Access Atlanta > American Idol Buzz > Archives > 2008 > January
January 2008
1/31: Idol ratings way down
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Back to picking through bits and pieces, mostly from other blogs and such:
Kimberley Locke is taping an episode of “Don’t Forget the Lyrics,” in which she’ll sing a snippet of her cover of “Band of Gold.” Constantine is set to show up, too, probably to sing a Queen song. This bit is from Idol Chatter.. Plus, Kellie Pickler’s USO tour in Baghdad in December is chronicled by Great American Country Feb. 16 at 9.
USA Today’s download numbers feature four songs by Daughtry, four by Carrie and two by Jordin (“Tattoo” is up to 1.15 mil and “No Air” up to 175k.) On album sales, Daughtry was top seller with 21K and 3.71 mil total. Carrie’s “Carnival Ride” sold 20K and 1.79 mil total while “Some Hearts” sold 11K, up to 6.23 mil. Jordin is at 49, selling 12K and 461K total. She’s a month from 500K at this pace. Blake’s “Break Anotha” has stalled on the charts around 40 and his album sold just 4K last week and 255K total.
Other sales: Kelly’s Breakaway is at 5.94 million and sold 3,700 copies compared to 2,200 copies of “My December.” (746k); Kellie sold 2,900, 709K total; Elliot, 1,600, 489K; Bucky, 1,200, 321K, Fantasia, 700, 504K, Mandisa, 700, 69K, Bo, 500, 38K; Kat, 300, 366K; Clay, 200, 523K; Ruben, 100, 236K; Constantine, 100, 24K, Taylor, 100, 700K, Kimberlely, 100, 18K, Paris, 100, 21K.
Ratings this week continue to lag far behind year-ago figures. On Tuesday, 28.2 million watched the Omaha auditions, down 17 percent from the comparable episode in 2007. Wednesday’s season-low 25.5 million or so is down about 20 percent. Comparably, traffic on this blog year over year is down so far by about 35%. I’m not sure how much of that has to do with being on this old template or losing a few of our buds to exile, but it’s probably simply lowered interest in the show period. But that doesn’t mean this will become a “Dance War” blog anytime soon!
Cecil Frot-Coutaz, the executive producer for “Idol” we seldom hear from, spoke with the National Association of Televisoin Program Executives conference and pooh-poohed the ratings dropoff, in this NYT piece.. But if I were them, I’d be concerned. The hope is the final 12 are so fascinating, the show will be able to show some growth in March. We’ll see. The fact is, the show is old enough that people who have decided to move on to other shows are going to be tough to bring back in and the pool of potential newbies to replace them is not so great.
Oh-and did anybody catch MTV’s “Randy Jackson’s America’s Best Dance Crew” this past Saturday? It’s actually kind of fun. There’s even a crew who are on old-school roller skates! Sadly, the show had auditions in Atlanta and the only Southern reps are from Florida. The same thing happened with “So You Think You Can Dance.” None of the top 20 were from Atlanta despite the fact auditions were held here. The bottom line seems to be that Atlanta creates better singers than dancers!
1/30: Miami American Idol auditions
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sorry to be late on this. I was doing trivia night at the Local. My friend Jim and I were using our “bar bucks” from a previous miracle second place finish. Although we started well (3rd place at halftime), we fell apart in the second half and ended up in dead last among 21 teams. Our last attempt to salvage ourselves failed when we couldn’t come up with the two James Michener novels titled after foreign countries. (I got “Poland,” missed “Mexico.” Jim had no clue.)
This was actually a pretty darn entertaining hour. They showed another high number of good singers (nine) and that clueless “American Juniors” alum inadvertently provided some of the most sublimely funny moments this season. My favorites: Ilsy, Brittany, Suzanne and especially Robbie.
And we won’t soon forgot the first gal, memorably known now as the burping butcher, Shannon Broughton of Okeechobee, Fla.. She will also be known as the over-singer after that excruciating first note of Janis Joplin’s “Cry Baby.” (Then again, Janis’s version isn’t markedly different at the start.) “I had a late night last night. You just made me feel a lot worse,” Simon. “That was like the Hungarian Janis Joplin.” She then started singing another song. “It sounds like you’re eating while you sing,” he said. “Your mouth is doing weird weird things.” Paula said: “You have melody problems.” “Wow, I’ve never had somebody tell me I sing bad before,” Shannon said. “This is crazy to me.” “Most people don’t actually know what they’re talking about. That’s why you have to meet people like me,” Simon said. She’s in shock, genuine shock. Her mom’s in more shock before. “She never heard no before,” said Paula, who is about as mean as we’ve ever seen her (relatively speaking.)
Robbie Carrico, one of the spoiiler 24, from Melbourne, Calif. has style, panache, and a great voice. “You got a nice voice. It was kinda cool,” Randy said. Simon’s on the fence but says yes. I liked him a lot more than Randy or Simon. Go Robbie!
After the commercial break, a cavalcade of unnamed crappy singers beckon. Then there’s gypsy music singer Ghaleb Emachah from Miami, who isn’t half bad but not great either. He ruins the upper end of Marc Anthony and it’s over. “I’d like you if I was drunk,” Simon said. “Sober, I don’t think it works.” Paula says the strong accent is problematic, then gets annoyed by Simon. Randy says yes. Wow! Simon says no. Paula is acting odd, then says yes and hugs him. Huh? How did this guy make it?
Best pal combo: Corliss Smith of Jacksonville first. She’s not quite there in the looks department but has a quality voice, working over Randy. Brittany Wescott is better, much better. She’s radiant. She sings to Simon, who even claps along! Both make it!
Fantasia story alert: Suzanne Toon, 21, of Clearwater, Fl., had a daughter two years earlier and is a single mom. She’s a bit rusty and teary-eyed. “I’m sick of struggling,” she said. She has something about her that’s special. “A seductive voice,” Randy said.
Jasmine “remember her?” Trias callback: Ramiele Malubay of Miramar, Fl. wants to be the first Asian-American “Idol” and actually has a good voice. “You are a fine singer and fine performer,” Paula said. “I don’t think you’re a contemporary singer. I think you’re more like a hotel singer,” Simon said. (It’s nice to see the mean Simon for a change.) Despite a no from Simon, she makes it through. She is yet another Spoiler 24 we may be seeing again. I liked her, didn’t love her.
Sob story: Syesha Mercado has a drug-addicted dad recently out of rehab. She’s also a spoiler 24! She has a fine voice and a vibrant personality. But I agree with Simon that she seems a bit overwrought. And she does “Think” by Aretha Franklin as several prior contestants have done (Kat, Diana, LaKisha and Fantasia, for instance.) I feel like I’ve seen it before. Oh, well.
Natashia Blach works “At Last.” (Shouldn’t that song be retired?). Ilsy Lorena Pinot is amazing! What a smile! I love her!
Wow. Nine good singers in 40 minutes? That’s got to be a record.
Ben Hausbach is abysmal. Carroy Bethea is, as Simon said, over the top. Grant Rhea sounds like a gal. Fabienne Hyppolite was plain annoying. Ditto with nasally Richard Valles doing Rascal Flatts.
Then there’s an “American Juniors” flashback, not that anybody even watched that show. (I didn’t.) Simon sarcastically says he loved that show to the contestant Julie Dubela, who was a top 20 finalist from that show. She doesn’t have a clue that he’s being sarcastic. In fact, she even demonstrates the song she sang on “American Juniors” to the other contestants. Hilarious and frightening at once! She’s got some polish but it feels very stage theater. “Have you ever been called precocious?” Simon asked. “What does that mean?” she said. “Overrehearsed, overdramatic,” Simon said. She does the desperate second song while they are talking. Simon suggests she become an actress. “It’s over,” he says. Wow. SImon’s rough! “Overindulged,” he adds after she leaves. The producers are classic by showing her singing “Rainy Days and Mondays” from “American Juniors.” That was one of my favorite audition bits ever!
