Pod Insights The Comment Section with Drew Afualo WHO WANTS TO KISS ME? Ft. Maya Hawke | Episode 221 About this episode The one and only Maya Hawke is on the show this week!! Maya talks to Drew about having to watch her parents kiss in a movie during middle school science class, their favorite romantasy books, smut, getting off the Internet, advice on wedding planning, cold plunging in streams, and so much more.
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Transcript 13,773 words · 2 speakers
Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.
0:00 Speaker 00 The first porn I ever experienced was a book that I found on a bookshelf. It was like a translation of an old French, um, literatica.
0:09 Drew Afualo? Okay.
0:10 Speaker 00 And I was like, this is amazing.
0:12 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
0:12 Speaker 00 And I, like, yeah, I do that, but like, but I do it in like an elegant way, you know? I, I do it in like a French literatica way. Like, I'm not like, I'm not cheesing, I don't watch porn, okay? I read 16th century French literatica. That's grown up.
0:26 Drew Afualo? Right.
0:26 Speaker 00 That's ladylike.
0:27 Drew Afualo? Right.
0:35 Drew Afualo? Hey, everyone, and welcome back to another episode of the Comment Section Show, starring me, your fave, everybody knows me, who cares about me. Onto the guests today, we have the living icon, living legend, the one, the only, Maya Hawke. Woo!
0:50 Speaker 00 That might be the best introduction I've ever gotten.
0:52 Drew Afualo? Oh, my God, I'm so glad to hear it. That's one of my favorite compliments I get from guests.
0:55 Speaker 00 I feel the, I mean, it's, I feel, you've, you've taken my words away.
0:59 Drew Afualo? I love that. I'm gonna suck the fart right out of that ass and it's gonna be beautiful. We're gonna enjoy it together.
1:04 Speaker 00 That's, you know, my dad always says, "You smelling what I'm farting?"
1:09 Drew Afualo? Your dad and I have that in common.
1:10 Speaker 00 Yeah.
1:10 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I'm a big fan, but thank you so much for coming on the show.
1:13 Speaker 00 Thank you, I'm so happy to be here.
1:14 Drew Afualo? What an honor. It's an honor to have you. This episode of the Comment Section is presented to you by Barilla. You know those nights when you're deep in a reality TV binge and suddenly the snacks aren't cutting it? You need a proper meal, something that hits as hard as the most unhinged clapback. Al Bronzo by Barilla is crafted with textured ridges that actually hold on to sauce, so every bite is rich with flavor. That moment you go back to swipe the clean plate? That's carpetta, the art of savoring every last drop. Al Bronzo by Barilla, the pasta that does carpetta. Look for the red bag. What's new with you?
1:53 Speaker 00 Uh, uh, uh, I'm on tour.
1:55 Drew Afualo? Yes.
1:56 Speaker 00 Um, that's pretty fun and new. Just came from San Francisco, now in L.A., going to Denver tonight, so that's, feels new and good.
2:04 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
2:05 Speaker 00 What else is new with me?
2:07 Drew Afualo? Music, obviously, is new, but awesome.
2:10 Speaker 00 Music is new, thank you. I appreciate it.
2:12 Drew Afualo? Yes, Maya gave me the honor of listening to it early.
2:15 Speaker 00 Oh.
2:15 Drew Afualo? Very exciting.
2:16 Speaker 00 I did.
2:16 Drew Afualo? Yes, you did.
2:17 Speaker 00 That's pretty cool.
2:17 Drew Afualo? And it was amazing, and I loved Heavy Rain. I already told her off camera, but I need to say it on camera.
2:22 Speaker 00 Well, I really, that means so much to me. It's my favorite song on the record.
2:25 Drew Afualo? I'm so glad.
2:26 Speaker 00 And I had a lot of fun writing it and a lot of fun recording it. And just like, you know, some things are like very labor intensive and sometimes it just like works.
2:34 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
2:34 Speaker 00 Like I'm sure with your episodes, like sometimes you have to like spend a lot of time editing it.
2:38 Drew Afualo? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
2:39 Speaker 00 And sometimes you're like, we could just print what we got.
2:42 Drew Afualo? Ready to go.
2:42 Speaker 00 Yeah, ready to go, so.
2:43 Drew Afualo? I love that. So, talking about music.
2:46 Speaker 00 Yeah.
2:46 Drew Afualo? I would love to know like your history with music, like if you've always wanted to be an artist, like if you've ever wanted to be a specific kind of artist. Like why is now the time really to like really bury yourself in music, do you think?
2:58 Speaker 00 Well, I've always, I mean, this is my fourth album.
3:01 Drew Afualo? Mm-hmm.
3:01 Speaker 00 I've been doing it, you know, every record I've had a slightly different like agenda and style with the way that I put it out and and the way I was thinking about putting it out and the way and what I wanted it to do in the world, like how I wanted it to move through the world. Um, I think it's been different every time because I am also an actor and I I'm sort of figuring out how I want these two careers to work and because the two crafts work together very beautifully.
3:32 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I was gonna ask that.
3:33 Speaker 00 But then in the the two careers, you know, the two industries, it's it's different. And so I'm always kind of renegotiating different ways to try and think about it.
3:41 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
3:41 Speaker 00 Um, but I've been making music my whole life. I never really wanted, well, that's not true. At some points I thought about wanting to be a musician. Like in my early, early teens, like 11 to 14. And then I was kind of like, no, I I'm not good enough at that. I've I've been, I'm very a strength led as a person.
4:00 Drew Afualo? Okay.
4:00 Speaker 00 I'm very like, if it's working, keep doing it, do more of it. If it doesn't work, ne- never mind.
4:04 Drew Afualo? I'm with you on that. I get that. I get that kind of mentality.
4:07 Speaker 00 Um, which is like maybe like laziness, but I, um...
4:11 Drew Afualo? I don't know if it's lazy, because you have lots of talents to work out.
4:15 Speaker 00 Thank you. Um, but, uh, so then I stopped doing music for a while and then I started again when I left school and started working as an actor because I realized that the beautiful thing about acting school is you get to act every day.
4:27 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
4:28 Speaker 00 And the weird thing about acting as a job is you're pretty lucky if you get two full days of acting in your year.
4:33 Drew Afualo? Right.
4:33 Speaker 00 Um, like real acting, you know? And, um, so finding other ways to... creatively fill up your cup is very important and like I you know I make music and I watercolor and I write and I um do all these different things and some of them feel like there are times where it feels like it's important to keep that sheltered and protected from it becoming your job because you know when you like you have a dream you want to do something you work really hard to be able to do it and then you are able to do it as your career if you're lucky and then all of a sudden the joy of it of the dream gets sucked away and you have to figure out how to keep protecting it and and reigniting it and so I always have to have like
5:14 Speaker 00 if I'm doing something is my job I have to be doing something different creatively just as pleasure always in a balance
5:21 Drew Afualo? absolutely
5:21 Speaker 00 and so like you know like right now I'm on tour with music which is often my like pleasure world so I'm like writing you know uh Sarah J Moss fanfiction you know what I mean like just like keep myself balanced to make sure I just always have some kind of creative expression that isn't being commercialized
5:39 Drew Afualo? yes of course
5:40 Speaker 00 and so I don't know
5:42 Drew Afualo? especially as an artist right you need to be re-inspired you need to be reset a little bit
5:46 Speaker 00 and like re-dorkified right like re-re innocentized and inspirized
5:53 Drew Afualo? yeah totally
5:54 Speaker 00 I also invent new words in case anyone was wondering
5:56 Drew Afualo? a renaissance woman that's what you are you can do it all
5:59 Speaker 00 triple threat
5:59 Drew Afualo? yeah I was gonna ask if
6:01 Speaker 00 can't sing or dance but I do invent words
6:05 Drew Afualo? yeah there you go can't sing please you're a trip and I can't sing and if I could god help everybody
6:13 Speaker 00 I mean I think everyone can sing and I'm sure you can sing
6:16 Drew Afualo? that's what everybody says and I appreciate the sentiment I don't know I guess I just like I feel like if it's not immediate I'm like I don't have it
6:23 Speaker 00 so we're back to what I just yeah yeah
6:25 Drew Afualo? like I'm with you on that
6:26 Speaker 00 it didn't come easy then never mind
6:29 Drew Afualo? Well, and I'm also like, God, honestly, God help the world. If I, if I find out I can sing, I'm dropping an EP tomorrow.
6:34 Speaker 00 I mean, I
6:35 Drew Afualo? I'm going on tour.
6:36 Speaker 00 It would be explosive.
6:37 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I would, I would have to get in the lab.
6:39 Speaker 00 I think he would be headlining Coachella in like six months.
6:41 Drew Afualo? I'd have to. Honestly, I, I took up DJing as a side hobby. Because I was like, that music industry is gonna let me in one way or another.
6:48 Speaker 00 Yeah, yeah, yeah.
6:48 Drew Afualo? This is the way I'm gonna get in. A bunch of white guys can do it. I could easily do it.
6:51 Speaker 00 Oh, totally.
6:51 Drew Afualo? That was my thought. And then I was like, just give me about eight months. I'll be at the Doe Lab in Coachella.
6:56 Speaker 00 You absolutely will. I, I, I've no doubt about it.
6:59 Drew Afualo? Uh, so back to acting and singing. I would love to know, is the, how does the preparation feel? Does it feel the same? Does it feel as intensive? Does it just kind of depend on how you're feeling at the time?
7:10 Speaker 00 I've been comparing a lot because I did my first professional play this past year.
7:14 Drew Afualo? Oh, very cool.
7:14 Speaker 00 And now I'm on tour again for the first time in three years. And I've been really thinking about the like, pre-show vibe as an actor versus a musician. They're so different.
7:24 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
7:25 Speaker 00 It's like, like backstage at the venue, it's like, everyone's cool and they're hanging out and maybe having a beer and like chilling and chatting, you know? And backstage at the theater, everyone's like,
7:36 Speaker 00 yeah, he thrusts his fists against the post and still admits he sees the ghost. Like, there's like such a
7:42 Drew Afualo? Everyone's locking in in a different way.
7:44 Speaker 00 And there's like, there's like a locked in, like actors and musicians have such different vibes, like, actors are the most on time people you've ever met in your life. Like, maybe not movie stars, but actors.
7:53 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
7:53 Speaker 00 Are the most on time people you've ever met in your life. Like, like, and even movie stars, like, when it comes to the workday.
7:58 Drew Afualo? Right.
7:58 Speaker 00 Like, most of them are like, you know, your call time's 6:05, you're there at 6:05.
8:03 Drew Afualo? Yeah, for real.
8:04 Speaker 00 Because that's sort of the attitude. Every minute wasted, time on set is like $200,000.
8:09 Drew Afualo? Right, for real.
8:10 Speaker 00 So, we're not in the business of being minute wasters.
8:13 Drew Afualo? For real.
