“Following the announcement that Andrew will appear on the hit US TV programme à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“American Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  we can confirm that the episode featuring Andrew will be transmitted in the USA on FOX (Tue. 8/7c) on April 22nd. Andrew will be guiding the contestants and as they perform a selection of his songs from the set of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Phantom the Las Vegas Spectacularà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  at the Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas.”

http://www.andrewlloydwebber.com/news/article.php?ID=135

Phantom Las Vegas musical numbers:
http://www.phantomlasvegas.com/

http://thumbsnap.com/v/sBFMvaIm.gif

Chris Slighà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s take on the show last night. I love me some Sligh.

Wow, Sligh put Archie in his bottom 3! That’s the first time I’ve seen Archie be put into the bottom 3 since a few weeks ago when a correspondent from Foxes on Idol did the same when he had that semi-trainwreck performance of “We Can Work It Out”. I can’t blame him, though. Just like Chris, I am repeatedly bored with the kid no matter how nice and pleasant his voice sounds.

I am the pentimulate Russian judge. I give whatever score I like and there really is no basis for them. If I hate a contestant, they will have a tough time achieving anything more than a 5. So, me giving Kristy a score of 5 this week is actually very high praise. If I like you, I will probably spot you a few points even when you suck.

Yes. If heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s wheeled onto the stage on a gurney and then dumped out at center stage where he lies during the entire performance, he will get a 3.

:laugh_tb:

Oh, btw, Brooke was taking breathing lessons from Archie as well. She is so nervous now it’s getting uncomfortable to watch. If both Carly and Brooke are in the bottom three tonight I hope the paramedics are standing by, those girls are wound so tight, the grief counsellor is going to be working some serious OT.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve rated the performances on some nights, although I try to be as fair and as un-biased as possible.

I don’t. LOL. I see no reason to be un-biased at all when it comes to music. Play on!

I’ve never put much stock in the Grammys. How on earth does one compare songs/singers objectively? If it’s based on vocal skills, shouldn’t Opera win all the awards? Those guys are off the scale on vocal skills. Yet, they don’t move the most units.

Should the songs be based on popularity? Well, the AMAs and the Billboard awards are, but Alvin and the Chipmunks had the number 5 album last week. Are Alvin and the gang really that much better artists than everybody else who came out last November? No, not really. Do they deserve a Grammy? Probably not. Is the Macarena fine art? No, certainly not.

With a song, what matters? The lyrics? The complexit? The message? It would be dire indeed if all the Grammy award winning songs were socially relevant and too complex to hum along to in the car.

To me singing has so much more depth to it than its basic building blocks. It’s like baking a cake. All the ingredients are important. Using good ingredients help, but it’s no guarantee of success. How you combine them helps. Using too much of one thing and not enough of another leads to disaster. And sometimes, the fanciest cakes aren’t necessarily the best.

So, my scores are simply based on how much I enjoy a performance. I think David A has the best vocals of the competition. I question his song choices and some of his performance querks, but I can’t deny the vocals. Meanwhile, David Cook has vocals that aren’t quite as good, but he makes up for it with great song choices and performance skills. So, they end up both getting a 9 from me. They could have both done a little better last night IMO, so neither gets a 10.

But, I am biased. I personally don’t know how I could not be. There are just some styles I like. I don’t care for overuse of melissma. I love melodies. I can appreciate a good glory note. Scooping annoys me. I generally prefer simplicity. I want texture, vocal variety and connection to material. And, I like a contestant who has a little fun. This show is cheesy, so embrace the cheese and laugh at yourself.

Now, I know that everybody will not agree with me. Some hate the glory note. Some love runs. etc. They aren’t wrong. They just have different preferences and that’s why I enjoy reading the review threads. It’s interesting to see why other people like or do not like a contestant. I think it’s great and gives new perspective. Even if that person likes Kristy (hey, she does have her some good qualities. Even I can admit that).

They have to start acting like stars….to quote Simon.

LOL. So even if Cookie comes out dead next week, heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll still get at least a 3?

