July 8, 2025 • 35 mins
Loft meeting! We finally got Brenda Song to sit down with Lamorne. Together, they unpacked her thirty-year entertainment career, how she transitioned from child actor to bona fide superstar, and how she became Daisy on New Girl.
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Speaker 1 (00:14):
I don't know umber. I'm calling a lof meeting folks today.
I am joined by a very very special guest. Brenda
Song's career is longer than my.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Dario.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
I've dated quite quite the number anyway, Like literally, she's
been doing TV for like thirty years something like that.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
I was like three four. Oh my, I know, I'm psychotic.
There's something wrong with me.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
I mean, she's ship out to sum She's London Tipton,
the Hotel heiress from the Sweet Life of Zach and Cody.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Are you reading my IMDb or are you reading like
a bio?
Speaker 1 (01:00):
I'm bringing by all. We wrote by we wrote this,
we wrote this out the social network, and a lot
of you folks if you're if you're listening to this podcast,
you know her as Daisy from New Girl. Please welcome
Brenda Song to the show.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Thank you for having me. I'm so excited. I'm so excited.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
What were you when I saw you in Serrano? What
were you promoting?
Speaker 3 (01:26):
I was promoting a movie that's going to come out
in January called The Last Show Girl with Pamela Anderson, Jamielee, Curtis,
Dave Batista.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Here in a shipka Billy Lord I am.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
I literally just I'm in the background holding lights like
I am so just to be a part of this project.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
It was wonderful. It was so I hadn't seen you
in so long. It was so nice to see. It
was such a lovely surprise.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Oh my gosh. Yes, that was a fun That was
a fun little gathering that we had there. And we're
gonna at the Toronto Focast. Well, that was my first
time being there. I never yeah, I mean I've been
I go to often, but that was my first time
at the at the festival.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
And you were promoting the Saturday Night Life movie.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Right, yeah, yeah, it's out now. So for all those
folks who haven't seen it, you are a fucking asshole.
But oh you haven't seen it yourself. You should have
made it up. Yeah, you know how the story is.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
When do you have time? When do you have time?
Speaker 1 (02:22):
To be real? That's true, that's true. I put me
and my daughter, we have our date nights here, so
her and I just watch pretty much the same movies
over and over and over again Saturday. Yeah, I just
let her watch what I do exactly.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Imagine.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Oh, your kids are only allowed to watch the things
you're in listen you know.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
What I mean. I run a tight ship. They got
to know with education, get to know your parents. I
only do educational work. So let's dive in you. What
is what is your New Girl origin story? Like? How
did like how did this like? What had you seen
the show before or you start watching it or have
(03:04):
you watched it? You know?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Uh? What is what is New Girl? What is the
World's the world? Here's the thing. I'm sure you guys
get this a lot, but the.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Truth is this was the first and the only show
that I was a huge fan of, watched the entire
first season, was obsessed with. It was my favorite show.
And when I got the call, They're like, oh, there's
this part that I think would be great for you,
but it like literally starts shooting next week. And I
was like, I don't care what it is. Yes, yes, yes, yes,
Before I even like knew what it was, I was like.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
Yes, a thousand percent.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
And then I read it and it was such a cooler,
was such a fun episode, and I was like, this
is the dream. I get to beet in the loft,
I get to meet everybody, and this sort of story
and this like such a such a different character for me,
because obviously I forgot that this show is like we
shot this ten years ago, a little over ten years ago,
and I remember the time. I was like kind of
(03:59):
just coming out out of finishing up like the sweet
Life stuff, and it was like very much.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
I feel like.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Life imitates art, art imitates life, like this is sort
of was where I was in my life. And so
when that came to me, I was like, oh my gosh,
this is my favorite show. I don't care what I'm doing. Yes, yes, yes,
And it was the best it was. I had, like
I was so nervous. I remember that first day on said,
I was so nervous because I'm like, I am such
(04:26):
a geek. I love all of you guys so much.
I was like such a creepo fanatic, like I could
not wait, and it was so much fun.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
I had like such a blast.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
I know what it was. I know what made you
nervous because you realized in that moment once you saw
the scripts that you're going to be working with an
Emmy winner, and uh, that freaked you out.
Speaker 3 (04:45):
I couldn't I couldn't handle it. Couldn't handle it. They
literally said, future Emmy Winner laure and Morris you ready
for it and I wasn't.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
So when our character is me you you Winston feels
okay to go and talk to Daisy because you're wearing
an engagement ring. And you know, yes, I've.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
Used that trick before. I've used that trick before.
Speaker 1 (05:09):
So you've used this trick before, would you? So? Did
you find it useful on the dating scene before you
met your husband?
Speaker 4 (05:16):
You know?
Speaker 1 (05:17):
Or did did you use that on your husband's not?
Speaker 3 (05:21):
We're a hippa, We're a hipA. You know, we're a
hip couple. We're you know, we've got two kids.
Speaker 2 (05:27):
I just here's the thing.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
We've got to guys are living in Sin. Oh you're
living in Sin? I see, we are?
Speaker 2 (05:32):
We are, we are living in.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
My grandma used to say, oh, y'all shacking up, y'all
living in sin How dare you?
Speaker 2 (05:41):
But you know what it was?
Speaker 3 (05:42):
It actually happened by accident the very first time it happened.
We I'm you know me, I don't really go out
very much anyway. I usually just go to dinner with
my girlfriends.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
We like.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
That's that's my idea of going out.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
And when I was younger, I remember I went out
with my girlfriend and her ring was too big and
she was like, can you where you have you have?
We have the same sized fingers and I was like,
oh my god, let me try it on and she's
like can you.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
I don't want to lose it, so I was like,
oh my god, I'll wear your ring.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
And I remember this group came over and all this stuff,
and I was like, oh wow, I've gotten like no
one's interested. Fine, but it was like this weird and
all of them like, oh, how long have you been engaged?
Speaker 2 (06:19):
And I was like, get.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Wait a second, and and then it kind of like
my girlfriends and I were talking about and I'm not
gonna lie. There are times where I have a fake
like engagement rief. We just want to go out and
like don't even want to, Like it's the best excuse
and it's terrible, but like it's like, sorry, I'm engaged,
don't even want because that's not what we're going out
there for.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
I know it's terrible, and it's.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Not that it's terrible. I'm just saying you're setting yourself
up with danger because there is an entire group out there.
I'm not saying I'm in one of these like group
chats or anything like that. But there's a tire uh
uh brigade of men that only want to date women
that are in relationships.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Wait what why?
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Yeah, because I don't have to you don't like, you're
not gonna stick around, You're gonna you go. You gotta
be like I gotta go to but I gotta go
home to my husband.
Speaker 3 (07:11):
It's one of the things that I remember when I
when I read The Nerd for the first time and
like our kind of like breakup. I remember reading it
and like laughing because Daisy was so unabashedly like, yeah,
I'm I'm seeing a guy.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
And I respect that because the thing about what is
the point of you?
Speaker 3 (07:31):
Come on, if you want to, like, if you want
to go and mess around, don't be in a relationship
if you don't want, you know.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Hold on. It wasn't Daisy. Wasn't Daisy wasn't that upfront
about it when she was trying to lie.
Speaker 3 (07:46):
She was trying to lie. I mean those did those
not look like my shoes a little more? And I
feel like I could they were.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
We used to always call you big feet, Brenda. I
was like, oh, okay when we.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Were rehearsing that we pulled out this shoe and it
was so comically like gigantic and also ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
It was it's it was very fun.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
But you know it's funny because of that, because I'll
tell you because of that, there have been maybe a
couple occasions in my life where if I just start
dating someone and like I'm talking like maybe this is
our first time, my first time going to her apartment
or home or whatever, and I'll see a pair of
shoes that clearly are not hers, and it's none of
(08:29):
my business. I just got there for the first time,
and I have I have flashbacks of that episode of
That's Us filming that scene.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
That's funny, you know, the gift that keeps on giving Lamar.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
But like you said, you know, she cheats, she gaslights,
she lies. Is there any defen what's your real defense
for Daisy Spain?
