Kellie Pickler Opens Up About Trouble With Record Label Before Split

Just months after the release of Kellie Pickler's third album '100 Proof', Sony Music Nashville cut ties from the former American Idol contestant. It's been nearly a month that Kellie has remained without a label and in a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, she opens up about the rocky relationship and awful recording process.

Though it was one of her most genuine and personal albums, '100 Proof' was seemingly overlooked by her label and sold a mere 74,000 copies since its release in January. "Well, it wasn’t promoted. When my album came out, I didn’t even have a song out on the radio," Kellie revealed. "[The label was] spread thin." She went on to describe how life was at an ever changing music label: "The only consistency was inconsistency.”

Kellie didn't hold back about the entire rocky road and even admitted what her recording process was like. "The process was hell," she spoke candidly. "We couldn’t agree on songs... I don’t need anyone to tell me what to say or what to sing," which was what Kellie was accustomed to after signing her record deal at age 19, fresh off American Idol.

But is leaving a label like Sony the kiss of death in the music industry? Recently, Tim McGraw left his label home of Curb Records and resigned with Big Machine Records and he's seen great success. What does the future hold for the North Carolina native? "I've thought about the major labels versus the more independent ones... [You want] to sign with someone that is about the music and gets you."

Kellie's currently on tour through October promoting her new album '100 Proof'. See her tour dates on her Facebook here as her official website was shut down after the label split.

-Jodi Phillips / The New 103.7