Speaker 1: This is the most dramatic podcast ever and iHeartRadio podcast.
Speaker 1: Chris Harrison and Lauren Zema coming to you from our
Speaker 1: new office, Merritt Street Media. I don't know if you
Speaker 1: guys have heard the news. If not, we're going to
Speaker 1: break it to you right here, right now. Lauren Za
Speaker 1: and I are coming back to television at Merritt Street Media.
Speaker 1: It is a brand new network run created by the
Speaker 1: legend doctor Phil. It's going to hit the airwaves in
Speaker 1: the biggest network launch ever April second. LZ, Congratulations, welcome
Speaker 1: back to TV.
Speaker 2: Congratulations babe. This feels so incredible. We have been sitting
Speaker 2: on this news for a little while and are.
Speaker 3: Thrilled to be able to share it with everybody.
Speaker 2: And thank you all for all of the support that
Speaker 2: you've given us, for the messages, for the we want
Speaker 2: to see you back on TV again. I almost feel
Speaker 2: like we should go back to where we started, how
Speaker 2: we met, which is me interviewing you so that we
Speaker 2: can kind of explain the story of how this happened
Speaker 2: and vice versa.
Speaker 1: Okay, yeah, this will be our training to get back
Speaker 1: into television. But yeah, I'm just so darn excited to
Speaker 1: be doing this. It's I'm we've been chopping at the
Speaker 1: bit to break this news because, like you said, we've
Speaker 1: been sitting on this for a while.
Speaker 2: I've been surprised by how I don't want to say
Speaker 2: I didn't miss it. It's just I think you and
Speaker 2: I were both in the place of what we want
Speaker 2: our next chapter to be. And we literally named our
Speaker 2: production company Next Chapter Productions. But we wanted our next
Speaker 2: chapter to be something that we were really excited about,
Speaker 2: and we actually behind the scenes and never never announced this.
Speaker 2: We had another overall deal with a studio where we
Speaker 2: were working on some stuff. They were great, but we
Speaker 2: never really found the project we wanted to do.
Speaker 3: And when this came along, this felt right.
Speaker 2: So I think let's dive in with that, because that's
Speaker 2: going to be everybody's first question.
Speaker 3: Let me ask you, Chris Harrison.
Speaker 2: Yes, why was at Street Media the right home for
Speaker 2: your return to television?
Speaker 1: It was a perfect fit. When doctor Phil and I
Speaker 1: had our first lunch and then you came to our
Speaker 1: next lunch and we all got to know each other,
Speaker 1: and he explained what he was doing, the purpose behind
Speaker 1: Merritt Street, and what he wanted us to be doing.
Speaker 1: I just I had this fire burning inside me again,
Speaker 1: and I just knew, you know, you get that feeling,
Speaker 1: you're like, this feels right. This was right, And I
Speaker 1: believe in what he's doing. I believe in what this
Speaker 1: network stands for. And what I really liked is when
Speaker 1: he talked to both of us, he said, I want
Speaker 1: both of you back on TV, but I'm not just
Speaker 1: bringing you back to do a relationship show. If you
Speaker 1: want to do that, great, you guys, think bigger, think bolder.
Speaker 1: This is a blank slate. It is going to be
Speaker 1: the biggest network launch ever. Somewhere between seventy five and
Speaker 1: eighty million subscribers will be watching Merritt Street Media. You
Speaker 1: guys go, I just want you to be a part
Speaker 1: of this family. We'll figure it out.
Speaker 2: I'm glad you just had the opportunity to do the
Speaker 2: Chris Harrison thing of the biggest, the biggest network launch ever.
Speaker 2: But it really is. I mean, by the numbers, seventy
Speaker 2: five eighty million people, and it was I know, we
Speaker 2: had told you all we were going to announce this
Speaker 2: a little bit sooner, a little bit earlier than we
Speaker 2: ended up being able to. Part of the reason was
Speaker 2: they were getting approached with even more deals to add
Speaker 2: even more numbers of subscribers to this launch. So it
Speaker 2: is the biggest network launch in television history. I think
Speaker 2: the sort of easiest, most digestible way to convey it is,
Speaker 2: remember when Oprah launched own Doctor Phil is now launching
Speaker 2: his own channel, his own network, and you all are
Speaker 2: going to be able to find it.
