LeAnn Rimes: Self Wrap is So Imminent

0:28I go to a lot of baseball games. for listening. Leanne Rimes is here. Great singer, great actor. Currently working on the new 9-1-1 with my brother Chad directing. New 9-1-1 Nashville. Kind of a perfect fit, I'm thinking. Lots to go over with her.

0:57Hey, how are you? Hi, I'm so good. Are you in Nashville right now? No, I'm in LA right now. I was just in Australia and I just got back and then I head to Nashville in a couple of days. And then, yeah, it's nuts. So you're starring on the 911 Nashville. Have you not shot anything yet? Oh, no, I've shot plenty. Yeah, we've been in the thick of it. It's been quite a crazy, as you know, like crazy situation where we're like juggling six different episodes at one time. But yeah, we started shooting in June. And yeah, I'm out for a couple episodes. They've been so kind to work around my touring schedule.

1:37And I'm just about to pop back in. Tell me about what you were doing in Australia. I was touring. Actually, last year, I was over in Australia like three months off and on. I was filming The Voice and had a blast. And then so we just kind of backed it up with a few shows. We played Sydney and Melbourne and Brisbane, a whirlwind of like a week and a half. And then, yeah, I'm back. So I'm still adjusting. If I fall asleep during this interview, you'll win. Oh my God. Isn't it? It's the most brutal ever. I shot in Melbourne for a

2:15to New York for the TV upfronts and back. Okay, that's just insane. I can still feel it. It was so many years ago, but literally that is the most horrifying trip ever. Yeah, it really is. Last year I was on The Voice Australia and The Voice UK and I had one week where everything overlapped. And so I was in Australia for a week filming, flew through, flew to Manchester, filmed for five days and then flew back. So I understand your pain when it comes to travel. Do you like doing, do you like, when you're on a panel, do you ever feel, I feel like it could go one of two ways. This is what I imagine.

3:03Like if I were judging acting, you're a great singer judging singers. Do you have like super amounts of sympathy and empathy? Or are you like, hey, you better, who told you that you should be a singer? I think it's a little of both, to be honest. Because it's funny, especially on the voice. I think the most intimidating thing is walking out and seeing those chairs turned around. And you don't see heads. So you're literally singing to the back chairs. And talking to a lot of, you know, the contestants after. They were like, we're nervous, we're fine. But when you walk out and see those four chairs, it's really intimidating.

3:41So I think I have a lot of empathy towards them and understanding of those stage nerves. But at the same time, you know, this is what you signed up for. So, you know, it's a little bit of both for sure. I'm pretty hard though. I'm a tough critic. Do you ever have that thing like, oh my God, that hacky song again? Really? Yes. There are some songs that are just like, what are people doing? Why are they choosing the song? Okay. Do we have your pet? Can you give me your pet peeve song? Oh, pet peeve song? Like where you're just like, oh, really? Oh, God. I don't know. That's a good question. I mean, this guy came out and it was actually kind of interesting.

4:24He came out and did I'm Too Sexy, but like as like a rock song. Okay. But that's a bad idea. That's different than pet peeve. So that's just a horrible idea. Yeah, just in general. But it actually made me perk up and listen because you're like, what the hell is this? So sometimes that could work for you, but it did not for him at that time. Yeah, I think it's the cheesy songs that people choose that they think that they're going to get them through. And I'm like, that's not going to work for you. I always feel like for me, it's the overwrought the overwrought song like you better land that plane if you're gonna play it's like oh I get it I'm supposed to cry okay sure whatever do you know what I mean yes if they don't nail it it can be very painful I see streams of blue I do cry at everything I was one of those that cried at all the things on the panel.

5:29I'm like a ball of theaters most of the time, especially when it comes to music. If someone's good and moves me, and that's what I looked for. I mean, you really have to, for me, it's all about like if people can emotionally move you. Because there's a lot of people who can sing, but there's like another level when people can like reach in your heart and twist it into knots and make you feel so. Okay, so what do you attribute that to? Because I, it's so funny you say this. I was thinking about interviewing you and I know you're a big Patsy Cline fan And Patsy Cline is one of my favorites as well.

