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[0:21] Heather Bedor: Still that music is growing on me.

[0:23] Amber Brzezinski: I agree.

[0:24] Heather Bedor: I agree.

[0:25] Amber Brzezinski: Just in there, Jamie.

[0:26] Heather Bedor: The more I hear it, the more I'm like, oh, kind of it's kind of a hit.

[0:30] Amber Brzezinski: Right?

[0:31] Heather Bedor: Loving it. Well, welcome to a show. We haven't had one in like two weeks, and I feel like I'm off my game. Um, we had like Well, see, I had the special mince meat showing last week.

[0:42] Amber Brzezinski: So I was I was here last week.

[0:46] Heather Bedor: And it did well.

[0:47] Amber Brzezinski: It did well.

[0:47] Heather Bedor: So that was a good call. Um, well, welcome to the Broadway Fan Club podcast. I am Heather. That lovely lady to my left, your right is Amber. And joining us in the studio today, I cannot talk. I'm also losing my voice yet again. But joining us at a studio tonight, um, I think I might have harassed him a little bit too much on Instagram. Um, but no, he's just the most delightful person. Um, and just so ready to join us. I'm gonna bring him on now if you're cool with that, Amber.

[1:15] Amber Brzezinski: Two it up.

[1:16] Heather Bedor: Yeah, let's only John DeVereaux. Come on up.

[1:20] John DeVereaux: What's going on?

[1:24] Heather Bedor: I feel like it's like the prices, right? We need to have intro music.

[1:27] John DeVereaux: Right, exactly.

[1:29] Heather Bedor: All right. Now before we went live, I let everyone know that I have a surprise. And here is my big reveal.

[1:36] Amber Brzezinski: Yay!

[1:40] John DeVereaux: Yeah, I'm representing.

[1:43] Heather Bedor: Yeah, um, I think you were at you were at the block party, right?

[1:48] John DeVereaux: The block party? No, I was no, I wasn't there. I was um August. I was here in LA.

[1:55] Heather Bedor: Yeah, I I was like, I don't remember seeing so I ran, I went to masquerade and it was raining, and I had about 15 minutes before the curtain call of the anniversary show, leaving masquerade and my lift canceled on me.

[2:10] John DeVereaux: So I'm running in a corset in the rain.

[2:13] Heather Bedor: Oh wow.

[2:14] John DeVereaux: Running. Carlton drama right there.

[2:17] Heather Bedor: That's commitment.

[2:19] John DeVereaux: It was it was rough. And then so like I get there and I'm like, can't breathe, can't breathe. And like dripping in water, and everyone's looking at me, like, who is this crazy lady that just came in? Um, and I'm texting um our friend Justin Sargent. You gotta love Justin, and I'm like, all right, I'll find you somewhere. And so we get the recording of the the anniversary show and Lynn coming out, and it was awesome to celebrate with everybody. Walk out, here's this awesome street party, and I'm looking through everything, and I'm waiting for Justin to text me back, and I look up as I'm looking for like mustard for my hot dog me standing right there, and I'm like, Oh, of course. That works. But uh yeah, that was that was I'm sorry you missed that, but you need to be celebrated more.

[3:01] John DeVereaux: Well, listen, I I feel like I'm always there in spirit, you know, I'm all about the the spirit of the community, and you know what? Uh I'm here, so it's fine. It's all good. And you know, we were talking pre-show too. Is that you're very much a community guy, like we're community girls, like it's so important to build one your own community, but to support other communities and having that development and build, and you just got back from somewhere. Do you want to just kick it right off?

[3:29] John DeVereaux: Oh right. Yeah, I was this weekend. I was in Atlanta for a Hamilton fan-led festival.

[3:40] Heather Bedor: Which is awesome.

[3:42] John DeVereaux: Yeah, so it was incredible. Uh it's called Hamjam. And I got to be a special guest there with Jared Dixon. Uh, y'all know him as Aaron Burr from Broadway's and the Phillip Tours, Aaron Burr.

[3:54] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[3:55] John DeVereaux: Uh, but yeah, it was an incredible time, and it was my first time to experience firsthand the community uh in person, you know, because usually it's like I I'm there's 20 feet of space. I'm on the stage and then the audience or there's a barrier, there's uh it's breaking that wall, you know. Yeah, but this is like oh, this is for y'all. This is not about me. It is not about y'all saw the show and you you're in awe of me or any any one person in the show. This is you loving the show. This is you singing the songs in your car every day. This is you dropping, yeah. They're creating this. I mean, to put on a convention is a lot of work.

[4:37] Amber Brzezinski: Oh, yeah.

[4:37] John DeVereaux: And they're putting on a convention about a show that they love so much that they've created this incredible community. It's beautiful. Yes, it's the impact of the show, and it really made me see firsthand uh how people are affected by this show. It's more than just the spectacle, it's more than just the the fantastic voices. It it's people take this with them, and I I love to see how far out it ripples.

[5:05] Amber Brzezinski: What uh do you did? You have any like key moments where you're like, Whoa, I'm sure you had a few, but I think it stands out.

[5:12] John DeVereaux: Absolutely. There during the meet and greets, uh, there was a uh fan Tony. She came up and she was crying when she came up to the table. And I'm like, Oh, don't cry, what's going on? With what what I was just like, I'm just so happy to be here, and I'm so happy to meet you. This show just means so much to me. Um, I I'm so happy just to be here. And I said, and that that joy that she felt in that moment, I I just want everybody to experience. Everybody should have the right to experience that joy. Uh so if one person can do that, I think having hundreds of people in one space where you do have community where you are, you don't have to say certain things because some things are already understood.

[5:59] Amber Brzezinski: Sure.

[5:59] John DeVereaux: You know, you don't you can be as cringe as you want because we're all here for the one thing.

[6:05] Amber Brzezinski: Right.

[6:06] John DeVereaux: Um, but yeah, I I it was incredible to to be in that space for the fans. And of course just be a witness to that. That's a side a perspective of Hamilton that I haven't seen. One on outside watching people be inside of it.

[6:23] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah, you know.

[6:24] John DeVereaux: Yeah, that's true. Like a different side of the fish tank, a little bit.

[6:28] Amber Brzezinski: Right, right.

[6:29] John DeVereaux: The lens changed, so to speak.

[6:31] Amber Brzezinski: Right, right. Absolutely. No, I mean it's it's so important we talk about community, and you know, you're working so hard on creating stuff. Um, but you've been doing this for a while. You got into theater when you were 14.

[6:44] John DeVereaux: Yeah, yeah. I was kind of I was peer pressure.

[6:47] Amber Brzezinski: Peer pressure, yeah.

[6:49] John DeVereaux: My friends actually um were all in a show, and this was in ninth grade. They were all in a show, and one guy had dropped out, and at the time, well, I still in at the I I was a bookworm. I was very my parents were very, I wouldn't say strict. They weren't strict, but they were very focused, academic focused for me. And I wasn't really getting into many extracurriculars. So my friends, this guy dropped out and my friends said, Oh, do you want to do this? I was like, that's not really my thing. And then peer they peer pressured me into it. It became rehearsals became just a way to like hang out with my hangout.

