By GLYNIS HART
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CLAREMONT — “In Claremont I feel like I can really be myself,” said Evelyn Cormier. On March 17, Cormier’s audition to American Idol will air on national television, but it won’t be the first time Cormier has been in the limelight.
She and her then-boyfriend David were featured on a national television show which gives one half of a couple — someone from a foreign country — a 90 day travel visa to the United States. Participants are in the spotlight, literally, as they try to work out their feelings for each other and whether one partner should stay by becoming a citizen. Evelyn and David, who is from Spain, not only fell for each other but committed themselves to marriage, drawing criticism and skepticism from some viewers.
“Staying grounded is a big part of handling Hollywood,” she said. “I have a really, really good support system in my family and my husband. They can really be there for me and be that soft place to fall.”
Cormier was homeschooled but took courses in French, theater and music at Stevens High School.
“Even when people were being mean about ’90-Day Fiance,’ nobody bothered me in Claremont,” said Cormier. “I love Claremont and I love New Hampshire. I don’t see myself ever wanting to move away.”
David initially met her through her social media presence, because Cormier uses it to promote her music career. She picked up guitar at age 12 and began her first band when she was 14.
“My dad got me, basically, a yard sale guitar and said when I got better he’d get me a better guitar,” said Cormier.
Eventually, she did get better, and true to his word her dad took her to a guitar shop in Hanover and let her pick out a Seagull: “It was the perfect guitar for me.”
Her song “Yard Sale Guitar” harkens back to that time. “Some songs take forever to write,” she said. “I wrote that in a day. I was at my cousin’s house and she had this dusty guitar in a closet. I took it and played it and said, ‘It’s not bad for a yard sale guitar,’ and wrote the song. I was so inspired; it’s really about flashing back to the beginning.”
For her “American Idol” audition, she played her father’s Martin guitar. “It has a really nice sound to it,” she said.
Her songs are inspired by real-life events. “They’re very raw,” she said. “All my songs are very personal; I’m not just writing random things but things that come from my heart.”
For her audition on “American Idol,” however, she chose a song by someone else. “I wanted them to hear me sing a song they already know,” she said.
Singing, she often brings the sound through the lower part of her throat, imparting depth and breathiness that will be a departure from much of the singing on the show.
“Honestly, I feel like my voice has always been that way,” she said. “I think maybe that’s why my parents didn’t recognize I had talent at first. It takes some time to own your own quirkiness.
“I’m just growing comfortable with being myself now,” said the 21-year-old.
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