Young fans meet Camile
at special Maui gathering
KAPALUA, Maui >> The preteen and adult fans who met Camile Velasco yesterday know her "American Idol" performances by heart.
"I think she's a really good singer," said Brandy Hayes-Nii, 9, a fourth-grader at Sacred Hearts School in Lahaina.
Camile Velasco: Several record producers are interested in signing her, stepfather says
A radio trivia question asked to name the beach where Camile was seen in her final competitive appearance on the television show. "The answer was Baldwin Beach," Brandy said.
Her mother, Heather Hayes, shook her head in amazement at Brandy's recollection, but was pleased with her interest in following Camile's career.
"I think she'll (Camile) be a good role model for kids," Hayes said.
Velasco, 18, made her first public appearance since she was voted off "American Idol" on April 7, attending a special gathering yesterday at the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua. She met with family friends and signed photographs of herself for the 15 winners of a Camile Velasco trivia contest sponsored by the Pacific Radio Group, including the Maui-based radio station KPOA 93.5 FM.
Asked what she thought about recent criticisms about the voting system on "American Idol," Velasco said: "What happens, happens. I really can't comment on that."
She said when she was voted off the show, she knew she should have felt angry, but she "was really content with how far I went."
Velasco's stepfather, James West, said his daughter's experience on "American Idol" has been great and he doesn't understand the intricacies of the voting system.
West said people have told him that they had difficulty making a telephone connection to cast a vote on the night she was voted off the show.
"The night she was voted off, no one could get through," he said.
Under a contract with "American Idol" expected to continue through a nationwide tour, Velasco and other performers are limited in what they can say and do. West said Velasco is scheduled to begin rehearsal for the tour on June 25. The tour starts July 14, including performances at the Blaisdell Center on Sept. 28-29.
He said the family is trying to see if the tour can add a day in Hawaii to perform on Velasco's home island of Maui.
West said several record producers have expressed an interest in signing Velasco and that she has already had a screen test with an "A-list director."
