Since winning season 23 of American Idol, the world has been somewhat of a blur for Jamal Roberts. Hearing Ryan Seacrest call his name, the singer’s life instantly changed. Since that moment, Roberts spent time on the morning show circuit, speaking about his rise to fame and the process of becoming the next American Idol. And even when he returned home to Mississippi, the town of Meridian welcomed him with more than open arms. But recently, Roberts got a taste of the downside of fame when he needed to defend his current manager Carlton Cofield.
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Having worked with Cofield for several years with Soultowne Marketing, Roberts first took the stage when competing on BET’s Sunday Best. Although a top competitor, the singer ended up placing third. Not wanting to go through that process again, it took a great deal of convincing from Cofield to get Roberts to audition for American Idol. Eventually taking the advice, Roberts quickly defended his manager after some suggested the singer was being taken advantage of.
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Hosting a Facebook Live event to answer questions from fans, Roberts took a moment to discuss his working relationship with Cofield. “After Sunday Best, I was through with TV. But he pushed me to go on American Idol. Y’all, I was not going on American Idol at all if it wasn’t for Carlton putting me on American Idol, telling me to audition. Your boy be right at the house, just gigging. Because, like, I didn’t want to go through that again.”
As for the claims hurled against Cofield that he was taking money from Roberts, the American Idol winner insisted, “Let me tell you something about my manager. He don’t take a dime from me. Everything he booked, every amount that’s paid, he gives straight to me and my kids. He says, ‘I’m here to help you, I’m not here to break you.’”
Considering Cofield a part of his family, Roberts wasn’t about to give air to attacks aimed at his manager. He concluded, “We positive vibes over here, no negative Nancies over here, got it? I’m just gonna start unfollowing, you know? Just get them out. Just get them on out the way. Let somebody that got some sense come in. Because if God gave us sense, you need to start using (it), because when you don’t, you start looking ignorant.”
(Photo by Christopher Willard/Disney via Getty Images)
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