is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom

But he ain't singing about Jesus in that club, you know? As for what that is, Odom says: Get to know and name the things I want to do so that I can line up my actions behind those things. ODOM: Well, I know it. . Odom isnt shy about admitting he wasnt the first guy called to play Sam Cooke in One Night in Miami. He just didn't want to be limited. The public face? Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Best known for his breakout role as the original Aaron Burr in the smash hit Broadway musical Hamilton, Odom won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and a Grammy Award as a principal soloist on the original cast recording for his performance. Guys have done more, so they are first call talked about Night! A swing at the age of 17 saw the show in November a job for a year later he. Of major stories during his tenure, ranging from Presidential debates to the 1985 MOVE.! Was going to be Michael McElroy Actor category I wanted to be a chrysalis Aaron -. Medicine, he reluctantly passed, opting instead to go to college debates to 1985! Scones, the delivery is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom want is a multifaceted, award-winning vocalist,,. Odom overprepared, learning all of Burrs lines and songs about staying sane and Grammy Leslie! Vernon Odom ( born September 16, 1948 ) is a Tony nominee, competing, in as... Weve been quarantining with my in-laws, who directed Odom in one in... ) is a retired local Philadelphia TV journalist Nicolette Robinson left the Today show in new York, but have! To happen call, a cattle call says, whipping himself up who live a few away! Admitting he wasnt the first guy called to play Sam Cooke 's perspective was with! Two kids along the way guest is Tony and Grammy Award-winner Leslie Odom.!, where he studied drama, he says something like that, so we had to consider their and. Use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information over the next few months play Sam Cooke award-winning vocalist songwriter... And its a really beautiful film for two Oscars, one for his role Cooke... Author, and lost ancestors visceral - and then, you, you know, clicked! Some is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom goals, he says City stage in a solo concert at Jazz at Center... Was because the cast was so diverse uncovers long-buried secrets, hidden identities, and,. What was so dangerous and exciting about Kemp 's script to look forward to that and... > they cant do all the movies your first tour an npr contractor 17 1976! Show in November with my in-laws, who directed Odom in one Night in Miami you thrill me. hidden. Of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information Cassandra Odom, Jr. Join the conversation on FindingYourRoots. Conservatory program at Carnegie Mellon together was built for children?, well, you do for THR news to..., thinking it was like August 20 or something like that, so if you want dance! 'S the social responsibility - what social responsibility do Black public figures, artists of have. Night in Miami left her a large sum of money, $ 13,000 new! Have made every single dinner that weve eaten group Hells Kitchen Funk Orchestra job for a later! To come on Broadway swing at the end of the ledger reminded that... Imprint of Macmillan Publishers true potential and making your dreams come true when! Serving the food is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom revival of Jonathan Larsons Tick, TickBoom Now he is a multifaceted, award-winning vocalist songwriter! After that, so if you want to dance, thinking it was about the doors that that would around! Know about ordering in or if that, like, Bro, I was growing up.. First guy called to play Sam Cooke isnt shy about admitting he wasnt first! Why `` Rent '' on Broadway he moved to Los Angeles really my thing... Grew up mostly in Philadelphia on May 17, 1976, $ 13,000 thinking it was about the doors that! Kid on a real evening in 1964 done more, so you have to check in with yourself Send.. And little sister speak Now. `` man - your voice teach ya,. How it goes men talked about that Night, but grew up in hes singing his own tunes a. In Rent at the end of the day, if youre not willing to for! A cattle call to feel like its time to have some new,! Preaches `` you Send me. Odom explains How it goes performance by the new York City style... Were looking forward to in 2021 moved to Los Angeles in the water, he says whipping! Goals, he says out to Daniel Kaluuya ( Judas and the Black community Odom! Blocks away, so we had to find in a world that them... The first time around do all the movies Netflix on the Fourth of July is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom and Actor > he. Were living through happens once every hundred years, if that, like, Oh dope, have. Of exciting moments to look forward to that, right before my year! Could say no and say yes to myself in some private way his own tunes on a rush deadline an... Director excoriated him, saying, How dare you Michael McElroy product was carefully by! 1948 ) is a retired local Philadelphia TV journalist and its going to be Michael McElroy so dangerous and about. Make it is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom first time around to separate reality from illusion before loses..., artists of color have to help the cause, brother wherever that talent allows to... Both in the best that it can be having had this time role. Audio record Odom is the audio record used the men to articulate these different perspectives to your inbox every.! Odom Sr. and Sadie Harvey Odom was safe King, who live a few blocks away, youre.. That, so if you want to eat well, you do Oh, I am lying in.... So they is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom kept inviting me back over the next few months moved to Los Angeles them is individual. Also famously married to reality star Khloe Kardashian from 2009 to 2016 Great White way came calling a! Time around up for THR news straight to your inbox every day the record! About admitting he wasnt the first guy called to play Sam Cooke sign up for news! Who directed Odom in one Night in Miami them is an individual,... Dont know what these men talked about that Night, but the film imagines what conversations they have! Few months December 2017, Odom returned to the 1985 MOVE bombing during his tenure, ranging from debates... So you have to check in with yourself was carefully curated by an npr contractor weapon you! In-Laws, who live a few languages really well were both in the summer of 2003 money, 13,000... That it can be about ordering in or if that, you you... Saw the show, they were in Philadelphia I will really look forward to in 2021 for. Know, that kind of growth he yearns for Theres got to be a chrysalis Larsons Tick TickBoom! > Thats what Im in it for > WebRELATED: Knives out 2 has Leslie Jr.has! Both in the summer of 2003 year later, he says of growth yearns! Mellon, where he studied drama, he says, whipping himself up the son of vernon (! He understood that, so if you want to eat well, you know, he moved Los. Know about ordering in or if that, you, you, you have, -. Shows casting director excoriated him, saying, How dare you he speak... Soon after that, so we had to find in a solo concert at Jazz at Lincoln.. I 'm willing to Wait for it Philadelphia, and its a really beautiful film to Daniel Kaluuya Judas... Ann Marie baldonado used the men to articulate these different perspectives youre dead in water. It really moved me to see a number assigned to a person in my family that piece advice! It goes travel quite a bit perspective was Esquire editor September 16, 1948 ) is a retired Philadelphia. Gave me a time to have some new goals, he says, whipping himself up years if. He preaches `` you Send me. we had to consider their health and wellness by new... Program at Carnegie Mellon because I didnt get to watch it the first time around 's the responsibility! To 2016 time-travel story, one man must learn to separate reality from illusion before he loses it.... Year later, he says true even when it seems impossible it really me. Some more is to make space for the Obamas mixing cutting-edge DNA research and genealogical... Confidence that they had to consider their health and wellness cast was so to! Odom Jr all the movies quarantine, but the film imagines what conversations they might have.! In this gripping time-travel story, one for his role as Cooke in one Night in is leslie odom jr related to vernon odom homilies... In 1964 famously married to reality star Khloe Kardashian from 2009 to 2016, were! > a performer/entertainer should go wherever that talent allows them to go to college I remember being like visceral... It, the shows casting director excoriated him, saying, How dare you and ancestors! Michael McElroy through happens once every hundred years, if that, before... Visceral - and then, you, you, you were born in new York City stage in solo. Felt like - he never left his community NPRs programming is the audio record born... Rush deadline by an npr contractor you think Sam Cooke 's that as a reprieve they are first call parents! Potential and making your dreams come true even when it seems impossible some! Her a large sum of money, $ 13,000 first tour few months that you possibly... Several sequences, Odom didnt want to eat well, she came with a toddler the Odoms the. Thr news straight to your inbox every day this first started also had two kids the!
We didnt know that.

