Nicest Rockstars, All Access Backstage Pass, and Music News

Some artists sound dangerous onstage and turn out to be the kindest people you’ll ever meet, and that contrast kicks off a wide-ranging music conversation we can’t stop thinking about. We dig into a list of rock musicians known for having genuinely good reputations, then swap stories about what “nice” looks like when the lights are off and the backstage pass is real. Along the way we talk about why fans remember small moments forever and how an artist’s character becomes part of their long-term legacy.

Then we hit the week’s music news across country and rock: tour expansions, streaming-era release strategies, and the genre lines that keep getting blurrier. We unpack Zach Bryan’s surprise drops and direct-to-fan approach, the steady rise of festival headliners who can move between country and rock, and what it even means to call someone a “legacy band” now. From Foo Fighters and Green Day to Metallica’s in-the-round stadium production, we look at how veteran acts stay relevant while new artists rewrite the rules.

The question of the day turns into a full-on backstage fantasy draft: if you had all-access for one night, who are you choosing and why. We compare craft-focused picks with pure chaos picks, read listener answers, run through country and rock charts, and close with mailbag questions that get surprisingly real: is country radio “too safe,” does a great mix still matter, and is a record deal in 2026 worth chasing if you want a real team behind you.

Episode Links

• Scotty Simpson: https://jayfranze.com/episode3/
• Bob Bullock: https://jayfranze.com/episode28/
• Bruce Reiter: https://jayfranze.com/episode67/
• William Lee Golden: https://jayfranze.com/episode72/
• Blake Tyler: https://jayfranze.com/episode120/
• Mark Badolato: https://jayfranze.com/episode140/
• Stephanie Rabus: https://jayfranze.com/episode149/
• RJ Preston: https://jayfranze.com/episode205/

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:24

Here is your host, Jay Franzi and Tiffany Mason.

Jay Franze 0:31

And we are coming at you live. I am Jay Franzi, and uh with me tonight the Roseanne to my Dan, my beautiful co-host, Miss Tiffany Mason. And if you are new to the show, this is your source for the latest news, reviews, and interviews. So if you would like to join in, comment, or fire off any questions, please head over to jfranzi.com.

Tiffany Mason 0:57

That was Roseanne's Laugh.

Nicest Rockstars

Jay Franze 0:59

Yes, yes. Before we get started, let me just go ahead and tell you about the question of the day. Question of the day submitted by James. If you had an all-access backstage pass to hang with any artist for one night, who would you choose and why? If you had an all-access backstage pass to hang with any artist for one night, who would you choose and why? Thank you, James. Miss Tiffany, do not give me your answer now. Let's wait till a little later in the show. And if you would like to join our shenanigans, go ahead and put your responses in the comment section. We will read those off a little later in the show as well. All right, my Roseanne, let's jump right into it. Let's start off with eleven rock stars who have the nicest reputation. Eleven rock stars who have the nicest reputation.

Tiffany Mason 2:02

I'm tempted to skip this article because what if we don't think they're as like, you know, rough and aggressive as they are in their music?

Jay Franze 2:13

Can you not be rough and nice? I thought that's how you like things. Well, to be fair, you already have. But moving on. 11 rock stars with the nicest reputation. Let's start off with number 11, Ronnie James Dio.

SPEAKER_05 2:38

Aw.

Jay Franze 2:39

I have always heard that about Ronnie James Dio. I never had the opportunity to meet him. Would have been nice, but yes, he has always been known for having a great personality.

Tiffany Mason 2:50

His reputation precedes him. Yep.

Jay Franze 2:52

I like him. Starting off good. So far, so good. I like this.

Tiffany Mason 2:58

One in.

Jay Franze 2:59

One down. All right. Number two. Whoops. I say number two. I guess this would be what? Number ten. We count backwards on this show. Number ten, Alice Cooper.

SPEAKER_05 3:13

I can see that.

Jay Franze 3:14

He's another one that has always been known for being a nice person. He comes off very weird and quirky. But he's been known as being a very nice person. Matter of fact, Lizzie Hill has always got nice things to say about Alice Cooper and Ronnie James Dio. And she's performed with Alice Cooper. That's cool. I like it so far so good. This list is not bad. Alright. Next. I'm going to say next because they don't number them, and I'm going to get confused.

SPEAKER_06 3:48

Okay. Next.

Jay Franze 3:50

Rob Halford, lead singer of Judas the Priest. Everything I've ever ever heard, he's been very nice. And he did a we'll call it a collab with Five Finger Death Punch.

Tiffany Mason 4:06

Oh, how nice.

Jay Franze 4:08

And it's a really good, really good song. No pun intended there.

Tiffany Mason 4:12

I heard it. How nice.

Jay Franze 4:16

Oh, look at this. Next on the list. I will say my favorite, and I haven't even seen the rest of the list. Lizzie Hill.

SPEAKER_05 4:26

I was just gonna say.

Jay Franze 4:28

Is that you just gonna say we're already there? We're already at that point. Yeah. Yes, Lizzie Hill. Now I've had an opportunity to meet with her and work with her on a couple different occasions. She is the nicest person ever. Yeah. She is one of the nicest people ever. Matter of fact, I took my family to meet her and the rest of the band, Hailstorm. And not only did she was she receptive and like it, but she jumped up from a table and ran around and picked up Bella at the time, who is probably I would say what Valen's age is now. And she picked up Bella and held her like four or five. Yeah. She was yeah, four or five years old. And she was so nice to her. And then when I actually had an opportunity to work with her later, she remembered me and came up and said, Hey, would you do me a favor and give this to Bella? And she handed me a guitar picture.

Tiffany Mason 5:26

Yeah, I remember that.

Jay Franze 5:28

So I think the picture of our meeting, me and the family, and meeting her in Hailstorm, I think that's up on Instagram if anybody wants to check it out.

Tiffany Mason 5:38

Okay. Gotta buy 10 years.

Jay Franze 5:41

You gotta go, you gotta go back a little while. Like to the beginning of time. But yeah, it's there. Um next one is George Fisher. I do not know who George Fisher is, but I do believe he's very nice.

Tiffany Mason 6:00

It would appear so he made the list. Yeah.

Jay Franze 6:03

It says he's uh he fronts a death metal band Cannibal Corpse.

SPEAKER_03 6:10

Okay.

Jay Franze 6:11

Wow. Guess you gotta be nice.

SPEAKER_03 6:15

Mm-hmm.

Jay Franze 6:16

Well, George, I'm gonna go check out your music and see what else you got going on. Alright, next, Dave Grohl. Again, he's another one. I I would love to meet him. I've never had an opportunity to meet him. Super talented. This man could not possibly be more talented. When he first started, I'm sure everybody knows this, drummer of Nirvana. But when Nirvana split, unfortunately had to split, he went on and formed Foo Fighters and played every single instrument on the record.

Tiffany Mason 6:50

So crazy.

Jay Franze 6:52

Absolutely amazing musician.

Tiffany Mason 6:53

He's the rock version of Jim Cristaldi. Nice.

Jay Franze 6:58

Look at you pulling out names from previous episodes. I I'm almost impressed.

SPEAKER_05 7:05

I think you are impressed. I am.

Jay Franze 7:09

And I think Wolfgang Van Halen is the new version of Dave Grohl. Wolfgang Van Halen put out his records, and just like Dave Grohl played every instrument on him.

Tiffany Mason 7:20

Okay. Next Jen.

Jay Franze 7:23

Super, super talented as well. And I've seen But is he nice? He is nice.

Tiffany Mason 7:27

Could he make this list?

Jay Franze 7:29

He would have made it. I don't know if he does.

Tiffany Mason 7:31

But we got a couple spots left.

Jay Franze 7:33

That's true. But Dave, I've seen Dave and Wolfgang for that matter in a lot of interviews, and that they always seem very nice. Give them a call, see if they'll come on. Dave, if you're watching right now or listening, please, jfranzi.com. You can just join right in. We'll stop whatever we're doing. Okay, next. Lemmy Killmeister.

