Clay Aiken performs at the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, IL.
Carrie Underwood performs at Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO.
Constantine Maroulis performs in Jekyll & Hyde the Musical at the Winspear Opera House in the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, TX.
Taylor Hicks performs at Bally’s Las Vegas in Las Vegas, NV.
Daughtry performs at the Honda Center in Anaheim, CA.
Mandisa performs at the Hits Deep Tour in Pittsburgh, PA.
Lee DeWyze performs at Fed Live in Harrisburg, PA.
Casey James performs at Midnight Rodeo in Amarillo, TX.
Scotty McCreery performs at Harrah’s Cherokee Resort Event Center in Cherokee, NC. Read more at AmericanIdol

Adam Lambert Talks VH1 Divas: ‘People Aren’t Ready For This Party!’ – “I just feel like people aren’t ready for this party. I don’t think anyone’s going to be ready for it,” he told Access earlier this week in an exclusive interview to promote the VH1 special. “It’s going to hit them like a ton of bricks across the face and people are going to walk away from watching this thing like, ‘That was the best party of the entire year. I feel it. Yeah!’” “We’re opening the show this year with this kind of comedy sketch, mocumentary style [chronology, looking at] my journey to becoming a true diva. And in the sketch, NeNe comes in and she’s like the diva coach,” Adam explained. “She’s giving me my swag… I predict it’s going to be a lot of laughter and we’re probably going to have to pull it together for these takes so that we can seem serious, but I’m sure it’s going to be a lot of fun.” – Read more at Access Hollywood

Scotty McCreery Balancing College Finals With Being a Country Star – McCreery’s most recent omission regarding his studies is a far cry from how he perceived his life as a college student just months ago. “So far, it’s not been that difficult. I’m not exactly taking Advanced Chemistry right now. So far, it hasn’t been horrible,” he exclusively told Taste of Country. “I’ve just had to have better time management on the road. Instead of sitting down for an hour playing Xbox, I have to sit down and study or write a paper.” “That just comes with growing up and maturing,” added McCreery. “As long as I can do that, I think this whole college thing is going to be easy. If I just wait until 5AM when something’s due in the morning, then that might kill me, but we’ll see.” – Read more at Taste Of Country

Lauren Alaina and Steven Tyler Reunited in Nashville – No judging this time around—American Idol finalist Lauren Alaina and former Idol judge Steven Tyler were reunited last night (Dec. 13) when Aerosmith played Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. During Aerosmith’s classic “Walk This Way,” Lauren popped out and joined Steven on the catwalk that extended into the crowd. The two exchanged a hug, then engaged in a little call-and-response singing, as well as the famous footwork that has come to define the song. – Read more at Country Weekly

Randy Jackson Reacts to L.A. Reid’s ‘X Factor’ Exit: ‘What? No!’ – The Hollywood Reporter broke the news to the American Idol judge on Thursday afternoon, who responded with his trademark, “What?! No!” Jackson said that Reid, the chairman of Epic Records, is a “dear friend.” And as a music-maker himself, he sympathizes with his fellow judge in understanding the difficult position of being a TV star and running a major music company. “He’s got two amazingly tough jobs,” said Jackson adding, “I can’t even imagine.” “He was great — he’s gotta come back,” said Jackson. “I gotta call him.” – Read more at the Hollywood Reporter

Frenchie Davis Talks ‘American Idol,’ New Album & More – Thanks to XL Nightclub, we received the chance to sit down with the incomparable Frenchie Davis, who most know her from her abrupt exit of American Idol 8 years ago, and who recently resurfaced on The Voice this summer. But before and in between reality shows, Frenchie has worked on Broadway as Effie White in Dreamgirls, won a Grammy for her performance in “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” and is releasing her first album, Just Frenchie, with the lead single “Love’s Got a Hold On Me.” – Read more at NewNowNext

