DELRAY BEACH – The brutal honesty Phil Isme believes essential to the podcast he hosts with Hennessy Williams has landed the comic in more than one predicament.
On their From The Crib podcast the duo discuss the kinds of topics – current events, society and relationships – regular guys talk about in private every day quite publicly.
And people, especially women, are listening.
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“When guys talk about certain stuff, and relationships, and the craft of dating and courting – when women hear that they are like, Whoa, what is wrong with you?” Isme said.
Some comments, Isme says, are taken out of context. Others, well, maybe a hint of showbiz seeps into the podcast.
“I’m just like, ‘Hey baby, this is entertainment,’” Isme said. “What are you doing? You don’t ask Quentin Tarantino, ‘Do you go around shooting people?’”
Isme and Williams began their From The Crib podcast a little more than one year ago as a way of staying sharp during the pandemic.
The hosts are in separate locations – Isme in Port St. Lucie, Williams in Fort Lauderdale – for their broadcasts, which air initially on Instagram Live (@FromTheCribPod) every Wednesday at 9 p.m. Following the live broadcast, From The Crib is distributed on other social media platforms.
“I definitely had my moments of someone saying, ‘Oh so is that how you feel?’” Williams said. “That’s the risk you take in being honest. You’re going to find yourself in position where you’re saying something that someone didn’t know about you and they have to hear it in a public forum. And you have to deal with it.”
Williams, in particular, doesn’t make it easy to stay out of trouble. His personality and tone on the podcast mimics his stand-up act – which is to say, it’s aimed at mature audiences.
“You hear how dirty he talks?’” asked Isme, pointing over his shoulder to Williams’ performing his set on Monday at Delray Beach’s Tin Roof. “That’s literally how he talks on this podcast – extra spicy.”
That can produce some unconventional relationship advice for listeners who send them questions during one of the podcast’s regular segments.
“We do our best to answer it on the air,” Williams said. “Sometimes it’s advice they can use and sometimes it’s not very useful, but it’s fun.”
As South Florida emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, both Isme and Williams plan to continue their podcast, hoping their audience continues to grow.
“It’s been over a year of this consistently doing an episode every week,” Williams said. “At this point the audience is built in. They have an expectation. We have an expectation. It’s a great outlet for us.”
