Listener Q&A Episode 10

Summary

The Lonely Island & Seth Meyers Podcast

Episode 10: Listener Q&A
Released: January 20, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode is a special Listener Q&A with only Seth Meyers and Jorma Taccone co-hosting (Andy Samberg and Akiva Schaffer are absent). The show is less focused on the SNL Digital Shorts and much more about audience interaction, behind-the-scenes stories, and reflections on their careers, creative processes, SNL experiences, and inside jokes.

With a relaxed, banter-heavy atmosphere, Seth and Jorma respond to listener questions, celebrate mic-drop-worthy podcast quips, share music and family stories, and read or play voice notes from dedicated fans and collaborators. There’s a distinct mix of humor, self-deprecation, and genuine, sometimes poignant, reminiscence.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Opening Banter and Absentee Andy & Akiva

• The episode kicks off with quick riffing about trying (unsuccessfully for a year) to plan a dinner with Adam Pally and how podcasting ironically hinders their "real-life" friendship energy.
• Running joke about a vasectomy appointment dovetails with dinner planning.
  • [00:38] Jorma: “Yeah, you can't send her pictures to prove how it could have been closer.”
  • [00:59] Seth, joking: “We're fucking up our actual friend in real life energy, you know?”

2. Listener Praise for “Muttered” Jokes

• They discuss how listeners appreciate the small, almost throwaway jokes that get tucked in under crosstalk, often by Jorma.
  • [02:19] Seth: “Somebody wrote, I laughed so hard when Yoram said, ‘but that's what generals do.’”

3. Spider-Verse Casting Jokes

• Seth relays listeners' suggestions (inspired by Jorma) that he should play “Spider-Man with teeth” in a future Spider-Verse movie, riffing on the idea of an unnerving, toothy Spider-Man.
  • [03:04] Seth: “If Spider-Man smiled while wearing the mask, it would be maybe the scariest thing that's ever been in one of those movies.”

4. The Shifting Podcast Premise & Meta-Commentary

• Audience feedback notes the hosts are increasingly straying from their original premise of only discussing Digital Shorts.
• Seth and Jorma embrace it, saying the podcast is “weaning ourselves off the premise.”
  • [04:46] Jorma: “We're weaning ourself off the premise of this podcast.”
  • [05:10] Seth (mocking criticism): “We've talked about sloths.”

5. On Memory, Medication, & “Burrito Brain”

• Jorma describes medication side effects affecting his memory, leading to ongoing jokes about “burrito brain.”
  • [05:19] Jorma: “My memory was bad before, but now it's fucking good.”

6. Listener Challenges & Merch

• They delight in a listener’s willingness to “throw myself off a ladder” if Jorma records an album as “Normal Guy.”
• Merch design discussions ensue after someone coins "Burrito Brain to Winter Soldier" for a shirt, acknowledging YouTube user "Vandal."
  • [07:26] Jorma shares an “incredible” (but lost) Ice Cube/Normal Guy album intro story.

7. Podcast Production & Behind-the-Scenes

• Complaints about past “rerun” episodes and shoutouts to producer Jeff, ribbing him as their “Lou Perlman” type manager.
  • [08:10] Seth: “Jeff bullies us into it... Like the Lou Perlman of podcasts.”

[09:16] Challenge Coins & SNL Ranks

• Ongoing joke about Seth as a "general" and Andy/Akiva as "admirals," due to their "I'm on a Boat" fame.

8. Shoutouts & Amy Poehler’s Podcast Golden Globe

• Seth congratulates Amy Poehler for her (fictional?) win of the inaugural Golden Globe for Podcasting. They affectionately joke that “she was always going to win.”
  • [10:23] Jorma: “The Minute they even said the award, I was like, well, Poehler, it's gonna get [it].”

9. Listener Notes: Kids, SNL, and Critiques

• Detailed feedback from listeners about kids' reactions to their shorts (notably "Betty White" and "Ross Trent"), mock complaints about talking too much about their families, and the “Squeaky Queen” spelling bee pun.

10. Famous Friends as Guests

• Speculation about future high-profile judges (Paul Thomas Anderson – “PTA”) for their hypothetical "criterion" panel.
  • [12:51] Jorma: “I bet he would.”

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Voice Notes, Behind-the-Scenes Collaborator Stories & Deep Dives

A. Greg Chun’s Voice Note ([13:35])

• Longtime composer Greg Chun shares hilarious stories of “career fails” and awkward moments with each member of the group:
  • Andy: Mistaken identity in early Emmy meeting.
  • Akiva: Misplacing a crucial audio file during the Michael Bolton Special post-production crunch.
    • Greg: “What you said verbatim... was, ‘Yeah, I'm just trying to figure out what happened to that whole conversation we had.’ Very key response.”
  • Jorma: Shows up to Greg’s party as the only guest—awkwardly just the two of them watching a boxing match.
• Seth’s "two favorite moments" cited by Greg: “zing, Jackpot” and “total cat replacement.”

Discussion Follows

• How collaborators like Greg Chun and David Nienongle are kept in their creative circle for decades.
• The unique, lasting friendships and working relationships built across SNL, digital shorts, and other projects.

B. Music Influence & Family Life

• Jorma's daughter’s favorite Rilo Kiley song and stories about passing on "hip" music to kids (“Mama’s Gun” by Glass Animals).
  • [25:33] Listener Natasha expresses excitement her kids love Rilo Kiley.

C. The “Popstar” Soundtrack Out of Print ([27:07])

• Question about possibility of reissuing the "Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping" soundtrack — likely on vinyl if at all, digital or physical CDs unlikely.

D. SNL, Family, & Work-Life Balance

• Candid discussion about the difficulty/impossibility of balancing SNL’s schedule with family life.
  • [28:34] Jorma: “You're basically dead to the world when you're at the show. And it is a bummer actually... you just do not want to add to that [stress].”
  • [31:27] Jorma: “Akiva's first week of having had his kid... me and Andy were like, get over here... this lazy piece of shit.”

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E. Fan Questions: Recents & Classics

1. Resilience & Failure ([33:34–39:01])

• Andrea, a preschool teacher, asks: “How do you recenter yourselves when you’re up against the ropes?”
  • Seth: Keeps going out of love for the work—failure is part of the process, infused with fear and drive.
  • Jorma: “The cheat code is group—being in a trio insulates you from failure. We liked what we were making, so a failure was just another inside joke.”
  • Seth: “Working with people who believe in you is key… sometimes you take esteem through them.”

2. Inappropriate SNL Shorts for Kids ([39:11])

• Listeners run into trouble showing shorts (like Laser Cats) to their kids, forgetting the risqué jokes.
  • [39:31] Seth: “Then the kid really liked it. And they were like, ‘I'm gonna show another one.’ Whoops.”

3. Community & Podcast Inside Jokes ([40:43])

• Examples: “Long time goose, first time gonk," “Two burrito-brained Winter Soldier,” and fans using these terms with their partners.
• Metacommentary on how inside jokes breed community, much like an SNL writer’s room.

4. Brian Tucker and "Fucked the Key Machine" Video ([44:04])

• A listener reminisces about the infamous YouTube rap video, asking for the story behind it.
  • Jorma: “Tucker came into our office and just did that. We were like, ‘let's film that as a music video.’”
• Follow-up: stories about Brian Tucker’s skill writing for Black comedians despite looking like “the whitest white man I’ve ever seen.”

5. SNL Set Logistics: Where’s The Desk? ([50:55])

• Seth explains the Update desk is rolled in and out of Home Base; Home Base is the best real estate in Studio 8H for sketch performance because it allows direct audience sightlines.
  • [51:15] Seth: “...that Update area is the sweetest piece of real estate at SNL known as Home Base.”

