Rocker sent packing on ‘American Idol’
There isn’t much on the Top 40 charts these days that sounds anything like Amanda Overmyer. Apparently, there’s a good reason for that.
Overmyer became the second of the 12 finalists voted off “American Idol” on Wednesday. The “rock and roll nurse,” as Randy Jackson called her, had one of the most memorable personalities among the contestants, but her song choices didn’t connect with the viewers.
DeGeneres to co-host ‘Idol Gives Back’
Fox has tapped Ellen DeGeneres to once again join Ryan Seacrest as host of the “American Idol” benefit special “Idol Gives Back.”
The network also announced the addition of Maroon 5, Heart, Gloria Estefan, Boyz II Men and The Clark Brothers to its talent lineup. They will join previously announced celebrity participants Bono, Brad Pitt, Reese Witherspoon, Eli Manning, Carrie Underwood, John Legend and Snoop Dogg.
The special will air April 9.
Last year’s debut edition raised $78 million to fund various international charities and earned a prestigious Governor’s Award Emmy.
More Idol Headlines After The Jump…
‘American Idol’: Two Out of Three Are Bad
Attention, potential ticket buyers for the American Idol season 7 tour: Amanda Overmyer will not — for better or for worse — be part of the lineup.
But don’t shed any tears for the Rock & Roll Nurse from Mulberry, Ind. As she noted on Tuesday night following her howling, energetic, and not particularly in-tune rendition of ”Back in the U.S.S.R.,” she’s spent her Idol run simply trying ”to show America what they would see if they came to my show and bought a ticket to see me.”
American Idol: Top 10 Revealed
Ryan opened the show by telling us who the four celebrity mentors would be this season: Dolly Parton, Mariah Carey, Andrew Lloyd Weber and Neil Diamond. I think these are all solid choices as they each bring something very, very different that the contestants can learn from. Personally, I think a theme week of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s work could be absolutely amazing.
Recap: ‘American Idol’ trims to 10
American Idol probably shouldn’t have done a second night of Beatles songs. But who would pay the price on Wednesday (March 19) for Tuesday’s mistakes? Who would be this season’s last contestant to miss out on the empty arenas of the American Idol Tour? Let’s find out…
Idol’s Top 10 Get Ticket to Ride
Ten American Idol contestants got a ticket to ride. Motorcycle enthusiast Amanda Overmyer was not one of them.
With her elimination Wednesday, the 23-year-old nurse missed automatic entrée into the American Idols Live tour lineup by one week after voters apparently tired of her Joplinesque vocals and signature ‘do, no matter how proficiently she delivered.
But while fans were treated to an encore of “Back in the USSR,” as per Idol procedure, they never got to hear the ballad that Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell were so hoping lurked beneath the surface of Overmyer’s rocker-chick exterior.
For Amanda Overmyer, the Road Wasn’t All That Long and Winding After All
It’s back to flatbed truck performances for Amanda “I Don’t Do No Stinkin’ Ballads” Overmyer. Done in by Beatles Week, Amanda received the fewest votes from viewers and got the hook on “American Idol” last night. She was the 11th Idolette left standing in the competition; her ejection means the Biker Nurse will not get to be part of the increasingly less sold-out annual “American Idol” tour.
Be Gone Beatles!
Some thoughts as we finally put Beatles Hell Week behind us…
1. How bad was the opening number with all the Idols? Let me count the ways. One, Castro and The Cook should never be forced to try and harmonize. Two, Nanny McTwee’s high note. Three, her attempt at walking while singing. Four, Ramiele’s lack of microphone power (or was she playing the part of Brooke’s ventriloquist dummy? If so, Brooke needs to work on not moving her lips). Five, the shaky-cam on Kristy. Six, the fact they gave Amanda any solo at all.
When egos exceed ability
In its opening stages, warfare often takes on strange forms. Today’s victory merely sets the stage for tomorrow’s defeat; today’s frontline is a sideshow from the main theater of conflict.
Likewise, at this point on “American Idol” last season, the contest was universally seen as a duel between Melinda Doolittle and LaKisha Jones. Two years ago, there wasn’t a pundit who thought Taylor Hicks had a chance at making the top three, let alone winning.
This year however, despite an extremely fluid midfield containing a very large number of possible contenders for the finals, one cannot deny that shaping this contest is a humongous fortress looming over every inch of the battlefield — a fortress named David Archuleta. On Tuesday night, the Chosen One reasserted himself as the prohibitive front-runner, casting the race in terms of who among the others will be his main opponent. (And that competition itself now has a nearly prohibitive front-runner in the person of Carly Smithson, although as the race tightens she will have to fight the incredibly strong midfield for every inch of soil she gains.)
