Blake Lewis

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Blake Lewis
Alias = BShorty [Citation |last=Chinen |first=Nate |title=New CDs |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/03/arts/music/03choi.html?_r=1&ref=arts&oref=slogin |publisher="New York Times" |date=2007-12-03 |accessdate=2008-03-06]

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Background = solo_singer
Born = birth date and age|1981|7|21 Redmond, Washington, U.S.
Origin = Bothell, Washington, U.S.
Occupation = Singer-songwriter, producer, beatboxer
Genre = Pop, hip pop, pop rock, blue-eyed soul
Instrument = vocals, guitar, keyboard, drums, loop pedals
Label = Arista Records (2007–2008)
19 Recordings (2008–present)
Years_active = 1998–present
Associated_acts = Kickshaw (1998–2002) Cupcake Ryan Tedder Chris Richardson Lupe Fiasco
URL = [http://www.blakelewisofficial.com www.blakelewisofficial.com]

Blake Colin Lewis (born July 21, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, beatboxer and philanthropist who was the runner-up on the sixth season of "American Idol" behind winner Jordin Sparks.

Biography

Early years

Lewis was born in Redmond, Washington to Dallas and Dinah Lewis.cite web |title=Blake Lewis' biography |url=http://www.blakergirls.com/bio.html |accessdate=2007-08-20 |publisher=The Blaker Girls] [cite web |title="Bothell: City Designates Day to Honor Its 'Idol'" |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003654231_glance06e.html |date=April 6, 2007 |accessdate=2007-04-09 |publisher=The Seattle Times] Dinah is a former rocker who still sings and plays guitar. [cite web |title=Blake Lewis' biography |url=http://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/blake-lewis/bio/286845 |accessdate=2007-07-06 |publisher=TV Guide] He is an only child and is of Welsh, German and Irish descent.cite web |title="Blake Lewis on American Idol" |url=http://seattle.about.com/od/artsentertainment/p/blakelewis.htm |accessdate=2007-04-09 |publisher=About.com |author=Watson, Billy] He attended Kenmore Junior High and later Inglemoor High School in Kenmore, Washington. [cite web |title="Family and Friends Rally Behind Blake Lewis" |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/artsentertainment/2003718476_idolweb23.html |date=April 3, 2007 |accessdate=2007-04-09 |publisher=The Seattle Times |author=Davila, Florangela; Edwards, Haley] [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Hits the Big Time on 'American Idol'" |url=http://www.kenmore-reporter.com/jumpstory.html?story=news2&pubdate=3/21/2007 |date=March 21, 2007 |accessdate=2007-04-09 |publisher=Kenmore-Reporter.com |author=Hicks, Joshua Adam] In high school, Lewis participated in many high school state competitions. He also took part in numerous musicals, as well as comedy and rap videos with his friends.cite web |title="Fans of Other Idol Sing His Praises; Blake Lewis Is More Than a One-Note Wonder" |url=http://www.foxreality.com/news.php?id=23815 |date=April 5, 2007 |accessdate=2007-05-19 |publisher=FoxReality.com |author=Chansanchai, Athima] cite web |title="Moist Cupcake!" (Cupcake official website) |url=http://www.wingitproductions.org/cupcake/ |accessdate=2007-07-06] In many of these videos, he portrayed his alter ego, Jimmie Walker Blue, the character he introduced during the semi-final round of "American Idol".

