(audience cheering)
- [Kelly] Have a seat!
- Hi,
That is such a cute outfit!
- Thank you!
- It is so great to see you.
How is your family?
- Good, good, good.
My dad's doing okay.
You know we're post surgery for his post pancreatic cancer.
So it's been a really long journey this year.
But, you know now it's just trying
to get some weight on him.
And, my daughter just turned 17, you know.
- That's crazy.
(audience cheering)
- My mom is like on like, doing all this like diet stuff
and like workout stuff and mindfulness stuff.
So she's just like it-- - My mom is too
- Super healthy right now. - Yeah, yeah.
- Like, you know, I guess she's going
into 2020 strong - Get it moms.
Yeah
- Like life is, you know, just grateful.
- Yeah, I'm trolling a little behind her, but I'm trying to.
But you adopted actually a 17
and you get adopted her when she was 12.
- When she moved in she was 11, Yeah.
- Oh, in 11.
- Yeah, yeah.
- So why did you choose to adopt,
we talk about this a lot on the show, actually.
And I was talking to my sister about this for she's adopted.
And she always feels sorry,
because a lot of the older kids never get adult
and so is the babies. - Exactly, exactly.
- So was that a that was a strong choice for you.
- I told my mom when I was five years old that
I was going to adopt and I was gonna adopt older.
Because that was when I found out that
my dad is not my biological father.
- [Kelly] Yeah.
(audience clapping)
- And it's so amazing to me, - That's a very beautiful
thing to do
(audience clapping)
- That he, you know,
married my mom when she was 18 years old
with a one year old.
- [Kelly] Yeah,
- And raised me as his own.
That's why I'm a Dawson.
And you know, when I figured that out and found that out,
I just said, Wow, like, what would that have been like?
I have so many friends who are single,
you know, have single parent
- [Kelly] Yeah.
- And you know, what if I was five or six now
would someone have wanted to adopt me then?
So I was like, You know what, I'm going to,
when I get older, I'm gonna adopt
(audience cheering)
I'm gonna adopt-- - And you're absolutely right!
The situation completely changes.
Like it's almost like once kids hit five
and above it just changes your percentage of
like getting adopted goes, just way down.
- Yeah.
- And you were actually a part of
a documentary about homelessness, right?
Like with youth - Homelessness.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
It's called Lost in America.
And you know, it's for a lot of girls, you know,
like my daughter would have more than likely statistically
aged out and more than likely become homeless statistically,
because you don't have a network,
you have no community around,
- You've no life skills and-- - And you know, like skills
are just like, you know, you know, people fall back,
you know, that just that those that that the family that's
coming together and rallying to your aid to
kind of grow and develop.
And so there's a story about that at a girl who ends up
in foster care and ends up homeless
and the homelessness problem that you're seeing is,
is just growing all across
this country is a very serious thing.
And when people talk about you know, real housing,
that's a that's that can be a real, real,
real benefit to society - Yeah.
- And not, - Exactly
(audience clapping) - It's preventative,
- You know, - Exactly.
- People act like it's gonna cost it so much you actually
it's costing us way more in not to take care of each other.
- Yeah, 100%.
We've actually worked with a lot of that on the show like,
especially with youth and homelessness,
and it's like, people don't get like
they didn't choose that,
they were born into this situation like nobody wakes up
one day and goes, can't wait to sleep in a tent,
like outside of a building like nobody does that.
And these kids matter.
Everybody matters, like no matter where you're from,
and I thought it was really beautiful.
But I do want to talk about your new show as well.
You're just drinking a beer and that
show is way cooler than me on any day.
You just exude cool.
I'm just gonna let it out now.
But what's your new show Briar Patch about?
- Well, my character is suddenly given the news that
her sister has died, she was a police officer
and died in a car bomb.
So she goes back to her hometown to
investigate her sister's murder.
And it just gets crazier and more wild
and weirder than that.
She's also works for in a Senate subcommittee.
So she works for a senator who she's you know,
in having a situation with,
(laughs) relationship with - Maybe relations
- Maybe relations with.
- Is that why you're dating Corey?
He was research? - No.
(laughs)
- It was research,
- No, actually - Your very method
(laughs)
That's all I'm saying.
No, I just (audience cheering)
I think it's so awesome.
(audience cheering)
I think this is the reason why I wanted to put it out,
because I think it's so awesome.
I think it's very telling of your character too,
to want a man like that that's so strong
and so infinite knows what he wants
and knows what's good for people.
- Yeah.
- [Kelly] He's a cool dude.
- He is a really great, - Yes.
- Very cool too.
- But it was also research to?
- No. - I was just kidding!
- It's so funny cause we did, we shot the pilot for
the show in September of 2018.
- Yeah.
- And then Corey and I started dating in October of 2018.
And I remember when the show got picked up,
and we started doing ADR, and we were going to film
the rest of it last year.
I talked to the showrunner Andy and I was like,
so art imitates life or life imitates art?
I think I have the answer to that finally.
- I know, it's so crazy.
- Yeah,
- Yeah, it's like a cool show.
- Yeah, luckily, you know, when you watch the show,
it's definitely more cynical version of looking
at politics and looking at sort of
the world in general or not.
But you know, that's not the case with Corey.
Thank goodness.
- I know, I know he seems really cool.
But speaking of running for office there's a game on
the web right now to figure out
to figure out your personal presidential campaign slogan.
I love it.
It's your name, the year you want to run for president
and the last thing you texted,
(audient laughs)
so I feel like it works mine
and I figured this out before the show, and it's awesome!
(laughter)
Mine is Clarkson.
2028.
Oh, sheew, you actually just reminded me that
Cassie texted me and I never got back to her.
I'm such an ass.
Please tell her I'm so sorry.
I just remembered grimace face.
(laughter)
That's my slogan.
(audience clapping)
- Well, what is yours?
- I brought out my phone.
- I hope, I was like beforehand, I was like,
I cannot believe this is my last text.
(laughs)
- Actually, I just I texted Cab
because I was actually sending him
the first two episodes.
That's you know,
- Yeah, - Cause he gets extra first.
So I just went just for you, baby.
(laughs)
That will be like, Dawson 2028 just for you, baby.
(audience laughing)
It sounds
- That's actually awesome! (audience clapping)
- It sounds a little bit,
I went to the I was (mumbles) at
the Met ball and Rihanna as performing
and then like the surprise guest was Kanye West.
- [Kelly] Yeah.
And he came out and everyone got super excited to
see him and the first thing he walks up to
the mic with all this, like rounding applause.
And the first thing he says is,
"You're welcome."
And I was like, - Oh, my God.
- You know, he's talking about running for office,
and I think that should be his campaign slogan.
- You're welcome - Kanye West for president.
- Actually, - You're welcome.
- I actually said that a lot myself.
So I kind make fun of him
(laughs)
- Usually am like, "You're welcome"
But it's usually when I mess up.