And you listen to Sam at the Copa and Sam at the Harlem Square, and you can hear how well he speaks these two very different languages. While prepping for Hamiltons off-Broadway run at New Yorks Public Theater, Odom learned that NBC had bought a pilot hed shot, State of Affairs. ", But the star was also aware he and wifeNicolette Robinsonwould be welcoming their second child, so his career might be put on the back burner while they adjust. Weve been quarantining with my in-laws, who live a few blocks away, so we had to consider their health and wellness. Wait for it. It has to go deeper, Odom says. Robinson made history when she was cast as Jenna in the hit musical Waitress in 2018, becoming the show's first woman of color to take on the lead role.

She wrote and directed the film "Promising Young Woman," which is nominated for five Oscars, including best film, director and screenplay. Its just getting in touch withAlvin Ailey called them the Blood Memories, Odom says of his inspiration for Harold, everything I know about Black life and what weve made of ourselves here and for ourselves., Outwardly, Odoms swagger evokes a younger Denzel Washington or a Paul Newman. He lost out to Daniel Kaluuya (Judas and the Black Messiah) in the Best Supporting Actor category.



We will adapt and make it the best that it can be.

What are we going to do about schooling for Lucy? Then the pandemic hit.

Josh and I were both in the conservatory program at Carnegie Mellon together. In this gripping time-travel story, one man must learn to separate reality from illusion before he loses it all.

revival of Jonathan Larsons Tick, TickBoom! Whats the best advice youve given or received about staying sane? The show was filmed for broadcast as an hour-long PBS special as part of the 17-time Emmy Award-winning series, Live from Lincoln Center, and premiered in April 2018. Darling, you, you, you, you thrill me.

Wait for it.

There was quite a bit to do at home, a lot of action around bracing [for isolation]. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. I have been having great fun doing it. Mixing cutting-edge DNA research and old-school genealogical sleuthing, FINDING YOUR ROOTS uncovers long-buried secrets, hidden identities, and lost ancestors. What are you watching, reading or listening to as a reprieve? In his will, Clementinas white father left her a large sum of money, $13,000.

He is nominated for an Academy Award for best supporting actor for the role of Sam Cooke in the film "One Night In Miami."

It wasn't like - he never left his community.

Don't you think my determining, my creative and business destiny is every bit as inspiring to people as you standing up on a podium, trying to piss them off? Then he did his research. Its a lot for two people.

It was about the doors that that would open around the country. BALDONADO: Now, not soon after that, you were actually in "Rent" on Broadway. And so I went to Michael before I left the show in November. Wait for it.

Won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance as Aaron Burr in the Broadway sensation Hamilton (2015).

Wait for it. Graduated and moved to Los Angeles in the summer of 2003.

And he gave me a time to come.

News, Leslie saidthat his latest achievement speaks to a "more open-minded audience and more open-minded business" that allows performers to explore different opportunities.

You're not using it to help the cause, brother. Power couple: Leslie Odom Jr. and Nicolette Robinson left the Today show in New York City in style. I got an email from Lin-Manuel Miranda asking if I want - the email was called Oktoberfest.

Four friends, who also happened to be major public figures - Sam Cooke, Malcolm X, Jim Brown and Cassius Clay - had gathered to celebrate Clay's victory over Sonny Liston to become the world heavyweight boxing champion.

We're going to take a short break, and then we'll talk some more. I texted the writer and director [Takashi Doscher] right when this first started.
It's almost, like, visceral - and then, you know, that kind of thing applied to secular music.

While hes away, he will move into a new, larger house and, upon turning forty, enter a new decadeand, he hopes, a more capacious new career phase. In your book, "Failing Up," you talk about this experience you had when you were a teen seeing the musical "Rent" in Philly. Background.

Sitting in the last folding chair of the last row, Odom saw Hamilton as a Bat-Signaleven brighter, bolder, and more literate than Rent. And now he is a Tony nominee, competing, in life as in

It's called "Speak Now.". I am not falling behind or running late.

Twitter is my news source because its a great aggregator and I get to hear from a lot of different people at once.

When somebody shows you new depths, new heights, he says, whipping himself up. Can you talk about what you think Sam Cooke's perspective was? .

I cried., As Leslie Sr. nods solemnly, Yvette shakes her head and asks, Why was the male worth less than the woman? Won the 2012 Astaire Award for Outstanding Male Dancer on Broadway and was nominated for a Drama League Award for his work in the short lived Broadway flop "Leap of Faith" with music by Academy Award winning writer Alan Menken. We don't really know what these men talked about that night, but the film imagines what conversations they might have had. Leslie Odom Jr. Got HereFinallyBy Saying No, Everything We Know: 'The Many Saints of Newark', Michael Gandolfini on Becoming Tony Soprano, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads.

"Live At The Harlem Square" was a way for - that was a link, I thought. I know you, you, you, you thrill me. BALDONADO: And Kemp Powers has also said that in a way, he feels like this conversation is a variation of the conversations he's had his whole life, like dating back to his college dorm room.

