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[0:14] Robert Bannon: Alright, so last year I did a Christmas show, and my Christmas show was at Chelsea Table and Stage, and Robbie Roselle was directing the show, and Robbie said to me, "So, what does your Christmas show want to be in?" And I literally sent him the Spotify of Michael Longoria's Christmas album because Michael Longoria's Christmas album is perfect. I literally wanted to just steal his whole album from beginning to end. I said, "Just chart these songs. Just chart this album, and we're gonna steal it from Michael Longoria because he's so good." When I his album is playing in my house all the time, and we're getting married next year, and "Marry Me This Christmas." It is oh Michael Longoria, you're finally here. Oh my gosh, that's so awesome. I didn't realize that that's an inspiration for you. How awesome is that?

[1:05] Michael Longoria: Thank you so much. Oh my gosh. And you're gonna do, I'm assuming some Christmas albums.

[1:10] Robert Bannon: Yeah, I'm gonna do a lot from the album. Um, but I, you know, Christmas time has always been like um a moment to discover Broadway songs, and you know, there's always some sort of musical on TV during Christmas time.

[1:24] Michael Longoria: Yes.

[1:24] Robert Bannon: Um, so you know, I'm doing a lot of the songs from "Merry Christmas Darling," but I'm also gonna put in a few, you know, diva songs, like a Barbara song, a Patti LuPone song, of course. You know, how could I not?

[1:38] Michael Longoria: Well, Robert, that's what I like about the album because the album has the classics like "Merry Christmas Darling." It has the classics like uh "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," but then you drop Ariana Grande, or you drop a Mariah.

[1:50] Michael Longoria: Yes.

[1:51] Michael Longoria: Well, that's the interesting, I guess, musical journey that I've been on is that like, you know, being um a singer of the 60s music from "Jersey Boys" and "Hairspray," um, kind of having to like um use those songs as inspiration, obviously for the majority of my work, but being somebody who's alive today, right? So I'm alive today, and I'm listening to Ariana Grande, I'm listening to Mariah Carey, and listening to all these other artists. So it was nice to be able to mix those in, you know, kind of weave them in there.

[2:23] Robert Bannon: Well, I mean it. You're your original. So everybody, we're here, we're talking the album's been out for I don't know, eight years, six years, something like that. But a very Broadway kind of Christmas is coming to 54 Below December 1st at seven o'clock, and you could get your tickets at 54below.org. And this is your first solo show at 54 Below?

[2:40] Michael Longoria: Yeah, isn't that weird? I mean, I've done solo shows around town other places, obviously, but uh 54 Below, yeah, it's my first time doing it. But I've done other people's shows there, like I've sung a song there, uh, where they, you know, invite me from the audience and I get up there and sing a song, but this is my first time, like actually, you know, curating a whole set list for this specific night and getting a band together. Uh first time I'm working with Yaz. Um, and you know, he was your musical. It's the only person I use. I've never worked with him, and I've always wanted to because I've been so jealous of everybody who has and like seeing how awesome their shows are every time he's doing it. So this was the opportunity to do it.

[3:23] Robert Bannon: Michael, then all you gotta do is tell Yaz to open up the Robert Bannon Christmas folder because we stole your music already. So it's already...

[3:29] Michael Longoria: I love it. I love it.

[3:31] Michael Longoria: That is so funny. Oh my gosh. But there's a problem. So what song did you sing from the album? Or which songs uh did you sing?

[3:40] Michael Longoria: We did we did Mariah and we did "Merry Christmas, Darling." Oh and we cut we we cut a little Ariana Grande piece and we cut a little Britney Spears with your arrangement of Britney's so good.

[3:52] Robert Bannon: I love that one.

[3:53] Michael Longoria: Yeah, we're doing I'm gonna do that in the 54 Below show um "My Only Wish." Britney Spears. If you know Britney Spears doesn't get all the credit she needs sometimes, right? I mean Britney Spears did a lot of cool things, and that song is really kind of interesting because it's a very adult.

