Nadia interview in Miami Herald article 1/16/07, mention of upcoming single Standing On Love Options

[jdanton2]

lots of comments from Nadia on things .also mentions her single will be called Standing On Love and will be out the end of January.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/16468317.htm





Posted on Tue, Jan. 16, 2007email thisprint this
UP FRONT | TELEVISION
On 'American Idol,' losers can be winners As 'American Idol' returns tonight, pay attention to the underdogs: Being a loser worked out well for past finalists.
BY HOWARD COHEN
hcohen@MiamiHerald.com
Blog | Idol Watch
As the sixth season of American Idol -- television's most popular program -- premieres tonight at 8 on Fox, the whole concept of the show has been turned upside down.

Losing, it seems, can make you a winner.

Only two American Idol champions -- Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood -- have sold enough CDs and garnered sufficient industry recognition to live up to the show's original tagline, ''The search for a superstar.'' But they're not the only now-household names to emerge from the series -- including some who were abruptly discarded from Idol.

None currently is bigger than Jennifer Hudson -- who finished seventh in season three, brusquely dismissed by judge Simon Cowell. Now, Oscar buzz surrounds Hudson for her performance as Effie White, the force-of-nature vocalist in Dreamgirls -- she cemented her status Monday night by winning a Golden Globe. And in a sweet twist for Hudson, Fantasia, the Idol winner that year, tried out for the Dreamgirls role.

`CATAPULT'

Miami's Nadia Turner, a fourth-season finalist, looks up to Hudson. ''We're friends,'' she says. ``A lot of people assume when you are not first or the runner-up how successful can you be, but you don't need to be first or runner-up to catapult to success.''

Cécile Frot-Coutaz, American Idol's executive producer, says this is a product of the show's popularity. ''The show is so big people who aren't the winner are doing so well,'' she says. ``Look at Hudson and her film career.

``We were pretty shocked and disappointed [Chris Daughtry] got kicked out so early, but those events are good for the show. It creates some publicity.''

Daughtry -- the clear front-runner early in season five -- certainly has benefited from that controversial ouster. He has sold more than a million copies of his eponymous debut CD, and radio -- long resistant to most Idols -- has embraced his single, It's Not Over. Daughtry sits at No. 3 on the current Billboard 200 album chart -- far outpacing winner Taylor Hicks, whose album has plummeted to No. 47. Other Idol rejects to come out on top: Kellie Pickler, who scored a No. 1 country album recently and has been tapped to star in a TV sitcom; and Josh Gracin, who has seen three songs breach Country's Top 5.

Conversely, Idol winners Ruben Studdard, Fantasia and Hicks haven't fared nearly as well. Each has released CDs that have sold poorly. Clay Aiken started out well -- he was the first runner-up to outperform the Idol who beat him (Studdard in year two) -- but in the years since, negative tabloid coverage and subpar albums have halted his career momentum.

PLENTY OF FANS

Though Miami's Turner, 30, was cast off the show relatively early -- seventh out of 12 -- she certainly isn't hurting for work. She welcomed the new year by performing in Kuwait and counts Rosie O'Donnell as a fan. The View star invited Turner to guest host the ABC talkfest earlier this month.

''This was when the Donald Trump thing was going on, so I got a lot of media play by sitting right next to Rosie. She was a sweetheart; treated me wonderfully,'' Turner said from New York.

In addition, Turner has finished filming a leading role in the forthcoming romantic comedy A Taste of Us. But she's not forgotten what got her on Idol: Her single Standing on Love will be released later this month, while her first album, still untitled, should hit stores in the spring.

The American Idol experience, she says, has been ''all good,'' even though she lost the title to country star Underwood.

''I would do it again,'' Turner says of the show. ``It opened doors to me. I could have knocked until I turned green, but being on the show gives you beyond exposure. I was able to tap into a part of the industry that wasn't accessible.''

HOWARD COHEN CAN TALK FOREVER ABOUT 'AMERICAN IDOL'. REALLY. READ HIS RUNNING COMMENTARY ON IDOL WATCH. CLICK ON BLOGS.

[jessesmith]

thank you soooooo much....it seemed dead in the nadia section.......
it's good that their are still some people who still think of her..(in the forum)
so this is official riight?