Access Atlanta > American Idol Buzz > Archives > 2007 > December
December 2007
1/1: Top 50 spoilers (including Carly Hennessy?)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Happy New Year! Thank you for 1.74 million page views last year. That wasn’t quite as big as 2006, arguably “Idol’s” beacon year, but not bad considering how lame the season was overall. Let’s beat that mark in 2008!
Joesplace, registration required, has been collecting intelligence on who the top 50 are. In the past, such spoilers have had a fair amount of accuracy.
At least five are from Georgia so the odds aren’t bad that at least one of the final 24 will be from our fine state. We, of course, won’t know for sure until mid February. Check it out if you’re curious.
And Vote for the Worst thinks that a former failed singer Carly Hennessy (above) will be among the final 50. She was featured by a former Wall Street Journal acquaintance of mine, Jennifer Ordonez, on page one of the newspaper as an example of how screwy the record industry is (or was in 2002). MCA invested $2.2 million in her, but she sold a measly 378 copies three months after the album’s release.
Hennessy, a Dublin native now around 25 years old, apparently tried out for “Idol’ in 2005 and Simon liked her, but she had visa issues that kept her from making it to the fianl 24. That’s all cleared up now. AI producer Nigel Lythgoe even alluded to her in a New York Post story recently.]
Her MCA site is still up though it’s obvious she is no longer with them since the last story was from August 22, 2002.
Here’s the video for her song “I’m Gonna Blow Your Mind.” It’s a decent pop tune.
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12/31: American Idol predictions for 2008
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I made a few timid predictions a year ago and actually got a couple sort of right. Let’s see how I do for 2008:
1- Let’s start easy. Last year, I made a rather prescient prediction about ratings finally falling after five amazing years of upward motion. Okay, so it was going to have to happen eventually so it wasn’t exactly a forehead-slapping prediction. In fact, the ratings opened big last year with 37 million viewers, the best ever. But the numbers flagged later in the season as ennui set in over the season six contestants. I think last year may cause millions to disappear from the get go, even with the writers strike. I bet the opener will be more like 30 million and I predict the show will drop at least 10 percent over a year ago and the younger viewers will flee even faster. That will still make “Idol” by far the biggest show in the land but will indicate some folks have gotten bored enough to move on as we enter season seven.
2- Although there won’t be as many celebrity “mentors” as last year, the producers will still nab a couple of big ones such as Mariah Carey, Steven Tyler and James Taylor.
3- Simon Cowell will become ill and miss an episode for the first time ever. Nigel comes in and covers for him.
4- One of the final 12 will be openly gay and “Idol” won’t hide that fact, which will generate some controversy though probably no more than Fantasia and the single mom bit a few years back.
5- Here’s another easy guess. This group of 12 will be much more interesting than last year’s. While I can’t see it being as cool as the best top 12 ever from season five, it will be comparable to season four.
6- The winner will be from the Midwest and will be a guy. (Hey, at least I have something like a 50/50 shot on that second prediction, eh?)
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12/28: My 2007 Idol predictions in retrospect
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
On January 1, 2007, I made five not-so-bold predictions about “Idol.” Let’s see how I did.
1 - After five consecutive seasons in which the show’s popularity increased, this will be the season folks will start complaining that it has jumped the shark and ratings fall a modest 5 percent. That’s not enough for Fox to panic but other networks gleefully chuckle to themselves that Fox’s savior may have seen its best days in the rear-view mirror.
Wow. I hit the mark perfectly on this one. Although the results show was up slightly, the performance show dropped about 5 percent while 18-49 numbers dropped even further.
2 - Simon gets nastier. Is it possible? Of course! He’s now insanely rich and working on so many other shows that his occasional irascible boredom escalates.
Hmmm… I can’t say if this one worked out. I didn’t sense Simon was any meaner than usual.
3 - The mid-season “surprise” one of the exec producers recently promised will be separating the remaining contestants by race. Oh, wait. “Survivor” did that already, didn’t they? Hmm… how could they possibly surprise us? Make us vote off two contestants in one week? Nahh… Fox isn’t going to waste a week like that. Have us vote for who we want OFF the show for one week, just to see what happens? Nope. I don’t see that one. An all-opera episode? Not a chance. Beautiful women enter the stage with numbered suitcases. Contestants pick a number and must sing the song that shows up in the case. That’d be a fine, desperate move. Bringing back already eliminated contestants to heckle the existing ones while they sing? Funny but not gonna happen. Actually, maybe they’ll give folks who were voted off a chance to get back on the show? That’s one “Survivor” did, too. Feel free to throw in your own suggestions.
This one was me kind of BSing off the top of my head, mostly facetiously. Actually, “Idol” did eliminate two in one week because of “Idol Gives Back,” the closest thing to a “surprise.”
4 - Corey Clark was booted in season two and Mario Vazquez quit before season four’s final 12 started. This year, somebody voluntarily quits mid-way through for some salacious reason.
Nope. Wrong. We only prayed that Sanjaya would voluntarily leave but nothing salacious happened here. And somehow, Antonella Barba almost made it to the final 12 despite modest vocal talent and those fun wet T-shirt photos will always be available on the Web!
5 - For the first time, the winner won’t be from the South or Oklahoma. The West Coast finally gets some love after Kat almost made it in 2006.
Okay. I should get partial credit for this one since Jordin is from Glendale, Ariz. That’s not quite the West Coast, but it’s the West.
On Tuesday, I will post five more predictions for 2008.
Oh, and only about 2 million people watched the finale of “Next Great American Band” last Friday. Not a shocker there and pretty much means a zero percent chance you’ll ever see that show again.
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12/27: Blake Lewis & that lousy coronation song
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Traffic this week is understandably slower than molasses so I’m sorry myself for posting so late today. (It’s that kind of week, ya know?)
Blake Lewis recently told MTV.com he knew he was screwed when he heard “This Is My Now” and wasn’t allowed to mess with it. I don’t think this is actually fresh news per se but he was fairly blunt:
BW: When you first heard “This Is My Now,” the ballad you had to perform during the finale, did you think you were toast?
BL: Oh, totally. Me and Jordin went in a room with some guy who was producing that song and I was like, what the f— is this? This is a piece of s—. And you’re not going to let me arrange it? OK, cool. Thanks guys. I didn’t want to win American Idol anyway; I wanted to get second. Then we found out we had to learn it in, like, three days or something ridiculous. It was dumb. [Laughs.] It was just like, are you kidding me? It was really a piece of crap song. And the guys who wrote it were like, we’re sorry, dude.
Here is Blake doing the song. He’s offkey a few moments but given his own vocal limitations, he did about as well as he could have under the circumstances:
So which was the worst coronation song so far? I still think “Inside Your Heaven” that Carrie had to do season four was by far the worst, just a pure, leaden turd. Jordin’s “This Is My Now” is a very close second, just annoying to the hilt and proves just how difficult it is to create a song apropos to an “Idol” victory. Sadly, that was what was voted in by the viewers. No accounting for taste there. I have a vague feeling “Idol” won’t be repeating the songwriting contest again this year. In fact, I forgot to ask Nigel about that. We’ll get a chance to ask again I’m sure next month.