8:14 Speaker 00 And, uh, and versus musicians are like, oh yeah, rehearsal started at noon. I got there at 1:30. I was on time. You know, so there's a real, there's a culture, there's some cultural differences. But it's also very Similar, cuz it's really about like, opening up your instrument. Trying to give, make as much space as possible for inspiration to come in. Try to like, get as much stress and tension out of your body as possible, so that you're loose and free. And can be kind of like a vessel. And um, so there's, I don't know, there's commonalities and there's differences.
8:49 Drew Afualo? Which, which art form do you think, do you feel like mostly like yourself? Is there any one?
8:54 Speaker 00 I feel that art form wise, they're like the same outlets, just with different lamps plugged into them. You know, and like they illuminate the room differently, but they come from the same place. I'm more comfortable in the um, film industry. Um, as like an industry, I think cuz I grew up in it. It's, it's intricacies and the different ways in which it's fucked up and complicated.
9:18 Drew Afualo? You're more familiar with.
9:19 Speaker 00 I like, I get it. And the music industry, I find very intimidating. And um, confusing.
9:26 Drew Afualo? Would you say that's an inspiring way, or in an off putting way?
9:30 Speaker 00 I would not say in an inspiring way.
9:32 Drew Afualo? It's the off putting way.
9:33 Speaker 00 I, well, I, I wouldn't say off putting, I would say intimidating. I would say like, it's intimidating and I think that there's a lot of um, when you're promoting a film, you're on a team. And that team is like the writer and the director and your co-star and, you know, uh, everyone involved and you're all pointing at something you made together. Going, look at this. And when you're promoting a record, it often feels like you are alone, pointing at yourself, going, look at this. And that's where I get uncomfortable.
10:04 Drew Afualo? Yeah, like bearing your soul kind of thing.
10:07 Speaker 00 Bearing your soul and then telling people to look at it. It's like, bearing my soul, I'm comfortable and I want people to look at me, but bear my soul. Right, like I'm, I'm obviously an exhibitionist and I like, I, but I like wanna be like, I'm gonna have a surprise show. Where I show up on a street corner and I just start singing and then, and everyone's gonna, and I want people to be there. And I'd be sad if they didn't come. But I wouldn't want to make an announcement saying that I was going to be there and I hope they can. You know what I mean? Like, it's like that is like my cognitive dissonance of like, I can't figure out how to crack this puzzle.
10:43 Drew Afualo? No, totally. Where, where do you like feel your creative process typically lies? Does it kind of change when you're like songwriting, when you're creating melodies, anything like that? Like, does it feel very specific, your process? Does it kind of free flow?
10:57 Speaker 00 It's mostly free flowing, but like there are some consistent themes. Like I usually, I, I often do a lot of my most musical writing when I'm doing something else. Like I get really inspired, like I'm on a, on a film set or on a, like that's kind of where I feel. And my brain starts like turning on, you know, like we have like kind of on brain and off brain mode. And like sometimes I'm in off brain and I'm just like, all I can think about is the book that I am reading and what I had for breakfast. And that I love you and, and then my pillow is soft and I should wash it. You know, like that's like I have that mode. And then when I'm like, okay, it's work time and I've got, I've got like, that's when my brain's kind of like, ooh, idea, idea, idea.
11:36 Drew Afualo? Yeah. And you jot down your ideas like as soon as you have them?
11:39 Speaker 00 Yeah. And like sometimes it's like voicemails and sometimes in my notes and some, it used to be really in my notebook, but to my great disappointment of myself. And my notebook has kind of gotten switched into my notes app.
11:51 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I feel that.
11:52 Speaker 00 My notebooks, I still carry them with me, but I'm mostly sketching them.
11:55 Drew Afualo? Yeah, that's cool though.
11:57 Speaker 00 Yeah.
11:57 Drew Afualo? Okay, you can do, okay, miss, I can do everything. You can even sketch.
12:02 Speaker 00 No, I mean, I can't really sketch. I like, I mean, I painted the album cover for this record.
12:05 Drew Afualo? Which is incredible and amazing.
12:07 Speaker 00 So I like, I, but I don't like, I'm not like a painter, but I like painting.
12:11 Drew Afualo? You can just do everything. Like I said, Renaissance woman.
12:13 Speaker 00 Well, saying you can do everything is different than saying you do everything. I very well may do everything. That doesn't mean I can do everything.
12:20 Drew Afualo? Well, you know what? God only hit me with a funny stick. That's all he gave me.
12:23 Speaker 00 Well, no, he gave you more than that. He gave you beautiful. He gave you kind.
12:27 Drew Afualo? Oh my gosh, thank you.
12:29 Speaker 00 And I like, I'm sure if I got to know you better, I would list more things.
12:32 Drew Afualo? Oh my gosh, well, we gotta spend more time together.
12:34 Speaker 00 Okay.
12:35 Drew Afualo? And now it's on camera, so you can't cancel on me. That would be embarrassing for you.
12:38 Speaker 00 Plans confirmed.
12:38 Drew Afualo? Okay, there you go. Perfect.
12:40 Speaker 00 Notice there was no specific dates at.
12:42 Drew Afualo? No specific dates, but it is on camera.
12:43 Speaker 00 Yeah, but it is on camera. Yeah, the record, yeah, yeah, yeah.
12:46 Drew Afualo? Okay, so I wanna pivot really quick to reading, cause you, you've mentioned reading a few times.
12:51 Speaker 00 Yeah.
12:51 Drew Afualo? Do you like, what kind of books do you like to read?
12:53 Speaker 00 I've been in a bit, I, okay, well, reading has been a very complicated thing in my life, my whole life, cause I was really dyslexic. I like. Went to different schools to try to figure out how to learn to read. And then instead of it becoming like a, you know, okay, I'm not good at this, so I won't do it. It be- words and language became so important to me because it was difficult.
13:14 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
13:14 Speaker 00 And I think, you know, someone smart at a school I went to for kids with learning disabilities, described my learning disability as like, most people have highways that go directly from their seeing to their comprehension.
13:29 Drew Afualo? Mm-hmm.
13:29 Speaker 00 And like, I have like, country roads.
13:31 Drew Afualo? Oh.
13:32 Speaker 00 That like, stop off in lots of different areas.
13:35 Drew Afualo? That's a beautiful way to describe it.
13:36 Speaker 00 Yeah, it has to like, go through your like, smell center and your memory center and your, before it gets to your comprehension center.
13:41 Drew Afualo? Right.
13:42 Speaker 00 And I think that that makes me like, really like, love reading and like, it's, it's hard and it takes a long time. But I retain it really well and it becomes, it's like watching a mov- like, I mean, I think that everyone feels this way about reading. Um, but I, it's like watching a movie in your head.
13:57 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
13:58 Speaker 00 Like, I just pitched reading. Um, uh, it's awesome. Um, but I, this year, I was kind of straight up audiobooks and like, hadn't really read a book cover to cover in a while.
14:09 Drew Afualo? Mm-hmm.
14:09 Speaker 00 But then this year, I, my mom got me into the sort of like, romanticy genre, which I don't like to call it because I think it's misogynistic, but like, that only the women fantasy writers get called romanticy.
14:21 Drew Afualo? And period.
14:22 Speaker 00 Yeah.
14:23 Drew Afualo? Period.
14:23 Speaker 00 But.
14:23 Drew Afualo? Love that.
14:24 Speaker 00 But you know what I mean when I say that.
14:25 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
14:25 Speaker 00 And I, uh, so I've been like, uh, probably read six thousand pages of romanticy this year. I've just been devouring book after book after book after book.
14:36 Drew Afualo? What are some of your faves?
14:38 Speaker 00 Uh, I think the, the definitive one, like, the, the, my Harry Potter of, is Throne of Glass.
14:44 Drew Afualo? Oh, nice.
14:45 Speaker 00 Yeah.
14:46 Drew Afualo? I haven't finished that one.
14:47 Speaker 00 Oh.
14:47 Drew Afualo? I read Akatar. Two, honestly.
14:50 Speaker 00 Okay.
14:50 Drew Afualo? I know I have quite the journey ahead of me.
14:52 Speaker 00 No, you've gotta get past book three.
14:54 Drew Afualo? Okay.
14:54 Speaker 00 Like, book two and three.
14:56 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
14:56 Speaker 00 Do a lot of work at like, you're kind of like, what's happening?
14:59 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
15:00 Speaker 00 And then when you get to book four.
15:02 Drew Afualo? Reading it, yeah.
15:02 Speaker 00 Yeah, and then when you get to book four, you're like, oh my god, I wanna go back and reread these books.
15:07 Drew Afualo? Damn.
15:07 Speaker 00 Cause now I understand what's happening and like, I wanna read it with, informed with that information.
15:13 Drew Afualo? Gotcha, gotcha, gotcha.
15:14 Speaker 00 And it's like, it, it's, it, by the time I go to the end, I was like, this is my- Mount ever, like this, like this series is my, one of my favorite things I've ever read in my entire life.
15:22 Drew Afualo? That is so cool. I love romanticy too. I'm actually writing two fiction books, actually.
15:26 Speaker 00 Really?
15:26 Drew Afualo? Yes, I am. I know I sold them last year, so I'm working on them now. But I've read, I've read a ton of them. Thank you.
15:33 Speaker 00 What are they about?
15:34 Drew Afualo? Uh, mine are about, I'm actually pulling from, cause I'm Polynesian, I'm Samoan.
15:39 Speaker 00 Yeah.
15:39 Drew Afualo? So I'm pulling from a lot of Polynesian, like mythological, like lore.
15:42 Speaker 00 Oh, brilliant idea.
15:43 Drew Afualo? Yeah, and like fables and they, you know, cause Polynesian people had so many before, prior to being colonized. They had so many, uh, they were, first of all, like worshipped many gods, but polytheistic, but they had so many different beautiful stories for describing things like the wind and the sun and the trees.
15:59 Speaker 00 Of course.
16:00 Drew Afualo? So I thought, there is no better setting for a romanticy kind of book.
16:04 Speaker 00 No, I think that's brilliant.
16:05 Drew Afualo? And I haven't seen it yet, so.
16:07 Speaker 00 I haven't seen it either. I think that's really, really smart. Yeah.
16:09 Drew Afualo? Look at me. I, I love that you love those books, though. Are you a big smut reading fan? You like to read smut?
16:14 Speaker 00 I mean, I think the, the first.
16:16 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
16:16 Speaker 00 Yeah. I mean, the first, uh, I mean, this is weird. You can cut this out if you want to, but the first porn I ever experienced was a book that I found on a bookshelf.
16:27 Drew Afualo? Okay.
16:27 Speaker 00 And it just looked mysterious and had no cover. And then I found it and took it off. It was like a translation of an old French, um,
16:33 Drew Afualo? Interesting.
16:34 Speaker 00 literatica.
16:34 Drew Afualo? Okay.