Idol Tracker: Debra Byrd teaches the world to sing
Just one week into the season and already the first shock waves spread across the Idoldome; not really for the ouster of rocker girl Amanda Overmyer, a delightful personality but ultimately an underperforming novelty candidate more than a serious contender. Far more shocking still was the first intimation of many heartbreaks to come with the horrifying placement of the Great Irish Hope, Carly Smithson in the bottom three.
With nine weeks ahead between now and Nokia, there will be surprises aplenty, and ultimately, all but two of our warriors must fall before that day. In a season as rich with competitors as this, no one it seems, can afford even one off week, (no one except The Chosen One, David Archuleta). There were however, some heart-stopping moments while we in the Idoldome watched a very stricken Carly wait to hear her fate and there is good reason to think a major riot would have ensued had the verdict gone another way. As is, we can chalk this up to one of those helpful early scares many go through and that can motivate a singer’s partisans. And now Carly gets her own room.
Fox squashes all nets with double “Idol”
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Once again, Fox dominated the TV universe as the John Lennon/Paul McCartney-themed editions of “American Idol” netted another decisive weekly win for the network.
The performance and results “Idol” shows, respectively, averaged 29.9 million viewers and an 11 rating/28 share among adults 18-49 and 27.1 million, 10.3/26, topping the weekly program charts by a wide margin.
Ratings up slightly but American Idol lost teenage girls and women, gained older men
The audience for American Idol seems to be changing, as the series has lost females but gained male viewers.
Compared to last year’s, last week’s top 12 performance show lost 12 percent of its teenage girls ages 12 to 17, 22 percent of women ages 18 to 34, and 8 percent of women ages 25 to 54, according to USA TODAY’s analysis of Nielsen ratings. Overall, there are just 900,000 teenage girls watching, compared to 9.5 million women ages 25 to 54.
Idol Dances by Dancing
An off-night for American Idol is still a big night. Just ask Dancing with the Stars.
The Fox singing show cramped the style of the ABC ballroom show in head-to-toe competition from 9-10 p.m. Tuesday, averaging 26.8 million viewers to Dancing’s 15.2 million, per Nielsen estimates.
Overall, Idol, featuring its 11 remaining performers largely doing untoward things to the Beatles songbook, was easily the night’s most-watched show, averaging 27 million from 8-10 p.m.
American Idol Spotlights Malaria Crisis During Idol Gives Back, April 9, On FOX
American Idol and FOX announced that this year’s Idol Gives Back, airing Wednesday, April 9 (7:30-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX, will raise awareness and funds to fight malaria in Africa for the second year in a row as part of its star-studded event.
Malaria No More is honored to once again be named a beneficiary of Idol Gives Back, which last year raised more than $76 million, including $9 million for Malaria No More and over $8 million for other malaria-related causes.
In 2007, funds raised for Malaria No More by Idol fans and corporate sponsor ExxonMobil provided life-saving bed nets to more than one million mothers and children in Angola, Mali, Madagascar, Uganda and Zambia.
Malaria is a preventable and treatable disease that claims over one million lives every year; an African child dies every 30 seconds of the disease.
David Archuleta’s Pep Rally
The students and faculty at Murray High School in Murray, UT, held a pep rally on campus today in honor of one of their own — DAVID ARCHULETA — who last night performed the BEATLES’ “The Long and Winding Road.” “American Idol” judge SIMON COWELL rated it “amazing.”
Today, David’s mom was presented with a certificate from the Utah State Legislature, which read: “For providing a positive role model while working to fulfill your dreams” — and stating their belief that he would be the next “American Idol.”
Idol Grunge Guy May Be More of a Hack Than Previously Thought
American Idol’s season-seven “rock dude,” David Cook, has already been accused of ripping off Incubus’ version of Lionel Richie’s “Hello,” and the Beatles catalog is respected enough that every bar band out there has given its own spin to at least one song. So it probably isn’t all that surprising that someone’s crying “ripoff” over the version of “Eleanor Rigby” that he performed on last week’s show, is it? Meet Doxology, a Seattle band with Idol cred–they’re “good friends” with Blake Lewis!–and their own version of the Beatles track that, they feel, hews strangely closely to Cook’s take:
rickey.org has MP3s of both the songs, and yes, there are some similarities, much like there probably are similarities between Cook’s take and the “Eleanor Rigby” cover by every Finger Eleven wannabe’s version in existence. Maybe this is why he went the Whitesnake-homage route this week?
American Idol Stand-out Smells Like Hemp and Hair Dirt
American Idol is getting freaky. And not just, like, Clay Aiken freaky. Take the cartoonishly cute Clay and slap weird liberal arts college bread-locks (think the end of Joe Dirt), a guitar, and some uncomfortably snug distressed boot-cut denim on him, and you have the pop Frankenstein that is Jason Castro, this season’s standout. He has the face that makes 14-year-olds swoon. His hair gives us something to laugh about again … together. Plus, he seems kinda baked all the time.
