Ayla Brown: Much idling while on road to ‹ Idol
Now that …American Idol is returning to Boston, Ayla Brown has some advice for Kris Allen wannabes: Be patient.
…Honestly, I hate to say it, but tryouts are all about standing in line, said Brown, the BC senior who finished 13th on Season 5 of FOX reality mega-hit. …We waited nine hours in line the first day to get a wristband. The second day was another nine or 10 hours in the pouring rain. I remember my dad coming at hour six. I was soaking wet and he brought me some dry clothes. My mom put a jacket over me and I changed right in line. How crazy is that?
The network announced yesterday that Boston – specifically Gillette Stadium – will be the first stop for auditions for the ninth season of …American Idol.
Family Votes for “Idol” 18, 000 Times
After spending hours voting for their favorite contestants on …American Idol, the Rychalsky family is hoping they might be winners themselves by landing a world record for calls placed.
Konstantine and Helen Rychalsky and their daughters Michelle, 27, and Kristen, 25, cast so many votes for their favorite singers that they might have done just that.
It takes coordination and resilience to make that many calls, Konstantine told the Connecticut Post.
“Fatigue plays a major part, which is why we have to do it as a family. It’s kind of like playing a video game, with one hand dialing and one hand hanging up, with lots of fun involved, ” Konstantine told the Post.
This season, they called to vote for contestants about 18, 000 times. That was done in shifts for 30 hours over 14 weeks, or two hours each Tuesday and four for the final episode, the Waterbury Republican-American reports.
More Idol Headlines after the JUMP…
Tony Awards 2009: Predicting the Winners
A month ago, no one thought that Rock of Ages would get five Tony nominations (including one for hair-tossing American Idol alum Constantine Maroulis!). Or that DreamWorks’ swamp-dwelling Shrek would come away with eight nods, including Best Musical. Hey, sometimes our crystal balls are fuzzy. (Back in January, the media were forecasting nothing but gloom and doom for Broadway. Now that 43 productions have opened this season, they’re singing a slightly different tune.) But that won’t stop us from taking a crack at predicting the winners of the 2009 Tonys. Tune in June 7 to see how we did; Neil Patrick Harris hosts the festivities at Radio City Music Hall, broadcast live on CBS from 8 to 11 p.m.
Rascal Flatts honors writers, readies for tour
Rascal Flatts plans to kick off its American Living Unstoppable tour in St. Louis this weekend, but before the trio hit the road for the summer, members wanted to thank songwriters Chris Sligh and Clint Lagerberg for the band’s latest No. 1 hit “Here Comes Goodbye.”
The song is Flatts’ 10th No. 1 song, Chris’ first cut, and both writers’ first trip to the top of the charts.
ASCAP and BMI co-hosted a party in honor of the writers on Tuesday at Cabana, where Rascal Flatts called “Here Comes Goodbye” a “picture perfect song.”
“The melody most definitely made us want to record it, ” guitarist Joe Don Rooney said. “I think the melody and the first few lines are what grab you in a song, and that is just incredible. We knew immediately after the first chorus. It’s such a great hook and a great idea ¦ and we all understand that being songwriters. Sometimes you have such a wonderful idea it’s hard to mess it up, and they really did nail it. It’s rare that all three of us get the hair that stand up on our arms, and when we do, we know it’s something special.”
Simon Cowell offers his ‘unconditional’ support to troubled Susan Boyle
Simon Cowell has personally called Susan Boyle to tell her: …Whatever you decide, I will support you unconditionally.
In an emotional conversation yesterday, the Britain Got Talent boss vowed to stand by 48-year-old Susan …no matter what, as she continues to recover from exhaustion in The Priory.
He even offered to RIP UP her tour contract to ease the pressure on her.
Runner-up Susan, who has learning difficulties, collapsed after …acting strangely following a week of intense pressure leading up to Saturday BGT final.
She is said to be …doing well at the clinic and is expected to remain there for …up to two weeks.
Susan has even been talking about recording an album, and Cowell has assured her that everything is in place …when she ready.
Fame does a number on Susan Boyle and Hollie Steele
News flash from across the pond: Becoming an overnight sensation can be hazardous to your health.
You would think the legacy of Princess Di would have left a more permanent imprint about the hazards of celebrity, but no. It recently claimed two more victims. First, 10-year-old Hollie Steele was flash-fried by the spotlight, followed by Susan Boyle, whose brush with fame literally put her in the hospital (or “in hospital” as the English inexplicably put it).
