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From musicals to music
New Tony winner for ‘ Hamilton’ explores jazz roots
Newly minted Tony Award winner Leslie Odom Jr. of ‘ Hamilton’ digs into his jazz roots
Leslie Odom Jr., 34, made his Broadway debut as a teenager, as a replacement actor in Rent, and has since juggled stage and TV projects. But last year marked his arrival as a star, thanks to a little musical called Hamilton.
On Sunday, Odom earned one of the production’s 11 Tony Awards for his dazzling portrayal of Aaron Burr, rival/ frenemy/ killer of creator Lin- Manuel Miranda’s Alexander Hamilton. Odom actually ran against Miranda in the category of best performance by an actor in a leading role in a musical; happily, there has been no dueling behind the scenes. ( Backstage after his win, in fact, Odom credited Miranda for helping him “find direction” with the show: “I feel like this is what I always meant to be doing; I was waiting for Lin to write it.”)
“Because of the crazy success of this show, there should be somebody backstage that’s a complete jerk,” says Odom, arriving at USA TODAY’s offices a few days before the Tonys. “There should be somebody that wears shades in the theater that’s, like, off on a trip. We don’t have that at all. We actually love each other.”
That crazy success has offered new opportunities to Odom, who while doing eight shows a week found time to record a self- titled debut album ( as a solo artist — he’s already a Grammy Award winner for the Hamilton cast recording). Leslie Odom Jr. digs into the jazz roots planted in part by a singing teacher “who put Nat King Cole in my hand when I was 12 or 13,” Odom recalls. His parents had laid a firm foundation of classic R& B, and “my dad was an early hip- hop fan.”
Odom notes, “We didn’t go to Broadway musicals when I was growing up; it was too expensive.” But he heard pop and jazz standards, including show tunes, interpreted by Cole and other greats. “I remember Ella Fitzgerald sort of coming into my life like a bolt of lightning — like, what is that? It was one of the purest examples of God in art that I’d ever seen.”
The album includes songs from various musicals, from Bells Are Ringing to Spring Awakening, as well as blues and Brazilian jazz. Producer Joseph Abate was “the worst,” Odom jokes, but “very wise” in pushing the singer/ actor past his comfort zone.
“It’s always about pushing past that fear, and having faith — Hamilton was the same way,” he says. “At a moment like this in your life, if your career, you seize it, and you try to talk about things that are meaningful to you while people are listening ... I’ve dedicated more than 15 years to this theater and television thing; I want to spend the next 10, 15 years or so devoted to music.”
Odom plans to promote the album, in fact, with a tour. “That stuff will be announced soon — I can’t wait.” Notably, his Hamilton contract, like those of his fellow
“I remember Ella Fitzgerald coming into my life like a bolt of lightning — like, what is that? It was one of the purest examples of God in art I’d ever seen.”
cast members, expires July 9. Miranda is widely reported to be ending his run then ( though there’s been no official confirmation); Odom stops just short of saying he’ll follow suit.
“It’s still uncertain,” he says, but adds, “It’s been such a full and wonderful experience that if it ended July 9, I’d have no complaints.”