Carly’s Fans Keep on Watching
IRISH American Idol contestant Carly Smithson from Dublin has made it to top 11 contestants on the Fox show, and her biggest fans are in her adopted hometown of San Diego.
Smithson, who worked as a waitress, bartender and entertainer in the Field bar and restaurant in San Diego, has a very loyal fan base who get together every Tuesday and Wednesday night to support their friend and vote to keep her in the competition.
Owner of the Field, Daniel Drayne from Co. Tyrone said he and his staff are so proud of their once-employee, and there is no doubt in his mind that Carly will go all the way.
“She is just brilliant. We always knew she had it in her. Her voice is amazing and she drew a huge crowd here to the bar on a Saturday night when she would perform,” Drayne told the Irish Voice.
Carly becomes the ‘Idol’ of downtown pub patrons
The staff at The Field, an Irish pub in downtown San Diego, first got to know “American Idol” contender Carly Smithson as a pretty decent waitress, good enough that they let her tend bar, too.
Then about a year and a half ago, the bar owners were looking for a new Saturday night music act. They didn’t think much of it when Smithson asked to be considered – until she climbed onto the bar’s fold-out stage and started to sing.
“From the first note ’til the last note, that was it,” said head chef Thomas Beatty. “The place was buzzing. Then when we Googled her, it was like ‘Oh my goodness.’”
‘American Idol’ Favorites Announced to Attend Idol Camp 2008
Idol Camp, the only performing arts summer camp inspired and brought to you by the producers of the nation’s #1 television phenomenon, “American Idol”, is opening its doors for the second year with a roster full of Idol alums scheduled to make guest visits and mentor young campers. The camp today announced that its 2008 line- up of former “American Idol” contestants will include Grammy-nominated artist and Season 5 finalist Ace Young, Season 4 runner-up Bo Bice and Season 3 finalist Jon Peter Lewis among others. These artists will help instruct classes, perform during evening activities and share personal insights for campers during an intensive two-week session aimed at advancing campers skills across a wide range of disciplines. The final, April 18th, application deadline for Idol Camp is quickly approaching and families are encouraged to sign-up now at www.idolcamp.com.
Phil’s Pages: Chapter 8
Hey there everyone! Thanks for joining me again for my weekly update. It has been an exciting one for me. My single is now in the top 40 of the country charts, my video has been doing well on country music video channels, and I am still busy singing and living the dream. I’m very blessed. I performed Saturday in Knoxville, Tenn., at a Church of God Winterfest gathering with an estimated audience of 19,000. It is an annual event and I have actually played there before, in 2002 and 2000. It was nice to go back and see familiar faces.
Chris Sligh Takes Over Christian AC Radio With ‘Empty Me’
As the current American Idol season moves forward with their top 12, Season 6 finalist Chris Sligh’s debut single “Empty Me” is making a huge impact at Christian AC radio and Sligh is pounding the pavement all across the U.S. In just 4 weeks after being the #1 Most Added track of the week, the single has debuted in the R&R AC Top 30 (#29 Monitor and #30 Indicator) with 32 stations already spinning it. “Empty Me” is New and Active at R&R CHR as well, all of which gives great momentum to Sligh’s solo debut, Running Back to You, which will bow nationally on May 6th on Brash Music.
Trias has the Philippines in her back pocket
From Grammys and gold records to college and day jobs, life after American Idol is a mix of the ordinary and the entertaining. USA TODAY catches up each week with a former finalist:
When Jasmine Trias landed, only Mount Pinatubo could have rocked the Philippines harder.
By one account, it was complete mayhem. By her account, complete mayhem is actually pretty accurate. “I was nervous and scared,” Trias recalls. “All the media was on me.”
It was 2004, the year of Jasmania in the Philippines.
Interview with Jon Peter Lewis of American Idol, Season 3
Speaking of Jason Castro and his Hallelujah performance, Jon admits he actually tried to clear that song and couldn’t during his season. It kills him how the Idols now get cleared everything they wanted to do in earlier seasons, but couldn’t. So remember that, season 7! As hard of a time as you have with song selection, the earlier seasons had it a little tougher! Yet, Jon thinks season three was the perfect time for him and doesn’t wish he had waited longer to be on the show. Everything’s good, and he’s happy where he is right now.
Yet, if he was on American Idol this season, I wanted to know what Jon would have picked for Beatles week. He admits he was dying last week listening to all those folks and thinking they had so many to choose, why choose the ones they did? It would be hard to pick one, as he loves them all, but he knows he’d want to pick one that was good for the show. He’d have to shut himself in a room and think for awhile, but off the top of his head, he thinks he might do Any Time At All, and it was here Jon broke out in spontaneous song, singing a few bars, which was incredible to hear impromptu over the phone.
