How To Be Epic with Jorge Rivera-Herrans - Access Denied S2 Ep 9

That one song took me over a year to really crack the code. Hey y'all, it's your host Jessica Jordan, and I'm here on Access Denied, the podcast dedicated to helping you get over your fear of rejection one episode at a time. Let's go. Hey y'all, and welcome back to a brand new episode of Access Denied. Today's guest is truly epic, and we talk about everything from how scary it can be to change your career to what it's like to create with the world watching. This is a can't-miss episode, and it's with the one, the only Jorge Rivera Erenss. I am so excited to have him on today. This is a can't-miss episode, y'all. Stay tuned. Jorge, welcome to Access Denied. How are you doing today? Oh my goodness, I am doing so well. It is so good to be here, Jessica. Thank you so much for inviting me. Oh my god, I am so freaking excited to have you on the pod. We have crossed paths before in the past. We have, we have. It's so great to finally get to talk for longer, you know? Likewise. 100%. Like I was thinking in my preparation for this episode, actually, and I feel like your listeners and my listeners might like this little anecdote or whatever, but the first time I was introduced to you was backstage. We were both involved in a school production of Grease. That was when we first— that was almost a decade ago, almost. Wow. Wow. So we go way back. We go way back. Wow. Oh, I was— oh my god, I didn't have a beard yet then. You were so young. Yeah, that— oh my gosh. I still had longer hair than I do now, you know? I had like the guitar. Oh my gosh, that's amazing. I love that. I love that. That's when we met. It was. And I have such a distinct memory of you and Rachel singing Hamilton backstage, just on repeat. And I was just like, "Okay, I don't know this yet, but I kind of like this vibe." So, because Hamilton had just come out, too. Like, it was— that's true. Yeah. Yeah. Wow. Oh my gosh, it's been so much time. That's amazing. I'm so— well, I'm so glad to reunite after all this time. Likewise. Likewise. But that is to say, your experience in musical theater clearly goes way back, and I'm sure even beyond Grease. So, that's really cool. Thank you. Yeah, you know, I did some, like, when I was in high school, my high school had productions of like Alice in Wonderland. I was— what's it called? The March Hare in that. We did, um, what was it? Fame. I think I was— I forget his name. Nathan Detroit? No, that's not Fame. I think it's Guys and Dolls. I don't know. We did some musicals. I'm forgetting. You know how it goes when you ask like, "Oh, what were you in?" and then you just forget every single thing. But yeah. So, I was in Guys and Dolls. I did some Fame. We did some Alice in Wonderland. We did Into the Woods. That was my first ever musical, so it holds a special place in my heart. No. Okay. Wait, what character were you in Into the Woods? I was— so, I was in sixth grade, so imagine me much shorter and a lot cuter, right? With your cheeks, you know? I was Prince Charming at the time, and Cinderella and everybody was significantly taller than me. So, it's like me and Cinderella. I'm like, "Yeah." Wait, that's amazing. Oh my god. I had been in, like, little class things here and there, but that was my first time where I was like, "Oh yeah, we're doing a musical on stage with auditions and, you know, it's going to be presented in front of the whole school and everyone's parents." So, that was, you know, my first foot in musical theater. You know, that's crazy, too, because Into the Woods is such a hard show. Yeah, it was the junior version, so I think it ends with act one, so there's no act two for it. That's probably best considering the— I didn't know. Oh my gosh. So, that rocked my mind, by the way, because I didn't know that there was an act two until years later. I was like, "Yeah, Into the— I think I was talking to somebody, and I was like, 'Oh my gosh.'" And yeah, I love the ending when everyone's like, "Oh, there's a giant," right? And they're like, "What?" And I'm like, "Yeah." And I love that, like, this is what happens in act two and these people. I love that because if you only have act one, it looks like everybody gets their happily ever after. Wild show. I love the show. One of my favorites. It's so good. The music's incredible. I actually was in a version of it in high school, which is why I know it was so hard. Love musical theater. It also is one of those things where I'm like, I don't know all of the shows I was in. I could maybe write it down and figure it out, but that's just how it is in the theater, in the arts. Totally. Yeah, totally, totally. Oh my gosh. Yeah, you know, so those were my first kind of steps into musical theater, and then when I went to Notre Dame, I actually started off in medicine. If you had asked me before I went to college what I was going to do, if you had asked me at any point in my life, I would have told you, "Oh, I'm going to be a cardiovascular surgeon or urologist or something along those lines." And I believed it, you know. My high school had a medical club. I was president of that medical club, you know. I was shadowing surgeons while I was still in high school at Manatei Medical Center in Puerto Rico. I thought I was going to be a surgeon, but when I was at Notre Dame, and I had some more time and space to myself to really reflect and think about what are the things that I want, there was a point where, I know this sounds cheesy, but there was a point where I was going to sleep and waking up thinking about songs that I wanted to write, you know? And I would go to my biochem and chemistry classes, but I would go to the classes and start sitting in the back. If you saw my notebooks, it would literally say chemical equations, and then it would just be lyrics under it, you know? It was getting to the point where I was skipping classes so I could stay in my dorm room and try writing songs, you know? Yeah. Sorry, I feel like I'm just giving you the spiel now. No, no. Okay, first of all, don't apologize. I love the authenticity of the conversation, but also I have so many questions about that and your journey to figure that out. But just before we get too ahead of ourselves, I'd love it if you could introduce yourself to the listeners. Of course. Sorry, jump. It all started when I was born. So, hello everybody. My name is Jorge Miguel Ria Erans. I was raised in Dorado, Puerto Rico, my whole life. Before I went to college, I thought I was going to be a surgeon. Then I got to college and I switched to writing songs. And now that's what I do. You know, I'm a songwriter and a playwright, and I like to do whatever I can to entertain, whether that's acting, voice acting, songwriting, just writing in general. And right now, what I believe I am most known for is the musical Epic, which is an adaptation of Homer's The Odyssey. So, yeah. Ah, so freaking sick. Getting right back into it, though, because I'm so curious. The jump from medicine to music is, first of all, huge in and of itself, but also at a place like Notre Dame where there's so much pressure to be a top-notch student. At least that's what I felt all the time, just constant mental drama to be the best you can, achieve greatness, and usually the arts aren't prioritized, especially at a school like Notre Dame. Totally. You know, it was terrifying, too, just because when I had— so I had gotten to the point where I wa—

at a time. Let's go. Hey y'all and welcome back to a brand new episode of Access Denied. Today's guest is truly epic and we talk about everything from how scary it can be to change your career to what it's like to create with

the world watching. This is a can'tmiss episode and it's with the one, the only Jorge Rivera Erenss. I am so excited to have him on today. This is a can't miss episode y'all. Stay tuned.