16:35 Speaker 00 And I was like, this is amazing. And I, and I, and then for a while I was kind of like committed to literatica, cause I thought it was sort of like a feminine. Yeah, I was like, I was like, oh, this is cool. Like this, like, yeah, I do that, but like, but I do it in like an elegant way, you know? I, I do it in like a French literatica way. Like, I'm not like, I'm not cheesing. I don't watch porn, okay? I read 16th century French literatica. That's grown up. That's ladylike.
17:00 Drew Afualo? Right, right.
17:01 Speaker 00 Um, that's, that's, that's fashion, that's dignified.
17:04 Drew Afualo? That's dignified, yes, yes, yes.
17:05 Speaker 00 That's, yeah, that's legitimate. So, yes, I know, I'm into it.
17:08 Drew Afualo? Yeah. I love that you're into it. I love that you're looking up fanfiction and smut. I'm into it.
17:13 Speaker 00 It's awesome.
17:14 Drew Afualo? I love A O three. Me and A O three go together real bad.
17:17 Speaker 00 That's awesome.
17:17 Drew Afualo? Yeah, me, A O three and my Kindle.
17:19 Speaker 00 Yeah, let's go.
17:20 Drew Afualo? I think some of my favorite romanticy books I've ever read like was, there's this Viking one I read called A Curse Carved in Bone.
17:26 Speaker 00 Ooh, sounds fantastic, no?
17:28 Drew Afualo? Oh, my gosh, it's a duology. It's so fucking tea.
17:31 Speaker 00 Why do all the titles, like, I love these books so much.
17:33 Drew Afualo? Oh, they're crazy.
17:34 Speaker 00 Have to be like all the same thing.
17:36 Drew Afualo? Yeah, they're like buried in ash, buried in embers, like, it's one of those.
17:40 Speaker 00 Yeah, they're like.
17:40 Drew Afualo? Watch them burn.
17:41 Speaker 00 Crossbow of midnight, like, Blood on the Tower.
17:44 Drew Afualo? Yeah, they're so, they're so dramatic.
17:46 Speaker 00 They like, and they all have the same like nouns and adjectives that are just like reorganized. And I'm like, these books are incredible. Please title them appropriately.
17:54 Drew Afualo? Title them a little bit better.
17:55 Speaker 00 Can we, can we work on getting some romanticy new book covers?
17:59 Drew Afualo? Right, let's work on the.
18:00 Speaker 00 Like, I want some like defined, like, New Yorker style, like, like, like, marketing of like, like, yeah, like, to just like, meet the quality of the writing, because the writing's amazing.
18:08 Drew Afualo? I agree.
18:09 Speaker 00 And I want, like, I want a, like, a dignified little New Yorker style cover and title, please.
18:16 Drew Afualo? I need a little bit more variation in that.
18:18 Speaker 00 Yeah.
18:18 Drew Afualo? As well, I agree. And in my book that I'm writing, I made her thirty.
18:22 Speaker 00 Okay, that's awesome.
18:23 Drew Afualo? Which is period, because most of them, she's freshly eighteen.
18:27 Speaker 00 Yeah, gotta be.
18:28 Drew Afualo? I'm not loving. I was like, I'm, as a thirty year old woman, I was like, no. I've even had, like, when I had meetings with a publisher, uh, one publisher that I had a meeting with, they asked me, would you be interested in making her twenty-three?
18:39 Speaker 00 And you were like, no.
18:40 Drew Afualo? I was like, yeah, no, I went, no, I'm not. And also, she's, technically speaking, she's seven hundred. So I think it's fine.
18:46 Speaker 00 It's, I think it's totally fine.
18:47 Drew Afualo? I think it's okay.
18:48 Speaker 00 I'm glad, I'm glad that you're letting some women be immortals here. I think that's very cool.
18:52 Drew Afualo? Yeah, my bitch starts out strong.
18:54 Speaker 00 Yeah, yeah, that's awesome.
18:55 Drew Afualo? Like, on, on top, like, top of her game, strong.
18:58 Speaker 00 I want them to make them older too, because I'm like, I'm falling in love with these books right as I age out of being able to play any of these characters. And I'm like, I'm like, will you please write one where the main character's like thirty-two?
19:10 Drew Afualo? That would be awesome.
19:10 Speaker 00 So that I have the time, so that we can develop the project together. And then by the time it gets made, I'll be the appropriate age to play one of these characters.
19:17 Drew Afualo? I'm telling you. Do you have any other? Favorites of like fantasy books or even just fiction in general.
19:22 Speaker 00 I love this, this, uh, the one, actually weirdly, this is like a big influence on my record. There's a song kind of inspired by it. It's from the eighties. It's um, called The Lioness Rampant Series. It's uh, about a character named Alana Trabond. It's by Tamora Pierce. And she's amazing and it's like, i- it's romantic, it's like eighties romanticy. It's not that smutty, but it's like, it's wink wink almost. It's like, it's like chapter break right there, you know? Yeah, Panda the fireplace style. Um, but I love, it's about like a young girl who wants to become a knight in a kingdom where women aren't allowed to be knights and so she dresses up like a boy and becomes like an amazing magical knight. It's, I love it.
20:05 Drew Afualo? Ooh, that's funny. I re- recently re-watched Mulan, which is like, that's kind of a Mulan tip. And I was like, damn, this movie is so good. I re-watched it recently.
20:14 Speaker 00 Mulan's amazing.
20:15 Drew Afualo? It's so incredible. And I was like, I need all the women in my books to be like this.
20:18 Speaker 00 We must be swift as the
20:20 Drew Afualo? To literally be like, mm, fuck my dad, I'm gonna go to war.
20:23 Speaker 00 Yeah.
20:23 Drew Afualo? Like, that's, that's the type of shit I need. I need from a girl in my book.
20:26 Speaker 00 Yeah, I'm with you.
20:28 Drew Afualo? And I'm writing mine, my girl to be like, well, first of all, I made all the men huge too. And like, all of the men have long hair, which I'm fucking with.
20:36 Speaker 00 That's awesome.
20:36 Drew Afualo? And so I'm like, I'm kind of going left of center for most of the books I've read, cause I feel like the descriptions are very like, every woman is very small, tiny, dainty, that kind of thing. Every man is huge and enormous and whatever. I'm kind of leveling that field.
20:51 Speaker 00 That's cool. I like that.
20:52 Drew Afualo? Like, I wrote a line that was like, the women are big, but the men are bigger.
20:55 Speaker 00 Yeah, that's good.
20:56 Drew Afualo? Like, that's the kind of shit I'm looking for in my book.
20:58 Speaker 00 That's awesome.
20:58 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I need some, I get what you mean though. You need to switch it up a little bit.
21:01 Speaker 00 Yeah.
21:02 Drew Afualo? Yeah, why not? What about TV shows? What are some TV shows?
21:05 Speaker 00 I watch a lot of TV shows. I just watched um, DTF St. Louis and finished it. And I was just so moved by my uh, old co-star, David Harbour. That his performance was like, one of my favorite pieces of acting I've seen in a long time. I like, I can't stop thinking about how good it was and like, like I left him like a crazy voice message being like, please tell me how you do so good at being actor. Like, I really, what did you do? Cause I wanna do be good like you. And uh, so I was blown away by that. Um, what else am I watching?
21:39 Drew Afualo? That you're loving.
21:39 Speaker 00 That I'm loving. I'm like,
21:43 Speaker 00 Watching Rooster, I'm loving Rooster.
21:45 Drew Afualo? Oh, I just saw something about Rooster the other day.
21:47 Speaker 00 Um, what else?
21:49 Drew Afualo? You ever watched the show Paradise? On Hulu?
21:52 Speaker 00 No.
21:53 Drew Afualo? Nah, listen, this show's becoming a paradise show because every one of my guests, I'm like, have you seen the show Paradise?
21:58 Speaker 00 Okay, cool.
21:59 Drew Afualo? I'm talking like I work for them, I don't, or like I'm in the show, I'm not. But it has Sterling K. Brown, James Marsden. There's a whole bunch of people, I think Shailene Woodley was in season two, like, there's a whole bunch of heavy hitters. Show's fantastic.
22:12 Speaker 00 Okay, incredible.
22:12 Drew Afualo? But it's like sci-fi, so it's like about end of the world kind of deal.
22:15 Speaker 00 Okay.
22:16 Drew Afualo? But it's basically, without any spoilers, the premise is essentially, the head of security is Sterling K. Brown for the president.
22:22 Speaker 00 Ooh.
22:23 Drew Afualo? And James Marsden is the president when the world ends.
22:25 Speaker 00 Oh, cool.
22:26 Drew Afualo? And so it's like, what do you do when the world's elite has been essentially prepping for the end of the world and not telling anyone else?
22:32 Speaker 00 It's like the next part of the, um, that movie that came out this year about like, uh, the, about D-Day when the nuclear bombs drop?
22:40 Drew Afualo? Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
22:41 Speaker 00 It's like, it's like, what happens next?
22:42 Drew Afualo? Yeah, essentially.
22:43 Speaker 00 Cool.
22:44 Drew Afualo? It's so interesting and honestly, they're acting their asses off in that show.
22:48 Speaker 00 Oh, I can't wait, I'll check it out.
22:49 Drew Afualo? But the writing is like unbelievable, I was like, I find it really inspiring for the books that I'm writing now, I've been trying to watch a lot of different depictions of love, like both in like, platonically, romantically, like, child to parent, like grandparents, that kind of thing.
23:04 Speaker 00 Whoa, that's really, I, I'm really into that too.
23:07 Drew Afualo? Are you?
23:08 Speaker 00 Yeah, even like on my record, I tried to have there be like, a song about friendship love, a song about sibling love, a song about parental love, a song about romantic love, a song about like,
23:18 Drew Afualo? Love.
23:19 Speaker 00 The love between two people who broke up and are still friends, like, just kind of all the different wa- ways and forms that really deep relationships can exist.
23:26 Drew Afualo? Yeah, totally. It's like, I, I think that's what I loved about it, because they, they depict like, human connection in a way that is so beautiful to me, like,
23:36 Speaker 00 Yeah.
23:36 Drew Afualo? It's the way you can connect to people, community, like, how much of a difference it makes, like,
23:41 Speaker 00 That makes me think that you would like Station Eleven.
23:43 Drew Afualo? Ooh, okay.
23:44 Speaker 00 Uh, it came out during the pandemic, it's one season, it, well, it'll blow your mind, it's on HBO, it's so good. People, I think, didn't find it at the time because we were in a pandemic. Pandemic and it's about a pandemic.
23:54 Drew Afualo? Oh, I see, I see.
23:55 Speaker 00 But like now pose, it's very different kind of pandemic. Um, but uh, it's amazing and it's also about kind of community. It like in the aftermath of a disaster and how the humans, the kind of rejuvenating power of the human spirit.
24:09 Drew Afualo? Yeah, that's like, I think that's why I also started watching a lot of Studio Ghibli movies.
24:14 Speaker 00 Oh, cool.