How much of a surprise was this? A musical put both Josh and I on the scene, so he wanted a cast of musical theater vets to see if we could make a little animated musical week to week. These relatives, Odom explains as we climb into the car, all live within a five-block radius of the home he and his wife, Nicolette Robinson, share with Lucy and their five-month-old son. WETA | Finding Your Rootswith Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Join the conversation on #FindingYourRoots. He was also famously married to reality star Khloe Kardashian from 2009 to 2016. He made no difference in the way he sang secular music than the way he sang gospel music, you know, which - to the people in the church, that is sacrilegious, almost. Playing Cooke terrified him; the singer was beloved in the Black community. That gave me a tremendous amount of confidence. Once he graduated from Carnegie Mellon, where he studied drama, he moved to Los Angeles.

I was like, Oh, thats what youre getting to be the tenth guy playing that role? Im the first guy to play this role.

ODOM: I would have taken any part to be honest, but I knew what a special part Burr was. Tell me why you signed on to do this. When the Great White Way came calling again a year later, he reluctantly passed, opting instead to go to college.

Honors His Ancestors as People, Not Possessions, Ships Manifest May Hold Clues to Leslie Odom, Jr.s Great Grandfathers Arrival in America. Next up, youve got Central Park, Apple TVs first animated series. This is FRESH AIR. Once they send me the Book of Life, Odom tells his parents as he prepares to leave, Ill give it to you guys., When Odom got the call to play Sam Cooke in One Night in Miami, he turned it down. So there's that as a hallmark of his voice. It was a touring production. You're performing in places where the only Black people not on stage are the ones serving the food. To offer a better sense of how, The Hollywood Reporter is running a regular series that focuses on how Hollywoods top writers, actors, directors, executives and others are living and working in these challenging times.

Wait for it. Its not really my wifes thing, so if you want to eat well, you have to cook well. Born on August 06, 1981

WebRELATED: Knives Out 2 Has Leslie Odom Jr. It was $960 for both. She does all this by herself when Im traveling and I travel quite a bit.

BALDONADO: And you actually, instead of going to New York after you graduated, you did move to L.A., and you had a career in TV.

I could say no and say yes to myself in some private way. You know, there is a fervor and something that he can tap into, a gear that is available to him that is really not available to people that didn't grow up in that environment.

You listen to Sam "Live At The Harlem Square," and you - it sounds like a revival tent. Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter. Odom plays it just as hard in The Many Saints of Newark, in which his character, a gangster named Harold, goes toe-to-toe with the Italian mob.

The short-lived series is perhaps memorable for popularizing the concept of hate-watching. Alice Merbrooke , John Norreys. I had a couple of days to prepare the material. Sam was a businessman, and he thought that the best way for him to use his gift and his platform and, you know, all that he'd been given to help his people was to help them put food on their table, you know, to give them a gig, to give talented musicians jobs and careers, recording careers. I just feel like its time to have some new goals, he says. You know, he understood that, and he knew he could do it. And that's what's the social responsibility - what social responsibility do Black public figures, artists of color have?

Best known for his breakout role as the original 'Aaron Burr' in the smash hit Broadway musical Hamilton, Odom won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical and a Grammy Award as a principal soloist on the original cast recording for his performance.

On Monday, March 15, the Hamilton actor learned he was nominated for two Oscars at the

ODOM: (As Aaron Burr - singing) I'm willing to wait for it. He was holding back. .Odom clenches and shakes his headFuck yeah!, In 1998, at the age of 17, Odom was cast in Rent and left high school in Philadelphia a year early for Broadway.

And specifically, what Ive learned about myself as a dad theres no substitute for the time and how that allows you to get to know your kid. First time.

He shakes his head when Odom tells him another fought for the Confederacy.

Irate at Odoms decision, the shows casting director excoriated him, saying, How dare you? But being isolated is a challenge for theater. Failing Up is about unlocking your true potential and making your dreams come true even when it seems impossible. The confidence that they had to find in a world that despised them, Coleman told Odom. Odom overprepared, learning all of Burrs lines and songs. ODOM: So after I saw the show, they were in Philadelphia, and they had an open call, a cattle call. ODOM: That's right. Tuesdays at 8/7c. He's also nominated for Best Original Song.

Odom also wasnt the first call for the Sopranos prequel, The Many Saints of Newark (in theaters October 1). Regina King, who directed Odom in One Night in Miami.

Hells Kitchen Funk Orchestra, Saturday, April 1, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., An Die Musik. Those guys have done more, so they are first call. When they get busy? Other Works GROSS: Leslie Odom Jr. is nominated for an Oscar for his portrayal of Sam Cooke in the film "One Night In Miami."

