Final 3 Week

I think Nat deserves to win. She’s been working hard on her arrangements… on everything musically. And she’s a little bit older than Matt. I believe Matt is going to go really well regardless. Not that Nat might not, but she’s really talented and awesome. She’s really deserving of it – she’s a really nice girl and I think she would just be a really good Australian Idol. She’s also really good handling the media and has lots of great song ideas for originals… she wouldn’t just be someone who would make a career out of singing other people’s songs.

I also think I would be a very good ambassador for Australia, if I was their Idol for 2007. It would be great to kickstart the Harry Connick of Australia. I’d love to open up Australia’s music industry a bit more with the pop/swing thing. 

If I could trade places with anyone in the Final 12 I would choose Ben. Even though I am aware he is happy being back at school and working on his new film!

If I could win an ARIA for anything, I would probably want it to be the Highest Selling album for 2007/2008 – Carl Riseley: The Winner’s Journey. Haha.

My dream gig? I’d love to do a concert back in my hometown at Seagulls Club on the Gold Coast, just so I can play to all my friends and family.

What be on my dream backstage rider list… sitting in my dressing room… A couple of fancy cars and a couple of motorbikes. All me mates and me favourite food. And my bird [girlfriend].

I would like to thank all my fans for their support on my hefty gym routine throughout the weeks. It’s going strong. I’ve been doing 25 pushups and more – sometimes three or five more. But I’d mainly like to say thanks for their love and support in general throughout the show and their lovely messages and let’s get the HMAS Riseley to sail into Sydney Harbour!

- Carl

Final 4 Week

I was really inspired about going to the ARIAs. I was sitting there, listening to all the awards, watching all the artists perform and accept their awards and the whole time I just thought, “Australia needs a Buble… so bad.”
I thought it was cool that some other musicians knew who we were. I knew who they were too and we all just got along and had fun. It was nice, I felt like I fitted in. 
  
What I have learnt is that I am a singer. And not a trumpet player that sings on the side. I am now a singer who plays trumpet on the side. 
  
Here's the way my week goes: 
Tuesday – I feel artistic. That's the arrangement day for our songs.
Wednesday – Learning day. I learn the songs for Sunday.
Thursday – Generally, it's an exciting and fun day because I get to do all my blogs and video diaries and my first rehearsal with my songs are on Thursday and they're fun.
Friday – Exciting, because the weekend is nearly here and Saturdays are our day off most of the time.
Saturday – AWESOME. I am quite happy on Saturday because it's my day off and I get to hang around with my bird – my girlfriend. They're also tense days, because it's the last day I can rehearse personally before the show on Sunday.
Sunday – Thrilling. Very interesting too because of the show and how I finally shape up – and how I go about making my performance that night the best performance of the show.
Monday – My favourite day. I can relax because I've done Sunday and we muck around most of the day and have fun. Mondays are actually really bad days because they're massively emotional. We try and pretend they're fun. 
  
I want to say a big thank you to all my fans for helping me get to Big Band night – that's awesome. I definitely have the best fans and because I haven't been that well over the last week I've stopped doing push ups and exercise. I tried to do some last night because I am feeling better, but I only pushed out three. I am sure I will be back up to 20 or 30 by Saturday.
  
 Thanks so much for all your messages on the web and here we go… Big Band baby! Yeah!

-Take care, lots of love, Carl

Final 5 Week

It’s getting so much harder to see people go. When Daniel left on Monday night it was just the worst. It was the worst feeling, I felt really, really bad and sad. Me and him were, I’d say, almost the closest. It was really tough on me actually. It was so sad.

I had a really good relationship with Ben and it was hard to see him go, but when he left I started naturally becoming closer to someone else. I guess that’s just how this works. Everything has gone so quickly – it’s sort of weird to think about how far I’ve come and what I’ve done.

I am not really thinking of this like it’s a competition. I do sit down and go, “Ooh, geez, there’s five of us. Who is going to be the Final 2?” But I am just trying to make sure I sing well and have fun with the tunes.

