Anybody check out those American Idol participant contract articles? One would imagine that Simon's English show uses the same practice...
She might sell a fair number of CD's out of the gate, but basically, she has signed away at least half her stake in them. When the show's producers stand to gain so much by hyping flash in the pan acts such as this, is it surprising that this happens?
I can just imagine them sitting around a boardroom, going 'You remember that lighter salesman that sang like Pavarotti? What we need is some broad, maybe even plainer.... dress her frumpy, get her to sing some big Broadway showstopper, create a sensation. Sign her, make a crappy record... We will be shocked all the way to the bank!'
Cynical...? Sorry, guys, but to be honest, if you have any real experience with record companies, this is a fairly benign conjecture of how they think
The truth is probably uglier