| Kingston man hopes to break Canadian Idol top 10 LYNN REES LAMBERT 07/18/03 00:00:00 For more than half his life, 23-year-old Ryan Malcolm has been singing for his supper. At 8 pm, Monday, July 21, the Kingston singer/server will perform before a television audience of about two million people on Canadian Idol -- the most watched show of the summer. Malcolm appears in the third and final installment of three sets of 10 finalists who are competing for a lucrative recording contract offered by the CTV production. Canadians can vote for their favourite performer via a toll-free telephone number and text messaging. Live show The show is live and the results will not be revealed until Tuesday, July 22 in a live "kiss and cry" followup that will determine who moves on to the Top 10. Malcolm made the Top 30 finalist group after beating 15,000 hopefuls. He auditioned in Ottawa May 6, one of 1,300 people who lined up and camped overnight for a crack at stardom. "It was incredible," he says of that first audition. "I spent 20 hours outside the Sheraton Hotel and when I got to the audition, they stopped me after 36 seconds and gave me a gold ticket." That meant he was in. Six sets of auditions later, he's still in the running. "I've got one minute to show Canada I can sing," says the Waterloo Village resident. Kingston area audiences have known this for years. Malcolm began his singing career at age 12, when he joined his father, John, and brother Reagan, in A Bit of Nostalgia trio that covers pop, rock, soul and rhythm and blues. With regular weekend gigs at restaurants and clubs in Kingston and throughout the province, Malcolm's childhood and high school years were different than most teenagers. "He sacrificed a lot," explains his mother, Deb. "He didn't do the high school dances and football games. He was always singing, somewhere, with his father and his brother." Twice he earned the Homegrown Caf� Junior Vocalist title, a CJOH-TV production that showcased young talent. With the family act, he's also performed at conventions and on cruise ships. Malcolm figures he inherited the singing gene from his father, a former Montrealer who performed in a group called The Spyders. One of six children, his family runs the Nostalgia Station restaurant in the Loyalist Plaza. When he doesn't have a microphone in his hands, one can usually find dishes -- he works as a server in the restaurant. The whole Canadian Idol experience has been wonderful, he notes. "My friends encouraged me to go into it," he explains. "I went in without any expectations. I figured whatever happens, happens. I've had a blast." After getting the gold ticket in Ottawa, Malcolm had to wait one month -- "the longest month in my life" -- before being called to Toronto for the intensive weeding-out process. "They put 143 of us up at the SkyDome," he says, for eight days of "go-go-go." The finalists got the royal treatment, with everything paid for -- food, room, transportation. He rehearsed with Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard, of American Idol fame, and found them to be "a lot of fun, awesome people," who encouraged contestants to utilize the vocal coaches to the fullest. Malcolm has high praise for his coach, music dynamo Sharon Lee Williams. Contestants ranged from ranch hands and makeup artists to deli managers and med students. Every day, "they cut people," he explains of the Toronto process. "They made four rounds of cuts in eight days." Nerve-wracking process Needless to say, nerves were somewhat frayed. "Every day we were given a song and we had to learn it overnight. I was a nut, a basket case. I couldn't sleep or eat." The selection of the top 30 took an excruciatingly long time, he says. "The judges -- Farley Flex, Jake Gold, Sass Jordan and Zack Werner -- were supposed to let us know by six that night but they didn't come in until midnight. It was the most nerve-wracking thing I've ever done." Their treatment, however, was first class all the way. "They made us feel like stars for a week." Malcolm has been in Toronto for the past week, rehearsing for the Monday night show which is shot at the Mike Bullard show stage on Yonge Street. When his turn is called, he'll sing One, a song made famous by U2. There's no audience -- no live audience -- save for the two million viewers at home and in restaurants, like Nostalgia Station, who will be rooting for their favourite performer. "People have been great," Malcolm says. "They come out to the restaurant and cheer." Sindy Bellemaire, another Kingstonian who tried out but was eliminated early on, has been a strong supporter, he says. The three competitors with the most votes -- determined by the Canadian public Monday night -- advance to the Top 10, joining the six who have already been selected. The tenth competitor is determined in a Wild Card show July 28. The first of seven live top 10 performance shows begins Aug. 4. No matter the outcome, says the young singer, he plans to continue doing what comes naturally. "I'm a ham. An entertainer. I'm going to be singing, somewhere." |