This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Jeff Malone: In today's episode, we discussed the new Broadway play, Greyhouse, the new albums from KIM PETRAS and KELLY CLARKSON, and an experience at the BEBE REXHA concert.

[0:09] Richie Grasso: This is Half Hour with Jeff and Richie.

[0:14] Jeff Malone: Half hour.

[0:19] Richie Grasso: Welcome to Half Hour with Jeff and Richie, the theater and pop music podcast.

[0:24] Jeff Malone: I'm Jeff.

[0:25] Richie Grasso: And I'm Richie.

[0:26] Jeff Malone: And we're bringing you our casual conversation on all things theater and pop music.

[0:32] Richie Grasso: And just as a reminder, our theater section may sometimes feature some spoilers, so you have been warned.

[0:39] Jeff Malone: Yes.

[0:40] Richie Grasso: That being said, today we are starting in Broadway land and talking about the new play from Levi Holloway, Greyhouse.

[0:47] Jeff Malone: So, Richie, tell us more about the show and your initial thoughts.

[0:50] Richie Grasso: Yes, we went to go check out Greyhouse on Broadway. This is the first Broadway show of the new Tony season, the 2023-2024 Tony season, which is really exciting.

[1:00] Richie Grasso: That we're like, we just finished Tony Words and now we're like diving into a brand new season here.

[1:05] Jeff Malone: We're already back at it.

[1:06] Richie Grasso: Yeah, and there's a lot coming this summer. I feel like more than normal. Usually it's like the fall, and there's like a great handful of shows this summer, new shows that are part of the new Tony season.

[1:16] Richie Grasso: So we did check out Greyhouse on Broadway at the Lyceum Theater in New York City. The play is by Levi Holloway, it stars Laurie Metcalf, and it was directed by Joe Mantello.

[1:25] Richie Grasso: Uh we have spooky horror on Broadway, which we have seen before. I feel like we've seen horror in the Rocky Horror Picture Show, Beetlejuice kind of comedic way.

[1:36] Jeff Malone: Always comedic.

[1:37] Richie Grasso: It always has a comedic flair to it, but there is some spooky too. Even like Sweeney Todd sometimes comedic.

[1:36] Jeff Malone: Sure.

[1:44] Richie Grasso: Right. This really goes dark and stays dark and very rarely gets comedic. I think this was a pretty cutting-edge play for that genre.

[1:54] Richie Grasso: My overall thoughts that it wasn't bad. I really enjoyed a lot of it. I enjoyed a lot of the production elements. I enjoyed the writing. I enjoyed Laurie Metcalf's always amazing in what she does.

[2:04] Richie Grasso: So like there's never anything wrong there. And Joe Mantello is a wonderful director. There's some nice things going on there too.

[2:11] Richie Grasso: Um I I will say that there were a few moments of like, wait, what? And oh, wait, what? And so there was that when I was kind of a little like, oh wow. And I think I feel like when we were leaving, there was people in the audience like, did that happen or did that happen? Or like, I think that happened. And it was like, no, I think that happened.

[2:28] Richie Grasso: So I want to talk to about the ending in a little bit. But overall, I would say I enjoyed this. And I and I there was a few moments where I literally jumped and was like, ah, and we and we were on the aisle.

[2:41] Jeff Malone: Because in the beginning, you know how like, you know, the lights fade to half, there's an announcement, and then the lights fade completely out. This was a boom blackout in like all like a haunted house.

[2:51] Richie Grasso: Um, so that was really cool. But overall, I did enjoy it for the most part.

[2:54] Jeff Malone: Same.

[2:55] Richie Grasso: I I feel like when we talk about things that live up to our expectations, I feel like this teetered on really going there for me. I I kind of feel like I wanted to be spooked a little bit more with the show.

[3:09] Richie Grasso: And I think there may have been some safe moments in the show that I think they could have pushed the envelope a little bit farther. But in terms of expectations for you, do you feel like it lived up to your expectations?

[3:23] Jeff Malone: It did for the most part. Like I said, I keep saying for the most part. There was a couple moments where I thought maybe the plot could have taken us in a little bit of a different direction.

