We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dr. Andrew Rimby a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Dr. Andrew thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
In March 2020, right at the start of the pandemic, Stony Brook University, where I was teaching during my PhD program, had informed all of us that we had to switch from in-person teaching to virtual teaching. I had a nuanced conversation with my students about best teaching practices when we switched to online learning, but we thought there was a possibility that we would see each other in-person in about a month. However, we all know how that turned out. The first week of working from home, I was also hard at work on my dissertation, was going as smoothly as possible since I had an exercise routine (intense walking outside), and then I learned that my Nana had passed away at her assisted living facility. Since I knew of the risk of traveling because of the coronavirus, I packed a suitcase that would last me for about two weeks so I could be with my parents for an extended period. I left Long Island for South Jersey and didn’t come back to my apartment until the beginning of June. Those months with my parents were so special since I’m an only child, and I was able to creatively think outside the box while being in such a supportive environment. It was during my time in South Jersey that I came up with the idea to start a literary and artistic podcast since I had become obsessed with listening to podcasts while planning teaching lessons, grading, exercising at my hometown’s beautiful park, and writing. But, I was not able to find a podcast that spoke directly to a PhD humanities student’s experience. I still remember when I had this realization that I needed to create a podcast that spoke both to an academic and an artistic audience. This is how The Ivory Tower Boiler Room podcast was born.
I decided to follow my passion for all genres of literature, the arts (Broadway/Dance/Music), pop culture (TV/Film/Celebrity Gossip), and ask “How would an academic analyze any arts and culture topic?” The name combines my academic personality and PhD English experience of “The Ivory Tower” and the behind the scenes of the arts and culture industry…the hidden “Boiler Room.” I need to shout out Mary DiPipi, who hosts the “True Crime in Academia” show on my podcast because Mary has been such an incredible collaborator to work with and has helped the podcast to creatively evolve.
Dr. Andrew , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
On July 7th, 2023, I officially became Dr. Andrew Rimby and presented my dissertation “The Pool of Narcissus: Walt Whitman’s Homoerotic Poetics” which I am now pitching to publishing companies because I am incredibly proud of my idea of, what I call, Whitman’s “queer male procreative poetics.” Before I define what I mean by this phrase, I want to first explain that it took me nine years to finish my PhD and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I had gone right from my Bachelors in English (minors in English and Gender Studies) at Kean University to Stony Brook’s PhD program, and it is so interesting to now be on the other side of the PhD since Kean laid the groundwork for my dissertation, and Stony Brook provided the queer theoretical fine tooth comb. During these nine years, I learned so much from my PhD courses (I even took a course at Columbia University), taught more than 16 college courses, received five fellowships for my LGBTQ+ research, published two articles (“Talking Back to Walt Whitman” and “Walt Whitman and Queer Theory”), and in the last three years, balanced finishing my dissertation with the Ivory Tower Boiler Room (ITBR) podcast.
Since I buried the lead, “queer male procreative poetics” explains how Walt Whitman’s queer male readers interpret male homoerotic themes in Whitman’s poetry and see their own identity reflected back in it.
What I love about being the host/director of the ITBR podcast is that it fuels my creative academic work and teaching. I have been lucky enough to have podcast interns who are supervised by Dr. Susan Scheckel, in the English department at Stony Brook, and they have gone on to careers in the entertainment and media industry. I always describe the podcast as a public humanities organization which means that it explores humanities topics that resonate with the academic community and beyond. I have had the pleasure of interviewing authors like Gregory Maguire, who wrote “Wicked” and my students in the Broadway Musical course had the chance to ask him questions as I interviewed him on the podcast. In regards to my writing, I have been able to interview authors who I have turned to for inspiration when thinking through queer male literature in 19th-century America and Victorian England.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
In academic culture “imposter syndrome” can really be contagious, and as my podcast and academic career has taken off, I have embraced my creative strengths while recognizing the need to ask questions and not pretend that I have all of the answers, because I most certainly do not. What has been an empowering lesson as a podcaster is collaborating with fellow artistic and entertainment podcasters and learning marketing and monetization skills from them. I have carried this collaborative energy into my academic work, and there are so many LGBTQ+ academics and creative writers who are part of my network. While so many think that “networking” is this stale idea of passing around your business card at a dinner party, I’ve learned that it actually is fostering a creative community who you can turn to when faced with obstacles. I still have to stop myself from thinking that it’s a weakness to turn to others for help. Instead, take that risk and use social media to help foster a creative network where you can be part of a larger conversation. Each of my social media channels, especially my LinkedIn and Instagram has connected me to so many fellow literary and artistic entrepreneurs!
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I have been so deeply moved by listeners of my podcast who have reached out to me on social media and said that my gay male uncensored artistic voice has inspired them to either create their own podcast or follow their creative passion. I came out as gay when I was 15, and I made a commitment to myself that after I came out, I would always show my authentic self in my personal and professional life. My podcast is committed to fostering healthy cultural debates (I’ve had on Marianne Williamson who’s running for president), embracing nuanced sexual conversations (Zachary Zane’s “Boyslut” episode definitely did that), and highlighting the importance of the arts in our everyday lives. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://andrewrimby.wixsite.com/website
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewdavidrimby/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrew.rimby
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-rimby-150284140
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewdrimby
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzrAVu427Q_tyAt6CCG4rWA
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@ivorytowerboilerroom https://ivorytowerboilerroom.com/