As a Rodeo Clown, Brinson James travels the world entertaining crowds and protecting cowboys. We talk dodging 2,500lb bulls, growing up on the road and the best rodeos. Then we countdown the Top 5 Western Movies.
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Interview with Rodeo Clown and Entertainer Brinson James
Nick VinZant 0:11
Hey everybody welcome to Profoundly Pointless. My name is Nick VinZant coming up in this episode, rodeo clowns and western movies,
Brinson James 0:22
and I stood on top of my clown barrel while the bullfighters brought the ball over to my clown doll as fast as they could. And I jumped over the bull while he ran past me. So only thing I'm thinking is jump as high as you can and run as fast as you can. And actually the bookable industry is so big. They're a bull sold at the there's just a huge bucking bull sale in Las Vegas every year, and a bull sold there. He was a two year old bull. He's never had a cowboy on his back. But he sold for $1.2 million.
Nick VinZant 1:03
I want to thank you so much for joining us. If you get a chance, like download, subscribe, share, we really appreciate it really helps us out. So our first guest travels all over North America, entertaining crowds and protecting cowboys. And he has some fascinating stories about what it's like to face off against a 2500 pound bowl, how you can keep crowds entertained, and where you can find the best rodeos in the world. This is rodeo clown and entertainer Brinson, James, Was this something that you always wanted to do? Or was this something that just happened?
Brinson James 1:44
No, it was definitely something I've always wanted to do my my dad was also a rodeo clown growing up so I don't know if it was something that I always wanted to do or it was something I had to do. It was kind of in my blood then we I was born to do it.
Nick VinZant 1:58
What do you like the most about it?
Brinson James 2:01
To travel and meeting all new people and making new friends but my biggest thing is I love to go out and make new friends and have fun in different places. And with this job, you only only get to work in a two hours every Friday and Saturday usually or sometimes we have no Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday events sometimes like that, but you only get to work two hours a day. So throughout the rest of the day we got to do something fun so that's my excuse to get out and you know it's almost like a vacation but you getting paid as well.
Nick VinZant 2:29
Can this be a full time living?
Brinson James 2:30
It is so actually this is my full time job since COVID I had to do a couple little small jobs here around the house but they're actually I'm quitting those because it's coming back to rodeo season in blue, red and Tom because almost all year people ask you know does rodeo or our brains have a season and it actually is nonstop all year long? winter time we just go indoors Are you pretty much guaranteed to get hurt in some way?
Nick VinZant 2:58
Maybe not rushed to the hospital go to the doctor kind of hurt. But are you going to get hurt pretty much every rodeo
Brinson James 3:05
me my job there so the road the the job of the rodeo clown 20 years ago, 30 years ago was a real big job because they had to be funny, tell jokes, do comedy acts throughout the whole rodeo. And then when it came down time for the bull riding, they put on the pads and they were serious and they protected the Cowboys once they fell off the bull. And that was the job of the rodeo clown throughout the whole rodeo for a long time. But now since probably know the later 90s, early 2000s it's really split to do different jobs. You have your crazy Daredevil that are just looking for that high energy bullfighters that will are absolutely nuts they put on the pads and now they're cowboy bodyguards they were literally jumped on a bull's head to save another cowboy or did you have your rodeo entertainers which can be funny can talk on a microphone can no handle a crowd can keep up keep a crowd you know no busy no when something goes on and stuff like that. So it's really split to two jobs because some people can be funny and some people aren't they're devils so that so I've really split and get to the funny side just because really they get paid a lot more they do it which is which is crazy someone who risked their life by putting on pads and protecting another human being gets paid way less than the guy that's out there just picking this up and making fun
Nick VinZant 4:35
now did you start out kind of doing the the more kind of rodeo bullfight getting the way the bull stuff and then say like no,
Brinson James 4:42
My dad did. My dad was a rodeo clown My dad was the rodeo clown that did both back in the day before I was born. He was the comedy clown did all types of jokes acts but then when it came down to bullfighting he put on the pads and protect the Cowboys but then once I was born He really started to move away from that aspect of protecting the cowboys and just really became more of a comedy clown and pushed me in that direction as well. Because again, you can't make a really a super good great living on protecting cowboys you're guaranteed just like you're gonna say there's guaranteed to get hurt every single rodeo almost when your clown you're way out there in the arena you're either up on the fence or in the crowd having fun is that to two totally different jobs now that I can step around the ball every now and then I've done it just to say I've done it but I like to say out there with all the rest of the people have fun.
