When I first reached out to Terry McBride it was out of the blue. I was hoping that a giant like him might give a stranger like me some of his time. Of course, I knew about him for years. You see, I was one of those dorky kids who read the music liners on cassettes. That’s right, cassettes. And he signed one of my favorite bands at the time, Moev. Since then he’s been behind great careers like Sarah McLachlan, Avril Lavigne and Coldplay…

… that’s just the short list!

And so I secured a meeting with him one morning in mid-March. I arrived at his office early and waited in the lobby like a nervous schoolboy. Then I proceeded to blabber for nearly an hour where he graciously listened and asked several insightful questions. I’ve since looked back on that meeting and thought, “You’re an idiot. Why did you let your mouth run away like a freight train?”

So do yourself a favor. If you ever get a chance to sit in a room with a giant, keep your trap shut and listen.

Lucky for me, Terry’s a good guy. When I reached out to him for this Blog, he once again, gave me some of his time. The moment we were done, I called my wife, feeling dazed like a school boy, and gushed, “This guy is so F$*king cool!”

I’m happy that a guy like Terry is in this world. We need examples of individuals doing their best to do the right thing. He’s the kind of guy you want to say, “Hey, you’re cool. Wanna be friends?” But that doesn’t really work when you’re much past 12 years old.

Q: What is your favorite sandwich and who makes the best one?

T.M. Sushi. Japanese sandwich.

Q: What is your favorite meal your mom makes?

T.M. She doesn’t make any. (Laughs) … and that’s probably a good thing.

Q: How did you meet your best friend?

T.M. At a house party.

Q: When or how did you find what you wanted to do?

T.M.  I was 21.

Q: How did you pursue it?

T.M. I just did it. I put blinders on and just went with it.

Q: Did you have a mentor/mentors in pursuing it? 

T.M. Yes, in a reverse kind of way. Those who believed that what Mark and I were doing wasn’t going to work pushed us further to prove them wrong. 

Q: What do you dream of doing or are you doing it? If so, then what is the goal?

T.M. You know, my goal hasn’t changed. It’s more the awareness of what it already is. I like to help artists who want to make the world a better place, as corny as that sounds. That’s what really motivates me.

Q: What would your 15-year-old self say to you now?

T.M. Follow your intuition and make up your own mind, but take the advice that is relevant to your life and ignore the rest.

Q: If life were a person what would you say?

T.M. Thank you. I don’t know what else to say. I come from a very Buddhist point of view. So we are souls that get to deal with our Summatis over and over again. Every time that we come back is an opportunity to correct some of our bigger issues.

Q:  If you were in charge of the world and you have no restrictions, real or imagined, what is the one thing you would give it?

T.M. Peace. I’d also shift from being tolerant to being understanding. There is a big difference. You can’t learn the other person’s perspective until you understand it. If you have peace, a lot of the other things will naturally resolve themselves.

Q: Has morality disintegrated to the point that we now need Yelp for people?

T.M. I think that what we need is education. A lot of people live in their own bubble. There are beliefs that come from living in a very closed society. I saw a lot of racism and bigotry toward East Indians when I was young and it was based on not having understanding.

Q: How is society getting things right?

T.M. Um, well… you know, I think there are a lot of very smart people who are putting in time and energy and moving this world in the right direction. I’m not religious, but the current Pope is a pretty neat guy. He’s saying things that need to be said. What’s going on in Venezuela right now, as tough as that is – they might avoid a civil war. Only a woman could have done what Chancellor Merkel did in Germany by letting in all those refugees. There are leaders that are doing positive things. As a Canadian we are blessed to have our current Prime Minister.

Q:  What do people need in order to see each other as equals?

T.M. Listen and share perspectives with others. Until you have lived in someone else’s shoes it’s hard to understand them.

Q: Do we still need religion?

T.M. I’ve never thought we needed it, but that’s just me. Other people do and I’m not one to judge their needs. It can be powerfully good, but it can also be powerfully bad.

Q: Do you have hope for the future?

T.M. Yes, yeah. I basically do. It’s generational, though. Ten years from now a new generation will step in and things will look very different. I have hope that Millennials will step in and be very inclusive and accepting, and very educated. You can be the most powerful person in the world, but eventually you will be pushing up daisies. Power cannot keep you alive. Nature takes over. The beliefs right now are generational. They will die off. Our greatest gift is the canvas that we can leave to our kids.

Hot topic of the week: This is an open discussion. Could be Gay marriage or the Confederate flag, or Donald Trump, for example. 

T.M. Obviously, as a Canadian I’m concerned about the negativity with my southern brothers. There’s been this movement of using hate and bigotry to drive a political agenda and I think it’s wrong. It’s my hope it will invigorate the younger generation to make a good and positive change. I actually think there will be some good things about who’s coming in. There is a way to reset certain things in government, but the way they are going about it is really sad. Being Canadian, Trump is not my president. We love the current president and we wish you didn’t have term limits down there.

Up here my kids celebrate other holidays from the point of understanding; maybe not acceptance, but understanding. We need more of that in the world. That will shape their points of view for the rest of their lives.

Q: What are three things that work for you: For example, you can’t find a good razor. Because of a near unbridled need for massive profits you may find that many products don’t live up to their advertising. What works for you? 

T.M. I buy higher quality stuff. I buy two pairs of shoes a year and they are made here in Vancouver: Strike Mvmnt in Vancouver. I don’t own a lot of things. My mom grew up in the depression and believed it’s all about buying in bulk and finding a deal, but I’m the opposite. The cult of consumerism is not a good thing.

More thought-provoking questions:

1:  Do Americans have the right to complain about immigration?

T.M. I think the only people who have the right are first nations. I don’t think we have a right. I wouldn’t be here if my great-grandparents hadn’t immigrated. That John Lennon song, if there are no borders, the world’s a better place.

2: If our value system is based on scarcity then what of a human life, now that the population is in the billions?

T.M. I don’t think it’s scarcity. Values to me are things that I intuitively love. It could be basically anything.

3: Would life be easier if racism were accurate?

T.M. I guess. I mean. I’ve seen racism as a young child. I guess I was just fortunate to be brought into a different mindset at a young age and exposed at a family level. Most were Persians, Asians, African Americans, or whatever. Racism doesn’t register to me. I know it exists, but it’s not part of who I am. It’s hard for me to see this question as relevant. It’s a perspective that I don’t love. I’m lucky to live in a city that is so multicultural. I don’t see it from my kids. Nearly half of their friends are not Caucasian. Which I think is absolutely wonderful.