"Elton John & Brandi Carlile"

Summary

SmartLess Episode Summary: "Elton John & Brandi Carlile"

Release Date: March 31, 2025

Hosts: Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, Will Arnett

---

Introduction

In this special episode of SmartLess, hosts Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett are joined by two extraordinary guests: Sir Elton John and Brandi Carlile. This episode delves deep into their collaborative journey, personal anecdotes, and creative processes, offering listeners an intimate glimpse into the lives of these musical legends.

---

Guests' Background and Accomplishments

Elton John enters the conversation with an impressive list of accolades:

• Over 300 million records sold worldwide
• 26 Gold, 43 Platinum, and 2 Diamond certifications
• Six Grammy Awards, two Oscars, a Tony, and an Emmy (timestamp [06:08])
• Kennedy Center Honors and a Knighthood from the Queen for his HIV/AIDS advocacy
• Raised over $565 million for charitable causes

Brandi Carlile complements Elton with her own achievements:

• 11 Grammy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and an Oscar nomination
• New York Times Bestselling Author
• Recognized as one of music's most respected voices

Together, they have created a new album slated for release on April 4th, marking a significant milestone in their careers.

---

The Genesis of Their Collaboration

Elton John shares the heartfelt story of how their collaboration began. Having been a fan of Brandi's work for over two decades, he was eager to work with her professionally.

"I've always wanted to record with her. When the final tour stopped in Europe, I had already booked the studio in Los Angeles for October 23rd. Despite feeling doubtful and hesitant at first, Brandi's incredible talent inspired me to push through." ([11:10])

Brandi Carlile echoes this sentiment, expressing her longstanding admiration for Elton:

"I've loved Elton John and Bernie Taupin since I was 11 years old. Collaborating with Elton feels both mystical and beautifully natural." ([14:08])

---

Creative Process and Album Development

The hosts delve into the intricacies of creating an album with such iconic artists. Elton John recounts the challenging yet rewarding experience of writing and recording alongside Brandi:

"We wrote 14 songs in three weeks and completed the album in 10 weeks. It was one of the greatest creative experiences I've ever had." ([12:19])

However, the journey wasn't without its bumps. During the recording process, Elton experienced a moment of vulnerability while penning lyrics:

"When I got to the chorus, I just broke down for 45 minutes, and it was all on film." ([31:27])

Brandi adds:

"Witnessing Elton's raw emotion during that moment was profound. It showcased the deep human connection behind the music." ([31:49])

---

Personal Anecdotes and Friendship

The episode is rich with personal stories that highlight the genuine friendship between Elton and Brandi. Sean Hayes reminisces about the first time he met Brandi and later Elton, sharing amusing and heartfelt memories.

Will Arnett shares his encounter with Elton, emphasizing the down-to-earth nature of their interactions despite their fame.

"Seeing Elton play 'Rhapsody in Blue' solo on a grand piano was absolutely phenomenal." ([24:02])

Brandi recounts meeting Elton in Las Vegas, leading to a lifelong friendship:

"Elton's voice, his presence—meeting him was surreal. It felt destined to be a friendship that would last for years." ([20:14])

---

Album Highlights and Themes

The album, titled "Who Believes in Angels," is a testament to their combined talents and shared experiences. Both artists contributed solo tracks that encapsulate personal milestones:

• Elton's solo track delves into themes of mortality and legacy, reflecting his introspective journey.
• Brandi's solo song is a poignant reflection on her daughter growing up and the bittersweet emotions of letting go.

"Brandi's song about her eldest daughter captures that moment of pride and sadness perfectly." ([30:21])

---

Behind the Scenes and Emotional Moments

Throughout the recording process, Elton and Brandi's genuine interactions are candidly captured. The hosts discuss the emotional depth of their collaboration, highlighting moments of joy, frustration, and artistic triumph.

"Elton tore up a lyric in frustration, but Brandi's unwavering support helped mend the moment." ([12:28])

Brandi emphasizes the humanity captured on camera:

"Everyly our behavior is reflected in that footage. It's a wild ride that showcases our true selves." ([29:50])

---

Personal Lives and Shared Experiences

Beyond music, the conversation touches upon the personal lives of the guests. Elton speaks fondly of his family and annual gatherings in Nice, France, where they enjoy quality time together.

"Brandi's girls adore my boys. Their kids get along like a house on fire." ([38:21])

Brandi shares humorous yet touching stories about traveling with Elton and the challenges of parenting during these trips.

---

Reflections on Success and Creativity

The hosts explore the mindset behind such sustained success. Elton reflects on his rapid rise to fame and the subsequent loss of his original self, only to rediscover it through sobriety and meaningful relationships.

"The little boy inside me had vanished, but returning to that innocence has made my life incredible." ([44:08])

Brandi discusses the importance of maintaining her creative instincts and the joy of realizing a childhood dream by collaborating with Elton.

---

Conclusion

As the episode winds down, the hosts express their gratitude towards Elton and Brandi, celebrating their monumental achievements and the profound friendship that underpins their collaboration. The heartfelt goodbyes underscore the lasting bonds formed through shared creativity and mutual respect.

"Your time and expertise are valuable. Thank you both for joining us today." ([48:13])

Elton and Brandi leave listeners with a sense of inspiration, highlighting the power of collaboration, authentic relationships, and unwavering passion for one's craft.

---

Notable Quotes

• Elton John:

  "It's probably one of the greatest creative experiences I've ever had." ([12:19])

• Brandi Carlile:

  "Collaborating with Elton feels both mystical and beautifully natural." ([14:08])

• Sean Hayes:

  "One of the hardest parts about B2B marketing is reaching the right audience." (Note: Likely an ad snippet; to be skipped as per instructions)

• Elton John:

  "The little boy inside me had vanished, but returning to that innocence has made my life incredible." ([44:08])

• Brandi Carlile:

  "Everyly our behavior is reflected in that footage. It's a wild ride that showcases our true selves." ([29:50])

---

Final Thoughts

This episode of SmartLess offers a rare and intimate look into the lives of Sir Elton John and Brandi Carlile, celebrating their musical genius and enduring friendship. Through candid conversations and heartfelt stories, listeners gain a deeper appreciation for the artistry and humanity that define these two remarkable artists.

Transcript

[Brandi Carlile]

This episode is supported by FX's Dying for Sex, starring Michelle Williams and Jenny Slate. Inspired by a true story, this series.

[Sean Hayes]

Follows Molly who after receiving a terminal.

[Brandi Carlile]

Cancer diagnosis, decides to leave her husband and explore the full breadth of her sexual desires. She gets the courage and support to go on this sex quest from her best friend Nikki, who stays by her side through it all. FX is dying for sex. All episodes streaming April 4th on Hulu.

[Sean Hayes]

Life these days moves at lightning speed, but we all need a moment to recharge for what's ahead. That's where the all new Nissan Murano comes in. The ultimate space to catch your breath and re energize. With available features like massaging leather appointed seats, a panoramic moonroof, a Bose premium sound system and ambient lighting, the Murano is thoughtfully designed to be your personal sanctuary, readying you for whatever the day brings. Because sometimes the greatest rush is is not rushing at all. Discover it [e-mail] Features listed are available upgrades.

[Jason Bateman]

Whether you're listening to Smartless at double speed or regular speed, you'd probably love.

[Sir Elton John]

To know how you can get more.

[Jason Bateman]

Cash back on your credit card. Either way, we'll slow things down a.

[Sir Elton John]

Bit so you don't miss anything.

[Jason Bateman]

Discover automatically doubles all the cash back.

[Sir Elton John]

You'Ve earned on your credit card at.

[Jason Bateman]

The end of your first year. With cash back match, that means with Discover, you could turn 100 cash back to $300. It pays to Discover. See [e-mail] credit card.

