Kelly Clarkson played new tracks for the folks at Vevo last week, according to this August 8 tweet, “#KellyClarkson plays new tracks for staff at #VEVO HQ #TwitPict http://twitpic.com/6351dz
Glee’s Lea Michele tweets, “At dance rehearsal! Think you guys are gonna love this number!! The song hasn’t been on the charts in a while…but it’s a classic!!”
Jennifer Hudson Reveals That “Winnie Mandela” Biopic Will Debut At Toronto’s TIFF
I thought we’d maybe mentioned this (or the possibility of it) before, whether on the podcast or here on the site, but I couldn’t find any sign of that after searching the site; I feel like I’ve had a conversation about it, so if it’s not news, consider this a reminder :)
But just in case, in the audio clip below which features Jennifer Hudson in an interview with the hosts of Chicago’s WGCI Morning Riot program, on the 12th (last week Friday), the singer/actress/spokes-model reveals that her long-awaited Winnie Mandela biopic, (Winnie) will make its debut at the Toronto International Film Festival next month. She even gives an exact date – September 16th.
Read more at Indiewire.com
Former American Idol contestant Jason Castro to headline Quefest 2011 in Garland
Atlantic Records recording star and songwriter Jason Castro, formerly of Rockwall, and country singer-songwriter John Slaughter will headline the second annual Quefest 2011 over the Labor Day weekend, Sept. 3-4, at Firewheel Town Center in Garland.
The dread-locked Castro was the third place American Idol finisher in 2007 whose hit “Over The Rainbow” hit no.1 on iTunes. After the 2008 American Idol tour ended, Castro moved to Los Angeles and began writing songs, eventually signing a deal with Atlantic Records. He recorded his first album in 2009.
Read more at Pegasus News
Interview: Taylor Hicks – On Songwriting, Acting, and New Album
In the midst of planning a new album, his first since 2009’s The Distance, Hicks and I discussed his various projects earlier this summer.
How do you feel at this point, beginning the new album?
What’s so great about this particular process for me is that there’s no big vehicle that I have to hop on to be able to sell my record. The last one had the vehicle of the Grease tour: 18 months, eight shows a week, 12, 000 people a week, and trying to sell records to ten percent of the 12, 000. I love big vehicles because financially they’re great, not going to lie. But does it help the organic process of writing a record? It doesn’t help it because it puts a time constraint on the process.
Read more at Blogcritics
Jumping by 1.0 Million Viewers from Last Year, ABC’s ‘CMA Music Festival’ Draws Its 2nd-Biggest Audience in 6 Years
Opposite mostly original competition during its 8:00-11:00 p.m. telecast on CBS (“Big Brother”/”Same Name”), NBC (“Minute To Win It”/season finale of ”Marriage Ref”) and Fox (series debut of “In the Flow with Affion Crockett”), ABC’s “CMA Music Festival” surged from its lead-in (+218% in Total Viewers/+220% in Adults 18-49) to draw an average audience of 7.0 million viewers and finish as the most-watched program in its 3-hour time period. The special also ranked No. 1 in its time slot with Women 18-34 (1.6/5).
ABC’s “CMA Music Festival” jumped over last year’s telecast by 1 million viewers (+17% – 7.0 million vs. 6.0 million on Wednesday, 9/1/10), drawing its 2nd-largest audience in 6 years – since 2005. The broad appealing show was also up year over year with Men 18-49 (+8%), Men 25-54 (+13%), Adults 25-54 (+10%), Teens 12-17 (+29%) and Kids 2-11 (+50% – a 7-year high).
Read more at TV By The Numbers
Three Networks Are Battling for the Rights to the Country Music Association Awards
As Blake Shelton’s breakout success on NBC’s The Voice and Scotty McCreery’s victory on American Idol this spring underlined, country music remains a red-hot force in pop culture. So perhaps this next bit of news shouldn’t be a major shocker: Vulture hears a three-way bidding war of sorts has broken out for the rights to the Country Music Association Awards, which has called ABC home for the past five years. At stake is one of the longest-running kudo franchises in TV history, as well as one of the most popular.
Even though last year’s ratings fell to a record low, the CMAs still lure between 16 and 17 million viewers on average, putting them on par with the Golden Globes in terms of popularity (and higher rated than the American Music Awards and a couple of other country honors, such as the Academy of Country Music Awards). The show also does very well with younger viewers, which explains why the Alphabet has been pushing hard to keep the awards and why CBS has been making a concerted effort to get the franchise back (the CMAs aired on the Eye for 34 years before former ABC chief Steve McPherson engineered an expensive deal stealing them away in 2005). In recent weeks, however, the dealmaking has grown even more complicated as NBC has stepped into the game, offering what our spies indicate is an extraordinarily lucrative offer to land the kudos.
In any case, look for a decision soon: Vulture’s sources say that, following a new round of meetings with network suits, CMA officials could announce a new long-term deal by month’s end.
Read more at New York Magazine
EXCLUSIVE: What are your favorite ‘Glee’ stars listening to right now?
The “Glee” cast and I talked all things music recently. What was their first album? Who was their first concert? What are they listening to now? I got the scoop while talking to the cast about their new 3D concert film. Ever wonder who Kevin McHale used to rock out to when he was younger? HINT: The person lives la vida loca…Yeah that’s right! Check out the video for all the juicy details!
Watch at MySpace
