Todrick Hall | |
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.jpg) Hall in 2019 | |
| Born | (1985-04-04)April 4, 1985 (age 40) Plainview, Texas, U.S. |
| Other names | |
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| Years active | 2008–present |
| Television | |
| Musical career | |
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| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Subscribers | 3.56 million |
| Views | 945 million |
| Last updated: October 22, 2025 | |
Musical artist | |
| Website | todrickhall |
Todrick Hall (born April 4, 1985) is an American singer, rapper, choreographer, andYouTuber. He gained national attention on theninth season of the televised singing competitionAmerican Idol. Following this, he amassed a following on YouTube with original songs, parodies, and skits. A documentary series about his video-making process titledTodrick aired onMTV in 2015.
Starting withseason eight, Hall became a resident choreographer and occasional judge onRuPaul's Drag Race.[2][3] From 2016 to 2017, Hall starred as Lola inKinky Boots on Broadway. Later in 2017, he began appearances asBilly Flynn inChicago on Broadway and in theWest End. He also appeared as Ogie inWaitress on Broadway in 2019.
Hall has released four studio albums, including thevisual albumsStraight Outta Oz (2016) andForbidden (2018). In 2020, he released an EP,Quarantine Queen, and was the international host of Global Pride 2020.[4][5]
Todrick Hall was born on April 4, 1985, inPlainview, Texas, a farming community in the state'spanhandle.[6][7][8] He was raised by a single mother until she married when he was a teen, when he gained a brother and stepfather.[7][8] Later the family would move to Dallas.[7]
As a child, he adoredThe Wizard of Oz. As an adult, he would createOz, the Musical; the pop songThe Wizard of Ahhhs featuring the popa cappella quintetPentatonix; and the visual album and tourStraight Out of Oz.[9][7] An elementary teacher in Dallas led Hall toward the arts, including theater, the orchestra, and ballet.
Hall is gay, andcame out to his family when he was 15.[7][10] At age 16, he began performing on weekends at the amusement parkSix Flags Over Texas; it was the first time he combined singing and dancing.[7][11][12] He also performed on cruises withRoyal Caribbean,Holland America Line, and atWalt Disney Parks and Resorts.[13][14][15] Hall has said that his work ethic comes from the lack of opportunities he had in the entertainment industry as a black gay man.[16]
When Hall was twenty he auditioned for theBroadway production ofThe Color Purple withOprah Winfrey andFantasia Barrino.[13] He was cast in the ensemble, and asunderstudy for the role of Harpo.[17] Barrino rose to fame as the winner of the third season of the reality singing competitionAmerican Idol, and working with her would inspire Hall to later audition for the show as well.[13] AfterThe Color Purple he performed inMemphis: The Musical and touring productions ofBeauty and the Beast,Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring theRockettes, andHairspray.[13]
Hall relocated to Los Angeles, eventually living in a four-bedroom "nondescript three-story home in theHollywood Hills". He joined the video-sharing platform YouTube in May 2006, and made over 300 videos in the next five years.[8][13][1] His first video, filmed while still living in Texas, was "a hilarious clip of him singing his order to a McDonald's drive-through speaker (complete with backup singers)".[8][18] The video has since received over ten million views.[18] In 2008 he uploaded a video of a performance of "Hard to Say Goodbye," which boosted his subscribers to two million.[6] YouTube became a full-time pursuit for Hall in 2011.[13] He says the platform showcases "how I can write a song, create the concepts, execute them, direct, choreograph and do hair and makeup" as well as perform.[1] Some of his popular videos were the basis of later concert tours like "Twerk Du Soleil" and the "Toddlerz Ball."[1]
In August 2009, Hall auditioned for theninth season ofAmerican Idol in Dallas, Texas.[19] He sang a self-composed song mentioning the judges –Simon Cowell,Randy Jackson,Kara DioGuardi, and guest judgeJoe Jonas – to make his case for inclusion in the program.[20] Years later, reflecting on hisIdol experiences, Hall said his "fondest memory" was the audition song.[21] All four approved of his participation; he went into Hollywood week and eventually the semi-finals. In the Top 24, he sangKelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone",[20] and in the Top Twenty performedTina Turner's "What's Love Got to Do with It". He was eliminated in the Top 16 on March 11, 2010, after his rendition ofQueen's "Somebody to Love;" he was one of four contestants eliminated in that round, and thus ranked between 13th and 16th overall.[22] JudgeSimon Cowell dismissively told Hall he "wouldn't amount to anything beyond a Broadway actor".[23] Later Hall stated that he regretted hiding his sexuality on the show: he had a girl wait for his post-audition walk outside with his golden ticket.[24][25][9]