Jorge, welcome to Access Denied. How are you doing today? Oh my goodness, I am doing so well. It is so good to be here, Jessica. Thank you so much for inviting me.

Oh my god, I am so freaking excited to have you on the pod. I We have crossed paths before in the past.

We have we have It's so great to finally get to like talk for for longer, you know?

Likewise. 100%. Like I was thinking in my preparation for this episode actually and I feel like your listeners and my listeners might like this little anecdote or whatever, but the first time I like was introduced to you was

backstage. We were both involved in a school production of Greece. That was when we first that was that's almost a that's like a decade ago almost.

Wow. Wow. So we go way back. We go way back. Wow. Oh, I was Oh my god. I didn't have a beard yet then.

You were so young. Yeah, that Oh my gosh. I like I still I had longer hair than I did now, you know? I had like the guitar. Oh my gosh, that's amazing. I love that. I love that. That's when we met.

It was. And like I have such a distinct memory of you and Rachel singing Hamilton backstage like Yeah.

just on repeat. And I was just like, "Okay, I don't know this yet, but like I kind of like this vibe." So, cuz Hamilton had just come out, too. Like, it was That's true. Yeah.

Yeah. Wow. Oh my gosh, it's been so much time. That's amazing. I'm so Well, I It's so glad to reunite after all this time.

Likewise. Likewise. Um, but that is to say, your experience in musical theater clearly goes way back and I'm sure even beyond Greece. So, that's really cool.

Thank you. Yeah, you know, I I did some like uh you know, like when I was in high school, in my high school had productions of like Alice in Wonderland, I was what's it called? The the March hair in that. Uh we did um what was it?

Fame. I think I was uh I forget his name. Nathan Detroit. No, that's not Fame. I think it's Guys and Dolls. I don't know. We did some musicals. I'm forgetting. You know, you know how it goes when you ask like, "Oh, what were

you in?" And then you just forget every single thing. Uh, but yeah. So, I was in Guys of Dolls. I did some Fame. We did some Alice in Wonderland. We did Into the Woods. That was my first ever

musical, so it holds a special place in my heart. No. Okay. Wait, what character were you in Into the Woods?

I was So, I was in sixth grade, so imagine me like much shorter like uh and uh a lot cuter, right? With your cheeks, you know? I was Prince Charming at the time and Cinderella and everybody was like significantly taller than me.

So, it's like like me and Cinderella. I'm like, "Yeah, wait, that's amazing. Oh my god." I had been in like, you know, like little like class things here and there, but that was my first time where I was like, "Oh

yeah, we're doing like a musical on stage with auditions and and you know, it's going to be presented in front of the whole school and everyone's parents." Uh, so that was, you know, that was like my my my first foot in

musical theater, you know. That's crazy, too, because Into the Woods is such a hard show. Yeah, it was the it was the junior version. So, I think it it ends with uh act one, so there's no act two for it.

That's probably best considering the I didn't know. Oh my gosh. So, that rocked my mind, by the way, cuz I didn't know that there was an act two until years later, right? I was like, "Yeah, into the I think I was like talking to

somebody and I was like, "Oh my gosh." And yeah, I love the ending when everyone's like, "Oh, there's a giant." Right. And they're like, "What?" And I'm like, "Yeah." And I love that like this is what happens in these two and these

people. I love that cuz it if you only have act one, it looks like everybody gets their happily ever after. Wild show. I love the show. One of my favorites.

It's so good. The music's incredible. I actually was in a version of it um in high school. Um which is why I know it was so hard. Love musical theater. It also is one of those things where I'm

like, I don't know all of the shows I was in. I could like maybe write it down and figure it out, but that just see how it is in the theater in in the arts.

Totally. Yeah, totally, totally. Oh my gosh. Yeah, you know, so that those were my first uh kind of like steps into musical theater and then uh when I went to to Notre Dame, I actually started off in medicine. I if you had asked me

before I like went to college like what was I going to do? If you had asked me at any point in my life, I would have told you like, oh, I'm going to be like a a cardiovascular surgeon or urologist

or or you know, something along those lines. And I believed it, you know, like my uh my high school had like a medical club. I was like president of that medical club, you know. Um, I had was like shadowing surgeons while I was

still in high school, you know, at Manatei Medical Center in Puerto Rico. I I thought I was going to be a surgeon, but uh when I was at Notre Dame, right, and I had like some more time and space

to myself to really like reflect and think about what are the things that I want. Um, there was a point where, I know this sounds cheesy, but there was a point where I was like going to sleep and waking up thinking about songs that

I wanted to write, you know, and I would go to like my it's like biochem and chemistry. But, um, I would go to the classes and start sitting in the back.

Uh, if you saw my notebooks, it would literally say like a chemical equations and then it would just be lyrics under it, you know? It was and it was getting to the point where I was like skipping classes so I could stay in my dorm room

and try writing songs, you know. Yeah. Sorry, I feel like I'm just giving you the spiel now.

No, no. Okay, first of all, don't apologize. I love the authenticity of the conversation, but also like I have so many questions about that and like your journey to kind of like figure that out. But just before we get too ahead of

ourselves, I'd love it if you could introduce ourselves to or introduce ourselves introduce yourself to the listeners.

Of course. So sorry jump. It all started when I was born. So, uh, hello everybody. My name is Jorge Miguel Ria Erans. I was raised in Dorado, Puerto Rico for my whole life.

Before I went to college, I thought I was going to be a surgeon. And then I got to college and I switched to writing songs. And uh, now that is that now that's what I do. you know, I'm a

songwriter and and a playwright and and I I I like to to do whatever I can to entertain, whether that's acting, voice acting, songwriting, uh just writing in general. Um, and right now what I am what I believe I am most known for is

the musical Epic, uh, which is an adaptation of Homer's The Odyssey. So, yeah. Ah, so freaking sick. Getting right back into it, though, because I'm so I'm so curious. Like the jump from medicine to music is like first of all huge in and

of itself but also at a place like Notre Dame where there's so much pressure to like be a top-notch student. At least that's what I felt all the time is just like oh yeah constant like mental drama to like be the best you can

be achieve greatness and usually the arts aren't like prioritized especially at a school like Notre Dame.

