Stephen Presents: Patti Smith (Extended)

Summary

The Late Show Pod Show with Stephen Colbert

"Stephen Presents: Patti Smith (Extended)"

Date: November 25, 2025
Guest: Patti Smith

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Overview

This extended interview episode features host Stephen Colbert in conversation with punk legend, acclaimed author, and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Patti Smith. As part of the “Rock and Roll Thanksgiving” theme week, the segment explores Patti’s dual identity as a literary and musical icon, the creative process behind her celebrated memoirs, the personal history that informed her art, and her unique outlook on life. Throughout, Colbert and Smith share mutual admiration, candid insights, and moments of warmth and spontaneity.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Working Philosophy Behind the Show

[02:00–04:16]

• Stephen and producer Becca discuss the show’s insider shorthand, “Let’s earn it,” which means postponing a pleasurable activity until after they finish essential work.
  • Quote: “Let’s earn it means…we have to finish the work in front of us. Because as much as I’d much rather at this moment, just listen to some music.” – Stephen [02:21]
  • They touch on the pressure of quickly rewriting show material and the creative interruptions that characterize their writing room.

2. Introduction to Patti Smith and Her Unconventional Cool

[05:02–05:43]

• Stephen remembers Patti Smith’s memorable in-interview interruption:
  • Quote: “She just put her hand on my arm and said ‘hi’ in the middle of me moving on to the next question. And I think she did the right thing...I really was so happy…” – Stephen [05:03]
• They praise her musical performance (“in such great voice”) and celebrate her new book, Bread of Angels.

3. Two Distinct Honors: National Book Award & Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

[06:51–08:07]

• Stephen notes Patti’s rare distinction of winning a National Book Award (for Just Kids) and being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
• Patti reflects:
  • Quote: “The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame…is a collaborative activity…you’re accepting on the part of your crew, your band…the National Book Award was for work I did in solitude…they’re both wonderful and obviously totally unexpected.” – Patti [07:21]

4. Advice for Young Artists

[08:08–09:20]

• Patti addresses the challenges of being young and offers candid, practical advice:
  • “Don’t take advice from me…take good care of yourself. Take good care of your teeth. Drink plenty of water…If you want to have a good time, that’s great. But it’s really important to take care of yourself.” – Patti [08:30]
• On resilience and self-worth:
  • Quote: “Look to themselves as their own best critic, as their own best measure of their worth…and not be swayed and demoralized by other people’s opinions.” – Patti [09:15]

5. The Genesis of ‘Bread of Angels’

[09:59–10:59]

• Patti describes the dream that inspired her latest memoir:
  • “I had a dream the book came in the mail and it was already written…in the book, it really seemed to express gratitude to the people that I love and have lost…” – Patti [10:07]
• Writing nonfiction posed a challenge for her, as she admits living “in quite a fantasy world.”

6. On Memory and Writing True Stories

[11:07–11:26]

• Stephen asks about the reliability of memory when writing memoir:
  • Patti: “I only write about things that I actually completely remember…I think it’s important to really, you know, feel what you’re writing.”

7. The Book’s Cover and The Meaning of “Bread of Angels”

[11:28–12:52]

• The cover photo was taken by Robert Mapplethorpe during the session for her album “Wave,” connected to significant personal transitions.
• Explaining the title:
  • Quote: “It’s described in the book as being an unpremeditated gesture of kindness…like, you’re on the street and you fall and somebody comes up and helps you up…just an act of kindness.” – Patti [12:18]

8. Childhood Illnesses and the Artistic Mindset

[12:52–14:57]

• Stephen references parallels with Martin Scorsese and asks if illness shaped Patti’s creativity.
  • “Convalescence, which I suffered a lot of, just meant time to read books, make up stories in my head…You’re sickly, you have a lot of fevers, you’re alone a lot, you’re living in your head…if you’re at all creative, it becomes a very fertile time.” – Patti [13:31]
• On vivid memories of hallucinations from fevers and medications in childhood.
  • “I was such a fanciful kid. I just found them interesting and I can remember them to this day.” – Patti [14:26]

9. The Impact of “Horses” and Artistic Breakthrough

[14:57–16:27]

