Not one for looking back at the past, I still can’t resist posting a retrospective of the previous year at the beginning of the brand new one. Here’s to new beginnings, people! I’m so happy you all are on my particular pop culture train. I’ve got THE BEST community on the net!
Here’s a look back at 2014:
January
Juan Pablo, the douchiest Bachelor who ever douched made a bunch of stupid, homophobic remarks to a reporter, including calling gay people perverted and questioning whether same sex couples could be good parents. After the expected outrage, Juan blamed his remarks on his poor English. Then, basically, Dancing with the Stars said THANKS BUT NO THANKS to him being a contestant on the show. In October, after appearing on the VH1 reality show, Couples Therapy (where Juan behaved as terribly as ever), Juan and girlfriend Nikki Ferrell (he never proposed), broke up.
Speaking of douches, a White House petition to deport Justin Bieber exceeded 100K signatures. 2014 would be filled with a slew of stupid behavior from the pop singer, including being arrested by the Toronto police for assault, testing positive for drugs, abusing a flight attendant (alongside his DAD), deposition clips revealing Justin to be an arrogant and awful person, getting BOOED at the Juno awards, apologizing after a video of his younger self telling a racist joke surfaces, getting into a scuffle with Orlando Bloom at an Ibiza nightclub, getting arrested after crashing an ATV in Canada, and getting booed at Fashion Rocks after stripping. That last item was September, at which point I became really bored with his antics. Recently he did/didn’t buy a private plane, or something. And his ex-girlfriend, Selena Gomez, sang an angsty song about him at the American Music Awards.
A completely retooled American Idol debuted on January 15 with new judges (Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr.) and a mentor (Randy Jackson), a new format, and more. In retrospect, all the effort did not help the ratings. At all.
February
The winner of the Biggest Loser, Rachel Frederickson, lost A LOT OF WEIGHT–155 lbs in mere months– alarming show trainers and fans alike. American Idol season 2 winner, Ruben Studdard, was a contestant, so we covered the season. The EXTREME methods the show uses for quick weight loss are questionable, to say the least. Trainer, Jillian Michelson decided NOT to return to the the show after the controversy.
CeeLo Green quits The Voice before he’s fired – After pleading no contestant to furnishing a controlled substance to a woman who accused the singer of drugging and sexually assaulting her, CeeLo announced his The Voice departure on the Ellen Degeneres Show. NBC was reportedly blindsided by the announcement.
It was good and bad news for Simon Cowell in February – The Good: Girlfriend Lauren Silverman gave birth to Simon’s baby boy Eric. The Bad: FOX cancelled X Factor USA after 3 rocky seasons.
After a solid start with retooled auditions, American Idol enrages fans with Rush Week – Relentlessly upbeat auditions made way for some cruel twists as American Idol 13 headed into Hollywood and Rush week. First, a slew of contestants were assembled in an airplane hangar on the first day of Hollywood and asked to sing for their lives. A bloodbath ensued. Then, 10 of the Top 30 were not allowed to sing for votes during Rush Week, disappointing fans of those contestants, and appearing unnecessarily callous to the hopefulls. The NBC Winter Olympics cut into Idol’s ratings, and the show never recovered. So much for season 13.
March
Queen + Adam Lambert announce the band’s North American tour, set to begin in June.
After two long years, American Idol season 7 alum, David Archuleta returns from Chile where he was stationed as a Mormon missionary. He appears more mature and with MUCH shorter hair! The rest of the year would be marked by David seemingly on a renewed spiritual mission, taking part in church functions and keeping his tweets focused on self-improvement and other upbeat topics. Also, there was that time in July when he joined season 7 BFF, David Cook, on stage to sing “Crush.”!
Kris Allen announces that he’s moving to Nashville – The American Idol season 8 winner announced his plans to move to Nashville later in the year (which he eventually did) ahead of the release of his independent album, Horizons. The set was produced by Charlie Peacock (Civil Wars). Kris joins the Nashville Idol party which includes Carrie Underwood, David Cook, Kelly Clarkson, Melinda Doolittle, to name a few!
April
Glee star, Naya Rivera, is kicked off of Glee after a row with producers. Naya leaves the set, and does not return for the rest of the season. She’s written out of the show finale and there are questions about whether she is gone for good. In the end, she and producers come to a truce and she returns for Glee’s sixth and final season in a limited number of episodes. All this mayhem occurs after her engagement to rapper Big Sean goes south. In July, she surprises EVERYONE including her costars when she marries long-time friend, Ryan Dorsey.