Totally. You know, it it was terrifying, too, just because when I had so I I had gotten to the point where I was, you know, I was skipping classes cuz I was trying to write songs in my dorm room.

You know, I was like, you know, uh spend going to sleep and waking up thinking about songs and stuff. And it got to the point where I was like sitting down somewhere and I was just like, what am I

doing? You know, like I'm skipping classes because I'm thinking about this and I I'm not focused. I'm not think I'm I'm not happy, you know? I'm much happier when I'm like singing, writing songs and stuff. And so I didn't tell my

family. Uh but I switched majors. I just completely switched. I dropped everything science. I dropped everything, right? And just went straight into the film uh theater and television department of Notre Dame. And I remember the day that I did that, my

leg I I vividly remember sitting at like the desk where you had to go to for them to like change your major or give you a minor or something. I remember my like my left leg was like shaking so much,

right? Like to this day, I like I remember being there sitting and I'm like, gosh, why is my leg shaking? I can't like I can't get it to stop shaking. I was just like I was so stressed out, you know? I I made that

switch and then I feel like, oh my goodness, what am I doing? What am I doing? You know, because there was no, it was like first off, you know, my family, very understandably so, were very like concerned and confused.

They're like, what are you doing? You know, uh my dad and I were at odds with each other for some time. We're super tight now. He's my number one supporter, but we, you know, he really was uh he

really wanted that, you know, financial stability for me that comes with, you know, medicine and the medical field, you know, whereas this felt switching to theater and and film and television really felt like a gamble. And everyone was like, "What what's going on? We knew

you your whole life. This has to be a phase. This has to be this can't be like really you, you know?" That led me to write my first musical, which at the time was called Stupid Humans and is now

called uh My Heart Says Go. um which uh when I was writing it in college, it was about a a med school dropout who wants to become a singer and his dad wants him to go back to medicine. So, not at all

inspired by anything I've ever experienced to be honest. No, I'm kidding. But yeah, so I I I wrote that and that really was like a huge learning experience for me for for learning, you know, the process of writing of writing songs and writing

musical theater and and how that like process goes, you know, and I'm super thankful to have had that at Notre Dame.

But like you said, you know, it was it felt like a lot of uh uncharted waters.

That was Notre Dame's if if I if I recall correctly, that was the first ever original musical produced at Notre Dame. You know, what was awesome is that we were all kind of like figuring it out together. Yeah, I learn I feel like I

learned so much from that process. And then after that, so that was that ended in my junior year of college. So I was going into my senior year and I was walking around being like, "Yeah, I want to write another musical. I wanted to

have all these I want to have like so many characters. I wanted to have uh gods and monsters and the ocean and sword fights and pirates and uh and love and betrayal and lust and all that and spells and magic and this and You know,

there was a time, I kid you not, where I thought I was going to write a musical about uh pirate angels. What was it going to be about? No idea. I just knew I wanted pirates and I wanted them to

have wings, right? I obviously didn't end up doing that, but that it felt so right to me at the time, but I was going around being like, "Yeah, I want a musical with this, this, this, this, and this, and this, and that." And every now

and then, you know, uh friends would say like, "Oh, so like kind of like the Odyssey." And I was like, "I don't know.

I don't know if it's like the Odyssey, you know, cuz I was like, "No, no, no.

It's different. It's different." You know, but then I really thought about the Odyssey for a bit because I had grown up uh loving the Odyssey. My mom got me a copy of Mary Pope Osborne's adaptation of the Odyssey for children

when I was really young. And then when I was in high school, we had to read the Odyssey as one of our, you know, uh, required readings. And so I always have really much enjoyed the Odyssey. And so

when I thought about it some more, I was like, "Yeah, you know what? This could this could really fit. There's all these different characters, which I love.

There's these larger than-l life themes, and there's a wide variety of different locations. There's a singular main character, which always is, you know, helpful from a writing perspective, like if there's a main character you can focus on and focus on their character

arc. Um, and then the thing that I really loved too was that uh I love video games and anime, and the Odyssey feels like a video game to me in the best way possible. It feels like there's boss battles. It feels like the

characters are leveling up over time. It's so fun. Uh, and so all of that really attracted me to the Odyssey and so I started writing it uh around the summer of 2019 and the rest is history.

That is so sick. I So I don't have the hugest uh background with Greek mythology. I will say that.

No worries. Yeah. Yeah. It's there's so much of it. There's so Yeah. Every time I think I know something, it keeps on going, you know, and it that's what that's part of why it's so fun and amazing, you know.

Agreed. And like I studied the Odyssey in school a little bit and so like I'm familiar with the story and have obviously heard all of your epic saga and everything.

So like I I know I know the gist of it, but how did you like bridge video games, anime, musical theater, Greek mythology, like these are four things that do not mesh just like instantly in one's mind.

It was a process that it took quite some time for me to really like find my voice. You know, if you uh for example, there's a lot of like songs in Epic that I refer to as sorry, there's a lot of

drafts drafts of songs in Epic that I call cut songs, right? And what those are was basically I was trying to write a song that captures this moment. Let's say the moment where Hermes gives Odysius the Moly so he can fight Cersei,

right? There would be like different times where I would attempt to write that. And through each draft, I got closer to really finding my own voice.

And what I mean by finding my own voice was there was a point where I was trying to think of like, you know, like what is it that I really enjoy? What is it that truly inspires me? And how can I use my

inspirations to create something that feels truly authentic to me and my own writing style and, you know, and and unique and all of those things coming together in a great way. upon like, you know, just introspection, I realized,

you know, I think what I want to do is really lean into those video game and anime inspirations, you know, and so there are literally times throughout Epic, like several times where uh it it'll literally say boss battle, like

for example, when you fight the when they fight the Cyclops, it says boss battle Polyphimmis. Later on, it says boss battle Cersei. Later on it says boss battle uh Antinuis, boss battle Caribus, boss battle this, boss battle that, you know, and then the final boss

battle Odysius, right? And so there getting to do things like that and really leaning into like, oh, you know, I want I imagine it like this uh and you know, it feels very anime and nature and in style. Uh get leaning into those

things really helped me like I feel it really helped me find my voice and create what I what I like to believe is like a unique a unique experience in Epic, you know. So it it it really helps

that like the Odyssey already has a lot of these elements like it has these larger than-l life characters and stories that have stood the test of time and really awesome amazing themes and then using that and leaning into my

inspirations of video games and anime and animation and other things too of course. Um I think that's what made it uh really mesh, you know. I feel like just like really like leaning into those aspects is what made it uh come

together. Well, it definitely did come together. Like it's so impressive. Like just I'm on the precipice of just like working in music very loosely right now, right? And it's it's let's not get too excited, but like I've been working on one song

and the amount of work that's gone into that one song is just like I can't imagine what you've just done.

