Canadian Idol has begun its fourth season, and already I have a crush on one of the contestants - Chris Labelle. Sometimes there's nothing sexier than a guy that can make me bend over and … laugh!
We're first introduced to this comically funny guy when they're interviewing contestants who are waiting in line in Ottawa, Ontario. The question asked is, "How do you prepare for the audition?" Most people answered thoughtfully, such as "I worked with my voice teacher to select the best song for my voice," or "I looked through my collection, and tried out my favourites on my friends and got their opinions."
When the interviewer asked Chris, who is wearing a black cap and t-shirt, he swiftly responded, "How do I prepare for the audition? I like to say the word 'kitty cat.' K-I-T-T-Y C-A-T." He repeated this word a half a dozen different ways with various inflections, as though it's a vocal warm-up exercise. All the while wearing a huge magnetic smile on his cherubic face.
See the video by clicking here. Once it loads, click on the link "Behind the scenes of the Ottawa auditions" under More Vide Clips. Move the play arrow about 2/3 across. The video section with Chris begins at about 4min | 50 secs.
The next time Chris is shown is at his first audition for the judges. According to one interviewer, the 24-year-old busboy came straight from his shift at an Elgin Street pub to sing the Temptations' "Ain't Too Proud to Beg." Chris Labelle never got to sleep.
"I was there all night -- 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. -- then I came here and got in line," he said, flashing a giant grin. "I was drunk at the start.* Now I'm wired. I just did it. I'm so excited -- from all-night shift to Canadian Idol."
When Chris is seen walking on stage, he's bursting with energy. Every feeling flashes nakedly across his face - and as one writer puts it, the " Ottawa busboy steals 'Idol' show."
The chatty and energetic Chris LaBelle started off the show, bursting onto the Ottawa audition stage like a ball of bald energy. Not that he wanted anyone to notice -- the 24-year-old LaBelle only revealed his hairstyle, which consisted of a super-blond ring around the sides and back and nothing at all on top, when prompted by the panel.
"It's not going to change your decision is it?" asked the Ottawa resident before sheepishly removing his black toque. "I wanted to bleach it for Canadian Idol. The beauty salon bleached it for an hour and a half and ruined my hair. I look like I'm 80."
As another writer puts it:
Chris Labelle, 24 from Ottawa, ON is the first to face the judges. He's wearing a hat that they ask him to take off only to discover that he is balding and has bleached his remaining hair so it is snowy white.
Or…
A ham of a busboy...stole last night's Canadian Idol episode, part of which focused on Ottawa auditions.
"I'm 24 years old," he said, telling the incredulous judges his hair fell out at the salon from too much bleach. "I look like I'm 80."
and…
One fellow to step up to the judges is 24 year old Chris Labelle. Continuing with the theme from the first episode, he’s asked to remove his hat. When he complies, the judges are shocked, not with his bleached blond hair, but his lack of it. That’s right, he’s kind of bald. Chris explains that it was a dye-job gone wrong…
Chris immediately launches into "I Ain't Too Proud To Beg." Everyone's unsure if he's joking (is he begging them to take him in spite of his hair?) or if he's actually auditioning. So one of the judges says, "Okay," said a smiling Zack Werner, "but you can't really sing, right? That's just what you do." Without skipping a beat, Chris launches into "I'll Be (Your Crying Shoulder) and moves frentically around the stage. At one point he stops in front of Sass Jordan, the female judge, does a "hip thrust" and flirts with her. He's so hilarious and spontaneous - I don't think he even knows what he's doing. Here's what the journalists said:
He's full of energy and sings Ain't Too Proud to Beg. Zack doesn't believe he can sing so he launches into I'll Be (Your Crying Shoulder) and has Jake saying at least he sings it honestly. He's getting a golden ticket and heading to Toronto making this a great start to the day.
and…
Labelle immediately switched gears and launched into Edwin McCain's "I'll Be," earning impressed looks from judges Sass Jordan and Jake Gold, who stopped him mid-note and told him he was moving on.
"Thank you," said Labelle, grabbing his ticket before bursting out of the audition room.
