May 2007 News Archive (Page 6)

Phil Stacey may be gone from the American Idol stage - but that doesn't mean he can't chime in on the singer who will remain on there the longest.

"I think that the four people that are left have individual strengths that set them each apart," Stacey told reporters during a Thursday conference call. "I think Blake is most likely to be the most original contestant ever on American Idol. He just blew it out this week with Bon Jovi. It was incredible.

Melinda Doolittle is possibly the greatest singer I've ever heard on the show. Lakisha sings with so much passion, that it's hard to listen to her and not get chills. And Jordin has got a range that lasts for days, and her upper notes just have so much power behind them. Honestly, I think it's anybody's ball game at this point. I'm going to be really looking forward to seeing how it goes from here on out."

With all the different choices Idol finalists are faced with on a weekly basis - from song choice and musical arrangements to wardrobe - Stacey said the best decision he made during his run was something that he hopes was visible in each of his performances.

"I think my best decision was to go into it with a positive outlook and be happy, and understand how blessed I was to be there to begin with," he said. "I think that a lot of people started liking me more as a person when they saw that I was truly grateful just to be there because being in the bottom three several weeks in a row, could be considered hard on a person. But my outlook was that 103,000 people auditioned for this, and I was so blessed to be there, that anytime that I got cut, I was just fortunate to be there."

One of the reasons Stacey was able to focus on his demeanor during the competition is because he never really worried about what to do with his hair.

"I think it worked for me because it was unique," said Stacey, who is bald and sometimes sported a hat during his performances. "It wasn't something that anybody else had this particular season. If I was on last year and it was between me and [Idol 5 finalist] Chris Daughtry being the bald guy, I don't know that it would have gone so well for me. But it worked for me this year because nobody else shaved their heads."

Having made it as far as he did in the competition, Stacey said "inevitably" his Idol journey would have come to an end had he stuck around any longer, so he looked at the positive aspects of his elimination because he knows what's waiting for him at home.

"I wanted to win, but there is a taste of goodness in the midst of this. I've had a good past few weeks, so I was able to go out on a high note," he said. "I'm excited about spending more time with my family. I miss my [two daughters] really bad."

This isn't good news for one of our all-time favorite American Idol stars:

Kelly Clarkson has reportedly scrapped her new album after label bosses weren't impressed with the record. The 25-year-old singer suffered a scathing attack from Sony BMG chief Clive Davis after he heard the new tracks, reports British newspaper the Daily Star.

A source at the record company tells the paper: "It was an extraordinary presentation. Clive was absolutely merciless in his criticism of Kelly. She's one of the biggest priorities on the label and her new songs were savaged."

The American Idol winner has been working on the follow up to the 2005 best selling album Breakaway for 18 months, but has reportedly gone back to the studio to work on new tracks.

A Melbournce cyber stalker who harassed and blackmailed an American Idol star walked from court yesterday.

Tanya Maree Quattrocchi, 21, of Oak Park, was released on a community-based order and ordered to serve 150 hours of community service after she was convicted of stalking and blackmail.

The County Court heard Quattrocchi was obsessed with pop singer Diana DeGarmo, 19, and hounded her with unwanted phone calls and text messages before stealing her identity.

Quattrocchi phoned DeGarmo 369 times and sent her 570 text messages between March and June last year, the court heard.

One text message read: "I could kill you before you could even lay a finger on me. "I know I'm out of line here, but I don't give a f..k. How badly do you want to kill me right now? Bring it on bitch."

Judge Lisa Hannan said Quattrocchi had spiralled out of control and only stopped harassing DeGarmo when she was caught by police.

"It must have been quite terrifying for the victim," Judge Hannan said. "Her life was invaded by you and her rightful sense of security stolen from her."

Prosecutor George Slim told the court Quattrocchi hacked into DeGarmo's MySpace page and pretended to be her in emails she sent to the singer's family and friends.

She also used DeGarmo's credit card to subscribe to pornographic websites.

Shortly before her arrest last June, Quattrocchi demanded $18,000 from DeGarmo and threatened to release the singer's newly recorded songs if she didn't get the money.

