June 27, 2023 • 38 mins
Our final guest for Pride Month couldn't have set the bar higher. Grammy, Tony, and Emmy Award Winning actor, singer, writer, and director Billy Porter sits down with Rosie to mark the occasion. Rosie and Billy's friendship, love and support for each other dates back to the Grease Broadway revival in the mid 90's and they travel through it all together in this conversation, as long as the Wi-Fi connection allowed it!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Hey, everybody, it's me Rosie O'Donnell and it is Onward
my podcast. I'm so glad you're here. It has been
a wonderful June for me, Pride Month and getting to
have all these LBGTQIA icons on the show during the month.
I mean, why is it important to do Pride Month
(00:33):
here on Onward? Well, our history is something that's not
taught in schools. You never really hear about famous gay
people and what contributions they have made to the world,
to the arts. You just you're not taught it in
some schools. Now, we're lucky if they even talk about
slavery or the Holocaust truthfully. And this is done purposefully
(00:55):
so we as groups of people feel shame and guilt
and are easier to keep oppressed and keep the focus
off the real issues. It's basically fascism. One oh one.
We lost an entire generation of mentors, fighters, torch passers
because of the AIDS pandemic, and I can't help but
wonder if we would be where we are politically in
(01:16):
this country had all these people lived. This is why pride.
This is why pride opposed to shame and stigma by
a society that uses our lives as political talking points
only for the reasons of power and gain. Our guest
lists this Pride Month Holland Taylor was wonderful, bridget Everett, delicious,
(01:37):
Cyndi Lauper who was just so touching and moving. Plus
today's guests would be amazing conversations any day of the year,
but it's our job, our duty, to use our voices,
to share our stories, and to call attention to the oppression,
even in and especially in the face of what is
deemed fame and success. Our final guest, the fabulous Billy Porter,
(01:59):
my friend and brought his truths as he always does,
to this conversation in such a personal, powerful and authentic way.
When we spoke, Billy was on tour and the Wi
Fi connection was tricky, so we lost him a couple times.
But what we recorded I really felt was important to share.
He's something else, he really is, and I love him
(02:21):
very much. Billy Porter, Here on onward, ohly on, here
we are. We're finally on. Hello Billy Porter, Hello Rosie o'dono.
(02:43):
I haven't seen you since our big family feud day.
Billy's family and my family competed in a vicious, vicious
match of family feud, and now we're not at liberty
to discuss who won. However, there was a big winner
on the show. And you're gonna have to tune in
(03:05):
Christmas week because I believe that's when it's airing, right, it's.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
A Christmas special we had Santa Claus questions.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Wasn't much much more fun than you anticipated? Because I
was kind of in shock, you know.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
It was way more fun than I anticipated. And my
sister and my cousin Stephanie, with the two of them,
I mean, it was like we've never done anything like
this before, nor had we and my sister, both of them,
they have great personalities and are amazing people, but I just,
I mean, they.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Just they took over, honey. They took over in the
best way. And all I keep thinking is when this airs,
they're both going to get a sitcom. I'm gonna be
calling up Mary Martha going, hey, listen, remember me your friend?
Are your brothers? Could you possibly find a role for
a chubby lesbian in the sixties?
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Are you at your sixties? For real?
Speaker 1 (04:00):
For real?
Speaker 4 (04:01):
Old?
Speaker 1 (04:02):
Are you sixty one years old? I turned in March.
I got a decade on you, right, isn't that the truth?
Speaker 3 (04:08):
Almost? I'm fifty three, so.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Fifty three, Yeah, we're up there. How old were we
when we met? What year was that?
Speaker 4 (04:15):
Well?
Speaker 3 (04:15):
I was twenty four.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
Wow, you were a baby.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
I was twenty four and you were close to being
a baby yourself.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Yeah. It was pre children, that's what I al was.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
Pree children children, right when you got the talk show.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
Yes, that's right, that is so true. A couple of
years after that because.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
You left, no, because you left Greece early to go
do the talk show.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Oh that's true. You're right, that's so true.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
And then the talk show was so fun, and I
had you on so many times.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
I always say that I was like, you know, the
unspoken Ben Middler to your Johnny Carson.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
You're not kidding.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
I was on that show. I think I was on
that show at least seven or eight times.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
At least you were one of the you know, most
often appearing guests, because I always knew that your talent
was beyond that of mere mortal men. Honey, it's the truth.
I remember the first time hearing you sing at the
Grease rehearsal, and you did teen Angel, and everybody had
chilled everybody was standing up, and that's what the audiences
(05:19):
proceeded to do the entire run. You know, there's something
extraordinary about you, Billy and and that's why you're so acclaimed.
And you have the Tony's and you have the Grammys
and the Emmy. All you need is the Oscar and
you're right up there with the legendary egots. I mean,
that's pretty trippy, isn't it to think about? It's trippy.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Yeah, it is trippy, especially with how it started. The
journey has been arduous at times, yes, you know, and
even when we were in that period of your talk show,
that was around the time of my first record deal.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
That's right, I remember that on A and M Records.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
And you know, I write about this in my book
because you were so my book unprotected.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
Please go get it, Yes.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
You know, but I write about it because I write
about angels. There were angels and camped all around me
and have been for the entirety of my life.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
And continue to be.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
And you were one of those angels simply your present,
simply you seeing me and going what.
Speaker 3 (06:31):
You just said.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Yeah, look at that kid.
Speaker 3 (06:33):
It's not just normal talent.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
It's a different kind of talent, Yes, and I need
to be a part of making sure the world sees
that exactly that's angelic, because that doesn't always happen. And
you did that for me, And I write about in
the book where I had already been on your show
several times, right, and then I got this, and so
we had a rapport, right, and I was coming on
(06:59):
now officially with my album.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Right, you had a record deal and you were part
of that whole industry now, and it seems as though
they wanted something different from you, right, Yes.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Yeah, you know, the business was very homophobic at the time,
at totally, and they just picked at me and picked
at me and nit picked at me in terms of
like how I communicated, how you know, all the things
that everybody loves about me now, right, which is me
showing up as my true, authentic self and giving zero
(07:34):
fucks about what anybody thinks about it, Like that's who
I've always been. And at that time, I was told
my queerness would be my liability.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Yes, we all were told that, but I think you
were told it in a way that they tried to
control you.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
Yes, And so it was the day of me coming
on your show for the first time with my music.
And there was a room full of people, you know,
the people from the label and stuff, and somebody said,
just try not to talk to right before I went out,
and I know you did a million shows. And I
came out and you paneled me and I was like,
(08:12):
I couldn't even speak.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
You were second gues.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Remember this.
Speaker 1 (08:16):
I don't. I remember one time when you were on
It's probably this time that I was in shock. I'm like, wait,
he's not acting like Billy right right. You weren't giving
me any Billy that I knew and loved. And I
was thinking what happened?
Speaker 3 (08:29):
And you said at the break in the commercial, you
were like, what's wrong? What's wrong?
Speaker 2 (08:33):
And I started to well up, and you were like,
don't worry about it, let's keep going. And then I
came to your office afterwards and you were.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
Like, what the fuck did they do?
Speaker 1 (08:43):
Right?
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Because I said, and I told you, and you gave
me a big hug, and you just said, fuck them
up them, fuck them, sucked them. And that was all
I needed. Yeah, that was all I needed. And I
knew that you were going through similar.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
Yes, it was hard to be a lesbian, Yes, exactly.
