0:02

Hey guys, it's Sammy J. And

0:05

welcome to season three of the Letsbie

0:07

Real Podcast. My goodness, that's weird to say.

0:10

Um, you cannot see me, but I have a

0:12

ginormous smile on my face. I

0:14

am so honored that we are launching

0:16

our third season with the

0:18

very talented Wayne Brady. This

0:21

guy can do it all. And when I say

0:23

that, he can dance, he can perform, he can

0:25

improvise like no Weddy's

0:28

business. And I've watched him for years and

0:30

I'm so honored that he took the time to come

0:32

on my podcast. And I also just want to

0:34

take a quick moment before we get into the episode

0:36

to thank all of you for listening,

0:39

for subscribing to d m NG, me for

0:41

just supporting this podcast, because I

0:44

honestly never thought we'd be here.

0:46

I came up with this podcast when I was going through

0:48

a really rough time and it was to

0:50

help myself and to help

0:52

others if I could. And I'm so glad that you

0:55

guys have responded to this podcast

0:57

in this way. I hope you guys love

0:59

this episode. It's the start of so many

1:01

great episodes in the third season. If

1:03

you haven't already, please subscribe to the Let's

1:05

Be Real podcast and leave a comment

1:08

and I will see you guys very soon. Enjoy it.

1:12

Wayne Brady, I am so happy you're here.

1:14

Thank you so much for coming on my podcast.

1:16

Thanks for having me let alone the first

1:19

episode of season three, which is so

1:21

crazy to say. Congratulations.

1:23

That's awesome, especially since we

1:25

did the entire second season during the global

1:28

pandemic. Um, which I want to talk to you

1:30

about because we're finally seeing the light at the end

1:32

of the tunnel, but we've been stuck inside for so

1:34

long. I'm gonna talk about how

1:37

it affected your mental health in a little

1:39

bit, But first, how did you deal with

1:41

it professionally? Well,

1:43

my thing is a little different, I think

1:46

because I was working straight

1:48

through the pandemic. I was on the

1:50

sitcom The Neighborhood. When

1:52

when everything stopped, then

1:54

we had to pivot. We started

1:57

working from my my home,

1:59

myself and my my

2:01

production team, who was my ex wife Mandy,

2:03

who was my partner, and her boyfriend

2:05

Jason. We have a production company, so

2:07

we started shooting things here. We shot

2:10

the A Tribute to Little Richard

2:12

for the b ET Awards. UM.

2:14

We've done four national commercials

2:17

here countless corporate

2:19

shows. So we were back

2:21

at work almost immediately making

2:24

the hustle happen here. We

2:26

resumed production on some things I think early

2:29

fall of last year. That was

2:31

a culture shock because now we

2:33

were back around people and everyone's getting

2:35

tested. It's weird,

2:38

but it was really cool, and we managed

2:40

to do a whole season Let's Make

2:42

a Deal um in a COVID

2:44

space and it ended up being amazing.

2:47

So I've had a great time working

2:49

during pandemic. Wow. So was

2:51

the audience virtual? The

2:54

audience for Let's to Make a Deal? We have sixteen

2:56

people that are part of a virtual audience

2:58

for then we had a small group of six people

3:00

that that were there with us live. So it was a

3:03

small audience, but it was It's

3:05

so intimate and still fun and

3:07

and a great party Vigon. It's like

3:09

having a game night with your friends. See.

3:12

I feel like we could all use that now, especially

3:15

I don't know about Shoo, but I've been when I watched

3:17

TVs and movies now and I see people in a crowded

3:19

space, I'm like, why aren't they wearing a mask or

3:22

why aren't they social distancing? And the fact that that's

3:24

my instinct now is crazy.

3:26

Well, it's not crazy, because it's actually

3:29

a part of of life.

3:31

It's like any any event that

3:34

affects us as a culture, and it affects

3:36

us globally. So I think that the good

3:38

shows are the ones that have been able

3:40

to reflect real life, to

3:42

show, hey, this has happened,

3:45

or this is happening. Certain shows

3:47

tend to go, well, we don't want to bring it up,

3:49

and we're just gonna pretend it doesn't exist. And

3:52

for me, those are the ones that I get taken out of because

3:54

I go, wait a minute, if you're saying that that

3:56

happened last week, no

3:58

way, because people are still walking around in masks.

