Wave3 John Ramsay Lets Cure Cystic Fibrosis Concert with Alex Reymundo and the Crashers

JOHN RAMSEY: Whenever I have a guest who’s passionate about something, it’s usually because of a personal connection, and that is the case with the gentleman to my left. That is John Schmidt, who is an attorney by trade, but has a very good heart for the right cause. John, welcome to show.

JOHN SCHMIDT: Thank you.

JOHN RAMSEY: And Alex Raymundo, everyone knows Alex here.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Here I am, Louisville, nice to see you again. I love you.

JOHN RAMSEY:· So I was wondering, I was thinking to myself, “Okay, Alex Raymundo, nationally known around the country, you know, highly sought after comedian, why would he do a concert for a free cause, not get paid?” and then you kind of put it together for me with John.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: We got warrants. Mark and I have warrants, and we’re trying to serve the community.

JOHN RAMSEY: Mark —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: No, you know what?· John is a friend of — of — of Mark’s, and he reached out to me through The Crashers, and told me what he was wanting to do, and — and I love being with these guys, with The Crashers, and — and — and it’s — you know what, I haven’t done a show almost two years. I’ve been on the road.

JOHN RAMSEY: Wow, well —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: I’ve been on the road. So here we are.

JOHN RAMSEY: This’ll be fun. Okay, Mark Maxwell.

MARK MAXWELL: Sir.

JOHN RAMSEY: If The Crashers were there, I don’t care if it’s Super Bowl playing with Kid Rock, whoever, you know it’s going to be a good time. That’s a guarantee.

MARK MAXWELL: It is going to be fun.

JOHN RAMSEY: So give me catch up on the band, how you guys been? Everything good?

MARK MAXWELL: It’s — man, it’s amazing. Yeah, it’s been great, we’ve had a great season already, we’re playing more outdoor shows this year than we’ve ever played. So yeah, I’m very excited about it. I mean, I — you know, we’re blessed to have what we have. We’ve been together for 14 years, same six guys, right? And along the path, of course we met Alex, and he’s been on stage with us —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Yes.

MARK MAXWELL: — singing even when we don’t want him to.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Ah, man.

MARK MAXWELL:· And — and — so we — we just have a good time, and — and again, we became friends, and then John reached out and was like, “Hey man, I want to do this event in Mount Washington,” I’m thinking, “Okay.” We’ve yet to play Mount Washington, so it’s one of those venues — and it’s an amphitheater, it’s brand new —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Brand new.

MARK MAXWELL: — that we’re playing, so we’re excited about this. It’s going to be a great show.

JOHN RAMSEY: Man, I — I’m excited.

MARK MAXWELL: Yeah.

JOHN RAMSEY: I would love to see this concert, and the good news is it’s for a great cause. So —

JOHN SCHMIDT: It is.

JOHN RAMSEY: — John, I mentioned a personal connection. Tell us a little bit about your daughter, and what this concert is all about.

JOHN SCHMIDT: So it’s about helping raise money for cystic fibrosis, and cure cystic fibrosis. So Bullitt County’s been good to me, it’s where my practice is, it’s where — where I go. So Mark said, “Hey, make it free, put on a free show,” so that’s what we’re doing, and we’re just looking to raise a little money and get donations.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Yeah.

JOHN SCHMIDT: To cure cystic fibrosis.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Even though he dropped the F-bomb, “free show,” there.

JOHN SCHMIDT: Oh, I’m sorry.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: It’s — everybody, I’m telling you, Louisville, it is a brand new venue. The Wesbanco Amphitheater in Mount Washington. You need to come see it. It’s beautiful, especially you, Mount Washington, but it’s free to get in, but we’re trying to raise money. So drop a 20, drop a 10, drop a five, don’t be a cheap person, and — and do something good. We’re going to — we’re going to — they’re going to have beer, wine from local beer and wineries. Number Juan Tequila’s going to be there, Ramiro’s food truck — taco and margarita truck is going to be there. So come out, have a great time. I’m going to sing with The Crashers —

MARK MAXWELL: And give a bunch of money.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Yeah, give a bunch of money.

