LET'S BEAT AROUND THE BURGH
w/ KIDMENTAL — Presented by #1 Cochran
(Proposed Presenting Sponsor)
A Mobile Beatbox Podcast & Community Activation Series — Powered by Pittsburgh.
THIS ISN'T A PODCAST. THIS IS A MOVEMENT.
Let's Beat Around the Burgh w/ kidmental is a two-part initiative — and we're inviting #1 Cochran to be its Presenting Sponsor that fuses mobile content creation with on-the-ground community impact — powered by electric energy, live music, and the spirit of Pittsburgh.
Part 1 — The Show: "Let's Beat Around the Burgh w/ kidmental — Presented by #1 Cochran" (proposed title)
A mobile podcast and social media series filmed entirely from a custom-outfitted EV pickup truck — built around the Chevy Silverado EV — the #1 Cochran Beat Machine — decked out with professional sound equipment, podcasting cameras, and a live loop station. kidmental drives around downtown Pittsburgh interviewing guests while cameras capture both the scenic beauty of the city and the energy inside the vehicle. Every conversation can turn into a song. Every ride is an episode. Every guest leaves with a story.
Part 2 — The Venue: Communit-E Pop-Ups (the "E" Stands for Electricity)
The show serves as the marketing and campaign platform to announce and promote Communit-E Pop-Ups — free weekday community events designed to stimulate neighborhoods across Pittsburgh. The EV serves as the all-in-one transport — hauling the mkrStage, PA System, and production equipment directly to each location and powering every element on-site. These are not weekend events — they are intentionally scheduled during the week to reach people when and where they need community most.
Two engines. One mission. All Pittsburgh.
THE VEHICLE — THE BEAT MACHINE
Your Brand on the Streets of Pittsburgh
The heart of this project is an all-electric, zero-emission pickup truck custom-outfitted as a mobile production studio and mobile power plant. The concept is built around the Chevy Silverado EV — ideally provided by #1 Cochran as part of this sponsorship — for its powerful Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) capability and rugged truck-bed utility. The Silverado EV doesn't just carry the show — it powers the show.
The Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) system is one of the most transformative — and least understood — features of modern electric vehicles. The Chevy Silverado EV's available 10.2 kW onboard power exports enough electricity to run a full home during an outage, power job-site tools, or fuel an entire outdoor production setup. Yet most people have never seen it in action. The Beat Machine changes that. At every Communit-E Pop-Up, the truck's V2L outlets power the PA system, podcast cameras, lighting, and stage gear — giving the community a real-life demonstration of what EV technology can actually do beyond just driving. From running emergency power for a house during a storm, to keeping a job site productive without a generator, to powering a block party — V2L is a game-changer that deserves to be shown, not just explained. Its retractable hard-cover protected truck bed doubles as dedicated storage and transport for the mkrStage, PA System, and all production equipment used at the Communit-E Pop-Ups — everything travels in one vehicle and deploys on-site in minutes. The onboard battery system then supplies electricity for the full PA system, loop station, podcasting cameras, food preparation equipment, retro gaming consoles, stage lighting, and the SP2 phone charging system. No generators. No grid hookups. No extension cords snaking across a parking lot. Zero emissions, zero fossil fuels — the vehicle IS the infrastructure.