Bachelorette contestant, Eric Hill, dies in a paragliding accident ahead of his season starring Andi Dorfmann. Things get awkward when the season airs and Andie and Eric part on less than great terms.
May
American Idol twist has an unexpected outcome – The producers allow the Top 5 to decide if they will save that week’s eliminated contestant. Two contestants, Jena Irene and Alex Preston, vote NO to the proposition, likely surprising the producers, who probably bet eliminated contestant, Sam Woolf, would be saved one more time (he was the recipient of the judges save at Top 8). Fresh outrage from fans ensues. That the producers would even put the contestants in such a position–not to mention the blatant attempt at manipulation–is what angers fans.
Caleb Johnson Wins American Idol – But not before outraging fans after calling them “retards.” He apologizes, and then apologizes again. For some, the prospect of another rock singing white guy winning Idol is a let down, to say the least.
Scotty McCreery is robbed at gunpoint. – It’s hella scary, but the American Idol season 10 winner and his friends are unharmed in the end. Thank God.
Clay Aiken narrowly wins the Democratic primary for Congress. – The American Idol season 2 alum threw his hat in the ring to run for congress in his local North Carolina district. He barely wins the primary. A recount is requested. The next day his opponent dies suddenly of a heart attack. Yikes. Clay goes on to claim the primary win.
Glee and American Idol barely figure in the FOX advertising upfronts – FOX chief, Kevin Reilly (who will be ousted soon) mentions both shows in passing to say the Glee season 6 episode order will probably be cut, and that American Idol 14 will be streamlined. Glee does cut back to thirteen episodes for the final season. And it doesn’t premiere until mid-season. FOX, needless to say, is not having a great year.
Josh Kaufman wins Season 6 of The Voice – To the surprise of mostly EVERYONE who figured You Tube star, and iTunes champ, Christina Grimmie would take the crown. She comes in third behind country teen, Jake Worthington.
June
Queen + Adam Lambert kick off their summer North American tour with an iHeart Radio concert, live streamed for our viewing pleasure! I attended the Boston stop at the Garden in July and was completely blown away.
Original flavah Idol, Kelly Clarkson gives birth to baby girl River Rose Blackstock! The rest of the year is filled with many adorable pics of the photogenic progeny.
Viral sensation, Sister Cristina, wins The Voice Italy. The singing nun earns her title performing improbable pop songs.
American Idol Live kicks off and to the horror of fans everywhere, the Top 10 are forced to sing to live tracks. No band. No hot guitar player. Just going on the cheap. Crowds in much smaller venues than the Idols are used to are lackluster all summer. Even The Voice contestants got to tour with a band.
July
Making the American Idol Tour situation even sketchier: Dexter Roberts stops appearing with the Top 10 after the first couple of stops. It’s announced that Dexter is let out of his contract with no explanation, yet he makes appearances in his hometown. Rumors run rampant. Finally we learn that poor Dexter came down with spotted tick fever and was forced to leave the tour to recover. At least the poor guy got a record contract.
Glee fans went insane when Chris Colfer announced on twitter that he was fired from Glee. Except NOT. His social media was hacked. To make matters worse, the actor was on a plane he boarded in London. It would be hours before he could address the issue. The next day, media was skeptical when Lea Michele announced her pregnancy. Yep. She was hacked too.
The Voice 5 winner, Tessanne Chin, comments on her “quiet” album release. Tessane’s debut album, Count on My Love, only sold 7K in it’s first week, with very little promotion from the label. She tells THR that the “quiet” release couldn’t be helped, and she hoped the current The Voice tour would promote her new music to fans. So much for reaching beyond the bubble, though.
August
August was notable for the sudden, shocking and tragic death of beloved American Idol season 7 alum, Michael Johns. Rumors swirled around exactly how he died–whether alcohol or drugs were involved. The final coroners report listed an enlarged heart and fatty liver as the cause of death. Idol alums from across the seasons took to twitter to express sadness at the loss of a true friend.
Josh Gracin Suicide Threat – More horrible news as American Idol season 2 alum, Josh Gracin, leaves what appears to be a suicide note on Facebook. He’s found by police and goes into treatment.