4:01

It's still an issue. That's it's super

4:03

interesting. Have there been any good TV show

4:05

binges that you've been enjoying over

4:08

the past year. Oh man,

4:10

I don't even just off the top of my head,

4:12

I don't. I think the Marvel

4:14

stuff absolutely. Uh. One

4:17

Division was a great binge. Um

4:20

uh, definitely, The Falcon

4:22

and The Winter Soldier great binge. I

4:25

took this opportunity. I'm an avid reader anyway,

4:27

but there were lots of books that I wanted

4:30

to take advantage of it, and things

4:32

I wanted to write and and and

4:35

I tried to use this whole period at

4:37

the time to get ready. So so

4:39

I tried to binge on, binge on the things

4:41

that I hadn't been been doing in terms

4:44

of being a creator. When I was a

4:46

senior in high school, I knew that

4:48

if I was going to watch show, I would binge the entire

4:50

thing. So I made a deal

4:52

with myself that under

4:54

no circumstances during the fall semester,

4:56

I would start a new show because I knew I

4:58

wouldn't focus on a out. Yes,

5:01

but I'm now happy to report that as

5:03

a freshman in college, I am

5:05

ready to start binging many shows. Congratulations,

5:09

that's what I was telling my daughter. You know,

5:11

she she's a senior as well, and she

5:14

she got all of her her stuff done. And

5:16

it's amazing to see see

5:18

seniors with with willpower,

5:20

because I don't know if I would have

5:22

been able to handle it being being a senior,

5:25

being being stuck at home, being responsible

5:28

for for doing home, the homeschooling,

5:31

and you've got to get get your college

5:33

stuff together while there's such a big world

5:35

of entertainment. Come on, that's hard. So good

5:38

job, Thank you. But

5:40

the one good thing I will say that out of the pandemic

5:42

for me is that the s E T a CT were

5:44

canceled. And I'm a terrible test taker, So

5:46

that was the one way I was like,

5:49

thank goodness, because I just can't.

5:51

I'm not a test taker. My brain

5:53

doesn't work that way, and not everyone brains

5:56

does. I mean, that's a whole different conversation

5:59

in terms of of the standardized

6:01

testing. You know what what is standard?

6:04

That's that's what I love about being a creatively.

6:07

What is standard? Your standard is

6:09

different than mine. I think a different way than

6:11

you do, So you cannot

6:13

be expected to be judged on my level, nor

6:16

nor me on you. So judge

6:19

each person as as

6:21

their individual merits come up, especially

6:24

when when it comes to matters of an

6:26

intellectual nature. If you think about it, everybody's

6:29

brain is wired differently, So

6:31

why are we introducing

6:33

things taking tests a certain way for every

6:35

person? It just doesn't make sense because

6:39

some some sometimes people like a

6:41

cookie cutter. That's why the you

6:43

know, the cookie that shaped differently

6:45

sticks out. Um. But

6:48

I find that that

6:50

that, especially in what what we do,

6:53

it's better to have your own point

6:55

of view. It's better to learn the things that you want to

6:57

learn. And that's the only piece of advice that I gave

6:59

my daughter. Or she just committed to to

7:01

a Loyola Marymount and I said, look,

7:03

do whatever you want to do. She wants to study theater,

7:05

and she got accepted in the program. It's great to

7:08

do whatever you want to do, but just

7:11

make sure that you are approaching it in a way

7:13

that you want because ultimately, at

7:15

the end of the day, you know it's

7:17

your your journey, and be

7:19

as different as you can. Don't don't

7:21

try to walk some someone else's path

7:23

and and stay in the lines. And

7:25

that's something I really struggled with. High school

7:28

is not my biggest fan ever,

7:30

um and it was you know, when I

7:32

live in New York City, when you go to schools,

7:35

it's what's popular, it's

7:37

the way things are done. People were the same things.

7:39

And I always struggled with that. And I feel like

7:41

I'm at a point where I'm finally starting to

7:43

embrace and realize that being

7:46

different and being myself

7:48

is actually a good thing instead of a

7:50

negative. Yes, yes,

7:53

being yourself is not just a good thing, it's

7:55

a great thing, and I think it's necessary but

7:59

you know, this story never changes. I've

8:01

been out of high school a long time and

8:03

it's the same. You know, it's the same story.

8:06

You want to fit in because we are social

8:08

preachers, we are social animals. We

8:10

we we like to be a herd. But

8:14

you can be part of the herd, and you can enjoy things

8:16

that other people enjoy. But at the end

8:18

of the day, you don't have to lose your identity.

8:20

And that's the thing that high school. I

8:22

had a problem with in high school as well, until I started

8:25

acting and I was exposed

8:28

to so much into

8:30

creativity and two people that wanted to think

8:32

differently, that that wanted to color

8:34

outside of the line, that wanted to do

8:37

crazy characters, that wanted to have weird

8:39

conversations that challenged you. That

8:42

that's something I think that that you you

8:44

can take with you for for the rest of your

8:46

life. I always remind myself if

8:48

I'm mad or upset with myself. First,

8:50

I realized to stop comparing myself, because second

8:53

I realized if I wasn't myself, I wouldn't have

8:55

this podcast. Yes, I'm glad

8:57

for that, and I think everyone should embrace that.

8:59

And I think social media also depicts

9:01

this image where especially being

9:04

a teenager in this time period where we're

9:06

all on our phones, we need to just

9:08

realize that it's fake and if we embrace ourselves,

9:11

that's what's best for all of us. I think we

9:13

didn't have social media when I was growing up, and

9:17

and and and I wonder about that because

9:19

my generation didn't have that pressure. But

9:22

what we did have was we still have the

9:24

same pressure that social media brings, except

9:26

it was it was oh, what

9:29

jacket are you wearing? What music are you

9:31

listening to? Do you like the same things

9:33

that I do? Um? Uh,

9:36

those same things. But your generation

9:38

is it's so much harder because you've

9:40

got pictures in front of you every day saying

9:43

this is how you should look, this is the best

9:46

way to do your makeup, these are

9:48

the artists that you should like. And if you don't

9:50

like these things, then I can then

9:53

you're not great. And social

9:56

media is dope. It's a really wonderful

9:58

way to disseminate informa shan and

10:00

and to get comedy and to share

10:03

experiences. But that's the downside

10:06

that I don't like. And as the parent of

10:08

a team, I've seen how

10:10

it can influence and how it

10:12

can cause a lot of distress. Yeah,

10:15

and it really affects I think affected

10:17

my mental health more than ever. During I think winter

10:19

break of my sophomore year, I was

10:21

like, I need to cut social media out.

