Paul Shaffer hosting SiriusXM, AXS TV celebrity interview show

Featured Guests Include Entertainment Trailblazers Such as Graham Nash, Billy Gibbons, Sammy Hagar, Donald Fagen, Buddy Guy and More

Musician and television star Paul Shaffer has announced a multi-platform content deal to host the all-new interview series Paul Shaffer Plus One. The program will debut in an hour-long format on SiriusXM and on AXS TV in a half-hour format debuting Sunday nights in primetime this summer.

Paul Shaffer Plus One finds the multi-talented musician sitting down for candid in-depth conversations with his close friends and fellow music icons, as they discuss their careers, influences, and experiences. Shot in a recording studio setting and with Shaffer at the piano, when talking about the genesis of a particular song, Shaffer may initiate a brief impromptu performance. Featured guests include music legends such as popular rocker Sammy Hagar, The Hollies’ and CSN’s Graham Nash, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons, blues trailblazer Buddy Guy, and Steely Dan co-founder Donald Fagen, among many others. As Shaffer memorably portrayed the hapless record company promotion man Artie Fufkin in This Is Spinal Tap, appropriately also guesting on the series is Tap bassist Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer).

“In this show I get to go one-on-one with all my favorite recording artists. We talk mainly music and if the topic turns to a specific tune, we demonstrate in song. It’s a dream come true,” states Shaffer.

Four-time EMMY nominee Shaffer forever cemented his place in entertainment history as the band leader and sidekick during the combined 33-year run of Late Night With David Letterman and Late Show With David Letterman. Before joining Letterman’s record-setting run, Shaffer cut his teeth as a featured performer and member of Saturday Night Live’s house band during SNL‘s first five years, working with Gilda Radner on her hit Broadway show, and as musical director for The Blues Brothers featuring Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. Shaffer has also enjoyed an acclaimed career as a GRAMMY-winning solo artist and collaborator, performing alongside Robert Plant, Bob Dylan, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney, Brian Wilson, Cher, B.B. King, and Diana Ross, to name only a few, and co-writing the evergreen anthem “It’s Raining Men” with Paul Jabara. Shaffer’s work can currently be heard on David Letterman’s new Netflix series My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, for which he wrote and performed the theme song and bridging music.

The monthly show will air across multiple SiriusXM music channels. Paul Shaffer Plus One will be available via satellite and accessible through the SiriusXM app on smartphones and other connected devices, and online at siriusxm.com.

Paul Shaffer Plus One is the newest addition to AXS TV’s extensive roster of classic rock and music programming that already includes the cross-country jam series Rock & Roll Road Trip With Sammy Hagar; original reality series Real Money, starring rock showman Eddie Money and his talented family; the star-studded sit-down series The Big Interview With Dan Rather; and the music-themed countdown show Top Ten Revealed, hosted by Katie Daryl; as well as a slate of unforgettable concerts from some of music’s biggest names. AXS TV produces more than 200 hours of original programming, and is available nationwide across major cable, satellite, and telco distributors, and streamers such as DirecTV Now, Sling TV, and Philo.

“AXS TV is proud to partner with SiriusXM to bring Paul Shaffer Plus One to our viewers across the country,” comments Evan Haiman, vice president of music programming and production, AXS TV. “The series is the perfect complement to our growing lineup, and represents a continuation of AXS TV’s commitment to providing the absolute best music-themed programming on television today. The response to our popular series such as Rock & Roll Road Trip and Real Money, among others, has truly been incredible, and I’m confident our audience will embrace Paul Shaffer Plus One in the same way.”

Shaffer’s longtime manager, Panacea Entertainment chairman Eric Gardner, is the executive producer for both series. Evan Haiman joins Gardner as executive producer for the AXS TV shows.

SiriusXM subscribers may enjoy the program on SiriusXM radios, and those with streaming access can listen online and on-the-go with the SiriusXM mobile app, and at home on a wide variety of connected devices including smart TVs, Amazon Alexa devices, Apple TV, PlayStation, Roku, Sonos speakers and more.

Buddy Iahn
Buddy Iahn

Buddy Iahn founded The Music Universe when he decided to juxtapose his love of web design and music. As a lifelong drummer, he decided to take a hiatus from playing music to report it. The website began as a fun project in 2013 to one of the top independent news sites. Email: info@themusicuniverse.com