The Jay Jay French Connection: Beyond the Music

Killer stand up comedian, actor & lifelong rock n roller Dean Delray joins the podcast this week! If you're a rock or comedy enthusiast, you won't want to miss this conversation. Dean has been podcasting for the past 12 years on his great show 'Let There Be Talk, which you'll want to be sure to check out if you haven't already. Dean & Jay Jay get into all things comedy & music - discussing paralle...

Yana Roney, better known as Powder Fluff Girl on social media, is this week's guest on the podcast! Yana is an internet sensation - Mountain Shredder, Dirt Braap, Internet Celebrity, and Bikini Model all in one. She is famous for sharing her bike riding videos & exclusive photoshoots via Instagram, Tiktok & Facebook. She collaborates with different brands around the world, & her videos, showcasing...

Lynyrd Skynyrd founding member and lead guitarist Rickey Medlocke joins Jay Jay this week on the podcast! Jay Jay & Rickey's history goes as far back as Twisted Sister does - to 1973 - and they've remained friends ever since. Rickey is best known as being the frontman & guitarist for the band Blackfoot, as well as an original member of Lynyrd Skynyrd. He's of Lakota Sioux and Cherokee ance...

This week, Jay Jay has a timely guest on the podcast ahead of the upcoming election, Edwin G. Oswald. Tune in to hear Edwin & Jay Jay discuss Ronald Reagan's life trajectory into the US presidency, the paradox of Reagan, & how people view him. Edwin recently wrote & published the book 'From Ronald to Donald: How the Myth of Reagan Became the Cult of Trump.' His book lays out a compelling argument...

This week's guests are guitar heavyweights Joe Satriani & Steve Vai! Tune into this special 2-in-1 episode - Joe & Steve find time during their ongoing tour to connect with Jay Jay on the podcast. They discuss their new work & share stories of their dense musical backgrounds, all the way back to day 1 getting their first guitars as kids. In addition to their tour, Steve & Joe just...

This week's guest on The Jay Jay French Connection, is Wayne Bjerke, joined by Twisted's social media manager, Tor Caracappa! Wayne has been a true old school TS fan all the way back to their club days. He is currently a graphic artist & tattoo artist, who has been friends with Tor for 20+ years. Learn why Jay Jay believes that bands are only as good as their fanbase, & hear Jay Jay & Wayne discus...

Legendary Hollywood writer, producer & director, Paul Williams, is this week's guest on The Jay Jay French Connection: Beyond the Music! You won't want to miss Paul's stories from his remarkable journey into filmmaking, & talk about his recently published book titled 'Harvard, Hitmen and Holy Men. The book gets into how he is a real-life Forrest Gump - & how his experiences form a uniq...

This week's guest is 3-in-1 - Guitarist and producer Donny Goldberg, & his 2 sons, join Jay Jay in conversation! Together the 3 of them make up the instagram sensation Raized Wrong. Landon is 13 & his brother Lyric is 12 - together with their father they create online covers of hits from the 80's 90's & more.  Hear the story about how Jay Jay found their music online, & why he imme...

This week's special guest is true guitar virtuoso & grammy award winner, Tommy Emmanuel! The real-time exuberance Tommy Emmanuel brings to every note of every song he plays is palpable and infectious. His fans are in love with his unbound talent as a guitarist of multitudes, his ability to play three parts at once, always with pure heart and real soul.   This conversation is not to miss for gu...

Crimson & Clover, Crystal Blue Persuasion, Mony Mony, I Think We're Alone Now, Hanky Panky & Sweet Cherry Wine - these are just a few of the hits written by legendary artist Tommy James, who is this week's guest on the podcast!! Tommy is a renowned musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, widely known as frontman of the 1960s rock band Tommy James and the Shondells - who is now entering...

This week's guest is the founder of one of the seminal punk bands, The Dictators! CBGB’s was built on the back of the first of the great legendary NY Punk band The Dictators. Join Jay Jay in welcoming punk legend Andy Shernoff on the podcast! Andy is a musician, songwriter & producer, who is a founding member of The Dictators. Jay Jay & Andy discuss the parallels between the New York bar scene tha...

Shel Talmy is the legendary producer of The Who’s first earthshaking debut album “My Generation,” the first 5 (and most famous) Kinks albums, the Easybeats biggest hit 'Friday in my Mind,' as well as Manfred Mann's debut single 'Do Wha Diddy Diddy,'  mong many many more. It has been a great 2023 here on The Jay Jay French Connection - beginning the year with Twisted's induction into The Heavy Meta...

