LaKisha Jones begins her run in Broadway's The Color Purple today.
Jones, who began singing in her church choir, has now full circle as she joins the show. She'll portray the role of Sofia during her engagement.
The Color Purple currently stars former American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino as Celie. She'll conclude her extended run Jan. 6, 2008.
Just as Fantasia Barrino, one American Idol star, is set to leave the cast of The Color Purple, another former contestant is ready to join the cast:
Lakisha Jones.
On January 9, Jones and Chaka Khan will make their Broadway debuts in this critically acclaimed show.
Chaka Khan, the eight-time Grammy winner, will join the cast as Sofia, playing opposite Benjamin "BeBe" Winans' Harpo. Winans' is the four-time Grammy winner who hails from the legendary first family of gospel music.
Also coming aboard the play, which is about to begin its third year at the Broadway Theatre, is Jones. She'll perform the role of church soloist at all evening performances, stepping in to play Sofia during matinees.
Sounds like a perfect match to us!
Few American Idol contestants from this past season connected with audiences like LaKisha Jones. Everyone seemed to love this single mother.
Now, in the middle of that show's summer tour, Jones sat down with TV Guide to discuss the past and future...
TV Guide: How will you juggle being a parent with working if you get a record deal?
LaKisha: Well, when I get a record deal, then I call the shots. That's going to be a part of my deal. I need to take my baby with me. I've seen plenty of artists who have their children with them. So it's possible.
TV Guide: So you'll get a nanny?
LaKisha: Probably my mom. It just depends.
TV Guide: You sound hoarse. Did you lose your voice?
LaKisha: I'm good. It's just that I got a massage after just waking up.
TV Guide: I forgot, the Idols have a massage therapist at every tour stop, don't they?
LaKisha: Yes. That's one of the luxuries â I will miss that!
TV Guide: What do you do to lift your spirits when you get tired?
LaKisha: I pray and listen to inspirational music. I talk to my baby, my mom... and I get massages.
TV Guide: Is there anything you're doing to keep your energy up?
LaKisha: Nothing out of the normal. I drink my tea and my Emergen-C and all of that stuff.
TV Guide: Blake Lewis said one of the biggest challenges is you're force-fed junk food every night. Is it the same for you?
LaKisha: We have pizza and all of that stuff. You can choose not to eat it.
TV Guide: Did you do anything different on stage when the tour came to your hometown?
LaKisha: We did the reprise at the end of the show. Then I did the "And I Am Telling You" song.
TV Guide: What's been the biggest surprise for you about the tour?
LaKisha: Just checking in to hotels every day and getting up at four o'clock in the morning and getting off the bus. That's the hardest part for me, breaking my sleep up.
TV Guide: So you're not a morning person?
LaKisha: I am somewhat, but not at four in the morning!
The Freno Bee recently sat down with American Idol finalist Lakisha Jones. Here are highlights from the interview:
On if the right person won American Idol this year: "I think LaKisha Jones should have won," she says with a laugh. "I think whoever was meant to win Idol won it. I think we all came to American Idol for our own individual reasons. We were there for the time that we were supposed to be there. Everything happens for a reason. No. 4 isn't a bad spot - look at Chris Daughtry."
On her post-Idol music plans: "I have a couple things in the works, but we can't do anything until after the tour. We're still under contract with them."
On what people can expect from the live show: "It's gonna be fantastic. We have a lot of group numbers. We have duets, trios, and we have solo numbers. Some of the stuff is stuff that you've never heard us sing in the show. So it's not like you're gonna be bored because you're hearing us do everything we did on the show. We have a lot of new material and some choreography."
On her big-sister-like relationship with Sanjaya Malakar: "He really is a sweet guy. He's 17 years old, he came out here, and he did the best that he could do. He just got caught up in the media. Beyond that, he's a nice person, and he has a nice spirit, and I really like that about him. Sometimes I have to tell him to sit down somewhere because he's jumping all over the place. He kisses me on the cheek or he wants a hug, and I'm like, "Sanjaya! Sit down! Stop" But he really is so sweet."
