The Sauce Talk Podcast

#21 - CJ Tuite

CJ Tuite is one of my oldest best friends! I've known CJ since I was in the 5th grade and we've been close ever since. He is truly like a brother to me. It is through CJ that I really got to grasp fully what the term "solidarity" really meant. CJ got dealt a rough deck of cards and his upbringing got extremely dicey throughout the years. To witness what he has become, after all he's been through has been nothing short of incredible, as many moments throughout his journey would've destroyed some of the strongest men I've come to know in life tenfold. I wanted to share his story in hopes that anyone out there that's going through a similar situation would never give up and strive for that light at the end of the tunnel. You can't choose your parents or the early years of your life, but you can change its course for the better. CJ and I sat down for what could've easily been over 10 hours, and just briefly touched on some of the rough moments of his when growing up. We haven't even scratched the surface, but I am thankful for his trust and for opening that door just a tad for the listeners, in hopes of inspiring anyone that went through or is currently going through a similar situation. We hope you enjoy our conversation.
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#20 - Mike Cosenza (Mikes Pasta & Sandwich Shoppe)

Michael Cosenza is a well known New Jersey Culinary Chef and the co-owner of Mike's Pasta & Sandwich Shoppe located in Nutley, NJ! Cooking has been in Mike's blood since he was a toddler, sprouting that culinary seed in his family kitchen growing up. Finding his way has been a long journey from deciding to pull out of joining the Marines in the 11th hour, to pursuing his destiny, attending the French Culinary Institute, fine-tuning his craft, laying the very foundation of what's to come. Souring through the restaurant scene taking on many roles in the kitchen, it wasn't until around 5 years ago when he discovered his passion for making homemade pastas. We sat down, and I got to hear all about his story and, more importantly, his love and passion for food. Mike is a fantastic human and we hope you enjoy our conversation!
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#19 - Corey Donohue (Panther Printing Co.)

Corey is the owner of New Jersey's best screen printing and embroidery outfit on the East Coast, Panther Printing Co, which was founded in 2014. Starting out in a small 100 square foot corner of our mutual friends sneaker warehouse, in which he was employed, he then started what would unknowingly become his screen printing empire. I have known Corey since he was 16 years old, so to see him grow not only as a man, but also as a business owner has been one of the most rewarding experiences I've had. In this episode you gain knowledge of his childhood growing up in New Jersey along with a rundown of what it was like to start a local business from the ground up! I had a blast chopping it up with my good friend and I learned a ton about the screen printing industry, as so will you after listening to this episode!
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#18 - Sean Struss

Sean is a West Orange native who has had a love and appreciation for the food and beverage industry since a young age. As the current beverage director at the BeefBar in NYC, my guest tells everything from starting out at the very bottom at local pizzerias & restaurants, to working in the most prestigious culinary outfits in the tri-state area. Sean and I are both mutually emotional people and during this episode we both laughed and cried harmoniously, sharing our deepest thoughts and philosophy regarding life as well as the restaurant industry. This is one of the greatest conversations I have ever had in my life and I can't wait for you all to give it a listen!
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#17 - Joey Hono

Joey Hono, for as young as he is, he's lived a hard, long life filled with experiences that you could depict through cinematic expression. Growing up, I've always been drawn to music like minnows to a trout. One genre in particular that I adored was house music, or rather club music as a whole. The type of music that sonically echoed off of the walls in the most legendary underground NYC clubs throughout the 90's and early 2000's. Oddly enough, although my passion for the music was strong, I did not partake personally in the club party scene but instead thoroughly enjoyed to live vicariously through the stories of others. One club in particular that had a large impact on the scene was The Tunnel. It largely became known towards the end of its life cycle for Hip-Hop, but it did not start out that way. My guest was a frequent at the tunnel along many other rave parties in the big apple for many years and was even there when they had the infamous drug raid that ended up contributing to the termination of its existence. Many drug fueled chaotic adventures that would last hours and carve unforgettable memories into the very fabric of his cerebral cortex. Those memories were thankfully shared over the finest Japanese whisky, as we took a detailed stroll down the nostalgic road that made up the very life he continues to lead. From a childhood in which resembles the movie Kids, to the nightlife escapades that are in lines with the film Party Monster and everything in between, his story is an interesting one . After our chat, in which we realized the large amount of mutual friends and interests we have in common, it's  remarkable we have never crossed paths prior to our introduction. Please welcome my guest Joey Honō aka Joey Blaze.
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#16 - Rose Talocci

