Kalau katalah amp tu wireless, habis naper masa nyanyi Daughters amp tu terpacak kat stage?
Simon said,"Casey this is not going great." Casey agreed "not really" ...naper dia ckp mcm tu? sbb starting pun dah kelam kabut... Tengok ajalah starting video ni. something happened.
OK, It's alright - no amp....cuba tengok video ni. Pastu you don't really hear his electric guitar.
Daughters - amp suddenly on stage pastu, guitar dia jelas kat performance ni.
Wires sticking out
If it's true.... Cian Casey. Kalah on an even playing field tak apa, but benda mcm ni not fair lah.
Casey James: 'You don't always get the chance to do what you want to do'
American Idol contestants often say that you don't really get to know them by watching the show. If that has been true for anybody from Season 9, it has been especially true for Casey James, the guitar-wielding Texan who finished third. From the very start, Idol portrayed him as cougar bait, as eye candy for the women -- getting him to take off his shirt during his audition; playing up Kara DioGuardi's unseemly, apparent infatuation; and finally saddling him with a sentimental ballad in John Mayer's Daughters while telling him his audience was women and girls.
By forcing Casey into that persona, Idol lost the chance to showcase one of the most musically diverse performers the show has ever seen, someone whose background ranges from bluegrass to heavy metal. Now that he's finished with the competition, Casey seems ready to break out of the mold. I talked with him briefly Thursday afternoon as he was on his way to tape his appearance for Ellen.
Aaron Kelly said he talked to you about coming to Nashville -- I think he likes the idea of having someone in town he knows. How good a fit would Nashville be for you?
Casey James: I think it'd be great. It just depends on which direction I want to go musically as to where I end up geographically. No matter what I do, there's going to be a lot of blues influence in it. Whether that means I'm going to be doing some rock/country/blues mixture, or flip it around and do something a little different.
There's so much to be said about production and engineering of an album. It really depends on which producers and engineers that I work with as to what the record ends up sounding like. You can make material sound so different just be remixing it and changing things up.
You had some of your best moments on the show with ballads -- Jealous Guy, Don't!, even Daughters -- but it always seemed like there was a rougher edge to you waiting for a chance to get out.
I love to rock out. Believe it or not, the band that I just made a CD with is pretty much rock. It's a modern-day Southern rock deal. There's a huge side of me that loves to do that. On another side is blues, and another side is country and then ballads and acoustic-type things.
I've been in I've been in a bluegrass band, I've been in a heavy metal band, I've been in a rock band, I've been in a blues band, I've been in a country band, I've been an acoustic act. A lot of the music that I write, I write different type stuff: If I'm at a country venue and I do it, everybody goes, "What a great country song!" If I'm at a blues venue and I sing it, they go, "What a great blues song!" It's really just interpretation of the music.
There's definitely a rougher edge. That's something I love to do, as well.
Why didn't we see more of the rougher, louder Casey on the show?
The opportunity never presented itself. That's one of the things about the show that people don't see. You don't always get the chance to do what you want to do. You have to work within the confines of the show. It's an amazing thing, and that's all part of it. If it had presented itself, and I could have done something that I felt was me and was heavier and more rock-y, then I totally would have done it. It just didn't get to work out that way.
Things switched up. I'm happy with the way everything turned out, because I love both the songs. Everything was just the way it should have been. I was going to possibly do another song, and then I ended up not. That's all part of it. That's the way it goes -- that's just normal operating procedure.
Did you consider doing Stevie Ray Vaughan's Pride and Joy?
That would have been a crowd-pleaser, but I would have lost all my musical credibility if I had done that song. As a musician, there are certain songs you just don't do unless you're going to switch it up, in which case you better be somebody, and I'm not, so ...
Wednesday, when you sang Daughters as your exit song, you had a touching moment where you walked into the audience, picked up a little girl and wound up singing behind the judges table. Who was that girl?
That was my cousin's daughter, Lindy, who I watch from time to time. Me and her and her brother, Jaron -- that was the boy sitting right next to her -- I just love them very much. They're super-good kids.
When I started the song, I was prepared and everything, but, not having my guitar, it was, like, oh, you know ... And then I realized, "Wait a minute! I can walk around!" So I started walking.
Lindy had been wanting to give me a hug all day. Being a little girl who doesn't understand show business, she doesn't know that I can't go out and give her a hug. All she knows is that I'm not. When I saw her, I was, like, "Oh, yeah, I'm outta here, they can't tell me not to give my little cousin a hug!" It worked out really perfect. I'm so glad that it worked out that way.
As soon as you did that, my readers started saying, "Oh, now he moves around!"
I'm a guitar player. If I'm playing a lead, I move around tons. You watch a show, I am never, ever still. But when you've got a minute and a half to sing, you don't have any lead breaks, so you have to stand in front of that microphone. It is what it is. You can't have your cake and eat it, too. I can either sing you a song or I can move around, unless I've got a head mic on.
Did that make you feel hamstrung?
