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I asked Dawn when it was she first noticed that Zachary, their first child, had inherited their musical talent. She told me that she used to sing notes to him as a baby, and when he was about a year old, he started repeating the notes back to her...perfectly!
When Zachary was 3 years old, he was at a matinee performance watching his Dad perform in a band fronted by Nashville recording artist, Greg Hanna (originally from Cornwall, Ontario and also well-known throughout Ontario). Greg announced from the stage that anyone who wanted to come up on stage and sing could do so -- and, totally stunning his parents who had no idea he would ever do such a thing, Zachary jumped off his chair, ran to the stage and delivered a great rendition of “Pop-A-Top” by Alan Jackson, handling the microphone like a pro and singing with no fear at all!
Greg Hanna, who is very impressed with Zachary’s singing (as are other artists with whom Zachary has performed) was married last summer and chose Zachary (out of all the other singers he knows) to sing at his wedding. As Dawn Peddie reports, Zachary sang “Love Me Tender” at the wedding and “there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.”
After jumping on that stage, at age 3, Zachary performed from time to time in public, mostly singing country style songs. All that changed when, at age 4, he went camping with his grandparents for the weekend. As it happened, ETA Wayne Creeden was performing at the campgrounds -- and he obviously made a lasting impression on Zachary. At the end of the weekend, Zachary came home and asked his parents, “Have you ever heard of that man named Elvis?” He also wanted to see pictures of Elvis Presley and to hear Elvis’ music and songs.....and the seed was planted!
The next year, when he was 5 years old, Zachary performed as “Elvis” for the first time, competing in the Youth (l6 and under) division at the Collingwood Elvis festival and winning first place. Since then he has also competed in the Junior Divisions at several other Elvis fests (including the Brantford fest, a London, Ontario contest, and David Lee’s “Elvis in Dixieland” in Alabama) placing 2nd in all of them. On the way home from one contest, after all the ETA’s had performed on stage together in a final “big jam” Zachary was in tears. Dawn was afraid he was upset about something, but instead, he was crying tears of happinesss at having the opportunity to be on stage and sing Elvis songs “with all those men.”
Zachary has also continued to perform in public, and has been featured in “legends” type shows in the Toronto area, where his fellow performers (adults) have marveled at his ability to sing on pitch at such a young age.
I asked Dawn about some of the feedback she and Zachary have received and she said that she often hears that Zachary is “such a nice kid,” “he sings really well,” is “ very talented,” and says Zachary is often told to “stick with it” and that “cute” is good for only so long, but his “talent” will last a long time.
Dawn and Ryan have also told Zachary that it’s great to “really like Elvis” but to sing “like Zachary” and to “be Zachary,” to do a good job when he performs, and to be sure to practice.
Zachary is a real Elvis fan these days too. He is collecting Elvis memorabilia and his whole bedroom is “Elvis.” He was also thrilled to visit Memphis, Graceland, and Tupelo last summer. Dawn says Zachary is pretty laid back and doesn’t get too excited about anything, but when their car pulled in front of Graceland, Zachary was about ready to explode with excitement. Going through Graceland, Zachary was fascinated by the Elvis costumes on display and spent a long time walking around looking at them --although, as he says, he loved all of what he saw at “Elvis’ house.”
This year, in Grade 2, Zachary has an “awesome teacher,” who has encouraged Zachary to sing. On “Hawaiian Day,” he sang “Rock a Hula” and on Valentine’s Day he sang “Love Me Tender.” Zachary also has many other interests such as hockey, swimming, and tae kwon do. Dawn says that, above all, they strive to make sure he remains a “normal kid” who is well-liked by the other children.
When Zachary gets calls for bookings, they always ask him first if he wants to go. If he does, they make a family effort (parents, and both set of grandparents) to watch Zachary’s performances. Dawn also keeps busy making all of Zachary’s costumes. He now knows about 30-40 songs, and is currently having fun working on his “dance moves.” Dawn hopes he always sings (whether it be Elvis songs or other songs) as he has the singing talent and loves to sing. Zachary says he also likes Ray Charles (and was impressed that Ray sang the same song as Elvis...”I Got A Woman”). He is a big “Metallica” fan, too. He continues to go every year to see ETA Wayne Creeden and is an admirer of fellow St. Thomas, Ontario ETA, Roy LeBlanc, who has also encouraged Zachary.
And finally... I also had a few questions for Zachary and here are his answers!
Zachary says he doesn’t have a favourite Elvis song as he likes them all. And when asked, “What do you think about when you are singing on stage?” he says that even though he loves all the people and some of the audiences are really big, he just pretends that he’s in his bedroom singing to his mom. When asked what makes him special, he says, “I think it’s because I’m a nice kid who thinks about other people.” He likes Elvis because “Elvis was very talented”......and if he had a chance to talk to Elvis he would ask him “if I could spend the night at Graceland.”
Zachary has several upcoming performances in the works, and he will also be performing again at the Collingwood and Brantford Elvis fests this summer, along with many other children and young people. If you have the chance, be sure to come out and lend your support and encouragement to the newest generation of Elvis singers (who, by the way, are big admirers of not only Elvis Presley, but also the grown-up ETA’s).
Many thanks to Zachary Peddie for this interview!
Contact info:
Ryan/Dawn Peddie: rpeddie0614@rogers.com
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