Catching up with Carly Smithson
Carly did a Q&A with L. A. Times' Idol Tracker.
As contestants go, few females in “American Idol” history were as bombastic as Carly Smithson. The Season 7 rocker, one of three in that year’s Top 12 if you include David Cook and Michael Johns, brought all the grit she could muster into the competition, only to be eliminated in sixth place after a downright inspiring version of “Jesus Christ Superstar” during Andrew Lloyd Webber week.
But though she always seemed perfectly at ease on the “Idol” stage, Carly, surprisingly, confesses she “was uncomfortable the whole time.” “I wasn’t ready to win,” she tells Idol Tracker. “I had to come off of the show and define myself as an artist, to show people who I really am.”
And did she ever. A year after her elimination, and through a series of coincidental connections, Carly met Ben Moody, the co-founder of Evanescence who had parted ways with singer Amy Lee back in 2003. (It was not lost on either that Carly sang Evanescence’s breakout hit, “Bring Me to Life,” which Ben co-wrote, on the “Idol” summer tour.) Ben, along with fellow original members John LeCompt and Rocky Gray, were looking to do their own thing, and Carly turned out to be the perfect fit for a new band called We Are the Fallen. Their debut, “Tear the World Down,” which includes the single “Bury Me Alive,” co-written by Carly, is out on Tuesday. Their headlining tour starts Thursday.
Be sure to check out the rest here! Also, WATF's debut album Tear the World Down will be released everywhere TOMORROW, so please go pick up a copy or download it from iTunes and support our favorite rocker! ♥
As contestants go, few females in “American Idol” history were as bombastic as Carly Smithson. The Season 7 rocker, one of three in that year’s Top 12 if you include David Cook and Michael Johns, brought all the grit she could muster into the competition, only to be eliminated in sixth place after a downright inspiring version of “Jesus Christ Superstar” during Andrew Lloyd Webber week.
But though she always seemed perfectly at ease on the “Idol” stage, Carly, surprisingly, confesses she “was uncomfortable the whole time.” “I wasn’t ready to win,” she tells Idol Tracker. “I had to come off of the show and define myself as an artist, to show people who I really am.”
And did she ever. A year after her elimination, and through a series of coincidental connections, Carly met Ben Moody, the co-founder of Evanescence who had parted ways with singer Amy Lee back in 2003. (It was not lost on either that Carly sang Evanescence’s breakout hit, “Bring Me to Life,” which Ben co-wrote, on the “Idol” summer tour.) Ben, along with fellow original members John LeCompt and Rocky Gray, were looking to do their own thing, and Carly turned out to be the perfect fit for a new band called We Are the Fallen. Their debut, “Tear the World Down,” which includes the single “Bury Me Alive,” co-written by Carly, is out on Tuesday. Their headlining tour starts Thursday.
Be sure to check out the rest here! Also, WATF's debut album Tear the World Down will be released everywhere TOMORROW, so please go pick up a copy or download it from iTunes and support our favorite rocker! ♥
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