We visit with veteran Band Manager, Miki Mulvahillk and discuss her fascinating career in the music business. We review another story of MN Nice that made national news, we have another "Don't be that guy," segment and we check in with our traveling corespondent, Kevin Gorg, on the road with the Wild.
We visit with veteran Band Manager, Miki Mulvahillk and discuss her fascinating career in the music business. We review another story of MN Nice that made national news, we have another "Don't be that guy," segment and we check in with our traveling corespondent, Kevin Gorg, on the road with the Wild.
And we're off. Welcome to the Kindness Chronicles, where we hope to inject the world with a dose of the Minnesota nice that it desperately needs. This is John Schwetz. I'm here once again with Steve Brown, Kevin Gorg, our, our co-host is on assignment. I think he might be. Southern Florida, something following the Minnesota wild around. He's got a lot of assignments. we hope to get him back here in the studio someday soon. But, until then we shall, uh, proceed. How was your week, Steve? It was fantastic, actually. Uh, I had a birthday, so Yeah. Really? Yeah. So do you 53, well, you know, I mean, 52 years younger than you. Yeah, but how old am I? You're 50. You're 53. You are Yes, I am. Okay. Nobody needs to know that. No. yeah. We have a special guest later on today. It's Mickey Mulvihill. Yeah. And she is the owner of Heart and Soul Artist Management. And, uh, we look forward to visiting with her. But before that time, we, uh, would just like to, uh, to fill you in on a couple of, uh, twins notes we call it this week in nice stuff, this week in nice stories. It is trickery. You think they're gonna hear about twins stuff, but, but we're gonna talk about nice stuff. And one story that I saw this week that, uh, was particularly moving to me was a story that was on the CBS Evening News. Mm-hmm. And it happened to be about a, uh, grade school and I think Hopkins, Minnesota. I think so. Yeah. This, uh, story was another one told by Steve Hartman. And, uh, as the story goes, there was a, uh, group of fifth graders, I think they were, um, I should have my facts straight before we start discussing this. They were like fifth grade their grade, younger kids, school kids. And the, uh, the story opens with these kids out on a playground having a lot of fun and doing things, uh, at recess that kids. and, uh, in the foreground you could see several kids in wheelchairs. Mm-hmm. and, uh, watching the kids play, watching the kids have fun. Yeah. And as the story went on, uh, there were a handful of kids in that classroom that didn't feel very good about that. Mm-hmm. They went to their teacher and said, why can't we build a, uh, playground that would be accommodating to, uh, our classmates? Yeah. And uh, the teacher said, well, that would probably cost$300,000. And fifth graders really not understanding what$300,000 in tails said, well, why can't we go out and do that? So they went out and they, started, having bake sales. Yeah. They started asking, uh, local restaurants if they, uh, would, would ask their customers to round up mm-hmm. and raise money that way. They started going door to door and, as it turns out, the little thermometer that they had in their room got them to that$300,000 to build this adapted, playground equipment. But real, what really got me the goosebumps. That gave me the oxytocin, boost that I needed for the day was, uh, one of these young guys, fifth grader, when asked about why this was something that he wanted to do when he got choked up mm-hmm. I immediately got choked up. Yeah, I know. And I'm sure anybody else watching unless you don't have a pulse. Yeah. got choked up as well. What was, it was, yeah. It was really, it was a well done story too. They, he timed it out perfectly and it was, but it was so meaningful. The kid choked up explaining why they were doing it, and then they interviewed the teacher and she used, and she broke, broke down. And what was super fun is they, uh, they thought that 300,000 was easy. Why don't we do this for the other schools in our district? Yeah. And they continued the thermometer up the wall and actually proceeded onto the ceiling of the classroom. and they were closing in on like$700,000 raised for these, kids, uh, to have an opportunity to have recess. Like they, that's so cool. Like they did, the kids just got momentum. They just got, they tapped into something. And it's amazing to think that little kids can generate something like that on their own. I mean, you know, I'm sure there wasn't appearance saying, Hey, you know, you should start this thing. Even if someone said that. It took the, that, the energy of those kids to start bringing it to, into, into reality. That's just amazing. In our pre-production meeting, we decided we weren't going to play the story because you really have to see it. Yeah. To get the full effect. So I encourage you to go to the Google or to the YouTube and just put in there, uh, Steve Hartman on the road. He's got all kinds of stories he want. Who was a cbs uh, news story was a CBS news story