Lewis started beatboxing at seventeen. He picked up this talent purely by ear, listening to CDs of beatboxing, after he was inspired by Matthew Selby, a former member of the Los Angeles-based a cappella group M-Pact, of which fellow "American Idol" semi-finalist Rudy Cárdenas was a member.cite web |title="KickShaw - the Biography of Five Mouth Musicians" |url=http://www.seapeace.org/bandpgs/kickshaw/ |accessdate=2007-04-09 |publisher=SeaPeace.org] [cite web |title="Rudy says 'Farewell'" |url=http://www.m-pactjazz.com/news.cfm |accessdate=2007-08-19 |publisher=M-Pact official website] Aside from singing and beatboxing, Lewis plays the guitar, keyboard, drums and has written many songs such as "She Loves the Way", "Emotional Waterfalls", "Dumpty Humpty" and "Jealousy".cite web |title="Blake Lewis Reaches Out to Gnarls, will.i.am After 'Idol' Finale: 'Call Me!'" |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1560387/20070524/id_0.jhtml |accessdate=2007-05-25 |date=May 24, 2007 |publisher=MTV.com |author=Byrne, Katie; Cantiello, Jim] [cite web |title="Bothell Swoons For Blake" |url=http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/05/12/100loc_a1blake001.cfm |date=May 12, 2007 |accessdate=2007-05-13 |publisher=HeraldNet |author=Switzer, Jeff; Holtz, Jackson] cite web |title="Exclusive Blaker Girls Interview With Blake" |url=http://blakergirls.com/Interview040507.htm |accessdate=2007-06-22 |publisher=The Blaker Girls |date=April 5, 2007] He describes himself as an improv musician and often uses devices such as loop pedals and the Kaoss Pad to layer beatboxing, instruments, vocals and effects to create a song live on stage.cite web |title="Will the Real Blake Lewis Please Stand Up" |url=http://www.disheveledmag.com/blakelewis.html |date=July 24, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-15 |publisher=Disheveled Media |author=Rothman, Jason]

Being a member of the a cappella group Kickshaw for four years after graduating from high school in 1999, Lewis worked with the group on a 10-track album titled "Put It In the Microphone" but he quit the group in 2002 to become a solo musician going by the stage name Bshorty, which was basically inspired by the nicknames of the members of 311 and "aggressive inline-skate videos during the 1990s", "doing drum and bass shows, and conscious hip hop shows, singer-songwriter stuff, and electronica and hip hop".cite web |title="Blake Lewis: The Beat Boxer" |url=http://www.people.com/people/package/americanidol2007/article/0,,20007868_20016489,00.html |date=March 30, 2007 |accessdate=2007-04-14 |publisher=People] [cite web |title="American Idol' Runner-Up Blake Lewis Creates Own Genre On A.D.D. Debut" |url=http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Break_Anotha&action=edit&undoafter=172458888&undo=172639558 |accessdate=2007-11-20 |date=November 19, 2007 |publisher=MTV.com |author=Harris, Chris] [cite web |title="KickShaw; A Cappella Group Featuring Blake Lewis" |url=http://www.singers.com/contemp/kickshaw.html |accessdate=2007-07-09 |publisher=Singer.com] [cite web |title="KickShaw - Put It In the Microphone" |url=http://www.a-cappella.com/product/2609C_Kickshaw_featuring_Blake_Lewis/pop-mensgroups |date=2003 |accessdate=2007-07-09 |publisher=A-Cappella.com] [cite web |title="Save Your Seattle Snark, Simon" |url=http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=idol17&date=20070217 |date=February 17, 2007 |accessdate=2007-04-09 |publisher=The Seattle Times |author=Davila, Florangela] [cite web |title="'American Idol Live 2007' Special - Meet the Idols!" |url=http://www.palmbeachpost.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/palmbeach/streeter/entries/2007/07/american_idol_l_2.html |date=July 7, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-09 |publisher=The Palm Beach Post |author=Streeter, Leslie] He made connections with various musicians by performing regularly in many venues in Seattle such as Nectar Lounge in Fremont, SeaMonster Lounge, Lo-Fi Performance Gallery, Jet Deck in Everett (now in Mill Creek) and hosted shows like The Digital Lounge shows at ToST. [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Is No 'Idol' Come Lately" |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/artsentertainment/2003697258_blake08.html |date=May 8, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-20 |publisher=The Seattle Times |author=Davila, Florangela] [cite web |title="American Ideal: Why Seattle Should Love Blake Lewis" |url=http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=247465 |date=June 20, 2007 |accessdate=2007-08-20 |publisher=The Stranger |author=Zwickel, Jonathan] Before "Idol", he was working on a solo album with a number of tracks finished. [cite web |title="Blake & Jordin Speak - Exclusive Preview" |url=http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2007/05/blake_jordin_sp.html |date=May 17, 2007 |accessdate=2007-05-19 |publisher=USA Today |author=Barnes, Ken]

"American Idol"

