B (3:37)

Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us.

A (3:40)

Cut the camera. They see us. Only pay for what you need@libertymutual.com Liberty Liberty Liberty Liberty Savings vary underwritten by Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and affiliates. Excludes Massachusetts. Taking a walk. Well, hi, Katie. It's nice to have you on taking a walk.

B (3:55)

Well, thank you for having me. I was thrilled to be invited.

A (4:00)

So, you know, we do ask this question at the beginning, since we call this thing taking a walk. And it would be nice if we were taking a walk in your, you know, favorite LA neighborhood, for sure. But we're not doing that. So for the magic of technology, we're taking a walk in this virtual way. But if you could take a walk with somebody, living or dead, who would you take a walk with? And where would you take that walk with them?

B (4:26)

Oh, Marilyn Monroe somewhere near the Chateau Marmont. You know, here's the thing. I grew up fascinated, obsessed, infatuated, if you will, with Marilyn Monroe. I first and foremost just thought she was as beautiful as they came. I loved, I loved the movie Some Like It Hot. Not only was she adorable, but, like, it was hilarious. So I, you know, as a young girl growing up in Phoenix, Arizona, I just, she epitomized Hollywood and glamour and femininity and humor. And so I really did a deep dive as a little girl with, you know, collectibles and posters and memorabilia and going into Spencer's and not only just seeing the posters for AC DC and Nirvana, but then being like, ooh, I could buy this poster that has Marilyn Monroe with Coco Chanel. So, yeah, I think that she has a fascinating story and history. And I think to walk somewhere over there in that Sunset Boulevard area, Chateau Marmont, where there's still the historic infrastructure, would be a pretty interesting hour to spend, if you will.

A (5:46)

I guess it would be for sure. Isn't that, though? Don't you get spoiled living where you do that? There's just so many historic places that, you know, you know, there's some presence of some of these folks from the past that are there.

B (6:02)

Of course, the ghost of the past. I love that, you know, and I think that's what makes it really exciting. But absolutely, you can take it for granted. And there was a long period of my adult life living in Los Angeles where I absolutely did take it for granted. But I now have a 10 year old son, right, and he's at the stage where the other weekend I literally brought him down into Hollywood by myself. Like, gave my. I don't know what my husband was doing, but I was like, you know what? I'm gonna take him. And we went down to the record parlor in Hollywood, and it's this tiny little record shop. And we kind of flipped through the vinyls and smelt. I mean, the record parlor is a lot different than Amoeba Records. If you've been in either of these. I mean, in the record parlor, it's wood, it's dank, it's damp, it's vintage. It's like opening up that box of crayons and you get that smell of like the cardboard, right? So I brought him in and I was like, we were just flipping through records and then we walked down, you know, Hollywood Boulevard and we saw Frank Sinatra's star, We saw Mariah Carey star. I was able to point, you know, that's the Capitol Record building. You know, that's the house that Nat King, you know, Cole built. It's the house that Nat built. And there's a bunker down there and Les Paul and then, okay, and there's the Pantages. And, you know, this is where they held the Emmys, like in the 60s and 70s. And so I've been able to get excited about Hollywood and all the sights and sounds again because I'm dragging a 10 year old with me. And dragging is probably the key word.

A (7:32)

I don't know about that. Now he's probably thinking, all right, maybe I'd rather be doing some other things, but mom's pretty cool, so let's go for a walk, check some stuff out.

B (7:44)

I will admit we did stop every once in a while. And I let him use my phone to scroll for some Pokeballs and catch some Pokemon along the way as well. So I still kept it fresh for him, of course.

A (7:54)

Of course. Well, you started at a very young age in broadcasting. I believe you were 15 years old when. When you started. But before that period, what was the first moment you knew you had some connection with music?