[7:28] Amber Brzezinski: Right.

[7:29] John DeVereaux: Yeah, of course. We get to hang out after school. We get to do this thing, cool. Uh I was not even I wasn't pressed about being on stage. I I didn't, I didn't I was like, this is so silly. This is not something I I would show is that.

[7:45] Amber Brzezinski: I was gonna ask, what was it?

[7:47] John DeVereaux: It was a mind you this is a high school show.

[7:50] Amber Brzezinski: That's fine.

[7:51] John DeVereaux: We did Greece in my high school, like we're gonna.

[7:53] Amber Brzezinski: Oh yeah, yeah, we did, but this is bed breakfast in Broadway.

[7:57] John DeVereaux: Have y'all heard? Classic story. Love where the owners have an Airbnb, not Airbnb, a BNB. Bed and Breakfast for the people out there who don't know it's not Airbnb. BNB stands for Bed and Breakfast. The things of the past. Yeah, now everything's an acronym. Uh yeah. But they have a bed and breakfast where there's an eccentric group of people running the place. Uh the owners wants to be famous. Uh the the wife has a play that she wants to write. There's an actor who lives there. There's a uh people people are just all hype. A producer is they hear get wind that a producer is coming to the air BNB, the BNB. And we got it, yeah. And they chaos ensues because they're also hiring a janitor. And the janitor's name is Oliver, but the producer's name is Olivier.

[8:58] Amber Brzezinski: Oh the mix up happens.

[9:07] John DeVereaux: Yeah, chaos. So that and then K more chaos ensues. Y'all see the point. But anyway, I was and uh it was really that moment I was playing the actor in the meta show. Uh so it was the moment where I dress rehearsals were fine. Even in my in my program, in the program it says, even though John enjoys this as a hobby, he would not pursue it as a career. I still have to tell me that it's framed, yes, okay. Oh, yeah, I still have the program, and I still have the shirt from the show, the cruise shirt. Um it took that moment where I stepped out on stage for the first time in front of people.

[9:46] Amber Brzezinski: Right.

[9:47] John DeVereaux: And I was like, whoa. You got the bug. This is this is something different than I because I also come from a family of athletes. Uh I I did a lot of sports as a kid, baseball, football, soccer, track, swimming. I tried, I tried and did them all. But there wasn't like that that feeling. I wasn't being I know as a kid, I was like, okay, I'm running around, I'm doing something. But this was the first time I was doing something, and I felt different. Like I was like so in the moment, you know.

[10:24] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[10:25] John DeVereaux: So that was the first moment that I knew this this is the direction I should be moving.

[10:31] Amber Brzezinski: I love that.

[10:32] John DeVereaux: And then you you just took off like rock and fire.

[10:36] John DeVereaux: Oh, yeah. I tried to do the best I can with what I got, like Mariah said. Just I'm headed. I was very committed. Um I never sang like that before the musical at that time which is Godspell. And then in college uh I thought that I was going to get a real degree. You know I thought I was gonna be uh I was gonna get a degree like that and then I was about halfway through my sophomore year. I was getting my generals fit finished up and this theater girly she was like she we were taking biology together and she just kept nudging me and saying like oh you should audition you should do this you should do you have a great look you've done it in the past like you're talented and eventually I did and I ended up with a BFA long story short I ended up with a BFA from the theater program so it was it was uh kind of I don't want to say faded but I had to discover myself what what it was not discovered myself but discovered firsthand I had to find out that this was the direction I really need to go and then like years later you're just like spitting bars as Jefferson left again in like the hardest role possible.

[12:01] John DeVereaux: Oh thank it it is it is a challenge but I will I will say I'm I do have if ever I get my another hyphen added like actor singer candlemaker the next one's gonna be psychic because I I have these series of tweets that go from 20 uh from I can't even say that from 2000 and eight from 2008 uh where I said we're Facebook used to say your name and is fill out the rest of the status a long long time ago right it says John DeVereaux is ready to take his acting career seriously 2008 then in 2015 I made this stupid tweet where I was uh basically saying um hi my name is John DeVereaux and I will be singing of my Hamilton audition of what I would do hi my name is John DeVereaux and I would I will be doing Diamonds Verse from Knuck If You Buck Head not and then cut to the tweet of my me debuting in Hamilton w in 2019 where I said I'm making my debut and I put those three in perspective and I'm just like wow like you did that you did that for working I put the work you interested that I think that's the important part is it just it doesn't come easily like you still have to work you say that you have this uh growing up where it's all athletics and you're you know going into messy but like theater is uh strong tough sport I was gonna mention that too like and your body is your instrument and the field and the everything so like it's it's a battle it's a battle like it is yeah that's why you see people on stage I mean it and it's not about body shape it's not about what you look like because these are athletes.

Everybody who's on a stage professionally is is an athlete. And the muscles, the training, the conditioning. Breath control. I mean, yeah, it's it's muscles just because you can't see it or you can't see the work. And I think that's that's another thing. I I think the work for an artist that kind of 301 level, when maybe 401 level work is making it look effortless.

[14:30] John DeVereaux: Because that's the mystique. Because if you get people thinking, oh, I can do that, you're good. Absolutely. And then coming out and stage touring and doing all that after you've just done that marathon run. I don't know how any Eliza just how I don't know how they do it. Seriously. I don't know how they do it. Um, one of the things I heard early in my career was if you're doing it right, you're tired. You want to, you're done after the show. And I'm like, okay, that's kind of old school. You don't have to like burn yourself out, you don't have to like crawl out of the stage door sometimes, something yeah, sometimes it'd be like that. Sometimes it do be like that. But I'm saying, like, just over and beyond, like saying the show must go on all that, but just with that feeling of that overshadowing, you know, and having to put so much into it every night, like I know just as like an audience member, like the feeling I get watching that show. Like I can only imagine performing it every night, like giving so much of yourself into that role every night for other people to receive.

[15:52] John DeVereaux: Right. It's a safe, and that's what I love. I think that's that moment I had when I was on stage was like, oh, everybody's focused on this right now. Everybody, everybody in the building is focused on this moment right now. So there's that sense of community but also singular focus that makes you feel seen and safe. The stage is supposed to be a safe space absolutely to take the risk of being vulnerable and exploring that it's supposed to be that way. So in that sense I and Hamilton and the show's a machine. I feel like these women who play Eliza like they know how to access they know what they do and they know what to do in order to sustain themselves not just for the show but for after the show.