Though he initially found "American Idol" unappealing, Lewis auditioned for it in Seattle with "Crazy" by Seal and an off-screen rendition of "Sunday Morning" by Maroon 5. [cite web |title="'Idol' Runner-up Knows Exactly What He Wants"| url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/Music/12/04/music.blakelewis.ap/index.html |date=December 4, 2007 |publisher=The Associated Press via CNN] [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Fans Cheer on Hometown Hero" (video) |url=http://www.mtv.com/overdrive/?id=1557986&vid=145596 |date=April 24, 2007 |accessdate=2007-05-20 |publisher=MTV.com] [cite web |title=Blake Lewis Biography |url=http://www.blakelewisofficial.com/biography |accessdate=2007-11-29 |publisher=Blake Lewis official website] Introducing himself as the local beatboxing champion in the audition, Lewis beatboxed along with his teammates, including Chris Sligh, Rudy Cárdenas and Tom Lowe, to "How Deep Is Your Love" by Bee Gees in the Hollywood's Week. The memorable performance received a standing ovation from the audience and Paula Abdul, who commented "that brought down the house". In an early episode of the United Kingdom edition of "American Idol", Lewis recalled his first solo performance in the Hollywood's Week was "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" by The Temptations. When later he sang it in front of the other finalists, Phil Stacey felt that it was the best performance he has seen from Lewis. [cite web |title="Phil Stacey Comes Home - and Brings a Few Friends, Too" |url=http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/070607/lif_182009224.shtml |date=July 6, 2007 |accessdate=2007-07-09 |publisher=The Florida Times-Union |author=Bull, Roger]

List of Blake Lewis' week-by-week performances on "American Idol"

Lewis ended up the last male contestant standing; the judges had predicted Lewis' "front runner" status early in the competition. In an exclusive interview with [http://www.x17online.com/ X17Online] on March 4, 2007, Simon Cowell foresaw Lewis' chance to take the crown. [cite web |title="Simon's 'Idol' Predictions" (video) |url=http://x17online.com/celebrities/reality_tv/simons_idol_predictions.php |accessdate=2007-06-29 |publisher=X17Online |date=March 4, 2007] After Lewis' performance of "Lovesong" by The Cure/311 on March 27, Paula Abdul said that she would love to see him in the finale. Cowell further confirmed that Lewis was the front runner of male contestants on "American Idol". Lewis, upon entering the top 2 on May 16, 2007, he thus became the first ever contestant from the Northwestern United States (specifically, Washington) to compete in the finale.quote box|quote=I've tried to stay true to myself this whole entire time, and I think I've represented myself as creatively as I could with what I got on the show.|source=Blake Lewis, interview with MTV.com|width=35%Lewis' beatboxing and scat singing skills had been featured occasionally throughout the competition, notably in the performances such as "Virtual Insanity", "All Mixed Up", "Time of the Season", "You Give Love a Bad Name", "You Should Be Dancing", "This Is Where I Came In" and "This Love". He had also rearranged songs including "You Keep Me Hangin' On" and "You Give Love a Bad Name". Although Lewis' first performance in the semi-final weeks, "Somewhere Only We Know", was pure singing and inspired judges to make comments about his contemporary vibe, his signature performance on the show was probably "You Give Love a Bad Name" by Bon Jovi. Lewis incorporated a substantial beatboxing component, making the song sound significantly different from its original version. Jon Bon Jovi, the lead singer of the band who also coached the contestants that week, noted that Lewis' rendition was "rolling the dice". All three judges acknowledged the huge risk of Lewis' arrangement, but also praised him for his originality including beatboxing. Randy Jackson believed that it was the most original performance ever on the show. Cowell even predicted that 50% of the audience "would absolutely hate it" but another half would love it. The groundbreaking performance was later ranked #6 in top 20 all-time greatest "American Idol" performances on AOL.com. [cite web |title="The Top 20 'Idol' Performances Ever" |url=http://music.aol.com/songs/american-idol-winner-song |accessdate=2007-05-30 |publisher=AOL.com]