Speaker 3 (08:54):
My real defense is we were not in a committed relationship.
I feel like being in your twenties, you're figuring stuff out.
You you're offering to like babysit my cat, Which is
really funny because when we filmed that, I was not
a cat person, never had a cat, And now I
have three, like I'm full baby, and I feel like,
(09:15):
you know, she's just kind of like, why she's not
putting all.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Her eggs in one basket? You know, I feel it,
you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (09:21):
You were things weren't clear, so therefore you know, she's
just having a good time until things were clear, because
she did say, well, no, I guess we lied because
she was seeing someone until we're exclusive.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
But that.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
I think I recall she was like, no, actually I did's.
Speaker 1 (09:41):
Yes, I mean, that's why I just stay single so
I don't have to deal with all this this tomfoolery.
So I'm did I hear this correctly? You were on
(10:04):
Disney but also doing the Social Network? Was that a
was that a bit of a conflict there was that?
What were or was it fine to just get out
and be able to go and do this movie because
I hear Disney runs a pretty tight shit, Oh a
thousand percent?
Speaker 4 (10:17):
It was.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
It was pretty crazy because I remember at the.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Time, I you know, we're in a sitcom. You rehearse
three days, you you shoot for two days, and we'd
been like doing this for a while.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
Now. This was like during I.
Speaker 3 (10:31):
Believe the last season of the Sweet Life on deck
and I got this audition and I was like, there.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
They never let me.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
They're not gonna let me out to go an audition,
and I like read, I was, oh my god, I
need this, Like this is you know, fight Club is
one of my favorite movies and favorite books. David Fincher
is one of my favorite directors of all time. So
when I read this, I was like, oh my god,
and mind you I'm getting like two pages. Everything is
like blacked out, but like two lines. I have really
no idea what I'm doing, but like it's a Facebook movie,
and I just knew that I wanted to work with
(10:59):
these p and it just happened that the casting practor
Larray mayfield her offices in Hollywood, like not even ten
minutes from where we film.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
We were shooting in.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Hollywood at the time, and I went during my lunch
break and I went, I auditioned, and then they were like,
got a call back, Can you come and read with
David Fincher? And I was like like, are you kidding me?
The dream and I was able to go. I think
it was like then either the next day or one
of the days it was again during my lunch break.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
It just kind of.
Speaker 3 (11:28):
I didn't tell anybody until I booked it, and then
they had to approve it, and then they didn't approve
it because of, of course the intended bathroom scene. And
I was, yeah, I mean, I was heartbroken. And I
had to chat with the head of casting and with
the head of Disney Channel at the time, and we
(11:49):
were like because they were like, we understand this is
a great thing, but you just can't do it.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
And I was like, I'm an actor. This is the
last sea. I am an actor.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
This is the last season of a show that I have.
We've been doing for seven years. I was like, remember
when you first met me? Was I was I a
hotel heiress.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
I don't remember being an hotel heiress. I was like,
I'm an actor.
Speaker 3 (12:09):
And I was like, and what have I ever done
in my personal life to ever draw any bad attention,
bad publicity to your company? Have I misrepresented you guys
in any way, shape or form, because if I have,
please let me know.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
But it's did you have a bulletproof car? Or is
that that I make that up?
Speaker 2 (12:25):
Oh Dary, how do you remember that.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
Lifetime?
Speaker 2 (12:29):
It was a different lifetime ago. I was maybe dating
a rapper.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
Soldier Boy.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
But and the thing about it is, and you know,
and fortunate enough, they obviously you know, understood and allowed
me to do it. They it was funny though, because
they had to read the script before they approved it,
and they were like, we can't give you the script,
so they sent over like the scenes that I was
in for them to like sort of see that it
wasn't as nefarious as they thought. But thank goodness, because
I would have I would have been so heartbroken because.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I think they so they obviously they allowed it, yes,
but would you say after we saw how great the
movie was, were they like, oh, okay, awesome or was it.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
Like no, here's the thing.
Speaker 3 (13:18):
I will say this a Disney Channel and everyone there
has been nothing but extremely supportive of every aspect. It
was the only time that I've ever actually had to
even sort of had to like speak up like I'm
very very fortunate, like they.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
Just I mean, I wouldn't be here without them.
Speaker 3 (13:34):
I mean the opportunity, the experience, the work experience, the
life experience. It's been absolutely incredible. Like I really don't
have much to complain about. It's just the simple fact
that this one job is just so heartbreaking. Because I
can also understand. But at the time, I was twenty
two or twenty three on the last season of.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
A show that you know, we we knew.
Speaker 3 (13:55):
We were coming to an end, and it was actually
pretty crazy because I feel like we wrapped it and
I had like less than a week off, and then
I started rehearsals on this movie, which was the polar opposite,
and it was such a shock to me my system
as an actor, as a human. But it was amazing
because I think it reinvigorated my passion for acting. Like
just to jump from such a different project to work
(14:15):
with people who are, you know, just so talented, so
incredibly just so different from what I was doing. It
just really inspired me and kind of like lit a
fire under me to remind myself why I love doing
what I love. Is like we get to do crazy
things from day to day. Like we can be working
on a sitcom and then working on a David Fincher
movie a week apart.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
It's really crazy.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Oh yeah, it doesn't. The happy endings don't happen for
folks all the time the way it happened for you
in this situation. I had a situation years ago. I
was I started as an actor in Chicago. I get
a job as a TV host for Beet in New York.
You know, wasn't my favorite sitting at the moment, I
(14:59):
you know, I had to move to New York, and
New York was so busy that it gave me a
headache every single day. But luckily for me, my show
came on right after our flagship show, and I started
the show with jokes and Ellen DeGeneres would watch the show,
and then she would watch my show and asked me
if I could come and do her show as a correspondent.
(15:22):
And they were willing to work with my bet schedule
and fly me back and forth. But b Et was like, no,
you cannot go and do it. And I tell you,
when I tell you, I was so hurt by that.
I was like, people, Rob blow does this all the time,
Rob low Rob Lowe is on shows. He's hosting shows,
(15:42):
show seventeen shows, competing shows too.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
Yes, literally unrivaled, like two game shows, two different networks.
Speaker 1 (15:53):
Yes, And so I you know, so to hear that
it worked out for you is great, you know, it
just kind of especially nowadays. Lets me it, lets me
know that we're in a good space with streaming and
all these things that you know you can't you shouldn't
really tie performers down necessarily. I understand if it's in
direct competition with something, but you know, you have all
(16:13):
this talent and all this ability. Imagine we never saw
you in that movie, you know, it would be a
different conversation.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
It's can I tell you? I mean I always say that,
like for me, I can only speak of myself and
my journey. But it's you know, I think it's just
it's about being honest with I don't know. I don't
think if I had called and had like an honest
conversation with this you know, head of casting and with
you know, the president of Disney and just was like
(16:40):
really honest about it, I don't think like this would
have happened. And it was like a huge lesson for
me to learning how to speak up for myself because
me normally would be like, oh my god, that's such
a bummer, like but for me, I'm like, oh, the
show is my priority.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
That's what I'm working on. Like I get it.
Speaker 3 (16:55):
But there are just times when it takes something this
big or it's like career altering, life altering for me
to learn how to stand up for yourself. And I
think that's the biggest lesson for me, is like, even
if at the end of the day they had said
no I can, I can walk away happy knowing that
I at least stood up for myself and tried to.
Like I always just ask for my day in court,
(17:16):
whether it's an audition or in fighting for you know,
making something work, because at the end of the day,
seeing actors you know in different projects only helps the
projects that they're currently in, you know what I mean,
getting out there doing different things, and also it makes
me a better human, a better actor for the projects
that I'm working on. I never want to be resentful
of any production that I'm doing because obviously, like I'm
(17:38):
so incredibly grateful. How many people get to wake up
every day and go to work and be like, I
get to do the thing I've dreamed of doing my
entire life. You know, it sounds so cheesy to be like, oh,
I get to wake up and live my dream. You know,
it's like it sounds so corny, but it's the truth.
