EP 498: Jack Black and Kyle Gass of Tenacious D

For more than 25 years, actors and musicians Jack Black and Kyle Gass have been performing as the rock satire band Tenacious D. They’ve toured around the world, recorded Grammy-winning albums, started a music festival, made a tv show, made a movie, then made an animated movie, and now they’ve even put out a new graphic novel. Today Kyle and Jack join me on the show as we get into how they’ve managed to outlast the lifespan of most bands and how satirizing rock bands has led to their playing with everyone from Metallica to Kid Rock. They reveal how Bob Odenkirk and David Cross gave them their first big break, how their movie The Pick of Destiny went from an initial box-office failure to cult film status, and their dream cast for a Tenacious D musical on Broadway. They discuss what was like to voice every single character and hand draw every frame of animation for their second film Post-Apocalypto, how the movie and now graphic novel of Post-Apocalypto address everything from toxic masculinity to Donald Trump, and how being the self-proclaimed “World’s Greatest Band” gives them a little insight into Trump’s narcissism. Plus the time Kyle had to go on stage with partial facial paralysis, Jack gets a stalker in the middle of our interview, and Kyle shares memories of his brief stint as a census taker.

Order their new graphic novel Post-Apocalypto on Amazon or order a signed copy at www.tenaciousd.com. You can also follow the guys on Twitter at @JackBlack and @GassLeak.

Today's episode was sponsored by the new podcast What’s Ahead with Steve Forbes. On What’s Ahead, financial legend Steve Forbes sits down with today’s leading business, economic, and cultural minds everyone from CEOs to scientists to celebrities to give listeners a better grasp of what’s coming, as well as sharing his own perspectives on the day’s most pressing issues. Check out What’s Ahead with Steve Forbes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.