In August 2010, Hall returned toBroadway in the musicalMemphis.[17]
Hall's videos include several of his own original songs and music videos and choreographedflash mobs. Hall did a choreographed flash mob in aTarget store toBeyoncé's "End of Time" prompting her to hire Hall as a choreographer on her roller-disco video, "Blow" which came out in November 2013.[7][26]
On October 22, 2014,MTV announcedTodrick, a docuseries following Hall, would premiere in 2015. On December 20, 2014, Hall produced and appeared in a commercial for the series and featured other celebrities' holiday wishes. Eight episodes of the docuseries were ordered and aired throughout 2015.[27] The soundtrack for the show was released on October 13, 2015. In October 2015, he was picked asElvis Duran'sArtist of the Month and was featured onNBC'sToday, where he performed his single "Wind It Up".
In February 2015, he was featured onVH1'sHuge on the Tube series.[28]
Hall first appeared as a guest judge on theeighth season ofRuPaul's Drag Race for an episode which featured aWizard of Oz-inspired challenge and aired April 11, 2016; they did not know his lifelong passion forThe Wonderful Wizard of Oz.[13] Hall reappeared as a full-time judge forRuPaul's Drag Race All Stars 2 later in 2016 and returned as a recurring guest judge for theninth season which aired throughout 2017. Along withDrag Race, Hall frequently appeared onLogo TV's game showGay for Play Game Show Starring RuPaul alongside other celebrities.
On June 23, 2016, Todrick self-released his second album,Straight Outta Oz.[25] The album is a visualconcept album that uses the imagery ofThe Wizard of Oz to explore Todrick's own life and rise to fame.[25] He was inspired to create the project after seeingDisney'sZootopia,Lin-Manuel Miranda'sHamilton, andBeyoncé's visual albumLemonade.[7] The album has seventeen songs, the tour had over twenty; it took about six weeks to write, and then filming the videos happened in two weeks.[7] The project's first video was posted to YouTube on June 23, 2016.[29] The videos had cameos fromKim Chi,Bob the Drag Queen,Willam Belli,Joseph Gordon-Levitt,Nicole Scherzinger,Pentatonix,Perez Hilton, andAmber Riley.[25][7] "Color" ruminates on his first boyfriend, a handsome Londoner, "the first to really know me."[25] Hall announced theStraight Outta Oz Tour to promote the album whichoriginally ran between July 7, and August 12, 2016 in the United States and Canada. The album debuted inITunes Top Ten Pop Album Chart after its release in late June 2016.[7]
TheStraight Outta Oz Tour was interrupted by Hall's casting in the Broadway musicalKinky Boots.[30] They offered the lead inKinky Boots "without even auditioning, because they felt my story was so similar to that of Lola's", a drag queen cabaret performer.[25] Hall's performance was well received by critics. He performed 155 shows from November 1, 2016, to March 1, 2017.
TheStraight Outta Oz Tour was revived in 2017 and ran between March 30, and June 5, in various North American, European, and Australian locations.[31] It was accompanied by an expanded deluxe edition that included songs that were featured on the tour but not on the original version of the album. Additionally, the album included an extended version and new video for "Wrong Bitch" featuringBob the Drag Queen, and a rerecorded version of Todrick's previous single "Low" featuringRuPaul. In August 2017, he had a cameo as a back-up dancer in the music video forTaylor Swift's song, "Look What You Made Me Do"; the two had become friends in 2015, and would collaborate on several projects.[32][33]
From November 30, 2017, to January 14, 2018, playedBilly Flynn in a limited engagement role inChicago.[34] During his tenure, the show had its best-grossing week in its 21-year Broadway history.[35]
In December he released the documentary filmBehind the Curtain about the production behindStraight Outta Oz filmed in conjunction withAwesomenessTV who had released a successful documentary about another gay YouTuberTyler Oakley.[36][37] It was screened in select theaters and later released on home video. Later that month he had a guest appearance in theBob's Burgers Season 8 episode "The Bleakening" as drag queen Miss Triple-Xmas (or Cleavage to Beaver) performing the song "Twinkly Lights".[38] He also released a medley of covers of songs from thePitch Perfect film series that was featured on thePitch Perfect 3 Special Edition soundtrack.