[Sean Hayes]

Hi, Sean. No, you're Scotty. Oh, hi, Scotty. How are you today? I was wondering if you would stick around and listen to Smartless. Welcome to Smartless. That was very good.

[Sir Elton John]

Smart.

[Will Arnett]

Smart, smart.

[Sean Hayes]

Less.

[Jason Bateman]

Good morning.

[Sean Hayes]

Good morning, everybody. Hi. Hi.

[Jason Bateman]

Great.

[Will Arnett]

Sean, you all packed? Sean, you all packed?

[Sean Hayes]

I was just going to say I just finished packing. I hate packing.

[Jason Bateman]

Sean. Yes? You're going to England.

[Sean Hayes]

I'm going to England. Yes. The United Kingdom.

[Jason Bateman]

Yes.

[Sean Hayes]

What else?

[Jason Bateman]

To work on. To work on a fantastic new project. Do you want to talk about it?

[Sean Hayes]

No. I mean, it's a little fun. Cameo in a movie called the Running man with our friend.

[Will Arnett]

Edgar Wright is directing.

[Sean Hayes]

Edgar Wright is directing. We should have him on the show, by the way, the great.

[Will Arnett]

I know we should. I've wanted to for a while and he's a fan. He's a big fan of the show.

[Sean Hayes]

I know he loves. Yeah, we love him too.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, he's going to be busy for a little while now, right?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, he's been. They've been shooting already. For a while, he. For Tracy. Edgar Wright directed Shaun of the Dead. Hot Fuzz, Baby Driver. Tons of great movies.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, tons.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

Really good filmmaker.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, he's a very good filmmaker.

[Sean Hayes]

And a good guy.

[Will Arnett]

And a good guy.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah. But I packed my sanitizer because I'm, like, chasing a little bit where I. I have the sanitizer wiped, so I wipe down the seats before I sit down, and I wipe down all.

[Jason Bateman]

Do you really?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Jason Bateman]

I see.

[Will Arnett]

Don't you pass.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah. Like, what are you talking about?

[Jason Bateman]

I would feel embarrassed that I'm making such a big. Like, do you try to sneak that at all?

[Will Arnett]

Now you're embarrassed. This is the line.

[Sean Hayes]

I don't put music on with arrows pointing at me. Like, look, as I, you know, I do it like.

[Jason Bateman]

What about theater seats? When you're at a movie theater, do you do that as well, or do you. I wear a hoodie like this.

[Sean Hayes]

I do. I do. But I do bring sanitizer to a movie theater.

[Jason Bateman]

And for the armrests, for the.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, but I don't wipe the seats, and I just make sure I don't touch them all.

[Will Arnett]

You guys are what's wrong with this country.

[Jason Bateman]

But. But here's truly, truly.

[Will Arnett]

I truly mean that. I do. Sincerely. And I love you.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, that's the problem in this country. But, Will, don't you see? Because my brain goes immediately, too. So the backrest of. Of theater seats or plain seats, you lean against it, and then you go right to your pillow, Right? So you lean back on your pillow at home in your bed, and then eventually you flip over onto your side or your face and your mouth's open, and you're like, what are you talking about?

[Sean Hayes]

I don't go from the connection. I don't go from seeing a movie to laying down.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, you do eventually. At the end of the night, you go home from the theater, you put on your little PJs, and then you climb into bed.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, but it's time for the germs to get away.

[Jason Bateman]

But the germs don't die that quick. I think they last longer. Don't they?

[Will Arnett]

I don't know. I rely on something called my immune system. And people have, you know, doing this and living forever.

[Jason Bateman]

What if you're smelling somebody's hair gel?

[Will Arnett]

You know, my grandparents lived into their. Well, into their 90s. My great grandmother, over a hundred, and they never owned a bottle of sanitizer. They didn't do any of this.

[Sean Hayes]

They should have.

[Will Arnett]

So, like. Yeah, they should have.

[Jason Bateman]

You're right. You're right. You're right.

[Will Arnett]

Long healthy lives. And they didn't, they didn't obsess about it.

[Jason Bateman]

I know. It's just a gross factor. I wish I could not think about it because I don't think I'm getting sick. I just think I'm preoccupied with gross thoughts.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, I know, I know.

[Jason Bateman]

Any other coffee chatter? Should we get to our guests?

[Sean Hayes]

We should get to our guests. I. I was. No. I could talk about the airplane travel thing, but no, let's go.

[Jason Bateman]

Okay. And I don't know if you heard it, but I did have an S on the end of that. Yes, guys, today it's a special treat. It's two for Tuesday.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, wow. We didn't even have to pay.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, yeah. We're gonna double the pleasure, double the fun. Because we've. We've got not. Not just the one guest, we've got the two. And when I say two, it's kind of more like 10 because of their combined accomplishments.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, okay.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

On one side, he has sold more than 300 million records worldwide. Okay. Has 26 golds, 43 platinum, 2 diamond. I gotta ask him what those are.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah. What's a diamond?

[Jason Bateman]

He's also received six Grammys, two Oscars, a Tony and yes, an Emmy to join the elite group of EGOT winners. He's a Kennedy center honor. He's got honoree honoree. He's received the French Legion of Honor and a knighthood from the queen for HIV AIDS. He's raised more than $565 million. Not to be outdone, she is one of music's most respected voices, receiving 11 Grammy Awards, two Emmy Awards, an Oscar nomination, new York Times best selling author. They've combined their superpowers to create a new album. With a birthday of April 4th, they're here to talk about that and their incredible lives. I'm very excited and honored to introduce Brandi Carlisle and Sir Elton John. Can you believe it?

[Sean Hayes]

Terrific.

[Will Arnett]

Absolutely terrific.

[Jason Bateman]

Good morning to you, Bozie.

[Sir Elton John]

Hi, guys.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, hello, guys. Can you believe this?

[Sean Hayes]

This is pretty cool. This is really cool.

[Will Arnett]

Insane.

[Sean Hayes]

And it's dark. So you must be in London.

[Sir Elton John]

Well, Windsor. Yeah. Outside of London. Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Okay. Sorry. Yeah, I'm from Glen Ellen, which is outside of Chicago.

[Will Arnett]

It means nothing to Sean.

[Jason Bateman]

Nothing. Sean. And you're together too? This is. I. I'm. I'm. Are you got. What are you. What are you both doing right now? This is in conjunction with promoting the album that you're together.

[Sir Elton John]

It is in conjunction with promoting the album. So yeah, that's why we're talking to you guys. We're promoting and flouting.

[Sean Hayes]

This is so cool for us, you guys. This is really cool.

[Sir Elton John]

Thank you.

[Sean Hayes]

Huge fans of.

[Sir Elton John]

But like, to say hello to Sean, who I haven't seen for years.

[Sean Hayes]

I know. How are you, my. My friend? I. I know. I haven't seen you in such a long time.

[Sir Elton John]

I know, Sean.

[Jason Bateman]

You're hermoney.

[Sean Hayes]

I do owe him a little bit of money and a little bit of a good time.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, he was a rent boy when I knew him.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, well, he's a lease boy now, so.

[Sean Hayes]

By the way, it's still the same price. Yeah. Wow. Wow. Now, wait, I have a great. This is so kooky. So, Brandi, you know, I'm gonna tell this story. When I first met you, okay? So this is embarrassing for me. So we were at a fundraiser, and we got sat next to each other, me and Scotty and you and your wife. And I sat there and like an idiot, I go. And we were laughing and having a good time. I go, I'm so sorry. I'm an idiot. What do you do? And you. And you said, I'm in the music business. I'm like, oh, okay, cool. And then you introduce you to your wife, who's also lovely, and we had a great night. And then the next day, I go to this meeting at, like, I don't know, Warner Brothers or something. And it's in a high rise, and I look out the window and the size of a building is a billboard with your face on it. And I'm like, I just sat next to her last night at dinner and had no idea.

