Kamloops’ top meme page runner, Nevin Webster, is expanding his Loospzer brand following his first polarizing podcast episode, which featured an interview with Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson.
The first 46-minute episode, available on multiple platforms such as Transistor and Spotify, attracted over 1300 listeners.
In addition to networking with interesting people and providing a platform to share under-reported stories, Webster says the goal is simple.
“I wanna really get people from every different demographic on the show…to start to understand the tapestry that is Kamloops,” Webster said.
His second episode, released on Oct. 29, saw him sit down with mental health professional Cecile Tucker. He mentioned WolfPack alum and paralympic gold medalist Greg Stewart, as well as local Indigenous social media influencer and business owner Ashley Michel, as future guests he’d like to interview.
Although feedback from episode one was predominantly positive, Webster said he did receive some criticism from listeners who thought he didn’t critique the mayor enough.
“I picked a rather challenging first interview,” Webster said. “Having the mayor on …was like a make or break kind of thing. I don’t think I blew it out of the park, though some people thought it was amazing. I don’t think I flubbed it… but it was a challenge.”
Before this Loopszer podcast, Webster used that moniker to post memes on Instagram and Facebook, growing his following to over 5,000 users across two platforms. Webster, a former TRU tourism management grad, said many of his followers are TRU students.
This year, Webster received two Best of Kamloops Awards for the best Facebook and Instagram page in the city. Originally, he made memes about general topics before gradually focusing on the city.
“People weren’t doing it, and it seems like there was a big gap [in Kamloops-themed content], so I started doing it,” Webster said.
This gap has also been present in podcasting. Since the final episode of Kamloops Last Week aired eight months ago, residents have been without a wide selection of locally themed podcasts. With his new Loopszer show, Webster hopes to change this.
“Making as many memes as I have about Kamloops, you start running out of topics you can talk about before you start making stupid jokes like I have. The podcast was born out of a necessity to make content that is fresh and interesting…It was a response to [feeling] meme burnout,” Webster said.
Despite the freshness of his current product, Loopszer is not Webster’s first foray into the podcasting industry.
Between 2018 and 2020, the TRU alum hosted Kameo w/ Nevin Webster, a program featuring a similar premise. He produced over one hundred episodes and spoke to local politicians, artists and unique Kamloopsians in episodes with runtimes ranging from four minutes to over an hour.
“I think Kamloops was pretty well used to my antics — I was a pretty big internet troll back when there were news articles and comments. I think people were familiar with me,” Webster said.
Webster’s Loopszer podcast is now streaming on multiple platforms, with weekly episodes expected in the future.