Robin Williams commits suicide – And August continues to suck as beloved comedian Robin Williams is found dead, at home, hanging from a belt in an apparent suicide. It turns out the actor suffered from depression and Parkinson’s disease.
Our favorite stars and pretty much everyone else took the Ice Bucket Challenge – In a clever bid to raise money for ALS, folks were encouraged to poor ice cold water over their heads and namecheck others to do the same. The idea brought awareness and funds (most everyone donated too) to the fatal disease. Nearly all of our favs participated.
The new ABC singing competition, Rising Star, limped to a low rated finish – The gimmick of live voting seemed intriguing. Too bad the execution of Rising Star was cheesy and the contestants inferior. Nobody watched. In a foregone conclusion, rocker, Jesse Kinch, took the crown.
American Idol winner, Caleb Johnson, released HIS debut album Testify, which becomes the lowest selling post-Idol debut EVER. Testify sold a mere 10K in its first week. The next lowest is Season 12 winner, Candice Glover, who sold 19K. HER release was MONTHS after she won. Putting Caleb’s album out a few months after his win didn’t help a bit.
The American Idol Experience Attraction Closes – It had been announced that the American Idol Experience attraction in Orlando would be closing in January. But in a sudden decision, park officials announced it would be closing in a few weeks, at the end of August. Truly an end of an era. Aaron Kelly and Majesty Rose were two finalists who had auditioned at the park. The last of the winners will be represented in the upcoming season.
September
After the sudden death of Nicole Kidman’s father, Keith Urban rushes to be at her side. They fly to Australia for the wake and funeral. In the meantime, Idol alum, Adam Lambert, steps in to sit on the judges panel in New York City. An alum on the panel–totally an Idol first!
Carrie Underwood is pregnant! – It’s the first child for the American Idol season 4 winner and her husband, hockey player, Mike Fisher. The sex of the baby–a boy–is revealed during the CMA Awards! Thanks Brad Paisley! It’s been report after report on the state of Carrie’s baby bump ever since.
Josh Kaufman lands the lead in Pippin – Nobody would have thought that one of the first gigs for The Voice 6 winner would be Broadway. Much to his fans’ delight, however, the blue eyed soul singer was cast as the Prince in Pippin! After a shave and a haircut, folks barely recognized him. Not a bad thing at all, by the way. He performed “Corner of the Sky” for the CBS Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Katharine McPhee Makes Her TV Comeback in Scorpion – The American Idol season 5 alum had a rocky two years on NBC’s Smash. Low ratings resulted in the series finally being cancelled. But the singer/actress is cast in the CBS drama, Scorpion, and this time it’s a HIT. Bonus: Katharine is romantically linked to her costar, Elyes Gabel.
Chris Daughtry records Utopia Theme: It seemed like such a big score at the time. Chris Daughtry records the theme song for the FOX network 50 million dollar gamble, Utopia. Unfortunately for all involved, the reality show, which revolved around contestants attempting to build a society from scratch, died a pretty quick death–cancelled after two months on the air. The concept was intriguing, but the cast, made up of annoying and difficult people, turned viewers off. Better luck with the next TV show theme, Chris!
Congrats to Ricky Ubeda, the winner of So You Think You Can Dance 11! We hung on the edge of our seats until we heard that the show would be renewed for another season.
Jordin Sparks Breaks Up with Jason Derulo – At first the split seems amicable and friendly. But then, Jason begins running his mouth off about how he NEVER cheated! And Jordin pressured him to get married! Finally, in an interview with Wendy Williams, Jordin opens up about the split. She stays classy throughout, but there is a hint that maybe Jason DID cheat. Hm. A few weeks later, Jordin dropped a mixtape. One song, “How About Now” was a pretty pointed diss directed at Jason. “You thought you had it all figured out back then, boy how about now?” sings Jordin. “cause I’m up right now. And you suck right now.” S-H-A-D-E.