On host Ryan Seacrest: "Ryan is sweet, and he's sexy. I wouldn't mind going out with Ryan."
On her sharpest criticism from many, not listening to some of the mentors on American Idol, namely Tony Bennett: "At the end of the day, the decision has to be up to the vocalist. I'm presenting the song, so I have to sing the song the way I think it will come across good. You do listen to what the mentors say, but I don't feel like you have to do everything that they tell you to do."
On regrets: "The only one would probably be Bee Gees week. I would have selected two different songs. I don't know what songs those would have been, but they would have been two different songs."
On her relationship with the rest of the top 10: "It's like a family. Sometimes they get on your nerves. You'll be like 'OK, you know what? I don't want to talk to y'all today. I've had enough.' And then there's times when it's like 'Hey, what you doing? What's going on?' Throughout the whole show, you live together, you eat together, you sleep together. You have no choice but to become close because you work as a unit, you become one family. It's like any family; you have your ups and downs, and you have your good days and bad days."
On how Idol has changed her life: "I'm going on tour - never in my life have I got to say that. I'm waking up everyday doing something I love to do and I'm able now to take care of my daughter better than I ever have in my life."
LaKisha Jones describes life on the American Idols Live! tour in terms that are upbeat but no-nonsense.
"Every day, I see a new hotel, and every day, I wake up doing something I love to do, so I can't complain about that," she says.
The tour is coming to the Palace of Auburn Hills on Sunday. Besides Jones, the lineup includes winner Jordin Sparks, runner-up Blake Lewis, fan favorite Sanjaya Malakar and the rest of the top 10 finalists.
LaKisha says she's looking forward to returning to Michigan: "I have a special surprise for my hometown toward the end of the show," she says. "It involves what I'm singing."
So... what is it?
"I'd like to keep it a surprise," she says.
The former bank teller, who's been earning good reviews on the tour, says she hasn't been nervous about singing for thousands of fans at big arenas.
"I'm calmer now than I was on the show because we're not competing for anything anymore. We don't have to impress the judges and hear that constructive criticism they give us week after week," she says, sounding as if she doesn't miss Simon Cowell's snippy critiques of her wardrobe one bit.
The hardest part of crisscrossing the country is missing her daughter, though. Jones says Brionne, who's 4, visits her every few weeks and stays in Flint with LaKisha's mother the rest of the time.
"If there was anything I could change, it would be having my daughter with me more often and having help with me on the tour to take care of her. When I'm able to call the shots, then she'll be there."
And now for the big question. Has she met any good celebrities as a result of being on Idol? "I did," she says, citing Tom Cruise, Queen Latifah, Taye Diggs and Eva Longoria.
"I look at them like, oh my gosh, they're the stars," she says. "They have that same response when they see me. It's kind of cool."
SOURCE: The Detroit Free Press
Justin Guarini was an early advocate of LaKisha Jones on the recently completed sixth season of American Idol.
"LaKisha was my favorite going in," he said, noting that Jones' strengths included "obviously, the voice, she's just very sweet and the story was perfect. She's from Little Town, USA, had a daughter. She had a real reason to fight for first place and fight to make it big in the industry. She has a powerhouse voice."
Jones, who will perform at The Palace of Auburn Hills Aug. 12 with the American Idols Live tour, finished fourth this season.
Guarini says her demise boiled down to "song selection and not showing enough versatility."
"She's very good at what she does, but you've got to really roll with the punches on 'Idol,'" he said. "It's definitely a marathon. There's a lot of stamina involved."
LaKisha Jones got to feel the love from about 1,500 excited fans at her long-awaited homecoming rally Saturday at Atwood Stadium.
"Kisha! Kisha!" the crowd chanted on their feet, waving posters, clapping and yelling as Jones, sporting a new bob, walked out onto the 50-yard line, near the word "Flint" in large letters, and grabbed a microphone.
