'America's Got Talent' Winner: Cowell Not to Blame for Boyle Breakdown

Denise Warner

PopEater

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Neal E. Boyd was an insurance salesman from Missouri. Then he won a little competition called 'America's Got Talent' and now the opera singer has his own album, 'My American Dream.' In an interview with PopEater, Boyd talks about his time on the show, the advice Simon Cowell gave him, and what he thinks about Susan Boyle. Read It Below

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Tell me about your album, 'My American Dream.'
"The album is a very pop-classical album. It's a very large, big-sounding album. I wanted a CD that would really move people and something with a very cinematic sound ... It's almost like going to the movies with a very intense soundtrack. The whole thing is a soundtrack to my life. And everything in my life -- even though it ebbed and flowed over time -- when big things happened, big things really happened."

Do you have a favorite song to sing?
"I do ... Amazing Grace ... It's probably done [on the album] like you never heard it before. It starts off classical and it just slowly starts to get a little bit gospel and at the very end of it ... you nail it. And you're in full gospel voice. People aren't going to see it coming, they just won't. Especially if what they are looking for is traditional opera as it is. I wanted to make it more pop classical, bring in all the influences I've ever had in my life, from R&B to pop to country. And we've definitely succeeded."

Describe your experience on 'America's Got Talent.' What was it like?
"The fun stuff?"

The good and bad.
"There was really nothing bad about it, there was a lot of pressure. Kind of like what you're seeing now with Susan Boyle. You are in this bubble. And you are ... I guess a good word would be sequestered. You're living in a hotel, and you're performing once a week and you don't really unpack because you don't know when you're going to come home. You're there, you're away from your friends, you're away from your family and all you really have is your dream ... You make a lot of friends along the way and not everybody's dream ultimately comes true."

Was it hard to watch your friends go home?
"Oh yeah, I had one in particular. There was a country singer named Sarah Lenore, who got to be real good friends with myself and another contestant Eli Madsen. We were best of friends from Vegas weeks until the end of the show. And then all of the sudden, there's this moment in the show when it comes down to voting people off and it's Eli standing next to Sarah and you know one of them's going home and I'm in the back. I remember the one thing I said when I looked at the screen was 'Oh no,' because this was the nightmare, you know what I mean? One of your friends has to go home. And it was completely emotional, I think at one point ... I started weeping uncontrollably which is unlike me." Laughs

What advice do you have for this year's contestants?
"You really need to bring your A-game every single time. It's easy for us to fall back on the fact that we're not professionals, or then anyway. We weren't professionals at the time, we made mistakes, we're not pros. This isn't a contest for the lighthearted. It looks fun and glitzy on TV, [but] the contestants are going through some real stuff. There's no two ways about it ... I think my best advice would be A, you have to believe in yourself and B, bring it because if you don't bring it, someone's going to beat you."

What are the judges like?
"I'll start with David because he's the easiest. David Hasselhoff is David Hasselhoff through and through. He was never not funny, he was never not tall and menacing, but he always had a smile on his face and he was very supportive. That was good to see every week, you knew he would be consistent. Sharon was pretty much the same way. She loved it when she could tell that you gave it your all. She really liked when we did well -- very nurturing and motherly. Taking advice from her, someone who built someone like Ozzy Osbourne, it's very reassuring ... Piers [Morgan], he was never negative to me. But some of his comments could be harsh. It was a lot like Simon [Cowell] on 'Idol.' The comments were direct, extremely direct. He wasn't mincing words. If he didn't like it, he didn't like it."

The show has a new host, Nick Cannon. What do you think of him?
" [Old host] Jerry [Springer] had a stylistic thing. I think Jerry's approach brought the audience into it for seasons 2 and 3. And in 3, the audience was very cutthroat. And it was because of, I call it, the Springer Effect. You want to see blood, you want to see carnage ... With Nick, I think it's going to be fresher, more hip hop. I don't really think it's an age thing, I think it's just a generational thing. Nick comes from that world of young, hip Hollywood ... I think he's going to be able to host the show and bring in a younger, hipper crowd."

Do you wish you could have been judged by Simon?
"I tell you what, I did get my shot with Simon. [It was during] my audition in Los Angeles. The three judges were there ... They just buzzed off this tap dancing granny and Jerry throws me out on stage and on camera all you see are Piers, Sharon and David. But right over here to my left was Simon in the producers booth while they were taping the show ... After my performance ... I went off stage and Simon followed me, he came down and he told me about Il Divo and he told me about how this classical genre is coming back, and [said] 'You really need to listen to these guys' ... and incorporate what they have into your performance ... he told me, 'You're really something.'"

Cowell recently wrote an article where he admits he made some mistakes handling Susan Boyle. What do you think of her story?
"I don't think you can blame Simon for what happened with Susan. And I'll tell you why. It's because people are so fascinated with these shows. And when you're on top, eventually people are going to want to knock you down. Susan was an anomaly because it went to viral online ... [People] see this woman who doesn't look the part, isn't Hollywood beautiful, comes out and has a good voice and we're supposed to be shocked by that? ... I don't think they should be shocked ... Simon takes the blame for it simply because he's the producer and one of the judges ... But he can't send someone out into the world of susperstardom, who isn't prepared to be there ... What's going to happen with Susan, I don't know. There's talk of her coming on 'America's Got Talent.' I'd love to see her. But I think there's some personal stuff going on there. I think there's stuff we don't know about. I hope she can work through them without people really digging so deep into her life that she feels like she has no where else to go."

Will we see you on this season of 'America's Got Talent'?
"I believe so. I would definitely enjoy coming back ... to get back on that stage, I know they are setting up this whole rivalry between America and Britain. And I think I've proven America's got talent in a pretty big way."

Speaking of the rivalry, you're performing with ['Britain's Got Talent' season one winner] Paul Potts.
"Yes, I love that. Paul is an incredible guy. He really inspired me. His whole journey [was] another Internet thing. His journey on 'Britain's Got Talent' inspired me to at least take a chance and audition for the show."

Is there anyone else you're dying to work with?
"Oh yeah. I'm a big country music fan ... I loved it back when Pavarotti would collaborate with contemporary stars. I want to collaborate with contemporary stars. I'd like to do a duet with Justin Timberlake, arranged by Timbaland, or work with Nelly, or Beyonce or even Carrie Underwood. The two genres can cross in very special ways."

2009-06-23 15:46:26

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