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Hi Erman. You seem to always have a lot going on in your world. What have you learned most about yourself since we last interviewed you?
I’ve definitely developed more into what I’m becoming. A shift in mindset. I don’t care about a lot of things anymore. That sounds harsh but I mean I’m not concerned with a lot of things. I don’t chase red carpets, I don’t chase premieres, I don’t chase parties in the Hollywood Hills. Of course, when the day comes I work on big industry projects, all that will come organically. But I don’t want to be defined by all that. They won’t be part of my identity. I can lay my head each night knowing I had a genuine impact on someone. You know those people who want to have as many Getty photos as possible even though they already have 50 under their belts? For me, I’m just concerned about laying down the foundation to honor my lineage, give back to my family, and create a legacy for my future wife and kids. All the glitzy stuff is extra. I couldn’t even tell you who half the artists are on the radio nowadays. I probably should because I work in entertainment, but for me, I’m just staying laser focused. I tune out a lot of extra noise around me. Is this what you call maturity?
Have you experienced any major changes in the last year?
Yeah, my friend told me the other day I lost weight. It’s a diet plan mostly done by actors and writers. It’s called the “struggling artist” diet. Let me break it down. You wake up in the morning grateful that you woke up at all. That devolves into “WTF am I doing, man?” That’s followed up by “You know, this will all make sense in the end.” You’re back to being in a good mood. Then, you grab coffee or tea with a buddy you said you’d meet for breakfast two months ago and are meeting out of obligation. You skip lunch for the day because it’s between that and, well, the bills. At night, you go to an event and if you’re cute enough then you’re offered two or three drinks. This adds to your caloric intake for the day. At 2am, a handful of you grab a late night bite at a diner, and that’s your big meal for the day. Fun fact, you never see these people again. Lastly, you go home and look at your receipts and instantly regret what you purchased. Finally, you knock out. The cool part is you get to repeat this all over again the next day! I guess the short answer is “yes.” Oh, were you specifically talking about work?
You seem to maintain a certain level of humor!
Everything is funny to me. Something goes wrong, I laugh. A lot of problems are temporary. Just laugh. I’m never serious during interviews. You’re having a good time, right? Let’s have a great time.
What are you working on now? We know your poetry book is already out. Do you have follow ups to that?
I’m working on myself. Yeah, no, I’m expanding creatively and brand-wise. My industry events are still going, but more recently I’ve found a bigger passion in bringing people together on a smaller scale. I’ve already expanded into most continents without penguins, but I’ve done so this past year with dinner events. Dinner with Strangers is a way for people in big cities to come together for a meal in hopes they become friends. And hopefully no one in the bunch is a serial killer. But really, it’s meant to boost people’s mental health, self-esteem, and confidence. Imagine you’re in a big city surrounded by millions but you don’t have friends. That’s what we’re here for. Our best results so far have been Cork, Ireland; Washington D.C.; Manhattan, Los Angeles; Toronto; and Athens. We’ll be in various parts of France, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Australia, and anywhere I see myself visiting. We have a residency in Nashville at a bar on Broadway for weekly dinners, so that’s cool because I love country music. It’s really an excuse to be in cities I want to enjoy.
Going off of that, my friends and I are developing a doc series called “Lunch with Strangers.” We’re traveling to various cities – mostly hidden gems and quaint towns you wouldn’t think of – and finding people on the street who’d be open to grabbing lunch with us. During lunch we interview them on life and career and get to know them on a deeper level. We learn of their burdens and life goals, and if it’s within our means, we surprise them in the end with something special. We film our first episode this fall. Where will it go? Who knows. If it’s just a fun social media passion project, that’s fine.