Performing at the Opera House would be bloody scary, I reckon! So full on... I just want to hope that I feel like I deserve it. Sometimes I think, “Oh geez.” I just have so much respect for the other guys – Natalie is so good, she so deserves it. And Matt is so good… and so on. But if I was to win it, I would just think, “Oh man – I hope I can live up to the Australian public’s expectations.”

It’s just unbelievable to think back to the beginning and then realise I am in the Final 5. It doesn’t feel real. I feel a bit lost for words actually… I’ve done it tough but I’ve learnt so much. It’s been so good.

- Carl
 

Final 6 Week

I think there are some obvious favourites in the competition, like my man Matt Corby… and deservedly so. But I think we have got to a stage now where there are only six of us left and I think we’re all sorta favourites to someone. I think we need to keep thinking like that to keep our spirits high in such high pressure times.

Believe it or not, I think I am going quite well so far. I am actually quite proud of myself to tell you the truth! I have only been singing for a couple of years and I am learning so much. Every time I go to practice my songs with Erana it turns into a singing lesson and I am improving every week. Personally, I am really happy with how I am going in the competition and considering I am still here, I am pleased.

My favourite judge is definitely Marcia because she’s so sweet to me and she’s gorgeous. But I would have to say the judge I most value an opinion from is Dicko. He truly is out there to help me as an artist, even if he does put on a few fancy “soundbite” comments for TV every now and then.

I am worried about disappointing my family and my girlfriend – but I guess mainly all the people that really love me and care about me the most… I worry about letting them down. Whatever I do can possibly reflect on them too. But at the same time, I also don’t want to let down all my fans out there who are putting in all this effort to keep me in the competition.

Finding time aside for myself, to listen to music alone, is the most essential thing I need to do in my life. I need to make time to just sit by myself with a pair of headphones on, or just crank up the stereo as loud as I can alone in a room and just engulf myself with music, so I can just relax. It does everything for me to do that. Listening to music can get me out of terrible moods, it can do anything for me. I can pick a style of music and I will feel that way, pretty much.

I am very proud to say I can almost pass the Naval fitness test now, which is being able to do 25 push ups in a row. I can do nearly 24, so I am ALMOST able to pass! Just to answer a few of those more pressing questions… my favourite colour is… well, my new bike is black and it looks awesome, so black. But generally, blue. And my favourite food is mangos and avocados. Not together. And a really nice slow cooked steak. My first real kiss was with a girl named Shannon in the school holidays before Grade 9. Oooh, it was dodgy! Love you guys, see ya!

- Carl

Final 7 Week

If I could perform any song on Idol, I would play my most favourite song of all time when I was a kid, and it was in my most favourite movie of all time when I was a kid too. This song is all about how the sky is the limit and whatever you believe you can do, you can achieve. The song is from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and the song is called "Pure Imagination".

I think the most dangerous thing about fame is trying to dodge the "Big Head" syndrome. I just try and remain humble, try to be myself and never forget where I came from. As nice as it is to hear it, you do get a lot of favourable comments about your singing and even your looks or personality and you've just got to keep a level head about it all.

Is it harder to rearrange someone else's song or write your own? I think it would be different for everyone, which one would be harder. I think it's hard to arrange somebody's tune because unless you know exactly what they were feeling at the time they wrote it, or why they wrote it, you might wreck the song. And you don't want to upset the composer as well. At the moment, arranging is easier for me than composing. But in a general sense, composing is easier because there are no expectations.

If I could do a duet with anyone it would be Jessica Alba. I'm not sure what she's like as a singer and it doesn't bother me what sort of song we would sing… but as long as she is standing next to me singing, that would be awesome. I've heard she sings really well in the shower.

I want to be remembered as the guy that brought swing back into the Australian family living room, as the really nice, honest jazz singer… and as someone who hopefully opened a new door in Australian Idol for aspiring jazz singers as well.

I'm proud to say I have absolutely annihilated my previous regime of ten push ups after my run, and am now conquering 20. But unfortunately, my sit ups have gone down because I have been lazy with them. I am back down to six!

-Carl

Final 8 Week

I think staying true to yourself is the single most important thing to remember in this competition, above absolutely everything. I just feel like I really want to get my point across to the Australian public, in terms of what kind of an artist I would want to be if I was to win and what kind of music I would bring out. I think it’s important for them to know what kind of music I would present, so I don’t shock them. 
 