Speaker 2 (17:53):
I mean, on my like.
Speaker 3 (17:54):
On days where I'm tired or stressed or whatever, it's like, Brenda,
this is what you do for a living. You know,
you go to work and you literally step into someone
else's shoes. You get to like perform and like the
artistic for your job.
Speaker 1 (18:11):
Chill hours. So yeah, yeah, I mean, like thirty thirty
years in this business starting as a child. How how
are you so well adjusted? Your outlook is so not
jaded whatsoever. You're very positive about it. You know, how
do you how do you look at life that way?
How do you look at the business that way?
Speaker 3 (18:30):
First of all, I think it all comes down to family.
Like I think, you know, being a child actor is
a very very specific a niche and a very you know,
it's not easy learning rejection at such a young age,
understanding learning this business at such a young age. I
was very fortunate because my family never treated us such.
This was an after school activity until I was old
(18:53):
enough to sort of take it on as my career.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
And I think that's the.
Speaker 3 (18:57):
Most important thing was that this was just a job.
This was not my life for so very long. It
wasn't until The Sweet Life where I got accept into college.
My mom got breast cancer for the first time and
I booked The Sweet Life all within like a week,
and my family sort of sat me down. I was like, Okay, look,
you got to the school you wanted to go to,
but you go to school to figure out what.
Speaker 2 (19:17):
You want to do.
Speaker 3 (19:18):
And if acting is what you want to do, you
have an incredible opportunity. But if you do, like move
forward with that opportunity, it has to become a career.
Like mom can't drive you to auditions anymore. You know,
she's going through treatment, my dad's working, my brothers are
in school. And I think that's when it sort of
kind of became, oh, like this is more than just like,
oh I get to like, you know, go to work
(19:39):
every once in a while, go back to school. Like
it wasn't that anymore, Okay, I it was my first
like long term show.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
I like it.
Speaker 3 (19:47):
Just I think that was a turning point for me.
And the truth is, it's like I think it's just
a constant reminder that I get to with all the
nose there's so many no's in this industry. I've just
learned to celebrate all the yes is, and I've learned
to just celebrate all the beautiful things that we get
to do, like getting to meet wonderful people, make friends
we don't see each other for a decade, and I
(20:09):
run into you and I feel like, oh my god,
the one I haven't seen you in so long.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
There's so much to catch up on.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
And I feel like that's constant for us, because we're
constantly you know, we work in these little bubbles all
the time. You get very very close with people very quickly,
and you may never see them again. And it's a
very unique kind of lifestyle. And I think for me,
it's just life is too short to just see the.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Negative and everything.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
I one thousand percent, don't get me wrong, Like I
have my negative Nancy days. I'm a thirty six year
old Asian American actress in Hollywood that's been doing it
since I was three years old. There is you know.
I mean I have like heard it all, felt at all,
seen it all, like all of There have been so
many more nos and so many more disappointments in you know,
my career. But I always just say it's a part
(20:53):
of my journey.
Speaker 2 (20:54):
You know.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
If I focus on those, all I can do is
learn from them, going Okay, that was not my journey.
I have to move on. I mean, there are I've
cried over projects. There have been projects where I thought
this was mine, this is it. I put my heart
and soul into it, and I was like nah, and
you're just like what And then I realized it's just
the nature of this business. And as with like any job,
(21:15):
we're all disposable. You know, we all have our moment
to time. We're all just disposable, So why not enjoy
it while we get to do it?
Speaker 2 (21:22):
And I think that's sort.
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Of just my mentality that every day that I'm on
set or even like auditioning putting myself on tape. My
reps always think I'm crazy because I love putting myself
on tape. But I always say, like, for me, well,
growing up, every audition was like I didn't have a
lot of them, so every single one was like a
job in itself, so I found so much joy and like,
you know, getting to like every audition going Okay, what
(21:44):
can I do? Because I didn't have a lot of them.
So I think for me that's just sort of the
case is I think mind over matter is sort of
how I live my life because I could sit here
every day and be like I've slept for four hours
a day because both my kids just set one decide
to wake up in the middle of the night one
decide to way about like five am.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
I haven't luck but you know what, my boys are happy, healthy.
Speaker 3 (22:04):
I get to like hang out and chat with someone
that I haven't seen it a while. Like life is,
you know, there's not much to complain about.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
I'm very, very, very fortunate.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
So it's so funny that you say, you know, you
did really like the auditions weren't coming at a high volume.
But is it. But apparently you haven't stopped working since
you were eight. You haven't had a year, like a
full year you were.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
Maybe even before that.
Speaker 3 (22:37):
I did did commercials for a very long time. I
got on my first series when I was nine, and
then sort of kept I've been very fortunate just this
sort of kept on working the longest time that I
took off not working besides the pandemic.
Speaker 2 (22:54):
Uh was uh?
Speaker 3 (22:56):
After I finished the second season of Dulphase, I went
back to work right after seven and a half weeks
after I gave birth to my first son. We wrapped
the second season, and you know, it was a pandemic,
so it was like the longest season of our lives.
And six weeks after we wrapped, I found out I
was pregnant again.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
I had to.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
Pregnant these in the same calendar year loan ward.
Speaker 5 (23:16):
It was it was insane and and yeah, and so
my partner was like, you have to take some time off,
and so I took that entire year off.
Speaker 3 (23:28):
And it was the most like for me mentally challenging year,
not just because of being a new mom and my
so many changes my body emotionally, mentally, everything, but also
I'm just so like working. I realized it is a
huge part of just you know, how I feel like.
I like, it's just such a huge part of who
(23:48):
I am. And and also it was a huge lesson
that year because I realized it was also like how I.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Felt like I earned my love and I earned.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
I was like, because we're so used to, you know,
working all the time, and it was actually really nice
to just not and really focus on me and my
family and where I was. And I feel like coming
out of that year, I changed, I like realized how
much I had changed. I mean I had I mean,
I think for the first time in my life, I mean,
(24:17):
as you know, being a parent. I didn't know what
real responsibility was until the moment I had my kid.
I was like, oh yeah, this is responsibility.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
This heads up, you have to.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
Literally and for me, oh no, this, everything about this
little thing depends on me, Like I have to literally
feed this child from.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
My own body, Like this is crazy.
Speaker 3 (24:42):
And and after that year, I kind of went through
this like like awakening and I left my managers of
twenty six years.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
I loved my publicist of.
Speaker 3 (24:54):
Over a decade. I kind of just was like, I'm
a new person. I need a new perspective on who
I am, where I'm at. I feel like being a
child actor for so long, I could act feelings and
emulate feelings, but I didn't experience them.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
And I feel like for me to really.
Speaker 3 (25:13):
Get to a place in you know, in a scene
or with a role, I have to like have to
pull from something real out of myself to make it
feel real, to get to that place that.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
I need to go, whether it's in comedy or drama.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
And I really feel like the last like a few
years of my life, and especially since being a mom
and the pandemic, really just spending time on me, I
feel like I've become such a more well rounded human being,
therefore making me a better person, better friend, better partner,
better daughter better mother. And that was the one thing
(25:47):
for me in this past year that, like, you know,
going back to work was huge for me.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
And I don't know.
Speaker 3 (25:52):
About you, but I realize, you know, the guilt of
leaving your kids to go to work is the hardest thing.
Speaker 2 (25:57):
And I know we're so.
Speaker 3 (25:59):
Lucky because we get to do in a pocket of
time and we don't have a nine to five every day.
And so I give it to all the moms and
dads out there who have to like leave their kids
every day.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
I don't know how you do it, because I do
it for chunks of time and it's so hard. But
I realized for.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
Me to be the best mom, I have to be
the best me, and acting is a huge part of that.
My job is a huge part of me being me.