6. Table Read Prep ([53:01])

• Amy asks about preparations for the table read. Guidance is minimal due to time constraints; mainly writers give quick character notes beforehand.
  • [54:38] Jorma: “It is always a bit nerve wracking to go into the host and try to give them direction beforehand. You don't want to bug them.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jorma, on failed dinner plans:
  “We’ve been trying to get dinner, the three of us, and I feel like we’re on the cusp.” ([00:48])
• Seth, on SNL/family life:
  “I can’t even comprehend having kids when I was still at SNL... you are basically dead to the world when you’re at the show.” ([28:22])
• Jorma, on group creativity:
  “The cheat code is group… because we liked what we were making, even when it was maybe considered a failure.” ([37:05])
• Seth, on supporting collaborators:
  “Sometimes you take esteem [from]... the fact that people are working with you because they believe in you, and you trust their taste.” ([38:10])
• Listener Andrea, on resilience:
  “Because failure, just like preschoolers sometimes, will catch you with a sucker punch left and a sucker punch right and then Rocky 22 consecutive sucker punch rights.” ([33:34])
• Podcast meta-commentary:
  “We’re weaning ourself off the premise of this podcast.” (Jorma, [04:46])
• On inside jokes:
  “Jokes just get piggybacked on until they no longer resemble anything normal.” (Jorma, [41:41])
• On showing SNL shorts to kids:
  “They were like, correctly steering around the ones that are sort of explicitly dirty... Laser Cats—forgot the first Laser Cat, you guys are both like asking Lindsay Lohan if they’ll have sex with him.” (Seth, [39:19])

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Important Segment Timestamps

| Timestamp | Content/Topic | |---------------|-------------------| | 00:00–06:00 | Banter on absentees, dinner/vasectomy, podcast format shift | | 07:26 | “Normal Guy” & lost album intro, creative process | | 13:35 | Greg Chun’s voice note: career mishaps, process stories | | 18:00 | Collaborator relationships in SNL & beyond | | 25:25 | Family/kids & music (Rilo Kiley/Glass Animals) | | 27:07 | "Popstar" soundtrack reissue discussion | | 28:22 | SNL family life, work/life balance, regrets | | 33:34 | Listener Andrea asks about coping with failure | | 39:19 | Parental struggles with showing kids SNL shorts | | 44:04 | Brian Tucker’s infamous rap video explained | | 50:55 | SNL’s Home Base and Update Desk logistics | | 53:01 | Table read preparation and sketch rehearsal | | 57:21 | Apologies to listeners, leftovers for next time |

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Tone & Language

Casual, punchy, and full of layered in-jokes and gentle digs. They frequently break the fourth wall, sometimes mocking themselves, their listeners, or podcast conventions. Listeners and collaborators feel like part of an extended family, and the humor is equal parts self-deprecating and affectionate.

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Summary Takeaway

This episode is a love letter to both the fans deeply invested in the podcast lore, and the enduring partnerships, creative processes, and friendships woven through SNL, The Lonely Island, and their collaborators. While it doesn’t focus on a Digital Short, it’s a deep dive into what actually sustains long careers in comedy: creative community, inside jokes, and resilience built with (and for) each other.

Transcript

[A]

Hey.

[B]

Hey.

[A]

It's the Lonely island and Seth Meyers podcast show.

[B]

Hey, everybody. Welcome to the Lonely Myers and Seth. Great Taconi Podcast. Here's what's happening today. Yeah, it's me and Yorm. And you know what that means. Yorm. You know what it means, Red Bull? No. It means you're the Alvin. There's literally no arcade today.

[C]

Yes. Yes. Finally.

[B]

Fuck Joy.

[C]

No theater are bullshit.

[D]

Yes.

[B]

Hey, this is just a fun thing for you guys to know. Yhoram and I are about a year into trying to plan a dinner.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And the vasectomy too. We gotta work.

[B]

Oh, yeah. Well, maybe that's it. Maybe dinner. Straight to the vasectomy, I pick you up the next morning. Or vasectomy, I pick you up. We go straight to dinner. Either way, that one.

[C]

The second one.

[B]

Cause we're, you know, we're the New York boys on this pod, and we have a friend, Adam Pally, who everybody who's listening probably knows, and we've been trying to get dinner, the three of us, and I feel like we're on the cusp.

[C]

We're Seth. We're fucking it up. This podcast is fucking up our actual friend in real life energy, you know?

[B]

I know, but I do feel closer to you doing the pod than I would otherwise. So, you know, the trade off's been good. Hey, you sent me the trailer to your movie. Over your dead body. Is that trailer public yet?

[C]

It is. Not yet. What'd you think of it, though?

[B]

I thought it was outstanding. Yeah, I'm really excited for people to watch it. I won't spoil it. But I will say that, you know, when Yoram was over in Finland, it wasn't all just saunas.

[C]

We did some work. We did some actual work.

[B]

It's some work. And it's a full. Also very funny to realize that. I know. We talked about it. This movie does not take place in Finland.

[C]

No, it takes place in upstate New York. And I think I told you guys this, but when we were driving up to our temporary location, which is like two hours from Helsinki, I was like, fuck, this looks like upstate New York. Like, why couldn't we shoot in upstate New York? Yeah, my wife said that too. She was pretty pissed.

[B]

Yeah, you can't send her pictures to prove how it could have been closer.

[C]

No, they're birch trees. It's different.

[B]

Somebody said, and I'm a little worried that you won't have the ability to do it on a two man pod instead of a four man pod. But there's Been a lot of compliments y in the comments for the little jokes you sort of mutter under the din of, of the crosstalk.

[C]

Give me an example of that.

[B]

I don't know.

[C]

Nobody remembers that.

[B]

Somebody. I don't even remember the context, but somebody wrote, I laughed so hard when Yoram said, but that's what generals do.

[C]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Again, don't quite remember the context, but.

[C]

Well, just, just for our listeners, a lot of them get cut out because there's a. There's more muttering that happens with me. And yeah, I would say a majority get cut out. And the ones that make it in, fucking winners.

[B]

I also owe you a great deal of thanks because you sort of, you know, this was not the intention, but you gave people a lot of ideas as to what Spider Man I should play in the next spider verse movie.

[C]

A lot of ideas. You'd call that a lot of ideas? I just.

[B]

No, I'm going to tell you the Spider man, they think I should play and you're going to realize why it was your idea.

[C]

Please.

[B]

Seth should play the Spider man with teeth.

[C]

Yeah, that's great.

[B]

Almost never see his teeth. I will say if Spider man smiled while wearing the mask, it would be maybe the scariest thing that's ever been in one of those movies.

[C]

So funny. You almost never see his teeth. That is true.

[B]

I mean, if they. Look, I'm just saying, if they want to hear me, I'll record one ADR line which is like, yeah, I got teeth. And then they just animate that and all the kids scream.

[C]

And I would love it. That, by the way, by the way, fucking great. That, like, who we're talking to is fucking Phil and Chris. Phil Lord, Chris Miller.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Those guys are going to hear this and it's all possible, like, listen, everything, it is not an impossibility.

[B]

Everything in that movie is already an Easter egg.

[C]

Exactly, exactly. Just you need more.

[B]

I mean, again, I'm not asking to be the lead in the main universe. I'm just asking for a line in one of the many verses.

[C]

Yeah. They've built in cameo fucking supreme over there.

[B]

There was a little shade for the Betty White episode somebody wrote. For anyone who just wants to hear about the digital short, skip to one hour and two minutes.

[C]

We're getting. By the way, we're getting. This almost follows how bad we got with making the shorts. Yeah, every, every week we got like, later and later until by the end, I think, year seven, I remember distinctly. Like, finish shooting at like 5:00am, start editing at like seven after, like resting for an hour and a half. I. I think that we're going that direction like that. We're barely covering.

[B]

I. But I would just argue, and I should say some of the members of Kuaid army in the comments pushed back on the snarkiness of that. To say at this point, if you're just listening to them talk about the shorts, you're sort of missing the point. And I like that we're kind of weaning ourselves off the reliance of talking about the shorts.

[C]

We're weaning ourself off the premise of this podcast.

[B]

Off the premise of the podcast.

[C]

Great.

[B]

Again, we're running out of road, so we got to do something.

[C]

I don't know what's going to happen. And I know Andy's thrilled about that. He can't wait to hit the.

[B]

And by the way, just for anybody who's like, when are they getting to the short? We're not getting to the short today because it's just two of us. This is going to be a little Q and A, a little listener notes.

[C]

Do we talk about, like, sloths and, like, things that aren't like digital shorts.

[B]

But, like, we've talked about sloths.

[C]

Yeah. And. And giraffes. Right.

[B]

We.

[C]

We cover that. Right? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay. Yeah.

[B]

Can we get a database to Yorm that he could just Google?

[C]

Can I just say, yesterday I went to my pain doctor and I told him how much gabapentin I'm on. And he was like, are there any side effects? And I was like, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like, he's like, my memory was bad before, but now it's fucking good.

[B]

Also, we're six minutes into the podcast. When you got on, you were drinking from the biggest thermos I've ever seen. And now you have a little coffee cup. What's going on?

[C]

Do you know?

[B]

Did I.