Nick VinZant 5:39
So like when you go to a rodeo what's kind of like your staple of like what is the role what do you what are you doing as an entertainer when
Brinson James 5:46
my kind of style is a little bit different than everybody else's. I really like to keep our high energy I love to go out in the crowd and have fun with the crowd and get everybody on the edge of their seat because these bull riders and bullfighters that I've been out there and watching and part of the event they've told me before Hey man when you get the crowd to screaming and are cheering is at the top of their lungs, I feels like I can do anything the bull riders tell me that it feels like they can ride you know any bore any animal that is possible. So that's where I really kind of am trying to fit in is I'm just trying to get that crowd up to the higher energy where we can see some awesome bull rides or some awesome horse riding wherever we or event we're having the rodeo and so I'd come out there and just have a more of a high energy dance. I do a lot of dancing. I big big with dance and I love music. So that's pretty much my thing as we go out there. Have fun, get them clap and get up dancing and make sure everybody is going to danger have a good time when they come to the show.
Nick VinZant 6:49
Okay, but tell the truth. Tell the truth. The guys, the rodeo guys who are out there scaring away the bull. Do they look at you like Look at that guy just jumping around. Right is Is there any Is there any on animosity there? Is there any kind of like write
Brinson James 7:09
me and the bullfighters are usually we are the best of buds but there is a little spot where they don't like so bullfighters in the New Age bullfighters now that are taking it seriously because they're an action sport and they're protecting lives. They don't like to be called the rodeo clown. So so just your town folks and people that are just coming that aren't your normal people that see rodeo all the time. They go over there. It's a rodeo call video call. And they these guys are they're pretty much action sports. You know, they're they're crazy to jump in front of these wild animals. So they don't really fit see themselves as being a rodeo clown. So they kind of Yeah, and I'll make fun. Yeah, he's the clown. All right. So yeah, there's a little there's a little bit of back and forth there. But ya know, you're usually just a virgin and mostly helping each other out. Actually, last weekend I was in Tennessee at a rodeo and I stood on top of my clown barrel, while the bullfighters brought the ball over to my clown barrel as fast as they could. And I jumped over the bull while he ran past me. So there's kind of a tag team of all of us working together. But ya know, it's almost like a big team out there.
Nick VinZant 8:26
What's that? Like when you got a bowl which I'm gonna just gonna throw out a number I'm correct me 2000 pounds.
Brinson James 8:32
2500 is usually running at 2500 is usually those the nice big ones that they wanted those rodeos? The smallest that you'll ever see it at a rodeo or Bull Run is maybe 1800? And yeah, no, so only thing I'm thinking is jump as high as you can and run as fast as you can. It's no Yeah, no, it's your only instinct kicks in and the only because I've been around it my whole life. And I kind of have seen the professionals do it. I've seen everybody cut that the ball growing up. And I kind of know the gist of how to get around the the animals. So I kind of trust myself and I trust the bullfighters and my friends that are in the arena also to get my back just in case something goes wrong.
Nick VinZant 9:14
What would you say to somebody who says like, Look, this is abusing the animals? This is taking advantage of them. This isn't something that should be happening. What for your, from your perspective as somebody who is there? What would be your response to that?
