Dream chasers arrive early for ‘American Idol’ auditions at Guthrie Green – People arrived before dawn Friday and waited in a long line to audition for “American Idol” at Guthrie Green. Some brought guitars or other instruments. Some brought friends and family members. And someone brought a goat. “I’ve seen a lot of things,” Nancy Yearing, a veteran “American Idol” casting producer said. “I’ve seen somebody dress up like a bunny. I have seen somebody dress up like a banana.” But Yearing confirmed that she had never before seen a goat at an “American Idol” audition. – Read more at TulsaWorld.com
Reba McEntire Announces New Christmas Collaboration with Kelly Clarkson – According to McEntire’s impromptu announcement during her live session, the two collaborated on “Blue Christmas,” which marks the second time they have joined forces for a holiday track. Clarkson’s 2013 Wrapped In Red album featured the two (plus Trisha Yearwood) performing “Silent Night” together. They have also performed other holiday classics like “Jingle Bell Rock,” “Hard Candy Christmas,” and “Softly and Tenderly” together at Clarkson’s annual Miracle on Broadway charity event in Nashville. – Read more at Country Common
Natalie Grant, other Christian stars raise more than $200k for Hurricane Harvey relief – Christian music stars gave Hurricane Harvey relief efforts a shot in the arm Thursday night with a online benefit concert streamed live from a Brentwood studio. The goal was to raise $100,000. In addition to a performance by Grant, other Christian artists who participated include Jeremy Camp, Danny Gokey, Travis Greene, Mark Hall of Casting Crowns, Hannah Kerr, Matt Maher, Mandisa, Jonathan McReynolds, Ryan Stevenson and Matthew West. – Read more at the Tennessean.com
David Cook continues to move forward following his success on American Idol – American Idol winner David Cook doesn’t remember where he was or what he was doing when he first found out he’d broken a Billboard record in 2008. “Knowing how stupid and ridiculous the schedule was at that time, I was probably working,” he said, laughing. Fresh off his seventh-season Idol victory, Cook set a new record for debut entries on the Billboard Hot 100 in the Nielsen Era by landing 11 songs on the list. The previous record was six, set by Miley Cyrus in 2006. Pre-Nielsen SoundScan data, the record was 14, set by The Beatles in 1964. “Those are the surreal things I think I’ve made a conscience effort not to internalize,” Cook said. “I don’t know how you internalize that and it doesn’t reshape you.” – Read more at OK Gazette
Lauren Alaina Lets 7-Year-Old Blind Fan ‘See’ Her: ‘He Made My Whole Day’ – Hillebrand couldn’t help but praise the American Idol season 10 runner-up on Facebook, sharing photos of their backstage hangout — in which Alaina bent down and placed AJ’s hands on her face so that he could “see” her. “She’s amazing. I didn’t even have to tell her he was blind. She already knew,” Hillebrand wrote of the “Doin’ Fine” singer, adding in the comments that Alaina had given her son a kiss. “She knelt down in front of him and grabbed his hands and put them on her face not caring what her makeup looked like,” she told the South Bend Tribune. – Read more at People
‘The Voice’ winner Alisan Porter reminisces about guest-starring on ‘Golden Girls’ – “I think everybody watched ‘The Golden Girls’ at that time,” Porter said. “It was amazing working with all of the women of ‘The Golden Girls.’ I can remember Betty White being the most nurturing. We had a really important, really cool scene together.” She added, “And then of course, just being Blanche’s granddaughter for all of time is pretty cool.” Read more at Today
Cassadee Pope Puts on a Standout Performance for a Good Cause – Dreams come true! Cassadee Pope and people from all over the world came out to the 17th Annual Dream Ride Experience which ran from August 25-27 at the Farmington Polo Club in Connecticut. Attendees enjoyed a carnival, pet adoption, and of course, live music — including a set by Pope. Before taking the stage, the 28-year-old singer said, “I’m honored and touched to be headlining the Dream Ride concert benefiting the Special Olympics.” – Read more at US Magazine
Cassadee Pope Celebrates her 28th Birthday
Catching up with Phillip Phillips, opening for Goo Goo Dolls 9/4 Chastain – “Miles,” he said in an interview today, “really explains the last three years in its own way without being too specific.” Sample lyrics: “Cause we’re works of art/ We’re falling stars/ We’re fire waiting for a spark/ Yeah, we’re gonna be miles up, up, up/ No, we’re never gonna come down.” “I try to make songs universal,” Phillips said. “People who know what I’ve been through knows what the song means to me. It’s been good to get that out and be done with everything in the past.” – Read more at AJC
America’s Got Talent Kechi on How Surviving a Plane Crash Made Her a Better Singer – The reason why was I would always talk about the show with friends of mine and we would always joke with her saying, “You should sign up for the show because it is a show that you can do whatever!” But I would have never have had the courage to sign up for it. My friend was the one who put in the application for me and did all the work. So she put me out there when I wasn’t brave enough to it do it myself. I feel like it is the perfect show for someone like me. The show already does a great job of showing that is doesn’t matter how you look, how old you are, or where you came from. They don’t care about that, they just care about what that gift is that you have, and do you want to show it to America. So it is the perfect platform for someone like me who, I feel, has a story to tell and to show people that just because I’m a burn survivor, my life doesn’t have to end. – Read more at Parade
Katie Stevens Sheds Her ‘American Idol’ Past With Freeform’s ‘The Bold Type’ – “I was getting discouraged in music,” she says. “I started auditioning.… I was trying to network with anybody that I possibly could. I was taking two acting classes a week and auditioning. I didn’t necessarily hit rock bottom, but I was working at Sprinkles Cupcakes and trying to make money, not wanting to tell anybody that I was getting a job because other people that I knew from Idol were like, ‘Why aren’t you singing places and making money off of the Idol name?’ And I was like, ‘Because I don’t only want to be known for that.’” There might be a stigma attached to former reality show contestants, but Stevens has nothing but love for her time on the show. – Read more at Hollywood Reporter
I Love Kellie Pickler on CMT | Kellie Runs the Rock ‘n’ Roll Nashville Marathon
Scotty McCreery on ‘Idol’ Revival, Brett Young Reveals New Acoustic Performance | Certified Country
Lauren Alaina Sells Some Tires
Hear what inspires @FirestoneTires stage artist @Lauren_Alaina to be a better songwriter in this exclusive interview… pic.twitter.com/mq2EMh4aNc
— CMT (@CMT) September 1, 2017
Todrick Hall speaks out about Taylor Swift video backlash – When Taylor Swift shared a 13-second preview of her hotly anticipated “Look What You Made Me Do” music video last week, it should have been a celebratory moment for her good friend, the hugely successful YouTube/RuPaul’s Drag Race/MTV/American Idol/Kinky Boots star and recording artist Todrick Hall, who’d had to keep his dancing cameo top secret since the clip was filmed back in May. But instead, Hall was trolled online by haters, who called him everything from “sellout” to even a racial epithet, and accused the openly gay performer of betraying both the black and LGBTQ communities just for associating with Swift. The “Beygency” went especially hard on Hall (despite the fact that he had previously appeared in two Beyoncé videos), deducing from a quick glimpse of his “Look What You Made Me Do” scene that Swift’s video was a rip-off of Beyoncé’s “Formation.” – Read more at Yahoo.com