[C]

Did you see what was in the coffee cup, though?

[B]

Oh, oh, you put. But what was in the giant thermos you started with?

[C]

That's just water, you know?

[B]

And now you're drinking a coffee cup full of Red Bull. Oh, my God.

[C]

My New Year's resolution is water. And my Whatever. The anti new. Like what, Jeff?

[B]

For the YouTube video. Jeff, can Yormiz face box be just the biggest thermos I've ever seen? So big that likes my mugs. Hey, somebody said, I will throw myself off a ladder in Yoram's honor if he creates a full 12 track normal guy album. I know you like a challenge.

[C]

Can I tell you a Fun Normal Guy story.

[B]

I mean, they're all fun.

[C]

Yeah. Thank you. Thank you. I know, I know it's one of your favorites. So there is a. It's on one of Ice Cube's album. I think it's America's Most Wanted. I'm not sure, but like, I know it might be Death certificate. Yeah, it's. So the opening of the album is Ice Cube being led to his death in an electric chair. And it's a very sinister, dark, moody interlude that starts the album. And I was somehow able to remove Ice Cube entirely from it and put Normal Guy in it. So it was him just going, yeah, like, you know, like. And guy being like, open 12. Oh, hey, how's it going? You know, like. And then he's being led down the hallway and he's like, hey, man. Hey man, I never did like you. So, you know. And then he gets led to the electric chair and he's like getting strapped in and he's like. It's like very pee wee. And then it just ends with the Ice Cubes line. But said Normal Guy style, which is like, you got any last words? And he's like, yeah, yeah, I got some last words, all you guys. And then that was going to be the beginning of the album, which now, like, I can't find it anywhere. Like, you know, so sad.

[B]

That's. I mean, although I guess that we got kind of got the totality of it. Excellent performance. It's always nice when Normal Guy stops by the pod. Red Bull gives you wings. Everybody agreed to Burrito Brain to Winter Soldier is the shirt we need. And someone on YouTube, Vandal in the comments.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Who claim credit and I believe correctly.

[C]

Sorry, that's. That's the person's name. Vandal.

[B]

That's their handle. Vandals, the handle.

[C]

You don't know.

[B]

That's true. It could be Vandal. They have reported they're on. They're on a design. So hopefully soon they will share that with us as well.

[C]

I'm going to share the design that I sent to Jeff for a shirt because it was a fuck around thing that I did on my phone and it stinks. So. But I'll make a better design, but you can put that in the little show notes.

[B]

Also, you know, speaking of Jeff, you know, people still very angry about the rerun episode. We tried to sneak by him. And you know, I just want to say, like, we're not gonna do it again, but like, Jeff bullies us into it. Jeff is like, he's like a boy band. Manager. He's like the Lou Perlman of podcasts. Like we're, you know, he's just like very pushy and aggressive and makes us do things that we don't feel have integrity.

[C]

Well, Seth, I offered to do this. Maybe makes it worse or better, but I offered to do an episode solo and he was like, yeah, I don't think we need that. It was. I was. I was with. Over the holiday, I was with my very funny sister in law, Emily Heller, and I was like, maybe I could.

[B]

Do something with her.

[C]

And I was like, kind of kicking around. And Jeff was like, nah, we good. No, that's good.

[B]

You were. You're too burrito brain to host is what.

[C]

Oh, yeah, I think. I think you can tell.

[B]

We talked about the challenge coins and how I was a general on the challenge coin. I was gifted and asked what your ranks should be. Somebody said clearly Andy and Akiva's rank should be Admiral. Why Yor.

[C]

Because of Admiral Spaceship.

[B]

That's a. That's one version, but also that they're on a boat.

[C]

Oh, nice.

[B]

Yeah. But Admiral Spaceship is actually.

[C]

I feel like we're crossing ranks though. Is ad. That's like now the Navy.

[B]

Cuz that's not army, right? That's. That's Quaid Navy.

[C]

Yeah, that's Qu. Navy. I would be buck private, I'd say.

[B]

Yeah, that's probably. That's probably fine.

[C]

What is the book part meme?

[B]

I don't know. And I'm not going to get to the bottom of it.

[C]

Jeff, look it up.

[B]

Look it up, Jeff. Oh, Jeff. Well, I got you. Actually, a real question for you, Jeff. A lot of people say the Apple podcast upload keeps ending abruptly before we hear Arnold. People have to switch to YouTube to hear his later quaits. I don't know if that's Apple wide or just this one person's phone.

[C]

Can I complain about the last episode? I thought it should end with us just being cut off, but I mean, Keev says some last thing, but I always like it when Arnold closes.

[B]

I kind of agree. I think since we don't have the other two here. I agreed with you when you said it and.

[C]

Oh, but if they were here, you wouldn't.

[B]

No, I would take their side. Figured I'm a coward when they're here, but I'm brave when it's just you and me.

[C]

He's just so mean.

[B]

Congrats to our friend Amy Poehler. She won the Golden Globe first. The inaugural Golden Globe for podcasting.

[C]

You knew she would, right? The Minute they even said the award, I was like, well, Poehler, it's gonna get better.

[B]

I do. I am hopeful, you know, for our behalf, that you can't repeat in the podcast category.

[C]

That's not going to be possible. I think we should just ask Amy to talk to Hans and Sven and everybody and put it on.

[B]

Right, Yordy. We talked about how Keef maybe threw a little shade at old. Oh, wait, we have private Bug. Private is informal slang for a soldier at the absolute lowest rank. I was right. So you're bucking for promotion. Ah, yeah.

[C]

This is a really informative podcast.

[B]

It is. I mean, it's. I. You know, again, especially when we're not. We're not in the weeds on these dumb shorts. Keith threw some shade at Lynn for constantly saying whether or not his kids liked or didn't like the shorts.

[C]

Yeah, he got.

[B]

He got. Keef basically was like, we don't get it.

[C]

That fucking backfired pretty hard on him.

[B]

But Lynn did say that he just wanted us to know his 11 year old did love the Betty White short, which I think actually will like that almost like serves Keef's premise.

[C]

But Lynn also sent a video of his son not liking Ross Trent, which I did appreciate, but it was. It was kind of a burn back because I was like, there's nothing like, nothing like the eye roll of an 11 year old to make me feel like shit.

[B]

I said, I mean, this is. I'm sorry to talk about the spelling bee. I'm almost on to our listeners here. You know, we have to do. We got to clean up. I said it should be called a queen squeak when Andy gets queen bee clean. And then everybody pointed out it should be a squeaky clean. Sorry, a squeaky queen.

[C]

A squeaky queen.

[B]

And then somebody wrote, a squeaky queen is the andiest thing Andy didn't say. And I think that's actually a really good way of putting it.

[C]

Anytime you hear any one of our songs and there's like over fucking wordplay, like, shit, it's always Andy. And just know me and Akiva took it down a notch because we were like, you can't fucking understand even what you're talking about because it's so detailed. But, you know, I love the guy.

[B]

I love that guy. People are still wondering where you land on Andy now you've at least put your flag in the game.

[C]

Well, I love him and I hate him.

[B]

Somebody was commenting on just like the level of talent we've had in our criterion judges and worried that we might never be Able to top it. And then someone said, who are they going to have next? Pta? No, they said pta. And guess what? I bet he might do it.

[C]

Yeah, I bet he would.

[B]

I mean, what a great idea.

[C]

All those fucking guys that have to, like, do real interviews and talk about, like, art. Like, I'm sure are pretty pumped to, like, you know, talk about some bullshit for a while.

[B]

Well, especially, like, we know. I mean, PTA was, like, present at creation during. I mean, he was there when it aired, when dick in a box aired, when the world changed.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Hey, we have a voice note. Our first voice note.

[C]

Wait, wait, wait. Before you get to voice notes, I want to just mention this was sent to us, and it's definitely for you.

[B]

It's a. Oh, yeah, it's a bunch of Pittsburgh Steeler football cards.

[C]

I'm going to send this to you regardless of whether you.

[B]

Yeah, I like when you know who they're for. Oh, yeah, those were my notes. And now we're. Our first voice note is from Greg Chun, who composes. Who composes our theme songs and. Oh, no, I haven't heard it. I'm very excited. Let's give it a roll.

[C]

Shit. Make way for the quaint army. Say, hey, it's the quaint army. Hey, fellas. Greg.

