Latest news with #MuchMusic
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Globe and Mail
The summer Sook-Yin Lee spent in a noodle costume changed her life forever
At 17, filmmaker Sook-Yin Lee took a lowly job that nobody else would, as – get ready for this – a 10-foot-tall piece of pasta with a mustache named Mr. Noodle. Was the rocker by night, pasta piece by day humiliated? Demeaned? Did the future artist and MuchMusic VJ file the gig away forever in the embarrassing-job vault? She did not. In this instalment of 'How I Spent My Summer,' Ms. Lee shares how being Mr. Noodle turned into something delicious and eternally filling. I ran away from home as a teenager to become an artist. I was fortunate to meet a supportive queer community with a vibrant and collaborative art scene that encouraged expression. I was in a band, screaming didactic political songs mostly, and we had this gig in Vancouver in an underground nightclub. Literally underground. Above was this unpopular pasta bar. One day I was lugging my gear out of the basement when it caught my eye: this sad-looking, forlorn, empty noodle costume in the window. Kinda like Gumby, but a noodle. He was a 10-foot-tall foam rectangle with big googly eyes, a French beret and a mustache. Even though I didn't have an audience, I was into performance art and social experiments, so he was perfect. I went into the restaurant and asked the guy who ran the place, Lyle, 'Hey – is anyone here the noodle?' Lyle said, 'No, no one will be the noodle.' I didn't care about the money, which was minimum wage, and I didn't really need the job, but I wanted to see what being the noodle was like in society. Robert Munsch's first job in the French countryside turned out to be a stinky situation Artist Christi Belcourt on her first job that paid $17. Not per hour ... just $17. Lyle gave me the lowdown on Mr. Noodle. He said, 'Mr. Noodle is Motown and he walks like this.' It was like a jive turkey walk, super stupid. He wanted me to walk like that and give out menus. I did that in front of the restaurant, where Lyle could see me, but as soon as I was out of view I took on a different noodle personality entirely. I made rules for myself as Mr. Noodle: Never speak words, as then the spell will be broken. I let myself make strange sounds and onomatopoeias, like brrrrrrrreeeeakkkk! or kwauk-kwauk-kwauk! I lost the Motown strut; I didn't give out the menus. I just walked, kinda listless, being a noodle. It was hot in there, and Mr. Noodle was suspended on two strings on my shoulders. I'd stack dishtowels as padding underneath the strings but it still got pretty painful. A lot of people were intolerant or rude. Many told me to move or get out of their way. Children liked Mr. Noodle, though. They'd run up and say hello and want to introduce me to their parents. There'd be the dad, sunbathing on the beach, and I'd deliberately block his sun. Elderly European men were really nice to Mr. Noodle. They'd sit down and talk to him, like really talk to him, regaling them about their day. One day, I got beaten up on Granville Street by a gang of skinheads. They thought Mr. Noodle was funny, so a crowd gathered around and they started pushing him back and forth. Luckily the body was made of foam, so it wasn't physically painful, but I watched sadly from the inside through the mesh face. I stayed in character the whole time as Mr. Noodle got beat up. Every day, I kept a diary of what happened to Mr. Noodle. It resonated with me that he was the ultimate outsider, and I wanted to see who embraced him and who didn't. I didn't have any big plans, but later that summer a friend told me about a film contest she was entering. I decided to enter too, and had one weekend to get a submission ready. It was immediately obvious to me that I'd make Escapades of the One Particular Mr. Noodle. A few months later, I found out Mr. Noodle was one of 10 scripts that was chosen to get made. It became my first legit film. I basically mobilized my neighourhood to be actors. I filmed in my house, remade the Mr. Noodle costume and re-enacted my summer as Mr. Noodle. It got enough attention that I was hired to make another film, and that's how my filmmaking life was born. All of this happened because of Mr. Noodle. Had I not followed my curiosity, had I not taken a low-paying horrible job, had I not found inspiration in him and related his experience as an outsider to mine as a Chinese-Canadian, my life would have been different. Without Mr. Noodle, I might never have become a filmmaker. As told to Rosemary Counter
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Canadian TV host George Stroumboulopoulos condemns Canada's political system, House of Commons: 'I despise what they did to this country'