Seriously, none of the coronation songs are all that great, but it’s not surprising that Kelly’s “A Moment Like This” became the only hit. For a power ballad, it has a decent hook and worked for Kelly at the time. Ruben’s “Flying Without Wings” and Fantasia’s “I Believe” weren’t half bad either thanks to heartfelt performances though I like “I Believe” a smidge more. Taylor’s “Do I Make You Proud” was treacly pablum but Taylor tried his best to make it tolerable.
So my personal rankings from best to worst:
1- “A Moment Like This”
2- “I Believe”
3- “Flying Without Wings”
4- “Do I Make You Proud”
5- “This Is My Now”
6- “Inside Your Heaven”
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12/26: Looking to ‘08
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Since there is virtually no news going on in “Idol” land, I’ll post a question: what are you hoping for most in “Idol” land in 2008, either for the show or for its alums?
Fox did release its early schedule for “Idol,” and it’s virtually the same as last year. There will be four weeks of auditions, a total of eight episodes and 10 hours over seven cities, starting January 15. On February 12, there is a two-hour Hollywood round show. On February 13, the 24 semifinalists are revealed. Then it’s three weeks of semifinals to trim the 24 to 12. The final 12 starts March 11.
And DJSlim over at “Idol Blog Live” posted a video of Katharine at the Disney Christmas Parade here.. She sings a medley of Disney songs such as “If You Wish Upon a Star,” “Beauty & the Beast” and “A Whole New World.” She’s really gettin’ out there, eh?
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12/24: Idol stories of the year
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Okay, it’s Christmas Eve and I am placing an obviously pre-written item for the holidays.
What do you think were the most notable “Idol” or “Idol”-related moments of the year?
Was it Sanjaya and his “faux hawk”? Sanjaya hula dancing? That Ashley Furl crying for Sanjaya? Or maybe Sanjaya singing Bonnie Raitt badly?
Was it Blake’s beatboxing Bon Jovi?
Was it Lakisha’s show-stopping rendition of “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going”?
Was it Celine Dion during “Idol Gives Back” doing that trainwreck duet with a dead Elvis?
Was it when Nigel and Ken decided to pull a fast one on Jordin and make it seem for a few seconds that she was eliminated during that same episode but in the end, not really?
Was it the Kelly Clarkson drama with Clive Davis?
Was it the amazing career surges for both Carrie Underwood and Daughtry?
Was it Jennifer Hudson winning an Oscar for her tour de force role in “Dreamgirls”? (I finally saw the film on HBO over the weekend. She was incredible!)
Locally, my favorite moment was interviewing Ryan Seacrest at the Atlanta auditions on camera and him teasing this poor print scribe incessantly about it. My second favorite from that day was seeing the Brittenum twins again. Gotta love those guys! My least favorite moment was showing up at the Atlanta International Convention Center in October only to realize the later Idol rounds had wrapped up early. D’oh!
I also enjoyed getting treated with diva-like ennui by Paris Bennett, who came to lunch having already eaten and wearing sunglasses throughout her interview. I wonder why haven’t heard from her since?
Another notable moment for me was when Bo Bice called me personally to thank me for the time I spent with him up at the Cumming Country Fair. He is truly a nice guy. It was a lot more pleasant than dealing with the uptight managers of Josh Gracin and Jordin Sparks who told me I couldn’t talk to their clients because I didn’t get clearance from the record labels. As if either of them were going to say anything all that problematic?
And it’s comforting to know at least one former “Idol” reads this blog, namely, the very grounded and quotable Chris Sligh. He’s da man! Thanks Chris and good luck with your new label and album! And don’t worry about those folks at {TMZ, who like to make fun of Idol contestants doing rather modest events for a few bucks. Everybody’s gotta make a living!](http://www.tmz.com/2007/12/19/idols-chris-sligh-party-like-a-not-star/#comments).
In a year when I managed to catch at least six past Idols in concert (Bucky, Kelly, Elliott, Josh, Kelly, Taylor) as well as the “Idols Live” tour, my surprise guilty pleasure was Clay Aiken at Chastain. Thank you Jill for joining me on that escapade as Clay did an incredibly lengthy TV show theme medley, followed by snippets of songs such as Justin Timberlake’s “Sexyback” and Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel.” (More surreal: a month later, I watched Sanjaya do that same song far worse and far less campier.)
And I want to thank all of you bloggers who stuck through this less-than-inspiring season six of “Idol” and survived the drama of the Exiles and Flat Screen. Deirdre is my watchdog and she gets special thanks for being my sounding board this year on all issues blog related.
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12/22: Next Great American Band finale
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m in Vegas for vacation and missed the finale but did read a recap online so I do know that the Clark Brothers won. Although as I have noted that Sixwire is more commercially viable, the Clark Brothers are a special talent and will find a niche somewhere in the music world no matter what.
I’m sad the show didn’t quite gel with anybody beyond a very small core group of two to three million viewers every week. Bands are not individuals and nowadays, it’s the cult of the individual. Sure, that Friday slot wasn’t great either. I wonder how it would have done, say, in the summertime in the same time slot as “Rock Star” aired on CBS. That show actually didn’t do that badly in 2005 and 2006, but it was probably tough to find another INXS and the whole Supernova concept didn’t work.
So farewell to “Next Great American Band.” It was nice knowin’ ya!
Oh, and a little controversy where a radio jock called Paris Bennett that word that rhymes with witch, seemingly unjustly here..
And happy birthday Jordin Sparks! She turns 18 today!
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12/21: Clash of the Choirs finale
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Honestly, this finale was packed with filler so after watching a few minutes upfront, I simply fastforwarded to the end to see Nick Lachey’s team winnning. Woohoo! I at least got the winner right! And he richly deserved it.
NBC’s “30 Rock” star Tracy Morgan came in to announce the winner. Tracy Morgan? His film “First Sunday” is giving away the $250,000. Not exactly the first person — or 95th person — I’d think of to do this. And he’s wearing a turtleneck. Morgan being serious is bizarro.
Ratings last night held firm, with 8.3 million viewers compared to 8 million opening night and 7.7 million Tuesday night.
Anyway, I’ll backtrack and watch some of the performances, which at this point really don’t matter in terms of any voting. DJ Slim provides the videos, of which I’ll link to a few I liked:
The opener: Christmas carols. Patti LaBelle’s team does a rather bad version of “Sleigh Ride.” Team Bolton team does a decent version of “Silver Bells.” Team Rowland does a very clean, fun take on “Jingle Bell Rock.” But Team Lachey sounds amazingly smooth doing “Let It Snow.” Team Shelton ends with an all-over-the-place “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” with the worst choreography. Just seeing the choirs side by side proved that Nick Lachey put together the best choir.
Team Shelton’s “Celebration.” This over-played party song is so tired, I can’t muster any energy getting excited about this. The guy who sang the first verse was bizarrely off key. The line dancing was laughable. A few of the soloists were decent, at least. (Full disclosure: at age 10, I actually bought this single.)
Team LaBelle’s “No More Drama.” Very few can pull off the passion and actual drama singing this Mary J. Blige classic. And I’m sorry. Although her lead singer (who looks but doesn’t sing like Fantasia) seemed to be missing something that would have taken the song to Blige-like epic levels.