[A]

It's Greg Chun here, your jingle writing guy. And I wanted to send in my own voice note because I, too, have amusing little tidbits from the past dating back to awesome town days. And I wanted to thank you for letting me write for the pod and for continuing to let me work with you from time to time, because I actually have given you each a specific reason to not want to ever work.

[C]

With me ever again.

[A]

Andy's is probably the most innocuous. It's just a case of mistaken identity. When you all called me to write the opening movie musical for the Emmys when Andy hosted, Andy thought I was somebody else. And we got on the meeting, and he's just like, hey, man, excited to work with you on this. We really enjoyed the work you did for us on. And it was some short that I did not work on. And I was faced with a moment of, well, do I tell him that it's not me? And risk, Like, I really want to do this job with them. But in the end, I was such a rule follower. I was like, okay, Andy, well, I appreciate that. I'm actually, I didn't work on that one. So if there's, like, a certain special something that you wanted from that one in particular, I'm not your guy. And Andy actually could not have even cared less. You were just like, oh, okay, well, for this one, we're going to do this. And I'm like, phew. And a clear conscience. How awesome. Akiva's is worse. A lot worse. In fact, it's probably the most epic career fail I've ever had. And we were working on the Bolton special, the sexy Valentine's Day special, and I think we sweetened the orchestra on 12 months till Christmas or 10 months till Christmas. And we were coming down to, like, the final mix, and, like, time was running out. So you gave me very specific instructions, like, for this number. For this number, I want you to have this one file that we had sort of, like, mostly approved before. I want it on deck. And I know we made these other changes, but if I don't have time to approve them, like, I want you to have. And I basically lost it. And so when it came time to it, like, you had to sit and re approve and take all this time that you didn't have, continue to work on it. And we were all getting no sleep, and so it was really horrible. I felt pretty bad about that. But you were very gracious about it. In fact, I think what you said verbatim in the very key, diplomatic way was, yeah, I'm just trying to figure out what happened to that whole conversation we had.

[C]

Very key response, very much a I'm.

[A]

Not mad, I'm disappointed moment. And I felt really shitty. Yhorms is probably the worst and the most embarrassing because back in the day, like, after we had finished the awesome Town pilot and everything, I was like, oh, okay, you know, cool, guys, whatever. Hey, yhorm, I'm having a party where we're gonna be watching the Holyfield fight on Pay Per View. And you're like, oh, cool, sick.

[C]

I'll be there.

[A]

And so I swear to God, like, I'm not some loser, but for some reason, everyone else I invited that day, like, bailed at the last minute. And so Yhorm shows up with a six pack of beer at my apartment in Glendale, and there's nobody there except for me and a television. And we were supposed to sit there and watch this fight and stuff. And it was just really, I was just super mortified or whatever. And so I thought you just figured I was this freak who had no friends. And it was very awful. So, yeah, well, that's it. Despite all that, you guys still let me play in the sandbox, and I really appreciate it, Seth. Unfortunately, I haven't worked with Enough to help. But I will put out my two favorite Seth moments in history that live rent free in my head. One is zing, Jackpot, and the other is total cat replacement.

[B]

Okay, so that's it.

[A]

You guys are awesome. Bye.

[C]

Oh, my God. First of all, I love having a better mic. Come on. Than anyone else I know. Like, so smooth.

[B]

He's so smooth. Somebody actually, which was really funny, said, like, hey, I just want to note how much better Lynn and Quest's mics are than sure. And Tappers. And it's like, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, but yeah, that was the best mic we've.

[C]

Tapper's a little surprising, though.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Yeah, Greg is the best. It's. It's so funny to even, like, awesome Town. That means we've been working with him for over 20 years.

[B]

How did you. How did you come across him in awesome Town? What was the first connection with him?

[C]

Awesome Town, I believe, was Greg from. You know, it all becomes a blur, obviously, to me especially. But, like, one of the best things.

[B]

About, like, you have Blurrito brain.

[C]

I do. I do. Like, always. And more and more so. But, like, one of the best things about it being a triad between the three of us is that we are constantly collecting people. So I can't remember if Greg was from. I think it was MTV Music Awards that we picked him up from. Like, like, some thing that we had done with him. And then Akiva. I think Akiva was the one who, like, scooped him as a friend. And, like, we're working together forever and we've just worked with him since. I think that's right. But Kiva will know better than I will because I'm a mess.

[B]

But I really. I was very pro. That Quaid army thing we heard at the top, too, by the way.

[C]

We do that, though, all the time. There's a guy named David Nienagle who we work with all the time, who is, like, from Akiva doing the watch, only Atwell, who's a fucking incredible person. And these people that we go to all the time for, like, they're incredible. And Greg is one of those people.

[B]

I think it's very nice. And I think it happens at SNL all the time. Like, right. Anytime you meet somebody that you enjoy collaborating with, you're like, oh, yeah, what's. What's the point of moving on from this?

[C]

By the way, David Nienongle, who does special effects, we have been completely fucked over by, like, Mike Scherer. Anybody who meets him, just, like, he does all of the visual effects. For loot. Now, he just told me recently. For loot. I think he said I have 1400 shots to get through. And I was like, holy fuck. Like they're destroying his life, so please stop.

[B]

Support comes from Helix. Hey, everybody. It's the winter. You know, we're all having our seasonal depression. It's a tough time to get through and. Tell me about it. Oh, my God. Nothing makes it harder than when you get a bad night's sleep. Keev. Sorry, Keith. You are.

[D]

You can't.

[B]

You can't get a bad night's sleep, right? It fucks you up.

[C]

Oh, I hate it.

[B]

I hate it.

[C]

Like I'm bad on the pod if I don't get my 14 hours.

[B]

But that's why we both took the Helix sleep quiz, which matched us with the perfect mattress.

[C]

We did.

[B]

I found out I need a firmer mattress. Oh.

[C]

And I found out the exact opposite.

[B]

And you know what? This is really sad. Andy. When he took the Helix sleep quiz, he did so bad, he got held back.

[C]

Ooh, sweet burn. That's a school school tie in.

[B]

It's a very easy sleep quiz to take. And Helix is the most awarded mattress brand. It's tested, reviewed by experts. Yeah, it is Forbes and Wired. Also, you guys. It's delivered right to your door with free shipping in the US Rest easy. With seamless returns and exchanges. The happy with Helix guarantee offers a risk free customer first experience designed to ensure you're completely satisfied with your new mattress. All right, how many nights of sleep do you want for a trial yorm before you're sure the mattress is good for you?

[C]

For me, three to four.

[B]

I'm going to give you 120. No way.

[C]

Are you serious?

[B]

120 night sleep trial and limited lifetime warranty. Go to helixsleep.com island for 27% off site wide exclusive for listeners of the Lonely island and Seth Meyers podcast. That's helixsleep.com island for 27% off site wide. Make sure you enter our show name after checkout so they know how we sent you. Helix sleep.com island support comes from Bombas.

[C]

Yeah, My favorite sock company, dude.

[B]

My favorite sock company. You know what? I bet, because we got kids, that's one of the best things about Bombas. Throwing them on your little kids feet.

[C]

Yeah, I was saying in the last ad that it's all that's in my house because my wife is relentlessly buying them and then it's difficult to know whose is whose. So you know, that's how much we like them.

[B]

Cause you got little kid feet.

[C]

Yeah, yeah. Move on. Just move on.

[B]

But I swear, Bombas are super comfortable.

[C]

Yep.

[B]

I like them as much as our kids. And I agree. I know what you're saying, Keith. I'm sorry.

[D]

Fuck.

[B]

Why do I keep going? I know what you're saying just makes.

[C]

Me so happy when I'm not the.

[B]

Only one I'm getting. Like, I didn't realize you could catch burrito brain. Yeah, you can. I haven't had a burrito all year.

[C]

Yeah, well, no, it's a stigma.

[B]

Let me tell you what I like right now, please. Because again, do it. I like the luxurious Sherpa Sunday slippers. They feel like walking on clouds.

[C]

Yeah, I like that. Like a Sherpa. Like a Sherpa would up in the clouds.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. And by the way, not just socks, everybody. Softest base layers that will have you rethinking your whole wardrobe.

[C]

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. Base layers.

[B]

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[C]

Which I think is great. I think is really wonderful aspect of this company. Andy disagrees. He like he was.

[B]

Andy disagrees. But y and I, on behalf of yorm and I, we tip our cap and our socks to you Bombas, for actually serving the greater good. Head over to bombas.com island and use code island for 20% off your first purchase. That's B O M B A S.com island code island at checkout.