[Will Arnett]

I had no idea.

[Sean Hayes]

Now, of course I listen to all your stuff. I, like, went bananas on you after that.

[Brandi Carlile]

I've done lots of things. I've been a roofing laborer, a barista, a grocery store worker. I'm lots of things.

[Will Arnett]

Are those things true?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Randy?

[Brandi Carlile]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

What kind of barista were you? Were you. Were you good at the barista ing? I always think I would be awful at that.

[Brandi Carlile]

Well, it's all about tips. It's all about tips. So I was great.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Are you good? Are you good working for the tips? I've always secretly had a fantasy to be a waiter just so I could work each table to figure out what they need me to be to get the best tip. Like separate audiences, you know?

[Sean Hayes]

Jesus.

[Brandi Carlile]

Yeah, we know.

[Jason Bateman]

You were great at that.

[Brandi Carlile]

Yeah, we know how to do this in the music business, in the entertainment industry. We know how to chameleon.

[Sean Hayes]

I never understood why, because I worked at a restaurant, why we all have to combine our tips and then you split. Did you ever work in one of those places where you put all. Everybody pools their tips and then you split them?

[Jason Bateman]

Is that really the way it works?

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, it worked when I was a waiter.

[Will Arnett]

It was awesome. My obsession is watching Jason when people describe real world jobs because. And God bless you and I love you, Jason, but. But you've never. He grew up in the show business. He's been an actor since he was a kid. And he's never had a real world. Right, Jason, you've never had a real job.

[Jason Bateman]

Will, have you ever had a job where you get tips?

[Will Arnett]

Fuck no. But I'm saying the point is, I have had. I have had real world jobs, though, so I dug trenches.

[Jason Bateman]

I know, I know. All right, you guys, you two, let's talk about who believes in angels. This is your new album. What about the concept for the album? How did that come about? Whose great idea was this to get who called who?

[Sir Elton John]

Well, I've been a fan of Brandy and a friend of Brandy's for over 20 years and her family.

[Jason Bateman]

Wow.

[Sir Elton John]

And I've been. I've always wanted to record with her. And I had the idea of making the album when the final tour stopped in Europe. I'd already booked the studio in Los Angeles for October 23rd. Yeah. And I wanted to desperately make a record with her. I've been a fan of hers for years. She's been a fan of mine. We included Bernie Torpen in the process, who's been my longtime lyricist, and Andrew Watt the producer. So there were four of us going into the studio with nothing but self doubt and hesitation and always for a good album. And I, when I got to the studio, I was really tired, I was grumpy, I was fairly lethargic. And for the first few days, it was the hard experience because I was not in a good place. I had so much self doubt wondering whether I could shift this album into the way I wanted it to be. And eventually after they put, we filmed every song being written, take being recorded, so my behavior is there for all to see. And after the first trailer, after the first five, after the first five days, it suddenly clicked and people were really supportive of me and my behavior and they taught me around and I felt in a good place. And then we just roared. We wrote 14 songs in three weeks and 10 weeks. Oh my God made the album. And we started with nothing. So it was probably one of the Greatest creative experiences I've ever had. And she is a machine. She is so incredibly inspiring. I mean, her vocals, she never does a bad vocal. Her phrasing, which I had to harmonize to, was so difficult for me that I actually tore the lyric up and told her to fuck off.

[Brandi Carlile]

Nightmare.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, nightmare.

[Will Arnett]

Really?

[Sean Hayes]

You just were like, I'm not doing that. No, I'm not doing that.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah. Yeah. And then after I tore it up, we had to get it stuck back together again because I was being such an idiot.

[Jason Bateman]

Wait, is that typically the way that it works? You show up in a studio and you've got nothing, and you start to come up with either melodies or lyrics or whichever strikes you first?

[Sir Elton John]

No, you go there with some things written. Sometimes Brandy does that. She goes in and I sometimes go into the studio with. I've had a couple of ideas, but mostly recently, I've just write in the studio, but.

[Sean Hayes]

And are all the songs duets or are there some solos on the album? Is every song a duet?

[Sir Elton John]

That is 10 tracks. So we did, like, an album. Side one finishes with Brandy's solo song. Side two finishes with my solo song.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, that's nice.

[Sir Elton John]

Let Brandy talk a bit.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, well, I mean, Brandi, I wanted to say, you know, hi. First of all, I haven't seen you in a long time.

[Brandi Carlile]

Hi, Will.

[Will Arnett]

Last time. Hi, how are you? And last time I saw you, you were. You sang beautifully at Jimmy's memorial tribute concert at the bowl, which was just amazing. It was so incredible. Yeah. Jimmy the Great Jimmy Buffet, who was friend of ours, and our mutual friend Jane and Brandy, what is it like? I mean, you're such an accomplished singer, songwriter. You've done it all. You're an incredible performer. But when you get a call, and I know you, you guys, you. You've been friends with Sir Elton John for, as he said, 20 years. But when you get a call from Sir Elton John saying, let's. Let's make a record, that must be at risk of embarrassing you. Sir Elton John. What is that like when you get that call, when. When that comes through, like, hey, we're going to make a record.

[Brandi Carlile]

It was. If he didn't always do what he says he's gonna do, I wouldn't have believed it, but he does. And he was coming off of that massive tour, Dodger Stadium, Glastonbury, just like, really highlight moments, like, in anyone's life. And he was coming out of this with all this adrenaline, and I thought, well, he's not gonna do it. You know, he says he's saying it, but does he mean it? You know? And the thing you guys gotta understand is I have loved Elton John and Bernie Taupin since I was 11 years old. They're the only reason I ever wrote a song or touched an instrument. Yeah, same. And so it feels really mystical and bizarrely beautiful that at this point in my life, that this is what's happened to me and Elton in our relationship. But also, it kind of makes sense. And that's more than I can explain, but it's also more than I could have asked for.

[Jason Bateman]

Was it a difficult thing to allow yourself, Brandi, to let all your creative instincts flow? Flow as freely as I imagine they flow? When you're working by yourself, when you're collaborating with somebody that's such a hero to you, were you able to sort of, like, let that barrier drop down and let all the instincts fly?

[Brandi Carlile]

Not for a long time. I mean, imagine that. You know, like, think how that could have gone. It was like an existential crisis for me. It could have gone really wrong. Like, that first time I put a lyric down in front of Elton John. What if he hadn't have been able to write a song to it?

[Sean Hayes]

Right.

[Sir Elton John]

She's so inspiring, and she's so. You know, I was inspired by her. I've always been inspired by her voice and her writing, but her musicianship and I think we both inspired each other. That was the whole point of doing the record. To have what we have as artists and then, you know, put it on the other person. And she's quick. I mean, she's really quick. And she does a vocal in, like, one take.

[Jason Bateman]

You're both able to do so many different types of songs. Well, so many different sounds and genres and rhythms. Was it. Was there much communication about what type of sound and tone the film or not the film. Sorry. That the album would have. Whether it would have a rock feel, a country feel, a ballad feel. Was there any discussion about that?

[Brandi Carlile]

It was all down to. Elton had this vision. It was like, at first he was like, okay. He was trying to conceptualize what it would be. And he goes, okay, we're gonna be like Robert Platt and Alison Krauss. And then he would call me a week later and go, no, no, no, it's the Eurythmics. And then he would call me a week later and go, no, it's Buddy Holly and Patsy Cline. And then one day he just called me and he said, no, it's gonna be us. Let's have it. Just be us. But we're not gonna do anything anybody expects from us. And then I love that the vision just came clear.

