Taylor Hicks says he, record label agreed to split

The Birmingham News

Posted by Mary Colurso January 08, 2008 8:06 PM

Birmingham's Taylor Hicks said today that his split with J/Arista Records was a mutual decision and reassured fans that he would continue to record and perform.

"The important thing for all of you to remember is that I've been a working musician my whole life. This is turning the page on a new chapter of my career," Hicks said in a message on his MySpace page. "Artistic freedom and control is an exciting prospect."

The "American Idol" singer and Hoover native signed with the Arista label, one of several owned by Sony BMG, after his 2006 win on the TV show. He released one self-titled disc for the label in December 2006 and has sold nearly 700,000 copies in the United States, according to Neilsen SoundScan.

Hicks' former publicist for J/Arista, Liz Morentin, told the Associated Press on Monday that Hicks would record his next disc on his own, prompting speculation that Hicks had been dropped by Sony BMG because his sales didn't meet the label's expectations.

In his MySpace message, Hicks confirmed that he'll be working on another CD this year, but didn't mention a deal with another label. He added that he's close to finishing a concert DVD, "Whomp at the Warfield," but didn't specify its release date.