#lu interviews

Glee star Darren Criss is delighted to hit the road for his first solo tour since his break-out role as Blaine on the Global hit show. “Selfishly, I wanted to go on a bit of a work vacation, to travel with some of my best pals from the University of Michigan. We all went to music school together, we’ve all played in bands, we’ve always wanted to do something like this,” says Darren, who knew the show’s summer hiatus was the perfect time to test out his new music with fans for his “Listen Up” tour.

On the show, Darren proves his musical talents are just as strong as his acting abilities and the star tells us these two pursuits go hand-in-hand. “I was always asked while I was growing up, ‘what do you want to do? Do you want to do music or do you want to be an actor,’ as if I had a choice,” he explains. “I always say I’m a professional mercenary. I’ll do whatever this world will let me do. I’m very well aware this could all be swept away from me in an instant, so you just try to work with the opportunities you are given at the time.”

But Darren isn’t going anywhere soon! His tour sold out almost immediately and he says he’s got even more tricks up his sleeve: “With music, I’m always recording and writing something, regardless if it’s something I can use or someone else can use.”  

The triple threat tells us he’s found a good balance in his career. “For me acting and music are very much connected – they are both engrained in storytelling, they are both engrained in performance and keeping an audience captivated,” he tells us.