Dalton is most recently known for being one of the Top 3 finalists on the 15th and final season of the Fox Television hit show, American Idol. Dalton began performing at the age of 12 when he formed his first band Fly Away Hero, which released two EPs (Fly Away Hero, Now Boarding.) At 14, he was contacted by a casting director that discovered his band through YouTube and asked him to audition for a new act called IM5. The principles were Simon Fuller, Perez Hilton and Jaime King. From over 30,000 nationwide auditions, Dalton was chosen for the group.

Over the next 4 years, Dalton worked with many well-known producers, songwriters and choreographers, including Toby Gad, Harmony Samuels, Rock Mafia, Nappytabs, and Meghan Trainor. At 18, Dalton reunited with his childhood band Fly Away Hero, who landed themselves at #17 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart after releasing a new EP titled Lost and Found that debuted at #22 on the Alternative charts and included their song Hercules, written by Dalton, which remains the #1 selling song on the EP.

MiLLENNiAL caught up with Dalton to learn more about his music and where he sees himself going in 2018.

Describe your musical style.

The term we’ve all been using is alternative pop, but that term is so nebulous now I don’t really like using it. It definitely leans pretty pop, but it has some 80’sish influences and organic drums and stuff. So really I don’t quite know but I’d love it if someone could give me a name for it. 

How did you get started as an artist?

When I was a kid, like 11 or something, I started having these super weird seizures because of the combination of medicines I was taking at the time. I missed so many days of school that I had to be pulled out, which resulted in a lot of bored Dalton time. Then my friend called and told me about the School of Rock and how I should be going there since I couldn’t go to real school. So I checked it out and it turned out I really liked playing music so here I am. 

Tell us about your new album? What themes or messages does it convey? 

The album talks a little bit about everything that’s been going on with me lately. It talks about the show, and then my fear of getting old and dying, and then abusive relationships, and then totally cool relationships. It’s a bunch of stuff. 

Who does your music typically attract and what is your hope for expanding your audience? 

It actually brings in a pretty wide group of people. It’s funny like at shows I’ll see an 80 year old next to a 14 year old. I don’t know how that happened, but it did. 

Which artists do you draw inspiration from and how would you like to model your career? 

In a perfect world, I want to have the same career as Diogenes of Sinope.

To learn more about Dalton, follow him on Soundcloud, Facebook, and Instagram .