CMA Music Fest kicks into gear
The CMA Music Festival starts today with everything from a stadium concert at night to artists going through the traditional ritual of meeting and greeting their fans.
The concert at LP field features Alan Jackson, Carrie Underwood, Lady Antebellum, Tim McGraw, Jason Aldean and Danny Gokey.
Keith Anderson, Diamond Rio, Colt Ford, Joey + Rory, Love and Theft, Neal McCoy, Jake Owen, Josh Thompson and Clay Walker perform at the Riverfront Park daytime stage.
Other events include Blake Shelton’s fan club party at the Wildhorse saloon, Dierks Bentley, Josh Turner and Danny Gokey autograph signings at the Country Music Hall of Fame, Darryl Worley unplugged at the Nashville Convention Center, the Andy Griggs Celebrity Poker Tournament at the Cadillac Ranch and several showcases.
For more on the big 4 day CMA country music festival, click THIS LINK.
‘Idolatry’: Crystal Bowersox on dream collaborations (Adam Lambert?), confrontations with judges, and what she’d change about ‘Idol’
Crystal Bowersox is a fighter by nature, which is why she wasn’t going to let anything — a Hollywood Week put-down from Simon, a semifinal hospital scare, or the finale-night combination of high heels and a steep flight of stairs — get in the way of her American Idol run. Now, in her Idolatry interview, the season 9 runner-up discusses her dreams of co-producing her major-label debut disc, the duet she and Lee DeWyze almost chose over “Falling Slowly, ” and what she wishes she’d done differently the night the season 9 Top 12 was announced.
Headlines after the JUMP…
Constantine Maroulis Will Host 2nd Annual Tony Awards Simulcast 6/13
Rock of Ages star Constantine Maroulis will host the 64th Annual Tony Awards simulcast live in Times Square on Sunday, June 13th. The Tony Awards, in partnership with iXP Corporation and Times Square Alliance, will simulcast every moment of the Tony Awards LIVE to the Clear Channel Spectacolor HD Screen in Times Square on Sunday, June 13th from 6:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.
Constantine talks about life after Idol
Lee DeWyze: LAX Landing
Arriving from New York City, Lee DeWyze was spotted at LAX International Airport last night (June 9).
The “American Idol” champ looked a bit worn out from all of his media responsibilities, sporting a black shirt, dark wash jeans, and a red cap.
OnMedia: A chat with Crystal Bowersox
This year’s crop of “American Idol” finalists stop in Milwaukee on the second night of their post-show tour, July 2, at Summerfest.
And the woman who almost won, second-place finisher Crystal Bowersox, tells me she’s looking forward to the outdoor venue on a hot summer night, as well as connecting with some Milwaukee friends.
“I’m a summertime girl, ” she says. “I like the sunshine, I like bein’ all sweaty and gross.”
Driving rain cuts CMA Fest opening day short
A whopper of a storm cut short the CMA Music Festival’s opening festivities Wednesday, sending crowds of people dashing under tents and into doorways as thunder and lightning cracked the sky over downtown.
The storm disrupted what had been a smooth start to the festival that began with a parade down Broadway. Brenda Lee mounted a powder-blue Corvette convertible and led a procession of country stars including Rodney Atkins, Bo Bice, Danielle Peck, The Grascals, Chuck Wicks and many more.
Thousands lined the streets; they came from all over.
PIC: Carrie Underwood Kisses Fiance at CMTs
PDA alert!
At Wednesday’s CMT Awards in Nashville, Carrie Underwood — who won video of the year for Cowboy Casanova and CMT performance of the year for Temporary Home — made a rare public move, smooching fiance Mike Fisher on the lips before going on stage to accept the video award.
“It’s great having him there!” she told UsMagazine.com after the show. “No matter what happens, I go home a winner. I have the biggest prize, the guy sitting next to me. Win or lose, he is proud of me. Of course, it’s nice to share the good times too!”
Carrie Underwood knocks Taylor Swift off pedestal at CMT Music Awards
Carrie Underwood showed Taylor Swift just who the real queen of country music is with her two big wins at Wednesday’s CMT Music Awards. The one-time “American Idol” champ prevailed in another public vote as her video for “Cowboy Casanova” took the top award while her rendition of “Temporary Home” on the CMT show “Invitation Only” won the performance prize.
