I get to wake up every day and create music. And even when it's a tough moment as far as career ups and downs, it's always something you're passionate about, and it's a beautiful way to spend your life.
Being a pastor's kid comes with a lot of pressure and scrutiny. A lot of my dad's sermons were about respect. It was a beautiful way to be taught about love and two people being equal.
I grew up here in New York City and New Jersey, performing on Broadway shows, surrounded by some of my closest friends from the LGBT community. My father, a minister from New Jersey, shaped my view that love is love, that we are all equal.
I made a resolution in 2010 to stop drinking Diet Coke, and I haven't had Diet Coke since then. I think it was the best life change I've ever made, because I drank quite a lot of it.
I'm pretty crazy about the Yankees. When I can't actually watch a game, I TiVo it. I am also a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan. I don't tell many people that because I will get made fun on because I'm from New Jersey!
My upbringing was faith-based, but we believed you should love all others as you want to be loved, because everyone should be treated equally. That's helped me have an understanding of people on different journeys and in different walks of life. At the end of the day, we're all the same, because we all want to be loved.
I really like scripted dramas. My favorite show of all time would have to be 'Lost': I loved how the writers and producers were able to weave the different storylines together; and the acting in that show was incredible.
I admire Kings of Leon. I think their records are amazing. Just from hanging out with them, I can say they're good guys. It's cool to see that they get to do what they love. But I think they clearly have an appreciation for where they came from, and it has shaped who they are.
People who are feeling bullied and people who feel like outsiders should talk to their parents and guardians about finding a place with likeminded people where they can feel accepted. That's what I needed, and that's what I found with musical theater.
I think part of the beauty of being a pop phenomenon is that you're going 1,000 miles per hour, and it's all happening - and that's also the hard part about it.
The world of music is changing so dramatically every day, the way people hear music. It's different. It's a new day and requires new thinking.
I kind of date my musical discovery back to when I was 13 years old, getting my iTunes account and using that as a major tool to discover new music.
I see my career as not just music, but as hopefully an entertainer on all mediums, and someone who can have real influence and make great art.
I have a lot of memos in my phone of songs; I've had dreams about a melody. It's always melody first as far as when stuff like that happens - I find that my melodic sense is my strongest asset as a songwriter.
I keep my political views to myself.
My faith plays a big part in who I am: a Christian guy playing pop-rock music. I'm in a pop-rock band, not a Christian band.
Growing up, my dad was a pastor, and much like The First Family or people in front of the public eye, we were highly scrutinized as a family within the church and looked at as - well, I guess you would call an example of what that family image should be.
I think a lot of what you do in acting, and for the most part singing and dancing and everything, is trial and error. It's all about just seeing what works, and if it does, to use it, and if not, to throw it away.
