Harry Connick Jr. Talks New Orleans, The Perfect Po'Boy, and His New Album

Grammy and Emmy-award-winning musician and actor Harry Connick Jr. joins host Sid Evans on Biscuits & Jam to talk about growing up in New Orleans, his new spiritual album, and how he and his daughter have shown their gratitude to essential workers across the country over the last year.

Get to Know Harry Connick Jr.

A star of music, television, film, and Broadway, Harry Connick Jr. trained under legendary pianist ​Ellis Marsalis ​and became a household name in the '90s with crossover hit songs like "It Had to Be You." A winner of multiple Grammys and Emmys, he's starred in films like Hope Floats and New In Town, and on television's Will & Grace and American Idol. In 2005, in the wake of damage and loss in his hometown caused by Hurricane Katrina, Harry led the fundraising charge to get New Orleans back on its feet. On today's show, Harry discusses his new album, Alone With My Faith, made up of spiritual standards and his own songs about faith that speak directly to the struggles our country has managed this past year.

What Harry Connick Jr. Talks About in This Episode

• Growing up in New Orleans
• His favorite po' boy and the food culture of New Orleans
• His new spiritual album, Alone With My Faith
• Losing musician mentor Ellis Marsalis

Quotes From Harry Connick Jr.

"I​t was a huge part without my even knowing it. I remember coming home from school and on the days that my dad might have been home early or on a weekend, and he'd have a dozen crabs that he would be picking the meat out of so he could make gumbo. Or we'd eat things like red beans or shrimp remoulade or po' boys. That is just what we grew up with. And so it wasn't until I moved out ... that I realized that it's not that food was worse in other places. I, I just don't think it was as culturally important as it is in New Orleans."

"I needed to connect with people. And even though I was in my house and there was nobody here, I felt that speaking through the camera was connecting me with people who were going through the same thing. That's the interesting thing to me about this pandemic is that if, if you ... have a tragedy in your family ... I can pray for you and, and try to empathize, but I can't quite experience it from your point of view and vice versa. But this pandemic is something that we all share almost identically."

"The man that I have become and that I continue to try to be, which is, you know, better and more humble, a better father, better husband. Those types of things, Father Richard had a big influence in me on. To be able to draw upon my faith in a time like this when I think any of your listeners who happen to subscribe to the notion of faith, I think we all share this common experience."

About Biscuits & Jam

In the South, talking about food is personal. It's a way of sharing your history, your family, your culture, and yourself. Each week Sid Evans, editor-in-chief of Southern Living, sits down with celebrity musicians to hear stories of how they grew up, what inspired them, and how they've been shaped by Southern culture. Sid takes us back to some of their most cherished memories and traditions, the family meals they still think about, and their favorite places to eat on the road. Tune in every Tuesday for Season 2.

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Get a transcript of the full interview with Harry Connick Jr.