10:24

So for the entire two weeks I shut

10:26

my phone off and I had so

10:28

much extra time. I taught myself how to play the ukulele.

10:30

Because the amount of time I was on my screen,

10:33

it like my day opened up. You

10:36

taught yourself to play the ukulele. Yes

10:38

I did, awesome, Yes I did.

10:40

It was fun. Do you have the ukulele with

10:42

you right now? I don't, but those

10:44

two weeks we're so lovely.

10:46

I was on it. I tell

10:49

myself how to play somewhere over the rainbow. That

10:52

that that's a great use of time. I'm

10:55

inspired now because I keep saying that I

10:58

won't be able to play, and then it

11:00

really well, Like I half heartedly

11:02

can play play the piano enough to write.

11:05

But I thought, you know the pandemic, I'll sit

11:07

down and now really focus. I

11:09

didn't learn to play them so so

11:11

so I applaud you for your two weeks. Good job.

11:14

I appreciate that it wasn't out of a place

11:16

of like motivation. It was when

11:19

my anxiety was at its worst. It's actually

11:21

the time I created this podcast because my anxiety

11:23

was so bad and I needed to take

11:26

time out and really ground myself

11:28

and think about what inspires me and

11:31

honestly, sometimes negative situations.

11:33

If I didn't have that, I wouldn't have this podcast. So

11:35

I think when you turn anything to a

11:38

positive, you don't know what can happen.

11:40

And that's what life is. And it's great, big

11:42

you nailed it, and and that's

11:45

why you shouldn't compare, because you

11:47

end up, especially in the entertainment business, you see someone's

11:49

journey and you're like, Wow, they've

11:51

got X, Y and Z. Why am I not

11:54

there? You're exactly where you're

11:56

supposed to. The each

11:58

event that has

12:00

happened has led you to that

12:02

place. Like when I

12:04

get interviews, sometimes folks go, oh,

12:06

are you saying you dance? You actually do this pick

12:08

one? I go no, And it's not

12:10

be being coy. It's because truly,

12:13

if I didn't do any of the things that

12:15

I learned to do or that are in me, we

12:17

wouldn't be having this talk right now because

12:19

I wouldn't have been able to do the show

12:21

that got me to that place, so that

12:24

we're doing this, so we just

12:26

need to embrace the things that we've got

12:28

and keep it moving exactly.

12:31

And though I was off social media for this two weeks

12:33

completely, I will say I have been on TikTok

12:36

way too much because of this pandemic, and I

12:38

have gone down the whole of it. It's

12:40

possible, it is, And I will say

12:43

I love your TikTok. I

12:45

am I

12:47

am entertained. How would you

12:50

say that's your favorite app at the moment for social

12:52

media app? Um?

12:54

Yes, yeah, TikTok because

12:57

I like, for someone

12:59

who I've I've

13:02

labeled myself in the past, you

13:04

know that I'm very much an introvert and

13:06

I'm not an incredibly sociable

13:08

person when I'm not on camera or

13:11

on screen, and and there's nothing against

13:13

other people. I just like my own company.

13:16

So TikTok opens

13:19

me to the fact that I love the TikTok community,

13:22

Like I like watching people comments on each

13:24

other's pictures and for the most part, they're

13:26

very positive. People

13:28

love seeing other people win,

13:31

and that does something for me. So

13:33

that's why I do like that that

13:36

app. And if you'd have told me before

13:38

the pandemic that I would enjoy TikTok.

13:41

I would have laughed at you. In fact, I did

13:43

laugh when when my daughter first brought it up to

13:45

me my league and she said, oh, let's do a TikTok, Like,

13:48

what, what the hell's it is? Now? It's silly,

13:51

I'm grown right, but

13:53

but it's fun. It really is. And I was hesitant

13:56

for a while because when I was like thirteen, I got

13:58

into musically, which is like what it was, and

14:00

I would spend hours doing these hand motions

14:03

whatever it was, and it was just I

14:05

was hesitant to go back down that hole. But I'm glad I

14:07

did because it when you

14:09

there's a good and bad to every app of course, but

14:11

when you find the positive side of it,

14:13

it's so much fun. The

14:16

editing is cool and and jumping

14:18

on the dance challenges are great, and

14:21

I love watching people use it

14:23

to be creative. I think that's what TikTok

14:26

is really exploded into.

14:28

The Creativity on TikTok is great. There.

14:30

The comedy on TikTok is great, and you can find

14:33

anything you want. It's almost like if

14:36

you like battle rap, there are people doing

14:39

battle rap. If you like Polly TikTok.

14:41

Then then then there's an amazing Polynesian

14:44

TikTok and all the cultural dances.

14:46

If you like modern dance or

14:49

jazz, if you like comedy,

14:51

a news TikTok, the socially

14:53

conscious feed. It's

14:56

it's really opened my eyes to social media.