SJP praises ‘fantastic’ Jen
Sarah Jessica Parker has heaped praise on Sex And The City: The Movie co-star Jennifer Hudson.
“I am a huge Jennifer Hudson fan! She was fantastic!” she gushed to MTV News.
“She only worked six to eight days, but she was just lovely.
“One of the things that’s really striking to me about her is she is just beautiful. She’s very, very pretty. She’s very tall and I’m significantly shorter than she is.”
She added: “It surprised me because her role in Dreamgirls is not about her beauty; it’s about her power and anger and her ambition. In this movie she is really sweet.”
Spamalot Marks its 3rd Anniversary with 3-D!
Eric Idle’s hilarious Broadway musical Monty Python’s Spamalot celebrated its third anniversary on March 18 at the Shubert Theatre. So how do King Arthur, Sir Robin, the Lady of the Lake and their court of madcap medieval knights celebrate such an occasion? Well, by going 3-D! The sold-out audience were given special glasses for the event, along with a special edition, collectible certificate of achievement. What did the glasses do? Nothing, which was the Python-esque point of the joke. Click on to see Spamalot leading players Jonathan Hadary, Clay Aiken and Hannah Waddingham sporting their stylish specs in celebration of their show’s big day!
Praise be to ‘Hallelujah’: Classic reborn digitally, thanks to ‘Idol’
For 23 years, musicians and fans have been singing the praises of Hallelujah, the oft-covered Leonard Cohen classic that exploded into the digital era after Jason Castro performed it two weeks ago on American Idol.
The 20-year-old contestant’s performance sent Jeff Buckley’s definitive version into the cyberspace stratosphere with sales of 178,000 downloads, up from 2,500 the week before, marking the biggest Idol bounce yet.
The Beckham Boys Attend Taping of American Idol
Though they’re rumored to be contemplating a return to their native England (which David has denied), Victoria Beckham, 33, and her sons Brooklyn Joseph, 9, Romeo James, 5 ½, and Cruz David, 3 were big fans of America last night. American Idol, that is. The family — minus Victoria’s husband David — attended the taping of the wildly popular singing competition and were said to have been enthusiastic audience members. OK! reports that Victoria and the boys stood and danced to Amanda Overmyer’s rendition of ‘Back in the USSR’ and she hoisted up Cruz so he could have a better view of Brooke White as she performed ‘Here Comes the Sun.’
American Idol Week Five: More Beatles, Guh
I talked last week about why an American Idol Beatles week is such a ragingly bad idea. Whether or not you consider the Beatles catalogue sacrosanct, and I definitely don’t, the forms of singing that a show like American Idol is built to showcase make absolutely no sense matched up with songs like theirs. And when you throw in a group of session-musician hacks as sleepy as this year’s Idol backing band, you’re pretty much guaranteeing a confused pileup of inadvisable genre switchups that not even the most reverent of historical video-montages can fix. That’s what happened last week, when the contestants took on the Lennon/McCartney songbook, and it didn’t work out too well for anyone. After that mess, the Idol producers went and replicated their mistake, giving us another week of shitty Beatles tributes.
‘American Idol’: Jon Peter Lewis on the Top 11
But enough uncomfortable guy-emotion. Down to business: Last night I was really disappointed — and no, not because of the theme repeat. The contestants were boring, for the most part. I found myself in between commercials slumped in my chair with the remote in hand, itching for a change. Despite its dullness, and what I think might produce the first big upset of the season, there were some bright spots. You see? I’m not all storm clouds and black-hearted cynicism. Positives first!
‘American Idol’ Recap: Only David Archuleta, Syesha Mercado Fab Enough On Second Beatles Night
Like a bitter ex-wife, “Idol” producers decided to wring every last dime out of the Lennon/McCartney treasure trove and presented viewers with yet another Beatles-themed episode Tuesday night. And although the parameters were expanded this week to include all four Beatles’ contributions, nobody elected to sing “Octopus’s Garden.”
So why the double-dipping? Seacrest claimed it was due to overwhelming demand. Too bad the top 11’s haphazard offerings and ill-informed song choices left me feeling like a Blue Meanie.
American Idol: Beatles Night II, or “This Is All Getting A Bit Strange”
Wow. Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the Beatles songbook…
American Idol gained enough momentum last week to almost justify the show’s oversized, Wembley-Stadium-gone-haywire makeover. Unfortunately, “Beatles Night II” followed in the tradition of most sequels, meaning that it lost the energy of the original version and called the whole series’ integrity into question. So while it’s sorta fun to block out last night’s offenses by turning the whole thing into a movie metaphor (possible film titles: How Archuleta Got His Groove Back, or Lord of the Sings: The Return of Syesha), the fact still stands that this episode was — to be very kind — subpar.
