ETA: I just did a mega-update on this post with quotes from various news sources (and my own sources). Check it out.
Breaking! Here are a few tidbits from the press conference Simon Cowell held today. Keep checking back, I’ll be keep updating as I get more information:
- Britney Spears is #1 on Simon’s list of potential Idol mentors for Season 8. I bet she’s on that short list of young mentors Ken Warwick mentioned... Every year the producers ask Paul McCartney to mentor, every year he says no.
- Simon loved Salt Lake City. He loved everything about it–the air, the people–he had so much fun. And, he said, “We even had an Osmond…and I liked him!”
- Like Ken Warwick in his recent conference, Simon was asked several questions about Paula Goodspeed. He said that Paula Abdul could have stopped filming if she felt so scared and uncomfortable in Goodspeed’s presence. He insists that the producers have integrity, and would never force Paula to face a stalker for good TV.
- He’ll decide next year if he continues as an on camera judge. He believes Idol could continue for 10 or 20 years, even without him.
- Simon was not involved in choosing Kara DioGuardi as a 4th judge, but kept an open mind about her.
- Simon will NOT be dialing back the criticism in the wake of Paula Goodspeed’s death. He doesn’t think the show is inherently mean, and that it’s the judges’ job to remind people that if they suck, maybe they should move on to something else.
- He still can’t remember Carly Smithson’s name, “I don’t think there are as many [ringers] as last year…Really I prefer if they are kind of new people and haven’t had that kind of experience. It doesn’t seem quite fair. Having said that the Irish girl in particular was a great singer.â€
- On David Cook and David Archuleta, “I have been happy. I mean, these aren’t easy times in the record business at the moment, and y’know, the whole point of American Idol is that you’re giving talented people an opportunity whereas under normal circumstances, they probably wouldn’t get a break or a recording deal. So you, when you see these guys selling records, it makes the whole process worthwhile.”
- What does he think of their future prospects? “I think they’re both smart, I think they both know what direction they wanna go in. So, I…I’m optimistic.”
Update: (from Billboard):
- About the Season 7 contestants, “We’ve got an interesting bunch. We got stuck last year with a battle of the blondes — they all looked that same and we couldn’t differentiate one versus the other. We tried to be as broad and as open-minded as possible so we don’t wind up with 12 people from the Stepford Wives.” WTF? Simon is baked. Last year’s crew had plenty of personality.
And there weren’t all that many blonds. OK, maybe there were a few blonds in the Top 24–Alaina, Kady, Garrett, Colton, Robbie and of course, Brooke and Kristy Lee. Some of the Top 24 were pretty bland, but I think they ended up with a decent Top 12. - About this year’s contestants, “We filmed Hollywood Week about a month ago. My memory of that is that the guys, overall, were stronger. Five or six of them stood out more than the girls.”
More about Paula Goodspeed from People
- “You’re talking about a human tragedy…It hit us like an express train. It upset me a lot,” said Simon.
- He claims not to remember her audition until he saw footage on TV when the news broke.
- Paula would not have been in any immediate danger, says Simon, “There are a minimum of seven security guards in the room. You don’t see them, but they’re everywhere.”
From the LA Times:
- On Paula Goodspeed, “We’re talking about a tragedy here so I really don’t like talking about this person as a stalker. My regret in all of this is we didn’t know how troubled this person is but we really didn’t know…The process is its open auditions, we don’t research people…I assume that everyone who auditions knows what it’s like to audition, i.e., if you’re not very good you’re going to get criticized.â€
- On the producers, “These guys have the utmost integrity as human beings. We’re taking them at their word that they didn’t know she was as troubled as she was. I spoke to them after the incident they were absolutely horrified.”
- On the wild-card round being brought back: “I think it’s a good idea. I wasn’t crazy about the process we went through the last couple years where we were given a group of contestants that you were bored with by show 5.â€Â Simon is confident that judicial intervention will keep in some of the more interesting personalities. Does this mean the judges will be choosing reality-type personalities to round out the cast, rather than good singers?
- On new judge Kara DioGuardi,“I have no idea whether this is going to work or not, because I haven’t seen the shows back yet. The thing I do support is at least trying new things. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t…She’s got experience, she’s written hit songs, she’s got an opinion which is very very important and she talks a lot…She knows what the end product is.”
- On Diversity, “Trying to be as broad and open minded as possible so that we don’t end up with 12 people from the ‘Stepford Wives.’ I think personality is as important as talent. What you hope you end up with is somebody like Fantasia who is not only a great singer but is an incredible person who has a great vibe.â€
More from MTV and Entertainment Tonight.
- On Kara and Paula “ganging up” on him, “What guy would like that? C’mon? You’ve got two girls ganging up on you. One is hard enough; two is unbearable. But they’ve both got personalities, they’re both very forceful, and you’ve got to stand [your ground]. At least I’ve got Randy by my side. It’s not that bad.” He claims he never met or heard of Kara before he heard she joined the cast. Kara is well known in the industry and already had strong Idol ties. I’m calling total bullsh*t on that.
Woah! Did not know that! I guess I have followed him to a lesser extent than the Davids.