B (8:12)

Oh, gosh, that's a great question. So growing up, I wasn't in an overly musical family, right. But there were core songs and albums and Music moments that happened in my family. This is gonna be a surprising one, right? I remember we had this van, a family van. Okay. Nowadays I don't even know if we're allowed to say it, but nowadays people would see it and say, oh, that's like a rape van, right? It's a creepy van. But it was the 80s, right? So now you understand what the family van looked. And this van, I'm gonna take a moment to describe it because you, it's. It was magical. It was, it was better than the Scooby Doo van because this thing, you know, it had that sliding door and the back, you know, on those vans they would have like those back to like bubble windows kind of towards the way back. Ours were not circular, they were star shaped. So there are these star shaped windows in the back of the van, Right. The interior was shag gray carpet, floor to ceiling. The back was like this bed that can be converted into a bench. No seatbelts mind you. And the front were the two captain chairs. Now in the front, above the driver's seat, you know, it had the steering wheel and it had its regular hoard. But above the driver's seat there was a button and you pressed it and it was a different horn. It would go oooga ooga. The van was glitter purple and it had an eight track. And my parents had just this box, a milk crate, if you will, of some eight tracks. I know Sergeant Peppers was one of them. So I really remember the Beatles, you know, running through those speakers. But they also had a eight track. Donna Summers. Bad girl, Bad girl, Bad.

A (10:00)

Oh.

B (10:00)

And I was no more than three years old and I would prance around this van. Cause I'm a munchkin at that time and can walk and there's nothing there, right. Just walking in this van, driving through the neighborhood singing Bad Girls. And I loved it. And I loved Donna's Summer. And then obviously, you know, inside the house, my parents. I remember hearing Tracy Chapman, I remember hearing the Rolling Stones Start me up is really a vivid memory from the record player. And Paul Simon, the Graceland album. Those were things that really struck me in my early childhood before I got into working at a classic rock radio station.

A (10:40)

So you though were interested in radio and television in your career? What really pointed you directly to one path or the other?

B (10:50)

Sure. So when I started working at a radio station, it was like this kid's radio station before they even had like a Radio Disney, if you will. And I got to learn like how to run the board and just the Magic of radio and doing like the weather cut ins and things like that. And then I started working for the sister radio station, which was an FM station. And I got to do the 8 til midnight midnight shift on a Saturday night because no one but like a 16 or 17 year old really wanted to do that shift, right? Cause that's when you go out and have fun. And I got to know classic rock and I always then thought, and then this is the heyday of Howard Stern. So I thought, you know what shock jock radio music. I think I want to, you know, do be. Be a D, A dj. I didn't think. I've told this story a million times before and I'm not saying it to beg for compliments or anything, but I didn't think I was pretty enough to be on television. I now know first off, it doesn't matter what you look like. You could be as ugly as sin or as beautiful as whatever. Like that's not what it's about. Being on television is different in talent and followers and stuff these days. But you know, I was, you know, 16 and just didn't know. And I just thought, well, I can't be on tv so I'm gonna, you know, stick with radio. And so my transition to television was kind of accidental. Back in the day it was the MTV choose or Lose Rock the Vote presidential election of 2000, if you recall, back then, back in the olden days. But who do we have? We had Al gore, we had McCain and the straight Talk Express, and we had Bush, right? And I sent in an audition tape to mtv like on a vhs and eventually got hired to be a political correspondent and tour around on the Straight Talk Express with Senator John McCain. And so all of a sudden I realized, hey, I can be on television. Look at me.

A (12:39)

Where did you get instilled this, you know, I don't know, this fearless approach to your career and to your, to your life.

B (12:49)

That's a compliment. Thank you. And I wish I almost still had it. Like it's, it's interesting because as you get older, I feel like you maybe take less chances and, and there's a lot more fear. So I sometimes I miss that spunk that I had. But I don't know, I was, you know, I, I don't know where that boldness came from. I mean I certainly, I had a great family and great parents. And so they were always the, you know, you can be whatever you want to be, but they're also, you could be whatever you want to be. But like, let's be sensible about it. So it's not like they were always like big dreamers of like, you know, grab a star, sweetheart. They were like, well, grab a star that pays well and has benefits. So. But to, yeah, that weird. Umph. To be like, I'm going to send in a VHS tape to mtv or I'm going to cold call the executive producer of the Marquee Cuban show and see if I could co host a basketball show with Mark Cuban. Why, like, I would do stuff like that. And so I think I maybe didn't know any better. And you know, it was the, the loveliness of growing up in a day of not like oversaturated of social media as well, that you could cold call people and find opportunities.

A (13:59)

Yeah, there were different ways to reach people for sure. But still embedded in your thinking was the fact that, oh, what the heck, I'm just gonna do this because I believe in it. And I myself, I could tell that right away. And that is a rare trait and I believe it has served you well. So go back to cold calling to pitch show ideas into Mark Cuban and his organization.

