Casey James Speaks to The Press – Satellite Conference Call

Casey James did a short conference call with reporters today. He talked about Kara Dioguardi, the competition, his fellow contestants and his incredible homecoming last week. Read the detailed transcript below.

On Kara Dioguardi telling Casey to stick to his core demographic, women and young girls—was he offended by that? Does he think he’s a bit more well-rounded as an artist? “I would like to hope so! I definitely not offended by someone –that’s her opinion, and I know nothing of demographics and my marketing skills are obviously poor, or I wouldn’t have been doing the same bar gigs for 11 years (laughs) so, I definitely don’t take offense to it. But I definitely would also like to think that I have a few more people out there that like what I’m doing.”

What would he say to a future contestant who are asked to take their shirt off by a judge? “(Laughter)  Who’s to say that I would be here had I not done that? So I think if you feel like you can back yourself up and not be the guy who took his shirt off—‘cause hopefully that’s not what I am now—then I would say do what you need to do to get the ball rolling. There’s a possibility had I not done that that I might not have made it past that first round. It definitely wasn’t something that I thought of, or even realized was gonna happen. But I’m so thankful that it did because, coming back, I really had that drive to knock it out the first chance that I could. I think I did surprise the judges at that point.  It obviously worked out. (laughs).”

Could Casey ever collaborate with Kara in the future? “Sure. As far as I know, she’s a pretty good writer. I’m not opposed to working with anyone that is good at what they do, so absolutely.”

What was it like working with people like Harry Connick Jr. and Adam Lambert as mentors? Is there one moment that stands out? “I think everyone’s going to say the same thing. Harry Connick Jr. was amazing. All the mentors were really great. But, when somebody takes the time to do the music—he brought his band, he wrote the scores, he wrote the music and composed everything. He even came into iTunes and stopped by and made sure we were OK there. He put a lot of time in. And that, to me, said a lot about who he is as a person and a musician. The whole situation in general stands out to me and says, ‘This is special’.  It was  a lot of actual real time that was spent, and not just camera time—like actual time when I could sit down with him and say ‘hey what do you think about this, what do you think about that’ and get his actual honest opinion.  That to me is advice, that’s the most wisdom you can gain from somebody who is sitting down and really talking to them.”

When he thinks about his hometown visit, is there one moment that stands out as the most special? “The whole trip was so amazing, I just remember looking around and being at home and feeling really good, but I think—there was definitely a moment. I was at the Keys playing with some guys that I used to play with a lot onstage doing the real band thing. A good friend of mine, Mace Mavin, who used to play a lot in the Dallas/Fort Worth area—he’s got cancer and he found out right before I left for the show and he is doing his best to kick that cancer’s butt–he was there.  I know how sick he is and weak and everything, but he made the trip to see me.   That was just overwhelming, it was really overwhelming. I’m sitting there doing what I love to do and he was there and all my friends and family are there and the place is packed—that moment was very intense for me.”

Did he want to perform either “Gravity” or “Blue Sky” (two songs he sang at his homecoming) on Tuesday night? “There were so many, but time limitation is a real issue when you get to pick a song. And there were so many songs that I love to do and if I had 3 minutes It would have opened up a whole new realm of possibilities. But when you have a minute and a half to work with, you have to use that to  your advantage and to the best of your abilities.  It changes things up a little bit. I went with what  I thought was best for the show in that time limitation. That’s why I picked what I picked.  I love those songs. Who’s to say if things had been different, possibly I would have done one.”

How tall is Casey? “A little bit over 6”3.”

About not having a TV set for 20 years.  How it happened, how it shaped and affected him, “When I was about–nearly 20 years–when I was, I guess, 7 or 8, lightning struck my mother’s house and blew out the antennae on the TV and we just never got another one.  I guess it wasn’t that important to us. Growing up without it—I didn’t see all the things that everyone else saw on the TV and thought was cool, or to do this or to do that, and fashion things, and hip things that were going on—so I guess it kinda led me to be my own person a little bit more and to do my own thing and I’m really glad that it worked out that way. It gives you more time to do other things.