The legendary comic, Joan Rivers, dies of complications from Throat surgery. Rest in Peace Joan. Other notable deaths in 2o14: Joe Cocker in December. Director, Mike Nichols in November. Former SNL cast member, Jan Hooks, in October. Also from SNL, announcer Don Pardo in August. Also in August, actress, Lauren Bacall. Actor James Garner in July. Blues guitarist, Johnny Winter, also in July. Broadway legend, Elaine Stritch in July, punk rock legend, Tommy Ramone, in July, Survivor Caleb Bankston in June, lyricist, Jerry Goffin, in June, broadcaster, Casey Kasem, in June, actress, Ruby Dee in June, Brady Bunch star, Ann B Davis in June, Poet, Maya Angelou in May, Actor, Bob Hoskins in April, actor, Mickey Rooney, in April, comedian, David Brenner, in March, actor, Ralph Waite, in February, comedian, Sid Caesar, in February, actress, Shirley Temple, in February, actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman in February, folksinger, Pete Seeger, in January, TV sitcom stars, Russell Johnson and Dave Madden in January, Phil Everly of the Everly Brothers in January, and actor, James Avery in January.
October
X Factor USA alum Simone Battle commits suicide – The twenty-five year old singer, a contestant on the inaugural season of X Factor USA, is found hanging from a rod in a bedroom closet. Her death was eventually officially ruled a suicide. Simone was a member of the up and coming girl group, GRL.
American Idol Season 7 alum, Joanne Borgella dies of cancer – The Top 24 contestant from American Idol season 7 Top 24, is only 32 when she loses her cancer battle. The singer bravely chronicled her journey on Facebook.
Kesha sues Dr. Luke – The pop singer and Rising Star judge Kesha (NO DOLLAR SIGN!) sues her producer/manager, Dr. Luke, charging that he abused her physically, sexually and emotionally during their professional relationship. Dr. Luke sues Kesha right back. The battle is ongoing.
November
The Dawg Leaves American Idol for good – Randy Jackson announces that he’s leaving American Idol We’ve heard that one before, but it actually appears to be true. “After 13 seasons I felt now was the perfect time to leave American Idol.”says Randy in a statement, “I’m proud to have been a part of a series that discovered some incredible artists and will go down in history as one of the most successful television shows ever.”
Clay Aiken loses his Congressional bid – As most predicted, Clay couldn’t overcome the power of incumbent Republican, Renee Elmers. His attempts to reach out to state Republicans raised a few eyebrows. The day after he lost, it was announced that the former candidate had cameras following him around on the campaign trail. Esquire TV will air a docu-series in April, which upset some Hollywood backers who now question Clay’s motives for running.
James Durbin and wife Heidi welcome baby daughter – James and his wife welcome baby daughter Kinzee. Other celeb births include: A girl for Amber Holcomb in February, A girl also for Gina Glocksen in July A second child, a girl, for Christina Aguilera in August, A girl for Tim Urban in September and a second child, a baby girl, for Danny Gokey in November.
Ben Haenow wins The X Factor UK. He also gets his Christmas #1!
December
Scott Borchetta is named American Idol mentor – Surprising pretty much everyone, it was announced that American Idol managed to snag Taylor Swift’s Svengali, Scott Borchetta, as in house mentor. In the announcement, Borchetta pledged to be involved in every aspect of the singers’ development, pledging not to abandon the winner after signing to the honcho’s Big Machine Records.
David Cook raises 1 million dollars for Brain Cancer Awareness and Research. Passing the 1 million dollar fundraising mark was quite the milestone. The American Idol season 7 winner has been raising funds to fight brain cancer since his brother, Adam, died of the deadly disease in 2009. That’s over six years worth of fundraising, hitting seven figures!
Country crooner, Craig Wayne Boyd wins The Voice 7, giving Blake Shelton his fourth win. Will the coach be looking for one for the thumb this spring? More than likely! Craig has been signed to Dot records and is currently getting ready to head out on tour.
Len Goodman will leave Dancing with the Stars – After the spring cycle, Len Goodman will leave the American version of Dancing with the Stars. The judge had been flying back and forth to sit on the panel for both the American and UK versions simultaneously. It’s time for a break!
Hell Yeah Pentatonix! – The biggest thing to come off of a singing show lately is the little a cappella group that could, Sing-Off season 3 winners, Pentatonix. After winning the low-rated singing show, the group built a following on hard work and deft social networking. RCA signed them, and I bet they are glad they did. The quintet’s Christmas album went platinum! Pentatonix returned, triumphant, to the Sing-Off holiday special, where Melodores were crowned this years’ winner.
Phillip Phillips engaged to longtime girlfriend, Hannah Blackwell – Happy Christmas! The American Idol season 11 winner, and his longtime girlfriend, Hannah Blackwell show off some nice bling as they announce their engagement!
