Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Cabral "Cabbie" Richards: Sports Interviewing Antics 101

By Lindsey Horsting

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Cabral Richards’ interviewing style is comedic and “self-deprecating,” similar to Conan O’Brien – a man he holds in high regard.  Despite the fact that they are competitors, his sentiments in regards to some of O’Brien’s sets are humble.

“Man, that’s so kill!" he said. "I wish I thought of that.”

Richards works in a niche market for sports enthusiasts and further distinguishes himself within the profession with his style.

Richards, 38, is native of Toronto, Ontario and has based his career in Canada between TSN and Sportsnet – two Canadian Sports Networks.  He studied radio and television arts at Ryerson University in downtown Toronto, and completed three years before he decided he wanted to work full-time at The Score, a channel of the TSN Network. 

Richards was an intern at The Score on TSN in July, 2001 when he pitched an idea for a segment to be a “man on the street.”  The segment debuted as a weekend highlight show and eventually the name changed to “Cabbie on the Street.” 

An admirer of Jimmy Fallon, Richards said he wanted to combine his silly nature and love of sports into his interviewing style.  “Cabbie on the Street” involved stopping random Canadians and asking them silly sports questions.  For example, on his first segment that aired he asked: “how do you feel about the National Anthem being played at sporting events?” 

He would ask people which tournament they thought was the most exciting, either March madness or the World Cup, and then he would ask them a personal question about what's exciting in their own lives.

Richards explained when he interviews he is an amplified version of himself.

“I’m kind of like the dumb one in my circle of friends so I would say dumb or awkward things in conversation, so it’s just an extension of that, and keeping it in the world of sports,” he said.

Richards has since taken his interview techniques stylistically one step further with professional athletes and entertainers.  “Cabbie Presents” playfully brings an awkwardness for the interviewee, and takes a more friendly, casual approach, he said.

“A lot of my humor, a lot of my on-camera presence revolves around either invading personal space or actually physically engaging the person that I’m speaking with,” Richards said.

The day of Richards’ phone interview he mentioned he had just flown back to Toronto from Penticton, British Columbia where he had just finished interviewing Canadiens' goalie Carey Price.  He laughed when describing his mindset going into an interview.

“I know that people revere you, but I’m just going to speak to you as though you are a friend of mine,” he said.

He wants athletes to experience something new and bring the viewers an exclusive glimpse into the athletes’ lives, Richards said.  In preparation for the interviews Richards asks:

“What haven’t they done before, what can I get away with, and what would they be willing to do?”



Interview:

Cabral Richards:  So I went to…I suppose Broadcasting school.  I studied Radio and Television Arts at Ryerson University and then my second year I got an internship at a television station, which at the time was called Headline Sports.

Lindsey Horsting: Ok. 

CR:  It then re-branded itself The Score I think around 2001 or 2000 and that’s when I pitched an idea to be a “Man On The Street” in July of 2001.  So the segment, I guess, debuted on a weekend highlight show was on a Sunday night at like 11:55 a.m…err p.m.  It was so late.  The first seven episodes were called On The Street With Cabbie and then I changed it to Cabbie On The street, and that’s how it started.

LH:  Wow, that’s…

CR:  And…sorry, the segment was, I would just go out and ask random Canadians like silly sports questions.  And, and it was, you know, I would make fun of myself.  You know I’m a huge fan of Conan O’Brien and so I’d be self deprecating.  It was never like trivia, it was just like…I’m trying to remember what I would…you know, I would ask like you know “How do people feel about the National Anthem being played before sporting events,” was that was actually the first one that went to air.  I would ask questions like, you know, which tournament they thought was the most exciting, whether it was March Madness or the World Cup, and then I would ask them something really personal about what’s exciting in their own lives.  Like I would do like, really silly and awkward things.

LH:  Right.  And that’s what I really like about your style and how did you decide to pick that, because it’s, it’s so unique right?

CR:  Oh, Thanks.  How did I decide.  Well…well I wasn’t going to make a character.  I, I guess it’s in some ways an amplified version of myself, but I’m kind of like the dumb one in my circle of friends so I would say dumb or awkward things in conversation, and so it’s just an extension of that and keeping it in the world of sports.

LH:  Gotcha.  Did you, did you go back and finish at Ryerson after your second year after you interned? 

CR:  No, I only did three years.

LH:  Oh. Ok.

CR:  So the program was four, so I left after my third year.