[4:08] Robert Bannon: You do my favorite Mariah song. Not not the song, yes, but you sing "Miss You Most at Christmas Time."

[4:13] Michael Longoria: Yes, oh my gosh, "Miss You Most at Christmas." Isn't that an interesting song? I don't know why I gravitate towards all the sad stuff, but I just feel like I mean I love to just maybe emote and feel all the feelings that those kind of songs bring out in me. Um especially Mariah Carey, just because you know she's the queen, you know.

[4:32] Robert Bannon: The queen.

[4:33] Michael Longoria: Well, I'm gonna text you as because the queen.

[4:33] Robert Bannon: The queen.

[4:37] Robert Bannon: The problem with my arrangements, Michael, are that they're nowhere near your key because who could sing that high? So everyone get your tickets 54 Below. We have a watcher that watches our show every week, and she is a Michael Longoria fan.

[4:53] Michael Longoria: Oh, that's awesome.

[4:54] Robert Bannon: Hi Marie McGee, who has followed you. She's Marie Langy on Instagram. She has written me for ye since this show started about Michael Longoria.

[5:02] Michael Longoria: Michael gosh, that's so awesome.

[5:04] Robert Bannon: So she's streaming our fans that we love your music. We listen to your music, so thank you for being here. It means a lot to us.

[5:10] Michael Longoria: I'm so happy to be here.

[5:12] Robert Bannon: So you are you in LA baby? Is are you a Hollywood.

[5:15] Michael Longoria: Okay, so I'm originally from yeah, I was born in Hollywood, California. Um apparently there was a hospital in West Hollywood, so you know there's some connection there. I don't know. The judge was happening, you know, when I in the when I was born in the 80s. But um, yeah, no, boy hung out there till I was like 15. I came to New York for the first time, like in a like a high school two-week program, and I was like, wait, what? There's this whole other society. And you know, you gotta think back then Facebook wasn't around, no no internet really was around internet was around, obviously, but I didn't really have access too much as access to it. So to see this like other world of like people that were doing art every day and like walking up and down Broadway.

I remember being like just walking looking side to side at each of the Broadway houses and being like, oh my god, this place exists. Like this seems unreal that a place could have everything that I could possibly want in one, you know, one area.

[6:16] Robert Bannon: And then you came here, you went to school here.

[6:18] Michael Longoria: Then I came to school here. Yeah, I you know, I think the universe was bringing bringing me over here. I came at 17 and I went to NYU and um studied drama at Cap 21. And um, yeah, you know, I saw everything I could. I I was the merch boy uh over at "Aida" during uh when "Aida" was like in previews. So like I was watching them change the different wigs and stuff and try different things and um, you know I just I got I had a pretty cool um upbringing, I would say. Like NYU was a good cushion from a very like California boy life, like oh I like musicals, and then all of a sudden, like New York, I was there, but it was like I was there with the protection of school. So I was like, okay, it's cool. I got some time to figure this out.

[7:05] Robert Bannon: You didn't need protection though, because you literally you jump into "Hairspray," then you you jumped in the original cast of "Jersey Boys."

[7:13] Michael Longoria: Yes. Yes. I was the original Joe Pesci. And then I was understudying Frankie Valli. And then eventually I did the two a week, the matinee. I remember I remember with the first time they put my um my name in that section. Oh, there I am in the in the Sacramento version. Um I the first time they put my name next to that role, and it was like official, like as the Matinee Frankie Valli. It was just like a big deal. I just remember being like, wow, this is so cool. But um still California boy over here doing this, making it happen, okay.

[7:47] Robert Bannon: But you got the Italian last name, so you're good, you got a good Italian uh movie.

[7:51] Michael Longoria: You know, yeah, the you know, it's one of those universal names that nobody really knows where it's from. So, you know, Eva has it as well. Oh that's there's also a very famous um uh baseball player named Evan, who has the last name. So you know, I'm bringing it to Broadway, I'm bringing it to New York. You know, people know.

[8:10] Robert Bannon: I love it. People know you as Frankie Valli, and you got thousands of shows, literally, as Frankie Valli and singing these songs. Here's here's you uh and and Frankie.

