Happy birthday.
It's your birthday today.
Thank you very much.
Thank you.
This is an incredible way to spend a birthday,
let me tell you.
This is pretty cool.
Well, we're honored that you wanted
to spend your birthday with us.
Pleasure.
What did you do before--
you're from Canada, right?
From Canada, yeah.
What part of Canada?
I grew up in Victoria, which is nearby Vancouver.
It's beautiful there.
Yes, it's very nice.
I've performed there many times.
Yeah, it's really nice.
Yeah, it's beautiful there.
So what did you do there?
Wow, I had a million different jobs.
Once upon a time, I was the Walmart people greeter for--
you know that guy?
Yeah.
I drove a school bus.
I looked after kids.
I worked in coffee shops and restaurants.
Were you in a band ever?
Were you musical?
Yeah, I grew up playing the drums.
And so that's my first musical experience.
I never sang.
You never sang before?
Never sang before.
So how did you think to audition for a show about singing?
It's pretty crazy.
I had a manager.
And she's my manager still, Elena.
She suggested that I show them-- instead of singing, show them
my musical abilities playing the drums.
And so she suggested for the audition
that I play the drums on what we had at the agency,
which was coffee mugs, and Tupperware,
and unsharpened pencils, which you just
happen to have right here.
Oh, OK.
I heard that that's what you did.
Yeah.
I want to see what got you the part on Glee
playing this set of drums.
This is it.
So this is the bass drum.
OK.
And this can be the snare drum.
OK.
It was like this.
[DRUMMING]
[CHEERING]
I think the original tape was better.
No, that was pretty good.
So then they see the tape, and they say, yes, we
want to see him from that.
Yes.
You flew, drove?
How did you get to LA?
It's kind of a crazy story.
I heard that they were interested in me for the part.
And it was like, they didn't want to fly me for the audition
because I guess they weren't that interested.
So I was like, I got to drive to Los Angeles.
And so I got in my car and I went from the agency
after I got this call to the record store.
And I got the Rent soundtrack and Billy Joel's Greatest Hits
because I figured I had to sing for this audition.
So you just memorized those songs on the drive.
Yes.
So then did you sing there that day?
I sang that day.
I sang Billy Joel Honesty.
You know that song?
Were you nervous?
Were you crazy nervous?
I was so nervous.
But you just kind of got to swallow and go for it
Yeah.
And then you go to Fox, and then you got the job.
I literally left Fox at 4:00 in the afternoon.
I found out at 4:35 that I got the job.
That's so cool.
That's really cool.
It's kind of a Cinderella story.
It is.
It's pretty cool.
Pay attention to those Walmart greeters, everybody.
Be nice to them.
Don't just walk past them.
All right, so I got you something
that I would like you to use on Glee, if you would, OK?
OK.
It's a birthday present.
Next time you play drums, you play--
[LAUGHS]
--with Ellen drumsticks.
Look at this.
This is incredible.
All right?
Giant, giant Tupperware things I want you to hit on.
Huge, huge.
[DRUMMING]
Yeah.
I feel like I'm about to break something.
Happy birthday.
Thank you.
[MUSIC PLAYING]