Several original versions of songs Lewis performed re-entered "Billboard" Hot Digital Songs chart shortly after the show. Lewis' first performance on-stage, "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane, re-entered the chart at #26 (#19 on Hot Digital Tracks chart); [cite web |title="Strong Showing From Idols On the Charts" |url=http://www.foxesonidol.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=1&article=article0200.art&page=1 |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=March 2, 2007 |publisher=Foxes On Idol |author=Reynolds, Donna] "Time of the Season", a The Zombies' hit in 1968, reached #67; [cite web |title="Elliott Yamin Riding High On the Charts" |url=http://www.foxesonidol.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=1&article=article0215.art&page=1 |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=March 30, 2007 |publisher=Foxes On Idol |author=Reynolds, Donna] Ryan Adams’s “When the Stars Go Blue” hit #39 (#37 on Hot Digital Tracks chart); [cite web |title="There’s a New Idol In Town!" |url=http://www.foxesonidol.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=1&article=article0231.art&page=1 |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=April 27, 2007 |publisher=Foxes On Idol |author=Reynolds, Donna] Bon Jovi's "You Give Love a Bad Name" shot up to #29; [cite web |title="Idols Sell Steadily; Bon Jovi Saturates Download Chart" |url=http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2007/05/idols_sell_stea.html |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=May 9, 2007 |publisher=USA Today |author=Barnes, Ken] "This Love" and "She Will Be Loved" by Maroon 5 jumped to #41 and #45 respectively. [cite web |title="Elliott's 'Idol' Showcase Boosts Sales Big-Time" |url=http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2007/05/elliotts_idol_s.html |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=May 23, 2007 |publisher=USA Today |author=Barnes, Ken] [cite web |title="Idol Sales News - Week Ending 05/27/07" |url=http://mjsbigblog.com/idol-sales-news.htm |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=May 30, 2007 |publisher=MJ's Blog |author=MJ] Maroon 5’s album "Songs About Jane" had re-entered the Top Pop Catalog Albums chart at #5 on June 2, 2007 as well. [cite web |title="Billboard Update 06/02/07" |url=http://mjsbigblog.com/billboard-update-060207.htm |accessdate=2007-08-19 |date=May 27, 2007 |publisher=MJ's Blog |author=MJ]

On May 11, 2007, Lewis visited his hometown, Seattle, Washington for the traditional "Idol" Top 3 hometown visits. He made numerous appearances at radio stations and then played a concert in Seattle at Westlake Center, including a performance of "Baby Got Back" with Sir Mix-a-Lot. He also visited the top of the Space Needle. Fans followed him to Bothell for a parade and concert at the Sammamish River Park. Afterwards, he proceeded to Safeco Field to sing the national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner", for the Seattle Mariners's Game.

Lewis claimed 311 as his all-time favorite band after his performance of "All Mixed Up". [cite web |title="'Idol' Gets Its First Taste of Hip-Hop - Thanks to a Rock Band" |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1554100/20070307/id_0.jhtml |accessdate=2007-04-20 |date=March 7, 2007 |publisher=MTV.com |author=Moss, Corey] Responding to a viewer question on March 13, 2007, he had also confessed his love of "underground hip hop, electronic music" such as Common Market and Panda Conspiracy, with an addition of The Mob Law, which in Lewis' opinion, "should be signed to a major label". [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Thinks Outside the Box With Us" |url=http://usmagazine.com/node/9505 |accessdate=2007-07-06 |publisher=US Magazine |author=Corneau, Allison]

While being the last two contestants waiting for the results on May 2, Lewis and Chris Richardson answered Ryan Seacrest's question about their close relationship, saying that they are best friends. [cite web |title="Chris Richardson: I Knew I Was Going Home" |url=http://www.people.com/people/package/americanidol2007/article/0,,20007868_20037703,00.html |accessdate=2007-05-12 |date=May 3, 2007 |publisher=People] Interestingly, Lewis has "Chris Sligh, Rudy Cárdenas", contestants from the sixth season of "American Idol", listed as his own "American idols" on his profile on "American Idol" official website, while Sligh and Cárdenas also have Lewis on their lists. [cite web |title=Blake Lewis' profile |url=http://www.americanidol.com/contestants/season6/blake_lewis/ |accessdate=2007-05-12 |publisher=American Idol official website] [cite web |title=Chris Sligh's profile |url=http://www.americanidol.com/contestants/season6/chris_sligh/ |accessdate=2007-05-12 |publisher=American Idol official website] [cite web |title=Rudy Cárdenas' profile |url=http://www.americanidol.com/contestants/season6/rudy_cardenas/ |accessdate=2007-05-12 |publisher=American Idol official website] Furthermore, Lewis claimed in an interview with [http://www.blakergirls.com The Blaker Girls] that besides Richardson, Cárdenas and Sligh, his best friends on the show were Brandon Rogers, Jordin Sparks and Gina Glocksen. In the episode of "The View" on June 14, 2007, Lewis said that there were "a lot of writers on the show", including Richardson, Sligh and himself.cite web |title="TV's Top 5! The View - Beat It, BABS" (video) |url=http://us.video.aol.com/player/launcher?ar=us_en_video_748x541_full&mode=0&pmmsid=1926608&referer=http%3A//television.aol.com/franchise/top5.adp |accessdate=2007-06-14 |date=June 14, 2007 |publisher=AOL.com]