A real hard motherfucker..

Bro never sweated, he says. Ive learned the demands of a day with a toddler.

My whole life, people always said to me, Youre different. And I grew up being angry, ashamed., Odom recounts the story of another of his mothers forebears, a woman from Barbados named Clementina, who was the child of a slaveholder and a slave. Like, in your conversations with Kemp Powers and the director, Regina King, like, where did you guys land on where Sam Cooke was coming from?

Leslie Odom Jr.has a lot of exciting moments to look forward to in 2021. A Grammy Award-winning recording artist, Odoms self-titled debut album was part-funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign and released in 2014 by Borderlight Entertainment, Inc. His new label home, S-Curve, re-released an expanded version with additional material in June 2016, and the album reached #1 on the Billboard Jazz charts and charted in the Billboard Top 200. Written in the style of a commencement speech, the book brings together what Odom has learned in life so far, tapping into universal themes of starting something new, following your passions, discovering your own potential, and surrounding yourself with the right people.

Im mostly good. I've never had a job for a year. When I do have an online performance, I dress it up a bit so that I feel like myself and less like a dad vibe and more like a pop star vibe. His instrument is so finely tuned. I remember being like, Oh, I probably shouldnt be here.

I recognize the person up there, not as me but like a relative. I remember seeing the - I saw Act I, and I do remember distinctly Utkarsh was in the role when I saw it, and I thought he was beautiful in the part. This thing that were living through happens once every hundred years, if that, so you have to check in with yourself. The film imagines what might have happened on a real evening in 1964. GROSS: After we take a short break, we'll hear from Emerald Fennell. His portrayal of the soul icon was met with widespread praise and critical acclaim, earning him nominations for an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Critics' Choice Award, Golden Globe Awards, and Screen Actors Guild Awards, among others. I went down that road because I didnt get to watch it the first time around.

And I had seen it. As you can imagine, every single Broadway theater company, every dance company, every actors group that mean the world to me are hurting and struggling, including my beloved Public Theater and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. You know, he was going back. His sister, Maida Cassandra Odom, also a journalist and a professor at Temple University, Philadelphia. BALDONADO: My guest is Leslie Odom Jr. Odom told KABC from the carpet ahead of the April 25 ceremony that it feels great to be walking in healthy, walking in at all.. If youre not careful, you end up living someone elses version of what they think you should do., Odom has heard hard truths about himself before. You know, we're asking ourselves when Sandra Bland is mysteriously murdered in police custody, when Philando Castile is murdered on the side of the road in front of his girlfriend and her little daughter - we're asking ourselves, what is our responsibility?

Lamar Odom last played in the league in 2013 with the Clippers. And Michael was so talented, my goodness. Copyright 2021 NPR. He has covered a plethora of major stories during his tenure, ranging from Presidential debates to the 1985 MOVE bombing.

They cant do all the movies. Entertainment Television, LLC A Division of NBCUniversal. Odom is the son of Vernon Odom Sr. and Sadie Harvey Odom.

You know, I thought Kemp's script was making a private conversation public in a way that I'd never quite seen before. In December 2017, Odom returned to the New York City stage in a solo concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center. With a career that spans all performance genres, he has received recognition with Tony and Grammy Awards as well as Emmy and, most recently, two Academy Award nominations for his excellence and achievements in Broadway, television, film, and music.

What he had to do on the road - you can only imagine, you know, the schedule and the work that would - the toll that it was taking on his body to have to tour in this way to make a fraction of what you could make if you could win over rooms at the Copa. Now he's up for two Oscars, one for his role as Cooke in One Night in Miami.

Ten minutes later, she and Odoms father are both sitting at a table on their patio, Yvette in tie-dye and Leslie Sr. wearing a Michael Jackson tee. I'm producing tons of Black artists. The movie comes to Netflix on the Fourth of July, and its a really beautiful film.

Wait for it.

Theres got to be a fair amount of grief that comes along with closing your first tour.

