Country singer Eric Church is apparently not a fan of singing competitions.
In a recent interview with Rolling Stone, Church asserted the opinion that the popular show “The Voice” is spawning a group of non-artists who think they can make it big overnight.
“It’s become ‘American Idol’ gone mad,” he said. “Honestly, if Blake Shelton and Cee Lo Green f—ing turn around in a red chair, you get a deal? That’s crazy. I don’t know what would make an artist do that. You’re not an artist.”
Church managed to insult quite a few of his peers with that blanket statement, including former American Idol contestants who have gone on to make a big name for themselves in the country music world–Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson, namely. Blake Shelton’s wife, Miranda Lambert, actually got her start on Nashville Star back in ’03 and invited Church to tour with her in 2010, so to say his comments ticked her off is putting it lightly. Once she got wind of the interview, Lambert took to Twitter to call Church out.
But Church issued an apology yesterday via The Boot , saying he never intended to hurt anyone with his comments and was only speaking about his feelings towards people who think they can take shortcuts in the business.
“The comment I made to Rolling Stone was part of a larger commentary on these types of reality television shows and the perception they create, not the artists involved with the shows themselves,” Eric said. “The shows make it appear that artists can shortcut their way to success. There are a lot of artists due to their own perseverance that have gone on to be successful after appearing on these shows, but the real obstacles come after the cameras stop rolling. Every artist has to follow up television appearances with dedication towards their craft, but these shows tend to gloss over that part and make it seem like you can be ordained into stardom. I have a problem with those perceived shortcuts, not just in the music industry. Many people have come to think they can just wake up and have things handed to them. I have a lot of respect for what artists like Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, and my friend Miranda Lambert have gone on to accomplish. This piece was never intended to tear down any individual, and I apologize to anybody I offended in trying to shed light on this issue. I am grateful for all of the artists and fans that have supported me along my journey and certainly did not mean for my comments to undermine their talent and achievements.”
No word yet on how Lambert feels about the apology.
