American Idol David Cook’s idol? Canadian singer-songwriter Raine Maida
He barely registered on “American Idol” until he cut his hair and sang “Hello.”
From then on, David Cook was the unlikely dark horse who reinvented hits from the ’80s and ’90s to the delight of his female fans, in the end trouncing teenage phenom David Archuleta in a landslide upset.
Cook and his fellow Top 10 competitors arrive in Toronto on Saturday, and it turns out that the emo-balladeer has a musical idol of his own – Canadian singer-songwriter Raine Maida.
Over 5, 000 ‘Idol’ hopefuls wait to audition
Daniel Stringer may not be the next American Idol, but he sure looked the part at 6:45 a.m. Friday.
Stringer sported pointed Aldo shoes, perfectly faded Seven jeans and a porkpie hat tilted just so on his head.
“I actually dress like this all the time, ” said Stringer, 21, of Gilbert. “I thought it would work well here.”
Stringer may be confident about his look. But his voice could be another matter.
More Idol Headlines After the JUMP…
‘Idol’ emotions rise, fall
The television producers didn’t come to Glendale on Friday simply looking for great singers with the potential to become the next American Idol.
They also needed to find earnest singers who could be skewered by the judges and served up for mockery during the competition’s early episodes.
That realization served as salve for some who didn’t make the preliminary cut and served as a source of worry for some who did.
“I really hope I’m not one of the crazies, ” said Michelle Buckingham, 24, of Chandler.
‘Idol’ hopefuls get ready for the judges
“I’m an airline pilot but I want to be an American Idol, ” read a glittery red and purple sign gleaming on the sidewalk of Glendale’s Jobing.com Arena.
The sign holder, a U.S. Airways pilot from Tempe, declined to give her name because she called in sick to audition for the talent show, which held this year’s only Arizona tryout Friday morning.
The pilot was one hopeful in a line 2, 500 people deep that wrapped around the Glendale venue by 5:30 a.m.
‹Idol contestants nervous? Of course!
It was 8:17 a.m., but Carlos Familia had oodles of energy. The Providence 16-year-old was busy two-stepping to an Usher song on his iPod while around him people massaged their throats and saved their voices.
…Im just getting into my zone, he said.
He had been waiting in line since a little after 6:30 a.m. to try out for American Idol. He wasnt the first to arrive. He wasnt even in the first dozen. The first two of about 150 contestants showed up Thursday night around 9 p.m. and slept in the rain for a while before retreating to their car.
David Cook, Jennifer Bertrand: Why does KC produce so many reality show luminaries?
New York, Los Angeles and Miami can boast of plenty that Kansas City doesnt have. Broadway. Hollywood. A beach.
But hey, we can tout a growing list of reality TV show contestants.
The current American Idol? From Blue Springs.
One of the last winners of …Survivor? A native of Kansas City, Kan.
One of the two finalists in HGTV …Design Star? Jennifer Bertrand hails from Olathe.
Former ‘Idol’ singer with cancer hosts fundraiser
Luke Menard, a former “American Idol” contestant who’s battling cancer, will hold a concert to raise money for his medical bills and other expenses.
The 29-year-old Crawfordsville native made it to the top 16 on “American Idol.” He was diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin’s lymphoma soon after his March 6 elimination from the show. Doctors found a tumor in his chest.
Menard will perform at a sold-out concert Saturday at Crawfordsville High School’s auditorium, which seats 800. Money from the benefit will go to Menard and his wife to use for medical bills and other expenses.
‘American Idol’ cancer benefit
CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. (WFLI)–A concert in Crawfordsville will help an “American Idol” battling cancer. Crawfordsville-native, Luke Menard, was diagnosed with Stage II Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in May. The former American Idol contestant is undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments.
A concert Saturday night at Crawfordsville High School will raise money for his medical bills. Menard said he could not have made it through the last year without the Crawfordsville community.
“I really honestly don’t think I would want to be in any other town in America right now than Crawfordsville.
The kind of support we are getting and people are being respectful of our needs financially, emotionally, and spiritually people are just giving us so much more than I ever expected. Menard will perform along with the group, Chapter 6; jazz pianist, Greg Jasperse. A guitar signed by the current American Idol Top 10 will be auctioned off. Tickets for the event are available at the door or at various stores around Crawfordsville.
Jason Castro, American Idol tour one month from Dallas show
Mark your calendars, Dreadheads. A month from today, Jason Castro and the rest of the American Idol tour will be performing at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. The past week, they swung into Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Detroit. Today’s a day off, but they’ll hit Toronto and Rochester, N.Y., over the weekend. Jason got a good review from the Detroit Free Press. We also learn that Jason will be recording “Hallelujah” for a Mexican film and that he’s a blackjack player.
Idol Alum JPL Visits the Post
The Post got a visit from …American Idol Season Three’s Jon Peter Lewis, aka JPL. Jon stopped by to discuss his life, career, the future of …Idol and insight into some of the scandals the show has survived along the way. Jon even gave us an acoustic performance of his new single, …Break The Silence, off his new album …Break the Silence.
Idol Jon Peter Lewis
The former Idol contestant visits M&J and …Breaks The Silence!