Brinson James 9:33
Yes. So a lot of times at the rodeos people come up and enter asking those things or confronting up with with information. And a lot of the information is false just because they were fed wrong information. Lots of people think that we tie something around their testosterone producing anatomy. And that is the farthest from the truth. We could we couldn't first off Jim The men that are listening in if yours were tied, would you want to run jump in book? No. In the horse riding a lot of the horses that we buck and rodeo are female. These horses are horses and bulls that are in the rodeo world are worth a lot a lot of money there and they're bred to be buggers. They're bred to be just like the racehorse business out his. His dad was a racehorse, his mom was a racehorse so his whole racehorse DNA is bred to run fast. These bulls are the exact same way his dad was a bucking bull. His granddad was a bucking bull. And his great great granddad was a bucking bull and his mom, but also, so it's all bloodlines, they're all worth a lot of money. So if you hurt one of these animals, where they don't want to buck, that's actually money coming out of you know, the owners pocket because he's taken that bull note to different rodeos or bull runs across the country and making money. Whenever he books and stuff like that, they get an out fee, and if they bump the guy off, sometimes they get even more money. So it's all about how much money these bulls can make for their owners. And it's a big, big business right now a lot of retired bull riders that are no just getting out of game a little bit are still saying in the whole rodeo and bull riding world by owning bucking bulls and growing the bucking bull industry. And actually, the bucking bull industry is so big. There a bull sold at the there's this huge bucking bull sale in Las Vegas every year. The last one that they had I was in 2019 I do believe and a bull sold there, he was a two year old bull. He's never had a cowboy on his back. But he sold for $1.2 million. He's never you never had a cowboy on his back. And that and so when they don't only they wait till three years old until they bubbles with cameras on their back. They're all still a little too young before then. So it's all about that now he since he looks so good, and he won the award and he's they sold him for that much money. Now he can produce a lot more bucking bulls and make so much more money off of him. So it's a huge, huge business. And when you go in with huge, huge money, there's no way we can just maybe accidentally hurt these animals where it can't happen like that. Because that's the biggest thing is we protect these animals, we feed them the best feed that they got, we take care of them with the trailers, and that are the top the top of trailers that are going, No, they're all up to par with everything they have to be. There's always veterinarians there at the event checking out the animals before and after is a big big thing because of course, a lot of people think that we injure these animals, but when some people says Oh, you're you're hurting him by poking them with a stick to get them to go through the gates. Gee, he just got kicked by another ball back there. There's no there's no way I could do any type of slinging of a bat hit this ball that would compare to this other bull hooking them with another horn. So I mean, there's them just traveling it or standing in it pinned together is way more of a no they get battled around way more than anything we could ever do.
Nick VinZant 13:33
I honestly when you said how much that bowl sold for I was thinking like, Alright, it's gonna be like 15 Yeah, so can be like 20, which I would have thought that's
Brinson James 13:40
the normal bulls at the lower end just if you go down the road and check out your local rodeo. Though those bulls average if you're just selling them to other rodeo places around 10 to 20 10,000 9015. The good ones Of course, you want those that jump the kicks been and that are hard to ride. And the harder the red, the more money they cost. So yeah, so but there's some of them that are up there in the PBR. They're on TV right now. They're making a good bit of money traveling around with four or five bowls. And they're traveling all around the country making money with these animals. So it's awesome to see. And it's a big big industry that is just keeps keeps growing.
Nick VinZant 14:24
Do you think like Did you ever see yourself? Not doing this? Right? Is this like is this the kind of it's just like a phase job? Right? Like you're gonna do this for 510 years ago.
Brinson James 14:36
I don't think so. Just because it's so much in my blood now have been grown up with it. I've literally just eat sleep breathe rodeo because we were on the road. traveling from rodeo to rodeo growing up. We didn't really have a home we just traveled to rodeo to rodeo so it's something that I think about all the time. And it's something that and I love being in front of people and entertaining too. That's my biggest thing is I love making people laugh. I used to get in trouble in school being the class clown but take that teachers I'll get paid at it now.
