Q&A: David Cook
Obviously, Tulsa rocker David Cook’s life has changed significantly since he won “American Idol.” He poses for photos during batting practice at Shea Stadium before the New York Mets play the San Diego Padres in this Aug. 7 photo in New York. (Associated Press photo)
From the Aug. 20-Sept. 6 issue of Look at OKC, on newsstands now.
One of “American Idol” winner David Cook’s first memories of living in Oklahoma involves designing an illegal tattoo for a friend.
“I remember one of my first experiences after moving was I designed a tattoo for my friend before tattooing was legal. I probably shouldn’t tell you this story, but we drove to Tahlequah and had it done. And I just remember that was so much fun for me,” he said.
“There you go, Oklahoma, that’s the dirt.”
Cook, 25, has taken the memories of living, playing clubs and tending bar in Tulsa with him on the road since he won the reality TV singing contest in May,
This summer, the singer/songwriter/guitarist, who was raised in Blue Springs, Mo., has been traveling the country with the rest of the Season 7 top 10 contestants on the “American Idols Live” tour.
The tour will come Aug. 28 to Oklahoma City’s Ford Center and make its last stop Sept. 13 at the new BOK Center in Tulsa. When Cook moved to Tulsa about two years ago to join the band the Midwest Kings, the new arena was still a construction site.
Cook talked about how his life has changed since winning “American Idol” and how Oklahoma shaped him in a recent phone interview from a tour stop in Philadelphia.
Q: Is it a little different playing packed arenas than it is playing clubs and bars?
A: Yes. (laughing) The crowds are a little bigger, and you … just have more resources available to you. But I don’t know, part of me actually kind of misses playing the Gray Snail (Saloon in Tulsa) on a Wednesday night.
Q: No way.
A: Oh, yeah, believe it.
Q: Has reality sunk in? Can you even describe or get a grip on how your life has changed?
A: It hits in pockets. You know, you’ll wake up in a hotel and realize, “OK, I couldn’t have afforded this hotel a year ago.” But I mean, it’s small things, I think, that really kind of drive it home. I got my first bill the other day, and that was oh. That threw me out of fantasyland for a minute.
Q: Your first bill for what?
A: Oh, just you know, life. (laughing)
Q: Um, OK. Have you been working on your album in the midst of all this touring? And what’s the status?
A: Yes. Actually, we’re writing as we’re recording, and I actually think we’re like seven or eight songs into the tracking process. We’re going to track out about 20 songs and narrow it down from there for the record. But yeah, we’re actually ahead of schedule right now, knock on wood.
Q: Do you have a release date or an album name?
A: No name. Release date, we’ve got the month down now; we’re shooting for November. It’s just a matter of a specific date.
Q: Are you working on writing some of the material? Are you working out of Los Angeles?
A: Actually, I’m writing wherever I’m at, meeting with a lot of people for co-writes. … A lot of the tracking is being done in L.A. But vocals on the records, until I get off the road, are probably gonna be done wherever I’m at.
Q: Have you moved away from Tulsa and relocated entirely to L.A.?
A: I’m not really moved away from anywhere. If anything I’m homeless for the first time in my life, so I haven’t really made any firm decisions on where I want to end up. I mean, I’ve got family and friends in Kansas City; I’ve got friends in Tulsa. You know, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.
Q: The “Idol” tour will be among the first shows at the new BOK Center. Is that exciting for you to play there?
A: Absolutely. In the short time that I was in Tulsa, I feel Tulsa’s just as much responsible for where I’m at musically as Kansas City is. I mean, I found myself as a musician in Kansas City, and I found myself as a person really in Tulsa ‘cause that was my first foray into kind of being self-sufficient. …
It’ll be nice to kind of quote-unquote come home and see friends and really show ‘em what I’ve done with myself the last year of my life.
In concert
What: “American Idols Live” Tour 2008 featuring David Cook, Brooke White, Carly Smithson, Chikezie Eze, David Archuleta, Jason Castro, Kristy Lee Cook, Michael Johns, Ramiele Malubay and Syesha Mercado.
Oklahoma City: Thursday a28 at the Ford Center, 100 W Reno. For tickets and information, call 235-8288 or go to http://www.okfordcenter.com/.
Tulsa: Sept. 13 at BOK Center, 200 S Denver. For tickets and information, call (877) TULSA-CC or go to http://www.bokcenter.com/.
-BAM
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