24:14 Drew Afualo? I love the way that he writes love, like both between like siblings, between romantic partners and like the depiction of love. And I also like to watch things in different cultural contexts because I feel like they depict love in very different ways from like the way American people write.
24:29 Speaker 00 Yeah.
24:29 Drew Afualo? So I feel like it's giving me a lot of different kinds of inspiration and like variation. Like what kind of things do you like to look at or watch or like pull inspiration from? Or is it mostly just like personal experience?
24:41 Speaker 00 No, I pull inspiration from all kinds of things. Like I often get caught off guard by some moment. And like why it just like, you know, when something just strikes a chord. Feel like occasionally something strikes a chord and it either personal or or something I'm reading or watching. Or someone else's art or song or.
25:03 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
25:03 Speaker 00 And then you kind of follow that down, right? Like you like kind of figure out, you follow where it hurts or where it makes you smile or like where you're like, oh, yes. Oh, that's true.
25:14 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
25:15 Speaker 00 And I think usually truth is like.
25:55 Speaker 00 My biggest guiding principle in life?
25:58 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
25:59 Speaker 00 But I'm really interested in honesty. And in how much I think that your life gets better if you stick to it.
26:08 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
26:08 Speaker 00 Like, and when you figure, but that doesn't mean it's always easy to be honest. And not just because it's hard to scary to tell the truth sometimes, but also because it's hard to figure out what the truth is.
26:20 Drew Afualo? Right.
26:21 Speaker 00 So when I hear something and I'm like, oh, that rings true.
26:24 Drew Afualo? Mm-hmm.
26:24 Speaker 00 That's usually what I chase.
26:26 Drew Afualo? Oh, I love that. I felt like that was indicative when I was listening to your music, but also I feel like that's what helps people connect to music a lot easier when you're like way more honest. I feel like sometimes if it doesn't hit, a lot of times it can be, it can feel inauthentic or a little, like people, artists are holding you at arms length a little bit. But when you let them get a little close, it can be real beautiful.
26:47 Speaker 00 Yeah.
26:47 Drew Afualo? Just like your song, "Heavy Rain."
26:48 Speaker 00 Thank you.
26:49 Drew Afualo? Loving that. This episode is brought to you by Ring. Look. It's always comforting to keep an eye on your home. That's why I've been using Ring's Battery Doorbell. It lets me see who's at the door and track packages in real time. And at night, the Outdoor Cam Plus helps me protect my yard with a wide view and clearer Retinal 2K video. And for even more detail, you can upgrade to 4K cameras and doorbells with Retinal Vision so you can zoom in without losing clarity. Your door, your yard, your home. With Ring, it's protected. Shop cameras, doorbells, and more right now at ring.com. I know you said that's your favorite song. Why is that your favorite song on your new
27:30 Speaker 00 I had this beautiful day. I was, I went down to Lincoln Center and I was making a wish in the fountain, which is usually the wishes I wish to someday perform at Lincoln Center.
27:42 Drew Afualo? Oh, true.
27:43 Speaker 00 So it seems like a good place to make that wish.
27:44 Drew Afualo? Hell, yeah.
27:45 Speaker 00 And I was like, I was like, I was there. Have you ever been to that square?
27:49 Drew Afualo? I, yes, I have, yeah.
27:50 Speaker 00 It's like very, very beautiful. It's like multiple fountains and people are moving around and then all of a sudden. I was having this like very interesting conversation with my brother and then just the like rain just out of nowhere just like exploded down and I just watched all these New Yorkers like magically materialize umbrellas out of nowhere and and everyone was just kind of like all of a sudden rushing and moving away into doors and disappearing everywhere and.
28:17 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
28:17 Speaker 00 I had the day, a day where I, I didn't have anything to do. There was no reason that I couldn't just sit there at my fountain where I make my wishes and just be, be in the rain.
28:27 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
28:27 Speaker 00 And I did and I felt very free and very, um, very myself and in, you know, like out, there's so much stress in the world in, you know, both one's own life and then also in all the information that we all have access to every day.
28:50 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
28:50 Speaker 00 And I just, we have these moments, or at least I have moments where I can't differentiate between what is a real problem and what's not a real problem.
28:59 Drew Afualo? Right, yeah.
29:00 Speaker 00 Like, you know, where you're like, sometimes I talk about like when I'm anxious. If I solve the thing, the problem that I feel anxious about and it just immediately gets replaced by another problem.
29:11 Drew Afualo? Right.
29:11 Speaker 00 Then the problem is the anxiety.
29:13 Drew Afualo? Right.
29:13 Speaker 00 Um, and if, if I solve the problem that I'm worried about and the problem goes away, then it was the problem and not the anxiety.
29:19 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
29:20 Speaker 00 Um, and so I was having a day where I just felt like, oh, this is my life. I know who I am. I know what I believe in. I know what matters to me. A- after a time of feeling extremely insecure and very afraid, I think when, when Stranger Things ended, I felt very, um, lost and I didn't have a lot of faith in myself or in the future of what was gonna happen and I was really scared and it took me about a year. To really move through that feeling and and that day was kind of like the day of being like, okay, no, I get it. I see it. I know what matters to me. I know where I wanna point my arrow.
29:56 Drew Afualo? That's so beautiful.
29:57 Speaker 00 And those words just kinda came to me while I was like soaking wet in the cab home and.
30:01 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
30:02 Speaker 00 Yeah.
30:02 Drew Afualo? That's so beautiful. I think that's amazing. I think it's also like a very human feeling too, I think. I think sometimes, I think people will find that very relatable that you as someone who's been performing at such a high level for such a long time can also have those feelings of humanness where you're like, well, what's next? Like, I think that can be very relatable to a lot of people.
30:23 Speaker 00 Well, I'm lucky cuz I've known about that since I was a kid cuz I I, you know, I got to watch my parents who are at the top of their fields.
30:30 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
30:30 Speaker 00 Be really nervous about what next year was gonna look like or about this or about that and like not not have a sense of security.
30:36 Drew Afualo? Right.
30:37 Speaker 00 Um, in any sort of like regularity of of having a job.
30:41 Drew Afualo? Right.
30:41 Speaker 00 And I think, you know, my identity got so fused with Stranger Things and in a way that I never imagined until it ended. I didn't couldn't see it until it was gone and then I was like, whoa, I don't know what
30:56 Speaker 00 I don't know what comes after this.
30:57 Drew Afualo? Right.
30:58 Speaker 00 And I I don't have faith that anything will. And I've like law, I it it, you know, bef- I was nineteen when I got that job. And when I was nineteen, I had so much faith in myself. I was like, I'm gonna be a movie star and it's gonna be awesome and it's gonna be great. And I think that like, of course, I'm gonna get the part in this because I'm going in and I have a good attitude and I'm cool, so why wouldn't I? And like, here we go. And and then cut to eight years later, I have all of that confidence is gone. And you would think it would be increased due to experience and credits, but it was obliterated due to knowledge and information.
31:30 Drew Afualo? Right.
31:30 Speaker 00 Um, and um, you know, it's that classic experiment where they have people take a math test, but first they have to demarcate how well they think they're gonna do.
31:37 Drew Afualo? Right.
31:38 Speaker 00 And the people who think they're gonna do the best do worse than the people who think they aren't.
31:43 Drew Afualo? Right.
31:43 Speaker 00 And which is usually because the more you know about something, the less, the more you know you don't know.
31:48 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
31:49 Speaker 00 Right? Like, the better you are at math, the more like, I don't really know that much about math.
31:52 Drew Afualo? Right, yeah.
31:52 Speaker 00 Versus if you're like, no, I remember I passed eighth grade geometry. Let's go, you know?
31:58 Drew Afualo? Yeah. Well, I think that's, I think it's also very Honestly empowering to hear someone like yourself talk about that kind of vulnerability, especially as an artist, because it can feel, I think for optics wise, it can feel like you're in something as huge as Stranger Things and they're like, well, you're fucking, you're totally fine. You're feeling fine, you're feeling great, you're feeling awesome 24/7, there's no way you're not. But that is the, the hard part about, you know, ascending to new heights. There are, there is that level of like, there's a greater height to fall from, I guess. Like the higher up you go, which can be nerve wracking. But I also think it's really beautiful and vulnerable for you to share that feeling so openly,
32:39 Drew Afualo? especially through music, about feeling very like, just nervous about what could happen next.
32:44 Speaker 00 Yeah.
32:45 Drew Afualo? After getting a gig that big.
32:46 Speaker 00 You know, our, our industries present a facade of kind of like impenetrable glamour.
32:55 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
32:56 Speaker 00 Uh, and, and there's a lot of glamour and like, a lot of very young people do very well.
33:01 Drew Afualo? Mm-hmm.
33:02 Speaker 00 And, uh, and, but it's, it is also a, a profession of constant reinvention.
33:09 Drew Afualo? Right.
33:09 Speaker 00 And very little job security.
33:11 Drew Afualo? Especially for women.
33:12 Speaker 00 Yeah, especially for women and I, um, I think that it's, a- and also we live in like, we are the anxious generation, like, right? Like, and so there's both real and imagined inse- like, uh, structural insecurity.
33:28 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
33:28 Speaker 00 Um, and, and, and, you know, we, we hold these comparison machines in our pocket that are programmed, and this is like, I really, I, I, a big part of my not feeling so bad anymore, my heavy rain moment, was really getting off the internet.
33:43 Drew Afualo? Really?
33:43 Speaker 00 Was, yeah, because I was realizing that like, not only, you know, my husband, like, his internet told him that he was a loser and that I was amazing. And like, doing great and everyone loved me and like, and my internet told me that I was a loser. And like, and that he was doing great. And that my other friends were doing great, but that like, everyone hated me, like, you know, like, a- and I realized, oh, it's not just that the internet is bad. It's that each of us have our own curated crafted internet made by the Companies that run the internet.
34:14 Drew Afualo? Right.
34:14 Speaker 00 That are designed to get us to look at it more. Which inherently means that they target our insecurities, our self doubt, our fear. Our self hatred. Like, and that's what I am looking at. It is not an accurate representation of how I'm doing. It's a. Yeah, it's a funhouse mirror. And, um, and I realized I had to stop looking at that. And then I did.
34:38 Drew Afualo? That's good, though. I think that's a beautiful thing. It's important, I think, to, to cut off things, parts of this business that are not necessary to you thriving as an artist. Like, the internet's one of them. And I'm someone who came up on the internet, so I fucking get it.
34:50 Speaker 00 Well, but like, we all came up on the internet. You know what I mean? Like, in different ways, right? Like, that's kind of, it's all become the internet now.
34:56 Drew Afualo? It's true, yeah. They're, they're so one in the same.
34:58 Speaker 00 Instagram and your Netflix are like, you know, right next to each other on the same thing you hold in your pocket and like, and you're doing similar stuff on them. You're scrolling through trailers or you're scrolling through trailers.
35:09 Drew Afualo? Right, exactly.