L.A. Reid’s ‘X Factor’ Departure: End Of The Real Talk? – Which is why I was surprised, and disappointed, to see on Thursday that Epic Records boss L.A. Reid? announced he’s leaving “X Factor” after two seasons. Forget for a moment that jumping ship the week before the finale is bad reality show form. The real bummer is that Reid was one of the true bright spots on a show that is still struggling to find its focus. I’ve written before? about how much I love the pomp and spectacle “X Factor,” and how “The Voice” and “American Idol” clearly borrowed a page from the first “Factor” season and upped their flashpot and graphics game during performances this year. – Read more at MTV

Is ‘Smash’ a Musical? Behind the Golden Globes Shocker – A lot of people — OK, let’s just say most people — were shocked to find that NBC’s Smash is nominated for a Golden Globe. Nobody expected that. If they did, they’d be lying or delusional. Smash is a drama about trying to stage a musical (about Marilyn Monroe in season one) on Broadway. But is Smash really a musical? Because it’s certainly not a comedy. There are two shows on television that play at being “musicals”: Glee is a hodgepodge of emotions but most clearly a comedy about a nerdy glee club trying to sing their way to being accepted and popular at school; the other is the aforementioned Smash, which is, to state it again, a drama about staging a musical.- Read more at Hollywood Reporter

Ratings: 12.12.12 Sandy Benefit Concert Draws 19.3 Million U.S. Viewers – Nearly 20 million people in the U.S. tuned in to watch Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and other music legends at the 12.12.12 concert to benefit victims of Hurricane Sandy on Wednesday, according to Nielsen. All told, the concert — which was held at New York’s Madison Square Garden and aired on various networks, including ION, AMC, IFC and VH1 Classic — drew 19.3 million total television viewers in the U.S. for at least a portion of the show, though the concert was accessible to nearly 2 billion people worldwide via TV, the internet and radio. – Read more at The Wrap

 
  • suenigma

    To each their own. I don’t consider TLM dreck, by any stretch. I think that it’s an excellent album, albeit not perfect. I also don’t consider FIM total cheese- although it’s not one of my faves on the album, it is quite beautiful, IMO.

    TOML – cheesy yeah, but beloved by many. Nice that he dusted it off for the bride, who is a huge Cook fan. It’s pretty obvious that Cook was not a stand-in for Johns, and was not there at Foster’s behest – an absurd assertion.

    Cook is nothing if not versatile. It may not be what he is widely known for thanks to Idol, but his rock chops were earned long before Idol, and he seems pretty secure in that knowledge, even if the world at large doesn’t know it. I love the fact that despite rock being his genre of choice, he is not not a snob, nor does he consider himself above the cheese. He went to college on a musical theatre scholarship afterall. LOL

  • mjsbigblog

    So…we’re going to continue the fan baiting from last night into this morning? 

    Actually, no we’re not. 

    I think we get the point. 

  • SullyD

    Thank You.

  • Pippygirl

    All this veiled insult talk about cheese is giving me a headache. I personally think FIM is a beautiful song, if it’s cheesy then order me some! Although I am not a huge fan of all David’s post idol music  (my main beef is that his songs frequently end up hurting my ears with a wall of sound) the man’s talent is undeniable. The fact that on Idol he took every possible cheesy theme and made it into something unique demonstrates that. The fact that Idol no longer values that ability doesn’t negate it imo.

  • Incipit

    Oh, it gets worse and worse, or better and better, depending on how many strings of pearls one is wearing. Bwahahaha!

    It’s pretty obvious that Cook was not a stand-in for Johns, and was not there at Foster’s behest – an absurd assertion.

    I know, right?  No one does their homework anymore. *snerk* Michael Johns is there – in Jakarta. He didn’t need a stand-in.
    This ‘notion’ that I’m supposed to angst over DC, or be ~sads~ that he was flown halfway around the world and put up in a luxury hotel, and paid to entertain 5,000 people and a large TV audience at the wedding celebration of a billionaire’s daunter, who was also a fan – is definitely worth a *chuckle* or three – Bottom Line –  That’s what artists do, entertain people for money, whatever the spin. But this is more fun  - I don’t do angst anyway – so Yeah.RE WTF Cook below ~ D was there apparently with MJ?>>@TiiaTeheIn hyatt hotel jakarta.just one song.>>COOKistas ?@COOKistasTo the curious ones re this photo http://is.gd/ZrdnGN . David Cook reportedly sang “Always Be My Baby” at a hotel (Tnx @TiiaTehe !)