[C]

Support for this podcast comes from Airbnb. All right, I'm going to sing this one. Booking a trip with Airbnb makes a better trip for you and me. You could be traveling with a family looking to discover authentic local experiences. The rhyme fell out. Or you could be taking a trip with a group of friends. Whatever. Airbnb makes it easy. Here's a personal experience that everyone's going to want to hear. Recently my cousin Katie came up to visit me. We didn't have enough room staying at our place unfortunately, because we were jammed up with my folks in law and she found an awesome place down the road from us. Super close with Airbnb and loved the place. Super warm and cozy. It's snowing on the east coast and so that was a winter wonderland for her as well, and it was just incredibly easy for her. And I also just loved how close it was. It's also better than a hotel because you're feeling like you're in that local experience. Experience. Anyway, she loved it, guys. And we built snowmen. I have always loved staying at homes on Airbnb. They are wonderful to feel like you got that local experience. There's so many different locations. Obviously there's also guest favorites which are the most loved homes on Airbnb. When you reserve a home on Airbnb, you receive space to spend time with your family without hanging out in a hotel. Or you can book a property with a private pool. That's cool. Places to stay in the coolest parts of the city. Not the touristy parts, unless you like that sort of thing. They also got that too. A place to cook and dine together. Yeah, not me, but you know, I could reheat a bowl of ramen, I guess. And no worries about your kids disturbing others, which is a big plus for all you parents out there.

[B]

This is pro linebacker TJ Watt and I'm back with YPB by Abercrombie for another activewear drop. My second co design, Collect, has new shorts and tanks that keep up with all my in season workouts. And their new Restore collection is a game changer off the field too, because even pro athletes like me need rest days. Shop YPB by Abercrombie in the app.

[C]

Online and in stores because your personal best is greater than anything.

[B]

Somebody wrote in Natasha. She was very delighted to learn that Jorma's daughter's favorite song is a Rilo Kiley song. What song was it?

[C]

The song is called Better Son Daughter. I don't know why it's called that, but it has a lyric that she loves, loves, love singing.

[B]

Also, Kim wrote in how we were talking about how Both Andy and YHorm have been in Spider man to add to the connectedness, Jack Quaid was also a spider man.

[C]

Hey, yeah. Hey, yeah. Jack. I can't do that thing, but macaroni. Jack. Oh, I'm Andy.

[B]

What you cooking, Jack? What you cooking, Jack?

[C]

Wait, hold on. I want to talk about cool music. Hipster shit. Because of Riley Kiley, when my son was four, we were looking shit up on YouTube. I can't remember why. Like he. I asked him what song he wants to hear and he just said mama's Gun. That's what he said, Right?

[B]

Okay.

[C]

That happens to actually be a song. Like I was. I just said like, name two words and that's what he came up with. Right. Mama's Gun is a song by Glass Animals, who then had this massive fucking hit and heat waves, like, years and years later sort of thing. So we were super into Glass Animals and in particular, this song called Mama's Gun Forever. And there would be moments where I. Like, at one point I was looking at something else up on YouTube and I was like, oh, you want to check out some animals or something like that? Yeah, Glass Animals. And I was like, that's the most fucking hipster thing ever. And then, super weirdly then, they had this massive hit years later, and I was like, oh, this guy's like a maven. My son.

[B]

He was ahead of it. He was ahead of the game.

[C]

Yeah. Ahead of the curve.

[B]

This. I feel like, Shelly, this might be some bad news for Shelley, but I'm gonna just read this, and you knowing the current state of the music industry, I would like your answer. Okay.

[C]

Okay, cool. Yeah.

[B]

Question for the Lonely Island. With the 10th anniversary of PopStar's release coming up, is there a possibility of the soundtrack getting a re release? It's almost impossible to find a CD copy of the soundtrack, and I desperately want to get my hands on it.

[C]

I would say we can press for trying to get some vinyl, but I don't know if we.

[B]

Yeah, that's true. Vinyl, I feel like, is the way, because it's. You know, at this point, you're rereleasing it for connoisseurs.

[C]

But, you know, like, a lot of music industry people listen to this podcast, and I would imagine Monte Lippman, the head of Universal Records, does, too. I mean, I can't imagine that he listens to any other podcasts.

[B]

No, this would be the one.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Or he probably stopped after it took so long to get to the short last.

[C]

But it'll probably happen without us even, like, doing anything.

[B]

Yeah. Also, Shelley was very kind about how hard it is to put my appreciation into words for the work that you and your cohort have done.

[C]

This work. This is the work that we're doing.

[B]

Hey, I mean, we can talk about this one. Emily wanted to know. She's been a huge fan since awesome Town. Love you guys. Something I'd love to hear talk more about the POD is what family life looks like for people at snl. How does that work with crazy schedules? How about now? Did most of you start your families after snl? How'd you meet your spouses? As a working mom, always curious about work life balance, especially within your industry. Thank you. P.S. hot rod is a masterpiece. I.

[C]

Yes, please.

[B]

I mean, I met my wife when I was at snl, but I can't even comprehend having kids when I was still at snl. I mean, we didn't get married till I was done, and I don't think I would have been a particularly good husband. You were married while you were still on snl?

[C]

I got married while we were at snl. And you came to my wedding. And a lot of SNL'ers did as well. It was very, very lovely. But when Mari got to the show, I remember her first show, she went into the writer's room and there were a bunch of spouses in the writer's room. And one of them leaned over to her and was like, so you're part of the SNL widows? And I was like, that was. That was accurate. Because you're basically dead to the world when you're at the show. And it is a bummer, actually, because, like, having so many friends on the show, I still have the sense of, like, I don't want to bother them because the level of anxiety that you have during a show week, you just do not want to add to that in any way, shape form. So the idea of, like hanging out with anybody, especially on a show week, is like a nightmare. And there were many moments, I would say this is the most distinct memory I have of being a failure as a husband was getting a call from Mari where she shooting with Natalie Portman. It was right before we shot with you, Seth. It was in her apartment. And I was holding playback for the song. And I was having to be like, oh, I'm sorry, I'm shooting with Natalie Portman right now. And she was like, I just fell on the stairs, my back. And she hurt herself really badly. And I was like, I gotta go, like. But it was just. And it's still to this day between the two of us, a failure of our marriage.

[B]

I mean, we always talk about, you know. Cause Alexi and I were. And by the way, I met Alexi at Chris Kattan's wedding. So SNL had a key role in every part of my life. But she would come to SNL every week. And you realize now, like, she talks about it, like, to pace your day, that on Saturday you will get in a taxi at like 11 o' clock at night to go. And again, like, working at the show, your adrenaline has kicked in. Like, I never felt tired at 11 on a Saturday. Yeah.

[C]

Oh, you don't wanna go anywhere at 11 fucking o'.

[B]

Clock. Oh. And like driving into the heart the maw of times squ mess of it. Oh, when I went back and hosted in 2017, and I, at that point had two. Maybe just one. Yeah, one kid. But I remember, like, having to make time to, like, go to the people. Like, my biggest memories were, like, people like Tucker. Brian Tucker is great writer at snl. Steve Higgins, producer at snl. Sort of say, like, hey, I want to retroactively apologize for the times in my head I thought it was, like, busted that you left to go see your kid in a school play. Because, like, you know what I mean? Like, I realize now that I was a total piece of shit and you had your priorities in order. And I cannot believe you did this job while also being a good parent, because both of them did.

[C]

Another massive regret that I have was Akiva's, like, first week of having had his kid. His first kid. And we were shooting, I think it was with Nicki Minaj. And both me and Andy were like, get over here.

[B]

Like, we're.

[C]

He just had, like, the best moment of his life of having his daughter and us just being, like, this fucking lazy piece of shit.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Like, just unbearable. And then. And then I. We can maybe cut this out. Cause maybe it's talking about it too much. But, like. But I also remember on the flip side of just my life revolving entirely around snl, sleeping there almost twice a week. Like, basically, like, on a Tuesday, working with Forte till fucking 3pm on a sketch that's never gonna get. So sleeping over on Tuesday into Wednesday and then sleeping again at the show on shitty couches. Like, we should have invested in cots or something. But, like, sleeping on Forte's couch, which was a dumpy, like, picture the dumpiest couch ever.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

But I remember having this conversation with Mari where we went to some play on some off week. It was like, some black box theater. And I was like, this is so fucking cool, man. Like, this is like a East Village crazy little play. Like. And she was like, have you never been here? And I was like, like, no. Like, how many times have you been here? And she was like, 10. And I was like, okay. Like, you're actually having a life in New York. And my entire life was, like, shooting in different places in New York.

