NBC's "Nashville Star" said goodbye to pretty Ashlee Hewitt, who rollicked the crowd with her original rendition of “Mike’s Hard Lemonade’, a company who must be over the moon for their good fortune at finding their way as the beverage of choice for Hewitt’s bittersweet lyric.
Ashlee Hewitt, the 20-year-Minnesota native was eliminated, leaving 4 finalists. It seemed after last week’s solid performance that Hewitt was in line to win the contest.
The decision at the end of the original song segment of the show left the finalists: Coffey, Gabe Garcia, Melissa Lawson and Shawn Mayer all vying for the chance to work with John Rich and make some noise in Country music on a grand scale. Eight acts already have been eliminated from the show.
The finals are Aug. 4.
"I'm not disappointed at all because this was a great experience for me. I am not stopping here. I am going to do whatever it takes," said Hewitt.
Now only two episodes remain in NBC’s Nashville Star. Next week we get to go back to the contestant’s hometowns, and next week is the last time America gets to vote for their favorite.
Monsters and Critics joined some other journalists and spoke to Ashlee Hewitt, who NBC's Nashville Star said goodbye to on Monday night.
I have to say that your performances - all of your performances last night were exemplary and that you really do shine doing your own material.
Ashlee Hewitt: Thank you.
What did you make of Jewel, Jeffrey and John’s individual medley performances? Personally, I had some pitch problems with Jewel. I didn't know if you listened to their performances and had any comments.
Ashlee Hewitt: I got to hear their performances out on stage and in the house it's really - there's a lot of reverb so you can't hear word for word as good as you can probably on live television. But for me, it was really awesome to see them in our shoes and see them get up there in front of everybody and sing their original songs. I really respect all of them as songwriters.
And I think they are really, really great. I've learned a lot from them all too, so I thought it was fun just to see them up there instead of being in the judges' seats, being in our shoes.
How would you describe the judges’ styles?
Ashlee Hewitt: I think John Rich has been always very brutally honest and for me, that's really good because I take criticism very well. And I think that he's been - he's helped me a lot in just being true to myself and just giving me some good advice about, not letting anybody tell you no. Because he's been through what I'm going through right now and like he said last night - he said he's always tried out for talent shows and never won one. But - so that was nice to hear.
But as far as Jeffrey Steele, Jeffrey Steele is awesome too. He's very sensitive and he is a great - I didn't get to mentor with him. But I've seen him mentor the other people and he's - he really takes time to figure out the problem with the artist and really show them how to fix it. And he critiques them like really good and he's very, very nice about it, and honest too, so he's a great mentor.
Jewel is really sweet too. And I haven't really hung out with her that much, so I don't really know how she was with mentoring. But they are all pretty cool (out there).
What great country artist influenced you when you were growing up? Who did you listen to and who imprinted you the most?
Ashlee Hewitt: I grew up listening to the old, old country. So I was listening to Johnny Cash, and Tammy Wynette, and Loretta Lynn, and all of those older country acts. And another one was LeAnn Rimes. When I was about 13 years old was when she was really making it big in the country music scene. And it really - it gave me the idea about, young people can really make it in the industry. And so I really looked up to her as being young and pursuing her dreams and achieving her goals.
I noticed that you and Shawn had a friendship. You two were holding hands and kind of laughing a bit towards the end. Do you guys harmonize and sing well together? Have you tried singing with each other?
Ashlee Hewitt: We always jammed in the hotel and we always had a really cool connection and this last week we got really close towards the end. We do - we have big plans after the show. We're going to write together and stuff and we're going to be life long friends I think. But of course, we're both lead singers that's for sure, so I don't know how well we'd harmonize with each other. I can be a background singer too, but we have a lot of fun together. We're going to definitely stay really close after the show.
You came from a family of 13? What was your birth order?
Ashlee Hewitt: I'm fourth from the oldest.
How did that affect you?
Ashlee Hewitt: I really know where I come from, and having so many siblings has just been a really great environment to grow up in. They are your best friends and you have a lot of encouragement from your family and everything like that. So it's really supportive of me and they give me a lot of confidence in really achieving my goals.
Talk about your transition to living alone and to Nashville
Ashlee Hewitt: I moved to Nashville a year ago. It was a little challenging for me. I had one of my sisters that lived with me, so that helped a lot.
I grew up about two hours from the biggest city, so it was really hard for us to like go shopping whenever we wanted and stuff like that. So it's really cool being in Nashville and having everything like right near reach and only ten minutes away.
Did you think you'd be staying?
Ashlee Hewitt: I didn't know if I was staying or going, but I prepared myself for anything to happen because you just never know and unfortunately, last night was my last night. But I felt really confident with my performance and I'm really glad that I got to perform my original on national television, so I feel really blessed that I got that opportunity.
How did you process the rave reviews the last two weeks?
Ashlee Hewitt: That was really helpful for me. They were very, very supportive and encouraging, and it means so much coming from (really) great artists that have been where I am and know exactly what I'm going through. So I left last night with some great encouragement.
Over the few weeks, John has been my mentor and he's given me some really constructive criticism and it has helped me so much. And I feel like I've grown as an artist so much and Nashville Star was a great experience for me.
What is your take on the final four?
Ashlee Hewitt: I think Gabe is awesome and I think it's going to be a really close - in the end, it's going to be really hard to decide who is going to be the next Nashville Star. I got really close to Shawn Mayer this last couple of weeks and last night was a really good night for her too. Her original song was very good and it gave me chills the whole time. So she's a great person and she deserves so much too. So I really hope she goes far, but they are all really great.
How important was it for you to perform your original song?
