Jason Robert Brown

Paul Mow had a dream of building a theater in the newly-revitalized Arts District of Benton Harbor/St. Joseph, Michigan, and as usual for Paul, he pushed and pushed and made it come true. I was lucky enough to be the main attraction at the Grand Opening Party for the wonderful new Ghostlight Theatre, joined by a whole passel of fantastic local talent (including Paul himself). It was a particular joy being able to sing “Invisible” on Pride Weekend with so many fabulous and spirited LGBTQ+ folks and allies. I loved being present at the birth of this gorgeous new space,Read More »

Three years ago, I got a call from Michael McElroy of Broadway Inspirational Voices, asking me if I would participate in an outreach that BIV was doing with the Ronald McDonald House. I said yes immediately, and was introduced to Josie, an eleven-year-old girl with Osteogenesis Imperfecta. My job was to write a song about Josie that the Broadway Inspirational Voices would perform at a special event in October 2016. Osteogenesis Imperfecta (or OI, as it is called in the medical community) is a disability which makes Josie’s bones weak and easily breakable. What was not so easily breakable wasRead More »

What is the recipe for a Wayne Brady? You need a pound of generosity and, like, a ton of charm, and then fourteen gallons of talent, open up a can of fearlessness, and sprinkle at least four bags of joy; stir all that together and bake it until it’s steaming hot, and then just let it ooze on out until you can feel the love bubbling up from the ground. I may have gotten the proportions wrong and missed some ingredients, but somebody should figure out all the specs because we need as much Wayne Brady in the world asRead More »

Man, oh man, do I love Doris Day’s singing. It’s elegant but earthy, with her rich creamy voice that burrows deep into the chords and finds the perfect place to nestle, cozying up against the accompaniment and swinging along with it. I’ve heard people say she’s chilly, she’s bland, but she’s neither of those things; what’s remarkable about her singing is how warm it is, how authentic, how close to the bone. There’s not a lot of grit in the sound, but there’s plenty of grit in the emotion. She doesn’t sing like someone who had it easy – toRead More »

Let’s be honest: some people sing better than others. And some people sing better than pretty much anyone. And one of those people is Alysha Umphress. I’ve been waiting for the chance to sing with Alysha for years now, and we finally found a night when she could come to SubCulture and get her groove on with my boys. Three minutes into the sound check, every single musician looked at me and said the same thing, “Her pitch!” I don’t think I’ve ever worked with a singer who lands that squarely in the center of the pitch every time, andRead More »