Headlines: America’s Got Talent Returns, The Voice Knockouts This Week

Tonight, America’s Got Talent returns after its Olympic hiatus! In case you need a refresher, the final 12 of the Top 36 will be performing for YOUR VOTES. We’ll be live blogging at 8 pm ET/PT.

Also, The Voice 11 Knockout Rounds are taping today and tomorrow at Universal Studios in Hollywood. The singers competing on the LIVE SHOWS will be chosen from these rounds.

DIERKS BENTLEY, TOBY KEITH, BLAKE SHELTON & KEITH URBAN TO PERFORM ALL-STAR MEDLEY HONORING GLEN CAMPBELL – The Academy of Country Music® (ACM) announced that Dierks Bentley, Toby Keith, Blake Shelton and Keith Urban will take the stage at the 10TH ANNUAL ACM HONORS™ for a special tribute to Glen Campbell, who as previously announced will be honored with the ACM Career Achievement Award. The country music luminaries will perform an all-star medley of Campbell’s greatest hits, culminating in an ensemble performance of the iconic “Rhinestone Cowboy.” Kim Campbell will accept the award on behalf of her husband. The two-hour special will tape on Tuesday, August 30 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, and make its television debut on Friday, September 9 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Universal & Illumination To Launch ‘Sing’ With Live Jennifer Hudson And Tori Kelly Performances At Toronto – On top of the previous announcement that Universal and Illumination Entertainment’s big Christmas holiday animation release Sing will have its world premiere as a Special Presentation of the Toronto Film Festival, I have learned the studio plans to turn it into an even bigger deal with live performances from Oscar and Grammy winner Jennifer Hudson and Tori Kelly (two of the film’s voice cast) immediately after the debut screening which is scheduled for 3:30 PM on Sunday, September 11 at the Princess Of Wales Theatre. – Read more at Deadline

Kacey Musgraves and Kellie Pickler Join Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making The Team – Kacey Musgraves and Kellie Pickler make guest appearances in CMT’s longest running original non-music series, Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making The Team Season 11, premiering Aug. 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. This star-studded season is one not be missed. Then, Kellie Pickler makes a surprise visit to Training Camp to learn some moves and share insight into how she handles being in the spotlight. Fun fact: Kellie cheered in high school, so she’s bound to teach the girls a thing or two. – Read more at CMT.com

Kellie Pickler: Bungee jumping was most terrifying moment of my life – Country singer Kellie Pickler and her husband, singer-songwriter Kyle Jacobs, have a new CMT reality show, “I Love Kellie Pickler.” Viewers get an inside look at their life together and get to see Kellie tackle some big challenges – like bungee jumping! – Todayshow.com

David Archuleta visits a Hospital in Taiwan

Fantasia Opens The Door For Love & Healing In ‘The Definition Of’ – To be honest with you, we fought for this album,” the songstress tells ESSENCE. “There were days when I would be in the studio and I would say, ‘if I can’t do what I’m feeling, then I don’t wanna do it at all.;” Ultimately, it was Fantasia’s resilience, trust in her craft and unwavering devotion to her passion for creating music that convinced skeptical record label heads to take a chance on her vision for the album. – Read more at Essence

America’s Got Talent’s Sal Valentinetti on His 50-Pound Weight Loss – On the red carpet after performing One Direction‘s “Story of My Life” in his own unique crooner style, Valentinetti told Parade.com, “I lost 50 pounds for my health. I was 20 years old, 315 pounds, pre-diabetic, and my blood pressure was 145, I did this for me.”
It wasn’t easy for Valentinetti, who works at his cousin’s pizzeria in Bethpage, N.Y., to be around the food he loves, but not be able to touch a bite. Plus, he had regular workouts with a trainer. But like we said earlier, he is motivated. – Read more at Parade.com

Alex & Sierra Talk Making Music Their Way, Being Called “The Cutest Couple In Music” & More – I figured we would start off with something fun. Let’s talk about the album, because you definitely chose a personal title. What was the transition like going into making music after you won X Factor? A: So for the first album there was definitely a lot of cooks in the kitchen, a lot of hands wanting a piece of the pie and making decisions, back and forth. Pretty much everything you’d expect from being on a label. Since then, we’re no longer with the label and we get to make all the decisions — and right now it’s really freaking cool to get to make music and we’ve been writing a bunch. We’re writing what we want and we got to choose what went on As Seen on TV, which was a cool thing to be able to say “wow, this song is making it.” S: And we had never written together, before so there’s definitely a new experience for us just going straight into making music instead of just being on a TV show covering other people’s songs. I think we’re a lot more comfortable now and we try and have our little systems down and it’s something that we love doing. We can’t wait to get out more of our originals. – Read more at AndPop

About mj santilli 34841 Articles
Founder and editor of mjsbigblog.com, home of the awesomest fan community on the net. I love cheesy singing shows of all kinds, whether reality or scripted. I adore American Idol, but also love The Voice, Glee, X Factor and more!