I’m also going to start writing a comedy-drama that is a super heightened version of my own story navigating the entertainment and social scene in LA. It’s about my favorite person ever – me! – who feels he’s peaked after several years in Los Angeles, so he heads off to Miami where he’s a complete fish out of water. Imagine being called “top networker in Hollywood” then essentially starting over when landing in Miami. I wanted to examine two cutthroat cities that have similarities but are also extremely different. In real life, I’m expanding operations to Miami, but while there I’m writing this. Here’s the kicker. I’m writing the script in real time. I’ll be there for a few months and everything I’m experiencing is going in there. Fall flat on my face during dates? It’s going in there. Look like a loser at the hottest club in the city? You bet it’s going in there. It’s called “The Most Interesting Man You Never Met.” It’s a long a** title for a fairly simple premise, but it plays on how we meet people but never really get to know them. That’s me I think. A lot of people meet me, but not everyone truly meets me.
There’s also a horror short in post-production right now that my collaborators hope will become a feature. I can’t give you the title right now because it’s based on an urban legend and I don’t want to spoil it this far in advance. I worked with my colleague and frequent collaborator Brandon Waites under his banner W8S Entertainment. Brandon also co-wrote, directed, and produced it. I came on as co-producer. And since I already started shouting them out, I might as well go all in. It was co-written by Jason Rice, being edited by Robert John Morales, produced and DP’d by Peter Fuhrman, executive produced by Sean Purdy, Stephanie Waites, Taylor Clarke, also co-produced by Francisco J. Landin, and associate produced by Oscar Rene Coronado. Brandon and I love giving first timers a chance, so it’s cool to see Brandon’s daughter, Gabby, in the lead role for this. His whole family starred in it! You’ll see his wife Stephanie, his son Adryan, and his other daughter Skyla in it as well. Other supporting cast members include Israel Brewer, Samantha Callicutt, and Janet Squire.
You asked me about a follow up to my last poetry book, “Bad Times & Goodbyes.” That’s still on Barnes & Noble online. Right now, I’m knee deep in my follow up but there’s no set date for it yet. I’m just living more life at the moment to be able to add depth to the writing. It’ll continue on the themes of growing up and the hardships that come with it.
I’m also in the process of spending time in Nashville with a musician friend of mine. There’s a script I’m playing around with in my head. The movie usually dictates the soundtrack, but I wanted to try something in reverse! The music will dictate where the writing goes. Will it make the process harder? Probably. But I’m usually throwing spaghetti at the wall anyway and seeing what chaos sticks around.
Well, you might consider it “throwing spaghetti at the wall, “ but it’s great that you have your hands on different things rather than sticking to one thing. With all this going on do you have time for dating?
I’m always open to it. I don’t see anything wrong personally with being busy while balancing romance. I don’t want to push anyone away then when I’m 60 I’m like, “So here I am, ladies! Finally available!” No. But I know what I like and what I want. The two most attractive things to me are communication and discipline. If you only reply to me once a month, nah, I’m good. You make the vetting process easier for me. When it comes to discipline, if you say you want one thing but your actions say otherwise, it’s a massive turnoff. For example, if what you want in a man is at Step 10, but your bad habits keep bringing you back to Step 1, then you’re doing yourself a big disservice. Leave me out of it. Also, another huge part of my journey is being surrounded by so many beautiful people all the time yet being committed to abstinence. That can definitely limit my reach, but hey, I guess it’d filter out the right person. Look, I’m a future millionaire. I don’t want baby mama drama to get in the way of my destiny and sucking up my resources, but I also wouldn’t want to bring a good woman into a situation in which there’s drama. So, despite being around so many attractive people, I practice abstaining from a lot of things. I don’t need a whole kindergarten like Nicholas S. Cannon, and I don’t want all these different moms coming to pick up their kids.
Cheers to thinking long term! Speaking of which, what’s next for Erman?
Probably going on a bathroom break after this. But also, each year I’m part of the annual HorrOrigins Film Festival in Tucson. I’m back to hosting it at the end of September. If you’re into horror films, come on through. I also have my own film festival called Artist Emerged, and this is under the umbrella of Ethos Film Awards. Think a festival within a festival. It’s still in its early stages, so I look forward to it being bigger than Cannes. Just kidding, but one can dream.
Erman, always good to catch up with you.
Thanks for having me. Maybe next time I’ll be an astronaut or N** player, something realistic.
Find Erman on social media @ermanbaradi.