[16:41] John DeVereaux: Right. It's they know what they're doing. And again from the outside I say I don't know how y'all do it. I would be right. But you didn't but you do it every time. Yeah. And I I'm just like kudos to the Elizabeths in the world. Do you have a way before shows whatever show you're doing that you prepare yourself like do you have a ritual do you have some something like some weird junk food I don't see but just no no I like the junk food sometimes you know everything in moderation. No I'm saying there's outside of the normal you know warming up I mean I I have rituals in my personal life my personal life but I mean on tour it was a ritual anyway because it was always a pre-show leading up to I I would make sure that I meditate that I'm my or journal or do something that was just 10 minutes of no screen time and just focused on the moment whatever it may be just so I can prepare myself to be in the moment later if I'm if I'm on stage but really other than that I I used to have I changed my ritual around a lot as a standby because some days I'm on some days I'm not there was a time where I had I actually still have it there's a this book of philosophies that I used to just have on my dressing room my station in the dressing room and every day I would just find a different philosophy to go through this book like yay thick love those yeah and like yeah cool this is today's and this is a philosophy I wonder how I can apply this today or no just anything to bring me back to the focus in the building because you have people who are working so hard on stage and I sometimes I feel like as a standby you know your job is is to be ready to do the show at any I just have to be ready in these four white walls with this fluorescent lighting and these mirrors all the time you know while right you're constantly looking at yourself having to go all right how am I gonna do this what am I gonna make up yeah so it's it's it's an interesting dynamic to have that.

[17:12] John DeVereaux: What was the um like shortest time you had to prepare to go on stage for any of your roles? 15 minutes before downbeat.

[19:17] John DeVereaux: So like oh my god so like 10 at at 10 was called and then I and then oh y'all I'll tell you the story. Please we we were it's not going anywhere, you're fine. Okay. This la this happened uh in LA uh at the last last go through here. I was on for I it was a matinee. I don't remember if it was a Saturday or Sunday, but it was a matinee, and I had done the first show. This was back when I used to get my hair braided if I had uh a to a topper on. Sure. So if I had a wig, I would get my hair braided and then they would put that on there. So the first show I I was on, cool. And I'm thinking like, okay, the second show, we get to half hour. I usually leave the braids in so that like so hair doesn't have an issue and doesn't have to put them back in later.

Right. So it's half hour. I'm back for the evening show. I haven't gotten the call, nobody has said that I'm on. I feel like I'm at the theater. Everybody should be here. Okay, I'm gonna start taking it's like then it's about five minutes into the call. I was like, okay, I'm gonna start taking my start taking my bike.

[20:30] John DeVereaux: Oh no. So I just start taking them down, I'm taking it down. Mind you, I just gone to Shake Shack and got a bite. I was like so ready to just eat and have great time. Yeah. But I'm taking my hair down. Take my hair down. And our stage manager walks into the room, and it's just like, hey, hey. You're all so you've had half braid and half no braid. Yeah. I I think I had just finished actually. I just finished it. Oh, okay. And I had taken my first bite of this Shake Shack burger. And then he comes in. There's footage of this, by the way. Somebody recorded the very moment that I found out. Please, I'm gonna have to find this footage. Okay. And I'm just like hair crazy, by the way. I just realized like I have to get okay I have to do my hair too. Okay. Cool. I had to lock in. I had needed like 10 seconds to just finish the burger.

[21:30] John DeVereaux: At least you finish the burger. Yeah. You need that sustenance. That was the moment I was having I was going to finish this burger at the very least. And if I'll pay for it later in the show if if I need to but there was there's a moment where I'm just shaking my head dancing to whatever music is playing in the dressing room like hyping myself up and that's like it was a wonderful moment. But yeah I think no that was that was the uh closest I've had to go on. Yeah. But I will say people have had closer.

[22:09] Amber Brzezinski: Oh yeah absolutely and I think that's one thing that we always say like the standbys are the glue that like hold the show together and like you really like you have to respect those standbys and those swings so much for everything that they do.

[22:29] John DeVereaux: Oh yeah because we always talk about it as everyone goes because now the stunt casting is like this huge thing. Uh-huh yeah yeah I feel that look I I feel like the stunt stunt casting has been around for a long time. You know so shows like Chicago are built for it. Yeah. Bring people in. Little shop. Little shop. Absolutely. Yeah. But then there are other shows that I go, hmm. Okay. Yeah. A choice. But a choice that I go, I uh well, let's just talk about it. Meg as Zidler. I see it because that role is built for cameo.

[23:08] John DeVereaux: Yeah, right. And they change it, they tweak it. This is a jukebox musical based off of jukebox music. Before you even said Moulin Rouge, I'm like, I know you were talking about, yeah. Yeah, yeah. And and there's a few others in my mind, but that's like the one absolutely like because you know, Bob got his her his own number in the show first. Yeah. They also changed it for someone else. Boy George, they put private chameleon in there.

[23:35] John DeVereaux: Oh, they're gonna say you they're changing it. Oh, if Megan Thee Stallion doesn't walk out there and go, chickens, eh. She's gonna do it. She's gonna do it because that that's what the role ends for, and that's exactly to have those kind of cameos. Same thing with Anne Juliet, they've they brought in people that I'm very excited. It's like Cheryl Porter was just injured there. I mean, Joey makes a phenomenal Lance, like he's great. Yeah, Joey, uh, even Charlie D'Amelio. Yeah, that was that it's just things that fit, you know.

[24:11] John DeVereaux: Oh, right, okay, cool. There is a point with with stunt casting where I go, I completely understand the because the industry has changed so much post 2020, post pandemic, and being on all sides of the table and the theater, I've I've bit I've done it, and I I understand that the point it is a theater business, it is an industry. People want to get butts in the seats, yes, people gotta come to the show so people can make recoup their money that they borrowed from other people. People are expecting this money. And so is everybody on the other side of that. So are the actors or are like the audiences. They're expecting their money's worth.

[24:56] John DeVereaux: So when that happens, they wanna bring people in who will bring people to the theater. I can't be too mad. Yeah. Am I but I'm also mad. Two things can be true. We live in a yes, but also how are you? I'm just gonna put it out there. Yeah, because this is something that we we do, we see a lot of it and we try to like keep it on lockdown. Like, stop. You go to a show expecting to see let's let's just see as Moulin Rouge. You go to see Megan Thee Stallion, like that's that's your goal. You're going to see her as you'd love, which is gonna be awesome. You paid the ticket price. And then she's not in it. You've never seen the show before. Do you go, well, screw this, I'm only here for Megan, or do you stay there for whoever the Zidler is because you've never seen the show.

[25:45] Amber Brzezinski: Well, you're gonna have people who show up for Meg.

[25:48] John DeVereaux: Right. Oh yeah. 100%.

[25:51] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah. Um it's hard.

[25:54] John DeVereaux: Yeah, it's tough. It's tough. Because that I personally was guilty of that at Sweeney Todd because I specifically went when Sutton came in. Because I had seen the show, that was our first group we ran. I had seen the show three times before that with different iterations and friends, and I went for Sutton and she was out because of a stomach bug, and they announced it when we got into the theater. So I could have went the next day, and I'm like, I've already seen that standby. I've already seen those understudies perform those roles. So I was okay with that. But that's just something we've always it's kind of like a weird dynamic of like the people that are like, it doesn't matter, like go see the show regardless, or go see the person you want to see only.

[26:36] Amber Brzezinski: Right.

[26:37] John DeVereaux: Yes. And I think it matters for the show and the experience you expect as a spectator.

