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5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
We now have the top two we anticipated two months ago: David Cook vs. David Archuleta. This should be a humdinger, as Simon dubbed it. And yes, kids, that’s not a dirty phrase. Dated, yes. Not dirty.
Syesha Mercado finished No. 3, the spot I predicted in mid March before the top 12 performed. I’m proud of that one!
She’s a beautiful gal who sang consistently well throughout the competition. I really enjoyed her “Tobacco Road” and “Me and Mr. Jones” in the semifinals and became a fan. Her “Yesterday” was exceptional. Along the way, she made a few minor stumbles in song choice (Fantasia’s “I Believe,” especially) and skirted defeat five times. She picked up some steam near the end, with “A Change is Gonna Come” receiving her the most praise.
Through all the themes, her versatility was her strength and weakness. She always managed to make something out of whatever was handed to her. She never had a truly awful jaw-droppingly bad performance. She didn’t forget her lyrics. She moved the stage well. On the downside, she never had that Fantasia “Summertime” moment. She lacked that singular presence that would make her a potentially successful R&B singer. I’m not sure who she is as a performer. But Broadway? Perfect! She can become somebody else and do it well.
So I’ve gotten three out of nine guesses right based on night-after predictions. Of the top 12 I picked in order nine weeks ago, I got four correct. I made two wildly bad predictions—Kristy Lee out week one and David Hernandez landing in the top 5. My original top 12 was 12-Kristy Lee 11-Ramiele 10-Chikezie 9-Ramiele 8-Michael Johns 7-Brooke 6-Carly 5-David H. 4-Jason 3-Syesha 2-David C. 1-David A.
Anyway, here’s a quick rundown of the episode before the results:
Ryan’s hyperbole is in full force tonight as he notes that missing the top 2 for the third-place finisher is “devastating.” Not… really.
David Hernandez and Chikezie Ezie are in the audience, along with Andrew Lloyd Weber. Group sing: “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us now.” There were 56 million votes for the top 3, up from 51 million a week earlier. (Last year, there were 60 million votes tallied at this point and 50 million season five.)
Fantasia comes on relatively early for the results show. Her hair is very, um, red. It’s a very funky song. But I’m not likin’ it. It’s called “Bore Me” and comes from her second album. Simon looks flummoxed to say the least!
I guess they want to reserve time for the three hometown visits. First up: David Archuleta. Murray, Utah. “Good Day Utah.” 101.5/The Eagle. The Gateway Mall. Lotsa screaming girls. He’s overwhelmed and teary. “Gosh!” he says many times.
And to kill more time, they show his “farewell” video, just in case. And they use Graham Colton’s “Best Days” instead of “Celebrate Me Home.”
Syesha goes to Sarasota. “Good Day Tampa Bay.” Her elementary school in Bradenton. She goes to her house. (David somehow misses out on that.) “I struggled with drugs and alcohol for years,” her dad said. “This is like a natural high to me. This gives me a purpose to stay clean.” She gets a parade with the parents to her high school. The Fox TV copter to a concert in Sarasota. “I didn’t expect to cry so much,” she said.
During her “farewell” video, they use Fantasia’s “I Believe” while Syesha utters cliche after cliche about “if you believe in yourself, anything is possible.” (The problem being, that isn’t really true. Just watch the “Idol” auditions!)
At 9:42 p.m., David Cook gets the spotlight. “Good Day Kansas City.” He does a weather report. Hits a radio station. Goes downtown for a big concert where he does an acoustic version of “Living on a Prayer.” His elementary school, where he sees his proud music teacher. We meet his bro and he chokes up during the parade. Is David crying, too? Fox knows how to push those buttons, eh? We see his high school stadium appearance and a brief moment at the Royals game.
His video features “What About Now” by Daughtry.
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5/13: Idol top 3 performance show
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sorry about starting this so late. Played tennis, then hit the weights (negating the exercise with a yummy coffee mocha milkshake at Steak n Shake, ahem). So it’s now past 10 p.m. and I’m hitting the DVR.
Interestingly, the personal picks by the trio were relatively weak. The producer’s picks were truly atrocious. But the judges did a solid job and their picks made my top three. Overall, it wasn’t a terribly memorable night.
As for the performances, David Cook does indeed win the night, as Simon said. And David Archuleta was a solid second, doing about as well as you’d expect, with or without Daddy Dearest. Syesha was good but not good enough at this stage.
It’s an easy call: say goodbye to Syesha. Even with Paula predicting a David/David finale, I can’t see enough Syesha fans rallying to defeat either David. The fact is, since neither Dave tripped up, they didn’t change what has been an almost inevitable outcome since the beginning of the top 12. Syesha has made an admirable late run but no way she can break the combo. [Dialidol.com has Syesha safely at the bottom.]
My predictive track record this season is abysmal—I’m only 2 out of 8. I actually did better before the top 12 started—I’ve gotten three right so far from that stage.
