TVSquad Talks To "Idol" Winner Lee DeWyze on Idol Tour and Upcoming Album

[JamesG]

"American Idol" Winner Lee DeWyze on Recording His Album, Twitter and Meeting Kris Allen
by Gabrielle Dunn
posted Jun 25th 2010


Lee DeWyze is a man of few words.

Perhaps it's because he's saving all of them for his upcoming album, which DeWyze told TV Squad that he's already started writing.


Either way, the former paint salesman from Chicago, who came from behind to beat frontrunner Crystal Bowersox with his raw vocals and shy-guy-with-a-guitar appeal, woke up early (sorry, Lee!) to chat with TV Squad about his about his upcoming album's rock sound, meeting season 8 winner Kris Allen, his "bromance" with fellow Idol Andrew Garcia and shucking the "no confidence" portrayal of him this season.



Still, there were a few subjects DeWyze in which decided to remain mum on.
(Darn those mysterious musicians!)






Can you tell us one song you'll be singing on tour?

I'll be doing "Treat Her Like A Lady."




How are rehearsals going?

It's going really good, actually. It's just nice to get in the rehearsal space and play a full song, as opposed to the minute and a half stuff. [Laughs] ...We still have a little bit more to go.

For me, rehearsals kind of just started, like, a week or so ago, because I was out flying around doing all that stuff. So when I got back, I kind of had to get right into rehearsal.











Will you be writing and recording your album during the tour?

Yeah. I'm gonna be doing that ... It's gonna be quick. I'm going to be going, and touring and recording the album, and by the time we're done with tour, it'll be close to being done.

I have personally done writing for it. In the next couple of days, it'll be my first time in the actual studio with the people I'm going to be working with. It's really cool.




Do you plan to collaborate with anyone from season 9?

Not right now, no. Eventually I would like to; there are people I would work with that were on this season.

But right now, it's just kind of about the tour, and then me putting out my album. Someday down the road, I would.




Any idea what the album's going to sound like when it's done?

It's definitely going to have a rock feel to it. Some songs are going to be heavier than others, some songs will be broken down and slow.

It'll be cool. It's gonna be very "me." [Laughs]




Is it similar to your pre-"Idol" albums?

I mean, I don't know. It's probably going to be a little bigger, a little different. We'll see.











Did you get a chance to talk to season 8 winner Kris Allen at all?

I did get a chance to meet him at the finale. I got a chance to hang out with him and his family and everything. He's a really cool guy. I like him a lot.

He had some words of advice; but just over all, a really nice guy. I was like, "Wow!" Yeah, I talked to him, and David Cook and a few of the others, and they were all like, "Congratulations!".

They've all been real cool.




Have you seen the "bromance" buttons with you and fellow contestant Andrew Garcia?

I didn't see that. That was really awesome. [Laughs] No, we didn't know that. I think it's funny.

Oh, I didn't even know about the button. Andrew showed it to me. He was like, "Dude, they got a button for us!" I was like, "Nice."











Season 9 didn't do a great job of showcasing contestants' personalities.
Do you think the show accurately portrayed you?

I think, if anything, they harped on the confidence thing too much. That's about it. That's the only thing I would say that I don't think was accurate about me -- just saying I'm not confident.

Every week I'd get up there, it'd be like, "Okay. I am."




Are you confident?

Well, yeah! How do you get up in front of millions of people and do that if you're not?

But, you know, if you go with it, you roll with it.











Why did you decide to set up a new Twitter account?

Well, there's a lot of fake ones out there, so they just set up the real one. It's pretty easy. You know, I never was really into Twitter so much before all of this, so sometimes I forget.

I'm not the type of person that's like, "Oh, I've got to get my Twitter up!" But it's kind of cool. I get to talk to fans and stuff and, you know, post little things to let people know what's going on with the music. It's kind of cool.




Do you look at what people tweet to you?

If I can, If I get a chance.

It's more or less I like to just say I'm recording or I'm doing this or I'm doing that. I don't know.




People on Twitter want to know what your tattoo says.

[Laughs] They're just Cat Stevens and John Lennon lyrics.




Oh! Which ones?

I don't want to say.

Everyone's asked me and I haven't told anybody, so I'm just going to keep it that way.











What made you choose 'Beautiful Day' as your first single?

It just was the right song for the time, I guess you could say.




Are you going to be performing it on tour?

I don't know yet. Since the show's been over, I have come up with an acoustic version of it, a kind of more acoustic-rock version of it, I guess you could say.

So if I was to sing it, it'd be something like that.









Have you seen the bus yet?
Do you know what the sleeping arrangements will be?

No, but I can't wait to find out. [Laughs] I'm sure it's going to be interesting. We'll see.

As long as I'm not next to Big Mike -- I'm just kidding. We're all looking forward to it. It's gonna be awesome.

I mean, who gets to do this, you know?





Which cities are you most excited to visit on tour?

Canada and Chicago. Chicago, my hometown, for sure.
Yeah, it's gonna be cool.

http://www.tvsquad.com/2010/06/25/le...ols-live-tour/