Beyoncé and Usher’s Secret Coach | Nick Cooper | Coffeez with Joe Shalaby Ep. 322

Episode of Coffeez with Joe Shalaby · October 22, 2026 · 1 h 13 min

Celebrity performance coach Nick Cooper tells Joe Shalaby about his mirror ritual, coaching Beyoncé, screen-free parenting, turning down Oprah, and his father's final words.

Summary

Vocal and performance coach Nick Cooper joined host Joe Shalaby on Coffeez. Cooper described his morning practice of gratitude and "mirror therapy," arguing that the most important performance is the one given to oneself in the mirror. He traced his career to reading announcements in church as a child, which taught him the power of language, and credited his longtime teacher Isaiah Lurie with shaping his approach of focusing clients on their dreams rather than their flaws.

Cooper recounted a record deal with Motown and Virgin that soured when a label head criticized his image, prompting him to move behind the scenes. He told of being hired to teach Beyoncé three songs, including French-language material, for the Academy Awards, and said she sent everyone else out of the room on meeting him. He also said he turned down an offer of his own television show from Oprah Winfrey because it did not fit his vision, and that he has never drunk alcohol or used drugs.

The two traded views on parenting: Cooper said his household has no devices, his daughters speak Chinese and start a business each summer, and he aims to be a father rather than a friend. Shalaby described leading his mortgage company as a servant leader and shrugging off criticism. Cooper argued that stardom depends on an intrinsic drive independent of validation, said tools like Auto-Tune and AI can mask a lack of passion, and gave Shalaby an impromptu voice lesson using Michael Jackson's "Beat It."

In a closing game Cooper judged hypothetical artists, quickly passing on an AI-assisted act, and said discipline and conviction cannot be taught. He ended by recounting a final phone call with his dying father, who had told him it was his turn to maximize his own gifts.

Chapters

0:14
Cold open at the coffee bar
Cooper orders tea and asks the barista what makes her special, and she shares that she is a leukemia survivor.
1:44
Introduction and the mirror ritual
Shalaby introduces Cooper, who describes his morning gratitude practice and mirror therapy.
4:44
Discovering the power of language
Cooper explains that listening is his true gift and recalls reading in church as a child, which led him to study language.
8:12
Acknowledgement and validation
Cooper recalls singing to homeless people in Washington, D.C., and explains how he helps stars stop needing outside validation.
11:17
Road to Hollywood and music's role
Cooper discusses Family Matters friends, Broadway at 16, abstaining from alcohol and drugs, and his mentor Isaiah Lurie.
17:11
Shalaby on serving and red lights
Shalaby describes servant leadership at his mortgage bank and the obstacles of critics and regulators.
20:00
Parenting without devices
Cooper explains his screen-free home, his daughters' summer businesses, and modeling behavior for children.
24:52
Leaving the spotlight and coaching Beyoncé
Cooper recounts his Motown and Virgin deal and the meeting in which Beyoncé chose to work with him for the Oscars.
35:22
Money, the pot of gold, and Oprah
Shalaby says money has not changed him, and Cooper describes the land of effort versus ease and turning down Oprah's offer.
43:25
What makes a star
Cooper argues stardom requires intrinsic drive and resilience, and explains his 'extraordinary is built' philosophy and 'trash man' metaphor.
58:01
Beat It voice lesson
Cooper uses Shalaby's choice of Michael Jackson's 'Beat It' to teach vowels and consonants and tie it to Shalaby's life.
1:04:21
Sign, develop, or pass and final reflections
Cooper judges hypothetical artists, names discipline as unteachable, and recounts his father's last words before his death.

Key points

What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.

