Connor O’ Brien is doing alright. This young Clevelander and twenty-something singer/songwriter has been making a living and a lot of a name for himself by serving as opening act for a bunch of note-worthies in the music industry—from 10,000 Maniacs to Mariah Carey and that old soap opera-guitar personality Rick Springfield. He’s got a cool website, lots of local print press and air play for his musical endeavors, and the cat just scored a major coup by landing a big role in the Beck Center’s production of the musical Miss Saigon - now playing until August 15th. Armed with savvy management, artistic ambition, a young George Michael-meets-Morrissey image (minus the angst, the controversy, and the sexual ambiguity), and a strong voice, Connor just might be the biggest pop star you’ve never heard of. But that all could be changing, even as you read this interview. Here’s to the winds of Fame...

Hmmm? Connor O’Brien. Conan O’Brien. I bet you hear that reference a lot?
Connor O’ Brien: I do, I was announced as Conan at my very first band show... and fans said it again just last night opening for Rick Springfield in Toledo. I don’t mind, I love Conan, it’s one of my favorite shows. And besides, it is much better than Ryan Adams and Brian Adams.

Let’s talk about your music. Your CD Soliloquy is out on SX Records. Is it your first full-length disc, or have there been others?
Soliloquy is actually my second album. My first album was self titled and opened a lot of doors for me as an artist.

I know you recorded a Christmas duet with a local singer from another band. What’s the story behind that project?
I recorded a version of Carol Of The Bells that I arranged and produced with Kira Leyden, the lead singer of Jaded Era, an extremely talented and popular local band. It went really well, our voices matched perfectly and I got to make a heck of a rock track for a good cause. All proceeds benefited the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Have you received much local airplay for any of the tracks on Soliloquy, because Get a Life and Ready to Fall seem just about perfect for the Cleveland airwaves right now, at least the Top 40 stations?
Ready To Fall has been all over the radio. It aired nationwide for millions of listeners on a nationally syndicated Radio Star? show sponsored by Epic Records. It’s now in rotation on three major stations in the Cleveland area, Kiss 96.5 FM, 102 ZOO FM and WREO Star 97 FM. It’s actually shot to the number three spot on one of the charts...it’s an amazing feeling.

Your sound on Soliloquy is a bit tricky to pigeonhole. On one hand, your band can rock, and they look like they can rock too. Yet your vocals and song subjects seem to fall pretty squarely in the Pop camp. I’m curious how you define your style
I consider myself a pop rock artist. If forced to compare, I’d list Matchbox 20, Train, and Edwin Mc Cain? as some closer bands to my style of music. My rock career is pretty diverse as I also studied opera in college and continue to do theater, gospel and jazz music.

So, waxing silly for a moment...If your music were an animal, where would it live, and would it be a carnivore, herbivore, or omnivore? Could a hunter or trapper make clothes out of it?
Hmmm, It would probably be a 300-pound gorilla living wherever the hell it wanted to, now that I think about it.

Do you consider yourself to be primarily a vocalist, a songwriter, or a performer? Is one of those activities more important to you than the others?
Tough question...I’ve always considered myself a musician honestly. I pride myself on my songwriting, and performing, even my producing. But I take extra pride in being a vocalist. These days everyone takes for granted a powerful, vocal instrument. I’m so happy and proud to be an all-around musician, but I admit I work very hard to be the best vocalist some people may ever get the chance to hear. Whether or not I achieve that, well, you’ll have to ask them.

Do you write in musical notation? Do you compose using an instrument, or is it all done in your head? Or maybe another way of phrasing it is, when you’re penning a tune, which instrument do you hear as you’re creating?
Honestly I write everything vocally. I can compose on a piano very well, and I also can write notation perfectly. But I spent about three years during college touring with a nationally-ranked collegiate a cappella group, and I learned how to emulate any instrument or melody with my voice. So it kind of stuck, and when I write a song now, I can hear the whole thing in my head, every part usually, and I express that vocally. Plus notation works much better for classical works, which I have composed in the past.