I didn't feel hamstrung at all. Music is music. I think sometimes it's warranted, sometimes it's not. So I didn't feel hamstrung at all. I got around enough -- intros to songs and some leads. I felt really blessed that I got to do as much as I did. I didn't figure it would even be that much.
You had a couple consecutive weeks in the bottom three. Did that put some pressure on you, make you feel like you needed to change some things?
Absolutely not. And I don't mean that I wasn't concerned.
Going into this, from day one, I had made up my mind to just do what I do and be happy in the Lord with the results, you know what I mean? If I start doing things to try to get somewhere on the show, that's when I lose who I am artistically and I lose my self-respect. I wasn't going to play that game.
A lot of people thought you got the short end of the production stick Tuesday -- singing first, not getting a lot of special staging and lighting. By the time the choir hit the stage for Lee DeWyze and Hallelujah, I knew there was no way you were going to make the finale. Did you have a moment like that this week, where you looked at what was going on and went, "Oh, I'm in trouble here"?
Nah, everything happens for a reason, and it works out the way it's supposed to work out. I don't concern myself with any of that. In my mind, I'm exactly where I need to be, and I've never been more happy.
Where do you want to go from here?
I've been blessed that I made it into a TV show that gives you massive exposure as an artist. Even though you don't get the full extent, you do get to present yourself a little bit. Because of that, I'll get to do what I want to do, which is music.
The show is great. The TV show is one thing, and that's been the best thing that has ever happened to me in my life. But now I can do music for real -- full songs, do an album and really get started with my career.
It'll be nice knowing you don't have to have a day job for a while.
You know what? My day job was always music. If I have to go back to playing music, that's what I was going to do anyway.
The only thing that'll change is that I won't be playing for people who are trying to a) get drunk, or b) find a woman or man, or c) hit somebody. Hopefully, I'll be playing for people who are there to hear me play and that have respect for me as an artist.
Casey James talks about his 'Idol' journey
Casey James talks about his 'Idol' experience and what's next for his musical career.
We've been saying that Casey James' American Idol journey came to an end after he was eliminated in Wednesday's results show, with Crystal Bowersox and Lee DeWyze headed for a finale showdown. But it's not quite right to say his journey has ended.
There's the round of talk-show appearances he has coming up. There's the upcoming American Idol tour. And there's the battery of interviews, such as the phone interview he just completed with me for DFW.com and the Star-Telegram.
Throughout all this, James has been as good-natured and engaging as always. This is the third time I've talked to him about his Idol experience, and I've always enjoyed the conversation. What's below is an edited version of Thursday afternoon's conversation. It's only mildly abridged, but abridged all the same.
I want to start by talking about your performance of Daughters after you were eliminated Wednesday. I don't think I've ever seen you look more at ease on the show. Am I reading this right, or did the elimination come as a bit of relief?
What it boils down to for me is that I'm excited, and I'm thinking toward the future. My goals in life are to do music, and now this is going to be -- I mean, being on a TV show is one thing, you know? And then being a musician is another, and I know that now is the time that I can do what I really want to do, because of the show. So it's like all that gratitude and all me feeling so honored by getting to that point, it was all right there in my heart all at the same time, and I guess it just shone through.
Did you know that little girl you serenaded?
Yeah, that's my cousin's girl. Yeah, I didn't just pick up a random baby. [Laughs heartily.] I stay at their house sometimes and watch their kids, and they love me a lot and I love them, and we play nurse and Clue. I love to play games, so kids are super-fun to me, especially them, they're good kids.
The judges complimented Crystal for not compromising herself during the competition. But I don't think you got enough credit for staying true to yourself.
I didn't need to say this out loud, because it was from my own conscience, but going into this, I said to my mom, "More than anything, my self-dignity and my own self-respect is worth more than any amount of money or any kind of fame in the world, and what I'm going to do is I'm going to go out there and be exactly who I am. If they don't like it, then I won't get far, but if they do, then I will." And that's what I did, and I'm so proud and thankful that I didn't have to change anything, and that it worked. I mean, I made it to the third position out of a lot of folks that are really talented, and that is one of the things, to be honest with you, that I'm most proud of.
How would you rate your performances this week? [The judges were critical of James' performance, and especially choice, of Eric Hutchinson's OK, It's Alright With Me, and more complimentary of his first rendition of John Mayer's Daughters. But they were more effusive in their praise of Bowersox and especially DeWyze.]
I'll tell ya -- I watched back, because I always watch back, and in my own opinion, there were two separate ends of the situation. One was I was more relaxed and calm and at ease on the stage than I've ever been. And two, they were my two worst vocal performances. [Laughs] So, on one side of it, it was great, on the other side of it, it was ridiculously horrible. My voice has cashed out from being sick and not getting any sleep and screaming and yelling. That's just a bunch of excuses, but what it boils down to is I had an off night, and they were two of my weakest vocal performances.
Well, during your homecoming tour last week, I caught you only at the Keys Lounge and at your Stockyards appearance -- and that made me tired. I can't imagine what it was like for you.
You run on adrenalin for essentially two days, nearly three. And you get back and all that wears off, and you've still got work to do. I really never got unpacked, and of course I had to move this morning. So it's there, and it's nonstop, man. I was really wore out when I came back.