Fortunately for the hip-shaking soul singer, his I.D. proved he was young enough to be eligibile for the Top 200 and he was sent on his way to Toronto.
"You are probably the most entertaining person we've seen so far," said judge Farley Flex, before handing Chris Labelle his gold ticket to Toronto.
or…
Labelle, who was delivering food just this past weekend on the job at popular Elgin St. watering hole Lieutenant's Pump, pelvic and hip thrust his way to a spot in the Top 212. He bleached his hair, shaved off the top to look like an aging bald man, then donned a toque and mugged while singing The Temptations' Ain't Too Proud to Beg.
...and when his snazzy performance of “Ain’t Too Proud To Beg” doesn’t convince the judges of his actual singing talent, he breaks into Edwin McCain’s “I’ll Be”. The second performance displays his versatility and the judges decide hair or no hair, he’s going to Toronto.
After getting his gold ticket, Chris still had the energy to race around the room giving fellow competitors high fives.
You can listen to his audition by clicking here. Note the judges laughing in the background as he races around the stage.
To be honest, I don't think he's such a great singer. But he charms the pants off me - he's so much fun to watch.
The next time I think I see him is during the next round when contestants are called up on stage and asked, "Why do you want to be the next Canadian Idol." I could be mistaken, but I think it was Chris who said, "I've always loved singing. I do it everywhere. In the shower, in the bathroom…" He's got a huge and sincere smile on his face, and you can tell he's just working on the hyper energy of his nerves. "And I'd just like to make Canada my …bathroom," he finishes.. He didn't know where he was going in his statement, and kind of forced himself into a corner.
Even my father laughed at that one.
As the competition winds down and the judges must choose the top 22, Chris steps up to deliver his final solo performance. There must have been a few weeks in between because now he's sporting a tuft of hair on top of his head, and the sides are shaven (he looks much cuter). Before he walks on stage, he says to the camera:
“I’d like to see an established artist try and go through what we competitors go through,” he said. “This competition is no joke. I wish people could see behind-the-scenes because [the pace] is nuts.”
Again, you can tell he's a bundle of nerves and hyperactivity, and just throws himself into the song and movement. He works the stage like a pro - but more like a comedian than a serious singer. He manages to put in his patented hip-thrust at Sass Jordan, and then runs embarrassedly off the stage, blushing.
The cameras watch him come off stage, and the interviewer says, "How did it go?" Chris answers, trying to be brave, "I think I did okay, yeah, it went good, I think." But you can see his confidence sliding off of him as he sinks into his embarrassment. He runs around the corner, away from the cameras and disappears. A few seconds later the camera finds him, sunk into a corner, crying, tears coming down his cheeks. The stress and emotions have overcome him, and he's trying to have a private moment. He pulls his shirt up, trying to cover his face, dropping it a little with his sad eyes looking over top … he looks so vulnerable and emotionally authentic.
You can see every thought expressed on his face, as he tries to pull himself together for the camera. He stands up, forcing a confident posture, and says something like, "I'm strong, I can pull myself together." After a few tries he does, and then beams his gorgeous smile.
As one writer puts it:
Chris Labelle decides it’s time to get serious, and his number is “That’s Why They Call It The Blues.” He was OK, no better… mostly, he’s glad to be done. The emotions hit and he briefly breaks down, but he’s far too tough to weep for long.
I totally fell in love with this guy after watching this scene unfold.
Chris didn't make it to the top 22.
But by some fate, one of the top 22 men dropped out, and Chris was asked to replace him:
A 24-year-old server at the Lieutenant’s Pump, Chris Labelle became a surprise addition to the Canadian Idol Top 22 when Phil King withdrew for family reasons. “The best day of my life was when I got the call telling me that I was in the Top 22 and that I would perform in front of millions of people,” he said.
So I'll have the pleasure of
__________________________
*In his bio on the web site for Canadian Idol, it states:
A server at the Lieutenant's Pump in Ottawa, Chris is most proud of the fact that at age 24, he has never drank, smoked or done drugs, "I've always told everyone if I were to sign a record deal then that's when I will have my first shot and I'll probably be smashed," he says.
That's in opposition to what one journalist reports him as saying - "I was drunk at the start," when waiting in line to audition.
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