Jimmie Walker Blue, his alter ego was introduced in the middle of the Idol. [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xFFJIjWZ9M YouTube - Blake Lewis as Jimmie Walker Blue ] ]

Post-"Idol"

Lewis' songs from the "American Idol" have been on sale at the iTunes Store and the "American Idol" official website as "Blake Lewis - EP" (called a "bundle" on "Idol" official website) shortly after the finale of "Idol", along with other songs that did not make the EP's cut that are being sold as individual singles. Figures from SoundScan which were posted on "USA Today" indicated that Lewis' "You Give Love a Bad Name" was "the biggest-selling download of the season", with 192,000 copies sold.cite web |title="Monitoring the 'Idol' Buzz: Who's Selling the Most Downloads?" |url=http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2007/07/monitoring-the-.html |accessdate=2007-07-18 |date=July 18, 2007 |publisher=USA Today |author=Barnes, Ken]

After the finale of "Idol", Blake Lewis has made several appearances on television shows. He performed Maroon 5's "She Will Be Loved" on "The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet" (combined with a snippet of U2's "With or Without You"), "The Today Show", "Live with Regis and Kelly" and "The Early Show". [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Performs!" (video) |url=http://www.mandjshow.com/videos/blake-lewis-performs/ |accessdate=2007-06-21 |date=May 31, 2007 |publisher=The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet] [cite web |title="'Idol's' Blake Beatboxes His Way to Fame"|url=http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/31/earlyshow/leisure/music/main2870907.shtml |accessdate=2007-06-21 |date=May 31, 2007 |publisher=The Early Show] In the episode of "The View" on June 14, 2007, he sang "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane. Lewis had also appeared on "Total Request Live", "The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet" with the winner of "Idol", Jordin Sparks and "Larry King Live" with contestants who made into the top ten of "American Idol". [cite web |title="The Winner of American Idol!" (video) |url=http://www.mandjshow.com/videos/the-winner-of-american-idol/ |accessdate=2007-06-21 |date=May 25, 2007 |publisher=The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet] [cite web |title="'American Idol' Finalists" (transcripts) |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0705/25/lkl.01.html |accessdate=2007-06-22 |date=May 25, 2007 |publisher=Larry King Live] [cite web |title="Encore Presentation: 'American Idol' Finalists" (transcripts) |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0705/27/lkl.01.html |accessdate=2007-06-22 |date=May 27, 2007 |publisher=Larry King Live] On July 4,2007, Lewis performed "God Bless America" and "America the Beautiful" on "Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular" with Sparks and Melinda Doolittle. [cite web |title="Starry, Starry Night" |url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/07032007/entertainment/starry__starry_night_entertainment_farrah_weinstein.htm |accessdate=2007-07-05 |date=July 5, 2007 |publisher=New York Post |author=Weinstein, Farrah] [cite web |title="TV's Top 5! Macy's Fireworks Spectacular - 'Idol' Top 3 Perform" (video) |url=http://us.video.aol.com/player/launcher?ar=us_en_video_748x541_full&mode=0&pmmsid=1935679&referer=http%3A//television.aol.com/franchise/top5 |accessdate=2007-07-06 |date=July 4, 2007 |publisher=AOL.com]

Lewis took part in the "American Idols Live! Tour 2007" from July 6 - September 23, 2007, along with other contestants in the top ten. He revealed on "The View" on June 14, 2007 that all the male contestants on the show would be playing musical instruments on the tour (for the first time ever), "doing like a folk band," and that he would bring along his loop pedals for his beatboxing. Before several shows, Lewis improvised, got dressed up as a janitor character named Bob Bobberson and sometimes as a Pop-Tart. He performed "She Loves the Way" on the last show, becoming the first "Idol" who sang their pre-"Idol" original materials on the tour. He and Chris Richardson have "started working on a little documentary" on the tour and it will be published at their MySpace profiles.cite web |title=Blake Lewis' profile |url=http://myspace.com/blakelewis |accessdate=2007-06-22 |publisher=MySpace] [cite web |title=Chris Richardson's profile |url=http://myspace.com/51422496 |accessdate=2007-08-05 |publisher=MySpace]

