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Zach Colick
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Posted: Tue Jun 2nd, 2009 06:25 pm |
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Editor's note: The following story appears in the June 4 Town of Paradise Valley Independent. Post comments by hitting reply in the upper right-hand corner. Comments will be posted in an upcoming issue of the Town of Paradise Valley Independent.
Scott MacIntyre shares 'Idol' journey
By Zach Colick
Independent Newspapers
It’s definitely been an interesting journey during the past five months for “American Idol” alum Scott MacIntyre.
The longtime Scottsdale resident said he auditioned for “American Idol” for two reasons: to share his incredible voice on a worldwide stage and tell his story to inspire others so they can reach high for their dreams, in spite of any challenges in their life.
Mr. MacIntyre, who has been visually impaired since birth, believes the only limitations in someone’s life are those they create themselves — and that people can overcome any obstacles to achieve any dreams they set out to accomplish.
That was the message the 23-year-old Redondo Beach, Calif., native shared May 28 at the Scottsdale Civic Center Mall, with a small crowd of fans both old and young alike.
He was the featured speaker at a special Mayor and City Council breakfast, where he thanked his throng of supporters for letting him into their family rooms and kitchens for the past five months to tell his musical story.
“It’s not just about the music, it’s about the people,” he said, “and I’m honored that you guys have seen something in me and have lifted me up in that way.”
With the Scottsdale Mayor’s Youth Council present, Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane recognized Mr. MacIntyre as an inspiring example to young people in Scottsdale and proclaimed May 28 as “Scott MacIntyre Day” after reading a proclaimation on his behalf.
The Mayor’s Youth Council, established in 1987, provides Scottsdale high school-aged youth the opportunity to learn about how local government works and how services are provided. Participants meet key city staff and officials, and share ideas about local government issues.
Mr. MacIntyre was a recipient of both a Marshall and Fullbright scholarship at a young age. He said he was also involved in a similar youth program growing up, which he said taught him a lot about government, public speaking and debate.
Lessons learned from the program were key on “American Idol,” he said. The program also got him interested in law — he may pursue a law degree and enter the political arena in some regard in the near future.
“There’s time for that later, after ‘American Idol’,” he said.
Due to contractual obligations with “American Idol,” Mr. MacIntyre could not perform songs made famous on the hit Fox reality series.
Mr. MacIntyre has played previously at the Maricopa County Events Center, Phoenix Symphony Hall, Gammage Auditorium, Chandler Performing Arts Center and the Herberger Theatre, but never dreamed “American Idol” would be the vehicle to take him to the next level.
While always a big “American Idol” fan, Mr. MacIntyre said he never thought the competition was best suited for him as it didn’t allow contestants to play musical instruments until last season.
“When they wheeled out a grand piano on the big stage, that’s when I knew that’s what I had to do and where I had to be,” he said, noting playing the piano adds a much-needed layer to his performances. “That immediately became a dream of mine to play grand piano and sing on the ‘American Idol’ stage.”
Mr. MacIntytre is completely blind and can only see about “2 degrees of tunnel vision,” which has presented a lot of challenges throughout his life, as well as on “American Idol,” with one particular comical situation.
“It’s like looking through a coffee straw,” he said of his lack of vision. “If you can imagine holding a straw up to your eyes — it’s not exactly like that — but it’s a very limited field of vision, with no peripheral vision whatsoever.
“When I’m looking at someone, I only see, in good lighting, a part of their face or their eye, and it takes a long time before I ever get a visual representation of that.”
Mr. MacIntyre talked about the instance on one of “American Idol’s” very first episodes this season, when host Ryan Seacrest stuck out his hand to give him a high five.
Mr. MacIntyre, who called the situation hilarious as it made its rounds on YouTube and various news outlets nationwide, said he was not offended when he was unable to reciprocate until the show’s longtime host told him what was going on.
“It’s almost nice in a way for a few seconds when someone does forget (that I’m blind) because I just look at my visual impairment as another characteristic,” he said. “You know, my hair is light, my eyes are blue — or green depending on what I’m wearing — and I happen to be visually impaired.”
Finishing in the Top 10 — he was eighth out of hundreds of thousands of contestants — was a humbling experience as he got to “leave the ‘American Idol’ bubble” and experience all that, arguably, America’s favorite reality series has to offer.
“The fan support is just intense and it’s amazing, and you really don’t get to experience it until you leave and do all the media interviews with everyone,” he said.
“It’s really kind of a different experience while you’re on the show because you don’t get to go out and interact with the people who are supporting you. But it was just amazing leaving and seeing what an impact I had made in the world.”
Mr. MacIntyre said while newfound national fandom and popularity are new experiences for him — he receives hundreds of e-mails everyday from fans all across the world — he said he realizes “American Idol” has a worldwide impact and is taking every new opportunity in stride.
Because of “American Idol’s” grueling weekly demands, comprised of photo shoots, filming commercial spots, radio appearances, and learning choreography and group songs, producers often leave contestants with little time to fine-tune their weekly song choices.
And while Mr. MacIntyre said fashion has never been something he has focused on, appearances can sometimes make or break you on a given week.
“The visual is a big part of it, which is weird for me because I don’t have a good eye for that,” joked Mr. MacIntyre, referring to his visual impairment. “But we’re surrounded by the best stylists, and it was just an amazing experience.”
All these lessons, though. have taught Mr. MacIntyre how to work more efficiently, productively and be more organized than ever before.
“There’s so much going on each week that singing kind of becomes the last priority sometimes as far as the schedule goes, so you really have to struggle to hang on to that,” he said. “Tuesday night comes around and you’ve done a million different things, and you haven’t rehearsed your song enough because you’re doing the Ford videos and the photo shoots.”
Always wanting to pursue a career in the music business, Mr. MacIntyre said he knew what genre of music he wanted to pursue even before auditioning for “American Idol.”
He believes that was an asset as he always stayed true to himself during the entire competition.
“Even though it wasn’t a songwriting show, I tried to choose songs that really allowed me to approach each week as if I was the songwriter to create a unique and fresh experience for the audience,” he said. “I could really take a song from an artist that people weren’t expecting me to do and conform it to the Scott MacIntyre style.”
Mr. MacIntyre said he plans to release a solo album comprised of original music — along the lines of Gavin DeGraw, John Mayer, Vanessa Carlton and Bruce Hornsby — after touring this summer with the other Top 10 “American Idol” finalists.
The tour makes a stop July 20 at Glendale’s Jobing.com Arena.
“I’ve been writing music for years and I’m kind of the lone serious writer on “American Idol” this year, and that’s definitely going to be a huge part of my future,” he said.
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