Well, today is the official day that we are released from our contracts with 19 Entertainment. I actually got word of my release a couple of days ago, but today is the official day. It's excited to move on, but it's with whimsy that I look back on the last year of my life.
I am thankful to 19 Entertainment for a lot of things. I am thankful that Nigel and the judges gave me a chance. Before Idol, I was at a place in my career where I was frustrated because, though things had happened with labels, nothing had ever quite worked out. Now, because of the show, I am signing with management that I have always dreamed of signing with and I'm about 95% sure I'm signing with the label and A&R guy that I fell in love with 5 years ago.
There were some really great times over the last year and some really crappy times, mostly of my own doing, to be perfectly honest. I put myself in stupid situations and the last few months have been great to extricate myself from some of those situations. It's nice to finally be at a place in my life where I can make choices and stand behind those choices as my own and feel confident enough to allow disagreement with those choices without defending myself. It's a nice place to be, honestly.
19 and American Idol have changed my life for the better. And for that I am eternally thankful.
I am glad to have had this experience.
I am now looking forward to putting this behind me and making a great record and touring on the validity of that record. As I said in the previous post, I have 3 new demos up on myspace. Check them out and listen while I'm able to have them up there. Please continue to come here...I'll have new content up soon.
And thank you for being with me on this incredible journey.
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23 comments:
Thank you for taking us on your journey. You didn't have too. We know this blog brought you joy and sometimes pain due to misunderstandings but we watched you grow stronger and cheered you on. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings for you.
i didn't think that would happen til after the tour was over , any whoo does that means you don't have to be quiet about bening signed to a label???
Chris~I thank you for letting me go on this journey with you. I have seen you grow throughout this experience. Watching videos from the tour your voice & stage pressence has also really grown. I am so excited about your future. I know you will go really far. I love the 3 demos on your myspace page. I can't wait for the album & the tour. I hope you come to Southern California. You mentioned previously that your band from HPF will be hitting the road with you. That is awesome.
I also can't wait to hear stories from the tour now that you are not in 19's clutches.
Thanks again for letting us take this journey with you & you know we will be with you as you continue on an even more incredible jouney.
Congrats on being released from your contract, and after listening to the demos on myspace, whoever is going to sign you will be really lucky to have great talent. On a not-so-different note, my favorite demo of the ones I've heard is probably Something Beautiful. It has that Chris Sligh feeling, but it's catchy and also sounds a bit like Counting Crows. They're all great, though. I can't wait to see how they improve from the demos.
Chris,
You thanking us for coming w/you on this incredible journey is a bit like your night at Ryan Cabrera's party where your "idols" were coming up to you telling you they were great fans of yours. Too surreal.
So...you're very welcome. And we are so priviledged you allowed us onto the ride.
~clarissaNaz
(hanging onto my hat)
Chris,
I hate to be a copy cat, but like everyone else it has been such a blast to have felt like you were taking us all along on the ride with you. You have done, in my opinion, a great job navigating what I am sure was uncharted and sometimes dangerous waters. So there was some bumps along the way, big deal, there will likely be more. Let's face it, it's the bumps that make us better and stronger, and my friend that is what they have done for you. I am proud to have called myself a Sligh fan from day one.
The demos rock, and so do you! So run, do not walk into the next phase. This is the good stuff Chris, you've earned it!
"Please continue to come here" - as if wild horses could drag us away! If you haven't figured it out by now, a Chris Sligh fan is a fan forever.
So today is the official day you are released. Sort of like breaking up with someone you really like, but knew it wasn't the perfect fit. Now on to the perfect fit - which romantically for you is Sarah - but professionally will be this new cool label.
The demos are good. I really like Love is Raining Down and Something Beautiful. Seems like if it is a concept album you would end with Running Back, as it really has a strong, powerful, yet hopeful feeling. I love your voice - and sometimes I wish you would just sing without any background at all!
Don't worry, plenty of people will continue to visit your site - there'll be so much new news!!
I rambled alot in another post just now, but I have to also state that I think your new songs are very Audio Adrenaline-esque (Especially their Underdog cd). Which I LOVE! Do you listen to Audio Adrenaline? (If you do, or if you have before, I hope you like them and don't take offense to me comparing you to them!... you've never mentioned them in your influences).
:) Lori
PS: When you start touring will you promise to always and forever come to Indianapolis? OK thanks. :D
As everyone else is saying. Once a Sligh Fan, always a Sligh Fan. We will be here with you all the way.
Please continue to come here...Are you kidding me? We your true fans will always be here...You just try to keep us away...
This was a really nice post-- and thank you for the Memories, too. But like you said, as the Tour winds down, the rest is only beginning.
It's hard to allow yourself to be in a place in life where you don't have to apologise for yourself and your choices. It takes integrity, and fortitude. But it's the one place you can be, that I think God is most pleased at... acceptance and love. Good stuff can come from that.
