Pride Spotlight; Good Rising’s Bryan McMullin

Bryan McMullin is the host of Good Risings, a podcast aimed at “providing the perfect daily practice for anyone looking to lead a more intentional, mindful, and inspired life.” We interviewed Bryan about pride month, Good Risings, and podcasting’s LGBTQIA+ community.

Would you mind telling us a little bit about yourself, maybe something that only a few people know about you?

My icons are Reba McEntire and Buffy. But this is a Pride Spotlight on LGBTQIA+ podcasters so I’m guessing everyone already knew that.

What does pride month mean to you and how do you celebrate?

I grew up in a town where being openly gay was not only unwelcome but dangerous. And then I moved to Los Angeles to be an actor, which (at the time) was an industry where being openly gay meant that you wouldn’t get hired. Beyond that, gay marriage wasn’t legal until I was thirty years old. The widely accepted narrative was that gay couples weren’t equal to straight couples, even beyond the religious union we weren’t granted the same rights. Being deprived of something so foundational as marriage permeated even my most intimate relationships, it twisted my understanding of commitment and connection, and it ate away at my self-worth.

I’ve always perceived myself to be especially strong, unscathed, a “survivor”. I never really considered the idea; To be a “survivor” I must’ve been faced with something I might have not survived. I have countless memories of being harassed and assaulted, dating back to when I was seven or eight years old, but nothing effected me more than the stigma; The narrative of shame, the unusual, the “other”, the “dirty”.

I spent the better part of my life under the weight of that. So, I understand Pride to be the big, loud, outward expression of shedding Shame. It’s a time for this marginalized community to bring those aspects of themselves which have been used against them into the daylight. We’re simply saying, “shame no longer has power here”. It’s not just an important thing to say, it’s an important thing to feel, and it’s an important thing to witness.

Pride’s purpose also ebbs and flows with the political atmosphere. As competing ideals become more extreme, responses become more extreme, and Pride tends to become a reflection of that on one level or another. Then, of course, Pride itself becomes something “they” try to use against us. But— We’re very used to that, aren’t we?

How does being LGBTQIA+ impact your role on Good Risings, if at all.

Everyday we’re being inundated by polarizing information. We’re in the midst of severe divide politically and socially. Our two-party system has both sides doubling down in extremes, where one person’s victory is the other person’s upset. There’s no middle ground. The pendulum sways and the roles are inevitably reversed. Now more than ever, people are so closely identifying with “this” or “that” they can no longer tolerate, let alone engage with, the “other”. Day to day life has become overwhelming. People are caught in a whirlwind and can’t seem to find the ground.

Good Risings is made up of three to four segments every weekday, each of them about five minutes long. It’s meant to be a motivational morning routine. Jacqui (my best-friend) and I host the Grateful Grains segment. We cover a wide array of health and wellness related topics, things which have had an impact on our lives personally, rooted in research but discussed in the context of our own experiences. Our goal is to help our listeners recenter. To help them build a foundation of wellness in their own lives; Physically, Mentally, Relationally, and Spiritually. Planted firmly in their own wellbeing, we believe people are better suited to tackle the seemingly insurmountable tasks that lie before us.

Every aspect of who I am is involved in these conversations and one aspect of who I am is gay. But our show has a vast and diverse audience, which is encouraging. We see that suffering is not exclusive to any one community. We see that people can relate in lieu of their differences. We see a shared desire to heal and grow.

Are there things the podcast industry should be doing differently to support the LGBTQ+ community?

Anyone can have a podcast. And anyone can listen to anyone’s podcast. It’s a no-holds-barred way for the LGBTQ+ community to share and connect, to hear stories that appeal to them, or hear conversations that pertain to them, discussed by people they can relate to.

Of course when it comes to making money, listener base matters. We’re still trying to win over the vast majority of the population who haven’t engaged with the world of podcasting. It’s an entirely different kind of entertainment. The “industry” itself could do a better job of marketing podcasts trough mainstream mediums; In television, in film, in news, and across social platforms. Most podcasters can’t afford to do that themselves, but they also shouldn’t be footing the bill for bringing brand new listeners to the medium.

That said, I’d pose that same challenge back to the LGBTQ+ community. Given that Podcasting is such an open forum where our voices are welcome, we should be supporting our fellow LGBTQ+ creators by tuning in when we can.

What is something you hope to leave your listeners with at the end of each episode?

Our ability to experience lasting fulfillment is intrinsically tied to our physical wellbeing, our mental wellbeing, our relational wellbeing, and our spiritual wellbeing. No one is going to cultivate those things on our behalf.  Our closing slogan is, “a better tomorrow, starts with today”. We’re all about pursuing the best possible life through action. Daily.