It's the little things that Bowie resident Ju'Not Joyner said have changed since landing in the spotlight of this season's nationally televised FOX singing competition "American Idol." For instance, he's found it difficult to run errands without being mobbed by fans and he has to think twice about what he's wearing before he heads out the door.

"I can't go out of the house looking scruffy," Joyner joked after singing the national anthem at a Bowie Baysox game April 16, bedecked in a red leather jacket and aviator shades. "I'm making my barber rich."

A longtime friend says it's obvious what the publicity has changed in Joyner: he's now more focused than before on a musical career.

"It gave him more focus and direction in what he is trying to do," said Miles Simmons of Upper Marlboro, who has helped the rhythm and blues artist record material since they met in 2000. "Now he has a plan of how he wants to portray himself… He is developing his brand right now. It's like ‘Who is Ju'Not?' He wants to be able to tell his own story."

Joyner sums up his youth with one word: "troubled." While early on, he showed a natural ability for singing and his mother entered him in talent competitions, his wild streak proved too much to handle. As a child he bounced in and out of the foster care system and eventually left home at 16, calling half the cities in Prince George's County home along the way. He hadn't thought much of his own voice then, dreaming instead of a career in professional basketball. But those dreams ended with a torn ACL and propelled him back into creative ventures like songwriting.

As he states on the social networking Web site MySpace.com, he is "more interested in showing the world that I'm a recording artist rather than a pity party recipient or charity case."

The 26-year-old today asserts he is an artist and an entrepreneur. Joyner creates his own songs, beats and all, and wants to produce them his own way. He tried out for "Idol" twice before, this season finally making it into the top 36 contestants. The show is now down to the top seven. He said he never felt like he fit the mold of what the producers were looking for, which he is convinced is a naíve singer with little business sense.

The owner of his own real estate business with his fiancée, Angela Parrish, and a father of one, he's realistic about his options.

"I look at music as a hobby that has the potential to make you a lot of money," he said. "When I say hobby, don't think I'm just going to sit back and chill. But you just need to keep it in the proper perspective."

Joyner's still writing and recording, stopping by Simmons' home-based studio in Upper Marlboro a couple times a week to work on material and heading to Night Flight Recording Studio in Fort Washington when he wants to lay down vocals. But after "Idol," Joyner said he's warmed up to the idea of writing music for other people. Before, he used to want to keep the good songs for himself to sing, but now sees it as one of the best ways to make money in the recording industry.

That doesn't mean fans shouldn't expect an album at some point.

"We're still piecing things together for a five- or six-song EP," said Simmons. "Just to get a taste of what he is about and see how people will respond. We want to finish the whole [album] but we want to test the water with the strongest material."

Joyner's favorite song he's written thus far is "Just Live and Let Love," because of its political content. Eager to reach out to fans to see how they like the material, he posts songs on video sharing Web site YouTube.com and on his MySpace.com page and exchanges messages with fans. He performed at The Sideline bar in Largo April 1 and after singing at a Bowie Baysox game, eagerly signed autographs and posed for pictures.

No doubt, Joyner said he is very grateful for the exposure he got on "American Idol."

"With the way I sang the songs I showed people that I'm a real artist," he said.

E-mail Andrea Noble at anoble@gazette.net.