14:58

So I've stopped being angry and going

15:00

I'm not going on social media blah

15:02

blah blah. Now I truly enjoy it, and

15:04

I will say I've been very inspired

15:06

on there. I don't know if you've heard of Emily

15:09

and Abigail. They created bridget

15:11

In the musical where they love

15:13

it. It's great we had so we had them on

15:15

this podcast and it's they're doing

15:18

it all in their house

15:20

and they just finished the concept

15:23

album. I'm like, that's incredible your

15:25

generation. I'm telling you, I'm so proud

15:28

of you guys. Because TikTok

15:30

um I was involved in Ratatui the Musical and

15:32

it started off the same way. It was a

15:34

concept, and all of a sudden, the community

15:37

ran with that concept and the next thing you know, you

15:39

have something where all these Broadway stars where

15:41

we're all online doing

15:44

Ratitui the Musical, and now

15:46

bridgets in the musical has a concept album,

15:48

and all these people have tuned into it. TikTok

15:51

is changing the way that we view

15:54

getting things done. In response to

15:56

your first question about handling the pandemic, I

15:58

think that's the coolest thing that I've seen. The

16:01

pandemic has shown me, and

16:04

you're a perfect example of it. Just because

16:07

your circumstances, you're stuck here

16:09

and you can't do something outside,

16:12

you go, you know what, I'm going to get

16:15

this done and it happens. That's

16:17

amazing to me. You don't need

16:19

to wait for anyone to make something

16:22

happen, So that's off. I think

16:24

one of the biggest things is that for

16:27

a lot of people with my generation, we

16:30

don't necessarily ask permission to do something.

16:32

We do it and then whatever comes from

16:34

it comes from it. Yeah,

16:37

we've been going through the pandemic for about a

16:39

year and a half now, and the pandemic

16:41

mixed with social media, it can affect

16:43

your mental health in a lot of ways.

16:46

We have to take a quick break, but when we come back,

16:48

I want to talk to you about the cocktail of the

16:50

pandemic and mental health and how you've been

16:52

dealing with it. We'll be right back, and

17:00

we're back. Let's get into the pandemic and

17:02

mental health. First off, how are you

17:04

doing? I mean, I

17:07

suppose it's been like everyone

17:09

in the sense of I and

17:12

the rest of my family. We engage

17:14

in therapy regularly, so we

17:16

have so we make it a point

17:19

to reach out to our therapists and we

17:21

talk. We talked to each other. We have family

17:24

therapy and we have individual therapy.

17:27

And years ago, I kind of thought

17:29

that therapy was, you know, the the

17:31

old thing is, I'm not sicker,

17:34

I'm not crazy. Why do I need therapy?

17:36

And use those words

17:39

that are very, very rough, you

17:41

know about therapy, until I really realized

17:45

the therapy it's simply a

17:47

way of you talking, and and

17:49

the more you can talk and share, you

17:51

can lighten that load, not just for yourself but

17:53

for someone else. So my

17:56

mental health, I'd like to think it was

17:59

decent because I kept using

18:01

those tools which

18:04

in a place where we were shut

18:06

down, you couldn't

18:08

have any interaction with your friends or family.

18:11

I didn't see my mom for a year

18:13

and a little bit. Um

18:15

it can get dark, and I know that

18:17

that's what Whether you're a teenager, you're an

18:19

adult or whatever. You

18:22

need that sense of connection,

18:25

so we really dug into the

18:27

therapy to keep our sense of connection

18:29

and sense of self. I've been

18:31

going to therapy on and off since I was

18:33

I think seven, and

18:36

I don't understand why there's a stigma

18:38

with it, because just like with exercising

18:40

your body, it's exercising your mind and becoming

18:43

the best person you can. If you have more strategies

18:45

to help you if you have anxiety

18:48

or depression or O c D, like,

18:50

utilize those because it can really help. Well

18:53

that that wasn't the narrative, you

18:55

know, the weird

18:58

narrative. I think the narrative

19:00

about your mental health goes

19:03

hand in hand with the outdated

19:06

thing of telling little boys to

19:08

to act like men. I'm

19:10

telling girls to to

19:13

be a lady. There are all these outdated

19:16

modes of thinking that have

19:18

been passed from generation to generation,

19:20

and the mental health peace was one of it. Is like,

19:22

it's okay to be physically strong and

19:25

to suck it up. Man

19:27

up, that's what you heard a lot, man up?