Team Lachey’s “What a Wonderful World.”: Quiet, introspective, just plain lovely. He also split the solos up, again using his team very effectively.
Team Rowland’s “Survivor”; Since Kelly’s team was ousted, she didn’t get a chance to sing her solo. She takes a Destiny’s Child classic. It’s a bit over the top but I enjoyed it.
Team Bolton’s “When a Man Loves a Woman”: Ack. Bolton singing blue-eyed soul has never done it for me. zzzz.. wake me up when it’s over.
Team Shelton’s “Boondocks”: One of the military guys got to get some solo work. It’s a perfectly passable cover of this Little Big Town hit. (Shots of Miranda Lambert every day must mean she and Blake are dating.)
Team Bolton’s “Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing”: The solo singers were good on this Marvin Gaye classic, but the arrangement was fairly tepid.
Team Rowland’s “One Sweet Day”: In this Boyz II Men/Mariah Carey collaboration, the female singer didn’t quite hit the high notes but she was better than the male singer. The little deaf dad moment was sweet. It’s hard to criticize the sentiment.
Team LaBelle’s “We Are the Champions”: She chose this Queen song as a statement. The two male solos were good, especially the second dude.
Team Lachey’s “Sing a Song”: Yet more proof why Lachey’s choir won. There was party-like choreography, fine harmonies, just pure delight through and through. You must watch this!
So is this show worth bringing back once a year? Seems like perfectly harmless fun to me right before Christmas. And the ratings, while just okay, were certainly good enough for NBC to do so.
In “Idol” related news, here’s a salacious item: Vivid Entertainment is releasing the Jessica Sierra “hardcore” sex video on January 30 and has a trailer out there in cyberspace. I’m sure if you want to see it, you’ll be able to find it but I’m certainly not going to link to it! Oh, and TMZ reports she’s preggers to boot!. Merry Christmas, Jessica!
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12/31: Idol predictions for 2008
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I made a few timid predictions a year ago and actually got a couple sort of right. Let’s see how I do for 2008:
1- Last year, I made a rather prescient prediction about ratings finally falling after five amazing years of upward motion. Okay, so it was going to have to happen eventually so it wasn’t exactly an incredible prediction. In fact, the ratings opened big last year with 37 million viewers, the best ever. But the numbers flagged later in the season as ennui set in over the season six contestants. I think last year may cause millions to disappear from the get go, even with the writers strike. I bet the opener will be more like 30 million and I predict the show will drop at least 10 percent over a year ago and the younger viewers will flee even faster. That will still make “Idol” by far the biggest show in the land but will indicate some folks have gotten bored enough to move on.
2- Although there won’t be as many celebrity “mentors” as last year, they will still nab a couple of big ones such as Mariah Carey, Steven Tyler and James Taylor.
3-
4-
5- The winner will be from the Midwest and will be a guy. This prediction is a pure guess.
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12/20: Ruben Studdard dropped by J Records
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ruben Studdard became the first “Idol” winner to lose his record deal. The lovable “velvet teddy bear” was dropped by J Records after three records, Ruben’s brother Kevin confirmed to me this morning.
But Ruben’s co-manager Jonathan Effinger said Ruben is still with 19 Entertainment, that they are now shopping for another label for him. Ruben has already started recording cuts for his fourth album, having just gotten back from working with producers in Copenhagen, Denmark.
“19 decided to find another record label to put his vision out,” Effinger said. “19 has a pretty good idea what they want to do and want to be given the flexibility to do it. Just looking at the album sales, I don’t think they reflect Ruben’s ability or fan base.”
Ruben’s sales have dropped since his first CD sold 1.8 million. His second album, a gospel release, moved another 437,000. His current R&B album, which came out in 2006, only moved 235,000.
Effinger said Ruben wants to make an album with a more live sound. “His voice needs to go to another arena and develop a different sound,” Effinger said. The departure from J “was not an angry situation. The time with J was good. There are no hard feeelings.”
J Records represents Taylor Hicks, Fantasia, Jennifer Hudson (whose album is due out next year), Carrie Underwood and Blake Lewis.
Effinger said he’ll get Ruben on the phone for an update so I’ll post something new if that’s the case. Ruben last month told me he was doing the national tour of “Ain’t Misbehavin’ ” next year and that hasn’t changed.
12/20: Clash of the Choirs show #3
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
My predictive powers went nowhere again. I said Team Shelton would be out but it was Team Bolton instead. That military/country vote power trumped the Bolton fans.
And oh, how the mighty have fallen. I was disappointed with Patti LaBelle’s choir. Sure, she just tore the roof off that mother on “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” but that was all Patti. I’m off Patti’s train and have jumped onto Nick’s. His often risky song choices, his nifty choreography and his ability to entertain should mean $250,000 for his hometown Cincy and those sick kids at the local children’s hospital..
II was out late so I was able to fast forward through a lot of the chaff — and there was plenty. Sure, it’s all for charity but man, the gushing was a bit much!
And despite the fact most of you have panned the show, it held its audience Tuesday, with 7.7 million viewers and virtually the same number of 18 to 49 year olds as Monday.
Each choir got to sing three times. The first was any song, the second was holiday themed, the third was a song with the celebrity from their songbook Here’s my rankings for the three remaining choirs and videos of some of the songs. (Thank you dJslim again!)
1- Team Lachey with “Flight of the Bumblebee”//”All I Want For Christmas” (Maria Carey)//”What’s Left Of Me”: Nick is taking the biggest chances and this one was so out of left field, it worked. No guts, no glory! The feint up front was cute and the performance was pure fun. His choir experience showed.
His second tune was the amazingly delightful Mariah Carey tune. It’s hard to lose with this chipper classic (if you want to call a 13 year old song a classic). Nick’s first kiss gal was hot!
Nick used his choir effectively for his solo hit ballad “What’s Left Of Me.” Again, he put together a wonderful, engaging arrangement and sang from his heart. Bravo!
2- Team Shelton with “Home” (Marc Broussard)//”Joy To The World”//”This Can’t Be Good”: He really took a chance with a foot-stompin’, bluesy tune and pulls it off. They did it with conviction. The harmonies on the upper end didn’t meld but that female soloist midway through raised the roof. This was easily Shelton’s best performance.
He played it safe going with the standard “Joy to the World,” a song that choirs actually do sing. I did like he threw in a bit of the Three Dog Night song, too.
Then Blake did one of his own songs, one I’ve never heard of. The break when the choir scatted a bit was great. He utliized the choir fairly well and they added some extra energy to the tune.
3- Team LaBelle with “Jesus Take The Wheel” (Carrie Underwood)/ “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” (Andy Williams)//”Somewhere Over the Rainbow”: The lead singer who took on Carrie Underwood’s instant classic was just decent. She simply couldn’t hit the big notes with real authority. For the second night in a row, Patti didn’t make it much of a team effort and it hurt. I wasn’t moved.
The holiday song was just okay, almost boring. Where did the mojo go, Patti?
