‘Hamilton’ actor Leslie Odom Jr. talks up Las Vegas concert

Leslie Odom Jr. needs to feel the tingles. “You have to walk toward the things that make you feel alive,” said the Tony- and Grammy-winning actor best known for his role as Aaron Burr in the Broadway smash “Hamilton.”

Does he get nervous before performing? Odom, 38, who brings his “Stronger Magic” live tour to the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay on March 8, said it goes this way: “More often than not, it’s things that are slightly out of your comfort zone — the things that make you feel a little afraid — that force us to dream a bigger dream,” he said. “ ‘Hamilton’ was my wildest dream. Now, I’m touring the country with my music.

“Life is full of wonderful surprises if you have a little support and are allowed to fly,” he said.

The Philly native just released his first album of original songs, “Mr,” which follows his Billboard No. 1 hit jazz CD. His work also includes stage with “Rent,” TV with his recurring role on “Law &Order: SVU” as Rev. Curtis Scott, and screen with “Murder on the Orient Express” and the recent “Harriet.”

Next up, he will star in the “Sopranos” prequel, “The Many Saints of Newark.”

Review-Journal: What is your idea of a great Sunday?

Leslie Odom Jr.: As Americans, we rarely take a breath. I think that’s why my family and all of us love the Christmas holidays so much. You get that time in December just to be with family. Sundays are like a little Christmas every single week. It’s the only time to get off the treadmill and just be with the ones you love the most. I like to take that day to just be with family. We go to a church service. We watch my daughter at her dance class. We cook dinner together, read books and just check in with each other.

Describe your live show coming to Vegas.

I’m putting together the show right now. The truth is, I’ve been on a de facto tour around the country for about three years now, after stepping off the “Hamilton” stage. My show is stuff from my jazz album and the new album, plus obviously the “Hamilton” music. It’s exciting. With the release of my first original album, this tour feels very real. It’s the first time I’m going out on a proper tour bus to do one city after another. The same musicians will be playing my songs each night. My goal in Vegas and everywhere is to deliver and move people in ways they can’t expect.

You were that kid who recorded himself singing at age 5. You also sang in church. Did you have a plan at that young age to do music, TV, film and stage?

Not at all. I didn’t know a career as an actor or singer was even possible when I was a young boy. I did love watching TV and loved going to the movies. It was the feeling that I craved. I knew that when the story or the song made my heart soar that it was the best feeling in the world. I didn’t think there was a job out there for me doing this kind of thing. Not in a million years. Then a show called “Rent” came when I was 13. I had no desire to be in showbiz, but I wanted to be on stage singing those “Rent” songs. At that time, I thought maybe if I trained, I get into “Rent” when I was 30, do “Rent” until I was 40 and then retire.

But your numbers didn’t add up.

Luckily no. I was 17 when I was cast in the show — and it challenged everything.

Your dad works in sales and mom works at a nursing home. Were they supportive of you going into the arts?

They were supportive, but we didn’t really know much about it. I want to also credit early teachers for seeing something in me that needed to be focused. My first elementary school teachers were guiding me into the arts because I was that kid who lacked focus and discipline. I’m so fortunate that they really looked at me and thought, “He’s not getting it in my class. Maybe he will get it if we ask him to sing or learn some lines like he is in a play. Maybe that will bring him some direction.” And it did. Bless the teachers in our lives.

How tough was it when you came to L.A. to start your career?

I was this 21-year-old kid who came to L.A. and immediately started hustling. I didn’t have a car, but I did have roommates, which helped. That first year, I worked a total of 14 days doing TV and made $1,500 here and there. When we did my taxes, I made about $20,000 that year. But I survived, which was the victory. What I longed for was more consistency. I was not looking to be a big star and I wasn’t trying to make a ton of money. Twenty grand was enough to start.

What is the dream now?

Now, my dreams are a bit loftier. It’s about freedom of choice and being a part of the kind of projects and creating the type of art that allows me to develop. I’m not letting up on myself. I’m keeping the bar high. I want people to play my new album “Mr” right after they play the “Hamilton” cast recording.

How did it feel to win your first Tony?

Really, the highlight of that whole experience — more than the Tony or the Grammy — was the 45 minutes the cast got to perform the show for a private audience of Barack and Michelle Obama. I don’t think it gets any better or you can soar higher. This was the leader of the free world and we had 45 minutes of his undivided attention. We got to say something or sing something that could change him … and he’s changing the world and our lives.

Finally, can you give us a few secrets from the upcoming “Sopranos” movie, “The Many Saints of Newark?”

If I said anything, David Chase would show up here and whack me in the kneecaps. I can say that those actors are part of that seminal series, but it was more than a TV show. It changed lives. I can tell you that with the movie, there is so much reverence for this work. James Gandolfini’s son, Michael, plays the young Tony Soprano. That is brilliant. The last thing I can say is I work for “the family.”