July 2007 News Archive (Page 5)

Clay Aiken was involved an odd dustup on an airplane over the weekend.

The former American Idol's midair spat with a woman on a flight to Tulsa, Oklahoma, prompted an FBI query but did not result in any charges, E! Online reports. Here's what allegedly went down:

The 28-year-old singer was on a Continental Airlines flight Saturday morning bound for Tulsa International Airport, when he got into an altercation with a female passenger after she complained about his foot on her armrest.

The woman then supposedly gave Aiken a "minor shove" during the dispute, FBI Special Agent Gary Johnson told the newspaper, but that was about the extent of it.

"At that point, the flight crew was able to resolve the situation," he said.

According to the Tulsa Airport Authority, both passengers were detained until FBI agents arrived to question them. No one was injured in the tussle.

The feds sent the results of its probe to the U.S. Attorney's Office, but since neither passenger interfered with the flight crew, no charges were filed. While performing later that day at Tulsa's Brady Theater, Aiken quipped onstage about getting roughed up by a girl.

His publicist and manager could not be reached for comment.

Clay Aiken is currently in the midst of a nationwide tour aided by local symphonies. It kicked off July 4 in Dallas and wraps Aug. 19 in Orlando.

After American Idol contestants from this past season were through playing for fans in Florida, The Ledger sat down with Sanjaya Malaker. Here's what the singer had to say:

What are you tired of talking about?
I'm kind of tired of talking about my hair, but I figure it's inevitable. It's gonna happen, so it doesn't really bother me. But it's just kind of an old subject.

I'll ask you the one obligatory hair question, and then we can move on. What's the one hair-care product that you can't live without?
Water.

Really?
I use hair products if I'm going somewhere nice or something, but for the most part I kind of wet it and let it air-dry. My hair's really low-maintenance. I'm lucky like that.

You're turning 18 on Sept. 10. How will you celebrate?
I kind of want to get a tattoo, but I don't want to get it while I'm on the road because I want to get it from somewhere that's clean, and I want to be sure that it's clean, 'cause I'm not about to have some nasty rash on my body.

What would you get it of, and where would you get it?
I was thinking of on my arm, and my Chinese astrology (sign) is a snake and I love snakes, so I'd get a snake and somehow incorporate a treble clef or some kind of musical symbol and possibly somehow incorporate a Virgo, but I don't know. I haven't really thought about it enough to get it yet.

What was the strangest thing that a fan has sent you?
I think the strangeness comes with what they say in their letters, 'cause there's a lot of people that don't necessarily censor themselves in their letters, and it's kind of interesting to read.

Can you give me an example?
Someone said that when I sing, it's like hot chocolate with a lot of mini marshmallows.

So is the tattoo an effort to get rid of the mini marshmallow image and move to something a little more mature?
No, I think it's, I wouldn't get it somewhere that's really obvious. I'd get it somewhere that I can hide it very easily. It would be more for myself.

If you were a superhero, what would you want your superpower to be?
Psychic abilities.

Why's that?
I think that everyone's psychic, but they just don't listen, and I've kind of gotten to a point where sometimes I can listen to my instinct and be right, and so I like to call myself psychic. … I think it's a cool concept, and so I think it would be really cool to genuinely, actually be psychic.

As contestants from American Idol took the stage once more in Florida last night, The Palm Beach Post had a review of a few of the performers...

Melinda Doolittle: I was worried in the beginning that Mindy Doo was holding back too much, allowing herself to be overshadowed by other singers, especially LaKisha. But the second half of the show was a large improvement, and featured a "Natural Woman" that politely walks Kelly Clarkson's version to the woods and leaves it there without breadcrumbs. (I love Kelly. But you had to see it.) And she looked HOT.

Jordin Sparks: One of my fellow reporters noted that, late into the second half, winner Jordin seemed to be a footnote in her own victory. Everybody else seemed to have a lot more stage time. But that was before the last 20 minutes, which became the Jordin Show. She has such a stage presence when seen live. and delivered a solid, incredibly effortless "I Who Have Nothing," a pretty good "Broken Wing" and a version of snore-happy winning single "This Is My Now" that at least kept you awake.

The kid is pretty good at the guitar, too. I will say that the choice of that icky treacle as the single let me know how much the producers wanted her to win, because it wasn't anywhere near the style of fellow finalist Blake Lewis' strength. Yes, it's a conspiracy theory. Talk amongst yourselves.

Blake Lewis: Speaking of my beloved beat box, he kept proving how well he sings, and not just how well he can turn his body into a stripey-haired percussion instrument. His take on Jamiroquai's "Virtual Insanity?" Priceless. He took up a lot of stage time, by the way, seeming to be in on so many people's segments. His buddy...

Chris Richardson: also got a heck of a lot of spotlight shone on his little buzz-cut noggin. He was the lyrical oomph to Blake's beat-box on "Geek In The Pink," which was competent on TV but flowed nearly perfectly on stage. He avoided a lot of the nasalness that Simon Cowell was always after him for. Nasal is a style of singing, like Chris told Simon. Just not one that works as well as what he did on stage.

Sanjaya Malakar: As his mom told me later "He can sing!" I didn't care for some of his Michael Jackson-esque choreography on "The Way You Make Me Feel," but he sounded great, moving around in front of a screen showing some of his greatest hair hits. One thing - why no faux-hawk? And he plays a mean tambourine.