[3:30] Richie Grasso: Right. Um, and maybe there was just something else that could have happened, but I did enjoy it. And and and what I will say is like the set was really wonderful. It was utilized and used.

[3:38] Richie Grasso: I love when a set designer and a director are both using the full space that they are given. How many times do we see shows and it's like down front and center the whole time? And I'm like, you have this use the set behind you.

[3:51] Richie Grasso: Like, so it was used a lot. There was some nice performance. There's a lot of children in this show, and they gave great performances. It did meet my expectations overall.

[3:58] Richie Grasso: If we want to talk about a little bit more about the set and overall direction, direction by Joe Mantello and set by Scott Pask. I thought some of the direction choices were just on top of it.

[4:10] Richie Grasso: It's always Joe Mantello knows what he's doing. He definitely would be someone to work with in the future. But I just felt like he knows how to really utilize a stage with what he's given, especially with these children actors, because it's sometimes hard to get them around and move around the stage.

[4:29] Richie Grasso: And at times though, I feel like I wanted more from the set. We know Scott in the in the past is very usual usually like still set, like doesn't move. There's not a lot of moving pieces.

[4:44] Richie Grasso: And at times I was like, hmm, if that wall changed or if this if the house flipped around in any way, would it have added more to like the scariness of it? You know what I mean?

[4:59] Richie Grasso: Like there were some cool things that they did with like the refrigerator changing or like a kid appearing in the window. Or the drawer opening and closing.

[5:06] Jeff Malone: Right, right.

[5:07] Richie Grasso: But like they go outside a lot. And I don't know if this is like a moment that we're not supposed to really know. Like whatever happens outside of the house. Do they actually go outside the house? Because they're ghosts.

[5:18] Jeff Malone: Spoiler alert.

[5:20] Richie Grasso: Yeah. But um they're they're ghosts. So like, where do they actually go? Is it our imagination that they're actually leaving and they never end up leaving the house? I don't know.

[5:30] Richie Grasso: That's just something I thought about now. But it always says to me, like, if that set just spun and we saw something like a forest is scary. We're hearing about something happening, a car crash in the woods, they hit a deer.

[5:45] Richie Grasso: We always just hear about it, but we never actually see it. So you kind of have to bring your imagination there. But I just feel like it could have added to a little bit more of the depth of the show.

[5:53] Richie Grasso: I will also say from a writing perspective, yes, I hear what you're saying. And I would also say from a writing perspective, I always find that a play, especially a murder mystery or a straight play, will have these tendencies of doing one or two things.

[6:06] Richie Grasso: Either they're beating me over the head with the message and the plot, and I leave, like, okay, we get it, like this is what this is about. Or the other end of the spectrum is I am so confused right now. I have no idea what I just witnessed.

[6:20] Richie Grasso: This kind of fell in the middle for me. I feel like things were spelled out, but there was this little bit of like, oh, and I know people keep talking about the ending, like, what happened? What happened? But I think the point is for you to leave talking about it.

[6:32] Richie Grasso: I remember leaving there saying, okay, we I need a minute to like just think about this and talk about this. I want to know more. And and and it was nice because sometimes we leave a play, like, okay, I I get it, like I know it's happening.

[6:43] Richie Grasso: This did leave you, and I think some people are like, What happened? But I think the point is for modern dear to go is nothing, not everything needs to be spelled out for you. Create your own narrative.

[6:54] Richie Grasso: Was that guy this or that? Were the kids that or this? Did the woman stay or not? Make that own assumption and then see, and I'm sh, and I'm sure whatever you're thinking is probably similar to what's most likely actually happening.

[7:07] Richie Grasso: I also don't think people should be leaving extremely confused and just leaving like they have no idea. But it is a cool play that at the end of the show, you do have get to have that moment of saying, like, what happens? What does this house signify? Who in the house stays there forever?

[7:22] Richie Grasso: You know, does a different character leave next time? Who knows? And that's kind of left up to your own interpretation, which I think is a great ending. Obviously, there is a defined ending. The writer says this.

