- How are you?
- [Kelly] I'm so-- - We've never met.
- I know. And it's so crazy.
I was literally backstage going,
"Wait, I've never met her."
- [Ava] I've never met you.
- You're so badass!
- Oh, thank you. - Yeah! (audience cheering)
- As are you, as are you. (audience cheering)
- [Kelly] I, incredibly-- - Thank you.
- [Kelly] I feel like I'm a very busy woman
but I feel like you have upped me,
(Ava laughing)
you are like far busier than me.
- Busy but blessed.
They call it booked and busy--
- [Kelly] Booked and blessed. - And blessed.
- [Kelly] That has all the B's. - [Ava] Yes.
- I love that--
- All the B's!
(audience clapping) - [Kelly] I love that.
Um, well, you're so busy
as I said that even Shonda Rhimes
gave you some great advice.
- [Kelly] What was that?
- She did. I called her
and I said, "You know,
"you've got so much going on.
"I've got a lot going on
"but you seem to be a little calmer than me,
"how do you do it?" - [Kelly] More balanced?
- A little more balanced.
"What are you doing?"
And she said,
"Oh, well, do you work on the weekend?"
And I said, "Well, yeah,
"definitely work on the weekend."
And she said,
"Do you ever get caught up?"
And I was like, "Yeah, no,
"I never get caught up
"where I work on the weekend." She said,
"So, then stop doing it. Why are you doing it?"
- [Kelly] Yeah.
- And so it just really made me,
help me reprioritize my time.
- [Kelly] Yeah.
You know what helped me is kids.
Like, it's like I want to be a great mom.
And mine was like,
my kids I'm like, that my daughter will shame me.
My seven-year-old has some shame game, y'all.
Like, she'll be like,
"Why are you on your phone?" (Ava laughing)
And I'll be like, "I'm not."
And I'll put it down. Like, (Ava laughing)
so, I stopped doing weekend stuff.
Like, I try my best
every once in a while something pops up--
- [Ava] Yeah.
- And shame game comes to cry to me.
But it's hard though to stop--
- [Ava] It is. - When you love what you do.
- [Ava] When you love what you do-- - Yeah.
- [Ava] You know? And it's, it's,
it's a part of making films
and telling stories is,
you know, a beautiful part of my life.
So, to say, "I have to stop at this time,"
it's something that I've not done, but--
- [Kelly] But you're a creator. - Yeah.
- [Kelly] It's hard to just be like-- - I love it.
- [Kelly] Like, I'm not gonna to create--
- [Ava] That's-- - Over the weekends.
- [Ava] That's right. - We should probably listen to her.
Um, so yeah, "Balance is good,"
so my therapist says. Um,
so were you always so good at,
dedicated to work?
Like, even back,
I heard that you,
we were both waitresses.
I was a waitress as well before--
- [Ava] Yeah.
- I feel like all of us were waitresses.
- [Ava] Yeah. - I loved it.
- [Ava] I loved it and I was really good.
- [Kelly] I was good. - I was good.
- [Kelly] Yeah. I knew how to really use first names,
get a better tip.
- [Ava] Oh, what you're say-- - Yeah--
- [Ava] What you're saying-- - [Kelly] Yeah.
- Just feel out what they want:
Do they want more conversation? - [Kelly] Yes.
- Do they want more space?
- Yes!
- All the little extra things you'd bring.
Yes.
I knew who to target in the family.
- [Kelly] Yes! - You like pull out the...
I was so good at-- - [Kelly] That's a talent.
- It is. And I always think,
if this Hollywood thing goes wrong
and I can't make movies anymore--
- [Kelly] Yup. - I'll be fine.
- [Kelly] Yeah. - Yeah.
- [Kelly] 'Cause I'm a killer waitress.
- [Ava] Yeah, I'm a killer waitress.
- Me too. I'm personable--
- I can tell you were good,
I mean, I can-- - I'm just saying--
- Just imagine her coming to your table--
- Yeah.