Speaker 3 (09:03):
In the space.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
You had more power than I had at the time,
but it was similar spaces, correct.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
But truthfully, Billy, I do remember that, you know, we
had been told as gay people coming up that the
knowledge that you were gay would ruin everything. And there
was kind of proof, right, there was like that Tony
Randall show Loved Sydney that never got on the air
past three episodes because there was a gay reference, not
(09:32):
even a you know, it was a different time. There
was no will and grace on there was no you know,
it was it was a different time. And I remember
them saying that they wanted you almost to be like
Luther Vanros remember that and what killed.
Speaker 3 (09:47):
Luther right, because he did at fifty three he did.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
Let's talk about that, and that he yes, and he
came from a hard childhood and he he was very lonely,
you know, in his success. Like I got to be
friends with him because we lived kind of close to
each other at one point, and Vanessa Williams was friends
with him and I was friends with her, and we
all ended up at his house for dinner a couple times.
(10:13):
And you know, he had cashmere wallpaper, so you'd go
into his house and he'd say touch the walls, and
it was Beije tan cashmere wallpaper, and the house was
immaculately furnished. And there were people working in the house
in uniform, which I never understand, but okay, people in uniform.
(10:33):
And then he said to me right after dinner, everybody
was relaxed and hanging out. He goes, you want to
see the bedroom that I spend all my time, And
then up in the bedroom is a normal bedroom with
a king size lazy boy recliner with both sides of
the armrest for coolers. So he would sit there all
(10:57):
day and night watch his big TV, have his cooler
for his die coke and his you know whatever he
was doing. But he was lonely. He was so lonely.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Yeah, celebrity can be isolating, Yeah, brutal right, And I've
seen so many of my friends achieve a level of
celebrity before it happened to me, right, And there's no
explaining it, correct, you have to live it.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
It's like, you really don't understand.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
And I was the closest in proximity to fame and
celebrity that anybody could be sure for.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
A decade, for a long time, a longer time than
anyone thought it would take for you.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Yeah, but what I say about that is the reason
why it took so long was because the universe, God,
whatever you want to call it.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
Was preparing me to be ready for it.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
I was not ready, Rosie. I know that's why it
didn't happen at that time. Because who I am and
what I represent is bigger than just fame.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
I understand that. I totally understand.
Speaker 3 (12:15):
I know you do.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
It's like, it's bigger than fame for fame's sake, It's
bigger than celebrity for celebrity's sake. There is a calling
on my life. There's a purpose, dare I say?
Speaker 3 (12:25):
And I do?
Speaker 2 (12:26):
Dare say? A ministry. That's the language that I speak
because I come from the Church. Yes, I dare say it,
the very place that put me out from my queerness. Yes,
I do say it. Right, I have a ministry. Every
time I walk out of my house, every time I
show up to do anything, it's my ministry that I
(12:48):
lead with.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
And might I say, Billy, yeah, that I'm so proud
of you every time that you've had an opportunity to speak,
and in the last you know, five years, you've had
a lot of opportunity. You have spoken to issues and
causes that mean a lot to you. You've spoken at
private events like for my school and inspired children. And
(13:09):
what you've done and the way you so eloquently can
deliver your message very much like a preacher, like the
best preacher, like the preachers that change your life in
one afternoon when you weren't expecting to be moved kind
of preacher. Yes, you know, and it's beautiful to watch,
and I feel so immensely proud of you. And then
(13:32):
I also feel a certainty about the timing as well.
I think this is the right timing for him and
for us and for the world and for.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
Now, because I was not ready for it before and
at forty seven, after having lived a full life, all
of a sudden.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
Kaboom kaboom really cbo.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Yes, And now with social media and the Internet, all
of that stuff, the way that one's mental health is
targeted constantly, it feels like it's targeted on purpose. Sometimes yeah,
it until you actually understand what that feels like. And
(14:20):
when you were coming up, there was no internet. Now
imagine now, like I was like, oh my god, okay,
I'm here in this space now I thought I knew,
I thought I understood, right, and I did on a
certain level, right, I did on a certain level. But
till it happens to you, Yeah, like just for instance,
(14:41):
for an example, not to like lean into the negative
because I'm not that person, but just as an example.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
So, you know, a couple of weeks ago, it was.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
Announced that I'm doing the James Baldwin story, right, which
is fantastic, and congratulations, thank you, and I'm thrilled and
it's great, and you know, you always have, Nacey. But
the social media of it all has made people think
that their opinion matters, right. It doesn't, No, but there's
this forum for people to now.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Just judge and criticize.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
And yes, I got a text message from an unknown
number from somebody calling me a narcissist and that I
should be giving this opportunity to somebody else and I
don't need to be doing everything, and I just spewed that.
I was like, who even is this? Yeah, it's like
(15:35):
that comes at you every day. Yes, And people don't
remember that we're human and we have feelings. Yes, And
my compassion is different, particularly with the kids, specifically with
the ones who get it really early before they're even.
Speaker 3 (15:54):
You know, it's like, oh my god, I'm grown.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
Yeah yeah, and this makes me want to lose my
mind sometimes.
Speaker 1 (16:04):
And what do kids do with that? I agree, Yes,
it's so difficult, you know. And my ten year old
is very into the computer. She's into watching kids animation
on YouTube, and she wants to talk to the other
kids who are doing the animation, and she wants to
like find her little tribe. And you do, as the parent,
(16:25):
You're like, how do I keep them away from this?
You try to not let them know that, like, but
we're all addicted to it, this thing, this this you know. Ever,
you tell your kid to get off her computer and
you're on your own little iPhone.
Speaker 3 (16:42):
Right.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Well, the world only spends forward, right, yeah, So in
the process of that evolution, we are the ones now
that must redefine because there hasn't been a definition yet.
It's the wild West. The same positive infrastructure that got
(17:03):
Obama elected is the same negative infrastructure that got Trup elected.
Speaker 1 (17:09):
Right.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
It means nothing and everything at the same time. It's
a new technology still, and so there's no balance yet, right,
And we as human beings are trying to figure out
what the fucking balance is yes, you know, that's what
(17:30):
I's that's where I find myself and it's like.
Speaker 3 (17:34):
There's no balance.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Yeah, there's no balance, that's right, and that leads to
gross excess. I could tell you that much. And that
is not good for anyone. I mean, it's a horrifying
thing when it reaches the culture at like Kardashian levels
and really start actually thinking that anything fake, like a
Kardashian face is better than everything real, like your own.
(17:57):
You know, like the perspective is is shifted, and there
is no balance as a performer, as somebody in the
public eye. For many years of my like forty years
of my career, you know, I could say that the
thing that's helped me stay grounded and find the balance
is family and friends, old friends. Like oops, we lost
(18:19):
Billy Porter. Yeah, the WiFi is not our friend today.
So we'll be right back when we'll find him. We'll
find him for you. He's back. I don't know. You
(18:51):
went black and then it just went dead.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
Yeah, my Wii, the Wi Fi here at SVB for
the last couple of days has not been the.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
Best, right, I apologize. Let's try to get it.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Okay, good, all right. So now, Billy Porter, you're going
on tour Black Mona, Lisa, tell me all about this, honey.
