New video update...

A couple of weeks ago, I posted an article where Josh mentioned that he would be working with his brother Chris on an upcoming music video.

Chris has just posted this on his blog -

Hello peoples of the internet. First off, the cat has been out of the bag and dangling quite visibly for some days now. I’m directing a music video for my brother. This will result in a cavernous thud in the minds of some, but I know for others, namely fans of Josh Groban, this will come as overwhelmingly delightful news.

The concept I drew up for the video was birthed from some cold hard facts: I have zero dollars for a budget, and we have to do it while he is on tour. A challenge to be sure. But I have been on the road with the tour for the better part of this week now, and I’m really happy with the footage so far. I’m on the road for a little over two weeks, and I plan to elaborate more once I’m home. So expect me to retroactively journal this experience in full as soon as the experience has resolved.

Today provided a small snafu however, again something I’ll elaborate on in detail in a couple weeks. The quick story is that I woke up today with what felt like a miniature family of five living in my throat. Adorable, but they left little room for talking, or swallowing, or breathing. I’m stubborn, and spent several hours in the wee morning (I certainly wasn’t sleeping) deciding how I could forge ahead and make due. Instead, I freaked out and went to the emergency room. Half a day later, I lie back in my Orlando, Florida hotel room bed where I will be staying, unexpectedly, for at least a couple more days. I will say that I am fine and will be even better with a couple day’s rest. Unfortunately, the tour must go on without me, along with the rest of the video I need to shoot.

Once in high school I shot a short video in my free time with some friends, and I never finished it. It’s the only project I never finished, and it has always bothered me. Bothered me only slightly less than it motivated me to carry to fruition all future endeavors. I write to you now atop a rickety bridge which I must soon decide whether to cross or dive off. And I will tell you now, if the choice becomes a matter of my health or finishing this video, then I must choose the former.

This very day has been one of the most enlightening in some time. I’ve been working tirelessly for weeks. But all that work did was put me in the hospital, where I will inevitably be spending the profits of said work. So in the end, there is no way to cheat time. The few days of rest I could’ve spent earlier, potentially avoiding all sickness, instead occur now by force smack in the middle of a project that I love. But that wouldn’t have made for much of a story. A silver lining to this nauseating day I suppose.

All of that said, plans are hovering, and plane tickets are waiting to be bought. I am checking back into the hospital tomorrow to see if these 24 hours have worked in my favor. If so, a couple more days of rest should be enough for me to justify picking up the camera again. I love this video so far, and I love working with my brother. It’s not an experience easily deserted. I’m afraid you all will have to stay tuned. And in the meanwhile, be good to yourselves. Work just ain’t worth it.

- CG

(Source)

I really wish Chris a speedy recovery. At the end of the day his health is much more important.

Ben Folds on Josh...

Ben talking about collaborations that just didn't work...

I spent some time in a studio with Josh Groban and we had a blast. He’s one of the most talented people I’ve ever met. He’s smart, charming. I’m proud to call him my friend. We really didn’t do anything but watch Tim and Eric videos for two days. I think we’re determined to do something really good together at some point. I think we both walked away from that disappointed.

(Source)

But thankfully for us we do have these two gems...

Still Fighting It...

Life is a Masquerade...

Success never comes easy...

From the Oman Tribune...

At 30 singer-songwriter Josh Groban has managed to retain a humble demeanour and a laidback, down-to-earth personality despite the kind of success that most singers can only dream of, writes Cindy Pearlman

NOW and then, as his tour bus roars along a deserted highway in the middle of the night, Josh Groban mulls over the blur of his life. As the miles rush by, he tries to wrap his mind around how he got to where he is, how he became a pop star with four multiplatinum records and a promising acting career to boot.

“It has been a fast and furious climb,” Groban says, speaking by telephone from a stop on his Straight to You tour. “I was signed at age 17. Then I was thrown into huge environments where it was either sink or swim. I’m a good swimmer and I continued to swim in the deep end – and then the first album came out. Suddenly there was this explosion of fans.”

He still had to contend with moments of self-doubt which were hard to handle amid his burgeoning career.

“It felt like I had to live up to all of these things that literally exploded all around me,” Groban recalls with a bemused laugh. “I had to grow into my puppy paws as an artist.”