The court heard Quattrocchi had a limited intellectual ability and had scored an ENTER score of just 16 when she graduated from Ave Maria College in Aberfeldie.

Defense counsel Kellie Blair said Quattrocchi, who was studying website administration last year, was shy and spent most of her time on the computer. The court heard she came from a loving and supportive family and there was nothing to explain why she had tormented DeGarmo.

Ms Blair said Quattrocchi, who pleaded guilty to the charges, was remorseful for the anguish she had caused DeGarmo.

The American Idol singer, from Atlanta, was the 2004 runner-up to Fantasia Barrino and is performing in a musical called Hairspray.

DeGarmo and her mother, Brenda, submitted victim impact statements to the court. The court heard DeGarmo alerted the FBI to Quattrocchi's harassment in June 2006.

In sentencing Quattrocchi, Judge Hannan acknowledged her poor intellectual and social skills, and said she had good prospects for rehabilitation.

Bon Jovi week should have been easy on the boys and tough on the girls, but alas, it was Chris and Phil who were sent packing. Entertainment Weekly called pianist Michael Orland, who coached the two ousted guys, to find out what went right and wrong last week.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Michael, you must be so sad that your boys went home.
MICHAEL ORLAND: I know. I lost two of my children!

It was a shocker too. Phil, especially, had a few strong weeks, and Chris Richardson got high marks from the judges. No matter who we lost this past week it was going to be hard. I will go on record saying I think this is the strongest top six we've ever had. Usually there's someone still on for personality.

Do you think Phil has a future as a country singer?
I did some PR stuff with him and Chris yesterday. To hear Phil Stacey singing songs he did early on in the show, it's like listening to a different person. I hope he makes an album because he's got such a great voice. But he's got to fulfill whatever commitment he has to the Navy. He should remake the Village People song, ''In the Navy.''

I'm sure that would go over well in our armed forces. How about Chris' rendition of ''Wanted Dead or Alive''? Did it work for you?
I thought he did a really good job. It was so open to comparison to Chris Daughtry's, but I knew Daughtry's version so we purposely put in different verses and ended it differently. I thought he would have smooth sailing this week.

I was positive at least one of them would be safe — I thought LaKisha would take the fall for her inspirations week disaster.
I'm happy for her that she was so strong this week that however the votes went for her during inspiration-songs week, she was that good this week to stay. Now it will be interesting to see that other phenomenon of the voting. You have to wonder whose votes are going to go to whom. It's anybody's guess who'll be in the finale of these four.

I think Blake will get a lot of the Phil and Chris votes. Speaking of which, there's an internal battle in the halls of EW about whether his rendition of ''You Give Love a Bad Name'' was brilliant or hideous. What's your take?
I thought it was so genius I couldn't believe it. I was scared for him, though. I knew it could go either way, as we saw with Chris Sligh weeks ago. I was in the room watching Bon Jovi with him and Bon Jovi was not digging it at all. But I thought it was so incredible and respectful of Bon Jovi's version.

I was surprised when he admitted that he used a computer to arrange it. Is that all kosher to you?
Yes, because while it's a computer program, he comes up with the drum beats and manually puts them in. It's his own creativity doing it. I love that he said that. Even during Diana Ross week, I remember he was playing beats in the background with her to hear what it would sound like.

Even though Melinda acted all dorky after she sang ''Have a Nice Day,'' I thought she kind of rocked.
Melinda Doolittle was so amazing and incredible. I actually thought Jordin did a better job than the judges gave her credit for.

She took a lot of hits that night. I was wondering if she might be this season's Chris Daughtry.
She had a rougher time with it on the show than she had during rehearsals. In the morning it sounded fantastic, but as the day went on she lost some of her low register, which happens with every singer. She knew immediately she wanted to sing that song, and sure, she could have done some power ballad and made it sound incredible. But she wanted to take a risk.

It's a great top four to be doing Bee Gees songs. Who are you working with this week?
Just Jordin Sparks this week, but I've spent a lot of time with LaKisha because she was very indecisive about her song, so I went and hung out with her to go through some songs. LaKisha is one of those people that when she hears somebody else doing a song, it's hard for her to hear what it will sound like with her voice.