"It's so good to be back here," she said. "Thank you so much for your support and your prayers and the love. My dream has come true."
The American Idol finalist signed autographs, posed for photographs and sang two songs: "God Bless the Child" and her signature Idol number, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going."
But it was the city of Flint who owed Jones thanks, said Trey Michaels, rally master of ceremonies and program director at WDZZ-FM (92.7).
"You carried us on your back," he said. "You inspired us. You gave us a reason to believe."
After months of rooting for her, supporters finally got the chance to show Jones their love. It started under a warm sun around noon Saturday at Patsy Lou Buick GMC on Corunna Road in Flint Township, as a smaller band of about 100 screaming, starstruck fans caught first sight of their local sweetheart up close.
"We love you!" "We're so proud of you!" "You are so beautiful!" people hollered out to a beaming Jones, in shiny black heels and a gray blazer.
"Kiki! Kiki! Kiki!" the chants of Jones' nickname began, as cameras and picture phones flashed from all directions during a brief ceremony with Mayor Don Williamson and his wife, Patsy Lou, at the dealership.
Fans jostled to present Jones with gifts of flowers, pictures and even a black Jesus statue.
Later, at Atwood, the mayor presented Jones with a key to the city and proclamation. Patsy Lou Williamson gave her a $6,000 check and six-month free lease on a new Buick LaCrosse. The singer also received a Flint watch, personalized tree ornaments from Bronner's and an oversized card signed by 300 fans.
"(I'll use the money) as a down payment for my new home in Houston," Jones told a TV reporter.
Plenty of fans scored, too. Sharon Wilson, 49, of Davison snagged an autograph and a photograph of herself with Jones, who worked her pen and smile at two meet-and-greet sessions for well over an hour.
"I was successful! (The autograph) is going to hang in my office at work," said Wilson, a manager at Genesys Regional Medical Center. "How often do we have a star like this in Flint?"
Let's let Lakisha Jones get right to it with Entertainment Weekly:
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Last night after the results were announced and you did ''Stayin' Alive,'' it looked like you were overwhelmed. But your rendition was amazing. Were you having fun up there?
LAKISHA JONES: I was. And you know, they asked us â they asked all of us â if you go home, what song would you like to sing? And I said, ''Honey, 'Stayin' Alive!' 'Cause I'm gonna stay alive after American Idol.'' I would have sung a slow song, but I wanted to go off with a bang! I looked at the lyrics, and you know what, it says, I'm gonna be alright anyway. And that's how I was feeling. I'm gonna make it anyway.
EW: I love ''Stayin' Alive'' â but it's a hard one to sing because it's so fast in parts. Were you afraid to do it?
JL: I was a little nervous just because I know the song is so well known that I didn't want people to make bad comments about me trying to switch it up and slow it down a little bit.
EW: Do you think those comments â about you slowing it down â were fair? Because that was the judges' biggest criticism.
JL: I don't think that's fair â no. Because if I would've just did it like they did it, then he would have said, ''Where's the LaKisha at?''
EW: I know, it's a really hard line to tow â making it your own, but keeping it the same.
LJ: Right, and I felt like that at that moment. You know, a couple weeks ago in the competition, I felt like, you know, I just can't win. And I got tired â and it's so overwhelming and I was just preparing myself to go.
EW: So a couple of weeks ago you felt like it was gonna be over for you soon? But you didn't give up.
LJ: Yeah, I felt like my time was coming. I had to decide what works for me. And if it's for me to be here, then I'll stay, and if not...
EW: I have to tell you, ''This Ain't a Love Song'' â I watched that like 10 times on DVR. Hands down, my favorite performance of yours.
LJ: Oh my God, everybody loved that performance.
EW: Honestly, I thought you were going home that week, coming into that performance.
LJ: I did, too! And then Bon Jovi said to me, ''You know, if you do that song, you got one more week.'' And did he call it or what?! I had changed my song when I first met him. And when I did, he said, ''I'm so glad you changed it. I'm so glad you're doing a ballad.'' And after I sung it to him, he said, ''I hope you packed enough clothes because you're gonna be here another week!''