[26:44] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[26:45] John DeVereaux: You definitely want to get your money's worth, whether that is I'm going for the show experience, I don't really care who Zidler is, or if you're a fan. And I feel that's the responsibility and the agreement that these special guests have with the show. And it has to be like eight shows. Hopefully you you got people who are in hand tested.

[27:10] John DeVereaux: Yeah. Oh, Meg has been on tour. I I don't think she's gonna miss the show. I don't think Anjali. I I I'm sorry, I don't think Cheryl missed the show because she is well her her instrument is well trained. She's been proven, tested that she can sustain. And you ask any anybody from the outside, so to speak, outside of the theater world, then when they come in, they'll tell you it is the hardest thing they've ever done. Absolutely. I don't think they realize how hard it is.

[27:37] John DeVereaux: Yeah, and they want to see. And I think it's it's kind of a rite of passage. I feel like if you've re if you're on the outside, you gotta come in to boot camp and come into the dungeon and see what it's really like. Absolutely. Uh there's a respect. And I think have being foundational with your your training and and with how you portray yourself uh with theater and staying sharp in those ways, going back to fundamentals, that will only lead to the external. That'll only lead to the television and the and the movies and the commercials. It's like ballet and dance you know you just start there with balance and then you move from there you have a great foundation so many people make Broadway like the ultimate goal but there's so many other things around it and I always say it's a stepping stone and that's not meant to be disrespectful some people find their career on the Broadway stage but there's so many other opportunities tours um being a multi-hyphen creator content creator everything there's so many other things now you are a very intelligent man I think you already know this um you're but you know talking about we were talking earlier about like social media stuff and like you actually teach a course for performers and can you touch on that a little bit because I feel like those almost go hand in hand because what I find is that and Amber sees it too amongst some of our fan groups people are like I really wanted to come see performer X performer X wasn't there damn it performer X and they get really angry but Performer Z is also really great and is part of the group and they're like oh I'm kind of hurt that they only cared about this person.

[29:22] John DeVereaux: How do you handle that when it comes to, you know, training these performers as to how to be on socials? Because your socials, and like, I don't think you'll take this the wrong way, you have, I I'm very much a fan first, but you're very real. Like, you're like, I had a day, this day sucked, this is this, but this is what I'm doing to get over this and past this. And then you have like your goofy side too. And I think that's really appreciated nowadays. Actually, I was talking to Chris Levy, one of our friends that just posted in the group, and um, in the comments. And we were talking about this today. And it's like, there's not that many real people online right now. It's very much post. So can you touch on that a little bit?

[30:09] John DeVereaux: If you don't mind? Absolutely. I feel it in this course, it's geared towards performers. It's meant to be a way to maximize the not even the potential, but the skills performers already have and focus them on social media and growing their personal brand and whatever they want to foster. If they want to have a business, if they want to foster community, if they want to just have a million followers just to have it, if that's your thing, like sure, like there are certain ways to go about it and different strategies for all. But in the way I think so, you were asking about the sort of rejection in a way of like feeling of seeing somebody's on the rise and you're not. I don't want to make sure either that or like how to not take things personally online. I think that kind of, okay everybody, this is what I do. I know not everybody can do this. This is what I do. I just, yeah, just put the phone over because it's the cheapest way to get over.

[31:21] John DeVereaux: Are you gonna fight me? Are we going to fight? Yeah, and if we're not gonna fight, we could just turn the phone over. I love that, you know, and I'm not a fighter, no, but I will, you know, if it came to it. But anyway, I say when it comes to feeling those feelings of not being to that level, everybody's on their own journey. And I, as cliché as that may sound, but that's the thing. We were just talking about people being real. There is a lot of posting online and different styles. I think people don't know what to post and how to express themselves in a space where the algorithm is constantly changing, this platform where the algorithm judges you, where it's right, people are already curated moments, right?

It's like what do this group of people that you don't even know? Because the way the algorithm works, it sends it out to a certain number of your followers and certain people who don't follow you, and you don't know what kind of day these people are having. They may not, may have their own biases, but you don't know that system, and you're trying to just express yourself. So I think the ways that I've been most successful online on socials is I've been most successful when I've just been myself and just posted what I wanted to post. I have also been the least successful doing that, posting whatever I want. You just never know.

[33:01] John DeVereaux: You never know, and that's, I think it again, it depends on what you're trying to do with your socials, right? Right now, I'm in a sense, I'm in a space where I'm building community. So if jokes don't land, they will for the people who need to hear it. Right. If, you know, I'm building this community of people who want to see my content and who want to support and that we'll have experiences together and it'll be cool. But if it's not for you, it's not for you. Exactly. And that's okay. I think you want people. I was having a discussion last night about rejection and just like, oh, what if this person doesn't want to feel, doesn't meet a need or meet an expectation that I have that you may have, or it's like, okay, that's okay.

They just, you have an expectation, and it's either you let go of that expectation, yeah, and not feel with that person about it and be okay with letting that expectation go, or you stand by it. And then you just stand by it and be like, okay, that's cool. I will find something or someone that meets that. So it's just that simple to say, this is what I'm doing. Right. It's not meant for the people that don't get it. And it's the hardest thing online is seeing other people's success and saying, oh, I should do, they're doing this, so I should, but if it doesn't align with you and that's not your thing, don't do that. That's not your journey.

[34:40] Amber Brzezinski: Well, I don't think you ever set out on social media. You weren't looking at being this like super content creator, like you didn't start doing that. That wasn't your goal.

[34:49] John DeVereaux: No, I was literally, that was birthed out of social media of TikTok being a way to like make my tweets in a video. Yeah, like I have so all these things, I'm like, wow, that's, that was my first primal thought about creating on social media. This is video tweets, and I am so happy. Because my tweet, I look at my tweets and I just like in my mind, like this is great. I visualize it before I type it out, and it was a way to act it out. And that's why I did all that stuff for Hamilton, because I had the prompt of Hamilton, and then also trends, sounds, whatever. And it just worked so well because whenever there's a prompt, I feel like I'm smashing that. I'm absolutely, I'm absolutely gonna do a task. Assignment done, yeah.

[35:45] John DeVereaux: Yeah, completely. And I will say, I don't know who King Ach Ace Marksman is, but they say smartest man I know. Uh, that's my man, y'all. There you go. There you go. So smartest man, you know, damn right. I love it. I love it. Yeah, I mean, you do so much, and I don't think a lot of people know that. Like, do you maybe want to talk about your other hustle here?

[36:08] John DeVereaux: That nothing. Oh, yeah. See, I don't even like to call it a hustle, really, because it's, it's like, it's a real, it's a passion. Passion product, it's passion for real. I make candles. I'm a chance. Actually, you know what? Let me talk about her before I bring her out. Okay, but I started a candle company during the pandemic called Of Yours Products, after we were sent home on hiatus in 2019. We were on lockdown, and I had, it's like I needed something to do with this creative energy. And I was buying so many candles, y'all. I was, I was buying Bath and Body Works would have hated to see me coming. National Candle Days. Honestly, I bought so many candles, and I got tired, I got annoyed in myself of buying candles.