Chris,
It is I who owes you the "thanks" for the incredible journey. You have been so kind and gracious to let all of us have the chance to get to know you and what is in your heart through your blog.
This blog has done more than just allow us the opportunity to get to know you, it has also allowed all of us here (the core) the opportunity to get to know each other. Some great friendships have come about because of this blog. Your music has brought people together and has made the world a better place. Ralph Waldo Emerson said "To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children...to leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. " Chris, you have succeeded my friend.
SIMB
Carmen
Chris, no, "thank you" for taking us with you on your incredible journey. It's been an exciting adventure and I hope that you will allow us to continue along with you on what surely is going to be the most exciting part of your life/career.
We love you Chris - don't you forget it.
Carmen~ You have put into words what I've been thinking but could not articulate. Thanks...I agree with you completly.
TOP TEN THINGS I HAVE LEARNED FROM PARTICIPATING IN THE CHRIS SLIGH BLOG WORLD:
10. Do not try to compete with GDA in any kind of Trivial Pursuit game. You will lose. Badly. (love you, GDA!)
9. There's a WHOLE lot more that goes into the making of a record than the general public knows.
8.I have a twin who lives across the country from me. Two people named Rosalee and Risalea had to be separated at birth, right? LOL
7.Some of the most articulate, kind, and fun folks in the world are devotees of this blog (and I dare not list names, lest I leave some out)
6.Many bloggers on here should be running P.I. businesses, as they have tracking the Idols on tour down to a science! (my own PI--our dear Amanda!)
5.Chris loves us too much to leave us, as he tried to close the blog for the duration of the tour, but just couldn't bring himself to do it. : )
4. Visiting a blog helps you brush up on English skills such as poetry when reading/composing Sligh-kus and Slighmericks.
3. Blog reading also builds geography knowledge as one follows the Idols around the country. Some have brushed up more than others with many field trips to said locations. (go Carmen!)
2. Blog reading can be addictive, to the point of leaving the site minimized on one's work computer, lest comments be missed in the course of the day.
1. and the #1 thing I learned from reading Chris Sligh's blog: His voice caught my attention, but his words captured my heart. We love you, Chris (and Sarah, too)
Risa
Yeah Risa...Couldn't have said it better myself.
I can't wait till next summer when we can all meet in person.
Risa,
Amen!
SIMB
Carmen
hey Chris! the demos sound GREAT!!
I'm happy that you and the rest of the Idols are free from your contracts now! Can't wait to see who you'll all sign with. I hope we hear announcments from all of you soon!
^_^
You're welcome :P No but really Thank YOU. Without you this season of AI plus this summer would've been pretty crappy. I also thank AI for introducing us to you and HPF. I loved you after your audition but once I found HPF and heard your sound I knew I'd definitely found someone I will continue to support long after AI.
As I said earlier on.. (It's cheesy but..) Keep doing what you love and we'll keep loving what you do.
Congratulations on everything! I'm so happy everything has worked out for you. God has really blessed you on your amazing journey.
I look forward to seeing what great things lie ahead for you!
thats great.
chris i really really need some advice....i love music more than anything, and i feel like its the talent God has given me (singing, guitar and piano by ear, songwriting, etc), and its what im supposed to do. but i have this severe stagefright/shyness when it comes to singing in front of people. i just cant do it, not in front of ANYONE. even my family or friends. i think im pretty good, i really wish i could get over this stagefright. but im thinking about auditioning for american idol next year, so maybe since everyone is there to sing...i will feel more comfortable....? idk, but could you please give me some advice? and tell me about your audition process:was it hard?
thanx for reading and pleease respond
Hi, Joe -
Scroll down to Chris's Aug. 2nd blog, "So You Think You Can Sing". He gives some advice there, but does not address stagefright.
Going from not being able to perform in front of ANYBODY to wanting to audition for American Idol is a HUGE step. I think that everyone has a certain amount of the jitters before a performance - some more than others. Maybe you would feel more comfortable performing in front of strangers than in front of your own friends and family. But you should practice performing in front of SOMEBODY before you go to American Idol. You need to have an outgoing personality to succeed on a show like that. You sound like you are also very sensitive. The judges may rip you apart and you may not take their criticism well.
For your personality type, since you said you do songwriting, you may end up being more comfortable doing that in a "behind the scenes" profession, rather than taking on an upfront performing role.
I was somewhat like you growing up - shy and had stagefright at times, but not as extreme. I also know that it can be conquered if you put your mind to it. Here's one reference to start off with:
http://www.anxietycoach.com/social1.htm
Just do a Google search on "stagefright" or "stage fright" and I'm sure you'll find more help there.
This is just my opinion. I'm not a psychologist or anything like that. Just a Sligh fan who can identify a little with what you are going through.
Good Luck.
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