Ashlee Hewitt: I think writing songs is something that I truly love and something that really shows people who I am as an artist, and it's a great way for me to express myself and really show my style of music. So for me to be able to sing my original song on national television was great and I feel so blessed. One of my biggest goals in this competition was to get to that night, so I feel like I achieved that and I'm really excited that I got to do that show.
What is the vibe with all of the contestants and the judges been this season?
Ashlee Hewitt: I think a lot of it is how you take the criticism. A lot of it is if you can really work on what they tell you and take it to heart and really - they've been where we are and they know what we're going through, and they know what it takes to be an artist. So I mean if you can take what they say and really apply it -to your performances each week, that's really going to get you far.
I feel like the judges have been pretty supportive of me through the whole competition, but they've also given me a lot of criticism even off behind scenes, and so I feel like, , I've learned a lot from everything that they've taught me. I think that's the main thing is just trying to just kind of listen to what they have to say because they know what they're talking about.
Has your MySpace site had any big spikes in hits or the number of fans that have registered after John’s comments?
Ashlee Hewitt: Yes, last night I got my computer back, and I was so excited because I'm a MySpace freak. And so I was online and I have gotten over 2000 (friend invites) since last night, so it's been awesome. And I got a lot of praise on my MySpace too as well and I've been reading everybody's comments and messages, and everybody has been so encouraging and supportive. It was so fun to go through and read everybody's messages.
Where do you think last night's performance ranked for you personally?
Ashlee Hewitt: I think last night was one of my strongest or the strongest performance of mine. I think I really got to showcase who I am as an artist and what my style is. And hopefully America will grasp that and continue to follow me because I really think that - I feel blessed that I got to perform that song on TV. And that was one of my main goals was to get to that night, and so I feel pretty confident in my performance last night.
Why do you think you were the one to go?
Ashlee Hewitt: There were a couple performances where - that I could have done a lot better, it's song selection. And it's really hard with nerves and everything being on such a stressful - it's like roller coaster and it really is - you never know what's going to happen. And when you're in the bottom two, it's just so hard to go out there and perform your best. But it's just - it's all about song selection and not letting your nerves get to you right before the show.
How has Nashville Star helped you as a songwriter?
Ashlee Hewitt: I know I'm going to have a lot to write about after this experience, so it's going to be great. I've been writing in my hotel room too a lot and so I was kind of anti-social over the last few weeks because I've been so focused. But it's been a great experience and I'm just going to keep writing and hopefully I'll be able to release some original stuff pretty soon.
What do you think was your biggest challenge on this show from week to week?
Ashlee Hewitt: I think my biggest challenge was just having - finding songs that really fit my style and not being able to perform my originals every week. That was hard for me because I'm a total songwriter, but it also was hard not being able to talk to my family because they are my biggest support system.
So not being able to talk to them was really hard because, I talk to them all the time and I'm really close with my family. So that was challenging for me to stay focused and not think about how they were doing and everything like that.
Do any of your inspirations to your songs or for other songs come from riding horses, or from the Ranch?
Ashlee Hewitt: Yeah, I mean being that I come from the country, I was born and raised there. And I really have real country roots so a lot of my songs are inspired by horses, and cowboys, and being in the country. And especially the original that I wrote and performed last night was one that was inspired by just being in the country, and being a cowgirl, and a cowboy, and it talks about, , (just trucks) and stuff like that.
So I think - that's my (song)'s point is writing about real life things that I've actually been through and real stories. So I think growing up on a farm it really helps me stay true to my country roots.
Have you had a lot of support from your brothers, and sisters, and everybody else?
Ashlee Hewitt: Yeah, I stayed up late talking to them last night and they were so excited, and so supportive, and they are so proud. And I haven't seen them in a really long time so I actually get to fly home today and see them, so I'm really excited. They are just like my biggest support team.
I would always sit in the living room and play guitar and everybody would gather around and sing along. And I'd teach all of my little brothers and sisters how to play guitar and stuff like that. So my whole family is very musical and I know that a lot of my younger brothers and sisters are going to be great musicians when they get a little bit older. And yeah, they've always had to put up with me practicing 24/7.
Biggest crowd you sang for?
Ashlee Hewitt: The biggest setting I think was for a Minnesota Twins baseball game and that was in front of about 25,000 people. So that was my biggest crowd.
Talk about Shawn’s firing of John Rich as her mentor.
Ashlee Hewitt: She didn't want people to think that she couldn't handle his criticism. It wasn't that. But she wanted people to know that she did it because she didn't think that she was getting anywhere. It didn't seem like he was giving her (hints) that would help her instead of just telling her that she wasn't doing a good job. So she really felt like she wasn't getting anywhere and so that's why she decided to go to Jeffrey and she got along a lot better with Jeffrey.
But also, like I got along with John just because I think he had been supportive of me most of the time. But he has also given me some really constructive criticism that I've taken and tried to get better each week with it. But yeah, so we did have different...
What is next for you, any deals?
Ashlee Hewitt: I haven't been approached about a deal yet. Billy Ray Cyrus took me aside last night and he said, "You are awesome." He was like, "I can't believe you got eliminated." And the truth is that his manager was standing backstage and his manager had been my number one fan from the beginning of the show. So he said that he could open a lot of doors for me, so that was really exciting.
I have learned so much just being mentored by such great artists, and I've really gotten a lot more comfortable on stage in front of a lot of people. And it's been an amazing experience and I've learned so much, and it's definitely put a jumpstart to my career. And I feel like I'm way more ready to do great things than I was before I started this show, so I'm really excited.
Susan W.Aug 6th, 2008 - 12:44:04
April MacIntyre,
I don't understand why you have to quote people verbatim, could you not edit your interviews? I wouldn't have written this publicly but I see no other place to send you a message. If you want people to read your articles please edit them. This article totally lacks professionalism.
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