So finding that balance has been you know, it's been
the journey this past year.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
I can tell you what's tough. I got some great
advice from someone. I'm not going to say who it was,
but famous father. Now I know.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
Now I want to know who it is.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
I'll tell you, I'll tell you, I'll tell no, no,
But she said to me, I told her. I ran
into her two days after I after my daughter was born,
and she was like. I was at a friend's birthday
party and I was like, hey, I had a baby.
I had a baby. I'm telling people I had a baby.
And she goes, she goes, Can I give you some advice?
(26:57):
I said, yeah, she goes. Your daughter doesn't care or
won't care about any of those work related goals that
you may have. You know, you might you might be
chasing the next big award, or the next tour or
the next thing because you're very passionate about it. But
all your daughter is going to care about is time spent.
(27:18):
You know, That's all she's gonna care about is how
much time did you make for her? And so that
is that's what keeps me, That's what that's my that's
my filtration system, you know what I mean. When when
things come in, it's like, okay, where is it shooting? Okay, great,
So I'm less. I'm less concerned now about some of
(27:39):
the other particulars that I would have been had I
not had kids. Now it's more about stability. Can my
daughter come or is it local where I could still
you know, go to my have my daily daddy daughter
routine and you know, and I've been lucky since she's
been born, you know, and I co parent too, so
(28:02):
you know, it's it's great to have a mom who's local,
you know what I mean, and I don't have to
I'm not gone for crazy amounts of time, you know
what I mean. Because my daughter notices it. Sometimes when
I'm here. I'll walk into my office to jump on
a podcast or something, and she's like, is Daddy going
to work now? I go, yep, And then she'll sit
(28:22):
There's like a glass door that I have here, and
she'll just sit there and like kind of look She'll
be looking at and I'll just and the reason why
I wanted to be glass doors so she could know
that I'm still here. So I'm like, I'll just like
I can wave at her and when nanny's here and
I could just you know, get my work done. But yeah,
so I think I think that's I think, you know,
I think that's what keeps you on line, you know,
(28:43):
having having family and children's children especially, you just look
at the world a little bit.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Differently, oh a lot different?
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Oh yeah, oh yeah. So one of the things that
Hannah talks about, you know, on on this show and
about New Girl in particular, is how complex and engaging
Liz Meriweather's characters are. I could imagine you had a
very similar feeling when reading the Blue Eye Samurai script,
right look at Yeah, let's keep you talk about your
(29:15):
character a little bit of bad Blue Eye Samurai.
Speaker 3 (29:18):
And so the Blue Eye Samurai is one of my
most favorite projects that I've worked on because it all
happened during the pandemic. So up until then, I hadn't
done a lot of voice work. I do a little
bits here and there someone asked me to. But it
was during the pandemic that I was on a Disney
show called Amphibia, and then this audition came through, like
(29:41):
literally right in the middle of that, like middle of
the pandemic.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
I was like, sure, what do I have to lose?
Speaker 3 (29:45):
Like, I was like, the beautiful thing about animation is
something that I feel like I would normally not get
cast in live action. You can do it doesn't matter.
You get to do whatever you want an animation. So
I went into a kind of just like messing around.
I sent them like a couple of like different takes,
and I'm I'm I always tell people I'm want one
trick Pony what you hear is what you get.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
I can't do crazy voice. I can't. That's not me.
And if I like, I've tried and it's not me.
Speaker 3 (30:11):
So I kind of just messed around and then didn't
hear anything, and then I only and then they sent
me the script before I had like my like I
wouldn't call it a screen test, but like my meeting
with like the showrunners and writers, and I was.
Speaker 4 (30:23):
Like, this is such a crazy, like like such a
crazy detailed story like this. I felt like I was
reading a script for a live action show, not for animation,
and I was like, this is incredible, and so working
on it has been amazing because I only get the
scripts weekly, like I don't get them like in advance,
(30:46):
and it's and sometimes most of the times I don't
get all the scenes, so I don't know what's happening
anything outside of.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
What I'm doing, which is so hard. But we just
started season two and it's been so much fun.
Speaker 2 (31:00):
Yeah, it's crazy.
Speaker 3 (31:01):
I mean with the animation, you probably won't see the
show for their like ten years.
Speaker 1 (31:04):
Oh yeah, yeah, I know it.
Speaker 3 (31:06):
But it's one of my favorite projects because it is
so different and the animation is so beautiful. The cast
is absolutely incredible. I feel so fortunate to be part
of such a wonderful and talented cast. It's pretty crazy,
like I yeah, it's it's one of my favorite projects.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
I have so much fun on it.
Speaker 1 (31:25):
Ah, very very nice. Before I let you go, I
do have to ask. It's the it's a question that
has been on fans mindes for probably like the last
six years. Afrigat how long we've been off the air
now six or seven years. But throughout the pandemic, our
show has become even bigger than it was when we
were airing, you know, in real time, and the fans
(31:48):
want to know that if there were a Newgroer reunion,
would you want to come back on the show?
Speaker 2 (31:54):
A thousand percent? Are you kidding me? A thousand percent?
Speaker 1 (31:58):
Now I'm going to pitch a storyline really quick. Okay,
I'm ready because my character is now married so he
doesn't cheat, you know what I mean, stop it? And
he's married, he's got kids. You come back, but also
have a pet cat named ferguson you come back, or
(32:21):
there's these sightings of you and and you know, maybe
Schmid says, you know, I was on a jog and
you know why. I saw it hanging outside of the loft, like,
oh Daisy, like you saw Daisy, why And we can't
quite figure out what you're doing hovering And it turns
out you've come back for your stolen cat. I'm your
I stole your cat. I stole the cat.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Can I tell you?
Speaker 3 (32:40):
That is something that would I never understood. I was like,
if someone took my cat, do you think I would
just have left for the Latin like for the rest
of the seasons. I never even tried to get the
cat back ever, not once.
Speaker 1 (32:54):
Never, never.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
I think what it is. I think what it is is.
Speaker 3 (32:58):
It's actually like per reason just goes missing and then
you find out Daisy had a whole like epic like
break in situation to get her cat back after you know, yes,
and now she wanted her cat back in the golden days.
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Yes. Do you have any pets? Do you have any cats?
Speaker 2 (33:19):
I have three cats?
Speaker 1 (33:21):
I know, Oh my god.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
We two cats and my mom, my mom.
Speaker 3 (33:28):
Is with us because we're my mom has a room
in her house because we don't have a nanny. We're
very lucky. My mom is here with us, and so
she has her cat. So we have so technically have
to and her cat.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
Oh so you.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Heard rubbed off on me?
Speaker 1 (33:43):
No, no, you cat before. This character. Once a cat person,
always a cat person. You heard it here, folks, Brenda
song is a cat lady. Brenda, thank you, thank you
for your time. I really appreciate you coming out chat
with us. The fans will will truly appreciate this.
Speaker 3 (34:03):
No, this was so lovely. I just honestly, this was
It was just a nice chat to you more. And
it wasn't long enough when we saw each other, so
it was nice to kind of chat and reminisce.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Yes, indeed, and next time we chat, I want to
hear more about this bulletproof car. Oh, actually, you know.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
What I will say. I really do have a bulletproof
car again again.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
Oh come on, lamar, you stay protected. Oh my god,
stay protected. Cars that listen, I so do. I I
have a couple of really big cars myself. I don't
have that car. I ordered it, but then I canceled
(34:45):
the order because it didn't have full self driving. I
was like, it does, now it does. I don't want
to have three cars.
Speaker 2 (34:57):
I'll just you don't need three cars. Okay, this is conversation.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
Yes, much love I appreciate it. Peace y'all. We'll be
back next week with another fantastic episode of The mess
Around
I don't know umber. I'm calling a lof meeting folks today.
I am joined by a very very special guest. Brenda
Song's career is longer than my.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
Dario.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
I've dated quite quite the number anyway, Like literally, she's
been doing TV for like thirty years something like that.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
I was like three four. Oh my, I know, I'm psychotic.
There's something wrong with me.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
I mean, she's ship out to sum She's London Tipton,
the Hotel heiress from the Sweet Life of Zach and Cody.