Just, yeah, right over. Right into the white barns. Like, they were, they were in the Yankees. They were all in there. So I watched a YouTube tutorial about how to make candles. I got a little sample pack of like a DIY pack and some scents to experiment with, and I'm like, oh, this is also very, it's a zen activity. Yeah, like the wax changing form to liquid, and then being mixed in with the fragrance, and then becoming solid again as something different. It's transformative, you know.

[37:46] John DeVereaux: It's the metaphor of that, but also the acts of pouring, the acts of being patient. You have to wait for the wax to heat up, you have to wait for it to cool to a certain point. You can't be too crazy with the pores. There's a certain way about it, and I did not expect that from candle making. You're like, oh, it should be easy. Oh, this is very specific. And it was great. I think again, it was the routine in a life where it was like, okay, my work, my job, I was on tour. That was a routine, and now I'm just, I'm sitting around. I need something.

[38:26] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[38:26] John DeVereaux: So I started into bread baking. You got candles.

[38:28] Amber Brzezinski: Oh no, but I loved everybody who did it. I admire the bakers out there who picked it up during COVID. Also the crocheters.

[38:37] John DeVereaux: Oh, yeah. They did their thing. But yeah, I started this then as a passion project, and I said, okay, now I'm making my own candles. Should I make this a business? Should I take this to the next level? I only wanted to, I would only do it if I came up with a great brand idea. So I was like, okay, let me sit down and think about it for a couple days. Brainstorming all these different ideas. And I was just like, oh, brand has to be a personal story. It has to be, because there's thousands of candle brands out there. I need my story to be personal.

[39:14] John DeVereaux: Yeah. I started thinking about my life on tour and how I was at a time. We were in an isolating time already. So I was already focused on the isolation. And I did feel that on tour sometimes. And I remember like, oh yeah, I would always get the same candle everywhere in every city because I know that scents is the strongest sense tied to memory. Feels like home, exactly. You know, and it's the same thing. I used to have like a light mood light that I would put in my room just so all these spaces felt like a home. And I realized, like, oh, I miss my friends too. I miss my family. How can I put these together? And I'm like, oh, that's what I do. I make the candles representative of my people. And I curate these scents around what they love or what I love about them.

And it doesn't matter if it's a quirky scent, if it's a more mundane scent, it's representative. Again, it's very unique and real. So I was like, okay, they're friends and family of mine, but if I'm making this a business, I'm gonna be selling these candles. I'm going to be giving them to people so they'll be of yours.

[40:27] Amber Brzezinski: I love that.

[40:28] John DeVereaux: So I, yeah, I just came up with that, and I was like, that's a perfect brand story. It's very personal. And I think it's one that's not out there. You know, I don't think, I don't know a lot of candle brands' stories. They're like, once that smell good. Okay, great. Right. And it's more than just the fragrance. You know, I only do wooden wicks. I use a soy paraffin blend. Look how pretty that looks like it's a little bit.

[41:02] Amber Brzezinski: Oh, yeah, yeah.

[41:03] John DeVereaux: She needs her wick cut a little bit. But this is actually a special candle that I made for ham jam for the festival for the Hamilton fans. And it's called Ten Paces, inspired by Alexander Hamilton. And it evokes the feeling of being on the dueling grounds. There's birch, black pepper, and tonka charcoal.

[41:29] Amber Brzezinski: Oh wow.

[41:29] John DeVereaux: This candle, I'm somebody who loves a like the scent of a book. Yeah, you know what I mean? And not like the, yeah, like I don't like like a food scent, like I like like a clean, new like leather bone books. I'm like leather is my ultimate scent. This like, all I can think of is that wooden pirate ship scent. I just see a lot of sepia, it's just like 10.

[42:04] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah, yeah, okay.

[42:05] John DeVereaux: Yeah, this is that one. This is like the founding fathers.

[42:10] Amber Brzezinski: Absolutely.

[42:10] John DeVereaux: Yeah. I had a catastrophe making these. But this special one, by the way.

[42:16] John DeVereaux: The fragrance oils that I use come in these huge bottles, these huge jugs. So, but I needed to mix them all. And I didn't want to just mix them with every batch that I do. I just wanted to. Right, right. I had one of these dispensers that was kind of those coolers where you put in the, it's a call with the spigot and everything.

[42:40] Amber Brzezinski: Oh yeah, the punch.

[42:41] John DeVereaux: Yeah. Yeah, like you can't. And I was like, okay, this is big enough. This is cool. I hadn't used it in a long time. I had moved like so many times. Like my stuff got moved around while I was on tour. So I wash it out, I clean it, I put the things in there, and I'm getting ready. I'm like, this is a great idea. It's a great cool thing to do. I go to bed. I wake up to the sound of what sounds like rushing water. And I'm just, I have concrete floors, and I'm just like, oh, it must be the dishwasher, like because some that sometimes you know the thing that comes out and goes into the sink.

[43:16] John DeVereaux: Yeah, the drain. I'm like, okay, that must be going off. But I'm like, it kept going. I walk in and it is literally like spewing out. The spigot had broken off because the oil is denser than liquid, John. Oh so it popped off and it was just spewing onto the concrete floor, and I'm trying to wake up. And I'm sure it was great. But my heart was racing. I was like, okay, we gotta turn it around. We gotta turn it around. And I did. I did. I still had to make them that day. I did manage to salvage a lot of it, but there was a lot that was just like let's see. You just said something, and that's essentially how our business got started too. You have to turn it around, you gotta flip the verse a little bit. And like that's what I absolutely love about you, and I noticed that a lot is that even if it's something catastrophic, you're like, nope, but I'm gonna make this better, and this is how I'm gonna make it better. And I love that so much.

[44:19] Amber Brzezinski: We have to. I think I'm such an action-based person. I am about we got if there's a problem, if there's something going on, I was cussing up a storm while it was happening.

[44:32] John DeVereaux: Oh, I bet I had to I have to do this. Like I there's no I can take the moment to be upset, but that one moment, you know, I can't allow that to change my entire day. That one moment, look at this, look at this gorgeous shop. That one moment like that's hello, s'mores. Okay, look at the notch. And I love it. I'm gonna go to this finally fall. Here's your 10 cases. The mist hasn't lifted yet. Oh yeah, I mean, come on. It's there's a story there with those. This is I this is the first in a it's a prototype where I'm going to start a line of these special candles, these boutique candles of the shows that inspired by the shows that I've been in.

[45:25] John DeVereaux: So Joyce Jones says best candles ever. That's my mom. Hi, mom. I love it. I love the family going on here. But you know what, Joyce? I can't wait to smell one. Because she has her own candle that I have. She'll appreciate that I'll have her candle. That's why she says it's the best, because she already has her.

[45:47] Amber Brzezinski: But okay, I'm gonna need like 30 of these Damascus candles. They're so good. I honestly I was talking to someone the other day. My florals are probably the most I would say potent. That's what makes my candles different is that there's a certain percentage of fragrance oil that you can use. And while I was experimenting in 2020, I was like, ooh, it says 10% is the max. What if I do 15 or 20%? Don't do that. Don't do that. Your candles will sweat and they will be. I actually gave myself the biggest headache when I was experimenting with fragrance.