[7:34] Jeff Malone: No, there's a clear, distinct message here.

[7:37] Richie Grasso: And it's kind of really like in your face. So don't overthink the play. I thought Laurie Metcalf was brilliant in this to talk about a few performances.

[7:47] Richie Grasso: Uh I know, is it the most groundbreaking thing that we've seen her do? But it was the most important thing. No, but she's committed to it. It is a pretty interesting thing that we've seen her do.

[7:55] Richie Grasso: Like, oh, okay, this is a role that Lori is doing. Great, cool. Yeah, you know. Also, I just wanted to do a shout out to Cindy Coyne. I hope I'm saying her name right.

[8:03] Richie Grasso: She was the um mysterious woman. And I just loved her, or actually, I think she's called the ancient um in the show. I just loved her physicality, the way she just moved across the stage.

[8:15] Richie Grasso: I just think that is such an amazing role. She has some scary appearances, and I thought she was just really great.

[8:21] Jeff Malone: Yeah, I think that's something that they did really well in the show. Tossing the line between the child actor and the older woman actor, who is really the same person coming back as the different age of ghost.

[8:34] Richie Grasso: Uh, it was really done well. And it took a little bit of time to kind of figure that out. But that's probably where the most spooky parts were in the show.

[8:42] Jeff Malone: So, you know, it was great. Um I I know we're gonna get ready to transition on soon, but Jeff has a kind of a cool announcement to make about our next podcast episode and future podcast episodes because we're actually going to be featuring some interviews coming up.

[8:57] Richie Grasso: And to to kind of piggyback on Greyhouse, we have our next podcast episode as an interview with Drumroll.

[9:04] Jeff Malone: Yes, Drum Roll.

[9:06] Richie Grasso: We got the chance to actually interview Levi Holloway. So this is super exciting for us. We are starting our interview series.

[9:12] Richie Grasso: So every week there's also going to be an interview with someone from the industry, whether that be Broadway or pop music. So you're getting two episodes now from us every week for this new season, Tony season.

[9:23] Jeff Malone: We have a our normal episodes, and then we'll have interview episodes as well.

[9:27] Richie Grasso: And uh the interview with Levi is actually really interesting because we go way more in depth with the actual story. So if you've seen the show and you want to learn more about this show, definitely check that episode out.

[9:38] Richie Grasso: There's way more spoilers in there. So and that episode's coming out when?

[9:43] Jeff Malone: On Wednesday.

[9:44] Richie Grasso: On Wednesday. So if you did like this Greyhouse conversation, you want to hear more, we do ask Levi some really interesting questions about his show, and he does give us some wonderful answers back.

[9:52] Richie Grasso: Like I said, if you haven't seen the show yet, I mean you can listen to it anyway if you whether you've seen it or not, because he's just a wonderful playwright and really we got to ask him some great questions.

[10:00] Jeff Malone: So check out that interview with Levi in a couple days.

[10:03] Richie Grasso: Definitely check that out. And I want to end on one question about Greyhouse and ask this to you, and we can kind of ponder on it a little bit more.

[10:09] Richie Grasso: But the show did get mixed reviews. So do you think that the show is too different for Broadway, like the Broadway community? And how do you kind of see scary living on in Broadway?

[10:21] Jeff Malone: I definitely see scary living on in Broadway. It's there's like I always say on this podcast, there's room for everything on Broadway.

[10:27] Jeff Malone: And I think that this was an awesome, you know, first at bat, kind of for something really spooky like this. It is getting mixed reviews. I don't I am I'm a firm believer sometimes in when something opens. And I wonder if this opened in October around Halloween, if this would have had a much more bigger buzz market. Everybody's in spooky mode the day after Labor Day. And so I feel like, you know, landing this actually during an awards month. Well, this was in previews and opening while all these other shows were opening, and then to run it in the summer when everybody's going to see the blockbustery things, and this maybe would have landed maybe a little better. I'm not saying I the show is deserving to be on Broadway and it should run. I'm just wondering if it's missing a little bit because of the time of year that it landed.