My rankings:
1-David Cook (“First Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” Roberta Flack, Simon’s pick) third - What a strange choice. “It’s one of the great songs of all time,” Simon said. “Unlike Randy [with Syesha,] I wanted him to do something different. David has a chance to show some originality.” I’m sure Daughtry couldn’t do this song as well as David. This forces David to hit his higher register, which isn’t half bad. He clearly decided to infuse it with some real soul, as opposed to phoning it in, which he easily could have done. Great money shot note at the end. Even Simon clapped! Randy: “Loved the high note at the end but I wish Simon had picked something as predictable as this older kind of song. I want you to rock.” Paula: “That is one of my favorite songs. Now you’re the second favorite person to sing it.” Simon: “I thought it was one of your best performances to date. This is what makes you brilliant. Round one goes to Cook and Cowell!” A
2-David Archuleta (“And So It Goes” by Billy Joel, Paula’s pick) first song sung - I’m a huge Billy Joel song and since season two, Billy has seldom, if ever, has popped up. This was a top 5 soft rock hit for Billy but not one of his better known songs. Carmen Rasmussen did it not quite so well that year during Billy Joel week. I do love it. It’s pensive, yet melodically sweet. He slows it down and gives it a hymnal feeling. David hits it out of the park. Randy: “The Billy Joel thing works for you… You’re in the zone. You’re in it to win it, baby!” (Hasn’t he said those phrases like 40 times already? Get a thesaurus, dawg!) Paula: “It was a pure and stunning performance.” Simon: “It was very good. You know, no surprises. Bit predictable.” A/A-minus
3-Syesha Mercardo (“If I Ain’t Go You” Alicia Keys, Randy’s pick) second - I think purposely picked this song to see if she could be an R&B star. She does it well but is she a commercial R&B artist along the lines of Alicia Keys? I’m really not sure. It’s good but she simply can’t transcend the essence that is Alicia. Randy: “I thought that would work really well on you. You did an amazing job. I’m so happy you’re peaking at the right time.” Paula: “I’m very proud you’re the very last lady standing.” Simon: “You sang that very well. I just wish that Randy had chosen something for you, you weren’t going to sound like the original.” B-plus
4-David Archuleta (“With You” by Chris Brown, David’s pick) fourth — Yah! A current song! We haven’t had many of those this season. And this is one of my favorite songs of 2008. it’s hilarious seeing him utter the word “boo.” He almost messes up partway through proving this is a deceptively difficult song to sing. And a smart choice to appeal to the googly-eyed teens. And he doesn’t embarrass himself. Randy: “I applaud you are trying something new and young. Seeing you sing ‘my boo’ is unbelievable.” Paula: “It’s in the right tone of your voice. You’re so used to singing ballads…This is another part of who you. I’d work getting into it and not extending the phrases.” Simon: “I applaud you didn’t do a treacly ballad. It was a little bit like a chihuahua being a tiger in so much as it’s not really you. It was a bit awkward, the dancing.” [Simon is right.] But I like the song so he gets a B-plus
5-David Cook (“I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing,” producer’s pick) pimp spot - I hate, hate, hate this song. Did I emphasize I hate this song? But give David credit: he makes it almost tolerable. [Josh Gracin took a stab at it and so did, get this—Antonella Barba last year.] And he is working’ the money note again! Randy: “I love the song. It was okay for me. Very predictable.” Paula: “This is where the beginning, middle and ending is. David—see ya in the finals!” Simon: “One of the great songs of all time. David Cook wins the night.” B-plus
6-Syesha Mercado (“Hit Me Up” Gia Farrell, producer’s pick) eighth up — This was a No. 1 hit — in Hungary but barely scraped the charts here in 2006. It’s not a bad party song, the type of song Syesha hasn’t done much of. He does a perfectly adequate job. Randy: “It was just okay for me.” Paula: “It was from the ‘Happy Feet’ soundtrack. You did the song very well. I just want to tell you. As much as I liked it, I’m not sure if it defines you as Syesha the artist. I don’t know if it will get you into the finals of American Idol.” Simon: “It was better than the second song. Your best moment last week was the Sam Cooke song. The problem with that song. It’s a little bit forgettable. It’s fun and young but didn’t give you the defining moment at the end of this song.” [You can’t blame her. She didn’t pick the song!] B/B-plus
7-David Archuleta (“Longer” Dan Fogelberg, producer’s pick) seventh up — Speaking of treacly ballads, this one truly takes the cake, a cake with two tablespoons of sugar too many. The late great Fogelberg’s hit feels so retro ’70s and Archuleta can’t do much to save it from the mush that it is. Randy: “You can sing the phone book. You’re in the zone. Another hot one from you.” Paula: “Very lovely.” Simon: “You sang the song very well. However, the song and the lyrics are horrible. It’s so gooey. But you’ve done enough to get in the finals next week.” B
8-Syesha Mercado (“Fever” by Peggy Lee, Syesha’s pick) fifth up “I like the vibe of the song,” she said. “And I wanted to use the chair.” Paris Bennett did a pretty good job on this song two years ago. This is a good pick cos it has a Broadway vibe to it. Although she does a competent job, I was left kinda cold. No fever for me. Now if Kat McPhee had done it… Randy: “Very interesting song choice. What I will highlight. You sang it amazingly well.” Paula: “Out of all the songs, I’m surprised you picked this song. I’m not sure it shows who Syesha is as an artist.” [harsh for Paula!] Simon: “You will probably regret that decision tomorrow. You could have picked a song to show you as a contemporary. artist. It was a lame cabaret performance.” B/B-minus [My wife noted that she didn’t really work the chair well either.]
9-David Cook (“Dare You To Move” Switchfoot, David’s personal pick) sixth up - He had already planned to sing Collective Soul but switched to Switchfoot instead. Not sure why. It was a top 10 hit for the alternative rock band though I was personally bored by the song whenever it hit the radio. And he only makes it marginally better, even though he did finish with a flourish. Randy: “A little pitchy.” Paula: “I feel like you just got to the beginning when it hit the end of the song. I wanted more.” [Yes, it felt truncated.] Simon: “I don’t think it’s the best melodic song.” B/B-minus
In a TV Guide interview, Archuleta defended his dad before Jeff’s banishment: “I’ve heard the weird things that people have been saying, and it’s kind of a bummer. My dad’s been great. He understands more than anyone what I want.” (Would you expect anything else from the Arch?)
