Today Idol headlines after the jump ¦
American Idol Winner Rocks Atlanta Crowd
American Idol 2006 winner Taylor Hicks rocked through Atlanta Thursday night. He hit the Southern Star Stage at Six Flags performing before hundreds of fans.
The gray hair Hicks has been touring since February promoting his most recent self-titled album….
Bucky Covington to sing at Afton Fair
Former “American Idol” contestant Bucky Covington will headline a free 9 p.m. performance at the 118th Afton Fair on July 12.
Opening act Skyline, featuring Cassidy Lynn, will play a mix of modern and classic country music.
Covington, 29, finished in the final eight during the 2006 “American Idol” season. His debut album, “Bucky Covington, ” debuted at No. 1 on the Top Country Albums chart, making the album the best opening week for a debut album by a male on the chart since Billy Ray Cyrus’ 1992 debut…
Weekend Look: Events in town and around
…Paradise by the Dashboard Confessional
7.Indie rock group Dashboard Confessional headlines KJ 103’s Summer Jam. Local rockers Minutes Too Far open the show, and there’s more music from Saving Jane, Blake O., Kat DeLuna and “American Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee…
Night life spotlight — AriSawkaDoria
…It’s attracting a broad spectrum of listeners, from jazz to electronic music fans. There’s also been some Blake Lewis spillover.
Wait. Blake Lewis, the “American Idol” beat-boxer from Bothell?
Lewis and ASD are longtime friends. And when Lewis made his triumphant homecoming appearance in May — which was filmed for “American Idol” — ASD was the band he called on to be up there with him. (You can see pictures from the day on ASD’s MySpace …)…
Annual Handcart Days July 20, 21 in Bountiful
Parade theme is ‘Freedom Through Service and Sacrifice’
…Friday night’s entertainment is Bountiful’s own American Idol finalist, Carmen Rasmusen. She will be giving a free concert including her new single, “Nothin’ Like the Summer, ” at Bountiful City Park after the parade…
Officer Roasted Over Wienermobile Traffic Stop
…The Wienermobile was on the road for a promotion in which contestants sing the Oscar Mayer jingle for a shot at appearing in a commercial and winning “American Idol” tickets.
The 27-foot-long, 11-foot-tall vehicle was in a construction zone in downtown Tucson Wednesday, slowing traffic. Officer Korey Lankow caught up to it and ran its “Y-U-M-M-Y” license plate to make sure it was street legal.
The plate came back as stolen. Lankow pulled over the Wienermobile, and two more officers arrived to help…
Clarkson gets ‘Sober’; McPhee tells ‘Love Story’
…- “Love Story, ” Katharine McPhee
2006 “American Idol” runner-up Katharine McPhee projected a big brawny voice on TV and yet her debut “Over It” reached a tepid No. 29 on The Billboard Hot 100.
Follow-up “Love Story” again digs at the root of the dilemma: a mega-talented vocalist aligned with ill-fitting material. Both tracks are generously catchy and clever, but pushing popper McPhee toward R&B/ rhythmic is far from the big-ballad brand that prompted millions of votes on the show.
Warning label: 2007 winner Jordin Sparks won with the same tableau as McPhee. Will the label also transition the latter from what comes naturally, alienating the fan base? Now is the
time for lessons to be learned…
Fun Paula, Diva Paula co-star on Abdul’s show
On ‹Hey Paula, the ‹American Idol judge manages to remain a mystery
After its first 22 minutes, Bravo new docudrama …Hey Paula! remains a mystery. It not a look at a life that a crumbling disaster, nor is it exactly a humanizing portrait of the …American Idol judge and former pop star.
Perhaps the biggest surprise is that the tepid matron of …American Idol is not on display here, nor is the crazy insane Paula. In fact, this Paula Abdul comes across as an altogether different person from the one America was re-introduced to five years ago when the FOX talent competition debuted….
Third Annual Nissan Student Government Leadership Program Slated for July 29 – August 2, 2007 in Jackson, Mississippi
…Confirmed speakers for the 2007 program include: Valerie Montgomery Rice, M.D., nationally renowned educator, clinician and researcher in women’s reproductive health at Meharry Medical College School of Medicine, Reverend Dr. Nelson Rivers – corporate Chief Operating Officer of the NAACP, Gregory Anderson, writer of the No. 1 Box Office Hit “Stomp the Yard” and former NSGLP corporate participant and American Idol Winner Ruben Studdard…
More Artists Announced for ‘CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock’ on the ABC Television Network Monday, July 23
…A former “American Idol” finalist who is now one of Country Music’s fastest rising stars, Kellie Pickler knows what it’s like to have a dream come true and she shared that experience with Kellie McFarland, 19, a diehard Country Music fan who has dreams of running her own record label. Pickler paid a surprise visit at McFarland’s Nashville home and took the aspiring record executive on a tour of her record label. The uber fan got the star treatment and experienced what it is like to live like a Country Music star as she and two friends, Tyler Rider, 20, and Melissa Montgomery, 21, hung out with Pickler and were granted an all-access pass to the event…
Dexter Bean goes to Washington DC for JDRF
…Mary Tyler Moore started the official kickoff of the conference with approximately 500 people in attendance on the Capital lawn. Country music sensation Trisha Yearwood performed, along with former American Idol Elliott Yamin, Steve Wariner and the 150 delegates whom together sang the Children’s Congress “Promise to Remember Me” song…
All Names Are Subject to Cancellation
It a crapshoot this weekend at an event that will connect fans with recent reality TV stars. And for many of those appearing, it roughly their 14th and a half minute of fame.