35:10 Speaker 00 It's like, you know?
35:11 Drew Afualo? It's so true. And I had someone on the show, um, Anna Cathcart. She's in Exo Kitty. And she, when she was on the show, she was telling me that what she realized was that acting is like, like, i- it's so much more of everything else than it is the actual acting. Like, she says, I love acting, but like eighty percent of it now is the marketing and the.
35:33 Speaker 00 I talk about that all the time.
35:34 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
35:34 Speaker 00 It's like, I remember, when I, when I was at drama school, I was like, yeah, you know, the thing that sucks about drama school is that like, my day is eighty percent magical and twenty percent bullshit. And then I left and started working. And I was like, whoa, eighty percent magical is crazy stats. That's bringing in, that's such high numbers of magical per day.
35:56 Drew Afualo? I was actually really lucky with how much magic I was experiencing.
35:59 Speaker 00 So much magic. Like, I, now I'm like lucky if I get like two percent magic. Like sparkly feeling of like, whoa, you and I were building a dream together. And, and we're catching flight and we're floating away. And here it goes, oh my god, I don't know the difference between me and this other person. And here we go, and I'm high on it. And whoa, I'm crying about something that didn't happen to me and a spell is coming over me. And now I'm laughing and now I'm in love with you. And like that. Like that kind of float is just like not in the schedule very often.
36:28 Drew Afualo? No, it isn't, yeah.
36:29 Speaker 00 It's complicated.
36:30 Drew Afualo? It's very minimal. I've actually recently started venturing into acting. I've always wanted to be an actress, but obviously I did the internet dickhead shit first. And now I'm trying to pivot and I'm in my self-tape era.
36:42 Speaker 00 Any way that anyone comes up and finds a way to make their art is awesome.
36:45 Drew Afualo? Thank you.
36:46 Speaker 00 There's nothing wrong with any way of doing it.
36:47 Drew Afualo? I appreciate that. I appreciate that. I mean, the way I came into the business too, I feel like is pretty unique in the sense that like I grew a platform by simply being really fucking mean to men. Like misogynistic men essentially.
36:58 Speaker 00 Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
36:59 Drew Afualo? So like me just ethering them kind of gave me a platform. So now I'm like, well, now what am I gonna do with it?
37:03 Speaker 00 Yeah.
37:04 Drew Afualo? I wanna do a talk show, talk to Maya Hawke, and also maybe act.
37:07 Speaker 00 Yeah, and also maybe write books.
37:09 Drew Afualo? Yes, and write books as well.
37:11 Speaker 00 And also wear really cool t-shirts.
37:13 Drew Afualo? Thank you. This is my dog, Tuna.
37:14 Speaker 00 I had a feeling.
37:15 Drew Afualo? Yeah, this is my dog. The last episode, I wore a squid shirt. So this time I'm using squid's my other dog.
37:20 Speaker 00 Oh, nice.
37:20 Drew Afualo? But um, he's deaf, by the way.
37:23 Speaker 00 Oh, that's awesome.
37:23 Drew Afualo? You can't tell from the photos, but he is.
37:24 Speaker 00 I, I have, I had a friend who had a deaf dog. Deaf dogs are really cool. They don't bark at every single thing that walks by the house.
37:31 Drew Afualo? He's honestly the chillest dog in the history of time. Like he's, everyone's like, he's a crowd favorite.
37:35 Speaker 00 Yeah, I'm sure.
37:36 Drew Afualo? He has no stress and it's probably because he can't hear.
37:38 Speaker 00 Cause he can't hear anything.
37:39 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
37:39 Speaker 00 And so many dogs are so terrorized by their sonic anxiety.
37:42 Drew Afualo? Right, like he literally has the biggest ears ever, useless.
37:45 Speaker 00 Sometimes I wish my dog was deaf.
37:48 Speaker 00 Every single person that walks by our apartment, yeah.
37:50 Drew Afualo? You have, uh, just one dog?
37:52 Speaker 00 Just one dog.
37:52 Drew Afualo? Oh, my gosh.
37:53 Speaker 00 Maybe I'll get a second one someday, but I don't know.
37:55 Drew Afualo? What's their name?
37:56 Speaker 00 Lucky.
37:56 Drew Afualo? Oh, that's so cute.
37:58 Speaker 00 She's the best. I miss her so much.
37:59 Drew Afualo? What kind of dog is she?
38:00 Speaker 00 A miniature labradoodle.
38:02 Drew Afualo? Oh, that's so cute.
38:03 Speaker 00 She's very cute.
38:04 Drew Afualo? And she's a barker.
38:06 Speaker 00 She's a barker.
38:06 Drew Afualo? That's okay.
38:07 Speaker 00 She also has the highest pitch bark. Uh, it's like, it's a, I love her to the moon and back again. I, sometimes I look at her and I'm like, I can't believe you.
38:16 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
38:16 Speaker 00 Like it's, it's, it's a tone, it's a pitch that like, it, it's like, you know, when you're like talking to a microphone and it feeds back?
38:22 Drew Afualo? Yes.
38:23 Speaker 00 It's like that. It's like so high.
38:25 Drew Afualo? The frequency is so high.
38:27 Speaker 00 It's so, it's ear splitting.
38:30 Drew Afualo? She's protecting the house.
38:31 Speaker 00 Yeah, she's protecting the house, but I've been teaching her, shh, whisper, whisper, and then she goes, woof.
38:37 Speaker 00 But then, and then she'll get annoyed and then she'll go, ah!
38:39 Drew Afualo? Yeah. So we gotta rework on that.
38:42 Speaker 00 We're working on it.
38:43 Drew Afualo? Working on it.
38:43 Speaker 00 Shh, shh, woof.
38:46 Drew Afualo? Well, I know you mentioned your husband and you recently got married.
38:49 Speaker 00 Yeah.
38:49 Drew Afualo? Oh, my gosh, how was that?
38:50 Speaker 00 It was awesome.
38:51 Drew Afualo? It was amazing. I'm getting married. I'm getting married in August. Thank you so much. Do you have any tips for me?
38:56 Speaker 00 Yeah, yeah, I do. Trying to think of which ones are on air appropriate. No, no, they wouldn't be sexual. They would just be, um, my biggest tip is that really
39:11 Speaker 00 you're gonna have a great time at your wedding. I know you are, like, there's, what, what, what stage of planning are you at?
39:18 Drew Afualo? Um, right now, we're, we're getting there. We're getting into the nitty gritty. I just like.
39:22 Speaker 00 Do you have a date set?
39:23 Drew Afualo? Yes.
39:23 Speaker 00 Is it?
39:24 Drew Afualo? We have a date set.
39:24 Speaker 00 Yeah, how far away is it?
39:26 Drew Afualo? It's another state, so.
39:27 Speaker 00 No, no, sorry. How, how many months in the future?
39:30 Drew Afualo? Oh, how many months? From now, it's about four, four, four-ish months.
39:34 Speaker 00 Okay, cool. Yeah, awesome. It's gonna go great. Like, you're gonna have the best time. Just be selfish.
39:40 Drew Afualo? Okay, I see.
39:40 Speaker 00 It will be hard.
39:42 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
39:42 Speaker 00 Like, to feel good about being selfish in the, but if you're gonna spend so much energy trying to please everyone, you're never going to please them, and then they just will be pleased. Like, they'll be so happy.
39:54 Drew Afualo? I'll be stressing about pleasing them.
39:55 Speaker 00 If the day goes all well, everyone will be so happy.
39:58 Drew Afualo? Okay, cool.
39:59 Speaker 00 And like, and you'll, you'll waste so much energy being like, does my mom like the flowers? Like, no, I'm worried she's gonna hate the flowers, and then she's gonna have a bad time, and then it's, it doesn't matter.
40:10 Drew Afualo? She's gonna not be able to stop looking at the flowers.
40:11 Speaker 00 She just wants you to be happy, even if the, and like, like, she's nervous that you're not gonna be happy. If you make sure you're happy, like, she'll be happy, and like.
40:19 Drew Afualo? That's so great.
40:19 Speaker 00 I, I think that's my, that's, try not to waste too much energy trying to make everyone else happy.
40:24 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
40:24 Speaker 00 It's one day of their freaking lives. They can do it. They can do it. They can sit next to someone they don't like. Everyone, everyone can do it.
40:32 Drew Afualo? Everyone will be okay.
40:33 Speaker 00 Biggest tip, don't show anyone your seating chart.
40:36 Drew Afualo? Okay.
40:36 Speaker 00 Make it with your husband. Don't lock and key. No one, no one gets notes. You know everyone invited to your wedding. You know who they like and who they hate.
40:43 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
40:44 Speaker 00 You manage their feuds. Do not let them manage their own feuds.
40:47 Drew Afualo? Okay, that's a great one.
40:48 Speaker 00 That's my biggest tip.
40:49 Drew Afualo? That's a great tip. My lesbian sister, um, I do have some, some blood relatives that are homophobic. So my rule for my wedding has been like, if they wouldn't come to her wedding, they're not invited to mine.
41:00 Speaker 00 Awesome. Badass rule.
41:02 Drew Afualo? Thankfully, that's cut my guest list in fucking half, cuz I have a huge fucking fan.
41:06 Speaker 00 Also probably cuts down the feuds.
41:07 Drew Afualo? Yes, exactly.
41:08 Speaker 00 Yeah. You don't need my advice, is what I've decided. You don't need my advice at all.
41:14 Drew Afualo? Honestly, though, that was tea about the seating chart. Because I told my mom, I was like, I really don't want to do a seating chart for that reason especially. I was like, I kind of want to do a first come, first serve. If you come, you get your own table and.
41:26 Speaker 00 So that was my initial idea.
41:27 Drew Afualo? Really?
41:28 Speaker 00 I tried to do that. It's surprising the thing, it's like, in many ways, this year, both like with this record and a lot of things, has been like laughing at your own plans. Like, it's just kind of like, oh, right, okay. Like, a lot of no's, like, a lot of like, a lot of like, me having ideas and people being like, that's a great idea, let me explain to you why it's not possible. Like, I would say is like, my year in two sentences, is that's a great idea, let me explain why it's not possible.
41:52 Drew Afualo? Well, there you go. You know what, you're constantly reinventing your learning.
41:55 Speaker 00 You gotta be, you gotta be.
41:56 Drew Afualo? Yeah. How's married life been for you?
41:59 Speaker 00 Awesome.
42:00 Drew Afualo? It's been amazing?
42:00 Speaker 00 Yeah.
42:01 Drew Afualo? I think that's wonderful. I think it's great when it feels no different.
42:04 Speaker 00 It doesn't feel different.
42:05 Drew Afualo? Which is a beautiful thing.
42:05 Speaker 00 But it feels like, it feels like we did a magic spell.
42:08 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
42:08 Speaker 00 It feels like the same thing, but like, me and my fellow warlock witch wizard man did a magic spell and, and we like surrounded ourselves in a magical bubble of light and.
