Today Idol headlines after the jump ¦
‹Idolatry rules at annual showcase
TV …American Idol corrodes our collective ear for charismatic vocalists and has evolved into a showcase of mediocrity. Its contestants are usually decent at any number of entertaining tasks, but few of them excel at anything in particular.
But just try and tell that to the adoring legions of Idol fans that show up every year for the annual …American Idols Live! Tour – as they did last night at the DCU Center in Worcester….
….Some of it was pretty good. None of it was flat-out horrible (though Blake Lewis and Richardson duet on Jamiroquai …Virtual Insanity came darn close). But then again, none of it was truly fantastic, either. So, tell me again: Why are we showing up to see these people every year? Because we thrive on mediocrity? Say it isnt so.
Bumpy road for ‘Idols Live’, but tour isn’t tanked
Reports that the Jordin Sparks-led American Idols Live tour is tanking are premature, according to an executive with tour promoter AEG Live.
An article in USA Today compared grosses for the previous year’s tour and this year’s outing: $35.2 million in 2006 vs. $12.1 million for the 2007 outing.
However, that compares only the first 30 shows of the current outing against all 59 shows of the 2006 Taylor Hicks-led tour.
…I have done every American Idol tour since it has started, and they’re all different, Rathwell says. …To just take a lot of numbers and mush them together and come up with some sort of conclusion is not really correct………..
Everything you’ve always wanted to know about Sanjaya, and more
The Top 10 American Idol contestants are on a nationwide tour, which provided another flimsy excuse to ask everyone favorite – or maybe not – 17-year-old singer, Sanjaya Malakar, some silly questions. In honor of judge Paula Abdul, we vowed to make them as vacuous as we could……
Emmys host Seacrest may sing at ceremony
Emmy host Ryan Seacrest said Wednesday that he will forgo an opening monologue in favor of a song at the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 16.
Seacrest said the Emmy telecast, which is set to air live at 8 p.m. ET (tape-delayed on the West Coast) on Fox, will open with a tune that he “may or may not be” part of depending on “how confident I feel on the 16th.”…….
Sidetrack to Celebrate ‘The Color Purple’ Sept.9
…The Color Purple, which launched its North American Tour in Chicago on April 17, 2007, features stars of the Broadway production, Jeannette Bayardelle and Felicia P. Fields, along with Destiny’s Child’s Michelle Williams and American Idol alum LaToya London…
American Idol evictee gets last laugh
Getting evicted from the Idol stage can cause tears and tantrums, but not for this American Idol.
Tipped to take out the fifth series of the US version of the show, 26-year-old Chris Daughtry was ejected just four weeks before the final.
But he has had the last laugh, recording the highest selling album in the US this year……
New Attractions to Enjoy At The Madera District Fair
….The fair also features a variety of entertainers, including Los Lonely Boys, Smash Mouth, and former American Idol contestant, Kelly Pickler……
American Idol Finalist Bucky Covington To Co-Headline Tour
American Idol 4 finalist Bucky Covington pleasantly surprised many fans when his debut album turned out to be not only one of the best albums to come out of a singer from American Idol but also turned out to be one of the best country albums of the year. With a hit album now under his belt, Bucky Covington is teaming up with another best-selling new male country artist of 2007 for what will surely be a very exciting concert series……
Insider Guide: Savannah Pride
…American Idol runner-up Kimberley Locke and DJ Joe Bermudez headline the eighth annual Savannah Pride Festival (Saturday, Sept. 15, 2007; 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Johnson Square/Bank Square). Join the movement as entertainers and speakers alike rally thousands in the name of tolerance, diversity, and a rocking outdoor party…
“American Idol” champ returns to the area this weekend
Less than a month after rocking Poughkeepsie’s Mid-Hudson Civic Center, Taylor Hicks will perform in the Hudson Valley again this Saturday night.
Alongside Earth, Wind & Fire, Hicks will bring his high-energy show to the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. Tickets are still available for the show.
Journal reporter Sean T. McMann, who interviewed Hicks leading up to his Poughkeepsie gig, and met the singer after the show, has written extensively about the “AI” winner.
You can find McMann’s latest blog entry about this Saturday’s concert at “Sean’s Space, ” just a click away at www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/blogs.
Baylie Brown performs at Pontotoc County Free Fair
Baylie Brown, 17-year-old senior at Krum (Texas) High School, will be performing at 6:30 p.m. Friday at the Pontotoc County Free Fair in the Pontotoc County Agri-plex convention center.
Brown has been singing since she was 7. In 2007, she was selected to go to Hollywood for season six of American Idol.
This year she auditioned in Dallas for the next American Idol and passed the first round of competition. She is also negotiating record contracts with two major record labels and will release her first single to the radio in the near future.
After her performance Friday night, Brown will be at her booth for a meet-and-greet sesion.