Speaker 2 (00:55):
Are you reading my IMDb or are you reading like
a bio?
Speaker 1 (01:00):
I'm bringing by all. We wrote by we wrote this,
we wrote this out the social network, and a lot
of you folks if you're if you're listening to this podcast,
you know her as Daisy from New Girl. Please welcome
Brenda Song to the show.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Thank you for having me. I'm so excited. I'm so excited.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
What were you when I saw you in Serrano? What
were you promoting?
Speaker 3 (01:26):
I was promoting a movie that's going to come out
in January called The Last Show Girl with Pamela Anderson, Jamielee, Curtis,
Dave Batista.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Here in a shipka Billy Lord I am.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
I literally just I'm in the background holding lights like
I am so just to be a part of this project.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
It was wonderful. It was so I hadn't seen you
in so long. It was so nice to see. It
was such a lovely surprise.
Speaker 1 (01:48):
Oh my gosh. Yes, that was a fun That was
a fun little gathering that we had there. And we're
gonna at the Toronto Focast. Well, that was my first
time being there. I never yeah, I mean I've been
I go to often, but that was my first time
at the at the festival.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
And you were promoting the Saturday Night Life movie.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Right, yeah, yeah, it's out now. So for all those
folks who haven't seen it, you are a fucking asshole.
But oh you haven't seen it yourself. You should have
made it up. Yeah, you know how the story is.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
When do you have time? When do you have time?
Speaker 1 (02:22):
To be real? That's true, that's true. I put me
and my daughter, we have our date nights here, so
her and I just watch pretty much the same movies
over and over and over again Saturday. Yeah, I just
let her watch what I do exactly.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
Imagine.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Oh, your kids are only allowed to watch the things
you're in listen you know.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
What I mean. I run a tight ship. They got
to know with education, get to know your parents. I
only do educational work. So let's dive in you. What
is what is your New Girl origin story? Like? How
did like how did this like? What had you seen
the show before or you start watching it or have
(03:04):
you watched it? You know?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Uh? What is what is New Girl? What is the
World's the world? Here's the thing. I'm sure you guys
get this a lot, but the.
Speaker 3 (03:14):
Truth is this was the first and the only show
that I was a huge fan of, watched the entire
first season, was obsessed with. It was my favorite show.
And when I got the call, They're like, oh, there's
this part that I think would be great for you,
but it like literally starts shooting next week. And I
was like, I don't care what it is. Yes, yes, yes, yes,
Before I even like knew what it was, I was like.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
Yes, a thousand percent.
Speaker 3 (03:37):
And then I read it and it was such a cooler,
was such a fun episode, and I was like, this
is the dream. I get to beet in the loft,
I get to meet everybody, and this sort of story
and this like such a such a different character for me,
because obviously I forgot that this show is like we
shot this ten years ago, a little over ten years ago,
and I remember the time. I was like kind of
(03:59):
just coming out out of finishing up like the sweet
Life stuff, and it was like very much.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
I feel like.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Life imitates art, art imitates life, like this is sort
of was where I was in my life. And so
when that came to me, I was like, oh my gosh,
this is my favorite show. I don't care what I'm doing. Yes, yes, yes,
And it was the best it was. I had, like
I was so nervous. I remember that first day on said,
I was so nervous because I'm like, I am such
(04:26):
a geek. I love all of you guys so much.
I was like such a creepo fanatic, like I could
not wait, and it was so much fun.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
I had like such a blast.
Speaker 1 (04:35):
I know what it was. I know what made you
nervous because you realized in that moment once you saw
the scripts that you're going to be working with an
Emmy winner, and uh, that freaked you out.
Speaker 3 (04:45):
I couldn't I couldn't handle it. Couldn't handle it. They
literally said, future Emmy Winner laure and Morris you ready
for it and I wasn't.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
So when our character is me you you Winston feels
okay to go and talk to Daisy because you're wearing
an engagement ring. And you know, yes, I've.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
Used that trick before. I've used that trick before.
Speaker 1 (05:09):
So you've used this trick before, would you? So? Did
you find it useful on the dating scene before you
met your husband?
Speaker 4 (05:16):
You know?
Speaker 1 (05:17):
Or did did you use that on your husband's not?
Speaker 3 (05:21):
We're a hippa, We're a hipA. You know, we're a
hip couple. We're you know, we've got two kids.
Speaker 2 (05:27):
I just here's the thing.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
We've got to guys are living in Sin. Oh you're
living in Sin? I see, we are?
Speaker 2 (05:32):
We are, we are living in.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
My grandma used to say, oh, y'all shacking up, y'all
living in sin How dare you?
Speaker 2 (05:41):
But you know what it was?
Speaker 3 (05:42):
It actually happened by accident the very first time it happened.
We I'm you know me, I don't really go out
very much anyway. I usually just go to dinner with
my girlfriends.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
We like.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
That's that's my idea of going out.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
And when I was younger, I remember I went out
with my girlfriend and her ring was too big and
she was like, can you where you have you have?
We have the same sized fingers and I was like,
oh my god, let me try it on and she's
like can you.
Speaker 2 (06:05):
I don't want to lose it, so I was like,
oh my god, I'll wear your ring.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
And I remember this group came over and all this stuff,
and I was like, oh wow, I've gotten like no
one's interested. Fine, but it was like this weird and
all of them like, oh, how long have you been engaged?
Speaker 2 (06:19):
And I was like, get.
Speaker 3 (06:22):
Wait a second, and and then it kind of like
my girlfriends and I were talking about and I'm not
gonna lie. There are times where I have a fake
like engagement rief. We just want to go out and
like don't even want to, Like it's the best excuse
and it's terrible, but like it's like, sorry, I'm engaged,
don't even want because that's not what we're going out
there for.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
I know it's terrible, and it's.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Not that it's terrible. I'm just saying you're setting yourself
up with danger because there is an entire group out there.
I'm not saying I'm in one of these like group
chats or anything like that. But there's a tire uh
uh brigade of men that only want to date women
that are in relationships.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Wait what why?
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Yeah, because I don't have to you don't like, you're
not gonna stick around, You're gonna you go. You gotta
be like I gotta go to but I gotta go
home to my husband.
Speaker 3 (07:11):
It's one of the things that I remember when I
when I read The Nerd for the first time and
like our kind of like breakup. I remember reading it
and like laughing because Daisy was so unabashedly like, yeah,
I'm I'm seeing a guy.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
And I respect that because the thing about what is
the point of you?
Speaker 3 (07:31):
Come on, if you want to, like, if you want
to go and mess around, don't be in a relationship
if you don't want, you know.
Speaker 1 (07:38):
Hold on. It wasn't Daisy. Wasn't Daisy wasn't that upfront
about it when she was trying to lie.
Speaker 3 (07:46):
She was trying to lie. I mean those did those
not look like my shoes a little more? And I
feel like I could they were.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
We used to always call you big feet, Brenda. I
was like, oh, okay when we.
Speaker 3 (07:59):
Were rehearsing that we pulled out this shoe and it
was so comically like gigantic and also ridiculous.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
It was it's it was very fun.
Speaker 1 (08:08):
But you know it's funny because of that, because I'll
tell you because of that, there have been maybe a
couple occasions in my life where if I just start
dating someone and like I'm talking like maybe this is
our first time, my first time going to her apartment
or home or whatever, and I'll see a pair of
shoes that clearly are not hers, and it's none of
(08:29):
my business. I just got there for the first time,
and I have I have flashbacks of that episode of
That's Us filming that scene.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
That's funny, you know, the gift that keeps on giving Lamar.
Speaker 1 (08:44):
But like you said, you know, she cheats, she gaslights,
she lies. Is there any defen what's your real defense
for Daisy Spain?
Speaker 3 (08:54):
My real defense is we were not in a committed relationship.
I feel like being in your twenties, you're figuring stuff out.