American Idol: Please Don’t Wake Me, Peter Frampton Is Pissed
I’ve been seriously deliriously sleep-deprived this week, because I thought Mariah Carey was scheduled to guest judge this week, or at least perform “Touch My Body” while Kenneth the Page hula-hooped and twirled flaming giant turkey legs around her. Alas, it was all a croissant-fueled hallucination. Join me, mon ami, as we romp through John Lennon’s grave and stomp on Beatles B-sides, La Cucaracha-style, ’cause this is American Idol!
Instead of the usual fun pageant walk involving choreography and criss-crossing the stage, we get close-up shots of our contestants slowly descending the dual staircases. When they get to the bottom, they just stand there. Yep, they’re planted awkwardly still, with eight different variations on waving. Or fist-wielding, as David Cook is wont to do. He is most definitely exhibiting some alarming symptoms of Smug Doucheitis.
American Idol and the Sound of Many Broken Wings Flapping
American Idol was pretty rough last night, wasn’t it? Somehow the producers got it in their heads that what the public really wanted to see was another night of the contestants giving the Beatles catalog another go, to the point where they reportedly switched up the whole show with only a few hours to spare and made everyone pick new songs at the last minute. Unsurprisingly, this led to two things: a show that ran the gamut from “not bad” to “awful” to “do I really have to put up with another 10 weeks of this?”; and lots of complaints from the judges about song choice, which should show you how much info Randy, Simon, and Paula are given about the hoops that the contestants are forced through. Rankings and reactions after the jump.
Related Posts
I really enjoy these behind the scenes reports:
‘American Idol’ Top 11: Beatles part deux
During the Archuleta clip reel — which was prefaced by KLK’s unfortunate “blow you out of your socks” comment — Nigel Lythgoe stops by the judging platform to say something to Simon that makes him raise his hands and say, “It’s okay!” No telling what went on there, but I can tell you that Nigel was merrily singing along with Lil’ Archie during “Long and Winding Road,” and even at a distance you could see the dollar signs light up in his eyes during the ovation Archie received for overcoming all that “adversity.” Archie gets two thumbs up and a back slap from the tech who comes out to take the microphone after every song.
Entertainment Weekly
Meanwhile, the “mosh pit” is swaying like plastic seaweed in the tacky tropical fish tank at the all-you-can-eat filet mignon joint by the feeder road.
LOL. That’s a great description. Here is what somebody (koala blue) who went to the rehearsal and posted on TWoP said on the matter:
I tell you, Nigel is clueless this year. He needs a nap.
Another little bit from the Insider article:
and right before we come back from break, an older man toddles down the stairs, trying to find his seat. Seacrest is unfazed — instead of hustling grandpa out of the shot, he just incorporates him, and tells him to download stuff on iTunes. It’s brilliant.
LOL. I love having that story explained. It seemed kind of odd that Ryan grabbed some hapless person out of the audience for his iTunes shill, but it’s hilarious that he just incorporated it into the scene when the hapless person just wandered into the frame.
I tell you, Ryan works his a$$ off on that show.
Probably my favorite part of the night was watching the contestants lined up on stage to watch the clips with each other: Carly holding Jason’s hand; Amanda jumping up and down like a teeny-bopper and faux-screaming at Archuleta’s clip; Brooke rubbing MJ’s back encouragingly during his disaster, then making a big silly sun gesture over her head during her own; Syesha and Jason doing a hoedown step in honor of Chikeze.
Bring Amanda back. She was the last of the “personality” IDOLS. That show needs personality BADLY.
Now were are at the “top Ten” numerically speaking looking back to vfw top 50 or 24 list so called “plant “list or I say “expearince”a better word..Here is 6 who made based on it in the top ten…
3………………………………………record label or nearly getting one
Carly,Kristy.Micheal Johns
1……………………………………….musical contest
Daivid A-Star search
1………………………………………..1–TV/singing—Syishia
1………………….tv not singing(nice looking)
Jason Castro–someones girlfriend on reality or not
There you have it who made from the previous list . 4 did make make that were not on their list.
I can not delete darn–
Ment was the VFW so called “plant “list before the top 24….based it on and I call it the “expearince” one
Kirsten, thanks for that. Ryan really is a pro.
Love the EW poster comment!
“Garth, meanwhile, expressed his dismay at David Archuleta’s front-runner status: ”He is really getting dull and painfully predictable. It’s like when a dog shoots out one puppy after another. The first couple are cute, then after that, all you can think about is ‘How am I gonna get rid of all these puppies?’ ””
Kristen, thank you! I enjoyed that.