19:29

Man up? Well what does that

19:32

mean? What

19:34

does that mean? Or like do you

19:36

play like a girl? It's like, okay, I

19:40

what is that supposed to be men sold I am a

19:42

girl, right those

19:44

those those are so outdated. So I think

19:47

I think once again, your generation

19:50

is part of the push to change

19:52

all of those narratives, to show that therapy

19:55

isn't a dirty word. It isn't

19:57

to be stigmatized. You. You are

19:59

not to be shunned it. You shouldn't

20:01

be afraid of telling your friends,

20:03

oh, I may be in mental

20:05

distress without it being

20:08

a thing. It's it's

20:10

it's It should be just as commonplace. You're right

20:12

as going to the gym, Like I'm gonna

20:14

go to the gym, and then after the gym,

20:16

I'm going to my therapist because I'm going to work out

20:18

here here and here, you

20:21

know exactly, And you know, I remember

20:23

the thing in the beginning of high school, I didn't tell anyone I

20:25

went to therapy, and some of my old friends

20:28

their parents um said it

20:30

was for the crazy. So if I

20:32

ever brought it up, it was for the crazy. So I

20:34

didn't tell anybody, and I

20:36

think that brought a little bit of

20:38

shame to it. But when I realized how

20:41

much I was growing as a person and

20:43

other people weren't, it just made

20:46

me realize Okay, I'm doing what's

20:48

right for me. If they're not, that's their

20:50

issue, right, It's health. Yeah,

20:52

that's why it's mental health. It's

20:54

so weird to me that there is not a stigma in

20:57

everyone's head about smoking or

20:59

doing some something that can damage your body,

21:01

but there's stigma about getting health,

21:05

health and healthy forward for your mind

21:07

and your heart. For example, jeweling right,

21:10

social media and teams

21:13

they normalize and be like, oh, I'm just going to hit

21:15

the jewel and so that became normal

21:17

and not a bad thing. So why don't

21:19

we just normalize therapy whereas

21:21

actually, because it's that's actually normal, and

21:24

don't do that with things that aren't good for you. Well,

21:28

you're a part of that conversation by

21:30

you having this talk right now, and you're using

21:32

your platform, you're a part

21:34

of the normalization process to

21:36

your peer group. So that's why why

21:39

we need conversations like this. Yeah,

21:41

and that's what I set out to do with this podcast.

21:43

You know, I feel like there's so much fakeness,

21:47

and you know, a lot of the time there are so

21:49

many media trained answers and things

21:51

are so protected. But if we're just have an honest

21:53

conversation and it helps one person feel

21:55

less alone, Like, think of what that could do. Yeah,

21:58

that's why I just realize.

22:00

I was like, yeah, like the name of your podcast,

22:03

that's the thing, you know, Let's

22:06

be real. That's what it is. That that that

22:08

if you can just cut to the chase of of

22:11

be be real with

22:13

with where where you are mentally,

22:16

be real with the fact

22:18

that if you need help, be real with

22:20

how you're feeling. No,

22:23

nothing bad can come out of you truly

22:26

connecting with your feelings. Yeah.

22:28

And it's also it's okay to not be okay

22:31

all the time. I think that's important to Yeah,

22:34

yes, just say that. And

22:36

that's fine because we're are new changes,

22:38

you know. Ah, thank

22:40

goodness for for you man.

22:43

That's really we need

22:45

this message spread far

22:47

and wide and it has

22:50

to come out just as naturally

22:53

as all the other stuff that we end

22:55

up spreading on social media. So

22:58

so for so feel like to me that

23:00

if somebody wants to be an influencer, you know, no,

23:03

no, that every young person wants to be an influencer

23:05

in influence, this influence,

23:08

mental health, influence, being

23:11

able to connect and communicate.

23:13

Yeah, that's a good thing. And I think the other

23:16

thing that's so interesting is

23:18

to normalize something is important. But sometimes

23:22

if you don't, especially on TikTok or social

23:24

media, people are like, I'm having an anxiety

23:26

attack. It's like, no, you're anxious. There's a

23:28

difference, and I think when people

23:31

don't distinguish that it takes

23:33

away from people who are actually

23:35

struggling. So there's a balance with everything. Well,

23:38

it's education. So if we normalize

23:40

everything, and if we have the discussions

23:43

about mental health, then

23:47

people will know the difference between that

23:50

they too. They will know

23:52

how to communicate in the language

23:55

of therapy. They will know how to talk

23:57

about how they feel right now, because

24:00

it's not common. People are just

24:02

taking their best stabs at it. That's

24:05

why why they say saying

24:07

things like that. I will say something

24:09

that's helped me with my anxieties distraction.

24:11

When I'm distracted, I don't worry about my thoughts

24:14

and I will say I'm not gonna lie.

24:16

Sometimes when I've been really anxious, I do

24:18

watch whose lines it anyways, and it actually

24:21

does really help distract me and it brings

24:23

me some laughter. Right up, I

24:26

have some questions for you regarding

24:28

that, so I know

24:30

it's all on the spot. But do you not have

24:32

any preparation at all? No,

24:34

there's no preparation none.

24:37

That's beyond amazing to

24:39

me. I mean, besides improv and having

24:41

no heads up, it's also the songs you guys

24:44

create on the spot. It's genius.

24:47

Thank you. You've done whose Line for

24:49

many years now, what would you say

24:51

your favorite memories are? There

24:53

are things that we've done on whose Lines that that have

24:56

touched me because of the people I've done it with, Like

24:59

getting improvised with Robin Williams. That's

25:02

a dream to to

25:04

to be able to do things things

25:06

like that with with

25:09

and this is the old version, not the version that

25:11

we have on the c W now, but Robin

25:13

Williams, Whoopie Goldberg, to

25:15

meet some of my comedy heroes. Those

25:18

are the moments that I go, oh,

25:21

man, I remember that that.

25:23

That was completely awesome. But in terms

25:25

of remembering the moments and the specific game,

25:28

not necessarily because you're just

25:30

having fun for us doing the

25:33

show. It's like when you hang out with your friends,

25:35

you're just doing the thing that's in the moment,

25:38

and then it's finished and then you look at

25:40

it later. I'm still surprised when when I

25:42

go back and like my daughter will be watching something

25:44

or a couple pop up on BuzzFeed or someone

25:46

goes, hey, you look at this. I go, oh, that's

25:49

really cool. Oh my gosh, that's funny as hell. Okay,

25:52

so so I kind of yeah.

25:56

So so that's that's my fun is

26:00

being it later and being reminded

26:02

of it. I find improv so

26:04

interesting and so fun to watch, and

26:06

from the outside looking in, you make it

26:08

seem so easy, even though it

26:10

is so not. My cousin actually

26:13

took a couple of improv classes, that's

26:15

good, and he was telling me

26:17

how hard and difficult was at

26:19

first, but that the more he got

26:22

comfortable with it, he had a new

26:24

sense of confidence. Do you remember the first

26:26

time you ever improvised? No,

26:29

not really, because I

26:31

think it was in a class setting thing.

