Leslie Odom Jr. Won't Tell You Why He Named His First Original Solo Album Mr

Tony winner Leslie Odom Jr. has had a busy three years. After winning a Tony Award for his portrayal of Aaron Burr in Hamilton, he released his self-titled album, starred in Murder on the Orient Express, appeared on TV's One Dollar and is currently earning great acclaim for both his first original solo album Mr and his turn as William Still in the just-released film Harriet. Odom Jr. stopped by Broadway.com's #LiveatFive to talk with Paul Wontorek about all his projects and revealed what show would bring him back to Broadway in a heartbeat.

While Mr marks Odom Jr.'s third studio album, it's the first time he's singing his own words. "A lot of these songs started as journal entries," he said. "It's deeply personal and I've been working on it for quite a long time. I'm really excited for people to hear it. Whenever I realize that it's going to be out in the world, I get butterflies like it's opening night. I feel so great."

Odom Jr. didn't want to limit the creativity of his listeners, which is why the explanation behind the album name will be kept a mystery. "It has a personal meaning for me that one day I'll maybe talk about," he said. "As an artist, you work on these things and then sit with them for a long while. The best thing about art is that it's created on a conscious and subconscious level. The audience can tell you thinks about the work that you didn't even know was there and I don't want to stop people's imaginations from working by telling them what I want them to hear. I'm curious to hear what people think 'Mr' means."

With 13 songs totaling 40 minutes, Mr allows fans to have a deeper insight into who Odom Jr. is as both an artist and a father. "My daughter Lucy is on the record," he said. "There was a song that she loves from the beginning when we were making demos and she kept asking to hear it again. [Spouse] Nicolette [Robinson] took a video of us hanging out in the bedroom one day, and I included the audio from that video on the song."

In the new year, Odom Jr. is getting ready to hit the road for his first bus tour to take his songs across the country. Although he is currently "very excited" about bus living, there's one thing that would make him ditch the tour. "I don't think this will ever happen but I want to do Purlie," Odom Jr. said. "I'd do Purlie anything. I would cancel everything and come back to Broadway in Purlie tomorrow. I really love that show and I certainly think the message is timely. But if not, we'll make something original. I'd come back to Broadway in a New York minute."

Listen to Mr, available everywhere now!

Watch the full #LiveatFive episode below!