Because I believe if I actually realized there was so much pressure on me, I'd crack," he says.īut avoiding the pressure becomes difficult as the weeks wear on, with the performing and the autographing. Sammie has met some of his financial obligations to the record company, and now he's beginning to see some reward.ĭoes he understand that he is a breadwinner? "We have sat down and discussed some things regarding financing and what you have to do in order to survive in this world," Baxter says.īut does he feel pressure? "I try to avoid it if possible.
But as soon as I see it I grab hold of him and say, 'Hey calm back down,'" says Baxter. Has he gotten a big head? "He gets there from time to time. or Washington and see how the girls react to the song," Sammie says, "I was, like, 'whoa!''" "When I would leave the state of Florida and go to L.A. To build on the momentum, Sammie went on tour. 1 in sales on Billboard magazine's R&B chart. It turns out, the air of innocence worked just fine for Sammie.įour months after its release, the single I Like It catches on and reaches No. "There will be plenty of time for him to kiss." For example she didn't want him to kiss a girl in the video: "It wasn't going to happen," Baxter says. Keeping things at a child's level was more difficult than she had expected. "I just want to make sure they keep it on a child's level," Baxter says. On the set, Sammie's mother stayed by his side every step of the way. He's becoming a little man,'" Baxter says. I'm, like, 'Oh my God, my baby's leaving me. "The image that we want to put in people's minds - we start right here," says manager Irby. "I'll let it all out during the video shoot., give out energy and be excited," Sammie says. Production began on Sammie's first music video. And a long as you got the ladies behind it, the fellas automatically are going to jump on it," says one club DJ.īut if the single was to be a success across the country, Sammie's team had to create the image behind the voice. Soon, it appears that the song has the makings of a hit. "Just got my fingers crossed, and I'm praying that I Like It and everything blows up," says Sammie. Then, after three labor-intensive months, 12-year-old Sammie Bush's first single hit the streets of Atlanta. So I don't want to feel as if I'm an object or that I'm a product waiting on sale.'" "You are here right now, because they see millions," says his mother.Īnd for his part, Sammie says, "I know I'm on the market but I feel like I have to be sold." He adds: "By that I mean, I have to do this, and I have to do that. (And it would take more than one successful album to pay that back.) It's time for Sammie to pay his dues. If Sammie's music were to take off, the first dollars would go to repay his team of producers. "Who wouldn't get excited at the idea of your son making millions?" she asks.īut Sammie and his family were not going to see millions anytime soon.
SAMMIE BUSH OPENING FOR FULL
She left her job in community economic development to devote herself full time to her son's career. "I was well aware of the sacrifices I knew it wasn't going to be easy," says Sammie's mother Baxter. As part of the deal, Austin moved Sammie's family to his studios in Atlanta last summer. "There's a lot of great singers, and if they don't have the confidence and the personality to go along with, then it's not the full package, but with him you could tell he's got the full package," Austin says.Īustin signed Sammie to a six-year recording contract with the backing of Capitol Records. "Just because a kid can sing it doesn't mean that you know they have the ability to be a star," says Austin, who has scored platinum record hits for Boyz II Men and TLC. Irby took Sammie under her wing and put him in touch with Grammy award-winning producer Dallas Austin.
"All I could think about was, I got to get to him before a horde of people do," she adds.
0 kommentar(er)