MARK MAXWELL: Give us some money. It’s a free show, but let’s — let’s take care, yeah. Let’s — let’s do the right thing in this regards.

JOHN RAMSEY: The venue capacity is 1500 —

SPEAKER 5: Well, we’ll pack —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: You know what, let’s get Latino — let’s put 1800 in there. Let’s get it, come on. Okay? It’s on.

MARK MAXWELL: I think we will, and —

SPEAKER 6: Can you say that?

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Yeah, I can. I did say that.

JOHN RAMSEY: How are you this good at this, man? Let’s you and I change chairs, man. You know, this thing — and I’m in agreement with you because not only will it be a great show, but this is kind of — you know, a lot of times people think about charitable organizations, they say, “Oh, we’re doing something that’s really sad.” But there’s a lot of good news about cystic fibrosis —

JOHN SCHMIDT: There is.

JOHN RAMSEY: — as far as research. Talk about — talk a little bit about your daughter, and how she’s doing — because you were telling me — and you were bragging, you’re a proud dad.

JOHN SCHMIDT: I am a proud dad.

JOHN RAMSEY: And that’s good, so tell me about Mary-Clair.

JOHN SCHMIDT: So — so Mary-Clair’s at Assumption, she’s a junior, she’s got a 4.4 GPA, she’s in 13 clubs, she had 220 service hours last year, she has a — you know — a job that she works and she’s just an incredible overall human being. Yeah, that’s — that’s — that’s my daughter right there, and, you know, she’s — she’s an amazing person, and she grabs every day, she sees it, then she kicks it a couple times, smacks it around a little bit, goes to bed, rinses, and repeats. She’s just an amazing person.

JOHN RAMSEY: I got a feeling like she gets that from her dad and her mother.

JOHN SCHMIDT: And her —

JOHN RAMSEY: I don’t want to discredit her —

JOHN SCHMIDT: — her mom is an amazing person. She’s a doctor and a pediatrician, and we’re so blessed to have that kind of care. And we are lucky, we really are lucky. Great — great therapeutics. Mary Claire’s life expectancy when she was born was 36. When I was born, life expectancy was 18, so it went to 36, and then due to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s investment in biotech —

JOHN RAMSEY: Okay.

JOHN SCHMIDT: — her life expectancy then went up to 60. So she went from maybe seeing her kids graduate high school, to now maybe planning for retirement, and our goal is to cure it.

JOHN RAMSEY: That’s worthy of a celebration, right?

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Uh-huh. Absolutely, amen. Yeah.

JOHN RAMSEY: For sure. That’s fantastic news. So it is a celebration, and you can help continue that research to where maybe we can possibly cure cystic fibrosis, which is the —

JOHN SCHMIDT: They think it’s within 20 years.

MARK MAXWELL: Wow.

JOHN RAMSEY: All right, Mark. Mark, I got to come to you right now.

MARK MAXWELL: Go ahead, go ahead.

JOHN RAMSEY: Now I have to mention, Aerosmith, Blake Shelton, Kid Rock, Super Bowls, you guys have performed everywhere. Does he have any musical game? Alex Raymundo?

MARK MAXWELL: Oh, yeah. I thought you were going to him. I have to ride back in a car with this guy, okay? Yeah, what are you talking about? He’ll get up and sing with us, it will be a fun —

JOHN SCHMIDT: Oh, there we go. There’s the rock-and-roll hair style, there you go.

MARK MAXWELL: The hair does not make it —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: No, wait a minute, man. Oh, come on.

MARK MAXWELL: It does not, I figured that out. No, yeah, Alex has been onstage with us a lot, singing. And so —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: You’re not answering the question.

