking on the streets of Melbourne, halfway around the world. She uploaded a video of a bedroom jam to YouTube. And now she's beat-boxing on a pan flute on sold-out U.S. shows, because she's world-class talent.
Hopefully the democratization of art, the fact that an artist doesn't need a record deal or a proper recording studio to connect with people around the world, means that extraordinary artists aren't held back because of access. The amount of music that is made today is mammoth -- if you close your eyes, you can feel the planet reverberate with all of it. That's a good vibration to be on, I think. I also hope we can figure out better ways for artists to get paid for their work. Music is vital. Humanity is dependent on art. The digital age has made the commerce of art murky, and it feels like a lot of musicians are working for free. I wouldn't ask my plumber or my accountant to do that.
8. Who would be your dream act to interview?
Joni Mitchell. Radiohead.
9. What's the best piece of advice anyone's ever given you? The worst?
Best: Everyone is little, and so are you. So don't be afraid to ask.
Worst: Change your name.
10. Fill in the blank: I can't make through the day without ...
... Coffee. A good laugh. Gratitude. (Apparently I'm needy. That's 3)
Bonus Questions
Favorite band of all-time:
This is too hard.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time away from work?
Kicking and punching the air in boxing classes, drinking coffee, reading nerdy things, listening to podcasts, playing guitar, laughing with my friends and family.
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