[8:23] Michael Longoria: Oh my god, me and Frankie, yes. Time gone by. I I as a Jersey boy myself, born and raised here in Jersey, an Italian, even though my last name doesn't have the vowel. I we I grew up loving that music. He is in his people need to stop trolling Frankie Valli because he is in his 90s and still out here working his tail off.

[8:42] Michael Longoria: Listen, he's doing what he said he would do. He said he would always be singing. So, like that's what I want to be doing if I can like forever, it's just always be able to sing.

[8:52] Robert Bannon: So, Michael, you're doing a Christmas concert. I wanted last year for Michael to come sing at my Christmas concert, but Michael has always booked everyone. He's booked this year I'm when I'm doing you are booked. You're a booked your books. Tell us about where your book you sing around this world.

[9:09] Michael Longoria: Well yeah I do um I tour with the original "Jersey Boys" we're called the Midtown Men and you know we have our own uh there we go we were on a bus at some point we were on that bus um I don't even know I forget how it happened but somebody had connections with somebody and they happened to be doing bus printing that week and they somehow got our logo on there. I don't know I mean I'm sure we had to pay for it but it was it was I remember it being like um like a you know because somebody had a connection with somebody's cousin I don't forget. And it was like a big deal because that bus went around town like you remember the "Mama Mia" buses like you'd be walking around and you'd see "Mamma Mia" everywhere everywhere that was that bus for like maybe one week but it was pretty cool to have our our stuff on on that but yeah the Midtown Men.

So I tour with the Midtown Men primarily that's like my primarily uh primary source of performance. Um then I get these moments where I get to do my own thing and like kind of step out on my own and just sing my heart out for people.

[10:10] Michael Longoria: Um yeah 54 Below has always been like I don't know a little intimidating because it's I'm used to singing it like downtown and the you know the Lion's den or you know like five dollar cover kind of places you know like original music um and 54 Below obviously is like you know more of a dress up place. You know you you go with friends and you have dinner there. You you said you like the guacamole. Um you know, I like the fries there. I've had you know, an hour or two uh when I'm there. But yeah, look, they have great food there too. So it's like it's one of those places where you get dressed up and go with friends, and you and then you hear somebody happen to be singing.

[10:51] Michael Longoria: I was joking with Yaz though, because I was like, okay, now this is the part where we're gonna have a slow song, and then you're gonna hear clink clink clink clink because it's that's just naturally what happens there, you know, any kind of place that's like kind of a supper club.

[11:06] Michael Longoria: Um well I do. I love the guacamole and I love a drink, and I don't think there's a better place to see a show for Christmas because you're literally blocks from the tree. You can see your show. Like everyone could go see your show. It's at seven o'clock because he's famous and on Broadway. So he gets the seven o'clock. You don't have to go at 9:30 at night, everybody. Oh my gosh. He's the headline night for that night. Go get a ticket and then after the show's over at 8:30, or whenever the show's over, walk right down, see the Rockefeller Christmas. You can make a whole Usher in December on the first with Michael Longoria.

[11:38] Michael Longoria: Absolutely. Come down. We're gonna have a great band playing. You know, it's gonna be great. My brother and good friend of mine, Emily McNamara and my brother Danny Longoria are gonna be singing back up. Um, so and the backups for this show is like, you know, they're singing, they're gonna be sing singing. So um it's gonna be something to be, you know, singing along to and with, and I think it'll be a fun night.

[12:02] Michael Longoria: I'm so I have such FOMO because I'm you can steal more arrangements, you know. I can't wait. There's a few new ones. Where's my phone? I gotta text Yaz right now. He's gonna send me over those arrangements for the show.

[12:14] Michael Longoria: Yes. Yes is actually doing a few ones like brand new. So I'm excited to hear that with the band and just like sing these new tunes, you know.

[12:25] Robert Bannon: No, you have music out besides the Christmas album. Obviously, you have other albums that are out. A lot of people listen to them. What made you, you know, you have covers of classic doo-wop 50s, 60s, you know, hopelessly devoted to you as a big cover that you where do you find these songs? How do you do they just come to you?