Fortunately, the choir did finish up strong with “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” though that was almost singularly due to the magic of Patti at the mike. Who needs the choir? She is just amazing, even at her age. Off with the shoes! Here it is:
And since this is an “Idol” blog, here are some “Idol” related bits:
Idol sales were big this week as Christmas nears (thank you Idol Chatter over on the USA Today site!). Carrie’s “Carnival Ride” sells another 138K and is past 1.4 million while Jordin moves another 62K and exceeds 283K. Daughtry moved another 60K and 3.47 mil total (2.29 mil so far in 2007, No. 3 best-selling CD of the year.) Blake Lewis, in his second week, quickly fell behind Jordin and Daughtry with 58K and is up to about 156K. Carrie’s “Some Hearts” sold another 31K and is up to 6.12 million. Kellie Pickler is No. 200 with 8K sold and 679K total. Taylor selling 500, is at 698K. The gap between those two is now just 21,000. Elliott, at 465K, is closing in on Fantasia at 498K. Kelly Clarkson’s three albums are at 2.7 mil, 5.91 mil and 721K repsectively. Bo is 30K, Mandisa is at 62K, Clay is at 521K and Bucky, 307K while Kat is at 363K. Ruben is stuck at 236K, Constantine at 22K, Paris 20K and Kimberley 17K.
Okay, if you knew RJ Helton from Cumming, you may or may not want to see photos gleaned from the vile Perez Hilton Web site here.. If anything, it’s not the Helton you may recall from his “Idol” days.
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12/19: Clash of the Choirs show #2
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well, I’m glad Nick Lachey’s team stuck around but it was criminal to see Team Rowland go home. I liked her choir’s take on George Michael’s “Freedom.” But this is definitely a case of name recognition, timing, song choice and demographics. Kelly’s fans were probably not as prevalant (or as plentiful) as Bolton’s. And her team performed second, which is not the best place to be during a two-hour show. Oh, well.
So far, the show has definitely stretched the definition of what a choir is. In most cases tonight, it was a lead singer or two, with a bunch of backup choir singers, nothing terribly special to me. Still, it was better than night one.
From a ratings standpoint, I thought this show would bomb Monday. It actually brought in a respectable 8 million viewers and came in 2nd among 18 to 49 year olds.
Again, the comments by the other judges was a waste of time. Typical comment from Michael Bolton about Team Shelton: “I thought they were great tonight. Great vocals, great energy, a really great performance.” Gee, was it really that great, Michael? At least Patti LaBelle was colorful in her praise. “I’m menopausal. I was sweating anyway. You made me stand up!”
The videos are courtesy of DJSlim’s Idol blog.
1- Team Lachey’s “Friends in Low Places” (Garth Brooks)(below) Nick has the best eye for great choreography (however sloppily executed) and he definitely had fun with this one. The lead singer has real skills, a genuine charm and warmth in his voice. It was much more variety show but it worked. For pure entertainment value, it was arguably better than LaBelle’s choir. I thought about it and have to give it to Nick as the favorite of the night, just barely edging out Patti LaBelle’s team.
2- Team LaBelle’s “I’ll Stand By You.” (The Pretenders) (Below) Ah… Carrie Underwood’s song. Again, this choir rocked, this time with a ballad. It’s the closest to a traditional choir in its makeup and choreography.The harmonies were crisp and wondrous, the lead singer just adequate. Seriously, Jennifer Hudson, LaKisha Jones, LaToya London, Fantasia or Tamyra Gray could blow her away. If her vocals were just a wee better, I would have placed them at No. 1 easily.
3- Team Bolton’s “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” (Diana Ross)(below) This is a much smarter song choice, a crowd pleaser. The choreography was lame (raise your hands when you say “high” and point downward for the word “low”) and the rendition very conventional but the choir showed plenty of energy in a Vegas-y sort of way. It was marginally better than Team Shelton.
4- Team Shelton’s “Takin’ it to the Streets.” (The Doobie Brothers) Ah… Taylor Hicks’ song. One of the male singers in the second verse was really offkey. This felt more like a skit from “Fame.” It was very loose and very un-choir like. I can’t say the harmonies were especially great but it’s hard to mess with that catchy chorus.
I say Team Shelton goes home tomorrow.
And to get in the Christmas spirit, here’s Kellie Pickler warbling “Santa Baby” on the “Today” show from djSlim:
I also came across this rather sad news report about Kellie and her estranged mom, the source of the song “I Wonder.”
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12/18: Clash of the Choirs show #1
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Go Patti LaBelle! And go Philly!
NBC has put together a music competition that’s family friendly and appropriate for the holiday season: the four-day “Clash of the Choirs” starting Monday night for $250,000 in charity. (The finale is Thursday.) They brought in five celebs to compile choirs from each hometown: top stars are R&B diva LaBelle and soul crooner Michael Bolton, followed by Nick Lachey (“98 Degrees,” Jessica Simpson’s hubby) and Kelly Rowland (Destiny’s Child) and mid-level country star Blake Shelton, who’s B level at best even in the country world with three no. 1 hits and 13 top 40 hits since 2001.
Each celeb held auditions in their hometowns and picked 20 people for a choir.
One observation: having the other celebs “judge” each other’s choir is pure silliness and a waste of time. Nobody was going to say anything bad about their competitors no matter how blah they were. Simon would just roll his eyes watching this spectacle.
For all of its good intentions, this show is probably going to bomb. Choirs are not the sexiest draw, especially for younger viewers. It just seems like too much of a stretch as producers try yet another permutation of “Idol.” If the choirs were amazing, I’d feel okay about this but outside of Patti’s team, the performances were too spotty and some of the song picks highly questionable. Natasha Bedingfield? Bon Jovi? Tom Cochrane? Huh?
Here are my more specific thoughts on the five choirs from best to worst.
1- Team LaBelle from Philadelphia I have a bias toward Patti LaBelle (above) because I got to meet her earlier in March at a Wal-Mart and she was nothing short of a delight. Chatty and funny, she’s also a diabetic (like me and Elliott.) She’s imbues the show with humor and grace. I loved her reaction when auditioners sang “Lady Marmalade” over and over - and how she pushed for her singer, the not-so-obvious white guy with real chops and soul vs. a big Ruben-type who didn’t quite have the charisma. As for the choir’s “He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands,” it was inspiring, dynamic and vocally superior to the competitors. This was a true team effort, just brilliant. You can see why the show producers placed them at the end.
2- Team Rowland from Houston Kelly offered a very faithful version of George Michael’s “Freedom,” which has a wonderful, uplifting chorus for a choir. She gave solos to the Asian dude and the black guy with a cowboy hat. They were both okay, not great. Overall, I liked it, didn’t love it. This was a serious distant second.
And the bottom three, well, it was close call. It’s hard to say which was the worst. None really impressed me.
3- Team Shelton from Oklahoma City Blake admitted he knew zip about putting a choir together and it showed. I loved how he picked the brains of a choral director, then cut him. Funny! He smartly picked a couple of military guys to virtually guarantee his choir will be back tomorrow. He ended up selecting a rather tired Tom Cochrane rock song “Life is a Highway.” The choreography was fun and there was decent chemistry. I wish the male vocals had more stage presence but the vocals were adequate.
4- Team Lachey from Cincinnati First of all, while “Unwritten” isn’t a half bad pop song, it’s still too poppy for a choir, even with the gospel elements amped up to 11. The two lead singers he opened with were relatively weak and lacking in stage presence. The choreography was incredibly cheesy. It was pretty darn tepid, even with a spirited ending.