Lewis was named #5 in the list of the 10 sexiest "Idol" contestants ever on the website during the running of the sixth season of "American Idol" and was ranked #21 in the list of music's 21 sexiest single men on June 11, 2007 on AOL.com. [cite web |title="Music's Sexiest Single Men: Blake Lewis" |url=http://music.aol.com/photo-galleries/sexiest-single-men-blake-lewis |Date=June 11, 2007 |accessdate=2007-06-12 |publisher=AOL.com] [cite web |title="Top 10 Sexiest 'Idols'" |url=http://television.aol.com/americanidol/photos/sexy-idol-contestants |accessdate=2007-06-12 |publisher=AOL.com] Later in the issue of "People" magazine on June 15, 2007, the brand-new runner-up of "Idol" appeared on its list of "Hottest Bachelors of 2007". [cite web |title="Single & Sizzling Men of '07 - Blake Lewis" |url=http://www.people.com/people/package/gallery/0,,20040542_20042271_7,00.html |accessdate=2007-06-14 |publisher=People |date=June 13, 2007] [cite web |title="Hottest Bachelors 2007 - Blake Lewis" (video) |url=http://www.people.com/people/package/video/0,,20040542_20040590,00.html |accessdate=2007-06-14 |publisher=People] [cite web |title="Blake Lewis one of People's Hottest Bachelors!" |url=http://www.americanidol.com/news/view/?pid=925 |accessdate=2007-06-14 |publisher=Official American Idol News Blog |date=June 13, 2007 |author=Marnie] He has also made a cut on the list of 50 hottest guys on "Elle Girl". [cite web |title="50 Hottest Guys: Blake Lewis" |url=http://ellegirl.com/slideshow/slideshowslide.do?slideshowId=324&page=6&
accessdate=2007-07-21 |publisher=ELLEGirl |date=July 1, 2007]

On March 6, 2008, he performed "How Many Words", from his album A.D.D. (Audio Day Dream), on the American Idol result show.

On the release of his second single, Blake Lewis spent much of his time promoting the single "How Many Words" at various radio stations. While Blake Lewis parted with his label, Arista Records, in June 2008, [http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1589974/20080625/blake_lewis.jhtml 'American Idol' Alum Blake Lewis Parts With Label - News Story | Music, Celebrity, Artist News | MTV News ] ] , he will begin his national tour starting on the East Coast at the end of September with the help of 19 Recordings and will be playing songs from A.D.D. as well as new songs. [cite web |title="Beatboxing Blake Lewis Announces Tour Dates" |url=http://www.americanidol.com/news/view/?pid=1403 |accessdate=2008-09-08 |publisher=American Idol |date=Sept 8, 2008] . Details about the tour can be found at Blake Lewis's myspace pagecite web |title=Blake Lewis' profile |url=http://myspace.com/blakelewis |accessdate=2008-09-08 |publisher=MySpace] or the website of his official street team, the Blake Lewis Army. [cite web |title= Blake Lewis Tour |url=http://www.idolbored.com/blarmy_tour.html |accessdate=2008-09-08 |publisher=Idolbored |date=Sept. 6, 2008]

2007: "A.D.D. (Audio Day Dream)"

Upon his record deal with Arista Records/19 Recordings which was announced officially on August 24, 2007, "A.D.D. (Audio Day Dream)", Lewis' "electro-funk-soul-pop" first studio album, was released on December 4, 2007. [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Sixth Season Runner-Up on 'American Idol,' Signs to 19 Recordings/Arista Records" |url=http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-24-2007/0004650870&EDATE= |accessdate=2007-08-24 |date=August 24, 2007 |publisher=PR Newswire] [cite web |title=J Records: List of Upcoming Releases |url=http://www.jrecords.com/ |accessdate=2007-09-13 |publisher=J Records official website] cite web |title="American Idol's Blake Lewis Dishes on New Album" |url=http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-News-Blog/Tv-Guide-News/American-Idols-Blake/700017962 |accessdate=2007-06-27 |date=June 27, 2007 |publisher=TV Guide |author=Zepeda, Dana Meltzer] In fact, the singer has been recording his album in the studio "for all night long" since June 18. [cite web |title="Behind the Scenes: 'Idol Live' Tour Rehearsals" (video) |url=http://www.myfoxla.com/myfox/pages/InsideFox/Detail?contentId=3589297&version=4&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=5.2.1 |accessdate=2007-06-26 |date=June 25, 2007 |publisher=MyFox Los Angeles] "Break Anotha", the first single from "A.D.D.", was released to radio on October 30, 2007 and on iTunes Music Store on November 13. [cite web |title="Blake sets album date, readies first single"
url=http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2007/10/blake-sets-albu.html]
accessdate=2007-10-29 |date=October 29, 2007 |publisher=USA Today |author=Barnes, Ken] [cite web |title=AllAccess |url=http://www.allaccess.com/ |accessdate=2007-11-01]