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Vehicle | Chevy Silverado EV — all-electric, zero-emission pickup truck with Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) capability; retractable hard-cover protected truck bed; vehicle to be provided by #1 Cochran as part of the proposed sponsorship |
| Interior Buildout | Mobile production studio: professional podcasting cameras (interior & exterior-facing), full PA/sound system, Boss RC-505 MkII Loop Station, interview microphones |
| Exterior | Full vehicle wrap opportunity for sponsor branding — visible across Pittsburgh neighborhoods, downtown, events, and on camera in every episode |
| Triple Role | The vehicle IS the studio, the stage, the power grid, the equipment vault, and the brand ambassador — all in one. It stores and transports the mkrStage, PA System, and every piece of production gear, then powers the entire pop-up from its own battery. No generators. No grid. No separate cargo trucks. Just one EV — clean, silent, and self-contained. |
kidmental is seeking #1 Cochran as the Presenting Sponsor — to provide a V2L-capable Chevy Silverado EV from their inventory to serve as the Beat Machine. In return, the sponsor receives permanent vehicle wrap branding, on-camera presence in every episode, and a direct sales opportunity at every Communit-E Pop-Up. Your brand doesn't sit in a media plan — it drives through Pittsburgh every single day. And here's the headline: your product literally powers every single event. The food, the music, the gaming, the stage — all of it running on your EV. That's not a sponsorship. That's a proof of concept your sales team can point to.
THE SHOW — SEGMENTS & FORMAT
Every Ride Issa Episode. Every Episode Issa Vibe.
kidmental picks up a guest, they drive around downtown Pittsburgh, conversation flows naturally, and kidmental's beatbox looping talent turns moments into music — live, in the vehicle, on camera.
Cameras capture:
- The streets and scenery of Pittsburgh (exterior cameras)
- The interview and musical moments inside the vehicle (interior cameras)
- Raw, authentic, social-media-ready content from every angle
Recurring Segments
Modular — not every segment appears in every episode.
| Segment | Description |
|---|---|
| Stick a Pin in It | While the guest is speaking, kidmental gets inspired by something they say. They cut in, play the signature "Stick a Pin in It" soundbite, and improvise a short tune about what just transpired. Spontaneous. Musical. Unforgettable. |
| Music Therapy | If the guest has a bad-day story, kidmental and the guest co-create a song as a lighthearted way of processing it — structured in three parts: Setup, Conflict, and Conclusion. Turning struggles into music, live on camera. |
| Korner Konfessions | The vehicle pulls over, and kidmental finds a random bystander on the street. They ask them deep, surprising, or funny "secret" questions — and of course, kidmental sings about the answers. Unscripted. Unrehearsed. Pure Pittsburgh. |
| the wRap-Up | kidmental taps into their freestyle improvisation skills to riff on real current events and headlines from around the world — no script, no prep, just raw wordplay and live musical instinct. Think of it as the news, but delivered in bars. Each episode, kidmental picks a headline making waves — locally, nationally, or globally — and breaks it down through freestyle rap and melody, making world news entertaining, digestible, and impossible to ignore. |
| Hawt off the Lot! | A featured vehicle spotlight segment tailor-made for dealership partners. Each episode, the Beat Machine shines a light on a specific car, truck, or EV from the sponsoring dealership's current inventory — highlighted through on-location filming, V2L demos, and kidmental's signature energy. It's part test drive, part hype reel, and part community conversation. For #1 Cochran, this is a direct, organic way to showcase whatever model they want the Pittsburgh community talking about — without it ever feeling like a commercial. |
| Riding Shotgun | An ode to Mr. Rogers and the power of a real conversation. kidmental invites a public figure — a Mayor, State Representative, postal worker, sanitation worker, community organizer, or any unsung pillar of the neighborhood — to sit inside the Beat Machine for an unhurried, unscripted, one-on-one interview. No hot takes, no soundbites. Just two people talking about the work, the community, and what it really means to serve. Inspired by the belief that every neighbor has a story worth hearing, Riding Shotgun brings depth, warmth, and genuine human connection to every episode — proving that the most powerful conversations don't happen in studios. They happen in the front seat. |
Special Feature: Theme Song Debuts
Every so often, the show debuts a brand-new Theme Song celebrating someone special. Guests or listeners submit prompts in advance, and kidmental crafts a personalized theme song in one of seven categories:
| Category | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Brand | A theme song for a business or organization | Brand, Blerd Over |
| Keepsake | A sentimental, personal theme song as a gift | Keepsake for Jammencat from their Father |
| Personalized | A celebration of who someone is | Personalized, Heather Abraham |
| Super Hero / Villain | A dramatic, larger-than-life character anthem | Super Villain, Megan: Toxic Zombie |
| Series | A recurring theme for a show, podcast, or content series | Series, Diary of the Middle Class |
| Squad | A group anthem for a team, crew, or collective | Squad, Spidey Squad |
| Streamer | A custom theme for a content creator or live streamer | Streamer, Leeshi Plays V2 |
THE VENUE: COMMUNIT-E POP-UPS
Community. Culture. Electricity.