Taylor Swift went into the night with three nominations, including bids for video of the year and female video for “You Belong to Me.” The teen singing sensation won both those awards last year for “Love Story” and in 2008 for “Our Song.” Both Swift and Underwood lost the female video race to Miranda Lambert, who took home her first CMT award for “White Liar.” Swift’s third unsuccessful bid this year was in the collaborative video category for her duet with Kellie Pickler on “Best Days of Your Life.” That award was won by Blake Shelton and Trace Adkins (“Hillbilly Bone”).
Nashville was slow — really slow — to embrace Carrie Underwood
It sometimes seems that country music doesn’t always recognize a star when one all but falls in its lap.
Five years ago, when a 22-year-old singer from Muskogee, Okla., named Carrie Underwood was crowned champion of the fourth season of American Idol, a major crossover success story bloomed.
Before her first album was even complete, an initial single, Inside Your Heaven, became an instant pop sensation that knocked aside heavyweights including the Black Eyed Peas, Mariah Carey, 50 Cent and Gwen Stefani. It became a quadruple-platinum hit.
No joke! Ellen plans to be a tougher ‘Idol’ judge
That said, Cowell’s departure came as a surprise to DeGeneres, according to several “Idol” sources. “Ellen thought she was signing on to a show that would be helmed by Simon for the foreseeable future. His announcement (that he was leaving) came as a total surprise, ” said one source.
Another “Idol” source said that Cowell’s departure announcement set her off on the wrong foot, and she never felt totally comfortable on the show last season.
“The egos here are all too big to admit that she didn’t work well within the show and didn’t get along with a lot of the people within the production, ” said a source close to the program. “Ellen wasn’t fitting in at the beginning of the season, and the situation never improved by the end.”
Jordin Sparks aims for good music over sex appeal as Battlefield Tour hits NYC
Sex sells — especially for teen stars turned pop stars Miley Cyrus and Christina Aguilera.
But don’t go looking for Jordin Sparks to go all leather and lace.
“I’ve never wanted to be a sex symbol, ” the 20-year-old “American Idol” winner told the Daily News. “I just wanted to be a singer and sell my music and make sure I can touch people along the way.”
With a laugh, Sparks noted, “There’re already enough artists out that that do all that and go crazy.”
Jordin Sparks far from idle, with Broadway and new album beckoning
The 20-year-old “Idol” champ – who plays Friday at New Hampshire’s Casino Ballroom in Hampton Beach and Sunday at the House of Blues – will join the cast of the Broadway musical “In the Heights” in August, once she wraps up her first-ever solo headlining tour.
“I’ve always wanted to do Broadway, ” Sparks said from her home in Arizona. “Music has always been my No. 1 love, but I love Broadway because I can become a different character and combine music at the same time. The opportunity came up and I was ecstatic. I cannot wait to go, because it’s going to be a whole new experience for me.”
Thousands gather for auditions but do Scots have the X Factor?
It’s the show that hopes to unearth international superstars but usually ends in tears as the dreams of stardom are dashed in front of millions of television viewers.
And, while not even six months have passed since last year’s X Factor winner was crowned – Geordie teenager Joe McElderry – the audition machine rolled into Glasgow yesterday to hear the latest batch of hopefuls.
Simon Cowell, 50, was joined by regular judges Cheryl Cole, 26, and Louis Walsh, 57. To add some spice to proceedings Geri Halliwell, 37, also took a seat on the panel as a temporary stand-in for Danni Minogue, 38, who is due to give birth to her first child next month.
“Hopefully, for once, we’re going to find somebody good from Scotland, ” said Cowell to the 3000-strong audience gathered inside the SECC. “Just remember I’m 50% Scottish.”
Susan Boyle To Perform For pope During U.K. Tour
The Roman Catholic Church in Scotland says singing sensation Susan Boyle will likely perform for Pope Benedict XVI on his tour of Britain later this year.
