Interview with Kimberly Caldwell of American Idol, Season 2
Kim talks about her time on Idol, her hosting duties, and upcoming Idol Camp
Kimberly Caldwell is one of the early successes of American Idol, yet her success is measured a little differently. She doesn't have a number one record out there, but she does have a successful television career, being seen on more than a few shows each week, such as Idol Tonight and Idol Wrap. She took time out of her schedule to talk to me recently, and while we only had a few minutes to chat before I had to leave, we did seem to pack a lot of information into this short time, helped by the fact that Kimberly is just as energetic on the phone as she appears to be on TV.
While I was preparing for the interview, I was thinking that I see such a different Kimberly Caldwell now than the one that I saw on American Idol each week during season two. When I started posing this question to her, she knew exactly where I was going with it, and I didn't even have to finish. She attributed these differences to her being completely and totally unfocused with no clue what she was doing when she was on American Idol. I have to say it's definitley refreshing that she can be so honest about her time on the show.
Yet now, Kim realizes she can just be herself on camera. Before, she never stepped back and realized what they meant, but they were right when they said it can change your life forever. She wishes she could go back and show America the real Kimberly Caldwell, yet it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. I asked if she hadn't been onstage since she was five years old, and she confirmed this, saying she should have been comfortable. She knew how to perform, but didn't know how to do a formal interview.
Since Kim mentioned wishing she could go back and do it all over again, I asked if she really would do American Idol again, given the chance. She told me emphatically that she would dit all again 100%. She kind of wishes there were an Idol All-Stars, and I agreed that would be great. Who among us fans of the show wouldn't love that? She'd like to do it with her buddy Justin Guarini, as she'd like to kick his ass, competitively speaking, at least. She wouldn't want to go against Chris Daughtry, but if he ever needs a date again, she'd like him to be her new boyfriend. Kim is so forthright, I'm thinking she wouldn't have much of a problem convincing him.
I noted that Kim seems to pick her favorite guys each season, referring to them as her newest boyfriend, future husband, etc., and she told me it's so funny to others that she does that, but for her, these guys on American Idol are her coworkers. And while the rest of us choose guys we'd like to date from our own circle of coworkers, that's really all she's doing. I asked if she'd ever dated any of them, and she replied she could name off at least ten names, but pressed, she refused.
Curious to get Kim's take on the latest on-set rumors, I asked her what was going on with David Archuleta and his dad. We'd heard that he was yelling at him backstage for screwing up his song in practice the week he forgot his lyrics singing We Can Work It Out. Kim said just like hereslf, David has been a singer his entire life, so she gets it. She understands the stage mom/dad thing.
Kim's mom has always been there for her and was her coach as well. She always told Kim the truth, whether it was that she was singing off key, or that when she opened her mouth more, she was spitting out her words. Kim sees the benefit of having somebody out there helping you, that is if he is indeed just critiquing.
For a new venture in Kim's career, she'll be volunteering her time at Idol Camp, this year. While many Idols did it last year and are repeating in the same roles again, this will be her first time. After her friends Ace Young and Jon Peter Lewis both told her how much they enjoyed dong it last year, and that it was a "super fun, super awesome bonding experience," when Idol Camp, asked Kim to do it this year, she knew she had to.
Kim is going to be at Idol Camp, for just two days, so she'll only be performing. Yet, if she was going to teach a class, she'd teach some things she wishes someone had taught her. She'd love to do a mock question and answer thing, like an interview, to show the kids what they're allowed to say and what they should say. I find this really interesting. You would think most experienced music people would want to teach some type of music class, instruments, voice, etc., yet Kim wants to teach how to get along in this business.
While Kim is looking very forward to her time at Idol Camp,, she admits that she never went to camp as a kid, as she is "so not the camping type of girl. She was the "girl that was 'like where's the hair and makeup?'" Her sister did camp, and was much more of a camper. Despite not being a camping type of girl, Kim is on the Advisory Board of Camp Kindle, a camp for kids with HIV/AIDS, where her sister is a counselor. Kim got to go down there last year and hang out. She loved it, getting to do things like making tie dye shirts.
Something I didn't know about Kim is that before she moved out to Los Angeles, she was a daycare teacher. It was definitely one of her earlier main goals in life, and she would love to now do a troubled teen tour of sorts. She'd like to go around to different schools and talk to the troubled teens about her own problems in those years. Again, it seems to match up with her desire to teach kids how to hold their own during an interview. It seems she wants to really help kids to be sure they get the best out of every experience in life.
My last question for Kim was asking her what her favorite traditional camp song was. Since she never went to camp herself, Kim doesn't have a favorite camp song as an attendant, but she does have a favorite from her time last year at Camp Kindle. Kim really loved Hippopotamus Smile.
There were more stories Kim told in that quick ten minutes we had to talk, yet I wasn't even able to take notes on them. She talks so energentically and fast, I just ended up listening some of the time, feeling like I was watching her on TV and listening to her talk to Rosanna Tavares or Justin Guarini. This has to be the real Kim that we see on TV, and it's so refreshing to know that's what she's really like. My bet is that the kids that sign up for Idol Camp, will see the same Kim I did here.
Parents can find more information about this exciting camp experience, at Idol Camp, and if they want to sign up their kids, they can waive the $35 registration fee with the promotional code idolfan1. You may also want to read Jon Peter Lewis's take on Idol Camp.
Read celebrity gossip at Troubled Hollywood, and my product and service reviews at Viewpoints. Catch up on my movie reviews and other things at My Facebook Page.
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| stevespr |
Posted: 2010/2/5 0:00 Updated: 2010/2/5 0:00 |
Home away from home   Joined: 2010/2/4 From: Posts: 1687 Online! |
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