LeRoy Bell delivered an incredible batch of performances during the latter half of his “X Factor” journey but that did not stop him from being eliminated on the show’s Giving Thanks week. (Photo by Tony Hoffman.)
By: Jacob Elyachar
Before you read my final part of my conversation with LeRoy Bell, click here to read part two: http://www.examiner.com/article/a-conversation-with-leroy-bell-part-two?cid=db_articles
“Nicole, could you please introduce your act?”-Steve Jones
“It’s the one and only, one-of-a-kind: Mr. LeRoy Bell.”-Nicole Scherzinger
This was the introduction for LeRoy Bell’s final performance on the X Factor stage before he sang an emotional cover of the Beatles’ hit: “Don’t Let Me Down.” Unfortunately, after his heartfelt performance, the Judges went into deadlock and in one of the show’s most shocking eliminations for the first season, America voted to send the 59-year-old singer home.
In my final part of my conversation with the Seattle-based singer, we talked about his final weeks on the show and what he has been doing since the show went off the air.
Jacob Elyachar: It’s Top 10 week, which was Rock week, and you performed “We’ve Got Tonight” by Bob Seger…It’s a wonderful song but both L.A. and Simon gave you awful feedback. Were you surprised by their comments?
LeRoy Bell: I was a little bit surprised and I was not prepared for that much criticism so that did shock me that there and I was just trying to take everything in. I always thought in the back of my mind: “It’s a T.V. show, it’s a Reality T.V. show…” but I thought it was pretty brutal. I think I weathered it okay but I was shocked and I needed to get to the next point in the competition. I thought after that there would be a possibility that I could have gone home the next night.
If you have the judges saying something, the audience ends up voting. A lot of them do not know what the judges are talking about through either their criticism or praise influences the viewers to a point. Some people who do not like what the judges are saying, would state “Oh! That’s crap!” or “I think he’s right.” That kind of worried me.
JE: However, you did not have to be worried about being eliminated because you were voted into the Top Nine week. That theme was “Giving Thanks” week and you performed Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel” and you gave a beautiful performance and dedicated to your late mother. Were you surprised by Simon’s praise at the end of your performance?
LB: I was very surprised with Simon’s praise. I did not know what to expect at that point. I think from that point on, I was glad to do what I do and not worry because I knew that I could not control what they (the judges) would say or how they would hear it. So I had to bring my A-game in terms of what the best I could and be prepared for the aftermath, but yes I was surprised.
JE: Unfortunately, you found yourself in the Bottom Two with Marcus Canty. For your “Save Me” song, you chose “Don’t Let Me Down.” Did you choose that song?
LB: Yes I did, originally I decided to pick that when they (the show’s producers) made us pick a “Save Me” song. So I picked that song early on in the competition. That was the one time I was surprised to be in the Bottom Two. I did not think that was going to happen then, so I was surprised to go home that time. Last week, I thought I was going home; I was surprised I was not. This time I thought I was not going hone and surprised I was. (Laughs)
JE: Were you happy to see Nicole and Paula standing during your performance?
LB: Yes, I was happy to see both of them up. At that point, I wanted to let it all hang out and that was really nice to see that they got it and at that point there was a good chance I could pull this one off. But you do not know how the audience is going to work because they were voting by Twitter and other things. It always surprised me to see how many fans I had as I did. I knew it was a toss-up at that point.
JE: The only two eliminations that disappointed and surprised me the most were Rachel Crow’s and your elimination. A lot of fans were disappointed when you were eliminated.
LB: Well, thank you. I get a lot of feedback from people who were saying the same thing and they told me how sorry they are and I told them that I was okay with it but I was surprised when they did it. When I saw Rachel Crow go, it kind of blown me away. I think it was easier for me because I was older and I understood that there were no guarantees. Rachel, as young as she was, she was not prepared emotionally for that.
JE: Did you talk to anybody like the judges or your fellow teammate Josh Krajcik before you left?
LB: I talked to Josh but I don’t remember if I talked to any of the judges. It was chaotic then but Josh and I were very close and I was also a couple of the other contestants. Josh was sad to see me go but hey the show goes on and it worked out and I am happy that I did it and I got as far as I did.
Since his elimination from “X Factor,” LeRoy reunited with his band: LeRoy Bell and His Only Friends. (From Left to Right, Terry Morgan-bass, Davis Martin-drums and LeRoy) [Photo property of LeRoy Bell and His Only Friends.]
LB: First of all, I had to get back in touch with my band because we have not been playing for a while and we haven’t played together in two years. I call them My Only Friends and it is usually LeRoy Bell and his Only Friends and so we got right back together and we had shows we had to fulfill because I cancelled a bunch of shows when I did the X Factor.
When I signed on to do the show, I could not tell anybody why I was cancelling and I felt really bad because I never cancel shows. Obviously, they saw me on T.V. and they realized what had happened and so I fulfilled my obligations. Then, I went right into recording a new record and then I got called to do a show in South Africa with Afrosoul singer Zahara and I also collaborated with her. I returned to America and got back to the studio to record and we are pretty much keeping busy.
JE: If you had the chance to give advice to aspiring musicians, what would it be?
LB: There would be a couple of things that I would say to them. Go with your gut extinct number one and do not let anybody tell you that it is not possible to do it. Believe in yourself, it is not going to be an easy road but you need to be willing to work hard and not give up with definitely what you want. If you want it bad enough, make something happen.
To watch LeRoy’s performance of “Don’t Let Me Down,” click here: http://youtu.be/Z0D7TWUDYqE
To visit LeRoy Bell’s website: http://www.leroybell.com/home.html