[46:29] John DeVereaux: Oh yeah. I had something lit and I was like, uh that's what's going on. But now what makes my candles different is that I do use the max. They are at max safe. You know, I don't skimp on anything, honestly. A quality of tins, quality of wax. It's I even I have a special wax that one of the most annoying things about candles is when they don't melt down all the way. Yeah. Sometimes that's because sometimes it's because of the container or because of how candle care could be based off the owner of the candle, but my wax I'll wrap my candles in tinfoil, like you have to do that.

[47:15] Amber Brzezinski: That's the thing.

[47:16] John DeVereaux: I know, but I know, but like I'll get mad enough where I have to. No, this wax is like a special blend where it the melting point is lower than most so it comes off the sides as long as the sides of the candle are warm of the tin are warm, it'll come on down. But I love that you have a passion about candles, like that's such a cool question. I like they have such a it's a staple in my life, and even more so now, of course.

[47:49] Amber Brzezinski: Well, yeah. Now Chris Levy said, I heard Woodwick's, I'm gonna need some of those candles, please. So I did just share your website. So if anybody wants to go to www.ofyoursproducts.com/shop, it'll take you right over to ten paces to the dumbass rose and to everything else you have managed to create that's gonna be beautiful. And you guys might want to stay tuned to both John and our Instagrams because we might be doing a giveaway. It's possible. And Amber and I might be buying out the whole stock from these videos.

[48:30] John DeVereaux: Well, listen, that that's just fine with me. I think they belong in everybody's home, honestly.

[48:37] Amber Brzezinski: Well, now are you making them all limited edition fragrances or just 10 paces is a limited one?

[48:43] John DeVereaux: 10 paces is the limited one right now. I like I said, I think I'm gonna have a rotating special candle. I love that that'll be that representative of what show I've been in. But it's still in the working process. I'm kind of building the ship as I sail at this point. I mean, you know, that's important too. In life right now, it's I'm being a bit audacious, and I'm I'm being more done than being perfect. You know, you know.

[49:13] Amber Brzezinski: That's I don't think that's perfect. Everybody's constantly work in progress, right?

[49:19] John DeVereaux: For sure. For sure. Now I just like kind of just high tie in with like the whole Hamilton thing.

[49:28] Amber Brzezinski: Sure.

[49:28] John DeVereaux: There's that whole obviously like the whole theme surrounding the show, like who lives, who dies, who tells your story. At this point, what is what is your story that you really want to be told that you want to be told, you know, about you? Like, what do you think is is your story, but I feel that's very good question.

[49:59] Amber Brzezinski: That's not even the hard-hitting question.

[50:01] John DeVereaux: It's not even a hard cutting question. No, that's a good one. I feel my story will be that I lived a purposeful life, that I was intentional with what I said and where I was at any time. It will be I'll tell you another quick story.

[50:30] John DeVereaux: Yeah, we love stories here. We don't have to just have a heart out, we're good.

[50:33] John DeVereaux: Okay. And there was a time in my artist career that I think everybody has where they just cry in their closet about being broke. That was me. And I was like, I am, but also not being artistically fulfilled. It's like, what am I doing? Should I just like quit? I could just do something else. But I was like, I'm just so tired. I'm tired of being broke. I'm tired of hearing those.

[51:06] Amber Brzezinski: Right.

[51:07] John DeVereaux: But I'm gonna keep going. I'm just tired right now, but I will make it. I had to let that out. So I think it was later that week I've gone to and I was asking, like, I was praying in my closet. I was just like, God, please show me where I'm supposed to be and where do I go? If I'm not supposed to be doing this, please like just point me somewhere else. Give me some direction, yeah.

[51:33] Amber Brzezinski: Sure.

[51:33] John DeVereaux: So I take the day and it's laundry day, and I walk into this complex here in Los Angeles by my house at the time. There's a Ralph's and a dollar store next to the Ralph's. I have $10 in cash until my next unemployment check comes in, which is like a week away. So I have $10. I go to the Ralph's and I get a um, I get Robin Noodles. They're four for a dollar. Yeah. And I get I get those. So I have $9 left. And I had some change too, and I don't know why, but the change was like exact that I had in my pocket to pay for the tax or whatever. And then I leave with nine dollars, and then outside of the Ralph's, there's a woman who is homeless and disabled. And I like for and I don't know if it was because of the kindness of my heart or because it was laundry day, but I gave her the five, and I needed the ones for laundry.

I don't know. Hopefully, it was out of the kindness of my heart and not convenience. So, and next door I go next door and I go to get some detergent, and then I take everything. So I have two dollars left at that point.

[52:48] Amber Brzezinski: Wait, two dollars?

[52:48] John DeVereaux: No, I have three dollars left at that point. Go back to the house. I put two dollars aside. This was back when it was one dollar a wash, one dollar to drive. Right when it was cheap and not like eight dollars a side exactly. Well, why am I spending twelve dollars for one load of one load of laundry? Oh that's insane. Awful tariffs.

[53:07] Amber Brzezinski: Uh but again, but amen. I was left with one dollar, and I hadn't looked at this dollar. And I look at the dollar, and on one side with the face, it's it's written in pen, love on the left side and bless others on the right side. And on the back, in God we trust was highlighted. So I went from a ten dollar bill to a one dollar bill, and I keep that bill because I think it was maybe a month later I moved to New York, and then everything happened two months after that. Yeah, my on the road. So there's that, and that is my purpose. I know that as long I've lived a life that I've been watched over spiritually and covered, so and protected by the angels here on earth, like my mother and my friends, and everyone in my life who is again these candles, like they're my angels, even though there's I've fallen out with some of these people that are my candles are named after, but I still like y'all, that doesn't erase any impact that they've had on me.

[54:16] Amber Brzezinski: Right.

[54:16] John DeVereaux: So I have I've been covered, and I know that that is only because I follow I'm intentional with my purpose, and I know that that was a sign that day that me giving five dollars to that woman. Yep. Me using my money like right and just loving and blessing others, that's my that's what I want the story to be is that anybody who encountered me felt loved and or blessed.

[54:49] Amber Brzezinski: I love that.

[54:50] John DeVereaux: Yeah. And you're so authentic in it. Like this is not an act for anybody that's like oh this is how you really is like this is not an act. This is just you genuinely and I will even say like when I reached out and I was like hey we would love to have you like not even a shadow of diet you're like that sounds great let's do this and I was like that's awesome like because you know sometimes you reach out to people and they're like you gotta talk to my agent and all this.

[54:58] John DeVereaux: Yeah I'm not I'm not any experience that I haven't done other than things that where I go like you know what I may not need to do certain things to say I'm good on that but I was gonna give an example but this is a family show notes not really it's but you know there are things that we do and I'm just like yeah I want to do it I want to try it and and form an opinion about it. Let me experience this life is short.

[55:46] Amber Brzezinski: This life is we only have one life to live. So YOLO even if you think you have more than one this is this one. You know this is make the most out of this right now because this is what we have this is what we're working with and I always think that everybody crosses paths for specific reasons, and it's just such a pleasure that you've been able to cross hours. So thank you for that.

