Clark Beckham – American Idol

By starrymag | May 18, 2015

Q) What was your favorite moment last night?

A) My favorite moment last night was playing with Michael McDonald, no doubt.  He’s just a legend and someone I’ve looked up to on the piano, and vocally, and off the stage as well, and it was all confirmed too meeting him and rehearsing with him.  Just a great guy, humble, and a great example for me, and I want to be like him in many ways.  But that was absolutely a moment and a performance I’ll never forget for as long as I live.

Q) Out of the whole season what’s the one piece of advice from the judges that you’re going to take with you?

A)  Probably what Keith said.  I think he said a couple of times, he said something to the effect of “Don’t sing and don’t play what you can.  Play and sing what you must.”  I think that’s the best advice from the judges that I got.

Q) I just want to know what was going through your mind when you were standing on the stage with Nick right before the announcement was made.  Were you surprised at all with the results?

A) Right when the results happened, truly, both of us were saying, Nick is funny.  Nick thought he was going home many times.  Many shows he was like, “I’m in the bottom two, I know it.  I’m just in the bottom two.”  And I’m like, “Bro, you’re crazy.  You’re going to do fine.”  Or, he said, “I’m going home.  I’m going home.  I just know it.”  I’m like, “Dude, I don’t think you are.”  And he never has.  And then yesterday during the show he was like, “Man, I think you won.  I think you won.  I think you won.”  And I was like, “Man, I have no idea.” Nick has always been that way, but I think really deep down neither of us truly had any idea what name was going to come out of Ryan’s mouth when he made the announcement.  And obviously I wanted to win and I wanted the streamers, and the title, and the trophy, and all of the things, and I wanted to go to Vancouver for the World Cup so bad, I’m a huge soccer fan.  But at the end of day I just believe with all my heart that I’m exactly where I need to be, and I can’t wait to see where I go from here.

Q) You had your share of tiffs with Scott Borchetta, and even the judges tried to convince you a couple times to his thinking about singing more modern songs and all that.  Jennifer even admitted Tuesday night that Nick is probably Simon Fuller’s dream American Idol with the whole package and all that.  Scott was also very supportive of Nick’s song choices throughout the competition.  So, I just want to get your opinion on whether or not you sort of feel they favored Nick a little bit, or you did find it difficult to truly be yourself throughout this competition, because I feel like there was a lot of influence on you.

A) What you said about playing more modern, I really believe that I am modern, and I think the best modern is when an artist can understand and play and do music that is coming right now and is just on the brink, or just around the bend, just coming alive.  And I really believe that the music that I put out and that I am, I really think that that’s really what’s going to come around the bend. But, yes, I don’t think I would have fit with Scott as well as Nick is going to fit with Scott.  I think they worked really well together through the whole competition.  Scott is extremely successful and he’s a great guy, and no matter what I really believe, and I know, that he wants the best for me and for Nick.  Honestly, Nick and I were talking about it, I think the best outcome happened.  The best thing for Nick was for him to win.  I believe I’m where I need to be and the best thing that could have happened to me is what happened.  I just choose to believe that.  At the end of the day that’s where I stand.

Q) Now, you’ve already shared what your favorite memory was from last night’s show, but can you share with us what was your favorite memory with Nick, who’s this year’s American Idol from the entire journey?

A) Oh, man.  Oh, gosh so many great memories with Nick.  Well, when it was the final three, when it was Jax, Nick, and me, in the Dolby Theatre we had our own dressing rooms, at least the girl, girls and guys were separated, and because there was one girl, Jax had her own room, and then I had my own room as well.  Just a conversation we had there, like “Hey, man I think you’re going to do great.”  And just the conversations when it was right at the end, cameras were off, doors were closed, just me and him in the room and those conversations that we had, just the rawness. And I could tell, I can attest, Nick is, I’m so happy for him and I’m so glad that he is being lifted up in this way, because Nick is exactly who he is on and off camera.  He is exactly the same person, truly.  When he said the things that he said right before the announcement was made and when Ryan asked us if we had something to say to each other, he said those things to me off camera and on camera with the same sincerity.  He’s a very sincere, genuine person. And I could not be happier with how everything went down, and so many memories with him.  We all called him “Grandpa” that was because he was the oldest contestant on the show, and he’s 29.  And we were younger and we always called him “Grandpa.”  I don’t know, it’s a lot of great memories and more to come.

Q) Last night Yes TV hosted an exclusive viewing party for your Canadian viewers here at our studios, and past American Idol finalist Danny Gokey was here performing, and he said on air that he just had so much respect for you for how open you’ve been about your faith on this journey.  Can you share with us a little bit about your faith?

A) Yes.  My faith has never been something I want to push.  It’s never been a publicity card, ever.  But it’s never something I’ve wanted to hide.  It’s something that I think doesn’t contradict anything I’m doing, or anything I want to do.  God is the one who has made me who I am, and it’s a great service to be successful.  I owe it all to Him.  He’s such a part of my life I just can’t help, he’s going to come out in conversations and anything.  Just like if you’re married or if you love someone how they’re going to come out in conversations, you’re going to talk that person, that’s how it is with me.  I owe it all to Him.  He’s led me this far and I know he’s not going to leave me where I am now.  I love the Lord, and that’s just really what it comes down to.

Q) I want to talk to you about “Champion,” the process that went into choosing it.  That was actually, I thought, a good song for you.  Did you feel comfortable singing that?  Did you have any time when you had any trouble with that song?  Did you have any choice in the matter with the songs, or did they give that to you?

A) For the whole season they were looking for songs for us, and we had the opportunity to just have some of the greatest writers in the world write for us, and they were looking for a song that was appropriate, that was a victory chant.  After this long marathon of a journey that this American Idol experience has been they were looking for a song that’s a victory chant and also a song that works for the World Cup, because the winner, their single is also going to be featured a lot in the Women’s World Cup.  So, they were looking for that and looking at a lot of things. Musically, it’s not the style of music that I am looking forward to doing in the future as far as an artist, but I think it was just the perfect song.  I love the lyrics.  I really, really, really love the lyrics of the song and the message.  I think it was the perfect song for what they were looking for and what it was going to be used for, the Women’s World Cup, and also for just the potential victory of the competition and just the final victory lap, final finishing chant at the end of this long marathon of a journey.

Q) You mentioned your faith before.  Is that a direction you would want to go to?  If this isn’t the kind of music you’re envisioning, are you thinking more of a soul, faith-driven record, kind of like the direction Danny Gokey is in, or like so many other Idols, like Colton Dixon?

A) Sure.  Not necessarily.  I want to do, I guess what you call secular music.  Sometimes people can get scared of that word “secular.”  Secular just means outside of the church.  I believe in God and He influences everything I do.  I’m not a Christian artist.  I’m an artist and I’m a Christian.  That’s how I would describe it.  My faith informs everything I do, whether it be how I talk to people, how I dress.  The Bible says that with everything you do, even how you eat, do it to the Glory of God, even eat and drink, everything.  That’s how I see it. But I believe I’m not called to do Christian music or gospel music, although that’s been a huge part of my growing up, and I love it, and I think it’s needed and it’s helped me many times, Christian music, worship music, and gospel music, and I love it.  But as far as my music, I think I’m called, I’m going to stick to writing and singing what we call secular music and pop music.

Q) I’m looking forward to seeing you on the tour.  Are you going to play a million instruments?

A) Oh, I’m going to play everything they’ll let me put my hands on, no doubt.

Q) I was wondering if there were any songs you wanted to sing on the show that you didn’t get a chance to?

A) Yes.  We sang a lot of songs by the end of it.  If you think about it, there were tons of songs we got to sing.  But of course there are some others.  One song I really love playing and maybe it wouldn’t have worked in the 90 second format snippet TV clip of American Idol that we have to really take all the songs down into, a couple songs, “Gravity” by John Mayer is one of my all-time favorite songs, I think.  I really relate to that song, and I think it’s one of the most important songs written in years.  That’s one.  “Magic” by Coldplay, my band and I do a really cool, groovy version of that.  And also “Let’s Stay Together,” Al Green is another favorite of mine I would have loved to do.  Yes, those are some.

Q) Speaking of that, you named a couple of artists there.  When you do make a record and you say you see yourself as a pop artist, could you maybe explain a little bit more, maybe make some comparisons to artists that are out there now of the kind of record that you would like to make?

A) Yes.  It’s hard to articulate in words, I guess.  The best way I can do it is sit down with you, me on guitar and play some original stuff for you and talk you through that way.  But pop just stands for popular music, and also AC, like adult contemporary, like John Mayer stuff, that’s where I see myself going.  I also see myself going along the trail that Bruno Mars, he’s been like a trailblazer in this new, “Uptown Funk” and this new type of music that’s wildly successful and people love it.  I think I’ll make music that’s not Bruno Mars, but it’s absolutely along that path that he’s made.  Also, Robin Thicke is a soul man.  He’s a great R&B singer in the current day. So, Robin Thicke, John Mayer, someone who doesn’t—really, what genre is John Mayer?  John Mayer’s genre is John Mayer.  It’s just the music that comes out of him, people love it because it’s good music.  That’s what I hope to do when I make music.  But I guess Robin Thicke, John Mayer, Bruno Mars, and of course I could probably name countless others.  That’s the kind of vibe I’m wanting, current popular music but with heavy R&B influences.

Q) Of all the things you’ve learned on the show and all the advice you’ve gotten, can you share with me something technical that you will now take forward to implement into your style of music?

A) Sure.  Vocally, I’ve learned, TV music is hard because you sing into the mic and then typically in an artist’s career they have two ways of being heard.  They have when you’re on tour and you’re playing for people in concerts and you’re going through a sound system, and that’s coming out through big speakers live, right there, and that’s what you hear.  Or, you have a song come out on the radio, in a recording studio, when you have recording equipment and you produce it, and put reverb on it, and you’re in a studio, and you have the best sound come out and produced that way, and mastered, and all that stuff. Then TV, it’s like the live thing, but the audio goes through and goes into the board, it’s compressed, and then it shoots up into a satellite, and then it’s compressed there, and shoots back down and goes out to everybody’s TVs.  So, you get a different sound.  It’s much, much, much less forgiving, so every note that’s just barely sharp, or barely flat, is very obvious in those situations on TV, because of that compression.  And then it’s compressed again into YouTube, when people go back to watch the YouTube videos, and then they watch it in 360P and a low quality possibly through their phone speakers. So, it’s quite a different sound when it goes through all of those filters and it’s compressed, and compressed, and listened to that way.  So, really I’ve learned to just, I think, to really be conscious of pitch even more than I ever have.  I think that’s something that I’ve been able to get better at.

Q) You mentioned all of your faith, and your changes in your style of singing.  Quickly, how have you transformed as an artist being on American Idol?

A) I think I’ve transformed because I think I sing, instead of what Keith said on the show to me, I think I sing more in the moment.  I think I’m able to get more into the song emotionally.  It’s really, really, really difficult to get deep into a song in a vulnerable place where you find yourself, I can get in that moment when I’m by myself in my room just playing guitar, just me and the walls, no one around, but then you have to get in that place on national television for a 90 second song, with cameras, with the judges, with the lights, with the cameras, with fog, and the stage, and a lot of times in the show when we just found out that we made it through, and we’re running up on stage, and the music starts and then you’re singing. So, that is extremely, extremely difficult.  But I have to say after this ten month process that’s been for me, because I auditioned in July, last July, in this whole process, that’s something that I’ve been able to do better is get into the music and get into character, if you will, of the song and do that more effectively.

Q) On Tuesday you sang “Ain’t No Sunshine,” and I think we saw you blushing when JLo asked you who you were singing for.  I was just curious if that performance was for anyone special?

A) Yes, I remember her asking that, and I was like, oh Lord, please do not ask that.  But it’s interesting because no, there’s no one that I was singing that specifically to, and there’s no one in my life in that way, in a romantic way.  But it’s funny because everyone is like, “Oh, who are singing to?  Do you have someone?”  The song’s about the person being gone, so I don’t think it relates to is there someone in my life right now, because I guess maybe it is appropriate because there is no one and the song’s about her not being there.  So, I guess no one specific, no, but I just tried my best and I think I was really able to get into that heartbreak and really deliver that.  But, no, there was no one specific that I was thinking of.

Q) How has being a musician impacted your dating life up until this point in your life?  Even though there’s no one now, but previously how has that impacted your dating life?

A) Great question.  I’ve never really thought about it.  A personal question, and I don’t mind that at all.  Thank you for asking it.  Obviously I guess it’s the initial, and it can be an attractive thing, oh, cool, he’s a musician, that’s cool.  And that could be an initial attraction.  But sometimes I had someone that I was dating and she was worried, she was like, “I’m afraid that you’re going to choose music ahead of me.  I’m afraid that music’s going to be a bigger part of your life than I am.” And it’s hard.  It’s an interesting balance that I never thought about, but music really is, and I don’t know if this is weird to say or what, but it’s just the reality, it’s just how I feel, music really is a, it’s like I’m in a relationship with her, “her” being music.  I’m just obsessed with, this is weird, as I’m referring to music as a “her,” but just follow me with it, if we can be cliché and I guess romantic here, but I really am in love with her and I can’t imagine a life without music. And sometimes I guess maybe that, it can either get in the way of other relationships.  But I really believe with all my heart that when it is right, when I do have the right person in my life in that way, that it won’t be conflicting, that it will elevate, that it will help.  And I guess I’m waiting for that to happen, for the right person.

Q) Clark, what would you like to say to your fans and supporters?

A) Just, thank you, guys.  I’m glad I got to talk to you all.  Again, ultimately I’m very proud of the performances that I’ve done on the show, and I don’t regret a single note that ever came out of me, whether it’s on my guitar, piano, or my voice, or any word I said, or anything I ever said on the show.  I think I depicted myself accurately as an artist and what kind of music I love and want to make, and I’m staying true to myself on the show, and I plan on doing that for music’s sake.  Again, I just thank all you guys for being here and asking me these questions and keeping me thinking.  I’m just very appreciative and grateful.

 

*CONFERENCE CALL*