Tiffany Mason 7:55

I thought you were gonna say something like Lemmy Kill Myself. No.

Jay Franze 7:59

Lemmy.

Tiffany Mason 8:00

I was like, that's an interesting name.

Jay Franze 8:01

Lemmy is the lead singer of Motorhead.

Tiffany Mason 8:05

Okay.

Jay Franze 8:06

He is a great musician, great band. Up, up, up, up. Stop the presses. I need, I need a button. Uh-oh. I need a button.

SPEAKER_05 8:16

Uh-oh.

Jay Franze 8:17

Next on the list, Wolfgang Van Halen.

SPEAKER_05 8:23

Oh, shut the front door.

Jay Franze 8:27

Nice. Nice. Look at that.

SPEAKER_05 8:31

He teed that up.

Jay Franze 8:34

And he beat out Dave Kroll.

SPEAKER_05 8:37

Dang.

Jay Franze 8:38

Do you know whose mother was? Who is Eddie Van Halen married to? Valerie Bertinelli.

SPEAKER_05 8:46

Oh, really? Okay.

Jay Franze 8:48

Oh, I used to think she was the hottest thing ever. To be fair, she's still the hottest thing ever. Miss Kathy, are you on here? Please tell us what TV shows Valerie Bertinelli was in. I know you know them.

Tiffany Mason 9:01

One day at a time.

Jay Franze 9:03

That's the one. Thank you. One day at a time. There was another one, too.

Tiffany Mason 9:09

Hot in Cleveland.

Jay Franze 9:11

Well, that was later in life. Those ones she started out with. Anyways, one day at a time is the one I was thinking of. She is beautiful. I love her. I would leave my wife for her right now.

SPEAKER_06 9:22

Jennifer.

Jay Franze 9:24

Just a joke. Everybody relax. Next on the list, Devin Townsend. Ah, here we go. Another one. Michael Anthony. Michael Anthony was the bass player of Van Halen. He has since gone on to play with just about any project that Sammy Hagar has put together. He is a super nice guy, super talented bass player. And he's got the most unique background vocal. When he sings background vocals on a record, you can tell it's him a mile away. All of the Van Halen records had this really cool background vocal sound, and it was Michael and Eddie that sang the background vocals. But it's Michael's vocal that everybody hears and knows him for. So yes, look at that. Alright, wrapping it up, bringing it in, closing it down. We have Miles Kennedy. Never met him. Super talented singer. Like him a lot. Miles, if you want to come on here.

Tiffany Mason 10:34

This is not a super talented singer list. This is a nice person list.

Jay Franze 10:40

And he's at the top of this one too.

Tiffany Mason 10:42

Well, he's probably come on the show then because he's really nice.

Jay Franze 10:45

He is very nice. Miles, come on. jfranzi.com. He is known for playing with slash.

SPEAKER_05 10:54

Oh, cool.

News

Jay Franze 10:55

Alright. Well, that's good. I like it. Good list. Not a bad start.

Tiffany Mason 11:01

Okay. Well, first, Mr. Morgan Wallen is expanding his tour, but not without controversy. So Wallen just added major dates to his already massive tour, proving demand has not slowed.

Jay Franze 11:16

Tell us what the controversy is.

Tiffany Mason 11:18

Jay, I knew you were gonna say that. And I looked it up, and it just basically was like it there's nothing like necessarily current. They're just talking about his reputation in general in the country music industry. It was kind of lackluster. So I wish you had not asked me. Okay. Now, what I was saying is he's added major dates to his already massive tour. Proving demand has not slowed. So check your tour schedule to see if he'll be in your area soon. Another thing that is important to me, Mr. Zach Bryan drops surprise music. Fans are going wild again. He continues his no rules release strategy with new music that hits streaming with zero warning. So when they are saying like he's doing his own thing, he is dropping music whenever he wants, he's doing minimal promotion of it. Uh, he's got direct-to-fan approach using social media to share snippets, updates, even full songs directly with the fans, which I don't know, I would think as a record label, you're not real happy about that. But looser production style, not everything is polished to perfection, which I feel like we've been saying that a lot, that everything is so polished. So he's kind of taking a different direction. Some of the tracks feeling raw, live, emotionally immediate, and breaking format rules, longer songs, unconventional structures, and projects that do not fit standard radio expectations.

Jay Franze 12:50

Now I guess the question is, will they be put on the radio?

Tiffany Mason 12:54

Mm-hmm. Yeah, if you're not playing by the rules.

Jay Franze 12:58

What do they say? F the rules. Yeah.

Tiffany Mason 13:02

I think they say F the rules and ask for forgiveness later.

SPEAKER_02 13:06

Maybe.

Tiffany Mason 13:09

Jelly Roll bridges country and rock with major festival push. Jelly Roll is stacking appearances across both country and rock festivals this season. His genre blending momentum is turning him into one of the most versatile headliners in music right now.

Jay Franze 13:27

Yeah, we like country and rock. We like them together. We'll see.

Tiffany Mason 13:32

Yeah, yep, yep. Okay. Well, Miss Laney Wilson continues award season dominance. Wilson is racking up nominations again, cementing her place as one of country's most consistent stars. She is once again the most nominated artist of 2026 ACM Awards, earning seven nods, including Entertainer of the Year and Female Artist of the Year. The nominations extend her streak as one of country music's most recognized names and continued success, both as an artist and a songwriter. Okay, well, Luke Combs is next, and he is keeping stadiums, his stadium run, rolling, strong. Combs continues to sell out stadiums at a pace few country artists ever reach. His ability to stay relatable while scaling globally is becoming his defining advantage.

Jay Franze 14:26

I like him. He is probably my favorite country artist at the moment. I really do like him a lot.

SPEAKER_05 14:33

I want to tell you about Food Fighters. Tell me about announcing new tour dates. Okay.

Tiffany Mason 15:14

But I did not say anything about Ohio.

Jay Franze 15:18

Well, to be fair, Chicago is not far.

Tiffany Mason 15:21

It's not.

Jay Franze 15:22

Chicago's four hours, Nashville's four hours.

Tiffany Mason 15:25

Stop it. Chicago's only four hours for you?

Jay Franze 15:28

Yeah. Why does that seem like such a big surprise to you?

Tiffany Mason 15:33

It seems so much further away to me.

Jay Franze 15:36

That's because you're in Florida. However, for me.

Tiffany Mason 15:40

I think you said Florida like six times to me today, and I freaking love it. Florida.

Jay Franze 15:46

I don't know how I'm saying it wrong.

Tiffany Mason 15:48

It's always with the vowels. I've decided that any accent is with the vowels.

Jay Franze 15:53

Okay, good.

Tiffany Mason 15:54

Florida. Florida. But I say Florida.

Jay Franze 15:57

Florida.

Tiffany Mason 15:58

You say Florida. It's okay.

SPEAKER_00 16:06

Given any of fire, goodbye.

SPEAKER_05 16:11

Okay.

Tiffany Mason 16:13

Well, if you like Foo Fighters, I do like Foo Fighters.

Jay Franze 16:17

You got more news about Foo Fighters?

Tiffany Mason 16:19

No, but I was saying if you like Foo Fighters, do you like Green Day?

Jay Franze 16:23

Um I like things about Green Day. Um, what I like about Green Day the most, mixed by Chris Lord Algy, who is one of the best mixed engineers in the world, and I think he is single-handedly the reason why their album American Idiot became such popular and got them Grammys. Anyways, I think they're good. I like their music, but I like his touch on their music.

Tiffany Mason 16:49

Yeah, okay. I can appreciate that. Well, they are building momentum with new material and tour buzz. The band's latest releases are gaining traction as their tour buzz ramps up. They are proving legacy bands can still compete in today's streaming heavy landscape. Legacy band? I don't know. Legacy's old when I hear that.

Jay Franze 17:13

When I think of legacy bands, I think of bands that are much older, they're still performing.

