SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hey, it's Casey Abrams with the Idols podcast. This week we have LeVance Coley. He was one of my good friends. I toured the whole world with him with postmodern jukebox. He tried out for one of those big shows called America's Got Talent. He's a really awesome dude, one of the funniest guys I know, and one of the most talented voices I've ever heard. He can harmonize, he can melodize, he can rhythmmize. And it was so cool because I just watched the Oscars and I saw him on stage with the lead actor musician Miles Caton, Britney Howard, and Buddy Guy. He's gotten a single with a whole lot of cool people and he's been everywhere. And listen to the song that we sing at the end. There's some riffs I'm gonna actually study for myself as a musician. Much love, Bassie out.

SPEAKER_02 0:42

Come with me, come stay with me.

SPEAKER_01 0:50

That's good. Okay. So tell me about your hernia. No, Charlie. No, I'm dead. No. I think let's let's get this out of the way. America's Got Talent. You tried out at one point.

SPEAKER_05 1:06

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 1:07

And uh uh they asked me too, and I tried out online, and I didn't make it past the first round of online things after Idle. But uh, what was the experience like with America's Got Talent?

SPEAKER_05 1:20

Well, it it was actually kind of a fun experience for me because everything kind of went the way I wanted it to go, which which made it worse actually, because I was at the time I was on tour with Postman of G Box and we were overseas. I was I think I was in Germany, and they wanted me to be on the show. I passed all the different auditions and all the different rounds, and they were like, Lance, you are officially going to be on the show. And I was like, Well, I'm currently on tour, and they were like, Well, we will fly you back from Germany to back to America and then back for you to do the show. Can you do that? I was like, Let me ask. So I asked and they approved me. And so I left the tour for about four or five days. Right about I can't remember how many days, it was probably like four or five days. And so I went on the show, and my mother flew out from Colorado Springs to come see me, and I all my cousins and stuff came. It was it was at the uh in Pasadena at the Rose Bowl, I believe. And so it was a great experience. Tyra Banks was the host. I don't know if you remember when Tyra Banks took over for like two one or two seasons. So that was fun, and I was a huge fan of, you know, Tyra Banks back in the day. So, you know, it was cool to be around her, although she wasn't as uh she wasn't really that nice, but whatever. So, um, so my audition process went really well. I I wound up singing three songs. Usually people sing one song, but the judges kept having me sing more songs. They liked you. Uh they well, here's the thing. Howie, okay, okay, okay. So the first song I sang was Georgia on my mind. And I did a great job. The audience gave me a standing ovation. Uh it was Howie, Heidi Clun, Mel B, Simon, and Oh, is that a four, right? That's the four, right? Yeah, it was those four. And so Simon, Mel, and Heidi like me, but uh, but uh uh Howie didn't like me. He was like, Oh, you sing on like a little jazz singer, and the audience was like booing and all this stuff. So Simon was like, Well, why don't you sing us another song? What other song would you sing to prove us, to prove him wrong? So then I sang, I'm not the only one, but the the Sam Smith version, not the PMJ version. Okay. And so got another standing ovation. So then Howie's like, I still don't know. So Melby and Howie get into a huge fight on stage, fighting over me, and she Melby was like, I don't care what you say, that is a singer. If anybody can sing, that man right there, and it was a whole thing, and I was just like, Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It was the whole thing. Which I loved. It was it was funny. And then they wind up having me sing another song. So then I sang California Dream. Mind you, the last two songs I s I sang three songs, but the other two, the last two I sang uh were both a cappella because I didn't have a track. So I just sang both. I the first song I sang was with the track because I was prepared to do that, but the other two, I just had to, you know, do it on the spot. And every single time I sang, I got standing ovations from the entire audience three times.

SPEAKER_01 4:28

And so I wish I could hear that.

SPEAKER_05 4:31

It was great. So then I got I got all the yeses, everybody, I got a yes. I passed through to the next round. So I go backstage and Tyra's waiting right there right now. Oh my god, how does it feel to know you're gonna go to the next round? I'm like, oh my god, it looks like and then I like and then I go outside, and you know how these TV shows are, they want to make a whole moment. So they had my mom come outside, and they had to have me go, you know, to the door and open up the door. My mom's standing right there, and I hug her and then the cue the music. You know, it's all it's all stage, by the way, you guys. Everything is staged. I don't know if you guys can see me or whatever, but uh, everything is staged. So I was ecstatic, okay? I was so happy. So then I had to go back to PMJ tour. So uh I went back to Germany, and so of course I tell like the band members, you guys, I made it, I made it.