6:01And the Katie Lang. Oh, I love Katie Lang. Obviously, I mean, I mean, huh? I mean, holy crap. For both of those, there's a tone. There's a certain tone that they have that's like round and warm. Right. And then there's the storytelling. telling. I mean, I think someone who really understands the story that they're telling and believes what they're, it's like acting, right? I mean, you have to believe what you're doing and, and commit to that. And, um, I, I mean, I learned that from listening to Patsy Klein when I was little. Like I remember she was probably one of the first people I ever listened to.

6:43And she just knew how to break your heart. And to me, those are the best singers. Katie is another one of those that just, and then when you wrap that warm tone there, it's just like, is heaven. It's bananas. I, I, I, uh, I saw Katie sing Cryon, the great warrior. I mean, it's such a throwdown and particularly when she goes for the big note and kind of like, she does this thing where it's like a plane and you're not sure it's going to reach altitude. Yes. Do you know what I mean? I don't know what that technique would even be, but it's and the cry there's also a cry in both of their voices yes that i love um another thing i learned from listening to patsy when i was little is that that that longing and cry um is just so beautiful and they have that like little yodel break thing that happens it's just i don't know there's it's just it's all these little components that when put together are absolute magic.

7:46So when you're on the panel, and the... By the way, how sick are the chairs? Let's just talk about... I don't think there's a show without the chairs, honestly. They're super cool, but they're very uncomfortable. Like, they're not what you expect. I was expecting like a massage or like give us something. We're sitting on that damn panel for hours outside. It's not as comfortable as you think, but they look really cool. I was on a show called Parks and Recreation and they brought the chair. They brought the, we all did a promo. You can find it on YouTube where we all were in the chair. And we actually put the chair, I think, in Ron Swanson's office.

8:24But it was like, you would have thought they brought like the Star Trek transporter. Like you were like, this technology. And of course it's just a guy moving a handle. Yeah, it's not anything fancy, like at all. No, you think it's going to be great and it's basically not. No, not at all. So you were the youngest solo artist ever won a Grammy. Does that record still stand, by the way? Yeah, it does. Wow. They don't, I mean, they don't produce child singers like me anymore. You know what I mean? Right. I feel like kids don't come out at 13 like I did anymore. It's so rare. um yeah I'm still I'm still the youngest which is wild to think about and what exactly was it for um I won for uh best vocal performance for blue and then I also won best new artist which I um I was the first country artist too to everyone best new artist at the time so um yeah it's a wild wild ride it's like going to your it's like yeah welcome to the NFL and oh but yeah here's the Super Bowl and you want it.

9:36Like you go, well, now what? Yeah, it is. It was that for sure. I remember I went to, going to the event because I was so young and because I was a country artist. My publicists, I remember asking them, I was like, should I like, should I come up with something to say in case it happens? And they're like, no, no, don't worry about it. It's like no one thought. And we get there and they have like the pre-awards, which my first award was the pre-awards. And I won that award. And we were like, well, maybe you should start thinking of something to say. So yeah, it was so unexpected. And I look back at that.

10:14I mean, that was such a whirlwind in my life. I don't have clear memories of it. I really have to watch the whole thing again to be like, oh yeah, that's what happened. Well, yeah, because A, you're young and two, you black out. You do. You do. It was such a weird experience. I wish somebody would have told me at that time in my life to like, take it all in, you know? But that only comes with age. You never know that at 13. I don't know. You don't know shit at 13. No. No. No, but I relate. I started at nine. You started at, I mean, you already. You started at nine? Yeah, eight, actually. Oh, wow.

10:53But like, you know, that local yokel stuff that you do. And we're this city where you like children's theater. And then I played every little kid part that there was. And like, you know, just knew I wanted to do it. But like, I've been doing it since, like you, since we were young enough to not know better. Yes. Which I think is actually a really great thing. Yes. I think. I mean, I started on stage when I was five. and I think I never had stage fright because I was it was like breathing like I literally came out of the womb and like went on stage is what it felt like so I think in certain ways like starting that young is such a beautiful thing because you just have no inhibitions um and it never really kicked in like luckily like not because I feel like I was because I'd done it so much all the time since five years old.

11:45Like by the time I was 11, you know, by the time anything would like kick in, I was basically a pro at what I was doing. So it was wild. You'd seen everything. Yeah. And when you, you grew up in Mississippi, is that where you were singing around Mississippi? So I grew up in Mississippi till I was six and then we moved to Garland, Texas. So I was singing, Texas had like more opportunities for me to sing. So that was part of the reason we moved and And they would have like, there was oprys, like little local oprys from in Fort Worth or Mesquite. And so I would go like on the weekends and sing at all these oprys.