B (14:26)

Yeah, sure. So, you know, after working at mtv, I went to Dallas, you know, so I was, I was at MTV because it was the presidential election that only lasts a year, right, folks? So like, you gotta find another job. So the next job I decided to find was, well, my old radio partners who I had been doing in Phoenix while I was going to college. I was a morning show producer for like a top 40 station. And those guys moved to Dallas and started doing shock jock radio. It was the height. It was early 2000s. FM talk was the rage. They didn't play music. It was just talk all day. The talk that rocks, I believe, was the motto at this radio station. Howard Stern was on in the morning and then, then these guys, Ron and Dawn, they would come on from 10 till 2 and they needed a female. And so I reached out to them and they were like, yeah, come along. You'll be the chick in charge. And I got to come on and produce the show, but also be on air doing shock jockey stuff. You know, Hooters catered and would bring food every day, things like that. Broadcasting from strip bars on a Friday. Look, ma, are you proud of me now? And as most things in the FM shock jock talk world, the show came to an end. Those guys ended up going to New Orleans and then up to Seattle. And I just wasn't. I think I had a boyfriend, a dude. So I was like, I'm not going to Travel around following these dudes. I'm going to stay with this dude. I shouldn't even been thinking about any of the dudes, quite frankly, but. So I stayed in Dallas and found out that Mark Cuban was going to be starting a basketball show. And it was going to, each week, kind of start with an opening monologue of him talking about the Mavs and, you know, where they are, and then feature, you know, segments with the players. And he was looking for a co host. And it was. I had bumped into someone at a grocery store. They're like, oh, I heard that Mark Cuban is doing this thing. And I think they already hired the person. I wish I had thought of you sooner. Would have told you. Thanks, jerk. But I was like, that's not gonna stop me. So I found out who the executive producer was. Cold called the local CBS station, got transferred to his voicemail, left a voicemail saying, I heard you might already have someone, but I promise you, like, she's wrong and you need to chat with me. And I was hired within 48 hours. And I was sitting next to Mark Cuban, co hosting a basketball show, doing features with the basketball players and going to the All Star Game and just doing silly things, tours of his house like MTV Cribs. And I did that for two years. But I was lucky enough. And I'm sorry that I'm rambling. I feel I've just, I've just commandeered this podcast. I've just come and I'm sorry you.

A (17:09)

Got a lot to tell us, so.

B (17:11)

But I. I was sitting next to Mark and he's lovely, he's fantastic. He. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about Mark Cuban. I really, really enjoyed my time working for him and value his opinion and respect him and know he gave me an opportunity to elevator pitch him. He's like, well, I'm starting this new Network. It's called HD Net. It's the world's first high definition TV network. Everyone's going to buy these new TVs and get rid of their old ones. Like, why would anyone get rid of a perfectly good working television? Mark, to buy your fancy $2,000. One failure. As if, right? But I was like, yeah, I got an idea. I've got an idea where I'm going to go interview rock stars and show their concerts. What do you think? Can I have a couple of cameras and go do this? And he's like, sure. And I started producing and hosting a music show for HDNet. Budweiser came on as a sponsor. It was then called The Budweiser True Music show. And I did over 200 episodes and there was at least three bands per episode. So I booked and interviewed over 600 bands and then transitioned into multiple different programs at the network, which we can talk about and different titles, and became the VP of programming after working with him for 20 years.

A (18:25)

It's a great story. It's the key, I think, is resilience, like I said, the fearless approach, creativity, dreaming and just really just saying there's no wall in front of me. I'm just gonna go to the next place that I want to go creatively. So then you became, you know, a person wearing all these multiple hats for sure, which I think in today's world is also key because this is the reality of, of, of the world of, of content, creation of media, you know, wearing, wearing multiple hats. But you have to admit, the most fun of those hats had to be the interviews.