SPEAKER_04 5:22

I was they were like, oh my god, it was it was ha ha.

SPEAKER_05 5:26

Woo! I was so happy. I was so happy, and um, and it was the last day of tour, it was our it was the last show. The tour went great. I was uh taking an after-show shower, and I remember as soon as I got out of the shower, I was putting on lotion because black people put on lotion because we get ashy sometimes.

SPEAKER_03 5:44

Okay, good to know.

SPEAKER_05 5:46

So we put on lotion every day, or you're supposed to. Anyway, um your skin looks great. Thank you, thank you. Um so I'm putting on lotion, and all of a sudden I get a text uh not a text match, it's an email, so I'm checking my email and it's from AGT. And it's like, hey LeVand, so even though we pass you through to the next round, we're actually not going to put you through to the next round, you're not going to be on the show, but thank you so much for auditioning. And when I tell you, I was so sad and so distraught, and just like I was I was just like, why? You know, it's like I know I'm good, I know I had personality, I wasn't, you know, I have a story, I have a good backstory. It was it that's like the story of my life, you know. Plus, I'm I was always toreing people like yo ass. I'm sorry, can I cuss on here? Yeah, I was always toreing people like yo ass and Haley and all these American idol people. So I'm like, I want to be on a TV show, you know, I want to do it, I want to know what it's like. And you guys are giving me all your stories and behind-the-scenes stuff. So I just I thought this was my moment, but it wasn't.

SPEAKER_01 6:48

Well, it wasn't your moment for America's Got Talent. Yeah, it wasn't my but you've had way bigger moments in life. Yeah. In life. In fact, you just I just saw you on TV. Yeah. Uh hanging out with uh all the people from The Sinners. Yes. Right? So wait, uh what tell me about that.

SPEAKER_05 7:05

Well, first of all, I'm just so honored that I was chosen to be a part of this epic situation with the movie centers. Um we recorded, I recorded a lot of the music, or the the singing, the BGVs and stuff for the for the for the movie, for the soundtrack and the movie.

SPEAKER_01 7:21

Right.

SPEAKER_05 7:22

And um I just got called in to do a session with these beautiful singers called the DC6 singers. They are a small a cappella group that somehow manages to get all these great gigs.

SPEAKER_01 7:34

So were you the seventh person then?

SPEAKER_05 7:37

No, no, we had that that one we had like a 20-piece choir. Oh, but um, but it was just uh, you know, I remember what we recorded the uh the album at uh Warner Brothers Studios. And wait, wait, wait, was it Fox? Wait, was it Fox or Warner Brothers? I think I think it was Warner Brothers.

SPEAKER_01 7:54

Okay, it's weird because because sometimes like we we uh when we did American Idol, it was on Fox or ABC, but we were playing at CBS Studios.

SPEAKER_05 8:03

So it's like yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Who knows? I'm so glad. I love you. He gets it, y'all. He gets it. So we're recording the thing, and it was such a great experience. And then uh they we were in one of the big rooms, and I remember they had were showing uh clips of the scene of this of the parts we were gonna be singing in. So one was like this little light of mine, and so they had this whole church scene, and I don't know. Did you see? I haven't seen it, no. You have to see centers, it's so good, and it's it's it's like a huge movie.

SPEAKER_01 8:32

And I just watched a little bit of the scary movie six trailer, and it's already doing a satire on that. So you're part of mega history. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's amazing. So I really look forward to it.

SPEAKER_05 8:44

Oh uh, what is it called? Scary movie. Scary movie. I cannot wait to see it.

SPEAKER_02 8:49

I almost should go see that together. Let's go do it.

SPEAKER_01 8:51

And uh the Wayne's are back. That's so good. I'm so stoked.