12:21And that's where I got, you know, the experience was every weekend. Every weekend I was learning a new song. You know, I'm like a human jukebox, basically. So yeah, it was great experience for a kid. And it was wholesome too. Like those oprys weren't, it wasn't like I was singing in bars. it was like actual proper places to go sing. So it was a good way to get that experience as a child. What's your favorite music biopic? I mean, is it Sweet Dreams? That's Patsy. Oh, that's a great one. Jessica Lange's freaking insane in that movie. Insane. Yeah, Ed Harris. I mean, that's such a good movie. Yeah, that would probably be one of my favorite.

13:03I think Coal Miner's Daughter's better. You know what? I don't think I've ever seen Paul Miner's daughter. I've seen snippets, but I haven't seen like, I haven't seen the whole thing. I need to go watch it. This is basic. It's amazing. She's really singing, first of all. Okay. Jessica is not. That's true. Which is fine. I have no judgment on that. Yeah. I think sometimes, unless people can nail that, like, I don't want you to. No, yes. You know, I need to go watch that. It's so good. But it's like, it is that trope of, like both those gals did not have good pickers. No, no, they did not. They did not.

13:46But like great early manager pickers, like I know, you know what would be great to have an abusive alcoholic husband, but he's a great manager for podunk shit. I think that was the country music way. I mean, my dad was my manager for a while and then that like all blew up. So it was, I think that was like the country music way of like keeping it all in the family. Right. Oh, yes. Yes. That makes sense. And that was like the old school way of doing things. But it made for some really great heartbreak. I mean, that's, and granted, like you think of those women, like that was real. They were living that.

14:27Like that, that was, they were singing about their life. There was like, and that's what I loved about old school country music is there was no, there was no, these people were writing and singing about what they were living. And so I think like the old school stuff is just so real because of that. Not that it has to be that way, but I just miss, I don't know, I miss that authenticity sometimes.

15:08somebody put it to me really in a way that I think makes a lot of sense is the music I grew up loving like let's just take for example Fleetwood Mac the Eagles now the Eagles always were always had more than one foot in country music oh yeah always always but all of all like melodic harmonies, although there's not any harmonies. Somebody passed a law that there are no harmonies, by the way. When did that law get passed? I don't know. There's a lot of laws that got passed that I'm not down with. Somebody passed a law that saxophone solo's out. The law came down and that was the end of it. That actually might be okay.

15:50That's a good law. That might be an okay law. And then how about no vibrato? No, not allowed. Not allowed. That's because there's auto-tune on everything. So nothing's real anymore. So you're telling me you can't auto-tune vibrato? You can, but, but it, everything, I feel like when they auto-tune stuff, like everything, it's kind of like smoothed out. And so auto-tune is, you know, it's to me, it's like the devil. Can you hear it? Can, can you tell on a record you can tell? Yeah. I mean, a lot of people use it as an effect now. Yes. That's fine. You know, it drives me nuts, but yeah, it is fine.

16:29A lot of pop records use it. But yeah, you used to go in with like, I mean, even when I started, everything's changed from 30 years ago. Like you used to go with a tape, like we recorded to take and there was like a take and there was no like editing. It was one take. You actually had to be able to say. And you could do the take and they would go, all right, this feels like it's pitchy here and you would drop in that note, right? You go back and redo that. Yeah, we would punch in. Punch in. Which is just, yeah, it's changed so much. And I mean, like, you know, I still, I'm still old school. Like, you know, when we go in, we record takes.

17:14And I might go in and punch in a line here or there. But like, we try to get like a real overall take. It's just wild when I see someone that's like cut a record together. Like every, there's like syllables like cut. Oh, syllable. Literal syllables. Yeah. I once had a friend who cut it, and I won't mention the name, a very, very famous 1980s, 90s pop star, massive hit. And he said she never sang any of those lyrics together. Oh, wow. Literally. Literally. Like, it was just, it was like, grab this, grab that, put it together. But so when you listen to a song, though, but can you, can you, I know, I know what the auto-tune effect sounds like.