[B]

Yeah. But, like, even Lauren isn't. I remember saying in the week of the 50th, like, I remember, like, when I moved to New York, I was like, oh, my God, maybe one day I'll be able to get the keys to Lorne Michaels, New York City. And then I realized it's just 30 Rock, three restaurants, and Yankee Stadium.

[C]

You got the keys? Got the keys. Quick.

[B]

If someone's like, we don't know where Lauren is, I'm like, I'll check the three places.

[C]

Yeah. Did you turn on the Yankee game?

[B]

There he is. He's probably right. If you've ever watched the Yankees on Yes, Lauren. If he's at the game, you can see him. Hey, Jeff, you want to play a voice note for us?

[C]

I like these voice notes.

[D]

Hey, Quades. My name is Andrea, and I am a preschool teacher in sunny SoCal. First. First, I have to give a shout out to Jorma for A Little Fox and the Wild Imagination. I love this book. The artwork explodes off the page and I get to perform it with voices, which is super fun for the kids and for me, but it also gets them excited about reading. So bravo. I love it.

[C]

Thank you.

[D]

I run a music, dance, and theater program for preschoolers as well, and I have drawn so much inspiration from the Lonely island over the years. You sincerely inspire me to embrace my humor, be brave, remain open to collaboration, but most of all to be resilient. Because failure, just like preschoolers sometimes, will catch you with a sucker punch left and a sucker punch right and then Rocky 22 consecutive sucker punch rights. So my question is, how do you recenter yourselves when you're up against the ropes? I really hope this reaches your ear holes. I love you guys. Thank you so much. And later, Quaid's.

[C]

Oh, I want. I want you to answer this question.

[B]

Well, I just want to start by saying, like, I'm going to test it in real time because I'm on tilt right now because I also read a kid's book that went unmentioned.

[C]

Yes. Oh, fuck you stuff. Don't look his up. What is it called? What's it called, Seth?

[B]

What it's called? I'm not scared. You're scared. But I mean, I don't know, man, it's so funny. Like, I wish there was a way to give this advice better, but I mean, don't you kind of think. And it feels like that question comes from somebody who is wired the same way we are, that it's just kind of this, like, fight or flight thing with failure, you know? And ultimately, if you just want to do what we're doing more than anything else, you just keep trying because, like, the only other thing is to, like, run away from it. And you're like, but I know this is where I want to be. I know this is what I want to be.

[C]

Yeah, but I'll give concrete example, like. Like, what is one of your biggest failures? Or, like, the moment that you actually would have bailed on or should have. A normal person would have bailed on that. Do you have one?

[B]

I mean, again, like, I wasn't gonna. Like, I wasn't gonna, like, say it. Snl. Like, I'm bad at this. I'm out.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

But I certainly, like, you know, you felt it. Felt it. And, like, you know, no one has ever gone into Lauren's office and been like, I'm gonna save you the trouble. But had they? I might have, but I wasn't going to because, like, I was like, I just. I will. And that was the thing, too, because, you know, and we've talked about it so much on the pod, but, like, again, failing at the table is like, an incredible bruising of the ego, you know, especially the longer you're there and the more you, like. Like, the people you're around, it doesn't get easier to eat shit. But you know how it feels to have to have it work at the table. And you just, like, chasing that, I think keeps you going back for more.

[C]

I think it really depends, though, too, because there are people who have had and really, really fucking funny people who have come to the show and for whatever reason, like, it doesn't work out in terms of, like, maybe they have a purity of tone that just doesn't translate to, like, reading out loud in front of a hundred people or, like, whatever. Like, there are really, really successful people who have been at snl. And I think we. We both, Seth and us, have been incredibly lucky to, like, you know, because that was sort of the case with us as well. Of, like, there were things that probably wouldn't translate to the table, and then we were allowed to do it on our own and sort of, you know, proof of concept, make. Make these things. But I would say mine is that the cheat code is group. The group that I was in, yeah, it was three friends. And so we're a little insulated from failure in that, like, we liked what we were making, and so we were even joking around with each other and, like, laughing about stuff. Like, even when it was maybe considered a failure, like, didn't quite work. Like, it's not one person, like, with a bullseye on their back. It's three.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And that's been the case with me working with, you know, John Solomon and Will Forte, too. I've always been in sort of groups. Like, there's. There's a movie that I'm trying To get off the ground right now. And it is just me. And it's fucking scary. It's like, really. It's a different kind of. And that's. That's now something I'm very excited about. Of just, like, level of fear of, like, you live and die by what you fucking wrote. And, you know, Mugless.

[B]

Was that for me, you know, mine. I think there's also one, like, you are. The target's not uniquely on your back. I also think there's something about working with people who, you know, they don't have to explicitly say it every day, but, like, you know, they're working with you because they believe in you and they trust you and you trust their taste. And so sometimes you take esteem from through them. And, you know, I talked about this when I did Good hang. And, you know, Amy, like, almost, like, made me cry talking about, like, how my early days of the show, like, the fact that, like, her and Shoemaker kind of, like, continued to believe that they had not made a terrible mistake hiring me. Like, I don't think I would have survived without that. So it does help to have.

[C]

And then. And then cut to my interpretation of you as, like, head writer and, like, watching you, like, be able to go to sleep on a. On a writing night and then wake up and bang out, like, two sketches that could, like, start the show. Like, honestly, like, we've talked about this when we were writing Hot Rod, but, like, your. Your ability to, like, push through and, like, just write. It was like me and Andy, like, groggily waking up still at Lauren's office on the Paramount lot. And Seth just like, here's another. Here's another scene. Here's another. It's like, fuck, this guy is fucking amazing. Like, we're pieces of shit.

[B]

Well, you guys are always a little tired, so let's not forget you're always a little tired. But anyway, hopefully that was helpful. But I think the most important thing is it sounds like you love what you do, and I cannot stress how important that is.

[C]

I also thought that when she was saying it was a dance and music, I'm like, are you playing Lonely island songs for people? That's inappropriate. But, you know, okay, sure.

[B]

Oh, there was a good inappropriate. Somebody was showed their kid Cherry battle, and. And then the kid really liked it. And they were like, I'm gonna show another one.

[C]

Whoops. It is.

[B]

And so they were, like, correctly steering around the ones that are sort of explicitly dirty. And they were like, oh, you know what? Laser cat seems fine. And they Forgot the first laser cat. You guys are both like. They're both asking Lindsay Lohan if they'll have sex with him.

[C]

Yeah, that was a bummer.

[B]

He said. So that has now been the reason a seven year old.

[C]

Well, just so you know, that also happened to me. I also forgot that joke.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Memento. This is one of those Yorm comments that people are going to find funny later. Memento.

[B]

All right, here you go. This is nice, Hillary. I just like this. I like when a couple connects over the pod. I just got from work today and told my husband I was super tired and asked if he knew why. So he said, likely from winter soldiering. And that is what she was trying to get him to say. Fuck, yeah, that was her joke and he beat her to it.

[C]

Can I, can I go back though, to the. There was a person who was saying that they were listening to. Oh, yeah, on headphones. Like, that was how they go to bed to us talking. And I would like to say, you know, cuddle with each other. Don't do that. Just fucking hold each other and. And turn us off.

[B]

You know what I mean? Yeah. Oh, that's good.

[C]

Thanks.

[B]

Michael was the one who now has to talk to their 7 year old about sex because of laser cats. But Michael started his email with maybe my favorite opening.

[C]

Okay.

[B]

Long time goose, first time gonk.

[C]

It makes me like humans so much.

[B]

It really makes me like humans too.

[C]

Yeah, it's like fun.

[B]

It's fun. Look, there's a lot of things this podcast isn't doing, but, you know, I will say, a year ago, nobody would have written the sentence, long time goose, first time gonk.

[C]

By the way, did you have. Because I feel like what SNL also gave me was like, there's so many moments at SNL where you're like, well, that sentence has never been said. It's the best on earth. Like, it's the best.

[B]

It was very funny too, because, you know, Mike Shoemaker, who we obviously talk about a lot on the pod, is a loyal listener to this. And he was saying he missed. He goes, just by accident, he missed one episode. He goes, if you miss one episode, you have no idea what's going on. He goes, there was something you guys kept saying last episode. And I was like, what is this? And I was like, was it two burrito brained Winter Soldier? He's like, yeah, that was what it was. And again, like, Shoemaker is as comedy coded as any brain has ever been. And even he was like, it's impenetrable.