You’ve got an impressive list of performance credits already under your belt. Mariah Carey, Huey Lewis and the News, the Bacon Brothers. I hear Mr. Lewis was quite taken with your, what’s the word they use in the industry...pipes? Anyone else come to mind that you’ve opened for?
Huey was an incredible mentor of sorts, and I’ve enjoyed my fair share of tours. Some others include 10,000 Maniacs, Edwin Mc Cain?, Sixpence None The Richer, The Verve Pipe, and I just got off of the Rick Springfield tour last night where after my set, I joined him onstage to sing harmony to Jessie’s Girl in front of thousands of fans. It was a good time.

'''Did you have much of an opportunity to spend time with any of these headliners, either before or after performances? If so, what did you come away with it, in terms of a bigger understanding of the whole celebrity/big star phenomenon?'''
Depends on the act mostly. Some are just waiting to relax and start drinking after the show, and others want to hang out in the dressing room with their families. I usually get to hang and chat with the act, if not spend a good bit of time enjoying their company. But you learn that most of these people are normal folks just like you or me who are simply going to work when they hit the stage. Of course, their job is to be loved and to entertain thousands of screaming fans...good work if you can get it!

I hear that when American Idol was just getting started with its first season, the producers of the show were worried that they might not find enough true talent to make the show work, and so they contacted you and wanted you to be a contestant. But you declined. How’d they know about you, and why didn’t you accept what many people would consider a golden opportunity?
The silent partner of the show, Simon Fuller, had received a press kit of mine in England where he is actually from, a year or so before the show began. And he left a message on my voicemail personally asking me to come audition for the show. I declined because I had just been through a similar TV experience with ABC’s Making The Band, which I was a finalist for. I had decided at that point that I wanted to go in my own direction and create my own musical path. I’m very happy with my decision, but enjoy the show the few times I stumble onto it. I even told a few friends I would camp out with them for the Cleveland auditions just for the fun of it, to be a fly on the wall.

Can you tell me about a few performances or events you have participated in that you’re really proud of, in retrospect?
I’m always proud of the big shows I do really well at, like the Bacon Brothers, or such. But some that stand out are the Edwin Mc Cain? show because he is such an inspiration to me, the Dancing In The Streets festival in Cleveland because it’s such a great fundraiser for AIDS research, and I’m playing at a big MS fundraiser event in Sandusky this summer, the annual Peddle to the Point bike-a-thon.

'''How has the whole publicity thing been working out for you so far? I guess I mean, these damaged days one gets publicity for everything but quality songs, whether it’s by having sex with a goat or by setting a baby on fire. Is it difficult to maintain moral and artistic integrity (I don’t think you’ve had any wardrobe malfunctions on stage) and still get the kind of notice you deserve?

'''You’d be surprised, I’m happy to report that my press coverage has been amazing so far. It seems in these jaded times, people still respond to good music. And being from a small town doesn’t hurt either. I’ve had a lot of hometown support as of late just by embracing my roots and not running from them to LA as so many artists do.

'''Speaking of publicity and performances, congratulations on landing the male lead role in the Beck Center’s production of Miss Saigon this summer! I hear you were up against some tough competition from Cleveland and New York City for the part?'''
Well, I’m not sure of all the details really. I just know I went through a long audition process with several fantastic - and I mean fantastic - actors alongside me. And after it was all said and done, I was completely floored to be offered the role of “Chris,” one of the leading roles in the show.

So now you’re not only singing on stage, but acting as well. Is all the memorization of lines and movements coming pretty naturally for you? Do you find yourself tapping into uncharted regions of ability within yourself, or have you had theatre experience in the past?
I’ve actually had plenty of theater experience in the past. I discovered my voice in my teens when I started doing local community theater. I then went on to do over 15 productions, moving into operas in college at The Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. So yes, I have had some experience in the past, but don’t let that fool you. This is a very professional show, and when we first started staging certain songs and scenes, I was falling over myself to remember every move and emotional response. Heck, I still am! But I really feel like I’m coming into my own and absorbing the huge amount of information and music for such a sort period of time before opening.