national. and, uh, again, Minnesota makes the national news so cool. Two weeks in a row. Last week it was, uh, play for Patrick, which was in the morning. And do you really think that the best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup? Is that still a commercial challenge? It's still a commercial. It's on all the time. Okay. All right. And I just don't buy it. Well, I don't think that, That is the best part of waking up. I'm, well, you're not a coffee drinker, but I'm not gonna endorse FOLs coffee No. Go FOLs Coffee is what you drink when you're getting your tires changed at the tire shop. Yeah. I mean, I think the best part of waking up is waking up there. That is God. Oh, you gotta have that espresso espresso's the way to go and espresso. I noticed that you were admiring, uh, the, uh, the, the new coffee maker that we have. And you must have. I got one L we got one for Christmas for each other last December, and I actually had to take a little break because I can't have'em every day. I'm kind of a high-strung person, but No, that's a lot of espresso. Double shot of espresso every morning. Oh yeah. It's, it's amazing. It tastes so good and now, like we're so good at it, it's, you have to know how to do it, but, um, so yeah, we've got a whole family full of baristas now, so we got a very nice, uh, cash gift from Becky's, uh, mother this year. Okay. All right. And, uh, we are deciding what we should. With that cash gift and. Becky decided that we should get this really fancy coffee machine. Unfortunately, only one of we meaning her is a coffee drinker. So I would like to add that story to the Don't be that guy. Get a lot this week. There's a lot this week. Don't be that guy. This might be the airing of grievances. Maybe once again, another Seinfeld reference moment. It's a fes uh, festival for the rest of us. Yes. Well, uh, it is about that time to take our first break, but, uh, we will be right back with a, uh, a special guest. We're calling her Mickey Mulvihill. Yes, that's her name and, uh, she's got some really cool stories to share with us. Let's wait. Yeah, we'll be right back. And we are back. Hey, uh, John, I want to introduce, um, someone that is very interesting person and a fascinating person and a very kind, generous person, um, compassionate person who has great stories and before we bring her on board Yeah. I want to, uh, remind you. When we were bantering back and forth about, who ought we have on this? Oh yeah. This, uh, this podcast, people that are fascinating, people that are fascinating and kind. And you mentioned the name Mickey Mulvaney. And I said, whoa, not Mickey Mulvaney. Mickey Mulvihill. And I said, I don't know a Mickey Mulvaney No, you didn't say that. I said that And there she is, Mickey. Mul Hill, Mulva Hill, um, and she is the owner of, uh, heart and Soul Artist Management. Is that the name of it? Mickey? Yes. Well, welcome Mickey. Steve, take it away. Well, we were destined to talk to you because we both had the idea for you because you were such an interesting person. Um, you and I know each other from music world, from the, the Minneapolis music scene. But I, can you give us a little bit of information about who you are, what you've been doing, and, and then a little bit how you got into that, and then we'll kind of go from there. Well, I think we met way back in the orphan days. Yep. Um, when I was working with Johnny Lang and Layton. Yep. And, um, you were playing your. and I kinda, my career's been a big happy accident. So I started out, uh, working at the boom company underage and got to know a lot of, uh, fabulous artists, uh, like Luther, Allison and Buddy Guy, and then ended up taking over a s club and they all kind of pitched in and taught me how to book it and made themselves available and that led into accidentally managing. Luther and, uh, Phil Johnson. And that led into leaving the bar business and being just blessed to work with Stevie Layton and, uh, Susan and Johnny Lang and name a really, so, um, and now I, I have the privilege of working with Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Doug McCloud. Wow. So, Are are since Covid, how is the, uh, the booking business? Yeah. Is Kenny Wayne Shepherd, is he playing again? Tell us about life during Covid as it related to the business that you're in. Well, during Covid we didn't work almost, we almost didn't work at all. Um, we had a couple shows, um, but the whole industry was shut down. Uh, Tough on everybody and when they did, you know, save the stages and all of that, sadly a lot of the musicians did not, uh, get included in those payouts. Mm-hmm. it was great because unemployment made an exception there. Normally musicians kinda get screwed out of that too, but, um, there was some money there for that. Uh, and then last year we started, um, touring and people were so excited to get out that we had, we had a great year and this year. It's like non-stop touring. Um, we're we're scheduled out through August right now, filling in dates. Um, Kenny started a festival, um, kind reminiscent of the Paul Zukowski King festivals of old and that then kind avoid for