[Sir Elton John]

And years ago I bought an electric guitar because I wanted to push her and nudge her to play electric and get out there and rock a little more. And there's a great side of her that I could see that wasn't coming out. And she, you know, she's growing, she loves all sorts of music and she's broken. Listen, she sang Joni Mitchell's entire Blue Album at Disney hall without a teleprompter, which takes balls of fucking steel, I tell you.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Sir Elton John]

And so she's got big, big balls, I tell you.

[Jason Bateman]

Title for the album.

[Sir Elton John]

The unfortunate thing is she breaks wind a lot, but that's okay.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah. No, believe me. Yeah, yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

It's all in the outtakes, right? And we will be right back.

[Sean Hayes]

One of the hardest parts about B2B marketing is reaching the right audience. You put so much effort into a campaign only for it to get wasted on the wrong people. It's like trying to sell a data farm to a dairy farmer. That's where LinkedIn ads come in. Fortunately, LinkedIn is a network of over 1 billion business Y people who might actually be interested in your business. You can even target your buyers by job title, industry, company role, seniority, skills or company revenue. So stop wasting budget on the wrong audience and start targeting the right professionals with LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn will even give you a hundred dollar credit on your next campaign, so you can try it yourself. Just go to LinkedIn.com smartless that's LinkedIn.com smartless Terms and conditions apply only on LinkedIn ads. Hey guys, you want to know an easy genius hack to improve your life? Eat more Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Sure, there are countless life coaches, gurus and thought leaders out there, but none of them are sharing this simple secret. Eating a Reese's Peanut Butter cup brings a burst of joy to your day. They've got the perfect ratio of sweet chocolate to salty peanut butter that's sure to satisfy. And there's no wrong way to eat one. It's all about whatever makes you happy. I should speak right? I love them. Shop Reese's Peanut Butter Cups now at a store near you found Wherever candy is sold, Vuori makes performance apparel that is designed to work out in but doesn't look or feel like it. So you can even wear Vuori while relaxing at home or running errands. Check out the Ponto Performance Jogger, part of Vuori's dream knit collection, the Ponto Performance Jogger is super soft and lightweight with four way performance stretch. Perfect for stretching and lounging. I love the Ponto Performance Jogger. I wear it around the house. I wear it to go work out in, and then after I work out, I usually run some errands and I'm out and about and confident in my Ponto performance Jogger. It's awesome. Viori is an investment in your happiness for our listeners. They're offering 20% off your first purchase and free shipping on any US orders over $75 and free returns. Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on The Planet at viori.com smartless that's V-U-O-R-I.com smartless exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions. And now back to the show.

[Jason Bateman]

How did you both first meet?

[Sir Elton John]

She wrote me a letter and I was aware of her music. I was in Las Vegas doing one of my residences, and she said, would you ever consider playing on a song of mine? And. And I wrote back and said. Or phoned her. She put a phone number and I said, hey, yeah, if you can come to Vegas, because I'm stuck here, we can do something together. And she came. And before I even sat at the piano, I fell in love with her. It was like it was destined to be a friendship that, you know, it's lasted for years and years and years and gotten better. And it was. I love that it was just a happenstance or whatever. It was serendipity.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah. You know what I have to say, when I met you, Brandi, too, I just immediately fell in love with, like, you are those personalities and people that just are so lovely and filled with light and love and confidence. Took me a minute.

[Will Arnett]

Took me a minute.

[Sean Hayes]

Took a minute. Took a minute.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. And I'm not sure.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah, it took me a minute. I had to warm up to her.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, I did. I really just did.

[Sir Elton John]

And she. And she's creative as hell. That's what I love.

[Will Arnett]

No kidding.

[Brandi Carlile]

It was wild. Like going to see Elton in Vegas. I remember coming down that long hallway and I could hear his voice, speaking voice before I saw him. And I had spent so much time as a kid growing up with Live in Melbourne and tantrums and tiaras and all of his interviews. And it was his voice. And I was like, oh, my God, I'm gonna come around the corner in a minute and Elton John is gonna be sitting there.

[Sir Elton John]

And it was chill and a huge ball gown and a tiara and huge high heels.

[Will Arnett]

In a Tracksuit.

[Brandi Carlile]

But there was a lot of pink. There was a lot of pink.

[Will Arnett]

About 25, maybe 30 years ago, I was in Los Angeles, young, unemployed, or barely employed actor, and I was at a restaurant in Beverly Hills. I don't know why. And Sir Elton John, you came in and you sat at a table with a friend, and then you had, like, a security guy with you at a table next to you. And the phone rang his phone, and he took the call, handed it to you. You spoke on the phone for like, 30 seconds and handed back to the guy. And I thought, that's what I want. I want a guy sitting at a table behind me. He feels the call.

[Sean Hayes]

But were there songs on the. Or there's songs on the album, by the way, when you're doing that, when you're collaborating like that, isn't it difficult to come up with, like, a lyric or a melody or whatever, and through discussion, have to get rid of something that you love so much? Like, how do you get.

[Brandi Carlile]

There's no discussion. If Elton doesn't like it, he just yells, cut the line, and it's gone.

[Sean Hayes]

Really?

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, but it was very easy. There wasn't anything I didn't like. All the 10 songs that we chose were the obvious songs, and the rest, they're okay. The 10 that we had were fantastic. So. No, I mean. No, I would never say that. I mean, all the songs she gave to me were amazing.

[Brandi Carlile]

He makes decisions very, very quickly. It's not really even to be thought about, so there's no time to really stew in your kind of artistic, you know, whatever. He just happens very quickly. He's a quick, quick songwriter.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

And there'll be no touring of this, Right? Cause there's no more touring for you.

[Will Arnett]

Correct.

[Jason Bateman]

Sir Elton John.

[Sir Elton John]

There's no more touring for me, and I'm very happy about that.

[Jason Bateman]

Now. What about. Well, you've. You've, you've, you've. You've done it. Thank you very much for all your. All your shows. My God, I went to one of the shows on this last tour. It's incredible. What about, what about videos? Do folks make videos still? Right.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, we've made a video. We've made a video for this, and it's really great. David lachapelle did the video. He did the album. Steve. Yeah, of course we'll do videos, and of course we'll do some TVs, and we may even do, you know, play on a TV show.

[Sean Hayes]

But I love that.

[Sir Elton John]

And, Sean, how's your piano playing coming along?

[Sean Hayes]

It's going okay. It's going okay.

[Jason Bateman]

One of my Tony.

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. He won a Tony?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Sir Elton John]

He's a play on Broadway.

[Jason Bateman]

Incredible.

[Will Arnett]

He played. He did a Goodnight Oscar at the Tabasco Theater, which won him at Tony last year.

[Sean Hayes]

What a show.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, baby.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, he did. He plays Rhapsody in Blue all by himself on a grand. Right there, middle of the stage.

[Will Arnett]

We've told this story before, so forgive us, and to our audience, forgive us, but Jason was sitting right in front, directly in front of me. We went opening night and it was as soon as that was over and Sean had played Rhapsody and Blue and everybody was cheering and Jason turned around, we both had tears in our eyes, and he said, our show's over.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. We can't make fun of Sean. Can't make fun of Shawn anymore.

[Will Arnett]

We can't make fun of Shawn anymore. It was so good.

[Sir Elton John]

It was really good.

[Sean Hayes]

And by the way. And that was fleeting because we're right back where we started.

[Sir Elton John]

I used to go around to Sean's house in Hancock park and used to play the piano there. It was fantastic.

[Sean Hayes]

This is the same house.