[12:41] Michael Longoria: You know, um, I held a soundstone. Um I for each each of these for each of these um albums, the first one was Broadway Brick by Brick, and I wanted to have Broadway songs that I kind of that I grew up with, you know. Um like chorus line. I cannot believe I had the guts to sing music in the mirror. I mean, this was a while ago, this is maybe eight, eight or ten years ago now, that I did that first album.

[13:09] Michael Longoria: And it was like I did I did all the big ones, as if we never said goodbye, um, over the rainbow. Like I was just, you know, swinging these big big swings. And it was with John McDaniel doing the arrangements. Um, you know, he worked on the Rosie O'Donnell show. He's been in the musical theater business forever. So he gave me some really big like diva arrangements for that first album.

[13:32] Michael Longoria: And it was orchestrated in a very symphonic way, like a lot of musicians were on the album. Um so it felt like a, you know, very Broadway sound, right? The second one was a Christmas one, which I wanted to go back to, like a 60s pop sound. Um, and then the one that you that you were talking about, hopelessly devoted, that's like they do in the movies, which was all movie theme.

[13:55] Michael Longoria: I kind of wanted to do these themes to just kind of like give me focus. And then I kind of dove into what are the best movie songs, for example. With that project, I was like, let's literally go year by year. What was the most popular songs and why? And like what are what's so special about these songs and when you find like the group of them then which ones actually speak to your heart because if it speaks to your heart then when you sing them they're gonna touch somebody, you know?

[14:24] Robert Bannon: Well they do and they're so good. And you have we have a me and Darius have a like a shared Christmas Spotify playlist and you're all up in there and you will in the morning on Sunday when we're cleaning the bathroom Michael Longoria is playing in our Oh my gosh I love that I'm gonna have to send you a video of it playing out of the Alexa next time because you are always rotation.

[14:47] Michael Longoria: Um when you hear people that your music has touched them like our our our little story but like I'm telling you our friend Marie out here, she has seen you, she's seen the Midtown Men, she follows your music it's it makes it worth it. When you hear people they see you after a show what's it like?

[14:58] Michael Longoria: Well that's the thing like I don't I don't normally do these kinds of shows. So like I don't get that experience too often um where somebody tells me that like every now and then it will happen like on the road with Midtown Men in California for example we were in the middle of nowhere like at the casino somewhere and you know we're signing our normal Midtown Men albums and then out of nowhere somebody brings me the Merry Christmas Darling album I'm like, oh my God, you have this like how you know I I know I never think anybody listens.

[15:31] Michael Longoria: You know like as an artist you always I guess are trained to be humble and like and you know I grew up being a dancer. So like dances we're supposed to like be quiet and like you know I just listen and and follow directions kind of thing.

[15:44] Michael Longoria: So like when it comes to putting my heart out on these albums, I put them out and and the the creation process and the artistic process is just like giving birth for like several months. And then once it happens I kind of like forget about it like and not not because I want to but just because like maybe it's that that like um insecure artist in me that goes like well who cares you know okay now it's done who cares um but every now and then somebody will remind me about it I'm like oh right that that song like and then yeah I remember like the process of it and what it took you know and like all of the you know a lot of a lot of the emotional stuff like really does take take uh you being very vulnerable really going there and really feeling those feelings so sometimes I hear recordings like uh I will always love you on my uh movie album and like you can hear my my breathing it's like like you can hear me like on the verge of tears because I'm like literally like I wanted to have the most raw emotions um possible for these songs you know to be real.

[15:56] Robert Bannon: Well it works we hear it we hear it and and it is it it works and we love it and I I'm telling you I'm so happy that you came here because we've been we've been everyone for a year one day Michael's gonna sing with I'm gonna make Michael come sing at my show but we are gonna get mom I had no idea that you wanted me to that's I would definitely come and sing and I already looked like I'm doing a show in New York in December and I'm like he's he's in LA he's singing with Midtown Men booked people you have to go see him where can we we can find you we can find the Midtown Men website follow you on Midtown Men if you're in around the country we can go to your Instagram Michael Longoria sings and below us and your albums are streaming so you could stream your albums wherever anywhere.

