5 Questions in 5 Seconds
1. Tattoos or piercings – Tattoos
2. Guitar or harmonica – Harmonica
3. The Rolling Stones or The Beatles – The Beatles
4. Jay Leno or Conan O’Brien – Neither – David Letterman!
5. Leafs or Habs – Leafs
What’s something people don’t know about you?
Well, I just got a new tattoo like 2 weeks ago. It’s nerdy. I got the Rebel Alliance symbol from Star Wars on my arm. My fiancé got it too. We’re bound forever through the Rebel Alliance.
What do you feel has been your biggest accomplishment so far?
Something that’s special to me is the “Believe” video that I made. There’s been a lot of uphill battles. With careers, there’s a lot of highs but with every high, there is a low. It’s never a temperate situation, it’s very emotional. So I think that with all the work put into the video and wanting it to be a part of the Olympics and then making it happen… [It] was just such a cool situation.
What was it like to get your start on a reality show? It must have been very surreal.
We were actually watching a DVD of that show and I haven’t seen it in years and it was embarrassing. I was like really drunk in most of the footage. Even my band was like ‘I can’t believe that this was the platform that helped you become recognized—you’re not very classy.’
People who aren’t starting on reality shows, for instance Lady Gaga, are able to create what they want to be in front of everybody and make a persona. When you’re on a reality show, it’s different because no matter what when you’re being filmed 24 hours a day, whether you like it or not, your real personality is going to show.
What was it like being on MTV Cribs?
When we got that call, my roommate Tara was like ‘okay, let’s do it.’ And then the night before I was like ‘oh no, I don’t want to do this – our house isn’t even nice!’
So you’re on tour right now?
Ya, we’re in Edmonton today. My fiancé is from Edmonton so we’re just at his aunt and uncle’s house for breakfast. I’ve never met them before. We drove from Kelowna to Edmonton today and it was almost a 14-hour drive so we’re all very tired today.
We almost ran into a moose on our way here. We actually skidded and almost went off a cliff so there’s been no lack of excitement here. Oh, the Canadian winter.
How’s the tour (with Colin James) going?
It’s going pretty fast. It’s been amazing. I love his audience and fans, they love music so much. This is the first time we’ve toured acoustic like this and it’s pretty mellow and intimate. It’s just been fun and we fit really well so it’s been great so far.
What can people expect when they see you in Brantford?
When I’m in Brantford, it won’t be an acoustic show. I try to have a little of everything. It’s good to have some pop songs that are on the radio because when you play them live it’s like the time to tell a story musically and just jam out and have an experience. I try to make it different and more elaborate when I play live than what’s on my record.
You talked about Colin’s fans being amazing. What do your fans mean to you?
It’s all about making music and creating a relationship through that. The fans really are the most important thing.
The other night someone came up to me and told me they had cancer and “Believe” became their theme song they played all the way through until they were in remission. That’s why I make music.
