Well, you could see this coming from a million miles away.
Kris Allen, winner of Season 8 of American Idol, is no longer an RCA Records artist.
The Hollywood Reporter reported the news earlier this week; Kris confirmed it on Wednesday.
In a tweet to fans, he wrote: “I wanted to let everyone know that RCA and I decided to split ways. I thank them so much for everything that they did for me. There are so many people there that contributed to my becoming the artist that I am and I will miss them all.
“In saying that, I am really excited about what is ahead. The path has never been clearer for me. I love what I do and I will never stop … things are only gonna get more fun. I promise.”
In my mind, things already got more fun with “Thank You Camelia,” his second album, which marked a major improvement over his post-Idol debut.
Problem was, that post-Idol debut was the worst performing CD by an Idol winner through the first eight seasons. And, from a sales standpoint, “Thank You Camelia” did worse, staying on the Billboard 200 just two weeks.
When you’re a pop artist and that happens, your days with your label are usually numbered.
On the bright side, Kris has a number of concert dates lined up, including one at The Hamilton on Oct. 28. Tickets to the show are $28.50 and are available here.
And Kris performed a three-song acoustic set on Yahoo earlier this week that included “Monster” and “Better With You” from “Thank You Camelia.” Head to his website and you can check out the performance.
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4 Comments
Kris is Season 8 winner (not 9), so that’s 8 years. Kris’ debut album sold 80,000 on his first week sales. It put him at #11 on Billboard 200 because for some reason his label chose to release it in a week when many anticipated albums were released that week (John Mayer, Justin Bieber, 50 Cent, Susan Boyle, etc.), otherwise he would’ve been higher. His first single went platinum, and was a radio hit. Billboard reported that he was the first male winner to have a single in the top 10 in three different radio formats, and it was nominated for a Billboard Award. Lee was the Season 9 winner with lowest selling album debut selling 39,000 and did not have a hit single.
Kris is Season 8 winner (not 9), so that’s 8 years. Kris’ debut album sold 80,000 on his first week sales. It put him at #11 on Billboard 200 because for some reason his label chose to release it in a week when many anticipated albums were released that week (John Mayer, Justin Bieber, 50 Cent, Susan Boyle, etc.), otherwise he would’ve been higher. His first single went platinum, and was a radio hit. Billboard reported that he was the first male winner to have a single in the top 10 in three different radio formats, and it was nominated for a Billboard Award. Lee was the Season 9 winner with lowest selling album debut selling 39,000 and did not have a hit single.
Thanks for correcting the year. I’ve made that change in the blog. So, through the first eight seasons, Kris had the worst selling CD of any Idol winner. That’s the point I was trying to make. Not that his debut did horribly, but it didn’t match the sales success of his predecessors. The first album from his immediate predecessor, David Cook, went platinum in a matter of months.
Thanks for correcting the year. I’ve made that change in the blog. So, through the first eight seasons, Kris had the worst selling CD of any Idol winner. That’s the point I was trying to make. Not that his debut did horribly, but it didn’t match the sales success of his predecessors. The first album from his immediate predecessor, David Cook, went platinum in a matter of months.