Cathy Lee Brandstetter Interviews Todd Rundgren TRTV Partay for PatroNet subscribers Dallas, TX. 4/28/00 CLB: (referring to mike stand) I think that's yours because you're taller than I am. Cheers! TR: Cheers! This doesn't look like 80 people, little under a hundred maybe... CLB: I think they're in the bathroom. TR: They're all in the can right now. It's a good time to be in the can. CLB: Okay, we're going to do a little interview here with Todd for the internet... TR: This is for the benefit of those who couldn't be here and also for those of you in a total state of confusion. CLB: That would be me. (laughter) Of course you have no idea of the contents of the questions. TR: I've never seen the questions before this moment..... Is that your final answer? CLB: For $64,000, Todd, has the Patronet concept allowed you the creative freedom you'd hoped for? TR: Um uh, well it wouldn't be too far of a stretch to realize that I've always had creative freedom. That's why we have such a close intimate relationship and you don't have to share me with all those Spice Girl fans. But it actually has changed the way I make music in that I don't have to wait two years to make a record. I can make a record anytime I feel like it and there are people who will listen to it whatever it is. CLB: That's after surfing and beach barbeques? TR: I do not surf, I'm sorry. Beach barbeques.... yeah. CLB: Okay. What can you tell us about the status of the interociter? TR: Well the interociter, for those of you who haven't experienced it yet, the so-called interociter is the only way you'll be able to enjoy TRTV and the other PatroNet offerings from now on. Essentially it replaces Netscape and those other buggy... CLB: Well, say Explorer too! TR: I forgot about that- and all that Microsoft stuff replace all that- See the whole idea was just so that... it was the idea... remember the idea was that it would be easier than like, having to download a browser and then download twenty different plug-ins, and figure all this other stuff out... We really wanted to concentrate on new content and not on supporting software and that's why we built our own software to support! But in any event, the interociter is actually not in too bad of shape... Audience member: Good answer! (laughter) TR: But there are some very new things in it. See one of the reasons I get into this is because I don't feel like waiting for Netscape or Microsoft to do the really cutting edge things that we need. CLB: We can't wait. TR: We can't wait for them to do it. CLB: Time waits for no one. TR: That's why we have to do our own things so we can show them how it's supposed to be done! Audience member: Todd is it true the justice department is going to break up TRTV? (more laughter) CLB: Janet Reno and her jackbooted thugs are going to be wandering into Artist/Ent... TR: C'mon Janet! I'm ready for you Janet! CLB: Let's not get political, they'll be running in here in a minute. We're in Dallas, 70 miles or so north of Waco, I think... TR: (knocking on podium) Knock Knock Knock... Who's this remind you of? Audience: (laughters, groans, a boo) CLB: (sings McCartney) "Who's that knockin' on the door..." TR: Why didn't someone put foam rubber on the podium or something? CLB: On to way more important things than Janet Reno.... What's the status of PatroNet as it is evolving into Artist/Ent if I understand this correctly? TR: You could characterize it as evolving, but what happened was, as you all know, PatroNet was pretty much just me doing all the software and all the content and all the other crap and stuff like that. It just got to be too much after a while and so I had to get someone to help me. And the whole deal with Artist/Ent seemed to be the best one of all the opportunities. CLB: Danny Goldberg's a good guy? TR: He's an okay guy... I'm not going to talk about Mr. Goldberg here! You know one of the biggest problems here- and it's been such an inspiration... and uh the reason why I came here was just essentially to exploit all of you in a glorious manner, you know... CLB: And it feels sooo good TR: And to take all that commitment and turn it into a product, you know. But in any case part of the problem of getting PatroNet off the ground is me having too much responsibility and you know maybe I can share some of that responsibility tonight because we have a lot of people who have collected some stuff I'm sure everyone would want to see and people who have made stuff everyone would want to see and so PatroNet has to be as much I guess about the patrons as it is about me and the next step is to hopefully sort of realize that a little bit more and help everyone be able to share what they do with everyone else. CLB: You're a peachy guy. Just a few more questions Todd, this one is easy I think. Don't choke on the olive there's a sword that could go down sideways! TR: That's your problem! Audience: (laughter) CLB: Ooooh-kay.... Yuck! (unintelligible) Honey, timing is everything- thank you- thank you- Michele. Anyway Craig Kilborn, host of the Late, Late, Late, Late Show... TR: As late as possible, right! CLB: ....is where you're premiering your new song "I Hate My Frickin' ISP"? TR: Well it wouldn't be the absolute world premiere because I did it last night with 12 Rods, a band I just produced... CLB: At the Metro in Chicago... TR: They're a good band and you should check out the record.... CLB: Is it out yet? Has it been released? TR: Actually it's coming out the same week mine is. But let's clear up some confusion here. Let me explain what Patronet is. The bottom line is I don't need a record company to help me make a record because I have you guys to help me make a record, right? Audience: (cheering, applause) TR: I don't have to go to some label and say please give me some money to make a record because you guys have already done it. So that record is done. It took longer than a year but.... CLB: Hey we've waited years and years for records before. TR: It took a long time but in any case the record is of course coming out and what we've done is all of you subscribers are supposed to get a CD of this record before anyone else. Of course you've all heard most of this music anyway before they got to hear it. But you will get a CD and the difference is that the CD that you will all get full color CDs whereas everyone else will get pretty much black and white insides. That's what the record company policy is, that they have like, 12 panel inserts and they do most of it in black and white because it costs too much otherwise. But I managed to talk them into... Well here was the problem- you've gotten some of the cds I sent out which we do from a custom cd maker- but they don't do like a full professional package with a 12 fold insert regular cd kind of deal. CLB: Is that an interactive album cover thing? TR: No, it's just -- you know... paper. Audience: (laughter) TR: It's this thing called paper, check it out, you know. But uh... unlike online porno it costs money and so.... CLB: Credit cards accepted. TR: So anyway what's happening is all the subscribers will get a one of a kind cd for subscribers only and it'll be all in full color but otherwise it'll be the same cd everyone else gets. But anyway my point was that the cd that comes out that regular consumers buy, was not paid for by a record label, it was paid for by you guys. You guys paid to have that record made and that's the whole idea of PatroNet that I don't have to go begging to a record label to help me make a record, I go begging to you guys. PLEASE let me make another record!!! Audience: (laughter) CLB: Do you accept Sears cards? TR: I think the worm has turned and every artist will be begging you guys to help them make a record eventually instead of getting a record deal. That's the idea of PatroNet you know- cut out the middle man. CLB: We are wondering, is this like Tuesday night with Craig Kilborn? And we can all see you do this even though we weren't in Chicago at the 12 Rods show? It's on Tuesday night? TR: I was at the 12 Rods show to kind of like get a little attention for the band and also to play the song in public for the first time because the next time I play it will be on national TV on the Craig Kilborn show on Tuesday night and the power trio will be performing "I Hate My Frickin ISP" Tuesday night. That'll be Kasim and.... CLB: Trey? TR: Trey Sabatelli who is Prairie's replacement when he's got a better playing gig. CLB: This is a two part question. Who is your frickin' isp? TR: This is dangerous waters here because we may want to get some money out of them I don't know. We're in the process of extorting money out of them right now. We're blackmailing my isp and we can't reveal their name unless... CLB: Refund us some of that. TR: Um well I would say if you have to insert something in there for isp, AOL is as good as anything you know. And bad as my isp is I'm sure they're not as bad as AOL. CLB: And our good friend Bill Chapman owns AOL. TR: He owns AOL?!? CLB: Right here- at your party- he owns AOL. TR: He owns AOL's stock right? CLB: Time Warner. TR: Oh you and Steve Case are like in some kind of... (unintelligible) CLB: Ted Turner, he colorizes things too... (laughter) TR: You would have to say there's some kind of mystical dichotomy there, in that AOL is going for the biggest, most general audience they can get and I'm going for the most particular, special, audience I can get- and that's what PatroNet is- like these people right here. CLB: One final question. Are you having a nice time at your party? TR: I've been drinking free for two hours- what do you think? Or it seems free to me anyway- it could be like a $200 martini for all I know... CLB: Sounds like he's having a good time. (Todd goes on to perform "I Hate My Freakin' ISP" for the partay-goers)