Is it too early to ask if you've been contacted by any agents or record labels?
There's a lot of stuff I'm sure will happen in the future. For now, I can't really say. I'm really looking forward to all those things that I'm looking forward to. Like I said, the show's one thing, but the reason for the show is so that I can do music. That's what I'm looking forward to.
Some people say you should think about going a country route, but I see you as more of a blues guy. But blues is more niche, while country is more popular.
Obviously, there's different routes to take. Some are going to lead to more ... like being on TV more, more exposure and things like that. If I did country, I'm sure it'd work out really well, and it would be great. ... I might even kind of get a little bit of that going. But no matter what I do, it's going to have blues in it, because it's what I love the most. And I think no matter who the artist and what they do, you can always put what you want into it. John Mayer's a great example. He came out with some very mainstream, poppy stuff, but he's as blues as it gets.
We've been referring to you as a Parker County native and a Fort Worth resident. But I've heard from people who say you used to hang out in Mineral Wells, and we shouldn't forget Palo Pinto. Are three counties fighting over you?
[Laughs] Well, you know what? That's a huge honor, and to be honest with you, it's all true. I grew up in Cool, which means that I was a mile from the Palo Pinto line, but I lived in Parker County. But I did hang out in Mineral Wells a little bit, and in Weatherford, too. As soon as I got old enough, I moved to the big city so I could work and not have to drive an hour to a gig. So they've all got a piece of me. [Laughs again.]
When I saw you at the Keys Lounge, you seemed to be having such a great time, playing with your old band mates. You really seemed to be in your element.
I've been in a bluegrass band, I've played in a heavy-metal band, I've played in rock bands, blues bands, country bands, folk bands. But it's always been a band. Everybody's onstage with you, and it's an energy that's like a living, breathing thing, a piece of music is. If you're there with the people, it happens collectively and it's not stiff and rigid. That was the thing that made me the most uncomfortable during the entire course of the show, is that you don't have that connection with the musicians, because they're so far away. So coming home and getting to be onstage with the guys, especially guys I've played with before, you just have that happen. It was amazing. It gives you that sense of "That's why I'm doing all this, so that can be where I'm at and what I'm doing."
You've said in other interviews that when this is all over, you're coming back to Texas. So when will that be?
The sad thing is -- well, I guess it's not sad, it's beautiful and amazing -- is that I've got to get ready for the finale, and we'll have the finale, and then I'll have press, and then we're rehearsing for the tour. So it's going to be a bit. But I guarantee you, I'll never leave Texas. I love it way too much.
I know where I came from, and that's not going to change. The fact that I at this point have a chance to be successful and do what I love in life, that doesn't change anything about me other than that. I've had an amazing experience, I've learned a lot, I've seen a lot of cool things, met a lot of cool people. But I'm still the same dude that I was eight months ago. I just have bigger opportunities now. I'm so honored and thankful for -- I mean, there were people who were amazing fans of mine before I even auditioned for the show. Those people mean more to me now than they ever have, because it's those kinds of people that will stick with you in tough times.
I'm sure everyone will ask you this, but who do you think has the upper hand between Crystal and Lee in the finale?
I think it's going to be a good battle, man. Who's to say? I think it'll be a great show, and I'll be -- well, obviously I'll be watching, because I'm gonna be there. [Laughs]
When we first talked, you said you didn't have a TV before Idol. So all these months later, how much culture shock have you gone through in the past few months?
I got a TV about three weeks before I went out to Hollywood week. But I didn't have channels. I still don't. It's an [amazing] amount. The great thing about the way I was raised is, you just roll with it and learn and adapt and do what you need to do. It's crazy. You see a lot of things and a lot of stuff that I didn't know anything about. It's definitely a huge culture shock. But you just roll with it, you know?
Not knowing anything about TV or the show or anything like that, the shocking thing to me was -- and I don't mean this in a negative way -- the offset between the actual music part of it and the rest of everything that you do. I thought, "We do a song per week, and they'll give you a heads-up about the song, and you get to pick and you'll really work out the song." But it's really not like that. To put it in one sentence, the schedule was the most shocking thing to me.
After you played the Stockyards, you stopped the limo two times, maybe three times, to sign autographs. You already seem to know how to connect with your fans.
This is another thing that I'm really excited and proud of is that I feel a connection with my fan base. I write everybody back that's written me, and the ones I haven't written back to yet, I will, because I've got the letters. I'm drawing people that are like me to me, and that makes me feel really, really good. They're good people, they're kind people, they're mannered people -- and I don't mean that in a way that I'm a good person or whatever, but I'm happy that the people that write me are just good people. That's a huge honor to know that that's who's listening to me and that's who's liking me.
It's been a crazy experience. I'm just so proud and honored and happy and thankful. I'm standing out here, for the first time in months and months, by myself, in the sunshine, and knowing that I just made it to No. 3 in a situation that's going to allow me to do what I want to do for the rest of my life is just amazing. I feel great.
Post time 21-5-2010 09:26 AM
beLEEver
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