Just over a week ago, I had the privilege of interviewing tennis legend Venus Williams on stage in front of a capacity ballroom.
It was a wellness-focused event, and Venus was there to talk about her life, career, health challenges over the years, and her book (‘Strive: 8 Steps to Find Your Awesome’). I was thrilled to be given the opportunity, but by the same token, I was painfully aware of the gaping hole in my areas of expertise. I was never going to end up on the UK quiz show ‘Mastermind’ with my specialty subject combining wellness and tennis (Wellnis? Tenness?). If this was happening, it was time to bone up on material, stat!
I’ve actually been lucky enough to interview a number of celebrities over the years. Some have been great experiences, and some have been challenges. I had a couple where asking questions was like lobbing a wet sponge against a wall; I wasn’t getting anything back. Those of you who know me, know I could talk for England, but my voice isn’t always the one everyone endlessly wants to hear. Shocking, I agree. At least if I’m suitably prepped, I’m not sitting there, slack-jawed, wishing the stage would swallow me up. I can keep yabbering enough for the both of us if no one’s volleying the ball back to me.
So, when it came to the upcoming Venus sit-down, I had my work cut out. The first thing I did was download the audiobook version of ‘Strive’. Whether I was driving in rush hour traffic, or taking a break on the couch at home, I was absorbing the information. The one thing that struck me, as chapter after chapter went by, is that Venus and I have a lot in common. She loves rib-eye steak; so do I. She is a late night eater; so am I. She’s an elite athlete; so …
Well, two outta three ain’t bad.
You never know if studying for these interviews is going to be interesting, or a slog. But I have to say that I really liked the book. I found it inspiring, coming from a person who understood that sometimes we all, including her, make mistakes or stumble. It’s how we handle those mistakes, pick ourselves back up, and move forward with a new lesson learned, that makes the difference between dwelling on the negative or embracing the positive. Before anyone wonders if I’m now getting commission for every book sold, I’m not; it was just an easy listen that made some really good points.
I jotted down notes that I might use in my questions, while also doing research on the internet. I learned more about her childhood, watched her previous interviews on YouTube, found details about her wedding last year, and drilled all her championship and Olympic statistics into my head. She was co-chair of the Met Gala this year, and wore an amazing Swarovski statement necklace – quite the work of art – that paid homage to, among other things, her Wimbledon win; her parents; and black tennis pioneers.
Here’s a fact really worth noting: Venus wrote an op-ed for The Times in 2006, calling out Wimbledon for not giving equal prize money to its male and female champions. She also met with British politicians on the subject, and put it so much in the spotlight, that in 2007, the situation was rectified. Roger Federer won the men’s singles competition; Venus won the women’s singles; they got the same money.
Booyakasha!
By the third week of studying, I wondered if I would have done better in university if I’d put the same amount of effort into swotting up on mathematics. Once I had my list of questions tweaked, edited and in order, I pulled out the index cards a la Graham Norton. I always have my trusty cards on stage with me in case the nerves really set in and I lose my place in the conversation, or if I simply forget a fact and need to refer to them. I also find that the act of writing out each question on individual cards helps me to retain the information. I consider it a challenge to have them as a safety net, but not need to use them.
Unbelievably, my first big interview on stage was Al Pacino. Talk about starting with the deep end. At least I was going into that with a lot of pre-knowledge because I was well familiar with so many of his films, but he threw me a curve ball from the off. I was told that his junior high school teacher had noticed his talent when he was young, and went out of her way to encourage him to pursue acting seriously. This would be a great opener, I was informed by people in the know.
On the day, we both arrived on stage – the ballroom was packed – shook hands, and sat down in our comfy chairs. After a brief welcome, I began confidently with my first question.
“What started your love of acting?” I posed.
He looked at me, a glint in his eye, and replied, “I dunno; I woke up one morning and said to myself, “Hey, I think I want to be an actor!’”
Tartar sauce; he was going to make this a test. Time to reach for the cards …
I will say that by the end, we’d come to a point of fun banter, but he made me work for it. It didn’t help that the screen in front of us that was supposed to have a timer I could monitor was absolutely blank. One part of my brain was gearing up for each new question, while the other was trying to approximate how long we’d been up there and how much longer there was to go.
A year later, I got Jamie Lee Curtis. I could have gone into that one with no research whatsoever. Not down to me knowing everything, but because she did all the talking. The woman was exactly as she seems in interviews on TV – vivacious and energetic; full of beans. At one point, I think maybe she choked on her water or something, so I seized the opportunity to jump in with a question. Isn’t that nice? Rather than checking to see if she was okay, I saw an opening and I went for it.
It was about the children’s books she had written, and I prefaced my query with a preamble about the fact that “some of them” were bestsellers.
Throat now clear, she was able to reply with, “ALL of them are bestsellers.”
Right, that was me told. As I said over the mic, “I finally get a word in, and I’m wrong”, which was greeted with titters from familiar faces in the audience who were no doubt gobsmacked to witness me being out-chattered.
I could name drop for quite a while longer, but I shan’t. I’m sure you want to know how it went with Venus.
Well, she couldn’t have been more charming and forthcoming, with a good dose of humour sprinkled throughout the conversation. She was a delight to talk to and my initial nerves dropped away immediately. Without panic clouding all my stored facts, I remembered every question I wanted to ask and the cards remained firmly on the table. Bonus: The screen timer was on, and I threw furtive glances its way so we didn’t end up keeping everyone there until midnight.
I was never a watcher of tennis up until then, but from now on I will be following her career with great interest, wishing her victory in upcoming competitions. In the meantime, I’ll go back to the book to see if I can follow the 8 Steps each day. After all, wouldn’t we all like to find our awesome?
Related Videos