Speaker 3: We'll have more details on you know, literally what channel
Speaker 3: it's going.
Speaker 1: To be, right, But it'll be on Dish, it'll be ondirected,
Speaker 1: it'll be on Charter Cave, it'll be on all everything.
Speaker 2: So when we started meeting with Phil, like you said,
Speaker 2: I think we were both instantly excited. There were a
Speaker 2: couple of things that instantly excited me. One, doctor Phil
Speaker 2: is brilliant. I mean, if you don't know his background,
Speaker 2: the reason Oprah found him and put him on TV
Speaker 2: was because she was just so impressed by him. And
Speaker 2: by the way, this kind of feels like kismet. Yeah,
Speaker 2: Doctor Phil launched his show. I went and looked this
Speaker 2: up two thousand and two. What else launched in two
Speaker 2: thousand and two?
Speaker 1: Babe The Bachelor? My career doing The Bachelor, And I
Speaker 1: didn't know that for some reason. I think because of Oprah.
Speaker 1: I felt like he's been on so much longer. When
Speaker 1: you told me that he started the same year that
Speaker 1: we started, I really that it feels full It feels
Speaker 1: full circle.
Speaker 3: So he's so brilliant.
Speaker 2: And I had actually interviewed him a couple times when
Speaker 2: I was at ET because at that time his show
Speaker 2: was on CBS, we both were. And when Doctor Phil
Speaker 2: announced he wasn't renewing with CBS, that was a big deal, right,
Speaker 2: I mean, his show is a huge daytime show, I
Speaker 2: think the biggest, and so for him to leave and
Speaker 2: say I'm going to start my own thing that made
Speaker 2: waves in the industry. And that leads me to the
Speaker 2: second thing that excited me, which was that he wanted
Speaker 2: to make waves. To have incredible resources, this facility is
Speaker 2: so stunning that they've built here in Texas, and to
Speaker 2: also have the experience of someone like Doctor Phil who
Speaker 2: is such a pro at what he does, and having
Speaker 2: those two worlds colliding is really something special that does
Speaker 2: not come along very often.
Speaker 1: And I'll piggyback off that because a couple of things.
Speaker 1: Number One, why am I so excited about Merritt Street.
Speaker 1: One of the reasons you just mentioned. It's right here
Speaker 1: in my own backyard. To be able to get back
Speaker 1: to television and do something meaningful, and to do it
Speaker 1: here in the DFW area where I grew up, my
Speaker 1: mom still lives, all my friends family. This is awesome.
Speaker 1: This is such a treat for me to be around.
Speaker 1: We're hiring locals, bringing people out of the local colleges.
Speaker 1: This is just such a cool thing to be able
Speaker 1: to give back to this community and to bring television here, huge,
Speaker 1: big time TV. This state of the art facility that
Speaker 1: he built, I've never seen anything like it. It really is.
Speaker 1: It is. I've been to CNN, I've been to Fox News,
Speaker 1: I've been to all these places. This place is absolutely astronomical.
Speaker 1: And Doctor phil They've spared no expense, cut no corners.
Speaker 1: It's incredible. The other thing to me is you and
Speaker 1: I had different options to return to television. We had
Speaker 1: talked about different ideas, We had ideas pitched to us,
Speaker 1: and nothing just nothing felt right, Like nothing got that
Speaker 1: fire burning where I'm like, yes, this is it. And
Speaker 1: something about running into doctor phil Us, becoming friends and
Speaker 1: him pitching us this idea. All of a sudden, the
Speaker 1: stars aligned and this thing just felt right. And as
Speaker 1: soon as you and I were on you know, talked
Speaker 1: about this, we knew. We were like, this is it.
Speaker 3: It is. It's kind of like a what's work love
Speaker 3: at first sight?
Speaker 1: You know, it's funny. I was gonna say, this has
Speaker 1: been a relationship show for the last couple of years.
Speaker 1: And let me let me dispel one rumor. People have said, oh, well,
Speaker 1: he stayed away because there was a two year no
Speaker 1: compete clause and that's why he stayed away this long.
