VH1’s New ‘Big Morning Buzz’ Host Nick Lachey Looks to Jay Leno, Ryan Seacrest for Interview Tips

The 98 Degrees band member speaks to TheWrap about who he’d like to emulate on the live interview show starting Monday

Miller Mobley

Nick Lachey takes the reins of VH1’s “Big Morning Buzz Live” talk show as its spring host starting Monday.

A member of singing group 98 Degrees and host of NBC’s “The Sing-Off” will be on the other side of the interview now, and there are definitely some things that he’d like to avoid after being the interviewee countless times.

“I definitely didn’t appreciate being an interviewee when you were broadsided – stuff that people would spring on you that wasn’t part of a pre-interview,” Lachey told TheWrap. “I don’t want a guest on our show to feel like they were sabotaged or hijacked into answering a question. I don’t want to put anyone on the spot.”

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The new host said that there are two interviewers he’d like to emulate in his new gig: former “Tonight Show” host Jay Leno and KISS FM and “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest.

“Every time I did his show, Jay Leno would come in and say hello before the show,” the 40-year-old said. “You feel like he wanted you to be there whether he knew anything about you or didn’t know anything about you. But, you come in to the interview feeling like he wants to hear what you have to talk about. The best interviews come from when there’s almost some teamwork involved. You don’t want it to feel adversarial.”

He continued, “Ryan Seacrest is another guy who’s really, really great at making you feel comfortable and supportive of what you’re there to talk about, but also great at interjecting his own opinion as well.”

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Expressing an opinion on the day’s current events will be an important part of the show, as Lachey and his revolving co-hosts will be asked to weigh-in every episode on the day’s biggest stories. And for many viewers, this could be the first time they’ll hear what the singer thinks about pop culture, politics and fellow celebrities.

“The beauty of a show like this is you bring your own angle to a discussion,” he said. “I can promise that I’ll always speak from my heart, from my experience. And I’m sure whomever is there sitting with me will give their perspective and a different experience to bring to the table.”

But, we live in a world where social media can take comments that may have previously stayed pretty contained and make them globally known. Is Lachey ready for that kind of exposure and the people who may disagree with his opinions?

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“You always run the risk that not everyone is going to share your opinion,” the Ohio native said. “And that’s OK, we all don’t have to all agree. I think you have to go into a situation like this one willing to be honest with yourself and your opinion. It comes with the territory.”

Currently, Lachey has only signed on to host the VH1 show for the spring, but is there a chance the job could become permanent?

“Yeah, I definitely see it as a possibility,” he told TheWrap.

“Big Morning Buzz Live” airs weekday mornings at 10 a.m. ET/PT on VH1.

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