The Great Creators with Guy Raz

Latest Episodes:

Zooey Deschanel: Stopping Stage Fright in Its Tracks, and How She Turned a “Disorder” Into a Superpower Nov 22, 2022

Show notes

Zooey Deschanel is an actor (New Girl, Elf, 500 Days of Summer) musician (She & Him), crafter, and entrepreneur (HelloGiggles, Lettuce Grow). She tells Guy how being diagnosed with ADHD as a child affected her life and career, how the "loneliness" of the actor's life led her to songwriting and her collaboration with M Ward, and how – right before landing her biggest role – she almost quit acting. Zooey also delivers some practical tips on how to turn fear into excitement, and makes the case that regularly pursuing new creative paths makes you better at everything else.

Links from the show:

Zooey's parents' filmographies: Caleb Deschanel & Mary Jo Deschanel
Zooey's first instrument: the Casio SK-1
Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences in Santa Monica
Scene from Zooey's first-ever role on TV: Veronica's Closet
Zooey and Frances McDormand "Drugs & Promiscuous Sex" scene from Almost Famous
The Go-Getter (2007 film), how Zooey met M Ward
Let's Dance by M Ward
Vincent O'Brien by M Ward
Thieves by She & Him (Official Video), one of Zooey's favorites which she wrote in "12 minutes"
She & Him's "pandemic project," Melt Away: A Tribute to Brian Wilson
New Girl full episodes on Amazon
Saturday Night Live sketch - Bein' Quirky With Zooey Deschanel
HelloGiggles
Lettuce Grow

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Billy Eichner: Playing the Long Game and Breaking New Ground for LGBTQ Audiences Nov 15, 2022

Show notes

Billy Eichner is an actor, writer and comedian whose most recent film is the groundbreaking rom-com Bros. Billy talks to Guy about having to create his own path to success, how he developed the viral hit Billy on the Street, and what he hopes all audiences, straight and LGBTQ, will take away from Bros.

Links from the show:

Billy on the Street: Best Moments
Billy on the Street: The Meryl-Go-Round
Billy on the Street: Emma Stone
Billy on the Street: Chris Evans
Billy on the Street: Shondaland with Amy Sedaris
Billy on the Street: The Julianne Moore Acting Attack
Bros Trailer

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Weird Al Yankovic: Achieving Massive Success by Leaning Into His True (Nerdy) Self Nov 08, 2022

Show notes

Alfred Matthew Yankovic, when he was six years old, was told by his parents to choose between accordion and guitar lessons. “And my parents being the visionaries that they were said, ‘Oh, young Alfred would love to play the accordion.’” Alfred, today better known as the chart-topping musician, satirist, and beloved nerd Weird Al Yankovic, tells Guy how that decision changed his life, and decades of popular music to come. They also discuss how Kurt Cobain saved Weird Al from a lifetime of spoofing Michael Jackson songs, and how intense the process of writing silly songs can be.

Links from the show:

Dr. Demento, Weird Al's early major influence and later employer
"Belvedere Cruising", the first song of Weird Al's to air on Dr. Demento's show
Weird Al playing "My Bologna" in San Luis Obispo in 1979
Eight Weird Al music videos side-by-side with with the songs they spoof
Music video for Weird Al's "Fat"
Weird Al interviewing Patrick Stewart at Comic-Con
Trailer for "Weird: The Al Yankovic Story"

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Graham Nash: Writing from Experience and Letting Your Heart Lead the Way Nov 01, 2022

Show notes

Graham Nash has made some of the most unforgettable music of the last century: songs like Marrakesh Express, Our House, and Just a Song Before I Go. And now, at the age of 80, he’s as creatively engaged as ever, still releasing new albums and roaming the streets of New York City in search of his next great photograph. He talks to Guy about where he continues to find inspiration, about the top-10 hit he wrote in 30 minutes, and about his famous--sometimes famously troubled--collaborations with David Crosby, Joni Mitchell, and others.

Links from the show:

Chapter on The Hollies from a Graham Nash documentary
Dispatch from a legendary 1974 Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young tour
Rolling Stone feature on Graham Nash’s book of photography “A Life In Focus”
Graham Nash’s speech at Joni Mitchell’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997
2012 interview with David Crosby, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash
Graham Nash’s Tiny Desk concert
Graham Nash sings “Our House” at a celebration of Joni Mitchell’s 75th birthday in 2018
Graham Nash and Chris Stills perform “So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad)” by the Everly Brothers

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Sigourney Weaver: Conquering Self-Doubt and How to Harness Your Instincts Oct 25, 2022

Show notes

Sigourney Weaver has appeared in more than 60 films, from her breakout role in Alien in 1979 and the blockbuster Aliens in 1986, to Gorillas in the Mist and Working Girl, and later Avatar, with many sequels in the works. Despite being raised by a family steeped in show business, Sigourney was reluctant to pursue acting for many years. In our conversation, Sigourney unpacks what was behind that reticence; tells Guy about her early years in avant-garde theater; talks about why, at first, she wasn’t all that interested in being in Alien; and explains why she takes issue with the idea that she tends to play “strong women.”

