Q with Tom Power
CBC Podcasts & Radio On-Demand
Five days a week, Tom Power brings you candid conversations with the artists shaping our culture. Whether he’s chatting with A-listers or rising stars, his disarming warmth and meticulous research always gets below the surface, bringing us deeper into the art and lives of today's most compelling musicians, writers, actors and filmmakers.
As a Canadian institution, Q has attracted the biggest names in the world. But it's never been about the fame. It's always been about the art.
Since becoming the host of Q in October 2016, listeners have come to know Tom for his in-depth interviewing style (asking founding Wu-Tang Clan member RZA what was inside his teenage notebooks), his mischievous sense of humour (jokingly chiding actor Catherine O'Hara for her parenting skills in Home Alone), and his genuine enthusiasm and fearlessness (singing a duet with Mavis Staples).
You’re just as likely to hear from celebrities and cultural icons as you are to hear from emerging artists at the beginning of their career. Tom gives each and every artist the space to tell their story in their own words. He also has a track record for interviewing artists on the precipice of stardom, like Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Daniel Caesar, who appeared on Q well before they hit the mainstream.
On Q, we cover arts and culture in all its forms, including music, movies, film, TV, comedy, painting, photography, theatre, cinema, Broadway, fashion, dance, opera, documentaries, books, fiction and memoirs.
Look to our archives to hear some of Tom’s award-winning artist interviews, including his moving and insightful conversation with the Canadian actor Michael J. Fox, which was awarded the prestigious gold medal for best interview at the 2021 New York Festivals Radio Awards.
In 2022, Tom spoke with Friends star Matthew Perry in front of a live audience. Their warm and frank conversation about the actor's struggles with substance abuse struck a chord, leading to millions views on TikTok and Instagram, while also being picked up by news outlets internationally, including Vanity Fair and CNN.
Tom’s impactful discussions with top talent have included Adele, Bono, Chappell Roan, Pamela Anderson, Cate Blanchett, Dua Lipa, Cher, Denzel Washington, Mick Jagger, Florence Pugh, Francis Ford Coppola, Kristen Stewart, Emma Stone, Jim Carrey, Billy Porter, Tom Hanks, Jerry Seinfeld, Tyler Perry, Alicia Keys, Alan Moore, Bruce Springsteen, Dolly Parton, Barbra Streisand, Darren Aronofsky, Harry Styles, Simu Liu, Sean Penn, Sandra Bullock, Michaela Coel, Ryan Reynolds, Katy Perry, Neil Young, Shakira, George Clooney, Ava DuVernay, Omar Apollo, Trixie Mattel, Orville Peck, Big Sean, Anil Kapoor, Jane Fonda, Robert DeNiro, Antonio Banderas, Elton John, Celine Dion, Kerry Washington, Chuck D, Steven Soderbergh, Mikey Madison, Cillian Murphy, Sean Baker, Steve McQueen, Paris Hilton, Taylor Tomlinson, Gwen Stefani, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Kylie Minogue, Stanley Tucci, Rufus Wainwright, Caroline Polachek, Hans Zimmer, Denis Villeneuve, Alex Garland, Alan Ritchson, Britt Lower, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, David Blaine, Brian Tyree Henry, Perfume Genius, Deepa Mehta, Tracy Chapman, Chloë Sevigny, Josh Hartnett and many more.