B (19:08)

Oh, I love doing the interviews on camera and off camera. You know, I mean, it's so funny when, when you go over, you know, and if you, whether you're googling me or you're looking over at access TV sites and everything, like, I got to do so many great on camera interviews, you know, with. On a series called At Home and Social and now Listen and like, so you, you know, getting to sit there and do what you're doing and talk to Robert Plant and Alison Krause, right? Or Alice Cooper or Sammy Hagar. That was exciting. I loved chatting with all these rock stars, but equally for the other shows that I produce, like the Very best of the 70s and the very best of the 80s and the top 10 revealed, you know, you see all these talking heads on those shows responding and talking about their favorite songs. And it's an off camera interview. And I was getting to conduct those interviews as well and help them, you know, pause and say, hold on, can you rephrase that? And can we make it shorter and let's make it punchy and I've got a joke and you want to deliver it this way. So, you know, brainstorming directly with Alita Ford or Jeff Pilsen from Foreigner and sitting across from them and coming up with Ooh, Zingers together. I got to create form like these really intimate, nice friendships with so many of these musicians over the years. And I do consider it friendships. You know, I mean, I feel, you know, there's a lot of great phone numbers on this phone and I really, truly, honestly believe I can text a lot of them and just say hi and that's pretty cool.

A (20:38)

Is there one that stands at the, you know, the ultimate height that you achieved in terms of an interview?

B (20:46)

You know, and it's not to pick favorites, because we don't pick favorites here. But I have to say, one of the last interviews I did when I was over at Access tv, talk about going out with a bang. It was Robert Plant and Allison Krause. And I had been chasing a Robert Plant interview for years. Years. And this one was really special for a couple of reasons. One, the publicist or the book? There's a publicist came to me. I didn't have to ask for the interview, so I found that to be a compliment that, you know, Robert Plant and Allison Krauss only have X amount time in their day. They're only going to say to X. Yes, to X amount of interviews. And I didn't have to ask for it. They slotted me in. So I found that really cool and special. I also want to use the word humbled. So it's not I was humbled, but Robert Plant put me back and reminded me something that I think we all still need the reminding of every once in a while. Is that a rock star, a movie star, an icon, they're still just people, right? And over my years of doing interviews, you know, I've always. I always love the people that are very charismatic. You know, Justin Hawkins, like the Darkness, you know, or a Sammy Hagar who, you know, logs on and they're like, oh. And you're like, yeah, big energy. I love it. It's a Rockster interview, man. But Robert didn't do that. And so I was disappointed at first and had to kind of recalibrate my thinking. When, you know, we log on, I'm like, hello, Robert. And he's like, hello, Katie, how are you today? And you're like, oh, man. He just brings his. I'm having my afternoon Earl tea energy, not my whiskey vodka backstage. And so it was nice to just be able to talk to him and feel him and his presence as a person versus a rock star. And so I just. I found that to be a very special interview.

A (22:53)

Oh, my God. Is it a great one or what? And what is so amazing about. About him? But also, you know, Alison's work is. Speaks for itself as well. But you think about Robert and you think about aging gracefully.

B (23:11)

Yeah, right.

A (23:12)

I mean, there's. There's really nothing he's putting on here. He's doing what he. What he loves. You must have loved the Led Zeppelin documentary.

B (23:21)

Oh, absolutely, absolutely. I mean, Led Zeppelin's a very special band. A lot of the, the legacy and iconic bands, you know, are. And he himself. Exactly. I mean, his story, I mean, I, I, one of my favorite interview, you know, Dan Rather, because on, over on Access TV we had Dan Rather show the big interview and he has this great interview with Robert and, and Dan, you know, peels the onion as he always does with any, you know, great interview. And just talking to Robert about, you know, the death of his, you know, toddler age son. And that has always sat with me that, you know, this is a guy that, you know, was a rock star in commandeering a stage and you know, idolized by so many. And at the end of the day he was still, you know, living life and having to go through stuff that humans go through, you know, you, you can't escape life. And you know, he, you know, certainly has a story to tell and experiences to share and pain and to carry.

A (24:24)

So tell me what you're working on these days.

B (24:27)