Canadian radio and TV host George Stroumboulopoulos is reflecting on politics and the recent federal election, explaining why he's unhappy with Canada's system at the moment. The former MuchMusic video jockey opened up to Arlene Dickinson in a recent interview on her new podcast, "Arlene Is Alone: The Single Life." In a second part of the interview published on Wednesday, Stroumboulopoulos explained — after the Dragons' Den star shared she endorsed Prime Minister Mark Carney — that he never publicly endorses any candidates. Still, he always commits to voting nowadays and even "overdosed on political content" this election. "I sometimes vote and I [will] hate myself for my vote, because sometimes I make a strategic vote and I hate that. ... Sometimes I'll throw the future, I'll take the risk because I'm just going to vote the way I want to vote," he added. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Arlene Dickinson (@arlenedickinson) Recalling his days at MuchMusic, the "Strombo" Apple Music Radio host indicated "I struggle with the voting thing." Back then, he was once handed a pin that read "Much Votes" and was told to wear it on air. At the time, he recalled telling his co-worker that "voting doesn't matter," adding that "if it really mattered, they wouldn't let you do it." Now, he said he's learned voting does matter, but he isn't happy with the way the system works in Canada. "I despise what they did to this country, what the House of Commons has done to this country," he said. "I despise that the focus has been taken off of getting people out of poverty, protecting workers, giving people the freedom to express themselves." He eventually stated how he doesn't trust big companies to "put people's best interests at heart," explaining he believes the political parties in Canada have deep relationships with corporations. "When we complain about this country, there are two parties responsible for it. And their relationships with corporations, and how corporate money and lobby groups have destroyed the actual version of democracy — I'm not even sure if we ever had it," he shared. Regarding endorsing politicians, he said it's something he can't do because his values don't align with what the parties have done — especially with how, he noted he believes, political parties hate poor people. Moreover, he said can't get behind the government sending money, weapons or helping arm the "destruction of another group of people" in the world. "To give them my endorsement? I wouldn't do that because it doesn't jive with my values." "I love Canada and I love Toronto. I don't love it for what it is, I love it for the promise it ought to be. This country gave my family so much when I immigrated here, so much," he added. "But that doesn't mean that it can't be better and it can't grow. ... Until we get money out of politics and get rid of religion out of politics, we will be this mess." He clarified that he doesn't necessarily think endorsing politicians is a bad idea. In fact, he urged that getting people involved in various ways is the only way to make the system better. "Just where my values are at the moment, found it very difficult to endorse. If somebody stepped up and said my number one job is to get people out of poverty and I'm going to make sure that is our primary goal ... I would say, 'You know what? I'll work with you then.' I don't support politicians but I support their work." He shared he's had family and friends experiencing homelessness who have unfortunately died while being unhoused. He explained mental health played a role, as well as addiction to substances like drugs and alcohol. "It was also the '70s and the '80s — it was a pretty bleak time. They didn't have the tools and the language that we have now, obviously." Poverty is his top issue, he said, because most people in that situation aren't there due to their own doing. "It's not just empathy for the people we're trying to protect. The hard part is having empathy for the villains." Stroumboulopoulos clarified he understands he isn't an easy person to get along with: "I'm a hard guy to be around because I'm very confident and I'm very self-assured." But it's important to him to find common ground with someone who may disagree with his views. That might come in the form of connecting over "problematic" music or "very aggressive" sports like hockey or football. Even if someone is on the other side of a political issue than him, he noted he can find a "little bit of ground" with them through a common interest. "I'm always trying to get to the heart of the matter to see if we can find a place to be that we can agree on," he noted. "Because otherwise, I'm going to be alone all the time, and I don't think it's good for me to be alone all the time."