18:00I'm talking about just. Yeah, I mean, sometimes, sometimes you can't, a lot of the times you can't. Like, but when they really use it as an effect, you can definitely hear it. But yeah, it's, no, I mean, most of the time, most of the time you can't. But, you know, you, then you hear someone sing live and you're like, oh, they definitely use that. Oh. Boom. Well, how about people that their whole deal is not being on to like, can you imagine auto tuning Neil Young? Right. Or Bob Dylan? No, no. I was just watching Farm Aid the other night and it's just so, I just love them walking out and just not giving a shit.

18:40Not a shit. By the way, I love that that's the only thing that those guys will come out for too. like farm aid. It's, it's awesome. I, uh, I was at the second farm aid and when it was, it was unbelievable. I got, that's when I went on Willie's bus and, and, and, and the amount, the level of, of power of the pot. It's just a contact high immediately. Oh, it was. Cause I didn't, I, I, I, I listened, I loved all my shit that I did, but I never was a pot guy. So I fake smoked it because I didn't want to be a nerd. I didn't smoke it. I fake smoked it. I was so high. I couldn't get out of the bus for five hours.

19:19I'm not kidding. So paranoid. You can't turn Willie down. Like you have to partake. You cannot. You cannot turn in that bus, by the way, like it was before all the cool buses. Like, right. Like that was, you know, people didn't have the tricked out. No. But it was all like, I remember it looked like a, like a caricature of a Western saloon. Oh my God, that's funny. It probably still does. Yeah, I don't think he's changed it. He probably still has the same bus. Songs from the bus. I'm sure there has to be an album. Right. So, okay, so let me ask you this. Let's talk about Masked Singer. Yeah. You were the sun.

20:02I was the sun. You were the sun. You were the moon. I was the sun. Well, so that was during COVID. And I had sat my ass on the couch for six months. And they called and they were like, they'd asked me to do it before. I was like, yeah, I just, you know, no, I don't time. And then I was like, I'll do anything to get off this couch right now. Yeah. So, yeah, we came up. I was like, I want to, I want to design my, help design my costume. And because of Can't Fight the Moonlight. And we're like, what can we make me? That's opposite. So we went, so now I've owned the whole sky. I've been the sun and the moon.

20:34You are the sun and the moon. You are the sun. You are the, who sings that song? I don't know. It's in the back of my head. the okay now we got to talk about 9-1-1 i could have told i could have told you how insane it is you just had to call me the best time with your brother by the way i love him so much i was like i want to talk to your brother tomorrow how is he doing i love him great he i love him he's so much fun he's directed one episode i was in and i just love him as director he's such an actor's director and just so chill. And yeah, he's a blast. Yeah. So yeah, my brother Chad is the producing director on the spinoff.

21:17There always has to be a low involved in 911 at some point, apparently. That is a rule, along with no saxophones. The other is if there's a 911, there's a low. And COD, as I call him, Chris O'Donnell is my golf partner. Oh, he is. Very nice. He's one of the great, like. Is he good at golf? He's really good. Oh, wow. And he's a made man. He's like golf royalty. I don't know if you know this. He's literally golf royalty. I do not know this. He's a member at every exclusive club, even the clubs that don't like actors. Look at him, Mr. Fancy. He has, he has, I don't know how he does it. Well, I do know.

21:56His family's like eighth generation golf. Oh, beautiful. Like he's members of a club that I'm trying to get into and they won't let me in because I'm an actor. And I'm like, what about Chris O'Donnell? Discrrimination. Discrimination. And then you've got Jessica Capshaw, who's just a sweetheart. She's a blast. And Kim Williams-Paisley, who I've worked with a bunch. And she's just, isn't she the best? She's the sweetest. I love her so much. Everybody, everybody, we've had a great time. Everybody gelled really easily. And yeah, we've got a bunch of... My son on the show is like a brand new actor.

22:33And it's, yeah, it's just like this really loving situation. Everybody's super chill. Are you a first responder? Are you behind the... No. What are you? I am the biggest bitch ever on this show. And I'm having the best time. I am... Yeah, well, you'll see how I'm intertwined. This show is like a... There's a lot more family drama on this show. than anything. It's very, it's a little like dynasty-ish in there. So you have all the first responder stuff and all the high stakes, you know, fun stuff. And then you have all of this family drama. So I'm intertwined into the family drama. And I'm a single mom, very manipulative.