[Will Arnett]

It is. He's still there.

[Sir Elton John]

You're still there.

[Sean Hayes]

Still here. Yes. And then I. And then you. The.

[Will Arnett]

The.

[Sean Hayes]

I think the piano I had for a while was yours, and then I sold it for a bigger one.

[Will Arnett]

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. You had his piano?

[Sean Hayes]

I think so. Because Eric McCormick, who was on Will and Grace, he. Some, like, everybody was trading pianos or something. Somehow I ended up with Elton's. And then. And then I got a new one.

[Will Arnett]

Like a black market piano train. What's happening here amongst musicians and artists? What's going on?

[Sean Hayes]

Or one. Yeah, but. Yeah, you came over and played the music to Interview with a Vampire. I was blown away. You just sat down at my piano and started playing half the musical. And I was like, how can you do that? It's just.

[Will Arnett]

Wow.

[Brandi Carlile]

It was unbelievable to see that in real life.

[Sean Hayes]

Amazing.

[Sir Elton John]

What kind of piano do you have now?

[Sean Hayes]

Right now I have. Oh, my God, I'm so nervous. I can't remember. No. Bozendorfer.

[Sir Elton John]

Bosendorf. That's the best piano.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Sir Elton John]

Apart from. Yeah. Because you've got the extra notes down the end of it.

[Sean Hayes]

Yes, yes, yes.

[Jason Bateman]

Extra notes.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Really secret notes.

[Jason Bateman]

Secret notes.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

I'm dumber than I thought I was.

[Will Arnett]

Is it. Where is it made? Wait, what is the name of it? Bosendorfer German or.

[Sir Elton John]

You have a lovely Bosendorfer. If I had a dial.

[Will Arnett]

This one has extra secret keys.

[Sir Elton John]

This one has Three extra keys. It's longer.

[Will Arnett]

Of course we do.

[Sir Elton John]

Of course we'll wear.

[Will Arnett]

Of course we had extra keys. Wouldn't you like to know where they came from?

[Jason Bateman]

So, Brandy and Elton, you guys, you've been on stage together multiple times as is there. Has there been a favorite performance you guys have had together that you can think of?

[Brandi Carlile]

We haven't performed many times. We did Dodger Stadium.

[Sir Elton John]

Dodger Stadium has been my favorite. When she sang Don't Let the song Go down to me because she. Lady Gaga done it before and was incredible. And she wasn't available, so I asked Brandon. She was cheaper.

[Jason Bateman]

Much cheaper.

[Sir Elton John]

Cheaper. And. But she destroyed the song.

[Brandi Carlile]

Incredible.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Brandi Carlile]

The first time we actually sang together, though, I don't know if you remember this exact. The exact first time we actually ever sang together in real life was in Joni's living room. Joni Ridgewater on that country song.

[Sir Elton John]

Not many people can say that, can they?

[Will Arnett]

No. What is Sentence?

[Brandi Carlile]

It was an old country song that I've loved since I was a little kid called. You can tell your friend there with you. He'll have to go.

[Sir Elton John]

Yes, you'll have to go. Yeah. And Joanie sang Love Potion Number Nine and Summertime.

[Brandi Carlile]

Yeah.

[Sir Elton John]

And it was one of the most. Yes. And she. Music got Joanie back together again, as well as her physio. But this girl here on my left who used to instigate Joni jams, where people used to come up and you had to play. You all had to sing in front of Joni Mitchell, which is terrifying.

[Brandi Carlile]

That's a lot.

[Sir Elton John]

But it was one of the greatest things. And you'd have Herbie Hancock up there. You'd have Chaka Khan, you'd have Bonnie Raitt, you'd have you. No.

[Brandi Carlile]

You. Paul McCartney would come.

[Sir Elton John]

Paul McCartney?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah.

[Sir Elton John]

Harry Styles, Debbie Gibson.

[Will Arnett]

That's amazing. God. And you sang the whole Blue record, too. I mean, that's. What an incredible record that is.

[Sir Elton John]

Well, an incredible record. But she did it. I was sitting next to Joanie at Disney hall when she did it, and it was faultless. And I just said, you know, ball to steel. It's ridiculous. And without a teleprompter. I would never have done that without a teleprompter. And it was the most incredibly brave and courageous thing to do. And then she did it at Carnegie hall as well. It was phenomenal. And Joanie couldn't have been happier. She resuscitated Joanie.

[Sean Hayes]

I love that.

[Brandi Carlile]

Wow.

[Will Arnett]

Wait, you know, you bring up an interesting point. I've wondered that about the. About the teleprompters for lyrics and stuff. How common is that?

[Brandi Carlile]

On tour with musicians, it's getting more and more common. I started seeing it happen at all the tributes and stuff like that, but now I think it's just kind of a part of it because they look like monitors on stage, so you can't tell, you know? But I'm sure that it. It's interesting because a lot of musicians haven't figured out how to not look at them when they're performing, so I hate seeing that. But at the same time, it provides some spontaneity because then a musician can take a request out of the audience and actually play a song, right?

[Will Arnett]

Yeah. And they can just load it in. Jason uses a prompter when he goes to therapy. Isn't that right, J?

[Jason Bateman]

Hard to keep all the lies together.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Could you imagine?

[Sir Elton John]

I get the. I get requests from the audience. Can you play Piano Man? And I. Wrong guy.

[Sean Hayes]

No way.

[Sir Elton John]

Wrong Guy.

[Sean Hayes]

No.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah. Wrong.

[Sean Hayes]

No way. You do not have.

[Sir Elton John]

Someone asked me to play Piano man once. Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

No way.

[Sir Elton John]

I have played Piano man with Billy. Many, many, many, many.

[Brandi Carlile]

Security.

[Sir Elton John]

I couldn't play on my own.

[Sean Hayes]

Security.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, my God.

[Sean Hayes]

That is crazy.

[Jason Bateman]

Now, what are you. You say you filmed the entire recording process. What's gonna happen with that?

[Brandi Carlile]

But the crazy thing is, I never saw a camera. We don't know where they were. They were fixed. Little tiny things, so we fucking forgot about them constantly. And just our behavior is reflected in that, you know? It was a very strange concept. And I don't know, I think for that reason, it's like. It's a wild ride.

[Sir Elton John]

There's a song at the end of the album which is my solo song. Brandi has a solo song at the end of the side one about her daughter, her eldest daughter growing up and leaving. Tell her about it. It's just a beautiful song.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh.

[Brandi Carlile]

It's just. It's like. About that moment, like when you have kids, like, where it's like they depart you in some way even. It can even happen when they're young and you're so devastated and you're so proud at the same time, and you don't know which feeling to pick. It's about that.

[Jason Bateman]

I love that. You mean empty nesting kind of.

[Brandi Carlile]

But it can happen early on, too. Like the first time that they choose something you don't believe in or pick a record you don't like or decide to stay home on a trip when you wanted to.

[Sir Elton John]

Dependence.

[Brandi Carlile]

Yeah. Those moments are so sad. But also so he's so proud.

[Jason Bateman]

It's so true.

[Will Arnett]

My 4 year old this morning, it was kind of heartbreaking. My 4 year old said to me, he was just waking up and I was. He was kind of snuggled up against me and I was kissing his head, kissing his hair, and I was like, hi, buddy, good morning. Morning. And then he just. His eyes weren't even open and he just goes, no more kissing.

[Brandi Carlile]

That's what I'm talking about.

[Will Arnett]

And I was like. I was like, wow, okay.

[Sean Hayes]

All right. God, that sounds like a long marriage.

[Sir Elton John]

I wrote a song. I wrote a song at the end of the album and I just get the lyrics and I'm just too burden torping lyrics called when this Old World is Done With Me. And so I'm writing the verse like, oh, this is really pretty. And then I get to the chorus and of course it's about my death.