5- Team Bolton from New Haven Bon Jovi’s “Living on a Prayer” for a choir??? Where was the beat boxing? :) The lead guy who opened wasn’t half bad but it wasn’t quite a team effort. I did enjoy seeing the 77-year-old grandma gal singing the chorus to a Bon Jovi song. This was definitely the worst song choice for a choir and they suffered as a result.
My prediction is Lachey’s group is a goner because he went first and Bolton has more appeal probably for the types of folks voting. Lachey’s crowd probably isn’t watching this show but Bolton’s certainly is.
12/17: Kelly Clarkson on Miss Belgium
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This is clearly going to be a slooow week so let’s show some videos!
Kelly Clarkson is well loved in Europe, too. Here she is from Saturday performing at the Miss Belgium pageant. Question: is this really a good use of her time to be doing a pageant show in Belgium?
And here’s “Never Again” from the same show with the producers showing a verses of it in black & white and the chorus in color. Her dress looks great, flatters her figure. And vocally, she’s just fine.
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12/16: Fantasia “Purple” no shows, Kat with the prez
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Uh oh. Fantasia, who was getting big praise for her performances of “The Color Purple,” has missed 50 performances since April, an average of more than one a week. She is technically obligated to do eight performances a week.
According to The New York Post,, Fantasia’s out a lot because she’s simply not up to the grueling Broadway schedule.
Well, she is done next month. I wonder what her next step will be?
Here’s Kat McPhee with Atlanta’s Ne-Yo and Vanessa Hudgens entertaining the prez at the Christmas in Washington special aired on TNT last week. Has Pres. Bush ever said he watched “Idol”? Would he even know who Kat McPhee is?
First, it’s the opener, where she sings a bit of “This Christmas.” As always, Kat looks great!
And here’s the closer where she sings “O Come Ye Faithful.” She actually sings this one pretty well but dials back from hitting the BIG note at the end for whatever reason. Pres. Bush looks impressed!
Meanwhile, if you are between ages 10 and 15, “Idol Camp” is back next summer, this time in San Bernardino instead of Massachusetts. Details to apply are here.
And “Gone Country,” the CMT show which features non-country acts trying to be country (including Diana DeGarmo) debuts January 25 at 8 p.m.
Plus, Jordin Sparks is due to sing the National Anthem for next month’s Super Bowl.
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12/15: Next Great American Band recap #9
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
At this stage of the competition, I dont’ think there’s much any of these bands can do to change my opinions of them. And after this episode, I’d say that it really hasn’t.
Light of Doom finally came home and I finally got it right. It was well past due for them. It’ll be interesting to see if we ever hear from them again.
Denver & the Mile High Orchestra, as noted by the judges, will be a great corporate draw and make a fine living doing that. But as recording artists? No way. That original “You Move Me” wasn’t bad but hardly moved me. I have no clue why the judges were so enthusiastic about it.
I was actually a bit underwhelmed by the Clark Brothers this week. “Change the World” was just a wee bit too gritty for my taste but it may be the lovely original version by Eric Clapton that’s too enmeshed in my brain. I’m not a fan of Lonestar’s overplayed “Amazed” so it’s hard for me to enjoy anybody singing it. And I was disappointed they chose a gospel standard instead of an original to cap it and really show they are here to win it.
Sixwire, in the meantime, proved that they might be able to take this whole shebang. Their “Reelin’ in the Years” was perfectly solid. England Dan & John Ford Coley as the second pick? That “I’d Really Love to See You Tonight” is so soft rock, but probably hits the sweet spot of their 35-54 female draw. And their original “Good to Be Back” proves why they could end up on the charts once again if country radio gives them a chance.
Although the Clark Brothers by pure talent could win, my prediction for overall broad appeal: Sixwire.
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12/14: Nigel Lythgoe: focus on the contestants, not mentors
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s a quick summary of what “Idol” producer Nigel Lythgoe said during Thursday’s phone press conference to talk about season seven and (briefly) the stumbling “Next Great American Band.”
On mentors: There will be fewer of them. “We got carried away with the mentors” last year, he conceded. “We will spend more time talking about the kids and their lives.” He even suggested more screen time for their families.
On any changes next year As for major changes this year, don’t expect much. “The new talent freshens it up every year. There are a few things we’d like to change. I’d like a new set, new titles. I’d like to maybe get some free botox for Simon or something.”
On ratings: When asked about the ratings, which dipped slightly (at least the performance episodes did) for the first time ever, he said he wasn’t worried because even if “Idol’ lost half its audience, it’d still be one of America’s biggest shows. True. “I let others worry about ratings. I worry about making the best show possible while I’m employed here.” That’s only partly true because how could he not worry given the stakes?
On bad singers predominating the audition episodes: That won’t change. It’s worked up to this point so why change what he called the “Cirque Du No Talent”?
This year’s talent Unlike Simon and the judges, he didn’t hype this as the best talent ever. He did say there were some incredible individual talents. He also defended season six’s crew, feeling it was the best as a group, if not individually. I disagree. Season five in terms of depth (and breadth) was by far the most talented and I bet a majority of “Idol” viewers would agree. (Just the fact eight of them got record deals says everything.)
More “Idol”? He said he has fended off Fox’s efforts to add even more hours though that pressure may be even greater this year due to the strike. But he’d be happy to offer up “Next Great American Band” again, he joked.
No tricks on “Idol Gives Back” I asked about “Idol Gives Back” and whether they were going to fake out the contestants again and then not eliminate anybody. He said earlier this year, due to the situation, he had to schedule “Idol Gives Back” on a regular elimination day but he refused to cut anybody. But he was willing to mess with Jordin’s brain for the sake of TV. So he’s no saint! :) But this year, “Idol Gives Back” will air on Wednesday April 9 and the results show will air on Thursday April 10.
I asked if a true Beatles theme night will ever come to be “I always keep my fingers crossed every year.” He then said there’s no sign of Paul McCartney being a mentor. The defenders of the Lennon/McCartney songbook, he said are “becoming a little more lenient” as evidenced by the fact they may finally land on iTunes next year.
The order of audition episodes when the season launches Jan. 15 That hasn’t been resolved. But his favorite audition city for pure talent was San Diego. And Philly had enough train wrecks for him to want to focus on that one up front.
Contestants with instruments After allowing instruments during the Hollywood round, he said the jury is still out about allowing them during the main competition simply because he wants it to be an even playing field.
Taylor shouldn’t have won? He made some interesting comments when asked his favorite of the six “IdoL” winners. He conceded more out of sentimentality for Kelly Clarkson being the first and helping give “Idol” serious credibility as a star marker. He also loved Ruben Studdard but wished he had done more standards in that “velvet teddy bear” way instead of going more hip-hop urban (though his last CD was pretty much straightforward R&B.) He touted Fantasia for her acting skills. And he believes Carrie, being in country, will have amazing longevity. Jordin, he thinks, will develop into a fine pop singer. The only winner he thought the public made a mistake on was Taylor Hicks. “He brought performance and fun to the table,” Nigel said. But “Daughtry was the musical star of the year. I think people sometimes don’t vote when they think their favorite is secure.”