23:15It's completely opposite of my like normal disposition. And so I'm having the best time getting to do, didn't he play the villain? I mean, really. So how do you, how are you connected to either the firehouse or the call center? Like how do they connect your character? So Dawn and I, so Chris's character. Yes. And I have history together. Got it. So we grew up together. And so, but then there's, there's a lot more to that story that people will find out. So, yeah. So you haven't had to suffer in. Not yet. The turnouts. No. Oh no, So I thank God. Oh my God. Their turnout stories, bless them. And, you know, we've been filming all summer.

23:59So it's been so hot. They died in those turnouts. So luckily not. And I have not, I've yet to get drug into one of like the whole rescue things, but I know that's coming. Oh, yes. I've been told that's coming very soon. How, I mean, and my favorite is like when, when they, would they, listen, I, we got to a point where in one of my favorite moments, somebody was in a cryo chamber. And we trapped in a cryo chamber. We get the call and we go out and we try to, and then I realized he's trapped and he's frozen solid. Oh no. But you know, as you do, you always try to do CPR and I do CPR. My hands go through his body.

24:44Oh no. And it was so ridiculous, but also so great. And I fear like That's the ultimate 911. It's like, if you want reality, it's not exactly for you. This is not your gig. You know what's funny, though? So we would be reading the scripts, and I'm like, there's no way this has happened. And they would show us the actual news article about this thing happening. I'm like, that is insane. Oh, yeah. The person who goes to the porta potty at the state fair and ends up in a cyclone? Yeah. Happened. Basically. Yeah. I mean, if you think about it, I mean, we all live in our own little bubble, right? So like, I mean, think of all the people and all the scenarios that could happen.

25:31It's definitely happened at one point or another. And they just so happened to find all of those stories to put on the show. But you don't live in Nashville, do you? No, I did. I lived in Nashville in my early 20s for like seven years. And then I moved to LA and we live out in Calabasas. So I love it out here. And we actually just bought a little place in Nashville. So we started looking as soon as the show. I was like, why not? Yeah. So we bought this little cabin in the trees, like 45 minutes outside of Nashville. So I love it there. I mean, it's changed drastically. It's just insane. I mean, that's what's so great about the city and the show.

26:14The city and the show, because the city is actually kind of its own character. in a way. Right. You know, because Nashville is just, it's such a wild little city. Yeah, it's like, it's like Vegas. Oh. It's insane. Well, isn't it the, okay, I want to make sure I get this right. It's the bridesmaid capital of the world. Yeah, capital, bachelorette party capital of the world. Bachelorette party capital of the world. Yes. And it is bananas what you see during wedding season down there. Oh, yeah. It's bananas. Yeah. Just a bunch of drunk girls like peddling their way through Nashville. one of those like pedal bikes.

26:51Yes. Just drink it. Yeah. They have plenty to draw from just off of the stories of Nashville. I know. I have a young son who's single. I'm like, it's the bachelorette capital of the world. I'm just saying. How old is he? Just get a plane ticket and go down there. Oh, no. He's about to be 30. It's perfect. Oh, perfect. Yeah. You know what I mean? It's like, I bet you a future wife is peddling away, shit hammered in a, you know, gigantic bowl she's drinking out of with like a glow stick inside of it. Yeah, absolutely. That's exactly how you want to meet them. You know what? Tell him to come down.

27:33He's come down to hang with us. I know. Well, he wrote on, he got his first job as a writer writing on Lone Star. Oh, cool. In fact, Rashad and he co-wrote together. So Rashad is your showrunner. Yes, I love Rashad. We have such a great time. He's awesome. He's a great, great showrunner and a great partner. Yeah, he really is. What do they have you doing other than me to go out and promote it? Are you going to New York? Are you doing the circuit? I'm doing a few things. I don't think anything's completely solidified yet. But yeah, I just got back in and we're trying to figure out all the little, all the things that I'm doing.

28:08But yeah, I'm doing a podcast and we're doing a couple TV shows. Because it's not till, I'm just seeing you, it's not till October 9th. October 9th, yeah. So we're just now ramping up, starting everything. It premieres on the 7th in Nashville, which I'm excited about. Yeah, I'm excited for people to see it. It's, you know, when you work on something like this for months now, you're like, okay, let's go. Let's go. Let's see if people did this. Chris O'Donnell, when he first got it, got the show, he's like, I just read the script, man. And like, we're not really going to do all that stuff, are we?