The final guy makes a ridiculous entrance. Brandon Black of Pompano Beach does “I’ll Make Love To You” then cuts to an original: “I’m the next American Idol.” This is one of those absurdist auditions. “The audition was verging on desperation,” Simon said. “The weird wig. The horrible dialogue. The terrible singing.” Simon and Randy leave. B-bye.
Only 17 made it through Miami, the least of the six cities so far. The final tally now is we’ve seen 48 of the 142 Hollywood-bound contestants and 10 of the 24 supposed finalists. Atlanta is the last city next Tuesday. Based on what we heard, they condensed auditions to just one day here and Randy, Paula and Simon saw fewer than 50 people. That’s not a good thing. I wouldn’t be surprised if fewer than 20 people made it through from our fine city. We’ll see in six days!
1/30: Kelly Clarkson at Q100 studios
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
TMZ reports that season two winner Ruben Studdard today sued a marketing company for breach of contract..
But today, I’ll focus on season one winner Kelly Clarkson, who visited Q100 studios this morning, flying in from Nashville, then flying right back. Q100 just moved to a bigger signal so the Bert Show is bringing in big stars. Others this week include Ne-Yo and Nick Lachey.
ABOVE: I had about 15 seconds with her and I babbled something about doing an “Idol” blog to her and she politely said something like, “And the season just started!” That was the extent of that!
Over five-plus years, I’ve seen Kelly in concert three times but have never met her in person. So Q100 was nice enough to give me the chance. The Bert Show interviewed her for an hour so pretty much everything I could think of asking was asked and then some.
She was chatty Cathy, openly willing to answer any question and even when it got too invasive, she took no offense. She was chipper and looked great, even sans makeup. Besides her predilection for a certain curse word, she also likes to say the word “weird.” But she’s no longer using the phrase “Cool beans!”
Some random topics she brought up:
Her speaking voice: “I never leave voicemails. It’s the worst talking voice ever… I sound like a goober!”
Potty mouth: she admits she curses too much from her days as a cocktail waitress. In fact, she drops the s-bomb once during the conversation, then a few more times playing “Rock Band.” Bert had to use the “dump” button so that didn’t end up on air.
Avoiding Los Angeles: “I haven’t lived there. I’ve worked there so much that I practically live there. I moved my studios to Nashville… Everyone is trying to climb that fame ladder. It’s weird! It’s Halloween constantly. I can’t stay there. My best friend lives there… I grew up in the country. It’s weird. [In L.A.,] you don’t have yards.” She owns a 60-acre pad outside Burleson, Texas and uses that as a break from the fame game. She’ll be getting horses and has a barn.
Recluse? “When I’m working, I’m a social bird. I love going out. When I’m home, I don’t see anyone.”
New management: “It took five years for me to get the right circle of people. My new management [Reba’s folks] are so like me. It’s perfect. They’re very low key.”
On Reba McEntire, who she is now touring with: “I’m such a nerd. I’m such a fan. I’ve been a fan of hers since I was a kid. It’s just fun. She has such a distincct voice. She know show to dial back the country so when we sing together, it sounds so great.”
On Reba singing her songs!: “It’s trippy! She’s, like, smiling. ‘You’re so singing my song! It’s such a weird thing!”
They play the “40 Year Old Virgin” moment when Steve Carell’s character yelps “Kelly Clarkson” while getting his chest waxed, one of the funniest moments in the film and totally adlibbed. Jeff Dauler suggested she put that on her voicemail since she hates her own voice. “I’m an idiot!” she exclaimed. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
When asked about the Clive Davis tension, she never denied it. (How could she? She talked about it in multiple publications.) But she said she didn’t fight directly with Clive in every case, that it’s not like they talk every day. And she said tension is normal between artist and management, which is true. She said she had battles with “Breakaway” being too dark, too. “It’s important for any artist to put your foot down. You know what you want to sound like. It’s your face, your voice.”
The question of why “My December” tanked relative to “Breakaway” was kind of skirted. We could pinpoint a lot of reasons in this blog though it was probably a combination of lack of label support and somewhat weaker, less melodic songs, even if the tone wasn’t all that different.
ABOVE: Kelly tries out “Rock Band” for the first time, managing to finish Foo Fighters’ “Learning to Fly” on her first try. She picked drums because vocals would be boring for her. “I want to do something I suck at!” she said beforehand. She almost lost midway through but figured it out and got better. She bragged that she was a “Guitar Hero” killer and planned to buy “Rock Band” for her bus as soon as possible.
1/29: American Idol Omaha auditions
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: Danny Chapman, an “Idol” fan since season two and an Emory freshman, co-hosts the Fox-sponsored Idol party Tuesday night. CREDIT: Rodney Ho
Fox has commissioned a bunch of college campus parties across the country in audition cities. Locally, they picked one of the smaller schools, Emory University. I was invited and figured it might be interesting to see how many folks would show up.
Demographically, “Idol” has been aging so this modest marketing move makes sense because they are trying to get this younger demo excited this season after last year’s lackluster crew.
The turnout was respectable: about 60 Emory students. Not surprisingly, about 50 were female. I watched the show with the students. Two of them hosted the hour, giving away caps, “Idol” bouncy balls and “Idol” sweatshirts. They did a bunch of “Idol” trivia which most of you readers would find insultingly easy (“Who won the first American Idol?” “Name the top 3 last season.”). Toward the end, when they ran out of questions, I jumped up on stage (to promote this blog, of course) and asked three questions which I figured somebody would know: “Which American Idol finalist is on ‘Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.’ ” A guy knew that one (Jessica Sierra.). The second: “Who starred in ‘The Color Purple’ on Broadway?” Yes, someone knew Fantasia. But I stumped them with “What’s Ryan Seacrest’s hometown?” Atlanta would have been acceptable but nobody had a clue.
Anyway, on to the actual show. Two observations: Poor Paula Abdul seems to be back to her early-season wacked-out ways. She got there late and must have been sleep deprived because she hiccuped, slept, spun around in the chair, clapped like a seal and even yelled “Touchdown!” It was like Paula’s greatest judging hits in one show!
Second, “Idol” actually showed good singers, lots of them, while relegating most of the bad ones to montages. Or maybe those Midwesterners lacked a certain delusional quality and/or Vegas-like flair. Still, it was nice to see both an arm wrestler and a pro wrestler! (Both female!)
Paula’s plane was late so the odd sight of Randy and Simon started the episode. (Proving I’ve been watching this show forever, I recall the time Paula missed the Atlanta auditions season two back in the fall of 2002.)
For Chris Bernheisel, this is the biggest “life alternating change” in his life. And he’s a big Kelly Clarkson fan and gave Simon pictures of him with Kelly. Then he proceeds to kill off “Since U Been Gone.” Simon likes the sucking up but said “the singing was not good enough.” Shockingly, Simon was not mean! Then he auditions to be the local reporter to be at the red carpet finale. Simon promises Fox 42 Omaha will help him out!
Jason Rich, a good looking farmer from Stout, Iowa, starts a Keith Whitley song but forgets the words three times. Finally, he gets it right the fourth time. Simon is shockingly patient with the poor guy who actually has a good voice and decent presence. He doesn’t appear to have made the final 24.
Then a sequence of folks who couldn’t remember the lyrics, plus Paula’s arrival.
Arm wrestler Rachael Wicker is pretty with muscle (Simon was too wimpy to face off against him but she strong-arms Paula.) I agree with Simon. She sings real old. She’s 23 but feels like a latter-day Faith Hill. Blehh. I’m surprised she even got two yesses.
