American Idol season 13 winner Caleb Johnson Working on a New Album
He’s nabbed Grammy Award winning producer Vance Powell to mix his album.
I’m stoked to announce that Vance Powell will be mixing my new album ! Vance is a 6x Grammy Award winning Producer/Mixer/Engineer and has been apart of some of my favorite albums by (@rivalsons , @chrisstapleton @thirdmanrecords ) Honored ????
— Caleb Perry Johnson (@CalebJohnson) December 30, 2020
Jessica Meuse finds some ‘Stardust’ magic, independence for 2021 EP release – This past year has been a labyrinth of pain and hardship for everyone. But as 2020 winds to an end, there’s a silver lining for Slapout native singer/songwriter Jessica Meuse. “It’s forced me probably to confront the darkest parts of myself and say ‘What do you want to do with this?’” Meuse said. Until fairly recently, the “American Idol” season 13 finalist said she’d taken a mini-break from music. She’s been going through legal issues with previous representation, and is back to managing herself. It’s a situation that’s raised issues with her anxiety and feeling depressed. But things are changing. “I’m just doing what I want to do now, versus what other people think I should do,” Meuse said. “I’m going in more of an alternative direction. I’ve always been a rocker at heart, but at the same time you can still see my country roots.” – Read more at Montgomery Advertiser
Carrie Underwood Says David Bisbal Duet Inspired Her To Brush Up On Spanish – Carrie Underwood ventures into new territory on “Tears of Gold,” her first Spanish duet with David Bisbal. During a recent press event, the American Idol champ, 37, spoke about recording the track, admitting that the track prompted her to brush up on the language. “I did take Spanish in high school, [and] I took Spanish in college,” she confessed. “I feel like having a musical brain can lend itself to being able to learn another language. Ever since being able to work with David, that’s something that’s kind of reignited a little bit of that desire in me. So I have been trying to remember what I learned and build on it.” Underwood went on to recall that “Tears of Gold” caught her attention first and foremost because of Bisbal’s vocal track. “He’s obviously just got this incredible big voice, and the first time I listened to the song I was walking around for a couple of weeks afterwards singing it,” she continued. “I was like, ‘Well, that’s a good sign, it’s in my head after listening to it once or twice.'” – Read more at KIIS 102.7
Carrie Underwood: “I Still Get to Sing and Nobody Can Take That Away from Me” – Underwood: I mean, I don’t know if it’s necessarily a mantra. But I think making the album was very good for my heart. Because I was like, “Wow. I still get to do this. I’m not doing it in front of people, but I still get to go in a studio. I still get to do what I love, which is sing. I get to sing these incredible songs.” And you know, I did get to go and make the (HBO) special, and it was just beautiful. It was beautiful to be on a stage. I didn’t have an audience in front of me, but it was just beautiful to be on stage. And it was so good for my heart. – Read more at CMT
How “Ratatouille” Went From TikTok To An (Almost) Broadway Musical – The story of how Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical (or “Ratatousical,” affectionately) went from TikTok in-joke to a streaming Broadway production almost sounds like a musical itself: Jacobsen posted her song on TikTok just to make her friends laugh, but wound up skyrocketing to viral fame, capturing the imagination of countless theater geeks bored at home during the coronavirus pandemic, and, with a whole lot of teamwork and creativity, achieving internet magic. Raising more than $1 million in its first night and drawing 160,000 ticket sales as of Saturday morning, the musical (available for streaming until Monday evening) is undoubtedly the buzziest virtual theater event of the pandemic. In less than a month, a ragtag team of the original TikTok creators, big-time stars (Wayne Brady and Adam Lambert, among them), and Broadway professionals (including a choreographer and a 20-piece orchestra), came together to make TikTok’s vision a reality. In the process, they also made something from the ashes of 2020 that was wholly good.“I kind of just sat in shock for 20 minutes when I received that message,” said Sophia James, the 21-year-old “I Knew I Smelled A Rat” writer. “I couldn’t even fathom that my silly little rat song was liked enough by these professional Broadway producers and directors.” – Buzzfeed.com
Simon Cowell reveals large scar from back surgery – Simon Cowell is ending 2020 on a high note, albeit with a large scar from the year. The entertainment mogul was snapped enjoying the sun aboard a lavish yacht in Barbados, months after a horrific electric bike accident left him with a broken back in three places. He underwent a six-hour operation and narrowly missed severing his spinal cord. The new photos show the large scar running down his back. – Read more at PageSix