This week, Jay Jay welcomes guest Ethan Penner onto the podcast! Ethan is an old friend of Jay Jay's & is widely recognized as a pioneer in the worlds of real estate & finance, with over 30 years of experience in both fields. Jay Jay & Ethan tell the story of how they met, Ethan's growing up as a true metal fan, & how music has deeply influenced his life both personally & profe...

This week, Jay Jay welcomes legendary singer & music icon Pat Boone onto the podcast! Pat is a singer, actor, TV host, producer, author, radio personality, record company head, TV station owner - just to name a few of his accolades. He encountered fame early on in life as a teen idol who shot to stardom via an early national talent show. Now, after 70 years in show business, he's returning to his...

This week, Jay Jay goes beyond the music & welcomes cancer doctor & researcher Dr. William Li. William W. Li, MD, is an internationally renowned Harvard-trained medical doctor, researcher, and president and a founder of the Angiogenesis Foundation. His groundbreaking work has impacted more than seventy diseases including cancer, diabetes, blindness, heart disease, and obesity. Discussing c...

60th ANNIVERSARY JFK ASSASSINATION SPECIAL ON THE JAY JAY FRENCH CONNECTION PODCAST. JFK’s REAL KILLER IS FINALLY REVEALED Don't miss part 2 of the discussion surrounding the 60th anniversary of the assasination of JFK, with guest Monica Mercedes! This week, Jay Jay's special guests will reveal shocking stories and information on the JFK assassination. Monica is the daughter of the infamous Americ...

60th ANNIVERSARY JFK ASSASSINATION SPECIAL ON THE JAY JAY FRENCH CONNECTION PODCAST. JFK’s REAL KILLER IS FINALLY REVEALED This week, Jay Jay's special guests will reveal shocking stories and information on the JFK assassination. These 2 guests will have you in disbelief and counter everything you thought you knew about the JFK assassination! You don’t want to miss Robert Morningstar starting Tues...

This week, Jay Jay welcomes back his dear friend & collaborator of over 47 years, Dee Snider!  Dee Snider, the iconic American singer, songwriter, radio personality, writer, and actor, has recently announced the release of his first novel, Frats. Frats is an honest, daring story that examines the pressures of toxic masculinity in high school hallways. Dee Snider is no stranger to exploring con...

Join Jay Jay this week for the final week of Record Label Presidents Month! Very special guest Laura Kunkel joins Jay Jay to discuss the nuances surrounding getting into the record business, & Laura's inspiring story behind starting her new record label. Hear all about the importance of having individuals who truly care about music & art behind labels - & why Laura's motivation has been to be an a...

This week, David Rath joins Jay Jay for week 3 of Record Label Presidents Month on the show! David Rath comes from Roadrunner Records where he spent twenty-one years in the A&R and Creative Departments, having been A&R on albums by Slipknot, Korn, Gojira, Coheed and Cambira, Slash, The Amity Affliction, Trivium, Stone Sour, Dream Theater and Megadeth and where he oversaw music videos from Nickelba...

Tune in for the second week of Record Label President's Month! This week, Jay Jay welcomes special guest Cliff Chenfeld. Cliff is a renowned music executive, who is both the co-founder and co-CEO of Razor & Tie Records, as well as Kidz Bop. Hear all about the history of how Razor & Tie began as a reissue / compilation centered label, & progressed into becoming one of the leading rock l...

This week, guest Jason Flom joins Jay Jay to kick off a month of renowned record label presidents joining in conversation. Jason is a dear friend of Jay Jay's who has a deep rooted history alongside Twister Sister, which they talk all about. Their stories go back 40+ years to the early days of Twisted in New York, when Jason was a kid in high school following Twisted in Long Island. Jason has beco...

This week's guest is Jay Jay's wife Sharon, who joins the podcast for an open-ended conversation about life, love & Twisted Sister. Don't miss this conversation, only on The Jay Jay French Connection: Beyond the Music!

This week, Jay Jay welcomes back legendary guitar virtuoso Joel Hoekstra! This episode is a must listen for all guitar heads. Joel shares his remarkable journey from being a classically trained guitarist, & a young kid with chops in the suburbs of Chicago, to working in LA during the height of its 'shred guitar player scene,' to being one of the best & most well versed guitarists in rock n roll. J...

This week on The Jay Jay French Connection, Jay Jay welcomes author Jarret Keene on the show ahead of his brand new book release. Jarret is Assistant Professor in the Department of English at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he teaches both American literature AND the graphic novel. Hear all about how he has been a Twisted fan for years, & why he believes that many of his students have b...