Phillip Phillips post-win interview, photos from the finale
AMERICAN IDOL: Finalist Phillip Phillps and special guest John Fogerty perform during the season 11 AMERICAN IDOL GRAND FINALE at the Nokia Theatre on Weds. May 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. CR: Michael Becker/FOX
Phillip Phillips is his own man. That is what’s admirable about him and could also give his future record label and managers down the road headaches.
Already, he created a minor ruckus, saying his original coronation song “Home” is not at all the type of song he plans to sing down the road, almost disavowing it, despite the fact he got great feedback from the audience. In fact, it could end up being a radio hit.
I asked him during today’s phone press conference how that song even came in front of him.
“They just threw that song out there,” he told me. “They felt it was the right fit for me. I wanted to do one of my own songs I’ve written. But we had such a short time and couldn’t really do that recording wise. It’s a good song but it’s not something I’d write. I’m glad people like it.”
He later added that he would never have those big choral oohs and aahs in a song of his. “It’s a little too pop for me,” he said. “I’m a little more rock than that.” He prefers a blend of rock, jazz and acoustic stuff. “I’m kind of excited to get it out there,” he said.
Phillips said he doesn’t have any deep desire to be a big pop star. (I’m sure Jimmy Iovine was thrilled to hear that.)
Other topics:
His girlfriend: “She’ll be able to come on tour with me. She supported me throughout all this. I love her to death.”
On ladies liking him: “I’m all about the music, man. I’m not about trying to be some cute guy trying to be successful. I want the music to come first. I want them to feel it and have fun like I do with it.”
On his emotions after he won, causing him to break down and cry instead of sing: “I didn’t even really want to sing or anything. I was so shocked. I just started thinking about the whole top 12. I just started thinking of this whole journey. It’s so crazy. It was a tough road for all of us. It just kind of got to me a little.” Later, he added, “I honestly didn’t think I was going to win. I was caught so off guard. I was in such awe.”
Worst performance: “Time of the Season.” He wished he could have heard more sound in his inner ear. “That was a pretty bad performance. You can’t go back and change it. You can’t be mad about it. It’s all over with now.”
A reporter tried to get him to talk in more detail about his pain and the kidney issue. He wasn’t elaborative, just said he had to get it fixed up “pretty soon.” He had no date yet though TMZ later said it would be next week in Los Angeles. He did admit he almost left the show at least twice due to the kidney pain. He said a doctor helped him manage it until the show was over.
On winning: “I didn’t have any thoughts. I was very shocked. Overwhelmed. I didn’t know how to process it all. I didn’t know what I was thinking the rest of the night honestly.”
On singing with John Fogerty: “It was so awesome. He’s such a nice guy. It’s a pleasure being on stage with him. He wished me the best. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get to sing together again.”
On leaving Leesburg: “I think I”m going to be moving. I got a lot of things I have to do in a lot of places.” He didn’t say where he’d end up.I’m not sure he even knows yet.
On missing part of the tour due to surgery: “I don’t believe I’m missing anything. I’ll be 100% by then. I’m excited.”
On sticking to his guns: “It’s good to just not let people try to change you. It gets tough when a lot of people are coming your way trying to tell you what you should do or not do. I know myself better than anyone. I know what’s best for me… If I didn’t feel comfortable doing something, I wasn’t going to do it.”
Who he’d love to collaborate with: Damien Rice. Rob Thomas. Eric Clapton.
He didn’t feel he was similar to the past four winners, said the way he plays the guitar makes him different and the fact he’s not a great singer and they were all probably better. (Not Lee DeWyze!)
On his modest assessment of his voice: “I’m not outstanding. I can’t hit all those high notes. I do sometimes try to hit some kind of notes. I try to do something with it.”
On music that helped him while he was in pain: Eminem (loves the lyrics). Clapton. John Butler.
- And if you want to give “Idol” feedback, take this survey on the americanidol.com site.
- Audition cities and dates for AMERICAN IDOL Season 12 include Los Angeles, CA, on Thursday, June 7; San Antonio, TX, on Thursday, June 14; Charlotte, NC, on Tuesday, June 19; Newark, NJ, on Saturday, June 23; Chicago, IL, on Thursday, July 12; and Oklahoma City, OK, on Friday, July 20.
And here are photo highlights from the finale, including Fantasia and those pants! (JTesla, this is for you!)
