INTERVIEWING KFC

Game attended: Miami Heat vs Knicks

March 30, 2019

Trying to muster up the courage to talk to him was a nerve wracking experience. My palms were beginning to sweat and leg is moving up and down to the music filling the entire arena. I can hear the basketballs pounding the glossy and recently glazed floor as some of my favorite New York Knicks players dribble the ball down the court. It was the pregame practice, and it has been thirty minutes since I got to my seat and noticed who I had the honor of sitting next to today. I felt like the luckiest girl on Earth, nothing could possibly kill my mood, not even- dare I say: the Knicks losing this game? Well, they did lose and I left the famous Madison Square Garden arena with the brightest smile on my face. For one reason and one reason only, Kevin Clancy… THE Kevin Clancy from Barstool Sports was sitting next to me.

I have been following Barstool Sports for 5 years; It is the place I get most of my sport related news. Kevin Clancy is a radio host and blogger for the company and is known for sharing his raw and brutally honest opinion on any topic and most importantly, for being a longtime and loyal Knicks fan, like me.

I had 10 minutes before gametime and I needed any chance I got to ask him all the questions I needed to complete this assignment. With a quiet “excuse me?” and a slight turn to the right, I was face to face with the man I look up to so much. “Wait me?” he was clearly confused, I caught him off guard. I nodded in response and asked him just to make sure, “You’re Kevin from Barstool right?” He laughed and I laughed as well- this is so awkward. My heart was racing. I told him how much he has inspired me throughout the years and how he has opened my eyes to view the world in a more positive way. I followed up by explaining to him the discourse community assignments and asked him if I could interview him. I swear it felt like confetti poured down from the ceiling when he said “That’s so cool, yeah you can interview me.”

As soon as I asked him “how long have you been working for Barstool?” the conversation took off, questions and answers seemed to flow effortlessly and I genuinely gained so much more respect for him as a writer, sports fan, and activist. Kevin, famously known as “KFC” has been working for Barstool for almost 10 years. He started off by writing pieces about pop culture and his life living in the Big Apple. His writing style and outgoing personality quickly got to the hearts of readers and that is when he branched out and began to do podcasts. Viewers, like me, tuned in and listened to him preach or rant about the media, sports and pop culture. He became the host of multiple programs like “Barstool Radio” and was even able to get his own show “KFC radio” which he specified was the best decision he ever made. His career skyrocketed and he gained a large following from all over the world.

Kevin Clancy is on the left. Photo taken from Brendan Schaub's Twitter
https://twitter.com/brendanschaub/status/877896151621447680

The Knicks are currently the worst team in the Eastern Conference of the NBA. Because of this, many fans deal with negative comments and we constantly hear people backlash and bad mouth the Knicks on social media. So I asked him “How do you deal with the hate you receive from being a Knicks fan?” His answer was simple: “I would rather stick with the team I have supported for almost my entire life than be known as a ‘bandwagon’” The term is commonly used in the NBA community it is a negative term used for people who jump from team to team just because the team is doing good in the season and because the media talks about them more often. Without even having to ask, he told me the answer to the question I have been wondering since the day I heard he was a Knicks fan 5 years ago. He dove right in and told me how he became a Knicks fan; it all started with his middle school girlfriend. He wanted to impress her because she was on the basketball team at school and she was the “biggest Knicks fan I have ever met” His efforts to impress her turned him into an actual fan. That relationship didn’t go anywhere but his relationship to basketball grew stronger; he loved watching Knicks games. Basketball became something he grew passionate about, he says, “I live in the city, I try to come here [Madison Square Garden] every chance I get.” He loves the atmosphere of screaming fans, the full arena decorated in blue and orange, watching the game in person, the roaring of Knicks fans every time a player makes a shot. He shared that he takes his wife on many Knicks game dates and it has become a tradition.

The way he described his experience made me realize we aren’t that different. Yeah, he is famous and has over 100,000 followers on Instagram but we both share a love for the NBA community and a commitment to be Knicks fans until the end of time. He was lucky and was able to combine his love for sports and media together and make a successful career out of it. Kevin told me one of the best moments in his career was when he got a basketball signed by some players of the Knicks. I was shocked, it is a dream of mine and many others  to be able to meet your favorite players and get their signature on a basketball.

Although I was a nervous to talk to him, it was nice to know that we have similar interests and hobbies. I learned more about Kevin and how much basketball and the New York Knicks means to him.