Chayce Beckham will tell you he's not the best singer to ever win American Idol. The country newcomer is one of the finer storytellers to earn the title, however.
One year after winning Season 19, Beckham is signed to Wheelhouse Records, with a new EP available on digital streaming providers and a catalog of proven hits and covers to support it when he takes stages this summer.
During a recent visit to the Taste of Country Nights studio, he played two songs: "23" and a cover we'll talk about in a moment. Enjoy his fine finger-picking as he opens up about his life before reality television.
"23" is not on his Doin It Right EP, a six-song collection that features "Tell Me Twice" (a song inspired by his mother) and a sultry Tom Douglas co-write called "Talk to Me" that presents the Californian in new ways. Beckham is a soft-spoken singer and songwriter, but soft-spoken certainly doesn't mean boring in this case. During his conversation with Taste of Country Nights' Evan Paul, he spoke about the moving songs from his past and present and gave advice to current American Idol finalists. He also compared his own performance on the show to those who've come before him.
"I'm very hard on myself, but I hands-down think I may be the worst singer that has won American Idol," Beckham insists. "If you're going off of singing — if you're going off of who has the most vocal capability and technique. If that's what you're gauging it off of, they'd all beat me. I take pride in songs and songwriting and connecting with people like that, but when you get in there with those tigers ... those people can sing."
Professionals can decide if that's true or not, but plenty of great stylists have had long careers in country music. Legendary songwriter John Prine is certainly one of them. He influenced Beckham, and he'll prove it soon, if this acoustic performance video of "23" can top 200 likes. It's a rare cover that you need to hear to fully understand who Beckham is today.
Watch the above video and subscribe to Taste of Country's YouTube channel for more acoustic performances.
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Country 'American Idol' Stars Who Disappeared
We cheered for them. We voted for them. We followed them. Then, these seven American Idol stars vanished. Or, at least it seems like it.
What happened to some of country music's best American Idol contestants over the last 20 years? This list of country American Idol stars who disappeared includes a winner, a runner-up and a third place finisher, plus several early cuts who enjoyed radio success before losing touch with fans.
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