AMERICAN IDOL: Special guest Fantasia Barrino performs during the season 11 AMERICAN IDOL GRAND FINALE at the Nokia Theatre on Weds. May 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. CR: Michael Becker/FOX
AMERICAN IDOL: Special guest Chaka Kahn performs with the lady finalists during the season 11 AMERICAN IDOL GRAND FINALE at the Nokia Theatre on Weds. May 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. CR: Michael Becker/FOX
AMERICAN IDOL: Special guest Reba McEntire and Finalist Skylar Laine perform during the season 11 AMERICAN IDOL GRAND FINALE at the Nokia Theatre on Weds. May 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. CR: Michael Becker/FOX
AMERICAN IDOL: Special guest Rihanna performs during the season 11 AMERICAN IDOL GRAND FINALE at the Nokia Theatre on Weds. May 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. CR: Michael Becker/FOX
AMERICAN IDOL: Idol Finalist Jessica Sanchez and Special Guest Jennifer "Crazy Eyes" Holliday perform during the season 11 AMERICAN IDOL GRAND FINALE at the Nokia Theatre on Weds. May 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. CR: Michael Becker/FOX
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114 comments Add your comment
Deirdre
May 25th, 2012
3:29 pm
The new York Times is rating Phil the best of the WGWGs. I wouldn’t call him the best but I’d put him beside Cookie(and I’m not a tween!)
It’s just possible that the wgwg curse is what is keeping Idol alive. How long will it take to break the curse?
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
3:31 pm
I would also say I hope the show-runners notice and care that the WGWG issue makes the show the butt of many jokes, and the press pokes fun at it… but they probably think any publicity is good publicity. (I don’t agree.)
JTesla
May 25th, 2012
3:35 pm
Counting starts after Jordin of course, so we are up to #5.
Here let me rate the WGWGs.
1) WGWG#1
2) WGWG#5
3) WGWG#4
4) WGWG#2
5) WGWG#3
I actually think there is some redemption due for WGWG#3. He has been much maligned, but now we see that he was as much a victim of the system as we all are.
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
3:37 pm
Hmmm… I’d rate them as:
1. David Cook
2. Kris Allen
3. Scotty
4. (tie) Phil and Lee
6. Taylor
And yes, I know he was “off-key Lee”… but he at least did interesting arrangements. (Hallelujah, Beautiful Day, The Boxer.) I’d rather be interested and have to cringe at a note or two, than doze off.
And I still don’t think Cook should be painted with the WGWG brush. The advantage didn’t exist for him back then….
JTesla
May 25th, 2012
3:42 pm
I’ve not been an advocate for changes to the voting system in the past, but I am now. Technically better singers (as ranked by Whatnottosing) got spanked while one of the technically worst singers of the top 10 (ignoring that DeAndre fellow) coasted to a victory.
I do mean coasted. He even phoned it in a few weeks and was still untouchable. You all can kid yourselves by saying “It was a close race” but the guy was not in the bottom three until there were only three contestants left. There was nothing close about it. WGWG#5 had the competition in the bag before we hit the top 10.
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
3:43 pm
And I do believe Simon wanted David Cook out and wanted David A to win. But once again David A was too limited. The singers that keyhole themselves rarely win. Unfortunately that is what happened to Adam (should have won) Lambert and Jessica (balladeer).
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
3:46 pm
Exactly, JT….
And did anyone else notice that Jimmy didn’t give his usual thoughts during the finale? I’m willing to bet it’s because he stated Jessica should be the winner, and they didn’t want to show that and look foolish.
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
3:48 pm
Hi Barbara! Glad you found us over here!
And, yes, the MHC book from yesterday might be “Daddy’s Little Girl”. I couldn’t quite tell from the online descriptions, though… I need to just find my copy of the book and see.
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
3:52 pm
The voting system underwent a change with the Clay Aiken/Ruben Studdard debacle. How people figured out how to make block calls is beyond me but they did. From that time on the voting was handed over for a monintored system. In most contests you can vote more than once but there needs to be a limit for sure!
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
3:56 pm
And Barbara, I also think Simon wanted David A. to win. Here is my theory on Simon (regulars who have heard me preach it before, feel free to ignore.
) –
I think he was happy with the show seasons 1-4. But then:
Season 5 – he hated Taylor. He finally just gave up and admitted it was a popularity contest.
Season 6 – nothing of note happened, so he probably figured the Taylor debacle was a fluke.
Season 7 – he was still fighting the fruitless “it’s a singing competition” battle and thought David A should have won
Season 8 – his disgust at Adam losing was crystal clear. He didn’t even stand up and clap for Kris’ win. (And I for one was SO happy to see Simon react that way. It validated the point that Idol doesn’t often find a talent like Adam’s, and for him not to win was an absolute disgrace. Simon’s refusal to clap was a statement to America of “What the H— were you thinking?”)
wow, I’m giving that poor soapbox ANOTHER coat of paint, I guess. How about silver glitter this time?