42:19 Drew Afualo? Oh, that's so nice.
42:20 Speaker 00 It feels like, so it's like the same, except maybe the bubble got a little tougher.
42:24 Drew Afualo? That's kind of how I felt when I went, like, got engaged.
42:27 Speaker 00 Yeah.
42:27 Drew Afualo? Felt like it leveled up, like, nothing really changed, but it did feel different in a beautiful way.
42:32 Speaker 00 Yeah.
42:32 Drew Afualo? I think that's amazing.
42:33 Speaker 00 Almost the engagement felt like a bigger shift to me in some ways.
42:37 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
42:38 Speaker 00 Mostly because of the, like, the way that, like, family reacts to that.
42:41 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
42:42 Speaker 00 Like, they're kind of like, oh, okay, well, hey, nice to meet you.
42:46 Drew Afualo? Everyone gets real serious.
42:48 Speaker 00 Everyone's like, whoa, sorry, I didn't realize, got it.
42:49 Drew Afualo? I didn't realize you guys were for real about that.
42:51 Speaker 00 Yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, okay. What's your favorite color?
42:55 Drew Afualo? I guess I should get to know you a little bit better. I guess you're gonna be around for a while. I think that's beautiful.
42:59 Speaker 00 Yeah.
42:59 Drew Afualo? Well, look at you, you had a big year, your new album, got married.
43:03 Speaker 00 Finished a big show I've been doing for eight years.
43:05 Drew Afualo? I was gonna say, how's that, how was that? Like, the culmination of it all, I guess.
43:10 Speaker 00 Beautiful, really emotional. I mean, like, we talked about it a little bit, like, and, and I feel, um... So lucky to have had that experience.
43:19 Drew Afualo? Oh, that's so nice.
43:20 Speaker 00 I feel like the people and the friendships and like where it all ended up. And the kind of like groundedness it offered me like. It it's like a combination of a college experience and like of an incredible like. You know, digging of the foundation of the house of my life, you know, as metaphorically.
43:40 Drew Afualo? Yeah, totally.
43:41 Speaker 00 Like it was just foundational, community building. And really taught taught me about being a part of a team. Taught me about confidence and endurance. And uh belief in myself and in others. In taught me about change.
43:57 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
43:57 Speaker 00 Like the way things can change, like. What I thought that experience was gonna be when I started it was so different than what it. Ended up being like.
44:06 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
44:06 Speaker 00 And then was so and then that was so different than what it ended up becoming.
44:09 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
44:10 Speaker 00 And I like I am really what I'm left with is profound gratitude.
44:14 Drew Afualo? Oh, that's so wonderful. I think that's a beautiful thing. And I think y'all did a kick ass job.
44:19 Speaker 00 Thank you.
44:19 Drew Afualo? On the ending of it all. I watched the finale in Ireland.
44:22 Speaker 00 Oh, awesome.
44:22 Drew Afualo? Cause I went to Ireland over Christmas break and I was like, and it was the people people in my group were like, we have to watch the finale.
44:29 Speaker 00 Wait, you were with a group? Did you do like a group travel?
44:32 Drew Afualo? Yeah, we went to Dublin. Yeah, for New Year's Eve.
44:35 Speaker 00 Like, like with a group of friends or like on like a tourist traveling?
44:39 Drew Afualo? No, no, no, no, for friends with friends.
44:41 Speaker 00 In my mind, did you watch that movie?
44:42 Drew Afualo? Imagine I watched with strangers.
44:43 Speaker 00 I was just like imagining you like on like, like, you know, when you can like join like a travel group? Like I was imagining you on some sort of like tour of Ireland travel.
44:51 Drew Afualo? Yeah, and I was like, guys, wanna watch the Stranger Things finale?
44:53 Speaker 00 Yeah.
44:55 Drew Afualo? No, it was all my friends and family.
44:56 Speaker 00 Like, what was that movie called? It was amazing. Jesse Eisenberg directed it.
44:59 Drew Afualo? Oh, yeah, where they go on the the last trip together?
45:01 Speaker 00 Yeah.
45:02 Drew Afualo? Yeah, um, I forget the name of it.
45:04 Speaker 00 They go on a tour of um of.
45:06 Drew Afualo? Daisy remembers, you saw it. Yeah. Karen Colkin, yeah, I can't remember the name of it.
45:11 Speaker 00 A Real Pain.
45:12 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
45:12 Speaker 00 I was imagining you on like a Real Pain style.
45:14 Drew Afualo? That's what I thought too.
45:17 Speaker 00 And I was like, that makes sense that like the the group would get together and watch during the, it's pretty like, it's like a good common ground show.
45:22 Drew Afualo? Yeah. Oh, yeah. Are you kidding? One of the most popular shows in the history of time.
45:25 Speaker 00 Yeah.
45:26 Drew Afualo? Yeah, probably. It'd probably get a few.
45:27 Speaker 00 Yeah.
45:27 Drew Afualo? In the group to like it, yeah.
45:29 Speaker 00 Common ground.
45:30 Drew Afualo? Okay, pivoting back to music really quickly, what do you hope people take away from your new album?
45:35 Speaker 00 I mean, okay, so I I sort of see this album as like a journey from figuring out what you want. But knowing that you're not ready to receive it. Like, I think I saw a certain kind of love out there in the world, and I was like, oh, that's the kind of love I want.
45:49 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
45:50 Speaker 00 But when that kind of love comes at me, I freak out.
45:54 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
45:54 Speaker 00 I think I don't deserve it. I think that the person who is like being emotional and sweet is untrustworthy. I think that like, I I if I'm not like chasing.
46:03 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:04 Speaker 00 Something that doesn't want me, I feel uncomfortable.
46:08 Drew Afualo? Right.
46:09 Speaker 00 Feeling that scene and that wanted. I don't feel deserving of it.
46:12 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:12 Speaker 00 And so I was like, okay, but I figured out that I want to feel deserving of that.
46:15 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:16 Speaker 00 I'm no longer being like, no, that's just lame. My thing is cool. I'm like, no, my thing's not cool. My thing is messed up.
46:22 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:22 Speaker 00 And I want to be able to have the kind of love that I'm seeing.
46:26 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:26 Speaker 00 And I need to get emotionally ready for it. And I gave myself kind of like an assignment of figuring that out. I like articulated that. I was like, I want, I want to be able to accept the love I think I deserve.
46:37 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:38 Speaker 00 And um, I then sort of see the record kind of beginning there. And then the songs, you know, getting you to the end are like the lessons that I had to learn, the parts of myself I had to give up. Or like open doors up to.
46:56 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
46:57 Speaker 00 To grow enough.
46:59 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:00 Speaker 00 To be ready to receive that kind of love.
47:01 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:02 Speaker 00 And then the end of the record is like kind of about.
47:06 Speaker 00 How that kind of love changes you and makes you stronger and um.
47:11 Drew Afualo? And you're better for it.
47:12 Speaker 00 And you're better for it.
47:13 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:13 Speaker 00 And it's like it's not weakness, it's strength and it's beauty and it's makes you see another person so full. You can really see someone else so fully.
47:22 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:22 Speaker 00 Not just in the way that they either are or not into you or are you safe, are you unsafe, are they? You can like be like, oh no, I you are both independent from me, totally yourself, you see me as independent from you. But we're deeply on the same team.
47:37 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:37 Speaker 00 Supporting each other and.
47:38 Drew Afualo? And choosing each other.
47:39 Speaker 00 Yeah.
47:40 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:40 Speaker 00 And I tried like in that song Bring Home My Man, I tried to kind of lay out what I thought was a realistic.
47:49 Speaker 00 Promises that you could make someone, you know, it's like in some ways they're like my vows.
47:53 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
47:53 Speaker 00 And then it's like a. Uh, you know, well, I I know that we're not going to be daisies and sunshine every day for the rest of our life.
48:01 Drew Afualo? Totally.
48:02 Speaker 00 I know it's gonna get hard, I know it's gonna get bad.
48:04 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
48:05 Speaker 00 This is what I want from you, I don't need you to wake up every morning obsessed with me.
48:09 Drew Afualo? Right.
48:09 Speaker 00 I need you to have the patience to tell me when you're when you're not feeling obsessed with me and to work with me to try to find our way back there.
48:16 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
48:16 Speaker 00 And I think that that's sort of what the record ended up being about was like figuring out how I wanted to change. The lessons that I learned in order to make that change and then what it felt like to move through that change. To be it to walk in those shoes.
48:31 Drew Afualo? I think that's so beautiful and I'm so excited for everybody to hear it and I heard it first, just so everyone knows.
48:37 Speaker 00 Yeah.
48:37 Drew Afualo? I heard it, well, I mean, obviously Maya's heard it before me, but I heard it before all of you.
48:42 Speaker 00 Yeah.
48:43 Drew Afualo? Okay, so we're gonna pivot really quick to some fun facts.
48:46 Speaker 00 I love fun facts.
48:46 Drew Afualo? I do have some fun facts about you, but you can let me know if they're fun or not.
48:49 Speaker 00 Okay, cool.
48:50 Drew Afualo? They may not be that fun.
48:51 Speaker 00 I'm ready.
48:51 Drew Afualo? Okay, so it says, one summer you worked at the famous Shakespeare and Company bookstore in Paris.
48:56 Speaker 00 I did do that.
48:57 Drew Afualo? I have been there.
48:58 Speaker 00 You have?
48:59 Drew Afualo? Yes, I have, I got a tote bag from there and I bought, I think I bought Pride and Prejudice from there too.
49:04 Speaker 00 That's awesome, you know that thing when you like you remember that you didn't do something?
49:08 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
49:09 Speaker 00 And you like it's just like a pang of guilt and shame?
49:11 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
49:12 Speaker 00 You bring it, like there's one rule about living and working at that bookstore is you have. Have to write a bio about yourself and your experience there and I didn't do it. And they were like, it's okay. You can submit it a couple of months later if you want to. Still haven't done it. It's just like, I need, Scott, I gotta get that Shakespeare and Company bio in. I worked there when I was 15.
49:30 Drew Afualo? Oh, God, that reminds me.
49:32 Speaker 00 It's been over a decade. I'm like, oh, God, my bio, oh.
49:36 Drew Afualo? Watch them. They're gonna watch this and then they're gonna be like.
49:38 Speaker 00 I'm sorry, Sylvia. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
49:41 Drew Afualo? How was it working there?
49:43 Speaker 00 It's extraordinarily incredible. The French take so many breaks. I couldn't believe it. It's a crazy, it's a crazy coming from America. You're like there and you like work for half an hour and they're like, have you taken your break yet? And you're like, no, I just started half an hour ago. And they're like, oh, yeah. So breakfast break.
49:59 Drew Afualo? Yeah, they're all, you don't smoke.
50:00 Speaker 00 Okay. And then I'll go take my break, come back, like stack a couple of books. They'd be like, lunch break now. Like, when am I gonna get anything done? How am I gonna get these books stacked?
