As a child, I dreamed of being a TV show host. I loved watching David Letterman and Johnny Carson as a kid. I loved game shows and talk shows.
I have always loved TV & movies. I have even had the honor to entertain numerous celebrities through the years (most memorable; I was hired by Warner Brothers to entertain the cast of the BATMAN vs SUPERMAN movie for their wrap party in Detroit, Michigan. Each time I'd fly to Hollywood or New York, I'd sit in LIVE audience of a lot of shows, dreaming of being in their shoes; Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, Craig Ferguson, Jimmy Kimmel, David Letterman, Judge Mathis, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy and sitcoms.
I will be super real. As my adult years went on, I stopped sharing that dream with others because I feared it never becoming reality. I feared failure. I did quit dreaming.
However, it was not until this past year that I was reminded of that dream. I was invited to a meeting at Exploring Digital in Atlanta Georgia. They were telling me about a TV show they wanted to launch and asked if I would be the host of the show. I sat next to my wife squeezing her leg trying to play it cool as I said, "yes, of course." Inside, my mind was flooding with memories of the times I dreamed about this as a young kid and sitting in LIVE audiences watching many of MY talk/game show influencers.
That dream became reality at 50 years old. In between my tour schedule of speaking in schools and performing my Kindness Wins Comedy Magic Tour, we filmed season 1 of NFNCD (pronounced, INFLUENCED) with 2X Emmy award winner, Nathaniel Nuon. The best way I can describe the style of our show is, imagine if Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show and MTV's Ridiculousness had a baby, that would be our show. I have the honor to interview the biggest influencers on the planet like; MamaTot (Ophelia Nicholes, Kevin Eudy, cosplay stars Juju & Lulu, James Smith (Lion Dad), Charlotte Ann Tucker (child actress), The McCarty Family, Danielle Claudio (Cheer Choice Awards & Spread The Cheer USA, Founder), Ty Garcia, the Guinness book world record holder for shortest comedian at 3' 3" Tanyalee Davis, Natalie Rose (girl with a million jobs), John Di Domenico (Trump, Jay Leno, Austin Powers impersonator).
This seriously was the most fun project I have ever done in my life. Yes, this even beats performing magic at the Cheer Choice Awards two years ago having my former childhood crush, Paula Abdul sit in the front row. Sorry Paula. It also beats recently being featured in LA WEEKLY for being a TOP 10 influencer making impact in 2023 and having Mrs Universe 2023 (Ashley Tesoro) and her family watch my comedy magic show (headlining in Las Vegas) at a brand new luxury venue, Ahern Hotel. Which by the way, were all super cool experiences.
In a TV show format like NFLNCD, nothing like this has ever been done before. People are use to seeing talk shows interviewing a-list celebrities, but not social media influencers (which by the way, in many cases, the influencers have more followers on social media than the previous mentioned).
The NFLNCD TV show is a way for viewers to get an in-depth look at their favorite influencers beyond what their channel puts out and learn about some new influencers and personalities that they may want to start following. I love asking the influencers who influenced them and who are they influencing. We have a ton of fun on the set of the show.
Season 1 is currently in post production and the show is currently being pitched to major streaming platforms (Netflix, Hulu, etc) and TV networks (NBC, ABC, MTV, FOX and more) Fingers crossed, big things ahead.
What is YOUR dream? My next dream is being a guest on the Tonight Show (Jimmy Fallon is my talk show hero). Never stop dreaming, or at least never think you're too old.
Written by :: Tom Coverly
