Happy Martin Luther King Day! Melinda Doolittle tweets, “So happy to celebrate the legacy of a man who had such a huge impact on the world we live in. Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!” To celebrate, Melinda will be singing with the Boston Children’s chorus today.
Also, American President, Barack Obama, will be sworn in for a second term today. Kelly Clarkson will sing “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” at 12:21 PM ET. Beyonce will sing the National Anthem at 12:34.
Lauren Alaina began work on her 2nd studio album today. She tweeted, “Working away in the studio. Feels great to be in here (: can’t wait for y’all to hear the new album!!!! #excitedtweet”
Glee star, Chris Colfer, will appear on The Ellen Degeneres Show today.
Jessica Sanchez will be holding two Ustream chats today. One at 10 am and another at 5 pm PT. She may be making some announcements, and or talking new music.
Speaking of Jessica, here she is with American Idol 12 hopeful, Lazara Arbos. He tweeted, “She’s such a beautiful person inside and out!!”
Phillip Phillips began shooting the music video for “Gone Gone Gone.” He tweeted, “Got some awesome people here to help out with “Gone Gone Gone” video! Missouri State!”
Idology: Report Card for Idol’s Week 1 Singers! Plus: Nicki’s Side-Eye, Keith’s Best Body Part
Kellie Pickler’s Ram Truck Going Up for Auction Tuesday to Benefit the USO – Kellie Pickler has been driving her Dodge Ram truck for a year now, but it’s time to give it up for a good cause. She is the first of five artists who participated in last month’s Road to the Ram Jam All-Star Country Music Series to put her truck up for auction. The 1500 Laramie Longhorn truck, which was listed Tuesday in eBay, holds a lot of fond memories for Kellie and her husband, songwriter Kyle Jacobs. Kellie tells ABC News Radio, “We’ve definitely had that truck parked at the river. We’ve filled the boxes on the side up with our favorite ice-cold beverages and went fishing, and we’ve done a lot of road trips and whatnot.” – Read more at ABC News Radio
‘American Idol’ Premiere: Nicki Minaj’s Top 8 Moments (Video) – With the premiere of American Idol season 12 now behind us, one nagging question finally has its answer: will Nicki Minaj work as a judge? Say it together: “Yes!” In just two episodes, America has seen no fewer than three wigs, off-the-color chart eye shadow, one drummer hat, and some of the most fantastic GIFs in Idol history. – Read more at Hollywood Reporter
‘X Factor’ Fantasy Panel: Who Could Replace Britney and Why Demi Lovato Should Stay – After axing X Factor season one judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Sherzinger, keeping Epic Records chairman L.A. Reid, last January, Cowell now faces vacant seats from Britney Spears and the aforementioned Reid as he looks ahead to season three. Reid announced his exit from the program just one week ahead of the season two finale, which saw one of his own mentees, country man Tate Stevens, nab the $5 million prize. Meanwhile, Spears made her exodus official in early January after reports had speculated that she would not be asked back for another shot, citing a lackluster performance on screen. Both judges said they would be returning to focus on their day jobs: music. – Read more at The Hollywood Reporter
Reality television is not ‘dead’ yet, says Simon Cowell – Simon Cowell, the man behind The X Factor, says he thinks reality TV shows still have a future. The Britain’s Got Talent judge talked to Newsbeat ahead of the show’s London auditions. “For bad shows it’s dead, definitely,” he said. “You’ve seen with something like the Olympics, when you put something good on, people watch it.” The star is adding another reality TV format to his list, with Food Glorious Food. The cookery competition will set out to find the best home-cooked comfort food recipe. – Read more at BBC.co.uk
Simon Cowell Bullish on ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ Despite ‘The Voice’ Competition – LONDON — Simon Cowell told reporters on Sunday that he is optimistic that ITV hit show Britain’s Got Talent can bring in strong, and possibly even higher, ratings this year despite continued competition from the BBC’s The Voice UK. He also signaled that he wouldn’t return to the U.K. version of The X Factor on ITV and said the future of that show in the U.K. and U.S. would be discussed in upcoming meetings. Syco Entertainment, Cowell’s joint venture with Sony Music, is one of the producers of The X Factor and Got Talent formats. – Read more at Hollywood Reporter
‘Glee’ star: Singing for FLOTUS was scary – Darren Criss, the singer, actor and co-star of Fox’s “Glee” had the jitters while performing his song “Not Alone” for first lady Michelle Obama and President Barack Obama’s two daughters, Sasha and Malia, at the Kids’ Inaugural Concert on Saturday night. “It was incredibly nerve-racking,” he told POLITICO at the Daily Beast’s Bipartisan Brunch in Washington on Sunday. “I made a couple of mistakes, stuff that nobody would notice but me, in the song that I wrote and played — I’ve done it thousands and thousands of times before, never messed it up.” – Read more at Politico
