At the age of 27, this talented entertainer sure has accomplished a lot! From guest appearances on TV shows such as i-Carly and Greek, to starring in films such as Step Up 2 and 3, and You Got Served. He’s also toured with the likes of Beyonce and Mariah Carey as a backup dancer, and travelled the world teaching dance. You may also know him from the iPod ads and that’s just his past resume! Now starring on our favorite new show Glee, Portrait had a chat to Harry Shum Jr. and learnt a bit more about him, as well as finding out what else he has up his talented sleeves.

Harry Shum Jr. Photo credit: John Russo

Hi Harry. How are you? Thanks for taking the time to do this interview with us!
Hi. I’m good. How are you?

I’m good thanks! So first off, Glee has gotten its back 9 episodes order so we’ll be seeing a full 22 episodes for season one. Congratulations! How excited are you?
Thank you so much! Yeah I’m so happy that we can make some more and that people are really responding to it.

When do you guys go back to filming?
Right now they’re looking at possibly early next year. So there’s a little time to set up.

So you’ve just got down time between now and then?
Well I’m working on another project right now. It’s for an online series called LXD. So right now I’ve been working on that series in the meantime.

Okay cool. So the fifth episode of Glee has just aired. You play Mike Chang, one of the football players who joins Glee Club, will we get to see your character become a bit more involved with the storylines other than just singing and dancing in the background?
Right now I think that’s what we’re looking for. Right now there are so many characters in the Glee club so you know it’s going to take some time for everyone to kind of develop their characters and we’re going to see a lot more of everyone pull out and see what their character is and their background. So definitely I think we’ll see that.

And what were you like in high school? Can you relate to your character at all?
Yeah you know I kinda can. I had a really good high school experience. I joined all the APs and I did track and field. I did actually drama. You know I dabbed myself in everything and dancing, you know, became a big part of my high school years. There’s a way I can relate. You know I watch all the episodes and it’s so funny, the angst when you’re a teen – you can definitely relate to that.

So let’s talk about the music on Glee for a moment. Glee features music from a range of genres and era. Are there any particular songs that would make you jump up and down with excitement if they were performed on the show?
Well we kinda did. We just aired “The Rhodes Not Taken” where Kristin Chenoweth is a guest star. But we did our favourite song which is “Somebody to Love”, which I can listen to that song in repeat over and over again. So we did do that. There’s plenty of songs you know I would love but that kinda...I screamed up and down when we had the opportunity to sing that.

Oh yeah, I think that’s one of my favourite ones that I’ve seen performed on the show. Just watching that scene – I got goosebumps actually!
Aww that is awesome! It’s a great song. Obviously Freddie Mercury – just that song alone is great. So being able to make that into a show choir is just so mad. It’s awesome.

So would it be safe to say that that’s your favourite number that you’ve been involved with on the show? Or is there anymore coming up that just tops it?
I would have to say that this one is my favourite. There’ve been episodes where there are other ones that are kinda close to it. There’s definitely...we do do “Proud Mary” and that is definitely up there as well.

Glee has such a great ensemble cast. Is there anyone that you’re particularly close to in the cast or crew?
I’m really good friends with Amber Riley. Her personality is just so great to be around. You know we laugh and joke about the same things. And there’s a lot of her character that’s in her. (laughs) Which is great and really funny. So, I mean the whole cast, we get along with each other and we hang out even after we’re done filming. Which is kind of - it doesn’t really happen in a lot of shows. So it’s really nice to have that.

That’s pretty cool. So what would you say is the best thing about being a part of Glee then?
Man, to be able to get up in the morning and sing, dance, and do what we love – you know, a lot of shows aren’t able to do that. There’s a lot of shows that are comedy, but we have everything. You have comedy, drama, and you’re able to sing and dance. So that’s one of my favourite things, and I feel very lucky and blessed to be a part of it.