That was more than a decade ago, though. At 30 the singer/songwriter has managed to retain a humble demeanor and a laid-back, down-to-earth personality despite the kind of success that most singers can only dream of. In 2007 he was the top-selling artist in the United States, and he has sold more than 24 million CDs worldwide.

You’d think that he’d be beating off the women with a stick, but Groban – who at one point was linked to actress January Jones – reports that he’s single and not happy about it.

“No, I’m not dating anyone,” he says. “That’s what sucks about being on the road. There’s not enough time for film roles and not enough time to meet people.”

Well, not to meet women, perhaps. He did meet the legendary crooner Tony Bennett, with whom he duets on This Is All I Ask on Bennett’s hit album Duets II.

“Without a doubt it was one of the greatest honors of my career,” Groban says. “Make that my entire life. Tony is someone I’ve always looked up to because of what he has done for one of my favorite styles of music.”

He found the 85-year-old Bennett’s work ethic inspiring.

“At 8 in the morning, Tony showed up for sound check looking impeccable in an amazing suit,” Groban recalls, still seeming in awe. ``He sang full-out at that hour in the morning. I saw such a fire in him.

“The real greats maintain such a humility for their craft,” the young singer says, “and they never lose their desire to strive for greatness. It was also just plain fun to stand on the sidelines and watch Tony warm up.

“The cool thing is that he likes to record without headphones,” Groban adds. “We just stood there as two guys with two mikes. It was so old school and a great master-class way to do it. We had such a wonderful day in the studio.”

Lately, however, Groban has been finding his way into film and television studios as well as recording studios. He played an obnoxious lawyer in Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011), and recently did a guest stint on The Office as Walter Jr., brother of Andy (Ed Helms).

“I have been a big fan of the show, ever since it was an English show,” he says. “When The Office came to America, I watched it and thought they did a brilliant job of making it their own. I became hooked and watched every episode.

“The deal is that Andy, played by Ed Helms, is the firstborn in his family,” Groban continues. “That’s usually the favorite son. I’m the second-born, and my name is Walter Jr. after our father. Somehow I stole the name from him, and I’m more happy-go-lucky and successful than Andy. I can do no wrong in our parents’ eyes.”

He was a bit nervous stepping into the well-established ensemble cast of The Office, the singer admits.

(Source)

Video from Live! with Regis & Kelly...

Josh is such a natural host. Enjoy!

Tour videos...

You've probably already noticed that I haven't posted many tour videos on the site (except for the odd one or two including the amazing Double Dream Hands), and I confess this has been quite a deliberate move.  Apart from not having enough time to search for them, I'm also trying my best to hold out watching clips until I actually get to see Josh in November (and yes, I know I'm a little crazy attempting this).

But I've just found a great Tumblr site - Straight to You Tour Blog which has an awesome collection of videos from the tour. So go check it out if you want to see clips from the tour in an easy to find format! (The link to the site will also be included in my Blog Links on the right-hand side.)

South Africa Radio Interview...

A short phone interview with Josh that aired on Cape Town radio station KFM.

Josh Groban on KFM Breakfast by stem@kfm.co.za

New music video???

In the interviews Josh did for his appearance on the office, there was one little piece of information he shared that I found to be quite intriguing. When discussing his own relationship with his brother (Chris), he had the following to say (take particular note of the second last sentence)-

I adore my brother to death. He is one of my favorite people on Earth. We are the best of friends. We’re both in the entertainment industry. I’m in the music business and he is a film director and editor but the dynamic, especially when you are exactly four years apart and you have to share a birthday [they were both born on February 27] from the age of four on — it was one of those things when we are 10 and 14, it was a little bit awkward. After that, we were able to kind of settle into our ages. Now we can go out and have a beer and talk about anything. Especially with him watching the ridiculously early success that I had and the fact that he kept his own head and kept his blinders on and really kicked butt in his own way and his own world — now we collaborate all the time. He’s directing a music video for me next week. I’ve composed some music for some of his films

So the question is, what song will Chris be directing the music video for? Leave me a comment if you have any ideas what the next single/video might be. Personally, my pics would be "If I Walk Away" or "Voce Existe Em Mim".

(Source)

The Office Q & A...