Former pro wrestler Sarah “Lady Morgue” Whitaker of Council Bluffs, IA with the evil laugh is possibly the most pitiful singer of the night. Shockingly, she left in good spirits. Even the wrestlers are polite!
In what might have been a rigged bit, Simon invited Ryan to swap with Paula. Samantha Sidley, an adorably cute singer from Los Angeles, did a lovely Norah Jones but was clearly nervous. “I like your voice but I think you need to work on your self confidence and stop spinning around the mark,” Ryan said in his first-ever judge critique. Paula comes in, agreeing with Ryan that she could use more “showmanship.” All four say yes.
Other good singers: Elizabeth Erkert is solid with “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.” (“I am America’s Next Top Model,” she accidentally proclaims.) A Fantasia look and soundalike Denise Jackson from Madison, WI is solid. Michael Sanfilippo does a fine Stevie Wonder.
Sob story alert: Angelica Puente of Kenosha, WI moved out of her house because she had difficulties with her family as a teen. But she still loves her dad, who paid for her to come to “Idol” auditions. Awww…. When I heard she was going to do Celine Dion, I braced for a bad voice but in reality, she wasn’t half bad and hit her notes. She could use a little more stage presence and personality. I’m surprised she gets through!
Mohawked David Cook(right), of Tulsa, one of the possible final 24, pops up singing a stylish “Living on a Prayer” much better than Jordin did last year. Great voice, not sure about his personality. “Work on some persona,” Randy said.
Johnny Escamilla, “one of the weirdest guys you’d ever meet,” is possibly the strangest dancers ever doing “Shout,” Otis Day edition. Where did he get that sparkly jacket? B-bye Johnny!
Fortunately, they end with a decent singer: Leo Marlowe of Charlotte IA, who does a sophisticated take on Donny Hathaway’s “A Song For You.” Didn’t Elliott Yamin sing that song, too? He’s through and we’re on to Miami!
We actually saw 9 out of 19 of the Hollywood bound. Mike S was nice enough to do the tracking: 39 out of 125 and 8 out of the rumored final 24 so proportionally, that’as about right. We’ve now been through seven hours, so that’s an average of 5.5 good singers per hour. With three more hours, that means we’ll see 17 more good singers and probably half of the rumored final 24.
1/29: Idol Rewind, Paula video, et. al
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This is an exceedingly quiet day on the “Idol” trail.
I watched “Idol Rewind” over the weekend for the final group of four in the semifinals. The voters picked Josh Gracin and Corey Clark for what folks thought was the top 10 (but ultimately would be the top 12.). Talk about polar opposites. The first “rocker” ever on “Idol,” Patrick Lake of Athens, almost made the cut but came in third that day. Chip Days from Atlanta, who did R&B, wasn’t half bad but also failed to make it past this round. There was a lot of confrontations with the judges you don’t see anymore. Juanita Barber, who I had completely forgotten about, was a complete jerk about it when the judges complained how bad her “What About the Children” was (and believe me, it was bad.). Rickey.org offers up the confrontation..
Paula Abdul taped her music video over the weekend and she was exceedingly late but she was, Perez Hilton likes to say, “a hot mess.” We’ll be seeing the video during the pre-Super Bowl party.
It appears Jordin Sparks’ “Tattoo” is peaking at No. 6 on the top 40 charts while her second single “No Air” appears to be heading to top 10 territory too as it jumps into the top 40.
1/27: Blake Lewis contest winner, Carrie Underwood’s “All American Girl” video out
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Congratulations Derek Kuipers of Atlanta, who wins a Blake Lewis CD and autographed poster for his 11 year old who, according to Kuipers, “spent 3 months walking around the house in sweater vests and untucked shirts beat boxing everything from lunch orders to weekend recaps.”
Carrie Underwood’s latest video “All American Girl” is out. Check out Carrie in a brunette wig and in several different costumes, including a football uniform, a waitress, a flight attendant, a cheereleader, a pageant winner, a newscaster, a teacher, a chef, a fashion designer, a vet, a doc, a politican, a cop, an astronaut, a firefighter, an artist and a bride, to name a few. The song is now at No. 12 on the country charts.
In other Carrie news, she will be performing at the Grammy’s. No surprise there!
1/25: Diana DeGarmo on “Gone Country”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: Diana picks a song on the jukebox at the Nashville house. CREDIT: Ron Jaffe
Below is part of the story I wrote for the print edition, plus extra info about Diana I gleaned from my 30-minute interview with her earlier this month. I enjoyed the pilot episode, especially watching Dee Snider looking for coffee in the mansion and bitching that he needed his caffeine. And Diana in that episode showed plenty of confidence after sizing up the competition. “I’ve been doing this [singing] since I was five,” she told the cameras. “For John Rich [the country artist and producer] to believe in me, I won’t let him down. I’m going to take this baby all the way!”
Snellville’s own Diana DeGarmo, at age 20, is already a reality show vet thanks to her time as runner up on “American Idol” four years ago.
But after a brief pop career and a successful stint doing Broadway musicals in 2006, she spent last year trying to find a new path. When she heard CMT was pitching a show called “Gone Country” in which non-country singers try their hand becoming country stars, she was intrigued.
And her two weeks in Nashville truly inspired her.
“It was the craziest thing,” she said. “I didn’t realize I’d have such a change of heart. I grew up loving country and had gotten away from it. I missed it. A little lightbulb went off inside my head. It re-sparked something, an old flame that was already there.”
The show, which debuts tonight at 8 and 10, blends elements of “Surreal Life” and “Idol.” A group of celebrities of varying star wattage are placed in an outrageously large house with copious amounts of alcohol, given visually entertaining things to do (cleaning horse poop, skeet shooting on Gretchen Wilson’s ranch) and compete to put together a country song to be performed in a concert at a honky-tonk venue. The winner gets to record the song with country artist and producer John Rich.
Taped in November, Rich gathered DeGarmo, former Atlantan Bobby Brown, Julio Iglesias Jr., singer Sisqo (“Thong Song”), Dee Snider of Twisted Sister (“We’re Not Gonna Take It”), Maureen McCormick (Marcia Brady) and Carnie Wilson (Wilson Phillips).
For DeGarmo, this show was more than just a publicity ploy or quick paycheck. It’s her entry into Nashville where she’s now spending time recording music for an upcoming album, that will skew in country-pop. “I’m turning 21 in a few months, which is scary,” she said. “I really truly believe I found my identity with country music.” In promos after the first episode, DeGarmo is seen crying, saying “I want to be a country singer more than anything in the world.”
Here’s extra stuff gleaned from my notes:
Diana said she may try out acting in a movie this summer and is doing voiceover work for the Georgia Aquarium as well as work on that new album.
She said she had no idea show the cast was until she arrived. “I was just hoping it wouldn’t be Vanilla Ice,” she said. But when she saw her fellow celebs, she said she thought the competition “would be fierce!”
Her take on Carnie Wilson: “What you see is what you get. She’s that crazy aunt who’ll take you to a party.”
Julio Iglesias Jr.: “I knew his father’s music. He’s huge overseas.”
Sisqo: “Like me, people only know him for one thing. But he’s really talented.”
Dee Snider: “I was kind of intimdated. He has kids my age. We joked around. I called hiim Big D and he called me Little D.”
Maureen McCormick: “She’s a sweet sweet person. She enjoys life fully.”
Bobby Brown: “He has his demons but he’s a soft, sweeet soul. He was definitely into the country music.”
The bond between Maureen and Bobby Brown: “They’re the new odd couple. Opposites attract! They both have such jaded pasts. They really bonded over that — and the cigarettes. Makes great TV.”
Her response to Simon’s recent comments that Diana is not “current” or even “relevant.”
