Meet Payson Lewis, the newest artist to invade the internet with his music videos and cover songs. Payson was on The Sing-Off a few years ago and has appeared on various TV Shows such as Revenge, How I Met Your Mother and VicTORIous. If you’re local to Los Angeles, you may recognize him from the live stage show, For The Record, which is performed on weekends at DBA: Hollywood.

Or you may recognize him from his “Out of The Woods” cover with Rumer Willis, which recently took the internet by storm and boasts an impressive 48,000+ views on his YouTube Channel. Since its release, Payson has been adding videos to his YouTube channel while raising money to produce the videos through his Patreon campaign. Patreon is an online website where fans can donate money to an artist. In return for the donation, which can be as low as $1 per video released, fans receive special incentives set up by the artist. Some of the incentives offered through Payson’s campaign include Google Hangouts, free downloads, a follow on Twitter and even joining the creative process as a member of his team.

So far, Payson has put four videos out using the service. The most recent being his Christmas cover, “Santa Tell Me,” featuring Luke Edgemon. Check out the video below and be warned that these two gentleman are about to heat your holidays up.

Don’t forget to also check Payson Lewis out on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, and get to know him better in our exclusive interview where we chatted about his career, Disney movies, music and his future plans.

PopWrapped: How long have you been performing and when did you get your start?

Payson Lewis

:

My mom always tells me that I wrote my first song when I was 3 on an instrument I made out of rubber bands stretched across the knobs of my dresser. So, basically, I’ve been making music for as long as I can remember.

PW: You moved to Los Angeles from Philadelphia. What do you miss most about your hometown?

PL

:

Besides friends and family which obviously top the list, I do miss the famous Philly Cheesesteaks; Pat’s in particular.

PW: What motto or advice do you live by?

PL

:

My dad is the one who always told me to try to improve myself and the world around me each and every day. Those are pretty much the words I live by. It’s simple, but just a little improvement everyday makes a big difference over time.

PW: If you never got into music, acting or performing, what career path would you have taken?

PL:

It’s hard to imagine my life now without performance. But if I had to, I would still need to do something creative. I could see myself being a writer or a director. Or maybe just an artist. I used to be a pretty into art in high school. I just love the creative energy so much. It’s what drives me.

PW: What’s something interesting that your fans may not know about you?

PL

:

It’s kind of embarrassing, but I’m a total softie when it comes to movies. I’m such a baby. Like Toy Story 3, Up, ET…can’t help but shed a tear. I’m such a dork! Haha!

PW: What is your current guilty pleasure?

PL

:

My current, and forever, guilty pleasure is peanut butter candy. Reece’s pieces, peanut butter m&ms, fast break bars, butterfingers…I just can’t get enough.

PW: What are your five most played songs currently?

PL: I am super into Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud,” Sam Smith’s “Make it to Me,” “Habits (stay high) by Tove Lo, “Take Me To Church” by Hozier and for the Christmas season my friends’ Pentatonix’s “Mary Did You Know?”

PW: If you had a soundtrack to your life, what would the song be?

PL: Right now, it’s hard for me to go a day or two without listening to Sam Smith. I love throwing that record on and just vibing out. It sounds so good on vinyl!

PW: Did you have any New Year Resolutions this year? Did you succeed in them? Since this year is coming to an end, have you made any resolutions for next year?

PL

:

I didn’t really have any resolutions this year. I guess I always just try and make myself and the world around me better each and every day. I know it’s kind of cheesy, but it’s how I try to approach every day.

PW: Switching gears here, let’s chat a little more about your career. You worked on Victorious in the past and were recently seen on Revenge, do you plan on venturing into acting as well or are you sticking to music?

PL

:

I am definitely pursuing acting. I’ve been acting in theater since I was 11 and since moving to LA, I’ve done a number of TV shows and perform every weekend in a live stage show here in LA called For The Record.

PW: For The Record auditions are coming up again, is this something that you plan on being involved in still?

PL

:

Absolutely! I have been performing with them for 2 years now. The shows are incredible and the cast and crew have become my LA family. I wouldn’t dream of giving that up!

PW: You were on the Sing-Off, what did you take away from that experience? Did it teach you anything about the music industry?

PL

:

I learned a lot being on the Sing-Off. It was really my first on-camera experience. So there was a lot of technical stuff that I learned. But the most valuable lesson was definitely to always remain true to who you are as a person and an artist.

PW: What has inspired you to cover the songs that you have thus far?

PL

:

I’ve always been a sucker for a well-crafted pop song and a catchy melody. I also think that the songs I’ve worked on have had great lyrics that contain a lot of great emotional depth. With songs as well written as these it’s really fun to take them in new directions with different arrangements etc.

PW: What do you plan on doing next? More covers? Any original material?

PL

:

I have a lot of great stuff planned for my channel. I have a ton of songs I want to cover, friends I want to collaborate with, and eventually my own music that I’ve been working on. It’s going to be a lot of fun!

PW: Have you been writing your own music? If so, are there any artists that inspire you? Whether it be through sound or lyrics?

PL

:

I have been writing music off and on for years and I have been inspired by so many artists over the years it would be impossible to narrow it down.

PW: As an artist, is there anything special you hope to be able to accomplish?

PL

:

I honestly just hope to entertain and inspire. It’s nothing fancy, but I think it’s important. With music and performance we can take people away for a while, we can make them feel something. It’s simple but I think it’s incredibly valuable. I love the emotive power of music, movies, and theater. It’s what keeps all of us coming back for more.

Many thanks to Payson for taking the time to speak with us; and be sure to follow him on his YouTube channel, twitter  and on Facebook!

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