    Love to see those two get a chance at a few shenanigans – remember the ’08 Idol Tour, and O’Donovan’s Pub in Minneapolis, with David playing Air Drums to Michael’s “You Shook Me All Night Long” – complete with fancy stick twirls?  Those guys still amuse me. 

  • wordnerdarchie

    Well, what do you know.  David Cook’s demo of “This Year” has resurfaced on a tubey video.  We’ll see if RCA cares or not, lol.  (They used to take it down …. quickly.)

  • elliegrll

    Kinda sad isn’t it? :) Not being on any radar that could possibly be of benefit to him in his chosen genre… 

    This puts him in the same position as almost everyone else who has come off of AI.  It’s not a great position to be in, but it seems like he is trying to develop his sound, and figure out a way to reach an audience that will support his music.  He’s not trying to make cover albums, or just release music that will appeal to AI fans.

  • getaway1

    That’s why it’s more advantageous to have someone like Jimmy Iovine, the CEO of Interscope, mentor during the live shows and in turn have Scotty and Phil develop and grow in the genres. He got to work and know Phil over several months. He picked out a great single for him. And he understood the vision behind The World From The Side Of The Moon to green light it. Iovine could have easily gone the safe route and capitalized off the success of Home, but he let Phil do his music, and it is paying off.

  • Incipit

    We’ll see if RCA cares or not, lol.  (They used to take it down …. quickly and I think they will.)

    If this is the one you mean - Published on Dec 9, 2012

    ?????? ?????? ?? ???? ?????? ??????????? ?????? ???? ???, ??? ????????????, ??????, ????????? ??????. ??????????? ?? ?????!

    Then it’s still there, wordnerdarchie. It’s not like this demo was ever going to be on either RCA album – I don’t get why it keeps on turning up, years after the fact. But, I guess there is interest in some quarters. Who knows?

  • wordnerdarchie

    Yes, that’s the one.  I have it from a good source, that the request to remove will be made, if it hasn’t been already.

  • http://twitter.com/shoriagirl Shoria

    Why would RCA care about it?

  • Incipit

    I have no idea why, Shoria. Force of habit? *snerk* Or they still retain some sort of copyrights in that music? They have to have a legal standing of some kind, to request a take-down. 

    That demo is one of a half dozen or so connected to 2008 DCTR writing sessions that turned up at Cherry Lane Publishing, back before they were acquired by BMG Rights Management in 2010.

    The demo snippets aren’t even on their site anymore….and David’s latest licensing arrangement is with Greenlight Music…and that’s as far down the twisted path as I have gone. Heh.

  • standtotheright

    Eh, for enough money I’d guest star on Honey Boo Boo and tap dance with the pig [there is a pig, yes? I only read some recaps.], but I wouldn’t think it was unfair if it got a few eye rolls.

    Other than choosing talented people to perform, nothing about the way this wedding was conducted suggested that the family was overburdened with taste or good breeding. So the fact that they wanted a whole plate of Velveeta for their songs (and yes, TOML is processed cheese music that should never have been the anthem that it was [no matter how much anyone personally professes to love it] and FIM acoustic is at best an American brie-style wheel) is not astonishing.

    But I don’t think it’s any different from US movie stars who abandon their usual stateside restraint and gravitas to star in Asian ad campaigns. It doesn’t reflect on the roles they’ll choose at home, and it doesn’t reflect on the music Cook will do on his own.

    Still, fans should share those videos privately, not leave them public. I don’t think Cook wants anyone to have false hope about TOML making an appearance over here.

  • Karen C

    I didn’t know he changed licensing too.  RCA probably does have the rights, along with the licensing company. I think also there was a rumor that this particular song was going to be used for something but then it was leaked so they didn’t.    Guess we’ll see if it stays now.

