Chatter that Matters

Tony Chapman
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Chatter That Matters is an award-winning podcast that champions human perseverance and the power of possibility, countering the storm of negativity and the growing sense of impossibility. Hall of Famer Inductee Tony Chapman hosts the show and shares inspiring stories of individuals overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges to make things happen. Guests include athletes, artists, activists, entrepreneurs, immigrants, refugees, survivors, and leaders from all walks of life. Through these stories, listeners gain powerful life lessons and insights that inspire them to chase their dreams and achieve what they want, need, and deserve. In doing so, we learn life lessons that help us chase our dreams.

  1. Brian Scudamore - Willing to Fail

    3 DAYS AGO

    Brian Scudamore - Willing to Fail

    I open my 2026 season with fireworks of positivity. One of the best Chatter that Matters yet. A human journey marked with humility, humour and extraordinary. Someone knuckles decided to knock on the door of opportunity.  What does a Dragon, Best Selling Author, a McDonald's drive-through, a beat-up pickup truck, and a simple multi-million-dollar question have in common? 1-800-GOT-JUNK? The one and only Brian Scudamore. Brian turned hauling junk into a $700 million empire by embracing a mindset he calls "WTF, willing to fail". His story is more than a business case study; it is a profoundly human one, marked by courage, doubt, family pressure, leadership missteps, and the power of seeing possibility where others see nothing. Brian shares how firing his entire team saved his company, why culture is the ultimate competitive moat, and how systems, not people, fail. He opens about the moment his accomplished father said, "I'm proud of you,". If you are an entrepreneur, a leader, a parent, someone young searching for their ladder to climb, or quietly wondering whether there is another path to follow, this conversation will stay with you long after it ends. A special thanks and love to RBC for continuing to support the sharing of human stories that matter. Stories of ordinary becoming extraordinary. As you listen, and if you have young adults around, listen together and then ask yourself two questions that changed everything for Brian Scudamore. What if?  and Are you Willing to Fail? Happy New Year's, Everyone.  Thanks for listening, and here's to a fabulous 2026.

    40 min
  2. Canada - It's Now or Never

    5 DAYS AGO

    Canada - It's Now or Never

    Dear Canada. It is now or never. In this fifteen-minute podcast, I state that we stand at a crossroads. A century ago, the world emerged from the trenches of war and the shadow of a brutal pandemic. The optimism of the Roaring Twenties gave way to recklessness. We gambled our destiny, left it to chance, and crashed in 1929. Prosperity built on illusion never lasts. Today, we face another critical time. The first quarter-century of this millennium has not been gentle, from the shock of 9/11, to the 2008 financial collapse, to pandemics, October 7, Ukraine, and a steady erosion of our freedoms. While other nations seized their decade, Canada lost theirs. This is not partisan politics. It is our lived reality. Look around at food insecurity, job uncertainty, unaffordability, unchecked crime, and antisemitism spilling into schools, malls, streets, and places of worship, often met with a shrug by those in power. A feeling of impossibility, massive cracks in our confederation, and the Western Provinces squeezed, yet abandoned. A decade of scathing Auditor General reports, with most buried in the shadows, without a flashlight in sight. I end my podcast by saying our story is not over. I read a letter to Mark Carney. Why? There is no doubt in my mind that our footloose and party-free style of democracy will give the Liberals a majority. The pen remains in his and our hands. Canadians can still choose destiny over chance, but only with courage, unity, and conviction. Mark Carney has to make a choice. Continue more of the same and risk the fracture of this country, or earn his place among our greatest Prime Ministers by changing our course. In my letter, I offer my thoughts on how. Champion ideas over ideology. Restore critical thinking, law and order, and stand firmly against antisemitism and all forms of hate. Pursue smart immigration that welcomes those who will enrich our nation while sharing our values and respect for one another. Recommit to true reconciliation with Indigenous peoples and rebuild bridges with the West so all feel part of a united Canada. And practice fiscal stewardship, because we cannot borrow our way to greatness. I even derail a $100 billion plan to connect Montreal and Ottawa with high-speed rail in favour of connecting Canadian IP and our resources to the world. R&D, Patents, Refurbished ports, Pipelines and more. Mark Carney, don't chase the comfort of ideology or the safety of a base. Choose Canada, all of Canada. If you do, history will remember your name. Canada, it's now or never. Tony Chapman