Nick VinZant 15:07
When you know you Britain, you mentioned like a mascot and I'm kind of thinking give me some perspective in this right like I've been to sporting events. And you know there's a mascot there he's over there doing so that right? But when you do a rodeo are people like proportionately paying more attention to you than somebody like myself would be paying attention to the mascot at like a pro sports game? I do believe so. Right? Are you more in? Are you more involved in the overall
Brinson James 15:33
I am I just because I'm thinner stage for two hours, I'm right in front of you. There's nothing else to look at, except for the eight seconds while a bull riding is going on with our action in our eyes, turn to the button, shoot me watch the action. Then after that we have about two minutes of downtime. And that's why they're getting paid to come to the event. I feel the lows of the performance whenever we're going down and a Broadway style or something like that. I set out there right in the middle of the arena and take control of and take time. You know, either with dancing with jokes with an act, I trick rope with the last news, I cracked lips and do tricks. And so I just and that's my thing is to distract people from actually what's going on. While we can get some stuff done, and then keep the flow of the show going.
Nick VinZant 16:25
Are you ready for some harder slash listener submitted questions? Let's do it. Okay, so obviously, all the rodeos you go to are great. They're all fantastic. Which is, which is the one that you're like, man. Whoo, I got I got to have it tonight. This is this is the one
Brinson James 16:46
I got to one. So yes, just like you said, I love every rodeo. I love every event I go to I don't think I have a worst one. But there is one that if you love rodeo or you love action sports, you just need to go to Quebec, Canada, there's a little bitty small town that is called St. teat, Quebec. It's a I think, probably three hours north of the border. And it's a small town that has a population of 1200 people. But when a festival is called a festival, Western de St. htet. And it's all French, because Quebec is all French. And it's 10 days long. And 800,000 people come through this small town of 1200 people for a festival. And it's a 10 day rodeo every night. Well. There's no hotels in the south. So that many people flow through this town and say in their campers intense in their horse trailers. And they've completely sell out every yard, every backyard, every side yard every parking lot in a 10 mile radius of this town. And literally, they have an 8000 seat stadium right in the middle of the town. And they only have a rodeo there once a year. It's every September. And it's amazing. There's no energy like show, there's no show in the whole world that can match the energy of this show. Just because everybody in that culture are very outgoing. They want to do more. They're larger than life. They're drinking. That's another thing they love to drink out there. Yeah. So And literally, so usually the the more the lower time times of the event, you know, the the boring types of times of the show is when we take the tractor out there and we drag the arena real fast. Well, not here. Literally the guy says on the microphone in French who knows exactly what he's saying. But he says something like, All right, everybody stand up. Let's go, let's have some fun. And 8000 people stand up and start stomping their feet. And it's a 10 built building, and the whole building starts to rattle. And I just go out there and I dance for two minutes while that attractor drags and they play fireball. And it's high energetic. People are screaming dancing, literally right before the show, I go out there before we have any type of rodeo events. I go out there just before we start the event, and I walk out there and I asked him to clap their hands. By no microphone, I don't have a microphone, I don't speak French. So I just walk in the middle and I just kind of give you a hand signal of Please clap your hands and 8000 people's clap their hands immediately. And then I'll stop just by putting the hand up and then I'll start stomping my feet in the middle arena and then eight And people just stomp their feet there is so responsive. So I've worked quite a bit all over the world, Australia, Canada, Canada, New Mexico, Mexico, of the I mean, it's been quite a bit all over the place and there's not one venue or event that I can even come close to this one in Canada.
Nick VinZant 20:23
That's crazy. That's cool. Like I want.
Brinson James 20:26
That sounds like a great, amazing, it's absolutely please check it out on YouTube. It's a festival Western to st it. They have some crazy, crazy new events that they added to rodeo. And they actually have so in Western Canada is the Calgary Stampede was the largest outdoor show on earth. Literally. It's huge, huge, huge rodeo 30,000 people are sitting in the sands looking at the rodeo actually. And it is it's one of the best rodeos in the world. But still, the energy doesn't compare to Eastern Canada at the St. T. French show. It's absolutely crazy. Just check it out on the videos. It's amazing.