Speaker 1: That was not the case. We really just couldn't find
Speaker 1: anything that I wanted to sink my teeth into. Nothing
Speaker 1: really lit that fire in me until this, And and
Speaker 1: luckily Lauren and I had the ability to wait and
Speaker 1: be patient. And I give you a lot of credit
Speaker 1: for that, and myself, I'll tell you know, pat myself
Speaker 1: on the back of like being patient and not just
Speaker 1: jumping back to jump back. I didn't want to get
Speaker 1: into TV just to do TV again. I wanted it
Speaker 1: to be right.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I think you know, we're coming from a place
Speaker 2: of like if someone was in their twenties asking me
Speaker 2: that question, I'd say, dive in, say yes to everything,
Speaker 2: try everything, take the opportunity. But once you've really gotten
Speaker 2: to a good place you want to be at in
Speaker 2: your career, then you just have to start making decisions about, well,
Speaker 2: what do I want my career to be, and sometimes
Speaker 2: you have to say no. Sometimes saying no is more powerful,
Speaker 2: but you know that comes later. So I think we
Speaker 2: were both at that place. And maybe the one of
Speaker 2: the biggest assets about Merritt Street and Doctor Phil also
Speaker 2: is I don't know anywhere else, you know. Again, we
Speaker 2: talk to other networks about possibly doing overall first Look
Speaker 2: d and that kind of thing. I don't know anywhere
Speaker 2: else where. Someone who is running the network has been
Speaker 2: on TV themselves, and that is a game changer. It's
Speaker 2: almost hard to convey if you're not in the industry.
Speaker 2: But you know what a lot of people have an
Speaker 2: issue with in Hollywood right now, people who have been
Speaker 2: working in this business a long time, is that creatives
Speaker 2: used to run studios and now numbers people.
Speaker 1: Do people that had TV experience, they made TV.
Speaker 2: And now it's not like that. So it's kind of
Speaker 2: losing that that magic. And not only losing that magic,
Speaker 2: but it's just really hard to like pitch stuff and
Speaker 2: get stuff done because everybody behind the scenes is like
Speaker 2: a numbers person and is only worried about the bottom line,
Speaker 2: and you're trying to tell them, but if we make.
Speaker 3: This project great, it will be good.
Speaker 2: Like I would say, one of the huge reasons the
Speaker 2: Barbie movie crush this summer is because Mattel told director
Speaker 2: Greta Gerwig, do your vision. They let her do her
Speaker 2: vision and it was great, and they didn't try to
Speaker 2: step in.
Speaker 1: Too much, even at the expense of Mattel, Like they
Speaker 1: took some shots at Mattel, but they said, no, no,
Speaker 1: do your movie.
Speaker 3: Do you think?
Speaker 1: Yeah?
Speaker 2: And when we sit in a room with Phil, this
Speaker 2: is his network. He's running it. He makes quick, smart,
Speaker 2: powerful decisions, and he knows what's good. And to see him,
Speaker 2: you know, have that trust in us, like when we've
Speaker 2: been talking about some potential relationship reality shows. He's very
Speaker 2: much like you guys. You know, Chris, you know what
Speaker 2: you're doing, What do you want to do?
Speaker 1: What you know? I think you would call it in
Speaker 1: sports a player's coach. There are certain people you play
Speaker 1: for in sports that.
Speaker 2: That's one of the first sports analogies you've ever made
Speaker 2: that I've understood.
Speaker 1: In they really understand because they've been there. You know,
Speaker 1: they've played, they've been on the field. They know what
Speaker 1: you're going through as a player. That's Doctor Phil. When
Speaker 1: you sit down and you pitch him a show or
Speaker 1: you talk to him, the guy's been there. He's doing
Speaker 1: it at the highest level. He's still doing it because
Speaker 1: Doctor Phil Primetime is going to be the anchor of
Speaker 1: this network. He is Doctor Phil Brilliant. He owns his
Speaker 1: own show. So he has brought Doctor Phil the catalog
Speaker 1: as well as his new show, Doctor Phil Primetime to
Speaker 1: this network, and he's doing some unbelievable, really moving shows.
Speaker 1: As he says, I want to really own the debate
Speaker 1: lane in this country because, as he says, we got
Speaker 1: problems and we're going to start solving some of these problems.
Speaker 2: So maybe the next big question people ask is what
Speaker 2: are you working on specifically and what does this return
Speaker 2: to TV really mean?
Speaker 1: I love this. We're doing this in our new office
Speaker 1: and Doctor Phil is about to walk by right now
Speaker 1: to go out to the stage to do Doctor Phil Primetime.
