How to Interview a Celebrity

It's normal to be nervous before interviewing a celebrity, but these tips can help you get the most out of the conversation.

By Sarah Neilson

An interview with a prominent figure can be nerve-wracking: it’s a public conversation that requires plenty of work and research to feel natural. Although it’s meant to showcase the subject, an interview is still a collaboration and a chance to learn about yourself. How do you talk to people, and how do people talk to you? How do you listen; what are you curious about? Here are tips for approaching an interview — especially one you might be nervous about.

1. Spend approximately seven years going through all of their other interviews. The more famous the person is, the more frequently they will have been interviewed already and the more important this step is. By getting an idea of what questions they’ve been asked before, you can figure out what to avoid, or at least a new way to frame a question that might get a different answer. It can be tempting to ask easy questions, because, well, they’re easy. Even if you’ll end up talking about the same kinds of things, because work and art boil down to things like Meaning and Philosophy and Craft, but it’ll be more interesting for everyone — including the reader — to get there in an unexpected way.

2. Make sure you have a main thing to talk to them about, related to but distinct from the project they’re promoting right now. You don’t want to go off topic, but you do want to make it as interesting as possible for you, the interviewee, and the reader. Make sure you know a lot of detail about your interviewee’s current projects and use them as an entry point. For example, say you’re interviewing a writer who has a book coming out. What’s a theme you noticed? Can you pinpoint a specific part in the book where that theme comes up? Pull a quote. The trick isn’t to get so esoteric that readers unfamiliar with the project can’t follow what you’re talking about, but to use something specific to lead into a more general conversation. The best way I’ve found to do this is by making the question itself open-ended (“I’m curious about…” or “Can you talk a little about…”) and see how the respondent fills the space.

3. Let them talk. This can be harder than you think, because in a normal conversation, both people contribute. It’s natural to respond to what they’re saying, but make sure you’re not interrupting. Be patient, especially if the person you’re interviewing pauses frequently. Usually that means they’re thinking through their answer, and if you let them get there, it will almost always be good.

4. In addition to letting them talk, you have to listen to what they’re saying. The reason for this is twofold: First, logistically, if you somehow lose your recording and your backup recording and your notes (please do all of these things, there are so many horror stories), you will at least remember the gist of what they said. The second reason is that, if you listen, you can adjust your questions based on where the interviewee is leading you. They don’t know what’s interesting to you or your publication and won’t necessarily expand on something unless you ask them to. Have your questions ready to go, but don’t be afraid to deviate.

5. Watch the clock. People who are giving interviews — especially if they’re giving a lot of interviews — are being generous with their time. Yes, they have projects to promote, but they’re not being paid to talk to you. Be mindful of their time. Also be mindful of your own time! If you have hours of tape to transcribe and edit, you’re going to resent yourself for letting the conversation go on too long.

6. Be nice! Don’t ask intrusive questions about their personal lives. I promise there are lots of interesting things to talk about with a public figure other than who they’re dating or some devastating life event. If there’s something controversial that’s pertinent to the interview, tap into your empathy. You’re talking to a person first. Depending on the specifics, you might feel compelled to push a point; this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just make sure you’re clear, respectful, and that whatever you’re pushing on is relevant.

7. Follow your own curiosity when you’re brainstorming questions. Tap into the imagination and inventiveness that fuels your freelance work. What are you interested in? Do you have your own thoughts around some theme or aspect of their work? Shape a question around it. Think about this as a sparking-joy process that declutters the closet of over-asked questions and gets to the good stuff you really want to keep.

8. Ask them something funny, but try not to be obnoxious-funny. Bringing in some humor can cut down on awkwardness, but steer clear of anything too personal. You will need to tailor this to who you’re talking to and what you’re talking about. Read the room; you might also get a good idea of the person’s sense of humor by watching or reading previous interviews. It won’t be appropriate in every interview, but asking a slightly facetious question can break the ice.

9. Follow up with publicists and thank them. This is just a nice thing to do. Publicists work hard, too, and are usually juggling tons of scheduling and logistical challenges. I always appreciate their agility when it comes to facilitating so many things for a client.

10. Enjoy listening back to that time you got to talk to that Super Cool Person and treasure the secret knowledge that you can replay that recording whenever you’re sad. You were an empathetic listener! You got to talk to someone interesting! That is very cool.

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