Shannon Cason’s Homemade – Episode Summary

Episode: My Alternate Life in Brooklyn
Date: October 23, 2025
Host: Shannon Cason

Overview

In this episode of Homemade, Shannon Cason takes listeners on a personal journey through his “alternate life” in Brooklyn, New York. He weaves together memories from extended stays in Brooklyn—contrasting the city’s changes between 2013 and a return post-pandemic—and reflects on cities that feel like home. Mixing storytelling with candid, humorous commentary, Shannon explores ideas of belonging, transformation, and the connections that make a place memorable.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Cities That “Fit”

• Shannon opens by contemplating cities where people feel most natural and at home.
• Quote:

  "Some cities just fit. What city feels natural to you? ... I feel like New Orleans likes me. DC feels like home. Dallas. I like Dallas." (00:10)

2. The Brooklyn Suit Shop Adventure (2013)

• Shannon recounts how a stint working at a high-end custom suit shop in Chicago led to a months-long assignment in New York.
• He describes his first grim Airbnb in Brooklyn—a literal, unfinished basement—before upgrading to a nicer spot.
• The appeal of Brooklyn’s streets, local vibe, bodegas (“we call them party stores in Detroit”), and collecting approving nods as he walked the streets in custom suits.
• Quote:

  “I’ll be honest, living a cooler life than I actually really am. ... I’m good at playing cool. I can play the role.” (03:45)

• He highlights the energy of Brooklyn: Nation of Islam bookstores, local brothers, pizza shops, rats ("they mind their own business"), and attending hip hop clubs, sometimes getting too much attention from women.

3. The Rhythm of the City

• Daily routines—trains, bodegas, pizza shops, nightlife—and the immersive sense of belonging.
• Memorable Moment:
  Shannon discusses going out after work in his three-piece suit to Dilla tribute parties, DJ Clark Kent events, and Farside concerts.

4. Attention and Connection

• Shannon humorously shares the overwhelming attention he received from women during these months:

  “I was getting a lot of attention from the ladies. ... I was getting kind of nervous. There was the Japanese designer girl, the actress chick, the mature executive lady…” (08:40)

5. Return to Chicago and Brooklyn’s Pull

• When his time ended, Shannon felt Brooklyn lingered in his memory as an “alternate” life. Returning for visits always felt like reconnecting with a possible version of himself.

6. Brooklyn After COVID

• Years later, COVID boredom prompts a three-month return stay in the same Brooklyn Airbnb (“on Nordstrom and Dean”).
• This time, Shannon dresses down, but the neighborhood has changed dramatically—more gentrified, “more white people, which meant more money.”
• Observes changes in businesses: bodegas with high-end liquors, specialty chocolates, and a salad bar (“my favorite thing ever”).
• The old Nation of Islam bookstore and familiar street music are gone.

7. Remote Work and NYC Friendships

• Adaptation to a freelancer’s routine: producing podcasts for nonprofits remotely.
• Reconnecting with NYC friends—Vincent (audio producer), Finney (Harlem friend going through a breakup), Tom Powers (documentary filmmaker), and Wally (jazz enthusiast).
• Describes outings:
  • Neil Brennan and Wu Tang shows in Manhattan (with Finney)
  • DOC NYC festival (with Tom)
  • Robert Glasper at the Blue Note, Will Smith & Spike Lee at King's Theater, Chaka Khan concert via meetup.com (“Chaka kinda fine…Chaka still got that youthful giggle…”) (22:30)

8. Prospect Park, The Moth, and Artistic Connections

• Slow adventures around Prospect Park and walking to the Brooklyn Museum.
• Notable meeting: A photographer selling zines outside the museum, leading to an impromptu photo shoot.
• Quote:

  "He shot me on the train, by the murals on the street—random style pictures, nothing too staged." (27:30)

• Shouts out the photographer’s IG: @baracksafarivisuals.

9. A Connection Over a Zipper: Amina

• Shannon tells a detailed, humorous story about meeting Amina, a Brooklyn-born artist, after noticing the diagonal zipper on her hoodie.
• Memorable Quote:

  “I was like, you know, I'm not gonna ask you to unzip your zipper, but does it work? ... She laughed that I was genuinely interested in her zipper.” (30:15)

• Narrates their comfortable friendship, brunch dates, and how genuine curiosity can spark real connections (“If the attitude is bad, then just toss them back in the ocean...if they engage, get the numbers real easy.”)

10. Passing Friendships and Lessons

• Observes fleeting connections: another Airbnb guest from LA who refurbishes cars but keeps them rough on the outside ("no paint jobs. Keep all the original parts. If you add stuff ... it's corny.").
• Reflection:

  “I like that idea of just fixing up an old car by getting it running and keeping the quality of the age on the car. … That was pretty cool.” (39:00)

11. The Meaning of Brooklyn

• After three months, Shannon ships his few possessions back to Detroit.
• Brooklyn remains an “alternate world...an alternate life.”

  “Brooklyn is like an alternate world that’s an alternate life. In a different circumstance, I’d live there.” (41:00)

• He frames it as a “Detroit break”—a soulful escape for Detroiters, who are everywhere.

12. Coda: A Third Home

• Shannon concludes that, in another timeline, Brooklyn might have been home:

  “It’s Detroit, it’s Chicago, but in an alternate world it’s also Brooklyn. It just never happened. Yet.” (43:00)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Sometimes you just have to, like, take the opportunity.” (02:30)
• “The rats, they’re minding their own business and I’m minding mine. They don’t bother me, I don’t bother them.” (09:55)
• “No more Farrakhan recordings, twenty-four seven from the NOI building ... In my memory, I know it was gone.” (20:10)
• “Shaka kind of sexy still. Shaka still got that youthful giggle and everything.” (22:30)
• “We have very ... we’re just friends. All PG memories, though. All PG memories.” (37:00)
• On meeting Amina:

  “Find something genuinely interesting to talk about. ... Or it could be a zipper, and then it’s on them. Like, the attitude they show you is if they want you to continue talking to them.” (33:45)

• “Brooklyn would be like my third home. ... but in an alternate world it’s also Brooklyn. It just never happened yet. Yet.” (43:00)

Major Segments & Timestamps

• 00:00-02:00 – Cities that feel like home; intro to Brooklyn story
• 02:00-10:00 – The suit shop move, first Brooklyn Airbnb adventures, acclimating to city life
• 10:00-13:30 – The rhythm of New York; nightlife, hip hop, and street culture
• 13:30-15:30 – Attention from women and feeling “cool” in the city
• 15:30-20:00 – Departure, nostalgia, and Brooklyn’s magnetic pull
• 20:00-25:00 – Return after COVID, changing neighborhood, new routines
• 25:00-30:00 – Remote work, social outings, New York events and concerts
• 30:00-34:00 – Meeting Amina, art and connections, practical flirting advice
• 34:00-38:00 – Friendships, impromptu experiences, observations about change
• 38:00-43:00 – Packing up, reflections on Brooklyn and “Detroit breaks”
• 43:00–End – Concluding thoughts; Brooklyn as an “alternate home”

Tone & Style

The episode is highly personal, reflective, and lightly humorous, marked by real-world details, honest self-deprecation, and warm storytelling. Shannon’s voice seamlessly moves between affection for Brooklyn’s “coolness,” wry observations of changes, and gentle nostalgia for the alternate possibility of uprooting and making a home there.

For listeners seeking a tender, reflective, and playful portrait of Brooklyn and what it means to fall for a city (and the adventures, friendships, and stories that come with it), this episode is a warm, inviting window into Shannon Cason’s world.