Speaker 1: So the floor director's right outside. We got our camera
Speaker 1: crew right there taking pictures of us, and Doctor Phil
Speaker 1: is about to walk by, very hands on work. Everybody
Speaker 1: is around each other all the time. Just a creative
Speaker 1: think tank. I love this. But to your question, where
Speaker 1: will you see Elsie and I back on TV? A
Speaker 1: couple of big projects. First and foremost, I will be
Speaker 1: appearing on Doctor Phil Primetime. As Doctor Phil said, you
Speaker 1: know what I was doing with Oprah and how I
Speaker 1: would kind of supplement and help her. I want you
Speaker 1: doing that on Doctor Phil Primetime. So I will be
Speaker 1: appearing immediately starting April second, as the show launches, the
Speaker 1: network launches, I'll be on Doctor Phil Primetime, filling in
Speaker 1: doing some work with him. And I love that because
Speaker 1: it immediately got me back to my journalism and the
Speaker 1: same thing with you. You and I have talked about these
Speaker 1: stories that he's doing.
Speaker 2: Well, we need sort of a new word because you
Speaker 2: have been doing journalism. Yeah, but like you did that
Speaker 2: on The Bachelor. I mean you interviewed people on.
Speaker 1: The Batchel are using your skills for sure, totally.
Speaker 3: That was the Chris Harrison hot seats.
Speaker 2: So yeah, your journalism, yes, but I think what you're
Speaker 2: doing is bringing the hot seat to Doctor Phil.
Speaker 1: And oh interesting, Yeah, you've seen a couple of the shows.
Speaker 1: You tell me what I'm bringing, Well.
Speaker 3: That is what you're bringing.
Speaker 2: You know, you did a show about They've brought you
Speaker 2: in to talk about some relationship topics and I think
Speaker 2: you've done great with that. Also, it's getting you back
Speaker 2: to you know, he was really great with asking you
Speaker 2: what are you interested in?
Speaker 3: What do you want to cover?
Speaker 2: So I know you want to do some stuff with
Speaker 2: sports and things that are happening in that world, controversies.
Speaker 2: But Doctor Phil's show is kind of the perfect fit
Speaker 2: for you of that journalism interview background.
Speaker 3: But there's some drama on Doctor Phil.
Speaker 1: No. He look, he knows this network television also needs
Speaker 1: to be entertaining. That's what we're here for too, is
Speaker 1: to entertain you. And that's again you go back to
Speaker 1: having a player's coach, having a guy who's been in
Speaker 1: the trenches and been on TV. He knows we're not
Speaker 1: just going to do ah. You know, TV, we kind
Speaker 1: of entertain We got to make you laugh, got to
Speaker 1: make you think, got to make you cry. That's what
Speaker 1: TV does and that's what Doctor Phil does and he's
Speaker 1: brilliant at it.
Speaker 2: Another part of the reason the fit seemed so perfect
Speaker 2: to me, I think you two share reasons that you
Speaker 2: have been on TV for so long. Like Doctor Phil
Speaker 2: moved his show to Texas, he moved lots of LA
Speaker 2: staffers with him.
Speaker 3: He takes care of his people.
Speaker 2: And you know, when we were going through everything, I
Speaker 2: know that a huge part of the reason you made
Speaker 2: a lot of the decisions that you made, I think
Speaker 2: in part well, I think sometimes really to your own detriment,
Speaker 2: Like looking back, they weren't great decisions for you personally, honestly,
Speaker 2: but you made those decisions because your driving force was
Speaker 2: never yourself. It was I want to make sure the
Speaker 2: show stays okay. I don't want you know, I want
Speaker 2: to make sure that everybody who I've worked with is okay.
Speaker 2: And you were really focused on their jobs. So Phil
Speaker 2: brought a bunch of people from LA to hear and
Speaker 2: his bond with his audience.
Speaker 3: He really cares about his audience.
Speaker 2: He here in the Merit Street Media Studio has built
Speaker 2: an entire red carpet audience experience so that when the
Speaker 2: audience comes in for him tape, they have a really
Speaker 2: cool VIP Hollywood like experience right here in Texas. And
Speaker 2: he understands that connection. And you've always understood that connection.