Tiffany Mason 17:18

Green Day Aren't they like our age?

Jay Franze 17:23

Well, we we are a legacy, trust me. We're we're a legacy show at this point. However, yeah, I think Green Day is I would hope they were still in the middle of that. They're obviously not at the beginning of their career, but they shouldn't be at the end of their career.

Tiffany Mason 17:44

So I guess their legacy now. It's like when when they play the oldies and it's stuff that I completely relate to.

SPEAKER_05 17:51

I'm like, wait, why is this the oldies? This is like soft rock.

Jay Franze 17:54

Well, I heard uh legacy must be the term these days. Everybody keeps referring to legacy bands. And someone referred to Queens Rake the other day as legacy, and I was like, oh dear god, I don't want to hear that. But Jeff Tate's out on his his final tour. Yeah. So I guess your legacy. I want to know what marks a legacy band.

SPEAKER_05 18:17

Look it up.

Jay Franze 18:18

If you're still performing, are you a legacy? I don't know. Sorry. Sorry, Jeff.

Tiffany Mason 18:28

Maybe it's the amount of memories you've provided to history.

Jay Franze 18:33

Okay. What qualifies a band as a legacy band?

Tiffany Mason 18:45

Have you spelled all that out all by yourself?

Jay Franze 18:48

I mistyped it 15 times for some reason. It is a musical group with a long career, usually decades, that has achieved peak popularity and maintains a loyal fan following, allowing them to sell out shows and arenas and headline festivals on their historical catalog rather than new chart material. So then do they qualify as legacy then?

Tiffany Mason 19:15

I think so because they're selling out based on their previous material.

Jay Franze 19:19

Which is the same thing Jeff Tate's doing.

Tiffany Mason 19:22

Yeah. This is another legacy band. Metallica keeps reinventing the live show experience. Now this sound this sounds kind of cool. Metallica continues pushing boundaries with their massive stage production and unique tour setups. The band's latest tour features a full in-the-round stage setup with fans surrounding the performance from every angle, along with towering LED screens, rotating visuals, and synchronizing lights and pyrotechnics. Combined with changing set lists each night, Metallica is redefining what a stadium show can look and feel like. When we saw Nate Bragazzi in the round, it didn't bother me in the slightest. What would be appealing to the audience? I mean they have towering LED screens and rotating visuals.

Jay Franze 21:15

Probably suggested by the therapist.

Tiffany Mason 21:32

Oh, she likes the term. Okay. Probably because she's been calling bands legacy for a long time.

Jay Franze 21:41

Miss Kathy.

Tiffany Mason 21:42

I love you, mom.

SPEAKER_06 21:43

I love your mom. Mom.

Tiffany Mason 21:45

I didn't say anything like that, Miss Kathy. I just want to throw that out there. Okay. Lenny Kravitz. New music fuels career resurgence. Kravitz is writing a fresh wave of attention. With new releases and high-profile performances. His timeless sound is connecting with both longtime fans and new listeners. And the second I hear Lenny Kravitz, all I can think of is his song Fly Away. Just floods my brain. I can't.

Jay Franze 22:17

Well, he's got new music, so therefore he's not a legacy artist.

SPEAKER_03 22:21

No, no.

Jay Franze 22:23

He could be at this point, but your mother says she loves to hear your voice too.

Tiffany Mason 22:28

Ah, I know. She's just saying that. No, she says it every time she talks to me on that.

Jay Franze 22:33

None of us want to hear it.

Tiffany Mason 22:35

Jay?

Jay Franze 22:36

Hmm? Oh, did that come out on it?

Tiffany Mason 22:38

Um, tell Jay to be nice.

Jay Franze 22:40

Oh, sorry.

Tiffany Mason 22:43

He's not sorry. Okay. Well, I think everybody wants to hear my voice, Jay.

Jay Franze 22:48

So yes, no, it's not your voice they want to hear, it's the laugh. They like your laugh. They've never once said a word about your voice.

Tiffany Mason 22:56

It's true. I stand corrected.

Jay Franze 23:00

Your mother says, easy, baby.

Tiffany Mason 23:02

Easy. Okay, Pearl Jam maintains legacy status with ongoing tour demands. Pearl Jam continues to draw massive crowds, reinforcing their saying power, even while not actively on tour right now. Their fan loyalty remains one of the strongest in rock history.

Jay Franze 23:22

Legacy. There's the term again.

Tiffany Mason 23:24

I know. We had a lot of legacy ones tonight.

Jay Franze 23:28

I liked Pearl Jam for the album 10.

Tiffany Mason 23:32

I liked Pearl Jam for the songs they put on the radio. I don't know if I liked any of the other ones.

Jay Franze 23:39

Well, to be fair, you've never gone deep enough to listen to the other ones.

Tiffany Mason 23:43

No. No. I didn't know about these deep cut things. I really only paid attention to what they put on the radio. That was it.

Jay Franze 23:52

Pearl Jam songs that are on the radio from Pearl Jam are probably off the album 10.

Tiffany Mason 23:58

Well, thank you for letting us know that.

Jay Franze 24:00

Just saying.

Tiffany Mason 24:02

You like that legacy. That's probably what they are. That's probably what they're building their legacy status off of.

SPEAKER_02 24:11

Yeah.

Question of the Day

Tiffany Mason 24:11

Yeah. And that's the news we decided you should know.

Jay Franze 24:17

Moving on, question of the day. Question of the day. If you had an all access pass to hang with any artist, who would it be and why? If you had a backstage pass to hang with any artist for one night, don't get carried away. Who would it be and why? This question comes from James. If you would like to submit a question of the day, you can do that by sending it to feedback at jfranzi.com. But this one I thought was kind of interesting. It's a different approach. He's taking it from a different angle. He's expanding his talents. I say that because James provides us with a lot of questions of the day. That's why we call him Question of the Day, James. All right. Miss Tiffany, would you like to go first or last?

Tiffany Mason 25:03

Well, I'm gonna go first. So the one that keeps coming to mind is Taylor Swift for many, many reasons. Okay. I want to know how chaotic her life actually is. I want to know how many times she calls or texts Travis. I want to know about wedding plans.

Jay Franze 25:22

To be fair, Travis would probably be there.

Tiffany Mason 25:24

Well, maybe not. Maybe he's, you know, training.

Jay Franze 25:27

Maybe he's got a game or something. I don't know.

Tiffany Mason 25:29

Right. Maybe he's earning millions. Then we could talk about, you know, like the backup dancers and the costume changes, and every time that she's gonna change her microphone or her guitar, you know, these things. That's what I wanna wanna delve into that. Those aspects of her life. But then I think there's other people like Jennifer Lopez, the dancing and the performance, also smoking hot bod. So are we working out to keep this bod or what are we doing exactly? And fabulous hair. How does she take care of this hair? I need to know these things. So it would definitely be a female, I think. I don't think I'm gonna hang out with any dudes. Dudes. I don't think so. I think I'm really interested in costumes and costumes and dancing. Stage personal care, yeah.

Jay Franze 26:23

Personal care tips.

Tiffany Mason 26:26

But Taylor, because she's planning a wedding. So wedding coordinator probably reaches out. I finally find out tidbits that I can later spill to the tabloids. The rags. Who would you hang out with, Jay?

Jay Franze 26:39

Oh. Who would I hang out with for a day? Or we say hang out with for a day. We're going backstage, you probably get one hour to sit there. I rather than picking somebody standard because that's boring. I would want something of a little bit of activity, something a little bit more ruckus. You know, I want the the time Morgan Wallen is throwing TVs off of a balcony, that type of stuff. I want. Or you know, the the hijinks that Zeppelin would get in back in the day, or that type of stuff. I want to Okay. I want that.

Tiffany Mason 27:18

So you want to see some crap go down.

Jay Franze 27:21

I want to see some some big stuff, you know, the Beatles, you know, what was it like backstage?

Tiffany Mason 27:25

Or maybe like groupies following after these guys and throwing undergarments out.