[11:12] Richie Grasso: I agree with that. That's what I'm thinking. Maybe something interesting that they could do is like after it's done with its Broadway run, because it does have a set closing. I want to say it's closing Labor Day, I'm pretty sure. I think so. I gotta double check that. Yeah. I do feel like this show could work better in an off Broadway small theater and make it more scary.

[11:31] Jeff Malone: Yeah, like make it more interactive with the audience too. Like you're immersed into this GREY HOUSE.

[11:39] Richie Grasso: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, and going back to time of year, I always say, like, I liked the Thanksgiving play on Broadway, but I wonder if I would have liked that more if we're in Thanksgiving. I'm not saying we need to be, but I just wonder if that would help at all. With they had really low ticket sales too. And I wonder, like we it was literally about Thanksgiving. And I'm sitting there in April or May, and I'm like, oh wait, yeah, I gotta think back to like you always reminisce about that story. Not that you can't think about Thanksgiving year round. I'm just saying, you know, definitely on Broadway though.

[12:06] Jeff Malone: Yeah, like definitely when it comes to Broadway off Broadway, it's not it doesn't have to follow the same rules because look at Sleep No More. It does really well off Broadway, and we know that's a spooky show.

[12:15] Richie Grasso: So you know, yeah. There's the GREY HOUSE a bit. Greyhouse, amazing, awesome. All right. Now, now Jeff, we have a lot to talk about in the pop music world today. So, where are we starting now?

[12:26] Jeff Malone: Oh, we have a lot to talk about because we took a week off and a lot came out and we were away. So a little vacation. During that time, big albums came out. So we had two big albums come out, and we'll start with one and then we'll move to the other. But first we had KIM PETRAS, and then we'll move to KELLY CLARKSON. But Kim Petras finally came out with her first studio album. I don't know if you knew that.

[12:52] Richie Grasso: Oh, it's the first full studio album.

[12:56] Jeff Malone: Yeah, yeah. She has only ever had singles come out or LPs, like small EPs. Not LPs in my vinyl world, but EPs. So, and there's always been all of this hoopla around Kim and working with Dr. Luke and being signed to that label, and you're kind of like, okay, well, we really want Kim to be able to put her work out. So finally they greenlit the first album because we already know of plenty of albums that never even made it to streaming services or record stores, and they were just canned. And actually, some of the songs that made it onto this album were from those albums. So, fun fact for you. But I wanted to know, we listened to this album, what your initial thoughts were about it.

[13:46] Richie Grasso: I did like this. I think she's got a great vibe, great melody and lyrics. The one thing I will say is I know she's had a little bit of a rocky start in terms of like what's released when and what's coming for what album. I'm finding with her that there's this like, oh, I'm gonna do a pop-up performance here for a day, and then oh wait, this song is gonna come out, and then two months later, I'm gonna appear here. Oh, wait, and here's an album. It's just so jolty to me. I am so traditional with like release an album, then go on a tour, and then tour the album. And I know that's what everyone, especially the big stars do. Maybe she doesn't feel like she's quite there yet. But my opinion is what do you think? Like, is this an odd, jolty way of releasing and performing?

[14:30] Jeff Malone: I do agree with you because there's been such a formula in the industry for so long that has worked, and I don't understand why some of the new pop entries into this industry are doing it so different. And this is coming from the teams. So when you have people like Ava Max or Dua Lipa, KIM PETRAS, and they're just putting out singles, and then they finally get the albums. It's like the teams don't want to take a chance anymore. They don't want to take a chance and really develop an artist. And I don't understand why. We saw some of the greats get a fully developed, realized image with people like Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez. These pop gurus, these pop princesses, pop queens, had the moment to develop a relationship with their fans, have a fully concepted album put out, and then have singles from that album. I just don't understand why we're still trying to kill the album sometimes.