Jerkwad question Who did he think was the biggest “jerkwad,” the word used by one of the reporters? He said it was Corey Clark (the man who claimed to have slept with Paula) but when Nigel referenced him, he honestly couldn’t think of his name off the top of his head. (Probably purposely blocked it!)
More recent songs frequently sung by auditioners Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy.” Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten.” And Rihanna’s “Umbrella.” Wow, that latter one could be a complete disaster to try to sing well in an audition!
On why “Next Great American Band” failed He said many of the same things judge Dicko said a couple weeks back. The time slot is tough and many folks who love bands may be out watching bands. Plus, it’s hard to glom onto bands as opposed to individuals. And he’s rooting for Clark Brothers. No surprise there. He downplayed the commercial appeal of Sixwire, though. I think Sixwire is more commercial than the Clark Brothers!
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12/13: Idol Gives Back is coming back
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: Ahh.. the memories. A dead Elvis dueting with a live Celine Dion at the first “Idol Gives Back.”
Although “Idol” producer Nigel Lythgoe has said the focus season seven will be on the contestants, not the guest hosts and other shenanigans, the show producers couldn’t help but bring back the noble, if distracting, “Idol Gives Back” special, set for April 9. The public gave more than $75 million to children in Africa and the U.S. earlier this year so how can you criticize that? We can only hope they are going to skip the charade of pretending to eliminatie someone that day? (I still feel bad for Jordin there!)
I bet this year they will simply make it a special separate from the regular “Idol” shows. That seems to make the most sense. Maybe this time, they can get Daughtry to duet with, um, Kurt Cobain? Carrie duet with, Johnny Cash? Taylor riff with the late great Ray Charles?
Lythgoe will actually be doing a phone conference Thursday afternoon about “Next Great American Band” and “Idol” so if you have any questions you’d like me to ask him specifically, I”m taking requests.
Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks are going to perform on the Fox New Year’s party. No surprise there with the synergy.
Blake’s CD on Billboard’s SoundScan charts debuted at No. 10 with 98,000 sold. That’s only 21,000 fewer than Jordin. Among runners-up, he did better than Diana DeGarmo (47K) and Justin Guarini (57K), not as well as Kat McPhee (116K), Clay Aiken (613K) or Bo Bice (227K).
Here’s Blake at AOL Sessions doing “Break Anotha”:
Carrie outsold Blake for the week with 107K more of “Carnival Ride” and 1.27 million total, according to totals compiled by Idol Chatter. Her first CD sold 23K and is up to 6.09 million.
Jordin’s CD fell to 24 in its third week, with sales of 52K and 222K total.
Daughtry moved up to 32, with 43K sold and 2.4 million total.
Elliott’s debut CD returns to the chart at 168 with sales around 7K and is up to 458K. He has a fair shot of surpassing 500K by March.
Kellie Pickler, after selling 6K, is now only 27K behind Taylor at 671K total and is ranked at 194. She could surpass Taylor by March. Also, she’s doing a USO tour right now in Iraq. Photos are here at fan site www.kelliesmusic.com..
Off the charts: Clay’s Christmas CD: 1.3 million after selling 8K. His current CD sold 300, 520K total. Kelly sold 6K of “My December” and 713K total. “Breakaway” moved 5K and is up to 5.91 million. Bucky sold 3K, 303K total Bo sold 2,200, 27K total. Fantasia is at 1,300 and 496K. She should reach 500K by late January at this rate. Mandisa moved 1,300, too, and is up to 60K. Her xmas EP is up to 1,600. Kat sold 700 and is at 362K. Kimberley sold 400 of her xmas CD and is up to 1,500 but only 100 of her current CD, up to 17K. Taylor moved 300 and is up to 698K. Constantine sold 300, at 22K. Ruben sold 100 and is at 236K. Paris sodl 100, at 20K.
T-minus 33 days until season seven starts!
12/12: Daughtry diss, Blake Lewis sales
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you don’t like Daughtry, well, neither did this Hartford Courant reviewer..
Amazingly, Clay Aiken remains a popular search term. In fact, he is the most popular male to be searched on Lycos in 2007 while Brit Brit was the numero uno female. This begs the question: who the heck still uses Lycos?
And Blake Lewis’ “Audio Daydream” did better than I predicted: nearly 100,000 in sales its first week, according to Hitsdailydouble.com. (Their estimates are usually within 5 to 10 percent of Nielsen SoundScan, as reported by Billboard magazine on Wednesdays.) I thought he’d be lucky to sell 50,000 so congrats Blake fans! Anyway, he only came in slightly below Jordin’s first-week sales. Unfortunately for Blake, his “Break Anotha” single has not broken through yet. It has edged up to 50 from 52 on the pop charts with 52 of 143 top 40 stations playing his single at least once. If he can’t get radio airplay, sales will likely sink fast.
Jordin sold another 52K or so, placing her at about 230,000. Her single “Tattoo” is still showing sold upward momentum on the top 40 charts, according to Mediabase 24/7. She’s now ranked at No. 8 with 6,816 spins, up from 6,239 a week earlier.
12/11: Elliott Yamin at Jingle Jam
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I stopped by the Gwinnett Arena to meet Elliott Yamin for a few seconds during the meet and greet. He was loose, happy go lucky and extremely nice to the lucky folks who got to meet him. And I showed him my insulin pump, same exact one as his.
ABOVE: Elliott with Tommy Sullivan, departing morning personality at Star.
ABOVE: Our photographer Robb Cohen got a shot of me with Elliott. (My insulin pump is in full evidence-his is hidden.)
ABOVE: More from Robb Cohen during the concert.
Elliott, knowing he had only 20 minutes, actually got on stage a few minutes early so he ended up playing five songs over 25 minutes. His set: “Alright,” “Free,” “One Word,” “Wait For You” and “Movin’ On.” Although he has a Christmas album, he chose not to sing a standard from his Target-only EP. He dressed in a black vest, dark striped shirt and jeans. After seven months on the road, he definitely possesses more confidence than he did back in the days of “Idol” as he channeled his inner-Steve Wonder. The tween/teem Avril-Jonas Brothers heavy crowd was kind and receptive.
According to Radio & Records based on all-format airplay, Daughtry was ranked No. 3, Carrie No.1 2, Elliott No. 36 and Fantasia No. 56. Idol Chatter over at USA Today also noted the top across-all-format songs of the year and Daughtry had two in the top 10: “It’s Not Over” at No. 8 and “Home” at No. 10. “Before He Cheats” lands at No. 18. Elliott’s “Wait For You” came in a very solid No. 22. Fantasia’s “When I See U” finished at 61 and Daughtry’s “Over You” landed at No. 74. (The chart covered late November 2006 through mid-November 2007.) Elliott’s “Wait For You” was the No. 6 song of the year on top 40, ahead of Daughtry’s “It’s Not Over” at 10. Barnes breaks down plenty more here..
In other “Idol” related news, Patti LaBelle told Newsweek she was offered the Paula Abdul slot back in 2002 for “American Idol” but turned it down because she couldn’t be mean. And obviously, in 2002, her career was in far better shape than Abdul’s so she could turn it down! (Although Paula should have the last laugh given the financial windfall she’s gotten from the show. And you have to wonder if the chemistry would have worked right.)