• Colbert highlights the 50th anniversary of Patti’s first album, “Horses.”
  • Patti shares how the album emerged from poetry and allowed her to travel and communicate globally.
  • “Horses is really…it stemmed from poetry…But what it allowed me not only to speak to so many people…It allowed me to travel…It was magical.” – Patti [15:15]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Stephen (about “let’s earn it”): “If I’m really paying attention, I’ll stop focusing.” [03:44]
• Patti, on giving advice: “Don’t take advice from me.” [08:30]
• Patti on small acts of kindness: “A bread of angel is really when someone…that’s like a moment of the bread of angels. Not really profound, not necessarily spiritual or religious. It’s just an act of a gesture of kindness.” [12:18]
• Patti, interrupting the format with affection:
  • [12:56] “Hi.”
  • [13:07] “Sorry.”
  • Stephen, embracing the moment: “Stop me in the middle of anything just to say hi. That’s better than anything I’m going to ask you.” [13:08]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:00 – “Let’s earn it” explained – show jargon and creative process
• 05:02 – Colbert recounts Patti’s memorable interruption
• 06:01 – Introduction: Patti Smith—writer and “godmother of punk”
• 07:21 – Patti compares literary vs. musical honors
• 08:08 – Advice for young people/artists
• 09:59 – Bread of Angels: Dream inspiration and gratitude as theme
• 11:28 – Book’s cover: Photograph by Robert Mapplethorpe
• 12:18 – “Bread of Angels,” acts of kindness (title meaning)
• 12:56 – “Hi” moment: spontaneous warmth
• 13:31 – Childhood illness as catalyst for creativity
• 14:57 – 50th anniversary of “Horses” and its impact
• 16:27 – Closing, Colbert thanks Patti

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Tone & Style Notes

• The tone is relaxed, honest, and occasionally playful, as Patti and Stephen exchange stories and affection. There’s a genuine warmth and mutual respect throughout, with moments bordering on philosophical reflection. Patti’s wisdom is delivered with humility, humor, and directness.

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Final Thoughts

For listeners eager to dive deeper into the life and mind of Patti Smith, this extended conversation offers not only stories of musical legend and literary artistry, but thoughtful musings on creativity, memory, self-worth, and kindness. Longtime fans and newcomers alike will find inspiration in her pragmatic wisdom and the candid rapport she shares with Stephen Colbert.

Transcript

[A]

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[C]

Hey everybody. You're listening to the Late Show POD.

[A]

Show with Stephen Colbert.

[C]

He's here in the flesh.

[A]

One of my favorite things I get to do once every five weeks. Yeah, five or six weeks, something like that. We're here in the booth and I'm here with Becca.

[C]

Yeah, I'm the producer here on the POD Show. Thanks so much for listening.

[A]

A pleasure. Oh, I mean the people listening, not me.

[C]

Well, yeah.

[A]

Well, I thought you were thanking me for listening to you right now.

[C]

You are.

[A]

This is my I'm listening to you face.

[C]

Okay, so one fun thing that we do on the Late Show POD show, if you've listened before, is we have a little game called Late Show Vocab.

[A]

Oh, I love this.

[C]

Where we talk about insider shorthand that only we know that's integral to our process.

[A]

Got it.

[C]

So I have one for you to start off this week and it's the quote, let's earn it. Can you explain why when you would.

[A]

Use this term let's earn it means someone has Said something in the room that generally I then associate with some of that. I mean, I don't know. I think other people use let's earn it now just to mock me. But it means that somebody said something and made me think of, like, oh, wow, we should really listen to Aki123 by the English Beat. And I'll go, let's earn it. Meaning we have to finish the work in front of us. Because as much as I'd much rather at this moment, just listen to some music. And it's often music.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Especially in the rewrite room before we do the show, which is a real pressure cooker, we have rehearsal, and then we have to basically have the show rewritten in an hour after that, which is a high pressure. Because sometimes you might be rewriting 22 minutes of material.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Maybe even more because you have to cut down a fat monologue. And so it's basically, you have to rewrite a minute every 30 seconds. No, you have to rewrite a minute every two minutes. That's what it is.

[C]

And breaking news could happen at any point.

[A]

At any point. And I am a thousand times the worst at delaying us at every moment. Because if I'm in a meeting and everything is just going smoothly, it probably means I'm bored. But if I'm constantly interrupting people with other things that I'm thinking of, that means that whatever we're talking about actually sparked my interest and it made my brain fire in my own attention deficit disorder way. Is that if I'm really paying attention, I'll stop focusing.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

You know what I mean?

[C]

It's part of the creative process. You know, sparks of creativity.

[A]

So let's earn it means. Okay, I know I can't start this now, but let's get this done so we can actually listen to the song.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Or watch the sketch.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Or something like that.

[C]

Yeah, it's like, watch it a little bit. And then you say one sentence and then say, let's earn it. And then I go, okay, how do I find this in the next 45 minutes?

[A]

And then I'll say it up, and then I'll say, oh, by the way, we were gonna earn something, what was it exactly? I'll always forget what it was because it was a fleeting enthusiasm.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

Sometimes no one remember.

[C]

Yeah, I try. I try to remember, but it's.

[D]

It's.

[C]

Yeah. So that. That is so integral to our process, and it is often music based. And so that's launching into this week's theme. We have A theme week.