Like nine in like such a short Thank you. How do you have the time? feels like forever.

Well, yeah, it feels like forever cuz, you know, it took like around like 5 years to write everything. You know, there are several things that that several stars that aligned in a way that allowed me to have the time and space to

write Epic. The first one was uh I don't know if I should refer to this one as a star. The first one was CO. So, CO cut my senior year short, right? And I had plans for certain things I was going to

do after college with my first musical, but you know, CO comes in and everything and the whole world pauses for a bit. I went back to my parents' apartments, you know, living with them and I had all this time to myself. So my parents, I'm

very thankful for this, but you know, they never they were always like, you know, no, stay here with us as long as you want. There's no rush. Work on your thing. They became super super supportive of, you know, me and my

writing, which was so nice because, you know, when I first changed my everyone in the family is like, "What are you doing?" You know, so for them to have that faith in me, I really appreciate that. And I can't I can never like

overstate how helpful it is to just how helpful it is to someone to believe in them. The the world stopped because of co I just had all this time and the the area I was I was living in. I don't have

a lot of like friends here. There's not a lot of things nearby that I tend to go to a lot. Um and so my days were just kind of like me trying to write Epic and then me listening to a lot of YouTube

video essays. Oh my goodness, I have listened to more YouTube video essays than I can count. I love listening to YouTube video essays. I will do it any time of the day. If I'm like, you know, eating breakfast, I'm one of those guys

when I'm eating, I need to like listen or watch something. So, I put the phone down in front of me and I'm just listening to a video essay. And and when I say video essays, I'm talking about like video essays about writing, right?

So, what was super awesome about having all this time and also having YouTube as a resource is that you can learn anything on YouTube these days. you know, how to write character arcs, how to write exposition in a way that uh is

uh exciting, how to write suspense, how to, you know, write villains that are engaging, how to, you know, how to do this, how to do that, all these things that were there for me in the times when I needed it, you know. So, for example,

when I got to get in the water, so it's the second appearance of Poseidon, right?

Um, in that moment, I needed it to be very intense and I was struggling. I was writing different like types of song, different drafts, trying to figure out how do I create a tense moment with Poseidon, right? And eventually I was

just like, you know, I'm going to go on YouTube and look up how to write suspense. And I watched video essays about um suspenseful moments in Attack on Titan and suspenseful moments from Alfred Hitchcock movies and things like

that. And that was, you know, I I a huge part of the reason I write the way I do is because of those super helpful uh video essays, you know. Um, and I took them very very seriously because those

were like my my classes after college, you know. So that was super helpful. Talking about like you can learn anything from YouTube.

I think like another platform that that's true is of Tik Tok which has obviously been like huge for you and your process and totally sharing with the world like how you brought Epic to life. And so how did you

get started with posting the behind the scenes on TikTok? That's a great question. So, um, I had been working on Epic for like a few years. I think it was like maybe two or three or somewhere between two and three

years at that point. And some friends of mine were like recommending like, "Hey, have you considered like posting about this online?" And I had like, you know, maybe posted one video about it in the past, like maybe on like Instagram or

something, but I hadn't kept up with posting about it cuz, you know, it wasn't finished. You know, for me it was like, "Oh, but it's not done yet." You know, I don't want I don't want them to see it before it's finished. Um, but you

know, my friends are like, "Hey, maybe just try it and if it doesn't work out, you just like stop, you know." And I kept thinking about it and I was like nervous and I was worried about it, but

I ended up deciding like, "Okay, I'm gonna I'm going to try it." You know, just kind of dip my toes in there. And one of the first videos I ever post online was a video of like one of the

first drafts of this song called Full Speed Ahead. And I remember being so stressed out that day that I posted that. I like cried that night. I was stressing. I couldn't sleep. I was texting my friends. Thankfully, I had

like a great support system. So, they were like, "Dude, don't worry. It's awesome. Just keep at it." You know? I remember like like reading comments that, you know, uh and just being like, "Oh, they're going to think it sucks.

It's not finished. They're going to they're going to think it's terrible. This and that." And I was so stressed out. Um but I made a point to myself to like just be like, "Hey, just like post one video a day. Be kind to whoever is

online, whoever is commenting to you. Just be kind. Post a video a day and you know, just stick with that for as long as you can. And then if it really becomes like a full suffering fest, then of course, you know, maybe stop, right?

So I kept at it. And what was interesting was that the thing that I was so worried about before, which is that it's not finished, ended up kind of being one of the like the reason to post about it, you know? So like a lot of

times in my experience, I have found that it's very hard to find the process of something being made. you might find like some insider scoop on like, oh, here's like here's some photos that the proparazzi took from the set of this

upcoming movie, right? Um, but most times, you know, when we see a project like this, we see it at the end, right?

And so, I was like, okay, well, I don't know what to post about it. All I'm doing is working on it today, so I'm going to post a progress update, right?

And that's I started doing that a lot where I started posting progress updates like every week or every few days, you know, progress update this day of the year. I'm currently working on song 22 out of 40, right? Uh this is supposed to

happen in the song and this is what it's sounding like so far. And so what what ended up being really cool was that over time I my Tik Tok became a page where I was documenting the process of creating

a musical, you know, by I think by the time I got on Tik Tok for the first time, I was on song like 23. I think I was on on the song Sila, you know, and so, you know, it became really really

cool because a lot of people uh a community started building around Epic where we were all in this journey together. You know, I I would get to talk about like, hey, so here are the things that are really important to me.

