Byline: Will Jones
COCINA’s new podcast Takeout & Discuss, hosted by writer-broadcaster Xorje Olivares, isn’t simply one other pop-culture chat sequence. It’s an area the place meals, id, and creativity collide in essentially the most intimate manner potential: over takeout. With three episodes out thus far, the present is already carving out a lane that feels contemporary, acquainted, and essential.
For Olivares, the sequence is an extension of who he’s on and off the mic. “The present is an ideal illustration of my main pursuits as each a bunch and an on a regular basis individual: tradition and group,” he explains. A self-described “scholar of society,” he’s all the time been drawn to the way in which individuals present up on the earth and the way background shapes conduct, how id informs ambition, how lived expertise turns into narrative.
“We additionally wished to see if the casualness of dinner dialog may very well be translated just about—and it completely does!”
Throughout the primary three episodes, Olivares has already collected tales that keep on with him. He recollects music journalist Suzy Exposito describing the pushback she confronted in 2020 when protecting Unhealthy Bunny, regardless of his exploding stardom. From writer-cartoonist Zeke Peña, it was the “visible vocabulary” he created to painting El Paso past stereotypical border imagery. And comic Anjelah Johnson-Reyes provided one of many sequence’ most susceptible moments: the conclusion that even happiness may be formed by hidden trauma.
Every visitor brings a special lens, however the connective tissue is tradition. Broadly outlined and deeply felt.
Why Tradition Opens Each Door
“‘Tradition’ is such a jam-packed phrase,” Olivares says. “We every have a very completely different interpretation of easy methods to take part in it or observe it, even when we’re all Latino-identified.” That multiplicity is the gateway to richer, extra layered conversations about id, creativity, and the forces that form us.
As a bunch, his job is to seek out every visitor’s level of connection—popular culture, ethnic heritage, societal traditions, work tradition—and go deeper from there. “When you’ve dug a bit into their pursuits, it welcomes that deeper dialog about who they’re and why they’re.”
COCINA has spent years elevating Latino tales throughout platforms, and Takeout & Discuss is a pure evolution of that mission. As a proud Mexican-American, Olivares sees the work as private. “I’ve made it my mission…to make use of my platform and voice to shine a lightweight on others who could seem like me, sound like me, or come from the identical place as me.”
However the present isn’t solely about spotlighting main names. “You don’t want a Hollywood-style story to obtain amplification…on a regular basis individuals…are simply as deserving.”
The visitor checklist is intentionally eclectic, pulling from Olivares’ huge media community: writers, comedians, artists, advocates, journalists. “I additionally suppose an awesome ‘Takeout & Discuss’ visitor is somebody who understands that, within the grand scheme of issues, we’re meant to only have enjoyable collectively—I imply, we’re consuming tacos over a Zoom name!”
Centering Voices That Have to Be Heard
Wanting forward, Olivares desires the present to fill gaps left by a media panorama pulling again on protection of marginalized communities. “A number of media retailers have both eradicated or considerably decreased groups tasked with protecting numerous populations…which in the end impacts visibility.”
His response: maintain widening the desk. “My hope is that this present continues to highlight Latino and BIPOC voices who’ve one thing to say about something…We every have a definite standpoint…knowledgeable by our id however not all the time about our id.”
New episodes will drop a few occasions a month because the present grows. Tune in to Takeout & Discuss on COCINA or Apple Podcasts.