So you’ve done TV with Glee and guest appearances on shows such as Greek, iCarly and Zoe 101. You’ve also done films such as Step Up 2 and 3, Centre Stage 2, You Got Served. Do you have a preference for television or film? Is there are real difference between the two?
Yeah there is a big difference. To be honest with you, I like doing both. Kinda the best of both worlds because television is really fast paced, everything is just happening so fast. While film you have a couple months time to shoot the whole movie. So you get a little more time to develop a character, while TV is happening so fast. So what I do like about TV is that most of the time it’s centred in my home, which is LA. But there’s good and bad in both, and at the end of the day I love to do both.

Harry Shum Jr. Photo credit: John Russo

Are there any roles that you’ve done that you’ve particularly enjoyed?
I actually did uh... (laughs). It’s funny. I did an i-Carly guest role. I played the nemesis of i-Carly and we try and sabotage them and their whole them trying to get to Japan. So that was a lot of fun trying to sabotage them. We got to do martial art stunts and it was a lot of fun.

Ooh martial arts. Pretty cool.
Yeah, yeah, you know I got a little bit in there!

So are you trained in martial arts or anything?
You know I was when I was younger and then I stopped for a little bit. I feel that things that you learn when you’re young, you kinda have it in you. So you can kinda bust it out, you just need a little refreshing.

Oh definitely. You’ve also danced with some pretty big stars such as Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Jennifer Lopez, and Jessica Simpson just to name a few, have there been any in particular that you’ve really enjoyed working with?
My favourite artist and it’s because we went on a tour called the “Ladies First” tour and I was dancing for Beyonce, and they had Missy Elliott, and Alicia Keys. And the best part of it, other than being on stage and dancing in front of thousands of people, was to actually every night go outside in the audience wherever I wanted and listen to Alicia Keys just do her thing. And you know, to me I felt like that was my soundtrack everyday and I felt so lucky to be a part of that.

Pretty sweet life!
(laughs) Yeah, you know. I’m lucky. I’m lucky.

That you are. Now you’re also known as the i-Pod guy. How does that feel? Did you ever think at the start that it’d be somewhat a defining role for you?
You know it’s funny because how I got involved with i-Pod is that I won...You know Apple has its ideas with its silhouette thing, come check it out, see if you can do it. And I tested for it and it became this huge phenomenon! And I had a great working relationship that kept bringing me back. And it’s crazy. Like even today – I don’t know if you’ve seen this but Sesame Street spoofing i-Pod ad where Elmo and Big Bird are dancing. To me right there and then, you know if it’s on Sesame Street, it’s a phenomenon. So you know it’s really really cool to be a part of that. And last thing I want to say is that kids get more excited to hear I’m in the i-Pod ad than they are like on the TV show or dancing for an artist. They go nuts when they find out that I did a lot of i-Pod ads. It’s pretty cool.

Do you get stopped on the street for like ‘oh my God! Hi! You’re the i-Pod guy!’?
(laughs) I don’t know about that. sometimes I do when I go out to dinner and the TVs are playing. Because I just did one – one of the i-Pod nano ones, people kind of get a second take on me. So it’s pretty funny.

So backtracking a bit, how did you get into dancing and ultimately performing? Rumour has it that you began with no professional training but look at you now!
(laughs) Well back in junior high, and even in the early years of my high school years, I was doing a lot of plays and you know doing a lot of debate and I did a lot of acting. And dancing was never something I wanted to be involved in until I saw a dance team perform in our high school and my roommate - I mean not my roommate - my friend, he actually dared me to join dance team. So I was like “hey why not?” you know, just thought it’d be fun. And I ended up making it and we ended up performing at all these different schools. You know, for fun. Then a couple of body rolls after that, girls started screaming, I started thinking “hey this might be something that I might look into”. And I started training a lot. And from there yeah it became a passion and something that I love to do.

Cool. So what were your parents like when you realised this was something you wanted to do. Were they supportive?
(laughs) “You’re doing what?!” You know in the beginning stages – because they didn’t know. Traditional Asian/Chinese parents, they don’t really know this world, entertainment world, that you can actually if you do it right, can actually make a good living and you know go on and live a good life. But it took them watching a few times to gain full support off them but now I have their full support.

