When one stumbles upon the best piece of entertainment they have seen all year, it's only polite to share it with the world. That's how I feel about Straight Outta Oz by Todrick Hall.
We've been piecemealing Todrick's phenomenal creation to you over the past month with stories like Todrick Hall & Jay Armstrong Johnson Are Beautiful In "Color", Todrick Hall's "Expensive" Ft. Willam, Kim Chi, Alaska, Mariah, & Laganja, and Todrick Hall Releases 'Wizard Of Oz' Themed "Wrong B*tch". They are all great and amazing on their own, but when you see them all together, it is phenomenal.
A couple of weekends ago I came home to my roommates loading up Straight Outta Oz on the AppleTV. I really do like Todrick Hall as a performer and have enjoyed listening to his creations in the past so I joined in. I did not know I was going to get my mind blown.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jordin Sparks, Bob The Drag Queen, Amber Riley, Perez Hilton, Nicole Scherzinger, Willam Belli, Mariah Balenciaga, Alaska, Laganja Estranja, Kim Chi, Jay Armstrong Johnson, and Wayne Brady plus many more make appearances and stretch their vocal talents to assist Hall in this masterpiece.
Before you watch the video below, here's a little about Todrick's inspiration for this amazing compilation.
This past year has been very rough for me. I lost my Mtv show, struggled with the relationship with my mother, dealing with racism and homophobia in the industry and self image was such a struggle. I put my all into auditioning for NBC's "The Wiz" and got so close to landing the role of the Scarecrow, but didn't get it. I want to thank my family, friends and fans for helping me out of this dark place and encouraging me to turn my struggle into art. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz has always held a special place in my heart, and I have never been more proud of anything I've created. Thank you all for standing by me on this crazy yellow brick road we call life. Enjoy "Straight Outta Oz" and I hope to see you all this summer when we perform it live. Tickets are on sale now at todrickhall.com and I CANNOT wait to share the story of my life and Oz with you every night. – youtube.com
All I can say is get this on the biggest screen you can, best sound, and watch. Youtube it on your SmartTV. The AppleTV and surround sound was perfect for this. Spoilers … listen to all the words. Each song, each lyric is there for a reason. My favorite song? Immediately I think of "Dumb," but all are exceptional. Watch and let us know yours.
I will say it is about an hour long, but so worth the time.
To learn more about Todrick's life, performance history, etc, head on over to a recent Rolling Stone interview. Here's a taste.
In the description of the Straight Outta Oz video, you reveal that this album was born out of a lot of frustrations that you've been dealing with throughout the past year. What exactly has been going on?
I've found myself feeling that I was talking to people and trying to explain to them why Hollywood was homophobic and why Hollywood was racist. And if you're not a gay man or woman in Hollywood, you might not agree that Hollywood is homophobic because the homophobia is not directed towards you and your talent. If you are a Caucasian actor or actress, you might not feel like roles are unbalanced. It bothered me so much to the point that I was losing sleep over it; it was affecting my relationships with other people, and I was becoming a very bitter person. I decided one day that me complaining about it wasn't going to change anything, and if I wanted people to understand my point, then it would be better for me to put that into my art and my music. I could have spent millions of dollars getting the best therapist to help me get over this, and I, for free, wrote a musical that expressed everything that I feel about the industry – the good the bad and the ugly.I was really struggling with my relationship with my manager [Scooter Braun], because I felt like he wasn't noticing me. And I felt, in some cases, if I was a different type of person entirely, he would look at me with the same amount of talent and say, "Wow, I can do something with him." – rollingstone.com
And if you loved the video above and Mr. Hall in general, Todrick is on tour with Straight Outta Oz. Head over to todrickhall.com, see his tour dates and buy some tickets!
IF ANYONE CAN GET ME TICKETS FOR FORT LAUDERDALE !!!!!! I would be so happy!
Here are his remaining performances. Go buy tickets now!
Here are the performers of all the songs in Straight Outta Oz.
