Speaker 1: He's terrific. James Manslow, James, welcome to sitting friends in
Speaker 1: the morning. Buddy, how are you?
Speaker 2: Thank good morning, said, I can't believe you let in
Speaker 2: with the theme song. I am Chuckman over here. You
Speaker 2: got me on that one.
Speaker 1: That's pretty good. That's my man. Lou Rafino. He plays well.
Speaker 1: He's a legend. He worked with him as he plays
Speaker 1: all most of the music and he's just a really
Speaker 1: really smart guy.
Speaker 2: So he had the song was done, Lou, well done.
Speaker 2: You got a smile out of me. I'm good man. Yes,
Speaker 2: I'm in Tennessee. I'm home in Nashville right now. Beautiful
Speaker 2: morning today in Nashville. How's New York?
Speaker 1: It's not so beautiful. I mean the weather's pretty good.
Speaker 1: We got our issues.
Speaker 3: Oh my.
Speaker 1: The people I like these days are in Tennessee. Wiley
Speaker 1: Gaines is there, and Tommy larn is there, and my
Speaker 1: friend Klay Travis, who's on this show quite a bit,
Speaker 1: is there. And you're there, Snake spot Man.
Speaker 2: You gotta come out spot to be well.
Speaker 1: You guys got to vote in Marshall Blackburn as the
Speaker 1: next governor.
Speaker 3: Will you get involved in that or not? Really?
Speaker 2: Do you know what Actually I've met Marshall. She's supported me.
Speaker 2: She stood up actually one of her fundraisers for governor.
Speaker 2: I was invited to it, even though I was a fundraiser.
Speaker 2: I met her through some music stuff. Huge supporter of
Speaker 2: the arts and as a musician. I very much appreciate that.
Speaker 2: And she, actually that is a huge surprise to me,
Speaker 2: had me stand up and said, if you don't know
Speaker 2: James Manser, you should know him. He's a huge advocate
Speaker 2: for this country. He's a huge advocate against anti Semitism
Speaker 2: and for Jews. And man, I was extremely complimented. So
Speaker 2: I'm proud to say that she's a friend.
Speaker 3: That's awesome. I like that story.
Speaker 1: So you're out there fighting every day. You were at
Speaker 1: that event with me and Darren mollan and Bruce Pearl
Speaker 1: and all these great Jewish people in Laura, Manhattan not
Speaker 1: that long ago. And I'll ask you the same question
Speaker 1: that I used to ask my dear friend Michael Rappaport,
Speaker 1: who's answered a million times at this point. You know,
Speaker 1: Michael went through a lot, he was canceled. He's got
Speaker 1: a new documentary out which is amazing. Something to the
Speaker 1: extent of him, I canceled yet something like that, and
Speaker 1: I've seen it and it made me cry. But he
Speaker 1: really was canceled. He could not get any acting opportunities
Speaker 1: for the better part of two years. And the way
Speaker 1: you fight like that, like Michael, like me, I'd imagine
Speaker 1: he came under the same issue. So what are you
Speaker 1: doing about that these days?
Speaker 2: Look, I'm just continuing to put art out into the world.
Speaker 2: You know, I appreciate Michael Rapperford very much. He's certainly
Speaker 2: more aggressive on the issues, as are you than myself,
Speaker 2: And I appreciate you guys. But for me, I've been
Speaker 2: very outspoken. But as an actor, as a musician, as
Speaker 2: somebody who has created art and seen people come together
Speaker 2: through our through music, through TV shows and movies, I
Speaker 2: want to continue to do that. I want to bring
Speaker 2: people together. So I want to bring people to this conversation,
Speaker 2: actually have a conversation about it, not just fight about
Speaker 2: it and yell about it, but hopefully come together and
Speaker 2: solve it. And I take a great way from an
Speaker 2: American perspective to do that is to come together, regardless
Speaker 2: of what side of the aisle you're on, and say, hey,
Speaker 2: we've done pretty good so far. Look, around from history's perspective,
Speaker 2: look around the world today. This is the greatest place
Speaker 2: in the world to live in, the greatest place that
Speaker 2: it's ever been to live in. So let's start by
Speaker 2: saying we're grateful to be here and then come together
Speaker 2: and make it better. That love perspective, and if anybody
Speaker 2: fights against that, it's just a little ridiculous. Why are
Speaker 2: we trying to spread people, you know, put people against
Speaker 2: each other. I want people to come together and start
Speaker 2: with a little bittude.
Speaker 1: I love that, I don't. I mean, it's all okay,
Speaker 1: I'm not gonna lie to you, but I love it.
Speaker 2: You know that's a right. I'm in a boy band,
Speaker 2: so I've been called worse.
Speaker 1: You really are a boy band. And all these young girls.
Speaker 1: I remember my friend Alex brought And who works for
Speaker 1: Brooke Wallin's. She made us put you on a FaceTime
Speaker 1: the night that I saw you at that event. All
Speaker 1: these young kids, they all still love you. And you
Speaker 1: know when they reach out to you, what do they
Speaker 1: say about some of the things you're doing today.
Speaker 2: Well, look, if you look on social media and look online,
Speaker 2: there's a lot of hateful comments. I mean, I get
Speaker 2: death threats, just for being Jewish. It really isn't about
Speaker 2: what I say anymore say it's about who I am,
Speaker 2: It's about how I was born. I get death threats
Speaker 2: of being proud to be American, which to me is
Speaker 2: absolutely ridiculous. But that's because the loudest voices come from
Speaker 2: all over the world and they have nothing better to
Speaker 2: do but to be online and to behaveful But in person,
Speaker 2: every single day I get stuffed regardless of where I
Speaker 2: am in the world, and get thanked. I get thanked
Speaker 2: for standing up. I get thanked for speaking out. And
Speaker 2: those people mean a lot more to me than the
Speaker 2: people that think I should die because I'm Jewish, should
Speaker 2: die because I believe Israel has the right to exist.
Speaker 1: Well, to your credit, you know you mentioned me, and
Speaker 1: I'm a bit of a psycho, I admitted than Michael.
Speaker 1: You're excellent. No, I mean you're you're excellent. You were
Speaker 1: up on stage that night and you blew me away,
Speaker 1: and I like the way you deliver.
Speaker 3: No, I mean it.
Speaker 1: I mean you're a great looking guy, and you know
Speaker 1: you've got a great personality. You're an actor, you're a performer,
Speaker 1: but the way you deliver your remarks is well done.
Speaker 3: It is well done.
Speaker 1: It's very hard not to like you, even if you
Speaker 1: do hate Jews or Americans and the rest of that stuff.
Speaker 3: No, I mean it.
Speaker 1: I mean you just you have a way of doing
Speaker 1: it where you know you're you're likable me. They're like,
Speaker 1: oh that, I can't die soon enough. But to your credit,
Speaker 1: you do have Maybe it's the Tennessee. I don't, but
Speaker 1: you're not from Tennessee. Where are you from?
Speaker 3: Originally?
Speaker 2: I was actually born in New York City. My whole
Speaker 2: family's from New York. I was born in York Hospital,
Speaker 2: but I moved to San Diego when.
Speaker 3: I was young.
Speaker 2: So I'm more of a so called beach kid and
Speaker 2: somehow found home here in Middle America. But look, so
Speaker 2: to that point first, why I appreciate that I've traveled
Speaker 2: so much. I've started my career playing music all over
Speaker 2: the world, acting, getting to live and travel all over
Speaker 2: the world. And the truth is said, and you'll probably
Speaker 2: call it a little gay, and I'm okay with that.
Speaker 2: The truth is I have seen more commonality. I've seen
Speaker 2: that most people on this planet have more in common
Speaker 2: than we have differences. So I want to focus on that.
Speaker 2: I want to focus on the things that unite us
Speaker 2: and bring us together. And I'm pretty good with everybody
Speaker 2: right up until you think that, you know, I should
Speaker 2: die I believe it, or I should die for where
Speaker 2: I live. That's a right stop. And you know I'm
Speaker 2: gonna try to swear on the show. I don't know
Speaker 2: if that's allowed, to tell you to have off right
Speaker 2: until that point. Until that point, truthfully, I do want
Speaker 2: to bring people together because I think there's more of
Speaker 2: us that think this way and feel this way than
Speaker 2: there aren't.
Speaker 3: Well, I'll tell you this.
Speaker 1: I had a long conversation with my friend Sean Hannity
Speaker 1: last week, and you know we're talking about the mayor
Speaker 1: mom Donnie, and you know Sean has his feelings. He's
Speaker 1: not a big fan, obviously, but he's not nearly as
Speaker 1: angry and vicious as I am. I mean, I called
Speaker 1: the man a terrorist on Fox News. I probably blew
Speaker 1: any chance of getting back on Fox News anytime soon.
Speaker 1: And to be honest, I don't care because I think
Speaker 1: I explain why he.
Speaker 3: Is a terrorist.
Speaker 1: You have to kill somebody aware an explosive best to
Speaker 1: be a terrorist. Just share the ideology, celebrate those people.
Speaker 1: That's what mom, Donnie does. And I said to Sew
Speaker 1: and I said, let me tell you something, tough guy. Okay,
Speaker 1: you live in Palm Beach County. Now, it's real easy
Speaker 1: to be a little less tough when you're not traveling
Speaker 1: into New York City every day. I can say the
Speaker 1: same thing about you. There's love in your heart. You
Speaker 1: want people to get along. But you're in a state
Speaker 1: right now where all the good people are moving to
Speaker 1: imagine being right back here, James Maslow in New York City,
Speaker 1: you may be a bit rougher.
Speaker 2: You're right, You're absolutely right. And I travel enough to
Speaker 2: tell you straight up, I don't feel as safe. I
Speaker 2: don't feel as comfortable a lot of the places I go.
Speaker 2: I was just in part of o Art. I just
Speaker 2: played a solo show from when My first headlining solo
Speaker 2: show is about put us some country music. And I
Speaker 2: love Mexico. I've played so many shows down there. I
Speaker 2: have been received so well, so much love, some of
Speaker 2: the best service and food and fans in the world.