Executive producer Nigel Lythgoe explained the situation with Jeff at ew.com::
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: There have been reports that Jeff Archuleta was banished from backstage, but then David’s vocal coach gave a radio interview in which he said that wasn’t the case. What light can you shed on this?
NIGEL LYTHGOE: “Banished” is a terrible word, isn’t it? It sounds like we’re in some far-off kingdom. He has been asked not to participate in the choice of music with David or be in the room when David is working out his routines that he wants to sing. He’s fine to be in the studio — nothing wrong with that. We just want David to be able to be free like everybody else to get on and do what they want to do.
Naturally, TMZ reports that Jeff Archuleta Tuesday night was buddy buddy with Randy but not Nigel!.
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5/13: Top 3 strengths & weaknesses
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
While everyone is anticipating the long-awaited David vs. David finale, let’s give Syesha some due and weight each person’s strengths and weaknesses as we enter the home stretch of season seven:
David Cook
Four-word description: Daughtry, with more soul
Strengths: He brings growly sincerity and manly confidence to all his work. He can take a seemingly shallow pop song and shape it in a way that gives it a real depth. He’s comfortable on stage. And he doesn’t seem arrogant in an offputting way, like Daughtry did at times season five. Vocally, he seldom misses a note. He could be packaged quite successful in the rock-pop realm.
Weaknesses: He’s not the best-looking dude on earth and when he tried to pull off a Simon LeBon-like sexiness last week, it didn’t really work. And his fallback position is to ape that grunge-lite Nickelback sound, which can be a bit repetitive and tiresome in large doses.
Odds of winning: 3-2
David Archuleta
Three-word description: Donny Osmond redux
Strengths: He has a pliable, comforting voice that can warm the soul when properly engaged. He’s got puppy-dog good looks, appealing to 13 year olds and their moms. He can take on a ballad with surprising depth, especially if it has some sort of social message. He possesses a real heart. And he could do quite well in a Josh Grobin sort of way.
Weaknesses: He is only 17 and seems like he’s 13. His lack of maturity means it’s hard to predict where he’ll land in 10 or 20 years. He seems uncomfortable with anything with an edge and doesn’t seem to know how to apply himself on stage when it comes to moving more than two or three inches to his left or right. (Jordin Sparks had the same movement problem last year.) Guys don’t generally seem to find him all that interesting, but they aren’t the primary voters either.
Odds of winning 5-4
Syesha Mercado
Two-word description: Broadway bound
Strengths: She clearly has great acting ability, able to take on different genres with verve and a take-no-prisoners raison d’etre. Her vocals are always solid, if not distinctive or spectacular. She’s pretty, though not in an intimidating way.
Weaknesses: She always seems like she’s acting. If she has a “real” core to her, it’s sometimes hard to see. She is not a pure pop singer, lacking a top 40 sensibility.
Odds of winning: 20-1
I have to meet some friends for dinner but will add some extra “Idol” news later.
In the meantime, here’s MJ’s video of Jason Castro performing “Daydream” on “Ellen DeGeneres”:
-The debate over Archuleta’s dad’s influence over the kid continues unabated. Will David be helped or hurt by his dad’s reduced presence? MJ thinks it’s a win-win for David. He will get pity votes if he folds and if he does better, well, then they’ll say this was a good thing for David. In other words, David will be in the final two.
It’s hard to tell without knowing the family dynamics, says Charlie Toft, who covers television for film.com and is on USA TODAY’s Idol coach panel, which offers weekly advice to contestants. “Of all the major teenage contestants Idol has ever had, David appears to be the most heavily programmed and least spontaneous, and his stereotypically showy way of singing suggests he and his father have been aiming at this goal for a long time.”
I heard nothing of the sort in terms of “stage parent” issues with Diana DeGarmo (and I like her mom a lot) or with Jordin Sparks, the other two under-18 contestants who made it to the final three.
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5/12: Hometown visits, Archuleta’s dad banned!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I remember when Fox did this for Diana DeGarmo four years ago in Snellville. It’s a highly orchestrated hometown visit for the final three. Here’s a summary of their trips.
-Murray, Utah. greeted David Archuleta at his high school and at a mall, where 2,000 showed up. The governor named it “David Archuleta Day.” He sang the National Anthem at the NBA playoff game though ESPN wasn’t allowed to air it because of some sort of exclusivity deal with Fox. An AT&T rep claims Archuleta drew more than comparable events for Syesha and Cook, though blog commentators in K.C. say Cook didn’t do anything specific for AT&T and brought in 10,000 people at a high school stadium. DJSlim has video of his anthem and Syesha’s, too.
-Syesha Mercado hung out in Bradenton, Fla., doing a concert at the riverfront where she sang “Proud Mary,” visiting her elementary and high school (which is in Sarasota) and singing the anthem at a Rays game. This Tampa blogger captured the scene quite nicely.. She also attended Florida International University. This Miami Herald piece claims she’s the first Floridian to make the top 3, which I’m sure makes Vonzell Solomon (top 3, season four) feel great! The story noted that Randy Jackson wants her to sing Alicia Keys’ “I Ain’t Got You”on Tuesday as the judge’s choice. And yes, Manatee County proclaimed it “Syesha Mercado Day.”
-In Kansas City, David Cook sang “Living on a Prayer” and “Always Be My Baby” at the Power & Light District and later sang “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” at the Royals. (Thanks Tricia for the info) He leaked to the Fox 4 Morning show that he will be singing Atlanta-based Collective Soul’s “The World I Know” this Tuesday. The judges want him to sing (huh?) “First Time I Ever Saw Your Face” by Roberta Flack. How about that for strange? And yes, of course, he got to have his own “David Cook” day. Of course!