MARK MAXWELL: — I’m not really answering it.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: You know what, I make a really good fake front guy.

MARK MAXWELL: Yeah, boy, you do.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: I’m a good front man. I — I got — I got one, maybe two songs in me in a set.

MARK MAXWELL: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: And you got to pick the right song.

JOHN RAMSEY: And this guy’s the ultimate front man. Mark, you are the ultimate.

MARK MAXWELL: I — I —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: As he is.

MARK MAXWELL: And I appreciate that, but I — you know, I like it, and here’s the thing, I very much focus on the — the audience, right? It’s — it’s — they’ve had a rough week —

JOHN RAMSEY: Yes.

MARK MAXWELL: — right?· Everybody does. And so next Friday when we play, you know, it’s — everyone’s going to have a rough week. Their — their – – their work, their kids, their — whatever it be, they come out, we’re just a good movie for a few hours —

JOHN RAMSEY: A really good movie.

MARK MAXWELL: — it’s — yeah, it’s a good movie that you go — you walk away from going, “Man, this — look at that shot.” “Look at that shot.”

JOHN RAMSEY: I’m drinking.

MARK MAXWELL: You know what? We’re rated G, and you’re rated something else. You know what?

JOHN RAMSEY: I’m here for the grade curve.

MARK MAXWELL: Anyway, but yes, you know, we’ve been — all of us are blessed, and — and — and this is a great way for us to do something wonderful. Again, Mount Washington, first ever time ever that — their facilities out there are beautiful, really beautiful, and it’s a brand new park, so…

ALEX RAYMUNDO: You don’t want to miss it.

JOHN RAMSEY: I mentioned the celebration, Alex, and – and you mentioned, you know — you said, like, “rough week,” and actually a rough two years, so to get together, I think — something that I think everyone would agree that brings people together — first of all, music, and comedy.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: No doubt.

JOHN RAMSEY: A laugh, being able to dance a little bit, all of that will take place there. Alex, you know what I love that you do, and talk about bringing people together, there’s — there’s topics that sometimes are uncomfortable to talk about.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Sure.

JOHN RAMSEY: The racial divide that exists here in Louisville and other cities around the country, this is something that you point out, and I think it brings people together. You don’t mind talking about the fact that, “Hey, I — I’m an immigrant.” You tell your parents’ story, and you do it in a funny way — way where people kind of understand you a little better, don’t you agree?

ALEX RAYMUNDO: I — well, I — hey, put it on the table.

JOHN RAMSEY: Yeah.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: You know, I think it’s — I think when we don’t discuss things, when we don’t mention something and then — then it becomes uncomfortable. So I, you know, I was lucky enough that my parents came to this nation, and — and we moved to Fort Worth, Texas, and they — and they — they immersed us in middle class America to make sure that we felt at home everywhere. And — and if I can push that message, and if I can get you to look at someone that you wouldn’t look at in a different way, that’s what I’m here for, and I’m going to make you laugh, and I’m going to serve you a drink at the same time.

JOHN RAMSEY: Yeah, you — you —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: That’s what I’m going to do. Hey, you know what, sounds great. I’m part of starters.

JOHN RAMSEY: (Inaudible) Tequila will be served, where your tequila is served —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Oh, absolutely. Ramiro’s Cantina will be there slinging Number Juan Tequila, and — and it — we’re throwing a party, and you know what? You brought up something — we’re finally in full swing again after everything we’ve been through —

JOHN RAMSEY: Yes.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: — and so Mount Washington, Louisville, Kentucky, come out to see this show. It’s going to be the — I already checked the weather, it’s going to be fantastic, and if it looks like rain, I can do a rain dance.· I can do a rain dance.

JOHN RAMSEY: Saturday, May 21st, correct?

JOHN SCHMIDT: No, Friday, May 20th —

JOHN RAMSEY: I — I’ve got a different — there it is, I’ve got it right here. There it is —

JOHN SCHMIDT: Friday, May 20th at 8:00 p.m. —

JOHN RAMSEY: — it’s my fault.

JOHN SCHMIDT: — 8:00 p.m. start.

JOHN RAMSEY: Friday, May 20th, I want to be very clear about that.

JOHN SCHMIDT: Yes.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Yes.

JOHN RAMSEY: This is going to be a great show.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Oh, it’s going to be awesome.

JOHN RAMSEY: Mark, I — I — it’s fun — you know, Mark is the ultimate, I mean, front man —

MARK MAXWELL: Oh, come on.

JOHN: — as far as I can see —

MARK MAXWELL: There you are.

JOHN RAMSEY: You move, you dance, you engage the audience, you make sure that everyone has a good time. I tried to get on stage with him one time, Mark says, “Okay, John, grab the tambourine.”

MARK MAXWELL: Get way in the back.

JOHN SCHMIDT: When you come out, we’ll — we’ll get you on stage. We’ll figure out a way to get you on stage. You can —

MARK MAXWELL: Well —

JOHN SCHMIDT: We’ll get you on stage.

MARK MAXWELL: We’ll have to talk about that.

JOHN SCHMIDT: I’ll foot the bill, we’ll get you on stage.

JOHN RAMSEY: It’s supposed to be a celebration, not a cringe moment. So guys, it is a lot of talent, and I really appreciate you-all doing this —

MARK MAXWELL: Yeah.

JOHN RAMSEY: — because cystic fibrosis, I know — for those who aren’t familiar, the — the mucus gathers in lungs, and it makes breathing difficulty —

JOHN SCHMIDT: It does.

JOHN: — and as you said, the life expectancy was very short at one time, but now it’s all good news. So we’re going to make it a celebration.

JOHN SCHMIDT: It’s great news.

JOHN RAMSEY: It is. Great — great news.

JOHN SCHMIDT: And then you get — you get tickets by going to The Crasher’s website, Facebook — Alex has it on his Facebook link, you got the QR code right there on the TV, you go to my website, johnschmidtlaw.com, and —

ALEX RAYMUNDO: Yeah. Don’t think you can just show up, you got to get your tickets, right?

JOHN SCHMIDT: Well, we — we — yeah, we want people to get tickets, and it gives you an opportunity to donate, and — and put some money into the coffers.

JOHN RAMSEY: I like that. Yeah, there we go.

JOHN SCHMIDT: Yeah.

JOHN RAMSEY: Right there — you can see the QR code, grab your phone, boom, jump on that, and donate. Will that also get you tickets?

JOHN SCHMIDT: It will.

JOHN RAMSEY: Oh, that will, okay.

JOHN SCHMIDT: And thank you to WAVE3 for doing that, because that was the last minute addition.

MARK MAXWELL: Oh.

JOHN SCHMIDT: So the producers, thank you.

MARK MAXWELL: Very good job.

JOHN SCHMIDT: Yeah, good job.

MARK MAXWELL: We’re looking for 2,000 people. 2,000 people.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: I loved it.

JOHN SCHMIDT: I think you should — you should reward her with a shot of tequila.

ALEX RAYMUNDO: I will.

MARK MAXWELL: I got — I got — I got a flask.

JOHN SCHMIDT: We’ll do it

JOHN RAMSEY: Guys, again, thank you. It’s good to have everyone back together, and I can’t think of any — any better duo here Than the Crashers and Alex Raymundo, and of course you, John Schmidt. Thank you very much.

JOHN SCHMIDT: Thank you John.

JOHN RAMSEY: Again, appreciate — that happens on Friday, May 20th, Mount Washington, brand new amphitheater venue, no reason for you not to attend. Let’s get out there. Okay.

MARK MAXWELL: Thanks John.

JOHN RAMSEY: Thank you very much, guys. Thank you, love you, man. All right, these — these icons, I’m telling you. They just happen to be from Louisville, we are lucky.