Location:
Canada, ON
Networks:
CBC Podcasts & Radio On-Demand
Description:
Five days a week, Tom Power brings you candid conversations with the artists shaping our culture. Whether he’s chatting with A-listers or rising stars, his disarming warmth and meticulous research always gets below the surface, bringing us deeper into the art and lives of today's most compelling musicians, writers, actors and filmmakers. As a Canadian institution, Q has attracted the biggest names in the world. But it's never been about the fame. It's always been about the art. Since becoming the host of Q in October 2016, listeners have come to know Tom for his in-depth interviewing style (asking founding Wu-Tang Clan member RZA what was inside his teenage notebooks), his mischievous sense of humour (jokingly chiding actor Catherine O'Hara for her parenting skills in Home Alone), and his genuine enthusiasm and fearlessness (singing a duet with Mavis Staples). You’re just as likely to hear from celebrities and cultural icons as you are to hear from emerging artists at the beginning of their career. Tom gives each and every artist the space to tell their story in their own words. He also has a track record for interviewing artists on the precipice of stardom, like Lizzo, Billie Eilish and Daniel Caesar, who appeared on Q well before they hit the mainstream. On Q, we cover arts and culture in all its forms, including music, movies, film, TV, comedy, painting, photography, theatre, cinema, Broadway, fashion, dance, opera, documentaries, books, fiction and memoirs. Look to our archives to hear some of Tom’s award-winning artist interviews, including his moving and insightful conversation with the Canadian actor Michael J. Fox, which was awarded the prestigious gold medal for best interview at the 2021 New York Festivals Radio Awards. In 2022, Tom spoke with Friends star Matthew Perry in front of a live audience. Their warm and frank conversation about the actor's struggles with substance abuse struck a chord, leading to millions views on TikTok and Instagram, while also being picked up by news outlets internationally, including Vanity Fair and CNN. Tom’s impactful discussions with top talent have included Adele, Bono, Chappell Roan, Pamela Anderson, Cate Blanchett, Dua Lipa, Cher, Denzel Washington, Mick Jagger, Florence Pugh, Francis Ford Coppola, Kristen Stewart, Emma Stone, Jim Carrey, Billy Porter, Tom Hanks, Jerry Seinfeld, Tyler Perry, Alicia Keys, Alan Moore, Bruce Springsteen, Dolly Parton, Barbra Streisand, Darren Aronofsky, Harry Styles, Simu Liu, Sean Penn, Sandra Bullock, Michaela Coel, Ryan Reynolds, Katy Perry, Neil Young, Shakira, George Clooney, Ava DuVernay, Omar Apollo, Trixie Mattel, Orville Peck, Big Sean, Anil Kapoor, Jane Fonda, Robert DeNiro, Antonio Banderas, Elton John, Celine Dion, Kerry Washington, Chuck D, Steven Soderbergh, Mikey Madison, Cillian Murphy, Sean Baker, Steve McQueen, Paris Hilton, Taylor Tomlinson, Gwen Stefani, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Kylie Minogue, Stanley Tucci, Rufus Wainwright, Caroline Polachek, Hans Zimmer, Denis Villeneuve, Alex Garland, Alan Ritchson, Britt Lower, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, David Blaine, Brian Tyree Henry, Perfume Genius, Deepa Mehta, Tracy Chapman, Chloë Sevigny, Josh Hartnett and many more.
Twitter:
@CBCRadioQ
Language:
English
Contact:
416-205-3700
Website:
http://www.cbc.ca/q/
Email:
q@cbc.ca
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Episodes
Katherena Vermette on being a descendant and a future ancestor
10/8/2025
What does it mean to be a descendant and a future ancestor at the same time? In her latest book of poetry, “Procession,” Katherena Vermette aims to answer that question for herself — and she just might inspire you to think about it, too. Katherena is an award-winning, critically acclaimed Michif (Red River Métis) writer from Winnipeg, whose work spans poetry and fiction, but almost always takes on themes of family, intergenerational relationships, and the ties that bind us together. She joins Tom Power to talk about her new collection, and how parts of it were inspired by looking at old family photos.
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Duration:00:29:24
Geddy Lee recalls the Rush show he'll never forget
10/8/2025
Two years ago, Rush frontman and bassist Geddy Lee joined Tom Power to talk about his memoir, “My Effin’ Life.” He discussed his experience as the son of Holocaust survivors, dropping out of high school, and what he remembers about the late Neil Peart’s audition to be the band’s drummer.
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Duration:00:20:19
Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane sings like Sinatra
10/7/2025
Seth MacFarlane (Family Guy, Ted, American Dad!) is a man of many voices. For more than 25 years, he’s voiced Peter and Stewie Griffin, Brian the dog, and their neighbour Quagmire on “Family Guy,” the adult animated sitcom he created back in 1999. But when Seth’s not recording a character for TV and film, he’s recording music. Now, the five-time Grammy-nominated vocalist is back with his ninth album, "Lush Life: The Lost Sinatra Arrangements.” Seth joins Tom Power to talk about finding a treasure trove of unrecorded Sinatra songs, learning how to sing like Sinatra, and how he feels about the situation between Jimmy Kimmel and the FCC.
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Duration:00:39:22
How a banned sex scene led Robert Lantos to build a Canadian film empire
10/6/2025
Canadian film mogul Robert Lantos has spent his career bringing Canadian movies and TV shows to the screen. In fact, some say he kick-started the whole industry. Producing films for the likes of Atom Egoyan, David Cronenberg and Sarah Polley, Robert has truly shaped Canadian cinema over the last 50 years. He sits down with Tom Power to talk about his latest project, “Rise of the Raven,” which is a historical drama about the Hungarian army battling the Ottomans. Robert also tells us how his first film nearly caused a riot when the censors ordered a sex scene to be cut, and what his mother said when he made a movie about her family’s past.