[56:09] John DeVereaux: Oh, absolutely. I appreciate this this opportunity. Are you ready for the hard hoodie questions that you oh let me.

[56:18] Amber Brzezinski: I think I think I'm good. I got another one.

[56:20] John DeVereaux: Okay.

[56:20] Amber Brzezinski: Let's do it.

[56:21] John DeVereaux: I don't know. We've Amber has somehow made people.

[56:23] Amber Brzezinski: I know, we've done a lot of them.

[56:25] John DeVereaux: Yeah. Um, but you know, so you never know. So I always like to prepare people. Amber, you want to start off?

[56:32] Amber Brzezinski: Sure. You asked a beautiful question. We got a beautiful story. You're I know mine is kind of similar, but it's a little different. Um so if you were to be sitting in a room with young John, what do you think would surprise him the most about the life you're living now?

[56:55] John DeVereaux: Hmm. He would probably be intrigued and shocked that things turned out how he thought they would. Just not in the way that he thought they would. So there'd be a little bit of an I told you so in there. Absolutely. This just like there's a way of moving. You will have a plan. I feel like young John had a plan. I think that's we all do. Of going to college, becoming an anesthesiologist, of doing all these things.

[57:33] Amber Brzezinski: Is that what you were gonna do? Going to college for anesthetic?

[57:36] John DeVereaux: Oh, yeah. My mom was a registered nurse, she's retired now.

[57:40] John DeVereaux: She just inspired me. So, uh, I actually even in high school took a clinic. There was a junior clinicals in high school. I went to this magnet school and I went to the hospital to, uh, to like do the clinicals and whatnot. But then that's where I found out like, oh, this isn't for me. Uh, I damn near fainted during and I was shadowing an open heart surgery, and it is not like it's on TV at all. All you hear, you know that silence that gets the silence gets sucked, the air gets sucked out of a room. Imagine that with just the beeping of an EKG, and I'm watching this man being eviscerated and seeing it on the screen. I think it was the act of being at the precipice of life and death at this moment.

[58:29] John DeVereaux: Yeah. And everything started closing in. I said, I need to be excused. You're like, this is not. I need a little bit of air, please. I was gonna faint there. But all of that to say, um, I would say still do that because you will find your love of words and vocabulary and English is even enhanced further by this other perspective of the medical. And I also feel like it's just kind of built towards where I'm going to be.

[59:07] Heather Bedor: But you're gonna be on a lot of stages.

[59:09] John DeVereaux: Yeah. Because at that point, I was like, Oh, I'm gonna move to LA, I'm gonna get these commercials, I'm gonna be on a TV show for five seasons. And even then, like now knowing what I know now of my friends who are on TV shows for even these long periods of times, yeah. Right. It's still like, ooh, it's still real, it's still very real for them.

[59:25] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[59:31] John DeVereaux: So I would just tell him the perspective that he has. Keep that joy, keep that, keep that hope. It gets real.

[59:37] Heather Bedor: I love that. Do you think you would be surprised that you were awarded with Kennedy Center honor? Like, do you think I think that's kind of cool?

[59:46] John DeVereaux: Yeah, very cool. I don't think young John would even be. I knew we were that good. Yeah. He I don't think he was thinking about like awards. Even even now, it's it's like the awards are less about oh, this is how good I am.

[1:00:04] John DeVereaux: Yeah. But this is how this community sees me. This is how my peers view me to be exactly nominated is like, oh, thank it's it's more of uh of an honor than like a um you don't need to put it on. I mean it's it's a it's an honor, but it's also like you don't need to be given that award to feel like you're doing good, yeah.

[1:00:29] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah, the validation I I mean there are parts as an artist, sometimes you do give over to that. I do need to be told I'm good. I do sometimes.

[1:00:39] John DeVereaux: No, I mean it feels like that, you know. You and not just like telling me I'm good, but just like the way things work, you know, going into an audition, and sometimes I used to think, oh, I'm not good because I didn't get this job. Oh, I'm trash, or I that audition was terrible because I didn't get the job.

[1:00:57] Amber Brzezinski: Sure.

[1:00:57] John DeVereaux: And it took a while for me to snap out of that and realize like John, there's so many things out of your control. And all you can do, all you can do is what you can do. Go in there. Now, if you didn't prepare, now if you didn't do your best, right?

[1:01:14] John DeVereaux: And you can look in the mirror and say you did your best, that's on you. But at that point, it it's like what's in your control. But I did used to think like that. Um, but it's nice to be recognized in that way. Uh just to be I don't know, just to be seen.

[1:01:34] Amber Brzezinski: I think that's what it is.

[1:01:36] John DeVereaux: Because everyone has that desire.

[1:01:38] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[1:01:38] John DeVereaux: Absolutely. Uh less than validation, but more community.

[1:01:46] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah.

[1:01:46] John DeVereaux: That's why that's what I one of the things I do like about award season is I know that this room full of actors and performers and musicians, some of them have major beef with each other, some of them have are so close and and love each other and want each other to win. It's like a microcosm of people, yes, celebrities, but they're still so about this industry on all ends of it.

[1:02:11] Heather Bedor: So I I just think it's uh a collective experience for for whatever community you're getting that honor from.

[1:02:18] John DeVereaux: Yeah, we always talk about the energy in the room when you're experiencing theater and it's you're sitting and you're never gonna have that same experience again, whether it was what you ate for lunch, maybe it was you know, something shake shack, you know, or you know, how somebody was just follow up finding out something backstage. Right you never know.

[1:02:34] John DeVereaux: Uh the guy next to you might be smelling like you went to the gym, or the lady next to you might smell like one of your beautiful candles. You never really know what you're gonna expect. So I love that energy. All right, you ready for the next question?

[1:02:47] Amber Brzezinski: Yes, let's get it.

[1:02:49] John DeVereaux: All right, and then we will release you because it can you've been just a delight. Um what is a question that you've always wanted to be asked and have not had the opportunity to answer?

[1:03:03] John DeVereaux: And what is your answer?

[1:03:05] John DeVereaux: Hmm. Oh, wow, you're welcome. That's really good. Very good. Something I haven't been asked.

[1:03:16] John DeVereaux: Hmm. Wow. Sorry.

[1:03:25] John DeVereaux: No, no, don't apologize. I I know dead air is bad.

[1:03:29] Amber Brzezinski: No, you don't we don't care.

[1:03:31] John DeVereaux: This is this is what we're here for. We're here to have real moments within the world. I want it to be a genuine question.

[1:03:39] John DeVereaux: Um, are you happy?

[1:03:47] Amber Brzezinski: Oh, that's nice.

[1:03:49] John DeVereaux: I feel like there's and that and usually in interviews like this, you know, it's mostly about uh the business and the industry, and and I think we don't we deal with the emotional effects.

[1:04:03] Amber Brzezinski: Sure.

[1:04:04] John DeVereaux: Uh and I think at this point in my career, I've dealt with a lot of success and a lot of rejection and a lot of movement. So I feel people need if someone asks me, am I happy? I would say there's two types of happiness.