Blake's second single, "How Many Words" was released on March 10, 2008. A.D.D. has been made available at iTunes and includes his music video for his first single "Break Anotha".

On June 25, 2008 Entertainment Weekly officially announced that Lewis was dropped by his label, Arista, but will remain on Idol creator Simon Fuller's 19 Recordings roster. [ [http://hollywoodinsider.ew.com/2008/06/blake-lewis.html Blake Lewis dropped from Arista] ]

New projects

He said he's already written four songs for his second album, which he's working on with his band's drummer, KJ "Quantize" Sawka. The pair will be co-producing the effort, which Lewis describes as "Massive Attack meets Zero 7 — drum-and-bass with a little pop influence."

Lewis said he may release the disc through his own label, which he's in the process of getting off the ground. "I'm super-passionate about this record," he said. "Who knows what's in store? Half the year's over, and it's only going to keep going." According to MTV News, the album is expected to have the electronica genre like the first album, and is going to have blue-eyed soul, pop music, rock, jazz, emo, indie and some metal genre, somewhat like "he is experimenting his own music". Lewis is currently writing songs, but he did not mention some titles, and he did not say whether he already recorded the songs or not. It was also reported on KIIS-FM that Lewis will collaborate with Jordin Sparks, Chris Richardson, KJ "Quantize" Sawka and Ryan "Alias" Tedder.

It was reported that Lewis has collaborated with his friends on the band, Project Lionheart at a track called "My Eyes" and "Hell Yeah". [http://cdbaby.com/cd/projectlionheart] Aside from that, he also collaborated with Common Market's "Trouble Is", where he contributed backing vocals. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwLXfHMqvZU]

Philanthropy

Lewis has been supporting cancer research at Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle by donating 50% of the proceeds from the merchandise of The Blaker Girls. [cite web |title="Blake Lewis Merchandise Benefits Children's Hospital" |url=http://seattle.about.com/b/a/000103.htm |accessdate=2007-06-29 |date=March 7, 2007 |publisher=About.com |author=Watson, Billy] He chose to put his support behind this organization after one of his best friends and his friend's girlfriend were diagnosed with lymphoma. [cite web |title="Idol's Blake Turns Fan Craze Into Charitable Contributions" |url=http://www.usmagazine.com/blake_lewis_charity |accessdate=2007-06-29 |publisher=US Magazine |author=Corneau, Allison]

Discography

tudio albums

"A.D.D. (Audio Day Dream)"
*Released: December 4, 2007 (U.S., CAN)
*U.S. Sales: 302,000
*Chart performance: #10 (Billboard 200)

EPs

"Blake Lewis" ¹
*Released: May 22, 2007 (U.S.)
*U.S. Sales: 41,000(as of July 2007)
*Chart performance: #3 ("Billboard" Top Digital Albums chart)

Notes:
*¹ Since "Blake Lewis (EP)" was available exclusively through the iTunes Store, it was not eligible to chart on the Billboard 200.cite web |title="Rihanna, Shop Boyz Rocket to the Top of Hot 100: 'Now' 15, 'Name' 18" |url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/chart_beat/bonus_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003592236 |accessdate=2007-05-31 |date=May 31, 2007 |publisher=Billboard "Chart Beat" |author=Bronson, Fred] The EP has also made into the Billboard Comprehensive Albums chart at #30 and reached #3 on the iTunes Top Albums chart (#2 on the iTunes Pop Albums chart).