SPEAKER_05 8:54

So, so yeah, so we recorded the we recorded the the we didn't know anything about the movie. We didn't know it was gonna become this huge hit, and then next thing you know, everybody's loving this movie, and it's doing this, and it's doing this, and doing this, and then they start having live performances. So then they asked me to do the Jimmy Kimmel show. Oh, so I did the Jimmy Kimmel show. That was just only five singers, and we was me, it was uh uh me and a few other singers, and then um uh it was Rafael Sidit, Ludwig, the producer of the music, and then um Miles Caton, uh, who is the young uh black man on the movie, and he is incredible. And I know his mama. Okay, I know his mama. So when I was living in Japan, uh his mom is an incredible, so his whole family sings. Okay, but his mom is an incredible singer, and she's a part of this incredible gospel group called the Kirk Carr Singers. Okay, and she's one of them, and they're fan, they're like Kirk Franklin famous, like they're like big time gospel famous. And so you know me, I love me some gospel. And so when I was living in Japan, they came and sang at the Blue Note because I I was I happened to be uh friends with one of the singers because I used to go to her church and I used to sing in her in her church choir in Japan. In Japan? No, no, no, I'm sorry. Okay, one of the other singers in the Kirk Carr singers lived in San Bernardino, and I lived with this singer, and that's how I was able to meet everybody and get in in that circle. So then when I moved to Japan, they came out to uh to Japan to do the Blue Note and they hooked me up because I knew one of the singers.

SPEAKER_01 10:24

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_05 10:24

But I didn't know Timiny, I knew this girl named Shirvon. She was oh my god, she was a soprano of life, gospel soprano, oh my god. So they do a show at the Blue Note, kill it, and then we invite them all out to go have dinner with us. So after the after their show, I took a few of them out to dinner with my Japanese people and got to hang out with Timiny. She was giving me advice, we were talking, we were chilling, and then years later, I'm now singing back on for her son on Sinners.

SPEAKER_01 10:54

Whoa. Isn't that crazy? That's magic. No, it's magic. Isn't that crazy? Yeah, that's really crazy. Yeah, yeah. It's a it's a family affair.

SPEAKER_05 11:00

It really is. And so I'm just so grateful for that. But anyways, so we did that. We did the Jimmy Kimmel show, and then we just did the um the uh the actors' awards, or that used to be called the SAG After Awards, but now they changed it to the actors.

SPEAKER_01 11:16

Okay, but that's awesome to do that.

SPEAKER_05 11:18

It was incredible. First of all, I had never done that before, and it was the first time they had ever had a performance on that show. They used they they've never done that before. It's usually just awards, maybe an opening act. Maybe the host might do a little host opening act thing, but there's never been like a performance ever in the history of that show.

SPEAKER_01 11:37

So they liked it so much, they're like, we need to just have people do a song on this. Wow.

SPEAKER_05 11:42

So that was really cool.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

Oh, and there's a lot of actors there?

SPEAKER_05 11:45

Yeah, everybody was there. I was I remember right before we went on stage to do the song, we had to stay backstage for like five, ten minutes. And I'm literally standing right next to Viola Davis. And I'm just like, uh, I love you so much. I said a little so I didn't I didn't she was she was she seemed like she was trying to get in zone, so I tried to give her a little space, but I showed it to say, I love you and everything you stand for. And I want, you know, like this is like, hey girl, I love you. I just want to say I love you. I know you, I know you're trying to do your thing.

SPEAKER_01 12:10

You know what it's like. You know what it's like. I I I once asked a celebrity, I was like, Can I have a picture? It was Martin Short. And I was like, Can I can I get a picture with you? He said no. And I was like, Oh, okay. So from now on, from now on, I gotta really gauge it. I gotta be like, I'm just gonna go up to this actor and say appreciate their work. Yep, and then just leave. Yep, yep. And that's that's the way to do that. And I did, I think I did, I did that with Robert Glasper. I was just, I just like, I want to shake your hand. You are awesome. He said he was like, so he was like, thank you. And it was like in a crowded bar. Like, if it was like selfie, you know what I mean? It would have, it wouldn't have been the same. So so I think you did the right thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I'm a big I'm a big fan of her, especially since have you seen her in Hot Ones?

SPEAKER_05 12:50

What was no?

SPEAKER_01 12:51

No, no.

SPEAKER_05 12:52

Oh, in hot ones, the the hot sauce. Oh my god. Did she do she did do hot sauce?

SPEAKER_01 12:57

You gotta forgot about that. You gotta watch that, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 12:59

She did do that.

SPEAKER_01 13:00

Yeah, uh, that's but that's I'm sad to say that that's I'm a big fan of her work on that. I need to watch more things. What's what what movie should I watch of hers?

SPEAKER_05 13:09

Uh that movie, she oh, what's a good one? I mean how to get away with murder. That was just a great TV show. That's how she got one star. And then that walk that she does, everybody knows her for this walk. She purposely walked. She just walked weird on that show, but it's purposeful. It's a purposeful walk, and it's just hilarious. And then people would do spoofs on it online on TikTok or Instagram and walk. Okay, all right.