Rose Talocci aka Rose6,is the first female featured on The Sauce Talk Podcast! Rose and I met at our place of work over a decade ago as we were both hired the exact same day, but belonging to different crafts. Quite possibly one of the sweetest, talented, and most caring women I've ever met in my life. Just like my cousin Vinny from episode 5, Rose also shares what it was like for her growing up in the 90s being a homosexual female not only in normal day-to-day life, but also going into the military, as she was a Sergeant for the Marine Corps where, upon signing on she had to sign the "don't ask don't tell" waiver in order to follow her military aspirations. Upon exiting the military, she had a brief career working in broadcasting, became a locomotive engineer which she's still involved with in the present day, and then, onto pursuing her love for music, in which she adopted the moniker Rose6, performing shows with just a guitar, mic and her bubbly personality to accompany said tools! Please welcome my guest, Rose Talocci!
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#15 - Ari Kafadar (Ari The Jeweler)

Ari is an expert jeweler of Armenian descent specializing in custom pieces operating out of NYC. Ari's father has been in the jewelry business for over 30 years and while at first he was not interested in continuing the family business, that all changed once he arrived to his 20's after realizing the retail industry just wasn't for him. Although starting later in life, he quickly learned the craft at an expert level creating some of the most intricate and gorgeous custom pieces for athletes, musicians, even all the way down to your average joe. Ari's claim to fame is that every single piece is made of high quality all under one roof, in house, and with zero outsourcing! We had a wonderful conversation and I gained lots of knowledge regarding the jewelry industry that I did not know of prior.
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#14 - GDP (Matt Miller)

Finally you all get to hear the long awaited, highly anticipated, long lost GDP Episode! This in depth interview is jam packed with world premiere information and is purely for the fans. GDP is a hip-hop artist hailing from West Orange, NJ and, in my opinion, he carried the North Jersey underground Hip Hop scene on his back during his reign and changed its landscape forever. He constantly evolves himself creatively, as well as spiritually, leaving no stone unturned while elevating everybody surrounding him selflessly. We have known each other for many years way before he even started recording even a single bar period. Matter of fact, I recorded his first piece of music ever and, since then, he took off into the sunset spewing out a plethora of music for all of our listening pleasure and counting. Without Matt, I would've never had the name Al Sauce as he is the creator and giver of said nickname! We had many drinks and fanboyed over each other for many hours remembering the good old times highlighting his entire musical career up until this very point.
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#13 - Sal Pace & Mario Corona

Sal and Mario were an important part of my life, growing up during my teenage years around 1999-2004. Although I grew up in Verona during those years, I essentially lived a second life within the Caldwells. If you're around our age bracket in your late 30s, and you hung out in that area, anyone who's anyone have heard the names "Sal and Mario" before. Absolute local legends backed by urban influence and when we met in 8th grade we clicked immediately. I haven't seen these gentlemen in what is over 15 years, so I was very excited to live through the past, to reminisce on our nostalgic yesteryears, catch up on all the missed time and put it all on display for you here during this episode. We were sipping on that good stuff, taking a stroll down memory lane. We had a slight hiccup with Mario's mic in which we had no time to troubleshoot but thankfully I was able to resurrect his mic track with minimal buzzing for playback. We had a blast and hope you all do as well!
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )

#12 - Tom Colabraro

Tombo Colabraro is a well accomplished filmmaker originating out of Chatham, NJ. He developed his film chops starting out early filming skate videos on a local level which, with hard work and dedication, morphed into filming on a professional level for the 5 Boro skate team and the rest is history. Moving onto bigger and better things, he is presently known for directing The Fabulous Chi Ali documentary from 2019 and for being producer on the new Choice Is Yours Paramount + Documentary which follows one half of the 90's hip hop duo Black Sheep's very own Dres and the complicated story of Black Sheep along with the unfolding of the unheard posthumous J Dilla collab record DnD. On top of his contribution to the documentary space, he has also extended his reach into the tv series realm alongside projects and commercials for various major corporations and brands wielding a slew of awards in various categories. I've known this guy for over 20 years and it was a blessing to be able to sit down, share some beverages and reminisce on the good ole days while catching up on lost time. We hope you enjoy our conversation! 
 
*Mixed & Mastered by Carson Kopp ( @carson.kopp )                                                                                                        
**Intro Music by N3str0 ( @n3str0 )