Speaker 2: I always say The simplest way to explain it is
Speaker 2: you stop and take a picture with everybody, because you
Speaker 2: know those people are the reason that you're here.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and by the way, if you're ever in the
Speaker 1: DFW area, you want to come see a life taping
Speaker 1: of Doctor Phil Prime Time or maybe something else, and
Speaker 1: I will be talking about and doing very soon. But
Speaker 1: I thank you, and I feel the same when I'm
Speaker 1: on stage with him. He has this charisma and this
Speaker 1: charm and again I go back to sports, all my
Speaker 1: analogies or sports. But it's been fun to kind of
Speaker 1: exchange barbes with him and kind of volley back and
Speaker 1: forth with him when we're on stage together and we're
Speaker 1: hosting together. It really is a masterclass in hosting. I
Speaker 1: really enjoy his style, and it took me a minute,
Speaker 1: you know, to watch his style to see how he
Speaker 1: does things. But it's fun to be on stage with
Speaker 1: another host who does it at this high level because
Speaker 1: he's so damned talented. And you know, by the way,
Speaker 1: don't ever underestimate the guy with the accent. That's what
Speaker 1: he wants. Yeah, that's what he wanted.
Speaker 3: He's doing that Texas draw to draw it out of you.
Speaker 1: But That's one of the things he said to both
Speaker 1: of us when when he said, I want you guys
Speaker 1: to come to Merritt Street, I want you back on TV.
Speaker 1: I think you both have you resonate with your fans,
Speaker 1: and you have this fan base that you're going to
Speaker 1: bring with you. So I like that. You know, game
Speaker 1: recognizes game.
Speaker 2: You know well to have someone tell you, especially in
Speaker 2: our business, like here's what's a little bit of the
Speaker 2: contradiction of Hollywood. People who really make it are a personality, right,
Speaker 2: Like when you think about Jack Nicholson, you know exactly
Speaker 2: who're thinking about. When you think about Tom Hanks, you
Speaker 2: know people know that person. But what this business also
Speaker 2: tells you over and over again is fit a mold,
Speaker 2: fit a mold, fit a mold. And you and I
Speaker 2: were both at places where like I did Roses and
Speaker 2: Rose and I loved it, and I created that myself
Speaker 2: and pitched it and they greenlit that and support it.
Speaker 2: So I'm so grateful. But when I was doing interviews,
Speaker 2: you know, it was always like, okay, but you have
Speaker 2: to be doing it the ET way, ask it the
Speaker 2: ET way. And on the one hand, yes, but on
Speaker 2: the other hand, you know you lose yourself a little bit.
Speaker 2: And so to have him say to us, I want
Speaker 2: you to come here and do what you want to
Speaker 2: do and be yourselves.
Speaker 3: What a gift. I felt so blessed.
Speaker 1: One of the things that there's a quote that's stuck
Speaker 1: with me, and I've said this to some other people.
Speaker 1: So We're sitting with doctor Phil in his office and
Speaker 1: you know, I'm really hand ringing and him and and
Speaker 1: Holland about how I'm going to return, which of his
Speaker 1: shows that I would make the first show back, and
Speaker 1: what subject matter will I cover? And you know, I'm
Speaker 1: really in the weeds on this, and he just stops me.
Speaker 1: And as only doctor Phil could say, he is like, Chris,
Speaker 1: we don't have to hang this in the louver, meaning
Speaker 1: everything doesn't have to be perfect. Get let's get you
Speaker 1: back on TV man. People just want to see you talk.
Speaker 1: Let's go. And I just love he cuts to the chase,
Speaker 1: and that's a line that's going to resonate and stick
Speaker 1: with me for a long time. He just stopped me.
Speaker 1: He's like, we don't have to hang it in the loover, man,
Speaker 1: Let's just go do TV. Well.
Speaker 3: We're definitely both perfectionists.
Speaker 2: We like for our quality to be really high, which
Speaker 2: by the way, is why I have sometimes honestly struggled
Speaker 2: with podcasting. I'm excited to be back on TV because
Speaker 2: I grew up and studied and loved a medium that
Speaker 2: is really like edited and not a word is wasted.
Speaker 1: Scripted, formulaic to a certain degree.
Speaker 2: When I would edit Roses and Rose, I would cut
Speaker 2: out half seconds, like the timing matters so much to me,
Speaker 2: especially because that's what you learn about in comedy, Like
Speaker 2: timing matters so much so to just sit and what
Speaker 2: we've always been told about podcasting is talk longer, go longer.
