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Taylor Reuben Hicks (born October 7, 1976) is an American soul singer, songwriter, and musician. He was an independent artist for the span of a decade before rising to prominence as the winner of the fifth season of American Idol. Upon winning American Idol, Hicks was immediately signed to Arista Records. His debut single “Do I Make You Proud” opened at the number one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified gold by the RIAA. His major-label debut is scheduled for release on December 5, 2006. His energetic stage performances and throwback to classic soul music have earned him a following of devout fans, who have dubbed themselves the “Soul Patrol”. Did you know that Simon Cowell shares his birthday?

He’s 30!

Taylor Hicks was born at Saint Vincent’s Hospital at 3:30am Central Daylight Time in Birmingham, Alabama on October 6, 1976, to Brad Hicks and Pamela Dickinson Hicks. As an infant, he had blond hair. His hair color turned dark brown/black as an adolescent and started turning gray by the time he was 13. He and his family moved to suburban Hoover when he was 8 years old. His parents divorced when he was 8, and his father Brad, a dentist, and stepmother Linda shared custody until he became of age.

According to his father, when he was five years old he sang to random strangers the music of Kenny Rogers or Michael Jackson. He plays guitar as well as blues harp and writes most of his own songs. He also possesses absolute pitch.

Hicks was a former student of Berry High School and graduated from its successor Hoover High School in 1995. He attended Auburn University, majoring in business, communications and marketing, but lost interest and dropped out after three years. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee to pursue a music career and has worked with Nashville veterans Billy Earl McClelland and Percy Sledge.

Hicks became the subject of two Weekend Update skits on NBC’s Saturday Night Live on April 15 and May 20, 2006, portrayed by cast member Jason Sudeikis. In an allusion to Hicks’ quirkiness and disposition, Sudeikis mocked playing Hicks’ trademark blues harp and repeatedly shouted out “Soul Patrol!” Hicks, when interviewed by Ryan Seacrest on the subsequent episode of American Idol on April 18, 2006, as to whether or not he saw the imitation, admitted that he had and that the impression made him “fall out on the floor” with laughter. This is the first time an American Idol contestant has been parodied on the show.

“Weird Al” Yankovic parodied Hicks on his 2006 album, Straight Outta Lynwood, with a parody of “Do I Make You Proud” called “Do I Creep You Out?”.

A Bit of Trivia:

Hicks also has two goldfish, named Lamont and Ray, around whom fans have created and maintain a blog.

Other October 7th Birthdays:

Simon Cowell-TV Personality/American Idol (47)
Rachel McAdams-Actress (30)
Toni Braxton-Singer (38)
John Cougar Mellencamp-Singer (55)