Well my experience in the autograph lines were that Jason and Archie were the easiest to talk to and most accomodating without seeming overwhelmed. I know that doesn’t seem relevant to answering questions, but to me, I expected them to way more shy and introverted in person as that is the persona I got of them from Idol.
Yes Cook can be quite articulate, but even he didn’t really impress me with his interview skills until after Idol. His answers always came off as canned and boring to me. And Brooke as much as I love her got so annoying with her non-stop, nonsensical babbling. Again, love them both, but they all kinda sucked at those on-the-spot interviews in my eyes. Most people do….I know I would. That is why though that I agree with you on the point that those instances are simply not enough to gain insight into who they are.
Not sure how you can be so sure of that without taking an official poll. Bland and boring performers…really? That explains why the tour was so popular then and why the Davids are gaining new fans every day and have gold albums.
Oh man, I totally forgot about that! THAT, I have to admit was pretty hilarious! LOL!
And Oceana, while I think Taylor’s live voice is pretty pathetic, she is at least talented in some regards. She could use voice lessons though to strengthen her live vocal performances. But yes, Britney, totally manufactured. She doesn’t sound human.
Britney? Mentor? Blech.
oceana, I absolutely agree with you. But your and my hopes for the show are very different from the people actually making money off it. I think some of the mentors from this last season DID have a lot to offer. I’d much rather hear what Dolly has to say than Britney, any day. But the reality is Idol is aiming to increase or maintain viewership in a demographic younger and very different than mine.
I think Britney is one of the most overrated pop stars in recent memory. At least most would agree that Mariah at least can carry a tune or Diamond wrote a good song or two or Dolly is a charming personality. Maybe Britney has something to mentor regarding stage performance and riding the waves of fame, though her handling of these is highly debatable in my book as well. But Simon’s mention of her just tells me, again, what the show and he is ultimately about: sell, sell, sell. Britney is back in vogue. Cash in now.
Who gave Simon the nice pills? He was actually talking nice about both Davids? Wow! The only thing I don’t agree with is that I really think they could have gotten a deal without the show.
Minor nit-pick. Britney’s “Blackout” neither debuted at number 1 nor sold 500K in week one. It was number 2 and sold 290K it’s first week. Granted, BB did change the charting rules that week and she was undergoing a massive meltdown at the time. She does have a very impressive sales numbers record, even if she can neither sing or lip synch accurately live.
Agreed. Idol was their platform, but I think eventually a break would’ve happened for them both.
I will agree that Simon is greedy, however, I always thought the underlying goal of the show was to aid in the launch of a successful music career for the winner (and maybe some of the others). Britney’s talent is debatable, however, her success is not. She (and her management) have found a way to keep people interested in her for so many years. She obviously has something that is appealing to LOTS of people, even 10 years after her debut album dropped. So it’s a win/win - good mentor for the contestants, good way to get young people to watch the show.
Agreed, Krazee. I’m not a Britney fan, but I fully concur that having her on the show would be a smart move for business. She is undeniably one of the biggest celebs on the planet. And she does appeal to the youth market. I’m not interested, but I know ratings would be huge.
I don’t mind if they have Britney as a mentor, as long as they don’t have to sing her songs. They definitely need to get some younger mentors (although I would prefer an actual singer)
Britney has the “X” Factor - that is undeniable. Since Cowell is all about X Factor tied with Vocal Chops, I can understand why he’d suggest her to be an AI Mentor. Are there better vocalists? Sure, look at XTina or Mandy Moore, when they all launched on the scene around the same time. Why Brit over XTina? Both have looks, charisma, and moves - but how did she become the Global Phenom. Mentor can mean a lot of different things. Sure, normally one would assume vocal mentor, but it could also be mentor for AI contestants on how to handle fame, press, and what not do do or say. She could be seen as a pop star’s who reached her zenith in terms of fame, accolades and music chart domination. And then her life turned upside down and we all witness her breakdown, but, she’s rising up from the ashes.
Actually I think Christina would be a better choice.
I would think that a Britney mentoring session would be kind of like when Gwen Stefani mentored and the theme was something like, “Gwen Stefani songs and songs from CDs in Gwen Stefani’s collection.”
I’m almost wishing that Britney was a mentor last year. Who wouldn’t have wanted to see and hear DC’s anguished, emotionally raw take on “Oops, I Did It Again”? Heh.
Actually, I’m partial to hearing DC’s take on “Gimme More” or better yet, “I’m Not a Girl, Not yet a Woman.” Or Archie tackling “(I’m a) Slave 4 U.” LOL
Hee! Hyperwink and Folkfan, from your lips. I think DC’s versions would be amazing. Yup, Archie doing “Sometimes” would be awesome.
Christina would make a better vocal mentor, true.
Heh, Folkfan, so true!
Don’ t know if someone has mentioned it but Brittney was on Xfactor in the UK, they did her songs for the theme and it was a train wreck. Rumour has it she was a diva on the set, she lip synced her performance, and it got a lot of bad press. She didn’t do any mentoring, just showed up and left again. Whether she could lighten up for an episode of AI would be interesting to watch.
If it’s Xtina, props to anyone who reaaranges Dirrty as a ballad, Genie in a Bottle as a grunge power ballad and two thumbs up to any guy who sings Ain’t No Other Man.