-And how about this for juicy gossip? TMZ and Associated Press both say David Archuleta’s dad Jeff was booted from the show for being a pain in the patootie. Apparently, he had insisted Archuleta add a line from Sean Kingston’s song “Beautiful Girls” into “Stand By Me,” which producers nixed. Archuleta did it anyway. It caused problems with the song’s publisher and cost “Idol” money, TMZ claims. Jeff has been nixed from the backstage although technically Archuleta is a minor and needs a guardian. I wonder how the legalities of this will play out and will Archuleta be better without his dad breathing down his neck while he rehearses with the band and vocal coach? Jeff will be able to sit in the audience, lucky guy. I heard later that Jeff is only technically banned from rehearsals and song consultations.
-For the first time since the beginning of the top 24, David Archuleta is not longer the gamblers’ presumptive favorite. Cook is now slightly ahead.
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5/9: Should “Idol” skew younger?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Simon Cowell generally hates precocious young teen singers, though he has been fairly kind to David Archuleta. But he told Extra that going younger may be the way to go, especially on a show that is losing younger viewers.
“All these shows, including Idol, in the future are going to have to go younger. We’re going to have to drop the age from 16 to 14 soon.”
Do you agree? I’m not too psyched about the idea. Younger kids don’t tend to know who they are yet and that can be a handicap.
Remember “American Juniors”?
In other “Idol” news:
-Some “Idol” reject from season three who compared himself to Clay Aiken was arrested for soliciting sex with 10 year olds,. I think I blocked this dude out of my brain.
-Carmen Rasmussen from season two thinks that David Archuleta is still the fav to win it all.
-Today is the day each of the top 3 is getting the hometown treatment. I’ll post some of what happened over the weekend.
-Some fans of Jason Castro didn’t believe he said he wanted to go home to Entertainment Weekly. Well, he admit he said it to her in a follow up interview. and he was just frustrated at the time.
-Sacre bleu! A hometown writer in Salt Lake City dares to critique the hometown teen contestant in the form of David Archuleta!. Been there, done that!
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5/8: Jason Castro exit interview: “I’m a chronic yawner.”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In today’s press conference, Jason Castro proved he could say full sentences and denied he was tanking on purpose.
He also said the yawning he did on camera was not an indication of ennui toward the show, that people who noticed thought it was funny. “I am a chronic yawner,” he said.
I asked him specifically if he said “Don’t vote” Tuesday night.
“I was trying to emphasize ‘Vote,’ ” by saying it twice, he said. “Nobody heard me. I sat down and was thinking about it. It had the same syllable. [Don’t and vote.] [The second time,] I consciously went and said ‘vote’ once.”
On Simon saying he forgot his words on purpose. “I did not do that on purpose. I can’t believe I forgot such a popular line [during ‘Mr. Tambourine Man.’] THat’s writtong on your soul. It somehow slipped my mind.”
Insisting he wanted to win: “I still wanted to win. I think it came down to my inexperience. Once we doubled on songs, I couldn’t focus. My mind was just split. I couldn’t deliver either [song.]” Later he added. “I was doing my best.” He said when he said he wanted out to “Entertainment Weekly” a couple weeks ago, “A lot was going on that morning. I don’t know. That kind of came across wrong. People were kind of thinking I didn’t want to be there. That was never my mindset.”
How much experience does he have: “I started playing guitar freshman year and singing soon after. I’d learn songs but never all the way through. So trying to do two was tough.” [Longest set he’s ever done: 30 minutes.]
Songs he couldn’t get cleared: As we know, he said “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley didn’t get aired because Danger Mouse nixed clearance after he had already performed it. He also almost got “Santeria” by Sublime cleared, then it wasn’t.
Why so mellow? “I’m grounded. Nothing comes as a surprise to me, but, um, I don’t know. I am like that. I’m not always so calm. I am kind of goofy. Some don’t see my hyperness. I still have fun. I am pretty relaxed about everything.”
Doing two songs: “I was losing that power. I couldn’t connect with the songs in the given time. I wasn’t committed to either one. I couldn’t fall in love with them.”
HIs speaking skills: “I’m an awkward conversationalist. I’m trying my best now! What you see is what you get. I didn’t change at all coming here.”
HIs singing and performance skills: “I’m as raw as it gets.”
On Paula’s snafu last week: “That was kind of funny. I was confused… I don’t think it affected my performance [of his second song.]”
Was he relieved by his departure: “It was my natural reaction. I felt relieved. The pressure was off. I loved my time on there. I would have liked to have gone farther.”
Watching “Idol” in past years: He vaguely remembers watching it one season in college.
On Jeff Buckley’s “Hallelujah” doing so well after he sang it: “I realized the power of ‘American Idol.’ It was such an honor. Cool. People hadn’t heard it. Now they have.”
What he wanted to sing next week: “Blue Eyes” by the Carey Brothers, from the “Garden State” soundtrack. (see below)
In other “Idol” news:
-DJSlim has what is a song by Jennifer Hudson called “All Dressed Up In Love.” I really like it but it sounds very ’60s, very old school, not modern at all. I have no clue where he got it from or whether it will be on her upcoming album.
-Reports are that Jordin Sparks is back to work, her voice recovered.
-Jon Peter Lewis from season three is going to be on “Good Day Atlanta” on WAGA-TV next Thursday, May 15. I can’t say he was going to be a star, but he seemed like a nice pen salesman. I’m not sure if he’s selling pens right now but that was Simon’s prediction for him.