quite some time. Uh, sorry. Mickey, what kind and, um, what kind of venues are you booking? Uh, theaters and amphitheater. Okay. Um, I don't do the booking. Um, I'm on the, on Kenny's team. Uh, reliant is his booking agent, um, and, uh, his father, Ken and Kristen and I, uh, deal with the best of, um, Stuff along with Kenny. Uh, and Kristen and I are on the road, uh, with Kenny as well. So my area is kind of merch and catering, hospitality. Okay. Uh, that type of thing. So John, do you realize like, so Mickey, not only have you, um, continued to become successful and or like to make it to this level, but you've continued and you're thriving in this even amidst the craziness of the last few years, John, I dunno if you realize how like it's just. Overwhelming to think that she's able to continue to do this, you know, as long as she has and be so successful at it. And, and being a local person, it's, it's kind of unheard of, like music business especially Covid killed a lot of people. Like you were saying, A lot of it killed a lot of, sorry, a lot of careers. People went from being, you know, uh, traveling musicians are touring musicians to really just getting jobs and having to just kind of settle. It kind of changed a lot of things. So the fact that you made it through that, Amazing to begin with. But the fact that you're, you're, you're a sane, super well adjusted person that's still doing this. It's, it's crazy. Well, can you take, take us back, Mickey. When did you start doing this? Steve's making it sound like you've been doing it for 70 years. Wow. Was she, you know, explain to Nah. Since the early eighties. Yeah. Wow. That's what I'm saying. Bloom company. Yeah. So quite a while. that's, that's, that would be 40 years. I'm not great at math, but yes. I started, uh, managing Luther Allison, um, probably 38 years ago. Wow. And Phil Johnson, uh, at the same time. And Jimmy were kind of like the, the three that, um, talked me into it, if you will. And, uh, like I said, it was a big happy accident That has worked out a lot because of how. Supportive and, uh, fabulous. Most people in this industry are from the musicians to the venue owners, um, who also got hit really hard during covid. I mean, a lot of our fabulous mom and pop theaters didn't come back or got bought by some of the big conglomerates, which is sad, you know, cuz there were long histories and relationships and, and they're much more tied into the community than when you. Mega company owning them, you know? Yeah. Um, you and I talked, um, earlier this winter, this fall, you know, you had some great stories. I wanna talk about that. But, um, can you explain to John and our audience what. What does a manager do like, cuz John is thinking that you're a booking agent or something that's, no, I thought, well, I'm just saying I know the difference. Well, we do when I, we have to, what I meant by that comment, the booking comment was where are you? Where, what kind of venues are you playing in? Not are you booking personally? I know, but I think you're, man, it, it would be good for our audience to understand what a, what a manager does, cuz that maybe people don't understand that. Let's just, let's ask that question then. Maybe we can ask it in a way that's not disparaging of me. I'm sorry. Yes. That would be, you know, that would be kind. Oh, that'd be kind. Okay. Well, I'm trying, you guys are like brothers. we're more like sisters. We got bunk heads. Well, managers are like the liaison between. Pretty much everybody in the artist. Yeah. So your, your main focus is implementing the artist stream and putting people together on this team. Uh, whether it be a booking agent or a lawyer or, uh, merch company or just to make pie so that the can afford to do, you know what Most artists, their whole. Energy is about playing, right? So it's not, an artist isn't happy being a plumber. Yeah. For example, he can be a plumber or she, but they're, what really, really feeds their spirit is their music, right? So, and being creative and writing and playing and singing or whatever their avenue is, and there's not a lot of time to do everything else to help put that out into the world. Management and booking agents and kinda support staff are there to, so that the artists can create. So I can relate to the concept of making the pie fatter, which I think is a, a, a nice way of saying how can we bring the most revenue to this process? Cuz you mentioned that you're, you do merch and you. She manages the people that are doing, that are doing all that stuff as well. Yeah. Yeah. Well I actually do the merch on the road with Kenny. Yeah. So, uh, like what percentage of the revenue comes from beyond selling tickets, the other stuff. Um, well I like to think that merchandise is a big part of paying the bills. I would think so. It depends on how big, and the reason I like doing it is I like people, right. I bartended when I had my bar, I. I enjoy talking to people and you hear what people really think about the show. Mm-hmm. if you're out there. Yeah. And I have a little more patience than some people do that might not be as invested in the artist, you know, like an outside merch company. Yeah. So, you know, somebody wants try on shirt. I'm like, go ahead. You're steal. Instead of saying, oh, you know, no, not unless you buy it. You can't, you can't pet it. So, yeah. But the. You have and, and having stuff that your, um, audience likes. It's a huge part of the revenue. I mean, you know, and there's margin and merch, there is margin and merch, you know, if she's cute enough to date, she's cute enough to buy a t-shirt for. That's our model. Exactly. Well, I I wonder if you've ever used that line before. You know that a lot of artists, you know, cause people are generous and, and it's like, oh yeah, you can have a teacher and it's like, You can pay for a t-shirt, but you know, if you, if you give all your me away, you're, it's costing you to play in the end. It's a great way to support AEC right now. That's a, that's a really great way to support bands. It is. And music stuff. And getting it directly from the artists at a show or on their website is where they make the most money, you know? Um, Well, you guys have been with the, um, all the digital age artists aren't making money on their music. Yeah. Unless they're playing and selling the physical product. Yeah. It's a very difficult time for, for artists. Um, so John, so she is, aside from just out there selling merch and, and, uh, managing, uh, percentages of everybody I'm talking about that they're, they're really, like she was saying, uh, she removes roadblocks for the artist. So the artist can. Get to the process and get out and make sure they're safe and healthy and, you know, doing their thing. And so it's, it's a very, I mean, they're, she's connected to these artists. She's very involved. So who manages what do you call'em? Roadies, the people that are setting up all the equipment and or who does that? Um, that's more, uh, that's under Kristen's. area. Um, she's fabulous. She's been with Kenny for 19 years and, um, until I joined the team, she and her dad, uh, Kenny's dad did everything. Oh, and Kenny's got a tremendous amount. Obviously it's, you know, the, the artist company, um, he and his dad to be partners and have kind a unique situation. Um, but when we're on the road, Kristen deals with all of the production, um, dealing. um, the crew. Um, but we're, we're kind of like a big family. Yeah. You know, everybody helps each other out. Um, the guys helped me out tremendously at the end of the night, you know, loading merch out for me and, um, everybody kinda pitches in and, and helps out. So it's, you know, you live on a bus together, it's, you become a family, you know? Yeah. It's a big circus. Set up and set up the new town and do it. Fortunately in our business there seemed to be a lot of that, a lot of. a lot of artists are very passionate about helping people that with handicaps or children, um, uh, the get well, um, living well with disabilities, um, does a really cool event that, um, I was blessed to be a part of where they help, um, about. I think there's close to 80 homes that help mentally and physically challenged people, um, either by getting the vans or helping upgrade the group home or just making life more dignified and more accessible. Right. Um, and then, you know, mixed Sterling's Heart and soul, I was really lucky to be involved with, and that, that was just an amazing, amazing event. I. My part of it was, um, booking the bands on it for the most part. And Luther Allison started, um, the first year before there was a festival and Nick was doing it at different venues. Um, Luther said, well, I'm giving the whole check back to the charity. Um, we're, we're not taking anything and we're all donating our time, which Fabulous. Yeah. And then, um, cause of that, when we started the festival, um, I just said if Luther can play for free, everybody can play for free So everyone did. I mean, we had That's cool for until the last two years. And Peebles, Otis Clay, Phil Johnson. GB Layton, um, Steve, you guys played cowboy mo, I mean three days of music for how many years where people donated their time. Mm-hmm. and all the money that we raised, no one got paid, went to help kids go to camp, and it was amazing and it ha things like that happened. All the, you know, all of the time. Um, I dunno if you saw on the news just a couple days ago, uh, some kids at a school here in Minnesota, in a community, I sadly can't which one, but raised enough money to make an accessible program. Their school couldn't use to step at the playground. Well, Mickey, for the children, as a matter of fact, we just covered that story and to me that is a perfect ex. It's not amazing. Yeah. It's j it was just awesome. Yeah. And what's fun about it is we're on the same page. The point that we were trying to make is there is an example of a, of a beautiful story of kindness and compass. that unless Steve Hartman didn't share that story, that story wouldn't be something that's inspiring people like us. Yeah. To, to do right. To do better. So, and there's so many children that are doing, I mean, that's, we've gotta be so proud of where there's so much that, like you said, that we get stuck in on the divisiveness and the, the bad stuff going on. But there are so many and many of it motivated by kids and. People doing random acts of kindness every day. You know, 10 year olds knitting scarves and hats for, for homeless children, you know, and, and, yep. Their children themselves. Right? And it's their idea and they're getting the invo, the adults involved, and that's, It tells volume, it tells you something where we have the potential to go. Yeah. It tells you something about what, how we're built and if, if young people who don't see the world as complicated as we see it, it's, it's pretty inspiring to to yeah. To see that happen and much less judgmental and Yeah. So inclusive, which is where we need to be. Yep. So did you say it was Luther Allison that, um, That was the one that decided that we were gonna, they were gonna donate their time. Did I get that story right? Yep. Yeah. He said when, um, Mick brought the check, uh, Luther looked at me and he said, let's give it back. So Luther passed away 25 years ago. Tell us about Luther, because I mean, he sounds like an hell of a guy, guy, guy. He was, he was, uh, he lived in, um, outside of Paris for a number of years. Got. Seen here and the way, um, African American artists were being treated and never, but never learned to speak French. But when he would ride the subways and the buses when he died, I can't even tell you how many people reached out and said, oh my gosh, I had the most. Life-changing conversation with Luther. I was on the subway and I told him what was going on and he just, he just made it all better. And it, in literally, he didn't speak any French but he would smile and nod and give people the time. You know, and much like BB King had time for everyone, and the true great artists are that way. You know, they, they are regular people who make time to make other people. Feel valued. Well, I always, and Luther was so good at that, the people I admire most in life are those that make others feel like they matter. And it sounds like, uh, like Luther was one of those people that, uh, you know, I, I love the stories when you hear about these, uh, these professional athletes or these actors that, you know, when you chat with them, you feel like you're the only one in, in the room. So it's pretty cool. It's very. and he, he, would he die of, uh, lung cancer or something? He did lung cancer that metastasized to the brain. Oh. So, oh, they said six to nine months and it was six weeks. Oh, wow. So it was pretty, pretty devastating. So was he touring when he found out about his illness? Yes, we were, um, on tour and actually playing, uh, the 10-year anniversary of TripleM in Madison and. Went to the doctor earlier that day, we were Montreal. And this, like, the head of the guitar hit the, the curtain as he was going on stage and he would bump into Rocky, his wife in the bathroom and tease her about her hips getting wide, but just little things that like maybe needs glasses just by chance. He, they, he had a gun outside of, um, In Oxford, which is outside of Madison. And by chance there were two days off and the doctor had time for a visit, went in and said, you know, maybe it's nothing, but I want you to go in and see this specialist who just happened to have time the next day. How often does that happen? Yeah, no, not at all. And so, um, then Rocky called me and said, worst case scenario, which on tour we'd always say, ok, best case scenario, we'll do this. Worst case we'll do that. And I'm like, what's the worst case? And she. Luther, he's got nine months to live. Oh my God. And told me, and I was like, what? And he played, we didn't tell anyone. He played in Madison that night and then the next day played at the Minnesota Zoo. And after that show, we told the band and he went into treatments and was gone six weeks later. Wow. Man. So we were on, I was working with Johnny at the time also. We were out, um, on tour with Aerosmith who were big fans of Luthers. And um, I left the tour to go, Rocky called and said, you better come and say goodbye. So I snuggled in, you know, on top of the bed next to him and I'm like, God, this has gotta suck Luther. And he said, you know, it's my time to the river. I want the next person that comes on stage to realize it's not about racism, classism, or sex. It's about playing the music and loving the people. And so that's what's on his tombstone is play music. Oh, music. Oh, that. Right? Leave your ego. Play the music. Love the people. That's great. Well, there's a lesson for all of us to be, uh, to be learned out of that one. You know, uh, to be more like that guy, to be more like that guy. Yeah. you know It sounds like you've, uh, you've had the opportunity to be around some big stars. Are there any big stars out there that, uh, you found to be particularly kind or particularly, interested in, in others? Aside from Luther, maybe? Yeah. Other than Luther, um, I would say the Rolling Stones are pretty darn. oddly, uh, you know, and Johnny, when we were on tour with them and Johnny lost his voice, um, in Hawaii, Mick flew his doctor in at no charge to Johnny to look at his voice and, and get him through the, the show. It was amazing. Geez. And then they would come to our shows on the days off. We, we'd have, you know, gigs at little theaters on the days off when the stones were off and they'd come to our shows Wow. And hang out and just, you know, talk to people. And if, if somebody, a lot of times there were kids there and Nick would take the time to sign things for'em. I mean, it was a whole different side of them than when we were at the arenas and, yeah. Um, so I would say I've been really, really lucky to be surrounded by people that are, are pretty sweet. There's a couple that you know, I won't mention that aren't but they're very few and far between. Yeah. It, it's funny you mentioned the, uh, the stones coming and watching Johnny play on their day off. When we first interviewed Steve on this podcast, you talked about the fact that cheap trick came. Yeah. And watched you guys play at O'Gara or something like that? Yeah, we did. We did a short run of tours with them. We got to know them and we invited them to come to O'Gara after their first avenue show. They actually pulled the bus over on the way towards Chicago back home. It was like a Saturday. They came and were in front row standing there watching us, and then Robin got on stage and played a song with us. Like it was a dream. Oh, it was a dream come true. Yeah, it was. So there is, uh, yeah, most, I would say most artists are pretty, I mean, again, BB King, you not find a kinder person. Thought, I mean, he made time for everyone. He would get to a gig late because he would not turn anyone away if they wanted to stop and talk to him. I mean, it's, it's pretty impressive. Oti, Otis Clay was that way. I was lucky to work with McClellan from the boys who, uh, also died, uh, and Otis. I have a lot of dead people in my life. Geez, quite, um, a lot of angels. Um, yeah. So she would, you know, she was very, very kind. Also just loved people, you know, and would walk through and if, if somebody came up and said, I really like your shirt, she would literally take it off and give it to them we were on one trip and she gave away three sets of headphones in a weekend. I'm like, my Bev, those aren't cheap either. You gotta, you gotta sell some merch to cover the cost. Thank you. But she couldn't help herself. She, she just, cause she didn't care. It was just a physical thing. Wow. And it's like, oh, if you like it, you can have it. I'll get another one. No worries. You. Well, this is such a great example of like, uh, rock stars and, and, and musicians and artists are pretty sensitive people, and sometimes they get a bad rep for being jerks, but, um, when you break'em down, they're, you know, they're sensitive people typically, and they wanna just, they wanna share. And, uh, and what a, what an experience you've had. This is so great to people to actually hear some great stories from you and, and, you know, hear from you and, and, uh, and chat more than we probably you. Ever have. This is great. Where, where is, uh, Kenny Wayne Shepherd? Uh, where's he playing next? We are leaving on the fourth on tour and we start in Lexington, Kentucky at the Opera House. And then, um, we're doing, uh, we're, we're basically almost the year we're going to Europe and the UK and Oh, wow. Yeah, but we're doing the Ryy on which we're all really excited about. Some venue. All the venues are great, but Wow. The Ryy is one of those very special. Rooms. Yeah. Nashville. That, you know, is just the history there. It's just amazing. Has Kenny been writing new music or is he, playing all the oldies? um, well in this tour, um, until March, it's the fifth anniversary for Trouble is ok. Which was his, uh, biggest release, blue on Black was, uh, the longest running Blue single on billboard for, I mean, it was record breaking. Yeah. Tom Bernard played that every other, song. It's a great song on k2, right? Yeah, yeah. It was like people will go some occasion I'll, oh, yeah. I work with Kenny Wayne. I don't, I'm not sure who that is. Blue and Black. Oh yeah, I know that song. right. Um, but so we've been doing the 25th anniversary, which has been a really special tour cause until this tour, which started last year in Shreveport. And speaking of charities, we raised$90,000 for two charities at one show. Wow. Um, in Shreveport for, um, the Justice League and for the, um, domestic abuse. Um, but it's the only time that he's ever played that album. All the way through and, and does it every concert. So we, we we're done with that, uh, after Europe and then we start the new stuff. So he's writing all the time. Um, and had the trouble is got rerecorded and repackaged and came out, uh, December 2nd. Oh, cool. So we're kind of finishing touring behind that and then next year we'll have a new record out. So you have a lot of travel ahead, a lot of experiences ahead and, uh, and a lot of fun a. Meeting nice people. Yeah. A new open world. A new open world again, so, right. Best of luck to you. And the, the best thing about touring and Steve, you know, that is, it just reinforces that most of the people in the world really are good. And no matter where you go, they're, people are, as a rule, really kind. It's just sad that oftentimes the not kind ones get in office and not touch on anything political. Yeah. Yeah. Is, is Kenny from the south? He seems like. A guy from the south. Yeah, he's a Louisiana guy. Oh look. There you go. That makes perfect sense. Yeah. Um, do you wanna talk about any of the jerks that you've encountered over the years? By name? Just throw it out there. Okay. you know what, you know when. No sense in doing that. Why? Why even give them the air? Right? Yeah. Don't be that guy, I guess. No, no, no. There's way too many nice things to talk about to focus on. Great. I, I can't thank you enough for joining us. This is so cool. I really appreciate Well, I'm honored talking to you. You're, you're, uh, you're an inspiring, you're an inspiring person to hear about and best of luck out on the road and with Kenny and the whole. Have a great tour. Well, thank you guys very much, and we'll do lunch and, um, yeah, and I'll see you at a show, Steve. Yeah, that'd be great. All right. Good to talk to you, Mickey. Take. Thank you. Bye-bye. Bye-bye. Well, how about that? Yeah, she's the, she's the real deal. She is the real deal. Yeah. She, you know, she throws out all these names just so matter of fact. It's like really the stones. So when you were with the Stones, I. Yeah, she had a couple other stories and one story I wanted to hear from her, but maybe she didn't wanna mention, I'll tell you off, off air, but it was, oh, just, well pretend we won't hit the, uh, the pause button. No, I'll call. Okay. You could tell me later. But yeah, she's a, she's a pretty cool lady. I like her a lot. Well, uh, once again, we're going to, uh, we're gonna go visit with, uh, kg, um, um, find out what's going on in his life right now. On assignment. Right on assignment. Uh, and we'll be right back. And we're back. We're back with our pal kg kg. Where are we calling you at? Raleigh, North Carolina is a stop today on the Wild tour. It's this nine day four city trip and, uh, we're gonna get warmer weather as we move along. Are you gone for all nine days? Yeah, so we started in dc we're in Raleigh. Uh, we'll head down to, uh, play the Florida Panthers and stay in the Fort Lauderdale area for a couple days, and then we'll head over to Tampa Bay to close out the road trip and come home next Tuesday. Tampa Bay. Tampa Bay. That's a long trip to be away from your dogs. The dogs, um, are certainly missed. And um, that is one of the hardest parts of leaving is because, you know, you, you get attached to those little guys. So Fenway and Brooks will be, uh, they'll be at the top of the stairs to welcome me home late night Tuesday. And that is certainly one of the highlights of coming home. Well, I'm sure they're listening to this, uh, this program so that's very, uh, I'm sure your special friend over there, Chrissy. Playing all of your highlights, do they watch the games when you're on? Uh, Brooks does not watch tv. What, uh, Fenway? No. He's, what is he reading books? No, he's just kinda in his own world. He's that guy for sure. Fenway's the one that gets upset when he hears or sees another animal on the tv. So we know he watches. So, you know, it's always on in the background if, you know, if the, while they're. Crystal, she'll put the game on or whatever, but I don't think they really watch. No. Do. Um, do you ever put the animal channel on just to be funny, No. We've been coming up with this. Don't, don't be that guy that's, that is cruelty. You should not be doing that would not be very nice. So, um, any highlights on your trip that you'd like to share with? How was, it's so fun to be in. How was your meal last night that sounded like that could have been a highlight. Oh yeah. For folks that, you know, maybe travel for work or have been, or going to be, uh, down to Raleigh, North Carolina, there is one place that stands out. It's called the Angus Barn. Oh. And it's an unbelievable facility. It's gigantic. And you know, for holiday parties, I'm sure they. Tremendous business. It's all decorated right now still with the, the Christmas decor, which comes down, I believe, at the end of this weekend. But it's a steak place and it's like a supper club so that they do it the right way when you order your, your steak, it comes with all the, the fix in the salad, the potato of the whole thing. So yeah, it's a fun spot. We always try to go to the Angus barn on a night off in, in Carolina. And you know, the other highlight is I love DC We only get there once a. More often than not, a second of a back to back. So we had a night off in DC and got to walk around, see the White House, see some of the monuments, and that's such a great place. I know you've been there. And, uh, I love the history and I love, uh, just the vibe that that place has too. The wild team this year. If you had to have dinner with three of them, who would they be? Who would be the most fun? Oh, I mean, that's a great question. That's why I asked for sure. Jake Middleton would, would be at or near the top of that list. He's just this