The Tap Love Tour Podcast

What happens when success isn't the challenge, but getting out of your own way is? In this candid conversation, Brinae Ali joins Travis Knights to discuss artistry, leadership, healing, faith, and the lifelong practice of becoming the person you're called to be. From tap dance and community building to self-doubt and spiritual growth, this episode is a masterclass in navigating the journey within. Support Brinae's Work here: https://givebutter.com/bllp

What does it take to build a future for tap dance? In this conversation, Travis sits down with longtime friend, producer, choreographer, and community builder Allison Toffan to explore the work that happens beyond the stage. From founding the Toronto Rhythm Initiative to launching Toffan Rhythm Productions as a not-for-profit, Allison shares lessons learned about leadership, funding, advocacy, audience development, and creating opportunities for the next generation of artists. Connect with Allison here: https://www.toffanrhythmprojects.com Connect with Tap Love Tour here: https://www.taplovetour.com

In light of the recent passing of tap dance elder Skip Cunningham, we are re-releasing this special episode of the Tap Love Tour Podcast. In this episode Skip Cunningham shares hard-earned wisdom from a life deeply rooted in tap dance culture. This conversation moves through the history, etiquette, humour, musicianship, and community values that shaped generations of hoofers. Skip speaks candidly about the elders who influenced him, the evolution of the form, the importance of listening, and what it means to carry yourself with integrity inside the tap dance community. For younger dancers especially, this episode offers a rare window into a lineage that can’t be learned from steps alone. A powerful conversation with one of the culture bearers of the art form.

Chicago rhythm, Black cultural legacy, mentorship, infrastructure, and the future of tap dance. In this episode of the Tap Love Tour Podcast, Bril Barrett joins Travis for a deep conversation about building community, preserving culture, and creating real pathways for the next generation of artists. A powerful dialogue on tap dance not just as performance, but as responsibility, resistance, and love. Connect to Madd Rhythms here: https://www.maddrhythms.com/ Connect to Tap Love Tour here: https://www.taplovetour.com/

In this episode of the Tap Love Tour Podcast, Tap Dance artist, Roxane Butterfly shares insights from her new book, TANT QU’IL Y AURA DES PLANCHES, a raw and deeply personal reflection on a life devoted to rhythm, resistance, and individuality. This isn’t just about dance. It’s about identity, courage, and choosing your path, no matter the cost. Purchase the French language book here: https://roxanebutterfly.com/en/tant-quil-y-aura-des-planches-le-livre/ Support Tap Love Tour here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

Natasha Powell joins the Tap Love Tour Podcast to talk about The Room Upstairs, a work shaped by jazz, time, and deep listening in honour of John Coltrane. This conversation moves through process, improvisation, solitude, collaboration, and the challenge of making something honest. A beautiful episode on what it means to keep searching through art. Follow and support Holla Jazz here: https://www.hollajazz.com Support Tap Love Tour here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights Edited by MacKenzie Greenwell

In this powerful and unapologetic conversation, Travis sits down with Jason Samuels Smith and Moncell Durden for a deep dive into rhythm, lineage, identity, and the contested origins of tap dance. What begins as a discussion about credit and cultural memory quickly expands into a passionate exchange about Black indigeneity, diaspora, spirituality, and the politics of historical narrative. Who owns rhythm? Where do Black Americans come from? How do we responsibly trace cultural lineage when memory has been fractured? At times fiery and at times reflective, the conversation challenges dominant frameworks around Africa, the Americas, and tap dance history. This is not a passive listen. It’s an invitation to think critically, question inherited narratives, and engage with the complexity of cultural identity. Connect with Jason: https://www.jsamsmith.com/ Connect with Moncell: https://www.moncelldurden.com/ Support Tap Love Tour on Patreon: patreon.com/travisknights

Iconic tap dancer Jason Samuels Smith joins us for a passion-filled, controversial conversation exploring hidden histories, identity, and the re-examination of Black cultural narratives. Follow Jason here: https://www.jsamsmith.com/ Support Tap Love Tour on Patreon: patreon.com/travisknights

In this episode, we gather to reflect on the life, music, and artistic integrity of D’Angelo. Recorded in the days following his passing, this conversation is raw, personal, and deeply felt. Joined by Michela Marino Lerman, Jumaane Taylor, Jason Samuels Smith, Victoria Miller, Michael Shand, and Joanna Majoko, we talk about process, patience, and what it means to create work that lasts. We reflect on D’Angelo as a beacon, a high-water mark for what a master work can be, and how his music forces an honest reckoning with time, ambition, and the danger of waiting. This episode is about legacy, devotion to craft, and the urgency of taking yourself seriously as an artist. Don’t wait. Do the work. Finish the job. Check out Michela Marino Lerman: https://www.michelataps.com/ Jumaane Taylor: https://www.jumaanetaylor.com/ Jason Samuels Smith: https://www.jsamsmith.com/ Victoria Miller: https://victoriamillerdance.com/home Joanna Majoko: https://joannamajoko.com/ Michael Shand: @michaelshandkeys on instagram Support Tap Love Tour on Patreon: patreon.com/travisknights