[15:32] Richie Grasso: On top of the whole, you know, newer artists too, like what you brought up Ava Max, she did one night in New York at a small venue that we couldn't get tickets to one night, and I'm like, she has all this amazing music. Like, what and then even like Olivia Rodrigo, like she's breaking out of the Disney World a little bit. She's putting new music out in singles, but like, okay, where's the now the big next tour? Like, I feel like there's just yeah, I think I think that's coming next year. Olivia always said she wanted to have her little moment of what it's like to be a rising artist, but she shot to fame because of the High School Musical and the Musical series show, and then Driver's License being so successful as a pop thing.

But she's different because she's getting the album treatment. Actually, when Driver's License was so successful, they said write the album right now and put it out. And now we're gonna develop you as a pop artist. So, you know, she's different because she's getting it. Billie Eilish is different because Billie is doing it her way. But I'm talking about like some of these pop singers now, they don't have any control of their career. And I look at Kim and I say, you don't have any control. And I know you want it because there's things you want to be doing, and you're stopping. We're in a single world, singles, singles. When a single hits this padamba, Kylie Minogue comes out and the world goes wild.

And it's like, did Kylie release anything else? Is she releasing anything else? That's different because Kylie's already like a legacy artist in this industry. She's been in the industry for, I'm so sorry, five decades.

[17:07] Jeff Malone: Yes.

[17:08] Richie Grasso: Yeah. There was an interview actually recently where they were like, you've had an album come out for five decades and be in the top ten.

[17:18] Jeff Malone: All right, well, I mean Barbara's six song. You know me. I'm always gonna one up with the Barbara stats because those stats sit way at the top.

[17:29] Richie Grasso: Grandma. Barbara is six decades of number one albums. I mean, is that true or false? Right?

[17:37] Jeff Malone: I believe it's six, and maybe it'll be seven.

[17:39] Richie Grasso: Okay, but I'm talking about like legit pop music.

[17:42] Jeff Malone: Well, Barbara was a pop star of her day.

[18:46] Richie Grasso: All right, so we're moving forward. I don't know why it always comes to Barbara.

[18:46] Jeff Malone: Always.

[18:46] Richie Grasso: I mean, or you know, wait, I wanted to finish on that. Kylie is doing it in the style of how it's supposed to be done. She announced an album, it's coming out in September, and she has a promo single for it. And she is working that single. She's established. It's a little bit she didn't say I'm gonna drop this single, and then next week I'm gonna drop another one.

[18:46] Jeff Malone: Right.

[18:46] Richie Grasso: Right. And let something breathe. Yeah, let it have a moment. Yeah. Yeah. Right. Anyway, KIM PETRAS' Feed the Beast first. And we love the music. Super happy about it. I thought there were some great standout tracks. If you don't already like them or haven't listened to the album, but my picks are Minute, it is so great, Bait, and King of Hearts. And fun fact there, all three of those songs are not produced by Dr. Luke, so I have good taste.

[18:46] Jeff Malone: Wow. King of Hearts is great. I love that song. All right, so we're going on to another pop album, which is KELLY CLARKSON.

[18:51] Richie Grasso: Oh yes, Jeff's been waiting a long time for this.

[18:54] Jeff Malone: Yeah, I was so happy when she announced that she was coming out with new music because I we felt like it was missing. Like, obviously, we know Kelly's like moving into Christmas Queen territory with two Christmas albums that are just dominating the chart every year. We always know Mariah will take that. But Kelly puts up a fight in her Christmas land. But this is Kelly's 10th studio album, Chemistry, and it was released last Friday. So what do you think? Because we also listened to this one together.

[19:26] Richie Grasso: So um loved this. I love this. I just love her vocal technique. I love the precision and the accuracy that she has with the vocal. The writing is great. It's emotional. You can say it. She is the voice of our generation.

[19:43] Jeff Malone: Oh wow, that's a statement.

[19:46] Richie Grasso: I do, I will say that there's this new like turning of a new leaf with her. And there's this moving my show. Well, I guess she's leaving The Voice, right?

[19:55] Jeff Malone: Well, she always goes back and forth between them.