That’s good. So did you go to college or did you just keep doing the dancing thing after high school?
I did. I did a couple of semesters at San Francisco State University. And there from dancing I kind of took a leap of faith. And actually, you know I saw a friend, he danced with P!NK and Michael Jackson and he had this resume. And I didn’t know anything about the dance world, or just auditioning. Because I was planning to go down to LA anyway to pursue an acting career, but dancing kind of took over and I started booking – I booked my first tour the first week I moved out here. And then from there it kinda just rolls on you know, to different jobs. And doing things that I never thought I would ever be a part of like being part of an i-Pod ad, so yeah.

So do you have any siblings?
I do. I have two older sisters and they live in the Bay area.

Okay, so growing up did you and your sisters put on little shows around the house or anything?
Actually I would put on the shows and they would be my biggest fans and supporters. I would run around with a cape – a He-man cape because I didn’t have a Superman cape, and actually play out Superman scenes from the movies. And I would do a lot of little short comedy acts for them. So it was fun times. That was how we would pass the time a lot of times.

So when you’re a kid you aspire to be something when you grow up, what did you aspire to be? Did you ever picture that you’d be doing this?
You know it’s funny you know, when I was younger, my parents took me to a therapist because they thought – because I was really shy when I was younger. I was really shy and didn’t talk to anybody you know. You know if I didn’t have something to say I didn’t say anything, and they took me to a therapist. I remember doing a test and them asking me a whole bunch of questions. It’s funny, it took me a while to get out of my shell, but I never really thought that I would be… I love movies, I love going to the movies, and that’s something that’s always been a big part of my life. And something I felt inside that I wanted to do but I didn’t know how I was going to go about doing it.

So you’ve also taught dance classes as well. What’s that like?
A lot of times even when I was in high school I taught a lot of the other boys. Same scenario kind of in Glee, there’s a couple of football players that end up joining because dancing became cool. Me and my two friends, we joined and it was this cool thing to do. And from there I’d spend – you know, I had a passion for teaching dance. And then I ended up getting asked to join this group called Dance Explosion which is this big convention that teaches thousands of kids each weekend, different weekends in different cities. So I had the opportunity to do that for two years and it had been great – going all over the country, and actually went to Australia to teach a couple of times. It’s just a great experience to be able to teach kids and you know seeing the joy of dancing that’s coming out in just being able to dance.

That’s awesome. It sounds really fulfilling.
It is. You know it’s fun to see thousands of kids in one big room on your own platform, with them screaming and doing the exact same movement that you’re teaching them. It’s great. It’s a great thing.

So you play a footballer on Glee, but I believe you’ve got a bit of skills in other sports. Tell us a bit about that.
You know I did play tennis in high school. I joined a league in tennis and track and field I did. Pole vaulting, and a lot of the relay. And I’m just getting into golf. I’m hoping to be as good as one of those people...

Like Tiger Woods?
You know, I don’t know if I can get there to where he’s at. (laughs) Plus he’s the first athlete to make a billion dollars, so he’s really good. But for me it’s more of a hobby. You know, golf is, hopefully I can take it to another level. But at this point you know, if I can hit the ball straight, I’m happy. (laughs)

Now those who know you or follow you on Twitter know that you’re a bit of a foodie. So do you have any particular favourite foods?
Yeah I do. I am big on food with lots of flavouring. You know I love flavourful foods, and particularly Asian food. I went on this trip to China two years ago and the Chinese food there is insane compared to – it was my first time there – so obviously to Chinese food here. The food is just insane there but right now I’m on a , obviously a sushi kick and that’s something I’ll always love. I can do that anytime of the day whether it be midnight or even in the morning. I’m weird. (laughs) I can eat that in the morning.

So what about weird dishes? Is there anything you like to eat that others think is strange?
Um. Well I actually like. Okay, on my pizza – do you want to hear this? On my pizza - people think this is gross - I like mushroom, pineapple, and tomato.