Nick VinZant 21:05
Best rodeo song.
Brinson James 21:08
Best rodeo song. So there's a couple different ones that if so, rodeo song. I for me, I kind of feel like I've been everywhere man. I've been everywhere man cuz rodeos are everywhere. And yeah, I mean, when I think about it, I'm I'm traveling every single week and seeing someplace to do and I'm on the rodeo trail. And that's kind of something for me is on the rodeo trail and you're on the road. I mean, on the road again, of course that's another good one. But but so now it's kind of this kind of new, which I changed up and we're trying to get away from the country that a lot of these shows now they're trying to PVR the professional bull riders, they rarely ever play country music now. It's like a rock concert with some bulls involved. It's really crazy. So we do a lot of you know, hardcore rock and roll a lot of a lot of rap. But there's not there's one song that we play almost at every rodeo. And it brings everybody together that pretty much I think it brings the whole event together. And it's journey don't stop believing. Oh, yeah, that's the classic, that it brings everybody together and we're all you know what I mean? It you're just you're all together as one and yeah, you see right now you know,
Nick VinZant 22:38
you can't you can't help living in
Brinson James 22:43
every, almost every show. And and that's the one of our highlights of the event. We do a sing along and get the whole crowd on it. And when there's 10,000 people singing, is there's no there's no show like it.
Nick VinZant 22:56
scariest bull that you've ever seen.
Brinson James 22:59
So I've had a quite a few instances with some rules and some scariness in the years. So the first thing that jumps in my mind, every bill is scary. I mean, every bullet can get you down and hurt you really bad. But when I was 18 years old, we were in Boston, Massachusetts, or rodeo, and my dad and I were rodeo clown team or growing up and we're there working the show together. And this bill Oh, ran out to the middle of the cowboy fell off immediately, and then kind of made a lap around the arena will when he kind of came over by us. I've jumped up the fence. And my dad did the same, but he didn't get up high enough. And he hooked his legs out from underneath him. And he went down on the ground and the ball kind of, you know, hooked him on the ground a little bit. And when the ball went to leave, it wasn't like he was just super mean. But he put his head in the right spot. And he actually put his horn through my dad's pocket of his rodeo clown pants. So the horn, just stabbed right through the pocket. And my dad's rodeo clown baggies, which are the bigger no big size. Yeah, yes. We're hooked to his head and my dad was hooked to this Bull's head for 40 seconds. And I was I was there I was 18. And what do you do this this, there's nothing you can really can do. He was hooked to his head, his pants finally came off, his shoes popped off. And after 40 seconds, he crawled over to the fence and his left shoulder was dislocated. And his right foot was broken or his ankle and his foot was kind of looking over there to the neighbors. So I mean the ball then ran out and they had to actually unwrapped the pants off of the bull's head. It was wrapped around the horn so tight and I mean if that was just The first note, bro, that stands out in my mind, you know what I mean? wreck out your dad,
Nick VinZant 25:06
when you get it obviously like you can't get inside the animal's head but like the bull is, is the bull trying to hurt people? Or is the bull just like look trying to get away from me and I happen to be a 2500 pound animal and my little nudge is gonna send you across the road
Brinson James 25:22
just like a people, they some people are, who have good attitudes, some people have a bad attitude. Some people have good days, some people have bad days, these rules are exactly the same. A lot of them, you can get back there in the pins with them and stretch them on the back or when they come by the fence. You can rub on arm and stuff like that. They're they're not mean, they know it's their job to run, jump and buck. And so when they get into the book and shoot and they get demand on their back, they know it's time to do their job. And so they jump in but there is sometimes a couple that will they've had a bad day. You know what I mean? And and so they'll definitely be there to come in to try to get you but usually we're working with some that are you know, they're fun that they know it's their job to jump the kick as soon as the guy comes off. Oh, we're okay. And it's time to leave.
