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Simon Cowell to Angry Kelly: "Kiss and Make Up!"
Kelly Clarkson by Paul Drinkwater/NBC Photo
Refusing to walk away from her beef with her record label, Kelly Clarkson tells the August issue of Blender that during one of her face-offs with BMG/RCA boss Clive Davis, she said, "I don't know you very well, and I am not a bullsh---er. I get [that] you don't like the album. You're 80; you're not supposed to like my album." The 25-year-old's harsh diss of the music legend, who had been vocal with his concerns about her new material, doesn't sit well with the American Idol's onetime judge and jury, Simon Cowell. "Clive Davis at 80 is better than 99 percent of the people in the music business in their twenties, thirties and forties. And he's not [even] 80, he's less than 80," Simon tells TV's Extra.
The Brit's advice to Kel? "Kiss and make up, decide what's best, get on with it!" And then write us a nice catchy song about it.
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Jul 13, 2007 9:52 AM
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Ow. Looks like Kelly is learning her lesson the hard way. With not great album reviews, and not a great reception to her single so far, along with a canceled summer tour, I wonder who's laughing now.
I like Kelly Clarkson - I hope she has the humility to tuck tail and go back and ask for help from the olds pros who can help her out. I'd hate to see a talented singer cripple her career in such a needless way.
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Jul 13, 2007 10:00 AM
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I admire KC's artistic passion & integrity. She may have naively spoken harshly due to her emotional investment in her latest allegedly less than platinum release. A graceful apology could facilitate a mutually beneficial compromise, and would assist in her having a long, sucessful, and enjoyable music career. I wish her the best, too.
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Jul 13, 2007 11:53 AM
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As far as I can tell, Clive started the "war". I have more respect for Kelly now (it's still not much). Simon should butt out.
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Jul 13, 2007 11:55 AM
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I have to agree with Simon on this one. She needs to stop talking about it. She is just looking stupider by the moment. Reviews where bad, sales where down and a cancelled the tour, not exactly signs of a hit record. Maybe you should let someone that actually knows what they are doing help you.
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Jul 13, 2007 11:59 AM
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I hear she's joining the AI tour in select (big cities). Has to latch on to that to play to large crowds? Don't get me wrong, I've loved her past work, but she needs to get off of her arrogant high horse. She's very good, but she's not great, and she's certainly not a legend...yet. At the rate her mouth is going, she might not ever get there.
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Jul 13, 2007 12:04 PM
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Simon's off base on this one. I can't think of anyone more out of touch (or vindictive) than Clive Davis. His backhanded dissing of Kelly on the AI finale was completely out of line. And his references to Carrie Underwood having deferred to 'the great songwriters in Nashville' were laughable (I guess senility prevented him from remembering that Carrie had a hand in writing the tunes on her very successful CD). No wonder Carrie looked embarrassed to be on stage with him.
Clive's mantra is, "That, which I cannot control, I will destroy." He tried to do this with Kelly, and continues to try with Taylor Hicks. Taylor would also be wise to break ranks as soon as he can or he will not have any career left to salvage. Clive's song selection on Taylor's first label release didn't do justice to this very talented artist, but Clive is famous for doing favors for his pet songwriters, and Taylor was forced to record songs not worthy of his immeasurable talent. The only songs on his CD which received decent reviews were the songs Taylor penned himself. Doubtful that Clive would take notice of that though. His ego prevents him from seeing things as they really are.
Kelly --- you rock! (... and so does your CD!). Continue to follow your heart and your vision for your music (and most definitely write a song about the Clivester!).
If you want to learn more about Clive's evil ways, just do an Internet search - lots of blogs are devoted to reporting the real deal on Clive.
Clive is a fossil whose time has come and gone. Retire, Clive --- and start enjoying the early bird specials (perhaps Whitney might join you - she's not doing anything.......).
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Jul 13, 2007 12:21 PM
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Are you people serious? The new album is her best work yet, and Kelly was very, very right in making the decisions (and comments) that she did. She's not a little pop tart singer, as they'd like her to be. She is an incredibly talented singer/songwriter. Her "failed" album debuted at number 2, despite the lack of promotion and with the controversy surrounding it. This is better than Breakaway did, so why is that considered more of a success?
Reviews have also been good, from what I've seen (and no, I'm not talking about people on Kelly Clarkson fan sites).
Clive Davis may have a great talent at producing bubblegum pop garbage that makes millions of dollars. More power to him. However, Kelly's album isn't a pop album. It's an artist's album. The two obviously have different ideas of what music and more importantly HER music should be. She is a serious artist. He is not. She's completely right in saying that he's not supposed to like her album because it isn't his style.
