Saturday, May 29, 2010

Stop the Presses! American Idol's Crystal Bowersox: No recording contract signed yet

Toledo Free Press Exclusive: Crystal Bowersox denies Billboard.com report.

Written by Michael Miller | Editor in Chief | mmiller@toledofreepress.com

Crystal Bowersox said if she is committed to a record company, it is news to her.

Billboard.com reported May 28 that “American Idol” runner-up Bowersox has been “signed to 19 Recordings Limited and Jive Records,” but when asked to comment about the news, she denied knowledge of the commitment.

“I haven’t signed anything,” she told Toledo Free Press in a phone interview at 6:27 p.m. EST May 28. “Unless it’s something I don’t have a choice in, I haven’t signed anything. There are a lot of details to be worked out and I haven’t signed anything.”

Bowersox said she and other “Idol” contestants “have a lot of help” in negotiating the myriad proposals and legalities of contracts.

Bowersox, who said she does not watch television and is “out of the loop,” was also surprised to learn that news of her pre-finals break-up with boyfriend Tony Kusian was being reported by news outlets such as USA Today and Associated Press.

“I knew I would lose privacy through this process, but my life has been an open book through my music,” the Northwest Ohio native said. “I am an open book and I am comfortable with that; I have nothing to hide.”

Bowersox said life after the competition is still “very busy” as she prepares for an “American Idol” tour and recording her first album.

“I am ready to get to work,” she said, adding that while she is “open to working with other writers,” she hopes her debut album will be “100-percent original compositions.”

She said she was still “blown away” from her finale duets with musicians Alanis Morrisette and Joe Cocker.

“Alanis was sweet but not a big talker,” Bowersox said. “Joe knew my name but said he wanted to call me ‘Angel,’ and he did, the whole time.”

Bowersox said she has not yet heard from Patty Griffin, whose song “Up to the Mountain” has been released as Bowersox’s first post-”Idol” iTunes single, but hopes the recording ends up making a lot of royalty money for the writer.

When asked if she sees herself continuing to be an ambassador for Northwest Ohio and Toledo, and if she would fall on the side of the scale of Jamie Farr, who returns every year for his charity golf tournament, or on the side of the scale of Katie Holmes, who is rarely associated with Toledo, Bowersox laughed and immediately said, “Oh, I’m Jamie Farr, no doubt. Come on; I wrote a song called ‘Holy Toledo.’ I love Toledo.”

More of this interview will appear in next week’s Toledo Free Press Star.

4 comments:

  1. Yay Muddy and Muddonna! :)

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  2. This is great! Don't Sign in haste Crystal. Talk to Mellisa E. and Alanis M. about what to watch out for. Record companies tend to take advantage of new talent who don't know the ins and outs and pit falls of contracts.

    Read everything no matter how long and tedious and look up the meanings of words in Blacks Law dictionary 4th additions. Attorney's have a whole different language using words we are familiar with but mean things totally different then what we commonly know them to mean.

    What ever you do never give up rights or royalties to your originals just ask Paul McCartney he is still trying to get the rights back to some of his songs.

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  3. Love it that Joe called u Angel. He's the kind of guy who knows one when he sees one.

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  4. I still considered her as the BEST.

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