I like music and I draw inspiration from this, from this video game and from that and I like introducing um motifs that sound like this and sound like that. I like attaching instruments to characters. And what was really cool is

that uh a lot of amazing people would really start like catching those things and be like, "Oh, that's cool and I see what you're trying to do here." And it just made this whole process like so fun, you know, cuz it and don't get me

wrong, there's times where I was still like sad and being like, "Man, I can't figure this out." But even being vulnerable about those things online showed like part of the process, you know, there's times where the writers block is insane and and we get

depressed right? So, so that was part of the process, too. I was walking around the neighborhood like head down and all sad cuz I can't figure out this other Calypso song. But, you know, it what was really cool is there's a there's a bit

of a time capsule in there, you know. You see me with like shorter hair and with no beard and my face looks even more babyfaced than it does, you know, and I'm just there like, "Yeah, and I'm this I'm writing the song about the

underworld and this is how I did this and this is how I did that." It's so special to me that you were able to document all of that, not just for like the people that follow you and like the

people that like love the musical, but like for yourself and to see your own growth, I think is really powerful.

Yeah. every now and then like I'll get like uh comments on like old videos from years ago or things I completely forgot about, you know, and I'll like look at it and then look at myself in the mirror

and I'm like, "Oh my gosh, so much time has passed, you know?" Um, and it's so fun. And what what another thing that really was awesome about posting online and social media was that the the network the reach of community became so

much wider than if I had just been doing it myself and going to places in person.

So when we first started doing um auditions for Epic, you know, I So before before auditions, right, there were demos and demos are like uh primitive versions of recordings, right?

Where I voice all of the characters. So it'll be me as Athena and me as Odysius and me as Penelopey and me as Calypso and me as this and me as that, you know.

Um, and then every now and then I would call on like a friend to voice someone.

So like Tegan, you know, I'd be like, "Hey, I think your voice really fits this. Could you try voicing Athena? Can you try voicing this? Can you try voicing that?" But a lot of the demos you just hear like my voice or someone

else's voice just playing many different characters, you know? Um, and so there was a point where I was like, "Okay, well, I really need to like in order to truly understand like how these scenes work with each other, I need to hear

like actual voices in them." And so I did the first auditions for Epic on like on TikTok primarily, but across social media. And my thought process was anybody can audition. I want it to be so that it doesn't matter how old you are,

where you are in the world, none nothing matters except can you voice this character? Does your when you sing the song, does it feel truthful and authentic to the character? Right. And then for our first uh character, Calypso, who was the first auditions, uh

what was so cool, so like when I say like the reach was wider than ever, I mean like to the extent that like for example uh Barbara Wangui was from all the way from Nairobi, Kenya, I've never been there and I want to go there one

day, but I haven't been there yet, you know? And so if I was just like, "Okay, I'm going to go to uh this state for a day and I'm going to have an open casting call." You know, maybe if I was

lucky at the time, I would have gotten like maybe somewhere between 10 to 50 auditions that day, right? And then sort through those. But when we posted the Calypso audition, within like a week, I think there was like a thousand

submissions, right? And it was awesome. It was so great. There are so many talented people with such different styles and voices and different approaches to the character, you know.

Um, and that in itself was also part of the process, you know, you're getting to see like auditions. You're getting to see other people's auditions and how they tackle it and stuff and, you know, and casting in real time, you know, and

so that was a huge part of the community building process because then it was like, all right, when's the next edition? Uh, Aries, you know, and then we got Mocha who voices Aries. And then I forget what exactly was after that. I

think maybe it was like Penelopey, you know. And with each of these auditions, we're seeing other people who even if they didn't get the role, I'm like I see their voice and I'm like, "Oh, but they have a really interesting like vibe for

this. I'm really excited to see if they'll audition for this other character, you know?" Or every now and then like we'll audition someone. I don't know. Every now and then I would audition someone and they might not be

like the exact fit for this character, but I'll think of like, "Oh, listen. We're going to do auditions for this other character." I of course can't guarantee anything, but I would love if you could audition for this other

character when it comes in too because I'd love to hear your take on that, you know, and all of this, you know, throughout the process, you know, because these auditions, you know, you're posting them online or if if

someone wants to keep it private, they could email it to, you know, no pressure. Um, but yeah, all of these aspects and then that was just from the audition side of things, right? There was a point where I think by the ocean

saga I wanted to collaborate with one of the many amazing uh artists who were creating like animatics or animations about epic you know I noticed like wow there's a lot of really talented people who are making animatics and animations

and I was like how cool would it be if I just called one of them I reached out to one of them and I was like hey do you want to like collaborate with me to make the official trailer for the ocean saga

for uh epic epic the official concept album right and so at that point I had reached out to different artists and eventually landed on Wolfie the Witch who made the first official commissioned animatic for Epic or animation and it

was like a trailer of Poseidon breathing heavy, right? And that I think was the point when like I think that was that and the first audition for Epic were the points where everything changed, right?

Because after that we started like commissioning like I started commissioning like uh this artist, hey, can you make an animation for this? And I would send them reference videos of me playing with action figures while moving the camera exactly where I wanted it so

that they know exactly what I'm looking for in the visuals and stuff. And I we'd have to like work on like, you know, okay, I imagine the character having this design. He wears this and there's glowing lines like this. You know, it

started becoming real, you know, you could hear what Zeus sounds like, what or what Poseidon sounds like. For example, for the trailer for the for the ocean saga, that was the introduction of Poseidon. So you could hear, oh, this is

what Poseidon's voice sounds like. It's like smoky and raspy, you know, and dark, right? And then you see the trailer that's animated Poseidon. He's got long hair. He's got the blue glowing uh gill lines on his sides and you're

like, damn. And that's what he looks like. And it feels real. You're actually experiencing the story, you know, and that was so cool. And so, you know, from auditioning and anybody in the community, anybody can audition, you know, and then commissioning artists

within the community who were already making such awesome their own animatics, interpretations of the snippets that were out, but then getting to reach out to them, be like, "Okay, here's something no one has heard yet, and here's how I'm imagining this and that."

Getting to do all that, I really feel like that and just hanging out with the community made Epic Epic, you know?

100%. I think I think the reach like speaks for itself with like how many streams you get and how like popular your videos are and everything and I just I want to commend you because that's not easy to do. I mean you you

started with like this concept of meshing all four of these things that like what thank you so much and then to to be able to have a community out of that that truly has been involved in the process I think is

so it's an artist's dream in so many ways. I'm I'm very very thankful for it, you know, and and the community has always been so fun and like also getting to like getting to really interact with community, you know, through like

through social medias, through Discord. Discord was like a huge like awesome hub for the Epic community, you know, we would do like games. I'd jump in VC and play games with them or like we would do every now and then I would do an epic

challenge, right? Which is like, okay, I'm going to like ask you like some trivia questions or I'm going to frame it as boss battle. You are you are Odysius and you're fighting uh uh Cersei and her Chimera and to win you have to

answer these questions correctly but every time you get it wrong you lose 20 HP. every time you get it right, Cersei and her Camaro lose 20 HP and you're you're the goal is to whoever loses first, you know. Um, so stuff like that

super super exciting and uh getting doing that it really allowed us to like all bond, you know, bond over our our mutual and shared excitement and enthusiasm for entertainment, you know.