[Jason Bateman]

Thanks, Bernie.

[Sir Elton John]

And when you get to my age, which is near 100, you think I have. How much time have I got left? And you've got. You got children, you got a wonderful husband. You just think about mortality. And so when I got to the chorus, I just broke down for 45 minutes and it all on film.

[Brandi Carlile]

Cried hard.

[Will Arnett]

Oh, wow.

[Sir Elton John]

And we just.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah, I got it.

[Jason Bateman]

Wait, when do we. So what do we see with this footage?

[Brandi Carlile]

I think I want everybody to see it. Cause it's so. It's really human. Like deeply flawed and embarrassing. And the kind of shit that you do when you forget that there is a camera on is what's really interesting. But that moment, I got to be in there and I witnessed that moment because when we were making the record, I would sit behind him when he was writing his melodies and try to, like, remember some of the ones that were really hitting me hard. And I was recording him on the melody of this song because I thought, okay, well, I want to remember this melody so that in case he moves on to another one, he can remember how good it was. And he got to the end of that chorus and his voice started to shake. And I thought, oh, he's going. Like, he's going to really go. And he went into a real moment of.

[Sir Elton John]

And she came over and she said, don't worry, you've got at least another six months.

[Sean Hayes]

That's great. That's great.

[Jason Bateman]

Hold on. Through promotion.

[Will Arnett]

The worst part is she was looking at an app that was telling you real time when it was gonna happen. That was scary.

[Sir Elton John]

And I said, no, you're not in the will.

[Sean Hayes]

That's hilarious.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, needless to say, not to be maudlin, and we can push past this afterwards in the sort of the plan of using all your years as well as you possibly could. Sir Elton John, my goodness, what an enormous list of accomplishments you've done thus far with plenty of time left.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, plenty of time left.

[Jason Bateman]

You've contributed for three lifetimes. So thank you. Rest assured.

[Sir Elton John]

And this is by. Leave me. This is one of my biggest accomplishments. With her accomplishments.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, we cannot wait to listen to it.

[Will Arnett]

Do you have. Sir Ellen, can I just ask you quickly, if you don't mind, when you and Brandi alluded to it before, you being such a sort of a hero of hers, you know, musically and inspiration. And, Sean, you too, also, as a musician, when you. And you have been such a. Your music is such a big part of all of our lives for so long and in ways that we don't even know. Like, you've just. You really sort of weaved right into the fabric of. Of all of our lives. Do you have moments when you're moving through the world? You're in a. You're. You're somewhere and your song comes on. You're in a car, you're in a restaurant, you're in a shop, you're somewhere. How does it strike you when you hear your music, especially stuff that was. That was from a long time ago. What are those moments like hearing your music?

[Sir Elton John]

It's great. I don't listen to my stuff very often. I don't listen to radio very often. But when you're in an elevator and you think, what the fuck is that? And it's Daniel, you feel very proud. Yeah, no, I do. You know, I don't listen to my stuff, but I'm very proud of what we've written, and I love to hear it, as long as it's not being played by myself. But it's. Yeah. I've done so much in my life, and, yeah, there's so much more to do. And she's inspired me to go ahead with this record, and I think this is the best record I made in 40 years. So there you go.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, wow.

[Will Arnett]

I love that, by the way. I'm glad you mentioned Daniel. I think that probably a thousand times in my life, I've made the stew. Anytime I've met somebody named Daniel, I always. They say, Daniel. Say Daniel, my brother. You are older than me every single time.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, for sure.

[Jason Bateman]

We'll be right back.

[Sean Hayes]

Your time and expertise are valuable. I know that. And with professionals spending nearly half the work week on written communication. Focus is one of the most important things to have at work. With Grammarly as your AI writing partner, you can stay focused and get through your work faster with relevant real time suggestions. Wherever you write, Grammarly helps with any writing from brainstorming to sounding more confident and persuasive at work. With 90% of professionals saying it has saved them time writing and editing their work. Speed through the drafting and editing process while staying on task with context aware suggestions across more than 500,000 apps and websites, Grammarly has already helped me tremendously with work emails. I just get a lot more done quicker with the advice that they offer and the suggestions that they offer. I just feel more confident in hitting send when I'm done with the email. Really, really great. Get more done with Grammarly. Download Grammarly for [e-mail] podcast that's Grammarly.com podcast hey guys, you want to know an easy genius hack to improve your life? Eat More Reese's Peanut Butter Cups sure, there are countless life coaches, gurus and thought leaders out there, but none of them are sharing this simple secret. Eating a Reese's Peanut Butter cup brings a burst of joy to your day. They've got the perfect ratio of sweet chocolate to salty peanut butter that's sure to satisfy. And there's no wrong way to eat one. It's all about whatever makes you happy. I should speak, right? I love them. Shop Reese's Peanut Butter Cups now at a store near you found wherever candy is sold. Are you looking to take control of your health? One way to do that is to check Goodrx and finally stop overpaying for your prescription medications. With Goodrx you can find big savings on your prescriptions for everything from cold and flu medications to remedies for your allergies and so much more. GoodRx is free and easy to use. Just search for any prescription on their website or app, get your coupon and show it to the pharmacist. Check GoodRx to save up to 80% at pharmacies near you, including Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Publix, Albertsons, Kroger, and many more. Remember, GoodRx works whether you have insurance or not. And even if you have insurance, GoodRx could beat your co. Pay price. For simple smart savings on your everyday prescriptions, check goodrx go to goodrx.com smartlist that's goodrx.com smartless and back to the show.

[Jason Bateman]

So you guys have your friendship is did you say it's 20 years? You guys have been buddies over than that. Is that right?

[Brandi Carlile]

Somewhere around that.

[Sir Elton John]

No, over than that.

[Brandi Carlile]

Maybe more than that. Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

My goodness.

[Sir Elton John]

Because that was. I was in Vegas.

[Brandi Carlile]

Yeah, you were in Vegas, and we had kind of. Yeah. So I thought that.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

Do your kids know each other?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, you must. Yeah. You guys go on vacations all the time together.

[Sir Elton John]

They come to. We have a house in Nice in the south of France, and Brandy, Catherine and the girls come down every summer and we have the time of our lives.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, my God, I love that.

[Sean Hayes]

I love that.

[Will Arnett]

I stayed in a house. I stayed in a house right close to your house. Sir Elton John. A couple years ago, I was working on a job for like six months and this French caretaker of this house kept saying, that is Sir Elton John's house right there. I didn't ring the bell.

[Jason Bateman]

What about. Do either one of you need any parenting tips from the other person? How does that go? Do the kids get along?

[Sir Elton John]

Kids love each other.

[Brandi Carlile]

Kids really do.

[Sir Elton John]

I mean, my boys are a little older than Brandi's girls, but my boys are really good with children. And Zachary's not here at the moment. He's at school, but Elijah's here and he just loves playing with the girls. There's no problem with that. They get on like a house on fire. And Brandy's girls, Brandy and Catherine's girls, I should say, are absolute angels. I mean, they're just beautiful girls.

[Brandi Carlile]

The first time I went to go visit David and Elton in France with Catherine and my girlfriend, we landed and we went downstairs at this table, this beautifully adorned table for breakfast. I mean, everything is like decked out. There's like designer napkins and it's like unbelievable. You wouldn't believe it. And I had a three year old at the time and she was at that table for three seconds before, without any warning, she projectile vomited all over the entire thing. He didn't even pretend it was okay. He was just like.

[Sean Hayes]

God damn it.

[Brandi Carlile]

But no, he and David were so sweet about it and they calmed our anxiety. But, I mean, I died a thousand deaths when that happened.

