The Karol Markowicz Show: Mike Harlow on Cancel Culture, Hollywood Censorship & Fighting Back

Karol Markowicz (0:05)

Hi, and welcome back to The Karol Markowicz Show on iHeartRadio.

My guest today is Mike Harlow. Mike is a writer, producer, and filmmaker and host of Mike Growagrest on YouTube. So nice to have you on, Mike.

Mike Harlow (0:18)

So glad to be here, Karol. Thank you so much for having me. I've been an admirer of yours for the longest time. It's an honor.

Karol Markowicz (0:25)

I was going to say the same, very mutual appreciation society here.

You have one of the best Twitter accounts. I mean it as a giant compliment. I feel like people talk smack about Twitter and how much we use it, but I love your account. I learned so much. You have so much interesting stuff on there. How did you get into being a writer, producer, and having your own show on YouTube?

Mike Harlow (0:53)

Well, in terms of the political side of it, the YouTube, I really just fell into it. I've been writing my whole life.

I come from a family of crazy artists and musicians. My dad is a music producer. My mom is a jazz singer. My grandpa was an Italian singer. Him and Sinatra were rivals with each other. So I grew up singing in punk bands, but then I realized the apple fell very far from the tree when it comes to musical talent. So like what else do I like to do?

Karol Markowicz (1:23)

Writing.

Mike Harlow (1:24)

I don't believe that. Oh, you don't want to hear me sing.

Karol Markowicz (1:28)

I don't know. Maybe I do.

Mike Harlow (1:29)

No, no. You'll lose all your viewers.

Karol Markowicz (1:33)

Where did you grow up?

Mike Harlow (1:35)

New York City, born and raised. About a year or two ago, I moved to Florida. So I feel like I was sort of on the last plane out of NAMM.

Karol Markowicz (1:45)

Right. It'll be five years for us in January that we left Brooklyn for South Florida. So very, very similar trajectories. Also lifelong New Yorker, right up until that, though.

Mike Harlow (1:58)

What area are you from?

Karol Markowicz (2:00)

I grew up in Brooklyn. My husband grew up in Queens. So we were like legit New Yorker, New Yorkers, and we were never going to move. But then the city lost its ever loving mind during COVID, and we didn't see that getting better. And we feel like geniuses like every single day. We're like we're so smart for getting out when we did. So where did you live and what made you finally leave?

Mike Harlow (2:21)

Well, my dad is from Brooklyn. The last place I lived was in Queens, and I grew up in Manhattan, Upper West Side.

If you've ever seen the movie, you've got mail.

Karol Markowicz (2:30)

Yeah, of course.

Mike Harlow (2:31)

That's basically like a tour of where I grew up. They filmed it in my neighborhood when I was a kid. They went to every local spot. And it's so tragic watching that movie now because this city doesn't exist anymore.

Karol Markowicz (2:45)

Right. It's so gone. Yeah, we lived on 68th and Broadway for a little while. So I think in that same vicinity.

Mike Harlow (2:50)

69th and West End.

Karol Markowicz (2:52)

All right. So we might have seen each other.

Mike Harlow (2:54)

Oh, my God. Yeah, though, it's sad. I miss the city that was. It just doesn't exist anymore.

Karol Markowicz (3:02)

Yeah, I've mourned it so completely that I'm kind of over it. And I appreciate it for what it is. You know, we go visit sometimes. We go eat like really spicy Asian food. And then I come home to like beauty and safety and security and functioning government.

It's great.

Mike Harlow (3:20)

Isn't it so weird being able to just walk and not have to like look behind your back? And it's crazy.

Karol Markowicz (3:27)

Awesome. So, okay, you don't become a singer.

You what's what's the next thing that happens to you?

Mike Harlow (3:35)

So I've always loved writing. I've been writing since I was a kid. And so I became a bit of a professional writer where I was working with a publishing company, ghost writing books, and then that evolved into consulting on screenplays and stuff like that. And so around 2015, 2016, which in many ways feels like the turning point of humanity when everyone lost their mind.

I'd created a TV series that we were in the midst of pitching to different outlets. People seem to really like it. And then we got a letter from GLAAD, the Gay Defamation League, saying, this is homophobic. We will fight you every step of the way in making this shut. They are like the mafia. Shut down all the meetings, everything.