Billy Bush is Back: Hot Mics, Trump, Iran, Media Reinvention & the Future of Celebrity

On Brand with Donny Deutsch

Donny Deutsch Podcast Admin

Entertainment News, News, Arts, News Commentary

4.6 • 896 Ratings

🗓️ 16 April 2026

⏱️ 34 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Billy Bush — host of Hot Mics with Billy Bush (live Mon–Thu, 12PM ET on TuneIn Radio & YouTube) — joins Donny for a candid, no-filter conversation about life after the Today Show, building his own media brand, and why independent digital media is the future of broadcasting. Billy opens up about his very public fall from television's top tier and the painful personal journey that ultimately led him back — stronger, more authentic, and finally free from corporate media constraints. He reflects on what it truly means to hit rock bottom, rebuild from scratch, and find purpose on the other side. Then the gloves come off. Billy and Donny go deep on the biggest stories dominating the headlines: Trump's character vs. policy debate, the U.S. strikes on Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, the 2026 midterms and Democratic Party identity crisis, the Savannah Guthrie missing mother case, and NBC's awkward handling of its own story. They also unpack the seismic shift in celebrity culture — why Gen Z knows Alix Earl and Mr. Beast better than any Hollywood A-lister — and what authenticity really means in the creator economy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Isn't life grande?
0:01.9	And making it better just got easier with Starbucks new protein cold foam.
0:06.7	A little something, something to take your favorite drinks up a notch with 15 grams of extra protein.
0:13.2	Turn your usual iced caramel latte into a smooth iced caramel protein latte.
0:18.5	Add a delicious swirl on top of your drink just like that protein never
0:24.1	tasted so good with starbucks new protein cold foam subject to availability while stocks last
0:29.9	i've got a fantastic guest today.
0:41.4	I'm going to need a little help for my audience pulling him out of his show because he's shy.
0:44.8	He's reserved.
0:45.5	He doesn't like to speak much.
0:47.2	His name is Billy Bush.
0:49.2	He's been a fixture in the media scene for years.
0:52.5	His hot mics with Billy Bush, which airs live Monday through Thursday at 12 p.m.
0:57.7	Eastern 9 a.m. on the West Coast on tune in radio on YouTube.
1:03.5	He's always a guy that speaks what's on his mind.
1:05.9	Billy, thank you for joining me today, my friend.
1:07.7	Hello, Donnie.
1:08.3	I'm going to come out of my show right now, especially for you.
1:12.2	One of the few guys that has better hair than me. I mean, your hair is just, it's a thing.
1:17.2	It's an organism into itself. But Donnie, when I'm 82, like you are right now,
1:21.9	I mean, will it still be there? I don't know. Congratulations, man. You've made the passage that so many have made or not everybody successfully
1:30.6	use so from linear to what we call, I guess, what do we even call the media that we're on
	...

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