Smallscreen Features

Lee DeWyze talks life post Idol, the interview

By April MacIntyre May 28, 2010, 20:54 GMT

05/26/2010 - Lee DeWyze - 2010 American Idol Season 9 Finale - Press Room - Nokia Theater - Los Angeles, CA. USA © Albert L. Ortega / PR Photos

Lee DeWyze eeked out a win over Crystal Bowersox for American Idol this past week, and his rags to riches tale captured the audience who rooted for the paint salesman who realized his dream and fulfilled his talent.

Lee spoke to journalists on the phone May 28, Friday, to share his thoughts on the whole process.

iTunes lists Oct. 26 as the expected release date for Lee's first post-Idol album.

The bottom line was expressed by Lee DeWyze, who knew what America saw in him: "I think I'm a real guy, whether it be on the show, on the camera or off the camera."
In the last three weeks, DeWyze shared: "You are just exhausted. There is so much mental stress going on." 

Lee on fellow Idol alum and rocker Chris Daughtry: "He's a cool guy. Down to earth and original. I can relate to that."   Past winners were also noted by DeWyze, who bonded immediately with them. "They're very genuine people, and they all know what it's like to be on the other side of it, where I was at."

"You see what they've accomplished, and you just want that," shared Lee about the fame aspect.

Lee was frustrated at some of the performance constraints of the show. "We get a minute and a half...and that was the challenging part of it all."
Part of American Idol that scares people is "the fact that you do have to do things that necessarily aren't your genre." He often tried to rearrange his songs.  "There are some songs I wouldn't sing in a million years, but that's what I signed up for. Those are the rules." said Lee.  Shania Twain Week was one of the tougher weeks for him. "It's so out of my element, but I did what I could with the song."

Lee says 'Beautiful Day' isn't necessarily in his genre but, of his choices, he thought it represented the moment best.  As far as American Idol's cover-song choices, he said, "Once you accept it and you just roll with it, you can make the songs your own and move on."

Regarding his past recordings in Illinois: "That was a stage of my life I'm obviously proud of...I'm really looking forward to the new album I'm going to be making now." 

Even Lee shared he tired of being presented as the everyday guy/paint-store clerk, but ceded that was the subscript of Idol: "It keeps me grounded, knowing where I came from. It's kind of cool."  " 

Also revealed in the interview, apparently Mt. Prospect, Ill., mothers are walking around in T-shirts that say, "Lee DeWyze shook my cans."

For future recordings and touring, Lee said, "I'm going to be able to do my thing on my stage and really show everybody what I can do...without that dome over me...I'm really looking forward to the next step, making new music..."I can't wait to make an album that represents me and put it out there and tour it."

An eclectic music lover, Lee DeWyze's music faves include Sufjan Stevens, Kings of Leon, Ben Harper. Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine and even Simon & Garfunkel. He really digs the new Kings of Leon: "I like that sound. That's a sound I go for...It's very gritty," with great hooks, great lyrics, my new album will have folk-rock kind of alternative vibe to it- very earthy but at the same time reach out to a lot of different people."