You you're offering to like babysit my cat, Which is
really funny because when we filmed that, I was not
a cat person, never had a cat, And now I
have three, like I'm full baby, and I feel like,
(09:15):
you know, she's just kind of like, why she's not
putting all.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Her eggs in one basket? You know, I feel it,
you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (09:21):
You were things weren't clear, so therefore you know, she's
just having a good time until things were clear, because
she did say, well, no, I guess we lied because
she was seeing someone until we're exclusive.
Speaker 1 (09:35):
But that.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
I think I recall she was like, no, actually I did's.
Speaker 1 (09:41):
Yes, I mean, that's why I just stay single so
I don't have to deal with all this this tomfoolery.
So I'm did I hear this correctly? You were on
(10:04):
Disney but also doing the Social Network? Was that a
was that a bit of a conflict there was that?
What were or was it fine to just get out
and be able to go and do this movie because
I hear Disney runs a pretty tight shit, Oh a
thousand percent?
Speaker 4 (10:17):
It was.
Speaker 2 (10:18):
It was pretty crazy because I remember at the.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Time, I you know, we're in a sitcom. You rehearse
three days, you you shoot for two days, and we'd
been like doing this for a while.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
Now. This was like during I.
Speaker 3 (10:31):
Believe the last season of the Sweet Life on deck
and I got this audition and I was like, there.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
They never let me.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
They're not gonna let me out to go an audition,
and I like read, I was, oh my god, I
need this, Like this is you know, fight Club is
one of my favorite movies and favorite books. David Fincher
is one of my favorite directors of all time. So
when I read this, I was like, oh my god,
and mind you I'm getting like two pages. Everything is
like blacked out, but like two lines. I have really
no idea what I'm doing, but like it's a Facebook movie,
and I just knew that I wanted to work with
(10:59):
these p and it just happened that the casting practor
Larray mayfield her offices in Hollywood, like not even ten
minutes from where we film.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
We were shooting in.
Speaker 3 (11:08):
Hollywood at the time, and I went during my lunch
break and I went, I auditioned, and then they were like,
got a call back, Can you come and read with
David Fincher? And I was like like, are you kidding me?
The dream and I was able to go. I think
it was like then either the next day or one
of the days it was again during my lunch break.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
It just kind of.
Speaker 3 (11:28):
I didn't tell anybody until I booked it, and then
they had to approve it, and then they didn't approve
it because of, of course the intended bathroom scene. And
I was, yeah, I mean, I was heartbroken. And I
had to chat with the head of casting and with
the head of Disney Channel at the time, and we
(11:49):
were like because they were like, we understand this is
a great thing, but you just can't do it.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
And I was like, I'm an actor. This is the
last sea. I am an actor.
Speaker 3 (11:56):
This is the last season of a show that I have.
We've been doing for seven years. I was like, remember
when you first met me? Was I was I a
hotel heiress.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
I don't remember being an hotel heiress. I was like,
I'm an actor.
Speaker 3 (12:09):
And I was like, and what have I ever done
in my personal life to ever draw any bad attention,
bad publicity to your company? Have I misrepresented you guys
in any way, shape or form, because if I have,
please let me know.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
But it's did you have a bulletproof car? Or is
that that I make that up?
Speaker 2 (12:25):
Oh Dary, how do you remember that.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
Lifetime?
Speaker 2 (12:29):
It was a different lifetime ago. I was maybe dating
a rapper.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
Soldier Boy.
Speaker 3 (12:42):
But and the thing about it is, and you know,
and fortunate enough, they obviously you know, understood and allowed
me to do it. They it was funny though, because
they had to read the script before they approved it,
and they were like, we can't give you the script,
so they sent over like the scenes that I was
in for them to like sort of see that it
wasn't as nefarious as they thought. But thank goodness, because
I would have I would have been so heartbroken because.
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I think they so they obviously they allowed it, yes,
but would you say after we saw how great the
movie was, were they like, oh, okay, awesome or was it.
Speaker 2 (13:15):
Like no, here's the thing.
Speaker 3 (13:18):
I will say this a Disney Channel and everyone there
has been nothing but extremely supportive of every aspect. It
was the only time that I've ever actually had to
even sort of had to like speak up like I'm
very very fortunate, like they.
Speaker 2 (13:33):
Just I mean, I wouldn't be here without them.
Speaker 3 (13:34):
I mean the opportunity, the experience, the work experience, the
life experience. It's been absolutely incredible. Like I really don't
have much to complain about. It's just the simple fact
that this one job is just so heartbreaking. Because I
can also understand. But at the time, I was twenty
two or twenty three on the last season of.
Speaker 2 (13:52):
A show that you know, we we knew.
Speaker 3 (13:55):
We were coming to an end, and it was actually
pretty crazy because I feel like we wrapped it and
I had like less than a week off, and then
I started rehearsals on this movie, which was the polar opposite,
and it was such a shock to me my system
as an actor, as a human. But it was amazing
because I think it reinvigorated my passion for acting. Like
just to jump from such a different project to work
(14:15):
with people who are, you know, just so talented, so
incredibly just so different from what I was doing. It
just really inspired me and kind of like lit a
fire under me to remind myself why I love doing
what I love. Is like we get to do crazy
things from day to day. Like we can be working
on a sitcom and then working on a David Fincher
movie a week apart.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
It's really crazy.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Oh yeah, it doesn't. The happy endings don't happen for
folks all the time the way it happened for you
in this situation. I had a situation years ago. I
was I started as an actor in Chicago. I get
a job as a TV host for Beet in New York.
You know, wasn't my favorite sitting at the moment, I
(14:59):
you know, I had to move to New York, and
New York was so busy that it gave me a
headache every single day. But luckily for me, my show
came on right after our flagship show, and I started
the show with jokes and Ellen DeGeneres would watch the show,
and then she would watch my show and asked me
if I could come and do her show as a correspondent.
(15:22):
And they were willing to work with my bet schedule
and fly me back and forth. But b Et was like, no,
you cannot go and do it. And I tell you,
when I tell you, I was so hurt by that.
I was like, people, Rob blow does this all the time,
Rob low Rob Lowe is on shows. He's hosting shows,
(15:42):
show seventeen shows, competing shows too.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
Yes, literally unrivaled, like two game shows, two different networks.
Speaker 1 (15:53):
Yes, And so I you know, so to hear that
it worked out for you is great, you know, it
just kind of especially nowadays. Lets me it, lets me
know that we're in a good space with streaming and
all these things that you know you can't you shouldn't
really tie performers down necessarily. I understand if it's in
direct competition with something, but you know, you have all
(16:13):
this talent and all this ability. Imagine we never saw
you in that movie, you know, it would be a
different conversation.
Speaker 3 (16:20):
It's can I tell you? I mean I always say that,
like for me, I can only speak of myself and
my journey. But it's you know, I think it's just
it's about being honest with I don't know. I don't
think if I had called and had like an honest
conversation with this you know, head of casting and with
you know, the president of Disney and just was like
(16:40):
really honest about it, I don't think like this would
have happened. And it was like a huge lesson for
me to learning how to speak up for myself because
me normally would be like, oh my god, that's such
a bummer, like but for me, I'm like, oh, the
show is my priority.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
That's what I'm working on. Like I get it.
Speaker 3 (16:55):
But there are just times when it takes something this
big or it's like career altering, life altering for me
to learn how to stand up for yourself. And I
think that's the biggest lesson for me, is like, even
if at the end of the day they had said
no I can, I can walk away happy knowing that
I at least stood up for myself and tried to.
Like I always just ask for my day in court,
(17:16):
whether it's an audition or in fighting for you know,
making something work, because at the end of the day,
seeing actors you know in different projects only helps the
projects that they're currently in, you know what I mean,
getting out there doing different things, and also it makes
me a better human, a better actor for the projects
that I'm working on. I never want to be resentful
of any production that I'm doing because obviously, like I'm
(17:38):
so incredibly grateful. How many people get to wake up
every day and go to work and be like, I
get to do the thing I've dreamed of doing my
entire life. You know, it sounds so cheesy to be like, oh,
I get to wake up and live my dream. You know,
it's like it sounds so corny, but it's the truth.