[C]

Okay, here's the thing to bring it back to comedy in general. This is a little bit like what it's like to be in a writer's room where you're like, jokes just get piggybacked on until they no longer resemble anything normal or. Yeah. So this is, this is what it is. Support comes from Chime. I'm gonna do this real smooth, you guys. Chime is changing the way that people bank fee free and smarter banking built for you. Not like old school banks that change your overdraft and monthly fees. No, this is for the little guy. It's built for you, not for the 1%. Chime isn't just another banking app. They unlock smarter banking for everyday people with products like MyPay giving you access to up to $500 of your paycheck anytime and getting paid up to two days early with direct deposit. Some old school banks still don't do this. Barf O rama. It's got no annual fees, no interest and no strings attached. And when you get qualifying direct deposit, you get 1.5% cash back on eligible Chime card purchases. I know some people that could benefit from Chime. I'm not going to name names, but it's Andy, Akiva and Seth. Chime is not just smarter banking. It's the most rewarding way to bank. Join the millions who are already banking fee free today. Just takes a few minutes to sign up, guys. Head to chime.comi island. That is chime.com island all spelled regular. Chime is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services. A secured Chime Visa credit card and my pay line of credit provided by the Bancor Bank NA or Stride Bank NA. MyPay eligibility requirements apply and credit limit ranges 20 to 500. Optional services and products may have fees or charges. See chime.com feesinfo advertised annual percentage yield with Chime+status only. Otherwise 1.00% APY applies. No min balance required. Chime card on time. Payment history may have a positive impact on your credit score. Results may be. See chime.com for details and applicable terms.

[B]

New year, same extra value meals at McDonald's.

[C]

So now get two snack wraps plus.

[B]

Fries and a medium soft drink for.

[C]

Just $8 for a limited time only.

[A]

Prices and participation may vary.

[C]

Prices may be higher in Hawaii, Alaska and California.

[B]

And for delivery, we got another voice note. Yeah.

[C]

Fucking killer. I love these voice notes.

[B]

Hey guys, it's Cameron from the Pacific Northwest. Two questions. One, there's a video where Brian Tucker raps about fucking each of you and pantomimes it while each of you are trying to work for urinal on YouTube. Is Tucker's song reuploaded? I don't remember if it was 2005 or 2006 when it first showed up online, but it instantly became my all time favorite YouTube clip. The line, ah, a key for Schaefer pops into my head multiple times a week. Even all these years later, and even after what must be hundreds of rewatches, the extra V and the text overlay of Government still makes me laugh out loud. Please talk about how this video came to be. 2. Did Jorma get that vasectomy in October?

[C]

No.

[B]

Or did the latter take care of it for him? Love you guys.

[C]

Okay, first of all, one of the jokes that me and my wife did when I first fell off the ladder and I was in the first Trauma 2 center, and they were realizing that they couldn't do the surgery because it was too difficult for them to do there, and I had to go to Trauma 1. One of the jokes that me and my wife were doing was this doctor came in and she was, oh, my God. What did he just say? I'm really fucking brain dead. Keep or Jesus Christ, cut this all out.

[B]

No, keep. Leave it all in.

[C]

No, Leave it all in.

[B]

No, do not get a vasectomy with the doctor. He was upside down. So the doctor took out a part of his brain. He came in walking on his head.

[C]

We're cutting this out.

[B]

He cut his brain off.

[C]

But like, one of the jokes. One of the jokes that me and Mari were doing, there were two different jokes. One was about Jeremy Allen White. And that's why I got confused.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Was that we kept, like, pitching that to people of like, can I still look like Jeremy Allen White? People did not understand it. And then the other one was, if they're going in there already, can I also get a vasectomy? Like just a twofer. You might as well do it.

[B]

Right, right, right.

[C]

People didn't like that joke either.

[B]

Gotcha.

[C]

And then Tucker's song came about by Tucker coming into our office and just doing that, just saying, ah, fuck the key machine. I bent that shit over and I went to work. Ah, fucked a boy named Yarmouth. So we were just like, yeah, like, it was probably either Monday or Tuesday, but we were like, let's. Let's film that. Film that as a music video. And we did.

[B]

I think people should watch it because I always feel like the lore of Brian Tucker. You never think he's gonna look the way he does. It's extra funny. When you see Brian in person, he's.

[C]

Like the whitest white man I've ever seen in my life.

[B]

I just had Kenan on my show last night, and he was talking about. Because Kenan and Tucker, they also just wrote a kid's book.

[C]

What is it called? What's that called?

[B]

The Unfunny Bunny. But they were collaborators, and Kenan said he goes, one of the reasons I started working with Tucker is he knew how write and talk black, like, just from being a guy who, like, loved the culture, like, authentically and grew up around it.

[C]

Because he also, like, he just, like, does not exude that in any way. Again, he's like the whitest white man I've ever. I mean, this is like, he's. He's not trying to fucking front or.

[B]

No, there's no fronting.

[C]

No, he loves. He loves, but, like, he's pretty much, like, worked with and writes incredibly well for black comedians, Kenan included, and also Dave Chappelle. And he's just. Yeah, he's an enigma.

[B]

Connor wrote in. Hello, my name is Connor, and my girlfriend Lauren and I are huge fans of Andy Samberg. Unfortunately, soon I will be going on a deployment and will miss our anniversary as well as her birthday. I was hoping you could send her something to make her feel special before leaving. Her favorite movie is Hot Rod Connor. We reached out to Andy and it was a no.

[C]

Moving on. It's a burn. This is a real burn. Can I go back to the Tucker thing?

[B]

Yeah, go back. Yeah.

[C]

Great.

[B]

It's our time.

[C]

Yeah. Finally. Fucking finally.

[B]

Andy's not here. So.

[C]

Speaking of Tucker, me and Bill Hader did this back in the day. This is early days again. Like, I'm shocked that we had room for more comedy in our lives that, like, went nowhere or had no purpose. And there was this website called Defamer back in the day that was like a gossip shit for celebrities. And I thought it'd be funny to have a website and a blog called Deflamer about a guy who wants to become a firefighter. Hence, Deflaming. And it was him moving to New York. And it was just really depressing posts about him moving to New York. He's recently divorced, and Brian Tucker was him. So I took a whole bunch of pictures with Brian Tucker. Cause I just thought he was this, like, really a person you would truly feel sorry for. And he moves to, like, sort of not a great area of New York. And he's always trying to put a positive spin on it. But me and Bill Worked out a lot of posts for this, and I don't know why we fucking did it. Like, I think it was that when your job is comedy, you were like, the idea of doing comedy just for you becomes more appealing.

[B]

I don't know. Anyway, so we're just gonna move on.

[C]

From that last one. You're not getting any, like, you know, anything from Hot Rod. That's very sad.

[B]

Look, I mean, when Andy's here, we'll run it back. But like I said, Connor and I want to make sure I get your fiance's or girlfriend's name right. Hold on. I got a lot of stuff in front of me. Connor. Here you go. My girlfriend, Lauren. Ooh, I said fiance. Not yet. So maybe Connor, you know, while we're talking about what Andy's not getting you guys. Yeah. So Connor and Lauren, like I said, I reached out to Andy and it was a hard no.

[C]

Congratulations, guys. I love you guys.

[B]

I don't know. But again, they actually don't have anything to be congratulated for. I misread it.

[C]

It.

[B]

Oh, he's. He's going to unemployment. He will miss their anniversary, I think, of meeting.

[C]

And I mean, congrats on him.

[B]

I mean, I will say, you know, look, I know they. Lauren's a huge fan of Andy Samberg, but as friends of Andy, I would just like to say happy birthday, Lauren. Stay safe, Connor and. And most importantly, Andy had nothing to say to either of you.

[C]

Fucking sweet burn. Connor, I hope you get a challenge coin over there.

[B]

Somebody wrote. We were wondering if you guys would consider doing an episode or two around Kablamo Stork Patrol the Boo. I mean, I feel like. And we've talked about him a little bit, but I think that would be a fun standalone episode.

[C]

I think it was. Yeah. We would actually have a lot to talk about since we, you know, for many years, we did everything solo, like, and had. I think we've probably talked about this, but like a microphone duct taped to an old broom handle as we're. Boom. You know, like, those are fun early days.

[B]

Those are good old days. Do we have another voice? Don't.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Hey, guys.

