The Real Reason We Don't Hear From Jesse McCartney Anymore
When you think of Jesse McCartney, you may think of boy bands or Disney movies, but the actor-turned-singer has done a lot more than that. He transitioned from child actor to boy band member to solo musician, so his resume is pretty impressive. Even though he's done a lot in his 30 years, we haven't heard from the heartthrob lately. Why hasn't he been in the spotlight as much? These are the real reasons.
He's been doing solo work
After McCartney's time on All My Children and after his time with the pop boy band, Dream Street, the talented youngster set off for a solo music career. So in 2004 he released his solo debut, Beautiful Soul. The pop album's first single was a song of the same name that peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard charts. That was the record's most successful single and the album overall was considered successful. Unfortunately, that's been his most successful solo venture. The debut is still his top album iTunes but he's released three more studio albums, two live albums and a number of EPs.
He's been working with Disney
McCartney became a friend of Disney and, when he did, he became a regular on their soundtracks. He has songs on the soundtracks to A Cinderella Story, That's So Raven, That's So Raven Too!, Stuck in the Suburbs, Sydney White, Hannah Montana and several more. Even though fans may not be hearing solo work from the singer, he is getting placement on albums. The New York native also spent some time acting in two Disney channel shows, Hannah Montana and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, and although you can't see him in the Tinker Bell films, he's there. He lends his voice to Terence, Tinker Bell's BFF.
And he's been doing voice work
McCartney didn't limit himself to only voicing Tinker Bell films. He continued voice work in the Alvin and the Chipmunks franchise, lending his voice to Theodore. He also does voice work in Horton Hears a Who! and he told a reporter on the red carpet the best part of that work was, "not having to put on any makeup or wardrobe."
He also had an important role in the Young Justice show, which he was particularly excited about because he says he "was a big cartoon fan" as a kid. He also told CBR, "What's great about Young Justice is that we see him at his earliest stage of being a superhero."
He's still been acting
McCartney has continued to follow his acting dreams, appearing in his first film in 2008. Keith is an independent drama and writer/director Todd Kessler was impressed with how serious McCartney was about the process. "He prepared intensively," Kessler told MTV. "When he was on tour [for his music], I understand that he spent hours in front of the mirror in hotel rooms working on his character, working on his stance — even little details, like how he puts his hands in the pocket of his jacket. Everybody who sees the movie now is impressed."
Following that indie film, McCartney has kept himself busy by working on shows and films including Greek on ABC Family, Chernobyl Diaries and Fear the Walking Dead.
But he lost one big role
Even though McCartney has continued to act, he hasn't exactly had the best luck. The Last Airbender was supposed to be another film on McCartney's acting resume until there was a casting switch. He was originally set to play Prince Zuko, the villain, in the M. Night Shyamalan film. The casting switch was originally published on Variety's website, but the article has since been removed. According to Entertainment Weekly, McCartney left his role in the film after rehearsals had already began. They cited a conflict in McCartney's tour schedule and replaced him with Dev Patel.
He wrote a huge hit for Leona Lewis
McCartney has also kept himself busy behind-the-scenes by being a songwriter, and one of those songs in particular was a huge hit. With the help of Ryan Tedder, McCartney co-penned "Bleeding Love" for Leona Lewis. The song ended up being a No. 1 hit on the Billboard charts and Lewis' first hit in the United States.
"I co-wrote it with Jesse McCartney; he was on some Prince tip," Tedder told Billboard of the collaboration. "Jesse had just had a huge hit — 'Beautiful Soul' — and I was going in with him and I felt like I didn't have it. I went back in my room, said, 'I'm gonna be an hour late to the session, what if we just did something simple?' I sat in my apartment in West L.A. and said, 'What would Prince do?' So I sang over an organ patch and had the entire verse and chorus of the song. We finished the song, verse and choruses that day. His label heard it and from the top down said, 'It's not a hit.' So we went through three different keys to get it right for Leona Lewis. She killed it and the rest is history."
He was busy creating a fragrance
McCartney added fragrance designer to his resume when he created Wanted by Jesse, a women's perfume. The fragrance is now available on Amazon and they say it is "recommended for romantic wear."
"In the celebrity world or the music world, there hasn't been a fragrance that has been done for a woman," he told Seventeen about why he chose this new venture. "Ninety-five percent of my fan base is women. At some point in the future I probably will do one for men, but I wanted to give something to the fans that they could have every day. I think that it's kind of important. Music and fashion, they all kind of go hand in hand. It's just a part of the business that I wanted to tap into, and I think this was a great outlet."
He's busy being a philanthropist
When McCartney isn't singing or acting, he's giving back through his philanthropic work. In 2005, he combined singing with philanthropy when he was part of a charity single, "Come Together Now." The song was recorded by various artists including McCartney, Nick Carter, Celine Dion, John Legend, Gavin DeGraw, Wyclef Jean, Patti LaBelle, Brian McKnight and several more. The money from the single went to victims of Hurricane Katrina and it was part of a double-disc benefit album of the same name.
He's also an honorary board member of Little Kids Rock, which strives to help music education in school systems. According to their website, McCartney "has contributed to a long list of charitable causes in recent years. In late 2005 he joined Little Kids Rock when he visited several classrooms in schools that employ Little Kids Rock music programs."