Thanks to a co-hosting gig on the TV Guide Network’s weekly "Idol Wrap" show and a stint on MTV’s latest P. Diddy vehicle "Starmaker," Season 2 finalist Kimberly Caldwell has remained on the "American Idol" radar long past her seventh-place finish in 2003. It shouldn’t be any wonder, really. She’s bubbly, beautiful, and personally speaking, I’ve rather enjoyed our little televised gab fests over the years. Now the 27-year-old blond belter is getting ready to roll out her debut album, "Without Regret," and has opted to leave TV behind so she can focus on a music career. “This is pretty much what I’ve prepared for my whole life,” says Caldwell, speaking exclusively to Idol Tracker. “I’m so glad I took a few years to figure out who I really was as an artist and then put out this album without any regrets.”
Hence the title. But the sentiment, Caldwell insists, goes way beyond career choices. “It’s really all about empowerment,” she says. “And being human. I was able to just lay it out there, let go and really open up. In the studio, I would turn off all the lights, light a candle, close my eyes and just sing my heart out. I’m really proud of these songs.”
Caldwell wrote four of the album’s 11 tracks, and with titles like “Going Going Gone,” the single “Mess of You,” “Say Love,” and “Heart Like Mine,” in which she laments, “It’s not OK treating me this way / I’d rather let you break my heart than live with your mistakes / Because you’ll never break another heart like mine / Too late,” it’s easy to go to that place and wonder if a certain "Idol" winner is the person she’s hypothetically singing about. Or at least, I went there. “I swear to you, it’s really not about one person,” says Caldwell, who famously dated Season 7’s David Cook just after his crowning. “I took experiences not only from relationships I’ve had with guys but also friends that have let me down, my father, things like that. I didn’t want any of it to be vacant or come off fake. I wanted it to be as authentic as possible.”
Indeed, judging from an early listen to "Without Regret," Caldwell delves into deep emotional territory, with a guitar-driven grit and rock 'n' roll fury that’s a clear reminder of why she made it to "Idol’s" Top 12 in the first place. She credits several people for finding her true sound: longtime mentor and award-winning songwriter Diane Warren, producer Marshall Altman (Matt Nathanson, Kate Voegele), and Melissa Etheridge. “She is, like, my idol,” Caldwell declares with a reminder that her own performance of Etheridge’s “Come to My Window” was the "Idol" moment she’s “best known” for. “She called me when I was on the show and said she liked my rendition and was proud of me, so I covered another one of her songs, ‘You Can Sleep While I Drive,’ and dedicated it to her on my album. I was just kind of paying it forward. I wanted her to know that she inspired and pushed me to keep going.”
In fact, Caldwell is so hell-bent on getting a copy of "Without Regret" into Etheridge’s hands that she’s starting to sound like a stalker. “I don’t know if I’m going to have to stand outside of her house and wave my arms up and down, but I’ve gotta get her my CD for sure,” she says with a laugh. “I love her so much and it’s been a dream of mine to do a duet with her … or just be where she is.”
She’s speaking professionally, of course, since these days, Caldwell mostly has radio, press and touring on the brain. (Dare I say it: From a music compatibility standpoint, Caldwell would be a great opener for Cook!) And if her album art is any indication, she’s prepared for the promo onslaught physically too. “I’m just being healthy and am so focused right now,” she says. “I’m working out as much as possible, I’m in the best shape of my life and am finally emotionally, mentally and physically prepared to be an artist.”
But even with the single headed to radio in February (you can hear a snippet of “Mess of You” on her myspace page) and the album scheduled for release in April on Vanguard Records (the label run by Lawrence Welk’s grandson) via Capitol/EMI, Caldwell is still pinching herself. “Over the years, a lot of music opportunities came up and nothing ever panned out,” she says. “It’s amazing that I’ve now got the best of two worlds: I’m on one of the great independent labels and lucky enough to be a major-label artist. I’m freaking out because it’s finally all happening.”
-- Shirley Halperin
Photo credit: Vanguard/Capitol Music Group