That’s interesting.
(laughs) I remember my parents used to look at me crazy because I’d be like ‘oh yeah, I want tomatoes, mushrooms, and pineapples’, and they’d be like, ‘okay you can get half of it and we’ll get something else’.

I guess it’s one of those things where you can’t knock it til you’ve tried it...
Yeah. Yeah. And everyone has different taste buds! I get it. And it’s something – I like to mix my food around. I mean a lot of people like to separate them. You know I like to – it’s a melting pot. I like mixing it.

So is there anything you’ve tried nu-uh and then decided never again?
You know umi? I’ve tried umi – sea urchin - and I just can’t do it. I don’t know if I tried it in the wrong place. It tastes like...sand with paste - I can’t even describe it - with mustard? Like hot mustard? It was just really gross. But I’m a firm believer that there’s always some way if it’s prepared in a certain way, there’s always some other way that it could be prepared that you’d actually like it. I’m open to try it again if it’s done at a good spot.

Fair enough. So you’ve got a pretty interesting heritage. You’re Chinese and you were born in San Jose in Costa Rica, and you were then raised in California. So are you multi lingual or anything and do you have any more international connections?
I was born in Costa Rica so my first language was Spanish. Then I had to, I moved around – when I was five years old I moved to San Francisco and I had to learn English. Then my parents put me in Chinese classes so that – when you’re five and you’re learning all different languages, you’re bound to lose one of them. And Spanish started to go away a little bit because I had to learn Chinese and English, but I still understand Spanish and can have a simple conversation. But I also speak Cantonese and obviously English. But yeah it’s funny because in my household, my mum, she mixes it up. She speaks Spanish and then like Chinese and then English in one sentence and it leaves you a little confused when we were kids.

Wow. So I guess, with all the international connections, is there anywhere in the world you’d like to travel?
Yeah, you know I want to go to Greece. I love travelling and I think dance has taken me to a lot of different countries, but definitely Greece and surprisingly enough, I haven’t been to Japan yet. And I would love to go to Japan.

I hear you have your own companies or involved with some companies – ShmaSH Productions and ONE8ONE6 INC. Tell us about that and how you’re involved with them.
Yeah. ShmaSH Productions I started with a partner of mine. We produce basically a ton of dance media and we produce this DVD called Krump Session One, which is kind of a construction of krump which stars Little Feast if you’re familiar with him from So You Think You Can Dance. I think he was in So You Think You Can Dance Australia and in the US and in Canada. He’s the co-creator of Krump. He produced this DVD with constructional krump and then the basics of it. And also the choreography and also a bit of the history of it as well - which you can buy it online on www.krumpsessionone.com And we produce short media, online, and it’s something that I definitely have a passion for. Whether it’s just being in front of the screen but also behind the screen as well. You know, getting my creative outlet and trying to produce things that I’m really passionate about.

So if you weren’t involved in the entertainment industry what would you do?
I would probably be editor at some gadget magazine. (laughs) I’m a big gadget freak. I love gadgets. You know taking them apart and finding out what it does. I even have my own you know little personal reviews of gadgets. So that’s probably what I would be doing, I’d be doing something in the technology world.

Okay. So when you said you went to college, did you study something to do with technology?
I did, in a sense I was getting into that. I wanted to learn the business side of it, so I was out to study International Business. Because I knew...if I wanted to put together anything and work in the gadget world, I also wanted to know the business side of it. So that and also I studied Cinema as well. So you know, I was kinda in the middle and I didn’t know which one I wanted to do yet. I was making, you know, making my parents happy as well. (laughs)

So I noticed on your website you’ve got quite a bit of photography posted up and they’re really cool. Do you have any other hidden talents?
Hidden talents...um well I can cook. I cook. I guess that is a talent. I learnt that from my mom. You know, we used to own a restaurant back in the hometown I grew up in. And I learnt a lot about cooking. Cooking a lot of Latin food and obviously Chinese as well. That’s definitely one of talents. And also writing. I love writing. Right now I just worked on selling a treatment with Kevin Tancharoen over at Universal so that’s something I’m also interested in as well.

