The Associated Press
March 20, 2008 07:15 pm
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MULBERRY, Ind. — Fans of Amanda Overmyer, the “American Idol” contestant with two-toned hair and a raspy voice that won comparisons to Janis Joplin, are hoping she can still land a record deal despite being cut from the show.
The 23-year-old respiratory nurse, whom Idol judge Randy Jackson had dubbed the “Rock ‘n’ Roll Nurse,” was voted off the show Wednesday night, a day after performing a feisty version of The Beatles’ “Back in the U.S.S.R.”
Although the audience seemed to enjoy her performance, Overmyer was cut after receiving the fewest number of votes from viewers. Her elimination kept her out of the group of 10 Idol finalists who will tour the nation later this year.
Overmyer’s departure stunned about 50 fans and friends who watched the show at the Southfork Restaurant & Pub in Mulberry, the small north-central Indiana farm town where Overmyer lives.
“It was just kind of disbelief. We couldn’t believe it,” said pub owner Scott Roberts.
He said he and the others had expected Kristy Lee Cook, a 24-year-old from Selma, Ore., to be axed because she had been among the bottom-three contestants for the past three weeks.
Roberts said he hopes Overmyer, a fan of Joplin, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Bob Seger, still has a shot at landing a record deal.
Kenneth Sunshine, a publicist whose clients include Justin Timberlake, John Mayer and Ben Affleck, said Overmyer made a strong impression as a singer and performer on the show and developed a strong fan base that could open the door to a record deal.
“She seems to have — I wouldn’t say fanatic fans — but certainly strong fans. And that’s all you need to get going,” he said. “Anybody who’s got some foresight and smarts would really be smart to take a good look at her and offer her a deal because she obviously started something.”
Sunshine said he was surprised Overmyer was cut from the show at this stage, and so was his 13-year-old daughter, who he said acts as his “eyes and ears” by watching each Idol episode.
“She loved her and was very upset that she missed out. She made a point of saying that,” he said, adding that Overmyer has “got something special.”
Overmyer — a crowd-pleasing performer with black hair streaked with white — seemed to take her departure from the Fox show in stride.
“It’s been a run. ... No. 11 out of all them people is more than I could expect,” she told host Ryan Seacrest.
But back in Mulberry, the town of about 1,400 where Overmyer is often seen tooling about on her Harley-Davidson motorcycle, fan Mika Bowles wasn’t happy.
“It stunk,” she said. “I’m thinking they want more prissy type people, and that’s not Amanda.”
Bowles, who’s been an Overmyer fan since seeing her sing four years ago with a Lafayette area band, says even her periodic karaoke performances at the Southfork Pub are impressive. She predicts Overmyer will eventually get a record deal.
“She’s an entertainer. She’s a rocker,” Bowles said.
Overmyer’s fiance, Casey Taylor, did not return phone messages left Thursday.
But he said Wednesday before the elimination show aired that Overmyer had viewed her trip to Los Angeles as an “American Idol” contestant as a last chance for a music career after taking a break from live music two years ago to focus on her nursing career.
“She kept trying to get bands together but she just couldn’t find people who were motivated enough to stick with it. This was sort of her last chances to see if she was going to do something with music, or just let it go,” Taylor said.
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