Should she apologize? No! I respect her for not being a bull****er and not caving. He told her that her songs weren't good enough and that she should only sing songs that were written by hired writers. To a pop singer, that's no big deal. To an artist, he just slapped her in the face. He just told her to shut up and look pretty. And look who comes out on top. The album has been well received by critics, sure. But more importantly, it has been well received by fans. I'm not a fanboy. I'm not some big member of the Kelly cult. I'm just someone who respects her for standing her ground on this, because she is right. And because of her standing up for herself, Clive Davis will be benefiting. Her album will be around long after most of today's albums have found new jobs as coasters on the coffee tables of America.
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Jul 13, 2007 12:32 PM
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Tsk, tsk... to bite the hand that feeds you... To go up against a great recording mogul as Mr. Clive Davis is a really big mistake! Doesn't she know that other record producers will not want to deal with her in the future knowing how she treated Mr. Clive Davis. To make a comment about his age alone is so disrespectful! She should be so appreciative for the great opportunity that came her way through American Idol - It made her an overnight sensation! What a foolish young lady Kelly Clarkson has shown us she is!
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Jul 13, 2007 12:42 PM
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Someone's age: The biggest and most childish excuse. A brief look (or more why not) of Davis's accomplishments certainly proves he knows what he's doing and talking about.
When you get down to it Kelly Clarkson is no Pat Benatar. As a lyric writer her thoughts are broad there's nary a profundity to be found. Davis is probably wondering what prompted Clarkson's transformation into Rockergrrl. And if he's like me, he's just as bored as I am.
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Jul 13, 2007 12:49 PM
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Latinsmileyface:
Oh I suppose the hours that Kelly put into learning to sing mean nothing to you. They didn't pluck her from nowhere and teach her to sing. They didn't give her a voice. She did that herself.
Then they had a mutually beneficial relationship. They invested money and time into her career and made millions. Now she needs artistic freedom to grow. They cannot treat her like some bonsai tree and continually pluck and trim her. She is a person who, like all of us, needs to change and expand.
I don't even like her old or her new music. But if she wants to change, that's her choice as an artist (limited though she may be).
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Jul 13, 2007 12:54 PM
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What's disturbing here is the attempt to take an artist striving for individual control over her work and direction and force and cajole her into someone else's vision of what they should be.
Even as the most casual fan of her work, I'd rather Clarkson put out two or three "failed" albums that reflected her desires and goals rather than churn out ten platinum albums that suck away her will to live.
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Jul 13, 2007 1:11 PM
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In my opinion this latest album is better than Breakaway. It debut at # 2 and this week is at #3. Why can't she try something different? Clive Davis is an *ss, he may know what sells to the teeny bopper masses, but maybe she just wanted to broaden her repertoire and sing something adult like. I couldn't care less what anyone says, I went out the day it came out and bought it because I love her voice and love blaring Never Again in my car while driving, it such a stress release. Go Kelly, continue to try new and bold things and broaden your horizons, it can only make you stronger and stand out as a real artist!
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Jul 13, 2007 1:22 PM
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"I'd rather Clarkson put out two or three "failed" albums that reflected her desires and goals rather than churn out ten platinum albums that suck away her will to live."
I don't have to say anything, but ditto.
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Jul 13, 2007 1:23 PM
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I really have no right to comment here. Ten years ago, I would've said I would be as "into" the music scene as I ever was, but now here I am at age 45, and I feel so irrelevant! My musical tastes are Elvis Costello, Green Day, Joan Armatrading...Kelly Clarkson is NOT in my realm of expertise.
HOWEVER, I have such little respect for the American Idol genre of cookie-cutter garbage that I am DELIGHTED to hear Kelly standing up to the (as Joni Mitchell put it) star-maker machinery! It makes me think maybe she has a little something more to her than all the other dreck that has come out of American Idol.
So I'm 45 and I am copping to delving back into my parents' jazz albums for "new" influences rather than endure this AI generation. I am not expecting the 75-year-old Clive Davis to be any more "with it" (and I question the 47-year-old Cowell's relevance). Today's music SHOULD be run by the 20-and-30-somethings who are LIVING it! We baby-boomers need to face up to a hard reality. We don't matter anymore! Not when it comes to contemporary music! As much as I wish my kids would get into Elvis Cosello's Delivery Man, they aren't having it! And you know what? That's...okay...
Go Kelly! Give 'em hell! That's the rock and roll way!
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Jul 13, 2007 1:52 PM
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