First of all, i've heard the first three singles that
are going to be released. Fantastic. You're back to your roots.
This is sort of who you are. And I couldn't
be happier. It's like we're getting one hundred percent Billy
(19:26):
Porter all the time. It's like mainlining Billy Porter. I
love it.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
What's really interesting is I let it go right, I
let the need to be.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
A recording superstar.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Mm hm oh.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
And you know I was watching Oprah and she was
talking about with Maya Angelou and a Jan Levan said
about service m h and like, you know, the theory
is if you shift your intention to service, right, everything
else will work itself out. And that kind of collided.
I saw that with that moment on your show. You know,
(20:09):
in those years. It was in those late nineties years, right.
And then I moved to Los Angeles and you gave me.
Speaker 1 (20:14):
A car, Yes I did, which I also.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
Say in my book too to you in my book,
and you gave me a car. I drove that car
to the.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
Great you did, and I love that.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
I love that I had that car for fourteen years
and I got kinky booth and I finally bought a
new car.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Good for you, baby. That was a cute little blue bug,
wasn't it.
Speaker 3 (20:36):
Blue bug, blue bug, blue book stick shift.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
Stick shift tone. You have to learn that doesn't even
happen anymore. I love stick shift, so anyway, you know,
the first experience was so traumatic for me, right, and
I had so many other things that I could do
that I just did them, sure, And all of a sudden,
I'm Tony Grammy Award winning and now record companies are like, wait,
(21:04):
why didn't it happen?
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Right?
Speaker 2 (21:06):
You know what happened? Why didn't what she was thinking?
You know, like that kind of thing. So folks came
sniffing around me. This time, they came sniffing around me.
That's nice. And I ended up signing with Republic Records
in Island in the UK. And the record business is
(21:29):
still a shit show. I'm not gonna lie. It's a
fucking shit yes, and it drives me. The virgo efficiency, monster,
the virgo efficiency. I'm not gonna call myself a monster.
The virgo efficiency. Yeah, I have to change my language.
My therapist always says that She's like, you're.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
It's true what you exactly, You're not a monster. But
I get totally what you meant.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
But the virgo efficiency like energy, Yeah, it's like what
so anyway, But what I love about this process is
it is a return, you know to the original one
of the original dreams.
Speaker 3 (22:12):
My original dream was to be the mail Whitney.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
Houston Honey, of course, yes.
Speaker 3 (22:17):
Like so I got to Tony and now this is
the other dream, you know.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
So like I I'm a singer first, Like, that's the
gift from God, is right?
Speaker 3 (22:25):
I heard singing in church, Like that's the gift.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
And what I find so ironic about my career is
that for the first twenty five years of my career,
I was trying to get the gatekeepers of the industry
to take me seriously as an actor, right because my
queerness was in the way for that too.
Speaker 3 (22:43):
Finally get that going.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
So now I'm online and I stumble across some comments
because I don't really read them like that, but I
stumble across some comments and it's like, oh, I didn't
know Pray Tell could sing.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
I know it's fun to me, Billy, but you know,
Broadway people, man, you were around killing it eight shows
a week, standing ovations for twenty years before you get
seen on some show on TV, and it changes your world,
your world and your prey. Tell that character, Billy, that
(23:18):
character was. I remember we had dinner right before you
got that part, and you told me that you were
going with Ryan Murphy and I had said how much
I loved working with them on Niptock, and you were like,
I think it's going to change everything. I'm like, it
sounds like it's gonna and you talked about how you
got the role, and then you went out to shoot it,
(23:40):
and then it's such a glorious portrayal and such a
wonderfully needed peace in terms of gay history and the
world at the right time it showed up. Don't you
think I think we lost them again. Oh, we lost
them again, but this time cursing the WiFi. H I
(24:02):
curse you WiFi. Were not gonna be able to get
him back. But Billy Porter just delicious, a wonderful humanitarian
and political activist and just amazing human being. Thank you, Billy.
I love you. Stay tuned because we have all your
questions coming up, so stick around. We'll be right back
(24:23):
after this break. Okay, we're back and here is our
(24:48):
first Little Voice Memo question comment from you a happy listener, Rosie.
Speaker 5 (24:56):
Hi, this is Leslie from Pittsburgh. I have to comment
on your experience when you saw the whales breaching. Oh
my gosh, my heart was just beating as you were
talking about it. My greatest fear is going well watching
and being out on the water and having a whale
(25:17):
tip my boat over and just swallow me whole. But
it's just something I've always always wanted to do. So
my husband just keeps begging me, please, let's let's find
a time in our life to go do this, to
go well watching. So my question to you is, have
you ever had a tremendous fear about something and you
(25:39):
overcame it, or are you considering doing something that you
have a really big fear of that you're going to tackle.
So I hope someday I go well watching and wonder
if I do, I'll share that with you. But thank
you for sharing that experience with us. It was just
really really.
Speaker 1 (25:59):
Cool to hear. Well. Thank you so much, what a
beautiful message. I was so stunned by the magnificence of
these whales. I mean First of all, when you're looking
at the horizon and you're staring out at the sea,
you don't really expect anything to pop up perpendicular to
(26:19):
the horizon. Like mostly you know, if you see a dolphin,
they're arking. But there's not something that just pops up
like the telescope of a submarine. It doesn't happen, and
when it did, it was so magical. Now, I don't
think you should be afraid of going whale watching. The
chances of being eaten by a whale are so minimal.
(26:42):
It's like you're more likely to get killed in a
yellow car on a Tuesday going in reverse. I mean,
you know, if people were being eaten by the whales,
I think it would really quell the interest in whale watching.
And this time of year, boy, there are so many
places to go and enjoy it. And I think it's
(27:03):
wonderful that you're going to face your fears, and once
you do and you see the beauty of it, you'll
never be the same again. Now, there are some Orca
whales that are attacking sail boats, and like the Straits
of Gibraltar, which I don't even know where that is,
but you know that was an interesting kind of whale
behavior that's not typical, where these orcas attack these boats
(27:27):
and knock off the rudders and sink some of them.
And scientists were trying to figure out why they were
doing this, this one sort of pod of whales, and
one of the theories was that the mother that is
teaching everyone. Her name is Gladys, believe it or not,
a woman whale, female whale, had her child killed by
(27:47):
a boat rudder. That's what the thought is, that that's
what happened, and that she then taught the whales how
to attack the boats, which is kind of magnificent to
think in the animal kingdom that kind of behavior is possible.
You know, I'm sorry that all these bells are dinging.
We have a new ring doorbell at our house and
(28:10):
it's sort of set to if anyone comes near the sidewalk,
so all of a sudden you hear ding ding ding
ding ding ding all day. I'm gonna have to reset it.
But anyway, and the other part of the question, did
I ever face my fears and conquer it and doing
something I didn't want to do? You know, I always
wanted to ride a motorcycle, and I was afraid that
(28:31):
I was gonna get killed. And you know, I was
pretty young. I was in my twenties, and I thought,
I'll go slow, I won't you know, And I overcame
my fear. I took lessons and I rode a motorcycle
happily for like twenty years. And when I had kids
is when I said I can't do this anymore because
one mistake and there without a parent. So I had
(28:52):
many years of fun doing it. And I hope that
when you do go whil watching, you send us a
little memo and tell us how it made you feel,
because it's beyond magical and magnificent. Thank you so much
for the question. Here we go, we got another one
coming up.