26:34

Um. But oh but

26:36

but I will say, I'm so happy

26:39

for for your cousin. And

26:42

even though I don't remember the first time I did it, I do remember

26:45

the sense of

26:48

of of confidence

26:51

that does come from once

26:53

it's a skill that you've started

26:55

to open. And this is where people get

26:57

get tripped up just because you see

27:00

us do it on who's line, You aren't

27:02

supposed to be able to do it. I mean like,

27:05

really, when you watch a football game, are

27:08

you gonna run down on the field and you

27:10

mean to tell me you think right now you can

27:12

play as well as any of the guys

27:14

on that football team that have put in

27:17

years of work. It's a it's a

27:19

skill set. It's a real

27:21

skill set. Do you go and you tell

27:23

tell your doctor, oh, you know what the

27:26

surgery thing looks like. No, it's

27:28

a skill set, so first let that

27:30

go. If you take an improv class,

27:32

don't worry about being funny. This is the methodology

27:35

that I try to tell people. It's

27:38

about learning the skills

27:40

that can unlock that self confidence for

27:42

you, like you're saying that that your cousin has.

27:45

When when I've taught in the past and there's

27:47

there's a curriculum that I'm working on and I and

27:50

a piece of my company that we're going to start doing

27:53

doing applied improvisation to to

27:55

core to businesses and

27:58

this has been happening for years, I

28:00

would do that, well,

28:02

well, that's part of what what what we're

28:04

gonna be doing and part part of what different companies

28:06

have have done. It's to teach

28:09

the skill set of yes and of listening,

28:12

of the communication. It's not about

28:14

being funny. It's to be able to give you

28:16

the power to stand on stage,

28:18

to be able to speak to someone. Because

28:21

if you really think about the energy

28:23

that it takes for a lot of

28:25

people, not not everyone, because there are people

28:28

who are born communicators. I'm not

28:30

one of those people. The energy that

28:32

it takes me to be able to start a conversation

28:34

with someone that I don't know,

28:36

right, Like you're starting from zero,

28:40

right, it's amazing you. Oh

28:43

no, I've got to talk to this person. What am I going to

28:45

say? Huh? Improvisation

28:48

or learning those basic tenants gives

28:51

you a foundation

28:54

in public speaking. You can look someone

28:56

in the eyes, you can talk to them,

28:58

you can make your point clearly. You

29:01

you don't have to beat around the bush. You can

29:03

open your mind to different avenues of thinking

29:06

and quickly. The funny part, that's

29:08

an that's an add on. That is

29:10

a very skill specific thing,

29:13

the basic skills of it. That's

29:15

what I wish that because those

29:17

skills are actually kind of tied into

29:19

what we're talking about. Those are therapeutic skills.

29:22

The the the listening piece and

29:25

and the communication piece. Those are all

29:28

therapeutic pieces that improv locks

29:30

into what would you say

29:33

your favorite go to improv exercises

29:37

when I'm teaching or my favorite

29:39

Uh, I think that I love any

29:41

exercise that opens that

29:45

opens your mind in terms of your

29:47

pathways and and makes your

29:49

thinking flexible. So so

29:51

it can be any exercise. It just has

29:54

to be something that gets you thinking.

29:56

So even if it's something silly, like

29:58

there's an improv because called called

30:02

one Worder Time Story where you're listening

30:04

to somebody else and trying to tell a story. Or

30:06

this thing called Bunny Bunny Bunny where

30:08

where it's a physical game where you're

30:10

in a circle and you're passing a money and people

30:12

are jumping around. It's it's it's

30:15

big and silly, but it's designed

30:17

to free you up. So those

30:19

are the things I think so in a classroom setting,

30:22

those are good good exercises. I

30:24

loved what you said about how it's

30:26

it's like the therapy exercises is communicating,

30:29

is looking people in the eye. Um,

30:32

you've done so much is or something you

30:34

haven't done yet that you want

30:36

to do the list of things that I

30:38

haven't done is almost greater

30:41

than the list of things that I've done. Um,

30:45

I have so many things that I'd love to finish.

30:47

UM and projects that i'd love to be involved

30:50

in, Films that I'd love to do, roles

30:52

on Broadway that I'd love to create, projects

30:54

that I want to write, songs that I want to sing.

30:57

I think that you should have that list until

30:59

the day you lead the earth. That

31:01

you should never just go ah,

31:04

I'm done. You

31:07

should write a musical. Have you Have you written

31:09

a musical? I feel like it would be incredible.

31:12

Oh well, I thank you for that voter confidence.

31:15

Were We're working on a Broadway show

31:17

right now that we had a development for about a year and a

31:19

half to two years that will

31:22

have music in it that knock on

31:24

wood. That will be something that that I'll

31:26

be taking a Broadway next year. But I

31:28

just like telling stories, so if it happens

31:31

to take the form of musical, then I

31:33

would be on. I'm so

31:35

excited that Broadway is coming

31:37

back. It's official. Like I've seen on Instagram

31:40

people like at these shows and I'm like, oh,

31:42

but one time I want to be in New York. Yeah.