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"No Place Like Home”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
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“Proud"
Starring:
Brandin Stennis
Todrick Hall
Vonzell Solomon
Carl Seante
Tony Moore
J-Light
Kofi Owusu-Ofori
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"Over The Rainbow”
Starring:
Wayne Brady
Brandin Stennis
Todrick Hall
Kendall Vertes
Nia Sioux
Kalani Hilliker
Brynn Rumfallo
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“Color"
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Jay Armstrong Johnson
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"Little People”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Blair Carrizales
Rashieda Fadeyi
Sheena Fadeyi-Flores
Pentatonix
Chester Lockhart
Jesse Pattison
Jenni Thomasson
Carlie Craig
Vonzell Solomon
ThurZday Lyons
Brittanie Brant
Nina Schreckengost
Jamie Bennett
——————————————————————————————
“Expensive"
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Willam Belli
Mariah Balenciaga
Alaska
Laganja Estranja
Kim Chi
——————————————————————————————
“Dumb"
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Joshua Allen
EJ Lewis
Demille Cole-Heard
Jamie Bennett
Alex Bar
Chester Lockhart
——————————————————————————————
"If I Had A Heart”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Barry Pearl
Jay Armstrong Johnson
Andy Lalwani
——————————————————————————————
"Lyin' To Myself”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Jamie Bennett
Alex Bar
Jay Bordonada
Jesse Pattison
Kyle Potter
Kolin Jerron
——————————————————————————————
"Lions And Tigers And Bears”
Starring:
Amber Riley
Brandin Stennis
——————————————————————————————
“Papi”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Nicole Scherzinger
Jazlyn Miller
Joy Pantopoulos
Nina Schreckengost
Cassie Silva
——————————————————————————————
"Green"
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Perez Hilton
Grace Helbig
Chester See
Shanice Williams
Cody Saintgnue
Blake McGrath
Mikalah Gordon
Chester Lockhart
Vonzell Solomon
Jesse Pattison
Jamie Bennett
Nina Schreckengost
Jenni Thomasson
Eugena Washington
Ajdin Sefer
Ashley Loren
Eliza Donahue
Megan Fulmer
——————————————————————————————
"See Your Face”
Starring:
Amber Riley
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"Wrong Bitch”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Bob The Drag Queen
Brittanie Brant
Bria Walton
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"Water Guns”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Jordin Sparks
GloZell
Shanna Malcolm
Drew Alec
Shane Brady
Deonzell Green
Santwon McCray
Shanice Jarvis
Jazlyn Miller
Jenni Thomasson
——————————————————————————————
"Blah Blah Blah”
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
—————————————————————————————
"Home"
Starring:
Todrick Hall
Indar Smith
Jesse LeNoir
Billy Kametz
Michael Heverly
Jesse Pattison
Jamie Bennett
Chester Lockhart
Vonzell Solomon
Jenni Thomasson
Nina Schreckengost
h/t: rollingstone.com
OMG!!! STAR ALERT: By a sheer
OMG!!! STAR ALERT: By a sheer stroke of luck, I happened to see a notice online that the live production of this show would be closing at a nearby small theater this past Friday night, and after watching some of Todrick Hall's inspired video pieces–a singer/actor whom I'd hardly known at all–I decided to get tickets. Well, it was a night of sheer JOY, excitement and heart-felt, inspiring entertainment! The story, the costumes, the music, the choreography, the SINGING! It was INSANE! I'm so thankful we were able to experience this show while still in its earliest form….with all the fresh energy and brilliance of its creator and his entire cast. We will be seeing much, MUCH more from Mr. Hall…..and we'll all be the richer for it. Looks like it's on to Broadway for this brilliant young man (for sure, as he's set to take the lead in 'Kinky Boots' in November) and this fabulous show. BRAVO!
I cannot wait to see this!Â
I cannot wait to see this! Man is so damn talented!
Cant wait to see the show
Cant wait to see the show tomorrow night in Ft Lauderdale
My favorite song is Water
My favorite song is Water Guns. It is disheartening to think of all the lives lost.