SPEAKER_01 13:29

I'm gonna I'm gonna look that up. Japan, you stayed at you, so you were there for how however many years, and uh you uh you were doing something at Universal. What were you doing?

SPEAKER_05 13:40

I was a singer at Universal Studios, Osaka, Japan. I was in a number of different tribute shows. I was in a Michael Jackson tribute show, I was in a Motown tribute show, a Beatles tribute show. Um I played a vampire once, some Dracula, and some. Was it Beetlejuice? No, it wasn't it wasn't Beetlejuice. But it was on the Beetlejuice stage. Oh, okay. But we had a special like Halloween show, and I was I was Dracula and I had to sing a Japanese song, Inca style. Like, another one, another chikidi maska. And I had to like literally do the vibrato and everything.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

Like and it's called Inca.

SPEAKER_05 14:14

That's how they sing in Japan. It's called Inca. That's a style.

SPEAKER_01 14:16

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 14:17

But I call that good old-fashioned Ricky Diller church choir. That's that ain't nothing but some black church choir, Ricky Diller, James Hall. You know, the same thing.

SPEAKER_01 14:25

You okay, so you gospel is almost like every single type of music, right? Yeah, you can't do that. You can do anything in gospel. It's yeah, it's a lot. I would say it's mostly jazz. What would you? I don't know.

SPEAKER_05 14:36

No, I mean jazz does come from gospel, but gospel is so many things. It's rock and roll, it's country, it's it's jazz, it's opera. It's it's so many things. I think the only thing what what's not gospel? Uh oh, classical. I mean, I mean, like, no, no, classical music didn't stem from gospel music, but gospel music can sing.

SPEAKER_01 14:58

Right. I feel like I've heard some operatic people.

SPEAKER_05 15:00

Yeah, there definitely are classical gospel singers, but it's not that that's not that's not how classical music starts. And that's what shaped you as a as a singer? Absolutely. I grew up in the gospel church. I was a gospel singer. I wanted to be a gospel singer. I loved singing uh gospel music. I wanted to be a recording artist. I even made some gospel songs which you will never hear ever.

SPEAKER_01 15:19

Why not? Are they are they around?

SPEAKER_05 15:22

I don't know.

unknown 15:23

I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 15:24

Alright, and we'll put them right on the description.

SPEAKER_05 15:26

All I know is that ain't on Spotify, Apple, or title, so that's all that matters.

SPEAKER_01 15:31

Okay, let's do a let's do a uh uh let's do a hunt.

SPEAKER_05 15:33

I want to hunt it and I can't find it. If I can't find it, well, you never know, the internet is undefeated. Yes. Um did you play any other instruments? Uh I used to play, well, I played the piano a little bit, but I used to play the clarinet, the bass clarinet, and the xylophone.

SPEAKER_01 15:48

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_05 15:49

I know, I know, I know. If I gave you a clarinet right now, could you probably not because I haven't played a clarinet since I was in like high school. But I was actually really good. I used to play it all the time. I like it. It was I should have I should have continued with my instrument playing, but I was just lazy and I just like singing. I that's all I wanted to do was sing. I any when it came to practicing anything else besides singing, I just didn't have the heart for it. But I wish I would have had the discipline for it now because now that I know that it's uh it was so much better if you could just play for yourself like you, Casey.

SPEAKER_01 16:21

I'm I'm happy thank you. I'm ha I'm happy I can play with myself. Very good. I make a living playing with myself. Slap on the G string, if you will. No, I I I but that's the thing. You focus so much on your voice, and now you can hit all the notes. And I think that that's yeah, you focused on the right thing. You know what I mean? I focused on uh bringing an upright bass and having to lug around an upright bass that's more like about 50 pounds onto an airplane, and all you have to do is just walk on with your voice, right? But you have to take care of your voice, right? It's true. Yes, now what is there anything that you have to do? Because you what's the highest note you can hit? Like a high at least a high E. Okay. Can I hear it or no?

SPEAKER_05 17:01

I mean, right now? Oh this is one of those shows. That's a that's that's an E, right? That's an E. That's an E. I'm pretty sure that's an E. Or E flat. I think it's an E flat. Is it E flat or E? One of the two.

SPEAKER_01 17:18

That's a B.

SPEAKER_05 17:19

That's a B.

SPEAKER_02 17:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 17:20

Oh really? Okay, let's see. That's a music theory did not work with me.

SPEAKER_02 17:24

Oh, I mean it's oh it is an it's an E. Are you sure? Is that tuned?