I think the competition has made me 135% more confident in myself. It’s been a massive confidence boost – it’s a wonderful thing when you still have the ability to surprise yourself.
 
I think my shining performance was definitely “It’s Alright With Me’ because that was so my thing and I was so comfortable. That’s when I started to take a turn on stage towards feeling more comfortable. I am finding that every time I think about going on stage, I have a better ability to be myself and it all started that night. Non-performance wise, the best moment has been visiting the Ronald McDonald House and just having fun with the kids!
 
I haven’t really experienced any particularly hard or difficult moments, more just challenging moments to do with song choice or trying to perform to my best ability on stage.
 
I think my life will eventually go back to normal… hopefully when I am about 47 years old, when I actually do want things to slow down. So hopefully not for at least that many years… I’m enjoying what I love to do right now and I have extremely loved being able to get jazz into people’s living rooms every Sunday night!
 
I apologise for my blog being late… see you on time this week. Love you guys!

- Carl

Final 9 Week

I'd say the coolest moment was definitely when we were at Federation Square and we were doing our sound check. Thousands of people were watching it and they were all Matt Corby and Ben fans. In the middle of all the posters, I saw this sweet little girl with a big white t-shirt that said, “I Love Carl” on it in massive letters! She was standing all alone amongst all these Matt and Ben fans, and I went and gave her a massive hug and she cried. Her name was Bianna so if she reads this, hi!
 
The best advice I have been given is to remain level-headed, grounded and just to not get a big head about anything. You might have all these people supporting you, yelling out your name and asking for autographs but I think you have to remain humble.
 
I have a lucky travel charm - my St Christopher medal that I wear around my neck. I never had a pre-performance ritual before Idol, but I do now. I play everything I am going to sing on my trumpet, including all the licks. And I sing it through with my best friend and musical mentor Ashley Lewis on that Sunday.
 
Have I brought anything sentimental from home into Idol HQ? Not really… I do have my original Nintendo Gameboy and I play Pong on that. I love Pong.
 
The competition has massively changed me already. It's changed me all around – musically, spiritually and in terms of my maturity. I think I've become more confident in myself - and I've learnt to be able to talk to anyone without doubting myself or worrying. I'm also much more comfortable with who I am. I have learnt that people either like you or they don't, and there's nothing you can really do about it.
 
Hopefully I will be able to write to you next week, thanks for all the support so far!
 
I'm very PROUD to announce that I pulled off my first ten reps for push ups and sit ups this week. The only place from here now is up!

-Carl

Final 10 Week

I'd say I've been out of my comfort zone a fair bit, but not musically as such. I think you'd have to be a bit odd if you didn't feel a bit of out your comfort zone in any way during this experience, but I am very happy to say I am becoming more comfortable with seeing fans, taking photos and preparing my songs every week. Singing on stage is becoming more relaxing and we're all much closer mates now too. Generally, everything is slowly coming together into a little comfort zone so that's exciting. 
 
I have been sleeping well – Daniel and Ben and I sleep in the same room and it's been fine. We don't bother each other and we're very conscious of each other's space. The three of us are becoming close too – I've gotten to be very close with Ben and I love him like a little brother.
 
The craziest fan moment so far was when I got a pair of pink lacy knickers in the mail… and then I sadly found out they were from my male flatmate who was playing a trick on me. Just joking, haha. But I haven't had anything too extreme. At the Monday Night Verdict show there was a really good sign held up that said, "HMAS Riseley Sails into Sydney Opera House" and I thought that was just so awesome. Thanks to whoever did that, I thoroughly enjoyed looking up at it all night!
 
My biggest learning curve has been in terms of my vocal ability – getting experience with my singing. I have learnt quite a lot about myself so far. I've learnt that I am a bit of a grown-up now… I'm more disciplined than I thought I was. Being able to handle situations that you think would be hairy and come out of them OK is a good feeling. Working on only a few hours sleep, handling public situations… it's good to know I have that discipline inside me. It's a good feeling realising that you still have the ability to surprise yourself.
 