[19:58] Richie Grasso: Okay. So like that, I mean, she's bringing her show to New York, and I believe she's coming with her kids. She had made a statement change she needs a new change of pace and scenery with her children. She's doing the show here in New York. The album comes out. Then she's interviewed recently and says she's writing a Broadway musical. It's in the works. We know nothing about it. We don't know who she's collaborating with, if she's doing book as well or lyrics and music, whatever, but she is writing that. She even said in a comment recently, it's a little misconstrued, but something along the lines of she wouldn't, she hasn't ruled out possibly starring in this show.

[20:32] Richie Grasso: Um I did hear that. I there is, she's not quite sure. I think it was if I if you want to ask me, it's like Sara Bareilles. She wrote Waitress. She was like, I'm not gonna star in it. And then Jesse Mueller did it, and then later on, she's like, Oh, I'll star in it now. Like maybe Kelly would do something where she'll like put it out there, see how it breathes, and then maybe go land in it. And maybe Kelly will do like six shows a week instead of eight, or maybe she'll only do three nights.

[20:56] Richie Grasso: You know, she could probably do it, or maybe she'll just gonna write it. But hey, something's in the works. So she's doing the Sara Bareilles crossover, the Elton John crossover, you know, when the pop stars come into the Broadway territory. You know, and so great. I just love everything she's doing right now, and it's great. And I do love this album; it's great. Full circle. Back to the album, she definitely is having a great moment in the industry again, and she's making the music that she wants, and I'm so proud of her for doing that. I think she's making the right choices. Like you said, she's moving to New York. Her show is coming to 30 Rock. It's gonna be great. I'm gonna be there in some way or form. I love my Kelly, and I get to see some Kelly Oki live.

[21:39] Jeff Malone: Yeah, Kelly Oki. I know, right? I'm gonna mean she'll have more like Broadway New York people on her show because she'll be in New York. I would love to see her be like the Rosie O'Donnell.

[21:48] Richie Grasso: Yeah, remember Rosie really brought the Broadway people in. Every time a show was going on, she had them perform with the Broadway talent. I think it would be great. The tough part is like when Oprah and Ellen were doing their shows, those were in Chicago and LA, and so you were getting a lot of those actors. And now in New York, you know, Good Morning America always has their Broadway weeks and things like that. I think it's a different thing because it's a different demographic that's watching Kelly and knows who Kelly is, so I think New York's the right move for her.

[22:20] Richie Grasso: And this album, to go back to this, she said this was all the ups and downs of being in a relationship. So the album didn't start like happy-go-lucky and end bad. It's just all different things mixed into one, which was really great to listen to from that perspective. The first song on the album, like the opener, I was literally like, "Oh my god, she's gonna make me cry." But by the end, she has this song called "That's Right," and it's this kind of like Caribbean happy thing. I was like, "Oh, she's ready to do that line in the sand."

[22:59] Jeff Malone: Yeah.

[23:00] Richie Grasso: She had to change up the genre. She had to change up the sound. She had to have her moment there and say, "I'm happy. I'm ready to do my thing." Yep. It was just so great to see. Like she loves what she does.

[23:10] Jeff Malone: Yeah.

[23:11] Richie Grasso: And I was very jealous about this, but because we were in San Francisco, all over Pride Weekend, she was all over New York City doing flash mobs. If I ran into that flash mob, that's the only time I would ever want to run into a flash mob. The vocals in these coffee shop acoustics and stuff were just stunning. I'm like, "Oh my gosh, she's just really god-given vocal." That she can just walk in there and just belt.

[23:34] Jeff Malone: Yeah.

[23:35] Richie Grasso: You know what I want to see her do? I want to see her work with some Broadway talent. I need her and Bonnie Milligan to belt their faces off at each other. Can they do like a duet? Could they do like an awesome "Take Me or Leave Me" or something? Like a two female duet, or like, oh my gosh, this is our plea right now. Kelly and Bonnie, belt your faces off with each other in a duet because you will make the world gag.

[24:02] Jeff Malone: Okay.

[24:03] Richie Grasso: And side note, I'm just so curious to know what this Broadway musical is. Like, is it an adaptation of a film like "Waitress"? Was it a brand new original concept? Is it like her life story? I mean, I feel like we would know if it was her life story, but I would love for it to be a brand new concept. I think the easy way out is to find a script and then just add music to it. But like if there's a fully original show, you know.