Free weekday events designed to energize Pittsburgh neighborhoods.
The show — proposed to be titled "Let's Beat Around the Burgh w/ kidmental — Presented by #1 Cochran" — is the platform that markets, campaigns for, and announces when and where these pop-ups will happen. The show builds the audience; the pop-ups deliver the impact.
Free Community Meals
A caterer supplies 200 plates for community members coming out. Mana Meals and Taqueria Acosta are two of the featured caterers — Mana Meals bringing healthy choice foods and distributing sustainable meal plans for the community, and Taqueria Acosta serving up authentic, made-fresh taqueria fare. All food preparation equipment is powered directly by the EV — zero-emission meals, start to finish.
Retro Gaming & Electronics Education by Mana Gaming
Mana Gaming brings their mobile retro console collection to each event. Attendees get to play classic games that Mana Gaming fixes and upgrades — AND learn practical skills for fixing electronics around their own homes. Every console, every screen, every controller — powered by the EV parked right next to them.
Live Performance Art & Interactive Art
A fusion of live performance art and interactive art. From live jam sessions with your favorite artists — where YOU can take part in the entertainment — to music, visual, and physical experiences powered by the mobile installations of kidmental's Synergy Lab. This isn't a stage you just watch. It's a stage you step into.
EV Showcase & Sales Opportunity
The sponsoring EV provider has a direct opportunity to showcase and sell vehicles to attendees. The primary EV is already there — let's put more EVs on display.
Energy Education & Community Programs
If partnered with an energy company, they have an opportunity to educate homeowners and the general public about power consumption, available programs, and efforts that uplift the community.
◆ The Stage: LAE + mkrStage
The performance stage is deployed by LAE (Live Arts Everywhere) using the mkrStage platform, provided by ZeroFossil. The mkrStage is a portable, deployable stage that goes anywhere — and the full sound system, stage lighting, and loop station all draw power from the EV. It runs the show. Literally.
◆ SP2 Phone Charging System by ZeroFossil
ZeroFossil will demo their SP2 phone charging system at each pop-up. The SP2 has built-in ad marketing capabilities — creating an additional sponsorship revenue channel that helps sustain future events.
Every element of a Communit-E Pop-Up — the food prep, the retro gaming consoles, the full PA and sound system, the loop station, the stage lighting, the SP2 phone charging stations — runs entirely off the EV's battery. No generators. No grid hookups. No fossil fuels. The vehicle doesn't just get the team to the event — it is the event's infrastructure. Your EV, powering an entire community activation. That's the story your brand gets to tell.
The mission behind Communit-E Pop-Ups isn't just what happens — it's where it happens. These events are designed to activate unused and underutilized spaces across Pittsburgh — dormant parking lots, quiet neighborhood parks, overlooked public plazas, and community spaces that sit empty during the week. The pop-ups bring energy, culture, and foot traffic to places that need it most, transforming forgotten corners of the city into vibrant gathering points.
Because the EV is the sole power source, there are no logistical barriers. No need to negotiate generator permits or find electrical hookups. If there's a flat surface and a community nearby, a Communit-E Pop-Up can happen there. The EV makes every space a viable venue.
