Colby O'Donis

Colby O'Donis Colón

Early life O'Donis was born in Queens, New York and grew up there and in Florida. He is of Puerto Rican and Italian descent. His mother, Olga, is a singer once crowned Miss Puerto Rico in New York, and his father, Freddy "Fast Freddy" Colón is a disc jockey who worked at WQHT, a radio station in Lower Manhattan, New York. He was named after Colby O'Donis, a firefighter who was killed while saving his father's life. O'Donis has a sister who is five years older. He said that for seven years she helped pay for his dance, piano, and guitar lessons from her own paychecks. His parents first realized his singing talent when he won a talent show singing a Michael Jackson song when he was only three and a half. O'Donis' rise to fame began at age ten, when he became the youngest recording artist ever signed to Motown in order to do a song for a major motion picture soundtrack. The song, titled "Mouse in the House", was featured on the Stuart Little soundtrack. Soon afterwards, he began taking guitar lessons with Johan Oiested, a musician in Carlos Santana's rhythm section. At the age of 11, he was making regular appearances as an actor on the television series Grandpa's Garage. When he was 12, his father bought him his first production studio, and by the time he had reached fourteen, O'Donis was opening local Florida shows for major recording artists including Backstreet Boys, Brian McKnight, 98 Degrees, Britney Spears, and Ne-Yo. Shortly after his fifteenth birthday, O'Donis' parents made the decision to go to Los Angeles and pursue a recording deal for him. After the move, O'Donis was introduced to Genuine Music Group, where he began collaborating on producing an LP album consisting of songs from his catalog and songs co-written by producers Damon Sharpe, Gregg Pagani, and Brion James.

In 2006, O'Donis almost signed a record deal with Babyface. However, before the deal was finalized, O'Donis' management arranged a meeting with O'Donis and Akon. O'Donis played Akon his first demo of fourteen songs in a recording studio, and Akon loved and "really connected with it". A few weeks later, they set up a session and began working on music where O'Donis said they had really good chemistry from the start. At the time, Akon told O'Donis that he was starting his own label, called Konvict Muzik, and asked if he wanted to be a part of it. O'Donis agreed and, for the next two years, he waited for the label to "get going and achieve the stature they need to launch new artists" before being officially signed.

O'Donis has said that, before he signed with Interscope Records and Akon, he had already released six independent record albums. Also in that year, he was featured in the Akon song "Beautiful".

2010–present: Later career and Start Over In 2010, O'Donis was featured in a song called "What You Waiting For" by Malaysian artist Mizz Nina, which has received extensive airplay in Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries. He released a single, "Texting Flirtation." In 2011, O'Donis signed with Z-Entertainment Records and released the digital single "Like Me". The music video premiered on February 9, 2012, on YouTube.

In 2013, after what he described as "a four-year hiatus", O'Donis began working on his second studio album, titled Start Over. He released singles "Lean", "Turn This Night Around", "Come Back", "State of Mind", and "Kiss Those Lips" to promote the album. Although planned for a release date in early 2014, the album was never released. In March 2020, he announced on Instagram that he would be working on new music amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. His single "Hold On" was released on March 14.

Artistry O'Donis grew up listening to artists including the Temptations, Luther Vandross, Michael Jackson, and Usher.

Personal life O'Donis and Erin Yvonne, a dancer, actress, and life coach married on November 21, 2016. In October 2019, their daughter Alina Cruz was born.

Discography

Colby O (2008)

Filmography + Film and television Year Title Role Notes 2000–2005 Grandpa's Garage Diego Main role 2006 Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide Nelson Duckworth / Quack 1 episode: "Nicknames and Shyness" 2009 The Pig People Alex Horror movie 2009 Brooke Knows Best Self 1 episode: “Brooke’s New Beau”

Awards and nominations Year Association Category Recipient Result 2009 Grammy Awards Best Dance Recording "Just Dance" (with Lady Gaga) American Latino Awards Favorite Newcomer Colby O'Donis Teen Choice Awards Choice Music Hook-Up "Just Dance" (with Lady Gaga) 2010 Grammy Awards Album of the Year The Fame (as featured artist)