She may not have made it to the end of the 2011 season of American Idol, but one of the best performers of the season – Pia Toscano – hasn’t let that deter her from pursuing a singing career. Toscano has just signed on with 19 Recordings/Interscope Records and will be releasing her first single, “This Time,” digitally on July 12, 2011.
Toscano will also be part of the American Idols Live! Tour which begins on July 6th in Salt Lake City, Utah and ends in Rochester, New York on September 10th.
“I am thrilled to be joining the Interscope and 19 Recordings family,” Toscano stated. “Interscope Geffen A&M Chairman Jimmy Iovine was an amazing mentor during my time on Idol and I’m looking forward to working with him and everyone at Interscope Records and 19 Recordings. This is a dream come true.”
Toscano’s single “This Time” was written and co-produced by Esther Dean. According to the press release, “the acoustic guitar and beat-driven track is just a taste of what’s to come when the Queens, NY, native releases her debut album, which she is currently working on, later this year.”
Toscano’s elimination was a real shocker, even for judges Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, and Steven Tyler. Tyler said of the voting public’s decision: “They’re wrong. I don’t know what happened with this. She’s beautiful. When she sings, she’s a bird.”
Even celebrity fans sounded off on her early elimination. “I think she was probably the best pure singer on the show, and she’s got all the makings of what it means to be a star in my opinion, so I was just irked [when she was voted off],” said Ashton Kutcher on host Ryan Seacrest’s radio show, “On the Air with Ryan Seacrest.”