Nick VinZant 26:15
Well, it's interesting to have such a personality, right? Yeah. Best named bull. Oh, good one for horse.
Brinson James 26:22
Horse I guess. Best name bull I've ever heard. He was from I believe he was from Wyoming and it was out there at that bowl booking calm contest that I told you about that half a million dollar bull. He didn't win but his name was close hearted. hearted.
Nick VinZant 26:47
It's like an equal mix of fantastic and terrible
Brinson James 26:52
Maybe like a 13 year old boy at heart. That's why that was my favorite name. But um, I think that's the best personal that pops in my mind.
Nick VinZant 27:02
It's definitely better than like the jif or something you know, I mean, like it sticks in your mind. Oh
Brinson James 27:08
yeah. That's a good that's a great one. I'm gonna like the best build that is still bucking that and is in the PBR professional bull riders. His name is airtight and that bull can really get some airtime he jumps super high and when he kicks his feet come almost directly above his head so it's a it's a really well named bull and it definitely know what's going to happen if you draw that bone to get on his back. Yeah,
Nick VinZant 27:37
right that's it guys. You're in for a rough time not like snuck
Brinson James 27:44
This is sweet don't want to go home and tell your girlfriend Hey sorry sweetie. I fell off a Buttercup.
Nick VinZant 27:51
Right right right would you get last place Buttercup What made you want to be something like you know, I'm more important to a cowboy.The belt buckle or the hat question
Brinson James 28:07
I think the belt buckle because the belt buckle is the trophy the belt buckle says I'm better than you and that and that's then that's what it is is not your Tractor Supply belt buckle that you go by on it that's got you know the horse going through the open trail but the actual belt buckles that they've won is they're they're priceless cities cowboys. And yeah you don't want to mess with the Cowboys had either but these buckles are that's why they do it is they want their name engraved in gold on a gold Douglass's that their world champion and that's that's the angle to all these cowboys. But again, though, wear cowboy hat, you don't want to jack with a gun guys probably have especially when we're out eating or dancing or hanging out afterwards. You know, that's fightin words. If you start jacking with a cowboy hat, those are expensive some cowboy hats are those three four or 500 600 bucks they're worth a lot of money and, and cowboys take it seriously.
Nick VinZant 29:12
When you're out there. Like what is what is what is your fear what scares you?
Brinson James 29:19
Um, okay, so there's a couple, the one of my biggest fears is for me not to be able to do my job properly. And so to not be able to know get the crowds attention or fill, you know, a certain spot that needs to be filled. You know, if something were to happen with a microphone or have something to happen with no props and stuff like that, of course, on my end, that's where, you know, I'm always double checking and thinking about and stuff like that. But, of course, another thing too is you know, you want to definitely in that night on a good note, so nobody getting hurt is of course the best outcome. you're fearful a little bit for your friends. But we know that these are all professionals, people that come to these games now and, and are playing, not playing a part of it. They're professionals and they know how to get out of it and get out of certain situations. So we do feel pretty comfortable and a lot of the crazy situations, but I think the biggest one is just you want to see everybody get out there, okay.
Nick VinZant 30:21
Anything that you think we missed, or what's coming up next for you.
Brinson James 30:24
Um, so there's a bunch coming up now. I mean, it's really getting to rodeo season. I mean, of course, the summertime is a little more jam packed full of events. So I'm June I'm actually every single weekend, July, me and my girlfriend we happen a little bitty Prius and we drive from Florida all the way to Gallup, New Mexico for the first weekend of July, and we do a Gallup New Mexico then on to Salt Lake City, Utah, and then back down to Texas and then Louisiana after that. And so I'm looking forward to doing a lot more here in 2021. And end of the year on a good note because it's been a pretty low for the past year, and I'm ready to turn it turn it around and make it a turn these frowns upside down it's rodeo season.