     

  • wordnerdarchie

     The snippet for that song is still up at Cherry Lane, but it is interesting that the playbacks are no longer available at BMG.  Good catch there, but I wonder why.

  • Incipit

    It really is a twisted path, this publishing/licensing/rights administering thing, wordnerdarchie.

    AFAIK - CherryLane still has the 12 songs from DCTR, and several snippets listed, but not the demo playbacks, and not the music from TLM.

     Greenlight, They have all the tracks from DCTR and TLM, bar Kiss On The Neck and the Bonus tracks, listed. They used to have ”Lie” listed as “Lu”, IDK if they ever fixed it.

    Neither company inspires confidence in getting the lyrics right – they both need a copy editor.

    This information is as of May, 2012.

  • wordnerdarchie

    Ah, but if you have the direct links, you can play the snippets at CL…. ’cause I’m doing it right now, lol. ;)
    ETA: Of course, if they read here, that might just have tipped them off – might see another window closing.
    ETA: And I would really like to hear a full demo of “Strange and Beautiful”

  • Incipit

    I have some of the old links, wordnerdarchie – and almost all the lyrics – and I would love to hear a full demo of all of them…like “That’s What I Get”, and “Strange and Beautiful”…interesting to see if anything is ever done with these. After all – “One Second…” and “Only Honest…” both made it out into the larger world. 

    Which leads me to all the intriguing titles that didn’t make TLM – and wonder if they are also around somewhere on a website.

    Can you tell I’m jonesing for new music? *snerk* @ Myself.

  • Karen C

    Incipit,

    Souveneir was the other one that I liked, and he must have too since he did it so often in concert.   

    Of the ones we didn’t hear,  I would have loved to hear Mouthbreather.   I doubt we’ll hear the other songs.

    I’m just glad he has the freedom to do what he wants with his new music.

  • Incipit

    it seems like he is trying to develop his sound, and figure out a way to reach an audience that will support his music.  He’s not trying to make cover albums, or just release music that will appeal to AI fans.

    elliegrll, I saw a piece of news just now that caused me to come back to your post – and the ‘develop his sound’ part. Since David has written w/his long time friend and bandmate Andy Skib (Rhythm guitar, keyboard, vox) before leaving LA (the latest one we heard was the collaboration on “The Last Song I’ll Write For You” that David and the band did on Idol in May)- and Andy has been making writing trips from LA to Nashville, …it was interesting to see that Andy announced today he has “Officially moved to Nashville” with his new bride.

    >>Andy Skib ?@andyskib
    Looking forward to seeing what Nashville has in store for the Skibs. Very very optimistic!

    I think this is part of developing the sound they want for the next album, just as you posted.

    IMO. Of Course.

  • getaway1

    I find it a strange twist of fate that while David Cook may have been more versatile in his season and ratings held up, he ended up suffering in the long run, by not establishing himself in his genre lane. Cook’s music was not a huge hit on AAA. And he didn’t seem to get support from RCA in that respect. Yet it was Phil that eventually cracked open AAA.  Home is #1 for like 6 weeks now. And it has been reported that AAA has been playing Phil’s new music from his CD. There is definitely something to say about Interscope’s direction in having the winners focus on their home genre.

  • Karen C

    Getaway,

    he ended up suffering in the long run, by not establishing himself in his genre lane.
    Cook’s music was not a huge hit on AAA. And he didn’t seem to get support from RCA in that respect.

    I think this was the mistake RCA made, especially with TLM. It  very well could have and should have been on AAA.  I even asked the RCA rep that was on DCO for  a while why they wouldn’t do this, even though it was the right fit, and he basically said they didn’t want to risk not getting airplay.   But the other part of this was the songs RCA chose to release as singles, other than Light On.  

     I do think that with Phillip, he is hitting at a time where the type of music he is doing is charting, so it might be timing also.

  • wordnerdarchie

    Just like I thought.  That David Cook song we talked about earlier is no longer uploaded.  It has been removed.  RCA is still vigilant. Yup.

  • Karen C

    Guess they still care…….