A Rocker’s Reflections – Interview with Canadian Idol’s Billy Klippert:

Recently, I had the opportunity to connect with talented Top Three Canadian Idol finalist, Billy Klippert. Before we proceed with the interview, I am going to pull a CI Judge “Zach Wernerism” and predict that Billy, if he plans his musical career judiciously and with artistic creativity, will be a huge genre-bending rock star. The final portion of this interview focused on this aspect of his future musical development and success because I feel that this will efficiently determine Billy’s longevity and marketability.

However, you will also have an inside peek at the Canadian Idol process as seen through Billy’s eyes and will hopefully come to understand and appreciate the rigors and pressures that the Idols had to endure on the Canadian Idol road to success. Billy is always candid and upfront with his feelings and, from an interviewer’s perspective, it makes for an exciting and, at times, a humorous read! Enjoy!

Rosanne: First of all, Billy, congratulations on your success on the first Canadian Idol series. You secured one of the three top spots in the Canadian Idol series by giving us extremely memorable and passionate performances each week. It must have been an incredible experience for you.

Billy: It was amazing. It was the best experience of my life.

Rosanne: Before we talk about your success on Canadian Idol, let’s start at the very beginning. How long have you been singing – your earliest recollection? In addition, who inspired you and/or encouraged you to pursue a musical career.

Billy: I have been singing since I was 16 years old. I wrote a love song for a girlfriend of mine and it is still one of my best songs. Kurt Cobain inspired me. I admired how he turned simple chord structures into great songs. His music was really easy to play but I loved it.

Rosanne: Did you have an opportunity to read any of my Vocal Master Class articles here on Foxes On Idol? I am always asked this question by my readers, so I guess I am curious as well.

Billy: Unfortunately I haven’t had much of an opportunity to do anything but work on the show. They kept us pretty locked into what we were doing. We didn’t get to see daylight most of the summer.

Rosanne: Tell me about your initial Calgary audition experience. We know you sang your exciting version of “Superstar” for the Canadian Idol Television Judges, but what other songs did you perform in the preliminary rounds?

Billy: I was convinced I wasn’t going to make it through the first round. I thought it was a pop star competition and obviously I sang rock and roll not Britney. In the auditions I sang Pearl Jam’s “Jeremy,” David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” Stone Temple Pilots’ “Dead and Bloated,” “Lean On Me” by Bill Withers. There was some other Seattle Alternative worked in there as well, but those are a few of them.

Rosanne: So – you now have a gold ticket to Toronto and a bit of time on your hands until the June 2003 Top 143 Show. How did you prepare and when did the Canadian Idol producers inform you about your first song selection for Day One of the CI Boot Camp?

Billy: I didn’t do too much to prepare. Basically I learned a few songs (from scratch) that were a little more mainstream and tried to get a feel for what I thought they liked. We were emailed a list of pre-cleared songs which at that time was rather large. As we got to the top 10 rounds the pre-cleared song selections available were dismal. I selected what I did best out of the list and took it to Toronto.

Rosanne: You are primarily a rock musician – was it difficult to sift through the mainstream CI song selections and, ultimately, make your final song choices for the Top143 and Top 11 shows?

Billy: There was nothing on the list that I had performed before. I scarcely knew any of the songs on the list. I just stuck to the songs that allowed me to show how loud and soft I could be with my voice. I looked at my strengths and presented them through my song selections.

Rosanne: Okay – the big question. You lost your voice on that final day of CI Boot Camp week (Top 143 week). That experience must have encouraged you to become more diligent in the preservation of your voice. You sang really well in the Group One/Top Thirty Show and had more control and clarity to your voice. How did CI voice coach Sharon Lee Williams assist you in improving your technical and performance skills? She was fabulous wasn’t she?

Billy: Losing my voice definitely doesn’t happen to me often. I know why it happened and it is because I practiced too hard and loud for too long. I probably sang the song for close to eight hours straight. I didn’t have any critical voice problems later in the show, knowing I had more days to memorize and learn the songs. I think anyone will tell you that it easier to sing with music that provides a beat and a key to follow. It was easy once I had the opportunity to sing with the piano. Sharon Lee was really nice.

Rosanne: So, this takes us to the Top 11 Elimination Shows. You expertly sang your way up to the Top 3 competition. Did you envision that you would ascend to this prestigious level in the CI ranks? Top 3 is quite an accomplishment.

Billy: I wanted to win and I didn’t so I didn’t accomplish everything I wanted to – but it was still pretty unreal to think that I could make it to number three out of 15,000 people. I received a ton of exposure and above all a huge group of fans that I know will stick by me throughout my future. By far the most important thing to come out of this was the fans and friendships made.