rugged, big, strong defense and with the big old mustache. Mustache, yeah, he looks like a he. He does look like a lumberjack, for sure. So Jake would be on that list. Marcus Valino just. He's captain. Cool, right? I mean, he's got the Bradley Cooper looks, he's got the personality. He's funny. And then I suppose, you know, for me, I'm a, I'm a Golder and Mark Andre Flury. I mean, to, to sit and, and visit with a guy that's been there and done that. He's won three Stanley cups. He's played all over the world. Um, it, it's a hard choice because. you know, I left off Caprisa who might be the most fascinating person on this team, but, uh, yeah, it's, it's a, it's a group full of, uh, let's just call it a eclectic personalities. You got a lot of different, um, you know, backgrounds and you got young, you got old. Uh, but boy, they are, uh, a great group of men. They're fun to be around, they're easy to work with. And, you know, for, for all of us that work on the broadcast side, whether it's TV and radio, You couldn't find an easier group to, to navigate through what, what's the head coach like? Because when you watch him on TV and that little vein pops out in the for of his forehead, he looks like he might have a little bit of a, uh, he might want to consider de caffeinated coffee instead of whatever it is he's consuming. Is he? That's the fun, the funny thing, John, is, you know, the, the guy you see. When we flash to him during is certainly intense and you, you do see the veins and you, you feel like that, that anger, but away from game time, he's the most laid back, humble, funny, like. Just chill, dude. Like he's a scratch golfer. He'll talk to just about anybody. He's funny. Really. Uh, he's got, I I, I did notice he was talking to the refs and he was using an a word that's not fit for radio, um, And what was really fun is Bally's kept showing it and it was very clear what he was saying. Um, yep. So sometimes he can, he can lose that chill edge. Earlier you mentioned that you're a goal, oh, go ahead. I'm sorry, I interrupted. Well, no, I just think, I think for a lot of these coaches, you know, game time is they have to channel their, what they used to be, which is he was a hardnosed player, and I think that comes out, you know, when they're from the start of the game to the end of the game, he is that guy. He's super intense, but honestly, away from that, he couldn't be a nicer guy to work with. You just earlier you mentioned I'm a goal tenderer, so you'd want to have Mark Andre Flury at, at the, uh, at the dinner with you. When you refer, when you say, I am a goal tender. When was the last time you were between the pipes? See, for, for all of us that played the position, we're all recovering goalies. Oh, you're never really the goalie. Always a goalie. Always a goalie. And I think part of that's the mentality you have to take into. Cre, you have to be a little bit, you know, out there. I think most would, if you've ever met a goal sender, um, you know, at any level, boys, girls, whatever. Uh, we kind of marched our own drummer. So we always, you know, once you're a goal a, you're in that fraternity forever. I haven't put the pads on in decades, and I don't have any interest in putting those pads on anytime. Um, but, you know, I love conversations with other gold tenders and yeah, when you can have dinner with the Locke first ballot hall of famer, that's, you know, accomplished what Flurry has. And then also just that funny personality he's got, uh, he fits the mold of, of gold tender as well as anybody I know. Well if, and I've decided that I'm going to employ that same philosophy, um, and just, uh, announce that I am in great shape. Um, you know those Yeah. Once I, I was once in great shape. Therefore, I'm one of the great saw you shape people and um, yeah. You, um, you know, it makes me feel better about myself instantly. So Thank you. In college, he walked around that campus. I know, God know. People got outta your way, like No, seriously. It was, it was. Those were the days, weren't they? They, those were the days Oh God. A hundred pounds ago. I was really something. Anyways. Well, I just, uh, wanted to thank you for your, uh, for your time. I know that you're a very busy lad. We'd love to get you back in the studio at some point. We've got, uh, we got the, uh, it's in with the bunk beds, so that's always fun if you need to lay down and take a little snoozer to Oh, nice. I like a little nap once in a while. There is something sacred about that late, mid to late afternoon. Even if it's just for 45 minutes to an hour, that that nap. The older I get, John, the more I appreciate it. It's, uh, it really does make the world go round. I feel like it makes no question, it makes me a better person whenever I get the, I didn't have a nap yesterday and let's just say I wasn't a very happy guy by about 8:00 PM Um, so gotta get those, ma'am. That's right. Well, thank you Kevin. Uh, go wild. Uh, we'll look forward to seeing you and, uh, best wishes on a, uh, a, a safe. Thank you very much. Look forward to seeing you guys in person very soon. All right, goodbye and off we go.