ingles

Notes:
*¹ While Jordin Sparks, the winner of the sixth season of "American Idol", had "This Is My Now" as her official single, Lewis did not announce his choice of single officially, despite the fact that "You Give Love a Bad Name" was the highest-charting track among his "bundle" of songs available for downloading. "You Give Love a Bad Name" entered a number of charts.
*² Unlike the debut songs of previous winners and runners-up of "American Idol", all five songs that appeared on "Blake Lewis (EP)" were released digitally only, not physically.
*³ While not being announced as a single, "Time of the Season", the song Lewis performed in the British Invasion week on "American Idol", has debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart at #99, the Pop 100 chart at #74 and the Hot Digital Songs chart at #70 in the issue of the charts on June 9, 2007. Several tracks by Lewis have made appearances that week on the "Billboard" Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart and the Pop 100 chart as well, including "This Love" (#2; #80), "When the Stars Go Blue" (#10; #92) and "I Need to Know" (#19 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart).

Unreleased original works

*"Closer to Reason" [ [http://www.imeem.com/cryrainbow/music/gpvbdkXu/blake_lewis_closer_to_reason/ Blake Lewis Closer To Reason - FREE MP3 Stream - Listen on IMEEM Music ] ]
*"Dumpty Humpty"
*"Emotional Waterfalls" [=cite web |title="Emotional Waterfalls" by Blake Lewis on YouTube (Acoustic) |url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TavIlrtXr4g |accessdate=2008-06-02 |date=June 2, 2008 |publisher=YouTuber |author=unknown]
*"Four Letter Word"
*"Give It to Me" (duet with Laura Blue) [cite web |title="Give It To Me" by Blake Lewis & Laura Blue |url=http://www.tradebit.com/filedetail.php/1891483 |accessdate=2007-07-24 |date=June 9, 2007 |publisher=TradeBit |author=Desroques, Remi (a.k.a. JointSmith)]
*"Jealousy"
*"My MySpace" (featuring The Sampler)
*"She Loves the Way" -- he performed the song on American Idols LIVE! Tour 2007 [=cite web |title="She Loves The Way Live Info" |url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Idols_LIVE%21_Tour_2007 |accessdate=2008-06-02 |date=June 2, 2008 |publisher=WikiPedia |author=WikiPedia]
*"Transmission"
*"Drivin' Me Crazy" [ [http://www.imeem.com/cryrainbow/music/kn-BDYnM/blake_lewis_drivin_me_crazy_with_friends_from_seattle/ Blake Lewis Drivin' Me Crazy (with friends from Seattle) - FREE MP3 Stream - Listen on IMEEM Music ] ]

Guest vocals

*2003: Unexpected Arrival, "Julie" (featuring Blake Lewis); "Take Control" (featuring Blake Lewis)
*2007: Caleb Cunningham/K-Tone, "My Eyes" (featuring Blake Lewis) [cite web |title=Caleb Cunningham/K-Tone's profile |url=http://www.myspace.com/lionheartproductions |accessdate=2007-06-21 |publisher=MySpace]
*2007: KJ Sawka, "Brotherhood of the Drum" (featuring Blake Lewis); "Move On" (featuring Blake Lewis); "WTO" (featuring Blake Lewis) (from the album "Cyclonic Steel") [cite web |title="Blake Lewis, as Bshorty, Featured on Three Tracks on KJ Sawka's New Dualdisc Cyclonic Steel!!" |url=http://www.kjsawka.com/blake.php |accessdate=2007-06-08 |date=June 6, 2007 |publisher=KJ Sawka official website]

Cameos

*2007: Jordin Sparks, "Tattoo" (music video)

Footnotes

External links

* [http://blakelewisofficial.com/ Official website]
* [http://www.jrecords.com/ Arista/J Records official website]
* [http://musicbox.sonybmg.com/artists/blake-lewis Blake Lewis] on Sony BMG Musicbox Network
*AI contestant|6|blake_lewis|Blake Lewis
*myspace|blakelewis|Blake Lewis
*imdb name|2554206|name=Blake Lewis
* [http://music.aol.com/artist/blake-lewis/888971/main Blake Lewis] on AOL.com
* [http://www.last.fm/music/Blake+Lewis Blake Lewis] on Last.fm
* [http://test.redlasso.com/service/svc/clip/playClip?fid=630629df-7ae8-4ace-8061-feca6094a4ed Blake performing on Regis & Kelly]