Idol Chit-Chat
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Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Should Carly Get a Second Chance?

When Carly Smithson said on last night’s “Idol” that she had everything right in front of her and lost it, she wasn’t just talking about the trip to Hollywood she lost two years ago…

Yes, Carly Smithson is Carly Hennessy, whose debut album was such a failure it was a feature story in the “Wall Street Journal.”

I read the “WSJ” article and it’s pretty clear that Carly got a raw deal from MCA, her producers and her management. But should she get a second chance?

Here, courtesy of “WSJ,” is her story…

Carly was a child star in Ireland (She released an album at age 10.) and in 1999, she and her father came to Los Angeles to try and score a record deal. She was signed by MCA, whose president wanted to start her off as a teen pop singer (a la Britney Spears) and then develop her into a Celine Dion.

Carly and her producer, Steve Dorff, spent three months (while Carly lived on MCA’s dime) recording the album. But no one (except Dorff, who felt it was the best use of her talent) was happy with the result because it was “too serious” for the teen audience.

Because he was under pressure to create a new star, the MCA president decided to rerecord the album from scratch. Gregg Alexander, who had worked with Geri Halliwell (Spice Girls) and others, was brought on to produce four songs. Danielle Brisebois, a songwriter who had never produced an album before, was hired to produce the rest.

In April 2001, before the album was finished, MCA decided to release her first single, “I’m Gonna Blow Your Mind.” But the song was about a certain activity that Bill Clinton became known for (This is a family blog, so that’s all the description I’m going to give you.), which kept it from getting exposure on the popular teen outlets like Radio Disney. MCA felt it was her catchiest song, though, so they spent $250,000 on a video of Carly in a disco jumping around with friends in pajamas. The video was quickly shelved after it didn’t catch on.

Because it was too mature for top 40 radio and too pop for adult top 40 radio, the single didn’t catch on either. MCA brought in an additional manager to help out, got Carly a Canadian modeling contract, sent her on a press tour, and released a second single, “Beautiful You.”

By this time, MCA’s total investment in the album was nearly $2.2 million.

“Beautiful You” received less airplay than “Mind” and retailers, who were leery after overstocking Carly’s two singles, only bought 10,000 copies of Carly’s CD.

The CD, “Ultimate High,” was released in November 2001. Three months later, when “WSJ” wrote the article, it had sold only 378 copies.

The article ends with Carly headed back to Ireland after MCA decided to move her back (i.e. stop paying for her apartment and car) and release the CD in Europe. “This album is going to be huge,” she said. “I won’t stop until it is.”

Obviously, she changed her mind…

Apparently, Carly did experience some success in her native Ireland with “Mind” and its new, sexier video, which you can see below. But clearly, it was not enough success to keep her from returning to the states.

So, again, I ask, does she deserve a second chance?

Me, I believe she does. However, I don’t think that chance should come via “Idol.”

“Idol” is for undiscovered talent, not people who were discovered and then mismanaged. If Simon Cowell feels so strongly about her (In 2005, he said she was as good as Kelly Clarkson.), he should just sign her.

Votefortheworst.com is calling Carly a “plant” and a “ringer” to ensure that the show has talent. I’m not sure about that, but it does bother me that the show is trying to portray her as an undiscovered talent.

What do you think?

By the way, I encourage all of you to read the “WSJ” article here. Even though it’s from 2002, it gives a very interesting look into the music industry, which may explain why it’s in so much trouble now…