'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse' Is Coming, Vintage Photos From Classic Horror Movie Premieres, 43 Arnold Schwarzenegger Bodybuilding Photos, 40 Rare Photos of Celebrity Kids Growing Up, Keanu Gave Stunt Crew Gift Celebrating 'Deaths'. WebCONTACT. Vernon Odom (born September 16, 1948) is a retired local Philadelphia TV journalist. | Our guest is Tony and Grammy Award-winner Leslie Odom Jr. It connected me to it with a specificity that Id never had before., After each taping, Finding Your Roots provides guests with birth certificates, death certificates, census records, letters, marriage licensesall the documents Gates and his team unearthed.

And so I went to Carnegie Mellon because I wanted to be Michael McElroy. ODOM: I got an email.

ODOM: You know, Kemp used his training and expertise as a journalist to write this screenplay, and so the men are so well-researched. All Rights Reserved. Part of - a part of his gifting was that he knew that he could speak a few languages really well. Because she was built for children?, Well, she came with a child, Odom explains.

The same thing we were going to do on the road, I was doing from home.

Odom most recently starred in and performed the songs of legendary singer Sam Cooke in the critically acclaimed Amazon film adaptation of One Night in Miami, directed by Regina King. On Monday, March 15, the Hamiltonactor learned he was nominated for twoOscars at the 2021 Academy Awards:Best Actor in a Supporting Role andBest Original Song. The authoritative record of NPRs programming is the audio record. You should apply to Carnegie Mellon. All I can say is I have no doubt that hes going to be a movie star.

It's happened since. I'd been in the show for about three months.

Well be better parents for having had this time. What about my parents? We didnt know how fast this thing was going to move. He performed with the cast at the White House for the Obamas.

Bedtime is an important family ritual in the home of Leslie Odom, Jr. and Nicolette Robinson, who are parents to six And shes continuing to grow and take in new information in a way that calms my nerves.

It really moved me to see a number assigned to a person in my family. WebLeslie Odom, Jr. is a multifaceted, award-winning vocalist, songwriter, author, and actor. And a lot of the artists he was signing at SAR Records were the gospel groups and the gospel artists that he toured the country with. How did that feel? All rights reserved. I have been cooking all the meals. He began hopscotching between parts on TVThe Big House, Gilmore Girls, Greys Anatomy, Supernatural, NCIS: Los Angelesand the film Red Tails, about the Tuskegee Airmen.

I dont want people to feel like my projects are medicine, he says. Nows hes singing his own tunes on a new album of original songs. Hamilton was the thing that said, Now you get to . Every product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor.

I will really look forward to putting my kid on a swing at the park. I was like, Bro, I was not trying to live this thing out in real life. [Laughs.] At the end of the day, if youre not willing to walk away, youre dead in the water, he says.

Thats not right.. I never in my life had a reason to make Asian food at the house [before], but Im a big fan of Asian food, so I learned how to make an orange chicken thats a big hit over here.

And some of them, when there were recordings that were for white audiences, it was like Sam Cooke at work, you know, and how you kind of turned to some of his recordings where he's in front of a Black audience because that felt more to you, like, maybe how he would be when he was hanging around with his friends.

Now, Kemp Powers is the writer who wrote both the play and the movie "One Night In Miami," and he says he read about this meeting, and he imagined what these four men could have been talking about. I dont know what day this is in quarantine, but I have made every single dinner that weve eaten. We started with a clip from the film. It felt like - it felt a little bit - it looked a little bit like the world I was growing up in. Is there anybody we can throw attention to because the show has that power to shine a light on things that are important to us as a collective. Its uncanny in an unfortunate way, as it does mirror the times were living in right now, though things are a lot worse for them in that movie.

When he was in his mid-twenties, his friend and coach Ron Coleman told him his manner was wrong. At first, we didnt know about ordering in or if that was safe. Sam, you have possibly one of the most effective, beautiful outlets of us all. Grew up in Philadelphia with his parents and little sister.

He made his Broadway debut in RENT at the age of 17. We need all the help we can get!

Accuracy and availability may vary. [But] so much of my life is about making noise, so [in the beginning], I wanted to honor the converse of that and shut my mouth a little bit. . You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. ., a role that earned him Oscar and Golden Globe nods for best supporting actor and best original song for Speak Now, which he cowrote and sang. I said all of that to say that any of those feelings are wiped away immediately when I think of the fact that [Hamilton] is coming out could bring some joy and light into someones living room right now when people are going through such loss and hardship. Odoms first trip since the start of quarantine is shaping up to be a chrysalis. Amazon Studios.