Speaker 3: It crushes me.
Speaker 1: Okay, well, before we wrap this up, I think we
Speaker 1: need People are going to be wondering, Hey, what else
Speaker 1: are you working on.
Speaker 2: One of the first things we're working on is a
Speaker 2: morning show together, a morning show that we will co host.
Speaker 2: That was one of our first ideas here at Merit,
Speaker 2: and again they were super supportive of it. So we
Speaker 2: have that in the works, and I think that's going
Speaker 2: to be that great next chapter, as we named our company,
Speaker 2: Next Chapter Productions for us, where we've been doing the
Speaker 2: podcast together, but now we can do something together in
Speaker 2: a medium that we really love, which is television.
Speaker 1: Merritt Street Media. Immediately April second, we'll launch with Doctor
Speaker 1: Phil primetime, and they also have news. There's a big
Speaker 1: news department and they have a very talented group of
Speaker 1: newscasters and producers. In the morning, I think they're doing
Speaker 1: two hours of news. There's going to be evening news
Speaker 1: as well. That will launch immediately. And then what we
Speaker 1: are working on is producing a late morning talk show,
Speaker 1: the two of us hosting together. That could be dangerous,
Speaker 1: it could be fun, the.
Speaker 3: Most dramatic talk show ever.
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, it'll come on right after It'll come on
Speaker 1: right after the morning news. And that is something that
Speaker 1: I am so excited about. It's, if I had to
Speaker 1: pick one thing, that's probably my my most excited project
Speaker 1: to be diving into. It's something I've dabbled in before
Speaker 1: because I've you know, hosted with Kelly and The View,
Speaker 1: and I've done a bunch of that stuff. Obviously you've
Speaker 1: done ET and you have done your fair share of interviewing.
Speaker 1: To be on together because you're so damn talented, but
Speaker 1: I also love working together. I love our chemistry on
Speaker 1: TV and off, So I just think it's it's going
Speaker 1: to be fantastic and I and I again kudos to
Speaker 1: doctor Phil for saying, LZ, Chris, go do your thing. Man.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 2: Well, when we've been talking about it, you know what
Speaker 2: we want it to be. I think we want it
Speaker 2: to be relatable. We want it to be fun. We're
Speaker 2: going to talk about our relationship. We're going to dive
Speaker 2: into the issues everybody's facing, but do it in a
Speaker 2: really digestible, fun way. And I'm really going to fulfill
Speaker 2: my mom's dreams right now because, like literally, when I
Speaker 2: was a kid, my mom wanted me to be on
Speaker 2: the morning news shows in Chicago. So you know what
Speaker 2: this is about. This is about making Donna zeba happy
Speaker 2: Love you mom.
Speaker 1: If we can get back to work and be happy
Speaker 1: and make Donnazema happy, I mean, talk about a win win.
Speaker 1: One of the things that will work its way into
Speaker 1: our morning show is the synergy of this network. Doctor
Speaker 1: Phil has this beautiful synergistic idea of from morning to evening,
Speaker 1: you can turn this network on and leave it on
Speaker 1: all day. In one show, we'll not just lead into another,
Speaker 1: it will kind of bleed into another in that you
Speaker 1: never know who you're going to see in the morning,
Speaker 1: Doctor Phil will be on our show. We'll be on
Speaker 1: Doctor Phil's show. I almost throughout some other names of
Speaker 1: people that are coming to this network, But the idea
Speaker 1: is we're all going to kind of take part in
Speaker 1: each other's projects. Even the morning news will kind of
Speaker 1: bleed in and we will go back into the news
Speaker 1: set at times on our show for breaking news or
Speaker 1: for the news of the day and making things more digestible.
Speaker 1: So that will it's going to be a different vibe
Speaker 1: and a different show than you're used to, and the
Speaker 1: network itself is going to be a different vibe in
Speaker 1: a different feel. And I love this idea of Doctor
Speaker 1: Phil of like, hey man, everybody's door is open. We're
Speaker 1: all going to be here one big fraternity and we're
Speaker 1: helping each other out, which is very different than what
Speaker 1: I'm used to a network TV, where it is kill
Speaker 1: or be killed.