As a fan of The Office, it only took a single Tweet from the show’s star/writer Mindy Kaling to convince Josh Groban to lend his considerable soccer mom cache to the hip NBC sitcom. Add to that a miraculous synchronicity between his touring dates and the show’s shooting schedule and the next thing he knew, Groban was standing on the Schrute Farms set messing around with his TV brother and new Dunder Mifflin branch manager Andy Bernard (played by Ed Helms). With mere hours to go before the airing of his appearance on the show, Groban – who has also guest-starred on Ally McBeal and Glee – spoke to reporters about balancing acting and singing with his personal life, his relationship with his real life brother, and how he’d love to play a drug dealer on Breaking Bad.

Q Most people will recognize you as a singer but you’ve flirted with acting your whole life.

A When I was young I was really interested in theatre, so I guess the first thing that got me interested in acting was the idea that I’d hoped to be a theatre actor at one point. I was really fascinated with Shakespeare and I loved improv. When I was in eighth and ninth grade I joined an improv troupe in LA and eventually went on to a wonderful arts high school and studied theatre there, and before I was signed to my record label I was a freshmen at Carnegie Mellon and studied musical theatre there so acting was definitely at least half of what I wanted to accomplish in the arts.

Q How did the opportunity to appear on The Office come about?

A When Mindy Kaling asked me to do the show, she actually direct message Tweeted me. I was shocked to hear from her. And I said, “I’d love to do the show; when are you thinking?’ and it just so happened that the week they were taping the episode was the exact week, out of an eight month tour that I’m doing, that I happened to be in the Los Angeles area. It was 100 per cent serendipity and I’m so happy that the stars lined up for that.

Q As a longtime fan of the show, how did it feel stepping into that world?

A The really cool thing about this particular episode was that it’s such an ensemble episode. As a fan of the show, showing up at Schrute Farms and seeing everybody that I love from the show gathered in one place was really an amazing, pinch-me moment for me.

Q On the episode, you play Walter Jr, Andy’s younger and more successful brother. In real life, you share a birthday with your younger brother, which must have caused some awkward moments. Did you see any similarities in your character’s relationship with his brother to that of your own?

A Subconsciously, I think there’s always a rivalry in the family, whether you choose to admit it or not. I adore my brother to death. The dynamic, especially when you’re exactly four years apart and you have to share a birthday from the age of four on – when it was 10 and 14, a little bit awkward, after that we were able to settle into our ages and now we can go and have a beer and talk about anything. I’m sure that he and I will get a really great laugh out of this episode because, at certain points in our lives, there are similarities between us and Andy and Walter Jr.

Q You’re touring until December; do you find that you’re sacrificing anything by always being on the road for so long?

A I’m not dating anyone. There are two things that suck about being on the road: there’s not a lot of time to film things and there’s not a lot of time to meet people.

Q Finally, now that you’ve been on The Office, is there any other show you’d like to appear on?

A I would love to play someone really bad on Breaking Bad. I would love to play a drug dealer or something. I’m completely obsessed with that series. It would be wonderful for me to be on 30 Rock, too.

(Source)

Did you watch the episode?  What did you think?

Sneak Peak - Josh on "The Office"...

Looks like he's channeling Richard from Crazy, Stupid, Love with the hair. LOL

Scandal ?!?!?!

I was having an inner debate about posting this, but since Josh tweeted about it... LOL

(Source)

Interview with Aidan...

This is so cute - 

Carousel Theatre- Aidan's Interview with Josh Groban from Carousel Theatre on Vimeo.

A Carousel Theatre student, Aidan (Age 6), was invited backstage to interview singer Josh Groban before his August 30 concert at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, BC.

Aidan came prepared with microphone, backstage pass and reporter hat (and pirate tie).

The short interview is followed by a chat between Aidan and Jessie, Carousel Theatre's General Manager, who was curious about Aidan's experience.

The Imposter in Oslo...

A couple of days ago Josh re-tweeted a video of a Norwegian comedian, Vegard Ylvisåker, who impersonated Josh for his tv show "I kveld med Ylvis" (Tonight with Ylvis). To see that clip click here.

Well another video has surfaced that shows just how far he went, including a visit to a radio station and even getting into the venue where Josh was performing.

Watch the clip below:

I've gotta say that this did make me laugh, but I was glad to see that security at the venue finally twigged to the fact he wasn't Josh.