SPEAKER_01 17:30

Maybe not. No. Okay, let's do it. Let me check my phone. Okay, alright, do you know? Do you I do you have perfect? I thought you had perfect.

SPEAKER_05 17:39

You have perfect page. Oh yeah, it's a B. No, no, oh no, I didn't I didn't say it was a B, though. It's a it's a high. Yeah. No, no, no. That's higher than an E. That's really high. Hold on. That's it. A B5. A B five.

SPEAKER_01 17:56

That's insane.

SPEAKER_05 17:59

But I used to be able to sing higher than that too, but you know, I'm getting older and it's getting harder to hit them high notes. And I'm just learning how to like learn all facets of my voice as I get older because it's like I don't always want to have to sing up there, even though I'm known for that. I just want to be able to sing in all facets of my voice. And I like how my voice is changing because now I can sing, I have a richer tone, and yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_01 18:27

I mean, this is this is completely different, but Robert Plant from Led Zeppelin, you know that that band, right? And oh Bindey is that confused for so long. He's not or uh, hey hey, mama said the way you'll move, go Mega Sweat, you know. He doesn't do that anymore. Like he's he's known for that. But if you check out Robert Plant and Allison Krause, he did like a country album and he's just literally literally like, if the wild bird, because he's like, he's like transferred into something else, and he's he's killing it now, and it's like that's that's what you you can do, but you're always gonna have that high voice, I think.

SPEAKER_05 19:00

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 19:00

Is there what what do you do to make sure you have a high note for for your uh shows?

SPEAKER_05 19:06

Just practice and singing through and and hope for the best. You just pray.

SPEAKER_01 19:11

Just pray.

SPEAKER_05 19:12

No, no, no. You know, I've always had it's it really is a natural gift that I have. I've always had a freakishly high voice. When I was a kid, like I used to hit Mariah Carey notes all the time, and and then I went through puberty, and now I sound like this. So, but I've always just had a naturally high voice, and because I trained it and learned how to use my mix uh and and other things like that and my falsetto, it just it just has a different sound. But I don't live up there. I like to go up there, but then I come back down.

SPEAKER_01 19:40

Yeah, you you hit them like it get like maybe five percent of the time. Here's my note.

SPEAKER_05 19:44

Here's my note, and then I come back down. Yeah, yeah. I know some male singers who could just live up there. I mean, not as high, but like Michael Kilger, for example. Like he I feel like his voice is higher than mine when it comes to the where he lives. You know, he he he just lives up there.

SPEAKER_01 19:59

He talks up there too, yeah. Yeah, that's true. Yeah, he's and it almost feels like chest voice where he when he's up there.

SPEAKER_05 20:04

Yeah, yeah, he'd be he'd be up there, and I'll be like, all the best to you. All the best to you.

SPEAKER_01 20:08

He's he's killing it too. He's great. Have you ever acted?

SPEAKER_05 20:12

Um I've auditioned for a few things. Uh no, I would say no. I would say I've I think I've auditioned for a thing a few things. Maybe I almost got into like a commercial for like a choir commercial for acting. I just actually I did just do a a TV show, but I was just in a choir. I was just singing in a choir. I wasn't acting. I mean, it is acting, but I wasn't like I didn't have any lines or anything. I was just in a choir on stage.

SPEAKER_01 20:38

Yeah, but still, but that's but you have really good improv qualities because you're you are the host of PMJ, and you so you and you know what to do. Yeah, yeah. But you're you're good at improv improving. Yes, you know what I mean? But you're also good at acting on stage, and like here's the next person, and you have a very theatrical thing. Now you got uh did you get a Grammy? Am I crazy?

SPEAKER_05 21:01

So I I don't have to say I got a Grammy because technically I didn't get the physical Grammy, but when I did Sinners, um we did win best compil compilation album, and so I will get a Grammy certificate and a gold medallion.

SPEAKER_01 21:17

Good.

SPEAKER_05 21:18

Okay, but I don't get like the physical Grammy, so I I don't either.

SPEAKER_01 21:21

I have I have that. Oh to be honest, to be honest though, I paid for that one.

SPEAKER_05 21:25

You got you have to pay for all of them.

SPEAKER_01 21:26

Okay, yeah. But that's you know, I was a part of something. I didn't I didn't get the Grammy, but I'm happy that we can now brag and say, hey, we're a part of something, you know what I mean? So that's that's awesome.