Speaker 2: Yes, And he's very much about you know, I know,
Speaker 2: he just released his book We've Got Issues, and he
Speaker 2: again wanted to I mean, the story I've heard him
Speaker 2: tell over and over again is that he was having
Speaker 2: dinner with his lovely wife Robin, and he said to her, Gosh,
Speaker 2: the media has just gotten like out of control and
Speaker 2: I'm paraphrasing him, and she didn't even pause between taking
Speaker 2: a bite of her food and said.
Speaker 3: Well, honey, you are the media.
Speaker 2: And that made him realize, like, I need to play
Speaker 2: a part in creating something better. And so he really
Speaker 2: does want this network, Merrit Street Media, to be a
Speaker 2: place where it's not just all talking heads screaming at
Speaker 2: each other. It's real, grounded approaches. And I've watched him
Speaker 2: now approach his shows, the level of research he does.
Speaker 2: He researches every single side of an issue when he's
Speaker 2: going to tackle it, so that he goes in so
Speaker 2: informed and he just tries to get to the truth
Speaker 2: and to the reality and to a solution, not a controversy.
Speaker 3: And so I really am refreshed by that.
Speaker 1: He one of the first things he said to both
Speaker 1: of us, this is not political. We're not right, we're
Speaker 1: not left, We're facts. And he said, Chris, you may
Speaker 1: not like what you're going to hear on Merit Street Media,
Speaker 1: but one thing you can deny, it's just the facts,
Speaker 1: and take from that what you will and just have
Speaker 1: the debate and be able to ask questions and be
Speaker 1: able to take that and have a conversation. Heaven forbid,
Speaker 1: we have a real conversation.
Speaker 2: Heaven forbid, people who disagree can just talk to each
Speaker 2: other and have a conversation.
Speaker 1: Okay, So one more thing.
Speaker 2: Let's talk about the thing that I think probably a
Speaker 2: lot of your longtime fans will be pretty excited about,
Speaker 2: which is the other project we have in.
Speaker 1: The works here at Mary the Elephant in the Room. Yes,
Speaker 1: there are talks for a relationship show that is indeed happening.
Speaker 1: There are talks. We're still early days because we're early
Speaker 1: days in this network of the Vibe and we kind
Speaker 1: of want to see how this feels and what kind
Speaker 1: of show would fit. But we're in talks. And again,
Speaker 1: the beautiful thing is you just sit with doctor Phil
Speaker 1: and that's who we're dealing with, and when he says yes,
Speaker 1: we go, and he loves it. He loves the ideas
Speaker 1: we're talking about, and we're pitching. And so yes, there
Speaker 1: will be I believe a relationship show at Merritt Street
Speaker 1: Media and we will be back with that as well.
Speaker 1: So hopefully people will be happy that we'll be coming
Speaker 1: back with a relationship show and probably some you know,
Speaker 1: familiar names, some familiar faces that will be helping me
Speaker 1: put this show together.
Speaker 2: If you were going to let me just put you
Speaker 2: right into tease mode, how would you tease it?
Speaker 1: Well, this will be the most dramatic relationship show ever
Speaker 1: for real. No, I am excited and I do love
Speaker 1: again that Doctor Phille said. Look, I'm not bringing you here,
Speaker 1: you know, to hand out roses or to do a
Speaker 1: relationship show. If you want to do that and we
Speaker 1: think it fits, great, we can add that to the repertoire.
Speaker 1: But I want y'all to think bigger. I want you
Speaker 1: to be creative because he knows that we love TV
Speaker 1: and he was such a huge fan of you because
Speaker 1: y'all kind of shared the CBS world and so he
Speaker 1: knew of you. He loves you. He thinks you're talented
Speaker 1: as hell. He's been very appreciative of my talent and
Speaker 1: he's been so complimentary. I love that we kind of
Speaker 1: can just run with this and the Morning show, whether
Speaker 1: it's a reality show, Doctor Phill Primetime, There's going to
Speaker 1: be other projects coming through the door. Here, sky's a limit.
Speaker 1: The sky's a limit, and we are back. We're back
Speaker 1: on TV.
Speaker 3: To see you.
Speaker 2: Walk out on stage again was emotional for me, it's
Speaker 2: been a minute, and I never had any doubt that
Speaker 2: you would be back with what you wanted to come
Speaker 2: back with. But there's something about the actual moment of
Speaker 2: you walking out. Everybody went crazy and applauded for you
Speaker 2: when they saw you. I was just so proud of you.