Yes. If he’s wheeled onto the stage on a gurney and then dumped out at center stage where he lies during the entire performance, he will get a 3. So, that just underscores how terrible Kristy was during EDAW when I gave her a -2.

How do you put your scores together, by the way? If he got a 5 for the song, Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sure everyone else couldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have gotten much more than such, if a 5 even.

I am the pentimulate Russian judge. I give whatever score I like and there really is no basis for them. If I hate a contestant, they will have a tough time achieving anything more than a 5. So, me giving Kristy a score of 5 this week is actually very high praise. If I like you, I will probably spot you a few points even when you suck.

My score is just my general impression. A contestant improves their score by singing well, making good song choices (song itself and arrangements), performance and cohesiveness. I’ve toyed with the idea of becoming a total Russian judge and giving different scores for technical and artistic merit. LOL. But, Nigel would either just call me an internet loon or copy me on DYTYCD. (and no, I am not actually deluded enough to think he reads this or cares one wit). There is no real breakdown for my scores.

à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Personality,à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  he said, a little more than an hour before Tuesday nightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s all-Mariah Carey show. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“They are giving very safe answers to questions, making safe song selections. We are not getting a sense of who they are. We have to try to pull it out of them more.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

Yeah, Simon pulls out the contestants’ personalities by calling DCook pompous, KLC wallpaper, Syesha unemotional, Jason uncaring, Carly wound-up, MJ wanna-be, Brooke meat-less….

Very helpful, Simon.

Lack of singer personalities concerns Cowell

A non-remonstrative Simon Cowell had a simple explanation as to why Michael Johns got the boot last week from “American Idol” – and it appears conspiracy theorists get it but the contestants do not.
“You cannot deliver an uninspired performance at the top of the show,” Cowell said in an interview that mostly concerned the chart success of Leona Lewis. “And you can’t be up there imitating another singer.”

As our conversation turned toward song selection, I noted that Aerosmith’s “Dream On” did not fit the definition of inspirational, just because the word “dream” is in the title.

“I couldn’t agree with you more,” Cowell chimed in.

With the one judge on the line who keeps the proceedings close to level, it was hardly surprising that Cowell, who considers talents shows in the U.S. and U.K. “the luck of the draw,” would be willing to pinpoint a collective flaw in the season 7 cast.

“Personality,” he said, a little more than an hour before Tuesday night’s all-Mariah Carey show. “They are giving very safe answers to questions, making safe song selections. We are not getting a sense of who they are. We have to try to pull it out of them more.”

That seemed like a marching order to me going in to Tuesday’s show – let’s play “Where in the World is an ‘American Idol’s’ Personality?” ……

ETA: Wasn’t this the year we were supposed to get to know the contestants?

He got a 5 for the song. A 3 for the crying. 1 for the hair. This is like the GCS or the APGAR scale, though. You get a minimum of 1 point just for having hair. Even dead people get a GCS of 3.

LOL. So even if Cookie comes out dead next week, he’ll still get at least a 3?

How do you put your scores together, by the way? If he got a 5 for the song, I’m sure everyone else couldn’t have gotten much more than such, if a 5 even.

Since the song was just à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“okayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , is the 9 for the crying or the hair?

He got a 5 for the song. A 3 for the crying. 1 for the hair. This is like the GCS or the APGAR scale, though. You get a minimum of 1 point just for having hair. Even dead people get a GCS of 3.

In future, please make sure to watch the show in a timely fashion.

I swear, it was not my fault. I had every intention of watching it on schedule but external forces intervened. Darn you external forces!!!!!!111!!ELEVENTY-ONE!

Cookie’s take on Phantom of the Opera would be smokin!

I can see a catfight over Cat’s *Memories* between Carly, KLC, Syesha (whichever does not leave tonight).

David C: Crying was sweet. Song was okay. Hair steadily improves. 9

Since the song was just “okay”, is the 9 for the crying or the hair? :devil_tb:

In future, please make sure to watch the show in a timely fashion. Me no likey abridged Kirsten reviews.