[Sir Elton John]

Poor little fan.

[Brandi Carlile]

You remember that?

[Sean Hayes]

Wait, you know Elton. You know, I just. I go for walks a lot around my neighborhood, because you can. And I just put on this album that I bought when I think I was a senior in high school called Red Strikes Back.

[Brandi Carlile]

Oh, yeah.

[Sean Hayes]

It's one of my favorite albums you ever did.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, thank you.

[Sean Hayes]

One of my favorite songs. No, I never hear it anywhere. It's so perfectly written as the Heavy Traffic song.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, yeah. Thank you.

[Sean Hayes]

I mean, that's like a massive, massive hit song. That was never. I don't know if it's ever been released as a single.

[Sir Elton John]

No, there was lots of songs on that album, Japanese Hands and stuff like that.

[Will Arnett]

Yes.

[Sean Hayes]

Japanese Hands is great, too.

[Sir Elton John]

There are lots of deep cuts. I mean, I've had a lot of hit singles, but the. Probably the best songs on the. Are the deep cuts.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. For sure. For sure. And, of course, Give up the Ghost is one of my favorite albums. I've.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Will Arnett]

Aw.

[Brandi Carlile]

Thank you.

[Sean Hayes]

It's true. It's true. One of my favorite albums.

[Jason Bateman]

So, Brandi, growing up in Washington, did you think that you would be at this. Did you allow yourself to sort of dream about where you sit now in the industry, the level of respect and accomplishment? And how did that. How did. Well, I guess just answer that one first. You know, did you allow yourself to dream this high?

[Brandi Carlile]

Yes. The nuanced things like respect or credibility or things I value so much now, I hadn't really fantasized about, but I would close my eyes and dream of myself on stage in Madison Square Garden. I would think of myself. Like, I would visualize myself winning a Grammy and thanking Elton Johnson. Before I ever met Elton John, I was like, oh, yeah. I pictured. I would get up on stage and think Elton John and the Indigo Girls. And I was like, maybe 13 years old. Like, visually, I love that. So I visualized a lot of what has happened, oddly. But. And I don't understand or profess to know why that is, but yes, I did allow myself to dream really big from that single wide mobile home.

[Sean Hayes]

I love that.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. I wonder if the visualization, if you feel, is a really important part of it. And I'd ask you the same, Sir Elton John, did you allow yourself to dream as big as. And for our listeners, can you speak about what that kind of big word nowadays is? Manifestation. I don't know if you guys subscribe to that, but having those goals and vision and belief in yourself, what size role did that play, do you think, in both of your successes?

[Sir Elton John]

I never imagined myself as a solo artist. When I was in my group, Bluesology, I took the big risk of going up to Liberty Records saying, I want to write songs. I'm so fed up with playing in a band that doesn't want to go anywhere. And I can sing, too. And so the guy, as you know, because Old Story, gave me the envelope with Bernie's lyrics in it. And then when we wrote songs, I had to Go out. And nothing was happening. I had to go out and play them live. So I had to form a band. And I really didn't have any visions of being Elton John superstar. It just happened very, very quickly. And so it was like. It was so exciting because I came to America and there was Neil diamond introducing me. There was Brian Wilson, there was Linda Ronstadt, there was Leon Russell. All those kind of people that were my heroes, and suddenly I was there. I mean, it took me a couple of years to establish myself all over America, but it was like I was a kid in a candy store. I never realized. Never really visualized Elton John being a big star. I never. It all happened by accident. It really happened by accident, which was lovely.

[Brandi Carlile]

I was wondering about that too.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. And I would imagine the preservation of your smaller image, your more human image, your younger image, I would imagine has been. Remains to be a very important part of not only your identity, but your ability to be creative and your ability to write and to constantly be connected to the person that the public does not know, the person who you started as. That's gotta be a big, important part for both of your careers. Yeah.

[Sir Elton John]

When I became successful very quickly, and this is in the documentary Never Too Late, I. We did so much work in five years and went to the. The pinnacle of fame in five years, and I lost the person that I was originally. And. And that was very hard for me. And it took me loads of years to get that back. And I got it back when I got sober, which is 35 years this year, hopefully. And so, yeah, it. That the little boy inside of me had vanished. And. But the little boy's come back, and everybody needs that little child inside them to keep them going. And unfortunately, I lost him, and it made me very unhappy and very depressed, but I still kept working. I still make. Kept making records and touring. And so the music kept me alive until I finally came to my senses. And now my life is incredible. I mean, I couldn't have a better life than I could. I wake up every morning, my children and David and my. You know, all the people that work for me are the nicest people in the world. I am the luckiest person in the world. I am blessed. So. Yeah. And that little boy is very happy.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, that's great. I love that.

[Jason Bateman]

And Brandy, I'm sure that little child in you stays vibrant and loud, and.

[Brandi Carlile]

She'S hanging out right now. She is like, riding shotgun. This is the. You know, I've always tried to kind of like, keep the young child and me like at bay long enough to do my job and get through the things that are important to me, you know. But for this one, I've just let that girl come to the surface. Totally. Because I'm getting to hang out with Elton John. That's so cool. That's an unbelievable realization of a dream. And it's really been like a life affirming thing, you know? And also that young version of yourself gets more. Gets clearer when you have kids too, you know, you're just like trying not to project onto them, but it's hard not to see a mini me sometimes.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah, I'm sure. I'm sure.

[Jason Bateman]

Oh, bet.

[Sean Hayes]

Well, God, you know, there's so, there's. I'm just looking at you two going. There's such an. Very, very, very small group of people in the world that have gifts they leave behind that will last forever. I mean, just for decades. Yeah. And to have a part of you live on in music is so rare that people, a lot of people try to achieve that level and they just don't. And so it's just incredible, incredible to see you guys and now together. It's great.

[Sir Elton John]

Thank you.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, thanks. Yeah, that's it. And now I'm gonna. And I'm gonna try drugs for the first time. Time. I'm kidding. I'm kidding.

[Will Arnett]

You've never tried drugs, right, Sean?

[Sean Hayes]

Me? No, I got, I would get stoned all the time, smoke pot constantly. And now I take gummies, which is nice, but I. The only hard thing I tried.

[Jason Bateman]

Right.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, they're legal. They're legal. But I would. I tried mushrooms once and it was just insane. I felt like I weighed 250 pounds and it was just awful. Awful. It was terrible.

[Sir Elton John]

250 pound mushroom. A film coming to you soon.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, it was terrible.

[Brandi Carlile]

You wish.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, that was awful. Yeah, that's it. Wow.

[Will Arnett]

And then what? And so, and then what's that? What's that process like? So now you're done. You've, you've, you've completed the record and it's, it's gonna come out and you're not gonna tour. Maybe you'll do a few dates, a few live dates and, or a show here or there. And then I. I guess it's not unlike, you know, for us, like working on a film and then you kind of go and you move on. And then it's like, it's hard to say goodbye. I'm sure when you make a. I mean, you're still friends obviously, but to that project, you do Something that's so intensely creative.

[Brandi Carlile]

We talk every day and we see each other every chance we get. We'll always be making music together as long as we can.

[Jason Bateman]

Wow, that's fantastic.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, I love that.

[Sir Elton John]

I let go.

[Jason Bateman]

What?

[Sean Hayes]

What's that?

[Brandi Carlile]

He said he ain't letting go.

[Will Arnett]

No.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, that's good. That's good.

[Jason Bateman]

Well, we can't thank you both enough for, for joining us.

[Will Arnett]

I mean, what a thrill.

[Jason Bateman]

And talking to us about your album. We really appreciate it.

[Sir Elton John]

Yeah, it's been a pleasure.

