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September 21, 2009

Damien Escobar

They’re the Jimi Hendrix of the violin with a little Barry White thrown in for good measure. Watch as Damien Escobar, 23, and brother Tourie, 25, sex up the violin strings Saturday, September 26, at the Carson Center. Winning third place in last year’s America’s Got Talent, they are Nuttin’ But Stringz and nuttin’ but HOT!

Damien Escobar, you are cute, cute, cute, no doubt about it! 750 million people were agog when you competed on America’s Got Talent! Do you get recognized everywhere you go?
We’re always recognized when we’re together. But we cut our hair — we look different now. So people will be getting used to a new look.

Well, you just couldn’t look any cuter. Sharon Osborne certainly thought so. Y’all were flirt-ing!
That was my brother! She’s a beautiful woman on and off camera, though, but yeah, that was Tourie!

What was your favorite compliment from the show?
I really value the compliments from Pierce Morgan. Sharon’s a sweetheart. She’s a mom. And David loves everybody. But Pierce is more like the Simon Cowell. He said he would pay money to see us play in Vegas — he was convinced that we’d win.

I know! Everyone was convinced you’d win.
I was convinced, too!

But it’s resulted in all sorts of opportunities, yes?
Yes, we’ve had a lot of branding offers, marketing offers, recording contracts, we’re setting up a cartoon, making our own violin, we’re going to be doing a McDonald’s commercial. We’ll be working on a book next year, which will be made into a movie.

Right on! And you played at the White House.
Yes, we played for President Bush. The funniest moment of my life was seeing him dance. We’d be going left, and he was going right. He just couldn’t do it!

What about President Obama?
We know him. We’re good friends with one of his staff members. We got to play at one of his inaugural balls. He and his wife followed us through America’s Got Talent. He’s very supportive of us.

Maybe you’ll get to play the White House again!
I hope so!

But until then, it’s the Carson Center! Have you ever been to Paducah?
No, I’ve never been to Kentucky. I hear there’s gonna be good BBQ, so I’m very excited.

Damien, you and Tourie put on quite a sexy show. It’s like you’re Barry White and Jimi Hendrix, but with a violin.
I’ve never heard that. That’s the cool thing about being an instrumentalist. The self-interpretation.

Well, it’s definitely hot. I bet women in your audiences just go crazy. 
Our shows are filled with a lot of energy and a lot of inspiration. We put everything out there on the stage. I love performing. It’s like my therapy.

OK, so tell us how you started playing the violin.
It was a required school program. Tourie started it first when he was in third grade, then when I got to third grade, it was my turn. I picked up the violin and just flew.

Did you know you were good, even in third grade?
From what my teacher said, they called me a child prodigy. When I was 9, they suggested that I audition for Julliard. I was the youngest kid in history to be accepted there. At the time, I didn’t understand what was happening. I just wanted to play.

So you went to Julliard and have been playing ever since?
No, I put it down for a while. I lost my way for a little bit.

Yes, I read that you took a walk on the wild side.
I took a walk on the real wild side!

What happened?
I got arrested when I was 14 and I was going to be sentenced as a juvenile for two years. It was stressing me out really, really bad. I wasn’t a bad kid — I was always a smart kid. But I wanted to do things that my mom didn’t want me to do. I gained 100 pounds and I lost a lot of self-confidence.

Then what happened?
I started playing basketball, which was always therapy for me. I lost 75 pounds and I looked in the mirror and I liked what I saw. That helped me get my confidence back. Then my case got thrown out and I took that as a chance to get back on the right path and get back in school. So I went to college, returned to my music and I haven’t looked back.

How old were you during all this?
I was 16.

When did you start playing with Tourie?
When I was 17. We started playing music on the streets of New York. We’d play on the subway trains. That’s how it got started.

Tell us about your love life!
I don’t really have one. Women need a lot of attention, and I’m really busy with our music. I can’t get into a relationship unless I can commit to someone. I like to give my all in everything I do. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.

But you’re open to dating?
I’m definitely open to dating. I love meeting new people. Life is too short to sit at home. I love life, and I love taking risks.

How do you meet cute gals?
Usually through other people. But I don’t like to date people in the industry. It just doesn’t work.

Why is that?
The scheduling doesn’t work out. Either I’m too busy or she’s too busy. I like a strong woman who’s doing it for herself — but one who’s not as busy as I am.

What’s an awesome date for you?
I don’t know — I’m really chill. I’m open to anything. I like a woman who can take charge. I’m a Gemini. I’m strong-minded and I can juggle a lot of things. I need a woman who can sort my head out, take the initiative and do things. If a woman can tell me we’re going to go here at this time, that’s fine with me. We’ll have a good time.

Do you always play the violin for the women you date?
I definitely do. That’s my way of roping them in. That’s my lasso.

No doubt it works! So what’s next for you two?
We’ll be performing on Dancing with the Stars on October 28 or November 3. And we’re doing a two-week stretch at Planet Hollywood. Then we’re going to Europe. So we have some really cool appearances coming up.

Well, you guys are just too cute. I can’t wait to see you perform.
It’s amazing how the audiences have grown and grown, and to see the impact our music has on people’s lives. It really worked out for us.