Speaker 4 (29:09):
Hi, Rosie. My name is Matthew Rodriguez. I live in Chicago.
I actually host a TV show here and I do
that because of you. Really, I fell in love with
the Rosie O'donnald Show back in the nineties when you
came out, and I remember turning on the TV and
(29:30):
being like, good God, what is this woman?
Speaker 1 (29:33):
Who is she? I love her?
Speaker 4 (29:35):
And then you had Broadway on the show, and you
had the Lion King the Broadway edition the first time
I ever saw such magic, and I made my parents
take me to New York because I saw it on
your show and it changed my life. It made me
want to be an actor. I went to school for
acting and then eventually fell into hosting and Lotty lotted
out it. But this isn't about me. It's about you.
(29:56):
Love you so much, love that you're back on with
the podcast, and I think this is the perfect format
for you. My one question, though not that deep. Just
listen to your interview with Logic, which I loved, and
I wanted to know how did he fall in love
with you? How did he get to know you? Was
it from the Rose o'donald show? Because that wasn't quite clear.
(30:20):
He sent the message over to your table and paid
for your meal at Nobu? But how did he know you?
Why was he a fan? Was it because of your
stance against Trump? I just needed to know that part
and it was never addressed. So that's my question. Probably
too long, but I hope you're well. Love you and
thanks for all you do.
Speaker 1 (30:39):
Thank you so much. What a sweet, sweet message. Yes,
Logic like you watched me when he was a kid
and you would come home and he would put on
the show and there would be a calm and a
quiet for him in a house that was sort of
filled with chaos and violence. And so it was the
TV show. Believe it or not, that he was just
(31:01):
a little boy when he was watching, and really move me.
That guy is pretty magnificent. And my children are flying
in this week to see his concert, which he invited
all my kids and their friends and family to come
and sit with his friends and family and watch this
amazing man do what he does so well. So yeah,
(31:22):
it was my TV show, And congratulations on your TV show.
I'm glad you are hosting now. I find hosting very fulfilling,
especially when there's a real people to talk to. Sometimes
celebrities don't give you the kind of stuff that real
people do, which is why I always wanted to host
a game show, because my focus would be on the people,
(31:45):
trying to make them the stars that they are for
the day there on whatever show it is. To be
affable and to be genuinely curious about people's lives, I
think is a wonderful trait to have, and I'm lucky
that that's just sort of the natural way I am.
But yeah, I'm so happy that logic and I met
(32:07):
and that I'm getting get to go see him this
week and thank you for your voice memo.
Speaker 6 (32:12):
Here we go, Hi, Rosie, this is Bill. I'm listening
here at Knoxville, Tennessee. I'm a gay dad. We have twins.
I've been a fan forever, loved your television show and
then loved you when you were on the radio every
day for a couple of years. I was listening to
(32:34):
the last episode of your podcast with Bridget Everett. Boy
is she something you were talking about how some recent
shows you saw brought you to tears. And I just
saw a local performance of the Tony winning Broadway show
Fun Home, and it brought me to tears, and I wondered,
(32:56):
if you've ever seen fun Home? It was so amazing,
So I wondered if you've seen that show and if
you had any thoughts about that. Love you so much,
Glad you're back on the air.
Speaker 1 (33:08):
Bye, Thank you so much. Bill. That's very sweet of you.
I always wanted twins, so I'm wicked jealous. They say
that twins aren't placed for adoption very often, because you know,
the families think it's such a special and rare thing,
which it is. To have twins, and families usually are
able to step in and help out, and so they
(33:31):
aren't often placed for adoption. But boy, did I dream
my whole life of having twins or triplets. Fun Home
is one of my favorite musicals ever. I was so
blown away by it. I had no idea what to expect,
and that story of Alison Bechdel and her wonderful discovery
(33:56):
of who she is. And you know, I don't remember
ever seeing a music that featured prominently in a lead role,
a lesbian character and the ring of keys. When they
sang that song, I was like totally overwhelmed with emotion,
remembering when I was that young and would see a
woman and be very attracted and very interested in how
(34:20):
she was in the world. Kind of a tougher, you know,
like somebody who rode a motorcycle and was able to
take care of herself and be fiercely independent and kind
of tough but sexy. And I always thought that was
my dream for myself. You know, I don't know that
I ever achieved it, but that was my dream, and
that musical is just absolutely brilliant. It really is. I
(34:46):
saw it a few times in New York and couldn't
believe how wonderful it is. Get the soundtrack everyone, beautiful,
beautiful music in that show, and thank you so much
for writing. I loved the bridget Effort podcast too. I
thought she was amazing. So thank you so much. And
we have one more question for you right now, and
(35:06):
let's see what we got. Hey, Rosie, this has been
from Saint Louis.
Speaker 7 (35:11):
I've always admired your friendship with Madonna over the years.
I've loved her since I was a little kid, and
I've loved you since Your day is on VH one.
Do you think you could get her to do an
interview before her big celebration tour. I would freaking love
that so much. I love you guys both so much.
(35:33):
I'm crossing my fingers hoping that maybe you can get
Madonna on the show. I love you guys, he's out.
Speaker 1 (35:40):
Thank you so much. I love Madonna. She's an amazing
woman and a wonderful friend for some thirty something years now,
and I can't wait to see her on tour. I
know she's crazy busy getting everything set and whatnot, but
I will text her and we'll see what we can do.
You know, I don't like to bug my friends when
(36:01):
they're busy like that. I know what it takes to
put on a world tour, having seen her do it
many times during our friendship, so I'll see, Well, we'll
probably be able to get her sometime. I don't know
if it's before she goes out, but you know, for her,
finding an hour is a hard thing to do. She
schedules herself from very early to very late, and her
(36:23):
rehearsal is you know, boot camp. It's not you know,
for people who who want to like get by doing
marking the numbers, you do it full out, and rehearsal
you do it full out so many times so that
when we see it on stage it's the perfection that
she always brings to her world tours. So I will
(36:44):
do my best to get Madonna on this podcast for
you and for everyone else and for me because I
love her very much and I can't wait to see
what kind of records this tour breaks and how wonderful
it's going to be with all of her hits from
forty eight, pretty astounding. Well, thank you everybody, thanks for
(37:04):
all the great questions. And I want to thank Billy
Porter for taking time out of his tour to find
a way to speak to us, even though at darn
wi Fi, I love him very much. Hey, next week,
next week Reality Winner? Whose Reality Winner? Do me a
favor and google her before next week. Find out what
this woman is about. She's pretty amazing. She really is
(37:29):
a patriot, and she is a whistleblower. And she found
out that yes, in fact, Russia did interfere in the election,
the twenty sixteen election, and how they did it. And
she sent three pages of top secret information to a
reporter and then was put in jail for four and
(37:50):
a half years, the hardest and highest sentence ever given
to anyone accused of that. It's the same charges that
Donald Trump will be facing pretty soon, right about espionage? Interesting,
So look for that next week, Reality Winner. But I
hope you enjoyed, Billy and love you. Thank you for
tuning in. We'll see you next week.
Hey, everybody, it's me Rosie O'Donnell and it is Onward
my podcast. I'm so glad you're here. It has been
a wonderful June for me, Pride Month and getting to
have all these LBGTQIA icons on the show during the month.
