There’s nothing better than the holiday music of Brett Eldredge to get you in the spirit of the season — but how does the man transform himself into Mr. Christmas before he takes the stage for his annual Glow Live performances?
Eldredge reveals he has tricks of his own. Like wearing one of his fancy (and sexy) velvet tuxedos. “Sometimes I feel like a superhero cape,” says the 37-year-old singer.
And he makes sure that his backstage rooms are fully decorated for the holidays. “I have Christmas trees in the dressing room,” he rejoices. (Note the plural.)
And in that dressing room he keeps his favorite holiday movie, white christmas, is always repeated. (Though forgive him if he’s fast-forwarding through “Choreography.” “I never really understood that part,” he allows. “Like, this isn’t Christmas!” He’s right. IYKYK.)
Brett Eldredge.
Evan Mattingly
He also takes time to meditate on his favorite Christmas carolers and what made them legends — the charm of Bing Crosby, the swagger of Dean Martin, the panache of Frank Sinatra and the warmth of Nat King Cole.
“I just feel so lucky, in this world today, to be carrying on that tradition and making it my own,” says Eldredge, who kicked off this year’s edition of the Glow Live Tour last weekend in Nashville.
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But of course, what gets him most excited is the powerful, delicious sound of the songs themselves, culled from his two best-selling holiday albums of 2016. Shine and in 2021 Mr. Christmas — music, he says, that he first dreamed of performing as a kid growing up in tiny Paris, Illinois.
A country artist 11 months out of the year, Eldredge says his alter-ego is Mr. Christmas “a big part of who I am. This is me too.”
That part first peeked out into the public about ten years ago when he invited about a hundred friends to a Christmas show at a basement club in Nashville. Liberation from Shine a few years later it quickly inspired a live performance, complete with a Big Band orchestra that copied the sound of the album. One show expanded into a tour, which has now grown to 14 dates in nine cities over a whirlwind 28 dates.
Eldredge has his eye on even greater expansion. “I always want a lot of my fans to see it,” he says, “and there are so many nights you can do it, so we’ll probably try some arenas at some point.”
At the same time, he adds, he wants to protect the intimacy of the show: “There is a certain magic in these shows that I want to keep inside. The glow show just makes you feel so connected. It seems like everyone is on the same page in a world that sometimes doesn’t seem to be on the same page at all. When you bring it all together and you have this music and this spirit in the room, it’s so powerful. And that gives me purpose. I need that. The memories we create are yours and mine and all of us together.”
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By now, his holiday fans expect him to sing certain songs, which makes coming up with a set list a special challenge. “I love every Christmas song I’ve ever recorded,” says Eldredge, who has a total of 28 songs on his two holiday albums. “You can’t play each one individually, but I tried to include as many as I could.”
His highlights include three original pieces he co-wrote: “Glow,” “Feels Like Christmas” and “Mr. Christmas.” Other must-sing songs, he says, include “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” “Christmas Time Is Here,” “A Holly Jolly Christmas” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”
“And ‘O Holy Night’ — I have to do it,” he says. “That was my childhood. It’s the song that helped me find my voice.”
This year’s audience might notice something new in the series: an extra spring in Eldredge’s step. If so, there is a reason. He used most of 2023 to refresh, recharge and work on personal development.
“I’ve been on the road for 11, 12 years and I started to feel like it’s a lot more important to me, and so is my music,” he explains of what he calls his “sabbatical” year. “I really wanted to improve many aspects of my life and I think it’s important to take the time.”
With the luxury months to fill, Eldredge says he was able to enjoy personal travel (particularly to Italy and Portugal), work on his fitness (successfully running a half marathon) and volunteer at Nashville’s Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital. Vanderbilt. Most of all, he says, he got “a feeling rooted in being at home and in a regular routine. It was really beautiful. I feel like I’m starting parts of my life in a way.”
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Brett Eldredge.
Evan Mattingly
Long open about his struggles with anxiety and panic attacks, Eldredge says he’s also deepened his meditation practice, including his recent participation in a mindfulness retreat that required three days of complete silence.
“The hardest part wasn’t the silence,” he says. “The hardest part was sitting with your baggage—you know, the stuff that also makes you who you are.”
Slowly, says Eldredge, he learned to accept everything. “I’m a little shy kid at heart,” he says. “I’m creative, and I’m very sensitive, and I’m starting to love that part of me. I’m starting to learn that what makes me successful is getting in front of people, but it also makes me scared as hell. But it’s what I love to do, and I’m just learning that dance and I feel good about it.”
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Eldredge offers assurances that he’s pouring his new energy and insights into upcoming (non-holiday) music, though he’s not ready to talk about specifics. An important part of his vacation, he says, was songwriting, including trips to New York City to collaborate with songwriters there.
“I’m researching some really cool stuff that I haven’t shared with the world yet, but it will be here soon,” he vows. “It will be a completely new experience for many people. If you’ve liked my music before, it’s going to have parts that you like, but I’m trying to push as hard as I can to explore different avenues and give you something different and new, so I’m excited.”
Eldredge wraps up his Glow Live Tour on December 21st in St. Louis. But don’t even try to distract Mr. Christmas now and ask him about his own vacation plans.
“To be honest,” he says with a laugh, “I haven’t even gotten around to it yet.”
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Source: HIS Education