When we last talked about Christy Carlson Romano, I omitted that she was the voice of Kim Possible and many of you called me out on that. I’m sorry. I never know if non-A-listers are recognized for their voice work or not and my explanation of how she was the voice of Kim Possible but Poppy in the live action seemed too wordy. I wasn’t trying to take anything from her, I promise. What was taken away from Christy, however, was her hopes of becoming a recording artist. And according to Christy, they were taken by Katy Perry. After she finished her run in Beauty and the Beast in New York, Christy returned to Los Angeles with the hopes of transitioning into a singing career. Most people wanted to send her down the bubblegum pop route like the rest of her Disney co-stars. But Christy didn’t want to produce that kind of music and set out to find a record company that would let her make her kind of music. On her latest video on her YouTube channel, Christy claims she was this close to securing a record deal, but her contract was given to Katy instead.

One of Christy’s latest videos detailed an early 2000s foray into the music industry, which surprisingly involved Katy Perry.

The video, titled “How Katy Perry Got My Record Deal,” chronicled a contract with record executive Jason Flom that Christy supposedly lost to Katy.

Basically, Christy recorded a track called “Just A Song,” where Katy was the demo singer, while working with Jason and a group called The Matrix. The group was also working with Katy, and it sounds like both young artists were hoping to secure record deals with similar labels at the time.

In the midst of all this, Christy said she and Katy met at a dinner with other musicians, and she told her about Jason, recording “Just A Song,” and the potential record deal. Christy learned a month later that she didn’t have a contract, “but Katy Perry did.”

“So, there you go guys. That’s the tea,” Christy concluded. “I don’t know if she [Katy] was just using her sense to say to herself, ‘Wow Jason is in the market for this kind of voice.’ Or maybe she had a conversation that had already started with him.”

[From Buzzfeed]

Christy’s video is yet another example of how toxic the music industry is. The Katy story is an example of how quickly something you thought was a done deal can disappear. Christy said she has absolutely no ill will against Katy. She compliments her singing and her contribution to the music industry a few times. I mostly believe her. I do believe Christy is telling this story because Katy has become so famous, and that was almost Christy instead. Christy offers many signs that pointed to the fact that they were choosing one of the two women at the time, but Christy didn’t see it then. But it also sounded like Christy might think Katy did know. Which was one of Christy’s points – even if you like them, they are still the competition.

Christy is doing a service putting these videos out. For some reason my husband and I have been watching documentaries on bands lately and OMG the amount of evil in the music industry is unmeasured. Publishing and initial contracts are everything, it seems, and yet no bright-eyed, wet-behind-the-ears hopeful knows that. They give away the farm as soon as they arrive, every time. I think specific examples like Christy’s, and she goes into much more detail in her video, shine a light on what’s going on for those hoping to break into the business. Because it’s never just a simple dinner. You are never just saying hi to someone. If Christy can help someone spot the dealings as they are happening, she’ll help the outcome of their career.

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