I agree with the point of view of Washington Post writer - Lisa de Moraes:
Any more, I don’t think VFTW has the voting power they think they do.
I posted this is the wrong place, I meant to ask this here. So here’s my repost:
I have to say, I really don’t see who can take down Archie at this point. Of the people left who are capable of jumping though the musical hoops (Carly, Michael, perhaps David C.) Carly is lacking charisma (Latoya London redux), Micheal is choking bigtime, and the ego monster is threating to eat David C whole. Brooke matches Archie on likeability, but is her voice strong enough to jump genres? And Castro certainly has his fans, but a quick check of message boards reveales that he is a tad polarizing. The rest have no chance anyway. What does everyone else think? Is there someone I’m overlooking?
Jason is polarizing? Really? What did the poor kid do? LOL. He seems so harmless and good natured!
Yeah jersey. I’m with you, I love Jason, but there is suprisingly a lot of “he can’t sing” and “nasty hair” sentiment out there. I can’t see America voting in a stoner idol anyway. Hee.
Whether VFTW has any real voting power or not, I can’t help but think that TPTB, are quite aware of who they pick. So, to counteract their choice, and,prove to the world, they don’t have any real voting power, they throw the VFTW choice off the show. We don’t really know who gets how many votes, so, why not? NO one would be the wiser. But, so far this season, their choices are making early exits. JMO.
Somebody on board mentioned that Amanda lost $100,000 when she was eliminated. Does anybody know about this? How much are they paid and where did the $100K come from?
Looking back over the seasons: There’s nothing to assure that any of this S7 group will get that all-important record contract, besides the finalist. Look at S6 - who is under contract with the BIG MAJOR record company? Only two, and only one (Jordin) is selling records. Do you honestly think that the BIG MAJOR record company is going to go after anyone in this group besides the finalist? I don’t think so. Comments?
Interesting that Ryan kept emphasizing going on the “tour”, and I think for most of these contestants, that’s where their real money will come from — if they’re expecting someone to sign them ala Jordin, some of them are going to be in for a rude awakening. The rec biz has severely changed. You have to independently put out your own record now and then shop it around.
As good as Lakisha and Melinda were, they still have to do independent recordings. They are not signed to any MAJORS, neither is Chris R. You could say that Phil and Chris S. are signed, but their labels are small too. They will be glad to do some state fair shows this summer.
It’s a great thing for AI to promote its alumni, because they all need a boost!
Comments anyone? (the saved comment failed again)
About the Idol Gives back last night — I thought it was a darling segment and for Elliot to get a godson — precious!
Brooke put out an album in 2005 so she should join the Carly, Michael and Kristy list of having had an album out before this AI season.
Syesha was on “The One” which was also a musical contest.
tinawina, I posted a response to your message on the results show comments. I’m still getting over the fact that Kristy wasn’t kicked out.
Jeresey–It is Dreadenvy–
Yes home sick and bored
Also Tony thanks and good point it was a funny and good responce thanks for correcting my mistske
Isn’t it strange that every year (as far as I can tell), the voting works out perfectly - 5 guys and 5 girls go on tour - at least for the past three seasons. That is amazing.
iTunes rankings (Day 1)
(outselling #2 at least 2 to 1)
1. David A. - Long and Winding Road
2. David C. - Day Tripper
3. Carly - Blackbird
4. Jason - Michelle
5. Michael - A Day in the Life
6. Syesha - Yesterday
7. Brooke - Here Comes the Sun
(selling less than half of #7)
8. Chikezie - I’ve Just Seen a Face
9. Ramiele - I Should Have Known Better
10. Amanda - Back in the U.S.S.R.
11. Kristy - You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away
ChicagoSally, have you not watched any season of AI before season 6? It’s obviously not the first season of AI, but it is also not the benchmark that all other seasons are held to in terms of signings.
In terms of talent, season 5 is considered the best, the most diverse, the most interesting. In terms of talent, season 7 ranks right up there with it.
Thanks to season 5, we have a benchmark for signings. Every single person in the top 9 from that season was been signed after they were on the show and by the end of this AI season will have released an album. Here’s a rundown:
Taylor - Sony/BMG
Katharine - Sony/BMG
Elliott - Hickory Records (an Indie), distributed by RED Distribution, which is part of Sony/BMG
Chris - Sony/BMG
Paris - an Indie, I believe
Kellie - Sony/BMG
Ace - an Indie
Bucky - Lyric Street Records
Mandisa - EMI/Sparrow
Also, the winner and runner-up of Season 6 were not the only ones to be signed, either. Phil Stacey is Bucky’s labelmate on Lyric Street Records, which is owned by the Walt Disney Company. Not quite a small parent company. Chris Sligh is also signed, albeit not to a major label, but still signed and putting out an album that has potential to be very big in the Christian music arena.