[Jason Bateman]

Thanks, fellas.

[Sean Hayes]

To you both. Yeah.

[Jason Bateman]

Continued success to you both. And specifically with this album, we're really rooting for your to do with. Think of something to do with that footage. Please put it together so we can all get that privileged view into the process.

[Sir Elton John]

Oh, well, I hope we meet each other soon so we can give each other a big hug. And Sean, I do miss you. I love you very much. Okay.

[Sean Hayes]

I miss you too, honey. I love you too. Thanks. It's good to see you.

[Jason Bateman]

Thanks you guys so much. Enjoy the rest of your day.

[Brandi Carlile]

Bye.

[Jason Bateman]

Bye. Bye.

[Sean Hayes]

Jason, how in the world, I mean, did you, how did you, quote, land them?

[Jason Bateman]

That's. I, I, I'm reminded the same question I asked you after we had Sir Paul McCartney on the show. How did you land. And you said it was an incoming. This was an incoming.

[Sean Hayes]

Oh, wow.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. They're promoting that album and I guess they, they're doing a podcast and we were chosen, I suppose. I, I don't know. I didn't, I didn't, I didn' Just said, you know, there was a question as to, are we, how do we feel about doing, you know, double, Double guess, you know, which we've done a couple of times, but it's been rare.

[Will Arnett]

It's been musicians. It's been musicians. It was, it was Billy Eilish and her brother Phas and the Smile guys. Radiohead. Guys.

[Sean Hayes]

Radiohead. And then, and Tom York and then Arcade.

[Will Arnett]

Arcade Fire. Arcade Fire as well. But.

[Sir Elton John]

Right.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, it is odd that it hasn't just been music. Yeah. But yeah, it was really kind of just no doubt about it. Double barrel shotgun on the list.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, sure. That's just incredible. I mean, it's, I know I said it already, but it's like, I mean, it's, both of those guys have. Go ahead.

[Will Arnett]

Well, I was just. Sean, I was gonna. I'm looking at your face and first of all, you know that Elton John knows where you live and that he's been to your house and he's played on your Piano. But I just want. And you mention all the time, Glenn, Ellen and Il, Illinois, you know, to the point that we're all so sick of it. But did you. Is there. Is there for you the novelty as a kid growing up in Glen Ellen, Illinois, who loved music, who's sitting there with, you know, four siblings? No, dad. Is there part of you.

[Sean Hayes]

Go back, go back, go back, go back.

[Will Arnett]

No. What's that?

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah. No, I'm just trying to.

[Will Arnett]

I'm just trying to paint a picture. But it must be. For you, Sean, it must be mind blowing that it always is to Elton John.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah. It's all. It always is. And, you know, you. You, You. You kind of suppress it because you can't believe it. So you kind of stuff it down. Like you. Like.

[Jason Bateman]

I believe the sign off was by honey is what you called him. You said Sir Elton John, and you went with honey.

[Will Arnett]

You know where he gets that? You know where. You know where he developed that from? It's from Jimmy. You know, Burrows calls everybody honey one more time. You're like, I'll do the scene again. Stop calling me honey in front of the crew.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, it's such a habit now. I know everybody from Will and Grace calls everybody honey. But, yeah, no, he. Yes, exactly. Well, thank you for saying that. Yeah. But when people would come on Will and Grace, or I would. Like, Elton John was on Will and Grace or whatever it was, or whoever I meet in this business, I just filled with. Always filled with gratitude. When you wake up, that's where it all starts from. And if you're there, then everybody's on the same playing field. Right. Everybody's like, as much. That's me trying to suppress, like, oh, my God, it's fucking Elton John, you know? But you're like, wow, it's. Yeah. Anyway, it's my long answer.

[Will Arnett]

Well, it's a thrill to play. Like, I know JB's playing golf with Thomas Rhett today. Like, I know his whole schedule, you know, like, just to be able to play. Am I right?

[Jason Bateman]

You are right. You are right.

[Will Arnett]

He texted me during the show. He's such a great guy. And he said, hey, man, I wish you were playing today, because obviously you're not enough. And so. Which is. Which is. But I mean, honestly, even jb, you're not even a musician. You don't even know what music is for you. Elton John and Brandi must be a thrill.

[Jason Bateman]

I have to admit, I think I was more nervous for that than I can rem. I think I've probably been more Nervous for some of these, but I can't remember which one. I don't remember. It's been a while. Like, I've got tons and tons and tons of questions here, and I couldn't bring myself to ask any of them of either one of them. I just didn't know where to start.

[Sean Hayes]

What the hell to say. Right, because you want to do the Chris Farley thing where he interviews famous people. He's like, remember, like, you know when he did Paul McCartney? Remember when you were in the Beatles?

[Jason Bateman]

Both of them, too, with Brandy. It's just like, I'm just not sure what to say to people like that.

[Sean Hayes]

I wanted to ask him about every song. Like, how did you think of it and where did it come from?

[Jason Bateman]

And you just know, he's so old.

[Will Arnett]

Well, thank God you waited till he was gone again.

[Sean Hayes]

Well, but I wanted to be respectful of Brandy. I didn't want to just make it all about him and I wanted to, like, make it about the album.

[Will Arnett]

Brandy's Brandi gets it too. I mean, she's such an accomplished singer songwriter. She's amazing, honestly. That. That tribute for Jimmy Buffett last year she was on. She brough Shut the House Down. She was unbelievable.

[Jason Bateman]

Yeah, yeah, she was stunning.

[Sean Hayes]

And Give up the Ghost really is a great album. I love that.

[Jason Bateman]

Anyway, yeah, she's got incredible presence. I. I had no idea, though, that they were such close friends and that they vacationed together for 20 years. They've been buddies.

[Sean Hayes]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know what?

[Will Arnett]

Listen, I think there's only thing, one thing that I can say. Having them here today. Yeah, Having them today. And I just want to say, you know, it's nice to say. It's nice to say hello to some new friends. Oh, no, that's also nice. But it's also nice to say goodbye.

[Sean Hayes]

Goodbye. That's the one I was gonna use.

[Will Arnett]

Too. Smart Less.

[Sir Elton John]

Smart less.

[Will Arnett]

Smartless is 100% organic and artisanally handcrafted by Michael Grant, Terry Rob Armjarv and Bennett Barbico. Smart Less.

[Jason Bateman]

Hey, friends. Jason here. We're so excited. The smartless has officially joined the SiriusXM family. We can't wait to announce new surprise guests who we know that you'll love. If you want to be the first to hear new episodes ad free and a whole week early, subscribe to SiriusXM podcast podcasts plus on Apple Podcasts or visit siriusxm.com podcasts plus to start your free trial today.

[Will Arnett]

Carl's Jr's new snack stash was made for Munchy Madness Mix and match any three sides.

[Sean Hayes]

Just 5.99.

[Will Arnett]

Get onion rings, waffle fries and Jalapeno Popper Bites, Natural cut fries, fried zucchini and wine on another fried zucchini.

[Sean Hayes]

Get any three sides in your snack stash.

[Will Arnett]

Just 5.99 only at Carl's Jr. My.

[Jason Bateman]

Rewards members get a snack stash free with any new triple burger purchase in the app.

[Sean Hayes]

Munch responsibly only for my Rewards members.

[Jason Bateman]

For a limited time and participating restaurants. See it for terms.

[Sean Hayes]

Lowe's knows that taking on more projects should be rewarding. That's why loyalty members get more every day with Rewards for every home or business purchase. Plus shop weekly member deals and get access to free standard shipping. So what are you waiting for? Join for free today. Lowe's we help you save loyalty programs subject to terms and conditions. Details@lowe's.com Terms subject to change.