'''I gotta ask you, Connor, why musical theatre, now, at this stage of your game?'''
Because it’s one of my absolute loves, and moving into professional theater with members of the national tours at this stage of the game is a perfect step for me. I’d be one of those performers who, if I ever make it big, would work my tail off to open on Broadway a year or so later between rock albums. It’s such a passion of mine, and I feel I was born to do it in a way.

'''Are you at liberty to discuss the basic storyline of the play for our readers? Will there be pyrotechnics? Martial Arts? Cool costumes?'''
The basic storyline is a remake of the popular opera Madame Butterfly. However it is updated to revolve around the Vietnam war. It follows my character, an American GI stationed at the embassy in Saigon, as he falls in love with a Vietnamese call girl who is forced into the trade. They fall madly in love and then fight not to lose each other in the climatic days before Saigon falls to the Vietcong, and the Americans forces retreat. It’s truly an amazing, captivating, show that broke every major Broadway record in the '90s when it premiered. Our version is going to be amazing. The director, Scott Spence, and the entire creative staff are working such magic to make it a spectacular production. I can’t give away too much info, but I do know it’s something people will kick themselves for missing.

'Who’s your leading lady in Miss Saigon''? What can you tell us about her?'''
She is a fantastic professional actress named Robin Lee Gallo from New York City, who has appeared in Miss Saigon several times, including on the national tour of the show. She is truly amazing, and I’m just so honored to have an opportunity to work with such a talented performer.

Is it pretty challenging? I would imagine you’re dealing with a serious amount of call-and-response or duet song structures, when normally it’s just you belting out with some backing vocals from your band?
It’s extremely challenging. But thankfully I come from an operatic background and I have had to handle every vocal situation you can think of, including leading a 100-piece orchestra for a symphony pops concert, playing in The Marriage of Figaro in college, and covering five different vocal harmonies in one song during my time in professional a cappella. Thankfully, I handle the music fairly well.

What are the dates for Miss Saigon this summer?
Now through August 15th, every Thursday through Sunday. Details on tickets are available though the Beck Center box office at 521-2540 Ext. 231 or through http://www.beckcenter.org

Okay, so then what’s next for you?
I begin work on my third album this summer, along with the final stages of placing a theme song I co-wrote and produced in a new discovery channel series.

If you could have it all, or at least have what you really wanted with your career, where would you like to see yourself in 5 years?
With a fantastic major label album under my belt, recognition from my peers, possibly a few indie movie roles under my belt, and hopefully thinking about a family life. After all, that is what’s really important in life.

'''Well put! In your experiences, have you found Cleveland and Clevelanders receptive to your music and performances? Do Cleveland audiences get your pure performance style? Would they get it more if you wore a cape or had flash pots on stage or had a theatrical edge?'''
I think Clevelanders get it just fine! They have been extremely supportive of me and my music no matter where or what it may be, and I’m proud to say I’m from here.

'''Any venue in Cleveland really stand out to you as a great place to perform?'''
Tower City Ampitheater for the big stuff, and The Odeon for pure style! And even though it's in Akron, I'd like to mention the Lime Spider, too, which is a truly great venue for all musicians and music lovers.

'Oh yeah! You have a website where folks can check out your CDs) and see you. What’s the address, and which stores can Soliloquy can be purchased?
The website is http://www.connorobrien.com , and my albums should be available at CD Warehouses and FYE Music stores shortly as we finish up the distribution details. But for now you can order any of the albums direcly from the website, so go check it out. Thanks again!

Thank you, and good luck with your plans. Rock on.

Interview by Daiv Whaley
Photo by Jason Noble (:divend:)