But LaBelle is one of five artists competing in NBC’s “Clash of the Choirs” next week (along with Michael Bolton, Blake Shelton, Nick Lachey and Kelly Rowland.) Check out more here..
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12/10: Blake Lewis video, Movies Rock special
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s Blake doing “Break Anotha” on CBS Morning News, courtesy of MJ’s Big Blog:
]Normally, hitsdailydouble.com offers up first-week sales estimates based on one-day sales but the site didn’t do it this week so I can’t tell how well or poorly Blake’s CD is doing so far. It’s ranked #21 on Amazon.
And check out Idol Blog Live for great clips of Carrie Underwood (“The Sound of Music”) and Jennifer Hudson (“Somewhere”) from CBS’s “Movies Rock” special. Apparently, Hudson had to re-do her performance and what you see on air is the two performances spliced together. Nonetheless, both proved their pipes on two difficult songs.
Below are YouTube videos of the performances, which CBS might pull by the time you see this but they were live over the weekend. Just a warning:
And this isn’t “Idol” related but here’s Usher’s amazing tribute to Gene Kelly, doing “Singin’ in the Rain” during the same special:
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12/9: Next Great American Band recap #8
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Light of Doom and Denver & the Mile High Orchestra soldier on as Dot Dot Dot get the boot boot boot. I actually enjoyed Dot Dot Dot and was saddened to see them go before we got a chance to see the lead singer try out a little Freddie Mercury. Plus, given the time constraints (one hour, four bands playing two songs each), Dot Dot Dot barely got a wave goodbye.
It was great to see the bands finally go back to singing originals. Obviously, if this show were remotely a hit (it did have its best showing in weeks with 3 million viewers Friday, its best since the debut), Fox would give it more airtime.
Anyway, here’s a quick rundown from strongest to weakest:
1- The Clark Brothers. Okay, the original song “Homestead” proves that this group with its Americana/bluegrass feel, isn’t radio friendly at all (compared to Sixwire), but the song was still sung with conviction and heft, aided by a couple of extra band members. I did love their version of Queen’s “These Are the Days Of Our Lives.”
2- Sixwire. I think this is the band the judges are pulling to win because they are arguably the only ones who could truly sell albums on mainstream country radio. (Heck, they’ve already been on country radio.) They showed their fun side with “Fat Bottomed Girls,” then gave us a girls-will-swoon ballad called “Go On.” I wasn’t a big fan but I could see it appealing to that 25-49 female demo.
3- Denver & the Mile High Orchestra. Okay, I’m bored by these guys to some extent and Queen’s “Sleeping on the Sidewalk” confirmed that, but I enjoyed “Big White House” despite the lack of a hook in the chorus.
4- Light of Doom. These kids are really trying. You gotta give them that. I thought the opening with the drums for “We Will Rock You” was fun and though their version was a bit ragged, I didn’t think it was quite as bad as the judges said. The original was a bit weak but definitely not the worst song I’ve ever heard. i just felt the lead singer looked nervous and shaky for some reason, like he knew they’ve far outlasted their welcome on the show.
Does this mean Light of Doom finally go home? I’ve been miserable in my prognostication skills recently so who knows?
I’m still rooting for the Clark Brothers to win but if Sixwire does, no complaints there.
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12/7: Gabbin’ with Elliott Yamin/ Carrie-Keith tix on sale
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
First off, Carrie Underwood’s co-headlining tour with Keith Urban comes to the Gwinnett Arena. Presale starts today and ends Monday at 10 p.m. Given the popularity of the pair, both concerts will likely sell out. The password was not created by me but it just happens to be HOHOHO, according to an email I got. You also may have to pay some sort of membership fee to be in either fan club. Check out the details here. or here.
Tickets are $49.50 to $75. Tickets go onsale to the general public Dec. 21.
Second, tmz.com has procured a purported sex tape with Jessica Sierra. Need I say more?
Third, going back to a much happier situation, here’s a lovely shot of Ms. Underwood from Glamour magazine:
And now to soulful Elliott Yamin, who called in while in Norfolk, VA for a concert, not too far from his hometown of Richmond. (He’s going to be at Jingle Jam at Gwinnett Arena on Dec. 10.)
I actually spoke with him a couple of times in May right before what was supposed to be the start of his tour, which was set to open at the Loft in Midtown. But then he got the call from “American Idol” to perform “Wait For You” just as the single was taking off. Hmm… 250 people at the Loft or 30 million people on “Idol.” Not a contest.
“You couldn’t blame me, could you?” he said. Nope. Not at all.
“Wait For You,” as we now know, took off and became a top 5 smash and is one of the biggest singles of the year on top 40 radio.
His management team loved the song when he heard it as a demo. Yamin wasn’t quite convinced at first. “It didnt’ resonate with me right away,” he said. “It wasn’t until I went to New York, sung the song, internalized it and heard it back that I realized this could be something special.”
“The song,” he noted, ” has touching, meaningful lyrics. The music is beautiful. Everything [producers] Stargate touches turns to gold. It did sound like the most radio friendly song on the album.” Stargate, by the way, produced Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable” and Rihanna’s current big hit with Ne-Yo “Hate That I Love You.” Oh, and Jordin Sparks’ top 10 hit “Tattoo.” (Unfortunately, his second single “One Word” has stalled with minimal radio airplay.)
I took Deirdre’s question about how fame has affected him. “I’ve become a complete xxxhole!” he joked. More seriously, “Fame is weird. I still feel like the same old Elliott from Richmond, Virginia. My schedule has been so hectic. I seldom have time to reflect. I just go and fly by the seat of my pants. I feel like I’ve been a soldier. It’s amazing all the things that I’ve learned about myself. Two years ago, I would have told you you were crazy if I was told to fly 18 hours to Malaysia, go straight to sound check, play that night, then fly home the next day.”
Heck, in Malaysia for its inaugural Live & Loud Festival, he opened for Whitney Houston in her first concert appearance since her divorce with Bobby Brown. He didn’t get to meet her but “my keyboardist got to play spades with her.” He loved that the Malaysians knew his song well enough to “sing along” while he performed “Wait For You.” “It blew my mind,” he said.
He’s starting to prep concepts for his next album, which he hopes to come out with next summer. “There’s a little less pressure this time around” timewise, he said. “But once you reach a certain level of success, it’s kind of difficult to build and maintain it. There is so much work and so much more to do. We’re right on the right path. I’m really look forward to getting into the studio again. I want to record 30 to 40 songs just to record them.”
And as an insulin-dependent diabetic, he has aggressively lobbied on behalf of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Lily, which makes insulin. He has lobbied on Capital Hill and the United Nations. “It’s surreal to me,” he said. “I grew up a troubled teen, never graduated high school. I’m not a dumb person, just never had the book smarts. I’ve always been a hands-on learner who learned at my own pace.” As he was entering the halls of Congress, he said to himself, “Wow. Here I am, this kid from Richmond, this high school dropout, this one time degenerate. I just never expected to be at the level I am today. I had this great sense of pride. I never in a million years thought I’d be meeting Congressmen and urging them to join the fight for a cure for diabetes. I felt like a lobbyist.”
