Bobby Cannavale's Personality Crisis
RollingStone India|June 2016

How the ‘Vinyl’ star charmed Mick Jagger and got to play the coolest, craziest music exec that never was.

Alex Morris
Bobby Cannavale's Personality Crisis

A couple of years back, Bobby Cannavale went to see Mick Jagger about a job. The Emmy-winning actor had been tapped by Martin Scorsese and Terence Winter to play the lead in a show that was being kicked around at HBO, but the project was really Jagger’s idea – conceived two decades ago as a film that pulled the curtain back on the music industry of the 1970s – so Jagger was the man to please. And thus far, he hadn’t been. “I remember being really freaked out about what the lighting should look like in my living room,” Cannavale says now of a Skype call gone wrong. “I was like, ‘I want him to think I’m cool.’ So I wore black, you know? Black’s rock & roll.” The feedback Cannavale got afterward was that maybe he’d come off as too intense, too much like his (pathologically violent) bootlegger character on Boardwalk Empire, and not enough like the complex, drug-fueled but ultimately redeemable music exec Jagger envisioned.

Which was how Cannavale found himself driving to Washington, D.C., with girlfriend Rose Byrne in tow, to see the Stones play and meet Jagger in the flesh. They went to Jagger’s room at the Four Seasons (“I didn’t even know a hotel room that big existed. Like, I couldn’t find a bathroom”), they talked music (“I just tried not to say much”), and eventually Cannavale mentioned a YouTube video of a James Brown concert where both Michael Jackson and Prince came onstage: “Michael does the moonwalk and people go crazy, and then Prince is carried through the crowd on the back of his bodyguard. I showed it to Jagger, and he died. We must have watched it 10 times. I felt like, ‘Oh, we’re good now.’ ”

This story is from the June 2016 edition of RollingStone India.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the June 2016 edition of RollingStone India.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM ROLLINGSTONE INDIAView All
UNCOVERING THE RELEVANCE OF BIBIMBAP IN THE KOREAN WAVE
RollingStone India

UNCOVERING THE RELEVANCE OF BIBIMBAP IN THE KOREAN WAVE

A SYMBOL OF KOREAN SOLIDARITY AND PLURALITY, AS WELL AS THE ABILITY OF FOOD TO SERVE AS A CULTURAL AMBASSADOR, BIBIMBAP IS BEING CONSUMED ACROSS COUNTRIES AS THE KOREAN WAVE ADVANCES

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2024
Anitta's Funk Revolution
RollingStone India

Anitta's Funk Revolution

After a major health scare, the Brazilian star learned to let go and got back to her roots

time-read
9 mins  |
March 2024
THE LEGEND AND HIS RHYTHM, IN FIVE TABLA MOVEMENTS
RollingStone India

THE LEGEND AND HIS RHYTHM, IN FIVE TABLA MOVEMENTS

He will turn 73 this month and he has just won three Grammys. But that is not going to slow down the maestro. Ustad Zakir Hussain is as busy with his Hindustani classical and fusion projects as he was when he started his career nearly six decades ago

time-read
10+ mins  |
March 2024
BLACKSWAN in CONVERSATION
RollingStone India

BLACKSWAN in CONVERSATION

BLACKSWAN REVEALS THEIR EXCITEMENT ABOUT COMING BACK TO INDIA, NOTABLY PERFORMING FOR THE K-TOWN FESTIVAL IN MUMBAI, AND MORE CANDID THOUGHTS IN THE FOLLOWING INTERVIEW

time-read
7 mins  |
March 2024
K-DRAMA FLASHBACK: ITAEWON CLASS
RollingStone India

K-DRAMA FLASHBACK: ITAEWON CLASS

With Park Seo-joon as Park Sae-ro-yi taking center stage, the drama is his journey of revenge, growth, and love, but it also questions prejudice, promotes inclusivity, and celebrates diversity with other unique characters

time-read
4 mins  |
March 2024
ALAN WALKER ON AI, GAMING NEW MUSIC AND INDIA PLANS
RollingStone India

ALAN WALKER ON AI, GAMING NEW MUSIC AND INDIA PLANS

The Norwegian DJ-producer speaks with us about revisiting core memories for the music video to his latest song \"Who I Am,\" building a virtual theme park-like Walkerworld and more

time-read
6 mins  |
March 2024
Tyla
RollingStone India

Tyla

The South African pop star on staying true to herself; dancing all night, and her Belieber past

time-read
6 mins  |
March 2024
Varijashree Venugopal Signs to GroundUp Music Label by Snarky Puppy's Michael League
RollingStone India

Varijashree Venugopal Signs to GroundUp Music Label by Snarky Puppy's Michael League

The Bengaluru vocalist, composer and flautist’s debut album Vari’ will arrive in May 2024

time-read
2 mins  |
March 2024
Echoes of Earth Goa Included Intriguing Installations, Manic Music and Vivacious Vibes
RollingStone India

Echoes of Earth Goa Included Intriguing Installations, Manic Music and Vivacious Vibes

India’s renowned eco-conscious celebration made its debut in the vibrant state of Goa from February 2nd to 4th, 2024

time-read
1 min  |
March 2024
Dana Fuchs: ‘I Think There Is Power In Vulnerability
RollingStone India

Dana Fuchs: ‘I Think There Is Power In Vulnerability

The American artist performed at this year's Mahindra Blues Festival in Mumbai

time-read
3 mins  |
March 2024