NASCAR All-Star Race: Start time, lineup, TV schedule – Cassadee Pope, winner of The Voice, will sing the national anthem today. – Celebrity restaurateur Guy Fieri will instruct drivers to start their engines at approximately 9:21 p.m. Eastern time tonight, followed by the green flag at approximately 9:30 p.m. The times are approximate because qualifying takes place prior to the race (beginning at 7:10 p.m.), and any delays could push back the pre-race ceremonies. – Read more at USA Today
The Not-So-Obvious Ways ‘American Idol’ Had a Profound Impact on the Pop World – But for a show that was initially built on honoring late-20th-century pop’s Holy Trinity of Whitney, Mariah, and Celine, rock crossover plays a surprisingly large role in Idol’s wider influence: male and female belters on Idol, from David Cook to Crystal Bowersox, increasingly saw success when they married their beats to guitars. Breakaway, the second album from Season One winner Kelly Clarkson, allowed her to define a strand of pop that had been on the ropes: feisty, guitar-based and female-fronted. – Read more at Billboard.com
Six reasons why ‘Survivor’ will outlast ‘American Idol’ – ‘With “American Idol” set to end its 15-year run next year, another reality show that preceded “Idol” on a rival network has managed to quietly outwit, outplay and outlast the venerable but greatly shrunken singing competition. We talked to several experts and fans of both shows and here are six reasons why “Survivor” is going to outlive “Idol”: I was quoted in this piece! – Read more at AJC.com
American Idol runner up Clark Beckham on losing the title: ‘I’m exactly where I need to be’ – While disappointed with the results, Beckham says it was also hard to watch other talented friends get cut from the competition throughout the season. “Serena is one of the best singers we had this entire season, and she went home in the top 12. That one really hurt. And Tyanna is like a little sister to me, so it was awful when she left. And Rayvon…Rayvon’s my roommate! Every cut was difficult.” – Read more at Entertainment Weekly
The Season Finale: After The Show
Pentatonix: Can A Cappella’s Superstars Finally Break Pop’s Ceiling? – Still, both the group and their new label acknowledge that transitioning to original material will be a challenge. “Finding an a cappella hit song is like a needle in a haystack,” says RCA president Tom Corson. “It hasn’t been done since, like, Bobby McFerrin’s ‘Don’t Worry Be Happy.’ A true and pure a cappella record is a unicorn.” – Read more at RollingStone
‘Amazing Race’ Creator Defends Blind Date Season, Reveals Why Show Is More Emmy-Worthy Than ‘The Voice’ – The producers hoped to play cupid and spark romance, but they went 0 for 5 in matchmaking with all of their arrows missing. Nonetheless, “Amazing Race” creator Bertram van Munster defended the much-discussed twist in an exclusive season-ending interview with TheWrap on Friday. “It actually worked better and was more unexpected than we could have wished for,” he said. Co-creator Elise Donagieri’s had high hopes before production.”I think we have some real matches. If these people don’t fall in love, then there’s no hope for them,” she told TheWrap last November before the couples met. – Read more at The Wrap
Carrie Underwood’s Husband Mike Fisher and Baby Isaiah
Aw. Carrie Underwood’s husband, Mike Fisher Instagrammed this photo with the caption, “Me and my little man #lifeisgood” CUTE LITTLE SMILEY BABY.
Todrick Hall Dishes On ‘Beauty And The Beat’ Co-Star Katie Stevens (And Her Affinity For The Hood) – “Working with Katie is always a pleasure. She’s so much fun — she’s so down for everything,” T recently shared with MTV News. “We were walking around through the hood, the ghetto. Some people would have been really scared to be walking around in a blue, semi-ball gown on just a summer day in the hood, but she was so nice, going up to people, shaking their hands, giving them dab, throwing up the deuces. You can’t just ask for a better person than Katie Stevens. She’s awesome.” – Read more at MTV
