By Cassandra Szklarski
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TORONTO (CP) - Hamilton rocker Brian Melo has been crowned the new Canadian Idol.
The easy-going singer, known for wearing hats in each performance, beat out country crooner Jaydee Bixby in a star-packed results show Tuesday that also featured punky pop star Avril Lavigne and rock veterans Bon Jovi.
"This is incredible, I didn't think a year ago I'd be standing here," Melo said to a cheering crowd as his mother beamed back from the audience, tears in her eyes.
After the win, Melo told reporters backstage that he's intent on making sure he doesn't become a one-hit wonder. "I don't want to come out and just put out one album, I want longevity," Melo said. "I want to grow and get better with each album. I want to be an international star, I'm thinking of big things. I want to hit the American market, I want to hit the European market as much as I can." Nearly five million votes were cast following a performance show Monday that saw mostly praise from judges for Melo and criticism for Bixby. Idol officials refused to say how many votes separated the two contenders, saying only that it was a tight east-west battle. In Hamilton, some 2,000 friends, family and fans had gathered to watch the live broadcast at Hamilton Place Theatre. Melo, a 25-year-old construction worker, couldn't have been more different from his 17-year-old rival from Drumheller, Alta. While Melo favoured mainstream rock and contemporary hits, Bixby based his performances on country standards and Elvis tunes. But it was Melo who more consistently won the judge's praises, wowing them with a powerful rendition of Radiohead's "Karma Police" - which he repeated Tuesday - while Bixby was often slammed for his slick delivery. Melo wins a record deal with Sony BMG and his first single - "All I Ever Wanted," penned for the 2007 winner - released to radio Wednesday. Melo said he planned to do his best to put his stamp on his debut disc, including the songwriting and production. "Sometimes Canadian Idol might get a bad rap for credibility," he said backstage. "But being in this process, there's been so many songwriters, so many great musicians that haven't gotten the credit . . . that they deserve. So hopefully I'll be able to change that." For his part, Bixby said he wasn't too upset by not winning, taking his mother's advice to focus on the good things. "She always told me: 'Keep positive, keep on the positive side of things,' " Bixby told a roomful of reporters as his parents looked on. "And you know, there's nothing negative about coming in second in a national audition, so I'm very happy. I'm glad I made my parents proud." Celebrity fans in the studio audience included "Will & Grace's" Eric McCormack, talk show personality Mary Jo Eustace, "Rock Star: Supernova's" Lukas Rossi and Tory MP Jason Kenney. The coronation came as "Canadian Idol" announced that the Top 3 competitors will head out on a 15-city, cross-Canada concert tour this fall. Bixby, Melo and third-placed Carly Rae Jepson will hit the road Nov. 18, starting in Charlottetown. While concert tours featuring multiple Idols commonly follow the U.S. version of the series, the Canadian Idol tour will be a first north of the border. It will take Melo, Bixby and Jepson through cities in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. It wraps up in Edmonton on Dec. 12. Tuesday's finale featured a return to the stage by last year's winner, Eva Avila, as well as some big-name performers. Lavigne, her face framed by a pink streak in her long blond hair and her hand clutching a hot pink microphone, sang her new single, "Hot," and her sentimental ballad, "When You're Gone." Bon Jovi performed the title track to their country-tinged current album, "Lost Highway" and their 2000 hit, "It's My Life."
Melo took the title after wowing the judges Monday night with his take on Bon Jovi's "All I Ever Wanted" and Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," while Bixby's performance drew heavy criticism. Previous Idol winners include Season 2's Kalan Porter, whose career triumphs include a double-platinum debut record and multiple Juno nominations. But winning the title is certainly no guarantee of success. Veteran music journalist Larry LeBlanc says the challenge is turning that win into an enduring career."It provides short-term household name cachet to the artist," LeBlanc says of the value of being crowned Canadian Idol. "And if they do something with it fine, but it's up to them to make sure they don't become a trivia question."