[C]

Longtime Quaid. So I have kind of a general SNL question, y'.

[B]

All in previous pods have talked about how your sketchbooks can be in different locations in the studios, and it has me wondering whether the update desk always stays where it is or if they take it off and bring it back on. Also, this is just a general thing. I've listened to so much of this.

[C]

Podcast that now when I watch any.

[B]

Snl even episodes y' all weren't there for.

[C]

I can totally hear Seth just dryly.

[B]

Describing sketches to me. Anyway, thanks for everything. Bye.

[C]

Dryly.

[B]

Dryly describing. Love that you've described my role so well. It's a great question. They roll it in and out because that update area is the sweetest piece of real estate at snl known as Home Base. The desk would roll right in front of where the monologue is and sweet spot.

[C]

Why is it at Home Base, Seth?

[B]

Why is updated Home Base? Yeah, why? Because it plays out. So anything that plays out where you don't have to cross shoot anybody. So anytime it's a talk show sketch, you're going to be at Home Base. Home Base is a nice place to be anytime. It's sort of like if you think about a commercial where it's mostly testimonials, those testimonials will be at Home Base. It's kind of the really one of the few places where you have a direct line of sight if you are in the audience.

[C]

And yeah, it does make sketches play better because people can actually, like, see what's going on, whereas if it's off to the way, left or right, you can't.

[B]

Yes, I know. I know I'm repeating myself, but did.

[C]

Andy ever have a sketch that was at Home Base?

[B]

Andy?

[C]

Oh, yeah. Like, which. Which sketches were.

[B]

I don't know.

[C]

I feel like we were always off to the side.

[B]

Yeah. You guys. Yeah. You didn't write presentational stuff.

[C]

No, no, no. Mark Wahlberg talks to animals.

[B]

Oh, yeah. That would have been Home Base. And I know of Ty. The back left corner if you're facing Home base was what Dratch called Shit Can Alley. Yeah, but then I think Cowbell was in Shitcan Alley. So anytime anybody complained. Anytime anybody complained, they'd be like, mm, cowbell. Hey, Sefley and the Islanders. Keeping with the Criterion theme, this is Mike. I wanted to share that Hot Rod actually makes it into my family's top five movies of all time. Before you get too excited, figured I should share what other movies make up the list, and you can determine whether or not that's actually a good thing. I thought that was very nice.

[C]

Yeah, that's right.

[B]

Hot Rod. Secret Life of Walter Mitty. Really fantastic Mr. Fox.

[C]

I agree with that.

[B]

Wall E. A Knight's Tale.

[C]

Only one I agree with is fantastic Mr. Fox.

[B]

Yeah, but I would just say it's an eclectic family. You know what I mean?

[C]

That is very eclectic. I have to assume that there are five of them, and Then they each have a different pick.

[B]

I've never seen a Knight's Tale.

[C]

I don't even know what that is.

[B]

It's Heath Ledger. A knight's tale, 2001.

[C]

Gotcha. Yeah.

[B]

Oh, I did like this. Another phrase coined only because of the pod. Somebody asked a question and then said, hit me. And the titty, you know, I'm just saying it's a play on hip. Hit us in the Titus again. I'm just shuffling notes here. Amy was the one who said, I'd love to hear you talk about prep work for the Wednesday table read. It seems like scripts that are well performed have a better chance of being picked. So how much prep do performers do? How much coaching do writers do? Our cast members, hosts ever surprised by the parts they read at the table, or do all scripts come from a fully collaborative process? On Tuesday nights, she is the one who said, if you have any insights, hit me in the titty. All right, so it's a great question. I think we hit on a little bit before, but the reality is you don't have a ton of time. Everybody goes to the host, and the host is sort of sitting in a room with a big stack of scripts, and you sort of take your time to go in, but you don't have a lot of time because there's like, 40 sketches, and the host is already overwhelmed. So you can give them a little bit of guidance, but you can't, like, run through it with them. So I would always say, like, hey, you're playing like, you know, you're playing like a snobbish person on an airplane and just, like, kind of lean into. And then different cast members required different levels of guidance. I would say, like, Kenan, you just had to literally be like, you're in this. Also, if you forgot to tell Kenan he was in this, he would still be reading along and probably give you just as good of a read as before. But I would say there's never any rehearsing. So oftentimes when it's read at the table, that is for sure the only time you, as the writer have heard it run through with the cast.

[C]

To add on to that a little bit, Seth is not being hyperbolic when he says there's like, 40 sketches. There are almost exactly like, 40 sketches. 38, 40. That's like the number that you read through. It's this massive stack of paper. It's so much for the host to get through. I'm sure they're nervous as a young writer, because I'm sure Seth was more confident than I was. It was always a bit nerve wracking to go into the host and try to give them, you know, a direction beforehand. I obviously got better at that over, over time, but it's like, you know, it's all sort of nerve wracking and you're, you're sleep deprived and everything and you're trying to like in as few amount of words because you don't want to bug them. Like just give them direction. And then there have also been moments where I didn't do that, assuming that it was all on the page and it would be a. Okay, anyone's going to get this, like they're going to read through them once before they get to the table read and it's going to be fine. And that is never the case. We should always give direction.

[B]

Yeah. And yeah, I, I've also like a few times in the last 10 years have like, say, written something for a friend who comes back and hosts and I try to like via text, like tell new cast members like, what to do because I'm on my floor instead of theirs. And like, I just think it, you just can't do it.

[C]

Lost in trailer.

[B]

And by the way, sometimes. And again, it's, you don't have a lot of time but just like a little bit of eye contact, a little bit of like settling, like, hey, like, you know what, you pick one line and you're like, this is the one where you need to like say it. I think as a writer you need to know which are the most important lines as opposed to like line for lining it with everybody. The interesting thing is if you write a song in a sketch, then you get a little bit of music rehearsal. So, you know, and again, this is a song that usually, you know, in our era, it was the great Catrice Barnes, Rest in Peace. And you would like go in and she had composed the music. And any cast members who were singing a song knew that they would sort of be pulled into a room for the purposes of singing it through a couple of times. Because that, you know, obviously reading a line from a sketch, there's a lot of different ways to do it. But when you're singing a song that you've never heard before, it's worth having a couple dry runs to big up.

[C]

Catrice as well. Like, you know, she did Dick and Box with us. She did every bit of music at the show with us in the early days, except for, you know, like one or two little things here and there. You could also rely on her in this way of, like, you could just write out the lyrics however you wanted to, and then she would be able to, like, figure out the melody. And that oftentimes people who weren't musically inclined or whatever, like, it made you a lazier writer because she was so good at being able to, like, just create. So. And you could give her any kind of, like, era. Any kind of, like, you know, genre of music, and she'd be able to. I'll pronounce it the way Kiefa pronounced it. Genre. Genre of music. But, like. But she was incredible, and I would miss her.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Terrible.

[B]

By the way, if you've sent in a voice note. We did not even get to all of them. We didn't get to all your questions. We saved some because it felt like there was some value to Andy and Akiva, hearing them save for Connor and Lauren. I do want you to know he did hear your message and was just.

[C]

A hard, no, please fucking throw this.

[B]

Guy under the box. And I was. I was like, he's getting deployed, Andy. He's one of our nation's troops.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And Andy was like, I don't. I have no time for anyone. Troops or not. Not.

[C]

Right. I don't care. Put that on the Internet that I said it.

[B]

Yeah. Anyway, by the way, this is just. This is just me, like, honoring my dog. You know what I mean?

[C]

What?

[B]

I'm just like, he was shitty to Frisbee payback.

[C]

Oh, yeah, that guy. Yeah, Totally.

[B]

Jorm and I hopefully get a good dinner in the next month. Dinner and a vasectomy.

[C]

You know what? It is New York City, baby.

[B]

You were a great Alvin today, buddy. Thank you.

[C]

Thank you. Well, you know, although, you know what?

[B]

You were very thoughtful with your answers. You were also a very good Simon. And what I really appreciate is you were barely a Theodore, and sometimes you're too much of a Theodore. And so today, sure, you were a real Simon, Alvin, and it was really great.

[C]

And your Dave was, like, on fucking blast.

[B]

I could Dave with my eyes closed at this point, sweetheart. I love you, buddy.

[C]

I love you, Dave.

[B]

And why don't you give us the finale?

[C]

Take us out, Arnold. What did we say?

[B]

You say, later, Arnold.

[C]

Oh, yeah. Later, Arnold.

[A]

Later, Kuwait.