“You’ll probably know who I am when I come in,” Derrick Ault said over the phone as we arranged our interview at Java Zone. He was right. He looked like the type of guy you might see on an MTV reality show: tall, dark gelled-up hair and clear blue eyes.

Derrick, son of Oberlin CDS employee Sharon Ault, was selected to be on MTV’s dating show, Next. He is 20 years old and lives in Wellington.

He will be one of five young men competing for the affections of one girl, who will take each one individually on her ideal date. At any point, the girl can choose to ditch her current contender by calling out “Next” and moving on to the next of the five, whose order is chosen by drawing names out of a hat. The boys earn money for every minute they last with the girl, and at the end of the allotted time, her current date gets to decide between the money and a second date.

Derrick will fly to Los Angeles this coming Sunday to record the show, although it will not air until summer.

Derrick was approached by two Next recruiters while he was dancing at a club in L.A. He auditioned for the show in Santa Monica and got the spot.

“I’m just really proud, because not every man is approached,” Sharon said. “You know, he’s tall, he’s good-looking and I’m not just saying that because he’s mine.”

MTV has not given Derrick any hints about what the girl has chosen to do on her date. He admitted that he has never really been on a date before, but he is not nervous for his first, which will be seen by millions of viewers. He has no strategy planned to sweep the girl off her feet, either.

“I don’t need any strategy,” he said. “I’m just going to be myself. I’m going to walk off victorious.”

By “victorious,” he means a second date, rather than money, as long as she meets his standards.

“She has to be really all right. I’m kind of picky,” he said.

But his mom does not expect him to bring home the love of his life. “I just hope he has a good time with it, that’s all,” said Sharon.

Derrick is confident that his appearance on Next will not be his only 15 minutes of fame. He has been singing and dancing since the age of four and has a CD in the making. He was informed that his date is also a singer, a point of commonality that could give him advantage over the other suitors. He said that he will probably hand her a signed CD.

Derrick’s current album is called A Decimal Above, under his musician’s name of DC. His solo singing is a combo of hip hop, pop and R&B styles.

Derrick said, “Don’t compare it to anyone. It’s totally original...One day it’s going to play on VH1 and BET, though. It’s that kind of sound.”

Derrick will be performing a concert with the release of A Decimal Above in Olmstead Falls, March 18 at 7 p.m. There, you might also catch some of his hip hop, high-speed dancing that landed him his slot on MTV. Although he said that the show certainly will not hurt his music career, he has other methods of promotion and is confident about his future.

“I’m going to do big things with the music,” he said. “Expect that, because that’s what I know I’m going to do. I’m going to the top.”