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
3:57 pm
Hi Jenny! I hope that is the one. I was wracking by brain trying to remember…..smell the smoke?
Think I will try the Sookie Stackhouse books based on all of the comments by y’all yesterday
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:00 pm
I will never ever understand how Taylor won. I am with Simon on that! Does anyone know how the hell that happened???
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:01 pm
Barbara, I didn’t watch season 2, but was the block voting an issue even then?
(I think if I had watched, I would have preferred Clay or maybe even Kimberly Locke…. but I remember my husband trying to get me to watch, and he was completely torn between Clay and Reuben. He liked them both. The fact that it was such a good contest, got me watching the finale night and then I watched season 3.)
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:05 pm
Barb – I’d say block voting. I remember the Dial Idol software and power voting being talked about for the first time. And I thought that season was when the popularity-contest problem started.
I remember Simon criticizing and criticizing Taylor, and trying to tell the public he was weak and should go home… but then finally literally throwing his hands in the air and saying “It clearly doesn’t matter what I say anymore. So whatever. That was good.” (sarcastically.)
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:07 pm
I was too, Barbara (racking my brain about the book.) Thanks for helping me!
I never realized until I Googled, just HOW many books she has written! And I think I’ve read almost all of them!
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:11 pm
I think Taylor won by default. Better singers went home as he slipped under the wire. He was a nice guy but just an average singer.
Ruben was another singer who did mostly ballads. But when 1 vote could be counted as hundreds there should have been a do over. Clay did and still can sing circles around Ruben. But truth be told I liked him too!
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:11 pm
oops, was so busy worrying about the soapbox, I didn’t actually finish my Simon theory. Anyway, wasn’t it just a couple of days after the Adam loss that he announced his departure? I think that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. (sorry for the overused cliche.)
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:15 pm
I don’t know, Barbara, I think the Soul Patrol got a little out of hand (and annoying) and propelled him way further than he should have gone. (disclaimer, though… I was a huge Katharine fan.) But I never did figure out how him twitching and woo-ing his way through the final, won out over her beautiful voice.
But then again, I was probably the only person on earth who wasn’t mad when Daughtry left, because it meant Katharine stayed.
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:16 pm
Chris was a good singer but Adam was a great singer and performer.
But then again you always have to take into account personal preference!
Teeny boppers fell for sweet Chris and his good looks. That’s why so many young male singers today are so popular even tho their singing may be milktoast.
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:19 pm
To this day my daughter hates when I play Bob Dylan music and I gag when she puts on David Lee Roth. LOL!
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:21 pm
Exactly, Barbara. And I do own several of Kris’ songs from iTunes, and like them! But Adam was something special. He was one of those rare singers where I could not WAIT to watch the show each week, to see what he’d do. You couldn’t have paid me to DVR it back then… you BET I was home watching it live every week.
Mercedes and I were saying at one point earlier in the season, how that is a really good measure… when there’s someone you simply can’t wait to watch. Who makes you so impatient for show night to roll around.
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:24 pm
Haha, I like both Bob Dylan and David Lee Roth! Though DLR was more my fave in his Van Halen days. Dance the Night Away….
My fave Dylan would probably be Turn The Page.
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:26 pm
But many of Brad Paisley’s songs make me gag… there’s someone (not) for everyone!
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:32 pm
Jenny you got your Bobs mixed up! Turn the page is Bob Seger. Bob Dylan is Like A Rolling Stone .
My fave by him is Positively 4th Street and everything else he ever sang
I will admit to dancing to Hot for Teacher tho!
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:34 pm
Ooooops!! (embarassed.) Well…. I like Bob Seger too.
I do like “The Times They Are A-Changing”… that’s Dylan, right?
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:36 pm
Yes that is Dylan. Never be embarrassed . I get mixed up too…it’s only human!
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
4:42 pm
OK, had to look up his song list. Serve Somebody, Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door, Rainy Day Women…. those would be my Dylan faves.
And for that OTHER Bob… Mainstreet, Fire Lake, and We’ve Got Tonight. (All the Philip version did was make me want to go and listen to the Bob Seger version.
)
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
4:53 pm
I agree. I do not like others singing my favorite songs. No matter how good they are it never fails to disappoint. Hearing anyone sing Harry Nilsson’s I Can’t Live if Living is Without You makes me cringe!!
Then to hear them call it Mariah Carey’s song is just all shades of wrong
G
May 25th, 2012
4:55 pm
I’m willing to bet mortgage money that another WGWG will win next year! Really. I don’t think anyone on this blog could prove why this won’t hold true. Although one vote per person would prove to be a substantial change, I don’t think Idol has the nads to do it. So, I see no reason why a WGWG won’t win at least the next two years down the road.