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Canadian TV host George Stroumboulopoulos condemns Canada's political system, House of Commons: 'I despise what they did to this country'
Canadian radio and TV host George Stroumboulopoulos is reflecting on politics and the recent federal election, explaining why he's unhappy with Canada's system at the moment. The former MuchMusic video jockey opened up to Arlene Dickinson in a recent interview on her new podcast, "Arlene Is Alone: The Single Life." In a second part of the interview published on Wednesday, Stroumboulopoulos explained — after the Dragons' Den star shared she endorsed Prime Minister Mark Carney — that he never publicly endorses any candidates. Still, he always commits to voting nowadays and even "overdosed on political content" this election. "I sometimes vote and I [will] hate myself for my vote, because sometimes I make a strategic vote and I hate that. ... Sometimes I'll throw the future, I'll take the risk because I'm just going to vote the way I want to vote," he added. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Arlene Dickinson (@arlenedickinson) Recalling his days at MuchMusic, the "Strombo" Apple Music Radio host indicated "I struggle with the voting thing." Back then, he was once handed a pin that read "Much Votes" and was told to wear it on air. At the time, he recalled telling his co-worker that "voting doesn't matter," adding that "if it really mattered, they wouldn't let you do it." Now, he said he's learned voting does matter, but he isn't happy with the way the system works in Canada. "I despise what they did to this country, what the House of Commons has done to this country," he said. "I despise that the focus has been taken off of getting people out of poverty, protecting workers, giving people the freedom to express themselves." He eventually stated how he doesn't trust big companies to "put people's best interests at heart," explaining he believes the political parties in Canada have deep relationships with corporations. "When we complain about this country, there are two parties responsible for it. And their relationships with corporations, and how corporate money and lobby groups have destroyed the actual version of democracy — I'm not even sure if we ever had it," he shared. Regarding endorsing politicians, he said it's something he can't do because his values don't align with what the parties have done — especially with how, he noted he believes, political parties hate poor people. Moreover, he said can't get behind the government sending money, weapons or helping arm the "destruction of another group of people" in the world. "To give them my endorsement? I wouldn't do that because it doesn't jive with my values." "I love Canada and I love Toronto. I don't love it for what it is, I love it for the promise it ought to be. This country gave my family so much when I immigrated here, so much," he added. "But that doesn't mean that it can't be better and it can't grow. ... Until we get money out of politics and get rid of religion out of politics, we will be this mess." He clarified that he doesn't necessarily think endorsing politicians is a bad idea. In fact, he urged that getting people involved in various ways is the only way to make the system better. "Just where my values are at the moment, found it very difficult to endorse. If somebody stepped up and said my number one job is to get people out of poverty and I'm going to make sure that is our primary goal ... I would say, 'You know what? I'll work with you then.' I don't support politicians but I support their work." He shared he's had family and friends experiencing homelessness who have unfortunately died while being unhoused. He explained mental health played a role, as well as addiction to substances like drugs and alcohol. "It was also the '70s and the '80s — it was a pretty bleak time. They didn't have the tools and the language that we have now, obviously." Poverty is his top issue, he said, because most people in that situation aren't there due to their own doing. "It's not just empathy for the people we're trying to protect. The hard part is having empathy for the villains." Stroumboulopoulos clarified he understands he isn't an easy person to get along with: "I'm a hard guy to be around because I'm very confident and I'm very self-assured." But it's important to him to find common ground with someone who may disagree with his views. That might come in the form of connecting over "problematic" music or "very aggressive" sports like hockey or football. Even if someone is on the other side of a political issue than him, he noted he can find a "little bit of ground" with them through a common interest. "I'm always trying to get to the heart of the matter to see if we can find a place to be that we can agree on," he noted. "Because otherwise, I'm going to be alone all the time, and I don't think it's good for me to be alone all the time."
