Maxine Hardcastle Gets Help From “American Idol” Creator

Maxine Hardcastle, whose sublime vocals made their debut on this summer’s Hardcastle 4 CD by her father, Paul Hardcastle, is now getting some excellent career guidance.

The 19-year-old budding singer and songwriter is now working on demo songs with Simon Fuller, who just so happened to create Pop Idol in Britain and its version in the U.S., American Idol. If you’ve heard Maxine’s vocals on the new CD, on which she sings three songs, you know she’s got talent galore. But she’s still able to take advantage of the fact that Fuller is Maxine’s godfather and was Paul’s best man at his wedding. Also, Fuller named his entertainment and talent management company, 19 Entertainment, after Paul’s worldwide hit from 1985 called “19.” Since then, Fuller – who created the Spice Girls and manages Annie Lennox – has been involved in the creation of 106 #1 singles and 83 #1 albums in the UK, along with 281 Top 40 albums and 430 Top 40 singles.

Proud Paul – whose “Serene” has been No. 1 on Radio & Records' smooth jazz singles chart for five consecutive weeks – calls Maxine’s original songs a cross between Norah Jones and the Corrs.

Hardcastle says he auditioned Maxine for a song called “Smooth Jazz Is Bumpin” on his new CD and says she definitely passed the test.

"You know when it’s your own daughter you have to be hyper-critical. And I was almost thinking, no, she wouldn’t suit it. But when I heard the way that she way that she approached the song and sung it, I was really surprised. That’s why I got her involved in three tracks. My good old friend Simon Fuller’s helping me out to look after her so there’s no rush. But she will be looked after I think she’s got a great future ahead."

We agree. With her obvious physical charms and angelic vocals, it looks like there's a new star coming our way soon.