    13 min
  3. Dr. Stuart Gillespie - Food Fight

    25/12/2025

    Dr. Stuart Gillespie - Food Fight

    Our global food system is feeding more people than ever, yet some argue it is also making more people sick, more unequal, and more vulnerable. How did we get here, and more importantly, how do we change course? In this timely and deeply human conversation, global nutrition expert Dr. Stuart Gillespie joins Chatter that Matters to unpack the forces shaping what we eat, who profits, and who pays the price. Drawing on decades of frontline experience across India, Africa, and within the United Nations, Gillespie blends memoir and manifesto to expose the structural realities behind ultra-processed foods, corporate power, broken policy, and the growing tension between undernutrition and obesity worldwide. This is not a theoretical discussion. It is a grounded exploration of food justice, political will, activism, and the difficult trade-offs facing governments, industry, and consumers alike. Gillespie challenges the idea that individual choice alone can fix systemic problems, and makes a compelling case for coordinated, courageous action. The conversation expands to Canada's role in shaping the future of food, with insights from Lisa Ashton, Agricultural Policy Lead at RBC. She shares how Canada's agricultural strength, innovation capacity, and collaborative ecosystems can help drive healthier, more equitable food systems at home and globally. If you care about health, sustainability, equity, or the future we are building through the food we produce and consume, this episode will change how you see your plate. Listen now, and join the conversation about what comes next.   To purchase Dr. Gillespie's Book Food Fight:  https://www.indigo.ca/en-ca/food-fight-from-plunder-and-profit-to-people-and-planet/9781443475297.html

    37 min
  4. Pierre Mousseau - From the Ashes

    18/12/2025

    Pierre Mousseau - From the Ashes

    In this profoundly moving episode of Chatter That Matters, I sit down with Pierre Mousseau to talk about loss, grief, faith, and the long road back to meaning after tragedy. During the height of the pandemic, Pierre lost his 20-year-old son, Parker, after weeks of surgeries, setbacks, and moments that felt like miracles, followed by an impossible decision no parent should ever have to make. To say there is no more, to say goodbye to their child. Pierre speaks openly about watching his son fight, signing the papers to let him go, the guilt that followed, and the silence that filled every corner of his life afterward. He shares how grief became both his armour and his prison, how depression nearly claimed him too, and how a moment on a dark country road forced him to choose between ending his life and continuing it for those who still needed him. From the Ashes is not just a story of loss. It is a story of what can rise from it. Pierre reflects on rebuilding faith after anger and doubt, on unexpected moments of spiritual connection, and on how love, purpose, and responsibility reshaped his marriage, his leadership, and his view of what truly matters. He also speaks candidly about masculinity, vulnerability, and why men, especially, need permission to talk about grief instead of carrying it alone. This episode is for anyone searching for light after darkness. It is a reminder that while grief may never leave us, it need not define the end of our story. Sometimes, from the ashes, something meaningful can still grow.   To purchase the book: From the Ashes: A Father's Journey Through Grief, Grace and Faith https://a.co/d/a82HrgI

    34 min
  5. Karla Briones - Dream Weaver

    11/12/2025

    Karla Briones - Dream Weaver

    Some people dream. Others help weave those dreams. This episode is about two women who refuse to separate the two. It begins with Karla Briones. Raised in an entrepreneurial family in Chihuahua, Mexico, her first business was a schoolyard candy empire at six years old. Then the drug cartels arrived. Threats followed. Friends disappeared. At eighteen, her family dismantled their entire life and drove nearly four thousand kilometres to Canada with no safety net, no jobs, no guarantees. What followed was survival. Credentials did not transfer. Her parents fell into depression. Karla became a provider before she had finished becoming a student. Three jobs. A new language. University. Failure. Grit. Then entrepreneurship again. Pet stores. Restaurants. Retail. Some worked. Some collapsed. All of them taught her the same lesson: everyone can use and benefit from a helping hand. That lesson eventually became Immigrant Entrepreneur Canada to help weave the dreams of others. One of the many who benefited is Lina Asmah, the Hot Pepper Lady.  From Ghana to Canada, Lina carried fire in both food and spirit. She works full-time. She farms. She grows over 160 varieties of peppers.  Her turning point came at a last-minute event she almost skipped. Karla spoke. Lina applied. She entered Immigrant Entrepreneur Canada and found something rare, a system that did not talk about immigrants as numbers, but as builders. She found mentors. She found clarity. She found momentum. She found her dream. Lina also named something most people feel but rarely say out loud: we listen to accents before we listen to ideas. Inside that community, she found her voice again. Immigration Entrepreneur Canada and Karla Briones are helping newcomers weave their dreams.   To find out more about Immigration Entrepreneur Canada:  https://www.immigrantentrepreneurcanada.ca