50:08 Drew Afualo? I know, yeah.
50:09 Speaker 00 I'm an American.
50:10 Drew Afualo? Their workday is so nice.
50:11 Speaker 00 It's really different.
50:12 Drew Afualo? They're like, they go smoke and then they drink and then they do all that while working at a bookstore.
50:16 Speaker 00 Yeah.
50:16 Drew Afualo? I feel like the few, the, the hour I've spent with you thus far, I honestly feel like that is the most you job to work at that bookstore specifically.
50:25 Speaker 00 It's pretty, it's pretty, yeah.
50:27 Drew Afualo? Up your alley.
50:27 Speaker 00 Yeah, Harry Potter land.
50:29 Drew Afualo? It's really, that place is so nice though. It's so beautiful.
50:32 Speaker 00 It really is.
50:32 Drew Afualo? And all I wanted was to buy one book from there. I did, and we did have to wait in line for a little bit to get inside, but it was awesome.
50:38 Speaker 00 Yeah, you shouldn't go on a Sunday.
50:39 Drew Afualo? No.
50:40 Speaker 00 Yeah.
50:40 Drew Afualo? No, no way. Okay. Uh, this one says, you had to watch Gattaca, the movie that her parents met on while filming for the first time during your ninth grade science class.
50:51 Speaker 00 Yes, true.
50:52 Drew Afualo? Just like, just by happenstance? They just happened to play it?
50:54 Speaker 00 They played in a lot of, if you ask around, a lot of people watch that movie in science class.
50:58 Drew Afualo? Really?
50:59 Speaker 00 And they just were like, we're not gonna accommodate, we're not gonna change the syllabus for you because it might be weird.
51:06 Drew Afualo? Hey, sorry, we're not moving this around you.
51:08 Speaker 00 We're not, we're not, we're not shaping, okay? Okay, nepo baby. You think we're gonna shape the syllabus around you and not have everyone watch your?
51:15 Drew Afualo? Yeah, no, let's rework the science work.
51:16 Speaker 00 Parents make out? Yeah, no, we're not gonna rework class. Every year, the world's not, doesn't revolve around you, kid.
51:25 Drew Afualo? Nice try.
51:26 Speaker 00 Nice try.
51:29 Drew Afualo? That's so interesting, like especially during science class.
51:32 Speaker 00 Well, you've seen the movie?
51:33 Drew Afualo? I never had to watch it during science class.
51:35 Speaker 00 Oh, yeah.
51:35 Drew Afualo? I've never watched that movie.
51:36 Speaker 00 I think a lot of people did.
51:37 Drew Afualo? Oh, I'm sure.
51:38 Speaker 00 Yeah.
51:38 Drew Afualo? I'm just, I'm letting you know, I didn't have to watch it. So if you were in my school, you wouldn't have had to watch it.
51:43 Speaker 00 I wouldn't have to watch it. Well, I wish I went to your school then.
51:44 Drew Afualo? Well, and maybe that's why, maybe if you went to-
51:46 Speaker 00 I love my school.
51:48 Drew Afualo? I was like, maybe if you went to my school, they probably would have been like, actually put on Gattaca. Cause Maya's in here.
51:52 Speaker 00 Cause we like, cause actually people just like get a kick out of watching. We watched it like, so does she think it's hot? Does she think it's sad?
52:02 Speaker 00 What's she feeling?
52:04 Drew Afualo? Okay, next fun fact. It says, in high school, you told your dad that you were quote, going to a therapy session, but you actually went to lose your virginity.
52:11 Speaker 00 Yeah, that's true. I shouldn't have said that. I was, I was watching, I was like, my sister, like, you know, cause like all my sisters get fed these TikTok reels of me and interviews and like, my sister pulled that up on my phone and was like, Maya, is this true? Is this happening? Younger sister, my mom was like, ew, you said that in public? Gross.
52:34 Drew Afualo? Said, no, this AI stuff is getting out of-
52:36 Speaker 00 It's getting out of hand.
52:38 Drew Afualo? Mom, it's getting out of control. I don't remember saying that at all. But you know what? I feel that, cause sometimes I say things on like recorded broadcasts of any kind and I'm kinda like, I'm annoying. That's weird. I shouldn't say stuff like that.
52:51 Speaker 00 Yeah.
52:52 Drew Afualo? I should chill.
52:53 Speaker 00 I have that thought all the time.
52:54 Drew Afualo? I should chill with that.
52:55 Speaker 00 Yeah, I should chill. I wish, I wish I could be dignified and graceful and like only like be like a woman of few words.
53:01 Drew Afualo? And be so coy.
53:02 Speaker 00 Be so cool.
53:03 Drew Afualo? Yeah, unfortunately.
53:03 Speaker 00 Be so cool.
53:04 Drew Afualo? Unfortunately, I am a fucking yapper. I do love to talk.
53:08 Speaker 00 I love to talk and I think things are funny and like, and then they're not funny and I don't know.
53:13 Drew Afualo? And then sometimes my mom doesn't find them very funny.
53:15 Speaker 00 Yeah, me neither.
53:16 Drew Afualo? Okay, uh, this one says, you went on a long walk and swam in a stream on your 21st birthday? And that, you said that it's been part of your B-day tradition since you were four years old. Do you still find a stream to swim in on your birthday?
53:30 Speaker 00 I would say there's some like narrative, um, either by me or whoever wrote that.
53:36 Drew Afualo? Or the internet.
53:37 Speaker 00 There's some like, there's some rounding out of some facts there. I would say, I love stream plunging.
53:44 Drew Afualo? Okay.
53:44 Speaker 00 I love, I love to jump in the stream. I, I am not a person who's very good at doing the same thing every year. Partly because like I'm, my life, I travel a lot. I'm always in a different place on my birthday. So to be like, I do the same thing on my birthday every year. And I always like, no.
53:57 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
53:58 Speaker 00 I don't. I, I never do the same thing on any day, ever. Um, I'm the least habitualized routine person you've ever met. Um, I have no idea what I'm doing with my day every day. Um, I wake up and smell the panic. Um. But, uh.
54:14 Drew Afualo? That's how you start your day?
54:14 Speaker 00 That's how I start my day.
54:15 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
54:15 Speaker 00 Um, but I, whenever possible, I do like to submerge myself in this, in a stream.
54:19 Drew Afualo? That's nice. Did you go swimming on your 21st birthday? Is that the first time?
54:24 Speaker 00 I don't remember where I spent my 21st birthday. I feel like 21, I was in upstate New York and I did go swimming in a stream. I remember, I was, I was thinking about my 22nd birthday.
54:35 Drew Afualo? Okay.
54:36 Speaker 00 But it was what I was mixing it up with, but because that was during the pandemic was 22, 21 was the year before the pandemic and I.
54:41 Drew Afualo? I see.
54:42 Speaker 00 So I did go swimming in a stream.
54:44 Drew Afualo? I, my 21st birthday was in Vegas and it was a nightmare. So yours sounds better than mine.
54:49 Speaker 00 I mean, I'm, I'm, I'm a wholesome lunatic.
54:52 Drew Afualo? Yeah, that was my, that was my first and last time going to a strip club on my 21st birthday.
54:56 Speaker 00 Whoa.
54:57 Drew Afualo? Um, and I mean male strippers because like the female strippers were great, but the, the men, I, I was accosted by them. It felt like a haunted house when I was in there. So I was like, well, that's the last time I'll be doing that.
55:07 Speaker 00 I got really into, I can't remember his name, but there's this Australian male stripper that I was like obsessed with on Instagram. When I was on Instagram, he was amazing. And I really wanted to go and get selected.
55:18 Drew Afualo? Amazing like in his dancing?
55:19 Speaker 00 His dancing was amazing and it was like very intense. And I would like, like you could like, I, I almost wanted to like have him at my bachelorette party, but then I got distracted.
55:29 Drew Afualo? You got, I got distracted.
55:30 Speaker 00 And I got off the internet, got distracted and I didn't book it, but I still want to go. But I've never been to any kind of strip club ever.
55:35 Drew Afualo? We should go together.
55:36 Speaker 00 That seems like, there's our plan.
55:37 Drew Afualo? There you go. We'll shake hands on it.
55:39 Speaker 00 Great.
55:39 Drew Afualo? There you go, it's on camera.
55:40 Speaker 00 Done.
55:41 Drew Afualo? We'll do it, we'll repurpose that memory for me personally.
55:43 Speaker 00 Yeah.
55:44 Drew Afualo? Because it was awful and I did get a lap dance to the song Work From Home by Fifth Harmony.
55:48 Speaker 00 Incredible.
55:49 Drew Afualo? Um, onstage, and he did, um, at one point flipped me upside down and shook me like this.
55:54 Speaker 00 Oh, cool.
55:55 Drew Afualo? So granted, I didn't have the best of memories from that. I will say my favorite memory from that night, though, is like while I was upside down and being shaken, like from my change out of my pockets at that point. He's like shaking me, he turned around, and then I could see my sister's face through his legs, and she was laughing so hard that it almost made it worth it to me because like, a bit, I'll, I'll, it's always worth it to me.
56:18 Speaker 00 Yeah.
56:19 Drew Afualo? So like the bit and the memory of the bit made it kind of worth it, but at the time, I did want to die. Like it was awful.
56:25 Speaker 00 Yeah.
56:25 Drew Afualo? It wasn't something I planned on doing. My mom was there too, but that's a whole nother thing.
56:29 Speaker 00 That's cool.
56:30 Drew Afualo? That's a whole nother layer to it.
56:31 Speaker 00 Yeah.
56:32 Drew Afualo? That I had to kind of process.
56:33 Speaker 00 It makes sense to me.
56:34 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
56:34 Speaker 00 We might have more in common than we think.
56:37 Drew Afualo? Than we may think. What's your sign, by the way?
56:39 Speaker 00 Cancer. Scorpio, rising, Capricorn moon.
56:44 Drew Afualo? Okay, interesting. I'm a Virgo sun, Cancer moon, Sagittarius rising.
56:49 Speaker 00 Cool.
56:50 Drew Afualo? I feel like I could sense you were a Cancer. Very emotional, very in-depth.
56:54 Speaker 00 Emotional?
56:55 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
56:55 Speaker 00 Homebody?
56:56 Drew Afualo? Mm-hmm. Water sign.
56:58 Speaker 00 Water sign, like cozy cuddly.
57:00 Drew Afualo? Yeah, totally.
57:02 Speaker 00 But then I've got that Capricorn who's like, oh no, we gotta get stuff done.
57:05 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
57:05 Speaker 00 Those two are not always getting along, my Capricorn and my Cancer. They're like, my Cancer's like, why did you agree to do this? Stop. I don't want to do anything. What do you mean? I just want to call my brother and cry.
57:18 Speaker 00 And then my Capricorn's like, no, get up, get up, get up, get up.
