Mitch MacDonald

Mitch MacDonald
Mitch MacDonald performing in the Top Three Tour after the sixth season of Canadian Idol.
Background information
Born	(1985-10-22) October 22, 1985 (age 39) Port Hood, Nova Scotia, Canada
Genres	Pop, folk music, indie music
Occupation	Singer
Instrument(s)	Vocals, guitar
Years active	2008–present

Mitch MacDonald (born October 22, 1985) is a Canadian singer who was runner-up in season 6 of the reality series Canadian Idol.

Early life

MacDonald is from Port Hood, Nova Scotia on Cape Breton Island.[1] He grew up in a family of seven siblings.[2] He worked primarily as a carpenter before Idol.[3] He cites his musical influences as including fellow Cape Bretoner Gordie Sampson. Bright Eyes is one of his favourite bands.[4]

Canadian Idol

On Canadian Idol in 2008, MacDonald worked with such artists as Anne Murray, Simple Plan, Gavin Rossdale, and Tom Jones.[2] During his run on Idol, he never appeared in the "bottom two" or "bottom three".[5]

Music writer Martha Worboy described MacDonald's music as "tender, mostly acoustic renderings."[6] He received accolades in particular for his rendition of Joel Plaskett's "Love This Town", which drew comparisons to Paul Simon from the judges.[7] Nova Scotia Premier Rodney MacDonald, a musician himself before entering politics, said, "The key to his success throughout the contest was that he remained true to his musical roots."[8]

Performances

Week	Theme	Mentor	Song	Artist
Semi-final Group 1	Top 24		"Follow Through"	Gavin DeGraw
Semi-final Group 2	Top 20		"I'm Yours"	Jason Mraz
Semi-final Group 2	Top 16		"Blue"	The Jayhawks
Top 10	Songs of David Bowie		"Moonage Daydream"	David Bowie
Top 9	Hits by Dead Artists		"Angel Eyes"	The Jeff Healey Band
Top 8	Week of Unplugged Music	Gavin Rossdale	"Oh, Atlanta"	Alison Krauss
Top 7	UK Top 10	Tom Jones	"Jealous Guy"	John Lennon
Top 6	Canada Rocks Canadian Rock n' Roll	Simple Plan	"Love This Town"	Joel Plaskett
Top 5	Judges' Theme Lennon–McCartney		"In My Life"	The Beatles
Top 4	Music of Anne Murray Idol's Choice	Anne Murray	"Cotton Jenny" "Between the Bars"	Anne Murray Elliott Smith
Top 3	Songs of Bryan Adams	Bryan Adams	"Heat of the Night" "When You Love Someone"	Bryan Adams
Top 2	Idol's Choice Idol Single Judges' Choice	John Legend Hedley	"Paris" "Where We Begin" "If"	Gordie Sampson Mitch MacDonald Bread

Post-Idol

MacDonald toured Canada as part of the Top 3 Tour, with Theo Tams, and Drew Wright.[9][10]

As of 2010, he continued to tour occasionally, both in his home province and in other parts of Canada, and he started work on an album.[11]

References

1. Keilty, Lindsey (August 29, 2008). "'It's just a crazy cool experience'". The Weekly News. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved January 30, 2011.
2. Pottie, Erin (August 23, 2008). "Archived copy". Cape Breton Post. Archived from Welcome home Mitch the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved December 24, 2017. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help)
3. Brioux, Bill (September 11, 2008). "West bests East as another Idol is crowned", Toronto Star, p. E1.
4. Levine, Sheri (September 12, 2008). "Second-place finish won't stop this singer", The Province, p. B8.
5. Millar, Sarah (September 11, 2008). "Canadian Idol: Mitch MacDonald on being the runner up". National Post. Retrieved January 30, 2011.^[permanent dead link‍]
6. Worboy, Martha (September 11, 2008). "Lethbridge piano man tops in season six: Soaring vocals carry Theo Tams to victory over Mitch MacDonald", Canwest News Service. Reprinted in Edmonton Journal, p. D1.
7. (September 5, 2008). "Mitch MacDonald Age: 22 Hometown: Port Hood, Nova Scotia Pre-Idol Occupation: Carpenter Archived 24 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine", Niagara Falls Review. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
8. Keilty, Lindsey (September 19, 2008). "First in the hearts of Nova Scotians". The Halifax West Weekly News. Archived from the original on July 26, 2011. Retrieved January 28, 2011.
9. "Mitch MacDonald is still Cape Breton's idol". CBC News. September 11, 2008. Retrieved December 24, 2017.
10. (October 24, 2008). "Top 3 Tour books Winnipeg", Winnipeg Free Press, p. W1.
11. Hicks, Duane (September 1, 2010). "'Idol' finalist enjoys visit here". Fort Frances Times. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011. Retrieved February 3, 2011.