What the face value of a room full of former reality TV stars? $20. That the price of a two-day admission to this weekend Second Annual Reality TV Convention meet-and-greet confab in Nashville, Tennessee….
Has U.S. Conference of Mayors Launched a New Fox Summer Replacement: American Idol for Mayors?
At his award ceremony at the US Conference of Mayors in LA on June 24, Randy Jackson discussed on stage with Mayor Mufi Hannemann of Hawaii the development of a new reality show, American Idol, Mayors Edition. Jackson, one of the key judges of the astoundingly popular American Idol, got a thumbs up from the attendees, as the idea was rewarded with roaring applause by the hundreds of mayors and related officials in the audience….
It’s time to kick off the Big Party
…Daughtry, a former “American Idol” contestant, has generated the most single-ticket sales to date, Austin said. There were 40 tickets left around noon Wednesday…
Daughtry joins Midland fair entertainment
Pop star Daughtry has been added to the entertainment lineup for the Midland County Fair, performing at 8 p.m. Aug. 15.
Singer-songwriter Chris Daughtry found success as a finalist on last year’s ”American Idol.” …
Carrie Underwood Should be a Victoria’s Secret Model!
Carrie Underwood has changed incredibly since her days on American Idol. While the 24 year old singer was pretty and cute on the show, she was nowhere near the knockout that she is now. The 5 foot 4 inch leggie blonde is turning heads and taking numbers everywhere she goes. In fact, the shy girl who first graced the American Idol stage in 2005 is rumored to be seeing Dallas cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. Talk about a change in lifestyle!….
Spice Girls Reunite ‘ World Tour Begins In December
‘Who knows if this will ever happen again, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, ‘ says posting on group’s Web site.
…According to BBC News, the tour is being put together by Fuller’s company, 19 Entertainment. In addition to a greatest-hits album due in November, the AP reported that the group’s members will participate in the first official documentary for TV about their rise to fame. “It’s going to be the most honest story that you’ve ever heard, ” Halliwell said. “You get to see the dark side of the Spice Girls, the gritty side, the tears.”
“Girl Power is back and stronger than ever, ” they promised in the announcement. “What are you waiting for?”
[5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT …]
He’s a famous face in the Birmingham area, especially after his high-profile run on “American Idol” in 2005. But after one gold album and recurring intestinal illness, Bo Bice dropped out of sight in October. Turns out that he was recovering and regrouping, staying out of the public eye at his Nashville home.
Bice resurfaced this year with some low-key shows and did a mini-tour with country singer Joe Nichols. He’ll be on stage tonight at Alabama Adventure in Bessemer, where he last performed in June 2006….
…Is he or isn’t he?
Fans are buzzing about Bice’s next CD, which is set for release later this year. No word yet on the label; Bice’s representatives have declined to comment on his relationship with RCA. Months ago, rumors swirled that Bice had been dropped by the label after RCA pulled his name from the list of artists on its Web page. Bice still names RCA as his label on his official Web site, though…
Chamber ready to jam, peach style
…Clanton native and …American Idol contestant Ryan Mims will be opening the concert at 6 p.m…
‘Idol’ contestants help light up day
…The friends lost track of each other. Sparks retired in Arizona in 2000 after eight seasons with the Giants and one with Dallas. Barber retired in 2006 and joined NBC.
Then he heard that Jordin Sparks, Phillippi’s daughter, was an “American Idol” finalist. “She’s this beautiful, beautiful girl, ” Barber says…
Spare Times
…MACYS FOURTH OF JULY FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR: IN OUR CHILDRENS EYES , Wednesday at about 9:20 p.m., the annual display over the East River, fired from barges from East 23rd to East 42nd Streets and in Lower Manhattan…
…The fireworks show will be broadcast on Channel 4, beginning at 9, with recorded original and patriotic music performed by the New York Pops and recorded segments with Martina McBride, Joss Stone and the …American Idol stars Jordin Sparks, Blake Lewis and Melinda Doolittle…
‘Idol’ star boosts first lady’s anti-malaria event in Africa
LUSAKA, Zambia (CNN) — Da-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah-nah. It’s the little riff that plays right before “American Idol” starts.
It’s the riff I can’t seem to get out of my head, and I don’t even watch the show.
But I do know enough from pop culture to recognize that Melinda Doolittle was a finalist, and I think voters predicted she would win.
What I couldn’t predict was that I’d meet her in a remote village in Lusaka as part of the first lady’s trip to Africa.
But perhaps I should have. Fighting malaria has become the cause celebre……..
Nickelback Expand Summer Tour
…Joining Nickelback for most of the July concerts will be fellow rockers Staind and Daughtry. During the remainder of the tour, Puddle of Mudd, Daughtry, Yellowcard and Finger Eleven will take turns rotating through the opening slots…
I AM A NERD
…The sixth annual Layne Staley tribute concert takes place August 25th at Pioneer Square nightclub Fenix, and will feature Chris Daughtry, the bald rocker of American Idol fame.
HALFWAY HOME
UMGD, Interscope, Daughtry Stand Out In Six-Month Standings
The music industry is a lot like the Eastern Conference of the NBA or the National League in baseball. Somebody has to win the marketshare title, even if sales are down more than 16%..
…On the label side, Jimmy Iovine Interscope/A&M, with but a single album (Fergie) in the Top10, still dominated the new release category, thanks to strong performances from Robin Thicke (#14) and Gwen Stefani (#17). Warner Bros. (6.4%) was next, followed by Steve Barnett Team Columbia (5.5%), Clive Davis RCA Music Group (5.1%) and L.A. Reid Island Def Jam (4.7%) in the Top 5….