In March 2018 he released his new visual album follow-up toStraight Outta Oz calledForbidden. To promote the album, Hall embarked onForbidden: The Tour across the United States, Europe, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.[39]
In May 2019, Hall revealed that he will be releasing a trilogy ofextended plays to be released across the next six months. The first EP,Haus Party, Pt. 1, with its first single "Glitter" was released May 16, 2019. The EP also contained the single "Nails, Hair, Hips, Heels", with a remix featuringCiara.[40] The EPs were supported by the Haus Party World Tour.[41]Part Two was originally planned to be released in July 2019 but was delayed to September 19, 2019. It was supported by the singles "Wig", "Fag", and "Dripeesha" (the latter featuringTiffany Haddish).[40][42] Part Three was released in February 2021.
On June 17, 2019, Hall appeared in and co-executive produced the music video for singer-songwriterTaylor Swift's song "You Need to Calm Down".[43] Hall also helped recruit guests for the cameo-filled video.[43] In June 2019, Hall announced that he will be returning to Broadway to play Ogie Anhorn in the musicalWaitress opposite fellow YouTuberColleen Ballinger.[44][45] In August 2019 he joined the panel of Dance Captains for the second series ofThe Greatest Dancer alongside the other Dance CaptainsCheryl,Oti Mabuse andMatthew Morrison.[42][46] From November 2019 to January 2020 Hall will play the lead,Billy Flynn, in theWest End version of the musicalChicago.[47]
In February 2020, Hall released a song forDisneyland's new twice daily parade, called "Magic Happens".[48][14] Hall "learned to dance by watching Disney parades".[48] On April 27, 2020, Hall announced on social media that he had spent the past week writing and recording an EP entitledQuarantine Queen (themed around theCOVID-19 pandemic).[49] The album was released on April 29, 2020.[50] In May 2020 Hall signed with CAA Management.[51] On November 26, 2020, Hall released a live album of theHaus Party world tour recorded inAtlanta, alongside a full video recording for free on YouTube.
On February 12, 2021, Hall released thethird volume of theHaus Party trilogy after being delayed sixteen months past its original release date. On June 8, 2021, Hall released his fourth studio album,Femuline, which was preceded by the singles "Boys in the Ocean" and "Rainin' Fellas". The album is inspired bygay pride and features appearances fromChaka Khan,Tyra Banks,Brandy,Nicole Scherzinger andTs Madison.[52]
In September 2021, Hall andSamsung teamed up for a remix video of his breakthrough single, "Nails, Hair, Hips, Heels," centered around the new Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 foldable smartphone. The reworked lyrics -- "Flip, Fold, Snap, Clack"—reference the phone's ability to flip up and fold down.[53]
In December 2021, Hall competed inseason six ofThe Masked Singer as "Bull" and finished in second place.[54]
In January 2022, it was announced that Hall would be participating in thethird season ofCelebrity Big Brother as a contestant.[55] He made it into the final three and then placed runner up for the season.
