With the American Idol summer tour about to kick off (July 6 at West Valley City, Utah’s Maverik Center is the first date of the two-month trek) and the careers of Season 10’s alums soon to launch, some key management decisions have been made in recent weeks.
It was announced back in March that Simon Fuller, now heading his own XIX Entertainment, would personally watch over this year’s winner and runner-up. That remains the case, but THR has learned that season 10 victor Scotty McCreey and runner-up Lauren Alaina have been assigned to Ann Edelblute, who manages Carrie Underwood at XIX. Alaina's day-to-day responsibilities will be handled by Michelle Young, who manages David Cook along with 19 Entertainment's Iain Pirie.
Meanwhile, contestants who placed anywhere between third and 11th are automatically spooled into a co-management option with Red Light Management, the Charlottesville-based company that looks over the likes of Dave Matthews Band, Tim McGraw, Phish and Alanis Morissette, among dozens of rock, pop, country and roots acts. So far, the three Season 10 Idols picked up by Red Light are second runner-up Haley Reinhart, fourth placer James Durbin and Pia Toscano, who went out ninth and is rumored to have already signed a recording contract with Interscope Records (the label will not comment).
Says Toscano, who confirms that she has been working on music with producer Rodney Jerkins: "I feel like I'm in really good hands. The most important thing for me is feeling safe with my team. I think they have a good vision for me and where my career is going to go, and if I'm ever not happy with something, I just tell them. They're amazing."What do you think of these pairings, Idol Worshipers? Can the Carrie Underwood formula turn into magic for Scotty and Lauren, too? Who else from the Top 11 deserves a management deal?