And when I was writing Epic, I really wanted to create something that I would enjoy as a as a consumer, you know. I I like to think that I did that because I, you know, I enjoyed making it and

listening to the songs over and over and over and over and over again for years, you know, and then finally getting to release it and just enjoy it with everybody. Um, but yeah, I do think that one of the the best things about Epic is

the Epic community really because because there there's everyone is so kind. Everyone is so supportive.

Everyone is so like talented. Everyone is so cool and fun. And it made this journey, this harrowing journey of writing this this freaking mega musical, this huge musical, 40 fulllength songs with like 30 different characters from beginning to end. and like all these

ensemble voices that takes place in like a wide variety of different locations from the underworld to a palace to a ship that flies up in the air to an island in the sky to the depths of Poseidon's lair to you know to a

freaking other dimension cuz Athena has this power that telepathy and and and Sila's lair all of this stuff you know uh it's it's so cool it's and I'm very thankful for them it's been such like an interactive experience I would say and like even I

our connection is uh JP uh and like JP JP the one and only we love JP Japu. I like to call him Every now and then I'll be like is it Japu? He's amazing. He's amazing.

He's so great. Uh but I know you guys were just like in Greece together like over the holidays. Crazy.

Yeah. It's crazy how like I because I remember being in like in his dorm room and we were working on like a song at the time, you know, I was playing on a guitar and then singing into a mic in

the dorm room in this like little like box and we're just like, you know, okay, we're trying to make it so it's not too loud and we, you know, talk to the dorm to the roommates being like, hey, we're

going to make some music. They're like, cool. You know, and of course then there's JP making songs. There's Jorge making songs. There's Jorge always in the chapel playing that piano, you know.

So, uh, so it's it's so cool, you know, like how much time has passed and and and really getting to to do stuff with people, you know, and it's awesome.

Well, speaking of going back to college for a second, I want to like take a minute to bridge that gap between the beginning of this episode to like where we're at now because starting again with medicine and then getting all the way to

the success that you've had now and like all of this amazing, but like even taking that out thrown into it, right?

what what sort of like hurdles because like the the podcast is called access denied, right? Like and we talk about rejection, we talk about like the this idea of failure and I know you mentioned that you you had a breakdown that first

video you kind of put out and all of this, but like were there mental hurdles? Were there physical hurdles? Like what has kind of been some of the most challenging parts of this like transition, this huge experience for you?

Oh, that's a great question. Okay. So, I'm going to break them down into different pieces. The first one, so let's start with like for example mental, right? Um, so when I was first writing Epic and when I was really

figuring out my voice, you know, um, a lot of my there was some there was a time where I was really focused on like trying to submit my drafts of songs to like festivals and, you know, to like

programs and stuff, trying to get um, in the hopes that it would get like, you know, seen and picked up and that I would get to attend things that allow me to develop my writing skills. And you know, I had submitted Epic to so many

things and there was just there was, you know, especially like those really early drafts of Epic and nothing was biting, you know, nothing at all. And so that, you know, that in itself is very like, man, is what I'm writing bad? Is it does

it does it suck? You know, and I'm like listening to like other musicals that are chosen, I'm like, man, I don't I don't get it. Like what am I not doing, you know? Um, so like the constant uh

just like and I and I knew that my when I was writing it felt a little different. It was a little out there, you know, but I really believed in it. I really wanted it to work. So I didn't

just want to like, you know, okay, I'm going to switch to how one might believe it should sound just, you know, I just really wanted to stick with like, you know, I really am trying to find my voice and try to find that. Um, and then

throughout the process of writing, you know, there are times where these songs take me a while or a single draft of, for example, like I can a single draft of a song if I'm lucky. If I'm lucky, like emphasis on lucky, right? It might

take me like a week or or a few weeks. That rarely happens, though. I have to be really lucky. More often than not, a draft of a song will take me at least a month or several months, you know, and

you do all this work. You orchestrate this whole song and record all these vocals and all these harmonies and you spend like day after day and night after night trying to make these like everything and sampling ocean waves so

that you can add a a low frequency oscillator on them so that they sound like onbe and triplet. So, you have an ocean wave that's going and you're trying to go and you you spend all your time doing

this and you finally have a draft of the song and then you listen to it and it's not it, you know, and you're like, damn, I get what I was trying to do, but it's not quite hitting and and that's the one

of the hard things. It doesn't matter. the amount of effort that is put into it is not the only factor as to whether a piece feels right to you in the end, you know. And so, you know, so I've been

doing that time after time and like this draft's not working. Okay, try it again.

This draft doesn't work. Time, months pass by, I start thinking like, am I going to spend the rest of my life like huddled over this desk trying to make this song work, you know? And you know, and there were times where especially

like that second Calypso song, which now is Not Sorry for Loving You. I was really struggling with that one in particular. I was like very depressed at that time. I was walking around my neighborhood like so sad like listening

to orchestrations on on YouTube listening to stuff um genuinely trying to like get inspired or trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong. Why isn't this hitting? I was so sad. I remember I kid you not. I remember the moment that I

had my Eureka moment. I was in the bathroom and I was scrolling through videos. I was watching videos and a video of Uncle Iro from Avatar the Last Air Bender came up and I raised the volume and I don't even remember what he

said but it was something about to find your true self and I was like I know what I need to do and I got up went to my room took out the keyboard and that night that night I wrote the first draft

of not sorry for loving you which is Calypso song that goes and I pushed you I'm not sorry for that song like one after like months of failed drafts this and that it just clicked for a night finally and I wrote

that and the next day I was like that's what I'm talking about. So, so yeah. Um, so you know there a lot of times like things like that, you know, where I'll be getting like sad because time is passing, you know, and I

have no updates. Cuz the other thing with posting online is that there's always a pressure of, you know, having progress, right? But the truth is there's so many times where, you know, progress is not a constant thing. You

know, it's not like a constant, oh, each week I have a new song. You know, there are times where I make huge progress and there are times where, you know, I'm trying and it's just not working and I'm

trying and it's just not working cuz there it's, you know, there's no easy like simple, oh yeah, this always works, you know. Um there's, at least for me, there hasn't been anything like that, you know. It's always been trial and

error and experimenting and exploration until I find what works. And so, you know, there's just times where I would feel like, man, all this time is passing. I haven't made any progress.

