After more than six decades in the spotlight, Donny Osmond, who turns 65 on Dec. 9, has started a new chapter in his life, headlining his first-ever solo residency, “Donny,” at Harrah’s in Las Vegas.
Show business is in Osmond’s DNA. He made his television debut at the age of five on “The Andy Williams Show,” performing with his brothers, Alan, Wayne, Merrill and Jay as part of the Osmond Brothers singing group. In the early 1970s he became a teen idol, frequently appearing on the covers of Tiger Beat and 16 Magazine. He later found success with his sister, Marie Osmond, hosting the televised “Donny & Marie Show” and enjoying an 11-year Las Vegas residency with Marie at The Flamingo Hotel.
Photo By Lee Cherry
In Osmond’s current residency, he turns the highlights of his legendary career into a 90-minute musical extravaganza, a show The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Best of Las Vegas named Best Headliner, New Act/Show and Best Resident Performer for 2021.
“It’s the ultimate Broadway production,” Osmond says. “We’ve got the best dancers and musicians, video panels, lasers, and I even perform a rap song.”
Wait, what? Yes, you read that correctly, Osmond, who first rose to fame with pop ballads such as “Puppy Love,” is now rapping.
“I call it an auto-rap-ography,” Osmond says with a laugh. “It’s a rap song that I wrote to sum up my entire career.”
He also offers tributes in his show to Williams by singing a rendition of “Moon River,” and to Marie with the Beatles song, “In My Life.” One of the most compelling parts of his stage show is a segment where Osmond invites the audience to select a song for him to sing from one of his 65 albums. If he doesn’t know all the lyrics to the selected song, Osmond isn’t afraid to improvise.
It’s that self-deprecating attitude that has made Osmond a favorite with audiences.
“When I was 14, I met Elvis Presley for the first time,” he recalls. “He was an amazing entertainer on stage, but after the show, he left his ego on stage and was just a regular guy.”
Photo By Denise Truscello
Osmond has strived to maintain that same authenticity in his own life. Over the years, he’s proven to be a musical chameleon with the uncanny ability to successfully reinvent himself. He’s appeared on Broadway in “Beauty and the Beast,” “Little Johnny Jones” and “Donny & Marie: A Broadway Christmas” and starred in the stage and film version of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in the title role. He also sang “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” in the 1998 Disney film, “Mulan.”
Despite his many successes, Osmond is the first to admit his life hasn’t always been a bed of roses. The 80s were a lean time in his career, when he briefly considered leaving the entertainment field. He’s candid about overcoming a social anxiety disorder in the 90s and grieving the deaths of his mom, Olive, in 2004 and his father, George, “I try to be a glass half-full kind of guy, even in the face of adversity,” Osmond says. “I strive to lead a life of optimism.”
Photo By Denise Truscello
He credits his family and his faith with helping him stay grounded. His extended family are all members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, informally known as the Mormon church, and Osmond has a residence in Provo, Utah, not far from the church’s famous Salt Lake Temple, where he married his wife Debbie in 1978.
The couple have five sons and 13 grandchildren.
So, what’s the secret to their 44-years of wedded bliss?
“Whenever we have an argument, she’s always right,” Osmond says with a laugh. “I also think it’s important to treat your spouse the way you want to be treated, with respect and kindness.”
Osmond maintains that same closeness with his sons and grandchildren and has strived to give his family a sense of normalcy he didn’t always have growing up.
Photo By Denise Truscello
“I spent my childhood touring and I remember one show in Toronto in 1971 where Michael Jackson peeked out from behind the stage curtains and said hi,” Osmond says. “We were both kids and performing with our brothers. In some ways, we had parallel lives, we both just wanted to play and be kids.”
Over the years, Osmond kept in touch with Jackson and in one of their last conversations before Jackson’s death in 2009, Osmond invited Jackson and his kids to visit Provo.
“He said that sounded good, but he never made it to Utah,” Osmond says. “The day he died, I lost a friend and the world lost an incredibly talented singer.”
Today, Osmond says he and Debbie love nothing more than spending time with their children and their own families.
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“We love to have the grandkids visit our house and I’ve planted a fruit tree in our yard for each of them,” he says. “There’s pears, apples, peaches and plums, and the kids get excited when they visit and get to pick and enjoy the fruit from their respective trees.”
Osmond’s spacious backyard provides him with a source of joy. There are waterfalls, amazing views of the nearby mountains, a swimming pool, a small vineyard and even a recording studio where Osmond records his albums.
Last year, he released his 65th album, “Start Again,” featuring the EDM-influenced song, “Who.” While he has plans for a 66th album, Osmond would also like to produce albums for up-and-coming artists.
“There’s so much talent out there,” he says. “I’d love to serve as a mentor to younger artists in the same way Andy Williams did for me.”
One up and coming star he’s offered advice to is his own son, Chris, who turns 32 this month.
“Chris has a great voice and is an amazing songwriter,” Osmond says. “I’ve told him that he not only has to work hard to become a success but also to maintain a singing career.”
Osmond admits his own career has been “a wild ride” and he’s appreciative that his sold-out shows attract a combination of older fans who grew up listening to his music and younger fans who remember him winning season nine of “Dancing with the Stars” in 2009 or coming in as runner-up to rapper T-Pain on the reality TV show, “The Masked Singer” in 2019.
Many of Osmond’s lifelong fans are celebrities in their own right. After actress Jennifer Garner admitted she had a childhood crush on Osmond, he surprised her by showing up to wish her a happy 50th birthday this past April.
“Someone from her management office knows someone on my team, and they thought it would be fun if I called to wish her a happy birthday,” Osmond recalls with a laugh. “I said, ‘How about if I wish her a happy birthday in person?’ and surprised her while she was having a birthday lunch with friends.”
As Garner’s friends showed her a video of Osmond singing to her, he snuck up behind her and began singing live. The actress was flabbergasted.
“I couldn’t believe it when that video went viral and everyone started talking about it,” Osmond says. “We spent over an hour talking and laughing over lunch and one part that wasn’t captured on the video was actor Don Cheadle was sitting at a nearby table and when I was leaving he stopped me and said, ‘You did a great job, Donny,’ and I told him he was next and I’d be performing at his birthday next year!”