30 episodes
Juggalo News Presents: The Carnival Grounds with Madd Maxxx and Reverend Television Maximillian Young
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What is a Juggalo? There's a lot of different answers to that question as it turns out, and most of them have the word "fuck" in them. The short answer is a hardcore fan of the Detroit Wicked Shit Rap duo the Insane Clown Posse, or as they are more colloquially known, ICP. The full answer, however, may surprise you.
People have always assumed that Juggalos are mostly just a bunch of white trash losers who constantly act a fool and do tons of drugs at concerts and their annual festival, The Gathering of the Juggalos. Those people are correct. If you can get past the grit and grime though, you'll be made privy to a world you might have never though possible. Juggalo Culture is a very real and deeply hallowed thing to hundreds of thousands of American men, women and children, if not millions of people the world over. We're looked at as outcasts, and that might be true, but for all of our obsession with Axes, facepaint, and cheap soda pop there is a tangible and powerful energy at the core of this following.
Join two long time adherents of Juggalo Culture, Madd Maxxx and Reverend Television, as they take you on a journey through the smoke and carnival rides of the Juggalo Worldwith a look at Juggalo Culture that very few others could give you. Maxxx, a self proclaimed Juggalo Rapper of nearly 20 years, got his start in 2004 when Violent J flew him to Detroit to see if he wanted to work with him after hearing one of his songs online. Spoiler alert, he didn't. With that said, he has lived, eaten, slept, and breathed Juggalo culture since many years before that moment and every single moment since. The same could be said of Reverend Television, a longtime Juggalo who has been making independent art, music, and movies since the early 2000's. His work is gritty and subversive, and he credits Juggalo Culture as one of his most influential inspirations. This isn't just a couple of dimwits getting stoned and talking about a bunch of stupid shit. Well, it is that, but it's much more than that. This is a much more educated, even academic look at the works of not only just the Insane Clown Posse, but the multitude of other artists and musicians who have at one time or another entered the sphere of Juggalo Culture. Artists like Ice T, Snoop Dog, Eminem, the Beastie Boys, and that's just the famous ones. That doesn't include the dozens if not hundreds of artists out there who work with ICP or have been directly influenced by their work. There is much, much more through the gates on The Carnival Grounds than you could have ever imagined, so step right up and buy your tickets. There'll thrills, chills, and at least a few spills, though they wont be spills you want to be anywhere near. Unless it's some Faygo, of course.
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Episode 30 - IN.....YO....FAAACE!!!!
On this very special (and very long) episode of The Carnival Grounds, Maxxx and the Reverend finally get to discuss at length the first album in the polarizing but profoundly important Second Deck of Joker's Cards, the ineffable BANG! POW! BOOM!
This album served as Maxxx's reintroduction to the wonder and magic of The Dark Carnival, both musically and spiritually, as Maxxx had been very underwhelmed with the culture and with Juggalos at large at the time (mostly due to a negative experience at the GOTJ 2008). This album was the catalyst that reinvigorated Maxxx and countless others, and the proof is in the numbers, as ICP once again found their way into the top of the billboard charts with the release of B!P!B! This episode runs long but the conversation never dulls for a second, they actually get a little heated at one point, but it's all love all the time here at The Carnival Grounds so come check it out. -
Episode 29 - You Aint From Round Here..
On this episode of The Carnival Grounds, Maxxx and the Reverend discuss the seminal Juggalo mixtape series Let Em Bleed Volumes 1 through 4, created by none other than the longtime Juggalo icon DJ Clay. They discuss not only the albums themselves, but also Clays' influence on Juggalo culture over time. To say that his contribution to the culture has been substantial would be an understatement, and his presence continues to be felt to this day. These albums not only solidified DJ Clay as a major player in the scene but it also gave the artists on Psychopathic at the time the ability to make more informal tracks and expand their repetoire as musicians. Definitely not an episode you'll want to miss.
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Episode 28 - Once They're Dead They're Not Coming Back...
On this very special episode of The Carnival Grounds, Maxxx and the Reverend are once again joined (in person this time) by the long time homie and Juggalo Culture aficionado, Mike Landry as we discuss what we believe to be the hands down best Dark Lotus album of all time, The Opaque Brotherhood. We've referenced this album many times throughout the course of the podcast because it is genuinely a favorite, and this episode definitely helps put an emphasis on why that is. Because it was an auspicious occasion, the episode ran long and went onto more tangents than usual, but it's still one you won't wanna miss. No subject is ever out of bounds on The Carnival Grounds.
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Episode 27 - Farther and Farther Away..
On this newest episode of The Carnival Grounds, Maxxx and the Reverend discuss one of the last compilation albums to ever come out of Psychopathic and the third in the series, Psychopathics from Outer Space 3. This album came out at a time when the division in the culture had yet to rear its ugly head, and whether things were peaceful behind the scenes or not, the family still felt as connected as ever. So many long standing classics from each artist came from this album, many of which are still performed today. Take a trip into the past and out into space with us as we discuss every facet of the Juggalo world that we can think of.
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Episode 26 - There Was A Time...
On this episode of The Carnival Grounds, Maxxx and the Reverend discuss the post Tempest EP "The Eye of the Storm" as well as the era of the annual festival The Gathering of the Juggalos that is known as the Hogrock era. Hogrock was the name of the venue where the Gathering was held from 2007 until 2013, and it was, for lack of a better term, lawless. This was the birthplace of the infamous "drug bridge" as well as many aspects of the culture that resonate to this day. We were in rare form on this one, so come check it out.
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Episode 25 - This Shit Aint For Rookie Kids
On this episode of The Carnival Grounds, Maxxx and the Reverend discuss Shaggy 2 Dope's second solo album, the incomparable Fuck the Fuck Off or F.T.F.O. as it is colloquially known. This album is light years beyond the first and is absolutely one of the best projects Psychopathic Records have ever released. From the amazing beats to the stellar delivery of his always original style of lyricism, this project was a beam of light and hope in what was a somewhat uncertain and dark period in the history of Juggalo Culture. The album is packed stem to stern with bangers, proving once again that although Violent J is clearly the creative force behind much of ICP's work, Shaggy is no slouch by any quantifiable measure and can create authentic and dynamic work that stands the test of time.