On June 1, 2022, Hall released his fifth album,Algorhythm, which was preceded by the single, "Dance Forever".[56]
In 2024 Hall joined the musicalBurlesque in the role of Sean. He also wrote some of the new songs for the show, alongsideJess Folley, who starred as Ali Rose. The show opened at theOpera House inManchester, toured toGlasgow, to return to Manchester.[57] Ahead of its West End transfer in 2025, the show changed its team, with Hall directing and choreographing, as well as reprising the role of Sean.[58]
In October 2025 Hall announced he will premiere his own original musical,Midnight, at theSadler's Wells East in London, in November of the same year, after a few close-doors performances inNew York andLondon. Hall wrote the music and lyrics for the show, and also directed, choreographed and starred as lead character Rail. He commented “Midnight is an artistic work with a strong sense of social responsibility and cultural depth. It uses artistic means to call on people to cross racial boundaries, learn to understand, tolerate and empathise.”[59]
Hall announced a relationship with model David Borum via an Instagram post in May 2021.[60]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | American Idol | Himself (contestant) | Season 9 – Semi-finalist |
| 2014 | Nickelodeon Kid's Choice Awards | Himself | Opening Act |
| 2015–2016 | Dance Moms | Himself | 3 episodes |
| 2015 | Hit RECord on TV | Lead High School Boy | Episode: "Re: school""What They Say" segment |
| 2015 | The World Dog Awards | Himself | Presenter |
| 2015 | Catfish: The TV Show | Himself | Episode: "Devan & Rylan" |
| 2015 | Todrick | Himself | 8 episodes |
| 2016 | Dance-Off Juniors | Guest Judge | 10 episodes |
| 2016 | Sing It! | Milo | Episode: "The Chicken Theory?!" |
| 2016–2017 | Gay for Play Game Show Starring RuPaul | Himself (Guest Panelist) | 3 Episodes |
| 2016–2019 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Himself (Guest Judge & Choreographer) | 7 Episodes |
| 2016–2020 | RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars | Himself (Judge & Choreographer) | Main Panel (Season 2); Guest judge & choreographer (Seasons 3–5) |
| 2016 | Christmas All Over Again | Young Breezy | Television film |
| 2016 | Todrick Hall: Behind the Curtain | Himself; Producer | Documentary film on the making ofStraight Outta Oz |
| 2017 | Wild 'N Out | Himself | Episode: "LeSean McCoy/Todrick Hall/SNS & KidTheWiz" |
| 2017 | Sound it Out: The Untitled LGBT Documentary | Himself | |
| 2017 | Bob's Burgers | Miss Triple X-Mas (voice) | Episode: "The Bleakening" |
| 2018 | Muppet Babies | Carlos (voice) | Episode: "Frogs of a Feather" |
| 2018 | Dear White People | Volume 2, "Chapter III" | |
| 2018 | Queer Eye | Himself | Episode: "Sky's the Limit" |
| 2018 | RuPaul's Drag Race Holi-slay Spectacular | Himself (Judge) | Television special |
| 2019 | Crazy Ex-Girlfriend | Funky Cat | Episode: "I Need Some Balance" |
| 2020 | The Greatest Dancer | Dance Captain | |
| 2021 | The Masked Singer | Bull/Himself | Season 6 contestant; Second place |
| 2022 | Celebrity Big Brother | Himself (HouseGuest/Contestant) | Runner-up |
| 2023 | The Real Friends of WeHo | Himself | [61] |
| Year | Title | Role | Theatre | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-2008 | The Color Purple | Bobby, Harpo (understudy), ensemble | Broadway Theatre | Broadway |
| 2010–2011 | Memphis | Gator (understudy), ensemble | Sam S. Shubert Theatre | |
| 2011 | Hairspray | Ensemble | Hollywood Bowl | |
| Seaweed J. Stubbs | Los Angeles | |||
| 2014 | Cats | Rum Tum Tugger | Lubbock[26] | Regional |
| 2016–2017 | Kinky Boots | Lola/Simon | Al Hirshfeld Theater | Broadway |
| 2017–2018 | Chicago | Billy Flynn | Ambassador Theatre | |
| 2018 | US Tour | US Tour | ||
| 2018-2019 | Phoenix Theatre | West End | ||
| 2019 | Waitress | Ogie Anhorn | Brooks Atkinson Theatre | Broadway |
| 2020 | Kinky Boots | Lola/Simon | Los Angeles | |
| 2024 | Burlesque | Sean | Manchester Opera House andTheatre Royal, Glasgow | Regional; also co-composer and lyricist |
| 2025 | Savoy Theatre | West End; also director, choreographer, co-composer and lyricist | ||
| 2025 | Midnight | Rail | Sadler's Wells East | Off West End: also director, choreographer, composer and lyricist |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Step Up: High Water | Himself | Guest Appearance (Season 2 Episode 4: "Vogue") |
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