My Chemical Romance Frontman Gets Hitched; Plus Lindsay Lohan, Busta Rhymes, Amy Winehouse, Usher, Jennifer Lopez & More, In For The Record
…It sounds like fans aren’t feeling the American Idols Live Tour this time around. Halfway through the outing, there were no sellouts for the first 30 shows on the tour, with only one date topping the 93 percent capacity mark ‘ a gig in winner Jordin Sparks’ home state of Arizona ‘ Billboard Boxscore reports. Compare that to last year’s tour, which boasted appearances from Taylor Hicks, Chris Daughtry, Katharine McPhee and Elliott Yamin ‘ and had 17 sellouts in its first 30 dates and 10 shows with more than 93 percent capacity. Boxscore reports 14 of first 30 shows for the current tour were below 60 percent capacity and a gig in Birmingham, Alabama, was at an anemic 38.9 percent. …
Excerpt from ‘Dave Barry’s History of the Millennium (So Far)’
….In sports, Barbaro, the popular racehorse who won the Kentucky Derby, breaks his leg in the Preakness after a freak collision with Bode Miller. Barbaro is forced to retire, although his agent does not rule out future appearances on Dancing With the Stars. Meanwhile, the hottest show on TV is the ¬much- ¬hyped finale of American Idol, which is won by crooner Taylor Hicks, who narrowly edges out Nancy Pelosi…..
Tickets going fast for fair events
More than a month before it opens, tickets for several performances on the N.C. State Fair’s billboard are selling faster than fried food on a stick.
North Carolina native rocker Chris Daughtry nearly sold out during the first 24 hours of online sales, with Southern cooking diva Paula Deen following close behind. By Wednesday afternoon, fewer than 60 tickets were left to see Daughtry, and about 1, 000 remained to see Deen. Tickets for the Dorton Arena events went on sale at midnight Monday. The arena seats a little more than 5, 000 people.
And, curiously, fairgoers seem to favor those entertainers with roots close to home. Both Kelly Pickler, from Albemarle, near Charlotte, and Josh Turner, from Sumter, S.C., outsold headliner Trace Adkins on Tuesday by several hundred tickets.
The fair runs Oct. 12 to 21.
Live reviews: Black Crowes, Nickelback and the Kansas City Irish Fest
…Sandwiched between Nickelback and Puddle of Mudd, Daughtry offered 45 minutes of credible if somewhat anonymous assembly line rock…
Stars fall on Montgomery: Music hall of fame comes to town
…Johnson said the event this year will be one of AMHOF’s best. Randy Owen of the supergroup Alabama will be master of ceremonies for a show that will include performances by Kris Kristofferson, Percy Sledge, Taylor Hicks, The Commodores and former Montgomerians Tommy Shaw, Clarence Carter and Beth Nielsen Chapman. He said other stars may also come to perform…
College football notebook: Saban says safety needs consistency
…* Musical treat: Former American Idol star Taylor Hicks, a former Auburn student, will perform at halftime of the Tigers’ game against Mississippi State on Sept. 15.
He’ll perform a medley of songs with backup from the school’s marching band.
Hicks won the fifth season of the popular show in 2006. He attended Auburn for three years beginning in 1995, studying business and journalism…
American Idol Countdown Week Wednesday: #7 – Murtz Jaffer Interviews Sanjaya Malakar
As all Inside Pulse readers know, over the last year there is no one that Murtz Jaffer wanted to interview more than Sanjaya Malakar. I immediately became a ‘Fanjaya’ when I saw the talented singer take the stage for the first time on American Idol. I loved the way he stayed strong despite the criticism he received from media outlets around the world. I was jealous of the ponyhawk. As soon as I learned that the American Idols Live! tour would be making a stop in Toronto, I insisted on interviewing Mr. Malakar. After months and months of waiting, I now can present my favorite interview of all-time…..
Dino duets a badly misguided effort
Dean Martin’s business manager is among the people behind this collection of studio-concocted duets pairing the late singer’s ghost with the likes of Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Robbie Williams, Chris Botti and Shelby Lynne.
Sadly, it’s a terribly misguided attempt to update what is already timeless. With the exception of Kevin Spacey’s two likeable, relaxed efforts, virtually every track sounds fake and lacking in the warmth necessary for suspended disbelief.
A key moment in Baby-O, with American Idol’s Paris Bennett (oh, please!): Dean: “Baby-O”; Paris: “Yeah, Dino?”; Dean: “There are laws . . .”; Paris: “You know, there are laws. . .”
You know what? If there aren’t, there should be.
You review
By Omigod, omigod! “American Idol” runner-up Chris Sligh
Idols’ appearance last Thursday at the Times Union Center. It’s not as if Barnes gushed all over him, either: “Chris Sligh, he of fusilli hair and appealing voice, has grown musically, ” he wrote, “though his sarcastic personality fails to translate to live performance.” The note:………..