Speaker 2 (17:53):
I mean, on my like.
Speaker 3 (17:54):
On days where I'm tired or stressed or whatever, it's like, Brenda,
this is what you do for a living. You know,
you go to work and you literally step into someone
else's shoes. You get to like perform and like the
artistic for your job.
Speaker 1 (18:11):
Chill hours. So yeah, yeah, I mean, like thirty thirty
years in this business starting as a child. How how
are you so well adjusted? Your outlook is so not
jaded whatsoever. You're very positive about it. You know, how
do you how do you look at life that way?
How do you look at the business that way?
Speaker 3 (18:30):
First of all, I think it all comes down to family.
Like I think, you know, being a child actor is
a very very specific a niche and a very you know,
it's not easy learning rejection at such a young age,
understanding learning this business at such a young age. I
was very fortunate because my family never treated us such.
This was an after school activity until I was old
(18:53):
enough to sort of take it on as my career.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
And I think that's the.
Speaker 3 (18:57):
Most important thing was that this was just a job.
This was not my life for so very long. It
wasn't until The Sweet Life where I got accept into college.
My mom got breast cancer for the first time and
I booked The Sweet Life all within like a week,
and my family sort of sat me down. I was like, Okay, look,
you got to the school you wanted to go to,
but you go to school to figure out what.
Speaker 2 (19:17):
You want to do.
Speaker 3 (19:18):
And if acting is what you want to do, you
have an incredible opportunity. But if you do, like move
forward with that opportunity, it has to become a career.
Like mom can't drive you to auditions anymore. You know,
she's going through treatment, my dad's working, my brothers are
in school. And I think that's when it sort of
kind of became, oh, like this is more than just like,
oh I get to like, you know, go to work
(19:39):
every once in a while, go back to school. Like
it wasn't that anymore, Okay, I it was my first
like long term show.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
I like it.
Speaker 3 (19:47):
Just I think that was a turning point for me.
And the truth is, it's like I think it's just
a constant reminder that I get to with all the
nose there's so many no's in this industry. I've just
learned to celebrate all the yes is, and I've learned
to just celebrate all the beautiful things that we get
to do, like getting to meet wonderful people, make friends
we don't see each other for a decade, and I
(20:09):
run into you and I feel like, oh my god,
the one I haven't seen you in so long.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
There's so much to catch up on.
Speaker 3 (20:12):
And I feel like that's constant for us, because we're
constantly you know, we work in these little bubbles all
the time. You get very very close with people very quickly,
and you may never see them again. And it's a
very unique kind of lifestyle. And I think for me,
it's just life is too short to just see the.
Speaker 2 (20:30):
Negative and everything.
Speaker 3 (20:32):
I one thousand percent, don't get me wrong, Like I
have my negative Nancy days. I'm a thirty six year
old Asian American actress in Hollywood that's been doing it
since I was three years old. There is you know.
I mean I have like heard it all, felt at all,
seen it all, like all of There have been so
many more nos and so many more disappointments in you know,
my career. But I always just say it's a part
(20:53):
of my journey.
Speaker 2 (20:54):
You know.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
If I focus on those, all I can do is
learn from them, going Okay, that was not my journey.
I have to move on. I mean, there are I've
cried over projects. There have been projects where I thought
this was mine, this is it. I put my heart
and soul into it, and I was like nah, and
you're just like what And then I realized it's just
the nature of this business. And as with like any job,
(21:15):
we're all disposable. You know, we all have our moment
to time. We're all just disposable, So why not enjoy
it while we get to do it?
Speaker 2 (21:22):
And I think that's sort.
Speaker 3 (21:23):
Of just my mentality that every day that I'm on
set or even like auditioning putting myself on tape. My
reps always think I'm crazy because I love putting myself
on tape. But I always say, like, for me, well,
growing up, every audition was like I didn't have a
lot of them, so every single one was like a
job in itself, so I found so much joy and like,
you know, getting to like every audition going Okay, what
(21:44):
can I do? Because I didn't have a lot of them.
So I think for me that's just sort of the
case is I think mind over matter is sort of
how I live my life because I could sit here
every day and be like I've slept for four hours
a day because both my kids just set one decide
to wake up in the middle of the night one
decide to way about like five am.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
I haven't luck but you know what, my boys are happy, healthy.
Speaker 3 (22:04):
I get to like hang out and chat with someone
that I haven't seen it a while. Like life is,
you know, there's not much to complain about.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
I'm very, very, very fortunate.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
So it's so funny that you say, you know, you
did really like the auditions weren't coming at a high volume.
But is it. But apparently you haven't stopped working since
you were eight. You haven't had a year, like a
full year you were.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
Maybe even before that.
Speaker 3 (22:37):
I did did commercials for a very long time. I
got on my first series when I was nine, and
then sort of kept I've been very fortunate just this
sort of kept on working the longest time that I
took off not working besides the pandemic.
Speaker 2 (22:54):
Uh was uh?
Speaker 3 (22:56):
After I finished the second season of Dulphase, I went
back to work right after seven and a half weeks
after I gave birth to my first son. We wrapped
the second season, and you know, it was a pandemic,
so it was like the longest season of our lives.
And six weeks after we wrapped, I found out I
was pregnant again.
Speaker 1 (23:13):
I had to.
Speaker 2 (23:14):
Pregnant these in the same calendar year loan ward.
Speaker 5 (23:16):
It was it was insane and and yeah, and so
my partner was like, you have to take some time off,
and so I took that entire year off.
Speaker 3 (23:28):
And it was the most like for me mentally challenging year,
not just because of being a new mom and my
so many changes my body emotionally, mentally, everything, but also
I'm just so like working. I realized it is a
huge part of just you know, how I feel like.
I like, it's just such a huge part of who
(23:48):
I am. And and also it was a huge lesson
that year because I realized it was also like how I.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Felt like I earned my love and I earned.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
I was like, because we're so used to, you know,
working all the time, and it was actually really nice
to just not and really focus on me and my
family and where I was. And I feel like coming
out of that year, I changed, I like realized how
much I had changed. I mean I had I mean,
I think for the first time in my life, I mean,
(24:17):
as you know, being a parent. I didn't know what
real responsibility was until the moment I had my kid.
I was like, oh yeah, this is responsibility.
Speaker 1 (24:26):
This heads up, you have to.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
Literally and for me, oh no, this, everything about this
little thing depends on me, Like I have to literally
feed this child from.
Speaker 2 (24:38):
My own body, Like this is crazy.
Speaker 3 (24:42):
And and after that year, I kind of went through
this like like awakening and I left my managers of
twenty six years.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
I loved my publicist of.
Speaker 3 (24:54):
Over a decade. I kind of just was like, I'm
a new person. I need a new perspective on who
I am, where I'm at. I feel like being a
child actor for so long, I could act feelings and
emulate feelings, but I didn't experience them.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
And I feel like for me to really.
Speaker 3 (25:13):
Get to a place in you know, in a scene
or with a role, I have to like have to
pull from something real out of myself to make it
feel real, to get to that place that.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
I need to go, whether it's in comedy or drama.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
And I really feel like the last like a few
years of my life, and especially since being a mom
and the pandemic, really just spending time on me, I
feel like I've become such a more well rounded human being,
therefore making me a better person, better friend, better partner,
better daughter better mother. And that was the one thing
(25:47):
for me in this past year that, like, you know,
going back to work was huge for me.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
And I don't know.
Speaker 3 (25:52):
About you, but I realize, you know, the guilt of
leaving your kids to go to work is the hardest thing.
Speaker 2 (25:57):
And I know we're so.
Speaker 3 (25:59):
Lucky because we get to do in a pocket of
time and we don't have a nine to five every day.
And so I give it to all the moms and
dads out there who have to like leave their kids
every day.
Speaker 2 (26:09):
I don't know how you do it, because I do
it for chunks of time and it's so hard. But
I realized for.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
Me to be the best mom, I have to be
the best me, and acting is a huge part of that.
My job is a huge part of me being me.
