Culture Swap Brings Cleveland Together With Comedy Videos

Timothy “T Bone” Sweeney and David “Solo” Bost have built an online following by trading places.

In their viral videos, the duo introduce each other to experiences often framed around cultural stereotypes, under titles like “Bringing My White Friend to Do Black People Sh--” and “Bringing My Black Friend to Do White People Sh--.” Videos feature Solo skiing or playing pickleball for the first time. Other clips show T Bone stepping into a Black barbershop or a neighborhood corner store. The titles are intentionally clickable, but the tone is lighthearted.

“We thought we might get more backlash,” Sweeney says, “but the top comment on one of our videos was, This is so wholesome. That surprised us.”

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One impactful clip came from a deli on the corner of East 84th Street and Superior Avenue. The video racked up more than 52 million views, sending a wave of curious new customers to the neighborhood spot.

“We didn’t really realize that we had the power to do something like that,” Sweeney says.

At its core, the series explores cultural crossover, with Sweeney having grown up in Cleveland Heights and Bost in Cleveland’s St. Clair-Superior neighborhood. For Sweeney, the videos have changed how he sees the city. Filming with Bost broke down misconceptions he had about Cleveland after growing up in the suburbs.

“The sense of community over there is real,” Sweeney says about the city. “People look out for each other.”

At the heart of it all is something distinctly Cleveland, a powerful pride in the 216 that flows through neighborhoods and backgrounds. Their goal is simple: Step outside your comfort zone, laugh a little and realize you might have more in common than you think.

“Honestly, I just want to bring people together,” Bost says. “No matter what community you’re from or what race you are, I want people to see each other working together and getting along. That’s really the whole point of what we’re doing."

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