Links from the show:

The (pretty amazing) trailer for 1979's Alien
Ellen Ripley’s last stand in Alien
BBC story on Sigourney reuniting with the gorillas from Gorillas in the Mist
Sigourney in Working Girl
Sigourney plays a possessed Diana in Ghostbusters, with Bill Murray
Recent Boston Herald article on Sigourney’s very busy year
More on Sigourney’s new, 14-year-old character in the Avatar franchise

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Oak Felder: Making Music That Hits a Nerve and How Songwriting Can Be Like Therapy Oct 18, 2022

Show notes

Oak Felder is the producer and songwriter behind hits like Demi Lovato’s “Sorry Not Sorry” and Alessia Cara’s “Scars to Your Beautiful.” He talks to Guy about his upbringing in Turkey, why comfortable couches and blue lights help creativity, songs that bring him to tears, and how he helps artists unleash their creative potential.

Links from the show:

Video for Demi Lovato's "Sorry Not Sorry"
Video showing how Oak produced "Sorry Not Sorry"
Video for Alessia Cara's "Scars To Your Beautiful"
Video for Sterling Simms' "Jump Off"
Oak's TEDx Talk about creating emotionally resonant songs
Oak's Recode Talk about producing viral hits

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Nick Kroll: The Creative Breakthrough That Led to His ‘Exponential’ Growth Oct 11, 2022

Show notes

Nick Kroll is an actor and comedian (Kroll Show, Parks and Recreation) and the creator of Big Mouth and Human Resources on Netflix. He joins Guy to talk about developing outrageous characters, playing over-the-top villains, his quirky writing process, why everyone can benefit from improv classes, and his thoughts on comedy vs. “cancel culture.”

Links from the show:

Clip from Nick's appearance on The View in full Cavemen makeup
“Yogurt Water” scene from Kroll Show
Oh, Hello with John Mulaney
Nick as “The Douche” on Parks and Recreation
Big Mouth on Netflix
Little Big Boy on Netflix
Nick’s Instagram
Nick's friends and collaborators: Mike Birbiglia, John Mulaney, Andrew Goldberg, Chelsea Peretti, Jessi Klein

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The Chainsmokers: How to Craft the Perfect Artistic Partnership Oct 04, 2022

Show notes

The Chainsmokers production and DJ duo Alex Pall and Drew Taggart are behind the smash hits “Don’t Let Me Down” and “Closer.” They talk to Guy about why they stopped making remixes, how they moved past a breakthrough hit that felt like an artistic failure, and how they have managed to stay loyal to each other through the highs and lows.

Links from the show:

The Chainsmokers on Hype Machine
Video for "#SELFIE"
Video for "Roses"
Video for "Don't Let Me Down"
Drew sings "Closer" live at the VMAs
"Making of" video for their new album "So Far So Good"
Video for "I Love U"

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Audra McDonald: The Power of Taking On Work That Scares You Sep 27, 2022

Show notes

Audra McDonald (Master Class, Ragtime, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill) has won six Tony Awards--more performance wins than any other theater actor. (She's also won two Grammys and one Emmy along the way.) Still, each new role she takes scares her. Audra tells Guy why that fear is actually essential to her work, about her never-ending quest to know her characters better, and how it felt to have her friend and mentor Stephen Sondheim publicly pan one of her shows.

Links from the show:

Excerpts of Audra and Zoe Caldwell in Master Class
Audra singing "Summertime" from her role as Bess in The Gershwin's Porgy and Bess
Audra performing Billie Holiday's "God Bless the Child" from Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill
Audra performing the song "Say No to This" from Hamilton in the voice of Billie Holiday
Playbill pick of 13 Audra performances on the occasion of her birthday
2020 New Yorker interview with Audra
More on Audra's forthcoming role in Ohio State Murders

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Stephen Colbert: How “Breaking” on Stage Unlocked His Comedic Powers Sep 20, 2022

Show notes

Stephen Colbert has played many roles--an officious high school teacher in Strangers with Candy, and a bumbling blowhard on The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Now, on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, he's facing his biggest challenge: being himself. Stephen talks to Guy about working through that challenge, about the early and enduring influence Amy Sedaris and Paul Dinello had on his work, and about how Stephen Colbert the man related to Stephen Colbert the blustering pundit.

Links from the show: