Kris Allen Works With The Fray’s Joe King

I responded in the other interview thread. Great article and it’s good to hear he’s made such a positive impression and the people he’s working with are excited about it.

I can’t wait for Kris’ album! Thank you Joe Gordon … or King …. oh, just thank you, Joe.

Some high points in this article:

Though they recorded in Timbaland’s studio, the super-producer wasn’t present during the sessions. “But Timbaland’s brother was there along with his crew, and it added this great energy to the session. When the boys heard the track, they started hanging around.” King was happy to get some feedback from an outside source, as well as receiving a killer compliment. “Timbaland’s brother said if Timbaland was upstairs and he heard this melody, he’d walk in the studio and say, ‘That’s a melody.’ ”

[Ok, that's a cool compliment. Bodes well]

Above all, it was fun. “At the end of the session, we cranked up ‘Bounce’ in the studio and got down,” he said. “They’re following Kris’ progress on film, so there’s video of us white boys shaking it to Timbaland songs in his studio, which I hope doesn’t get out there.”

[OMG! I TOTALLY NEED SOMEONE TO PUT THIS UP ON YOUTUBE ASAP!]

Since the song is still in its infant stages, King said it doesn’t yet have a real identity. However, King is confident that whatever it becomes, Allen will have success. “He has all the elements it takes. He has a phenomenal voice and an incredible work ethic,” says King. “He’s passionate about what he’s doing, and that’s what’s going to sell him.”

[Very nice compliment here about Kris. And it rings true. Kris totally comes off as someone who is passionate about making music and who will work his butt off to ecome the kind of musician he wants to be]

It sounds like the two had a great session. I can’t wait to hear the first single (post NB) will sound like. It looks like things are headed in a good direction for Kris right now.

Um, I thought the dude from The Fray was named Joe King.
But, anyway, The Fray is right up Kris’ alley and I can’t wait to hear what Timbaland’s crew came up with for Kris.

Omg, I’m so excited about all the collaborations so far. Just one question though: So they make Kris get in contact with the artists themselves? I don’t know why i imagined a bunch of back and forth from the 2 managements or something. I wonder if the video-taping is for the extra stuff from the Itunes pass? I hope so because I want to see them dance! hehe

This is really exciting news. The highlight? The process with Kris being described as “organic.” It is also great to hear Kris is working with and getting good feedback from those established in the industry.

I totally can see Kris doing stuff like the Fray. I am getting excited!!! yay!

Above all, it was fun. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“At the end of the session, we cranked up à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Bounceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ in the studio and got down,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  he said. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re following Krisà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ progress on film, so thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s video of us white boys shaking it to Timbaland songs in his studio, which I hope doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t get out there.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

But I hope it does.

Sounds like a great session! I had never heard of Joe Gordon before now, but he seems like a good match for Kris.

ETA: Or maybe his name is Joe King? Okay.

Yeah, The Fray guitarist is Joe King, not Joe Gordon. But whatever…

It was interesting that King responded to an e-mail from Kris. But from what I can tell, the AI contestants are encouraged to try and make and follow up on contacts in the business, rather than just waiting for their management or label to help them hook up with potential collaborators once they are signed. I know Matt has hinted about that in some of his tweets.

Initiative! It’s all good!

Interesting insight about how people write songs. seems that they come up with melody and arrangement first, then probably Kris will write the lyrics later. imagine Kris with his ipod on listening to “la la la” and trying to fill in the words…

It was interesting that King responded to an e-mail from Kris. But from what I can tell, the AI contestants are encouraged to try and make and follow up on contacts in the business, rather than just waiting for their management or label to help them hook up with potential collaborators once they are signed. I know Matt has hinted about that in some of his tweets.

Initiative! Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s all good!

All righty then. What exactly is the management’s purpose then? They really aren’t doing a whole bunch of anything. Hopefully, that has since changed and 19/Jive is now making an effort to hook Kris up with the right people. 19 is a big company; I’m sure that getting RedOne and Dr. Luke for Adam took some doing, maybe now they can pay a little attention to Kris, yes?

I am so excited about this. Not because I like the Fray, because I totally hate them. However, I am excited about the “Now that’s a good melody” bit and the possible chance of seeing Kris and Joe King white guy dance to “bounce.” Also, the entire fact that they are making a video at all.

I totally did not freak out about this earlier in capslock someplace else. Nope.

Well, we don’t know how Kris hooked up with David Hodges, Claude Kelly or Salaam Remi — it’s possible 19/Jive set up those collaborations. Or maybe Kris met them during his run on the show and he followed up himself. I doubt 19/Jive would just sit around and not do anything. But the artists shouldn’t just sit on their butts and wait for their management to do all the work, either.

I’m just happy to see Kris is starting to get a little more attention in the media. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but there have been several articles/interviews about Kris since Michael Slezak wrote that EW.com pice on whether 19 was trying to give Kris the shaft…

And luckily the focus with Kris is pretty much all on his music (aside from the occasional paparazzi stuff like the photos/video from last night)

I totally did not freak out about this earlier in capslock someplace else. Nope.

LOL, CC. You crack me up!

Looking forward to Kradison music!

I reallyreallyREALLY want to see the video of them doing their thing to “Bounce”! I don’t know why, but this could be the newest YouTube sensation, if they’d just release it to the public.

I bet it probably wouldn’t be all that embarassing — those boys likely have rhythm!

Just because Joe Whateverhisnameis said he got an email from Kris doesn’t mean it came directly from Kris, or it didn’t happen after 19 contacted Joe’s people and said maybe Kris was interested in possible collaboration, and can we get a cell number or email addy, yaddayaddayadda. Or maybe Joe has an email address that’s easy to find. I dunno. But I don’t know how to contact much of anybody without going through management first, so… Kris just up and emailing Joe without everybody’s people talking to people first seems unlikely to me.

But I don’t live in a twitter world, so what do I know?

But I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t live in a twitter world, so what do I know?

Twitterworld is awesome. They should make a twitterworld ride at Disney.

I found out that Kris went jogging, went to Target and Urban Outfitters, and had his birthday dinner at Madeo (sp) yesterday. I got to feel slightly creeped out by myself just like a real stalker just by sitting on my couch.

Excellent! Am I crazy in thinking that it sounds like 19E might actually be giving Kris and Adam (and Allison–hopefully there will be word on her collaborations soon) room to create music that fits with their artistic inclinations? At least a little bit? One thing I’m curious about: does it sound like Kris is doing one song with The Fray (first single, possibly?), or several, or one song to start with and then they’ll decide about more?

à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Timbalandà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s brother said if Timbaland was upstairs and he heard this melody, heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢d walk in the studio and say, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a melody.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢

I should hope that this Timbaland fella would be able to recognize the melody of a song as opposed to the chorus or the bridge. I’m gonna add that to my list of great quotes.

There was Lester Maddox, Governor of Georgia, who once observed, “We ain’t never gonna have better prisons until we get a better grade of prisoner.”

And then the classic from Mike Tyson attempting to explain away pending rape charges by saying, “I love women, my mother was a woman….”

It sounds like they’re doing one song each with the diff. collaborators. I’m thinking that they meet up and work something out, give it time to breathe, and then work on it through email or video chat or whatever to work everything out since the idols will be busy touring.

Chachi:

I know — it is a little creepy, isn’t it. But hey — it’s still better than actually BECOMING a stalker and chasing Kris or whatever celebrity you are interested in all over town and maybe ending up in jail!

Oh, here’s an MTV.com article suggesting some other producers/writers Kris should collaborate with…any of these intrigue you?

http://newsroom.mtv.com/2009/06/22/five-90s-songwriters-who-should-produce-kris-allens-album/

Sounds great! am so looking forward to Kris’ cd!

Excellent. I think this is such a great fit and The Fray are just excellent, so I’m excited to hear this. And to hear Joe King has such cool things to say about Kris. Bodes well.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sure that getting RedOne and Dr. Luke for Adam took some doing, maybe now they can pay a little attention to Kris, yes?

Well according to RedOne, HE was the one that sought out ADAM. He watched him on the show and was impressed enough to want to work with him. So HE called the label.

Cool news! I hope Kris gets the same response from other people he “emailed.” I wonder if he ever heard from Jamie Foxx or Kanye West about working with them. That would be cool for him. Unless of course there are issues with different labels or whatever.

hip-hop producer Salaam Remi (Amy Winehouse)

Heh, Salaam has also worked with Nas (on God’s Son and I think some other stuff), Black Sheep (on their second, lesser album) and The Fugees (on their semi-classic, The Score). It’s kind of bizarre and amazing that Kris and him are now working together.

Sounds like Kris is doing well in his quest to get industry respect. Joe King, like the people who voted for Kris, recognized his passion for music. I love it that Kris wasn’t afraid to reach out to Joe. I think because he is so laid back, some people may be afraid that he’d let the label and every one else walk over him, and dictate to him what his album should be like. But, Kris isn’t passive about his career or music, he knows who he is, and he knows what type of music he wants to make. Those are two ingredients that helped him win idol, and those same two things will help him to make music that people will want to hear.

d. b. cooper Jun 22nd, 2009 at 9:46 pm

hip-hop producer Salaam Remi (Amy Winehouse)

Heh, Salaam has also worked with Nas (on Godà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Son and I think some other stuff), Black Sheep (on their second, lesser album) and The Fugees (on their semi-classic, The Score). Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s kind of bizarre and amazing that Kris and him are now working together.

So far that’s the only collaborator I’ve been intrigued by. If Kris ends up working with Kanye or Timbaland, THEN I’ll be impressed!

Well according to RedOne, HE was the one that sought out ADAM. He watched him on the show and was impressed enough to want to work with him. So HE called the label.

And THIS may very well be why TPTB wanted him to win so desperately. Less work for them, maybe?

I’m impressed enough with Kris that I trust he’s going to do well. I too am so happy with all of the great things Joe King had to say about their time together.

All signs so far for Kris’ and Adam’s debut albums have been very positive. It’s clear both guys are working hard and are excited about what they are doing. It’ll probably draining juggling all their responsibilities (rehearsing for tour, media stuff, writing/recording stuff for album) but so far it doesn’t seem to have affected them much.

Oh, and this is off-topic, but just a quick Happy Birthday to Scott McIntyre, who turns 24 today. One day younger than Kris — weird! Anyway, the Idols are evidently off to another bday party tonight!

this looks very promising for kris’s album.

This is so exciting. I cannot wait for Kris’ album!

It’s nice to see that Kris is so totally in charge of the process. Now, bring on the tour videos. Oh hai, Jude.

Yikes, I had a total brainfart with King’s last name. Fixed.

I think this will be a good match for Kris. I hope he’s having a blast. It will be interesting to hear his take on Hey Jude.

It is confirmed that RedOne, who’s producing Adam Lambert, contacted Adam himself. Adam has not contacted anyone; producers WANT to work with Adam!! RedOne contacted Adam Lambert even before end of Idol!! How cool is that!

Your point, Keld?

Glad to hear that Kris is working with some big name folks in the recording industry. I am sure looking forward to his debut album. Thanks for posting, MJ. It is always great to get new of Kris.

I’m a new blogger (thanks to Adam) … the acronym ETA that I know means estimated time of arrival … what does ETA mean here? (Good ahead, have a good laugh … then please help this challenged blogger.) Wait, one more … I’ve also seen FTW … what does that mean? And by all means if there’s such a thing as a blogger dictionary … point me that way.

FTW = for the win

Kris is quieter. His style is quieter. His personality is quieter. But he is no less charming. Winning AI has given him the clout to contact big name people and they are listening. I think once they meet him and work with him his talent will win out along with his easy going personality. He would be a dream to work with. No off putting pretense or prima donna behavior. Looking forward to anything they come up with. I’ve always liked the Fray and love Kris’s style.

honowoowoo,

ETA = Edit to add. Some have a link to a bloggers dictionary, I don’t, sorry.

Shari, tomorrow night? too late?

I love Kris!!!

It is confirmed that RedOne, whoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s producing Adam Lambert, contacted Adam himself. Adam has not contacted anyone; producers WANT to work with Adam!! RedOne contacted Adam Lambert even before end of Idol!! How cool is that!

Wouldn’t it be great if mj made a post to discuss that news in?!

Wouldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t it be great if mj made a post to discuss that news in?

i think mj made one already, he/she just want us Kris fans to know that Adam doesnt need to contact to anyone he s working with while Kris does

Happy Birthday Scott!

I didn’t know that Kris and Scott had birthdays so close to each other.

See that is really the difference between Kris and Adam and why there are fans of both. Some folks are thrilled that Adam is working with Lady Gaga’s producer. I can’t stand Lady Gaga, thought she was a complete mess on American Idol. To me performance art is performance art, but it isn’t music.

On the other hand, I love the Fray. I like their sound and their musicality. I love Kris Allen for the same reasons. I love his take on the music and the way he delivers the lyrics in such an unpretentious, heartfelt way. I am thrilled that he is working with artists like this because that is the kind of music I like.

Really, bottom line, to each their own, right? Thank goodness there is music enough to go around to everyone’s likes and dislikes.

To keld who wrote:

It is confirmed that RedOne, whoà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s producing Adam Lambert, contacted Adam himself.

….aaaaaand what does that have to do with Kris on this article? Not to be rude, but there is no mention of Adam/RedOne in this article. There is no need to compare, because I believe the competition has been over for what? Two weeks now?

Did I miss where Adam said that every single person he’s working with all went to RCA begging to work with him and he or RCA doesn’t ever, ever have to contact anyone? If there’s a certain producer or writer Adam would like to work with and, *GASP* this person didn’t reach out to RCA you don’t think they would contact that person?

Not to mention, we have no idea whether the other people Kris is collaborating with contacted him, or whether Kris/his label/management contacted them.

It’s great that RedOne reached out to Adam and is so eager to work with him. But it has nothing to do with this article.

The competition is over. Or it’s supposed to be.

The competition is over. Or ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s supposed to be.

This. It’s fantastic that Kris is working with Joe King (and it’s great that Adam’s working with RedOne, but that’s not this post). I’m still curious, though–does it seem like they are doing just this one song together, or multiple songs, or are they still figuring all that out?

It seems like it’s one song. From what I’m reading, it seems like they worked on putting the music together and have a general feeling of what and how the song will go, but not the actual lyrics.

I can understand why Kris wanted to work with them since Kris is all about their lyrics. The Fray’s songs do tell stories and isn’t just regular pop fluff.

But I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t live in a twitter world, so what do I know?

Twitterworld is awesome. They should make a twitterworld ride at Disney.

I found out that Kris went jogging, went to Target and Urban Outfitters, and had his birthday dinner at Madeo (sp) yesterday. I got to feel slightly creeped out by myself just like a real stalker just by sitting on my couch.

hehe….i feel the same too but i think in a good creepy way :lol_tb:

You Know Whatà ¯ ¼Ã… ¸If Kris really want to try out something urban, he can change up some songs and make duets with urban/r&b artists. I’ll recommand him to sing the Janet Jackson Got ’til it’s Gone which sampled from Joni Mitchell song Big Yellow Taxi. Made it more into a folky style!
But I guess Janet won’t bother to give that song to Kris. What a shame.

Oh, hereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s an MTV.com article suggesting some other producers/writers Kris should collaborate withà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦any of these intrigue you?

http://newsroom.mtv.com/2009/06/22/five-90s-songwriters-who-should-produce-kris-allens-album/

who are all these wierd people???? i’ve only heard of Gregg Alexander from the New Radicals but thats also cos i love their song “You get what you give”

Aw, I know who all of them are, but I’m in my mid-30′s, so, they’re my people! Evan Dando would be a good match for Kris. He wrote great pop songs and was sort of the Pete Yorn of the day. I had a huge crush on him! Search for the Lemonheads on YouTube, you might be pleasantly surprised.

I think Kris is assertive as to which artists he wants to collaborate with. He certainly knows his business and what he wants. I’m really impressed. Good job, Kris. Keep it up.

I think Kris would do really well to do the acoustic rock think with a soul/hip hop edge. Mraz does the reggae edge, Mayer does the bluesy edge. Kris can start carving out his own little niche there.

I *love* the Lemonheads! They are from MA and do (well, did) kind of edgy pop, like “It’s a Shame About Ray.” If you haven’ heard them, go to youtube and check them out.

It’s funny, b/c I listen to Gavin DeGraw and Jason Mraz a lot, and could see Kris going this way. Not John Mayer, however, or Jack Johnson. DeGraw has three albums, Chariot, Gavin DeGraw, and Free. I like all three of them. Chariot has two parts: the original and the acoustic part, and they are both very good. I also like The Fray a lot, and one could do worse. I agree-he will find his own niche. I wonder how he will add a hip/hop edge but I can see soul for sure. I’m looking forward to his album a lot. He will work with strong producers and go his own way (as he did, say, with the way he changed up Kanye’s Heartless, which, I agree, was *much* better than Kanye’s version).

I *love* the Lemonheads! They are from MA and do (well, did) kind of edgy pop, like à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a Shame About Ray.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  If you havenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ heard them, go to youtube and check them out.

“Into Your Arms” is one of my favorite songs ever, and if Kris could create something like that, while injecting his soulful vibe–wow, it’d be amazing.

I think Kris would do really well to do the acoustic rock think with a soul/hip hop edge. Mraz does the reggae edge, Mayer does the bluesy edge. Kris can start carving out his own little niche there.

totally agree. thats the impression i got from kris’ AI performances…that he’s a pop/rock/soul guy. and there is a niche for him in today’s market.

and i really do hope that it was Kris who initiated the contact w. J.King. shows that once again, he knows who he is as an artist and is going out there to get what HE (not the label) wants….thats just my take on it.

Suebrody “I wonder how he will add a hip/hop edge but I can see soul for sure.”

There are many so called hip-hop creations that have great lyrics/stories and even some great melodies. If Kris could collab with Kanye who is a good songwriter (lousy singer) it may work. Gavin DG and the Fray are prob closer to Kris’ current sensibilites but he is talented and he will learn so much from this experience. I fully expect an Allen sound in the future.

What bothers me is the implication that Kris should improve his vocal training and showmanship. Why?! He appeals to many people who may think the Blue Men Group is quite boring.

efm: Oh, Into My Arms is one of my all-time favorite songs. Yes, Kris could definitely do a Lemonheads type of album. They have a great hits CD that I highly recommend.

Who says that Kris needs to improve his singing? No. But I love, love, love Gavin DeGraw, as I mentioned (who has three very different albums), and I can see Kris going down that route. Jason Mraz’s latest album also has an acoustic side to it, and I hear echoes of Kris in there. Not that he should be a copy cat, but there are a lot of bands and singer/songwriters that have the kind of vibe I can see Kris going for.

deleted

à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Into Your Armsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  is one of my favorite songs ever, and if Kris could create something like that, while injecting his soulful vibeà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’wow, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢d be amazing.

oohh wow!! i have listened to Into Your Arms so many times on radio and also on Heroes season 1 and looovveed the song but for some reason never found out who the singer was!! so its sung by The Lemonheads? cool…definitely gonna check them out on youtube and deezer now (: