You might not know this if you weren’t familiar with Reggie Watts’ career before he got the gig as bandleader of The Late Late Show with James Corden, but he’s a supremely talented musical improviser (this appearance on Conan is a personal favorite of mine, for instance). What you probably do know, though, is that Watts will often take a couple minutes during the show to ask a question of one of the guests. On last night’s episode, Watts asked Donald Glover (Childish Gambino, in musical circles) if he would jam with him. Thankfully, Glover obliged.
Watts laid down a beatbox, atop which Glover sang some falsetto vocals and turned the jam into a soulful track about enjoying Watts’ company: “Reggie’s on the microphone / That means I’m not ever alone.” Glover then got up the dance, the rest of the band joined in, and the freestyle turned into a full-fledged song, which included a vocal guitar-like solo from Watts and slick dance moves from Corden.
It was an absolutely fun time, and a not-so-subtle reference to Watts’ time as the bandleader on Comedy Bang! Bang!, a job he held right before starting with The Late Late Show. This video was titled “Donald Glover & Reggie Watts Make Music,” named after Watts’ old web-only segment “Reggie Makes Music,” on which he’d bust out a quick improvised song with that episode’s guest. For example, here’s the one he did with Jon Hamm, which turned into a synopsis of the ’70s and ’80s TV show Taxi:
Have you been watching Donald Glover’s new series Atlanta? Let us know how you like it!
Featured image: CBS