-Q100 had Randy Jackson, Kat McPhee and Elliott Yamin on the phone this morning at the same time. McPhee said she was thinking of throwing in the towel earliy on and both said the show was extremely stressful. She felt she got worse as she went along. McPhee had Kellie Pickler at her wedding. Randy placed Kat and Elliott on his album. The trio are promoting the song “Real Love.”
-Phil Stacey’s self-titled new album opened at No. 43 with 13,000 copies sold, which is about what I would have expected. That’s comparable to Josh Gracin’s second CD, which opened a few weeks ago at 18,000. Stacey’s single “If You Didn’t Love Me” is at No. 28 on the country charts in its 15th week while Gracin’s “We Weren’t Crazy” is at No. 22 in its 29th week, according to Radio & Records. Last year, Bucky sold 61K in his first week.
-Jordin Sparks passed Taylor Hicks with 19K more sold and has 717K total. She’s now the fifth highest selling “Idol” winner, only behind Taylor. She’s now selling far more downloads—more than 3 million. Daughtry is at 4.02 million with 17K more sold. Carrie’s latest is at 2.06 mil with 14K sold while “Some Hearts” moves another 9K and is at 6.4 mil. These numbers all courtesy of Idol Chatter.
-For Clay Aiken’s “On My Way Here,” first-week sales, as projected by Hits Daily Double,, based on first-day sales is 80,000 to 85,000. That’s down from 205,000 for his last release “A Thousand Different Ways” in 2006, 270,000 for his Christmas CD in 2004 and 612,000 copies of his very first CD right after he came in second to Ruben Studdard in 2003.
And according to Georgia Claymate prez, Jenna McBride, this is what I missed Monday night at Manuel’s while I was trying to find my camera (to no avail):
*We had about 25 or so there last night. Most of the Georgia Claymates were in NYC for Clay’s last performance in Spamalot and some stayed over to attend the NYC CD Release Party and some stayed over for the CD signing today at Virgin Megastore in NYC. We had two girls who had literally just flown in for the party last night and came straight from the airport. It was an awesome party. And we especially enjoyed having my friend Jason there who came and played and sang. I think that Jason said that he knows you. His name is Jason Bowen. He is a singer/song writer for Sony/AVT or ATV (one or the other). Sony has changed so many names recently with so many different departments it’s hard to keep up.
Jason has been writing songs for Sony for about 12 years and he just happens to be friends also with Ryan Tedder, the guy who wrote the lead song on Clay’s new CD, “On My Way Here”. Of course Jason sang it for us last night and did a magnificent job. He and Ryan have co-written songs before and he sang one of them last night also. It was awesome too. And another song that he sang last night was one that he wrote that Sony has sent to Kelly Clarkson for consideration. Jason also sang a couple of other songs that Clay has recorded. Hopefully Jason will be able to write some for Clay some day and since their voices and style are somewhat similar, I would love it if he could sing backup for Clay also. Jason has toured with Barry Manilow as a backup singer.
Here are a couple of reviews for the new Clay Aiken CD:
The Daily News gave him one star.
The music Aiken’s writers matched to such hoary bromides continues the singer’s established love for the kind of power ballads that died in the mid-’80s. In this world, the band Mr. Mister still rules; Rick Springfield remains a pop player.
At least such warm-milk pop suits Aiken’s creamy tone. More than ever, he sounds like Boy George, only not so butch.
Here’s the Baltimore Sun, somewhat kinder:
As much as his record company would want him to be, Aiken isn’t a crossover pop star. He’s a male Celine Dion, a nerdier Michael Bublé, a new-millennium Barry Manilow, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The sooner he embraces that, the better his albums will sound. With “On the Way Here,” he’s not quite there.
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5/7: Whoa! Jason is (finally) gone! Idol top 4 elimination show, slipping ratings
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Has anybody been more relieved to be leaving “Idol”? Probably not!
Jason Castro is finally able to grab a beer, relax and go home. Phew!
The farewell video is amusing because it shows him dancing with that happy Asian dude during auditions singing “Since U Been Gone.” He is truly a goofball, a sweet kid. And he left us a couple of great performances (“Over the Rainbow,” “Hallelujah”) and as Paula says, a real person and a wonderful Jack Johnson surfer dude vibe.
But in recent weeks, he’s either become overwhelmed or tired or both because he clearly wasn’t able to deal with the workload. Two songs in one week? Whoa! That’s too much to memorize!
“Three songs next week. I don’t know what I would have done!” he said.
For only the second time, I correctly predicted the person leaving. (Ramiele is the other one.) But if you look at my original top 12 eight weeks ago, this is the third person I nabbed correctly back then (Michael, Carly, now Jason.). My top 3 at that time was 1) David Archuleta 2) David Cook and 3) Syesha Mercado. I’m most proud of the fact I had faith in Syesha to make it this far. It’s far more fun than noting that I thought David Hernandez would finish in the top 5!
Anyway, the first 54 minutes was the usual filler.
By 9:24 p.m., we know the two Davids are safe, of course. No shocker forthcoming. Thank God. That meant 30 more minutes to wait for the answer between Syesha and Jason.
In case you fastfowarded the first portion of the show or simply skipped it, Ryan noted that there were 51 million votes and the top 3 were all within 1 million votes of each other. That means they each got probably around 13 to 15 million each assuming Jason only got 6 to 8 million votes. We shall see.
The group sing was “Reelin’ in the Years.” Carly Smithson was in the audience again. “Idols Live” tickets go on sale May 17 with a stop at Gwinnett Arena August 18. The top 3 go to their hometowns. The Idols were flown to see “Love” in Vegas on a private 737 - with a bed. “Sleeping in the sky. Ooooh… cool,” said the ever articulate Jason.
I skipped most of the Q&A. I doubt I missed anything. Throwing in Maroon 5 was a blatant play to keep the fleeing 12 to 34 year olds to stick around. Bo Bice harkened back to season four.
