Leslie Odom, Jr. is a true superstar entertainer. The Tony and Grammy Award-winning, three-time Emmy and two-time Academy Award-nominated vocalist, songwriter, actor, and New York Times bestselling author will be performing on Sunday, May 26 at Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank.
The Broadway star joined WBGO's Doug Doyle to talk about the upcoming concert, the PBS special featuring his performance in Purlie Victorious, his love of jazz and portraying "Aaron Burr" in the groundbreaking musical Hamilton.
The concert in Red Bank will feature a variety of songs from his five full-length albums, Broadways shows, jazz and R & B.
Odom Jr. talked about how jazz has impacted his career and mindset.
"Jazz is free-form. You can play the concords of your soul. It is the language of my culture. It is like a beautiful container for God to speak through us about what this experience has meant, about the pain, about the rage and about the beauty of the human experience."
Leslie latest album When A Crooner Dies has 10 original tracks and was born from a very difficult time in his life.
"It was written after a very challenging season, emotionally and spiritually. Those moments are waiting for all of us. After the clouds parted after a few months of some challenges, I realized how much I had been leaning on music to get me through that time. I called my collaborator, producer and best friend Joseph Abate and said I got it. If I am not making music to help someone go through a tough time like the one I just went through than I missed the whole point of it. That's how I can put some water back in the well."
One of the powerful song on When A Crooner Dies is "Only Heaven."
"That's a little minute and a half song. We intended to write another verse and a bridge but it was just one of those tunes that the sentiment came out exactly like I hoped it would. We didn't need to say anything else. That's about the loss of my grandmother."
Leslie Odom Jr. "blew us all away" with his iconic performance as "Aaron Burr" in Hamilton. He recently made a triumphant and Tony-Award nominated return to Broadway in Ossie Davis’ classic American comedy Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch. PBS airs a live performance of that play nationwide starting May 24 as part of its "Great Performances"series. PBS
Leslie received a Tony nomination for his leading role in Purlie Victorious for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play” as well as for his role as a producer in the “Best Revival of a Play” category. The show received six Tony nominations before it closed on Broadway in February.
The actor portrayed the traveling preacher Purlie Victorious Judson, a role created by Ossie Davis in 1961. Odom Jr. says it was very rewarding to step into a role made famous by the legendary actor, playwright and activist Ossie Davis.
"This was piece that was worth the effort. It was worthy of every drop of sweat and every sleepless night. Ossie is synonymous with integrity, certainly in the Black community. Even when you open that lens a bit, Ossie Davis was a great American."
Leslie Odom Jr. was just included on the 2024 TIME100 list as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world.
How did Hamilton change him inside?
"It was the beginning of the evidence. As a young person coming up there's so much doubt and the beginning of my career I thought I could do something special if given the opportunity. I remember there came a point when I was in Hamilton when I said if I don't do the thing on this, I don't ever want to hear my mouth again about what I could do if I just had the opportunity or they would just call me. It's here right now. I still worry about things but after Hamilton, Purlie Victorious, One Night in Miami and my albums, I know now that if I'm given the resources, the space, the opportunity and if roadblocks are removed from my way, and sometimes I have to strategically remove them that I'm capable of excellence every time. It's not an accident."
In 2020, Leslie starred as legendary singer Sam Cooke in the award-winning Amazon film-adaptation of One Night in Miami, a highly-acclaimed project directed by Regina King.
The year before that, he was paired with fellow Broadway star Cynthia Erivo in Harriet based on the story of iconic freedom fighter Harriet Tubman,
Last year, Odom Jr. released his New York Times best-seller I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know. He was just included on the 2024 TIME100 list as one of the 100 Most Influential People in the world.
You can SEE Doug Doyle's entire interview with Leslie Odom Jr. here.