American Idol season one finalist Tamyra Gray will join the Broadway production of Rent at the end of this month.

Starting May 29, she’ll appear as Mimi Marquez, and will be “in the show through Nov. 25 at the Nederlander Theatre,” Playbill reports. The show plays every day except Wednesdays.

Tamyra previously appeared in the Broadway production of Bombay Dreams. Also on stage in New York right now is season three winner Fantasia Barrino, who joined the cast of The Color Purple last month.

Katharine McPhee is absolutely beautiful.

She also has a big heart, as the former American Idol runner-up is seen here at Sephora in Hollywood on Wednesday, where she on hand for the Love Lisa: Armed and Glamorous party to raise awareness about skin cancer.

And why not make some cotton candy while there?

The U.S. Navy has given its country six presidents — five of them in a row, from Kennedy through Carter — but even the guardian of the world’s oceans fell short of producing an American Idol Wednesday night.

Musician 3rd class Phil Stacey, a chrome-domed crooner stationed with the Navy Band in Jacksonville, Fla., learned viewers hadn’t given him enough votes to advance to the next round of competition, meaning that his appearance on Wednesday’s episode was his last in the regular contest.

Stacey will almost certainly reappear at some point on a future Idol, and is expected to tour with the summer-concert version of the show. The franchise recycles its alumni in inspirational sessions for new contestants, and invariably takes credit for “discovering” any and all its castoffs who make good elsewhere in the entertainment game.

And what a way to go — Stacey promised on Tuesday’s episode that he would go out in a blaze of glory when he sang Jon Bon Jovi’s 1990 solo single, “Blaze of Glory.” Judges Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul both ranked the song among the sailor’s best performances, and there was nary a dry eye in the Idol studio as he reprised it Wednesday; he put his arm around two uniformed sailors in the audience and kissed his wife, Kendra.

A farewell video showed Stacey with his baby daughter McKayla, whose birth he missed to be on Idol. His whole bid to succeed on the show, he said, was for his two daughters.

By reaching the top six, Stacey did better than the overwhelming majority of “American Idol” aspirants. He auditioned with tens of thousands of other hopefuls in October, and wasn’t even this season’s only Navy performer to draw screen time. The first, Jarrod Fowler, a 28-year-old intelligence specialist second class aboard the carrier Ronald Reagan, was a musical amateur who performed in uniform and was made the subject of a special video package along with his ship. But Fowler was cut before the season’s live voter-elimination episodes started, and Stacey stayed alive for 11 of them.

Stacey’s American Idol career began as a debt to a buddy.

Stacey’s mother, Andrell, a nurse in Smyrna, Tenn., told The (Nashville) Tennessean on April 11 that Stacey had agreed to sing at his friend’s wedding, but that when he couldn’t make it, the friend told Stacey the only way he could make good was by auditioning for American Idol in Memphis, which he did.

The rest is history.

Continue Reading...

The Associated Press continues its "personal side" series by asking the presidential contenders about which reality TV shows they enjoy. Their answers were centered around one show in particular:

Democrats
• Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware: "Don't have one."
• Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York: "American Idol."
• Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut: "American Idol, which I say often reminds me of running for president sometimes."
• John Edwards, former North Carolina senator: College basketball.
• Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio: No time for TV.
• Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois: "Other than the U.S. Senate on C-SPAN? I don't watch them too often."
• Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico: "Fox News."

Republicans
• Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas: "None this season; too busy. Last season it was The Amazing Race."

• Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York: Baseball.
• Mike Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas: "Nashville Star, USA Network's country music competition."
• Rep. Duncan Hunter of California: The Versus network, previously called the Outdoor Life Network.
• Sen. John McCain of Arizona: Arizona Diamondbacks baseball.
• Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts: "American Idol."
• Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado: "None.

USA Today's Bill Keveney is spending time behind the scenes with American Idol's final four singers, watching their singing, wardrobe and promotional duties as they prepare for Tuesday's performance show (8 p.m. live ET/tape-delayed PT).

His full report will appear in the paper on Tuesday. Here's a brief description of Thursday's activities:

Only 14 hours after saying goodbye to Phil Stacey and Chris Richardson, American Idol's four remaining competitors - Melinda Doolittle, LaKisha Jones, Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks - were back at Idol's studio complex narrowing down song choices for Tuesday.