I rely on my friends and family to keep me grounded. I have a close-knit group of friends, as well as my girlfriend and family who I call every day and they keep my mind in a pure state… if you will!
 
I'd like to say to all my fans out there they will be very happy to hear that I have now pushed my daily exercise routine to eight or nine push-ups after my run… and also, five or six sit-ups. So I am pushing myself further and I hope to get to ten next week!
 
And I just want to say a massive hi to Mum and Anthony and all my fans in New Zealand!

-Carl

Final 11 Week

It's been quite a relaxing week actually! We had a day off yesterday and I went for a walk into the city – I had my sunglasses on so I was being sneaky. I also went ten pin bowling last night with some friends.

In the Navy, you bunk with a minimum of 18 people and a maximum of 60 people in one room. At the moment there are three of us in a massive master bedroom and it doesn't faze me one bit!

You'd think it would be hard to get time to yourself with so many people sharing the same space, but I just walk around with my Samsung Mp3 player and stick to myself most of the week – just up until I am really comfortable with what I am singing. Then I come out of that musical shell and have a bit more fun. As unbelievable as it may sound, I really look forward to waking up early and going to the kitchen where Sam the House Manager has made me a beautiful smoothie. Sam's special morning smoothies are the highlight of my morning!

I think it's important to try and stick to your normal routine as much as possible because it helps you remain focused and not lose the plot. I go for a run as often as I can. It clears my head. I come back and do a few push ups… maybe five or six. And three or four sit ups. It improves my sleep and if there is any commotion going on, nothing bothers me – I just sleep right through it.

I was worried about the group song this week but I actually enjoyed that in the end. It was good to get it over and done with. I am definitely looking forward to the next one and being more comfortable!

With my song choices I have been very delicate. Very, very delicate. I always had at least a handful of songs in mind that I would do for the genre that was up, and I have a list of criteria that the song has to hit. Firstly, can I sing it? Will people recognise it? Can I make it enjoyable to listen to and to watch? What type of audience will appreciate it – taking into account ages and different types of people. Some of the people who enjoy what I do are just straight-up jazz fans - will they be able to connect with the song? Can I connect to it? In the end, I really need to be comfortable with it because if I'm not, it will come out on stage. But mostly I think - will I be happy if I leave having performed that song? I always want to feel like I wouldn't have changed it for anything. 

-Carl

First week in the Final 12

The highlight of this week has definitely been when I got to sleep! I got about four hours last night. Nah, I'm so joking. It's definitely getting into the Final 12.

It's really nice knowing I have support from Marcia – she is like this little angel that sits on my shoulder and offers advice. I feel good about that because she obviously sees something in me. I guess she sees me as a rough diamond.

I am definitely going to change it up – you'll see more than Swing from me. I think I'm going to give you a bit of a surprise. Things will be different… Rock week will be a surprise!

The biggest lesson I've learnt so far has been a personal one. I now know what kind of artist I want to be - and I didn't before. I've listened to the other contestants and heard their different styles and seen how they use their voices to work with their style. I know I couldn't do what they do – but I can do what I do.

I know I can do the different styles, and I did do them with the Navy band. But now I look back, I know I did them in an average way. I don't think I could ever go back to being in a cover band, performing at an average or lower level – especially knowing there are people like the rest of the Final 12 who can do that style so much better. I am really happy with who and what I am.

I guess the hardest thing about this will be being away from family and friends – and the girl - for too long. There's nothing more I want than making it as an artist, and touring and everything, but being away from my family is really hard. I have dealt with that in the Navy but I don't know if I want it to continue forever.

It is weird to think I have fans… I didn't personally think I had any! Back when I was in the Navy, when we did gigs, no one knew who I was. But by the time I was singing, teenagers and mothers would be screaming and cheering and afterwards, they would ask me to sign autographs. It was great – but it was all over once the night finished. I was sorta used to that, and I kind of imagined it would be like that here – like every Sunday night there would be excitement, but it wouldn't continue the next day. And then we went to a red carpet premiere and I had random people coming up and asking me for autographs, wanting me to be in pictures with them, telling me, “I love you!” It's a really good feeling actually. I guess it's a natural human instinct to feel good when people like you.

-Carl