LH: Gotcha.  So for, for a woman who would want to do something and be silly, say for example Kate Beirness went up to Kobe Bryant and tried to awkwardly hug him like you do, do you think it would be as funny?  How would she go about doing that?

CR:  Wow.  Good question.  How would Kate…I don’t know that Kate would ever do that.  How would she do that, how would she do that.  See there’s a, there’s a male-female dynamic which, is, makes it tricky to do anything with a certain physicality.  I can get away with it because I’m chubby, and I’m like goofy looking, and Kate is both the opposite of chubby and goofy looking.  Ok, so let me try to answer your question.  How would she, how would she do that…Phew, man I don’t…like maybe if she was wearing one of those like sumo suits maybe he would accept a hug from her?  Nah…I shouldn’t say he would accept, but, maybe that would be…that’d be funny?

LH:  Yah, I could see that.

CR:  Man, my idea sucks right now.

LH:  No, that’s…it’s true because, it’s, it’s really difficult for women to be funny like that.

CR:  No well, Kate can be funny, it’s just the physicality.  A lot of my humor, a lot of my on-camera presence revolves around either invading personal space or actually physically engaging the person that I’m speaking with.  Two devices that I use is I, I invade your space or I touch them as sort of a disarming mechanism to tell them like “hey, we’re the same, like, I know that people revere you, but I’m just going to speak to you as though you are a friend of mine.”

LH:  Ohhhh.

CR:  So Kate could use a, like, a dis, I, I don’t know how she’d disarm them, I mean, she’s, she’s cool as hell, and, she has, she definitely has some charm.  I don’t know how funny she is though.

LH:  That’s awesome.  And then I wanted to know how much preparation you put into your job?

CR:  Ok, so preparation.  I do prepare.  I like to have a roadmap before I go into the interview, just to know where I’m going to go, but it’s not a detailed map.  So I, I’ll prepare like, you know, two or three or four questions and then, and then go from there because I wanna, a) I want the athlete to experience something new as far as a line of questioning, questions go and, and b) like I want them, I just don’t want to totally free-for-all it because then it can go sideways really quickly and I don’t want to waste their time and I don’t wanna just like have all these funny clips which I can’t use on TSN.  So I’m, I’m mindful of that.  So yes, I do go in with a plan.

LH:  Right, awesome.

CR:  And brainstorming really stresses me out.

LH:  Brainstorming really stresses you out?

CR:  Yah! ‘Cuz like, it’s like, what, I’m trying to imagine what an athlete has never done before.  And then so, it’s like what haven’t they done before, what can I get away with, and what would they be willing to do?

LH:  Right.

CR:  So I have those three things constantly, mostly it’s what haven’t they done before, what can I ask this specific person that would be fun or entertaining.  That stresses me out.

LH:  Yah, no.  Well I’m glad I’m not the only one and I’m just sort of starting so.

CR:  Ok, are you doing sort of a similar kind of thing, like light-hearted interviews, like playful, playful interviews?

LH: Well, ultimately, that would, that would be my jam.  I love something that’s different right, because everybody always asks the same questions.

CR:  Yes.

LH:  And with the stuff that you have, like, I used to watch Cabbie On The Street and like NBA XL, and all that stuff right, so it’s like, it’s really, it’s just different.  It’s fresh, it’s funny, you laugh, you know you get a side of the players you don’t normally see, but I’m just starting my Masters program in Journalism, so I’m just sort of starting to like get that going and brainstorming and stuff and I find that, I thought that, I was hoping it would get better as you progress, but yah it’s difficult at first.

CR:  Yah, it’s difficult all the time.  Like, I, I really envy, you know, Fallon and Kimmel and their writing staff and Conan too because like they have, they have these huge platforms and they get to do, like when they come up with ideas and stuff I’m like “Ah man, that’s so kill, I wish I thought of that,” or “I wish,” but you know, I’m just one guy and I have a producer, my man ‘D’, we’re just two guys and we try to come up with stuff, but we have to sort of have to play in that space because I’ve had so much luck with big athletes that people think I can do the same thing as what a Kimmel and a Fallon can do.

LH:  Right.

CR:  Or, or a Funny Or Die.  So we are all, because, YouTube has leveled out the playing field, and, and it’s accessible to everybody regardless of what country or city you live in – that, that levels it out.  So that’s like my competition and I’m getting smashed.

LH:  I don’t think so!

CR:  Those guy, those guys are, those guys are legends!  I’m just trying to stay in the game.


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