Show stopper

On Sept. 18, Trussville residents tuned into the 25th season of “Dancing with the Stars” with special interest. Dancing with Lindsay Arnold was Trussville native Jordan Fisher, who has spent the last 13 years gaining the notice of the entertainment industry and making his hometown proud.

In addition to his appearance on the popular reality show, Fisher has also appeared on programs like “The Secret Life of the American Teenager” and “Grease: LIVE.” More recently, he had a five-month run in the cast of “Hamilton” on Broadway — an experience that he called “incredible.” 

On top of his first full-length album, which was released in October, his musical experience includes a Top 30 single and a duet with Lin-Manuel Miranda for the “Moana” soundtrack.

But before he took the stage on Broadway, Fisher grew up a resident of Trussville, where his love of the arts was first sparked at Paine Intermediate. 

“[T]here was a girl I had a crush on in fifth grade, and she asked me to join the drama club, and I lied and told her that I was already planning on it, when I had not,” he said. “I fell in love with acting and music and dance and creativity and all of those things all on the same day.”

After his theater debut performing “Conjunction Junction” in “Schoolhouse Rock Jr.,” Fisher made the leap to the Red Mountain Theatre Company, where he was discovered by a talent scout. 

“A lot of who I am happened because of my time with Red Mountain, so I cannot credit them enough where my success is concerned,” Fisher said. He added that his time with the company helped to create the foundation on which he has begun building his career.

But the strongest support that Fisher has received was from his grandparents, who raised him from a young age and later legally adopted him. 

“I’ve been loved by them better than any parent could ever love a child,” he said. “They’re the most incredible, loving, supportive, kind, warm, generous, selfless people you’ll ever meet in your entire life, and I’m insanely grateful to call them my parents.”

In fact, he hopes to one day come full circle and be the type of parent that he is grateful to have had. 

“My ultimate goal is to be a really great father and a great husband and provider, and ultimately I think that a lot of that starts with what it is that I do to provide,” he said. Currently, he is learning about the production side of the industry, hoping to establish himself as a producer so that one day he can better control his schedule and have time to spend with his family.

But for now, Fisher is focusing on getting the most out of everything that he does. “I love all facets of what I do, and I look forward to doing it for the rest of my life,” he said. “And honestly, my goal every day is to just sit in each moment and enjoy everything that I’m doing.”

Despite his success and the fact that he and his family now call California home, Fisher hasn’t completely left Alabama behind.

 “You definitely can’t take the Roll Tide out of our blood,” he said. He regularly comes back to visit his girlfriend, and he always finds time for the one thing he can’t get in LA. 

“You can’t replicate good old Bama barbecue,” he said. “There’s something so great about a simple Styrofoam box and a barbecue sandwich and some fries and a tea. And that’s definitely my jam when I’m there, for sure.”

Fisher has received “insane” love from the folks back in Trussville, and he says that there’s something special about representing his hometown. 

“[I]t’s really nice to feel that kind of love and that kind of support from a city that you spent the better part of your childhood in,” he said. “It’s an incredible feeling.”

To any Trussville kids who hope to make their own way in the entertainment industry, Fisher notes that success is a marathon — not a sprint. “I started at 10, so I’ve got 13 years in it already, and people are just now starting to take notice,” he said. 

He noted that “sometimes it takes longer [and] sometimes it happens the next day” but emphasized the importance of “recognizing that your journey is your journey”. 

Additionally, he urged aspiring artists to identify the thing that they look forward to doing every day. “[T]hat is what you are meant to do,” he said. “And regardless of how great your day is or how poor your day is, if your head hits the pillow andyou want to wake up and do it all over again, don’t let anybody tell you thatyou shouldn’t.”