Today Idol headlines after the jump ¦
Today in History – June 23
Today’s Birthdays: … “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson is 51…
Will Kelly Clarkson survive clash with record company?
There are few sure things in pop music, but bet on this: Natalie Maines and the rest of the Dixie Chicks know exactly what Kelly Clarkson is going through right now, and not just because they all are from Texas.
With a career-at-the-crossroads album, “My December” (RCA), coming out Tuesday, Clarkson is shaping up as this year’s version of the Dixie Chicks…..
Scrappers come out swinging
…The Scrappers continue their homestand at 7 p.m. today against the Muckdogs. Tonight is live music night as fans get a chance to see American Idol contestant Sarah Burgess perform.
Allentown Fair adds Carrie Underwood to lineup
Two-time Grammy Award winner and 2005 “American Idol” champion Carrie Underwood will be belting out her platinum brand of country at the Allentown Fair Grandstand on Sept. 2.
Help Is on the Way XIII benefit concert on August 5 in San Francisco
…The roster of performing celebs includes Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess, Battlestar Galactica), Joey McIntyre (Wicked, Dancing With the Stars), B.D. Wong (M. Butterfly, Law & Order: SVU), Kimberly Locke (American Idol), and Bruce Vilanch (Hollywood Squares, Hairspray), as well as cast members from the San Francisco version of Jersey Boys, and many others…
Christian Music Showcase Posts Sneak Peaks on YouTube
…Several key figures were first heard as attendants at the conference in past years. Some include two contestants from this year …American Idol competition: 28-year-old Chris Sligh and 17-year-old champion Jordin Sparks in 2003 and 2004, respectively…
Bon voyage: The return of Bon Jovi
It’s almost 25 years since Bon Jovi shot to fame with their big ballads and even bigger hair. On the eve of their latest sell-out tour, Jon Bon Jovi tells David Usborne why it hasn’t all been plain sailing
…It’s also why on one episode of the last American Idol series, contestants sung only his songs. “The biggest TV show in America playing nothing but Jovi songs, that’s pretty cool. I guess some of those songs really did touch a lot of people.”…
What’s cooking? Classics
MIXED MUSIC. It’s a little bit country, a little bit rock and roll. Twice over. “CMT Crossroads: Kelly Clarkson and Reba McEntire” (tomorrow at 8 p.m., CMT) pairs the “American Idol” winner and the country queen in concert. That’s followed by “Bon Jovi Unplugged” (tomorrow at 9 p.m., CMT), in which the Jersey rocker welcomes country princess LeAnn Rimes for an acoustic set echoing his new album, “Lost Highway.” More at cmt.com/shows.
All is fair: Big names line up for SB County, Mid-State events
SANTA BARBARA COUNTY FAIR
…This year, Grammy winner Kenny Loggins and …American Idol contestant-turned country music star Josh Gracin will round out the shows…
CALIFORNIA MID-STATE FAIR
…Daughtry, the band formed around Chris Daughtry, the 2006 American Idol contestant known for his rock skills, will play July 28, and Godsmack and Hoobastank will play together July 29. …The rock side is just solid, said Keffury…
Kelly Clarkson May Jam Econo This Summer After All
…It’s a shame that we won’t get to see Kelly sing with Chris Sligh–who, by the way, is blogging about the tour’s rehearsals–but we’re really hoping that she plays it smart with these “intimate” shows–smaller venues, multiple nights, and, for the love of Simon Cowell, lower ticket prices. Please?
Caught in the Act!
…Paula Abdul, leading a scavenger hunt to celebrate her 45th birthday. The hunt originated at West Hollywood eatery Ketchup and found the group of pals ‘ including Jordin Sparks, Blake Lewis, and Chris Sligh ‘ touring Los Angeles. When they were finished, the crew returned to the restaurant for mini kobe sliders, mini kobe beef hot dogs and mac ‘n’ cheese. Abdul ‘ whose birthday was June 19 ‘ looked “so good, ” an onlooker tells us, especially as she was blowing out the candles on her birthday cake.
Take aim at fun this weekend
…Farwell — If you’d rather see your country music stars in the splendor of northern lower Michigan (or if you didn’t get tickets to Birthday Bash) head two hours north to check out the first-ever Mountain Country Music Festival, starring Junior Brown, Shooter Jennings, Carrie Underwood and Gretchen Wilson starting at 3 p.m. today at the former Silver Ridge ski resort. At 2 p.m. Sunday, it’s Bucky Covington (cruising up from Ionia after his Saturday Birthday Bash appearance), Steve Azar, Jeff Foxworthy and Sawyer Brown…
25 years of music milestones
…21. “American Idol” (2002)
Churning out multiplatinum songbirds Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, the entertainment juggernaut is a rare water-cooler phenomenon in pop culture’s hyper-diversified landscape…
Stars line up for Dream concert fund-raiser
Live Earth NYC lineup
Keith Urban and Taking Back Sunday have joined the lineup for the New York-area edition of the Live Earth concert on July 7.
The Police, Smashing Pumpkins, Dave Matthews Band, Alicia Keys, Bon Jovi, Kanye West and Kelly Clarkson are among the top names already confirmed to appear.
Music Review
My December (2007)
Kelly Clarkson
Are you on Team Kelly or Team Clive? It seems like everybody chose sides before even hearing My December, Kelly Clarkson’s darker, more personal, riskier third CD. There are those who see her as a bird escaping a gilded cage, co-writing her entire album and bravely forsaking the hitmakers Clive Davis assigned to 2004’s five-times-platinum Breakaway. Others view Clarkson as a spoiled brat, so impressed by her success that she’s telling the industry’s most established father figure to take a hike….
Buffalo fan raises a glass to celebrate Aykroyd’s auction; Wine event draws Buffalo family to Niagara for their first visit
…Tonight’s sold-out gala event – attracting more than 1, 100 guests at $500 per person – features such talent as American Idol 2006 winner Taylor Hicks, Soprano Measha Brueggergosman and crooner Matt Dusk…
