While Al Calderon has made his name in daytime since joining Days of our Lives as Javi, many may be surprised to learn about Calderon’s musical talent.
From Singer to Salem
Long before he was shaking things up in Salem, Calderon was known for his role as Eddie in 13: The Musical. Not only did this triple threat record on the musical’s Broadway cast recording, but also has songwriting credits under his belt.
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Dan Elish, co-book writer, “13” and author of “King of Broadway,” told Soap Hub about his time working with Calderon. “There has never been a thirteen-year-old boy with the comic timing of Al Calderon,” Elish said. “There wasn’t a line out of which he couldn’t milk a laugh, or a comic pause he didn’t time perfectly — always to the audience’s delight. Tiny of stature but with an old-time movie star face and a big baritone, Al might have had the most natural acting chops of anyone in 13. He got every line reading instinctively and seemed to actually improve upon what was on the page.
“Al played the part of Eddie, one of the sidekicks to Brett, the big man on campus,” he continued. “I think it’s fair to say that Jason Robert Brown (13’s composer and lyricist) modeled the song ‘Hey, Kendra’ in part for Al — after all, no one else has ever been able to pull off lines like ‘Gonna get a big rockin’ horse and rock it rock it all night loooooonggg.’ Al milked it every night to huge laughs.
“I remember Al’s audition,” said Elish. “We saw hundreds of kids for 13, and after a while, the auditions blended together. But Al — like Ariana Grande, Allie Trimm, Liz Gilles, and the others — lit up the room the minute he opened his mouth. He was born a pro.
“I’m not surprised that Al has gone on to be a constantly employed actor and performer,” he praised. “His soap opera fans may not realize how funny he is — but then again, this is an actor who can play anything.”
If that wasn’t enough, Calderon also appeared on Season 3 of X Factor, where he placed in the Top 10 male singers. His latest contribution to the music scene is his releases on Spotify, including his latest single, “Lo100to,” which just dropped on February 21.
Musical Muse
While Javi may not be bursting into song any time soon, Calderon recently sat down with Dishin’ Days to discuss his Top 5 artists he would love to duet with.
The actor kicked off the list with Teezo Touchdown, whom he says has a “super dope style.” Calderon went on to list Jon Bellion, then revealed an unexpected connection to the singer-songwriter. “I actually have a song with him,” he said. “But we never met.” Calderon co-wrote “Electric” by Katy Perry, also co-written by Bellion.
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Third on Calderon’s list was Drake. “I know he lost to Kendrick [Lamar], but still one of my favorite artists,” he quipped. “Bryson Tiller,” he continued, saying Tiller had one of the best R&B albums of the year. Topping the list was Bad Bunny, who Calderon praised for doing a lot for Puerto Rico.
Do you hope to catch Calderon lending his musical talents to Javi sometime? Let us know in the comments.
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