Billie Eilish was one of the first artists to say yes. Another was BTS—they’ve been on the show before and have done everything from carpool karaoke to hide-and-seek in the studio. They all, I think, live together in a complex that has a dance studio underneath it. So they were very keen.
Diana Miller, a talent executive and a producer on the show, deserves a lot of credit. She pushed us to go for a real global angle, which I think gave our show an original slant. We featured artists in the UK, Italy, Korea, and the U.S. We also ended up with a really great range, with performances that were upbeat or clever, like Dua Lipa’s. To see everybody on Zoom, FaceTime, or Houseparty, which was the app that Lipa used, reflected the circumstance of our lives and the global nature of this crisis.
As for how we did it, technically it was tricky. We delivered a rig to each artist so they could film themselves with a camera that connected to their phone. That way, we could get high quality footage and they would also be able to see James on video chat. The Late Late Show tapes at 5 p.m. and airs later that night. With Homefest, we taped everything the day before it aired. Essentially, all the elements were shot live to tape, so there was a lot of complicated coordination that had to come together, especially with the time difference across locations.
We were shooting James in his garage, which we outfitted with three cameras and lights so it would look good. He was completely alone at his desk with his laptop so he could see us and the director through Zoom. It was a strange way to shoot a television show.
Of course, things briefly went awry. In the middle of the shoot, the power went out. It wasn’t our equipment or anything—his whole street lost power as often happens in L.A. neighborhoods like Brentwood and Westwood. It was very touch-and-go at one point. We had to reschedule a bit with David Blaine, who was—luckily for us—very kind and accommodating. The outage lasted about six hours; if it hadn’t come back we wouldn't have been able to deliver the show.