SPEAKER_05 21:35

That will be technically well, that's my first like semi-grammy win. But but I also was nominated for the John Legend Christmas album when I worked with him. I did his entire Christmas album, which was awesome. Dang, yeah. We recorded 13 songs in two days, and uh, it was with Rafael Sidd at his studio. He likes you. You know, that was before that was before this whole center stuff, that was years ago. Dang, okay. So I who who would have thought that come full circle I would be seeing him so often, you know? Yeah, that's like hey Rafia, he's like, What's up, Leviatch? You know, like he knows your name. He knows yeah, he knows my name. That is huge. And did I see something uh NAACP something? I did do the N double ACP awards back in the butt it was the it was the untelevised one. Um that was at the Sabon Theater in out here in LA. Yeah, the Sabon Theater. And it was really cool. I wound up singing three times, actually. Um it was a really cool experience. I I was doing Smokey Joe's Cafe, uh, the musical at the Pasadena Playhouse, and they invited the cast to come and sing some songs. So I sang two songs with them, and then an artist pulled out last minute and they had me sing a solo. So I think I sang some like Stevie Wonder song or something like that, and it was it went great.

SPEAKER_01 22:44

So yeah, I've done I've done a few things and you've been kill you've been killing it and singing with orchestras.

SPEAKER_05 22:50

Yeah, yeah. I sing with this wonderful orchestra. Uh well, this is actually this company called Musique, and it's led by this woman named Rachel Warby, who is a female, the f a female conductor of this orchestra, and she gives like these uh these intensives, these intensives of like um she'll talk about a subject and then we'll do a musical number to the things that she talks about. It's kind of like a history lesson with music, and it's always about something that has to do with the climate or or the or the the way the world is or how the world was, or she does a lot of things about like black injustice or how black black music has inspired so many things. Uh, but then all of a sudden she'll go to something like told do a show about Bob Dylan, you know. So it's really cool. It's really you should come. And they're free. What? Yeah, it's free. Like it's absolutely always free. So I love a good orchestra. And and and it'd be cool. Like I'll have background singers, I'll have a full orchestra, I'll sing like five, six songs, and it's great. I love it. And it's for me, that's working smarter, not harder, okay? Because I don't have to tour nowhere, I get to stay home, I get to just be here and just work from home. And that's why I'm loving it.

SPEAKER_01 23:56

Touring's a little crazy, yeah. It's it's a what's the craziest place you like when we were when we you know we had met on a postmodern jukebox. What's the cra what's the craziest place that you'd been to you never thought you'd go? Or not even with postmodern jukebox.

SPEAKER_05 24:10

Uh the craziest place I thought I would never go. So here's the thing before I answer that question, before I joined Postmodern Jukebox, I lived overseas for seven years and traveled all over the all over the world.

SPEAKER_01 24:23

So other than Japan?

SPEAKER_05 24:24

I live yeah, I lived in Japan for four years. Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, and then I worked on a cruise ship, and then I started traveling all over the world with cruise ships. Oh, cool. So I had already been to a lot of places all over the world before I joined PMJ.

SPEAKER_01 24:37

So you're like been there, doesn't that?

SPEAKER_05 24:38

Yeah, so then when I joined PMJ, we did it all over again for ten whole years. Oh my god. Um You're a seasoned vet at that point. Um uh but one of the places that I I really liked Denmark. I thought Denmark Copenhagen.

SPEAKER_01 24:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 24:54

Uh Christiania. Yeah, if you know, you know. Which you know, Christiania is shut down now. What? Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_01 25:04

It's it is I remember I went back and it seemed a little less high. I don't know. So I don't know. Maybe so it's shutting down?

SPEAKER_05 25:12

They shut it down, they don't have any of the things there anymore. They made it just like a regular town because there were there were too many deaths. Like I'm not even joking. People were getting killed. I'm not surprised. Yeah, I'm not surprised either.

SPEAKER_01 25:24

I'm sad, but I'm not that it I can see that. Yeah, that's there's yeah. I mean, there's times where I went there completely. I'm sober now, but I went there blitzed and with a bunch of friends where I almost fell. There was there's there's some stairs where they don't it's not like up to public health code, I'm sure. It's fun, I mean that's the fun part, but it's still it's a little bit weird. Okay. Yeah. Um, what's the nicest thing that anyone's ever said about you? What's the best compliment you've ever received?

