Photo Credit: Paul Citone / Erik Kabik Photography
Taylor Hicks has seemingly done it all. He won American Idol. He played the infamous Teen Angel in Grease on Broadway. He partied with Snoop Dogg. What more can a guy really ask for?
How about hitting up a city near you playing music while hosting a new television show about eating amazing food? I recently got the chance to talk to Taylor Hicks about his career and his new show State Plate. In an exclusive interview with the Huffington Post, when discussing his current tour, he told me, "It's doing great. It's a tour within a tour. I've really been enjoying the acoustic sound. I've been doing more of the acoustic, smaller performing arts centers and venues. That's something I have enjoyed doing as much as I enjoy doing the bigger venues. This particular tour is really stripped-down and raw. It's me and a guitar player. I think a lot of people can get to know the artist that way. It's something I always wanted to do." People will also get the opportunity to learn more about Taylor Hicks by watching State Plate. "I'm shooting the food and travel show State Plate for the INSP network as well. As I'm on tour with the television show I'm also on tour with the music which is a good thing. It's the best of both worlds," he told me.
The American Idol season 5 winner went into detail about what fans can expect from State Plate. Hicks said, "The concept of State Plate is like no other. I have to fill up a plate of food with iconic foods from that state. I don't think anybody has ever done that before. I think they tried to hint at the concept but never to this extent. It's truly an American food travel show. We go to each state and we fill up a plate of food. Entrees, appetizers, desserts and sides that are strictly unique to that state. It really is a farm to table concept. We go to the origin of where the food is made. More times than not we go directly to the farm. We milk the dairy cow so to speak. You know, for the cheese curds. It is a pretty amazing concept. I have been able to be educated on iconic foods all over the country. We are just scratching the surface here." While being on the road, Taylor Hicks has been able to catch up with familiar faces and family members that he never knew existed.
"I have a few friends who I haven't seen in a long time. Getting to see family is also great. Sometimes even family I haven't met yet," Hicks said with a wide grin. He elaborated, "The interesting thing while you tour is that sometimes you have people come up to you and say they are related to you. Once they start naming off familiar names I go, 'Wow.' When you meet people in the merchandise line...there's always a chance you can meet someone in your family." In true Taylor fashion, he had a hilarious quip up his sleeve. "It's kind of like the traveling version of ancestry.com," Hicks said with a gigantic laugh. It is possible Taylor's long-lost family members recognized him by his infamous harmonica skills. When asked if he still plays his handy-dandy instrument, he said, "I play it a little bit on State Plate. I really perform with it when I'm doing shows. The harmonica travels with me everywhere." He then gave expect advice to people who have a desire to play one of the world's most portable instruments. "I always tell people to get a C harmonica. Then they can look up songs that are in the key of G on the internet. Blues songs in the key of G and a harmonica in the key of C. That is the cross-reference and you will be able to be in key. A lot of people don't understand that the harmonica is not in the key of every song. It's in a specific key. You get a blues song in G and then you'll be able to play the harmonica and sound good which will give you a little bit more confidence," Hicks said with a warm glow. The musician's confidence helped land him in various theatre and television projects over the years including a memorable run in Grease.
That wasn't the only musical that had an interest in Taylor Hicks. The former Teen Angel told me, "I was up for the lead in Memphis and something happened. I was doing a Vegas show at the time. There was some interest." When discussing if he would ever return to the stage, Hicks said, "It has to be the right role. If the right role comes along and it fits your personality and who you are then you don't have to work as hard to be that particular character. That's called typecasting. Typecasting is very important for me because I'm just starting out in acting and getting my feet wet. On Broadway and in television it is smart to find a role that you are comfortable with." Taylor Hicks felt right at home when he also made an appearance on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. "It was interesting. I actually played a reality TV show judge but it just happened to be the Simon Cowell part. That's something I never thought I would ever do. In entertainment, you never know. It was a perfect role. I'm such a huge fan of the show. I've been watching it for years and that was truly an honor," Hicks said while reflecting on his experience working on the show. It was quite a surreal moment in time for the American Idol winner who had to play a character that was similar to his once archenemy.