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Duration:00:35:39
Why PIQSIQ wrote a song about Mahaha, the Inuit tickling demon
10/6/2025
What if the bad guy in your nightmare didn’t chase you, but tried to tickle you to death? That’s just one of the Inuit legends reimagined by the throat singing duo PIQSIQ on their haunting new album, “Legends.” Back in the summer, sisters Tiffany Ayalik and Inuksuk Mackay of PIQSIQ joined Tom Power to talk about the record and why they’re embracing Inuit traditions in non-traditional ways. Plus, they set up their new song, “Mahaha: Tickling Demon.”
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Duration:00:17:42
Alex Edelman says good comedy shouldn’t be funny all the time
10/3/2025
Comedian Alex Edelman has had an exciting past couple of years. He won a Tony and an Emmy for his acclaimed Broadway show “Just For Us,” which then became an HBO comedy special. It recounts his experience as a Jewish man covertly attending a meeting of white nationalists in New York, and it earned him a spot on Time Magazine's list of the 100 most influential people of 2024. Now, Alex stars and writes on the new series “The Paper,” which is a loose spin-off of the hit sitcom “The Office.” He joins Tom Power to talk about his work and why joking about something doesn't mean you don't take it seriously.
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Duration:00:34:09
How To Sing For Money? Ask Maggie Andrew
10/3/2025
Maggie Andrew is one of the most exciting artists coming out of the East Coast right now. She drops by our studio to set up the title track off her new EP, “How To Sing For Money.” Plus, she talks about the tension between art and commerce, and how to keep the magic of making music alive.
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Duration:00:11:38
Don’t ask Cillian Murphy what his movies are about
10/2/2025
Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer, Peaky Blinders) doesn’t like to do a lot of interviews — that’s what people say. The Oscar-winning Irish actor now stars in the new Netflix movie, “Steve,” which follows a head teacher at a last-chance reform school. It’s set in the mid-1990s, over the course of one critical day in the life of a student named Shy. During this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Cillian sat down with Tom Power to talk about the film, doing right by overworked teachers and why he’s reluctant to talk about his work.
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Duration:00:24:34
Alyson Stoner on the cost of child stardom
10/2/2025
Alyson Stoner is one of the most recognizable former child actors of the mid-2000s. They got their big break starring as “the little white girl” in the music video for Missy Elliott’s “Work It,” before eventually appearing in successful film franchises like “Cheaper by the Dozen” and “Camp Rock.” But in their new memoir, "Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything," Alyson exposes the dark realities of child stardom, from working 80 hours a week at age eight, to learning how to distinguish fan mail from kidnapping plots, to eating disorders. They join Tom Power to talk about rebuilding their life.
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Duration:00:20:45
Benny Safdie tells the inspiring story of a loser
10/1/2025
Celebrated filmmaker and actor Benny Safdie (Uncut Gems, Oppenheimer) did something outside his comfort zone when he made his latest film, “The Smashing Machine” — he directed it without his brother, Josh. Starring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Emily Blunt, the film tells the true story of former wrestler and mixed martial artist Mark Kerr. During this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Benny sat down with Tom Power to talk about his first foray into directing on his own two feet, what it was like working with The Rock, and why mixed martial arts is more than just pure aggression.
Duration:00:32:47
Gustavo Gimeno on Igor Stravinsky’s 1967 Toronto curtain call
10/1/2025
Back in 1967, Igor Stravinsky, the legendary classical composer, ignored his doctors’ advice and conducted the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in what would turn out to be his final public performance ever. Now, the TSO is honouring that concert and Stravinsky’s legacy with a new recording of his 1920 ballet, “Pulcinella.” Gustavo Gimeno, the orchestra’s music director, joins Tom Power to tell us about the record and why it was such a big deal for Stravinsky to do this performance.
Duration:00:13:21
For Tantoo Cardinal, there’s no turning back
9/30/2025
For more than five decades, Canadian acting legend Tantoo Cardinal (Dances with Wolves, Killers of the Flower Moon) has worked tirelessly to bring nuanced Indigenous stories to the stage and screen — and she says there’s no turning back now. Back in June, Tantoo joined Tom Power to reflect on her remarkable career, and why she’ll never stop advocating for authenticity and accuracy when it comes to Indigenous representation.
