2009 In 60 Seconds: Relive Lady Gaga’s Breakout, ‘New Moon’ Fever, More
At least that’s how MTV News’ Jim Cantiello sees things, and he should know, because he spent the year summing up just about every major event ‘†from the inauguration to “American Idol” and the VMAs ‘†in, you guessed it, 60 seconds or less.
On TV, “Project Runway” crashed, and Jay Leno dropped an atomic bomb on prime time when his five-nights-a-week talker sizzled for a few days and then flopped faster than an “American Pie” sequel. But the big news, of course, was “American Idol, ” where new judge Kara DioGuardi didn’t totally ruin the show (but didn’t really add anything either) and sometimes made it run way over schedule. The soft-spoken kid from Arkansas, Kris Allen, won out over season-long favorite Adam Lambert, the flamboyant crooner who has since announced the obvious (he’s gay), shocked middle America at the AMAs (think men on leashes, man-on-man kissing) and beat his rival on the Billboard charts. Oh, and loopy judge Paula Abdul left the show, announcing her departure on ‘†wait for it ‘†Twitter, of course.
Fans ready to see Simon Cowell go
Simon Cowell is leaving “American Idol” — but does anyone really care?
Although Cowell’s departure comes at a critical time for the show — “American Idol” has been steadily losing viewers since it hit its peak in the first weeks of Season 6 in January 2007 — the news, oddly enough, has barely caused a ripple in the online “Idol” universe.
Kelly Clarkson tops Christmas week Idol airplay
With holiday music in full swing and radio stations not really making decisions about which songs to add and which songs to drop until next week, there’s not much to read into this week’s American Idol airplay chart. Kelly Clarkson’s Already Gone remains an easy Number One, with nearly triple the airplay of the Number Two song, Kris Allen’s Live Like We’re Dying. (Kelly, by the way, says she recorded a version of I’ll Be Home for Christmas as a present for her mother and she hopes to post it for her fans sometime.) This week, we’ll let the Mediabase airplay numbers speak for themselves.
More Idol Headlines after the JUMP…
Adam Lambert: Super Skincare!
Adam Lambert and a pal pick up some skincare products at Ole Henriksen Skincare in Los Angeles on Sunday (December 27).
The 27-year-old entertainer will be performing for New Year’s Eve, but unfortunately, you’ll have to see him live to watch him! He recently tweeted, ‘unfortunately Gridlocked NYE will NOT be filmed/televised/streamed. It’s a LIVE event only. Hope to see you there!!’
10 most important works of the decade: No. 4, American Idol
I asked Kris Allen, the 2009 American Idol, why people like the show so much.
“I think the beauty about American Idol is that it takes people that they can relate to, that maybe acts like a friend of theirs, or has the same job or something like that, and makes them into rock stars or country stars or pop stars, ” said the 24-year-old from Conway, Ark.
2009’s most popular reality TV stories and shows
As 2009 draws to a close, here’s a look back at the most popular pages on reality blurred over the past year, as determined by the popularity of individual stories and show-specific archive pages.
While Marcus Lehman’s penis was the most popular story last year, it was curiosity about what Adam Lambert does with his that was this year’s most read story on reality blurred. In fact, four of the top five stories were about what reality TV stars do with their penises, so while accusations I’m crotch-obsessed may be true, I’m in good company with the rest of the world.
CUP: Country Stars, Racers Team Up Again
The Fifth Annual Sprint Sound & Speed Presented By SunTrust is scheduled for Jan. 8-9 in Nashville, with a lineup that includes Dale Earnhardt Jr., Tony Stewart, Kyle Busch, Greg Biffle, Denny Hamlin, Kasey Kahne, Carl Edwards, Clint Bowyer, Michael Waltrip and other NASCAR stars.
On the evening of Jan. 8, there will be live country music shows on the historic Opry’s Ryman Auditorium stage at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Featured performers will include Hank Williams Jr. (9:30 p.m. show only), Danny Gokey, Jason Michael Carroll (7 p.m. show only) Chris Young, a special performance from NASCAR’s Kyle Petty and his band, as well as addition artists t/b/a.
Danny Gokey sings at Lambeau
GREEN BAY – Milwaukee-native Danny Gokey sang his way into the hearts of millions of viewers on American Idol this year. Sunday, people put their hand on their hearts while he sang the National Anthem at Lambeau Field. Gokey is on a promotional tour for his soon-to-be released first album. His first single, “My Best Days are Ahead of Me” is already available online.
“It’s just a great reflection of where I’m at in my life, ” Gokey said in an interview with FOX 11. “I really feel like a lot of people knew me on the show through the tragedy that I went through and it was a rough time in my life. But I kept the right focus and something good came out of something so tragic.”