I mean, why is it important to do Pride Month
(00:33):
here on Onward? Well, our history is something that's not
taught in schools. You never really hear about famous gay
people and what contributions they have made to the world,
to the arts. You just you're not taught it in
some schools. Now, we're lucky if they even talk about
slavery or the Holocaust truthfully. And this is done purposefully
(00:55):
so we as groups of people feel shame and guilt
and are easier to keep oppressed and keep the focus
off the real issues. It's basically fascism. One oh one.
We lost an entire generation of mentors, fighters, torch passers
because of the AIDS pandemic, and I can't help but
wonder if we would be where we are politically in
(01:16):
this country had all these people lived. This is why pride.
This is why pride opposed to shame and stigma by
a society that uses our lives as political talking points
only for the reasons of power and gain. Our guest
lists this Pride Month Holland Taylor was wonderful, bridget Everett, delicious,
(01:37):
Cyndi Lauper who was just so touching and moving. Plus
today's guests would be amazing conversations any day of the year,
but it's our job, our duty, to use our voices,
to share our stories, and to call attention to the oppression,
even in and especially in the face of what is
deemed fame and success. Our final guest, the fabulous Billy Porter,
(01:59):
my friend and brought his truths as he always does,
to this conversation in such a personal, powerful and authentic way.
When we spoke, Billy was on tour and the Wi
Fi connection was tricky, so we lost him a couple times.
But what we recorded I really felt was important to share.
He's something else, he really is, and I love him
(02:21):
very much. Billy Porter, Here on onward, ohly on, here
we are. We're finally on. Hello Billy Porter, Hello Rosie o'dono.
(02:43):
I haven't seen you since our big family feud day.
Billy's family and my family competed in a vicious, vicious
match of family feud, and now we're not at liberty
to discuss who won. However, there was a big winner
on the show. And you're gonna have to tune in
(03:05):
Christmas week because I believe that's when it's airing, right, it's.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
A Christmas special we had Santa Claus questions.
Speaker 1 (03:11):
Wasn't much much more fun than you anticipated? Because I
was kind of in shock, you know.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
It was way more fun than I anticipated. And my
sister and my cousin Stephanie, with the two of them,
I mean, it was like we've never done anything like
this before, nor had we and my sister, both of them,
they have great personalities and are amazing people, but I just,
I mean, they.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Just they took over, honey. They took over in the
best way. And all I keep thinking is when this airs,
they're both going to get a sitcom. I'm gonna be
calling up Mary Martha going, hey, listen, remember me your friend?
Are your brothers? Could you possibly find a role for
a chubby lesbian in the sixties?
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Are you at your sixties? For real?
Speaker 1 (04:00):
For real?
Speaker 4 (04:01):
Old?
Speaker 1 (04:02):
Are you sixty one years old? I turned in March.
I got a decade on you, right, isn't that the truth?
Speaker 3 (04:08):
Almost? I'm fifty three, so.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Fifty three, Yeah, we're up there. How old were we
when we met? What year was that?
Speaker 4 (04:15):
Well?
Speaker 3 (04:15):
I was twenty four.
Speaker 1 (04:16):
Wow, you were a baby.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
I was twenty four and you were close to being
a baby yourself.
Speaker 1 (04:23):
Yeah. It was pre children, that's what I al was.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
Pree children children, right when you got the talk show.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
Yes, that's right, that is so true. A couple of
years after that because.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
You left, no, because you left Greece early to go
do the talk show.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
Oh that's true. You're right, that's so true.
Speaker 3 (04:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
And then the talk show was so fun, and I
had you on so many times.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
I always say that I was like, you know, the
unspoken Ben Middler to your Johnny Carson.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
You're not kidding.
Speaker 3 (04:54):
I was on that show. I think I was on
that show at least seven or eight times.
Speaker 1 (04:57):
At least you were one of the you know, most
often appearing guests, because I always knew that your talent
was beyond that of mere mortal men. Honey, it's the truth.
I remember the first time hearing you sing at the
Grease rehearsal, and you did teen Angel, and everybody had
chilled everybody was standing up, and that's what the audiences
(05:19):
proceeded to do the entire run. You know, there's something
extraordinary about you, Billy and and that's why you're so acclaimed.
And you have the Tony's and you have the Grammys
and the Emmy. All you need is the Oscar and
you're right up there with the legendary egots. I mean,
that's pretty trippy, isn't it to think about? It's trippy.
Speaker 2 (05:41):
Yeah, it is trippy, especially with how it started. The
journey has been arduous at times, yes, you know, and
even when we were in that period of your talk show,
that was around the time of my first record deal.
Speaker 1 (05:58):
That's right, I remember that on A and M Records.
Speaker 2 (06:01):
And you know, I write about this in my book
because you were so my book unprotected.
Speaker 1 (06:07):
Please go get it, Yes.
Speaker 2 (06:09):
You know, but I write about it because I write
about angels. There were angels and camped all around me
and have been for the entirety of my life.
Speaker 3 (06:20):
And continue to be.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
And you were one of those angels simply your present,
simply you seeing me and going what.
Speaker 3 (06:31):
You just said.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Yeah, look at that kid.
Speaker 3 (06:33):
It's not just normal talent.
Speaker 2 (06:35):
It's a different kind of talent, Yes, and I need
to be a part of making sure the world sees
that exactly that's angelic, because that doesn't always happen. And
you did that for me, And I write about in
the book where I had already been on your show
several times, right, and then I got this, and so
we had a rapport, right, and I was coming on
(06:59):
now officially with my album.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Right, you had a record deal and you were part
of that whole industry now, and it seems as though
they wanted something different from you, right, Yes.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Yeah, you know, the business was very homophobic at the time,
at totally, and they just picked at me and picked
at me and nit picked at me in terms of
like how I communicated, how you know, all the things
that everybody loves about me now, right, which is me
showing up as my true, authentic self and giving zero
(07:34):
fucks about what anybody thinks about it, Like that's who
I've always been. And at that time, I was told
my queerness would be my liability.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Yes, we all were told that, but I think you
were told it in a way that they tried to
control you.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
Yes, And so it was the day of me coming
on your show for the first time with my music.
And there was a room full of people, you know,
the people from the label and stuff, and somebody said,
just try not to talk to right before I went out,
and I know you did a million shows. And I
came out and you paneled me and I was like,
(08:12):
I couldn't even speak.
Speaker 1 (08:14):
You were second gues.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Remember this.
Speaker 1 (08:16):
I don't. I remember one time when you were on
It's probably this time that I was in shock. I'm like, wait,
he's not acting like Billy right right. You weren't giving
me any Billy that I knew and loved. And I
was thinking what happened?
Speaker 3 (08:29):
And you said at the break in the commercial, you
were like, what's wrong? What's wrong?
Speaker 2 (08:33):
And I started to well up, and you were like,
don't worry about it, let's keep going. And then I
came to your office afterwards and you were.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
Like, what the fuck did they do?
Speaker 1 (08:43):
Right?
Speaker 2 (08:44):
Because I said, and I told you, and you gave
me a big hug, and you just said, fuck them
up them, fuck them, sucked them. And that was all
I needed. Yeah, that was all I needed. And I
knew that you were going through similar.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
Yes, it was hard to be a lesbian, Yes, exactly.
Speaker 3 (09:03):
In the space.