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Canadian TV host George Stroumboulopoulos, 52, reflects on having post-concussion syndrome: 'My concussions have changed my brain chemistry'
Canadian radio and TV host George Stroumboulopoulos is getting to the core of his "truest self," an area where he shared he believes most people aren't achieving in life. The former MuchMusic video jockey recently opened up to Arlene Dickinson about everything from being "lonesome" and having ex-girlfriends as his closest connections, to health issues like post-concussion syndrome. Speaking to the Dragons' Den star on her new podcast, Stroumboulopoulos explained how — spending years interviewing high-profile athletes, musicians and leaders — he's learned people who are living as their truest selves are having the "most honest conversations with themselves." However, he noted many people aren't reaching their full potential. "So many people get on a path because they think it's something they're supposed to do, something they were encouraged to do, and there's an element of them just going with the flow or feeling trapped," he said during the latest "Arlene Is Alone: The Single Life" episode posted on Wednesday afternoon. Early on in the podcast, Stroumboulopoulos shared a bit about his health and what his experience has been in the past. As someone who spends most of his time alone, he's learned to mentally run through a checklist if he isn't feeling well. That means asking himself if he's tired, if he's eating right, if he's exercised and if he's had enough water. "I just go through the checklist of physical things — this, this, this. Usually if something is bugging you, you know why, usually." Spending his youth in Toronto, Stroumboulopoulos reflected on how he wasn't necessarily able to let mental health problems take over his life. "I don't have clinical depression and — this is my superpower — I don't have anxiety. I don't think I was ever allowed to. You just have to barrel through, when I was growing up," he said, explaining he's learned to become adaptive and that he holds himself "super accountable" to how he feels. There was one instance he reflected on where he said he woke up in a parking lot in the California desert wearing only his boxers and a T-shirt. He recalled previously checking into a motel under a fake name using cash, eventually thinking he was going to die and then stumbling out into a parking lot in fear no one would find his body. A couple days later, he headed to the airport still uncertain about what had happened. He happened to sit down next to a former NHL player and they recognized each other. Stroumboulopoulos explained what had happened, and the athlete indicated he likely had post-concussion syndrome. The former Hockey Night in Canada anchor said he was eventually diagnosed, explaining that motorcycle crashes, hockey injuries and fights caused his concussions. "My concussions have changed my brain chemistry. I feel things bubbling inside me now. I know how to stop them before they get out of control, but it's all related to my post-concussion syndrome," he said, adding he feels "almost unstoppable" at the moment but realizes it'll catch up to him at some point. Stroumboulopoulos self-described himself as "one of those old-school Gen Xers," where he keeps everything about himself secret and handles issues alone. "I don't tell anybody anything about my life. I don't let people know when I'm sad, I don't let people know when I'm hurting, I don't share anything," he said, adding he holds himself to the highest standard and that his life is far from an "open book." Moreover, he said a lot of the hobbies and work that he enjoys — like filming, editing and playing instruments — are things that happen to be solo activities. However, he admitted he know it's probably best to be making more of an effort to call people in his life, even if it's to simply meet for dinner. "I think friends and people in our lives are like the battery tender that recharges the car battery," he shared. "Your job is to top up each other's lives and when you lose them, they return all that leftover electricity." Recently, he said he started sending out-of-the-blue texts saying "hey, just sending you love" to people in his life who he knows are on the road alone often. "We're cultured to be part of this rugged individualism." He reflected on two people in his life who could be considered life-long friends, the first being someone he's known since he was born. They grew up together and even lived in the same building, but he said his friend lives in Whistler, B.C., so they mostly connect over text. The other person, Adrian, was his first roommate and a friend from high school. "That's it," Stroumboulopoulos said about his close friendships. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Arlene Dickinson (@arlenedickinson) But the "Strombo" Apple Music Radio host explained there are actually two more people he's close with — both of whom happen to be ex-girlfriends. He described them as being "two of the most important people in my life," sharing one is now a wife and mother living in Los Angeles who influenced a large part of the person he is today. "We are each other's release valve, conversation place, her husband and I are great friends. It's maybe the most enriched relationship I have in my life, my relationship with her," he shared. "You never know, right? There's lots of exes who, we're not in each other's lives in the same way. But two of my closest [friends] are my exes, and it's really lovely." But the thought of what could've been with either woman when it comes to romance has never crossed his mind post-breakup, he shared: "If a thing ends, it ends already for a reason. ... I have so many regrets, but not there." He then explained what he thinks is the "key to life," and it's something he doesn't think he'd have been able to do in his 30s and only learned upon age: "You don't just listen to talk. Hear them. Validate people on the other side of the firing line. Validate them, because what they're feeling is real. They may not be the best at communicating it, they also have their own history. "I try to look at every single person I interact with, even people I want to fight ..., through the same prism, which is, 'You are also just trying to get through this.'"
