Crystal Bowersox Wants To Delay Debut Album Until Next Spring

'American Idol' runner-up admits she is dueling with her record label over LP's release date.

"American Idol" season-nine champ Lee DeWyze may be ready to release his debut album this fall, but the same doesn't hold true for runner-up Crystal Bowersox. The soulful singer recently revealed that she's in no rush to release her debut album, even though her record label is pushing for it to come out before the end of 2010.

"The label's saying in the fall [of 2010] and I'm telling them in the spring [of 2011] because I don't want to rush something out just to hit Black Friday sales," she said in an interview with 101.5 The River, a radio station located in her hometown of Toledo, Ohio.

"I don't think that's right. I want ... not just to have a product, but to have a good product, something that I will be proud of in 10, 15, 20 years," she continued. "My debut album on a major label — it's a huge thing, and I don't want to just put something out there that's thrown together to have something to sell. That's just not right."

While Bowersox plans on taking time to perfect her album, the singer is aware that striking while the "Idol" iron is still hot is important. "I got this springboard that I've just jumped off of. I'll either keep flying or go down," she said. "Right now it's very important that work as hard as I possibly can to make this career and life that I want for my son."

Many of the show's runner-up contestants have released their albums during the fourth quarter in order to capitalize on holiday shoppers. But this isn't the first time Bowersox has spoken out about breaking "Idol" tradition.

Back in June, the singer talked to MTV News about embracing her individuality. "Oh yeah, like the fact that I have missing teeth and that I don't comb my hair. I mean ... I think that unique people are really what colors the world," she said. "It's a beautiful thing to be your own individual, and in high school, you get pushed into being the same as everyone, and then, once you're an adult, you look for the differences in people. That's what's interesting about life and humanity."

By James Dinh, MTV