A spokesman said Thursday (June 10) that negotiations are still taking place, but Boyle is expected to sing at an open-air papal Mass in Glasgow’s Bellahouston Park on Sept. 16.
Benedict’s four-day trip will be the first papal visit to Britain since Pope John Paul II in 1982.
His itinerary also includes an address in Parliament and the beatification of 19th-century Catholic convert Cardinal John Henry Newman.
Meet The ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ Top 11 (Yes, ELEVEN)
The Season 7 “So You Think You Can Dance” 11 finalists were revealed Wednesday night, and among them were some familiar faces–including bonus 11th contestant Billy Bell (the fan favorite who made the Season 6 top 20, but had to drop out for health reasons), ballet dynamo Alex Wong (who was selected for the top 20 in Season 5, but was unable to get out of his contract with the Miami City Ballet until now), and Alexie Agdeppa (who finally made this season’s cut after auditioning FOUR times).
“So You Think You Can Dance”: The very long and winding road
I have to disclose that tonight I didn’t watch “SYTYCD” as a fan but as someone who wanted to get the episode over with as soon as possible so I could possibly see the Chicago Blackhawks win a Stanley Cup for the first time since almost 10 years before I was born. Unfortunately, this was a bad episode for impatient people. We saw some good dancing tonight but also a lot of annoyingly drawn-out material.
I didn’t mind the first half of the episode so much. Here we learned that Ida Saki was dropping out (exactly why is unclear, perhaps to focus on other things, perhaps because she couldn’t take the pressure) which shocked and upset the judges. After that we saw the finalists go through a Broadway round which looked like a lot of fun, especially for Adrian Lee and Lauren Froderman. I don’t think I loved Lauren the first time I saw her but she won me over with the excited way she pretended to punch the seats after getting good input from the judges.
‘So You Think You Can Dance’ recap: 11th heaven
While watching the most recent episode in this seventh game-changing season of So You Think You Can Dance, I realized that Nigel and the panel handed me the equivalent a great, big hot fudge sundae. We had the cool (b-boy Jose Ruiz, tapper Melinda Sullivan); the warm, cozy coating that reminds us of yesteryear (Alex Wong, Billy Bell, Christina Sullivan); and, on top of it all, a nice, sweet, zingy cherry (that would be Kent Boyd, obviously).
So it was to my pleasant surprise that by the end of the entire show, Nigel and the gang didn’t yank this delicious treat away from me. Surely, I expected in the last 10 minutes, the judge would deprive us of early favorites Billy Bell and Alexie Agdeppa, because the season was starting to look just a tad too delectable. (And don’t call me Shirley.) After all, if we’ve learned anything from reality television, it’s how much it loves to rip out our hearts and use them as hacky sacks. (Remember how it felt to lose Alex Wong last year?)
Five Glee Finale Secrets: That Will and Emma Kiss Wasn’t Scripted!
Think you’re ready to say good-bye to season one of Glee? Not so fast! I caught up with the über-talented producer who wrote—and directed—last night’s epic season finale, Brad Falchuk, along with Jane Lynch (Sue!) and executive producer Dante Di Loreto and they spilled five secrets you fans have to know:
“The Will/Emma Kiss Wasn’t Scripted”: Can you stand it? So says Falchuk, and since he wrote and directed last night’s episode, he probably knows. So how did that awesome lip-lock go down? “I didn’t tell Jayma it was coming, ” Brad explains. “We shot all of Matt’s coverage first, and a master, and then when we got to her coverage, I pulled him aside and told him to kiss her. Her reaction is totally real.” And made for some incredible TV, no?
Coming soon: Gift shops stuffed with ‘Glee’
Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products is planning to unleash a flood of “Glee” merchandising this fall.
We’re talking video games, greeting cards, games, T shirts, sweatshirts, sleepwear, headwear, pens, notebooks, school planners, karaoke machine, boom box, board games, trivia games, puzzles, original novels and doubtless more.
Love executive quotes like this: “The merchandise launch will allow fans to continue to engage and express themselves in ways that are core to the essence of the show.”
Express yourself — by buyin’ lots of crap with “Glee” on it!
Lee Dewyze returns to LA: Saliva or Rubber bands?
via TMZ