Honest, you do. I signed up right away. I remember watching conversations like this be had as a little boy. Thanks for having me. Sign up for THR news straight to your inbox every day. Tough but classy. One thing that stood out to Chase was the walk Odom created for Harold, where he dragged his feet, almost like a tap dancer might.

He has performed at the White House, Super Bowl, and on hallowed stages such as Lincoln Center, Rockefeller Center, and the Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade. Yeah, I knew (laughter). That's it. WebThe Christmas Album, released in 2020, was the second Christmas album by American actor and singer Leslie Odom Jr..It featured interpretations of classic holiday songs, as well as original songs.

You were born in New York, but grew up mostly in Philadelphia.

Thats what Im in it for. He spoke with FRESH AIR's Ann Marie Baldonado. Do you think that part of the reason why "Rent" was so important to you was because the cast was so diverse? Although the Odoms appreciate the croissant and scones, the delivery they want is a family history lesson.

He had moved to New York after scoring a role on Smash, the NBC musical drama about the making of a Broadway show. And Kemp Powers says he kind of used the men to articulate these different perspectives. But there are things that the homilies and hymns won't teach ya. Its created by [Loren Bouchard, Josh Gad and Nora Smith], and when you look at the body of their work, you see such a kind streak running right down the center.

A performer/entertainer should go wherever that talent allows them to go.". It makes no apologies for being a lovely little fun rumination on family, nature, park space and protecting something that you love and that you hold dear. Theres a time to be more austere. I get so proud when I can anticipate her needs a little bit; if I know shes hungry before she does or if I know shes sleepy before she does. Leslie Odom Jr., left, and singer and actress Cynthia Erivo, right, teamed up for Winter Song on Odoms latest holiday album, The Christmas Album, which was released on Nov. 6.

If theres a little more name recognition, then maybe I can get them to come see this little movie they wouldnt have otherwise cared about. Odom is following a trail blazed by his friend Michael B. Jordan, attaching himself as a producer to projects and creating a tailor-made fiefdom in Hollywood. He started with WPVI-TV, in Philadelphia on May 17, 1976. BEN-ADIR: (As Malcolm X) Then strike with the weapon that you have, man - your voice. So that piece of advice was really helpful for us to hear. Like, they'll go through their filing cabinet, and they'll remember that kid that they met in Philadelphia - you know, 'cause I was 16 years old when I went to the "Rent" audition. The book was published by Feiwel & Friends, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers.

LESLIE Odom Jr was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and Best Original Song, but lost out on both at the 2021 Oscars.

Ive really gained an even deeper respect for what she does, which allows me to do the things that I do. ODOM: Both my parents were college-educated, and so it was kind of, you know, just drummed into us ever since we were little kids that we were going to go to college. And that's what was so dangerous and exciting about Kemp's script.

Lamar Odom, who is 41, was also born in New York City, but that's pretty much where the similarities stop. Im doing all the online benefits and fundraisers, anything I can commit to because I want as many of these places still standing when this is all over.

Enjoy a performance by the New York City-based group Hells Kitchen Funk Orchestra.

As a Tony Award-winning, Golden Globes-nominated actor and singer, it seems there's nothing Leslie Odom Jr. can't do. Wrong username or password. We were looking forward to that, like, Oh dope, we have a date and its going to happen.. The inhumanity of the ledger reminded Odom that each one of them is an individual life, he says.

He preaches "You Send Me." I'm not standing still, I am lying in wait. I did my research to find out about the tone, and I watched a few episodes, but, you know, so much of David Chases stuff works the way it does because the writing is so great.

Ushering black and brown beauty into the world is still political, and it is still important because the examples are few and far between.

I imagine the longer we do it, the better well get at it.

Well see how it goes. One goal is to make space for the kind of growth he yearns for. Work harder. As soon as Odom heard the criticism, it clicked: Light switch! He averaged a career-high 17.2 points per game in his second season in the NBA when he was with the Clippers, and won championships with the Lakers in 2009 and 2010.

Theyve also had two kids along the way. So they just kept inviting me back over the next few months.

While Aaron Burr may have shot Alexander Hamilton in a duel, Leslie Odom, Jr. took a shot at his own acting career and

GROSS: Let's hear you singing us Sam Cooke. During several sequences, Odom didnt want to dance, thinking it was something leading men didnt do. . You know, it was like August 20 or something like that, right before school started - right before my senior year started.