How did he handle the demands of the show? “Any situation in life that is difficult you just do what you can—that’s what I did.  It definitely is demanding, but the payoff is so—even if it had been 1 hundredth of the audience, the payoff would still be a million percent worth it. It’s definitely taxing, but a lot of people work a lot hard than me for a lot less. You just got to keep in mind, stay thankful for the opportunity to be where you’re at, and work as hard as you can and that’s what I think everybody in the situation does.”

How does he keep his humility? “It’s really easy. You keep in mind that if it wasn’t you, it would be somebody else, it’s very situational.  I’m very honored and happy and proud of everything that I’ve accomplished–but, keeping in mind that this will die down and very soon there’ll be the next person in my situation.  I’m just looking forward to trying to keep the audience that I have.  If I do that, then maybe you’ll have to deflate my ego later on down the line (laughter) but right now it’s really easy just to keep grounded, ‘cause it is what it is.”

Which contestants will he keep in touch with from the show? “I’m going to keep in touch with most of them.  Obviously the tour is coming out and we’ll all be together during that. Everybody’s going to be so busy, especially the ones—I mean, Crystal and Lee will be super busy—I’m one of those guys that tends to just hang out and just chill and w really won’t have a lot of time to do that. But I think I’m gonna keep in touch with most everybody.”

Was he prepared to be eliminated? What kind of conversations did he have with Lee and Crystal before the results? “I’ve been prepared at every single round from the beginning of the show. Because you never know what will be will be—you have to be prepared either way.  Every single time that I made it through obviously you’re elated and happy. The other night when I didn’t—kinda knew that was coming. I was more than prepared that night. Nobody– as far as having conversations– nobody talks about things, as far as that goes. I think everybody understands anything could happen and nobody really wants to talk about it. As far as that goes, really nothing was said. [I’m] obviously happy for them and I think that everything happens for a reason and I’m exactly where I should be and I have no doubt of that, and I’m super happy to be here.”

What are the strengths of the final 2? “They both have very unique and standout sounds. That pretty much says it.  You can’t say anything else other than that—they are who they are and that’s why people are voting for them.  So I just think that’s going to continue and it’s gonna grow and I think it’s going to be a crazy, crazy good show.”

Does one have an edge? “Man, that’s hard to say. I don’t think so. I don’t know.”

An interesting thing about Crystal  and Lee? “Man, I don’t know how to answer that. You guys see as much of them as I do to be honest with you.  There’s so little time. I wish I could help you man, I don’t know (laughter).

Where was the gig that he missed to audition for Idol? “Gosh that was so long ago. I don’t even remember the name of the place!  It was just a little gig, one of those deals where essentially just enough money to pay for the trip—it was in Destin.”

More about Casey’s devastating motorcycle accident, “I was riding a motorcycle and a guy pulled in, turned into me.  He had his right blinker on and there was nothing on the left side of the road. And when I went to go by him, instead of turning right, he tried to make an illegal U-turn and flip his vehicle around. When he did that, he didn’t see me there. I hit him doing 70-75 something like that. I broke a lot of bones and flew a long ways. (laughter).  That was 6 years ago on the 11th, on the very day that I performed on American Idol.  Nobody on the scene thought I would make it. But, they did a really good job of taking care of me. They flew me out on the helicopter and took me to the nicest hospital—amazing doctors and nurses did a wonderful job putting me back together.”

Is he happy with where he placed? “I’m the kind of guy that accepts what happens and is always happy about it. Had I gotten second or first obviously I’d be happy, but I can tell you that I’m definitely happy with where I landed.  I continue to say it, but it always remains to be true is that everything always happens for a reason and you just have to roll with it and be happy. And I certainly am. I’m elated to have landed here. And I’m going to make the most of it.

What’s next for Casey? “Next is [a]  record, and going and doing music. It’s time to get started. The reason for the show is to allow us to do music and that’s what I intend on doing. That’s what I love, and now I have the opportunity to do it. It’s go time.”

About mj santilli 34829 Articles
Founder and editor of mjsbigblog.com, home of the awesomest fan community on the net. I love cheesy singing shows of all kinds, whether reality or scripted. I adore American Idol, but also love The Voice, Glee, X Factor and more!