57:22 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I think Capricorns are, I, I, very admirable to me. I feel like Capricorns, Capricorns have a really Batman villain-esque layer to them where they feel very like, as soon as, first of all, everyone loves Capricorns. Like if you have Capricorn in your big three, people magnetize towards them. But Capricorns are very like, when they're done, they're done.
57:42 Speaker 00 When they're done, they're done. They've got, they mean business.
57:45 Drew Afualo? Yeah, they're very cutthroat.
57:47 Speaker 00 They're cutthroat and they mean business. And then I've got my Scorpio, which is like, makes me wake up and go, who wants to kiss me?
57:53 Drew Afualo? I think I need to kiss someone today.
57:55 Speaker 00 Anyone wanna kiss?
57:58 Speaker 00 Wouldn't that be cool? Wouldn't that be cool?
58:00 Drew Afualo? I love Scorpio women. Scorpio women are the best. They're a blast, honestly.
58:03 Speaker 00 They're a blast.
58:04 Drew Afualo? They're so fun.
58:05 Speaker 00 I love it when she gets to come out and party. It's very fun.
58:09 Drew Afualo? Would you say you identify more with the Scorpio, Capricorn, or the Cancer?
58:13 Speaker 00 I really like my cocktail. I feel like, I feel extremely seen by my triumvirate.
58:19 Drew Afualo? Yeah, okay, period. Okay, big words.
58:21 Speaker 00 Thank you.
58:22 Drew Afualo? Love that.
58:22 Speaker 00 I don't even think I use that word right.
58:25 Drew Afualo? I'm giving it to you.
58:26 Speaker 00 Sometimes I like just like using a big word for no reason wrong. Like, try, triangle, triangle, triumvirate. That would be cool? That seems cooler than saying triangle.
58:39 Drew Afualo? Well, I, I agree. I think even in the limited time I've known you just now, I feel like that is a perfect, your big three is real accurate.
58:45 Speaker 00 Thank you.
58:46 Drew Afualo? I feel like for mine, because of my absolutely just disemboweling men on the internet, I feel like they assume I'm a fire sign. But obviously my rising's a fire sign, so that's probably what it is.
58:58 Speaker 00 Well, also, cancers and water signs, it's like actually the strongest disembowelment is like, if you come for my friends.
59:05 Drew Afualo? Right.
59:05 Speaker 00 I will, I, I will become the scariest person that you have ever met.
59:09 Drew Afualo? You're telling me.
59:10 Speaker 00 Like, I, if you, if you come for the people that I love.
59:13 Drew Afualo? Right.
59:13 Speaker 00 Me, eh, whatever. But if you start to come after the, absolutely not.
59:18 Drew Afualo? I feel you.
59:19 Speaker 00 Yeah.
59:19 Drew Afualo? I'm, I'm like that exactly, I feel like. Also, I feel like the Virgo, um, makes me like extra good at being mean.
59:25 Speaker 00 Yeah.
59:26 Drew Afualo? Cause I'm a real detail-oriented person.
59:28 Speaker 00 Yeah.
59:28 Drew Afualo? So I will remember.
59:30 Speaker 00 Yeah.
59:30 Drew Afualo? Like recently, I, I did a big move, I, I moved houses and, um, the moving company I worked with was awful. But they, uh, lost some of my paintings and like smaller things. And I really do think that they broke them and then threw them away. Even when I was messaging them about it and I was telling them, "You guys lost my things." They're like, "We don't have them." Like, which is funny, cause I have OCD and also I'm a Virgo, so like, if you think I haven't memorized every single thing in my house.
59:58 Speaker 00 Where it was, where the box was, yeah, yeah, yeah.
1:00:00 Drew Afualo? Yeah, I was like, "You're crazy." I could, I could count every single item in my house right now.
1:00:04 Speaker 00 We've found a difference between us, cause I'm often like...
1:00:08 Speaker 00 In order for me to exist in the world, I have to accept that things that belong to me will be lost and broken. That is how I, and if I, and it only is a huge problem if I am worked up about it.
1:00:20 Drew Afualo? Right.
1:00:20 Speaker 00 But I'm gonna try to just have like a sort of like meditative mind state about being like, "Well, that t-shirt was meant to leave my life."
1:00:28 Drew Afualo? A Buddhist, kind of like, "These earthly possessions mean nothing to me."
1:00:31 Speaker 00 Well, it's just like, that, that was the time I got with that pair of earrings, and now that's, they're gonna find a new life. Somewhere else, and that's, that's all I got.
1:00:40 Drew Afualo? You're right, I need more of that.
1:00:41 Speaker 00 No, I need more care about the fact that you lost, care about your stuff.
1:00:45 Drew Afualo? Well, we need a little bit of each other, that's where we'll balance each other a little bit more.
1:00:49 Speaker 00 We'll work out the trade at the strip club.
1:00:50 Drew Afualo? Yeah, we will, exactly. When we're at the strip club, we'll, we'll...
1:00:53 Speaker 00 We'll exchange powers.
1:00:54 Drew Afualo? Yeah, well, yeah.
1:00:55 Speaker 00 We'll do a blood oath, and we'll like, we'll, yeah.
1:00:57 Drew Afualo? There you go. We'll plug into each other like the Avatar blue aliens.
1:01:00 Speaker 00 Yeah, exactly.
1:01:01 Drew Afualo? We'll just write into AWOL.
1:01:02 Speaker 00 Ah, now I'm super.
1:01:06 Drew Afualo? Well, thank you so much for coming on the show. I think you're a fucking hoot.
1:01:10 Speaker 00 Thank you for having me. I think you're a hoot. You're awesome to talk to, you ask great questions, you're extremely thoughtful and brilliant and wonderful.
1:01:16 Drew Afualo? Well, now I'm hard. So now what? Now I got a big ass boner, now what are we gonna do?
1:01:20 Speaker 00 See, I told you, I got that Scorpio. Who wants to kiss me?
1:01:24 Drew Afualo? Thank you so much.
1:01:25 Speaker 00 How many boners could I start?
1:01:26 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
1:01:27 Speaker 00 By the wave of a hand.
1:01:28 Drew Afualo? Yeah, you're just gonna blue balls everybody in this room.
1:01:33 Drew Afualo? I think you're a delight, and for just a second of seriousness,
1:01:37 Speaker 00 Yeah.
1:01:37 Drew Afualo? I really do think you are a Renaissance woman, and I really do believe you to be so incredibly talented. And I think it's a beautiful thing that you are so honest and vulnerable about artistic expression, but also just like how it can feel being an artist full-time. I think that's a really touchy subject sometimes to broach with artists, because I think sometimes they worry about showcasing that side of vulnerability, especially when numbers count, streams count, like, things like that. And I think it's a really amazing thing to hear someone at the level you are in your career still talking about feeling lost, or having to kind of re-center yourself in your art form and refill your cup. I think it's a beautiful thing. And I think it's really important for other aspiring artists to hear so that they don't get discouraged.
1:02:22 Drew Afualo? Because this obviously is an industry, both music and acting, of rejection, right? And it's like experiencing it over and over again.
1:02:28 Speaker 00 I'm pretty much at every level, right? Like, it's like, it's different rejection.
1:02:32 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
1:02:33 Speaker 00 You know, that you're being rejected from different things and in different ways. But, but it is a never-ending.
1:02:38 Drew Afualo? Yeah.
1:02:39 Speaker 00 You have to figure out how to get okay with that.
1:02:41 Drew Afualo? Yeah, absolutely.
1:02:42 Speaker 00 Um, yeah, but I, I thank you. Thank you for letting me talk about it and thanks for saying that. I really appreciate it.
1:02:47 Drew Afualo? And I think you're so talented and I can't wait for everyone to hear all of your new music and see you on tour.
1:02:53 Speaker 00 I can't wait to figure out what I'm gonna regret having said.
1:02:57 Drew Afualo? I guess we'll see in the edit.
1:02:58 Speaker 00 Yeah, we'll see in the edit. No, it'll be like a year. I usually like stand by my bits for like a year and then I'm like, ah!
1:03:04 Drew Afualo? You're like, I've never said that in my life.
1:03:06 Speaker 00 Like, yeah.
1:03:07 Drew Afualo? You're leveling up every year.
1:03:09 Speaker 00 But I love this idea, but no, no, that's AI.
1:03:11 Drew Afualo? There you go.
1:03:11 Speaker 00 I might start trying that.
1:03:12 Drew Afualo? There you go. So use it on your parents especially, because they're older, so they don't know.
1:03:16 Speaker 00 Yeah, that's true.
1:03:16 Drew Afualo? They're losing track, so you have to tell them.
1:03:18 Speaker 00 Yeah.
1:03:19 Drew Afualo? You say, "Mom, AI's getting out of control."
1:03:21 Speaker 00 Out of control!
1:03:22 Drew Afualo? It's out of control. It wasn't even me.
1:03:23 Speaker 00 Wasn't even me.
1:03:24 Drew Afualo? You could tell.
1:03:25 Speaker 00 Honey, give me this, you got me red-handed.
1:03:27 Drew Afualo? There you go. There's a little sample of what you could hear on tour.
1:03:32 Speaker 00 Yeah, we're covering "It Wasn't Me." Every night, yeah.
1:03:38 Drew Afualo? Well, thank you so much for coming on the show.
1:03:39 Speaker 00 Thank you. You're amazing.
1:03:40 Drew Afualo? I fucking love you. I think you're amazing. And thank you all so much for tuning into this episode of the comment section with the iconic Myehawk, obviously. For maybe the one person that was born yesterday and watches this and doesn't know where to find you, where can everybody find you?
1:03:53 Speaker 00 You can find me, even though I said that I don't have Instagram, but there is a profile that does exist that is being run by someone else. But I supervise all of it. I'm just not there. I'm just not looking at, I'm not looking at it. I'm deciding what goes out, but I'm not looking at the things that come in.
1:04:08 Drew Afualo? Right, right, right.
1:04:11 Speaker 00 And you can find me on Netflix and you can find me on Spotify and you can find me on Apple Music and you can find me on Bandcamp. And, uh, you can find me on, uh, Disney Plus.
1:04:21 Drew Afualo? And in the nearest stream.
1:04:22 Speaker 00 You can find me on, yeah.
1:04:23 Drew Afualo? Cold plunging in a stream somewhere.
1:04:24 Speaker 00 And in a stream somewhere. I'm around. Oh, and you can find me on my website, myahawkmusic.com.
1:04:31 Drew Afualo? Yes, exactly. Well, thank you so much for tuning in. Thank you for coming on the show. You're fucking ledge.
1:04:36 Speaker 00 You are.
1:04:37 Drew Afualo? And this is so fun and amazing. Thank you all so much for tuning in. Don't forget, new episodes of the comment section drop every Wednesday. You can stream the audio on all streaming platforms, but the video right now is on Spotify and it will soon be on YouTube. Make sure while you're on Spotify, though, you stream all of Maya Hawke's music, obviously. And we'll see you next week. Love you. Bye.
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