// INTERVIEW
Talking to TYLER HILTONBy JASON TORREANO
6/15/2005
You've heard his songs on the radio, and if you're a diehard "One Tree Hill" fan, you've seen him as Chris Keller on the WB teen drama. Singing sensation and actor Tyler Hilton, 21, recently sat down with NeXt to answer questions about his life, his music and why he doesn't have, of all things, a cell phone.
So being from the West Coast, what are you thinking about the East Coast and Buffalo, New York?
I like it better. I want to move out this way. I don't have an apartment now because I have been traveling, but I am thinking the next time I touch down it will be in New York or Boston or somewhere on the East Coast.
saw you are a big fan of Elvis. Who other then him do you look up to musically?
The Beatles - you know - I think that's for every musician. Robert Johnson and Elvis were probably the biggest ones. I really get a lot of Robert Johnson and the blues music in general. He encompasses the blues music for me. His story, his singing, his songwriting, everything about him, I just love that. I want to be like Robert Johnson.
This past week you spoke with WKSE morning personalities and you've said you don't have a cell phone. That's true?
So you're just not the cell-phone type?
I don't know. It made me an impatient person I think. Then Paris Hilton got my phone number, we hung out a few times and it went up on the Internet, and I was like, oh man, so I just gave it up.
And no relation to Paris Hilton at all, right?
No.
On your bio you said Chris Keller, the guy you play on "One Tree Hill," was cocky, mean, rude, talented and thought the world of himself. You go on to say, "something about him made me want to play him." Are those traits you possess?
No, I think that's what attracted me to him. That's what I love about acting - you can do so many things. You can be a certain way and justify it as "I'm just acting.' I mean you can be a total a------ to people and you can be like "It's just my character' and it is but is just so funny to look into the face of my friends on the set and totally say terrible things to them - but it's so funny. Then they yell "cut," and after I say something really mean everyone starts laughing because it's just so weird to be so mean to your friends - I mean I love it.
What would you consider your primary job? Acting or music?
Oh, I'm a singer. I just do the acting - I just take these little parts. It's a nice way to take a break from music without just doing nothing and it's a nice way to stretch creatively. It's a nice vacation, I mean it's a nice break, you know? I have only done a couple things with acting. I've done music for six or seven years.
People who want to get into the music business - what's your advice for them?
Oh, you gotta play. See there are a lot of people who want to get into this business and they go about it a--backwards. They look for a name for their band, a manager for their band, they're looking to do a demo - you gotta play some shows first. If you're in a band or you're a solo artist you can call yourself the mixed nuts or whatever, it doesn't matter what you call yourself - you just have to go out and play. It's going to be years before somebody finds you - the point is you have to start playing, you have to start meeting people, start making contacts, so you can start playing at other bars. I think people forget they gotta play.