Jay Franze 27:32

I get that all the time. Okay.

SPEAKER_05 27:34

I don't need to see that. Forgot. Sorry. Yeah, no, I need to see something different. Old hat.

Jay Franze 27:40

I don't know. Um, but you mentioned Taylor Swift, that would be cool too. I would like to see Taylor.

Tiffany Mason 27:46

You didn't really say anybody but Taylor Swift.

Jay Franze 27:49

I said the Beatles. I said Led Zeppelin. I mean, those are ones.

Tiffany Mason 27:53

Okay, you were saying like, so I didn't know you meant them.

Jay Franze 27:56

Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize it had to be spelt out. Yes. I would like to see some of the more ruckus stuff of bands, not just like, but say Zeppelin or the Beatles. Or even Elvis. Hell, I would like to be backstage with Elvis. That would have been cool.

Tiffany Mason 28:15

I would not like to do the Beatles because there's too many people chasing after those boys.

Jay Franze 28:19

That's what I want to see. I want to see motion.

Tiffany Mason 28:24

No. That's that's the next level.

Jay Franze 28:27

I told you I saw that with Tim and Faith.

Tiffany Mason 28:30

Yes.

Jay Franze 28:31

I saw that level of excitement out of their fans. That was cool.

Tiffany Mason 28:37

Shaking the car back and forth.

Jay Franze 28:39

Yeah. Driving down the red carpet was cool.

unknown 28:43

Okay.

Jay Franze 28:43

Iron Maiden was pretty cool. Didn't do anything exciting.

SPEAKER_03 28:47

Okay. It was just cool to be with them.

Jay Franze 28:49

It was cool to hang with them. Because, you know, I grew up listening to Iron Maiden, and you know, they were big when I was in high school. So it was just cool being around them. I think Five Finger Death Punch was cool last year. Thank you, Bruce. Bruce Ryder, previous guest of the show. So when he came to town, he invited me out to see him work at front of house, which was really cool. So I got to go backstage with them. I got to see Marilyn Manson backstage when I was there for that show. He was, I would say, almost dressed normal. He still had his platform shoes on. Anyways, let's see what everybody else says because my choice is I'm talking myself out of them as I go on. Jackie says the Oak Ridge Boys.

SPEAKER_05 29:37

The Oaks.

Jay Franze 29:38

The mighty Oaks. Yeah, I could see that. The Oak Ridge Boys. No, I've had that opportunity three or four times thanks to Scotty and thanks to William Lee Golden, both previous guests of the show. I actually took my wife backstage to the Oak Ridge Boys. That was really cool. We got to hang out with Scotty and William and all them and get to go on the tour bus, and it was fun, but nothing like ruckus. It was just fun. Fun to be with friends. But it was cool. I like it. Gerald, Gerald Rabus, father of Stephanie Rabus. That's why I'm mentioning the last name. Previous guest of the show. She just put out a new song. It's amazing. We need to keep an eye out for it. I got a sneak peek of it the other day. It is really, really good. I got to hear sneak peeks along the stages of production. So I get to hear it in, you know, while it was being worked on.

SPEAKER_03 30:34

Uh-huh.

Jay Franze 30:34

Again, I can't thank Gerald and Stephanie enough for uh you know sending me copies and allowing me to listen to it. So it was very cool. However, he also says William Lee Golden. Singer of the Oak Ridge Boys, one of the singers of the Oak Ridge Boys. All right, Michael, Michael D, the Michael D. Michael says, You know my answer. Why? Well, because he's the voice. Journey.

SPEAKER_06 31:15

Oh, dang it.

Jay Franze 31:17

He says journey. He answers us every week, and he says journey almost every time. But this time he used the nickname of the voice, which is Steve Harry's nickname.

SPEAKER_03 31:27

D equals Journey. Journey equals the voice.

Jay Franze 31:36

Sorry, Michael. Okay. Apparently not memorable to Tiffany unless she writes it down. And even then, another Mike, not the Mike, but another Mike says Bon Jovi. They've been my favorite band since I was five.

SPEAKER_03 31:53

Aww. She's probably as old as me. Yeah.

Jay Franze 31:59

Bon Jovi used to be one of my favorite bands. Still not a bad band, but they used to be one of my favorite. I mean, I used to be.

SPEAKER_06 32:06

How'd they get knocked down?

Jay Franze 32:08

Well, I'm a fan of rock bands from that time and stuff, and I really like them, but I think their later albums became a little too commercial and a little too polished.

Tiffany Mason 32:20

And then as sold out to the man.

Jay Franze 32:24

As you dig into those albums, that's when John Bon Jovi started writing with Nashville songwriters. So it went from a band writing their own material and was a little bit more raw to writing with Nashville songwriters, which made it a little bit more polished. Which is where you know I don't dislike it. I mean, I think they're incredibly crafted songs. I just liked the raw stuff they did earlier better. But yes, I I always thought of him as an amazing songwriter. And you know, I still think he's an amazing songwriter. He still co-wrote all the highly commercial songs. But I liked the earlier stuff.

SPEAKER_03 33:04

Okay.

Jay Franze 33:05

He wrote the song Runaway before the band was actually a band.

SPEAKER_05 33:09

Oh, really?

Jay Franze 33:10

Yeah. His uncle worked in a recording studio, and he hung around that studio all the time, wrote the song Runaway, got a record deal off of it, and didn't have a band. So they formed the band at that point.

SPEAKER_05 33:26

Oh my goodness.

unknown 33:27

Yeah.

Jay Franze 33:29

Again, that was a great song. I mean that's back when they were raw. So Kim. Kim says totally Elvis. See. Kim, we're on the same page. I'd want to see be backstage with Elvis too.

SPEAKER_05 33:50

Yeah.

Jay Franze 33:51

Alright. Kim, different Kim. We had two mics in a row, now we get two Kims in a row. All right.

Tiffany Mason 33:59

She says The Mics and the Kims are in the house.

Jay Franze 34:01

She says Alanis because I love her and she's my favorite. She also says Reba because she's fun and I'd like to be around her. And I'd also like to know her aging secrets.

SPEAKER_06 34:16

Okay.

Jay Franze 34:17

Well there you go.

SPEAKER_06 34:20

Oil of Olay.

Jay Franze 34:22

Ginger. Love that name. Cannot hear that name and not think of Gilligan's Island.

Tiffany Mason 34:31

The professor Ann Mary Ann.

Jay Franze 34:35

But Ginger says Paul McCartney. And then Dave says, yes, he's the best. Paul? Paul says James Hetfield. Oh, come on, Miss Tiffany. Singer of your favorite rock band.

SPEAKER_06 34:52

Metallica. There you go.

Jay Franze 34:55

He says we share very similar interests. And well, I mean it's Metallica. Paul, do you need therapy? I can't, I can't. Every single time I hear the word Metallica, all I can think of is that documentary.

Tiffany Mason 35:14

But that's gonna be our next question of the day. What documentary ruined the band for you?

Jay Franze 35:20

It didn't ruin the band, it just made things weird. Miss Kathy. Miss Kathy, mother of Miss Tiffany. She says Chris Young.

SPEAKER_06 35:32

She always says Chris Young. She likes Chris Young.

Jay Franze 35:35

What can she say? She says it would be fun to see what inspires his music and get to have a glimpse of his personality. Yeah. You know what else would do that, Miss Kathy? If we could keep Chris on the show. Chris, we know you're listening. jfrancy.com. Come join us. All right, wrapping it up, winding it down, bringing it in. We have the Mark Botellato.

Tiffany Mason 36:06

Okay, what'd he say?

Jay Franze 36:07

Previous guest of the show.

Tiffany Mason 36:10

Keeper of all facts.

Jay Franze 36:12

Keeper of all facts. If Mark was on the show, we would not have to use Google for sure.

SPEAKER_03 36:18

No, no.