In addition to neighborhood activations, kidmental will produce Communit-E Pop-Ups directly in the parking lots of #1 Cochran dealership locations throughout late spring, summer, and early fall — as often as the schedule and community demand allow. There's no cap on frequency; if a location is generating buzz and foot traffic, we keep coming back. And with #1 Cochran's multiple dealership locations across the Pittsburgh region, there's a built-in opportunity to run a citywide dealership tour — hitting a different #1 Cochran lot each month, bringing a fresh crowd to a new neighborhood, and giving every location its own moment in the spotlight. This is a turnkey community event on your own property — no planning burden on your team, just free foot traffic, community goodwill, and a live showcase for your EV inventory.
Here's what that looks like for the dealership:
- Built-in foot traffic — 200+ community members coming to your lot for free food, live music, gaming, and interactive art
- Live EV demonstration — attendees watch the EV power the entire event in real time, proving what an EV can do beyond daily driving
- Sales floor proximity — your inventory is right there, your sales team is right there, and the audience is already impressed by what your product can do
- Brand storytelling — every dealership pop-up gets featured on the show, creating social-media-ready content that positions your dealership as a community hub, not just a car lot
- Recurring visibility across every location — regular events at rotating #1 Cochran lots build familiarity and loyalty neighborhood by neighborhood, turning each dealership into a community landmark
This isn't a one-off sponsorship activation. This is a recurring, city-spanning community presence across every one of your locations — powered by your own product, promoted by a citywide media platform, and designed to put more people on your lots than any billboard ever could. The more #1 Cochran locations we activate, the bigger the story gets.
WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU
Sponsor Value Proposition
| Benefit | Details |
|---|---|
| Vehicle Wrap Branding | Your brand on the EV — seen on camera in every episode, at every pop-up, and on the streets of Pittsburgh daily |
| On-Camera Presence | Logo and brand integration in every episode of the show |
| Direct Sales Channel | Showcase and sell EVs at every Communit-E Pop-Up event — including recurring pop-ups produced directly on #1 Cochran lots during late spring, summer, and early fall; with the potential to tour across all #1 Cochran locations throughout the year |
| Community Goodwill | Associate your brand with free meals, education, music, and neighborhood investment — all powered visibly and entirely by your EV |
| Energy Education Platform | (For energy partners) Educate the public about power consumption, green programs, and community uplift |
| Digital Content | Social-media-ready clips, behind-the-scenes content, and episode features — all with your brand visible |
| Ad Revenue via SP2 | The ZeroFossil SP2 phone charging system generates ad-supported revenue at every event — sponsor logos in the rotation |
| Weekday Community Reach | Pop-ups happen during the week — reaching underserved audiences when weekend events don't |
This isn't a logo on a banner at a one-day event. Your brand is in motion every day — wrapped on the vehicle, integrated into content, and present at community activations across Pittsburgh. And at every single event, your EV is the one keeping the lights on, the speakers bumping, the food hot, and the games running. This is a living, breathing, driving partnership — and your product is the proof.
THE TEAM BEHIND THE MOVEMENT
The Ecosystem — Partners & Collaborators
kidmental
Host, performer, creative director. Professional beatbox looping artist with an IMDB song credit, Pulitzer Prize-nominated podcast feature (Ear Hustle), and creator of the Free Theme Song Initiative.
ZeroFossil Energy Outfitters
Provides the mkrStage portable performance platform and the SP2 phone charging system with ad marketing capabilities. kidmental has served as ZeroFossil's Operations Manager and Event Coordinator for four years, making this partnership an organic extension of an existing working relationship — not a cold pitch.
LAE (Live Arts Everywhere)
Stage deployment and live arts production partner. LAE also serves as the talent pipeline — bringing featured artists alongside kidmental to provide live entertainment at each Pop-Up event, if and when the moment calls for it. Whether it's an opening set, a surprise guest, or a full co-headline situation, LAE ensures the stage is never empty and the crowd is never bored.
