Happy American Idol Day! We’ll be live blogging tonight at 8 pm ET! Join us
Phillip Phillips will perform his new single “Gone Gone Gone” on The Ellen DeGeneres Show (Check local listings) and Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight, at 11:35/12:35 on ABC.
In Support of Nicki Minaj and Idol Feuds – As TMZ legend has it, Mariah Carey was told that she would be the only female judge on this season of American Idol. Upon learning that Nicki Minaj had also been hired, Mariah reportedly hung up the phone in disgust. The team spirit did not improve from there. Mariah’s camp started leaking stories about how angry she was and how much more she was being paid ($18 million to Minaj’s $12 million); the catfight narrative was firmly in place before the audition rounds even started. If you are looking to point fingers in the Great American Idol Diva Feud of 2012–13, start with the producers who pitted the women against each other, or Mariah herself, whose bad, entitled attitude set off Minaj in the first place. Put another way: Stop blaming Nicki. – Read more at Vulture
‘American Idol’ Judges: Where Will Nicki Minaj, Mariah Carey Rank? – “American Idol” returns for its 12th season on Wednesday night, having once again undergone a rather dramatic facelift by adding a trio of new judges to the fold: Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban. Of course, as you are probably aware by now, two of those judges want to kill each other, which means that this new season might just go down as the greatest in “Idol” history (or at least the most violent). And while Mariah and Nicki are already the two baddest bitches to ever grace the show’s stage — Urban should be getting combat pay for having to sit between them — we’ll be tuning in to see how they’ll fare as actual judges. What can we say? We’re purists. – Read more at MTV
‘American Idol’ Judges Become Focus Of Season 12 – LOS ANGELES — “American Idol” is facing a $36 million-plus question: Will that combined paycheck lavished on superstar judges Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban pay off in ratings? The newcomers have their work cut out for them whether they earn it with colorful feuding – ladies, you know who we’re talking about – or by discovering a singer who can charm America. The talent show, a TV groundbreaker when it debuted in 2002 despite a starless panel with Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul, needs every edge as its audience erodes and other contests emerge as challengers. – Read more at Huffington Post
The ‘ever-evolving’ ‘American Idol’ returns – “What did you think? We were going to come in with boxing gloves?” jokes Nicki Minaj, whose recorded tirade against fellow newcomer Mariah Carey has generated media heat as Season 12 of the Fox singing competition kicks off Wednesday with the New York auditions (8 ET/PT). But there’s no animosity as the judges — Carey, Minaj, country’s Keith Urban and Idol original Randy Jackson — gather in a crowded hotel meeting room to discuss the new season. As entourages look on, there is a little competitiveness between Carey and Minaj, but Minaj pays Carey a compliment, and the five-octave superstar chooses diplomacy when asked about the panel’s chemistry. – Read more at USA Today
Is American Idol Still Relevant in Season 12? – No amount of shiny hype, format tweaks or new judges can change the fact that American Idol is entering its 12th season when it premieres on Wednesday at 8/7c on Fox. As the elder statesman of reality singing competitions, Idol no longer has the sheen of innovation it once had. In fact, with a market so glutted with similar shows, the programs rarely surprise viewers who have become inured to all the variations. – Read more at TV Guide
‘American Idol’ season 12 brings revamped format – And here we go again — for the 12th time, as a matter of fact. “American Idol” returns Wednesday (at 8 on Fox/5) draped in newness — new judges, new energy and new(ish) format. Let’s get to all this newness, with evaluations: – Read more at Newsday
Feud with Mariah Carey a challenge, but Nicki Minaj could save ‘Idol’ – Come for the hair-pulling, stay for the music. Of course, no one is predicting things will get physical on “American Idol,” but right now Fox execs are stewing because the only publicity swirling around the revamped talent competition (returning for a 12th season tonight at 8 on WFXT, Ch. 25) is the sort that’s rancid. The network is still doing damage control over a TMZ-leaked video of judge Nicki Minaj lobbing expletive bombs at fellow newcomer Mariah Carey. – Read more at Boston Herald
Can ‘American Idol’ still top the charts? – “American Idol’s” 12th season debuts on Wednesday with a new panel of judges — and the growing perception that the show is no longer relevant. The singing competition lost nearly a quarter of its viewers last year, falling below 20 million for the first time since 2003. There was also a drop in that coveted 18 to 49 demographic. Undoubtedly, some of that audience ended up in the arms of competitors “America’s Got Talent,” “The Voice” and former “Idol” judge Simon Cowell’s U.S. edition of “The X Factor”. The hope going into this season of “Idol”? That the tension between sharp-tongued rapper Nicki Minaj and glitzy pop diva Mariah Carey will provide a ratings boon. – Read more at LA Times
‘American Idol’ zeros in on the contest — between Minaj and Carey – Not surprisingly, early publicity has focused on an alleged diva-feud — what, after all, could be more delicious? — with rumors of off-set take-downs and on-camera eye-rolling. If we hadn’t already witnessed similar cat-fight issues between host Ryan Seacrest and former judge Simon Cowell, this might seem dishearteningly sexist, but really it’s just television. Entering its 12th season, “American Idol” suffers from so much built-in predictability that a certain level of narrative manipulation is to be expected. To introduce an “All About Eve” twist — Minaj’s idea of making nice in the press is to acknowledge that she has looked up to Carey for “so many years” — was obviously too tantalizing to resist. Why else cast two such different strong-minded women? – Read more at LA TImes
