TEDDY Geiger is the latest singer-songwriter to follow in the footsteps of John Mayer, but the shaggy heartthrob has a leg up on the other youngsters trying to break into the pop world.
Signed to Columbia Records, the 17-year-old from Rochester has been hurled into the spotlight, playing the role of a rookie musician, Wayne, on the new series “Love Monkey.”
On the show, indie label exec Tom Farrell, played by Tom Cavanagh (“Ed”), discovers Geiger’s character in a Michigan dive bar. Later, the two embark on a rock ‘n’ roll tour of Manhattan, including CBGB and the Chelsea Hotel, during which the hopeful star tests the label rep’s rock authenticity by asking if he knows Sid Vicious’ real name.
In reality, Geiger, a self-taught musician, was discovered after he became a finalist on VH1’s “In Search of the New Partridge Family.” When he signed a label deal last year, he toasted with Pepsi instead of champagne.
Geiger’s debut disc, “Underage Thinking,” is due out on Valentine’s Day, just in time to pull the heartstrings of teens all over America. In addition to singing, he plays guitar, piano, bass and drums on the album.
The Post caught up with the blue-eyed, soft-spoken Geiger – who sprinkles his sentences heavily with “like” and lightly with “actually” and “kinda” – at a Midtown diner. He was taking a break from a sound check for “Get This Party Started,” a new MTV reality series with “Laguna Beach” star Kristin Cavallari, who appears in Geiger’s video “For You I Will (Confidence).”
All that media synergy is a far cry from an all-boys high school in Rochester. Geiger seems to be enjoying the ride.
Q: Where did you watch the “Love Monkey” premiere?
A: I watched it at my house in Rochester with a couple of friends and my parents. It’s their house – I live with my parents.
Q: Have you graduated from high school?
A: Yeah, I’m actually taking my Regents and kinda finishing up this week.
Q: You were in a couple of bands in high school. What kind of music?
A: Both were kinda like pop rock. With the first one, the leader of the band loved Oasis, so it was a hard-core Oasis-like band. I didn’t mind it. I liked Oasis.
Q: Did you go to your prom?
A: I went to my junior prom. I can’t go to the senior one, because I’m still not technically attending the same school. And I go to an all-boys school, so unless one of my friends brings me I won’t go. My mom thinks I will care [about missing it] in, like, 10 years. I was, like, if I pass this [“Love Monkey”] up and then just went to my senior year, I’d look back 10 years from now and be like, “Why didn’t I pursue that?”
Q: Before “Love Monkey,” did you know what Sid Vicious’ real name was?
A: No, I had no clue. But now I do – John Simon Ritchie.
Q: Had you ever been to CBGB before?
A: No, it was my first time there. I never really knew what it was, and once I figured it out, I was like, “Oh, that’d be awesome.” I’m not too well educated on, like, old rock ‘n’ roll history and things. My cousin’s really into all that and he always tries to teach me, and I always wind up forgetting everything.
Q: What are you into now?
A: There are just so many albums. I’ve gotten into a lot of Ben Folds. The first album I went out and bought was “Whatever and Ever Amen,” and that’s my favorite album. Before that I was really into Weezer. Lately, I’ve been getting into Flaming Lips. I was actually on a plane and they featured “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots.” It was on a Song flight and I was, like, “Hmm, interesting,” and I listened to it and I was, like, “Wow, this is great.”
Q: How much did you know about “The Partridge Family” before you tried out to be Keith Partridge for VH1.
A: Not a lot. I had never even seen an episode. My mom is the one who got me to go out on that. I ended up doing that one show [as a finalist] and what’s funny is I got booted off the day before the first day of school (in September 2004). I flew home from L.A. the next morning, so I was there for the first real day of school. And I was like, aww, couldn’t I have made it just one more week and missed some school?
Q: I read that you used to have thick glasses?
A: Yeah, and I had, like, a really, really bad haircut. My bangs were, like, weird. I got my hair cut at this place called Cuts for Kids and they, like, sat you in this big elephant chair. At 16, I started rebelling and saying I’m not going to Kid Cuts!
Q: You offer some deeps insight into love on the show. Have you ever had your heart broken?
A: I don’t know. I guess I’d know if I did. I’ve been rejected a lot, but I don’t know if I’ve necessarily had my heart broken.
Q: Tell me about the title track of “Underage Thinking.”
A: It’s kinda like the token “kid moves out of house and starts growing up” song. Actually, we were in the studio working on some music, and my mom kept calling. She was, like, “Have you eaten yet?” And I was, like, “No, I’m going to eat in, like, an hour.” And she was, like, “All right, make sure you eat,” which she does and she will do until I’m 30.
So we were, like, “All right, let’s write a song about that.”
THE SCORE
Age: 17
Hometown: Rochester, N.Y.
Followers: Ted-heads
First video kiss: Underwater, with “Laguna Beach” star Kristin Cavallari
Toured with: Hilary Duff
Fave book: “Ender’s Game” by Orson Scott Card
Fave movie: “Rushmore”