I wish they would evolve to the point that contestants could sing their own music. *cough* like maybe on finale night this year *cough.* Even Archuleather mentioned that he has written some songs and I imagine they would sound like the coronation ballad anyway, no?

Archuleather. Lmao, cheese! I didn’t know little Archie wrote songs, though — but yeah, even if TPTB let the finalists sing their own song, it’d just be as if they held the competition but let the Idols join in and Archie inevitably won.

I enjoyed Slezak’s article, as well. IMO, the belters are starting to get swallowed up in their own voices this year. Syesha and Carly would probably have done relatively well in any season besides last (I don’t know how they’d have fared last year just weighing in the Top 3 of Jordin, Blake, and Melinda). That’s what I think, anyway.

Damn. Maybe I shouldn’t have gone off clicking articles on Cookie left and right. My heart aches.

ETA: …Carmen, dear, please don’t dye your hair. You’d possibly end up scaring the kids more than Carly’s husband does.

So, I didn’t know the whole Carly background thing cuz I didn’t watch the auditions this year. As I was searching for DCook on Amazon, Carly Hennessey pops up. Her album released in 2001 has “Just Missed the T :ponder_tb:rain” on it which is one of my fav songs from Kelly Clarkson’s Thankful album of 2003. I’m intrigued.

I wish they would evolve to the point that contestants could sing their own music. *cough* like maybe on finale night this year *cough.* Even Archuleather mentioned that he has written some songs and I imagine they would sound like the coronation ballad anyway, no?

I would welcome them singing originals, too. It was one of my favorite parts of Rock Star. Sadly, I don’t see it happening this year.

I loved the Micheal Johns interviews on the Entertainment Weekly link! OMG that was such a tease with the first few words of Vision of Love.

OhMyGod the whole interview is hilarious! The two female editors are practically drooling and Michael Slezak jokes about how they’ve been crying for a week.

MJ: “Girls its just a TV show, it ok! Life goes on!”

Female: “God *giggle* you’re so smart”
:laugh_tb:

This is a funny yet snaky look at the contestants for Kristens eye only:

Thanks pop. It was amusing and inciteful. Especially this:

Syishia-Good voice à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’does she seem like she is playing a contestnat on a singing show.

That’s exactly what the problem is. The girl never stops acting. She would connect more with people if she’d just stop with all that. She’s actually a very good singer. She just needs to connect with the audience and the material.

I am so irrationally pissed at iTunes for taking away the pretty little popularity bars! I really wanted to see how the boys did last night, sales-wise.

I’m loving this game of cat and mouse that Idol fans are playing with iTunes. They must have had to re-write half their search software by now. Everytime they think they have us beat, we find another trick. LOL. I wonder how many PAs Nigel has scanning the blogs/forums to find out our latest tricks so they can close the loophole. Either the blue cast he’s sporting is from slamming his fist through the wall at the iTunes leaks or it’s because Ryan broke his arm after he was made to be the villian last week with the Evil Shock Boot.

Seriously, Nigel, why do you care? According to you, the Idol Internet fans are just a tiny number of loons. What harm could possibly come from us knowing how well the Idols are doing? It’s not like that kind of info saved Michael Johns or hurt Kristy Lee.

I didn’t get to watch the show until this morning. Here is my quick review for each of them in 10 words or less:

David A: Melinda-level consitency. Good thing or not? No lip licking. Yay! 9
Carly: Simon-Daddy will never like you. Relax! Cringe-worthy belting. 5
Syesha: Beautiful dress. Great song choice. It worked for me. 8
Brooke: Not as bad as I was led to believe. Aa’ight. 7
Kristy: She’s so passive aggressive. I can’t stand her. Sorry. 5
David C: Crying was sweet. Song was okay. Hair steadily improves. 9
Jason: Has been taking gasping lessons from Archie. Crappy vocals. Meh. 6

Which is stronger: Brooke’s Mormon/folky votes or Syesha’s African American/R&B votes? Granted, not every one who votes for either contestant falls into these categories, but I do think they make up a significant part of their fanbases. I think Carly and Kristy will be safe for another week. But who knows, I may change my mind…especially if Nigel does a press conference. lol