Bucky Covington helping re-open Nashville’s Hard Rock Cafe
Bucky Covington will play a concert benefiting the Arthritis Foundation’s Tennessee chapter Tuesday at Nashville’s Hard Rock Cafe. Bucky’s concert is part of a series of shows leading up to the venue’s grand reopening. Bucky also will take part in the Hard Rock’s Guitar Smash reopening ceremony Wednesday morning, then he’ll play a New Year’s Howlin’ Eve show for 93.1 The Wolf in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Top stories in 2009: Growth, hope in a grim year
Giraud goes far on American Idol
Few had heard of the smooth-sounding, piano-playing crooner’s name before 2009.
But by the end of the year, Kalamazoo’s Matt Giraud won national fame by placing fifth on American Idol.
The hometown singer, who graduated from Western Michigan University in 2007, went on to perform in a 52-city tour with the other finalists from the hit Fox TV show, which included a stop at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids.
Giraud also is busy writing songs for a hopeful record deal.
But even with his acclaim this year, Giraud still turns up in Kalamazoo, like at a Western Michigan University football game or Monaco Bay, the dueling piano bar where he used to perform before his run on American Idol.
Year in Review: top 10 albums and concerts
3 Melinda Doolittle, Coming Back to You (Hi Fi Recordings): What’s so great about Melinda Doolittle? She’s real. She’s soulful. She’s grown up. Put that together and you get a gloriously old-school R&B album that was all but criminally ignored. Somebody give her the attention she deserves.
10 Adam Lambert, For Your Entertainment (19/RCA): Love him or loathe him ‘ and it seems as though there’s an equal number in both camps ‘ the button-pushing American Idol runner-up made a super-fun, glam, pop-rock-dance CD bursting with pipes and personality. Now he needs to stop talking and keep singing. MARIO TARRADELL’S TOP 10 CONCERTS
A revamped ‘Dreamgirls’ hits Heinz Hall
“It was like ‘Boheme’ at La Scala, ” director Robert Longbottom said by phone last week, just as “Dreamgirls” made its way to Baltimore before the national tour hits Heinz Hall tomorrow. “If there was a piece of musical theater that belonged at a specific venue, it was this. It really was thrilling.”
Q: Syesha Mercado as Deena, the girl who is elevated for her looks rather than her voice, is part of a young cast without a lot of musical theater experience. Was there a purpose in casting newcomers?
A: Syesha comes with a lot of skill and raw talent, but she hadn’t played a lot of parts. I prefer that because for all of the high-tech side of “Dreamgirls, ” the performing side has to be absolutely naturalistic and raw. It’s a musical where you really need to live through these feelings. There are very few actors who can really turn that on in a manufactured way and be convincing. And if you’re just starting out and you’re passionate, the best thing is to really play it and feel it, which is another reason it’s so exhausting for these ladies. It is not only for stamina that I think they need to be young, but for the pathos of the piece. This is a universal story about those days, those early friends we make that we never replace, the heartbreak of losing some of them and finding redemption later on.
Rage Against The Machine campaigners deny Cowell job offer
The duo responsible for the campaign to make Rage Against The Machine’s `Killing In The Name’ the Christmas number one have denied that they received a job offer from Simon Cowell.
Tracy and Jon Morter began a Facebook campaign to stop The X Factor winner’s song from reaching the festive top spot because they were tired of the Cowell’s dominance on the Christmas charts.
Cowell told the Daily Mirror: “I offered them jobs at my record company.
ETA:
American Idol Top personal ‘Idol’ interactions of 2009
I took a genuine break from the blog world the past few days. I hope you all enjoyed your break, too.
So here are my six most notable personal interactions with ‘Idol’ this past year:
– Running into Anoop Desai at the Amos Lee concert. This was the most random ‘Idol’ moment of the year for me. It was just two weeks after Anoop was elmiminated from the show on May 7. I was walking down the concert aisle and a friend of mine said, ‘Isn’t that the guy from ‘Idol’?’ We followed him to the concession stand and yes, it was Anoop. He was in town to see some friends and was a big fan of Lee. We talked briefly and got our pictures taken with him. But surprisingly, he got to sing ‘Crazy Love’ with Lee during the encore, a song he was familiar with from his college singing group.
Adam Lambert, Lady Gaga Big Draws For New Year’s Eve Shows
Adam Lambert may have been dropped from “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest, ” but the pop star just announced he’s got a new gig to ring in the New Year. But if you want to see him play as the clock strikes midnight, then you’d better buy your tickets. The show isn’t going to be televised.
Lambert is set to play the annual Gridlock New Year’s Eve concert in Los Angeles. The show will be hosted by Pamela Anderson. Lambert has been billed as the night’s headliner and a Web site for the event notes that Lambert will perform at the stroke of midnight. Kevin Rudolf is also tapped to play the New York-themed bash, which will be held on the Paramount Pictures Studio Backlot.
Happy 19th Birthday, David Archuleta!
Happy 19th birthday, David Archuleta! It seems like just yesterday you were 18. Wait, you were 18 yesterday. Anyway, if I could give David Archuleta just one birthday gift, it’d be the gift of year-round Christmas. Because really, David kind of already makes it feel like Christmas all year, right?
David Archuleta birthday bonus: Watch “A Little Too Not Over You” and “Crush.”