SPEAKER_05 25:53

That I'm a oh my god, I've never been asked that question before. I don't even know. Yes. They're the most compliment that I'm uh I don't uh like God. I'm I like keep the tongue tied. Um the nicest thing anybody's ever said to me is that I'm a really kind and giving person. I'm I'm I'm very I'm very likable. I don't know. I don't know You know it it's you know I like when people compliment my integrity. You know, I don't I mean yeah, people like, oh you're a great singer, but okay. But I like when people go, you're a great singer, but I like you as a person. You have a you have a sh you have great integrity, you are really nice to any and everybody. I really like the way I treat people. That's good, you know, and a lot of people can't say that. I'm not like a diva. You know, I have self-respect, don't get it twisted. I'm not like all you know, you just gonna run all over me.

SPEAKER_01 26:46

But you don't have green MMs.

SPEAKER_05 26:51

You know, but I definitely treat anybody, you know, and I think that's why I think that's why my career has gotten the way it went to where it went because of the way I treat people. Because I show up not a diva, I show up respectful to everybody. I'll talk to the sound guy, I'll talk to this person, I'll talk to the to the usher. You know, I remember when the usher is low, it's like, oh my god, we love you, LeBlan. I'm like, I love you, you know, like it just I talk to anybody. If you're nice to me, I'm gonna be nice to you. Yeah, and it's really hard to find people who are like that, specifically singers, especially if you're a really good singer. The better the singer you are, so somehow, someway you just get this diva attitude. And I I it's a it's a bummer sometimes, yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_01 27:31

And it's you have to find that balance.

SPEAKER_05 27:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:33

I mean, I dude, I mean, after after American Idol, man, I I think I had a little bit of a of an ego. Just a little bit, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 27:40

I cannot imagine that because you have always been Casey Basic. Thanks.

SPEAKER_01 27:43

Well, no, well, I after I I went on my own tour after the American Idol tour, and guess who didn't show up to my concerts? You know what I mean? I had some empty, I'm I think my first ever tour after American Idol, there were six people there out of like a in a hundred seat theater.

unknown 27:57

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_01 27:58

So it's like, hey, that humbles you. And so, you know, like I think, I think I w I went I skyrocketed and then nothing. You know what I mean? So I really had to work my way, and I got that taste. I had a nice house. I was like, I need to get back there. You know what I mean? And then like you, you, you, you don't you're like, oh I'm rich and I'm rich and famous now, I can do whatever I want, and then and then gigs don't happen, and then people don't call you, and you're like, what did I do? Yeah, oh I have to keep working. So that's so it's good. It's good to have those downfalls. And so uh that's I think it's it's a it's a good balance. You have to you have to be a little bit cocky, but you have to know your worth, you have to be self-confident, but you can't be a dick. Yeah, exactly. Who's the nicest celebrity?

SPEAKER_05 28:45

Kenny Lattimore. Yes, oh, and you worked with him. I sang background for kids. I started off as a background singer, right? I did not want to be a lead singer at all. I was I was a very shy person, and I hated being in the forefront. And uh Me too, a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 28:59

I know that's why I played the bass. I was like, I want to be on stage, but back here. See? All right, so you were with Kenny.

SPEAKER_05 29:04

And I sang background for him for three years. Him and his ex-wife, Shantae Moore. And yeah, okay, wow. And uh Kenny was even my manager for a year as an artist. I was trying to be an artist, he wanted to manage me, and blah, blah, blah. And he is the one of the most nicest men I have ever. He's the he's a great example of what a man should be like. The way he treats people, the way he treats people, that's the kind of person I want to be. He treats everybody with respect and and he has a great reputation in the industry. He works all the time, he's an incredible singer. I feel like his career. I don't want to say, I think he's underrated. He's underrated. He's one of the best singers I've ever sang with. So tasteful. He kind of gives like male Whitney Houston vibes. Like that's the he comes from that kind of singing. He can sing. Oh, the for you, I give a lot of multibility. Oh, that song. And I used to just listen to him sing for three years. Oh, oh my god. Things are breaking on my God. It's just my earring. That's all right. It's your treble clef.

SPEAKER_01 30:10

At least he didn't drop the bass.

SPEAKER_05 30:12

At least it wasn't my at least it was a treble clef and not my clavicle. Okay. Sorry. I don't know. I don't know. I wanted to run the C and the L's, and you know, it just it didn't work.

SPEAKER_02 30:25

It's okay. I I said a joke. You didn't no one even got it. All right. Uh wait, group grab it. I don't want you to lose it. It's it's it's there it is.

SPEAKER_05 30:32

It's right here. I don't even know. Okay, that's a little, it's a little stud. My little stud fell off. Wow. It's fine. It's still. See, when you're in a house of bass, man, that shit just ha but Kenny, Penny was a great artist, and uh I he's the best artist I've ever worked with.