[17:32] Michael Longoria: Yep.

[17:33] Robert Bannon: I love that.

[17:34] Robert Bannon: And then tickets. Everyone, tickets. Tickets for December 1st at 7 p.m. It's a Thanksgiving weekend, the Sunday right after Thanksgiving, you know, like if you're in New York especially that week, come on down and hang out with us.

[17:47] Michael Longoria: I feel like it's gonna be uh every time I do these shows it's like a reunion of people that you've kind of know like through other people all these people here. Um so I just want I just want people to come and like have a good time and sing these songs with me because they're they're very um catchy songs that everybody knows.

[18:03] Robert Bannon: 54below.org is where you can get your tickets you gotta get your tickets and get get that guacamole get that guacamole get the French fries and don't don't eat during the slow quiet if Yaz is playing piano and Michael's just singing I might make a joke about it.

[18:20] Michael Longoria: Clink clean be like I actually had oh my god there was there was one time like I was playing uh grade 142 and I had this friend um who like I don't know why he chose to do this but like he came to sit right in the front row center and he ordered like steak and fries and this and that the entire time I was singing my heart I was it was the movie album and I all I see like I just literally see it like digging that stick you know that almost it was the most hilarious thing because I was like hello did you not come to hear this like what are you doing?

[18:58] Robert Bannon: Are you like me if you go see a friend's show if you go see some you know show please don't ever sit me in the front row it gives me such anxiety.

[19:06] Michael Longoria: I don't like to sit in the front because I'm like my neck ends up hurting but but yeah no I like to be in the back in the dark because I like to scream and like you know laugh out loud and get tickled with people's talent.

[19:16] Michael Longoria: Anytime I'm in the audience singing a friend, like I'm always like giggly because like talent makes you makes me just so happy, you know, like when I see somebody up there doing their thing, and um, so a lot of times I'll be like you're like, I'll be like chuckling because it's just like it tickles me to see somebody like being so great.

[19:34] Robert Bannon: Well, you're great, we love you. We thank you for being here. I can't wait for people to see this show and stream the music this holiday season.

[19:43] Michael Longoria: It's forever, Christmas music is forever.

[19:44] Robert Bannon: So every year, put it in the rotation.

[19:47] Michael Longoria: Yeah, please put this put the album on like Chris uh Merry Christmas Darling on your playlist. It'll be fun for you to listen to me, you know, belting out all these songs, you know.

[19:58] Michael Longoria: Up there, I was gonna say it's screaming, but I wasn't really romance.

[20:03] Michael Longoria: He's belting this album and therapy.

[20:07] Michael Longoria: You know, there was one a queen tell me once after after I did a song like I heard that scrouting, and I was like, How dare you? I was not screaming, but I probably was, or whatever it was.

[20:19] Michael Longoria: Well, and then you'll be scrouting in in Broadway's living room right there in the basement.

[20:24] Robert Bannon: Definitely there, there's a few moments where I'm like scrouting. There's some high falsetto moments that I'm doing.

[20:30] Michael Longoria: Um that I'm like, wait, why did I choose to do this? But uh, but no, it's you know, I feel like if I'm gonna go there, I should just go there, you know what I mean?

[20:39] Michael Longoria: Like, I go there with the Midtown Men, like anytime I'm on the Midtown shows, like I just I'm singing like crazy, crazy high. And I'm not I don't don't think twice about it.

[20:47] Robert Bannon: So, you know, there's gonna be a few moments like that in in this show.

[20:51] Michael Longoria: Well, my advice we're working, I've done six or seven shows with Yaz. He will never say no. So be as crazy and high and ridiculous of a request, and he will make it work.

[21:00] Michael Longoria: That's true. Well, I had I had caught him the other day. I was like, um, wait a minute, this is actually higher than we rehearsed last time.

[21:07] Michael Longoria: He's like, Oh, oh. I was like, I know that's what you're doing.