Are you involved in any charities or organisations?
Yeah I am with Invisible Children.

Oh awesome!
Yeah Invisible Children. And it’s funny because Jon Chu, which is the director of Step Up 2, he’s good friends with the founders of Invisible Children. And I got involved through that, like through that family. And I still want to make a trip out to Uganda. I just love what they’re doing. Putting together the media and new media and making it kind of - you know, it’s hip to know what’s going on. Which is why they’re doing so well. You know, and I think it’s definitely a great cause – to help stop the war and the child soldiers.

It’s definitely inspiring, just the way they’ve gotten young people involved with it, through like you said, the media and stuff like that.
It is! And seeing thousands of people doing things for a cause - you know sleeping out in cardboard just to make a point. And I mean they made it on Oprah so it reaches more and more people and that’s what these causes are for. The more people that know about it, the more that can be done. So I think that’s a great thing that they’re doing. How they’re using it to reach people.

Well good on you for being involved in that...So apart from Glee, what are your plans for the future? I know you’ve got LXD coming up so tell us about that and any other projects you have coming up.
LXD is a – I don’t know if you know about it, but it’s an online series that reaches kind of the origins of how these dancers got their dancing abilities. And it does it in a classical way, where you know heroes meet dance. So there’s going to be storyline and plot, and it’s great to see dancers be the characters and you know, not always having to dance in the background all the time. And really see what these guys are about. And we can have fun with it and also create fiction as to how they got their abilities, whether it be popping, breaking, or ballet, or even jazz. So that’s something that’s going to launch by the end of the year. And also I did Step Up 3. That should be coming out next year. and right now I’m also trying to just learn my craft and get better at what I do. Whether it be dancing or acting.

Okay. Now I don’t know if this is true but I read somewhere that you’re involved with Arcana, a sci fi film?
Yeah, that’s the film I sold with Kevin Tancharoen who’s the director of Fame. Yeah we came together and we put this treatment together and had this idea of, kind of using…It’s a supernatural - supernatural powers kind of meets 300 and Bladerunner. You know, we kind of gotta keep it down on the wraps. We’re still developing it right now, but it’s definitely something that’s going to involve a lot of aspects of martial arts. Even a little bit of dance, which is going to be really really unique.

It sounds really really cool. I can’t wait for that! So you’ve accomplished a heck of a lot at such a young age, what’s the secret to your success?
Um secret (laughs), secret. I don’t really have – it’s not really a secret! I guess for me, it’s really staying grounded and focused. And when you say focus, balanced. I feel a lot of people can accomplish a lot of things when they put their minds to it, but I feel balance is important. Because you as a human being, you got to enjoy life. And it could be enjoying life through work, through your friends, through your relationships and through family. To me, that’s one of the most important things, to stay grounded. And I think I’m, I’m in it for the longevity and I want to entertain people as well as have my own life as well. I think balance and being grounded is definitely the two things that help me get to where I am today.

Very wise. Do you have a motto that you live by?
Yeah I always say that life is simple – people just make it complicated.

Well put! So what would you like to accomplish in life?
I would love for, I think what I would love to accomplish is being able to entertain because I feel that’s my job you know. And outside of even the entertainment industry, just entertain people and make a difference in someone’s life. Whether it be small or really large. So I think that’s what I want to accomplish because I feel it can dab into different aspects of your life. So I would love to change or entertain people. And that’s something I think I will do for the rest of my life.

Before we wrap up, how can fans contact you? I know you have a Twitter...
Yeah I have a Twitter. It’s www.twitter.com/iharryshum kinda like the i-Pod “i” and from there I also have my website: www.harryshumjr.com. And last but not least, if you haven’t seen the LXD trailer please take a look at it. You will love it, I promise you! It’s www.thelxd.com and you can check out the trailer there.

Cool. We’ll check that out! So thanks so much for talking with us today Harry. We’re HUGE Glee fans. We look forward to seeing more of you on the show and we also wish you all the best for your projects outside of Glee!
Thank you so much! It was wonderful talking to you.