When he was younger, he said, he would visit D.C. from Richmond but not for the monuments or the regular sites. “We would go to strip clubs,” he said. “Politics never once crossed my mind.”
And he expressed sympathy for fellow “Idol” Jessica Sierra, currently in jail after disorderly conduct, threatening officers as well as breaking probation. “People outside don’t understand what we go through in this bubble. Being in the spotlight, I know how easy it is for people to get messed up or hooked on drugs. I’ve seen the temptations. It ain’t easy. It’s hard work. But that will never happen to me. I’m pretty level-headed. I have a great supporting cast and friends and family that help keep me grounded. I know how privileged to be in this position. I’ll never do anything to jeopardize that.”
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12/6: Daughtry, Carrie Underwood get four Grammy noms; Fantasia, three
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
2007 was a good year for “Idols” and and at least seven of them got Grammy nominations.
Daughtry picked up four Grammy nominations this morning along with Carrie Underwood. (Daughtry for some reason didn’t get nominated for best new artist.) Fantasia picked up three and Kelly Clarkson got a lone pickup thanks to her duet of “Because of You” with Reba McEntire. Jennifer Hudson got two and Mandisa took one. Even Ace Young got a nomination since he co-wrote Daughtry’s “It’s Not Over” and is probably getting a nice royalty cut from it.
Here are Daughtry’s four:
Best pop performance by a duo or group with vocal for “Home” vs. “(You Want To) Make a Memory” by Bon Jovi, “Makes Me Wonder” by Maroon 5, “Hey There Delilah” by Plain White T’s and “Window in the Skies” by U2.
Best rock performance by a duo or group with vocal for “It’s Not Over” vs. “Working Class Hero” by Green Day, “If Everyone Cares” by Nickelback, “Instant Karma” by U2 and “Icky Thump” by The White Stripes.
Best rock song (a songwriter award) with “It’s Not Over” (Ace Young had a hand in writing this) vs “Come On” written and sung by Lucinda Williams; “Icky Thump” written by Jack Black, performed by the White Stripes; “The Pretenders” written by Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins & Chris Shiflett, performed by the Foo Fighters; and “Radio Nowhere” written and performed by Bruce Springsteen
Best rock album with “Daughtry” vs. John Fogerty’s “Revival,” Foo Fighters’ “Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace,” Bruce Springsteen’s “Magic” and Wilco’s “Sky Blue Sky.”
Carrie Underwood’s instant crossover classic hit “Before He Cheats” was nominated in three categories:
1- Song of the Year (which awards the songwriters) against “Rehab” by Amy Winehouse, “Hey There Delilah” by Plain White T’s, “Like a Star” by Corinne Bailey Rae and “Umbrella” by Rihanna with Jay-Z
2- Best Female Country Vocal Performance vs. “Simple Love” by Alison Krauss, “Famous in a Small Town” by Miranda Lambert, “Nothin’ Better to Do” by LeAnn Rimes and “Heaven, Heartache & the Power of Love” by Trisha Yearwood.
3- Best Country Song vs. “Give It Away” by George Strait, “I Need You’ by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, “If You’re Reading This” by Tim McGraw and “Long Trip Home” by Dierks Bentley.
And she got a nom with Brad Paisley for “Oh Love” in the Best Country Collaboration With Vocal category. She competes with Reba and Kelly’s “Because Of You” along with “Lost Highway” featuring Willie Nelson and Ray Price, “I Need You” with Tim McGraw and Faith Hill and “Days Aren’t Long Enough” with Steve Earle and Allison Moorer.
Fantasia was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance with “When I See U” vs. “Just Fine” by Mary J. Blige, “No One” by Alicia Keys, “If I Have My Way” by Chrisette Michele and “Hate On Me” by Jill Scott.
And that song also was nominated for Best R&B Song vs. “Beautiful Flower” by India.Arie, “Hate That I Love You,” performed by Rihanna and Ne-Yo, “No One” performed by Alicia Keys and “Teach Me” performed by Musiq Soulchild.
Fantasia’s self-titled album was nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album vs. Akon’s “Konvicted,” Keyshia Cole’s “Just Like You,” Emily King’s “East Side Story” and Ne-Yo’s “Because of You.”
Jennifer Hudson grabbed two: “Dreamgirls” soundtrack for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media and Best Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media with “Love You I Do.”
Mandisa’s “True Beauty” was nominated for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album vs. local act Casting Crowns, Tobymac, Michael W. Smith and Israel and New Breed.
Clarkson’s “My December” got nothing. Elliott Yamin, Bucky Covington and Kellie Pickler, who all had decent-sized hits, were also shut out.
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12/6: Jennifer Hudson on Walters special, airplay and sales no’s
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Congrats RC for claiming the “Chicken Soup for the American Idol Soul” book and Linny, if you still want the Jordin CD, it’s yours!
Tonight, at 10:03 p.m. on ABC, check out how “fascinating” Jennifer Hudson, one of Barbara Walters’ “Most Fascinating People of 2007.” Others include Bill Clinton, Don Imus, Katherine Heigl, the MySpace founders, Justin Timberlake, and the Beckhams.
The next day, Hudson will join Carrie Underwood for a “Movies That Rock” special at 9 on CBS.
I’m also set to talk to Elliott Yamin at 2 p.m. today. If you have any questions I can ask him, I’ll be happy to oblige. Yamin is coming to Atlanta to open for the sold-out Star 94 Jingle Jam December 10.
Kimberley Locke, despite weak CD sales, is the queen of AC Christmas music. Her “Frosty the Snowman” is no. 1 on soft rock stations, the third year in a row a xmas song of hers has landed on top.
Jordin Sparks’ “Tattoo” has jumped into the top 10, No. 8 actually on the Mediabase 24/7 top 40 radio airply charts, leapfrogging Daughtry’s “Over You,” which peaked at No. 6 on that chart and is now at No. 10. Star 94 has spun it 34 times the past week; Q100, 47 times.
Blake’s “Break Anotha” is at No. 48 on the chart, with 45 of 129 reporting top 40 stations playing it. At least it’s showing growth on the chart. Nobody in Atlanta is playing Blake’s single yet though XM’s Top 20 at 20 is giving it about four spins a day.
Here are some download sales numbers, courtesy of USA Today’s “Idol Chatter”: “Tattoo” is at No. 7 and has sold 444K. “Over You” is at No. 33 and has sold 569K. “It’s Not Over” is at 112 and has sold 1.15 million. Carrie’s “So Small” fell to 64 with 388K total so far sold. “Before He Cheats” sold 9K downloads and has 1.94 million total with 2 million around the corner. Blake’s “Break Anotha” fell off the top 200 along with “Wait For You.”
Jordin’s second-week sales were not great, falling 57 percent to No. 18 from No. 10 with 52K sold and 171K total. Carrie dropped from 7 to 9 with 89K sold and 1.16 million total. Daughtry fell from 33 to 37, with 33K sold and 3.37 million total. “Some Hearts” is up to 6.06 million with another 18K sold. Elliott’s Christmas CD at Target sold 13K for the week and 23K total. Kellie comes back on the chart at 187 with 5,300 sold and 665K total. If she can maintain 5K a week over the next 10 weeks, she would exceed Taylor’s sales.
Clay’s xmas C