Today on Mutilated Mohawk Media we have something a little more on the realistic side. Jason runs @spookyclt page on Instagram. The page is absolutely wild, encasing tad bits of wonderfully creepy ghost stories from around the Charlotte area. He’s covered everything from the Lake Norman Monster to unexplained happenings in the area to even ghosts and the stories of how they got there. His page hosts spooky meetups where all sorts of horrific fun happens. As a fellow Charlotte local, we jumped on the opportunity to interview him about the page.
Tales of Ghosts In The Queens City
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Life long fan of all things spooky. Growing up I spent a lot of time alone watching the scary movies my older brothers recorded on VHS tapes. I’ve been in Charlotte for over 6 years now and married a life long North Carolina native. Started the Spooky Clt Instagram page and website over three years ago to highlight everything spooky Charlotte has to offer. Wife and I now host The Old North State podcast where we do deep dives in North Carolina History and Lore.
How did you get started with the Spooky Charlotte account?
Started the page because I wanted there to be an easily accessible place that consistently highlights the spooky side of Charlotte year round. When I couldn’t find it I made it myself.
What about the paranormal interests you?
Once I figure it out I’ll let you know. I’ve always been drawn to the paranormal and horror movies. What draws me there… who knows.
For the SpookyCLT page I try to get people interested in Charlotte by using ghost stories and other spooky things. A lot of it comes from History and people always feel more connected to their city when they know more of the history. So that’s a big part of what I’m trying to do too.
Top three favorite horror films?
Impossible to answer since horror films have so many genres within that I feel like I have a favorite for each genre. But in these spirit of trying to answer the question I’ll say that Scream is the one movie I wish I could watch again for the first time. Scooby Doo is the movie I probably watched most in my life. Friday the 13th is my favorite slasher franchise.
What is your favorite cryptid story and why?
So hard to pick favorites. I have become very passionate about our local ones (The Lake Norman Monster, Wampus Cat, etc) but when Hollywood wises up and makes a cryptid cinematic universe I know that Big Foot will be the Iron Man and I’m ok with that.
How do you feel about the horror scene here in Charlotte?
It’s comforting to me that I’ve been running my page for over three years and I consistently find new people and places doing spooky stuff. There’s room for growth of course, and I like to think I’m doing my part in getting more people involved.
How do you feel about the horror scene as a whole? What are your opinions on the directions that Hollywood is taking new horror films? Do you like what they are doing, why or why not?
Horror movies have and will always survive whatever generation they’re in. Right now I think we are in a horror movie renaissance. I’m at a point in my life where I have a hard time saying I didn’t like something, there’s always something good to appreciate or take away. Halloween, Scream, and Chucky are all catching a great second wind. I love that Wilmington is a location for a lot of new horrors movies. I think there’s a lot of great horror appreciators on tik tok and YouTube who are making great content as well. So over all I’m Happy to be along for the ride. Also glad that we live in a time where so much of the old content is available all the time. Horror is more than just movies though. For my page I talk about about local ghost stories and cryptids, something that use to only be in books and news papers really. We are getting more tv shows about it but I think podcasters are doing the best work.
What do you think it is about the unknown that interests people? Why are people so fascinated in things like the paranormal?
People have the inherent need to find somewhere to look for answers. Some look to the paranormal, some look to religion, some look to science, and some try they’re best not to even think about it. People have the need, and there’s a lot of entertaining stuff out there to keep them busy.
What’s your favorite local urban legend? What’s the scariest?
Scary is subjective really. My favorite is about the Revolutionary War general who was been seen riding horse back near the battle field where he died and the cemetery he was buried. Scariest though, there’s buildings that cause nightmares of bleeding walls, true crimes stories that are still unsolved, and covens in Charlotte that I’ve only really heard whispers about.
Have you had any paranormal encounters? If so could you tell us a little about them?
The latest happened the days after Carolina Con. I had been on panels talking about local legends, ouija boards, ghost hunting, and evil. After that weekend, vibes in our house felt off and one night I felt something touch the back of my hand while sleeping, and the cats immediately ran into the room after that happened. Wife and I immediately put the ouija board in the attic and smudged the whole house and ourselves. Nothing has happened since.
What is your goal with the spookyclt page? What does success look like for it?
The goal is always to have fun doing it. As soon as it feels like a job I’m not passionate about or something that’s getting in the way of my priorities, I’m out. Overall though I created the type of page I wish existed when I first came to Charlotte. So if someone wants to know spooky shit about Charlotte and they find my page, that’s success.
Ideally, what would you like to see happen in Charlotte surrounding the horror scene? Would you like to see more growth in an interest for this stuff? Why or why not?
I want Charlotte to be viewed like Savannah or New Orleans. A spooky tourism destination. We already have magic shops, haunted tours/ bar crawls, haunted hotels/ restaurant/ bars. All we need is for everyone else to get on board.
What are your meetups like? What is your goal with the meetups?
Each meet up has been different. The last one was a meet up for people who believe (or don’t believe) in the lake Norman monster. It was just a nice way to have a group conversation with like minded people at a brewery. Before that I interviewed a professor of religious studies about Demons. Each one is different and once again I’m just trying to create the types of events that I would want to go to.
For someone new to the area, or just now getting into local legends, what advice would you give them? What should they do to learn more about the local legends?
Google Spooky Charlotte. Between my Instagram page, my podcast and interviews I’ve been on, and YouTube videos I’ve been included in, there’s enough to keep you busy for a while and to find what topics you want to look into yourself.
To keep up with the spookyclt page click here for the link to their Instagram. Click here for the link to their website.
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