[1:04:25] John DeVereaux: Just in a way I feel like there are two types of truths.

[1:04:27] Amber Brzezinski: Sure.

[1:04:28] John DeVereaux: You have uh a capital T truth, things that are uh what what people believe in, like what they what they feel in their hearts and know with their faith, and there's like there's that truth for them, and then there's lowercase t truth that is just two plus two equals four. And I feel it's the same thing with happiness, having happiness that where you may not feel uh happy about where you're at or where you you're you're stably at, and but then there is this everyday happiness, like the joys that you find in life, yeah, the things that you can hook into for happiness.

[1:05:08] John DeVereaux: It's just I think sometimes you need to be able to have the energy to hook into them. Right. That's the trick of the world is like the happiness is you you have to create your own happiness, and what people mean by that is that you have to string out and get those hooks on the things that make you happy because the hardest thing is in the starting of it or in achieving, it's not about the achieving, it's it's about like how do you get there.

[1:05:36] John DeVereaux: I think it's a trust in yourself to like get there. You have to really understand and love yourself and be able to put it out there to start going. Right. And that's that's a lot of work. And it's like, are you happy with yourself? Are you happy with your career? Are you happy with your life? Are you asking me if I'm happy to see if I'm depressed? Like, what would the goal?

[1:05:55] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah, I mean, I work in mental health, and like it's it's especially I'd say, you know, since the start of COVID, it's just been so different in the world in that sense of people finding those big moments of joy versus what I call morsels of joy. And I tell people like, if you can't find that big moment of joy, just focus on you know, finding those little morsels of joy.

[1:06:24] John DeVereaux: Yeah, they add up, they do, they do, and they make a difference. I had such bad self talk during the pandemic of like, oh no, I don't want to go for a walk outside, or no, I don't want to do these things. I'm sad things are going terrible. Uh but doing the days where I made myself go do them, I felt better.

[1:06:45] John DeVereaux: Of course. I go take this walk, I go see people that bring me joy, uh, that I there's a fire in them that that warms me up, and then I'm able to deal with whatever it is at home, whatever loneliness that that there may be, or maybe that loneliness is now tempered with knowing, hey, you may feel lonely, but that's just a feeling you had do have these people. But again, you have to do the thing to hook out there.

[1:07:13] Amber Brzezinski: Yeah, it's a nervous reaction.

[1:07:16] John DeVereaux: Yeah, because some people it's it's like, does this make you happy? How does this make you happy? It's really it's it's very um intuitive. You have to really put your hooks in.

[1:07:25] Amber Brzezinski: I like it.

[1:07:26] John DeVereaux: All right. Leave everybody with words of wisdom or whatever you would like to do, and then we will give a shout-out to all of your incredible social media handles, and then you're released from the show. Did you at least have a good time?

[1:07:37] John DeVereaux: Um at least this was fantastic. Hey, anytime you want to come back, you're more than welcome to join us.

[1:07:45] Amber Brzezinski: Okay, don't say that I will annoy you all.

[1:07:46] John DeVereaux: Come on over. Um, I just want to say that there is uh I'm at this point in my life where I'm like I said, being very audacious, but and I don't really know what's I know what my goals are and my intentions are. Well, I know I and I know what I want to result from them, and in my mind, I see what's resulting from them, but I will say I'm eternally grateful for where I'm at to have the opportunity to, I think, not have to have the opportunity to do things like have a candle company to be able to have tours to almost become a doctor to uh have all of these experiences because we're multifaceted people.

[1:08:39] John DeVereaux: Uh what I say is I'm a hyphen collector, and I I hope everybody out there will embrace the parts of themselves that they may not show so much because it's how we're understood. You show yourself one way and that's how we're understood.

[1:08:54] John DeVereaux: Right. Encourage people to do more than just how they're understood to explore the multi-hyphens that you have and collect them all.

[1:09:04] Amber Brzezinski: I love that.

[1:09:05] John DeVereaux: It's like Pokemon, gotta collect them all.

[1:09:07] Amber Brzezinski: Exactly.

[1:09:07] John DeVereaux: See, I'm gonna the the collab is coming.

[1:09:11] Amber Brzezinski: Oh yeah.

[1:09:11] John DeVereaux: Yeah, absolutely. I definitely see like the uh hyphen collector merch. Like, where's that at? We need that.

[1:09:17] Amber Brzezinski: Oh, it's coming. It's all coming because my my brands, my personal brand, the candles, and uh the influential performer, the course. That's all it's all coming and awesome. The merch is on the way.

[1:09:32] John DeVereaux: I'm gonna disclose the information that not many people know. My legal name is Amber L-E-I-G-H. So I have been embracing that hyphen my whole life.

[1:09:46] John DeVereaux: The original hyphen collector.

[1:09:49] Amber Brzezinski: Yes.

[1:09:50] John DeVereaux: Right there.

[1:09:53] Amber Brzezinski: I love I support a hyphen.

[1:09:56] John DeVereaux: I can't, I cannot beat that. Cannot beat that. Um, where can people find you? We've got your Instagram. We're gonna put it on the screen, even though it's on you.

[1:10:04] John DeVereaux: So if y'all want to find me, um I'm at the John DeVereaux pretty much everywhere. Um currently working on a website that will be the donkeydevereo.com uh but yes just follow me there and then the the other important one is please go check out of yoursproducts.com slash shop um just I'm we're gonna need all of us candles all of us get in there get in there right okay good thank you for the win um we are so excited to see where this endeavor is gonna take you but I don't you're one of those people it's gonna sound weird like I'm not worried about you you do such great incredible things and you're really good at what you do so we are so incredibly honored for you to join us today and bring some light we just we knew it was going to be one of those shows where we're like we're just gonna feel good walking away and and ending the show and being like that was pretty that was good it feels like a nice warm hug so thank you for that.

[1:10:09] John DeVereaux: Oh yeah you're welcome for the hugs I'm on this button yes your hugs for the win all right thank you guys everybody um if you want to download this episode if you've been watching it live or you want to listen to it later you can join us directly at www dot thebroadwayfanclub.com or you can go to www.onlybroadwayfans.com yes that is our real podcast website on broadway um and our merch is coming too so John we'll have a we'll have a merch release party let's do it well thank you again for staying a little bit longer than we asked we really appreciate it so much of course thank y'all for having me and absolutely I'll be back.

[1:11:47] Amber Brzezinski: I'm sure.

[1:11:49] John DeVereaux: Yeah, absolutely.

[1:11:50] Amber Brzezinski: Yes, you will be back.

[1:11:50] John DeVereaux: Um soon you'll see um and don't forget, guys. I've thought it would be a knockdown.

[1:11:56] Amber Brzezinski: Hey, hey, there we go.

[1:11:57] John DeVereaux: That's what we're here for. Um, every Monday night when Broadway is dark, we keep the ghost light burning. Have a good night, everybody.

[1:12:03] Amber Brzezinski: Bye guys.

[1:12:04] John DeVereaux: Bye-bye.