Speaker 2: I was so proud of you.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 2: You crushed it. You didn't miss a beat, you were
Speaker 2: I'm in awe of your talent. I am. I used
Speaker 2: to feel this way even before we were ever dating.
Speaker 2: I would interview you and just I would look forward
Speaker 2: to our interviews because you were a SoundBite machine and
Speaker 2: you'd get me all the headlines I wanted.
Speaker 3: And you're so good at what you do.
Speaker 2: So to just watch someone you love do what they
Speaker 2: love to do is always a blessing. And I feel
Speaker 2: so grateful. I feel so thankful for where we're at,
Speaker 2: so happy, and I just feel like this is such
Speaker 2: an exciting moment for you, because you talked about this
Speaker 2: earlier about doctor Phil being kind of a masterclass for you.
Speaker 2: For me watching YouTube up there, I was like, God,
Speaker 2: I am watching two of the best in the business together,
Speaker 2: And what you can create from here is.
Speaker 3: I think going to be some of your best work.
Speaker 1: Yet I'll let everybody behind the scenes a little bit. So,
Speaker 1: as I said, we've taped already a few episodes of
Speaker 1: Doctor Phil Primetime where I'm appearing on Doctor Phil's show,
Speaker 1: and the very first time, right as he was about
Speaker 1: to introduce me, and I'm about to walk on stage.
Speaker 1: While I knew I was going to come back to TV,
Speaker 1: I didn't know if it would ever happen again. You know,
Speaker 1: you just you don't know because this business is difficult.
Speaker 1: I don't care who you are, It is a tough business,
Speaker 1: and so you never that stage is never promised to anybody.
Speaker 1: So as I do, before I walk out on any stage,
Speaker 1: I say a quick little prayer, and I got emotional
Speaker 1: because I realized, deep down, I wasn't sure if I
Speaker 1: was ever going to do this again. And I'm grateful
Speaker 1: for the opportunity, just as I was always grateful to
Speaker 1: walk on any stage when I was hosting. I was
Speaker 1: so grateful for that opportunity, and I thought of you,
Speaker 1: thought of our family, and I got a little teary
Speaker 1: eyed to walk out to that audience again and to
Speaker 1: be able to do what I love, and I realized
Speaker 1: being here at Merritt Street Media. I'm getting to do
Speaker 1: what I love again, and I have that passion at
Speaker 1: a very real, raw level. You know. I feel like
Speaker 1: I got to go to the mountaintop with what I
Speaker 1: was doing previously and here now I get to do
Speaker 1: it because I love it period to do it with you.
Speaker 1: I get to do this with the woman. I love you,
Speaker 1: and I have been coming to work every day. We
Speaker 1: drive into work every day, we talk about what we're
Speaker 1: going to do, and I know that can be a
Speaker 1: slippery slope. Maybe we'll do a podcast on working with
Speaker 1: your such a gift and significant other, but it's just
Speaker 1: been such a dream for me to get to watch
Speaker 1: you being so damn good at what you do, and
Speaker 1: so to bring our talents together and to do this together.
Speaker 1: This is the dream. Mary Street Media is the dream.
Speaker 1: And with that, we'll wrap this up and just say
Speaker 1: thank you. As Lauren said off the top, thanks for
Speaker 1: all the love, your response, your notes, your direct messages
Speaker 1: since we announced this what less than twenty four hours ago,
Speaker 1: has been overwhelming. And I love you guys. We love
Speaker 1: you guys. You have always meant the world to me,
Speaker 1: and I mean the audience. I always you know, as
Speaker 1: Lauren said, I tried to foster that connection with you guys,
Speaker 1: and it meant something to me, So it means something
Speaker 1: to me now that you guys are so excited that
Speaker 1: we're back and we can't wait for what is to come.
Speaker 1: And stay tuned because we'll keep you posted as this
Speaker 1: network launches April second, as Lauren and I announce our
Speaker 1: projects and shows we're doing. But thank you. We can't
Speaker 1: say enough how excited we are to be back here
Speaker 1: at Merritt Street Media. And we will talk to you
Speaker 1: soon because we have a lot more to talk about.
Speaker 1: Thanks for listening. Follow us on Instagram at the most
Speaker 1: dramatic pod ever, and make sure to write us a
Speaker 1: review and leave us five stars. I'll talk to you
Speaker 1: next time.