Today show’s Craig Melvin has launched his first-ever podcast in an exciting new career move.
The 46-year-old co-host unveiled his latest project, Glass Half Full, during Tuesday’s episode of the NBC show and revealed that it was recorded in his bourbon bar at his home in Connecticut.
Each week, Melvin sits down with a celebrity for intimate conversations over an alcoholic drink in a setting that ‘feels like catching up with an old friend.’
‘We have a lot in common collectively but then you get to a point where you forget the camera is on,’ he said. ‘It’s like you’re just having a conversation with a friend.
‘We try to peel back the layers and reveal more.’
Explaining the decision behind the podcast, Melvin said there is a real audience of people who want to connect ‘through storytelling, through laughter, through tears and this is the perfect medium for that.’
Melvin added that while he enjoys sitting down in the Today show studio with a variety of celebrity guests each morning, those interviews are only ever four or five minutes.
The podcast, however, allows him 40 minutes or so to sit and talk.
Today show co-host Craig Melvin has launched his very first podcast
Melvin’s drink of choice for the podcast is a glass of bourbon, which he sips on throughout.
‘By the way, that was part of the motivation,’ he told his Today show co-stars.
‘About 15 minutes in after a few sips I’m like, oh, a new conversation started.’
In the first episode of Glass Half Full, which was released on March 10, Melvin sits down with basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal for an honest conversation about the moments that shaped his life on and off the court.
‘From an early turning point that pushed him to take basketball seriously to the values instilled by his parents at a young age, Shaq reflects on the mindset that fueled his success and continues to drive him today,’ a synopsis teased.
‘He opens up about the mistakes he made as a husband, the lessons that came from fame and fortune, and why, despite being one of America’s most beloved athletes, he considers himself a glass-half-empty guy.’
A-list guests also include Regina Hall, Shonda Rimes and Carmelo Anthony.
Although this is his first podcast, Melvin’s Today show co-stars have all got podcasts under their belts.
The new podcast sees Melvin sit down with a range of celebrities for intimate conversations
Several of Melvin’s co-stars, including Hoda Kotb, already have podcasts of their own
In 2021, Al Roker launched Cooking up a Storm, which saw him make a holiday meal course by course with help from some special guests who open up about the dishes they love and the stories behind the food.
Jenna Bush Hager has her podcast, Open Book, which is made up of entertaining conversations with celebrities, experts, friends, authors, and book lovers to a wider audience.
Hoda Kotb’s podcast, Making Space, follows her journey of self-discovery and exploration of the resilience of the human spirit.
Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist provides sharp, conversational coverage of the day’s news.
