Grammy nominee and performer extraordinaire Jim Brickman is coming to your home this holiday season. He’s holding a special interactive, virtual show on Thursday, December 17th at 7 p.m. to benefit our friends at the Folly Theater. “This is a one-of-a-kind event that nobody else that I know of is doing,” says Brickman. “It’s a special show—just for Kansas City. In the Zoom room, there’s a lot of interaction. Very community-oriented where I’m able to talk directly to fans—which is something I’d normally do on stage but can’t.”
A portion of ticket proceeds will go back to help the Folly Theater. Plus, every ticket gets some holiday swag from Brickman himself. “You’ll receive a Christmas stocking we send right to your doorstep the week before the show that includes a CD of my Christmas music, a program for the show, your ticket, hot chocolate, jingle bells,” he says. “It’s a gesture to say here’s a little Christmas gift. Jingle those bells while you’re watching the show. Sing along with me. It’s the spirit of the whole thing that makes it unique.”
When we asked what holiday song Brickman could listen to on an eternal loop, he fessed up: “I would say A Charlie Brown Christmas—specifically Christmas Time Is Here.” His favorite classic, meanwhile, is It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.’
What are a few more things you don’t know about Brickman? We got the 411 during our interview.
5) I’m very shy.
“I’m an ambivert. It’s somebody that’s both an extrovert and introvert. On stage, I’m an extrovert, But, in life, I’m very quiet and always have been. Most performers are. Most of my friends can turn it on.”
4) I refer to myself in the third person.
“I ask, ‘What did you think of the Jim Brickman concert?’ I don’t say my concert.”
3) I was a very heavy, fat child.
“In college, I realized macaroni and cheese wasn’t a vegetable.”
2) I don’t practice the piano.
“I don’t rehearse. I don’t do scales. I just play. I didn’t practice that much growing up. Most of my songs I’ve written—so playing them comes very naturally through my hands.”
1) I didn’t get into music school in college.
“I didn’t get into any music school from auditioning. I had to go on a swimming scholarship. I have kind of a barrel chest and V-build—so any swimmer coach would look at me and say, ‘You’re doing breaststroke—or maybe the butterfly.’ I swam in order to pay for college and then I took music classes as an elective, but after auditioning, I didn’t get into the music schools.”