How you describe Levi Kreis'
style of music may depend on which track you listen to first. Levi may
very well be a different breed of musician. He is definitely not a "one
trick pony". R and B. Gospel.pop.Soul He has it all covered. If you want
ballads that grab you by the heartstrings or pop that will keep you
dancing in the club; Levi has it.
Levi Todd Kreis was born November
4 1981 in the town of Oliver Springs Tennessee; not far from Pigeon
Forge; home of none other than Miss Dolly Parton. In 2005; Donald
Trump's "The Apprentice" put out a call and challenge to write, record,
produce and package a cd. 1000's applied but only 4 were chosen to
attempt the arduous task. This was a huge break for Levi; as he and his
team won the challenge. This was for a special edition of The Apprentice
for XM Satellite radio. Levi played the character of "Roger" in the
national tour of RENT; south of the border. He also played the character
of "Adam Meiks" opposite Matt McConaughey and Bill Paxton in Paxton's
directorial debut "Frailty". Though some say this was a minor role; it
and Levi had a huge impact on the movie Levi went on to act in the award
winning independent film entitled "Don't Let Go "
One of the most exuberant,
energetic and highly entertaining characters of Jerry Lee Lewis is
bestowed upon Levi. He starred as Jerry Lee Lewis in Broadways "Million
Dollar Quartet" winning the esteemed TONY award for best featured actor
in a musical. Levi had to step away from the piano as Jerry in 2010
after an injury.
In 2009; I saw him perform at a
local festival. He had no swollen ego or false airs about him. There he
stood barefoot; standing on the grass; singing his heart and soul out.
Hundreds if not thousands around him. Levi has the gift; that when he
sings; though you may be just one in the crowd; it feels as though he is
singing for and to you. I had been a fan of Levi's before the event and
had made a Levi fan t-shirt; hoping to meet him. Only to thank him.
But; there I stood; standing beside a tree; my sister urging me to step
out of the shadow of the tree and myself; to say hello and give him
thanks. Oh. How I wish I had. I also had the extreme pleasure and
privilege of reviewing Levi Kreis' newest cd "imagine paradise" as well
as the "gonna be alright" remix cd. Thank you to Evan from
vision9records.com and Jared from jrd.com for getting me in contact with
Levi and for the encouragement that still continues. Extreme thanks to
Levi. Thank you for
allowing me to get to know you better and letting me let others know of
and about you. Thank you for allowing an "amateur" like me to give it a
go. I think where "it" went is phenomenal. Thank you for the feedback;
not only on this interview and reviews but the other as well. Thank you
for reminding me like you did in 2009 that everything's " gonna be
alright" I hope to see you soon barefoot-not hiding from behind a tree.
An Interview with Levi Kreis
Levi Kreis
1. You have a deep
spiritual side. Have you always been spiritual or did an event spark
that spirituality and bring it forward ?
I"ve always been a very sincere
boy when it comes to spirituality. I could say that it was because I was
born into a family that was very sincere about their religion, but I
think I would have felt the pull to be a wisdom seeker regardless. It's
my personality. I always long to know the underlying truth about things.
I'm a natural investigator, and that expresses itself by the need to
study different schools of spiritual, religious, and metaphysical
thought.
2. Million Dollar Quartet is a
huge hit. You were also in Frailty with Matthew McConnaghy . Do you
still have the need or desire to do more acting or is music "Priority
one"
Absolutely. I've taken the last
two years to restructure my music business, learn how to do things
smarter, more efficiently,and how to concentrate my investments in areas
that reap the greatest financial reward. I'm a one man business, and
the goal is to create multiple streams of passive income. If acting were
a lesser priority, it would only be because acting jobs are work for
hire jobs that force me to depend on an employer. My goal is to build
something that financially sustains me the rest of my life. It's simply a
numbers game.
Fun question! I would probably make over my entire image to a 70's leather boi, from the wardrobe to those awesome graphics and fonts of the late 70's. (I actually don't know how much of a gimmick that would be though as I think it's just an extension of me...in my fantasy mind. Yeah, I would have to go that route. Or maybe go completely Peter Berlin!
4 . I was lucky enough to see you perform at Tri-Pride in Kitchener Ontario a few years ago. You performed your set barefoot. Are you a true nature boy at heart; loving the simple things in life? If you could afford it; what would be your one "guilty pleasure" be ?
So funny you mention that. I was
hope for Knoxville Pride and performed barefoot. I performed at church
last Sunday barefoot. I am. There's a pagan/wiccan part of my history
that I used to talk about more often. I'm an amalgamation of many things
now a days. But yes, there is something so grounding about feeling that
ground connection when performing. Simple things bring me great joy. I
don' like life getting to complicated or fancy. My one guilty pleasure:
hmm. I have a pretty healthy diet - but my guilty pleasure right now is
Keebler's "Grasshoppers". Girl Scouts have been hiding the fact that
someone makes thin mints just as good as they do.
5, i saw you on Oprah in the
audience when Harry Connick was on. Some compare you to him .. (I myself
find you better looking). Is he one of your "idols" ?
Thank you! I have looked to him
often for the same reasons as I look to my hometown girl Dolly Parton.
They seem to have never lost their hometown essence, down-home roots,
and genuine rapport with those who support their music. They are truly
stand-out examples of fan appreciation! I aspire to have and maintain
that level of expressed appreciation and accessibility.
6. Speaking of "idols" or "role
models" do you think it is fair of fans to describe an artist as such
?Does this make you feel more of a commodity than a person?
I'm not fond of anything that
elevates entertainment to a status above other vocations. First of all,
entertainment is such a self consumed business. You wanna talk about
heros, there are people out there saving lives every day while I'm
consumed with pushing a single to radio. The world has a funny obsession
with fame, and artists judge themselves against it and often forget
that there are ways of taking what we do and creating a larger give
back. I think anyone who takes their gift and uses it to make the world a
more loving place - that is a role model! I am committed to doing that
the best way I know how.
7. How would you personally describe "hitting the big time" or "stardom" ?
Stardom will always be a moving
target that will make a man crazy to chase. It is also an entirely
subjective idea. The only thing there is to do in life is to do what
makes you feel fulfilled and expressed. Everything else is ego seeking
approval from a world who will elevate you one minute and knock you down
the next. For an artist to be consumed with stardom, to me is misery
and soul-sucking. Living in LA for years, I found "the big time" being
my sole obsession to the point of losing my own unique voice. It's a
dangerous dance to court the concept.
8. If I had a magic wand and
could grant you the wish of performing with any artist; who would it be ?
( this interviewers choice would be for you to do a duet with Dolly
Parton )
As the child winner of the "Best Young Talent" award at Dollywood, Yes, I would say Dolly Parton as well.
9. The recent release of your cd "
imagine Paradise" has garnered some rave reviews. When recording an
album; do you try to "one up" the previous or stick to doing your best
at the time.
I really tried to do what made me
the happiest musically without giving much consideration to how it
would be received or how it would be compared to the previous works.
This album was the first time I got to be creative without the weight of
worrying about how it would be accepted in the "industry" with radio,
etc. It was the most fun I've ever had recording because it's the freest
I've ever been when creating.
10. Which song on "imagine paradise" has ;if possible to choose just one, the most meaning to you?
Timeless (We Are). I feel really
proud of that song. As a craftsman of songs, I strive to create songs
that feel like you have known them forever and sound like they are
timeless classics. If I may say so myself, this may be the closest I've
ever gotten to creating a classic love song. I'm very proud of it
