Tommy Toe Hold Interview (2023): The Halcyon Show
6My interview with comedy cartoonist, MMA analyst and pundit, and legend of the MMA fandom, the mysterious and magnificent, Tommy Toe Hold.
"Ladies and Gentleman, welcome to this edition of the halcyon show, and on this edition we welcome a man who exhibits all the traits and hallmarks of an outrageously successful creator and analyst. Hardworking, dedicated, passionate, persistent, 2-Dimensional in style but multi-faceted in his work, and boundless in his creativity. He is the creator of the self titled comedy cartoon style series TTTHS that captured the imagination of MMA, tickled the pickle of the most prominent figures within the sport and made its way, all the way to UFC on FOX. He is one of the minds and voices behind the wildly popular MMA on Point, and has carved out his own spot as a respected analyst and pundit of MMA. All of this despite being born ruggedly handsome, with a perfectly bald head and beard even ZZ Top would be envious of and being entirely fictional. Ladies and gentlemen please welcome Mr Tommy Toe Hold."
#tommytoehold #mmaonpoint #TTTHS
00:00 Intro
01:50 How does he come up with his comedy?
04:12 Was he always fond of English and Language?
09:04 How does he balance analytical content with comedic content?
13:26 How does he manage to make comedic content loved by MMA fans and Participants?
18:28 How does he filter his ideas down to the very best ones?
24:28 How does he transition back and forth between TTTHS and MMA on Point?
27:47 How much free shit do I have to give away to become a big channel?
31:13 How did he feel when he started getting noticed and complimented on his work?
32:01 Getting started in MMA on YouTube
34:38 Calls from Bruce Buffer, Messages from Joe Rogan and Dana White
36:30 Meeting Bruce Buffer for dinner, and it all goes sideways
39:32 Meeting Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta in Las Vegas
51:13 How does he feel about his and MMA's evolution over the decade?
59:58 How did he evolved as a creator as the landscape of MMA and platforms have changed?
01:06:02 Is he naturally optimistic, pragmatic, or both?
01:06:52 Characters in MMA
01:14:25 How he "stays lucky" and the hard moments in his career
01:18:52 What is success to Tommy?
01:23:38 Making a video a day for over a year
01:28:45 Who should we appreciate more in MMA?
01:36:08 Brock Lesnar in retrospect
01:39:20 The power of Hype
01:42:59 Catering to all kinds of fans with MMA on Point and TTTHS
01:44:19 Tommy Toe Hold facts
01:46:49 His Anderson Silva laugh
01:50:14 What are his aspirations, goals and projects for the future?
01:51:12 His pitch for a brand new show idea...
01:56:00 His thoughts around his animation style
01:58:29 Meeting CM Punk in 2013
02:05:12 Is he still a Wrestling fan?
02:08:00 How does he feel about Sports Entertainment elements in MMA?
02:17:10 How has his fandom changed while covering MMA?
02:20:54 His outlook on MMA as a genre
02:28:21 Is there anything he wishes he could cover more?
02:33:41 What is best for the fighter vs best for the fans
02:38:50 The Paul Brothers Effect
02:43:21 Should more be done to protect older or retired fighters?
02:47:16 What moments mean the most to him in his career?
02:51:31 Where can you find him on Social Media?
02:54:38 Outro
You can follow Tommy or check out his work on any of the links below:
https://twitter.com/TommyToeHold.
https://www.youtube.com/@UChILe0IlOjBx5tzXkKJyDYw
https://www.instagram.com/tommytoehold/
https://www.youtube.com/@MMAOnPoint
Thanks to @MotionMadeAE for the background graphics for this episode, and to @StompsPlaylist who provided the background music.
Follow me on twitter on @LorneRiseley / https://twitter.com/LorneRiseley and on Instagram on https://www.instagram.com/thehalcyonshow/ and of course be sure to like, share and subscribe.
All images, artwork, soundtracks and video footage are owned by their respective companies. I do not own or have licence for any copyrighted audio, video or images used for the purposes of context. All copyrighted material is used for the purposes of review and parody and covered by standard fair use*