EW: I remember when he said that! That was just amazing, because I don't know the song that well â and I'm decently familiar with Bon Jovi stuff. But I think that's another key to picking songs: You wanna pick something that's kind of well known, but not enough so that it's ingrained in people's memories such that they can't think of it any other way. And my favorite part? The end when you ripped into whomever it was you were singing to.
LJ: Maybe Bon Jovi will let me cover it!
EW: When you were singing ''And I'm Telling You, I'm Not Going,'' you have this amazing energy that just seems to build. And the crowd really responds. I almost feel like I can see you perking up as they cheer. That true?
LJ: I do! My confidence level just shoots up and I get a rush! It means so much to me to have the crowd let me know they're right there with me. I think the objective is to bring America to you. Not for you to go to America. But in a song and a lyric, you embrace it and bring them into you. And I think that's where my problem was this week because I had such a hard time choosing songs and I really was not at all...I don't think I was prepared. Because I just felt like this really wasn't my style.
A couple of ousted American Idol finalists felt the love of their hometowns this week.
LaKisha Jonesâ shooting star fell from the American Idol galaxy Wednesday night, but on Thursday Flint continued to embrace her and the bright future it hopes for her.
Residents said they still are in Jonesâ corner, and store marquees, Internet blogs and even a highway billboard continued to scream out âLaKishaâ in a swell of community pride. And city leaders will honor her efforts.
A parade outside City Hall is planned, and Mayor Don Williamson will give 27-year-old single mother a key to the city. A local auto dealership owned by Williamsonâs wife, Patsy Lou, is kicking in a free six-month lease of a Buick Lucerne.
Flint Budget and Information Services Director Michael Townsend said Thursday that Jones has meant so much more to the community than just singing on a television show.
âThis has really brought positive attention to Flint, and weâve been so used to getting negative attention all of the time,â Townsend said.
The city of about 120,000 people â like many in Michigan that once relied on the automotive industry â is trying to rebound from past economic woes. The mid-1980s brought downturns in the industry with layoffs and plant closures, and the problems in this blue-collar city about 60 miles north of Detroit continue today.
So it was a pleasant change when crews from Good Morning America and Access Hollywood came to town to do features on Jones and her American Idol run, city attorney Trachelle Young said.
âThere is such a spirit of hope that LaKisha has given the city. Itâs infectious,â Young said.
City workers even volunteered on their off-time to hold miniature Idol rallies downtown on Tuesday nights prior to Jonesâ performances on the show.
Jonesâ appeal in her hometown crossed racial barriers. Flint is about 60 percent black, but Young estimated that about 75 percent of the 200 to 300 people at Tuesday Idol rallies were white.
âSo many would not come to downtown Flint,â she said. âLaKisha served as a catalyst to get people down here.â
Meanwhile, in Federal Way, Wash. on Wednesday, teenage fans of Sanjaya Malakar, voted off the show three weeks ago, gave him an enthusiastic welcome home.
About 600 Idol fans shrieked, asked for autographs, invited him to their prom, and posed for pictures with 17-year-old Malakar at a Federal Way shopping center.
Amanda Reed of Federal Way â a city of about 84,000, 20 miles south of Seattle â waited for more than five hours with her mom and her brother to be first in line to get Malakarâs autograph.
âShe was like a kid before Christmas,â Laurie Reed, Amandaâs mother, told The News Tribune of Tacoma.
Malakar, accompanied by bodyguards, police officers and his mom and sister, signed 200 autographs, and mall officials passed out another 200 pre-signed autographs for each donation of $1 or more to World Vision, a Federal Way-based humanitarian organization.
This came as no surprise.
Lakisha Jones and Blake Lewis were the final two contestants last night, awaiting their American Idol fate as Ryan Seacrest kept everyone in suspense for as long as possible.
In the end, the soulful singer was sent packing. We wish her the best of luck.