Kelly Clarkson Loves Mariah Carey – She says, “I would have loved to have walked into a room and Mariah Carey was sitting there! She’s not only a great singer she’s also a great song writer as well. Also Nicki is pretty cool and she represents a whole different side of music. I think it’s pretty cool.” With talent like Kelly’s, I think she would have earned a ticket to Hollywood no matter who was judging. – Read more at Ryan Seacrest.com
Nigel Lythgoe — ‘American Idol’ Could Die Without Ryan Seacrest
Nicki Minaj at Steakhouse Bring Me Some A.1. Sauce … STAT!!! – Nicki Minaj committed the ULTIMATE steakhouse sin at Boa last night … she sent someone out to get her A.1. Steak Sauce right in the middle of her meal … and TMZ has the video proof!!! FYI — most chefs working at top steak joints across the globe consider a request for A.1. sauce (or any other sauce not made by the restaurant) as a total insult … an insult proudly committed by millions of people every day. It’s right up there with asking for your steak cooked “extra well-done and butterflied.” – See the Video at TMZ
Haley Reinhart Looks Back on American Idol – “I have a lot of faith in my destiny and I’ve always really thought that this was in the cards for me and I wasn’t going to stop until I got here, living in a musical household like I did,” she told Radio.com last year at Lollapalooza. “Either way I would like to try whatever it took to get there but American Idol was such an amazing platform and outlet for me and I didn’t know if it would work.” – Read more at 92.3.com
Adam Lambert Attends STEP UP ON VINE Opening – Supporting those in need with mental illnesses, Adam Lambert attended the opening of STEP UP ON VINE in Los Angeles on Monday (January 14). Sporting a toned-down look, the glam rocker wore a black suit with a skinny brown tie as he joined other celebrity supporters like former President Bill Clinton and Kobe Bryant. – See the photos at Celebrity-Gossip.net
‘American Idol’ Alum Jason Castro Talks New Album, Season 12 Premiere Party – This Wednesday, millions of viewers will tune in to American Idol’s twelfth season premiere, and season seven alum, for one, Jason Castro can’t wait. That’s because Castro’s new album, Only a Mountain, will drop the day before the show’s first episode, and the Texas native plans to celebrate both events in a big way. The former finalist will host “An Evening with Jason Castro Benefiting MusiCares’ Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund” at Rockwood Music Hall in New York City, Jan. 16. There, Castro plans on showcasing music from Only a Mountain with a 45-minute acoustic set, followed by an American Idol viewing party. “It’s fun to marry two things together,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s going to be a sweet night. “ = The Hollywood Reporter
American Idol Contestant Colton Dixon Talks New Album
‘American Idol’ Carrie Underwood would find it ‘really tough’ to do a ‘Smash,’ ‘Glee’ or ‘Nashville’ – Carrie Underwood knows some current drama series are fueled by music, but she’s not sure she’d want to leap into such a show herself. “Oh, gosh, I don’t know,” the superstar singer tells Zap2it. “If you play yourself on a show that’s a super-drama, I wouldn’t want people to think I was like that. There’s a lot of meaty drama happening on those shows, so that would be really tough, to do something that was so close to my real life. There’d probably be a lot of stuff where I’d be like, ‘I’m not going to say that! I’m not going to do that!'” – Read more at Zap2it
‘American Idol’ Taylor Hicks to Take the ‘Paris’ Stage – American Idol season five winner Taylor Hicks is taking his Vegas act up the strip to the Paris hotel and casino. Beginning Jan. 21, Hicks will take residence at Napoleon’s at Paris Las Vegas, a bigger room than The Indigo at Bally’s, where the singer has performed for nearly a year. In fact, he’s the first Idol alum to secure a long-term residency on the Vegas Strip. “I couldn’t be happier to be making the big move to Napoleon’s inside Paris Las Vegas,” Hicks tells The Hollywood Reporter. “It’s a great live music venue and I’m looking forward to performing there.” – Read more at Hollywood Reporter
Why Most People Will See Chris Colfer’s Movie ‘Struck by Lightning’ on Video – This is the story of how Colfer and the producers decided to go for a digital release at the cost of a traditional Hollywood opening and why they believe it is the future for many movies. “My partners agreed with me that this was a way to get this film seen by as many people as possible,” says producer David Permut, “and also have a profitable experience for everybody involved.” While Struck by Lightning has grossed only $22,930 from a special preview night and its opening weekend in theaters as of Tuesday, it is on track to gross more than $1 million from on-demand customers on Time Warner Cable, Comcast and others by the end of February. It sells on VOD for about $6 to $10 per showing. – Read more at Hollywood Reporter
Chris Colfer: I’m driven by the fear that Glee will end some day – What were you like in high school? I was really a smart kid but I didn’t do much of the required curriculum in middle school because I was home-schooled. I always had a love of history and of film and TV. I did very little homework, though, and watched a lot of TV. But I think the years I spent in front of TV were actually just preparing me for this life. I’ve never taken any acting lessons – I just watched actors do it on their shows and in movies. They were my teachers. What are your must-watch shows now? I love Downton Abbey, it’s so damn good. I’d love to do a Glee-meets-Downton special. Me and Sarah O’Brien would be in the kitchen just gossiping about people, I’d give Daisy a makeover, then I’d tell Lady Mary: “Quit your bitchin’.” – Read more at Metro.co.UK
