Post by LaWkI on Aug 19, 2005 10:34:58 GMT -5
By withdrawing from American Idol before the finals even began, Mario Vazquez couldn't lose. And, as it turned out, he won.
The smooth singer who departed the star-making series under never quite explained circumstances five months ago has resurfaced with a record deal with the same company that keeps company with Idol standouts Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia, Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice.
Vazquez' signing to J Records was announced Thursday by the label, two days after FoxNews.com first leaked word of the "lucrative deal."
"All I've ever wanted to do is sing and I've always dreamed about having a career in music," Vazquez said in a statement. "There's no better label to achieve that goal with than J Records."
J Records is a division of Sony BMG Music Entertainment, the conglomerate that has been locking up Idol champs and runners-up since the Fox show debuted in 2002. Vazquez is the first Idol competitor to get the BMG deal without having won or made it to the final two, J Records said.
Music industry giant and BMG U.S. chairman Clive Davis called Vazquez "a multitalented, young American born Hispanic singer with the voice and charisma that we've been trying to find for a long time."
It might have been that Davis would have found Vazquez sooner if the crooner had stayed on Idol. Conventional wisdom, and even some fellow Idol competitors, pegged the polished Vazquez as most likely to claim the 2005 title.
But in March, days after being voted into season four's Top 12, Vazquez bolted, citing "personal reasons."
"Basically, it comes down to my intuition," Vazquez told E! at the time. "It wasn't time for me to do this now. There were certain aspects of my life that I needed to take care of first."
Then as now, buzz was that one of the things Vazquez needed to take care of was the management contracts Idol finalists are compelled to sign with 19 Entertainment, the company behind the hit TV franchise. If Vazquez didn't stay with the show, he didn't have to take the deal that the likes of Clarkson and Aiken only recently freed themselves of.
As a free agent, Vazquez was free to sign with Arnold Steifel, Rod Stewart's longtime manager, Roger Friedman reported on FoxNews.com.
Work on Vazquez' new album has already begun, J Records said. A spring 2006 release is planned. Then comes the hard part: Selling the record.
Justin Guarini and Diana DeGarmo scored BMG deals in the wake of their on-air Idol success--both were runners-up--only to be jettisoned when their debut collections sold poorly.
Underwood and Bice, the final two from Idol 2005, will test the waters this fall. Winner Underwood's album is due out Nov. 15; runner-up Bice's on Nov. 22.
The smooth singer who departed the star-making series under never quite explained circumstances five months ago has resurfaced with a record deal with the same company that keeps company with Idol standouts Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia, Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice.
Vazquez' signing to J Records was announced Thursday by the label, two days after FoxNews.com first leaked word of the "lucrative deal."
"All I've ever wanted to do is sing and I've always dreamed about having a career in music," Vazquez said in a statement. "There's no better label to achieve that goal with than J Records."
J Records is a division of Sony BMG Music Entertainment, the conglomerate that has been locking up Idol champs and runners-up since the Fox show debuted in 2002. Vazquez is the first Idol competitor to get the BMG deal without having won or made it to the final two, J Records said.
Music industry giant and BMG U.S. chairman Clive Davis called Vazquez "a multitalented, young American born Hispanic singer with the voice and charisma that we've been trying to find for a long time."
It might have been that Davis would have found Vazquez sooner if the crooner had stayed on Idol. Conventional wisdom, and even some fellow Idol competitors, pegged the polished Vazquez as most likely to claim the 2005 title.
But in March, days after being voted into season four's Top 12, Vazquez bolted, citing "personal reasons."
"Basically, it comes down to my intuition," Vazquez told E! at the time. "It wasn't time for me to do this now. There were certain aspects of my life that I needed to take care of first."
Then as now, buzz was that one of the things Vazquez needed to take care of was the management contracts Idol finalists are compelled to sign with 19 Entertainment, the company behind the hit TV franchise. If Vazquez didn't stay with the show, he didn't have to take the deal that the likes of Clarkson and Aiken only recently freed themselves of.
As a free agent, Vazquez was free to sign with Arnold Steifel, Rod Stewart's longtime manager, Roger Friedman reported on FoxNews.com.
Work on Vazquez' new album has already begun, J Records said. A spring 2006 release is planned. Then comes the hard part: Selling the record.
Justin Guarini and Diana DeGarmo scored BMG deals in the wake of their on-air Idol success--both were runners-up--only to be jettisoned when their debut collections sold poorly.
Underwood and Bice, the final two from Idol 2005, will test the waters this fall. Winner Underwood's album is due out Nov. 15; runner-up Bice's on Nov. 22.
