When you're on tour, you really don't get to hang out with and spend the holidays with your family and friends. And there isn't usually much of a break in between performance dates.
My first album after 'American Idol' I did with Desmond - we paid for it together, and we literally were together working on it every day for a year and half, just writing. We wrote in New York, Nashville, L.A., Sweden - we wrote with some other amazing songwriters like Diane Warren, too.
It really helped me as a writer to understand how other writers think.
The nice thing about 'Samson & Delilah' is that the team behind it are real hustlers - they really want it to happen.
All I want to do for the rest of my life is be with Diana 24/7. We're creative people, and we love to work together.
'American Idol' opened up all the doors to where I am now.
When I was 6 years old, we were lighting firecrackers in the backyard and started a fire. My brother ran out and was pulling water from the creek and pouring it on the fire with a 7-Eleven Big Gulp cup.
I'm the youngest of five boys.
Diana and I are in it forever. She's my best friend.
The Smith Center is a theater where you want to keep the lights on. The acoustics are amazing, and this is a stage that was built for sound.
It's amazing being on tour with a group of 50, but when one person gets sick, it goes through the whole company. We take care of each other - we're well stocked on Mucinex. When everything stays healthy, it's a joyful experience for everyone.