Jay Franze 36:20

Mark says, I mean, I did. And well, you were there. So what he's referring to is Monsters of Rock 1988. Mark and I went to see Monsters of Rock in Maine. And Van Halen was the headliner, Metallica was there, Scorpions were there, Dawkins was there, Kingdom come. It was amazing. And Mark and I got to sit on stage during those shows. So everybody's watching the show, and we're there on stage with the bands. It was very, very cool. I remember playing Dawkins keyboards while the other bands were on stage. And we were young at that time, so we were what 19, 20 years, 20 years old at best. Actually, yeah, 19. So cool. And we're on stage with Van Halen and Scorpions and watching Scorpions, you know, going by on a golf cart with girls flashing them as they're driving by and stuff. Oh, yeah. So that was that was a good time to be to be backstage with people. We didn't get to spend much time with Van Halen. That would have been cool. Yeah, that would have been a cool one, especially at that time when they're at the height of their career. That would have been really cool.

Tiffany Mason 37:39

How'd you guys get backstage?

Jay Franze 37:41

Uh Mark's father. Mark's father got us tickets. I don't know how he got them. I don't remember the the details. But he got us backstage.

SPEAKER_06 37:51

Wow.

Jay Franze 37:52

Yeah. You know, for whatever reason, our parents didn't care that we left the state. I mean, we're 18, 18, 19 years old at that time. I guess it doesn't matter. But we left the state. We went to Maine and checked it out, and it was awesome. It was one of the best shows you could go to as a kid for sure.

Tiffany Mason 38:10

Is Maine really that far from Massachusetts? No.

Jay Franze 38:14

To get from Boston to Portland, which are the two main cities: Boston, Massachusetts, Portland, Maine.

Tiffany Mason 38:19

Hour and a half.

Jay Franze 38:22

Depends on who's driving.

Tiffany Mason 38:24

All right, what did we just do?

Jay Franze 38:25

Question of the day, let's move on to the countdown.

Tiffany Mason 38:29

Our country charts. Starting with number 10.

Jay Franze 38:32

Oh, almost forgot.

Tiffany Mason 38:34

Why?

Jay Franze 38:35

I always forget.

Tiffany Mason 38:36

We're at 10. Okay. Number 10. I got a new one by Elizabeth Nichols. And in spot number nine, Beautiful Things by Megan Moroni. This song's actually really sweet. It's talking about how hard the world is on beautiful things, and it's talking about the girls are the beautiful things.

Jay Franze 38:54

It's a very nice song.

Tiffany Mason 38:55

It is. Okay, spot number eight is Turn This Truck Around by Jordan Davis. Spot number seven is Change My Mind by Riley Green.

Jay Franze 39:06

I like that song as well.

Tiffany Mason 39:08

I do too. And wasn't it Mr. RJ Preston that was talking about Riley Green?

Jay Franze 39:14

Yes.

Tiffany Mason 39:15

Mm-hmm. And his lead guitarist, sorry, I should catch the crew up. The show that we just did was RJ Preston. And RJ Preston was talking about being produced by the lead guitarist.

Jay Franze 39:30

Lead guitarist for Riley Green.

Tiffany Mason 39:32

Yeah. Yep. So sorry, I just saw the name Riley Green, and I was like, wait, RJ Preston was just talking about that.

Jay Franze 39:38

I will put a link in the show notes.

Tiffany Mason 39:40

Please do so. Jay, please put a link in the show notes.

Jay Franze 39:44

Thanks for adding more work.

Tiffany Mason 39:50

Spot number six is Brunette by Tucker Wetmore.

Jay Franze 39:54

No, have you listened to it yet?

Tiffany Mason 39:58

Okay. Okay. Side note. I have not listened to it yet because, okay, we went to Dylan Scott on Friday night and Tyler Nance opened for him. And the song that I keep thinking is Brunette is this song by Tyler Nance. But every time it comes on, I'm like, oh, this is probably that brunette song. And I listen for a minute and then I'm like, oh, he's not talking about any brunettes. So then I just like zone out again. So we're at the concert and he starts singing the song. And I'm like, oh my gosh, this is that song that I always think is brunette. So I I I one, don't know the name of that song. And two, still have not listened to brunette.

Jay Franze 40:41

You are very helpful. Very helpful. I guarantee you've heard the song, Brunette. You just don't know what it is.

SPEAKER_05 40:48

Yeah, yeah.

Jay Franze 40:48

It's all over the radio right now. You can cannot not hear it.

SPEAKER_05 40:53

Okay, then I heard it. I did. I just didn't recognize that.

Jay Franze 40:56

I just don't know what it is.

Tiffany Mason 40:59

Okay, spot number five is The Fall by Cody Johnson. Spot number four, I got better by Morgan Wallen. Spot number three, What He'll Never Have, Dylan Scott. And spot number two, sleepless in a hotel room.

Jay Franze 41:18

Man, you want these things, but you don't even give me a moment.

unknown 41:22

I forgot.

Jay Franze 41:24

Gonna stop. Miss Kathy, is it all right to stop the sound effects? Or do we have to keep going with them?

Tiffany Mason 41:29

No, we have to keep going.

Jay Franze 41:30

Well, you don't even give me the opportunity to do them.

Tiffany Mason 41:34

Because my girl needs some recognition. You got that clapping ready?

Jay Franze 41:40

Oh, now you want a sound effect?

Tiffany Mason 41:43

Now I do.

Jay Franze 41:44

Oh dear God, please.

Tiffany Mason 41:45

Because spot number one is still Ella Langley with choosing Texas. Choosing Texas.

Jay Franze 42:01

Oh, congratulations.

Tiffany Mason 42:04

Congratulations, Ella.

Jay Franze 42:06

Not that you need it from us. You just seem to be doing really well.

Tiffany Mason 42:11

Let's say you know you've made it when we're proud of it.

Jay Franze 42:16

Well, to be fair, that is true.

Tiffany Mason 42:20

Okay. Going to the rock charts.

SPEAKER_02 42:22

There you go.

Tiffany Mason 42:25

Spot number 10, twisting the knife by Ice Nine Kills, featuring McKenna Grace. And spot number nine, Searchlight by Shinedown.

Jay Franze 42:36

Great song, great band.

Tiffany Mason 42:38

I think I'm gonna check that one out. Number eight, from me to you by Baby Metal, featuring Poppy.

Jay Franze 42:47

Wait, wait, wait. We got breaking news. I just want to say. Ms. Kathy says, Nope. Girls love the sound effects.

Tiffany Mason 42:56

Yes. Yes. Yep.

SPEAKER_02 42:59

Alright, fine.

Tiffany Mason 43:00

I told you. And I want all the sound effects. But not the one where you fire me. Don't do that one. Okay, spot number seven. Kerosene by the warning.

Jay Franze 43:11

Warning's a cool band. Oh. It's young girls. Young girl band. Okay. Out of Mexico.

SPEAKER_03 43:20

Mexico. Okay.

Jay Franze 43:22

If you haven't checked them out, check them out. They're definitely a talented, talented group.

Tiffany Mason 43:27

Cool. Okay, spot number six is Wake Up Calling by Papa Roach.

Jay Franze 43:34

Always been one of my favorites.

Tiffany Mason 43:38

Spot number five. Safe and sound by Shinedown.

Jay Franze 43:44

Oh, they're one of my favorites.

Tiffany Mason 43:46

Exciting. Yeah.

Jay Franze 43:49

I do like Shinedown.

SPEAKER_05 43:51

Okay, wait for it. Spot number four. Oh. Your favorite toy by Foo Fighters. Yeah.

Jay Franze 43:58

One of my favorites. One of my daughter's favorites.

Tiffany Mason 44:04

Right. Okay, there we can switch it up. Spot number three. Now, do you say caramel or caramel?

Jay Franze 44:12

Depends on when I'm using it. But typically caramel.

Tiffany Mason 44:16

What's it a topping?

Jay Franze 44:17

I'd say, you know, past the caramel. I like caramel.

Tiffany Mason 44:21

Okay. Me too.

