EPISODE 7: Not Your Father’s Fairy Tale (with John Kavanaugh)

Ep. 8: "Early Morning Madness"

🎭 My Favorite Sings — Ep. 8: "Early Morning Madness" Rebranding and the Future of Musical Theater Development In this episode of My Favorite Sings, hosts David Goldsmith and Paul Gordon announce a major shift for the show — revealing an upcoming rebrand to "Does It Sing?" with David Goldsmith & Friends, focusing on "The Three Questions" that drive every great musical: Does it Sing? Do I Care? and Does It Have A Reason For Being? Paul shares his candid thoughts on the current state of Broadway, the obstacles facing new musicals, and the urgent need for musical and narrative sophistication. The conversation digs into West Side Story, Company, and A Chorus Line — dissecting what made them revolutionary — while reflecting on structure, storytelling, and why digital platforms may hold the key to theatre’s next chapter. BONUS: Stick around after the final credits, for an easter egg from the episode that reveals the clue of the title. 🎧 Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@davidgoldsmithlyrics [https://youtu.be/31t2ZDnS0Hc?si=W9t63r7sN2t5M_68] 🎙 Listen on Spotify, Apple & all platforms ⏱ Episode Timestamps: 00:00 — Introduction and Rebranding Pre-Announcement 01:21 — Technical Glitches and Podcasting Realities 02:05 — Paul’s Vacation and Catching Up 03:07 — Listener Engagement and Monetization 03:51 — The Connector Concert Experience 07:00 — Broadway’s Musical Landscape 09:41 — The Art of Storytelling in Musicals 13:43 — The Three Questions Framework 23:36 — Groundbreaking Musicals: West Side Story, Company, Chorus Line 26:59 — The Genius of Marvin Hamlisch 30:05 — Challenges in the Broadway Industry 34:09 — The Importance of Digital Transformation 36:16 — Paul Gordon’s Farewell and Future Plans 41:24 — Advice for Aspiring Musical Writers 47:06 — Final Thoughts and POST-CREDIT SURPRISE Anecdote

EPISODE 7: Not Your Father’s Fairy Tale (with John Kavanaugh)

While Paul’s off gallivanting in LA, David welcomes his longtime songwriting partner John Kavanaugh as guest co-host. John (9-time Emmy nominee, Sofia the First, Elena of Avalor, Descendants 3) joins for a deep dive into the realities of songwriting for Disney, film, television, stage—and what separates a song from a track. They cover: ✅ Landing their newest Disney song (and how blind submissions work) ✅ The strange mix of art, commerce, and luck behind every song placement ✅ The craft of structure, form, and musical theatre songwriting vs pop songwriting ✅ Their collaboration on My Once Upon A Time (Descendants 3) ✅ The long road of their musical Five Women at an Airport — now streaming on Virtual Stage Lab 🎧 PLUS: A never-before-heard surprise — the original demo track of "My Once Upon A Time" Produced by Marco Marinangeli & performed by Ashley Morgan — the first recording Dove Cameron heard before laying down her version. 💻 More from this episode: * 🎼 Five Women at an Airport → https://fivewomenatairportmusical.com [https://fivewomenatairportmusical.com/] * 🎥 Virtual Stage Lab → https://virtualstagelab.com [https://virtualstagelab.com/] * 🎶 Watch/listen to My Once Upon A Time →  https://youtu.be/eS4po4pY3xs?si=AKSfgVJEkAFnhr5Y [https://youtu.be/eS4po4pY3xs?si=AKSfgVJEkAFnhr5Y] * 🎙 Contact Virtual Stage Lab: virtualstagelab@gmail.com My Favorite Sings is a production of Virtual Stage Lab. CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS 00:00 — Pink headphones, Pride Month & LA flashbacks 04:40 — Guest intro: John Kavanaugh’s Emmy-winning resume 08:15 — Landing their newest Disney song 12:50 — Blind submissions & the Disney song process 17:20 — Structure: musical theatre vs pop songwriting 24:00 — The story behind My Once Upon A Time 35:00 — Why training matters for songwriters 42:10 — The evolution of Five Women at an Airport 52:30 — Virtual Stage Lab & democratizing musical development 1:02:00 — Shameless Plugs: Five Women at an Airport 1:07:30 — Tony Awards recap 1:13:00 — 🎧 BONUS: The original demo of "My Once Upon A Time"

What, Me Shameless Plugs?

🎙️ NEW EPISODE! “What, Me? Shameless Plugs?” — Ep. 6 of My Favorite Sings is live! David Goldsmith & Paul Gordon get real(ish) about: ✅ Launching the pod ✅ Taking notes (or not) ✅ Segment ideas they may never use ✅ And why filmed musicals might just save the industry Also: some very shameless plugs. You’ve been warned. 🧢 Stream now wherever you get your podcasts 🎭 Watch on YouTube + Spotify #MyFavoriteSings #MusicalTheatrePodcast #BroadwayWriters #VirtualStageLab #PaulGordon #DavidGoldsmith #NewMusicals #FilmedTheatre

Tony Noms Day!

Just in time for the Tony's, David Starts off this week’s episode by springing the podcast’s Main Title song and accompanying video onto Paul for the first time. He remains unpersuaded and the protest continues. It’s Tony Nominations  Announcement week as this episode is being filed, so naturally a freewheeling, snark-free (mostly) discussion ensues, along with a rapturous acknowledgment of Tony™ nominee Jasmine Amy Rogers, making her Broadway debut as Betty Boop, but who is also making her Gordon & Goldsmith musical My Improbable Sisters, in a very different and no less luminous performance as little-known civil rights icon Claudette Colvin, now streaming for free on YouTube, and you must go there now and watch it before you come back and listen to this episode. This week’s nerdlist includes a dive into some of Sondheim’s Greatest Patters. David allows Paul more TV and Film music discussion than he’s really comfortable with, but what are you gonna do? These are his Favorite Sings. Finally, Paul and David vow to Never Fight Again.

Why This Show, Why Now?

Why is His Girl Friday the movie not a good idea, but Guys & Dolls magnificently was? The answer is in the third of David and Paul’s Three Questions For What Makes A Musical: Does it sing? Do I care? And, Why This Show, Why Now? A little sneak preview conversation about the Gordon & Goldsmith opus My Improbable Sisters, streaming now on YouTube (starring Jenna Lea Rosen and Tony™ nominee Jasmine Amy Rogers). Some Legally Blonde, some Les Miz (an epic disagreement about the scansion of “On My Own,” some firsthand John Caird stories from Paul… why David and Paul are loving writing their next big project, an adaption of Dickens’ Little Dorrit… and then, per Paul’s request, this week’s Paul & David Break It Down concerns one of David’s patter songs (a waltz, and with a French accent) from that very work-in-progress. A peek into David’s lyric-writing process and the collaboration between David and Paul writ large. Not that you asked. Wait though, you did. Enjoy.