With preliminary Bee Gees song choices in hand, Blake and Jordin went to separate rehearsal rooms, each conferring with a vocal coach and music director to pick two songs and find the right musical interpretation. After more rehearsal, they will work with the Bee Gees' Barry Gibb at a mentor session this weekend.

At the same time, LaKisha and Melinda went shopping, each picking out her clothes for next week. Blake went for a fitting in the afternoon, with Melinda and LaKisha returning to pick their songs and record a version for arrangers and the Idol band. As the one remaining singer under 18, Jordin had school responsiblities for three hours.

Once again, let's go backstage at last night's American Idol results show ...

Rock Star Dad: Before hitting the stage, Bon Jovi lead guitarist Richie Sambora made sure daughter Ava (with ex Heather Locklear) was settled in her seat, giving him time to greet fans. With a Red Bull in one hand, he shook hands with the other before someone led him backstage to prepare for his performance.

The Judges Hit Their Marks: For the first time in weeks something unheard of happened: All the judges came out on time and on cue, making it to their seats a full minute before showtime! Another surprise: Simon and Paula are all about PDA these days, as he flirted, touched and then affectionately hugged Idol's nicest judge. Randy Jackson showed even more love for Paula with a kiss on the cheek.

Bon Jovi Fever: Last night's crowd was filled with die hard fans holding signs that read, "Bon Jovi rocks!" "I [Heart] Bon Jovi" and "Bon Jovi is our original American Idol." A group of USC sorority girls held banners displaying the band's name, but they replaced the O's with holes where their smiling faces peeked through.

Fans were screaming so much that the show's stage manager had to beg them to save that energy until Ryan announced the band. But when the New Jersey rockers brought out acoustic guitars and jammed softly, disappointed fans sighed loudly and sat back down. Even ousted Idol Antonella Barba, visiting for a second night, let out a big yawn. Leave it to Blake Lewis to rev up the crowd – he screamed "Bon Jovi y'all!" and brought fans to their feet again.

Phil's Blaze of Glory: It was an emotional exit when one of Idol's nice guys got the sad news that he was going home. There wasn't a dry eye in the house as Phil Stacey made his way down into the cheering crowd to hug his Navy pals and kiss wife Kendra. Onstage, LaKisha Jones, Jordin Sparks and Melinda Doolittle wiped tears from their eyes – as did some audience members – while Phil gave his final performance onstage before walking off arm-in-arm with Kendra.

Ryan's Faux Pas: Nobody missed it when Ryan Seacrest joked to Paula that she was prettier than Simon's "puppet," prompting Cowell to refuse to answer any of the host's questions. Ryan tried to save face, saying that he didn't mean girlfriend Terri Seymour, but at break, he asked Simon, "Are you seriously mad at me?" The judge just smiled and gave the puppy-dog-eyed host a handshake. Moments later Seymour came into the room and put her hand on her heart, looked at Ryan and said, "I heard you." Again, Ryan was all apologies and consoled her with a hug. Simon also made sure his gal wasn't offended, whispering in her ear while giving her a hug and kiss of his own.

Pinned Up: All the contestants wore red ribbons on their clothing in support of Idol Gives Back. LaKisha, however, was having problems getting hers to stay on – so it was mother hen Melinda to the rescue, finally getting it to stay in place moments before the final six posed for their group photo. Then it was back to consoling and supporting each other, as the remaining Idols wished each other good luck before cut time.

So Long, Chris: After Blake Lewis and Chris Richardson found out that one of them would be going home, the pals sat side-by-side onstage awaiting their fate. During the break, Idol producer Nigel Lythgoe shook hands with both, as did every member of Bon Jovi. Jordin, LaKisha and Melinda's waterworks came back, and just before Ryan read the results, the audience melted in awe when Richardson said, "I would go home for him," referring to his "best friend" Blake.

After Chris's name was called, his family, mother, father, uncle and aunt all stood on their feet throwing a hearty thumbs-up. Then, it was one last group between the Idols, setting off a chain reaction as judges, stage hands, band members and backup singers got in line to say good-bye.