Duration:00:24:29
He used to steal his mom’s copies of Vogue — now he works there
9/30/2025
As a kid growing up in Nipissing, Ont., Christian Allaire dreamed of being part of the glamorous world that he saw in his mother’s Vogue magazines. Now, he’s the senior fashion and style writer at Vogue in New York. Christian writes about that incredible journey in his new memoir, “From the Rez to the Runway.” Earlier this year, he sat down with Tom Power to talk about the book and how he learned to embrace his Ojibwe identity as his cool factor.
Duration:00:24:29
Why Sebastian Gaskin started embracing his Indigeneity in his music
9/29/2025
Sebastian Gaskin is a musician from Tataskweyak Cree Nation in Manitoba who fuses his culture with R&B, rock and pop music. Earlier this year, he joined Tom Power to talk about his debut album, “Lovechild,” how he came around to embrace his Indigenous identity in his art, and why writing joyful and hopeful songs is just as important to him as writing political songs.
Duration:00:18:29
How losing his voice made Patrick Watson a better singer
9/29/2025
What happens when you build a career being a singer-songwriter and then you permanently lose your voice? That’s what happened to acclaimed musician Patrick Watson, whose life was completely upended for months due to that traumatic surprise. Without being able to sing his own music, Patrick turned his attention to writing and composing music for other people to sing. He thought he’d never sing again, but after saving his voice using a hyperbaric chamber, he decided to make a record with a variety of singers to help him out. Patrick joins Tom Power to tell the story of how losing his voice became a catalyst for his new album, “Uh Oh,”
Duration:00:28:39
Scarlett Johansson was “humbled” directing Holocaust survivors
9/26/2025
What does the title of “highest-grossing actor of all time” actually mean for a Hollywood star? For Scarlett Johansson, who currently holds that position, it means directing her first feature film without any pressure of achieving box office success. In her directorial debut, “Eleanor The Great,” there’s not an explosion or sex scene in sight, and the lead role is played by 95-year-old actor June Squibb. During this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Scarlett dropped by to talk about her new film, working with the late Robert Redford, and why she doesn't and has never used social media. If you like this conversation, check out Tom’s conversation with June Squibb from 2024.
Duration:00:32:07
“Having the space to fumble" shaped Hanorah’s music
9/26/2025
Hanorah is a singer-songwriter from Montreal who’s opened for Mavis Staples, and grew up listening to Etta James and Joss Stone. But on her latest EP, “Closer Than Hell,” Hanorah moves beyond her early soul influences and explores a new voice. Earlier this year, she joined Tom Power to tell us how she started songwriting, why she’s happy she didn’t win “La Voix” (the Quebec version of “The Voice”), and what inspired her new song, “Barbed Wire.”
Duration:00:12:21
Sterlin Harjo was roasted for being a genius
9/25/2025
As a recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship (also known as the MacArthur Genius Grant), you could say filmmaker Sterlin Harjo is a certified genius. He’s responsible for creating the groundbreaking series “Reservation Dogs,” which follows the lives of four Indigenous teenagers in rural Oklahoma. Now, Sterlin is back with a new series called “The Lowdown,” starring Ethan Hawke as a rough-and-tumble bookstore owner and "truthstorian" in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He sat down with Tom Power during this year’s Toronto International Film Festival to talk about his career — and how being a genius really just means your friends will give you a hard time about it.
Duration:00:23:55
Amy Millan had to break up with her guitar
9/25/2025
“It’s not you, it’s me.” That’s the line Amy Millan used to break up with her guitar. The Canadian singer-songwriter had lost the love she had for her instrument and wasn’t sure it would come back. But after taking a break from her band Stars, she found herself working on her first solo album in 15 years. It’s called “I Went To Find You” and it came out earlier this year. That’s when Amy sat down with Tom Power to talk about the record, and how it was inspired by the loss of her father at the age of five.
Duration:00:23:56
Brett Goldstein is obsessed with love stories
9/24/2025
If you could take a test that told you who your soulmate was, would you do it? Would you trust it? That’s the premise of the new movie “All of You,” which was written by English actor Brett Goldstein (Roy Kent on “Ted Lasso”), who also stars in the film. Set in the near future, the story follows two best friends who are torn apart when one takes the test and the other won't. Brett joins Tom Power to talk about whether love can really be measured by an algorithm, plus, the moment he knew “Ted Lasso” had changed his life.
Duration:00:22:09