news articles 12 december

[Inside Australian Idol]

Dicko deals with fame
From Sydney Confidential
December 12, 2003


AUSTRALIAN Idol judge Ian "Dicko" Dickson knew the show would make him famous.
But he had no idea what being famous would do to him.

"It's been bigger than I thought it could be, I was naive about fame and what it can do to you," he told Confidential yesterday as he had "last drinks" at Channel 10's Christmas party before flying out for World Idol in London with Guy Sebastian.

Also chewing the fat on the Ten studio rooftop was Secret Life's Gigi Edgely, White Collar Blue's Jodie Dry and the news and sports crew.

Dicko, just six months ago a humble BMG executive in need of a haircut, has become as famous as winner Guy Sebastian, mobbed by fans - his muppet hair apparently sexy to middle-aged women.

"It has been hard to deal with, but being back in the office doing what I do has really brought me back to earth," he said.

"That is saying something because after 20 years in an industry that develops fame, you'd think I'd be better equipped to handle it."

Dicko flies off today to get working with old pal Simon Cowell, the nasty judge of the UK series, for the World Idol Performance show - to air 7.30pm Boxing Day - and the World Idol, The Results - to air twice on January 2.

But the question is, who will be the loudmouth this round?

"The producers have an idea of what they want to do but I'm not going to do their thing, but just be the natural me and they can edit around that," he announced.

"Simon is a hell of a character who looks, acts and lives like James Bond - right down to the Aston Martin - so it'll be good catching up with him."

The Daily Telegraph

entertainment.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4459,8138766%255E10229%255E%255Enbv,00.html

[Inside Australian Idol]

I know what Guy's like
December 13, 2003


Picture: Danielle Smith

This week Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian released his first album - which he recorded in just over five days. Christine Sams meets a young man in a hurry.

Guy Sebastian is surrounded by women, with his shirt off and trousers undone. But Australia's Idol hasn't turned to sex, drugs and rock'n'roll just yet. The 22-year-old is standing in a change room trying on designer clothes for a photo shoot.

"I feel a bit dressed up," the singer from Adelaide says after slipping into a new suit. But judging by his assured, sexy poses in front of the camera only moments later, Sebastian is feeling all grown up and ready for the Australian entertainment industry to take him seriously.

Sebastian has already celebrated sales of more than 128,000 units in one week for his first single, Angels Brought Me Here.

"I'd heard of the (single) sales while I was still in the studio recording the album... we were just jumping up and down and laughing, we couldn't believe it," Sebastian says.

"Then a few nights ago I got a text from a friend saying 'Congratulations on your No. 1' and I didn't know about the No. 1 at that stage. It was just amazing. I don't think anyone can describe that feeling."

It has been a week of peaks and troughs for Sebastian with a teenage fan collapsing in Adelaide's Rundle Mall, causing Sebastian to cancel the rest of his promotional tour. On the bright side, his new album, Just As I Am, was released this week and is expecting huge sales.

The Australian Idol is the only likely contender to topple Delta Goodrem from the No. 1 album spot, with critics predicting his album will be one of the biggest debut CDs released this year. "I hope she (Delta) doesn't hate me for it, if it does happen," Sebastian says with a coy smile. "But I still don't know if it will." Australian Idol provided an extraordinary marketing platform for Sebastian's music. The grand final television event (with Sebastian up against Shannon Noll) was watched by a peak audience of 3.65 million Australians.

The hype is similarly enormous for Sebastian's CD, which he says was recorded in a record five-and-a-half days.

"It was crazy, it was very busy. But we got to day six and I didn't really do anything. We'd gone so hard in the five days, I didn't really use the sixth day. I guess I worked for about five-and-a-half days in the end. But I'm stoked with the result. I didn't think I'd be very stoked with it because of the time constraints. I thought I'd have a lack of creative control and a lack of input. But I stayed awake a long time prior to the album, just making sure I was prepared."

There have been grumblings within the music industry about the Australian Idol recording process, with a number of hardworking musicians irritated by the speedy process adopted by the record company BMG in churning out Sebastian's songs. But the singer is unperturbed by the criticism. He was presented with more than 50 songs before whittling the list down to the 12 that appear on the CD.

"I rejected lots," he says of the selection BMG offered. "I gave them grief, lots of grief. But if I didn't like something, I wasn't going to sing it on my album. That's stupid. But I really had a good support base and had strength within myself to stand up for what I wanted.

"And BMG were really supportive of me. They really treated me like an artist, not the winner of a reality TV show. Now I am that artist."

Three songs on the album were co-penned by Sebastian: All I Need Is You, Something Don't Feel Right and i 4 u. There are also upbeat cover versions of classic tracks such as When Doves Cry and What A Wonderful World.

With its overt pop and hip-hop sensibilities (and formulaic backing tracks), Sebastian's sound is a long way from Farnesy, Barnesy or even Goodrem. So is this a new direction for Australian music?

"It's definitely different to anything I've heard come out of Australia," Sebastian says. "Anything R&B has come out with attitude, which isn't bad, but it's indicative of that genre. My whole line was to still have the soul, but not the attitude.

"I don't want to be someone where people say, 'There's that singer, we'll never be like him. Look at the attitude, look at the bling, bling.' I believe there's two types of artists: the people who really connect with their audience, where you're not pretending to be better than them. You're not pretending to be a macho king.

"Then there are artists where you're in awe of who they are, you think you'll never be like them or have what they have.

"I definitely want to be the first kind of artist. I don't have any desire to be looked upon as someone who is better than the rest. I am on the same level as my audience."

But despite his modesty (which is refreshingly genuine when you meet him), Sebastian is aware of the impact his music is having on fans.

"It really means something to me, to write songs that landmark certain events in people's lives," he says. "Like if people say, 'I walked down the aisle to that song Guy wrote'. Or 'I christened my baby to that song', or, 'That was the song playing at the club when I first met you'."

www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/12/11/1071125589392.html

[Inside Australian Idol]

Idol contestants given special licence to choose

13.12.2003
By REBECCA BARRY
NZ Idol contestants will be able to sing almost any song they choose, provided it meets broadcasting standards.

The Australasian Performing Rights Association (Apra) has granted the show a blanket licence bypassing the usual regulations involved with broadcasting music on television.

Normally, Apra must seek permission from the composer or publisher before the broadcast. But the Idol format means there is no way of knowing the contestants' choices in advance.

Apra head Anthony Healey said the licence was a hugely expensive privilege that cost Australian Idol "hundreds of thousands of dollars", partly because the composer and publisher (who control the rights to use the music) make money every time their song goes to air.


www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3539178&thesection=news&thesubsection=general