Harriett
May 25th, 2012
4:55 pm
Have a good weekend. I will be working on Monday.
Rickster
May 25th, 2012
5:00 pm
Drive safely out there today folks. Memorial Day traffic is going to be a bear.
Have a great weekend. See you all Tuesday.
Jenny
May 25th, 2012
5:16 pm
G – ‘I don’t think Idol has the nads to do it.”
LOVE IT!!
Barbara – I sometimes do, sometimes don’t. I remember being thrilled when they announced Adam would sing U2’s “One” – which is pretty much at the top of my all-time favorite list. But as much as I adored Adam… my reaction after the first few notes was “Oh. Not so sure about this.”
Though I replayed it a few times and grew to really like it.
Barbara B
May 25th, 2012
6:18 pm
It is fine for me with most songs but if it is one f my top favorite songs then that is a different story. I had the same issue with Try a Little Tenderness. Otis sang the hell out of that song. Anyone else can only be a poor distant cousin IMO. I think that might make me a song snob
JTesla
May 25th, 2012
6:31 pm
I think if they were to allow Fantasia to compete again and she only wore that outfit where she’s splitting at the seams (see above) then maybe, just maybe she could put an end to the WGWG dynasty.
Chaka Khan couldn’t beat a WGWG.
Jennifer Holliday would devour the soul of the WGWG, but still couldn’t beat him.
Mercedes S.
May 25th, 2012
7:41 pm
crap – posted a long, thoughtful piece (heh), responding to several posts…and then because I’ve changed computers, and forgot to fill in Name and e-mail, it all went to waste when I pressed submit.
Oh well.
Everybody enjoy their Memorial weekend, especially the hardworking Mr. Ho and his Mrs. Loved the pics above.
Oh, and I shared some thoughts on “MIB-3″ and “Chernobyl Diaries” (liked both, entertaining, each in its own way) at end of Rodney’s thanks you piece.
Mercedes S.
May 25th, 2012
8:11 pm
Watching the sun set over the Wilmington Island… priceless
Sierra
May 25th, 2012
9:24 pm
Here’s my ranking of the WGWGs:
1. Phillip
2. Scotty
3. Kris
4. David
5. Lee
Mercedes S.
May 25th, 2012
10:05 pm
HuffPo compares this years Idols to main characters in “The Hunger Games”. Suzanne Collins, who wrote the books, “have long said her series was inspired by discord between reality TV and news.”
Here’s how HP compares this years Idol crop with HG movie faces:
Peeta – PP
Rue – Jessica
Effie – JLo
Haymitch – Tyler
Cinna – Randy
Caesar Flickerman – Seacrest
The blogger noters that nobody corresponds to the HG heroine Katniss, a statement I take issue with – The Idol Katniss is Hollie! Cuter and smaller, but with the same dead-set ambition to survive. in spite of being constantly knocked down by judges who wanted Anyone But Hollie to win.
Mercedes S.
May 25th, 2012
10:14 pm
sorry… this year’s Idols…. “has long said”…notes… it’s been a long day!
Nutmeg
May 26th, 2012
12:18 am
I think it’s too early to rank Phil on the list of WGWGs.
Jessica losing to Phil isn’t nearly the travesty that Crystal losing to Lee was, and here’s why: Jessica and Phil are apples and oranges. Crystal and Lee were apples and apples, singing similar music with similar style, only she did it far, far better.
Say what you will about Kris, but he still gets airplay on B98.5 and Star 94. I rarely hear Adam there. I also rarely hear David Cook there, which surprises me. He needs a hit–he’s fading.
Taylor Hicks seems to be the most underrated Idol winner. He’s a solid performer and a good singer, and he’s worked steadily since his win.
Thank goodness I haven’t had to hear anything from Scotty since last year’s finale. If you don’t listen to country, he doesn’t come up. At. All.
Mercedes S.
May 26th, 2012
8:56 am
Hmm, this thing about airplay on radio stations… don’t quite get it, since I seldom listen to radio. But when you hear Adam Lambert play at Neiman Marcus AND Walmart, you know an Artist is in the building, so to speak.