Nick Cooper
Cooper argues that a person's most important performance is the one given to themselves in the mirror each morning.
“I believe that the greatest performance one will ever have will be in front of the mirror, not in front of an audience”
Listen from 3:22 · Mirror therapy and positive self-talk
Nick Cooper
Cooper contends that mastery over language is one of the greatest human gifts and drives success.
“I believe that one of the greatest gifts as a human you could have is mastery over language”
Listen from 7:03 · Communication skills
Nick Cooper
Cooper says his work with stars centers on freeing them from needing external validation.
“So I teach stars or creatives to walk away from the need of a yes outside of them”
Listen from 10:59 · Fame
Nick Cooper
Cooper says he has never drunk alcohol or used drugs despite working in Hollywood.
“I've never drank. I've never done a drug in my life ever”
Listen from 11:36 · Fame
Joe Shalaby
Shalaby says he leads his mortgage company as a servant first and believes money follows service.
“The way I lead my organization is I'm a servant first. I don't care about the money”
Listen from 17:22 · Servant leadership
Nick Cooper
Cooper says he aims to be a father to his daughters rather than their friend.
“I'm not interested in being my kids' friends. I really want to be a dad, and I want them to know that”
Listen from 21:26 · Fatherhood
Nick Cooper
Cooper argues that devices expose children to adult narratives too early, which is why his home has none.
“I believe that today we're in a time where devices are teaching narratives of life prematurely”
Listen from 23:17 · Children and screen time
Nick Cooper
Cooper says he left pursuing his own artist career after a Motown and Virgin label head criticized his image.
“I got my first record deal with Motown and Virgin. It was incredible”
Listen from 25:52 · Fame
Nick Cooper
Cooper recounts being hired to teach and arrange three songs for Beyoncé's Academy Awards performance, including singing in French.
“I had to teach her three songs, had to arrange them for the Oscars”
Listen from 27:45 · Vocal coaching
Joe Shalaby
Shalaby says wealth has not changed him and he still sees himself as a poor kid from Egypt.
“But the reality is money hasn't changed me. I'm still the same guy”
Listen from 36:27
Linked moment · 41:37Skip to 41:37 using a listen link in the info box.
Nick Cooper
Cooper says he declined Oprah Winfrey's offer of his own TV show because it did not match his vision.
“But I turned it down because Oprah offered me an incredible opportunity that wasn't my vision”
Listen from 41:37 · Fame
Nick Cooper
Cooper argues that tools like Suno and Auto-Tune can make anyone sound polished while masking whether they have real passion.
“So you can go on stage and actually perform and sound like amazing, like all the incredible people that are really doing it”
Listen from 43:40 · Artificial intelligence
Joe Shalaby
Shalaby describes his ability to absorb criticism and setbacks without being affected as a kind of superpower.
“For me, I can just get axes thrown at me all day long”
Listen from 47:40 · Resilience
Nick Cooper
Cooper holds that becoming extraordinary is a deliberately built process rather than something that happens naturally.
“I truly believe that if one wants to become extraordinary, the process of becoming extraordinary isn't something that just happens”
Listen from 49:57 · Resilience
Nick Cooper
Cooper says his mentor produced nearly eight of Michael Jackson's greatest hits.
“My mentor produced almost eight of his greatest hits”
Listen from 59:03 · Mentorship
Nick Cooper
Cooper claims a person's favorite song reveals who they are, tying Shalaby's choice of 'Beat It' to his critics.
“You show me any artist or person who tells me their favorite song, and I'll tell you exactly who you are as a person”
Listen from 1:02:59 · Beat It
Nick Cooper
Cooper says discipline is the one quality he cannot teach after decades of coaching.
“Discipline is the one gift bestowed upon people who want to go after this dream”
Listen from 1:06:40 · Vocal coaching
Nick Cooper
Cooper recounts that his father, before dying, told him it was his turn to maximize his own gifts.
“son, you've worked with all these amazing people, but it's your turn. It's your turn”
Listen from 1:07:55 · Grief

People

In the conversation

Joe ShalabyHost of the Coffeez with Joe Shalaby podcast; Egyptian-born entrepreneur and father of four based in Newport Beach
Nick CooperAmerican celebrity vocal and performance coach who has worked with Beyoncé and Usher

Discussed

BeyoncéSinger, mother of Blue Ivy Carter
UsherAmerican R&B singer and Cooper's client and friend
Oprah WinfreyAmerican broadcaster whom Nguyen said he met while traveling with his Zen teacher
Michael JacksonAmerican pop musician Druski names as who he would want to be in another life
Isaiah LurieCooper's longtime singing teacher and mentor
Gil CatesProducer of the Academy Awards telecasts
Bill ContiComposer of the Rocky score and Oscars music director
Jaleel WhiteActor who played Steve Urkel on Family Matters
Morgan FreemanAmerican actor whose Shawshank Redemption role inspired Hayes's philosophy
Jon BatisteAmerican musician Cooper said he recently worked with

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From the publisher

Celebrity performance coach Nick Cooper sits down with Joe. The man who taught Beyoncé three songs in French for the Oscars, coached Usher, and learned from the mentor who produced eight of Michael Jackson’s biggest hits. Why he turned down his own show from Oprah, the Mirror Theory, raising four kids with no devices in the house, why communication is the human superpower, and the phone call to his dad he almost didn’t make. New episodes every week. Pour up.

Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on October 23, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.

Categories: Self-Improvement·Music·Parenting