On HGTV’s newest show, Sebastian Clovis guides homeowners through the biggest renovations of their lives, bringing his creativity, support and team to each project. Together they design, demolish, rebuild and beautify their nightmare properties into jaw-dropping dream homes.

Gut Job premieres April 27, 2022 on HGTV Canada, so we sat down with Sebastian Clovis to talk about implicit messages within the show and HGTV’s changing landscape.

This isn’t your first HGTV show, what makes Gut Job special compared to your other shows with the network?

I think what really makes this one special to me is the fact that HGTV came up to me a year ago and asked me personally what it is that I want to do on the network. It was the first time that I was ever asked that question, you know, I've always kind of worked into whatever it is they want me to work into but this was the first time that they gave me a blank slate. 

They said ‘if you were to draw a picture, what would you draw?’ And I said, I got this show – Gut Job. They listened to everything I had to say, and they said ‘make it, Seb!’

Can you take me through the journey of how you went from the CFL to becoming an HGTV personality? 

I earned my first check on a renovation site when I was 14 years old. I apprenticed with a master builder every summer from the age of 14 right through to 19 years old. And then every year I came back from university, I'd work in the construction field because it was easy money. I knew how to install a door and window before I knew how to solve for x in algebra class. So when I finished my football career, it was a natural, easy transition, like ‘yeah, I'm gonna get some tools to start building again.’

The real transition came when TV jumped into the scene. That's the one that I wasn't expecting, and one that has taken me a long time to wrap my head around to be honest. I'm not really hungry for fame, so I had to find out what is it about TV that was gonna make me happy, and what I can be passionate about, because I'm not passionate about my face being on billboards. What I found that I could be passionate about was this opportunity to help homeowners who are in dire situations and be able to leverage my skills to help them build themselves out of these situations. 

I’m also passionate about being able to tell these renovation stories in an interesting and intriguing way with some humor and some levity, but at the same time, some education and insight.  

Can you elaborate on some of the deeper messages in the show?

Building for me is a philosophical microcosm of so much in life, you know, and so we can talk about buildings and we can talk about life in general. If you listen to the metaphors and the nuances, I'm not just talking about renovating this house, I'm talking about how to be a good community member, how to be a good contributing member of society at large, and how to be a great family member. Those are the kind of little gems that I tried to stitch in, in between.

I’m not a rapper, but I do drop bars in this show.

Historically, HGTV has been pretty white. Was that something you were concerned about when starting your first show? Did you ever feel that pressure to represent? 

I was very aware that I was the only non white face around and absolutely, there was a pressure to conform to the prevailing audience as it was understood. And you know, I think that's something that all Black people deal with in professional settings, finding a way to maybe take the ‘rough side’ off of ourselves or the side that could be misunderstood, perhaps, and be palatable to the paying audience. That's definitely been something that I've always had in mind. 

You know, my Instagram famously has had the same tagline at the top of it for years now – “99% builder, but ooh, that 1%.” And I've always said that's the 1% that I gotta put under my bed, and it can't come out. It can't come out on TV; It can't come out in these public spaces, because it might not be understood. And so I've always understood there's a portion of myself that needs to be, you know, put to the side a little bit so that I can achieve what I'm trying to achieve.

And, to be honest with you, things have changed a lot since I got involved with HGTV. HGTV itself has evolved, and I'm not the only Black face on this network anymore. 

There's a wider range of faces that are a part of this network. And so, you know, I've evolved as an individual, the network has evolved as a collective, and we're bringing more people into the fold, and I feel much more comfortable to be myself now. 

I mean, watch the faces that you see and the voices that you hear in this show. The stories that we tell are representative of our country and representative of my city at large. And if you notice, my hair is down now, and that's a metaphor for a lot. I'm letting loose because I’m comfortable, supported by my network and supported by HGTV, and I just really hope that the viewing audience at large is going to support me as well. 

Gut Job premieres on Wednesday April 27 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV Canada. “And pay attention to the music, because it’s bangin, ya’ll.”