The Wait For It Podcast · The Wait For It Podcast

Brick City Anime Festival 2026 (Live Interviews)

February 20, 2026·59 min·5 clips

Brandon McInnis landed his Epic the Musical role after a TikTok audition he almost didn't do.

The episode opens with co-host Eric interviewing voice actor Brandon McInnis at Brick City Anime Festival in Ocala, Florida on day two. Brandon describes the carpet and quiet of the venue as unusually luxurious for a convention setting. Eric asks about Brandon's role as Apollo in Epic the Musical, and Brandon tells the story of how two 13-year-old girls at a New Jersey convention convinced him to post his first TikTok while he was working as a software engineer. The TikTok algorithm brought his account to Epic creator Jorge Rivera-Herens, who noticed Brandon's content and eventually reached out after Brandon submitted an audition for the wrong character. The episode transitions to Phil Barrera conducting multiple shorter interviews across both days. Cosplayer Odd Cat Cosplay from Orlando discusses the judging he did for the costume contest and gives direct advice to first-time cosplayers: use thrift stores, watch YouTube, and just start. Odd Cat also shares that Hazbin Hotel was his standout watch of 2025, appreciating it as a win for indie animation given his musical theater background. Jacob from Novastars AC describes his indie anime-style series, where five alien species compete in space football to avoid all-out war, with professional voice actors including Bryce Papenbrook and Linda Young in the cast; Episode 3 released on the day of recording. Cosplayer Jonesy Cosplay describes starting at age 10 and spending 16 hours styling a wig for a Meg cosplay. Cosplayer Count Elizabeth discusses an original Buggy the Clown design inspired by Italian carnival clowns and her current interest in the band Ghost and its lore. Voice actor David Vincent reflects on his role as Nanami in Jujutsu Kaisen, describing the shared emotional experience with fans and praising a fan's spoiler-accurate half-burnt Nanami cosplay. Maid Nessa from Midai Maid Cafe, a cyberpunk-themed performance cafe appearing at Brick City for the fifth year, describes the cafe's dance performances and menu, recommending the Sparkling Lavender Lemonade and new Japanese parfaits. Fall From Grace Cosplay discusses a transforming Anastasia ball gown dress she created and describes Blue-Eyed Samurai as her standout anime of 2025. J. Michael Tatum closes the convention segment with advice on voice care, vendor Kelly from Kawaii Creations discusses keeping convention merchandise affordable, and artist Isabella from Blazing Arts is also briefly introduced.

As heard by us

A lively convention floor snapshot that keeps its focus on atmosphere as much as guests.

Brick City Anime Festival 2026 lands like a quick walk through a convention floor, with The Wait For It Podcast moving between guests, panels, and the odd calm of a carpeted room that should not be that quiet.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a front-row pass to Brick City Anime Festival's day-two floor chatter.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from The Wait For It Podcast