Some folks think Jason Castro last night was mouthing the words “Don’t vote!” to the camera as Ryan Seacrest was giving out the numbers. I was typing frantically at the time and as usual, not watching. Some think he simply repeated the word “Vote!” Hard to tell. Go to 4:12 or so:
Then again, it’s a moot point. He’s going home. Right? Right? We do not want a Daughtry or Tamyra tonight.
In other “Idol” news:
-Ace Young and Brandon Rogers are making cameos on Bones next Monday May 12 during a singing contest, in which Brennan takes part and sings “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” Bones, as Brennan is known, has no clue what “American Idol” is of course.
-Clay fans are having a field day cos he’s popping up on all the talk shows. Here he is on Good Morning America, thanks to the amazing MJ on MJs’ blog:
-And if you really have a lot of time on your hands, Billboard’s Fred Bronson (nice guy!) interviewed the top 10 contestants. The top 4 are featured here..
-[MSNBC reports that Ryan Seacrest might take over for Larry King as early as next year,] based on a couple of anonymous CNN sources. Seacrest already subs in for Larry. Would this be a good idea? If anybody has the time, though, it’s Ryan, that lazy schlub.
_While I’ve been enjoying this season more than last year, the ratings keep on getting worse. Last night was under 22 million compared to 25.5 million a year ago for the same episode. That’s about a 14 percent drop year over year. Alan Sepinwall, a highly respected TV writer for the Star Ledger in New Jersey, picks the show apart here. He hates the themes this year (which arguably haven’t always been so hot), he thinks this the deepest group without “stinkaroos” like Sanjaya but lacking any truly great great stars besides David Cook and he thinks the contestants look miserable and tired. He abhors the Q&A sessions (which have been truly time fillers) and the mosh pit, which isn’t necessarily awful but that hand waving has to go!
And this is a topic I might bring up as a separate blog entry later this week— perhaps “Idol” is packing too much on the contestants so they are truly exhausted? But are things really any tougher than they were season one? I might have to call Debra Byrd. She’d have a good sense of things…
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5/6: Top 4 performance show
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s songs that cleared from the 500 most influential songs of the rock era courtesy of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Here’s the list for reference.
The Who and Bob Dylan cleared songs, I think, for the first time. And that may have been the first time we heard Bob Marley. The Who should be happy. Not so with Dylan.
Jason Castro should have gone home last week. Can his fans save him tonight after? It will probably be Syesha and Jason in the bottom two, if they even give us a bottom two. I liked his first performance but you can’t mess up lyrics in the final four and expect to skate by again. As Simon says, sorry. (Fortunately, it looks like Jason is in danger, based on dialidol.com. Let’s avoid a Daughtry/Tamyra repeat!)
My rankings:
1-David Cook (“Baba O’Riley” The Who) fifth - The song everyone mistakenly thinks is called “Teenage Wasteland” is a much better pic than Duran Duran for Cook. He, as usual, mellows it out in the opening. He actually misses a note but he’s much more comfortable here. And it begged, begged for a much longer arrangement. I wanted more! Randy: “That’s more like the David Cook I’ve grown to love.” Paula: “I want more David Cook!” Simon: “Welcome back, David Cook!” A/A-minus
2-David Archuleta (“Stand By Me” Ben E. King) Fourth - Remember Josiah Leming, the homeless kid, murder this song during Hollywood round? Well, Archuleta won’t repeat that. This is a your usual earnest song that fits Archuleta’s voice and style. He even throws in a little bit of Sean Kingston’s “Beautiful Girls.” He plays to the teen gals and they love it. Randy: “At least there’s one guy hitting the stage trying to win the whole thing. It was hot!” Paula: “You’re seasoned already.” Simon: “You could have whistled and it would have sounded better than Jason’s song. I thought you struggled a little at the end. But look, in the grand scheme of things, I’ll call that as the best performance so far.” A-minus
3-David Archuleta (“Love Me Tender” Elvis Presley) eighth and the pimp spot! - His first attempt at a romantic ballad. He tries to look smoldering but instead, he just looks like he’s squinting early on. I’m not sure I’m enjoying seeing him that close up. He kind of whispers the high note at the end. Can’t tell if that was accidental or deliberate. It was good, not quite worth a pimp spot. Randy: “Another great performance for you.” Paula: “That was my favorite performances from you. I felt your heart.” Simon: “You didn’t beat the competition tonight. You crushed the competition.” B-plus/A-minus (I noticed he hit that second to last note better in the rehearsal version when they showed it at the end.)
