Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Longtime American Idol fans are no doubt disappointed to see the show go off the air after Season 15.

But Idol’s exit will be accompanied by lots of new music from the show’s past stars.

Lee DeWyze just became the third Idol winner to announce plans for a new album in early 2016.

His third post-Idol album will be called “Oil and Water” and will be out on Feb. 12. That’s the very imaginative album art that I’ve embedded, of course.

Lee’s also offering fans a chance to get the album about a week earlier, plus lots of bonus material, through a Pledge Music campaign.

You can snag an autographed CD for $30, tickets to Lee’s invitation-only, album-release concert in Los Angeles for $125 and handwritten lyric sheets for $250.

For big spenders, Lee’s offering up the acoustic guitar on which he wrote the 10 songs on “Oil and Water” for $12,500. He guarantees that it comes with “years and wear and tear from writing and recording.”

The Season 9 Idol winner has also announced a tour in support of the album. It includes stops in Philly (Feb. 15 at World Cafe Live), Pittsburgh and Scranton. Head here for the complete tour schedule.

Below is an acoustic version of “Safe,” one of the songs from Lee’s new album.

Oh, and the other past Idol winners to announce new albums in early 2016 are Kris Allen and Taylor Hicks. So far. Smart move to capitalize on the publicity that will surround Idol’s final season.