And the winner and runner-up of season 7 are not likely to be the only ones signed, either. I can see niches for all of them, and even if they are not the next!huge!supastah!, they will likely be able to have a career in the music industry if they want it, and if they’re willing to work for it. AI has never churned out multiple “superstars” out of one season, but season 5 proves that more than that one person can have some level of success. And for these contestants, I’m sure that level of success they are enjoying is better than what they were doing BEFORE the show… not to mention that they are doing what they love.
Here’s just some ideas for the niches that the season 7 contestants can fill:
Archu-D2 can corner the Disney/Hannah Montana/Jonas Brothers market for a few years.
Brooke White can cash in on the huge surge of female singer/songwriters that the market is eating up right now (read: Colbie Caillat/Sara Bareilles/Ingrid Michaelson/etc). Which I GUARANTEE you is why TPTB are pushing her.
David Cook can go the alterna-rock route, which is also raising in prominence right now (and is more his style than the Daughtry/Nickelback mold everyone’s trying to pour him into).
Carly Smithson could probably go the female pop rocker route.
Jason Castro can do the Jack Johnson thing, and be successful at it.
Michael Johns, I’m not sure about… I’m not really clear on the kind of music he’d make or who to compare him to in the current music industry. But I think his voice and look could sell records.
Kristy Lee Cook can be a B-list (or C or D list) country singer.
Chikezie - Urban AC, which is not a huge sell, but a good niche to be in, nonetheless.
The only two I’m not sure where they’d really fit are Syesha and Ramiele. Ramiele could probably try the pop tartlet route along the lines of Rihanna, but I think her voice is better than that. Syesha is the belter, but with Leona Lewis and Mariah Carey both releasing albums right now, I see Syesha being completely overshadowed. She is not as good as they are.
Anyway, the point is: there are lucrative niches for all of them. And it’s highly likely that more than just the top 2 will be signed at the end of this.
On another note: The thing that AI has continually missed the boat on for me is a good, young, non-AC male R&B artist. Someone who could rival Ne-Yo, Usher, etc.
primeminister - how do you get the ranking for the day? I get different ranking for each of these:
American Idol performance
American Idol studio version
American Idol
but none show me the latest like you just showed. :-(
Yeah Season 5 broke mold for signing. However, only the winner and runner up are certain of the major contract. The rest are there to get exposure and hope they make it.
Following up on Sarah’s post I’d say
David A will be signed no matter where he finishes. He’s a lock.
Many of the other S7 people have talent and are different from past Idol contestants but I wouldn’t call their signings a done deal.
Brooke White and Jason seem to be hitting their limits. To succeed they need to be great singer/songwriters. I wouldn’t compare them to platinum selling artists just because they share a genre.
David Cook will need a band to front plus great songs. I have no idea if he has either or if a major will support him. I’d say he has a good shot at being signed but it’s not a lock.
Carly and Micheal have talent but seem to lack charisma. They’ll need to show some to get a deal. I can’t imagine any of the rest of them having a shot at this point especially with the music business in such trouble.
I enjoyed an interview I read with Amanda where she say’s they’re not stars. They are just people who are getting exposure. She is 100% correct.
Clive could have gotten a good R&B male singer, one of the few white males to have a hit in that genre but he passed.
ealbino- search “American Idol Studio Version,” rank by popularity, count ignoring last week’s recordings.
pm - Thank you
btw..was that you who had your sister watch idol and review for us? I read it this morning..I agreed with her 100%
Okay, I just downloaded Mee-shelle from iTunes. Bandzilla! I hated the arrangement. Jason’s vocals were pretty, as always, but the sucky song plus the arrangement? Just no. Are they trying to de-pimp him with that? I can’t imagine listening to it over and over again like the studio version of “If I Fell” which was love. Sigh.
ETA: Jason, please pick a song you connect with this week. Your fans will love it. Mmm kay?
Sarah, have you not watched any season of AI before season 5? It’s not the benchmark that all other seasons are held to in terms of signings either.
In terms of talent, season 2 is considered the best, the most diverse, the most interesting.
Thanks to season 2, we have a benchmark for signings.
Here’s a rundown:
Ruben - J Records
Clay - RCA
Kim Locke - Curb
Josh Gracin - Lyric Street
Carmen - Rubber Room
Kim Caldwell - Randy Jackson’s Label
Vanessa (Lead singer for South 70) - Indie
Corey - Indie
Charles - Indie
AI2 is the only season that has churned out 2 multi platinum selling artists out of one season. Clay at 4.8 million and Ruben at 2.5 million. Season 2 proved that more than one person can have a high level of success AND that the winner isn’t always the most successful. Season 2 also has the most idols that are in Theater and Television.