    44 min
  6. Gordon Lownds - Cracking Up

    04/12/2025

    Gordon Lownds - Cracking Up

    I went in, and she was sitting there in a motel room with a kilo of cocaine on the bed and two bikers helping her break it down into smaller bags. That was the insanity I was living in. Gordon Lownds has lived multiple lives. He grew up in Toronto and clashed with his father and an older brother who bullied him until he finally fought back at sixteen. That was the moment he said, enough. He left home, hustled at carnivals, and learned some of the sharpest business lessons you will ever hear. He packed in a philosophy degree, then an MBA, and turned out to be a brilliant business mind. By his forties, he had co-founded Sleep Country Canada with Stephen Gunn and Christine Magee, and later Listen Up Canada. These companies reshaped how Canadians sleep and how they hear. At the height of his success, on his forty-eighth birthday in 1998, Gordon tried crack cocaine for the first time. It was day one of a thousand-day descent into hell that nearly destroyed everything he loved and all he had built and cost him over a million dollars in drugs. What happened after is a rare and remarkable story of recovery, resilience, reinvention and redemption.   To buy Gordon Lownds' Book: Cracking Up: From Rising Star to Junkie Despair in 1,000 Days-An Unlikely Addict's Memoir - https://www.indigo.ca/en-ca/cracking-up-from-rising-star-to-junkie-despair-in-1000-days-an-unlikely-addicts-memoir/9781990700798.html

    36 min
  7. Debra Meyerson and Steve Zuckerman: Identity Theft

    27/11/2025

    Debra Meyerson and Steve Zuckerman: Identity Theft

    As you listen to the show, I encourage you to step into Debra E. Meyerson's shoes.  Debra had a dream life: a tenured professorship at Stanford, a reputation as a groundbreaking scholar on organizational change and identity, and big adventures with her husband, social finance leader Steve Zuckerman, including sailing across Europe with their three kids. Then, at 53, a stroke changed everything. In the first 48 hours, Steve watched the Debra he knew slip away.  Her speech, her mobility, and everything she took for granted.  After her medical leave expired, her academic career, one she had spent a lifetime building, was taken away. Debra and Steve sit down and share what happens when life happens in an unexpected manner. You will hear Debra struggle to form the sentences she wants to communicate, and Steve talk about what it means to rebuild lives that will never be the same. You will celebrate how they moved from crisis and almost depression to purpose as they create Stroke Onward to support the emotional side of recovery - how Debra found the strength to write her book Identity Theft, and why they took on a 4.500 mile tandem bike ride across America to raise awareness and funds. If you have ever faced a before-and-after moment or loved someone whose life changed in a split second, or you want to feel the power of human positivity, Debra and Steve's story will stay with you long after the episode ends.

    33 min
  8. Mike Kessel - Living Long and Well

    20/11/2025

    Mike Kessel - Living Long and Well

    Recorded in front of a sold out crowd at the Toronto Hunt, this episode captures the energy of a live audience and a message every Canadian needs to hear. We are living longer, and more of us will reach 100, yet our healthcare system is under strain and our daily choices matter more than ever. My guest, Mike Kessel, CEO of Cleveland Clinic Canada, brings a clear and practical view of what it means to live long and live well. He explains why lifestyle drives most of our health outcomes and how simple habits like movement, sleep, and lowering stress can add years to our lives. He takes us inside the future of virtual care and remote diagnostics and shows how rapidly medical knowledge is accelerating. His message is simple. We are each the CEO of our own wellbeing, and the small decisions we make today shape the life we get to enjoy tomorrow. Mike frames healthcare in the most human way possible, as the business of creating more meaningful moments with the people we love. After Mike, Leanne Kaufman, President and CEO of RBC Royal Trust, joins me to share why planning for the later chapters of life matters just as much as planning for your health. Because living longer only works when we prepare for it. A powerful and timely episode for anyone who wants to understand how to live not just longer, but better.

    39 min
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5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Chatter That Matters is an award-winning podcast that champions human perseverance and the power of possibility, countering the storm of negativity and the growing sense of impossibility. Hall of Famer Inductee Tony Chapman hosts the show and shares inspiring stories of individuals overcoming seemingly insurmountable challenges to make things happen. Guests include athletes, artists, activists, entrepreneurs, immigrants, refugees, survivors, and leaders from all walks of life. Through these stories, listeners gain powerful life lessons and insights that inspire them to chase their dreams and achieve what they want, need, and deserve. In doing so, we learn life lessons that help us chase our dreams.

Information

  • Creator
    Tony Chapman
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    327
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2019 Tony Chapman
  • Show Website
    Chatter that Matters

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