Jay Franze 44:22

Caramel.

Tiffany Mason 44:23

Caramel. Okay, well. Laying it down. Well, we're on the same page because I always say caramel too. Do you say syrup or syrup?

Jay Franze 44:30

Syrup.

Tiffany Mason 44:32

Ugh. There's a Y in there. Syrup. Syrup. Mr. Mason says syrup. Syrup. No. Okay, well, spot number one.

Jay Franze 44:41

We lose we lose letters and syllables.

SPEAKER_05 44:44

Every day.

Jay Franze 44:45

Whatever makes it easy.

SPEAKER_05 44:48

Oh, okay.

Tiffany Mason 44:49

Spot number three. The song Carmel by Sleep Token. Nice.

Jay Franze 44:57

I have yet to do a deep dive on them, but I really want to because I hear nothing but great things.

Tiffany Mason 45:03

Okay, well, Carmel is the first song you can check out.

Jay Franze 45:07

I will do that.

Tiffany Mason 45:08

I mean, they're on the chart.

Jay Franze 45:10

I've heard the song. I want to check it out as a as a whole. An album like the way we did back in the day.

Tiffany Mason 45:18

Mm-hmm. Yeah, yep, yep. Okay. Spot number two. Who will you follow by the five?

SPEAKER_05 45:33

Good call.

Jay Franze 45:35

My daughter has become an Evanescence fan lately. Actually has the poster hanging on her wall.

SPEAKER_06 45:42

Snap.

Jay Franze 45:43

Both daughters do at this time. I got three, but only two of them have the poster. Because the other one is four.

Tiffany Mason 45:49

Little Valen didn't. She got no Evanescence poster up on her wall.

Jay Franze 45:55

However, first real poster my kids have put up. Bella's got like a thousand postcards of every artist under the sun. I don't know how that came about, but. Anyways, sorry. Evanescence.

Tiffany Mason 46:11

Spot number one, so far, so fake, by Pierce the Veil.

Jay Franze 46:23

Now I know we've said this quite a bit about this being the favorite band, this being the favorite band. That Pierce the Veil is truly my daughter Bella's favorite band. And I know you've brought it up before. We listen to them in the car all the time. They're coming here for two festivals, one in Louisville and one in Cornwall.

Tiffany Mason 46:43

Oh, that's what you brought it up for. Yep.

Jay Franze 46:44

Yeah. So we're gonna try to go to at least one of those festivals so she could see them. And if I'm not mistaken, I think Hailstorm might be at one of those festivals.

Tiffany Mason 46:53

Wow.

Jay Franze 46:53

So, but hailstorms on a different day. I don't know if we'll get to see them all. But we saw Evanescence and Hailstorm together. They co-headlined a tour. That was pretty cool.

This Week in History

SPEAKER_06 47:07

Sounds cool. I like that.

Jay Franze 47:09

Alright, my friend. Shall we move on to this week in history? We are zoned in this week in history in 1998. Oh figured I would give you a fighting chance this time. This week in history, 1998, when Shania Twain dominated two worlds at once.

SPEAKER_03 47:37

Oh.

Jay Franze 47:38

With You're Still the One. It isn't just a country hit. It takes over the pop world.

SPEAKER_03 47:44

Oh wow.

Jay Franze 47:45

This is the exact moment that Nashville realized there is no ceiling in country music.

Tiffany Mason 47:52

Oh wow. I would beg to differ that that was the moment. No, it was the moment. It was the exact moment.

Jay Franze 47:59

It says so right there.

Tiffany Mason 48:01

Okay, it's in text. Okay.

Jay Franze 48:03

Pearl Jam lands hard with yield. It is a tighter, more focused record. Fans show up for it immediately. It's proof that grunge didn't just die, it evolved. Okay.

Tiffany Mason 48:19

I still love grunge.

Jay Franze 48:21

Really? It was never my favorite. And it probably wasn't my favorite because it killed hair metal.

SPEAKER_02 48:27

Oh.

Jay Franze 48:28

I loved hair metal. Anyways, Tim McGraw, he keeps stacking up the wins, still pumping out hits. McGraw is quietly becoming one of the most dependable hitmakers in the format.

Tiffany Mason 48:42

Oh, wow. Dependable hitmaker.

Jay Franze 48:46

Matchbox 20. They were all over the radio. They were too. They literally. If I had to pick an overall favorite band ever, it would probably be Matchbox 20. If I was forced. I said if I had to pick one overall.

Tiffany Mason 49:04

Okay, when you go through the editing of this episode, I'm aware of you and account how many times.

Jay Franze 49:11

Anyway.

Tiffany Mason 49:12

It's like the episode I said I was gonna say that. That's what I was gonna say.

Jay Franze 49:16

I like Matchbox 20.

Tiffany Mason 49:18

And if I had to say in 98, were you in Orlando? Must have been before then.

Jay Franze 49:22

I would I were moved to Orlando in 96, I think. And I was in Nashville by 99.

SPEAKER_03 49:29

Okay.

Jay Franze 49:30

So no, I don't know. That's a that seems short. That's only three years I was in Orlando for six years, so I was there in 93, I guess.

Tiffany Mason 49:38

Well, you were there for the rise of Matchbox 20, so that would make sense. Yeah.

Jay Franze 49:44

But I do like them. But anyways, Matchbox 20 owns the rotation on radio with 3M and push. Post grunge just became mainstream comfort food.

SPEAKER_05 49:56

Weird. That's a weird sentence.

Jay Franze 49:58

That's a weird sentence. Faith Hill, she breaks through with crossover heat with the song This Kiss.

Tiffany Mason 50:10

I like that song.

Jay Franze 50:11

But the industry didn't see it coming.

SPEAKER_05 50:14

Whoa.

SPEAKER_06 50:16

Blindsided.

Jay Franze 50:18

It set her up to be in superstar status.

Tiffany Mason 50:23

Oh wow.

Jay Franze 50:25

Our legacy artist Green Day keeps alt rock loud and relevant. Nimrod continues to deliver. It's not a nice thing to call them. No. Call them Nimrods. That's not nice.

Tiffany Mason 50:44

No, and I think I may have shared this on the show before, but my go-to song when it feels like I'm gonna lose my crap is basket case. Because I feel like that song. Yeah. Do you have the time to listen to me whine? Because really, like we all just have, I mean, a lot of us generally speaking have first world problems. It's really not that big of a deal. But that's what that song always makes me think of. So if you need a legacy band to calm you down in the midst of the chaoticness of life, Green Day is the Green Day's got you.

Jay Franze 51:25

All right. Foo Fighters.

SPEAKER_05 51:28

Oh my gosh.

Jay Franze 51:30

Foo Fighters. The color and the shape is still cranking out hits like My Hero. Dave Grohl's post-Nirvana chapter is no side project, it's the real deal. That's true. I like Foo Fighters a hundred times better than Nirvana.

SPEAKER_05 51:49

Yeah.

Jay Franze 51:49

Nirvana just created a genre. They get credit for that. But Foo Fighters is where the talent is at, for sure. Third Eye Blind. That's all I was gonna say about it. But Third Eye Blind keeps all pop hooks everywhere. Tracks like semi-charmed life drowning out the airwaves.

SPEAKER_06 52:12

Yeah. Semi-charmed kind of life. Baby, baby, I want something else.

Jay Franze 52:21

Nice. Look at you. It says Friends in Seinfeld, where the must-watch TV. Titanic was in the box office.

Tiffany Mason 52:31

You know what? I've been wanting to watch Titanic. Somebody posted on Facebook they were gonna watch it, and I was like, dang, I want to watch Titanic. I don't know. I just have this burning desire.

Jay Franze 52:40

Somebody said on the radio the other day, come on, Rose, there was still space on that door. I was like, okay.

SPEAKER_06 52:52

That's awesome.

Jay Franze 52:53

Anyways, MTV continues to drive what's cool.

SPEAKER_05 52:57

Yes.

