We had the good fortune of connecting with Osvaldo (Ozzy) Madera and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Osvaldo (Ozzy), what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Thinking back to when I started brainstorming the creation of The Nerdy Basement as simply a podcast, it was all about creating a space where I could engage and talk to people about the things I was interested in which were films, tv shows, anime, comic books, and video games. While I was doing that already on other platforms as simply a fan, I wanted to have what I essentially wanted, a safe space. At the time that the idea sparked, I was working a dead-end job and didn’t really have any friends at the time, and the friends I did have, we had drifted apart, funny because The Nerdy Basement brought us all together again; nice silver lining if you really look at it. Back to my point, I wanted to have a dedicated space to talk about all of these things, and my YouTube gaming channel at the time wasn’t really the place to do that, I felt.
Once we gained a following on Instagram and an audience for our main podcast show (The Nerdy Basement Podcast), everything else just snowballed from there. News coverage, which is our primary content, became our staple and our main identity on and off the podcast.
Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
When presenting The Nerdy Basement to anyone, I present it as a news and media website/outlet/company/publication because that’s what we are. Some have debated that with us but it’s nothing we can’t brush off, it simply comes with the territory. But what I am most proud of is seeing The Nerdy Basement become something I have only dreamed of ever accomplishing when I first started and still continue to dream for it to become bigger and better than what it already is. It wasn’t an easy process getting to where we are now. We went in blindly, not knowing anything about how to run a social media page, how to produce and write a podcast show, how to even create or run an actual website, but we did it and have found success in it and that’s something we continue to strive for, consistent success and a consistent following. I think the pandemic lockdown was a huge testament to that what has led us to this interview. We took a massive hit during that time but we have been able to recover about a year and a half later post-lockdown.
Dealing with all of that came with its own trials and tribulations and things that we as a team, and me personally as the person who founded the whole thing had to overcome. I fell into this deep mental and emotional battle about what I wanted to do with the brand and I caused some issues within our circle that didn’t need to happen. Realizing that, I took a step back and realized that the friendships I had built and the relationships that were mended and renewed along the way were more important than any of the personal success I wanted to achieve and anyone looking at us today can see that me and the rest of the team going back to the drawing board and starting fresh and really putting our faith into each other, holding each other accountable and doing our due diligence, we were able to have one of, if not, the biggest year in our journey so far. It’s been an incredible feeling looking back on it now that 2022 has come to a close.
For anyone wanting to venture into this realm of social media influencing or entertainment, even journalism, please take care of your mental, emotional, and physical health first. The posts can wait and extreme burnout is real and tough to get out of; build and maintain those friendships because when it is all said and done, those friendships and the memories you have created throughout this journey are what will last a lifetime and live beyond your years.
As for me and the brand, this is an outlet that ran entirely by Hispanics/Latinos and we hire a diverse group of writers, but primarily people of color. From the outside looking in you probably wouldn’t have guessed it if you didn’t know us personally. But as someone who was born in the US and is of Puerto Rican and Dominican descent with no real background in entertainment or entertainment journalism, I want those who look like me to look at us and hopefully get inspired to chase those dreams. It will be hard, it will be taxing, it will be scary, but as long as you are consistent and surround yourself with like-minded people who believe in you and your dreams, the possibilities are quite literally endless. America is our home outside of home and this world of entertainment, this industry, reminds us daily that we have to fight constantly and consistently to be seen and most importantly be heard no matter how big or small the platform is.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well, I’m located in New Jersey and live fairly close to New York City, so it all depends on the time of year that my friend is visiting. Since I already have plans for a tour de New York (LOL) later this year, I’ll give you a little insight into what we’re planning to do. A visit to Times Square is an obvious one, a trip to Midtown Comics in Manhattan, and our four-day trip to the 2023 edition of New York Comic Con. There’s something at NYCC for everyone and the person we’re planning on taking has never been to a comic book convention like this one before so it’s definitely an experience worth having. To cap off the trip we’d visit the art museum and The Vessel just to get some pretty sights. Now if you’re up for a little extra fun and of course, a nice theater experience, I’d personally recommend the Alama Drafthouse in Lower Manhattan. It has a beautiful bar/lounge with a small integrated merch shop which has some really cool fan memorabilia. For the cinephiles, the lower lever where you make your way to the theater rooms is Hollywood galore. I’m talking classic movie posters, murals of iconic film scenes, and walkways with classic film tapes, it’s a sight to behold.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
When it comes to The Nerdy Basement there is a long list of names who have contributed to the overall success of the brand and the website. I cannot name just one person in particular. So this shoutout will be dedicated to the entirety of The Nerdy Basement Team, past, present, and new members that come along the way. However, if there is one person that I do need to shoutout specifically, is my co-Editor-in-Chief/Managing Editor, Edward Pagan. We’ve been through one hell of a rollercoaster ride in our venture into entertainment media and journalism and without him at the helm, I honestly think I would’ve just reverted the brand to simply being an Instagram page and dubbing myself a social media influencer.
Website: https://thenerdybasement.com/
Instagram: https://thenerdybasement.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/nerdy_basement
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thenerdybasement/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2lHF3rulYJ186MkSb9PhPw
Image Credits
All images provided were taken by me (Osvaldo J. Madera) at New York Comic Con 2019 and New York Comic Con 2022 during our press/media day