Tap dance as medicine. Rhythm as prayer. Healing as sound. In this episode, I sit with Berklee musician and rising tap voice Dylan Suzch to explore how movement can restore what the world breaks. We talk about arranging music for dancers, and how rhythm can hold space for pain, joy, and everything between. I also open up about my own experience watching Jeremy O. Harris’ Slave Play at Canadian Stage — a reminder of how art can cut deep and still call us to heal. Connect with Dylan on instagram: @dylan_does_tapdance Support Tap Love Tour on Patreon: patreon.com/travisknights

In this episode, we step into the world of Jacky Li — visionary Canadian Tap and Jazz shoe designer, and founder of SAF Shoes. From his Vancouver workshop to international stages, Jacky has been quietly reshaping the global conversation around what it means to feel rhythm through design, craftsmanship, and innovation. We talk about his creative process, the delicate balance between comfort and expression, and how Canadian design is leaving an indelible mark on the future of tap dance worldwide. Explore the latest SAF Shoes: safshoes.com Support Tap Love Tour on Patreon: patreon.com/travisknights

In this powerful episode, we sit down with jazz luminary Jeremy Pelt, acclaimed trumpeter, bandleader, and author of Griot—alongside the brilliant Lisa LaTouche, the 2025 Hoofer Award recipient. Together, we dive into the heart of Black artistry: exploring Jeremy’s book, the hidden stories of music history, the complexities of the creative process, and the lived realities of being a Black performing artist in today’s world. Purchase Jeremy Pelt’s music and book Griot: jeremypelt.net Connect with Lisa LaTouche: lisalatouche.com Support Tap Love Tour on Patreon: patreon.com/travisknights

In the wake of major cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts, we speak with tap legend Jane Goldberg about the Changing Times Tap Initiative Grant. Creating new work has always been about piecing together resources to achieve your vision. Tune in as the Tap Goddess of the Lower East Side shares how this grant could be a key piece in your puzzle. https://janegoldberg.org/changingtimestapinitiative/ Support the work of Tap Love Tour through our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

Why did one of the longest-running tap festivals in the world just get cancelled? Acia Gray, renowned tap dancer and founder of Tapestry Dance Company in Austin, Tx, joins us for a sober conversation about the philosophical shift and budget cuts at the National Endowment for the Arts. After 25 years of producing the Soul to Sole Tap Festival, Acia is making the difficult decision to bring it to a close. We dig into what this means for the tap dance community, the state of arts funding in America, and the resilience it takes to create space for rhythm over decades.

An open letter to Terpsichore Dance Celebration Support the work of Tap Love Tour through our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

This week we are joined by the force behind the Baby Laurence Legacy Project, and star of The Mars Project debuting October 4th-6th, 2024 at Fall For Dance North in Toronto, internationally renowned Tap Dance artist Brinae Ali. In this conversation we discuss balance, artistic inspiration, community impact through art and how you can support the BLLP. Donate to BLLP here: https://givebutter.com/BLLP Learn more about The Mars Project and all things Tap Love Tour here: https://www.taplovetour.com/ Support the work of Tap Love Tour through our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

Ian Berg is an incredible, ever rising Tap Dance artist, composer, choreographer, educator and co-founder of the Tap Dance Music Dance group Subject: Matter. In this episode, Ian helps me overcome my skepticism against jazz culture being taught in Institutions of higher learning. Donate to Subject: Matter here: http://www.subjectmattertap.com/contactdonate.html Check out Ian’s Tap Program pitch at Berkeley here: https://vimeo.com/840589479 Support the work of Tap Love Tour through our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

This episode, we connect to the Tap Dance scene in Nairobi, Kenya through the co-founder of TapaTapa Tap Dance Group, Stacey Achieng and her student Eileen Musati. It’s a joyful conversation that reveals Stacey’s goal to spread the dAnCe across east Africa, and has host Travis Knights wondering how he can get in on that. Shout out to Tony Waag for helping to make this connection. Connect to Tapatapa here: http://tapatapa.co.ke/ Support the work of Tap Love Tour through our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

Tap dancer Molly Smith, director of Chicago Tap Theatre's new production Can You Hear Us Now? The Queer Tap Dance Revolution, joins us to talk about the inspiration behind their latest work. The show runs June 20th - 23rd, 2024 in Chicago. Click here for tickets: https://chicagotaptheatre.com/events Become a Tap Love Tour micro-producer through our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/travisknights

Today we are joined by Brazilian Tap Dancer and Podcaster, Leonardo Dias. Brazil has been hit by record breaking, devastating floods. Leonardo has made a specific call to the international Tap Dance Community for help. So let's show up. Click here to donate: https://ko-fi.com/post/Help-the-victims-of-Southern-Brazil-Flood-N4N5XQXAB