Andra Day in the new Billie Holliday movie

Allison & Marc talk about Billie Holliday and the new movie.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
You know I love Billy Holliday.Yes, jazz singer Billy Holliday. Of
course, she's one of our giants. Legends, just legends and all that.
So you know, Andrew Day isAndrew Andre da Andre Day, excuse
me, Andre Day is portraying BillyHolliday. And when I first heard that,
I remember thinking, Okay, they'rejust doing it because she's got that

(00:21):
interesting voice. She can sing.Of course she's got a beautiful voice,
but she's got that interesting tone.So that's what they did. But you
know, I'd totally stand correct thatI've seen the trailer for this. I
think that she looks like she isgoing to be phenomenal in this role.
And what I love about it becauseif you think, Okay, well I
saw ladies sings of Blues and no, no them, this is about really

(00:41):
what she went through. When Isay Billy Holliday, you think beautiful voice,
troubled life, born in Baltimore.You know, heroin sexualized way too
early. Heroine died of this right, way too young. What this movie
talks about is that the federal governmentwent after her. The name of the
movie is The United States Versus BillieHoliday, and it speaks to how the

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government really went after especially after hergroundbreaking Vallid heartbreaking ballad Strange Fruit. So
anyway, Andrew Day is opening upabout it, and man, she she
says that she asked basically, shesays, she asked God to give me
all of the pain and trauma,give me all of her pain and trauma.

(01:33):
She says, talking about portraying Holiday, yes, and she said it
is frightening. And she said thatin order to portray her, she went
from one hundred and sixty three poundsto one hundred and twenty four pounds and
she did it by smoking and drinking. So she really just kind of lived

(01:53):
that life where you know, whenyou see pictures, you always see Billy
had a smoke in her hand.Everybody smoked back then, but she was
smoking. You saw her, youknow, in those whatever they used to
call them. She had the licenseto see a cabaret, so you saw
her in those places. But basically, yeah, she says, she abused
her body to get into the headspaceof Billie Holiday. That's amazing, and

(02:14):
it looks like the trailer is amazing. It's amazing. So it's on Hulu.
Let's support this movie. Let's findout that your truth. It's out
in February. Yeah, fine,fine, let's like I love her,
so I read the biographies and allthat. But finally the world can see
what a treasure she was, andyou know what, what a civil rights

(02:38):
activist she was. The movie dropsFebruary twenty fifth on Hulu United States Versus Billy Holliday