31:44

Last time I was on Broadway was a

31:47

was over a year and like

31:50

almost a year and a half ago, when I was with

31:52

Freestyle Love Supreme, I saw

31:54

that Broadway come on Back, Baby. Yes.

31:57

So one of my favorite things about Freestyle of Supreme

31:59

is they take your phone that you can't access

32:02

them. That was like that. This

32:04

is refreshing, not only for the social

32:06

media aspect. I love the fact that Lynn

32:08

and Tommy wanted to do that. But

32:11

to your question about some something like who's

32:13

lying, I love the fact that

32:15

that experience that you have as an audience

32:18

member that night, that's

32:20

it. You don't have the video, you

32:23

can't go back, you can't post it.

32:25

It speaks to the essence of improvisation.

32:28

The thing that you like that night is

32:30

only going to live on in your memory, and

32:33

that is such an amazing way to present

32:35

arts. My grandma's professional pianist.

32:38

We grew up on musicals. Is there

32:40

a certain musical that

32:42

you wish you could be in on Broadway? If

32:44

you could choose any musical, be any

32:47

character in that musical, what would it be? Hm.

32:50

I'm lucky enough that I've gotten to be

32:52

in some of the musicals that I really loved,

32:54

Like I was Lola and in

32:56

Kinky Boots, Hamilton and

32:59

Hamilton's Billy Flynn in Chicago,

33:02

and and I mean I

33:04

wish I was Tom Collins

33:06

and Rent Uh. I wish

33:09

that I could have been seaweed

33:12

in hair spread. I

33:14

wish that I would have been seaweed and hairspray. That

33:17

that's something that yeah, yeah,

33:19

I really wanted to be seaweed and hairspray. Okay,

33:22

we have to take one more quick break. But when we

33:24

come back, as a

33:26

huge Hamilton's fan, I want to hear about

33:28

your experience playing Aaron Burr in Hamilton's.

33:31

We'll be right back, and

33:38

we're back. Let's talk about your experience

33:40

in Hamilton's. Okay, first of all, what

33:42

was that? Like, I've done a

33:44

lot of musicals in my life, but doing

33:47

Hamilton's was the closest that you could get to

33:49

being in a rock concert

33:52

or a spectacle that as soon as you

33:54

walk out, like starting off the show was berg.

33:56

You know, we hear whether they done, done, done,

33:59

my open night, you hear then,

34:03

and then it's just so you

34:05

can't even hear the music when to come in on

34:07

how how does the Bestard Orphan sona? But you

34:10

can't hear that because the audience,

34:12

especially at that point because it really was just a

34:14

year after the first cast, so

34:16

it's still like an event. So

34:19

people are watching that show like

34:22

it's their favorite pop

34:24

star or their favorite rapper or

34:26

someone they came knowing every word

34:28

so like singing along with you and

34:30

looking you in the eye in the front

34:33

row. You're like, I can't mess these words up because

34:35

these a little sixteen year old kids

34:38

will will will be mad at me

34:40

after the show. It's

34:42

it's amazing. It truly is one of the highlights

34:44

of my career. Just

34:47

amazing. When when I saw it after,

34:49

I felt like I was floating. It was the weirdest

34:52

experience. It was the most because

34:55

you feel every emotion in that show

34:57

quite everything. It's

34:58

a it's a to roller coaster. I

35:01

felt that Lynn Lynn has an amazing

35:03

job in Tommy Tomic Kale as

35:05

the director as a team.

35:08

When I first saw In the Heights, I

35:11

felt that way. I saw In

35:13

the Heights like five times right off the bat

35:15

before I ever met you met Lynn, And then

35:18

in seeing Hamilton's for the first time, I

35:20

felt that way. You know that you're seeing

35:22

something that is new, it's

35:25

broken the paradigm

35:27

of what musicals are. You leave

35:30

going, oh my god, I'm so

35:32

inspired. I'm ready to just oh

35:34

this is great. That's I felt

35:36

the same way. I love that feeling. I love that

35:38

feeling. It's magical, and I think that's

35:40

what That's what musicals do. They

35:43

tell a story in a way that when

35:45

it's live, it's so incredible.

35:49

Nothing like it. What

35:51

would you say the best advice you've ever received

35:54

is that you wish you could pass on? Um,

35:57

I'd say the best advice is actually very simple

35:59

advice that it's not gonna sound like it's

36:01

groundbreaking, But the

36:03

older I get, and the longer

36:05

that I've been in business, the longer that

36:08

I've been alive, it makes

36:10

more sense to me. It truly

36:12

is know who you are.

36:15

Get to know yourself, and

36:18

the reason why I think it's

36:20

such good advice, and it's easier

36:22

said than done, especially when you're in a business

36:24

where your job is to play, make

36:26

believe or it's too even if you're a personality

36:29

on TV or a talk show or a podcast,

36:32

you are a heightened version of yourself. If

36:35

you get to know who you are, right decisions

36:40

become easier. If

36:42

you know the things that you like, if

36:45

you know the things you don't like. If you know the

36:47

people that you want around you, if you know

36:49

the things that you will fight for,

36:51

if you know the things you will settle for, if

36:54

you know the crap you won't take. If

36:57

you know those things, your decisions

37:00

almost become magically easy.

37:02

You don't have to stress about it. If

37:05

if something is presented to you and you know

37:08

I will not accept that, no, thank

37:10

you, Well that's really

37:12

what I want to do. I'm doing this. It

37:15

took me a long time to learn myself,

37:18

to become myself. And I tell that to my

37:20

daughter or two young actors when I teach.

