Whether the winner of American Idol 2016 will be La’Porsha Renae or Trent Harmon their plans have been set for where Idol Mentor Scott Borchetta will lead them in their career.
Update: Live tonight after the season finale Scott Borchetta revealed that he’s going to sign both La’Porsha Renae AND Trent Harmon even though it was Trent who won Idol tonight. Scott says this will be the first collaboration between Big Machine and Motown.
Since Borchetta doesn’t want to waste any time after the season finale he’s got a plan in place for both of the Top 2 singers and really even had one for Dalton had he moved ahead and won. So what’s Scott got in store for them? Taste of Country says he’s taking Trent to Country and La’Porsha to a new label for Motown.
Scott Borchetta says if Trent Harmon is crowned winner on Thursday night, he’ll take him to country radio.
“I think it’s very true to who he is,” Borchetta tells Taste of Country. “He’s always done country in his set. He lives on a true farm-to-table farm and restaurant … he’s a country boy.”
That fusion of pop and country is where Harmon belongs, Borchetta insists.
If [La’Porsha] wins, the Big Machine Label Group president has a partnership in place with Universal’s Motown label, so she’ll become the first Big Machine/Motown artist.
Very interesting and a great opportunity for both of them. I’ll be sorry if Trent goes full Country, because that’s not my cup of tea and I’ve enjoyed him this season, but I see where Scott is coming from and Trent’s potential to make that move.
Of course La’Porsha’s move makes a lot of sense and is really cool to see that they’ve got something set up for her with another label while acknowledging that Big Machine alone couldn’t do what she’d need to succeed.
While Scott was a bit off-putting for me at times he has done a good job of supporting the singers. Makes you wonder what some of the past winners who have struggled post-season could have done with his level of help.