“The thing with that, I was 16 when I was the show. At that time, we were singing a lot of old school stuff. They made us sing Elton John and Barry Manilow. How current is that?” So she figures Simon’s image of her is stuck in the past. “He just loves me,” she joked later. “He just won’t admit it!”
Her reaction to Ruben and Taylor losing their record contracts: “I totally feel their pain! The record industry is really funky. People aren’t making money. Labels aren’t into artist development anymore. We Idol folks were catapulted from zero to hero in 2.5 seconds. They expect you to be the full package, this model, shining pop star. But you’re still getting your bearings.”
Her favorite reality shows: Bravo’s “Project Runway” and guilty pleasure “Girls Next Door” on E! (I didn’t see that latter one coming!) She also is friends with Casey, who is on Bravo’s “Make Me a Supermodel.”
Her thoughts on Jordin Sparks: “I’m really proud of her, holding it down for the young kids! She didn’t get as much flak about her age as I did because when you see her, you don’t necessarily think she’s that young. I unfortunately looked as young as I really was.”
Her own songwriting skills: “I’m no Diane Warren by any means. I’ve been writing for myself for a long time but it’s very intimidating to perform them. You are completely exposed. I’ve never had the chance or courage to perform my own stuff.” She worked with two veteran Nashville songwriters to put her song together for the show. “At first, I was a little scared, but once we got the band together and the song together, we made a really, really great song.”
And if you enjoyed Renaldo Lupez’s “We’re Brothers Forever,” Atlanta band the Brilliant Inventions’ singer Eliot Bronson does a lovely acoustic version of the song. The band happens to be playing at Red Light Cafe this Saturday. More info here.. This is what I call smart promotions!
Finally, my colleague Wendell Brock reports that box office receipts nosedived after Fantasia left “The Color Purple” earlier this month and the show will shut down Feb. 24 on Broadway. Bummer for LaKisha Jones, who had just joined the cast!
1/24: Top 24 spoilers? And Ryan Seacrest’s football past
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m not going to spoil it for you if this is accurate but Joes Place already has 22 of the 24 semifinalists supposedly leaked. You can read it here if you dare.. There is at least one Atlantan on the list and I’ve met her. Plus, a Brittenum twin told me she’d be the winner. And a former Atlanta resident is on the list, too, who I’ve talked about, um, very very recently. Plus, some Irish gal who’s gotten a bit of press, too.
Fox held a phone press conference with Ryan Seacrest yesterday to promote his involvement in the pre-show red carpet at the Super Bowl Feb. 3. Seacrest will interview celebs before the game.
Seacrest is a big football fan and actually played the game throughout his childhood.
I started playing for the Atlanta Colts, the Pop Warner league. I was really young. I played at Peachtree Junior High, offensive guard. Went to Dunwood High School as a strong safety. I actually played the state semifinal senior year in Valdosta, Georgia. I did grow up … believe it or not, it sounds crazy — in the weight room training for the season or out on the field after school.
What was your playing weight?
My junior year in high school. I was second string, started as a senior. I was a stocky kid wearing husky. I weighed 170 and was short. Then I lost some weight, gained some speed.
I called his mom Connie for photos of him from his football days but she said Ryan already asked for those photos and she mailed them to his office in Los Angeles. Sadly, she didn’t have any duplicates readily available for us to post.
Connie said she always worried about her son getting hurt in high school and was relieved when he escaped unscathed. “I think he really gets a kick out of doing the Super Bowl,” she said. “He can talk the talk. He knows the lingo.”
He wouldn’t say who he was rooting for but his best football memory is wearing a Refrigerator Perry jersey as a kid back in the mid-1980s.
And he has yet to see the Paula Abdul/Randy Jackson video that will debut that day for her song “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow.” But she did debut the song on his show a few days ago.
“She’s not nervous. She’s elated. She brought the single to me a couple of days ago and we premiered it. I had 200 calls in a row supporting her, thrilled she was releasing a record. More than that, I’m very much looking forward to Randy Jackson dance. She is choreographing Randy. I’m being serious. He’s been training. He’s been doing some sort of private pilates, it’s so demanding.
We also got final ratings for the third ep of “Idol” Tuesday. The show, according to final numbers, drew only 29.3 million. I’m using “only” figuratively but that’s down 10 percent from a year ago, about the same percentage as the dropoff of last Tuesday’s ep. The rather dull Wednesday night episode drew a preliminary figure of 26.8 million, down a whopping 20 percent from a year ago.
And how about this for an idea who’s time probably shouldn’t have come: Idol Chatter reports that Wal-Mart and iTunes will release four compilation volumes of “Idol” alums who never released any major albums. The first volume, out Feb. 5, features Jon Peter Lewis (eighth place, season three), Stevie Scott (semifinalist, season five—photo included— ring a bell?), Ryan Starr (7th place, season one) and A.J. Tabaldo (semfinalist, season six). I vaguely remember Stevie and A.J. but just barely. And I’m supposedly an expert on this stuff.
And volume two supposedly has four more semifinalists: Alaina Alexander, Rudy Cardenas, Patrick Hall and a dude I thought deserved to make the final 12 season five, Gedeon McKinney (remember him in the photo?)
Finally, Ken Barnes over at Idol Chatter also got the sales numbers for Carly Hennessy’s album: 2,400 copies and 26,000 copies of her two singles. He also tracks downloads and Jordin’s “Tattoo” is at 1.1 million and her second single “No Air” is already up to 139,000. In terms of CD sales, the record industry hit a low in the January doldrums with Daughtry the top “Idol” seller with 19K sold and 3.69 million copies and Carrie’s “Carnival Ride” at 19K, too, with 1.76 million sold. Her first CD sold another 10K and is now at a whopping 6.22 million. Jordin’s CD is now up to 449K after selling another 12K. Others include Kelly’s Breakaway (5.96 mil) and My December (744K), Kellie at 706K, Elliott at 488K, Bucky at 320K, Fantasia at 503K, Mandisa at 69K, Bo at 38K, Kat at 366K, Clay at 522K, Ruben at 236K, Constantine at 24K, Taylor at 700K, Kimberley at 18K and Paris at 21K.
And I’m watching a Zaxby’s commercials featuring… Diana DeGarmo. “You have to lick your fingers when eating wings,” she says. “Don’t waste it on the napkin. Just use what God gave ya. It’s your own in-house napkin system.” Melinda did one, too.
1/23: Charleston American Idol auditions
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sadly, the “Idol” producers didn’t show us much that was good from South Carolina. Jefferey Lampkin is probably the only one I’ll remember by the Hollywood round of the four we saw who got the Golden Ticket (and one of the four was Jefferey’s not-as-good sister.) And why didn’t the Air Force gal get through? Huh?
Instead of starting with good singers like last night, the puppet masters opt for “characters.” First up is afro-man Raysharde Henderson of Atlanta (first Atlantan we’ve seen so far!), who compares himself to Clay Aiken. He’s just over the top and as noted by Paula, theatrical. It’s a no.
Then there’s the rather unpleasant-looking waitress DeAnna Prevatte from Kellie Pickler’s hometown Albermarle, N.C.. She’s rather intense, but not in a good way. “I like the anger and the passion,” Simon said, but it’s a no.
The Idol fans: awww… it’s love. Crystal Ortiz and Randy Stark of Abilene met through the “Idol” message forums where he supposedly doles advice about the audition process. They were clearly put there for back story, not talent. She’s actually not as bad as he is but he got more airtime. “That was a horrible audition,” Simon said. “The good news is you found each other.”
Sibling hallelulah!: Michelle and Jefferey Lampkin!! They are actually pretty good and possess a lot of spirit, especially Jefferey. “You were the bomb,” Randy said to Jefferey. Randy says yes to only Jeffery. Paula says yes to both. Simon, shockingly, says yes to both, too. He said he couldn’t split them up. What sweet tea did Simon drink in Charleston????
Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats” is the unfortunate “group” song.
Gimme an A!: Cheerleader Amy Flynn tries to channel Christina Aguilera, a risky move, after a speech about, like, abstinence, like, totally. She’s, like, cute and has an interesting, raspy voice. She’s just different enough to cut through. “This isn’t going to be quite so thumbs up, Amy. I personally thought the song was too big for you,” Simon said. “A lot of people are going to find you annoying. You are very confident and I don’t think you’re as good as you think you are.” She’s through!
zzzz…: London Weidberg, 24, from Charleston, is a professional singer and she’s not bad. Kinda dull. “You have a nice tone to your voice but not the best song,” Randy said. “There are thousands of singers like you,” Simon said. “I didn’t hear anything unique.” I agree with Simon.
Fly, Lindsey, fly!: Air Force C-17 pilot Lyndsey Goodman is the latest back story. She’s gorgeous and is in the military. Can she sing, too? She could use some work but she has potential after doing a pleasant “Black Velvet.” “I liked it. Had a couple of pitch things,” Randy said. “I’m concerned your nerves,” Paula said. “It held you back.” “I think you are a very good cabaret singer. I don’t think you are a contemporary recording artist,” Simon said. She got ousted! I’m shocked! Oh, well…
Queen of Delusion: Aretha Codner, named after Aretha Franklin, says she’s as good as Fantasia. She goes for Whitney — big mistake. She’s decent but clearly not good enough. She misses some big notes, too. “The funny blue dress. the huge belt, the screaming. It didn’t work and the singing was terrible,” Simon said. “It is amazing,” she said. “I stop crowds.” “You mean the crowds disappear?” Simon said. “Come on. You seriously murdered the Whitney Houston song.” “No… I thought I did a great job,” she said.
King of Delusion: Joshua Bosin of Beaufort S.C. goes all Jennifer Holliday on us —if she were a guy and really awful. “This show is faked and rigged,” he complained. “My talent is too big for this competition to hold,” he later proclaimed.
Tara Smith comes by and sucks. So do a bunch of others. Oliver Highman, 27, of Cornelius, is a new daddy whose wife had a baby the first day of auditions. He makes it to day two. I can’t get past the fact he looks like a Merrill Lynch stockbroker. And his voice is all over the place. He gets a no but he does show off his baby. And he takes the rejection just fine because, heck, he’s a dad!
In the end, 23 made it through. We only saw four Hollywood-bound folks. We also saw 9 “no’s.” So 106 contestants are off to Hollywood after four cities. We’ve seen 30 of them. (Mike S— tell me if I got that off-the-top-of-my-head count correct!)
1/23: Michael Johns a former Atlantan, Daughtry opening for Bon Jovi, Clay Aiken in Spamalot
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A couple of my sources tell me Michael Johns, the Australian dude, used to live in Atlanta under the name Michael Lee. M. Shawn Arnold, who is Holly Firfer’s husband, said he used to play the Buckhead bar circuit (Tin Roof, CJ’s Landing) with Johns. He usually played with Hank Barbee, a local musician. Johns was the lead singer for a local band named Film, Arnold wrote me in an email. Johns, as noted, was part of a band calld the Rising and was under the Madonna imprint Maverick Records. So let’s hope he makes the top 24. Based on what we saw in the audition, he certainly has a solid chance.
There is also some bitterness between former members of the band Film and Michael, according to this 2003 Creative Loafing story..
Chris Daughtry in 2005 semifinals sang a pretty decent version of Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive.” So now, two years later, he is opening for Bon Jovi, who just added a second show at Philips Arena. Talk about a band with incredible staying power! Bon Jovi just added a second show at Phillips. They will be here April 30/May 1. Tickets for the second concert go on sale this Saturday. The April 30 date appears to be sold out! Wow!
And there are photos all over the Web of Clay Aiken as Robin in Spamalot on Broadway. I’m sorry to say this but he looks a bit like… um… Carrot Top.
Here’s a photo gallery from Broadway World..
And more here at tmz.com.
Here’s Clay on “The View” Tuesday promoting Spamalot.
Here’s the ad for Spamalot featuring Clay:
1/22: American Idol San Diego auditions
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s kind of nice to have only one hour of auditions but it also means we see even fewer of the good singers. In fact, we caught just six of the 31 who made it to Hollywood from San Diego. We also saw 10 bad singers. So we’ve seen and heard 16 of the 83 who have made it through after three cities. Of the six good ones, I liked Tetiana, Michael Johns and Samantha the best. Carly was good but she really is too professional for my taste. Been there, done that. Maybe the whole WSJ story thing colored my impression. You can see why the “Idol” producers left that out but it is kind of lame that only those of us who read and write these blogs know about her background.
Arrogant? But good: Tetiana Ostapowych of Venice, Calif. is stunningly beautiful, looks a bit like the receptionist in “Ugly Betty.” Her voice is lovely but Simon says she is only good, not great. “Obnoxious,” Simon said.
Heartwarming story #1: Perrie Cataldo of Phoenix is a single dad with a four-year-old son whose mom died in a nasty, unspecified way in 2005. He’s got some presence and his take of Boyz II Men is a bit over-boiled with the vibratto but he’s certainly good enough for Hollywood.
Michael Johns, 28, of Los Angeles (originally from Australia) has the looks and the pipes to make it to the top 50. In fact, if the spoiler page is correct, he is.
Wow! Three good singers to start off. This must mean a lot of bad ones to come.
Here they come: Marat Hayrapetyan wears an absurdly frilly white shirt. Christopher Mitchell is no Ace Young. Tehilla Lauder just kind of slays them with vibratto. Then there’s the copycat Mariah Carey lover. Valerie Reyes has some of Carey’s breathiness and vibratto but none of her vocal strength or tone. Then the high notes come and breaks glasses across the country. “The only resemblance to Mariah Carey is Mariah Carey’s CD left out in the sun for a year, then trying to play it,” Simon said.
Then the gimmicky singers—Joseph (dressed in a Mexican poncho) & Juanita Mejia (doing a mime deal). Joseph actually wasn’t half bad but a gimmick is a gimmick. Monique Gibson ruins a Whitney song, then dared to try Mariah. Ugh! Then her friend Christopher Brown also screws up Whitney and wouldn’t shut up. He gets escorted out, thank God.
Love thy Simon: Samantha Musa is a Simon obsessive and her sis sits on his lap while she does Aretha Franklin. She’s a beaut and she’s actually a good singer. “I thought it was a great audition,” says Simon.
Try, try again: Then there’s the “idiot” who did the Statue of Liberty in season five and came back. Blake Boshnack of Long Beach, N.Y., who has tried out 11 times, did a decent, almost desperate “Stand By Me” and the judges didn’t stand by him at all. Simon tried to get Paula to say no and she wouldn’t say it.
Alexandria Ruiz got a no. Sarah Long was incomprehensible and was compared to William Hung (“The biggest insult ever,” she said.) Then a bunch of no-name sad folks. Fan-holding, shy Alberto (“Singing is the ultimate rebuilding of my soul”) Hurtado looks like a nightmare in the making before he even sang. And his biographical song was indeed horrid. “The most depressing song in my life,” Simon said.
Dreadlocked Aaron “Leave Me Alone” Garrett was dismal.
Emotional story alert: David Archuletta is a man who has had partial “vocal paralysis” and does John Mayer reasonably well but isn’t quite good enough. He might get a sympathy vote. “You have a really good voice at 16,” Randy said. “I think you have a nice tone, mature for your young age,” Paula said. “I agree with Paula and Randy. A great choice of song,” Simon said. Yup, he got the sympathy vote. (According to MJ’s site, he won Star Search when he was 12.)
