After tormenting us with three weeks of audition shows, we have finally moved on to the Hollywood rounds where at least the people can sing - or at least they’re supposed to be able to sing. At any rate, this is also Ellen Degeneres’ debut as an Idol judge, not an insignificant fact either.
Idol has brought 181 people to Hollywood and have split them into two groups that will sing for survival over the course of two days. The auditions are being held at the Kodak Theatre - the place where the Idol finale used to be held.
We speed through the various rounds, showing only a handful of performances, and highlighting people we “met” along the way. First up are Katie Stevens (Alzheimer grandma) and Ski-Bo-Ski (of the many mugshots). Ski-Bo-Ski kinda skeers the judges with his rendition of “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg” and Katie sings “For Once in my Life.” Katie gets the nod to advance, but it’s the end of the road for Ski-Bo-Ski. (more…)
The auditions are over, and this week, American Idol moves on to the Hollywood rounds where 170 or so hopefuls will be whittled down to the Top 24. This year, the Idol powers that be are offering up two weeks of coverage, which is a good thing.
This will also be the first time we see Ellen Degeneres sitting at the judges’ table. It seems like years since she was announced as the replacement for Paula Abdul who quit back in August! I’m not completely sure this is a good thing, but I suppose we’ll just have to watch and see.
So far, nothing much has leaked about the antics taking place in Hollywood - other than the Top 24 spoilers, of course. I really enjoy this part of the process, though, even though I kinda sorta believe the spoilers are pretty accurate.
Tuesday’s one-hour show starts at 8 p.m. and Wednesday’s at 9 p.m.
There’s talk on Broadway that two American Idol alum - Ace Young (Season 5) and Diana DeGarmo (Season 3) are being considered for replacement roles in the New York production of Hair.
Since leaving Idol, Diana has amassed an impressive resume on Broadway, appearing in Hairspray, The Toxic Avenger, Brooklyn the Musical, Oz the Musical, and other local shows. Ace has appeared as Kenickie in Grease.
The current New York cast will be headed to London, opening at the Gielgud Theater on April 14. The new Broadway cast will make its first appearance March 9.
Hair will continue its run at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre in New York.
Carrie Underwood sings the national anthem before the start of the NFL Super Bowl XLIV (Peter Gay / AP)
Even more Carrie Underwood news! Wanted to post a video of her excellent performance of the National Anthem at the Super Bowl. She did it live without accompaniment, which is quite a feat.
Is it just my imagination or is Carrie Underwood everywhere these days? The latest Carrie siting is on the cover of the March issue of Cosmopolitan magazine! No need for a whole lot of Photoshopping for Carrie. Nope! Not particularly digging the dress, but you can’t deny Carrie is smoking hot!
I wonder how she feels about being surrounded by article titles such as “How I Solved Our Sex Issue,” though! And I’m dying to know what love lie 52% of men tell!
The New York Post’s Page Six is claiming that shock jock, Howard Stern, is talking to the folks at American Idol about the possibility of his replacing Simon Cowell on the judging panel. Simon will be leaving the show at the end of the current season.
“I was approached by a major TV network to take over a TV show and leave here and do that next year — and I did turn it down … I’m not even sure if I want to be working. I’m waiting to see what happens,” Stern said recently on his Sirius radio show.
Marc Berman, senior television editor at Mediaweek, calls this idea an “enormous gamble.”
“He certainly is a name,” Berman says. “He certainly is not afraid to speak his mind. He would create a lot of controversy. If they’re looking to keep the show on the map, it’s not a bad idea.”
A name indeed! In my humble opinion, Idol without Simon will be on a fast track to oblivion. Simon can be mean, but his opinions are usually somewhat factually based. He also has a good ear for what will sell (can you say Carrie Underwood) and who has the potential to be a breakout artist. Howard Stern is just mean and mean doesn’t necessarily equate to success when it comes to judging a talent competition.
At least Simon can be constructive at times! No, I’m not really buying this one, but we’ve learned that the Idol “powers that be” are all about ratings. The addition of Howard Stern could give the first Simon-less season somewhat of a boost. At least the folks at Vote for the Worst would have a champion on the panel!
American Idol 8’sDanny Gokey is gearing up to promote his upcoming country album, My Best Days. The album drops March 2. Danny is out on the road promoting his single, “My Best Days are Ahead of Me,” working the radio circuit. The single is charting at No. 41 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
Last month, Danny, Carrie Underwood, and several other country music stars visited children at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as part of the Country Cares for St. Jude Kids fund-raising radiothon.
“The one thing I noticed is that this is a happy place,”‘ Danny said, “And you see the children and there is so much hope and optimism in their eyes.”
Fresh from her Grammy win , Carrie Underwood is headed to Hawaii to start work on her first film . Carrie will play a church youth leader in Soul Surfer, the story of surfer Bethany Hamilton, who was attacked by a shark and lost an arm.
The movie also features Anna Sophia Robb, Helen Hunt, Dennis Quaid, Lorraine Nicholson, and Sean Brosnan.
Meanwhile, Carrie is beginning to plan her wedding to Mike Fisher. “I’m Southern. I like big hair and eyeliner. I want my wedding to be me, so I’ll probably be rocking some big hair and eyeliner,” she told reporters on the reporters at the People’s Choice red carpet.
Jennifer Hudson arrives at the Pre-Grammy Gala on January 30. (Photo: Reuters)
Jennifer Hudson is working on her second album, and according to several sources , is getting some assistance from John Legend. On February 2, Legend twittered: “In the studio (with) the lovely Jennifer Hudson. I’m not singing. She’s recording a couple songs my team and I wrote for her. And she sounds beautiful.”
Jennifer and John Legend will perform Feb. 10 at the White House as part of “In Performance at the White House: A Celebration of Music From the Civil Rights Movement.” The show, which also includes Smokey Robinson, Natalie Cole, Seal, John Mellencamp, the Blind Boys of Alabama, and Bob Dylan, will air on PBS at 8 p.m. Feb. 11.
On February 1, Jennifer paid tribute to Whitney Houston as part of a BET special honoring the legendary diva . Jennifer sang Whitney’s signature song, “I Will Always Love You.
Can I get a hallelujah? The American Idol 9 auditions are over and next week, we move on to Hollywood. Hooray! But, before we move on, the Idol producers decided we need just one more night of auditions. Calling it the “Best of the Rest,” Wednesday’s show actually focused on some of the better auditions and many of those people are on the spoiler list (surprise, surprise).
I was particularly impressed by Crystal Bowersox, who sang Janis Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart” and Michael Lynche (right), the guy who was rumored to have been disqualified because his father blabbed to the press, but who is now firmly entrenched on the Top 24 listing. He sang “Unchained Melody,” and while it was corny, he has a good voice and is rather hot in a jockish kinda way! I like this guy.
We also had a chance to hear from Jessica Furney (“Footprints in the Sand”), Amanda Shechtman, Lee Dewyze (“Ain’t No Sunshine”), Lacey Brown (“Over the Rainbow” ),
Didi Benami (“Hey Jude”), Aaron Kelly (“The Climb”), Kimberly Bishop (”I Kissed a Girl), and Hope Johnson.
Not a bad show, actually, and a good way to wrap up the audition phase.
Some Today.com contributors may have received a fee or a promotional
product or service from a manufacturer for promotional consideration,
while others receive no consideration at all. Each contributor is
responsible for disclosing any such promotional consideration.
the Hollywood rounds where at least the people can sing - or at least they’re supposed to be able to sing. At any rate, this is also Ellen Degeneres’ debut as an Idol judge, not an insignificant fact either.