I'm just losing time, you know. Um, but each song like the reward for finally having figured out the song, the the rewarding rewarding feeling of finally like cracking the code, finally being like, "Yes, this works for this moment.

This conveys it how I want to convey it. This shows this arc in this character, this demonstrates this, and it's catchy." All of that in one, you know, is so rewarding that I'm like, "All right, bring on the next one." every

time, you know. Um, would you fall in love with me again is the final song of Epic. And that alone took me like over a year. That one song took me over a year to like really crack the code, you know?

So, like, so it it t it takes so much time, you know? That's crazy. That's one of my favorites of the whole uh saga, by the way. So, well done. It was worth the time.

Thank you. I remember like crying as I was writing it like this in love with you over and over and I knew because I was getting emotional writing it and I would be like oh I'm feeling something I'm feeling something and then just like

the you know h but but yeah so those are like mental hurdles right now like physical hurdles. So when I started uh riding Epic, I was like 140 lbs, fresh face, you know, like just that baby face, all this and that. And you know,

one of the things that was really important to me, uh, was I really wanted to, you know, capture I always try to like capture each of the characters through voice and stuff, but I really wanted to like physically get myself

into a place where I am more like and more believably like to myself, you know, to the character of Odysius, you know, and so like I had put on like 40 lbs, you know, for I was 140, now I'm

like 180. And I still need to like buff it up more for when we do like the live action this and that, you know. Um but uh so like going to the gym super intensely, which was, you know, a lot of

it was is still new to me. I can't say that I'm like a pro or anything. Um doing that, you know, having to like eat so much more. And also just like doing that and making sure I'm still on top of

like posting and this like not just not not just posting, but like post planning out like I'm going to post today. I'm doing the uh a progress update and also working on the thing and also like updating and this and that and going to

the gym like figuring out how to like do all of that was very difficult for me especially because I'm a person that if I don't like get enough sleep it is so hard for me to be productive you know

like if I and I feel like I'm averaging like six hours but if I can get like seven I'm like oh yeah that's amazing.

Um but yeah just like those physical hurdles and it's it's it's still an ongoing like uh process for me. I'm not like out here with like a six- tack or anything like that, you know, but you know, it's something that like all these

things are all of these things coming together uh proved to be a huge obstacle for me, but also allowed me to really get into like the headsp space. I was like in my like my hermit mode, you know, where I was just like, I'm not

talking to anybody. I'm on my grind. I'm like writing songs. I'm posting. I'm going to the gym and this and that.

I love so much of what you have just said. I always call these like nuggets of wisdom, right? when people like share like little things, but like seriously like to sit here and say like it took you a year to write.

Would you fall in love with me again? Like that is so powerful because like so often when things don't work out immediately, it's so easy to just be like, it's not going to it's not going to work out. It's not going to happen.

But having that perseverance, being able to continue forward and knowing like once you get that that Eureka moment is going to just it's like a drug, right? Like it just like when it hits it's just this dopamine hit like oh my god.

So you would think that I'm like a masochist at some point because it's like no it's got it got to the point too where like my cuz my parents would see that I'm just like super bummed out and

like I'm just like sad and all day you know they're you know they're trying to be in good spirits and I'm just like bummed super sad. And it got to a point where at one point like my dad was like

you know I was telling him I'm like man I just can't figure this song out. I can't figure it out. And he's like, "You said that last time." Like they start, you know, they'll be like, "Is it that time of the month

where you're just like, "Oh, I can't figure out the song. Oh, look how we're can't figure it out, but now he's and now he's going to go on a walk cuz he's sad. Oh, he figured it out the next

week." No, but that's actually powerful though. Yeah. Well, it was because they were like even though like for me it felt every time that I got sad, it felt like a real new and true and more devastating reason than the last to be sad, you

know, because I just couldn't figure it out. I would get I cannot explain how depressed I get when I can't figure out a song. I get like I you think I'm like super dramatic. I get so sad. I don't

want to talk to anybody. I can't sleep. I'm like at middle of the night I'm like I'm g try this thing and I get mad and I get frustrated and I'm like I don't want to talk to anybody.

So my parents I recognize that after a while they'll be like yeah you know you're going to get it because you always do this.

So yeah you know and and I love them for it. It was nice because they um allowed me to like kind of zoom out and be like, "Hey, I do get depressed every single time." But, you know, for me it feels real

every time. For me, it feels severe. My therapist always tells me bringing therapy into the conversation, but she always tells me like, "Honey, that evidence of like, hey, you got through this once before, you can do it again." and having your parents there

like reminding you of that even though it felt like its own version of tragedy every time like is still like so helpful I can imagine like in all right pursue it keep moving let's pick it up it's going to happen it's going to work out

and if not like we'll figure it out anyway like we'll we'll we'll pivot everything's going to be okay literally it would be like what's wrong I can't figure this song out and there and Um, and they're like, "Oh, what

about they and you know, my parents are always trying to help and they're like they'll listen to me talk about they'll be like, "Well, have you tried this?" And I'll be like, "No, that can't work because this and this and that." And I'm

just so, you know, I'm so mad I can't figure it out. And they're like, "Well, you said that last time." And I'm like, "Yeah, but this time it's different." And they're like, "You said that last time." But it was different. Every single time

it was a new problem that I had to solve with each song. And like cuz I you know I want I want oh it needs to sound different. I I this character needs to be like this and this arc needs to

happen in this song and these plot events need to happen in this song so that in this song I just focus on these two characters you know all of these things and they're like okay you know that's so parent of them. That's

yeah truly and you know I love them and they're always so helpful. You know, my mom voiced uh Odysius's mom in the underworld, and my dad voices uh Hephestus, the god of um god of the forge, right? And and yeah, and my dad

helped me build this booth. You know, I feel like I should say I helped him build the booth cuz he was the leader of this. I was just the assistant, right? I am seeing the time right now and we've

been talking for 50 minutes and I don't want to like so much of your time but I do want to just say like one final thing and one final thought that has like come to mind from this conversation is you

know I feel like a lot of times with the arts you see like the end result right you don't see that process of how something is made you don't see the the moments where things are not progressing you don't

hear about that and the fact that you're so like genuine and authentic authentic about sharing that and you have been from the start is something that is so amazing to me and it's one of the reasons why I wanted you to come on

access denied actually because I'm I'm so serious though because it is so difficult I feel like for people to be able to see themselves pursuing something creative because they feel like they're at a a stop a stopping point and that they they can't get over

it they can't push through that there's not like a path and you've given people a path.

