There’s no doubt TV host, actor and comedian Nick Cannon has a lot of drive. He’s now taking his talents — and his lifelong passion for cars — to a new show on Tubi called Nick Cannon’s Big Drive.
The eight-episode series shows Cannon linking up with his celebrity friends to talk about car culture and their lives around it.
“This is a true glimpse into my life,” Cannon told Yahoo Entertainment, adding that buying and working on classic cars is “one of my lifelong passions, going all the way back to when I was a teenager.” Cannon joked that his accountants are probably happy “now the habit that I used to just splurge on vehicles … is paying off because now we making content with it.”
In Nick Cannon’s Big Drive, the Wild n’ Out creator brings viewers into his world of rebuilding, collecting and riding in unique and flashy cars. He does so while coasting through scenic routes and hosting celebrity ride-alongs with stars that include Mike Tyson, Jeezy, Rita Ora, N.O.R.E, NLE Choppa and Snoop Dogg.
Cannon talked to Yahoo Entertainment about what cars mean to him, what he hopes to pass down to his kids and why Tubi was the best option for this new venture.
‘We live this life’
Car shows have done well on television, from Pimp My Ride to Jay Leno’s Garage, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee and the BBC’s Top Gear. Most recently, there have been new shows like the Swizz Beatz-led Hulu docuseries Drive with Swizz Beatz.
“Probably a lot like Swiss, we live this life and really, it’s authentic to who we are,” Cannon said. He compared the show’s energy to that of Pimp My Ride and MTV’s Cribs, “where you get a glimpse to your favorite artists or celebrities or entertainers’ life.”
Choosing Tubi: ‘Their films have gone viral for their awful production values.’
Sometimes bad films can also be really fun to watch. Many Tubi productions have gone viral on social media because of not-so-great acting and low quality graphics.Tubi is a streaming platform with a mix of popular TV shows and films, and original content. It was acquired by FOX in 2020.
According to the New York Times, Tubi “films have gone viral for their awful production values. But their success says fascinating things about what comes after prestige TV.”
Cannon said that Tubi “is the perfect partner” for his latest project.
“There’s no other platform that’s allowing the DIY community to come together and be like, ‘oh, I got an idea, I’m gonna make a movie on my phone,’” he said.
“I come from that energy, man. That’s how we created Wild ’n Out,” he continued. “That’s the sketches and stuff that we used to do. I love that energy that Tubi brings because as much as we’re entertained by that, if you really dig deep into it, it’s really a fine example of creating an even playing field in this space of entertainment to where you know you can see some of your favorite blockbuster films that cost hundreds of millions of dollars or you can spend, you know, time-scrolling through some of the movies that your homies made.”
Lesson for his kids
Nick Cannon’s family life has been in the spotlight since he married Mariah Carey in 2008 and had twins Monroe and Moroccan in 2011. He has 10 other children: Golden, Powerful, Zion, Zillion, Zen, Legendary, Onyx, Rise, Beautiful and Halo.
Cannon said that “passing on that wisdom from one generation to the next” is important to him.
“That’s why we even called it Big Drive because it’s really about inspiration, like what drives you, what makes you a driven individual,” he explained. “Whether they know a lot about an actual make or model of a vehicle isn’t really what it’s all about. It’s more about, like, the experience and the aspiration of just wanting as much as you can get out of life and sharing stories.”