4-Syesha Mercado (“Proud Mary” Tina Turner) Second - This song shows her strengths and her ultimate weaknesss. She’s an actress with solid pipes, a pretty face and great stage presence. But it comes down to authenticity and however good she is, it still feels like play acting. A good act, nonetheless. And she’s about as confident as it gets. She is going for broke. Randy: “You’re showing the heat late in the competition. Very nice. ” Paula: “You look like a star. Magic happens and you made it happen.” Simon: “I’m sorry to put a slight damper on things. I thought it was a bad shrieky version. A bad version of Tina Turner.” B-plus/A-minus
5-*Jason Castro (“I Shot the Sheriff” Bob Marley & the Wailers) *Third - He finally gets to really go reggae to match his dreads. He actually seems to be enjoying this one, as opposed to Neil Diamond. I enjoyed it. It’s his best performance in ages though he didn’t really add much to it in terms of arrangement. Randy: “That was really karaoke Bob Marley.” Paula: “I never saw you perform more to the audience. I wasn’t crazy about the performance or the song.” Simon: “Stand back. That was utterly atrocious. That was a song you do not touch. This was like a first round audition massacre. I don’t know what you’re thinking.” [I don’t agree!] B-plus
6-Syesha Mercado (“A Change Is Gonna Come” Sam Cooke) sixth - It’s reasonably heartfelt but kind of boring. She does successfully hit the money note at the end. Randy: “For me, the first song I loved. I did not love this one as much. I didn’t love the arrangement. I felt you pushed out things that weren’t there. You don’t need to do anything extra. It felt all disconnected. Fell flat for me.” Paula stand and claps. “I want to hug you. How you orchestrated the vocals. Beautiful. Welcome to your dream. This is it, Syesha.” [She starts crying. That’s kinda sweet. And she keeps crying and crying.] Simon: “I have to be fair. I’m going to agree with Paula. I thought Randy got that completely wrong.” [Wow! Didn’t see that comng!] “Before I sang the song, I researched it. Found out why it was written. It came out during the civil rights movement. I feel like I’ve changed a lot.” B
7-David Cook (“Hungry Like the Wolf” - Duran Duran) First up - A bit of an odd choice. Cook has charisma but it’s not like that of Simon Le Bon and this was a rare time when it felt kind of grunge-karaoke. He didn’t add much to the song at all. So it was okay, nothing to remember in a week or two. Randy: “That was just okay for you.” Paula: “You left me with a big appetite.” Simon: “It was good. I know where he’s coming from. It’s a little copycat. Is it good enough to get you through next week, yes.” B
8-Jason Castro (“Mr. Tambourine Man” Bob Dylan/The Byrds) seventh - He goes all folksy and it’s vintage Castro for the first 15 seconds. But then he completely botches it by forgetting the lyrics and fails to fake it by going uh uh uh uh. He recovered afterwards but at this stage, there’s no excuse for that. Randy: “Jason’s not in the zone tonight.” Paula: “It is what it is. At this point in the competition, you’ve solidified your niche.” Simon: “I’d pack your suitcase.” Agreed. C
And I’d like to apologize to the Claymate folks for not making it to the CD release party. The problem: I lost my camera. I arrived at Manuel’s Tavern at about 10 p.m. yesterday and realized my camera had disappeared sometime between work, playing tennis and Manuel’s. I went back to work to try to find it but alas, it was gone. I suspect I dropped it while placing my laptop in my trunk at a parking lot downtown. And I stupidly left no contact info in the camera bag for even an honest person to figure out. So some lucky schmo has my camera and 3GB in photos. If they know anything about “Idol,” they’ll be amused. Fortunately,
Anyway, Clay’s CD “On My Way Here” is out today. And so is Chris Sligh’s “Running Back To You.”
I left a message with Jenn McBride, the organizer of the Claymate party and will update to see how it went.
In other “Idol” news:
-MJ’s Big Blog has Michael Johns and Carly Smithson dueting “One Love” on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. It’s kind of a strange take. Not nearly as good as Bono dueting with Mary J. Blige.
-CMT’s “Gone Country” was renewed and inevitably, another “Idol” finalist is in: season four contestant with the really strange pronunciation skills Mikalah Gordon. I know, I know. I can’t see it either. The others competing: Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Lorenzo Lamas (yes, “Grease”), Irene Cara (“Fame,” “Flashdance”), Chris Kirkpatrick (N Sync), Jermaine Jackson (yes, he is a Jackson), and Sean Young (actress, “No Way Out”). Sounds like a fun crew but I don’t see any of them becoming country stars. It’s in production now and set to premiere in August.
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5/5: Kellie PIckler at Etowah High School
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Kellie Pickler did graduate high school. (Really!) But she readily admits: “I’m no role model.”
Dr. Kellie Pickler or attorney Kellie Pickler doesn’t quite sound as apropos as country singer Kellie Pickler. And she’s built an impressive fan base - especially at Etowah High School in Woodstock.
ABOVE: She’s indeed a tiny gal, even compared to me!
And for kicks, Kicks 101.5 and her record label at Sony BMG took an idea that worked in Philadelphia: kids from the high school who sent the most text messages got a free concert from said Pickler.
Etowah High School principal Ron Dunnavant heard from his brother that Etowah a few weeks back was in third place in the contest. So he went on the P.A. system that Monday and told kids to push them to No. 1. He wanted to celebrate a great year in which Etowah was named a “School of Excellence” by the state, one of only four schools this year.
His students did not disappoint. They ended up texting more than 500,000 times, averaged out to 227 per student. Junior Cole Arnold (right), a Pickler fan, contributed 120,000 all by himself by hooking his phone up to automated text messaging software for an entire week. Overall, metro Atlantans sent a whopping 2 millon texts (more than doubling Philly.)
“It’s like American Idol all over again!” she said.
Originally set up as an acoustic set in the gym, the label was so impressed by the response, they drove from Nashville an entire band and set the concert up in the football field for 4,000 Etowah middle and high school students.
With a sea of posters (including “I love Kellie like a stalker” and another shaped like a pickle with her head on it), she sang for 40 minutes, including a couple of new tunes and she even teared up after “I Wonder.” “I feel like I’m singing to my peers,” said Kellie, who graduated in 2004. The cheerleaders presented her an Etowah Eagles football jersey, a megaphone with her name emblazoned on it, plus a yearbook signed by hundreds of students.
Pickler has been running almost nonstop for two years. The sixth place “Idol” finisher was the first one out of the box with a CD before anybody else from the Class of 2006. After the show and the tour, she began promoting her album with a radio tour that led her to a Douglasville mall. She generated three top 20 hits over the next 18 months with almost nonstop touring, including stints opening for Brad Paisley and Rascal Flatts. She has sold more than 740,000 albums, more than Taylor Hicks and all the other Class of ‘06ers except Daughtry.