Jay Franze 52:57

And CDs were flying off the shelves. Gaming and pop culture were coalliding or coalliding. Colliding.

SPEAKER_03 53:07

Colliding.

Jay Franze 53:07

They were coalliding. Oh, I read too.

Tiffany Mason 53:15

I was trying to think, you know, because I graduated in 98, and so I was trying to think about CDs flying off the shelf. I love when they the posts on Instagram, like when they're talking about a distracted driver, they're like, you think we're distracted with our phones?

SPEAKER_05 53:29

How about someone that was trying to change the CDs in their six-disc changer or the CDs off the uh visor? That was distracted driving. Especially if you dropped your CD.

Jay Franze 53:48

1998 was where country went global and rock found its polish.

SPEAKER_06 53:53

Oh wow.

Jay Franze 53:54

I don't know if I like that. All right, let's see what was on the charts. Country charts. I'll read them quick. I will start from 10 for you.

Tiffany Mason 54:04

Please.

Jay Franze 54:05

Then what?

Tiffany Mason 54:07

By who?

Jay Franze 54:08

Oh, Clay Walker. I got to see him at Laurie's Roadhouse. So then what? Clay Walker. Number nine, Broken Wing, Martina McBride. Number eight, Valentine. Jim Brickman in Martina McBride. On the chart twice and back to back.

Tiffany Mason 54:31

Nice.

Jay Franze 54:32

Number seven, the note. Number seven, the note, Daryl Singletary. Number six, I just want to dance with you, George Strait. Alright, get ready for this one. Okay. Bye-bye, Jody Messina. Pin it on your forehead. How about that? Pin it to your forehead. There we go. Jody Messina, bye-bye. Number four, one of those knights tonight. Laurie Morgan. Number three, this kissed, Faith Hill. Number two, you're still the one, Shania Twain. And number one, I'm alright. Jody Messina.

SPEAKER_06 55:15

I'm on the city.

Jay Franze 55:17

So she's on the chart twice as well.

Tiffany Mason 55:21

But what'd you want to say about the other one?

Jay Franze 55:24

Jody Messina.

Tiffany Mason 55:26

You just wanted to say on the chart twice.

Jay Franze 55:29

But she holds the number one spot.

SPEAKER_06 55:32

Bye bye bye bye, my baby, bye-bye.

Jay Franze 55:36

She's been on the road something fierce lately.

SPEAKER_06 55:39

Uh-huh.

Jay Franze 55:40

I would like to see her.

Tiffany Mason 55:42

I would too. She got a lot of lot of umph still in her.

Jay Franze 55:47

Wouldn't have said it like that, but she brings a lot of energy to the stage. Oh yes, that she might do. Alright. The rock charts. Open up your eyes by Tonic. I loved Tonic when they first came out. They did not quite do as much as I thought they would. But great band.

SPEAKER_05 56:08

I'm sorry.

Jay Franze 56:09

Great band. Alright, here you go. This one's for you. Number nine, the unforgiven dos.

SPEAKER_03 56:16

Dubbed the unforgiven.

Jay Franze 56:19

Number eight, rattlesnake live. Number seven, touch, peel, and stand, days of the new. Number six, time again, black lab. Number five, blue on black, Kenny Wayne Shepherd. Number four, givin' to fly, Pearl Jam. Number three, my hero, Foo Fighters. Get ready for it. Callin' back again. Fuel Metallica. It's not as rare as we thought it was, is it? And number one, most high, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. Who are key members of what band?

SPEAKER_03 57:04

I can't tell you.

Jay Franze 57:06

Not just members, they're key members of the band Led Zeppelin.

SPEAKER_03 57:11

That's what I said.

Jay Franze 57:12

Yes, it was just the accents. All right.

Tiffany Mason 57:18

Jimmy Page, Led Zeppelin.

Jay Franze 57:21

You're making no. You're gonna have stickies all over your computer so you remember some of this stuff.

Tiffany Mason 57:26

Well, they say if you write something with pen and paper, encodes deeper into your memory.

SPEAKER_03 57:33

That's true.

Tiffany Mason 57:33

But sometimes there's a lot that comes at me because I didn't know. And so then sometimes I retain it and sometimes I don't.

Jay Franze 57:42

All right. Moving on to the mailbag.

Tiffany Mason 57:46

Mailbag.

Jay Franze 57:47

There you go. Derek. Derek from Tulsa says, man.

Tiffany Mason 57:53

The Oklahoma area.

Mailbag

Jay Franze 57:54

The Oklahoma area. It never gets old.

Tiffany Mason 58:00

Nope, that's why you're still laughing. Tiffany.

SPEAKER_00 58:04

You're fired.

Jay Franze 58:06

Derek from Tulsa says, Man, this show is becoming my Wednesday night ritual. Oh dear God, I'm sorry, buddy. Because I throw it on in the garage, crack open a beer. It's like sitting with a real conversation in my head.

Tiffany Mason 58:20

Oh my god, I love that. Okay. That might be my favorite mailbag.

Jay Franze 58:25

All right, Derek, thank you. Lena. Lena from Jersey. Not new.

SPEAKER_06 58:33

Jesse.

Jay Franze 58:34

Just Jersey. Jay, you clearly know your stuff. I love the way you can put the pressure on a guest to tell the truth. You don't leave anything hanging. You put the pressure on and make them finish. Okay.

Tiffany Mason 58:50

It's very nice that you make your guest finish.

Jay Franze 58:55

That's something my wife complains about all the time. Your guests are. Oh, big Mike. Not the Mike. Big Mike.

Tiffany Mason 59:10

Okay. Oh.

Jay Franze 59:10

Big Mike, if you can tell me you're a trucker, you know, I'll make our night. Country radio ain't broken. It's bought. Same ten songs. Same ten songs in rotation. It's too safe, too crap. All right, big Mike. Big Mike's got opinions.

Tiffany Mason 59:34

I don't think it's too crap. I think the songs are good, but I think he's saying that playing it too safe is too crap. Yeah.

Jay Franze 59:42

Yeah. I would probably agree. If you play too safe, it's too crap. Too safe, too crap, our new t-shirt.

SPEAKER_05 59:50

Hashtag too safe too crap.

Jay Franze 59:53

Now that we found out who George is, we've got too safe too crap. Thanks, big Mike. Tell me you're a trucker, and that'll be the logo. Big rig coming through your chest. Oh, moving on. Marcus. Marcus from Atlanta. That's a new name here. Thank you, Marcus. Tiffany low-key keeps the whole thing grounded. Okay.

Tiffany Mason 1:00:20

Pretty much. Pretty much. You're welcome, Jay.

Jay Franze 1:00:26

You really listening? That's how we can tell you. You're not a real listener. That's how we can tell right there. Oh, Shelby. Shelby from Nashville. She says, Rock isn't dead. We're talking about people think rock is dead these days. Rock isn't dead. They're just not wearing leather pants anymore.

Tiffany Mason 1:00:48

They still should, though.

unknown 1:00:49

Yes.

Jay Franze 1:00:49

They still should. They should, yes. I I miss those days.

Tiffany Mason 1:00:53

More leather, more good. Okay.

Jay Franze 1:01:00

I don't know. I don't think rock is dead. I think rock goes through these phases. If we think about what rock is, it's rebellion. It's going against the the industry. So it doesn't typically get showcased. So you had bands like the Ramones who were going against the grain and they weren't put on on um the radio and all that stuff, but they blew up. And I think that's the stage we're in. I think the rock bands right now just aren't in the limelight. They're still there. They'll make their way through again. And I look forward to it.

SPEAKER_06 1:01:37

So encouraging.

Jay Franze 1:01:39

Nice. See that we're positive thinking people here. Hannah with an H from Kentucky. How much does a great mix actually matter anymore? Hannah, you hurt me right in the heart. It should matter. A great mix really makes a difference. Makes a good song great. It adds the color. It's like taking a pencil drawing and it and then adding color to it. It really makes the difference. The problem is people aren't audiophiles like they used to be. They're not listening to it in controlled environments. They put in earbuds and that's the end of it. So as long as things are loud enough and clear enough, they're happy. So it should matter, Hannah? With an H.