Speaker 2 (09:04):
You had more power than I had at the time,
but it was similar spaces, correct.
Speaker 1 (09:09):
But truthfully, Billy, I do remember that, you know, we
had been told as gay people coming up that the
knowledge that you were gay would ruin everything. And there
was kind of proof, right, there was like that Tony
Randall show Loved Sydney that never got on the air
past three episodes because there was a gay reference, not
(09:32):
even a you know, it was a different time. There
was no will and grace on there was no you know,
it was it was a different time. And I remember
them saying that they wanted you almost to be like
Luther Vanros remember that and what killed.
Speaker 3 (09:47):
Luther right, because he did at fifty three he did.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
Let's talk about that, and that he yes, and he
came from a hard childhood and he he was very lonely,
you know, in his success. Like I got to be
friends with him because we lived kind of close to
each other at one point, and Vanessa Williams was friends
with him and I was friends with her, and we
all ended up at his house for dinner a couple times.
(10:13):
And you know, he had cashmere wallpaper, so you'd go
into his house and he'd say touch the walls, and
it was Beije tan cashmere wallpaper, and the house was
immaculately furnished. And there were people working in the house
in uniform, which I never understand, but okay, people in uniform.
(10:33):
And then he said to me right after dinner, everybody
was relaxed and hanging out. He goes, you want to
see the bedroom that I spend all my time, And
then up in the bedroom is a normal bedroom with
a king size lazy boy recliner with both sides of
the armrest for coolers. So he would sit there all
(10:57):
day and night watch his big TV, have his cooler
for his die coke and his you know whatever he
was doing. But he was lonely. He was so lonely.
Speaker 2 (11:08):
Yeah, celebrity can be isolating, Yeah, brutal right, And I've
seen so many of my friends achieve a level of
celebrity before it happened to me, right, And there's no
explaining it, correct, you have to live it.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
It's like, you really don't understand.
Speaker 2 (11:31):
And I was the closest in proximity to fame and
celebrity that anybody could be sure for.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
A decade, for a long time, a longer time than
anyone thought it would take for you.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
Yeah, but what I say about that is the reason
why it took so long was because the universe, God,
whatever you want to call it.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
Was preparing me to be ready for it.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
I was not ready, Rosie. I know that's why it
didn't happen at that time. Because who I am and
what I represent is bigger than just fame.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
I understand that. I totally understand.
Speaker 3 (12:15):
I know you do.
Speaker 2 (12:16):
It's like, it's bigger than fame for fame's sake, It's
bigger than celebrity for celebrity's sake. There is a calling
on my life. There's a purpose, dare I say?
Speaker 3 (12:25):
And I do?
Speaker 2 (12:26):
Dare say? A ministry. That's the language that I speak
because I come from the Church. Yes, I dare say it,
the very place that put me out from my queerness. Yes,
I do say it. Right, I have a ministry. Every
time I walk out of my house, every time I
show up to do anything, it's my ministry that I
(12:48):
lead with.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
And might I say, Billy, yeah, that I'm so proud
of you every time that you've had an opportunity to speak,
and in the last you know, five years, you've had
a lot of opportunity. You have spoken to issues and
causes that mean a lot to you. You've spoken at
private events like for my school and inspired children. And
(13:09):
what you've done and the way you so eloquently can
deliver your message very much like a preacher, like the
best preacher, like the preachers that change your life in
one afternoon when you weren't expecting to be moved kind
of preacher. Yes, you know, and it's beautiful to watch,
and I feel so immensely proud of you. And then
(13:32):
I also feel a certainty about the timing as well.
I think this is the right timing for him and
for us and for the world and for.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
Now, because I was not ready for it before and
at forty seven, after having lived a full life, all
of a sudden.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
Kaboom kaboom really cbo.
Speaker 2 (13:55):
Yes, And now with social media and the Internet, all
of that stuff, the way that one's mental health is
targeted constantly, it feels like it's targeted on purpose. Sometimes yeah,
it until you actually understand what that feels like. And
(14:20):
when you were coming up, there was no internet. Now
imagine now, like I was like, oh my god, okay,
I'm here in this space now I thought I knew,
I thought I understood, right, and I did on a
certain level, right, I did on a certain level. But
till it happens to you, Yeah, like just for instance,
(14:41):
for an example, not to like lean into the negative
because I'm not that person, but just as an example.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
So, you know, a couple of weeks ago, it was.
Speaker 2 (14:51):
Announced that I'm doing the James Baldwin story, right, which
is fantastic, and congratulations, thank you, and I'm thrilled and
it's great, and you know, you always have, Nacey. But
the social media of it all has made people think
that their opinion matters, right. It doesn't, No, but there's
this forum for people to now.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Just judge and criticize.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
And yes, I got a text message from an unknown
number from somebody calling me a narcissist and that I
should be giving this opportunity to somebody else and I
don't need to be doing everything, and I just spewed that.
I was like, who even is this? Yeah, it's like
(15:35):
that comes at you every day. Yes, And people don't
remember that we're human and we have feelings. Yes, And
my compassion is different, particularly with the kids, specifically with
the ones who get it really early before they're even.
Speaker 3 (15:54):
You know, it's like, oh my god, I'm grown.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
Yeah yeah, and this makes me want to lose my
mind sometimes.
Speaker 1 (16:04):
And what do kids do with that? I agree, Yes,
it's so difficult, you know. And my ten year old
is very into the computer. She's into watching kids animation
on YouTube, and she wants to talk to the other
kids who are doing the animation, and she wants to
like find her little tribe. And you do, as the parent,
(16:25):
You're like, how do I keep them away from this?
You try to not let them know that, like, but
we're all addicted to it, this thing, this this you know. Ever,
you tell your kid to get off her computer and
you're on your own little iPhone.
Speaker 3 (16:42):
Right.
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Well, the world only spends forward, right, yeah, So in
the process of that evolution, we are the ones now
that must redefine because there hasn't been a definition yet.
It's the wild West. The same positive infrastructure that got
(17:03):
Obama elected is the same negative infrastructure that got Trup elected.
Speaker 1 (17:09):
Right.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
It means nothing and everything at the same time. It's
a new technology still, and so there's no balance yet, right,
And we as human beings are trying to figure out
what the fucking balance is yes, you know, that's what
(17:30):
I's that's where I find myself and it's like.
Speaker 3 (17:34):
There's no balance.
Speaker 1 (17:35):
Yeah, there's no balance, that's right, and that leads to
gross excess. I could tell you that much. And that
is not good for anyone. I mean, it's a horrifying
thing when it reaches the culture at like Kardashian levels
and really start actually thinking that anything fake, like a
Kardashian face is better than everything real, like your own.
(17:57):
You know, like the perspective is is shifted, and there
is no balance as a performer, as somebody in the
public eye. For many years of my like forty years
of my career, you know, I could say that the
thing that's helped me stay grounded and find the balance
is family and friends, old friends. Like oops, we lost
(18:19):
Billy Porter. Yeah, the WiFi is not our friend today.
So we'll be right back when we'll find him. We'll
find him for you. He's back. I don't know. You
(18:51):
went black and then it just went dead.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
Yeah, my Wii, the Wi Fi here at SVB for
the last couple of days has not been the.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
Best, right, I apologize. Let's try to get it.
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Okay, good, all right. So now, Billy Porter, you're going
on tour Black Mona, Lisa, tell me all about this, honey.