[24:27] Jeff Malone: Also, can KELLY CLARKSON be Auntie Mame in the meme revival?

[24:32] Richie Grasso: I mean, I'm just thinking like we need— with what? With who?

[24:37] Jeff Malone: Oh, with her, but like who's gonna be the bosom buddy in that song?

[24:40] Richie Grasso: Oh, I don't know.

[24:42] Jeff Malone: That's it.

[24:45] Richie Grasso: Yeah, well, I just— Bonnie is playing an aunt right now, you know, in "Game Really Gimble." I just always think it would be like an American Idol person, like KELLY CLARKSON and like Jordin Sparks. It's just so interesting. We never had a "Funny Girl" revival, and now we had one, and the world was asking for one. And "Mame," I think there was a revival, but it was with Angela Lansbury again. We've never had a non-Angela Lansbury "Mame" on Broadway, and it's such a great Jerry Herman score. So I'm like, where is the star? Because you need a star. Who's the star for Auntie Mame? It's such a great show.

[25:18] Jeff Malone: Of course.

[25:18] Richie Grasso: And my favorites on the album, like favorite Bobby kind of songs, "Down to You," "Favorite Kind of High," and "That's Right." That's what we got there. Also, fun fact, we did recently see "Once Upon a One More Time," and Justin Carini is starring in that show right now. I wonder if Kelly's gonna go see it.

[25:34] Jeff Malone: Well, first of all, she better.

[25:37] Richie Grasso: Yeah, and we have another episode coming out about "Once Upon a One More Time" soon, but yes. But are we gonna have a "From Justin to Kelly" Broadway moment like reunion? Maybe she'll ask him to be in her show.

[25:51] Jeff Malone: It will be the musical will be about American Idol.

[25:54] Richie Grasso: Oh my gosh. So small-town girl from Texas winning. Imagine.

[25:59] Jeff Malone: There you go.

[25:59] Richie Grasso: And we have one more pop thing to talk about. You went to a concert recently.

[26:03] Jeff Malone: I was not there, but I know you.

[26:04] Richie Grasso: I went to see BEBE REXHA. First of all, she is so underrated as a singer, as a vocalist, as a performer. She definitely needs to be looked at in the industry more because she has some talent and she has some pipes. It was a great show. Something happened at that concert though that I didn't realize happened when I was there because what she's been doing at the shows, and I don't know if everyone knows this, is in the last song she tells everyone to put the phones away after she does the first verse and chorus because everyone's out there like this. We've all been at concerts; we all know everyone has their phones out and living in the moment, right? So she tells everyone to put their phones away during this moment because she's restarting the song.

[26:45] Jeff Malone: Right.

[26:45] Richie Grasso: So she redoes the song, and she's singing, and she's getting towards the end of the song, and she's doing the bows and all of this stuff, and then a man chucks a phone at her face. Crazy. I didn't see this happen because I was living in my BEBE REXHA fantasy. I was having such a great time, and the show just ended. I turned to my friend Jeff, and I'm like, "Why did the show just end?" We didn't realize that the show just ended like that. And the next morning, when we see on the news, it's like BEBE REXHA has a phone thrown at her face, and she's immediately rushed off the stage. She needs stitches. Come on, can we talk about etiquette?

[27:22] Jeff Malone: I know.

[27:22] Richie Grasso: Now we talk about etiquette in the Broadway world all the time, but now let's talk about etiquette in the pop world. Please stop throwing things on the stage at people. Crazy. It's so crazy. These people need to be safe and trying to perform. But I heard overall, other than that, the concert was good. So that's it. The concert was great.

[27:36] Jeff Malone: Nice.

[27:37] Richie Grasso: And then she came out; she's performing again, and she's making a joke about this, but she's like, "Everyone put your phones away. Come on." All right, we're getting here. So we're gonna pop really quick. Yes, there's a combination of last week and this week, but I picked eight tracks, so we're gonna race through them. Let's do it quick.

