Simon Cowell ups fortune by $69 million in past year
British TV personality and music producer Simon Cowell increased his personal fortune by 45 million pounds ($69 million) in the past year, according to The Sunday Times’ annual rich list.
Cowell, best known for his roles as a brutally honest judge on TV talent shows “The X Factor” and “American Idol, ” earned more than half of his 165 million pound fortune from television work alone over the past two years, the paper said.
ALMOST $45 MILLION RAISED FOR CHARITY BY “IDOL GIVES BACK”
Thanks to performances by Carrie Underwood, Mary J. Blige, Alicia Keys and Sir Elton John, Wednesday night’s third “Idol Gives Back” charity event raised almost $45 million for a variety of charities, according to figures provided by Fox.
The fundraising figure was slightly below the previous totals for the show, which brought in more than $70 million during its inaugural year in 2007, when Underwood, Fergie, Kelly Clarkson and Green Day performed, and $60 million in 2008, which featured Miley Cyrus, Snoop Dogg, Jordin Sparks and Mariah Carey. The event took a year off in 2009 due to the economic meltdown.
More Idol Headlines after the JUMP…
Idol’s Tim Urban Wants to Sing, Act and Keep Smiling
Your exit came on Idol Gives Back night. Was there a small comfort in that? What would you have sung if there had been time?
Yeah. It really did make a difference for me. We had been hearing a lot about Idol Gives Back in the last couple of weeks and I really wanted to be a part of it and to know I got to be a part of it, it made going home not quite as hard. I was planning on singing “Hallelujah” just one more time. I think that would have been a good song to go out on because it’s a song that’s special to me.
Caught in the Act!
This year’s Idol contestants Michael Lynche and Andrew Garcia were a hit at Drai’s Hollywood inside the W Hotel, where they arrived after the Idol Gives Back special. People were screaming their names and begging to take pictures with the contestants, and the guys were eating up the attention. Big Mike was walking around like he owned the club, while Andy chatted up his friends.
Norman Sings a Song for Wendy!
Before “American Idol, ” Wendy gave Norman Gentle his first break! He’s been a big Wendy Fan for years and after appearing on the show during the “Six Week Sneak Peek, ” Norman auditioned for “Idol” and got his ticket to Hollywood!
Now he’s performing this homage to Todrick Hall’s audition from this season to show his love for Wendy!
Carly Smithson of We Are the Fallen Prefers a Band to Solo Career
The lucky few who make it far on ‘American Idol’ usually leave the show with an established fan base to support a solo career. While not all ‘Idol’ alums are solo stars, most go this route. Then there’s Carly Smithson, a season seven contestant who is now the lead singer of rock outfit We Are the Fallen. Sometimes, solo stars don’t fit with an already-established group. For Smithson, the band completes her.
“Definitely for me, this is 10 times better, ” Smithson told Noisecreep via phone from London. “I feel there’s always somebody to call to go do something. We’re all traveling together or, ‘Hey, do you want to write a song?’ It’s very cool to be all five together at all times. It’s very different, though. The whole idea of it — it takes a minute to get used to, but I would not have it any other way now.”
Daughtry disappoints in rock-by-numbers night at E Center
The conventional wisdom is that any band is better live. But the rock band Daughtry came close to being an exception Thursday, as the band lumbered through a thoroughly unremarkable and relatively short set that seemed much longer than the 90 minutes it actually took.
It’s not that the band, led by former “American Idol” finalist Chris Daughtry, played poorly. The acoustics at the E Center were once again pleasing. Daughtry showed some of the showmanship that you would expect from someone groomed by TV executives, and his voice was flexible and emotive. The four musicians behind him stayed in the background, playing arrangements that mirrored those on the band’s two albums.
Ty Herndon and Friends
More artists have been announced for the Ty Herndon & Friends Concert to Benefit Make-A-Wish®.
In addition to Michael Peterson (#1 hit From Here To Eternity and Top 5 hit “Drink, Swear, Steal & Lie”), Anita Cochran (#1 hit “What If I Said”), Amber Hayes (Starred as Kathy Twitty in the national touring play, “It’s Only Make Believe, ” a story featuring the life and music of Conway Twitty) and Daniel Kirkley (Christian Recording Artist – “My New Dawn”), Ty will welcome special guests Diana DeGarmo (American Idol Season 3, Finalist, CMT’s Gone Country, and Broadway star) and Wade Hayes (#1 hit “Old Enough To Know Better” and Top 10 hits “The Day That She Left Tulsa (In A Chevy)” and “On A Good Night”).
‘American Idol’ Katharine McPhee: Back to brunette
“American Idol” Season 5 runner-up Katharine McPhee attended US Weekly’s Hot Hollywood Style Issue party on Thursday (April 22) and made a style statement of her own.
After going platinum blonde last year for the release of her sophomore album “Unbroken, ” Kat is back to her original brunette tresses.
Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young – Hair
Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young are going to “Let the Sunshine In!” The “American Idol” alums (finalists in season three and season five respectively) are playing Sheila and Berger in the hit Broadway revival of Hair.
I recently spoke with DeGarmo and Young about their new roles, new tribemates and “American Idol.”
‘Idol’ judge Kara DioGuardi to visit Ocala
MARION COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) – On April 24, 2010 American Idol Judge Kara DioGuardi will be hosting a celebrity Golf Scramble and Gala Dinner in Ocala.
All proceeds from this event will go to Phoenix House and a new music studio she is building for young adults at our treatment center in Citra, Florida.
‘DWTS’ Derek Hough on Nicole Scherzinger: ‘She Eats a Lot’
Before you get mad at the Pussycat Dolls’ ‘Dancing with the Stars‘ partner, hear the guy out.
“It’s interesting with her, ” Derek Hough tells Fancast when asked about Nicole Scherzinger’s comments to Us Weekly about weight gain on ‘DWTS, ’ “because she’s dancing so much that she works up an appetite so she eats a lot.”
That’s good news for normal sized girls everywhere. The perfect size 2 actually eats! “She’s not one of those girls who just eats celery sticks. She feeds her appetite. If she’s hungry she’ll eat and she doesn’t apologize for it, ” adds Hough.
DWTS Crew “Relieved” Kate Gosselin Is Finally Gone
So what are the vibes like now that Gosselin’s outta there?
“Everyone couldn’t be more relieved, ” fesses one of our sources who works on the hit show. “We all had to walk on eggshells around [Kate]. At least we don’t have to worry about where our eyes can or can’t drift off to now.”
Some nerve on that brood broad?
“Kate just thought that everyone was out to get her, ” adds our dancing spy. “That’s why she had all of those crazy rules, like how she was to be approached.”
Dove Awards Signal Christian Music’s Move to the Mainstream
“American Idol” winner Jordin Sparks belts out the show’s opening number.
Midway through the evening, former heavy metal band Korn’s lead guitarist, Brian”Head” Welch, brings down the house with his instrumental technique and athleticism.
Toward the end of the night, bluegrass icon Ricky Skaggs sings his new single.
The lineup suggests the Grammys. But the music signals a more heavenly intent.
This is the 41st Annual Dove Awards, which air Sunday night on the Gospel Music Channel. It is Christian music’s big-night equivalent to the Grammy Awards.