Tiffany Mason 1:02:29

Well, don't you think that listening to music used to be like an experience? And now it's almost like background noise because there's so much going on in the world all the time, so much is coming at you all the time. So if you're listening to music, you're also driving, or you're also walking, or uh you're also working, or you're you know, you're always doing something multitasking. So the color that people would be looking for, they're not looking for it anymore. You know, I mean, we're just so distracted.

What's Going On

Jay Franze 1:02:58

I agree, my friend. I agree. Sad. It's sad. We should be listening to music. It's the the mix that allows us to hear the nuance of the musicians. A good mix will allow you to get into the song and hear the little nuances of this the song, and even find mistakes or flaws in the recording. That's always cool to have that little Easter egg hunt of flaws that end up in a recording. There's famous Led Zeppelin songs that have flaws in them, which are cool to hear. So I don't know. A good mix really, really makes a difference. Sorry, Miss Hannah. All right. Wrapping it up, bringing it in. Shutting it down. Oh, calling it Finny with this one here. Travis from Dallas. The Texas area. Yes, I got it. Travis from Dallas. Is it still worth chasing a record deal in 2026? Depends on what you're looking to get out of your career. I would say yes. I think even though record labels get a bad rap, I still think they're worth it. I still think if you can't put up the money, if you can't put up the team of people to support you, yes, it's worth it. Now, make sure it's a good deal versus a bad deal is a difference. But yes, it's worth having it. And yes, they deserve part of that money because they are doing a lion's share of the work. And it's a business like any other business. A bad deal is different than somebody deserving their portion of the deal in the first place. All right, my friend. What do you have going on this week?

Tiffany Mason 1:04:53

Well, first of all, I just want to say that we went to Dylan Scott, Tyler Nance opened up, and it was a fantastic concert because you know, everyone's trying to figure out like new ways to do things. This was a rodeo first, and then the concert. So I've never seen really any rodeo aspect. So it was fun to see, you know, the bullfighters come out and harass the bulls and the bulls chase them, and then like a point system on that. It was fun to see the girls come out on the horses and do the barrel runs. And then we were shocked, okay. You know uh family feud. It's like the last family that answers the question right is the one that's gonna win because it seems like all the points leading up to that point don't even matter. And it was kind of like that. If they knocked over a barrel, they got a five second penalty, which was like an automatic loss. Just automatic. We think that there should have been like a two second penalty because then it keeps you in the running, but like closer to the end. But the five points, you're out, like you're just Automatically done. So, anyways, we were kind of laughing about that. And then it was at an equestrian center. So, afterwards, after the rodeo, then they pulled up like the pin or whatever that was keeping us all in the audience area. And we got to go to the stage, and we literally were very front row. Like we could have reached out and touched Dylan Scott and he could have given us a high five. We were so close.

Jay Franze 1:06:26

Did you do it?

Tiffany Mason 1:06:27

No. Um, no, he was not giving high fives to anybody, but it was really fun, and just to like see him not on the big screen. You know, like you always see the well, for me, I mean, I ain't getting no pit tickets every time. So this was a Christmas present, so that's why they were great seats. But, you know, normally you see the person on the big screen, and then like you see him little on the stage, and it was kind of the reverse. Like, we never watched any TV screen, we just watched Tyler Nance and and Dylan Scott in in Living Color right in front of us. It was really, really awesome. And it was so fun to hear Hannah and her friend just shouting the words. I mean, completely just shouting the words. It was so cool, so fun. And then just the way it fell, we actually have tickets to Russell Dickerson, so we're gonna go see good old Ross this Friday. And I'm really excited. Press is coming into town, so we're gonna go check him out, and I'm gonna go to a new venue. I've never been to the St. Augustine Amphitheater before, so that is gonna be super exciting. And then on Saturday, I'm gonna go to a songwriter festival. It's here in Nacote, and it is called Roscaloosa. It is the 14th year that they are doing it. So if anybody else is in my area and you guys are going to Roscaloosa, make sure you find me. I'll be wearing the Jay Franzi t-shirt. Make sure you find me, say hi to me, let's take a picture together. I am so excited, and I'm really excited because Justin Wilson is gonna be there. Nate Smith has actually um cut some of his songs, and Justin just has a great voice. You guys, some of these songwriters have great voices, they're just not pursuing the stage for whatever reason. And Justin has an awesome voice. I'm pumped to hear him again, and obviously always looking forward to new talent. So that's what I've got going on. It's a very jam-packed weekend, which I'm pumped about, which is rare for me.

Jay Franze 1:08:30

I know three shows.

Tiffany Mason 1:08:33

I know it's you. I know, very cool.

Jay Franze 1:08:36

Living the life.

Tiffany Mason 1:08:38

Well, for a short time. Those tickets for Russell Dickerson actually came out on Valentine's Day morning. They were buy one, get one. And I like read it and read it. I was like, wait, what? So for a hundred bucks, I got four seats. I know, I wish it was. I'd go to right.

Jay Franze 1:09:05

Then you could actually so when I saw that, I was like, What?

Tiffany Mason 1:09:08

Yeah, I was excited. So I jumped on that. So one was a Christmas present, and one was a Valentine's Day special. Look at me, live in large.

Jay Franze 1:09:18

What a surprise!

Tiffany Mason 1:09:19

What stop? What will you be doing this weekend, Jay?

Jay Franze 1:09:27

Well, it is gonna be a busy weekend as well, but it's gonna be a peaceful weekend.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:32

Okay.

Jay Franze 1:09:33

Because Lucy has a dance competition. It is out of town, and the wife will be taking Lucy and the baby, leaving me here in town with Bella. Nice. So we might try to go see Lucy perform at least one of the three days that they'll be there. However, we will be here in town, so I'm gonna hopefully get a lot of work done this weekend. Try to take take advantage of the time home alone and quiet to actually work. What a surprise. But as far as music goes this weekend, Blake Tyler, previous guest of the show, will be playing at Laurie's Roadhouse on Friday night. So that would be a show I would like to see for sure. And then Walker Montgomery is playing Saturday night at Laurie's Roadhouse. So I've seen him once before, but it was in a small, intimate acoustic setting. It was a state thing, breakfast with the governor. So it was like a charity event. That was kind of a cool environment to see the performance. But I would like to see him full band, would be great.

SPEAKER_05 1:10:46

Yeah, cool.

Jay Franze 1:10:47

And he was a nice guy, very nice guy. He could have been on our list.

Tiffany Mason 1:10:51

Well, we need a new list. Nice guys that are country music artists.

Jay Franze 1:10:56

Okay. We'll see if we can put one of those together for next time. Find it.

Tiffany Mason 1:11:00

I don't know.

Jay Franze 1:11:02

Anywho, I guess we'll crash it. Land it. Crash it. I don't know. Let's see. Yeah. Let's see which way it goes. Yeah. Which way will it go tonight? All right, my friends. Well, we have done it. We have reached the top of the hour. We have reached the top of our number dos, which does mean we have reached the end of the show. If you've enjoyed the show, please tell a friend and Miss Tiffany. If you have not.

Tiffany Mason 1:11:25

Tell two.

Jay Franze 1:11:26

Tell two. Tell them all. We appreciate any press we get. Good press, bad press. Either way, it's all the same to us. You can reach out to both of us over at jfranzy.com. You can keep that conversation going. We would appreciate that as well. There's boards on every episode. We would love to hear from you. All right, my friend. What say you?

SPEAKER_05 1:11:51

Oh my gosh, I thought that's what you were gonna say. I almost said it for you.

Tiffany Mason 1:11:58

Well, what I will say is that's it, crew. We are so thankful that you showed up and spent some time with us. And we will see you next week.

unknown 1:12:08

Nice.

Jay Franze 1:12:09

On that note, folks, have a good night.