Photo Credit: Caesars Entertainment
When asked about what it was like to put up with Simon Cowell's constant taunts during his time on American Idol, Hicks said radiantly, "I think by the time that the show was wrapping up for me and I won, I didn't think about Simon. For me, when you get to that point it's all about the people in America that are voting for you. Ultimately, I think it was nice for Simon to eat his words because I don't think Simon ever thinks that he is going to do that. I might be one of the only people in his life that has been ever able to do that. That's always something I got enjoyment out of." Taylor Hicks also got a great deal of pleasure while he had a residency out in Las Vegas. He smiled, "I did have a couple of Hangover 3 movie moments in Vegas. One of them involved Mike Tyson. He came and saw my show. We went out after that. I'm going to leave that alone. The only thing I can say is that there was no tiger involved. Everything else you can imagine. You can have all kinds of fun in Vegas. You just have to pick and choose your battles. When you become an entertainer there you truly have the keys to the city. You have to be careful but Vegas was a lot of fun."
Taylor Hicks has had an incredible amount of enjoyable moments in his career including sharing the stage with rap icon Snoop Dogg. Hicks said, "Snoop is cool. If it's not broke don't fix it. That's kind of the motto that he lives by. He's a great artist too. He couldn't have been more nice. I had this idea where we were gonna put the harmonica on rap. I don't think anyone has ever done that before. That was something I always wanted to do. I wanted to make sure that happened. We pulled it off. That was a great night for me." Another great night for Taylor Hicks involved him appearing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The skit he participated in remains one of the most memorable segments in the show's history. Taylor Hicks recalled, "It was one of those things...The more random you can be in this business the more of an impact you are going to make. Jimmy called me up and asked if I minded doing this Rebecca Black 'Friday' skit. I did that. I almost didn't make it to the plane but I was able to get there and do it with Stephen Colbert. The next thing you know it ends up being on a Grammy award winning album for the 'Best Comedy Record' of the year. Things happen like that. But you have to make sure that you're available and you have to be willing to do things outside of the box." He remembered the reaction of his segment with a cheerful and carefree fondness. Hicks said, "Another funny thing...I think the next day after it happened, I flew into Augusta, Georgia. We were greeted by fans waiting outside of the plane. The door of the plane opens and we start walking out and the first person that I see walks up to me and gives me a big hug. He says, 'Man, the thing that you did on Fallon...That was the greatest thing that you have ever done in your career.' At that point, I thought to myself, 'I've done a lot of things for ten years up until that moment. ' I didn't know how to take it or what to say. 'Thanks or no thanks,' if you will. You have to be self-deprecating in this business too. People get a kick out of you being corny. You kind of are a character that people have gotten to know. You have to be aware of it at all times. In that particular point of time, it was a cool moment."
Taylor Hicks might just have the coolest fanbase on the planet. His loyal followers dub themselves the Soul Patrol. When asked about the origin of the Soul Patrol, Hicks said, "I think it organically happened on American Idol. When you're on a show like that you really have to rally your fanbase and keep them together. When I picked up on the fact that they were gathering together as the Soul Patrol, I harped on that. It unified my fanbase. In a similar instance I kind of looked at it from a political angle as well. You have to keep your fanbase invigorated and together as one unit. When that happened it was a great way from an organic standpoint to keep everybody together." The Soul Patrol can keep expecting great things from Taylor Hicks as he continues along on his tour. He has a few surprises planned for his adoring fans. He told me, "I've never covered a version of an album. But I came up with this idea to cover Van Morrison's Greatest Hits in my hometown, Birmingham, in the Lyric theater on October 28th. I'm looking forward to that because it will be the first time I've ever covered a record from front to back. I obviously look forward to hometown shows but that particular show in my hometown covering an artist like that...There's something really cool about that." Hicks concluded that he can't wait to meet his supporters and fandom after his concert. He told me, "I will stay however long it takes--I always like to talk to my fans. That's something I always look forward to doing. I hope to see everyone out on the road real soon."
You can keep up with Taylor Hicks by visiting his website and following him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can learn more about State Plate before it premieres on October 21st at 9pm ET by clicking here.