They end with Carly Hennessy (who is called Smithson, her husband’s name, on the show). She auditioned in Vegas season five but couldn’t get a visa. She was also the source of the Wall Street Journal story about a singer MCA spent $2.2 million on and she sold only a few hundred CDs. This latter info was not included to the audience. Anyway, she’s back and quite nervous. She also added a monstrous tattoo on her right arm since 2005, probably influenced by her tattoo shop owner/hubby (who has tattoos on his face!) Vocally, she’s a pro and it shows. “That wasn’t as good as two years ago,” Simon said. I thought it was okay but she didn’t move me at all.
Good news: with only one hour, they didn’t bother with the “group” sing.
And here’s Kellie Pickler on Ellen DeGeneres performing her third single “Things That Never Cross a Man’s Mind.” Thank you DJ Slim for your work on taping it! For once, Kellie keeps her pups in check. She looks great! This song is skirting the top 20 and it’s not half bad!
1/21: Talking with Jordin Sparks, who literally now has tattoos
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABOVE: Jordin Sparks talking to Star 94’s Morning Mess CREDIT: Rodney Ho
I managed to snag a few minutes with Jordin Sparks today between interviews she had with Q100 and Star 94. We met at the Starbucks near the Disco Kroger off Piedmont and Peachtree.
She had a Caramel Macchiato. I had a decaf. What I like about her is how unaffected she is. No pretenses, no neuroses, no guile, no guard up. She possesses a true innocence about her that’s refreshing and hopefully she’ll be able to retain that as long as possible in this cynical, ugly world of show biz. I think there is a real-ness about her that helped her win, a genuine sweetness coupled with her formidable vocal skills. And it comes through in her first hit song “Tattoo,” which last week officially passed the 1 million download sales mark and is almost top 5 on the top 40 charts.
She said after she heard, she spoke to her mom about “going platinum” last week and her mom wasn’t impressed at all, probably because she didn’t know what that really meant. Jordin understands that although her CD has sold a relatively modest 437,000 copies so far, the world is different from what it was even just three or four years ago. CD sales are off more than 40 percent from 2002-03. People are buying downloads now, especially the demo she’s chasing.
As for the song “Tattoo,” which was created by the same guys who did Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable,” she admitted it has a similar vibe. But she loved it. “I didn’t even get through the first chorus when I said, ‘I have to have this song!’ ” She also loved that the song has become a true hit. Although she has already sung it publicly many many times on talk shows and other events, she doesn’t mind and knows she won’t be sick of it anytime soon. “It’s MY song! I’m not singing someone else’s song!” she said with youthful enthusiasm. It’s a breakup song and though “I haven’t gone through that horrible breakup, a couple of years from now, I might really feel it.”
When she turned 18 last month, she and several of her family members (including her mom and her grandparents!) went to a parlor and all had tattoos. She actually got one a day early: behind her left ear with her brother’s name “PJ.” During her “Idol” year when she was home barely 12 days the entire year until Christmas, she said “I kind of took my brother for granted. He’s 15 and I really missed him.” On her birthday, she got a second one: “Timothy 4:12.” This one is roughly translated as: “Don’t let anyone look down on you for being young. Instead, make your speech, behavior, love, faith, and purity an example for other believers.” In a sense, she sees herself as a role model given her “Idol” victory and wants to act in ways that make people respect her despite her youth. I saw both tattoos, stupidly forgot to take pictures of them. My apologies! They are both tiny and easy to hide if necessary.
One interesting thing that she said, seemingly sincerely, came when we first began talking. I had asked her how things went when she tried the hot videogame Rock Band at Q100 with Jeff Dauler and she said she failed as the vocalist in the game because she didn’t know the words well enough for a song that came out long before she was born: The Clash’s 1982 hit “Should I Stay or Should I Go.” “I failed,” she said. “I never fail at anything.” This could be perceived as arrogance but the way she said it, it was clear she was simply being honest. She’s lived a fairly charmed life, a comfortable existence with supportive family that pushed her to pursue her goals - in this case, singing. And she’s only 18. She hasn’t had a relationship so she hasn’t faced heartache. She has a lot to learn and she knows it.
Her dad Phillippi Sparks is a former New York Giant so she’s naturally psyched to be singing the National Anthem in two weeks in her home state. (She avoided saying anything negative about the New England Patriots but given her dad’s past, she naturally will be rooting for the Giants.). She is naturally nervous about doing the anthem because “if you mess up, they’ll talk about it forever.” When told she was the anthem singer, “I screamed, jumped up and down. We are such a huge football family! I’ve never been to a Super Bowl.” In fact, her dad has never played in a Super Bowl and teased her by saying she made it and he didn’t.
She will also never say a bad thing about “Idol.” (See Chris Daughtry.) She not only is eternally grateful for the opportunities the show has given her but she is, as noted before, “an Idol junkie.” She caught parts of both of last week’s shows despite her busy schedule and she’ll Tivo whatever she misses. (I didn’t have time to ask her about any specific contestants—or simply forgot given the limited time I had.)
Her promotion schedule, save for Christmas, has been virtually nonstop since October. I’m amazed she’s still at it but that shows how aggressive Sony and Jive is in pushing her out there. Besides “Tattoo,” she looks like she has a second hit in her hands with the duet “No Air” with Chris Brown that some stations began playing without record label promotion. That’s always a healthy sign that there’s a demand for the song, which is just starting to chart, has sold quite a few downloads already and could quite possibly become her second top 10 single by March. If it sells as well as I anticipate, her CD could pass Taylor Hicks in sales of 699,000 by April or May and she might bag her second million selling download.
As I write this, she has probably already touched down in New York and has just met up with Chris Brown to do the video for “No Air.” She said she had to record “No Air” separately from Brown last fall but met him at both the BET Awards and the AMAs. She also joked with the Morning Mess about him being her boyfriend but that’s wishful thinking, not reality.
She isn’t sure who she’s going to tour with yet later this year. She is going to do an international promotional tour, too, probably to Asia and Europe in early spring, another sign that the label is confident in her abilities. I asked her about Taylor and Ruben losing their contracts and she said she’d be “devastated” if that happened to her but would keep going on. “I’d be okay,” she said. “I’d just have to go with it. I’d never give up on music,” even if she pursues, say, Broadway or acting like other Idols. Later, with the Morning Mess, she noted, “It could be all taken away in a second. I’m really trying to enjoy everything while I can.” Given her current trajectory, I’d say Jive will certainly give her a second CD when the time comes.
She is also holding her first charity event next week in Arizona, inspired by “Idol Gives Back.” Melinda, Chris Richardson and LaKisha will all be there. More details here..
And congrats to Round Rock, Texas blog reader Bill Parcells, who was the first one to contact me for an autographed Jordin Sparks CD for his sister. It will be in the mail Tuesday, Bill!
1/21: Weekend tidbits
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m planning to talk to Jordin Sparks in person at Star 94 studios at 10 a.m. Monday morning. Email me at rho@ajc.com if you’d like to me to have her personally autograph a CD for any of you. Please email me by 9 a.m. Monday so this is truly rewarding any Sunday readers and early risers on why you’d want this and provide me your name and address so I can email the CD to you.
DJSlim has provided the audio for Renaldo Lopez’s obnoxiously catchy tune “We’re Brothers Forever” here:
Here’s a mostly positive review of the Reba McEntire/Kelly Clarkson concert in Ohio.. Too bad it’s not coming here. I’d love to see that!
I watched the second semifinal round of season two on “American Idol Rewind.” This was the group with the ultimate final three: Clay, Ruben and Kimberley. A couple of the also-rans weren’t half bad though I have zero memory of several of them. Hadas? Who? She screams the chorus of “You Light Up My Life.” I liked Candice Coleman’s smokey voice and while Rebecca Bond was a bit overly stylized, she had a bit of Toni Braxton in her. Jacob John Smalley has some sex appeal though he was like Justin Lite. Jennifer Fuentes rung a very vague bell. She dared take on Whitney’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” and it feels very karaoke and very loud.