I appreciate that. Thank you so much. Before we go, can I ask you my four questions I ask all of us?

Yes, you can. Let's go. I'm ready. Lock in. Okay. So, first of all, if you're having a bad day, what is a song that you can put on that will immediately like kind of boost your mood? It might not get you on your

feet all the way, but it's going to like raise those endorphins. I have several. Can I Do I have to name only one? No, you can name as many as you want.

Okay. So, there's uh I Wish by Stevie Wonder. The ones likeom. It's in Happy Feet. That one gets me going, you know. There's also um there's uh these songs by Silk Sonic. There's smoking out the window. And there's also

like I leave the door open. And there's also Oh my god, there's skates everywhere.

Those songs are like get me. Those songs I hear I'm like skates every single time. Um there was one song that I have an emotional attachment to and it's uh Viva Lvolvita by Coldplay because you know um it would have come on every now

and then when my mom is like playing songs, you know, and we would always sing along to it. And so that one holds a special place in my heart cuz you know if we're like you know if she's like if

I'm washing dishes or if she's cooking or something and we're just in the same area and that song comes off we're always like you know sing along today. So that one uh I love that one a lot.

You listed only bops so that's incredible. Thank you. Who knew that the guy that could write 40 unique songs for a concept album could have good taste in music?

Thank you. Yes. Um, question number two. When you're having a bad day, again, I call it a rejection rescue kit. What's something that you're reaching for?

What's an activity you're doing that's like again something you do to like help you through a tough time?

Video games. Yes. my PlayStation. My PlayStation literally, oh my gosh, that or YouTube, right? What I mean by that is like if I'm going through like if I really can't figure out a song, you know, there is genuinely a a benefit to

taking a step away from something for a bit, right? Uh and I think there was a time there was a lot of time where I was like scared or I didn't want to do because I felt like, oh, I'm giving up

or oh, this and that or oh no, I need to keep trying. I need to keep trying.

Right? I need to keep banging my head against this wall because at some point the wall is going to break when in reality you just got to take a step away and in doing something else you might find out you can just go around the

wall. Right? So for me it was like I would stop and I would go play some video games and in playing the video game I give my brain a break. I might come back and see like, "Oh, I didn't

think of it like this." Or I might be playing the video game, I get inspired from the game. Or I'm going on a walk listening to a video essay and I'm like, "Oh, that's" and I think of some writing

thing that I didn't think of before, you know, or I just go and listen to music.

But basically, it is taking a break with things that entertain me, like a TV show that I like that I'm binging, a video game, or a video essay.

I love it. I I think there's a lot of uh truth to getting away from a project, especially if it's like troubling you and removing it from your brain entirely. Doing something completely different is so helpful.

Totally. It's like a reset button almost. Yeah. Yeah. Literally. And it and it helps so much, you know, because like it's so easy when you're in it to think like, "No, no, I just got to keep trying and

eventually crack the case." But when you're when you when you're so laser focused on it, right, there it is so easy to like not be thinking about other solutions to whatever the problem is, right?

Uh, question number three. What is the last thing that you did scared? Oo, the last thing I did scared. Um, I went on So, I'm terrified of roller coasters, right, and rides. And I'm like working my way up trying to get like

better at them. Um because when I was a little kid I went on this one ride called the Gahal Muerto which is like you you just strap on and just spins spins spins like a giant thing like this

and that scarred me for life. I was like s too young and I was too short and it scarred me for life. Um but I've been you know getting better at them and uh very recently I went to Disneyland and I

went on Tiana's Bayou Adventure which has like a big drop at the end and I was freaking out. I was like, cuz again, I'm terrified of all rides, right? And we're like going up. We're going up and we're

near the top and I'm like, screw it. I screamed, but I screamed too early.

So, we were still at the top and when I finished it was like, oh my god, I did two screams, right?

And you know, and it went so smoothly. I want to go on it again. It was great.

And uh yeah, so I think that was the last thing I did uh where I was like very very scared.

That's a blast. Love that so much. Final question for you. What is a final nugget of wisdom that you would like to leave with the listeners today?

Final nugget of wisdom. No pressure. I just can't stress enough how powerful it is to believe in someone truly when when you cuz you know of course you know I can say like believe in yourself but I mean like in terms of community like

believing in each other and believing in others can it's like magic you know and I will forever be thankful for everybody who believes in me and has believed in me And really it cuz in those like in those times when they're super depressed

and they're super uh down on themselves you know I I would hear in my voice that like you know like there's all these people there's there's people rooting for you you know even if it's just one person rooting for

you even if it's you rooting for you but the power of really believing in someone you know so so yeah believe in beautiful sometimes yeah sometimes believing in someone is what's going to get them to get it really you

Oh, what a great note to end on. Jorge, where can everybody follow your journey?

Thank you for asking. Um, so I am on uh all the social medias as either Jorge Erans or J Erand. Honestly, if you just type one of my names or nicknames, it'll come up. So, yeah, I'm on Tik Tok, I'm

on YouTube, and I have a link to my official playlist for Epic uh on Spotify, and uh I recommend it. Yeah, it'll know it's mine because it has like my name as the user who made the playlist. But yeah,

I'm going to link everything in the show notes, y'all. So, be sure to check out Jorge because he's epic, if I do say so myself.

Um, I had to do it at least once. Uh, thank you so much for coming on y'all.

Thank you so much for tuning in and I will see you next week. Bye.

And that concludes another episode of Access Denied. Thank you guys so much for tuning in. If you like this week's episode, be sure to hit that subscription button and notification bell here on YouTube, or go check us out

on Spotify, on Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast, so you never miss another episode. We have so much exciting content coming out for season 2. You're not going to want to miss it. I'd like to give a huge shout

out to JP Warner Sound for dropping this sick beat that you're listening to right now. And finally, if you'd like to rep your love of Access Denied, you now can with our very exciting merch line featuring a very special Access Denied

mug so that you can sip your morning tea while you listen to me spill the accessibility. Anyways, friends, thank you so much once again for tuning in and I'll see you next time. Bye.