Well, you know, one of the things that I'm working on that's really actually very near and dear to my heart is I started working with a charity, it's called Cancer Can Rock. Which I love the irony in that, right, because obviously cancer doesn't rock. But in this form it's very similar to, as one would say, like maybe a make a wish foundation, right. But it's, we take these artists, you know, non professional musicians that are battling cancer, and we raise the money to give them the opportunity to go into a local recording studio for the day and record one of their original songs. And we bring in a videographer. So at the end of the day they have a recording, they have a music video. If they say we need a guitarist, we bring in a guitarist. If they say I need a drummer, we bring it. We need a cowbell. I'll get you a guy with a cowbell. So we fill that studio with the people and the engineers and the producers that they need to make this song so that they have this experience that allows them to forget cancer for a moment. It gives them a tangible memory for themselves and their family. And so I've been working with them and Rufus and Martha Wainwright, our board as well, they were doing something very similar called Folk cancer, the Kate McGarrigle Project in honor of their mom. And so we've kind of merged them together. It's like a charity, baby. So Cancer can rock and folk cancer. And it's just been really great to be on the board and be working with this organization for the last year. So that's been one of my big focuses. I just also joined the board over at the she Rocks. And that's cool because I'd been working with them for almost like five years, hosting some of their events, hosting some of their online interviews, and then I eventually got honored myself. And so to join the board and try to pick who's going to get honored for 2026 is pretty exciting as well. And then I'm just schlepping. I'm trying to figure it out like everyone else. You know, I mean, we talked about Access TV earlier, but, you know, that network has taken some turns and did mass layoffs. There's about, you know, less than a dozen people still there, and they're, they're playing the shows on repeat, but they're not creating anything new. And so I'm out here trying to figure out what do I want to be when I grow up. Right.

A (26:34)

Well, you know, you love music, so you got the background and backbone for that, for sure. But, you know, it is the era for content creators, as you know. So, you know, I think you're certainly riding that and, and not afraid to, you know.

B (26:50)

No, it's true. I mean, I, I have a great Rolodex and a great interest in learning and, and gift for gab, one would say.

A (26:59)

So in closing, what advice would you give to, you know, young people aspiring to have a diverse and evolving career like yours in media and entertainment?

B (27:11)

Well, I mean, listen, and it is this, this industry is changing, like, in real time. So it's like, I feel like I'm having a hard time keeping up as well. So the biggest thing I would say is learn as many skills as you can. Right. I mean, I grew up in a time when talent got to just be talent and didn't have to also be a cameraman and an editor and all those things. Right now, it truly is a content creator. You, you develop it, you shoot it, you come up with it. You have to do it all. So wear all the hats whether you want to or not. So learning that skill set, I think understanding and embracing AI is pretty key. I am still a firm believer. You know, listen, AI is scary. You know, we. We know how things could potentially go wrong. We've all seen that movie. But I will say, you know, it's not necessarily AI that's going to take over. It's the people who know how to use AI that are going to take over. So continue to learn, research, learn another language. I don't know.

A (28:11)

Oh, Katie. Darrell. What a what a nice conversation. I'm so honored that you came on Taking a Walk and you're a breath of fresh air and I wish you only the best in all your many endeavors.

B (28:24)

Well, thank you. I've had a lovely time chatting with you and I hope one day we get to be on the same footpath together actually taking that walk together.

A (28:33)

Let's do it. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Taking a Walk podcast. Share this and other episodes with your friends and follow us so you never miss an episode. Taking a Walk is available on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts. Music history is full of hidden connections just like everything else Worth understanding if you're someone who can't help but dig deeper, who sees problems as puzzles worth solving, Claude is for you. It's built for people that don't settle for surface level answers. Claude works with you on whatever you're curious about, helping you explore ideas and connect dots in ways that might surprise you not by thinking for you, but with you. See why the world's best problem solvers choose Claude as their thinking partner and try Claude for free @Claude AI buzz this episode of Taking a Walk is brought to you by Chase Sapphire Reserve. Whether I'm booking my next vacation or going to a concert, Chase Sapphire Reserve is my gateway to the world's most captivating destinations. When I use my Chase Sapphire Reserve card, I get eight times points on all the purchases I make through Chase Travel and even access to one of a kind experiences like music festivals and sports events. And that's not even mentioning how the card gets me into the Sapphire Lounge by the club at select airports nationwide. No matter where I'm walking, travel is more rewarding with Chase Sapphire Reserve. Discover more@chase.com Sapphire Reserve cards issued by JP Morgan Chase Bank NA member FDIC subject to credit approval terms apply. Lexus believes in the importance of standards. One of my standards I never want to be late. I always want to show up on time. For Lexus, the standard is simple experience. Amazing. Their benchmarks aren't stats or specs, they're feelings, exhilaration, joy. That sense your car was designed just for you. Machines built to make you feel more human. Because a car that doesn't make you feel something is a car that stops short of amazing Experience. Amazing at your Lexus dealer.

B (30:57)

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A (31:58)

This is an iHeart podcast.