TAYLOR HICKS   Born in Birmingham, Ala., on Oct. 7, 1976, Hicks was drawn early on to  music when every night his grandmother and him she would sit for hours in front of the record player listening to the soulful and bluesy sounds of Etta James and other artists. Perhaps his most influential artists were Ray Charles, Otis Redding and Sam Cooke, and as a youth discovered his voice had the true pitch to sing. By high school, Taylor Hicks was in a band, and soon after entering college, he had released his first CD, “In Your Time”. This soulful CD included songs like “Somehow” which reflects the pain and confusion of what Taylor was going through in his life and his view of the world around him. The song along with the other tracks echoed Taylor.   Along the way, Taylor opened shows for such notable artists as Tom Petty, James Brown, Keb’ Mo’ and Jackson Browne. But most of the time, Hicks scratched out a living playing in bars known as “the chitlin circuit”, beach clubs, VFWs, and other venues around Alabama and the Southeast. In 2005, Hicks released his second independent CD, “Under the Radar.”  Hicks has stayed busy ever since. In 2006, the winds changed for Taylor and he tried out for “American Idol”. Taylor won the title and has been living his dream ever since. He is now on Broadway as “Teen Angel” of the production Grease. Taylor Hicks is also the inspiration of Pawz for Music. A nonprofit organization dedicated to building the bridge of music to children.	"Taylor Hicks - Early Works" © 2008     Purchase this CD exclusively at Target stores	OTHER MUSICIAN SPOTLIGHTS:
	"The Fall"     http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUPQ_I9vtZY&feature=related
"Somehow"       http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TXO-Oz1IoWI&feature=related

Hicks Interview – from American Idol Magazine- Volume 2, Issue 4

 “America’s New Soul Man" by: Diane Gershuny

Taylor has no formal training in music.  He attended Auburn University, studying business, communications and marketing, but dropped out to pursue music.  He discovered soul music as a kid and identified with the universal themes of love and loss, loneliness, pain and the uncertainty of life---things that he had experienced at a young age stemming from the divorce of his parents.  Surprisingly, too, with all his exuberance in front of an audience, he’s lonely much of the time behind the curtain. He’s also circumspect when it comes to talking about himself, family, and his parents life.

Like many other solitary musicians, Taylor found himself at home on the road with its many instabilities.  Ironically, the road became a foundation for him for 10 years, a place where he could season his life and remain within himself.  He played every blues dive bar on the “chitlin” circuit – small clubs located mostly in the South – and learned to be an entertainer, the best possible form of “on-the-job training.  You can see in his eyes and hear in his voice all the years, all the gigs, all the cheers, boos, hollers and catcalls.  His are not the wide sparkling eyes of an overnight success story, but the deep, lined eyes of a man with whom you can sit a room and talk about the intersections of music and life for hours on end. 

Taylor’s love and passion for music is apparent whenever he opens his mouth.  You get the impression that becoming a musician had nothing to do with conscious choice…he just had to do it!  “If you love it, you’ve got to go and play it.”  You might get told ‘no’ by a bunch of people,” he says.  “You play and nobody pays you.  You go through the ‘payin’ the  dues,’ which makes you respect the music. It’s based off of pure love for the music.  It’s something that’s been inside me.  No matter what I’ve done, who’s told me ‘no,’ how little money I’ve made, I’ve always enjoyed it.  And it’s been good to me.”

He gives props to his mentors repeatedly and thanks them at every turn.  He’s actually performed with a few, including the legendary James Brown and Percy Sledge.  “I developed the passion and desire from the music I listen to. Sam Cooke, Ray  Charles, Brian McKnight….those people have such a passion.  They taught me to love music.” He says.

Taylor parlayed the lessons learned from those musical heroes into a sound of his own.  Sure, he still invokes comparisons to Michael McDonald, Joe Cocker, Stephen Stills and others, but he’s truly crafted a voice, sound and style uniquely his own. Taylor’s two independently released albums, ‘In Your Time’ (1997) and ‘Under the Radar’ (2006), for which he played  harmonica and guitar as well as writing and singing all the songs.

 

 

TAYLOR HICKS SITES

 

 

http://www.taylorhicks.com

 

 

http://www.taylorhickshq.com