Both were competitors in “Britain’s Got Talent, ” a nationally televised talent show designed to pluck virtuosos out of obscurity and launch them into the stratosphere of fame and fortune. As if that were a good thing. It was the template for “American Idol, ” except participants are not limited to singers and Simon Cowell, a judge on both shows, is much, much nicer. (Does he just hate Americans, do you think?)
‘Talent’ judge: Show did not exploit Susan Boyle
(CNN) — Scotland’s Susan Boyle gives new meaning to the term “overnight sensation.” The “Britain’s Got Talent” contestant was expected to be something of a joke when she first sauntered on stage, but she absolutely wowed the audience, the judges — and then the world via the Internet — with her stunning rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream.”
But like others who stumble upon sudden fame, she found the pressure and scrutiny to be overwhelming.
“Talent” judge Amanda Holden and Dr. Drew Pinsky of VH1’s “Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew” joined CNN’s Larry King Tuesday night to discuss Boyle’s hospitalization for stress and the toll the spotlight and media criticism might have taken on her mental health. They also discussed whether Boyle will develop the emotional stamina for a high-pressure singing career.
Cowell rep.: Susan Boyle recovers; career on track
LONDON (AP) ‘ Susan Boyle is getting better after an anxiety attack caused by the pressures of her overnight fame and celebrity judge Simon Cowell plans to help her launch a professional career, Cowell’s agent said Tuesday.
The Scottish songbird who finished second in the “Britain’s Got Talent” competition landed in a London hospital Sunday night after suffering what one of her brothers described as severe anxiety.
Show judge Amanda Holden and Max Clifford, who represents Cowell, both said Boyle should recover her equilibrium fairly quickly now that she is getting treatment. Holden said Boyle does not have any underlying mental problems.
Clifford said Cowell, the mogul who helped create the show, plans to work with Boyle after she is better to make sure her career gets off to a good start.
Daniel Baldwin may join ‹Im A Celebrity…
Guess jungle life isnt all it cracked up to be. But not even helping charity could keep Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt from getting out of the NBC show …Im a Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here on the very first episode.
And, now there a surprise in store for remaining contestant Stephen Baldwin, 43, according to DailyFill.com ‘ which reports that his older brother, Daniel Baldwin, is secretly in Costa Rica. Daniel, 48, is now poised to step in for the infamous Montag, 22, and Pratt, 25, who both twice threatened to walk off during the premiere episode.
A source also tells the site that another female replacement is in the works.
Shawn Johnson: Disco Ball Trophy in Pieces
Don’t ask Shawn Johnson if you could see the disco ball trophy she won on Dancing With the Stars.
The mirrored masterpiece is in the repair shop.
“It’s actually in pieces right now, ” her pro partner, Mark Ballas, said at the MTV Movie Awards.
WTF?
“We had to take them to New York and they shipped them back and when they opened the box, they were in pieces, ” he continued. “They’re fixing them.”
Shawn said, “I called [Mark] and I was like, ‘My trophy’s broke!’ ”
‘So You Think You Can Dance’ s’ positive vibe
At the gigantic Theatre for the Performing Arts, just a few yards off Planet Hollywood Hotel’s casino floor, the requisite elements of the genre are clearly evident; dancers buckling under the pressure, judges sternly jotting down notes; camera crews capturing the tension as contestants fresh from the stage wonder whether they gave enough.
But stick around the show’s Vegas Week (which airs on Fox tonight) a little longer and you’ll be struck by what is missing from the familiar panoply of reality TV staples — judges searching for clever ways to rub the dancers’ faces in their missteps, or a host coolly reveling in the contestants’ moments of despair, or catfights, bug-eating, backstabbing or name-calling. That is to say, every one of the established ingredients of a prime-time competition show.
“You can never rest on your television ratings. We’re so reliant on the talent, ” said Lythgoe, comparing his dance program to “American Idol.” “I think that’s been forgotten a little bit. There’s been so much talk on ‘Idol’ about the judges, the judges; it’s not about the judges. It’s about the talent.”
Oh, my ears! Auto-Tune is ruining music
The following sentence might come as a huge shock to teens and Millennials, so stop tweeting for a second, kids, and get prepared for a totally outlandish statement. Here it is: Once upon a time, pop singers were actual singers.
Yes, I know. That hard to comprehend since the pop charts are now dominated by artists who use Auto-Tune, the software plug-in that corrects the pitch of those who cant really cut it in the vocal department and turns their vocals into robo-voices. While everyone under 30 recovers from that revelation, here what I mean by …actual singers.
