Combat Jack host Reggie Ossé says that he’s been called the “Charlie Rose of hip-hop,” fitting for someone who imagines his ideal TV show would draw from the minimalist and intimate style of the Charlie Rose show.
Ossé’s first try at turning his podcast into a show on Complex TV taught him that this is a process he needs to handle with a lot of care. In our latest So What Do You Do feature, Reggie Ossé discusses what it takes to build and keep an audience, and his approach to creating a TV show in the future:
[I’m] taking something and really bringing depth and intelligence and human interest to it. So I really want to continue on that trajectory, but I also realize that it’s very difficult to expand my brand to other mediums. I think Complex did a good job, but there was a huge backlash from my core audience initially. So I really can’t jump at every opportunity that comes my way because it’s a check or a broader platform. Not saying that that’s what I did with Complex, but I learned through my experience that I have to be more mindful. Being on a podcast platform, you really develop a unique, intimate relationship with your audience, and it’s so intimate that if you deviate even slightly it could damage that relationship.Advertisement
For more from Ossé, including what he’s learned from Kanye and Jay Z, read, So What Do You Do, Reggie Ossé, Host of The Combat Jack Show?