[A]

Wow. Is this our first theme week?

[C]

It is. And guess what? It is. It's rock and roll Thanksgiving. Because we've had a lot of great rock and roll themed guests on the show lately.

[A]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

And I would love to just blast on through them this week.

[A]

Let's do it.

[C]

Rock and roll Thanksgiving. So this is a guest. The guest for this first one on Monday.

[A]

Okay. Two games on tonight's episode.

[D]

Yes.

[C]

Two games. Double, double the money.

[A]

This guest, do you want to keep all your money from knowing and explaining what let's earn it means, or do you want to go for the golden round? I'll go for the golden round, thanks.

[C]

Okay, great. This guest interrupted you in the middle of their interview and said hi.

[A]

Patti Smith.

[D]

Yes.

[A]

One of my favorite interactions with any guest ever. You'll hear it in the interview coming up, I assume. But she just put her hand on my arm and said hi in the middle of me. Moving on to the next question. And I think she did the right thing. I think it was exactly the right thing for her to do. And I hope I responded in a way that conveyed that because I really was so happy that she just interrupted me.

[C]

She's the coolest ever.

[A]

I loved her song too.

[C]

Yeah. Incredible performance. You gotta check out on YouTube.

[A]

In such great voice.

[C]

Yeah. She's so cool.

[A]

Unbelievable.

[C]

Born in Chicago. Born in Chicago.

[A]

Well, all the best people are.

[C]

I know. I've seen her and raised in New Jersey. You guys have all in common.

[A]

People are.

[C]

Yeah. There you go. Yeah. She's got a new book called Bread of Angels. And, you know, I. I'm excited to read it. Dress, kids. One of the best. One of the best memoirs of all time. So beautiful. So cool. This is the amazing Patti Smith. And this is the extended interview with Patti. And make sure you go onto YouTube and watch her amazing performance on the late show as well. Okay, great.

[A]

Let's earn it. Ladies and gentlemen, my next guest tonight is a celebrated writer and rock and roll hall of famer who is called the godmother of punk. Please welcome to the Late Show, Patti Smith. Hi. Good to see you again.

[D]

Nice to see you too. Yeah. People love you.

[A]

Oh, that's very nice. People love you too, obviously. Last time we spoke. Last time we spoke was at the old show and I was in character and I hope I was nice.

[D]

I don't even remember. I don't remember any.

[A]

It's fair.

[D]

No, I mean, I don't remember anything specifically, but you're always nice.

[A]

Oh, that's nice of you. To say, well, you're the only person. We looked this up. You're the only person to win a National Book award for. For your 2010's Just Kids, and also to be inducted in the Rock and Roll hall of Fame. Okay, so those are two great honors, two very different honors. There's one. How do they mean the same and how do they mean something different to you?

[D]

Well, I mean. Well, they are different because the Rock and Roll hall of Fame is really. Because it's rock and roll. It's a collaborative art or a collaborative activity, whatever you want to call it. But, you know, because when you accept to be in the Rock and Roll hall of Fame, you're accepting on the part of your crew, your band, the people. So it's far reaching. But the National Book Award was for work that I did in solitude, my own work. So that's special for me, you know, just as an individual or as a writer. But, you know, they're both wonderful and obviously totally unexpected.

[A]

Well, not by people who read Just Kids because Just Kids has become an iconic and sort of definitive account of what it means to be a young person, what it's like to be a young person in New York City trying to make your way, especially as an artist. And a lot of people say it's tough to be young right now. Do you have any advice for any young people out there who are entering the adult world?

[D]

Yeah, don't take advice from me. That's what. Well, I mean, well, just. Well, let's say as a mother, I would tell young people, take good care of yourself. Take good care of your teeth. Take a drink, plenty of water. And people laugh when I say, take good care of your teeth. But if you're like, ready to paint your masterpiece and you get like, you need root canal, you can't work. So.

[A]

So floss, she's saying, floss, among other things.

[D]

Save your money, get your teeth cleaned. But really. But just take care of yourself in general. If you want to have a good time, that's great. But it's really important to take care of yourself, whether you're getting ready for the revolution or just to do your.

[A]

Work, you know.

[D]

But also I think in these times, really important that young people especially look to themselves as their own best critic, as their own best measure of their worth. And not to, you know, what other people think or social media, anyone, because we really have to look to ourselves and have to be strong and, you know, develop our own armor and not be swayed and demoralized by other people's Opinions. Your new book.

[A]

Your new book is Bread of Angels, which is also a memoir. Like, just what inspired you to write a second book?

