Jason Castro, which comes to us courtesy of Atlantic Records (the first album from an alum to sign with the label), features songs crafted by Marc Roberge of O.A.R., Gregg Wattenberg (Five For Fighting), Zac Maloy (David Cook), Espionage (Train) and of course Jason himself. There are covers of classics that Jason has undertaken in the past, including "Hallelujah" and "Over the Rainbow," as well as brand new tracks like "Let's Just Fall In Love Again," "This Heart of Mine" and "If I Were You."
On the promo side of things, Jason will benefit from his mostly small scale tour, which begins Sat., April 17 at The Loft in Dallas, Tex. He has also been getting some press, mostly in the form of album reviews by People magazine and Michael Slezak of Entertainment Weekly. But his next big television appearance won't be until April 22, when he performs on Ellen, so first week sales will not be helped out on that front.
There are also a few underground promo campaigns going on, like the photo competition being held on IBeatYou.com in support of Jason's latest single, "That's What I'm Here For." But these kinds of promotional efforts are not really dependable for moving CD units.
As a result of the above reasoning, I see Jason Castro fit for an opening of around 13k copies, which would be a pretty good feat for a debut entry with little promo. This would be above where fellow Season 7 alums Brooke White (High Hopes and Heartbreak, 10k) and Michael Johns (Hold Back My Heart, 7k) saw their post-Idol releases open at.
Jason Castro is now available to pre-order at Amazon.com
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Showing posts with label high hopes and heartbreak. Show all posts
Showing posts with label high hopes and heartbreak. Show all posts
Monday, April 12, 2010
IDOL LIVE predix: Jason Castro's 'Jason Castro'
Friday, January 29, 2010
Brooke White interviewed on "Christopher Closeup"
She elaborated on her charity work including her performances for children's hospitals and the Ronald McDonald house, which she has been focusing on over the past two months, and how she couldn't stop crying when she considered the reality of the trials and tribulations some of these kids go through.
As for her time on Idol, Brooke said the amount of success she's had doesn't pan out to "you made it!" because it's possible to fall into the "Idol black hole" and it's challenging to maintain a presence. She said she dealt with her "post-Idol trauma" (i.e. not being on the show on a weekly basis anymore) by taking her music on the road and pursue her career on an artist's level.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Free downloads: Brooke White's "Follow Me," Michael Johns' "Heart On My Sleeve"
Following in the footsteps of Phil Stacey, two other Idol alums are featuring singles of theirs as free downloads available on Amazon MP3. Brooke White's song "Follow Me" from her debut album Songs From the Attic and Michael Johns' current single "Heart On My Sleeve" off his new album Hold Back My Heart are now available to download on the digital music retailer.
There is little doubt that the fact that the songs are free is for the purpose of generating interest in the two seventh season finalists' albums, as Brooke just released her sophomore effort High Hopes & Heartbreak a few weeks ago. So far, things seem to be working, as "Follow Me" is currently #3 on Amazon's Top Free Songs chart and "Heart On My Sleeve" is listening to the former's title, as it is right behind at #4. Back when Phil's single "You're Not Shaken" was available to download free of charge, it managed to get to #2 on Amazon's Top Overall Songs chart.
Regardless of whether or not these freebies result in higher album sales, they should bot be passed up by Idol fans at any cost (unless, of course, you already own the albums these songs appear on).
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
'Idol' BB 200: 'Leave This Town' #2 (8/8/09)
Once again, a partial list of sales figures is all we can go off for Idol-related albums on the Billboard Top 200 chart for the chart week of Aug. 8.
Unsurprisingly, it was Daughtry's Leave This Town that claimed the top Idol spot, as it slipped #1-2 and took in 100.8k copies for the week for a total of 370.1k after two weeks of release. At the same time, Daughtry's debut continued to rake in profits despite slipping 19 spots to #84 thanks to an additional 5.3k copies for a total of 4.499 million.
It was a semi-surprise, however, that Jordin Sparks' sophomore album Battlefield was only able to manage 48k in its opening week, as it debuted at #7 (just as I called the latter in my predictions).