SPEAKER_01 30:49

Yeah, he's he's awesome. I met him on the Dave Cause cruise, which Dave is another great person. I really want you to meet him at some point. He's he's amazing. But yeah, he he was on the Dave Cause cruise, and I just knew about him. I just met him and just hung out with him, and then I heard him sing. I was like, oh, that's amazing. He's he's just he's he's awesome. He's an awesome guy. Can you do an impression of me? Singing.

SPEAKER_05 31:20

No, wait, wait, wait, wait. I gotta I gotta think about you for a second. Okay, Abram. I'm not the only one.

SPEAKER_04 31:30

Stacey's mom has gotta go in. She's all I'm in a way to love. Stacey can't just see. You're just not gonna love me. Oh no, I'm gonna love Stacy's mom. Whatever you do. Thank you. Thank you very much.

SPEAKER_05 31:46

Stacey's mom. I love, I used to love hearing you sing Stacy's mom. Oh you're just a great singer. Thanks, man. I enjoy listening to you. You just your musicality is great. You're a great singer and performer. And I just love it. Appreciate you.

SPEAKER_01 32:03

No, it was always good to do that song with you, and you killed the harmonies. Those are some hard harmonies, man. Um, Ariana Grande. I remember you did like a party with her. Yes. And that was that was that insane?

SPEAKER_05 32:14

That was really cool. That was for Halloween. She had she hired me to sing in some band for her Halloween party in her backyard, in her big backyard with a stage. This wasn't this is her mansion, okay? Okay. So when we say backyard, it's a whole other building. And we had a whole stage there. Lizzo was there, Jaden Smith was there. Um, there was all kinds of celebrities there. And I just remember singing, and I was just going off welling, doing my thing. And I remember she came up, she came up, and this is on video, by the way. I have proof, okay? Um uh she was literally on the floor bowing to me while I was singing. And I was like, girl, get off the floor. Like, girl, get off the floor. While she has this whole Halloween mask on, it was hilarious.

SPEAKER_01 32:58

Oh, that's amazing.

SPEAKER_05 32:59

Uh but yeah, I love her. She is really a nice person. She's she's a beautiful human being. I love her. I loved her in Wicked. She I didn't know she was such a great actress.

SPEAKER_01 33:08

Yeah, she's feeling it, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 33:09

Excellent. I I want to see her in more movies, you know?

SPEAKER_01 33:12

Yeah, yeah. Her and Cynthia are insane together.

SPEAKER_05 33:14

Yeah, what a I mean, I have They literally are insane together.

SPEAKER_01 33:19

Yes. On that note, let's jam. Let's jam. Let's be incredible. Well, I don't know what I'm doing.

SPEAKER_05 33:25

Scissor sister, scissors, sister.

SPEAKER_01 33:41

Okay, uh, and then there's like a section. We'll we'll figure it out. I there's a section where it's like and I'll just watch it goes back up.

SPEAKER_05 33:55

No, no, no, no, no. No, no, no. But the the first tone you did. And then go back up to that second note.

SPEAKER_04 34:02

Oh, and then where the ties are good or fat. You know what I'm saying? Okay, so yep. And then stay right there. Where the ties are good. Gotcha. And then we figured that out.

SPEAKER_01 34:22

Talk me through it when it happens again. If if I mess up anything, just we'll see what happens. Okay. Okay, here yeah.

SPEAKER_05 34:29

Just just if hey, go to this, go to there. Okay, okay, cool. Okay, see, let's stay together.

SPEAKER_03 34:37

All right.

SPEAKER_04 34:41

I'm so in love with you. Whatever you wanna do is all right with me 'cause you make me feel so brand new and I wanna share my life with you. Oh baby sings we've been together oh loving you forever is what I need. So let me be the one you come run into never be untrue. So baby let's stay together loving you ever, wherever times are good, bad, happy to side where the times are good, bad, happy sad, why people break up oh and turn around and make up I just can't see 'cause you never do that to me. But you can't see being around you is all I see So baby Let's stay together Loving you ever times it could find happy repeat it since times it could find happy sad times it could have been on a side happy side times it put a fad happier Let's stay together what was that?

SPEAKER_00 37:51

I don't know something good, something beautiful. Alright, love you, man. That was awesome, man. Congratulations, congratulations on hitting that.

SPEAKER_05 38:03

Thank you. I need to start warming up before I sing though. How about that?

SPEAKER_00 38:07

No, that was perfect. Thank you so much.