CBC
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Anjulie's pop star dream had to die so she could start again
About a decade ago, Anjulie found massive success writing catchy pop songs that were all over Canadian radio and MuchMusic. She won a Juno Award and was writing songs for the likes of Lady Gaga and Kelly Clarkson. But then, at the height of her success, she walked away from music to focus on healing some internal wounds she'd been avoiding. In a new interview with Q 's Tom Power, Anjulie says her deep desire for fame and success started when she was just a kid. She remembers being the only person of colour at her school in Oakville, Ont., where she was often a victim of racial slurs that shattered her self-esteem. WATCH | Anjulie's full interview with Tom Power: "I lost all self-esteem very, very young, and my only way of trying to assemble it back together was through music — through listening to music or making it," she tells Power. "I fantasized that that would be the thing to bring me power in this world." Anjulie eventually manifested her dream through sheer hard work. She moved to New York where she'd perform wherever she could, including street corners, subways, and record company lobbies. "Anyone I would meet, I would have them give me their email address so I could email them and tell them where I was going to play, at what open mic," she says. "I once met a manager and he was very powerful and someone told me, 'Oh yeah, that would be the guy.' So I waited outside of his office for like 10 hours, just waiting for him to come out, so I could give him my demo or sing him a song. That didn't end up working, but I was just hustling." She adds that her background proved to be both an advantage and a hindrance for her, as the music industry didn't know what an Indian pop singer should look like. WATCH | Official video for Boom: "My ambiguity helped me get into a lot of disparate rooms that maybe I wouldn't have gotten into if I was just one clear ethnicity," she says. "But as an artist, it held me back because there was nobody they could point to and say, 'This worked, now you will.'" After writing a string of hits, including her song Boom, which was featured on The Vampire Diaries, Anjulie finally found her place in pop music. Record labels weren't questioning her place in the industry anymore — they were starting bidding wars over her. That pop star dream had to die, and it was painful. - Anjulie But her rise to fame suddenly came to a halt when she started to feel uncomfortable with the expectations that come with being a pop star. After filming a video where she felt overly sexualized, Anjulie realized she didn't want to sell herself that way. She begged her label to forgive millions in debt and let her go, which they did. "I tried to be this person that a lot of people kind of were banking on me being and I couldn't," she says. "I really had to mourn it.… That pop star dream had to die, and it was painful." Through therapy, including a year spent in an addiction program, Anjulie started learning how to appreciate who she was without fame or fortune. She did eventually return to songwriting, releasing the song Chai and Sunshine last year, which highlights her reflections on what would have happened if she kept going down the path she was on before she left. "I think the price would have been my mental health," she says. "If all those dreams came true and I never had my intervention … I think I would have been in a bad, bad place." Now, Anjulie is back to recording songs, doing interviews, and winning awards, including one of this year's SOCAN Foundation Her Music Awards. But this time around, success means something completely different to her — it's not about numbers, but about finding joy in creating music that truly reflects what she stands for. "I'm interested in the things that I put out doing very well, because it's also my livelihood. But the enmeshment and attachment and workaholism that I had is no longer there, and that's the relief," she says. "There's something that I missed when I was doing this the first time around.… I'm really going to ground myself for this time."