So finding that balance has been you know, it's been
the journey this past year.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
I can tell you what's tough. I got some great
advice from someone. I'm not going to say who it was,
but famous father. Now I know.
Speaker 2 (26:33):
Now I want to know who it is.
Speaker 1 (26:36):
I'll tell you, I'll tell you, I'll tell no, no,
But she said to me, I told her. I ran
into her two days after I after my daughter was born,
and she was like. I was at a friend's birthday
party and I was like, hey, I had a baby.
I had a baby. I'm telling people I had a baby.
And she goes, she goes, Can I give you some advice?
(26:57):
I said, yeah, she goes. Your daughter doesn't care or
won't care about any of those work related goals that
you may have. You know, you might you might be
chasing the next big award, or the next tour or
the next thing because you're very passionate about it. But
all your daughter is going to care about is time spent.
(27:18):
You know, That's all she's gonna care about is how
much time did you make for her? And so that
is that's what keeps me, That's what that's my that's
my filtration system, you know what I mean. When when
things come in, it's like, okay, where is it shooting? Okay, great,
So I'm less. I'm less concerned now about some of
(27:39):
the other particulars that I would have been had I
not had kids. Now it's more about stability. Can my
daughter come or is it local where I could still
you know, go to my have my daily daddy daughter
routine and you know, and I've been lucky since she's
been born, you know, and I co parent too, so
(28:02):
you know, it's it's great to have a mom who's local,
you know what I mean, and I don't have to
I'm not gone for crazy amounts of time, you know
what I mean. Because my daughter notices it. Sometimes when
I'm here. I'll walk into my office to jump on
a podcast or something, and she's like, is Daddy going
to work now? I go, yep, And then she'll sit
(28:22):
There's like a glass door that I have here, and
she'll just sit there and like kind of look She'll
be looking at and I'll just and the reason why
I wanted to be glass doors so she could know
that I'm still here. So I'm like, I'll just like
I can wave at her and when nanny's here and
I could just you know, get my work done. But yeah,
so I think I think that's I think, you know,
I think that's what keeps you on line, you know,
(28:43):
having having family and children's children especially, you just look
at the world a little bit.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Differently, oh a lot different?
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Oh yeah, oh yeah. So one of the things that
Hannah talks about, you know, on on this show and
about New Girl in particular, is how complex and engaging
Liz Meriweather's characters are. I could imagine you had a
very similar feeling when reading the Blue Eye Samurai script,
right look at Yeah, let's keep you talk about your
(29:15):
character a little bit of bad Blue Eye Samurai.
Speaker 3 (29:18):
And so the Blue Eye Samurai is one of my
most favorite projects that I've worked on because it all
happened during the pandemic. So up until then, I hadn't
done a lot of voice work. I do a little
bits here and there someone asked me to. But it
was during the pandemic that I was on a Disney
show called Amphibia, and then this audition came through, like
(29:41):
literally right in the middle of that, like middle of
the pandemic.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
I was like, sure, what do I have to lose?
Speaker 3 (29:45):
Like, I was like, the beautiful thing about animation is
something that I feel like I would normally not get
cast in live action. You can do it doesn't matter.
You get to do whatever you want an animation. So
I went into a kind of just like messing around.
I sent them like a couple of like different takes,
and I'm I'm I always tell people I'm want one
trick Pony what you hear is what you get.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
I can't do crazy voice. I can't. That's not me.
And if I like, I've tried and it's not me.
Speaker 3 (30:11):
So I kind of just messed around and then didn't
hear anything, and then I only and then they sent
me the script before I had like my like I
wouldn't call it a screen test, but like my meeting
with like the showrunners and writers, and I was.
Speaker 4 (30:23):
Like, this is such a crazy, like like such a
crazy detailed story like this. I felt like I was
reading a script for a live action show, not for animation,
and I was like, this is incredible, and so working
on it has been amazing because I only get the
scripts weekly, like I don't get them like in advance,
(30:46):
and it's and sometimes most of the times I don't
get all the scenes, so I don't know what's happening
anything outside of.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
What I'm doing, which is so hard. But we just
started season two and it's been so much fun.
Speaker 2 (31:00):
Yeah, it's crazy.
Speaker 3 (31:01):
I mean with the animation, you probably won't see the
show for their like ten years.
Speaker 1 (31:04):
Oh yeah, yeah, I know it.
Speaker 3 (31:06):
But it's one of my favorite projects because it is
so different and the animation is so beautiful. The cast
is absolutely incredible. I feel so fortunate to be part
of such a wonderful and talented cast. It's pretty crazy,
like I yeah, it's it's one of my favorite projects.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
I have so much fun on it.
Speaker 1 (31:25):
Ah, very very nice. Before I let you go, I
do have to ask. It's the it's a question that
has been on fans mindes for probably like the last
six years. Afrigat how long we've been off the air
now six or seven years. But throughout the pandemic, our
show has become even bigger than it was when we
were airing, you know, in real time, and the fans
(31:48):
want to know that if there were a Newgroer reunion,
would you want to come back on the show?
Speaker 2 (31:54):
A thousand percent? Are you kidding me? A thousand percent?
Speaker 1 (31:58):
Now I'm going to pitch a storyline really quick. Okay,
I'm ready because my character is now married so he
doesn't cheat, you know what I mean, stop it? And
he's married, he's got kids. You come back, but also
have a pet cat named ferguson you come back, or
(32:21):
there's these sightings of you and and you know, maybe
Schmid says, you know, I was on a jog and
you know why. I saw it hanging outside of the loft, like,
oh Daisy, like you saw Daisy, why And we can't
quite figure out what you're doing hovering And it turns
out you've come back for your stolen cat. I'm your
I stole your cat. I stole the cat.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Can I tell you?
Speaker 3 (32:40):
That is something that would I never understood. I was like,
if someone took my cat, do you think I would
just have left for the Latin like for the rest
of the seasons. I never even tried to get the
cat back ever, not once.
Speaker 1 (32:54):
Never, never.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
I think what it is. I think what it is is.
Speaker 3 (32:58):
It's actually like per reason just goes missing and then
you find out Daisy had a whole like epic like
break in situation to get her cat back after you know, yes,
and now she wanted her cat back in the golden days.
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Yes. Do you have any pets? Do you have any cats?
Speaker 2 (33:19):
I have three cats?
Speaker 1 (33:21):
I know, Oh my god.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
We two cats and my mom, my mom.
Speaker 3 (33:28):
Is with us because we're my mom has a room
in her house because we don't have a nanny. We're
very lucky. My mom is here with us, and so
she has her cat. So we have so technically have
to and her cat.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
Oh so you.
Speaker 2 (33:41):
Heard rubbed off on me?
Speaker 1 (33:43):
No, no, you cat before. This character. Once a cat person,
always a cat person. You heard it here, folks, Brenda
song is a cat lady. Brenda, thank you, thank you
for your time. I really appreciate you coming out chat
with us. The fans will will truly appreciate this.
Speaker 3 (34:03):
No, this was so lovely. I just honestly, this was
It was just a nice chat to you more. And
it wasn't long enough when we saw each other, so
it was nice to kind of chat and reminisce.
Speaker 1 (34:12):
Yes, indeed, and next time we chat, I want to
hear more about this bulletproof car. Oh, actually, you know.
Speaker 2 (34:20):
What I will say. I really do have a bulletproof
car again again.
Speaker 1 (34:25):
Oh come on, lamar, you stay protected. Oh my god,
stay protected. Cars that listen, I so do. I I
have a couple of really big cars myself. I don't
have that car. I ordered it, but then I canceled
(34:45):
the order because it didn't have full self driving. I
was like, it does, now it does. I don't want
to have three cars.
Speaker 2 (34:57):
I'll just you don't need three cars. Okay, this is conversation.
Speaker 1 (35:02):
Yes, much love I appreciate it. Peace y'all. We'll be
back next week with another fantastic episode of The mess
Around
Hosts And Creators
Lamorne Morris
Hannah Simone
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