Chris Sligh Hits ‘Idol Camp’ And Gears Up For Headlining Back To School Tour To Appear On The 700 Club July 29th
his debut CD, Running Back to You garners its first top 10 single with …Empty Me, (#9 R&R AC Monitor ‘ #5 Most Increased song), AMERICAN IDOL finalist Chris Sligh is readying himself to hit the road to support both, as well as his next single, …Arise. In addition, he will perform live on The 700 Club on Tuesday, July 29th.
Sligh first stop before launching his headlining Back to School Tour, will be …Idol Camp in Southern California. Idol Camp was created for kids who want to be singer/songwriters, and enslists former …Idols each summer to participate in teaching music classes, host open mic sessions, showcases, as well as extra curricular activities including arts and crafts, motor sports, paintball, soccer, archery, swimming and more.
Carrie Underwood is a Cheerful Giver
Carrie Underwood has lunch with her two male friends (the Aeropostale green shirt is her cousin Cody) at Il Fornaio restaurant in Beverly Hills on Thursday.
On the way to the restaurant, Carrie decided to show a little kindness by giving some money to a homeless person on the street. After lunch, she decided to do a little shopping at North Face.
Cards’ home opener will feature Daughtry
Grammy-nominated rockers Daughtry will perform at the Arizona Cardinals’ home opener against the Miami Dolphins on Sept. 14 at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Tickets for the home opener and other game tickets go on sale to the general public Saturday. The band, led by 2006 American Idol finalist Chris Daughtry, will perform a pre-game set as well as the national anthem.
Daughtry also performed the anthem at a 2006 home game and was in Glendale earlier this year on a ticket with Bon Jovi.
Timbaland reveals ‘Shock Value 2’ plans
Timbaland says he will be working with Madonna, Rihanna and the The Jonas Brothers on Shock Value 2.
The hip-hop star claimed there would also be collaborations with T-Pain, Jordin Sparks and Beyoncà © on the follow-up to his hit 2007 LP.
“Shock Value is really like the Now [That’s What I Call Music!] compilation, ” he told MTV.
“That’s my goal for this – not [to showcase] me as an artist. Of course I’ll do my little part, introduce some people.”
Frenchie Davis: From Idol to Misbehavin
When her stint on season two of …American Idol flared into controversy, Frenchie Davis became infamous. The promising young singer had been kicked off early on because of some risquà © photos found on the Internet.
The singer managed to turn that infamy into hard-won fame through sheer hard work and by maintaining a focus on what was really important to her.
Her answer to all that media fuss was to turn to theater. She was offered a part in the long-running Broadway musical …Rent, and she took it. She parlayed that into a West Coast tour of …Dreamgirls that brought her to Sacramento and San Jose.
Reality Check: ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ Surprises Us All
Every reality show seems to have one moment that turns out to be the big shocker of the season. This week we saw that moment on …So You Think You Can Dance ¦ Im just trying to figure out which one it was.
For starters: One-hit wonder Toni Basil is known to some as the singer of “Hey Mickey, but you definitely wouldn’t recognize her face, as all the work she had done makes her barely recognizable as a human being. Could explain why she’s disappeared for the last 20 years.
Anyway, Toni the third judge, despite never having choreographed for the show. And equally surprising as her brief return to the spotlight (and daylight) was her obsession with talking about how …street everything is.
Exclusive Interview: Comfort Fedoke of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ – Second Time Around
o say that this season of So You Think You Can Dance has been a roller coaster for Comfort Fedoke is an understatement. She had her ups and downs in the Vegas audition rounds but prevailed, making it through to the Top 20. Almost immediately, she found herself in the bottom groups, up for elimination, week after week. She and partner Thayne Jasperson were sent home right before making Top 10 but were selected to go on tour as swings. Right after she was eliminated, Jessica King got injured and was forced to drop out of the competition so Comfort was brought back. She landed in the bottom two that week, but Kherington Payne went home. This week became her last (for the second time) and she was sent home for good. Today, she spoke to BuddyTV in an exclusive interview!
‘So You Think You Can Dance’: A Falling Star
Welcome, So You Think You Can Dance fans! I will be your guide/fellow Cat Deeley obsessive as we journey through last night’s devastating results episode. But beware! This is the mating season of the Lythgoe. Actually, it’s always mating season for the Lythgoe. And I strongly advise that you don the protective earmuffs when traveling through Mary Murphy’s hunting territory. I can’t hope to match the skill and expertise of the great Adam B. Vary or last night’s guide, Lisa Raphael, but hopefully we can get through this together. I guess I’m just worried that if you SYTYCD fans out there hate my TV Watch, you’ll all march here with torches and pitchforks, strap me down, and force me to listen to Mary’s screech until the point of madness.
Britney Spears, Lil Wayne, Mariah Carey Among MTV VMA Nominees For Best Male, Female Video
After thousands of votes on VMA.MTV.com (along with ballots from select industry insiders), two diverse battles are set. A pair of legendary pop icons will square off against two relative newcomers and one wily underdog in the fight for Best Female Video. Pop queen Britney Spears takes another step on the comeback trail as her “Piece of Me” grabs a nomination, while Mariah Carey will try to end her VMA dry spell with “Touch My Body.” “American Idol” champ Jordin Sparks scores a nomination for her Chris Brown collaboration “No Air, ” and Rihanna is in the running as well with “Take a Bow.” Quirky long shot Katy Perry rounds out the Best Female race with her cheeky summer anthem “I Kissed a Girl.”
