In these extraordinary and uncertain times of COVID-19, with venues closed and live performance at a halt, NiteLife Exchange is reaching out and covering the effect the crisis is having on performing artists.
Nicolas King has been performing since age four. On Broadway he appeared in Beauty & The Beast, A Thousand Clowns and Hollywood Arms—all before age 12. King also originated the role of “Oscar” on Discovery Kids’ “Kenny The Shark” and has made over two dozen national Television commercials. As a vocalist, King as travelled the road with his mentor Liza Minnelli to perform as her opening act from 2002-2012. The Mabel Mercer Foundation awarded him the Julie Wilson Award at the 2010 Cabaret Convention at Lincoln Center. He’s also the recipient of the 1995 Talent America Award, 2012 BISTRO Award for Outstanding Performer of the Year, 2015 AMG Heritage Award for Artist of the Year and the winner of the 2019 Legends Award, as well as receiving a Grammy consideration for his latest album, On Another Note with jazz great Mike Renzi. (Hear Nicolas King sing at the bottom of this page.)
Nitelife Exchange (NLE) asks Nicolas King (NK) Six Questions:
NLE: Just before lockdown, you were on a gig in Florida. Did you realize then that you were about to enter into a new phase of living in quarantine? What was your immediate reaction and your thoughts?NK:
NK: It wasn’t until I was on my way home from Florida, on the half empty airplane, that I realized this was getting serious. My immediate reaction was that it was only going to last a couple of weeks, a month at most, and life will resume as normal, so the forced vacation seemed welcome.
NLE: You seem to have gone headlong into the “new normal” with positivity. One thing you did was offer Italian lessons online. How was that inspired? How did people respond?
NK: Honestly, the anxiety was very strong, and truly challenged my ‘silver lining’ disposition! Being unemployed for the first time in 25 years was a very sobering reality, and since I speak Italian fluently, I figured offering Italian was one way to make extra money in a time when I have no income coming in.
NLE: You’ve been spending isolation in your home base of Rhode Island, where your grandmother and Mike Renzi also reside. This has allowed you to create many online concerts with Mike––but is there a
part of you that longs for New York City, even in lockdown?
NK: I miss New York daily. I miss my apartment, I miss performing, I miss the New York energy very much. The perks of being in Rhode Island are many. For one thing, my family’s here, and the infection rate is one of the lowest in the nation. There’s a calmness and security here—besides, it’s home. I’m planning to return once things loosen up a bit.
NLE: You’ve been performing for most of your life. You also were very quick to take advantage of Zoom and live-streaming. How do you feel about the latter? Will there be a place for this virtual reality when live performance is allowed again?
NK: I’m honestly not sure. I’m not the most tech forward individual, I’m a very old-fashioned guy. I just want to get back into a room with people, experience the human connection that exists in our craft. I’m very grateful for programs like Zoom that allow us to stay connected in this very strange time. I think we’re living in a Renaissance of sorts, so I expect things to change for good after this, but I’m hopeful that all those aspects that we all love about live music and live music venues will come back.
NLE: Are there things you’re doing and accomplishing in this forced isolation that you might not have done if the pandemic never happened?
NK: Yes! Aside from enrolling in online courses at Yale for psychology, I decided to finish an album project that’s been on my mind for a while. I’m so excited to release it this summer!
NLE: You’ve been preparing a new album? How is that going? How do you see your career path when we’re back to normal? Will there be permanent changes we’ll all have to face in the business of show
NK: The album is quite exciting, it’s a retrospective look back at my 25 years of recordings. The album features remastered tracks, previously unreleased tracks, and some brand new recordings, including a gorgeous duet with my dream duet partner Jane Monheit! it’s fun to listen to me age over the course of 15 or so tracks!
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