By April MacIntyre Aug 4, 2008, 18:38 GMT
Meeting the loquacious John Rich the first time at the NBC Summer press day was an interesting foreshadowing to the way the country music talent show is playing out on NBC Monday nights.
The remaining contestants are all strong in their own right, and each one has the respect and admiration of Rich, who is not shy with his opinions.
In fact, it is his view of country music and who will bear the rightful mantle of country radio-approved artist, or not, that has Rich in the crosshairs of some critics who contend his remarks contradict each other.
It was his comments at the NBC press day that I recorded that seem at odds with some of the outcome of the competition.
When Rich was asked if a contest like "Nashville Star" would have benefitted him as an artist, Rich replied, "Absolutely, man. Are you kidding? This is a real good opportunity for somebody to not only become a country music star, but to becomean American music star.
You know, country music is absolutely the most diverse audience out there. All theradio stations play everything from Patsy Cline to Big & Rich. It's all one thing. It's red and yellow, black and white.
You go to a Big & Rich concert, for instance, and you will see a five-year-old, his mother and her mother all wearing a "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy" T-shirt. This is our audience. It's grandmas and grand kids, and everybody in between.
And it really is America's music. You know, country music hasn't been represented at this level like it's going to be on NBC for over 20 years. We have jumped quantum leaps in the last 20 years in country music.
We have artists like Kenny Chesney selling 80,000 tickets a night. The only artists that can compete with that are the Rolling Stones and U2. That's how big it is. It's a pretty damn big deal. The person that wins this show is going to have a real opportunity to become a serious superstar having that fan base at their fingertips.
I think, in my opinion, country music is the greatest music out there. It's music for the country. It's American music. I think now you could call Tom Petty country music. You could call The Eagles country music. You could call -- Motley Crue has just revved up country music.
I mean, Big & Rich, for God's sake. 'Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy.' That's AC/DC with a fiddle."
Monsters and Critics spoke to John Rich about the unfolding of Nashville Star and the finalists a few days ago.
So you don’t have a poker face. Every time Melissa Lawson is onstage you just beam and I get the feeling that you’re going to be in the Melissa Lawson business regardless of whether or not she wins this contest. Is that true?
John Rich: Well I don’t know. That’ll be up to her, you know. I think Melissa Lawson is just one of those people when you hear her sing - and of course, I’ve got to spend time around all these contestants.
When you’re around her and you hear her sing just off the mike when she’s practice or whatever, this is - you can’t practice and become that singer. This is a - like a - just a God-given talent.
The same thing goes for Gabe Garcia and to a certain degree, Shawn Mayer. They just have - they have X factors about them that you just go that is a special quality.
And as far as Melissa Lawson, my god - I mean, to have somebody up there who is a mother of five, you know, and battling her weight issue and actually winning and succeeding at that, and then with just this gift of vocal ability that she has, you just don’t see that everyday.
So, I don’t know how American ultimately is going to vote here, but when the thing is over if she doesn’t win it and she wants to work with me, I will be sitting on go. I can promise you that.
Now I have to bring up the C word - Coffey.He swears up and down he’s country and you say no way José, this is not country music radio. This is not the material for that. Where’s the disconnect? Why is Coffey not country?
John Rich: Well he’s just - if you just listen to the way he sings. See, country music allows for every visual you can throw at it. I mean, you got everything from Big & Rich to, you know, Hank, Sr., you know.
I mean, you’ve got the most traditional stuff all the way to the most outlandish stuff. But what is at the root of it is the real country music roots, you know. And I don’t think Coffey - when you listen to him sing, I said Coffey, you know, sing a Hank Williams, Sr. song.
Sing the most country song you can sing. And then when he sings the most country song I can possibly think of and still sings it like a straight ahead R&B singer, I’m telling myself this guy does not have one country note in his voice.
But he’s a great singer and he’s a very charismatic guy, and probably has a really bright future. I just don’t think he’s going to ever connect to the country audience. I don’t think he’s a country artist and I think...
I mean, he just doesn’t sing country - he doesn’t sing - there’s nothing about him that is country coming out of his vocal chords at all. And his intentions might be hey, you know, I want - maybe he didn’t grow up listening to a lot of country music. I don’t know.
But we’ve got artists like - for instance, I would compare him stylistically - because he is so Pop and so R&B inflected, I’d compare him to Rascal Flatts, Gary LeVox.
And here’s a guy that can sing every note that, you know, any R&B singer could sing. I mean, Gary LeVox can sing every note and he does sing every note. He can sing Christina Aguilera better than she can.
However, when he makes a Rascal Flatts record, man this is a country guy. You hear country coming out of his voice. Even though it’s inflected with all these pop (licks), you still - at the root of it, you hear country coming of this guy.
And I just never heard it coming out of Coffey and as bad as I wanted to hear it, I never did.
Neither did the audience, by the way, because he’s not here anymore.
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