When Tim Urban first competed on "American Idol" Season 9, the odds were definitely against him. He was an alternate contestant, brought in at the last minute to replace the disqualified Chris Golightly, and his early performances were viciously panned by Simon Cowell and the other judges. But Tim's improvement curve on the show was steep, and he stayed on week after week--and by the time he left the show, after impressively making it to seventh place, the former Vote For The Worst posterboy was best remembered for his lovely acoustic renditions of the Beatles' "All My Loving" and Elvis Presley's "Can't Help Falling In Love." (Although his "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" knee-slide was awesome, too, as were his hair and unflappably upbeat attitude, of course.)
And now Tim, who always shrugged off Cowell criticism with a giggle, is having the last laugh, by becoming the first Season 9 "AI" contestant to release new music (yes, he even beat out winner Lee DeWyze by a whole week). His self-released six-song EP, Heart Of Me, was rolled out on iTunes track by track starting November 8, and its positive critical reception indicates that this guy will enjoy a long career post-"Idol." This is an Urban renewal, of sorts (heh).
Tim recently moved from his native Texas to Los Angeles to pursue that career (which will include acting as well as music), and happily, his first stop after he unpacked his suitcase was Yahoo! HQ, where he sat down with me to talk about this new phase of his life and play three songs from his EP for the Y! Music staff. Check out his interview and songs below, and click here to get his EP on iTunes!
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