[D]

Actually, truthfully, I had a dream that the book came in the mail and it was already written. So in my dream, I was reading it, and it was actually beautiful. It was white with a white ribbon. But in the book, it really seemed to express gratitude to the people that I love and have lost. My parents, my late husband, my late brother, even my beloved dog. And I thought I should write that book. When I woke up, I woke up like this. I was still holding it, and I thought it was a sign that I should write it. It took a long time because writing nonfiction is really difficult for me because I live in quite a fantasy world. So I had to really discipline myself, but did the best I could.

[A]

Did you find as you were writing it that you were fabulizing, that you were going like, oh, I'm not sure whether that happened?

[D]

Oh, no. I only write about things that I actually completely remember, and I have a pretty good memory. It's the same way I wrote Just Kids. If I couldn't picture it almost like a scene in a movie, I probably didn't write about it. I think it's important to really, you know, feel what you're writing.

[A]

Tell me about the photo on the.

[D]

COVID The photograph was taken by Robert Mapplethorpe and 1979, and we were doing the COVID of my album Wave. And when we were done, I wanted Robert to take another picture that was more like for the song Dancin Barefoot. I knew that I was leaving public life, only I knew that. But I knew that I was about to make a lot of difficult decisions in my life, and I wanted a photograph to somehow speak of that. And we never really used it for anything except the inside of the record. And I thought it would be really nice for this book.

[A]

It's a lovely photograph. I'm wondering what Bread of Angels means to.

[D]

Well, I had a lot of different titles for the book, but I settled on that one. And it's described in the book as being an unpremeditated gesture of kindness. So a bread of angel is really when someone, you know, it might be that you've. You know, you're on the street and you fall and somebody comes up and helps you up. That's like a moment of the bread of angels. Not really profound, not necessarily spiritual or religious. It's just an act of a gesture of kindness.

[A]

You write a lot about your childhood when you actually. You were often ill As a child.

[D]

Hi. Hi.

[A]

Hi.

[C]

What's up?

[D]

I don't know. I just wanted to say hi.

[A]

Hi. Anytime, anytime.

[D]

Sorry.

[A]

Stop me in the middle of anything just to say hi. That's better than anything. I'm going to ask you. This is actually.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Is that you? Martin Scorsese says that having asthma as a kid was how he discovered cinema in his lives, wanted to become a filmmaker. I was actually in the hospital a lot when I was a kid, and I'm curious. I don't blame you. But do you think your frequent illness played a role in you becoming an artist?

[D]

I think it was helpful. I mean, I was a reader from very early age in life. I loved books. So to me, convalescence, which I suffered a lot of, just meant time to read books, make up stories in my head. And also I learned that a lot of my favorite authors, you know, like Frank L. Baum and Robert Louis Stevenson, there's several of them who were very sickly, like Proust, very sickly as children. And William Burroughs actually told me that he was quite sickly. And we talked about that a lot. Because you're sickly, you have a lot of fevers, you're alone a lot, you're living in your head. And if you're at all creative, it becomes a very fertile time.

[A]

Did you have fevers?

[D]

A lot of fevers. As a kid? When I was younger. I don't suffer them anymore.

[A]

You have any hallucinations or anything? Oh, yeah, yeah.

[D]

Well, I had really bad scarlet fever, tuberculosis, and these, the fevers. And also they gave you, in the 50s, so much penicillin, so maybe four times as much as you needed because they were still experimenting with it. Sure. And that alone would give you hallucinations. But I always, I don't know, I was such a fanciful kid. I just found them interesting and I can remember them to this day.

[A]

This is next week, marks the 50th anniversary of your first album. Horses. You. Obviously. What did Horses change for you?

[D]

Well, I mean, first of all, this picture, also taken by Robert Mapplethorpe, but I mean, horses is really. It stemmed from poetry. It was poetry that evolved in performance and then finally rock and roll. But what it allowed me not only to speak to so many people and, you know, to share my thoughts or ideas with my generation and other generations. It allowed me to travel because I, you know, I came from a lower middle class family. I was working in a bookstore even when we were recording horses. And I wanted to see the world so much, but had no real, you know, hope that I would economically be able to travel. And then I finish the record and I think, okay, back to the bookstore. And they say, oh, no, you have to tour. Tour where? Finland. And, you know, we went to Paris and London and all over. And it was, you know, magical. I get to tour and do the work that I wanted and communicate with other people. So it was great.

[A]

Patti, thank you so much for being here. It was lovely to see you again. Hi, right back. The book is Bread of Angels and stick around for a performance by Patti Smith. Thank you for listening to the late show pod show with Stephen Colbert. Just one more thing. If you want to see more of me, come to The Late Show YouTube channel for more clips and exclusives. Hey, Ryan Reynolds here wishing you a very happy half off holiday because right now Mint Mobile is offering you the gift of 50% off unlimited. To be clear, that's half price, not half the service. Mint is still premium unlimited wireless for a great price.

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