Up next was the Season 8 Walmart exclusive album, which sold 8.2k for a total of 43.3k and fell #49-53. Kellie Pickler's sophomore effort was up nine spots to #72 thanks to a weekly take of 6k, while Kelly Clarkson's All I Ever Wanted also moved 5.3k copies and fell 11 spots to #86.
Carrie Underwood's Carnival Ride continued to hang around, this week at #88, off six spots from the previous week, with a take of 5k. David Cook's self-titled album pulled in similar numbers, as it took in 4.8k and fell #86-90.
The final Idol-related album to chart was Brooke White's High Hopes & Heartbreak, which was down significantly from its impressive digital-only debut last week. It collapsed to 4.7k and was off 53 spots to #93.
Full chart positions and partial sales numbers courtesy of Under The Radar on Pulse as follows:
02 01 Daughtry - Leave This Town 100,826 269,299
07 -- Jordin Sparks - Battlefield 47,972 67
53 49 Various Artists - American Idol: Season 8 8,164 10,016
72 81 Kellie Pickler - Kellie Pickler 5,965 5,575
84 65 Daughtry - Daughtry 5,348 6,811
86 75 Kelly Clarkson - All I Ever Wanted 5,248 5,912
88 82 Carrie Underwood - Carnival Ride 5,045 5,546
90 86 David Cook - David Cook 4,794 5,275
93 50 Brooke White - High Hopes & Heartbreak 4,673 9,835
Total sales are in bold.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
'Idol' BB 200: 'Leave This Town' #1 (8/1/09)
Although the report is fairly incomplete, there are at least numbers for the latest weekly takes of all Idol-related albums on the current issue of the Billboard Top 200 chart for the chart week of Aug. 1.
Leading the pack was none other than Daughtry's sophomore release Leave This Town, taking in 269.3k in its first week of release. This number is well below my original prediction of 390k. Additionally, the band's debut album jumped 35 spots to #65 thanks to 6.8k worth of sales, resulting in a total of 4.494 million.
The next Idol-related entry was a full 48 spots behind, as the Season 8 Walmart exclusive album slid #36-49 and took in another 10k copies for a total to date of 35.1k. Brooke White followed one spot behind with the debut of her album High Hopes & Heartbreak at #50. The album sold 9.8k on digital sales alone and should see a nice increase next week thanks to traditional sales being added.
Kelly Clarkson's All I Ever Wanted continued to slip in sales as it moved 5.9k in its latest bout, down from 7.6k the previous week. It was off 21 spots to #75. Kellie Pickler also saw a decrease on the chart, but her Kellie Pickler only dropped one spot to #81 with sales of 5.6k, down from 5.7k the week before.
Carrie Underwood was the last female alum to see her album chart this past week, as her Carnival Ride saw a 13-spot drop to #82 with 5.5k copies sold, down from 6.3k. And David Cook's self-titled effort improved from 4.7k to 5.3k and was up 12 spots to #86.
Full chart positions and partial sales numbers courtesy of Taylor and Under The Radar on Pulse as follows:
001 --- Daughtry - Leave This Town 269,299 269,920
49 36 Various Artists - American Idol: Season 8 10,016 35,089
050 --- Brooke White - High Hopes & Heartbreak 9,835 9,835
065 100 Daughtry - Daughtry 6,811 4,493,988
075 054 Kelly Clarkson - All I Ever Wanted 5,912 7,598
081 080 Kellie Pickler - Kellie Pickler 5,575 5,660
082 069 Carrie Underwood - Carnival Ride 5,546 6,267
086 098 David Cook - David Cook 5,275 4,702
Totals are in bold.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Digital sales roundup: "Battlefield" #19 (7/17/09)
It was a much healthier selection of tracks by Idol alums on the latest Billboard Hot Digital Songs chart, as the release of Daughtry's new album breathed new life into the franchise's lacking assortment of late.
But it was Jordin Sparks who kicked things off, as her current single "Battlefield" increased in sales by 9% ahead of her sophomore album's release. "Battlefield" was up #37-19 and sold another 54.2k, putting its total at 442.7k. It should go gold in time for next week's chart.
Daughtry followed closely behind with "No Surprise," which added 25 spots to its ranking at #24 thanks to a 39% uptick in sales. The release of Leave This Town was undoubtedly responsible for a chunk of the extra 50.5k tracks that were downloaded, resulting in a near-gold total take of 496.5k. The band saw two of its album tracks debut on the chart as well, with "You Don't Belong" entering at #71 with 24.3k and "Life After You" barely making the cut at #200 with 8.1k.
Another new entry on the chart came in at #114, as Brooke White's cover of Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody" earned 15.2k worth of sales. Brooke's new album High Hopes & Heartbreak was released to iTunes one week early and featured prominent ads on the music store's main page, which greatly helped digital sales.
Rounding up the pack in terms of Idol representation was David Cook and his "Come Back to Me," which was up 33 spots to #119 thanks t a small 9% sales increase. The single sold 13.9k for the week and is now up to 274.1k in all.
Full numbers and chart positions courtesy of bks on Pulse as follows:
019 037 Jordin Sparks, "Battlefield" 54,195 9% 49,896 442,704
024 059 Daughtry, "No Surprise" 50,522 39% 36,425 496,473
071 --- Daughtry, "You Don't Belong" 24,278 999% 0 24,278
114 --- Brooke White, "Use Somebody" 15,186 999% 0 15,186
119 152 David Cook, "Come Back to Me" 13,913 9% 12,768 274,057
200 --- Daughtry, "Life After You" 8,149 999% 0 8,149
Total sales are in bold.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
HITS estimates: 'Leave This Town' 270.1k
For the first time since Kelly Clarkson's album All I Ever Wanted opened atop the chart back in March, an Idol alum has seen their album debut at #1, at least according to HITS Daily Double's Top 50 building album sales chart.
Daughtry's sophomore album, Leave This Town, is expected to pull in 270.1k copies according to the estimates and land in the no. 1 position in its first week, the latter of which the band's previous album failed to do back in 2006. Although these numbers are significantly lower than my original predictions, they are slightly higher than the 240-60k HDD was calling for the album last week.
Surprisingly, this was the only Idol-related album to chart in the Top 50, as Brooke White's release High Hopes & Heartbreak looked to be doing strong, as it pulled in 8.3k from iTunes sales alone with 69.4% of retailers reporting, but it was not enough to hang onto its spot at #45 when all was said and done.
Finalized figures courtesy of Billboard should be out this week, but if not, chart positions will definitely be posted later on in the week.
Out today: Jordin Sparks' 'Battlefield'; Brooke White's 'High Hopes & Heartbreak'
For the second week in a row, an Idol alum has a shot at seeing their sophomore release debut atop the Billboard 200, as Jordin Sparks releases her much-anticipated Battlefield. The album features tracks like "Walking On Snow," "Faith" (written by Jordin and Toby Gad) and second single "S.O.S. (Let the Music Play)."
Also out today is Brooke White's first post-Idol album, High Hopes & Heartbreak, courtesy of June Baby Records. It includes songs like first single "Hold Up My Heart," the follow up "Radio Radio" and a cover of Kings of Leon's "Use Somebody."
On the singles front, Blake Lewis drops "Sad Song," the lead off single for his forthcoming album Heartbreak on Vinyl.
