Bad Idea Social Club

Shyle Lyons (founder, Merchants & Makers ) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they talk about the unexpected connection between social work and building markets that bring people together, the cult-ish world of multi-level marketing, and the slimy realities of generative AI and its growing threat to working artists. Making a living is one thing. Giving a hoot is another. Keep up with Shyle...

Jason Ley (writer, author) shares his story with Aaron McCall as they talk about healing through creativite expression, overcoming his abusive relationship with alcohol, and finding courage, strength, and forgiveness in putting pen to paper. Sometimes a laugh is the mask. And sometimes it’s the only real thing in the room. Keep up with Jason Ley: jasonley.com IG: @jasonley Creative Mornings Grand...

Marcus Assenmacher (musician, songwriter, producer, Twin Phase , SayHeySounds ) shares his story with Aaron McCall as they talk about the magic and the broken business of making music, creative obsession, and the blurry line between making art and living life. Kinda funny how the thing you love most can make you forget why you loved it in the first place. But not haha funny. Keep up with Marcus As...

Tanya Avoundjian (creative director, designer, Stout Collective ) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they talk about wearing her Armenian-American identity and what it shaped in her, getting her hands dirty as a creative director who doesn’t fit the Don Draper mold, and the “what if” as a creative philosophy. She started by illustrating forum avatars for fake gold and look at her now. Keep up w...

Midnight Society: A Poster Show Saturday, October 17, 2026 Coopersville Brewing Company Coopersville, Michigan Get Directions 13 ARTISTS. 13 POSTERS. 1 CREATIVE BRIEF. Midnight is when everything is still enough to hear the noise and the silence all at once. The day resets, but nothing resolves. Ideas creep in, doubts get louder, anxiety vibrates and the unknown shifts shapes. It sits on our chest...

Riley Dompierre (photographer, sewist, creative nomad) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they talk about keeping creativity wild and untamed, the idealism and reality of living in a commune, and the relationship between creativity and humanity. Five foot two and completely unafraid. Keep up with Riley Dompierre: IG: @thimbleandgruff Creative Mornings Grand Rapids Monthly lecture series. Everyo...

David Martinez (drummer, Tidals , Second Body ) shares his story with Aaron McCall as they talk about rediscovering drumming after a decade, changing relationships with people, alcohol, and creativity, and not letting anybody or anything else define you. Dave and Aaron are old friends and bandmates from ~20 years ago; their music was loud and fast and their jeans were so tight. So. Tight. Keep up...

Abbie Lemke (comedian, writer, Off Air) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they talk about living with and masking an invisible disability, comedy as survival, writing a TV show with little to no resources, and not changing who you are for anybody. She’s been on stage over 1,000 times and she’s just getting started. Keep up with Abbie Lemke: abbielemke.com IG: @abbielemkellc IG: @offairtheshow...

Kayla Turpin (film photographer) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they talk about living and capturing the real, messy, unposed moments, the hunger for internal and external validation, and weighing authenticity against posturing. Wind in the hair, tears on the lens, Kayla opens up about all of it. Keep up with Kayla Turpin: kaylaturpin.com IG: @kaylaturpinphoto Creative Mornings Grand Rapids...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Leigh Ann Cobb: Awkward Art Kid" from Season 4. Leigh Ann Cobb (photographer) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they discuss going from an awkward art kid to an awkward art grown-up, what it takes to keep her sense of self a...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Courtney Lauer: The Hurry and The Harm" from Season 6. Courtney Lauer (graphic designer, artist) shares her story with Aaron McCall and talks about survival, control, and the strength it takes to turn pain into something honest....

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Khalid Ibrahim: In Love & Focus" from Season 2. Khalid Ibrahim (photographer, Eat Pomegranate ) opens up with Aaron McCall about connecting with his subjects, balancing his creativity with his life as an epidemiologist, and...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Alyssa Pacheco: Mirror Mirror" from Season 4. Alyssa Pacheco (poet, author, artist) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they discuss the deeply personal nature of her work. Alyssa opens up about the influence of her family dyn...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Scott Millington: Real AF" from Season 5. Scott Millington (photographer) has always had an eye for real-life moments and in photography, he found the language to document them. Scott sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about ho...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Rae Lang: Outsider" from Season 5. Rae Lang (artist, Woosah Outfitters & Outside Coffee Co.) talks with Aaron McCall about carving a life that’s slower, wilder, and closer to the woods. They get into Rae’s evolution as an ar...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Trash Hadley: To Be Fuckable" from Season 3. Trish Hadley (boudoir photographer) shares her story with Aaron McCall as they discuss the mutual vulnerability and trust in boudoir photography,  the varied motivations of her subjec...

Part of our REWIND summer series, we’re revisiting eight conversations that crawled into our brains and hearts, nested, and just live there now. This time, it’s "Marcel Fable Price: The Poet and The Price" from Season 5. Poet, storyteller, and former Grand Rapids Poet Laureate Marcel Fable Price joins Aaron McCall for a raw and deeply honest conversation about creativity, mental health,...

In the conclusion of the season 7 finale, Anna van Schaap (fine artist, tattoo artist, curator) sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about building a creative life that refuses to be small. She gets into finding her voice and claiming her space out of passion and defiance, and carving out something different for women and queer folks in an industry with a history of the opposite. They talk about ar...

To kick-off the two-part season 7 finale, Anna van Schaap (fine artist, tattoo artist,  curator) sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about building a creative life that refuses to be small. She gets into finding her voice and claiming her space out of passion and defiance, and carving out something different for women and queer folks in an industry with a history of the opposite. They talk about a...

Sara Pulver (illustrator, muralist, Dear Ollie) sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about knowing who you are and building something around it. She gets into a lifelong love of tactile, handmade things that eventually turned into markets, a grant, and a stationery shop where she hosts her own work alongside over a hundred vendors with a focus on women and queer creators. They talk about tackling m...

Luke Grill (chef, restaurateur, sommelier, 1983 Restaurants) sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about what it means to build something people can feel. He gets into cutting his teeth in some of the most demanding kitchens in the country, how dangerous it is to follow the crowd, and why holding his convictions is non-negotiable. They talk about the tension between art and business, building spaces...

Mark Stein (artist, illustrator) joins Aaron McCall to talk about what it takes to go all in on your work and the cost of pushing too hard. He gets into growing up on cartoons, punk and skate culture, the wake-up calls that changed everything, and why being a lone wolf will only get you so far. They talk about finding creative community, imposter syndrome, getting out from behind your desk, and wh...

AB (DJ, creative) sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about confidence, rejection, and how your sense of self evolves as you move through new experiences. He gets into music as both expression and connection, the push and pull of reading a room while staying true to your own voice, and how failure, fatherhood, and life experience shaped the way he moves through the world. They talk creativity, sel...

Joel Hoekstra (cook, musician, owner of Meyer Music) hosts Aaron McCall for dinner as they discuss creativity, instinct, and finding room to breathe inside the things that matter most. He gets into the connection between food and music, how growth comes from pushing beyond structure, and how both create joy, healing, and a real sense of community when they’re done with care. As a music education a...

Hannah Berry (artist, founder of Lions & Rabbits) sits down with Aaron McCall to talk about community, creativity, and the work happening between the cracks. She gets into turning art into real community impact, building something without a clear roadmap, and why creative people are often the ones holding solutions that nobody is listening to yet. They talk about collaboration, economic and co...