I spoke with her for a few minutes in the media center. (I guess they don’t call them libraries anymore.).
Do you text message?
I’m not a very big phone person. I’m not carrying it around. But I’d rather text than to talk to people on the phone!
Why aren’t you a big phone person?
I’m around people all day long. I like my space where I don’t have to be talking all the time. It’s important to have me time.
What phone do you have?
I have an iPhone. I go through phones like people change their clothes. I probably have had every phone out there. I’ve had four a Blackberry, I had a Pearl I dropped down four flights of stairs. I had a World phone on the USO tour. Pretty much blew that up. And I dropped an iPhone into the commode at a Cheesecake Factory. Luckily, it was before I used the bathroom!
I saw you opening for Rascal Flatts a few months ago and you cried after singing “I Wonder.” (the autobiographical song about her mom, whom she is estranged.) How often does that happen?
Every once in awhile it really hits me. It’s such an emotional song. It’s so personal yet I’m doing it in front of thousands of people. It becomes overwhelming. I can put the microphone down and hear everyone singing the song. You look into the crowd and see a mom holding her child, a little girl. That gets me sometimes.
You handling this whirlwind life okay so far?
It’s just crazy! The whole thing is sort of surreal. It becomes overwhelming constantly on the go. It’s very rare for me to slow down and absorb everything, the whole experience and the atmosphere. Sometimes, after a show, I have to lay down in bed and tell myself to slow down. I’m still adrenalized, still pumped from getting off the stage. I think, ‘Am I really doing this?’ This is what I wanted since I was a little girl.
ABOVE: Yup, she does have to wear red high heels, in tribute to her breakthrough song.
How was the USO tour?
It was amazing. I knew Toby Keith had done it. It was an incredible learning experience, really eye opening. It just makes you appreciate your life. You learn not to take even small things for granted.
What’s your favorite moment with a soldier?
There’s this song on my record, “Small Town Girl.” It’s actually one of the first songs I ever wrote about my hometown [Albermarle, N.C.] I had one soldier say when I sung that, he closed his eyes and it felt like he was back home. That was one of the coolest things someone ever said to me. It motivated me to want to go back.
So are you still getting flak for not knowing your European countries on “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?”
I have ot say I’ll have to tell these students to pay attention in class or you’ll look like a dumb*ss on television. But I don’t know anybody but a handful of people who knew that Budapest was the capital of Hungary. A lot of people won’t admit it but I was honest. I say what I think!
Are you touring this summer or working on a new album?
I’m doing both. I’m hitting some fairs and festivals. I’m doing a fair with Kid Rock in South Dakota. Hopefully nobody hits me over the head with a pool stick!
[Someone then said, “Don’t join him in a Waffle House!” Not sure if she got that!]
Finally, what’s on your iPod?
I can’t get mine to work. I’m computer illiterate. I do listen to CDs. I love Dolly Parton and Fergie. I love John Mayer. He’s one of my favorites. Keith, Kenny.
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5/5: Idol cliches
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I saw a headline on mjsbigblog about 11 major “Idol” cliches culled from seven seasons.
I decided not to read their cliches and see if I can come up with 11 myself. Feel free to add your own. These are off the top of my head and not in any order:
1-Ryan’s dramatic cold open, with the camera panning each contestant and him saying, “THIS…is… American Idol!”
2-Splitting the final seven into two groups and forcing the seventh to make a decision which one is the eliminated group. They’ve done it at least four years in a row.
3-Simon’s tight black shirts & his fake “sorry” apology when he’s saying something negative and the crowd is booing.
4-Cameras closing in on any surviving contestant crying after someone is eliminated. And if the contestant is crying, the others come on stage to join the person and console him or her (usually her.)
5-Paula’s halting, grammatically challenged, “Up With People” commentary.
6-Dawg, these cliches are hot! They’re da bomb!
7-Starting a ballad by sitting on the steps and gazing into the camera in close up, before pulling back, standing up and doing the “big” note standing up.
8-During auditions, those painfully stupid montages in which they have everybody sing the same song and do it badly.
9-The opening of the audition door and the contestant flashing the yellow piece of paper as relatives and friends leap and jump as if they’ve won the lottery, often with Ryan as collateral damage.
10-The endless archetypes during audition rounds—the country rube, the arrogant woman who talks back to the judges, the dork, the comatose dude, the military person, the gal whose relative just died, the man whose wife is about to have a baby, the little person with the big voice, the ebullient big dude.
11-The mentor enters a room with the contestants and they do a group sing of one of his/her famous songs. Then the mentors hugs the contestants, who express awe.
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Have a good day Flats, come back tomorrow and we can discuss how juicy one of the performers looked last night. I need a new desktop background, anybody know of a site that has pictures of Fantasia from last night?... read the full comment by JTesla | Comment on 5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David! Read 5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David!
http://www.bruboz.com/map-e.html map e... read the full comment by travel | Comment on 3/24: Whatever happened to.. season three? Sales figures & Clay's new CD, too Read 3/24: Whatever happened to.. season three? Sales figures & Clay's new CD, too
sORRY GUYS…i JUST HAVE NOT BEEN A GOOD MOOD LATELY!I’m gonna step away for the day.Yall have fun!... read the full comment by flats | Comment on 5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David! Read 5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David!
I stand corrected: I just read a recent article saying that Simon things David COOK should / is going to win the title. He must’ve changed his prediction from early in the season. Now I’m all confused! Only tonight will tell…... read the full comment by Making Sense | Comment on 5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David! Read 5/14: Top 3 Idol results show - David vs. David!