- Taking a order.
- You would probably want me to leave:
I like to talk. (Ava laughing)
Um, but I would say, (audience laughing)
I would say, I was like,
"I don't think you like a talker."
So, I'd walk away - [Ava] Right!
- And then I'd use it all on the other table.
But um, did, I heard, um,
did you ever see Little Richard?
Did you wait on like,
you waited on people - [Ava] Yeah.
I did not wait on people like that.
- Yeah. I worked at a place called Aunt Kizzy's Back Porch
in LA.
And on Sundays they had a very famous brunch
where a lot of people would come - known people.
- [Kelly] Yeah. - Little Richard came every Sunday.
I was at UCLA at the time
as a student - [Kelly] Yeah.
working.
And he left me a $100 tip
on a $60 cheque.
- [Kelly] Wow.
- [Ava] Every Sunday.
He really put me through college, basically.
- [Kelly] Wait, so--
- Yeah. (audience clapping)
- [Kelly] Are you this person now?
I promised myself as a waitress...
'Cause people would surprise me with tips like that,
and I was like, "Man, if I ever make it, like,
"if I make some money
"in life,"
I was like, I'm always gonna like--
- [Ava] I'm a great tipper. - Like, surprise...
- Are you? I'm a great--
- That's what I'm saying. - Yes!
You know why?
Because people don't realize you are hustling.
- [Ava] You're livin' on it, yeah.
- Yeah. - Absolutely.
- [Kelly] Yeah. And everybody comes at once.
You get slammed.
It's not like it's spread out during the day.
Just everyone wants to eat all day, all hours.
(Ava laughing) It's like you're slammed.
Anyway. I tip well.
That's really cool that you do that, yeah.
- [Ava] Well, it's important that you do it if you can.
- [Kelly] Yeah.
- You know so, yeah. - [Kelly] Absolutely.
Well, um speaking of music, uh, Little Richard,
Um, who is your favorite band to see
if I always like to ask,
who do you love to see, like, live?
- [Kelly] Who's your band?
- U2.
- [Kelly] Oh, good! Really?
- Yes. And when I came into
your beautiful dressing rooms in the back...
You have, she has albums on each of the room--
- [Kelly] Vinyl, yeah.
- Vinyl albums on each of the rooms.
And I walked in and there was a U2 album.
I said, "Oh, they did this for me."
And they were like, "No, this is--
- [Kelly] That's one of my favorite records.
Yeah. Yeah.
- [Ava] I love them.
I've seen them over 30 times in concerts.
- [Kelly] Oh, my God. - Since I was 18 years old.
- [Kelly] Wow. - They're just like my,
my Bible of a band.
- [Kelly] You know, it's funny you said Bible.
I was literally about to say,
I saw them live
and it was like a spiritual experience.
- [Ava] Mm, yeah. - Like, it was,
it was bigger than just music
and it was so, like, connecting,
like, you would, none of us knew each other
and the audience, you know-- - [Ava] Yeah.
- We're all just like experiencing the same thing.
It's such a beautifully... I'm so glad live music is back.
But yeah, wow.
- [Ava] I think it's because their music is about something,
it has meaning. - [Kelly] Yeah.
- And so, it kind of, yeah, it kind of.
- [Kelly] What's your favorite song?
I'm just curious.
- [Ava] It's so impossible to,
for me to choose.
I'd probably say
probably "One".
One of my favorites. - [Kelly] Oh, God!
- One of my favorites. - When he did it with Mary J.
- [Ava] I know. - [Kelly] God!
- Now it's just another level. - [Kelly] Yeah.
Yeah, there's so many great songs.
- Yes. You should sing that. - Okay. I, being I--
- I'm making a request.
- [Kelly] Sometimes I get nervous
about covering certain songs
and then sometimes I'm like,
"Oh, I shouldn't have covered that."
Um, but I did it.