The Synergy Lab
Interactive entertainment partner. The Synergy Lab transforms every Pop-Up from a spectator event into a fully participatory experience. Their programming covers the full spectrum of community-driven fun: open jam sessions and open mics that put real instruments and real microphones in the hands of attendees; an instrument petting zoo where curious community members — especially kids — can touch, try, and fall in love with music-making for the first time; freestyle cyphers that open the floor to MCs, poets, and storytellers from the neighborhood; and karaoke & comedy that guarantee laughs and keep the energy high from the first set to the last. The Synergy Lab makes sure no one leaves a Communit-E Pop-Up as just a bystander.
Mana Gaming
Mobile retro gaming console collection, electronics repair education.
Mana Meals
Healthy community meals and sustainable meal plan distribution.
Taqueria Acosta
Authentic, made-fresh taqueria fare for community pop-up events.
Sidekick Media Services
Video production and multimedia partner. Sidekick Media Services is a Pittsburgh-based multimedia production company specializing in event video coverage, photography, social media content, interviews, highlight packages, and livestream production. They bring serious production credibility to the team — serving as an official video production partner for SAE International, capturing Formula SAE IC at Michigan International Speedway, Baja SAE, and SAE Aero Design East. Their experience covering high-energy, fast-moving events at scale means they know exactly how to turn the chaos of a live Pop-Up into compelling, shareable content — exactly what the Beat Machine demands on the road.
#1 Cochran — Proposed Presenting Partner
As Presenting Sponsor, #1 Cochran's brand would be carried in the show's title — a permanent, city-wide association with Pittsburgh culture, music, and community. As a dealership, their role is simple: provide the Chevy Silverado EV that powers and brands the Beat Machine. Zero events to plan, zero content to produce — kidmental handles everything. A #1 Cochran representative is welcome to appear in dealership-filmed segments, giving the brand an authentic, human face without any production obligation on their end.
Duquesne Light Company (DLC) — Potential Community Energy Partner
As the primary electric utility serving the Greater Pittsburgh region, Duquesne Light Company is a natural fit for a show built around EV technology and community energy education. Their potential involvement as a community energy partner would bring institutional credibility to the V2L demonstrations and reinforce the Beat Machine's core message: that electric power — from the grid to the truck to the neighborhood — is something every Pittsburgher should understand. DLC's role would focus on community education alignment and co-branding around the V2L and EV charging segments of each Pop-Up event.
BEHIND THE BEAT
About kidmental
kidmental is a professional impromptu live looping beatbox musician with an IMDB song credit on Aaron Kleiber's stand-up special "Grown @%$ Dad." They have created theme songs, bumpers, and station IDs for Chicago's BlurdDotRadio, Pittsburgh's The Johnny Angel Show, Backyard Memoirs, The Aging Hipster Network, and Artist Bebop. Featured on the Pulitzer Prize-nominated podcast Ear Hustle. Creator of kidmental's Synergy Lab at Hackers Guild PGH and the Free Theme Song Initiative — crafting playful, personalized theme songs for anyone who joins.
Beyond the music, kidmental has spent four years as Operations Manager and Event Coordinator at ZeroFossil Energy Outfitters — planning, producing, and executing community-facing events and activations from concept to completion. They've also produced the Kid's Korner at the Beaver County BOOM event three years running (2023, 2024, 2025) — a family-focused activation inside one of the region's biggest community celebrations. This isn't a performer learning to run events on the fly; it's a seasoned event producer who also happens to be a world-class live looping beatbox musician. That operational backbone is baked into every aspect of Let's Beat Around the Burgh.
LET'S GET THIS SHOW ON THE ROAD.
Literally.
Co-create something that serves Pittsburgh and showcases your brand in motion — every single day.
| Contact | Details |
|---|---|
| bookme@kidmental.com | |
| Location | Pittsburgh, PA |
"This is a ground-floor opportunity to co-create something that serves Pittsburgh and showcases your brand in motion — every single day."