Season 3 actually held the record for the most signings for any Season until Season 5 came along. So, sorry no.
Unfortunately, neither one of them has held their ground. Clay’s latest effort barely went gold. Ruben’s didn’t go gold and he got dropped by his record label.
We’ll see if the successful Season 5 contestants have staying power.
Season 5 was pretty fab. I started watching Season 4, and Season 5 was way better for me. Oh, I did see the Clay and Ruben final, because of all the hype. I tried to vote for Ruben, but the lines were busy. Oh, well. I also randomly saw a Fantasia episode on Season 3 and tried to vote a couple of times. Same thing.
I don’t think you can compare sales from the early seasons to now. Attempts to do that obviously ignore the fact that the industry has really, really changed.
Rats! The edit timer ran out while I was writing.
As for predicting the future of this year’s batch, here’s my rundown:
David A. will not win despite his seemingly overwhelming popularity because he’s too young and unmarketable. TPTB will make sure that he gets the Diana Degarmo spot.
Carly will be #3 because although she can sing, she doesn’t have any charisma and will slowly sink just like she did before.
Michael and David C will fight it out for the win. I suspect that David will be the victor.
Jason C will have a nice career as a niche artist with a coffee house following.
Brooke, Ramielle, Chikeze, Kristy and Syesha are cannon fodder.
Season 3 matched the number of signings of season 2 but did not match the total sales by a long stretch.
Ruben is recording right now for 19E, he just switched labels and has a CD due this summer so he isn’t over by any means.
Clay’s last one was a cover CD, as was his Christmas CD. They aren’t expected to sell as well as original music. His Christmas CD, the best selling Holiday CD of 2004, still holds 2 sales records in its genre. Fastest selling Christmas CD in soundscan history, and biggest opening week numbers for a holiday CD ever. Josh Groban sold more in the long run but didn’t break either of Clay’s records.
Clay’s 4th CD, “On My Way Here” is due in about 6 weeks. Its original music so the critics can’t trash him for covers. Let’s see how it does this time.
Undecided, I started watching in season 3. I watched season 1 on Idol Rewind last year and I’m watching season 2 right now on Idol Rewind. And while there were a few great contestants on season 2, they’re definitely not the most talented group, nor the most diverse, nor the most exciting. IMO, of course.
Oh, no problem, Sarah. We all have our opinions :)
My mom is visiting me right now and keeps making me listen to snippets of the new songs on YouTube. They sound pretty much as irrelevant as the stuff on his first CD. Clay is sort of his own genre. I’m not sure it will do that much better than the covers CD. He should keep churning out those Christmas CDs.
Well, he has no trouble with the songwriting. His solo CD is really well-written for the most part and would probably be ready for radio if it had better production. If Clive and Co, wet themselves over Chris’s material, they should be equally enthusiastic about David’s . If he can’t make it to the top 5 or if his hair is just too big of an obstacle, yeah, he might not be signed.
It will be interesting to see what happens with David, Brooke, Michael, Jason and Carly. I think they all have the potential to be signed if they play their cards right. David A has probably already started recording his CD
I completely agree with this, pj! I find I have actually been listening to David’s The Long And Winding Road more times than Jason’s song. Michael’s A Day In The Life still gets the most play among this week’s tracks, though (but not as many as Across The Universe, heh). ;)
For any Daughtry fans out there (some of us are also David Cook fans), here’s a couple of tidbits you may find interesting:
Chris sings “Blaze of Glory” with Jon Bon Jovi (Oh my!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hk7sGsdYvpE
Chris records duet for the song “The Past” with Michael Lajon of Sevendust for upcoming album (Sevendust is a metal band):
http://www.zshare.net/audio/9162237dcbd8aa/
FYI: I LOVE this song
Enjoy!
Also, check this out:
http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5gThmw-nGCDw9CEa_QRA9RzS0tawQ
Chris is touring #1, Kellie Pickler with #5, and Carrie Underwood with #7. Pretty good stuff.
Kristy Lee Cook is the new VFTW pick? Oh, loh (or whatever it is Ramiele keeps saying and Syesha has also adopted)!!!
Poor irrelevant Ryan Tedder and Co. are pretty excited about their song getting on Clay’s CD. It is the title track.
This is on the Treehouse Music Group website:
CONGRATS TO HUNTER, CHRIS, & RYAN TEDDER (OF ONEREPUBLIC) FOR THEIR RECENT CUT “ON MY WAY HERE” RECORDED BY CLAY AIKEN ON HIS NEW CD TO BE RELEASED IN MAY 2008!
Getting songs from hot song writers is only half the battle. Presenting the songs in a relevant, original way is the other half.
I’ll just leave it at that.