Links to purchase the aforementioned can be found below:.jpg)
Albums
Jordin Sparks, Battlefield
Amazon.com - ($9.99 standard, $15.99 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Amazon MP3 - ($ 8.99 standard, $13.99 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Best Buy - ($9.99 standard, $14.99 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Buy.com - ($13.88) - Buy
CD Universe - ($15.18 standard, $18.50 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
iTunes - ($9.99 standard, $13.99 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Sears - ($12.59) - Buy
Target - ($9.99 standard, $17.99 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Walmart - ($13.88) - Buy
Brooke White, High Hopes & Heartbreak
Amazon.com - ($9.99) - Buy
Amazon MP3 - ($8.99) - Buy
Best Buy - ($12.99) - Buy
Buy.com - ($12.89) - Buy
CD Universe - ($11.18) - Buy
iTunes - ($7.99) - Buy
Sears - ($10.79) - Buy
Walmart - ($12.88) - Buy
Singles
Blake Lewis, "Sad Song"
iTunes - ($0.99) - Buy
The deluxe edition of Battlefield includes two bonus tracks: "Papercut" and "Postcard," in addition to a separate DVD that has four videos: "Hangin' with Jordin Sparks," "Battlefield Behind the Scenes," "Battlefield Photo Shoot" and the music video for "Battlefield." Fans that pre-ordered the album on iTunes also receive another bonus track in "Vertigo."
Monday, July 20, 2009
IDOL LIVE predix: Jordin Sparks' 'Battlefield'; Brooke White's 'High Hopes & Heartbreak'
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Season 6 champ Jordin Sparks is the second major Idol alum to release an album in the span of a week, and just like Daughtry's first album, Jordin's self-titled debut eventually was certified platinum. The two releases also were each released Thanksgiving week, albeit a year apart (2006 for Daughtry, 2007 for Jordin Sparks).
This fact makes predicting first week sales for Jordin's latest album Battlefield a bit trickier, as proved by my overambitious prediction for Leave This Town just one week ago. Another important factor to consider in predicting the kind of numbers the album will open to is the relevant competition.
Opening against Jordin are Demi Lovato, Brooke Hogan, Sugar Ray to name a few. Out of that crop, the biggest threat to Battlefield is Lovato's Here We Go Again, which is benefiting from a top-selling single and Disney-related promo from her Disney Channel show Sonny with a Chance. As for Hogan, her single is not faring nearly as well, and with limited promo she should expect a very soft release.
Jordin's first album opened at #10 on the Billboard 200 chart with 119.1k copies, but again, this was Thanksgiving week and nearly two years ago. The story this time around will undoubtedly be the fact that "Battlefield" is not half the single "Tattoo" was, which will diminish the chance of a big opening week. Although Jordin is a part of the hottest tour (Jonas Brothers) at the moment, and she has more than 200k followers on Twitter, on which she has been alerting fans about her album's release for weeks now, it appears that a safe bet for a prediction would be somewhere in the 65k range. As for where it will place on the BB 200, a Top 10 showing at #7 sounds about right.
As for Brooke White's first post-Idol album High Hopes & Heartbreak, an extremely healthy pre-release week on iTunes has earned it between 8-10k according to estimates. In its first week of nationwide release, a slightly higher take should be expected, probably somewhere around 16k. On the chart side of things, an increase to #35 seems like a plausible scenario.
Album review: Brooke White's 'High Hopes & Heartbreak'
Singer/songwriter Brooke White knows a thing or two about recording an album. Therefore, it is no surprise that she excels on her sophomore album, ‘High Hopes & Heartbreak,’ on which she wrote 11 of the album’s 12 songs. The album is the first courtesy of June Baby Records, a label formed by White and ‘American Idol’ judge Randy Jackson.
The track tasked with introducing audiences to ‘Heartbreak’ is the catchy “Radio Radio,” the album’s second single. The song, which was co-penned by White and Dave Cobb, shows the bubbly side of White’s personality that many fell in love with while she was on ‘Idol,’ and the song is without a doubt a feel-good one. This song marks the beginning of the presence of White’s piano talent on the album, which meshes extremely well with the disc’s overall Carole King / Carly Simon sound.
This upbeat, sing-song theme is found elsewhere on ‘Heartbreak,’ most notably on “Phoenix,” which is the closest comparison to material by Carole King on the album. The dated instrumentation works in White’s favor, as it gives the song an eclectic feeling. The album’s title track, “High Hopes & Heartbreak,” is another up-tempo track that fuses seventies influences with a folksy background.
On “California Song,” White invites listeners to sing along and have fun without worrying about getting the lyrics wrong. The incorporation of different elements of California life in the lyrics allows listeners familiar with the state to identify with the song.
The album’s first single, “Hold Up My Heart,” sets a serious tone that allows for White’s vulnerability to shine through, as a story is told through the song’s lyrics (“When I am weak try to always find the best of you and me / but I will always be the one who understands you”) and allows listeners to identify with the feeling of weakness yet retain a sense of hopefulness.
On “Out of the Ashes,” White expounds on the quiet confidence she builds in “Heart” to result in a pretty vocal performance, as she is aided by Steve McEwan’s vocals on harmony. “Little Bird,” which White co-wrote with fellow Season 8 alum Michael Johns and Cobb, is an area where the Carly Simon vibe is felt, and the sound effects added throughout the song give it a laid back feeling.
“When We Were One” is a ballad that features a chorus with a hook, allowing White some leverage as a potential single. The song itself sounds as if it could have been set to any style of music that is in at the moment, but her choice to apply her own style to the song results in a unique and ear-pleasing result that fits right in with the album’s other songs.
White’s strongest effort on the album comes in the form of “Smile,” a sweet, subdued-sounding ballad that has matching lyrics (“It might take a while`/ maybe a couple million miles / until I forget your smile”). The addition of stringed accompaniment that enters near the end of the song adds another aspect that heightens the emotional effect the listener feels. “Sometimes Love” is a close second in terms of quality, as the simplicity of the melody results in a powerful effect on listeners.
‘Heartbreak’s only cover comes as its sixth track, as White tackles Kings of Leon’s hit single “Use Somebody.” The arrangement is obviously very different, but the experiment works quite well.
To close out the album, White advises listeners to “Be Careful” in a nurturing, friendly manner. The stringed accompaniment adds a sense of sentimentality.
The bottom line of ‘High Hopes & Heartbreak’ is the fact that Brooke White possesses a single characteristic that many artists nowadays lack: she knows exactly what kind of artist she was born to be. She is not out to become the next huge pop superstar, instead she is concerned with showing fans that she is confident in the genre of music she records. This confidence shows immensely.
High Hopes & Heartbreak hits stores nationwide tomorrow and is now available to purchase on iTunes.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Out today: Daughtry's 'Leave This Town'
Nearly three years after the band's debut, Daughtry returns today with its sophomore effort Leave This Town. The album, which was produced by Howard Benson, features songs including "September," "You Don't Belong" and its first single, "No Surprise."
Also releasing today on iTunes only is Brooke White's High Hopes & Heartbreak, which will be available everywhere on Tues., July 21. As part of the special one-week offer, fans can also download the music video for Brooke's new single "Radio Radio."
Links to purchase the aforementioned can be found below: 
Albums
Daughtry, Leave This Town
Amazon.com - ($9.99) - Buy
Amazon MP3 - ($9.99 deluxe) - Buy
Best Buy - ($9.99) - Buy
Buy - ($10.98) - Buy
CD Universe - ($14.80) - Buy
DaughtryOfficial.com - ($19.99 deluxe fan pack edition) - Buy
iTunes - ($9.99 standard, $12.99 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Sears - ($12.59) - Buy
Target - ($9.99 standard, $13.98 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Walmart - ($11.86 standard, $13.88 deluxe) - Buy: standard, deluxe
Brooke White, High Hopes & Heartbreak
iTunes - ($7.99) - Buy
Music Videos
Brooke White, "Radio Radio"
iTunes - (Free) - Buy
The abundance of exclusive material available on the different retail editions of Leave This Town is astounding, as there is no shortage of bonus tracks or music videos to go around. The full list is as follows:
DaughtryOfficial.com: Two bonus tracks ("Long Way" and "One Last Chance"), 11"x17" exclusive double-sided poster
iTunes: Three bonus tracks ("What Have We Become," "Still You On the Inside," "Traffic Light" [pre-order only]), "No Surprise" music video
Target: DVD with six music videos ("It's Not Over," "Home," "Over You," "Feels Like Tonight," "What About Now," "No Surprise")
Walmart: Bonus download of "Get Me Through"
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