Another sign of future success – hubby just downloaded his first Idol perf since Adam – PP’s “Home”…
Deirdre
May 26th, 2012
12:36 pm
TMZ is reporting that Phil will finally get that kidney fixed on Tuesday. Good luck and speedy recovery!
bknsty14
May 26th, 2012
12:49 pm
OK. finally watched Duets this morning. It could grow on me. Not sure how the voting really works. Really like Jennifer Nettles. I have one word for you all: Quddus?!? Don’t like him. Don’t like his name. Don’t like his look. He reminded me of the gay, black kid from My So Called Life. The studio set up looks a little cheap. They could maybe change that up if the show does well. Not a bad debut. I did think a lot of people were better than J Rome, too, but we’ll see.
bknsty14
May 26th, 2012
12:57 pm
And if I have to hear “And I’m Telling You one more time I’m going to puncture my own eardrums.
Jenny
May 26th, 2012
3:29 pm
Mercedes, thanks for the Hunger Games comparison! Love it!
Except noooooo…. not Phillip for Peeta! I wish him well with his surgery, but he’s really beginning to bug me with some of his post-show appearances.
Dude. Back off on the “I just wanna play music… must do my own thing at all costs” bit just a LITTLE. You know, if you’d let them, there are people out there who just miiiight be able to give you good advice. You don’t have experience in the business. They do.
Also please, nooooo on Randy/Cinna. Cinna was my favorite character after Katniss, and I’d NEVER degrade him by comparing him with that bozo Randy. Same for Caesar/Ryan. Ryan can’t even hold a candle.
I’d include a couple of alumni instead:
Peeta – Colton
Prim – Lauren Alaina
Rue – Jess
Katniss – Hollie, or Haley Reinhart. (Haley was less smiley, which fits better.)
Efffie – Lady Gaga (sorry, no Idol could compare.)
Haymitch – absolutely Steven Tyler!!
Cinna – really, there’s no one else but Lenny Kravitz. Sorry, Idol.
Caesar Flickerman – Adam
Jenny
May 26th, 2012
3:35 pm
BK, we almost always agree, but before you puncture your eardrums, give Jess’s studio version of “And I Am Telling You” a try. You can listen to it for free on MJ’s site. It’s really good.
And Nutmeg – good points, but I actually think Jess losing to PP might be an even bigger travesty! Crystal was great… I was and still am a fan… but Jess really has a rare gift. I believe Phil only won *because* he is a WGWG.
Everyone have a fun and safe holiday weekend!
Jenny
May 26th, 2012
4:53 pm
Interesting article. Apparently, this year for the first time only the winner is guaranteed a recording contract. (So much for our usual theory that all of the top 4 or 5 “will be just fine”.)
One analyst cites reduced viewership as a reason for the contract reductions. He also cites the fact that there hasn’t been a super-successful Idol since Carrie.
“These contracts don’t pay off,” he said, contrasting the long list of “Idol” alumni who have been dropped by record labels with those who have thriving careers. “It seems like the successes that people like Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have had are the flukes.”
Ya THINK it could be because… ummm… let me see now, the power-voters forget all about their chosen cute one after he’s showered in confetti? Decreased confidence in America’s voting habits = decreased numbers of people who continue to watch and care about the show.
Carrie and Kelly are the flukes because they’re part of only a very few years that America’s actually voted for a great talent….
Oh well. At least Philip’s cuter than Scotty was.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/25/american-idol-runners-up-_n_1546314.html?ref=topbar
Dave
May 26th, 2012
6:30 pm
Rodney said he tries to keep his posting to 1 a day, to bad more of you don’t practice his example. Course then Y’all have to get a life.
Seth T
May 26th, 2012
10:26 pm
@Jenny — Thanks for the link. They can pay 50 million combined to Ryan, J. Lo & S. Tyler, but need to start crimping on support for everyone but the winner. And the Winners contract hasn’t been increased for years.
While there are always complaints about the Judges, but this year it was even brought-up by a great number of the Media writers that report on the Idol sreies – that Tyler offers little to the show this year, J. Lo is getting more way out of it than she offers in holding an audience, etc.
While Simon said there would be a “bloodbath” of changes after the X-Factor debacle — then Nicole and Paula were replaced — Idol is in dire need of a Judge makeover. It’s more and more about the Judges with Idol every year, so I expect to see a change in fading stars next year.
Other thing I have read also indicate that Nigel won’t have as much say in what happens, unless he personally puts-up some major money gaurantees to the network. He will still be the “Frontman Spokesman” for the show, but his judgement is no longer seen as the key to success.
Mercedes S.
May 27th, 2012
8:46 am
Sweden just won the “Eurovision” song contest – a misnomer, since it seems half of the contestants are from Asia. I checked out the winning number – a nightmarish melange of melisma, windmachine, and flailing arms. The song, performed in English, was incomprehensible. Runner up was a trio of grandmas in big skirts and sensible shoes. They performed a baking routine.
So yes, there seems to be worse shows than our song fests on TV. But the Eurovision Schlager Festival gets an audience of 125 million!