First of all, i've heard the first three singles that
are going to be released. Fantastic. You're back to your roots.
This is sort of who you are. And I couldn't
be happier. It's like we're getting one hundred percent Billy
(19:26):
Porter all the time. It's like mainlining Billy Porter. I
love it.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
What's really interesting is I let it go right, I
let the need to be.
Speaker 3 (19:41):
A recording superstar.
Speaker 1 (19:43):
Mm hm oh.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
And you know I was watching Oprah and she was
talking about with Maya Angelou and a Jan Levan said
about service m h and like, you know, the theory
is if you shift your intention to service, right, everything
else will work itself out. And that kind of collided.
I saw that with that moment on your show. You know,
(20:09):
in those years. It was in those late nineties years, right.
And then I moved to Los Angeles and you gave me.
Speaker 1 (20:14):
A car, Yes I did, which I also.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
Say in my book too to you in my book,
and you gave me a car. I drove that car
to the.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
Great you did, and I love that.
Speaker 2 (20:26):
I love that I had that car for fourteen years
and I got kinky booth and I finally bought a
new car.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Good for you, baby. That was a cute little blue bug,
wasn't it.
Speaker 3 (20:36):
Blue bug, blue bug, blue book stick shift.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
Stick shift tone. You have to learn that doesn't even
happen anymore. I love stick shift, so anyway, you know,
the first experience was so traumatic for me, right, and
I had so many other things that I could do
that I just did them, sure, And all of a sudden,
I'm Tony Grammy Award winning and now record companies are like, wait,
(21:04):
why didn't it happen?
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Right?
Speaker 2 (21:06):
You know what happened? Why didn't what she was thinking?
You know, like that kind of thing. So folks came
sniffing around me. This time, they came sniffing around me.
That's nice. And I ended up signing with Republic Records
in Island in the UK. And the record business is
(21:29):
still a shit show. I'm not gonna lie. It's a
fucking shit yes, and it drives me. The virgo efficiency, monster,
the virgo efficiency. I'm not gonna call myself a monster.
The virgo efficiency. Yeah, I have to change my language.
My therapist always says that She's like, you're.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
It's true what you exactly, You're not a monster. But
I get totally what you meant.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
But the virgo efficiency like energy, Yeah, it's like what
so anyway, But what I love about this process is
it is a return, you know to the original one
of the original dreams.
Speaker 3 (22:12):
My original dream was to be the mail Whitney.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
Houston Honey, of course, yes.
Speaker 3 (22:17):
Like so I got to Tony and now this is
the other dream, you know.
Speaker 2 (22:20):
So like I I'm a singer first, Like, that's the
gift from God, is right?
Speaker 3 (22:25):
I heard singing in church, Like that's the gift.
Speaker 2 (22:28):
And what I find so ironic about my career is
that for the first twenty five years of my career,
I was trying to get the gatekeepers of the industry
to take me seriously as an actor, right because my
queerness was in the way for that too.
Speaker 3 (22:43):
Finally get that going.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
So now I'm online and I stumble across some comments
because I don't really read them like that, but I
stumble across some comments and it's like, oh, I didn't
know Pray Tell could sing.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
I know it's fun to me, Billy, but you know,
Broadway people, man, you were around killing it eight shows
a week, standing ovations for twenty years before you get
seen on some show on TV, and it changes your world,
your world and your prey. Tell that character, Billy, that
(23:18):
character was. I remember we had dinner right before you
got that part, and you told me that you were
going with Ryan Murphy and I had said how much
I loved working with them on Niptock, and you were like,
I think it's going to change everything. I'm like, it
sounds like it's gonna and you talked about how you
got the role, and then you went out to shoot it,
(23:40):
and then it's such a glorious portrayal and such a
wonderfully needed peace in terms of gay history and the
world at the right time it showed up. Don't you
think I think we lost them again. Oh, we lost
them again, but this time cursing the WiFi. H I
(24:02):
curse you WiFi. Were not gonna be able to get
him back. But Billy Porter just delicious, a wonderful humanitarian
and political activist and just amazing human being. Thank you, Billy.
I love you. Stay tuned because we have all your
questions coming up, so stick around. We'll be right back
(24:23):
after this break. Okay, we're back and here is our
(24:48):
first Little Voice Memo question comment from you a happy listener, Rosie.
Speaker 5 (24:56):
Hi, this is Leslie from Pittsburgh. I have to comment
on your experience when you saw the whales breaching. Oh
my gosh, my heart was just beating as you were
talking about it. My greatest fear is going well watching
and being out on the water and having a whale
(25:17):
tip my boat over and just swallow me whole. But
it's just something I've always always wanted to do. So
my husband just keeps begging me, please, let's let's find
a time in our life to go do this, to
go well watching. So my question to you is, have
you ever had a tremendous fear about something and you
(25:39):
overcame it, or are you considering doing something that you
have a really big fear of that you're going to tackle.
So I hope someday I go well watching and wonder
if I do, I'll share that with you. But thank
you for sharing that experience with us. It was just
really really.
Speaker 1 (25:59):
Cool to hear. Well. Thank you so much, what a
beautiful message. I was so stunned by the magnificence of
these whales. I mean First of all, when you're looking
at the horizon and you're staring out at the sea,
you don't really expect anything to pop up perpendicular to
(26:19):
the horizon. Like mostly you know, if you see a dolphin,
they're arking. But there's not something that just pops up
like the telescope of a submarine. It doesn't happen, and
when it did, it was so magical. Now, I don't
think you should be afraid of going whale watching. The
chances of being eaten by a whale are so minimal.
(26:42):
It's like you're more likely to get killed in a
yellow car on a Tuesday going in reverse. I mean,
you know, if people were being eaten by the whales,
I think it would really quell the interest in whale watching.
And this time of year, boy, there are so many
places to go and enjoy it. And I think it's
(27:03):
wonderful that you're going to face your fears, and once
you do and you see the beauty of it, you'll
never be the same again. Now, there are some Orca
whales that are attacking sail boats, and like the Straits
of Gibraltar, which I don't even know where that is,
but you know that was an interesting kind of whale
behavior that's not typical, where these orcas attack these boats
(27:27):
and knock off the rudders and sink some of them.
And scientists were trying to figure out why they were
doing this, this one sort of pod of whales, and
one of the theories was that the mother that is
teaching everyone. Her name is Gladys, believe it or not,
a woman whale, female whale, had her child killed by
(27:47):
a boat rudder. That's what the thought is, that that's
what happened, and that she then taught the whales how
to attack the boats, which is kind of magnificent to
think in the animal kingdom that kind of behavior is possible.
You know, I'm sorry that all these bells are dinging.
We have a new ring doorbell at our house and
(28:10):
it's sort of set to if anyone comes near the sidewalk,
so all of a sudden you hear ding ding ding
ding ding ding all day. I'm gonna have to reset it.
But anyway, and the other part of the question, did
I ever face my fears and conquer it and doing
something I didn't want to do? You know, I always
wanted to ride a motorcycle, and I was afraid that
(28:31):
I was gonna get killed. And you know, I was
pretty young. I was in my twenties, and I thought,
I'll go slow, I won't you know, And I overcame
my fear. I took lessons and I rode a motorcycle
happily for like twenty years. And when I had kids
is when I said I can't do this anymore because
one mistake and there without a parent. So I had
(28:52):
many years of fun doing it. And I hope that
when you do go whil watching, you send us a
little memo and tell us how it made you feel,
because it's beyond magical and magnificent. Thank you so much
for the question. Here we go, we got another one
coming up.