37:23

I spent I think the first five

37:26

years of my on TV career not

37:28

knowing who I was because

37:31

that wasn't the path that I thought that I would be

37:33

presented. And all of a sudden, I've got all these

37:35

options. I wasn't prepared to go yes

37:37

or no. I was like, sure, okay,

37:41

I guess no. Good

37:44

decisions are not made with I

37:46

guess. So if you're younger

37:49

and you start the process now of

37:52

saying this is what I want, and it doesn't

37:54

mean that it's gonna stay that way, because you're gonna change

37:56

who you are now, different, who you will be

37:59

as some of that graduate college, who you will

38:01

be at thirty, who you will be for the rest of your

38:03

life. But you can keep updating that

38:05

list as long as you've got a

38:07

good baseline. That's the thing. Don't

38:09

wait until you're thirty to start figuring out who

38:12

you are. That's what I did. It was like, Oh, I

38:14

guess, I guess I'll start that work now.

38:17

No, get into it. That's a great

38:19

piece of advice. It's so important. We

38:21

should all live by that more well, lad, I

38:23

can help when you're creating projects.

38:26

How do you balance your vision for something while

38:28

pleasing other people and trying to make

38:30

something that the audience will still like. I've

38:33

created a couple of shows, but I mean, I think

38:35

I can speak from the perspective of working with

38:37

great people who have created the shows that that I've

38:39

been on. Once again, you

38:42

can't you can't worry about

38:44

making the audience happy. Now

38:47

I say that, of course the audience

38:49

has to be happy. You want to create a show that people

38:51

watch, so that just goes without saying. So when

38:53

I say don't worry about making the audience happy, I

38:55

don't mean you creating a vacuum and go whatever.

38:58

What I mean is, if you've got a story

39:01

like this is the story that is going to be told,

39:05

as long as the story is told masterfully, and

39:07

he's like, this is the story. You're

39:10

not going to make everybody

39:12

happy because not everyone has the same taste.

39:15

Yeah, we we sit at

39:17

home all the time. There are some my favorite shows that I

39:19

watched and I go, no, she

39:21

shouldn't be with him. I would

39:23

have had her go with the other boyfriend

39:25

that she had in high school, but that

39:27

wasn't the story that they told. So I think

39:29

as long as you pick a lane, this

39:32

is the story, and you rock with it and

39:35

you go and you are fully committed

39:37

to it, even if someone doesn't like

39:39

it, they have to respect the

39:41

effort and what it is. I completely

39:44

agree with you, and I think that's something that I'm

39:46

struggling with a little bit, focusing on

39:48

what I want but also trying

39:50

to make things marketable, what's appealing.

39:53

And it's a really interesting balance.

39:55

But I think you're so right, and you

39:58

just have to follow your instincts. But

40:00

but there is a balance, and so I think the balance

40:02

starts with, you know, the marketplace. What's

40:05

an idea that people

40:07

would like to see present that

40:09

idea, but do it your way. My dad always

40:12

says, he says,

40:14

you know, if everyone could do it,

40:16

that it would be easy. Exactly,

40:19

if everyone could do it, it would be easy.

40:22

That's that sums it all up. And

40:24

that goes back to whether you're at home

40:26

going oh, I can't do that improv thing,

40:29

or or whether you're watching How How

40:31

I Met your Mother going well, that ending stuck.

40:33

You didn't do it. Someone did it. Someone

40:36

else put a lot of work and became

40:38

an outlier to be able to crash

40:40

that thing. I think also it's

40:43

appreciating the art and just

40:46

the journey of it. I think that's we

40:48

are a lot of time as a society we focusing on

40:50

We focus on the ending of something, then we forget

40:52

about how wonderful the entire

40:54

thing was as a whole. I feel like, yes,

40:57

go ahead, speak on it. Your so

41:00

good? Yeah, Well, thank you

41:02

Wayne for coming on my podcast. I this

41:05

conversation has really inspired me, and

41:07

I'm excited good for everything

41:10

that's to come. And I know you're working on a lot,

41:12

and I'm excited for the possible Broadway

41:15

sometime next year. Keep

41:17

your eye out, it's gonna be good. It's gonna be really good.

41:19

Okay, I will come many times

41:21

to the show. Okay, I hold you to that. Yeah,

41:24

absolutely well, thank you. It's

41:26

my pleasure and I truly do. I'm so

41:28

glad that I got it off to to

41:30

you. I support you, and

41:32

I'm wishing the best for you. Go out there and kill

41:35

it. Thank

41:38

you guys so much for listening to the

41:41

first episode of season three. I hope you

41:43

guys enjoyed it. Wayne if

41:45

you're If you're listening, thank you so much for coming

41:47

on my podcast. I cannot express to you how

41:49

surreal and special that conversation was to me.

41:52

If you haven't already subscribe to the podcast,

41:54

leave a comment something you like, maybe something you didn't

41:56

like, suggestions for other people you want to have on.

41:59

I love to read your moments. You can also DM

42:01

me and follow me on Instagram at it Sammy

42:03

J. That's I T S S A M

42:05

M Y J A y E. I love talking

42:07

to you guys, season three. Get

42:09

excited, you guys. Next week I have

42:12

a very special guest, a friend of mine that,

42:14

trust me, you won't want to miss. I'll see

42:16

you next week. By