[27:59] Jeff Malone: All right, here we go. Starting with KIM PETRAS' "King of Hearts."

[28:01] Richie Grasso: Bop, love it. Love this song. Love her. Yay.

[28:04] Jeff Malone: Then we move to KELLY CLARKSON, "Down to You."

[28:07] Richie Grasso: Yes, "Down to You." Love it. The vocal quality is there. Amazing. Great.

[28:11] Jeff Malone: BEBE REXHA, "If Only I."

[28:16] Jeff Malone: Okay. Here we go. Favorite Gwen Stefani, "True Babe."

[28:21] Richie Grasso: This I'm not really— I'm putting it in flop. I'm not a huge fan of her, so people can read for me for that if they want. I'm just— she's good. I know she has some iconic songs in her past. I'm just like, this is a little whiny to me. This sounds a little, I don't know, not— she has a tone that you have to acquire.

[28:40] Jeff Malone: Right.

[28:40] Richie Grasso: Okay. Carly Rae Jepsen, "Shy Boy."

[28:42] Jeff Malone: Bop, because everything she does is a bop to me. We're going to see her in August for the third time. We're obsessed with her. Fun fact there. That's Richie's third time seeing Carly Rae.

[28:52] Richie Grasso: And that's the most he's gonna be seeing a pop star. Love it. Yes.

[28:55] Jeff Malone: Now moving into Olivia Rodrigo.

[28:58] Richie Grasso: Fun, fun, uh, "Vampire." This is great. I really love this because it just goes from low to high. Her whole range is really showed off here, and it's really well written. I love this song. Off topic, we had a quick little moment on this Olivia Rodrigo song, but it's rumored that this song is about Taylor Swift. So everyone will go back and go listen to those lyrics. Listen to the song and say, "Oh, she's coming with fire."

[29:21] Jeff Malone: Um, next one, the Barbie movie. We have Charlie XCX, "Speed Drive."

[29:24] Richie Grasso: This was like okay for me. I think they have such an iconic sound that it works for the Barbie movie and it works for them, but I wish they could just do something different. Like all their music sounds the same to me. But it's fine.

[29:34] Jeff Malone: For Charlie.

[29:36] Richie Grasso: Yeah, it's like on the fence. Please. She's a queen.

[29:44] Jeff Malone: Yeah, yeah, no, true. It is like a subform of pop. I get that. It's hyper pop.

[29:46] Richie Grasso: Yeah. And last but not least, the gays are going for this one, but Paris Hilton, "Hot One."

[29:54] Jeff Malone: Yeah, this is gonna be an L for me. I don't understand what's going on in this three minutes of music. I just never really understood her as a singer. It makes no sense to me. And this is just not doing it for me. So yeah, that's where I'm at.

[30:10] Richie Grasso: He really wants— he wants the boys to come for him.

[30:14] Jeff Malone: Yeah, come for me for Gwen, for Paris.

[30:17] Richie Grasso: I did love most of the songs though, but as long as you like Paris Hilton's "Stars Are Blind."

[30:25] Jeff Malone: No comment.

[30:27] Richie Grasso: It's okay.

[30:29] Jeff Malone: Okay, so oh my gosh, we are just about out of time.

[30:34] Richie Grasso: Wow. Okay, it is wildly already 30 minutes. Thank you all so much.

[30:40] Jeff Malone: Yes, that's all we have for today's episode of Half Hour, and thank you for listening. We hope you enjoyed our conversation today, and if you have any feedback or suggestions for future episodes, we'd love to hear from you. You can connect with us on Instagram and TikTok at Half Hour Podcast.

[30:54] Richie Grasso: And don't forget to subscribe to our podcast and leave us a rating and review.

[31:05] Jeff Malone: And we'll see you all on our next episode, which is an interview with Levi Holloway.

[31:11] Richie Grasso: Yes. But I'm Jeff.

[31:13] Jeff Malone: And I'm Richie.

[31:14] Richie Grasso: Saying ta ta.

[31:15] Jeff Malone: Bye.