Speaker 4 (29:09):
Hi, Rosie. My name is Matthew Rodriguez. I live in Chicago.
I actually host a TV show here and I do
that because of you. Really, I fell in love with
the Rosie O'donnald Show back in the nineties when you
came out, and I remember turning on the TV and
(29:30):
being like, good God, what is this woman?
Speaker 1 (29:33):
Who is she? I love her?
Speaker 4 (29:35):
And then you had Broadway on the show, and you
had the Lion King the Broadway edition the first time
I ever saw such magic, and I made my parents
take me to New York because I saw it on
your show and it changed my life. It made me
want to be an actor. I went to school for
acting and then eventually fell into hosting and Lotty lotted
out it. But this isn't about me. It's about you.
(29:56):
Love you so much, love that you're back on with
the podcast, and I think this is the perfect format
for you. My one question, though not that deep. Just
listen to your interview with Logic, which I loved, and
I wanted to know how did he fall in love
with you? How did he get to know you? Was
it from the Rose o'donald show? Because that wasn't quite clear.
(30:20):
He sent the message over to your table and paid
for your meal at Nobu? But how did he know you?
Why was he a fan? Was it because of your
stance against Trump? I just needed to know that part
and it was never addressed. So that's my question. Probably
too long, but I hope you're well. Love you and
thanks for all you do.
Speaker 1 (30:39):
Thank you so much. What a sweet, sweet message. Yes,
Logic like you watched me when he was a kid
and you would come home and he would put on
the show and there would be a calm and a
quiet for him in a house that was sort of
filled with chaos and violence. And so it was the
TV show. Believe it or not, that he was just
(31:01):
a little boy when he was watching, and really move me.
That guy is pretty magnificent. And my children are flying
in this week to see his concert, which he invited
all my kids and their friends and family to come
and sit with his friends and family and watch this
amazing man do what he does so well. So yeah,
(31:22):
it was my TV show, And congratulations on your TV show.
I'm glad you are hosting now. I find hosting very fulfilling,
especially when there's a real people to talk to. Sometimes
celebrities don't give you the kind of stuff that real
people do, which is why I always wanted to host
a game show, because my focus would be on the people,
(31:45):
trying to make them the stars that they are for
the day there on whatever show it is. To be
affable and to be genuinely curious about people's lives, I
think is a wonderful trait to have, and I'm lucky
that that's just sort of the natural way I am.
But yeah, I'm so happy that logic and I met
(32:07):
and that I'm getting get to go see him this
week and thank you for your voice memo.
Speaker 6 (32:12):
Here we go, Hi, Rosie, this is Bill. I'm listening
here at Knoxville, Tennessee. I'm a gay dad. We have twins.
I've been a fan forever, loved your television show and
then loved you when you were on the radio every
day for a couple of years. I was listening to
(32:34):
the last episode of your podcast with Bridget Everett. Boy
is she something you were talking about how some recent
shows you saw brought you to tears. And I just
saw a local performance of the Tony winning Broadway show
Fun Home, and it brought me to tears, and I wondered,
(32:56):
if you've ever seen fun Home? It was so amazing,
So I wondered if you've seen that show and if
you had any thoughts about that. Love you so much,
Glad you're back on the air.
Speaker 1 (33:08):
Bye, Thank you so much. Bill. That's very sweet of you.
I always wanted twins, so I'm wicked jealous. They say
that twins aren't placed for adoption very often, because you know,
the families think it's such a special and rare thing,
which it is. To have twins, and families usually are
able to step in and help out, and so they
(33:31):
aren't often placed for adoption. But boy, did I dream
my whole life of having twins or triplets. Fun Home
is one of my favorite musicals ever. I was so
blown away by it. I had no idea what to expect,
and that story of Alison Bechdel and her wonderful discovery
(33:56):
of who she is. And you know, I don't remember
ever seeing a music that featured prominently in a lead role,
a lesbian character and the ring of keys. When they
sang that song, I was like totally overwhelmed with emotion,
remembering when I was that young and would see a
woman and be very attracted and very interested in how
(34:20):
she was in the world. Kind of a tougher, you know,
like somebody who rode a motorcycle and was able to
take care of herself and be fiercely independent and kind
of tough but sexy. And I always thought that was
my dream for myself. You know, I don't know that
I ever achieved it, but that was my dream, and
that musical is just absolutely brilliant. It really is. I
(34:46):
saw it a few times in New York and couldn't
believe how wonderful it is. Get the soundtrack everyone, beautiful,
beautiful music in that show, and thank you so much
for writing. I loved the bridget Effort podcast too. I
thought she was amazing. So thank you so much. And
we have one more question for you right now, and
(35:06):
let's see what we got. Hey, Rosie, this has been
from Saint Louis.
Speaker 7 (35:11):
I've always admired your friendship with Madonna over the years.
I've loved her since I was a little kid, and
I've loved you since Your day is on VH one.
Do you think you could get her to do an
interview before her big celebration tour. I would freaking love
that so much. I love you guys both so much.
(35:33):
I'm crossing my fingers hoping that maybe you can get
Madonna on the show. I love you guys, he's out.
Speaker 1 (35:40):
Thank you so much. I love Madonna. She's an amazing
woman and a wonderful friend for some thirty something years now,
and I can't wait to see her on tour. I
know she's crazy busy getting everything set and whatnot, but
I will text her and we'll see what we can do.
You know, I don't like to bug my friends when
(36:01):
they're busy like that. I know what it takes to
put on a world tour, having seen her do it
many times during our friendship, so I'll see, Well, we'll
probably be able to get her sometime. I don't know
if it's before she goes out, but you know, for her,
finding an hour is a hard thing to do. She
schedules herself from very early to very late, and her
(36:23):
rehearsal is you know, boot camp. It's not you know,
for people who who want to like get by doing
marking the numbers, you do it full out, and rehearsal
you do it full out so many times so that
when we see it on stage it's the perfection that
she always brings to her world tours. So I will
(36:44):
do my best to get Madonna on this podcast for
you and for everyone else and for me because I
love her very much and I can't wait to see
what kind of records this tour breaks and how wonderful
it's going to be with all of her hits from
forty eight, pretty astounding. Well, thank you everybody, thanks for
(37:04):
all the great questions. And I want to thank Billy
Porter for taking time out of his tour to find
a way to speak to us, even though at darn
wi Fi, I love him very much. Hey, next week,
next week Reality Winner? Whose Reality Winner? Do me a
favor and google her before next week. Find out what
this woman is about. She's pretty amazing. She really is
(37:29):
a patriot, and she is a whistleblower. And she found
out that yes, in fact, Russia did interfere in the election,
the twenty sixteen election, and how they did it. And
she sent three pages of top secret information to a
reporter and then was put in jail for four and
(37:50):
a half years, the hardest and highest sentence ever given
to anyone accused of that. It's the same charges that
Donald Trump will be facing pretty soon, right about espionage? Interesting,
So look for that next week, Reality Winner. But I
hope you enjoyed, Billy and love you. Thank you for
tuning in. We'll see you next week.
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