Speaker 2: But it was a free concert, and that means they
Speaker 2: kind of let anybody in. And it was the first
Speaker 2: time that I experienced this latently pro Palestinian and anti
Speaker 2: Jew crowd right in front of me, about ten of
Speaker 2: Them'm gonna see you. About three thousands in Mexico up
Speaker 2: genocide signs. Yeah, holding up free Palestine size, holding up
Speaker 2: dye Zionists, go home Jew They weren't hiding it. So
Speaker 2: to your point, yeah, felt a lot less safe there.
Speaker 2: And in New York City, I've walked around with my
Speaker 2: Magen da vid out getting looks, getting eyes, and I
Speaker 2: stand up proud and I wear it. But man, you're right,
Speaker 2: I'm grateful I don't have to put up with that
Speaker 2: every day. That's partially, in fact, there was a huge
Speaker 2: part of the reason why do live in Nashville. I
Speaker 2: feel very safe here. My neighbors, Christian neighbors, Jewish neighbors, regardless,
Speaker 2: They're loving, they're supportive, they value the same principles as
Speaker 2: an American living here. And man, the older I get,
Speaker 2: you know, if you're starting a family in your future
Speaker 2: God willing getting married this year, the more I do
Speaker 2: want to live in a place that shares this pride
Speaker 2: and that does feel safe. And I certainly don't feel
Speaker 2: the same way in New York City anymore. And that
Speaker 2: starts as where I was born and it's one of
Speaker 2: the greatest cities in the world, but it's changing.
Speaker 1: It is well Masotov to you and your fiance, and yes, Tennessee,
Speaker 1: you want a good barbecue, you like your country music,
Speaker 1: you love your college football.
Speaker 3: I know that. I love that. I love Nashville, I
Speaker 3: love most of Tennessee.
Speaker 1: So on the way out here, James, We've had a
Speaker 1: great nine minute discussion, but we've discussed things and not
Speaker 1: necessarily optimistic. Give me something to make me feel like
Speaker 1: as we get set to commemorate three years October seventh,
Speaker 1: and even on a larger scale, because I am America
Speaker 1: first twenty five years nine to eleven. Outside of the
Speaker 1: fact that you live in a very safe and beautiful
Speaker 1: place for the rest of us, that don't give me
Speaker 1: a reason to be optimistic about the futures of both
Speaker 1: America and Israel.
Speaker 2: I'll give you a great reason. I was just at
Speaker 2: the mccabie Games JASC mccabie Games in Kansas City, and
Speaker 2: I got to speak to and then play some of
Speaker 2: my new country music for thousands of young athletes and
Speaker 2: predominantly young Jewish athletes. It is the mccabiy Games, like
Speaker 2: the Jewish Olympics, but that wasn't the focus of the games.
Speaker 2: The focus of their games was competition, was leadership, was
Speaker 2: growing to become the people that they want to see
Speaker 2: in the world. That was the conversation, that was the feeling,
Speaker 2: and man, I was motivated. I got to see thousands
Speaker 2: of young boys and girls, men and women from I
Speaker 2: think thirteen to seventeen or eighteen crush it out there,
Speaker 2: support each other, out there, dance, sting along to the
Speaker 2: music and lift each other up. That gave me a
Speaker 2: lot of pride as an American, gave me a lot
Speaker 2: of pride as a Jew. So I believe that there
Speaker 2: is hope because we have to believe that there is
Speaker 2: hope and we have to spread that hope. Sid and
Speaker 2: you do it in your way. It's a little harsher
Speaker 2: than I do. But I'll do it my way because
Speaker 2: we need always you know, Michael Rappipoor will do it
Speaker 2: in his way, be harsh than both of us.
Speaker 3: I'll do it.
Speaker 2: Got it, Keep James aboard each other, keep putting out
Speaker 2: some positivity and some hope, because what's the alternative despair?
Speaker 3: And we don't want that. What is the name of
Speaker 3: your your band? Again?
Speaker 2: Big Time Rush.
Speaker 3: Oh my god, what how'd you get that name from?
Speaker 2: Well, no, it had some to do with with hockey
Speaker 2: and the TV show. I don't know. It's a long
Speaker 2: and fairly boring.
Speaker 3: That's funny. No, that's great.
Speaker 1: Big Time Rush and James Maslow was great on that show.
Speaker 1: And now he's got a band also named Big Time Rush.
Speaker 1: And trust me, folks, you know I don't lie to you.
Speaker 1: He's just one of the nicest, smartest, most handsome. What
Speaker 1: a terrific guy. And I hope this is a first
Speaker 1: of many, many many visits. James Maslow, you were awesome
Speaker 1: this morning.
Speaker 3: Thank you so much.
Speaker 2: I appreciate your time.
Speaker 3: Brother, God bless you. That was great James Maslow right there.
Speaker 4: Thanks for listening to Sit In Friends in the Morning.
Speaker 4: You can hear Sit in Friends in the Morning weekday mornings.
Speaker 3: It's six.
Speaker 4: If you like the podcast, share it with your friends
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Speaker 4: so you never have to wonder
Speaker 2: What the heck is going on here