Clay’s “Open Arms” was good, if not his best performance. But he clearly has something about him, a goofy charisma that we’d love (or hate.) Even skeptical Simon sensed Clay could go far. He made the top 3 but just missed the top 2. The Claymates hadn’t quite formed at that point! Ruben said he knew Clay would be tough competition and admitted in 2007 that he thought at the time: “It was a breath of fresh air. Awright! He’s going home!” But Clay came back for the wildcard episode and we know the rest.
Ruben’s charm and vocal control jumped through the screen while he sang what would become a staple song for him, “Superstar.” This joyful performance clearly helped push him to the top of the heap early on. (Those 205 shirts didn’t hurt either.) Randy gave him a standing o. Paula hugged him. “You are what this competition is all about,” Simon said. In a 2007 interview, he said he actually recycled that song from the Hollywood round because the Donny Hathaway song he was going to sing wasn’t working out with the piano accompanist.
Kimberley Locke took her earlier audition song and what would also be a signature for her, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” While that was a good performance, I wasn’t totally sold on Kimberley until midway through the competition and she sang “New York State of Mind.” Randy and Paula gave her a standing ovation, but Simon only gave her a 4.5 in personality. She sassed back at him and said he’s a zero in personality. “I thought you were sexy,” she said. “You suck!” In 2007, she said she worried afterwards if the public would take that exchange the wrong way. (They didn’t.) I forgot about that little exchange!
1/18: Atlanta auditions airing 2/5, Nashville Star to NBC, Paula Abdul’s new song
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sorry—I’ve been busy with a lot of stories to write for the print edition, including a fill-some-space “Idol” story for Tuesday about whether it matters that some of the contestants have been signed before on major labels and such.
Mark your calendars: Atlanta is the seventh and final city to be featured on Feb. 5. Next week will be San Diego and Charleston. The following week will be Omaha and Miami. Presumably, the Feb. 6 date will include leftovers.
Anyway, if you have been a fan of “Nashville Star” on USA Network, the show is moving to the summer time on NBC, a step up in exposure. The show averaged about 2.5 million viewers in its original airing last spring, less than 10 percent of “Idol.” And the show has generated only one true superstar, the wonderfully talented Miranda Lambert, who sang one of my favorite songs of 2007, “Famous in a Small Town.” I hear groups and duos will be welcome, too, though logistically, I don’t know how that would work. No word on judges or host.
While the CMT and CMA Awards do well for CBS and the occasionally country concert (Garth Brooks, Faith Hill) pulls in decent ratings, can “Nashville Star” pull in passable ratings on NBC? Fox failed with its ‘Hill” ripoff “Nashville.” We’ll see how well the show translates to broadcast in a few months.
And DJ Slim’s blog had Paula’s new song “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow.” Despite myself, I actually like it. Sure, Paula isn’t a great singer and this has been clearly processed through 18 computers a la Britney but it’s got a passably catchy chorus and you can dance to it. Tell me what you think!
Have a great weekend everybody!
1/17: On Idol ratings, Daughtry, Clay
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The final ratings for night one was 33.4 million, up slightly from the preliminary numbers and down 10.7% from a year earlier when 37.4 million caught the show. The prelim numbers for Wednesday night were 30.3 million, down about 18 percent from a year ago’s 36.9 million. The dropoff among 18-49 has been about the same.
Maybe we can blame it on Kayla Dawn Hatfield (below). Just kidding. I just can’t believe she made it to Hollywood!
Daughtry backpedaled a bit on his comments about “Idol” in which he said the show was in a state of decline. (She yesterday’s blog post). Here’s what he wrote on his blog, courtesy of mtv.com:
“It’s so sad that when you’re asked something and you answer honestly … you’re made out to be the bad guy,” he wrote less than half a day after the RS interview posted. “Yes, I’m referring to the Rolling Stone post. The funny thing is, if you heard the whole conversation you would’ve heard all the good things I said about the show as well. Like for instance: How it’s an amazing platform to launch a career … ‘If you take it seriously!!!!’ Let’s not forget I was a struggling artist for 11 years that never got any respect or notoriety so know that I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity that ‘Idol’ gave me. And that’s where my comments came from.”
“My long-winded point is this,” he concluded. “I was never trying to ‘DISS’ the show or ‘BITE THE HAND THAT FED ME’ so to speak. I was simply giving my input on what I think would spice the show up a bit. Sorry for being honest.”
Ken Warwick with mtv.com defended the many contestants who appear to have had professional pasts such as Kristy Lee Cook, who used to be with Nashville Arista and Britney Spears’ management company.
“The truth of the matter is, there are too many people who come on to audition for us to go into all their backgrounds,” Warwick said. “We judge it purely on, when they walk through the door, if they have a record company attached to them already, then we’re not interested. If they have a management contract, they’ve got to lose it. it. … We take them on the merits of ‘Can they sing or not?’
“There are kids who are sufficiently good out there, that maybe should be stars,” he continued, “and the fact that they’ve been a backing singer to someone else in the past — if they were within the age limit and they meet all the criteria that we set — then who are we to say, ‘No, you can’t have another go [at it]’? That’s ridiculous.”
I would agree with Ken. If some of these folks have some professional experience, so be it. Not everyone can be Kellie Pickler or Elliott Yamin, truly diamonds in the rough who never would have gotten anywhere without “Idol.” And folks like Daughtry, Taylor Hicks and Melinda Doolittle have had plenty of professional experience.
Do you want to see what Clay looks like in “Spamalot,” which debuts January 18? NY Post’s Page Six provides a photo here.
Oddly, I was flipping through the channels last night and caught Jordin singing “Tattoo” on Kimmel (with frizzed out hair), then switched to Craig Ferguson on CBS and there was Blake doing “Break Anotha” (wearing one of his hideous plaid sweaters.) Both are doing all the shows they were supposed to do but couldn’t back in November/December when the writers strike kept the late-night shows off the air.
And don’t forget to email me if you want the Blake CD/autographed poster by 6 p.m. Friday and explain why you deserve it!
1/16: Dallas auditions, American Idol
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
We’re in Dallas and is it just me or is Simon getting soft? He seems to be pulling his punches and even liking folks we’d never expect. He even called some bad singers “sweet.” Did someone put a Paula pill in his Coke? What’s going on?
And people keep stupidly singing other “Idol” singers’ songs. Why bring up those types of comparisons?
A few people I wasn’t a fan of got through. But I really liked Alaina Whitaker and was oddly charmed by the nerdy Kyle Ensley. But versatile Kady Malloy looks to be the best of what we saw, a potential top 12 finisher, despite the fact she tried to imitate Carrie before switching to a better song.
First singer: Jessica Brown, single mom, former crystal meth user. Great voice but definitely lacking stage presence. She had enough potential to start episode two no a high note.
No. 2: Paul Stafford, a park attendant who looks like a disaster without uttering a note. And he is, mauling Elliott Yamin’s “Wait For You.” Thumbs down! Simon didn’t “go down” on him, thank God because “he goes down on just about everybody.” No double entendres there.
Kelly Clarkson fan and singing waitress Beth Maddocks has awful tone, just awful. “I have no idea what that was,” Simon said. Esteban Deanda: blech. Victoria Metz: double blech. Drucilla Wideman: triple blech. Alaina Whitaker, compared to Carrie Underwood in looks, actually sounds great, is definitely a keeper. “I don’t think you are as good as you think you are,” Simon said. “Work on the breathiness of your voice,” Paula said. (She’s on the spoiler 50.)
Gregory & Mia Tobias do an annoying duet that sounds like two completely different songs. Bruce Dickson, a 19 year old who isn’t bad looking but has never kissed a woman, appears way too close to his dad. He is waiting for his wedding day for that first kiss. As a singer, he’s decent but Simon doesn’t see him working on the radio. “I’m not sure who you are as an artist,” Paula said. Advice: “Kiss some girls,” Randy said. “Avoid Ryan on the way out,” Simon said.
Pia “Zpia” Easley is an R&B backup singer with a little mohawk who did very well. “I like you,” Simon said. “You’re interesting. Most backup singers come in like whipped donkeys.” She’s Hollywood bound.
Brandon Greene(above), with a bag of peeled fingernails, actually has some charm. “Forgettable,” said Simon. “I kinda like you,” Paula said. “I like the tone in your voice,” Randy said. Simon said no but he gets through. (A third Spoiler 50 of the night.)
Farmgal/mom Kayla Dawn Hatfield, who got in a nasty accident a few years ago and lost sight in one eye, was just bad in her attempt to channel Janis Joplin. Somehow, she got through via the sympathy card. Simon loved her. Go figure!
Erick Mauldin: he’s no Ruben Studdard. Charles Markham is purely offkey. Tristan Clements is out of control. Attractive blondie Kady Malloy does a great imitation of Britney Spears and then imitates Carrie Underwood. Then she takes Simon’s favorite song “Unchained Melody” and does a lovely job. “Of all the people we’ve seen, you’re the best so far. You are super super talented.” She’s a winner.
12 people made it through day one. We saw six of them sing.
Day two and hour two spends way too much time with the baddies. Douglas Davidson has “loser” written all over him and he doesn’t surprise us on that front. He tests his voice in front of the judges, sings horrendously and seems incredibly out of breath. Then he won’t leave and has to be escorted out. The bit goes on wayyyy too long. The guy takes up more than four minutes. Is he for real? “I think that was pretty decent,” he said.
Three more minutes are set aside for Angela Reilly, who gets his hubby in there to cheer him on but she is just crappy in a late-at-night-drunk-singing-at-the-bar crappy. She is enthusiastic, at least. “Love is deaf,” Simon said.
Earnest would-be politco, tie-wearing dorky Kyle Ensley does a surprisingly passable version of Queen and passes through. “I felt like I was at a glee club or a fraternity,” Randy said. “I thought it was very academic.” He said no. Simon actually said yes and Paula became the rare tie breaker. She almost said no but said yes.
Tammy Tuzinski is a very quiet Celine Dion fan who announces she is singing “Power of Love” but actually sings “If You Asked Me To.” Either way, she is laughably bad and has the personality of cardboard.
Colton Swon (above) does a passable version of Little Big Town’s “Boondocks” but as Simon noted, you could hear the same thing in 1,000 country bars across the country. Still, he gets three yesses (including a reluctant one from Simon) and is through. (He’s the fourth on the spoiler 50 sheet of the night.)
After a commercial break, “Idol” shows a bunch of guy singers who look like women and one guy in a “Bosom Buddies” type dress. I bet these are from all over the country and not even necessarily from Dallas. It was just a compilation “Idol” felt like putting in.
Then there’s country farmer Drew Poppelreiter from Mississippi, who isn’t as good as Colton but has a more distinctive growl, more George Strait-like. He could use more stage presence and gets a “no” from Simon. “I actually like this guy,” Randy said. “I think that you are who you are, you have a good tone to the voice. I didn’t feel any wow factor with your performance,” said Paula. But she says yes anyway after Simon implies she might just say no. (Fifth of the night on the spoiler list.)
Too tan elementary school teacher Kyle Reinneck of Edwardsville, Ill. does a Kelly Clarkson song “Never Again” is incredibly flat. “Very menacing,” Simon said. “It’s verging on scary.”
Speaking of Kelly, her “Since U Been Gone” was used for the “group” sing. No need to comment on that.
Burleson’s Nina Shaw, from Kelly Clarkson’s hometown, does some Whitney “Run To You” but it’s very shrill. “It’s overthought, very overdone and cabaret,” Simon said. She lacks real charisma to me. Randy liked the jazz thing. “Old fashioned,” Simon said. Paula says yes and she’s off to Hollywood. No way she’s going very far.
Theatrically dressed Renaldo Lapuz (age 44? Obviously a plant!) sings an original diddy called “We’re Brothers Forever.” He has Simon’s name is on his hat in honor of how famous the man is, causing Randy and Paula to yak. And Renaldo sings with great verve and isn’t half bad—at least he’s better than the Philly ringer, the “No Sex Allowed” dude. And Paula choreographs it! “I have a horrible feeling that’s going to be a hit record,” Simon said. “You’re very entertaining. But it will be a no.” They convince him to hug Simon.
The tally: 16 bad singers were shown, 10 good ones were featured (same as in Philly), 24 made it through.
San Diego is next Tuesday. I also hear Atlanta will be the Wednesday January 23 episode. I’m sure that will mean I’ll be tracking down the freaks from Georgia who pop up and possibly the “inspiration” story, too.
1/16: Idol ratings down, Blake Lewis giveaway!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
My first (and easiest) prediction came true: first-episode ratings would drop. I predicted 20 percent but it was more like 11 percent, based on preliminary numbers. That’s not really that bad. Last year, the show drew a record 37.4 million but dropped to an early estimate of 33.2 million this year. The 18-49 demo numbers fell about the same amount. This would be the lowest debut since 2004. (The numbers often go up by a half million or so in the final analysis so it may end up closer to 34 million.)
I think last year showed signs of “Idol” fatigue and a bunch of folks decided to move on, never to come back. That’s not surprising. And look—that’s still a monstrous number when even hit shows like “House” and “Desperate Housweives” draw 22 to 25 million viewers.
What will be interesting is to see how much ratings fall off over the next seven audition episodes. Last year, most of those eps were in the low to mid-30s. (I’ll update this entry with final numbers when I get them.)
Anyway, I have the opportunity to give away a Blake Lewis CD and autographed poster. Through Friday at 6 p.m., I’ll take all emails on why you think you deserve such a vaunted prize and I’ll reward it to who I think wanted it most. Email me at rho@ajc.com and I’ll need your name and address so the publicist can mail it directly to you.
And not surprisingly, Chris Daughtry has no qualms dissing “Idol” after a lackluster year, according to Rolling Stone.:
“It’s in a state of decline and if they don’t do something about it, it’s probably not gonna last too much longer. I’m sure that’ll be used against me, but that’s the truth, you know?”
He isn’t a fan of the audition portion packed with tuneless singers:
“People get tired of seeing people that suck,” he says. “It’s funny at first, but come on. They spend three weeks on people that can’t sing, and that’s what they’re banking it on. [They should] find some people that you can really invest in.”
I spoke with Justin Guarini last Friday for my print edition story yesterday and he thinks the show will end on a glorious high note if it closes shop in 2010 when Simon Cowell’s contract end (and presumably throws in the towel after nine seasons.) I think Fox will ride this baby until it’s no longer viable to do so, which means even if Simon’s departure causes 1/3 of the audience to leave, the show will keep on going until ratings drop below 10 million. That could be a long time from now, perhaps 2013 or 2014.
1/16: Welcome to season seven of American Idol!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Idol” chose Philadelphia as its season launching pad - although chronologically it was their last city. Early on, they showed more good singers than they did last year, a possible way to address criticism that it had become TOO much of a trainwreck. I sense we’re more likely to see more of the final 50 than we did last year at this stage. (Kristy Cook and Chris Watson are the standouts.) But don’t worry, lovers of bad singers. There’s more than enough of that.
Joey Catalano, the former fat dude (down 204 pounds!), started the season singing Maroon 5’s