Chris Sligh: OK, I gotta tell you something. This guy is the one that most shocked the biscuits out of me, because while the show proved that he has a solid voice, nothing hinted at its richness on stage, its range, or how confident and even sexy he becomes when behind a guitar. His version of Mute Math's "Typical" was fascinating, because with him playing, his voice sounded more edgy and rock-like. Drat. We didn't see half of what he could do on the show. We wuz robbed.

LaKisha Jones: I don't know what she's been doing in her time off, but something tells me it involves stage craft lessons. This girl came off as a consummate professional, and the cockiness that seemed to inform her decision to blow off all the guest mentors and always do her own thing, even when it backfired, seems to have become confidence.

Her best moment came when she once again acknowledged that she was ignoring the popular edict to never attempt "I Will Always Love You" and just blew that thing all over the ceiling. I got chills. When she ran up to the big glory note, she just attacked it like "Yeah I nailed it. You had doubts?" I did. But I won't get fooled again. I still think it wouldn't have killed her to at least listen to Tony Bennett a little bit, though.

Haley Scarnato: Like Melinda, she got better as the show went on. I think sometimes she was unable to hear herself in the monitor, so she appeared to be shouting. But her re-do of "When God-Fearing Women Get The Blues" was much stronger than it was earlier in the evening. And she owned her part on "Life Is A Highway." Good for her.

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Kelly Clarkson gives a very candid and funny interview in the August 2007 issue of Blender. Here are some highlights from it...

On what she does in her free time: “You know, I never go out. If I’m in L.A., I’m usually at my house playing Guitar Hero.”

On her lying music label, BMG: “Everyone keeps saying how hard this record because be because of all the crap surrounding it, but that last one was really hard to make. I literally got told to my face that it wouldn’t sell more than 600,000 copies. And I got lied to. One reason I don’t like working with people at the label is that they like. They told me, ‘We really want you to got Sweden. These people really want to write with you.’

So I flew to Sweden with lyrics I’d written to this track I’d been send, ‘Since U Been Gone.’ I get there, and the writers are like, ‘Oh, we already have lyrics. We just want you to sing it.’ It was really awkward. It was mean. That’s why there’s no relationship with them. Because I don’t like to be lied to.

On ex-boyfriend David Hodges, former Evanescence keyboardist: “I didn’t even really like the guy. I’m more mad at myself for being so blind. Why would I pick someone like him to date? What’s wrong with me? … It’s fine in the end. Maybe I ahd to go through that and learn more about myself. Maybe that’s why I don’t date much, either.”

On how many boys she’s made out with: “Four? No, wait. Oh my God, five! I have major trust issues. [laughs] I just don’t make out with people. That’s a waste of my kisses and time. And it’s so personal. It’s like, my face. Plus, I’m afraid of mouth herpes.”

On her face-to-face meeting with music exec Clive Davis: “It was nice. It was just the two of us, and his dog. I was like, I don’t know you very well, and I am not a bulls******. I get you don’t like the album. You’re 80; you’re not supposed to like my album. I said, ‘Clive, I’m going to make tons of albums. It doesn’t have to be mainstream every time. Then he kept bringing up people he’s worked with. ‘You’re a Whitney! You’re a Mariah!’ ‘First of all, Mariah writes a lot of her stuff. Secondly, I dont’ want a career like either of those singers.

That’s why it’s hard for us to make an album. You don’t know me! You don’t know what I like, and you don’t know what my fans like.”

As he goes across the nation on his “Soft Rock in a Heard Place Tour 2007," Clay Aiken is throwing a fun wrinkle into his song sets.

At his latest concert in Frisco, Texas on Tuesday, for example, the Claymates went wild over a melody of classic tunes this American Idol runner-up put together. They were:

#1 - “Baby Got Back” - Sir Mix-a-lot
#2 - “Like A Virgin” - Madonna
#3 - “Bills, Bills, Bills” - Destiny’s Child
#4 - “1999″ - Prince
#5 - “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy” - Kenny Chesney
#6 - “Oops…I Did It Again” - Britney Spears
#7 - “OPP” - Naughty By Nature
#8 - “Yeah” - Usher
#9 - “SexyBack” - Justin Timberlake
#10 - “Achey Breaky Heart” - Billy Ray Cyrus
#11 - “Beat It” - Michael Jackson

Take a look below at Clay in concert, singing these classics:

In TV Guide’s July 9 cover story, the choreographer, dancer, singer and American Idol judge speaks out about her triumph over various trials in life, such as a highly publicized divorce (from actor Emilio Estevez) and ongoing eating disorder that once dropped her weight to a low of 83 pounds.

But Paula Abdul insists she's is a survivor.

“I’ve endured life journeys that people never in a million years would ever think of experiencing,” she says. “I have risen from the bowels of hell and come out tripping and singing and dancing. I’ve always been counted out, but I come back, like a stealth warrior.”

And with her new (critically lambasted) reality show, Hey Paula, Abdul hopes to set the record straight.

“What I do feel proud about myself is I don’t give up,” she says. “I’ve worked extremely hard to maintain the integrity and level of class and goodness that I have. I screw up just like everyone else. The difference with me is that I get to teach the rest of the world lessons, to learn how to bounce back a lot quicker.”

In the end, Paula's ego appears to rival that of Simon Cowell.

“Partially [I decided to do this show because of] the fact I know my life purpose: Having the uncanny ability to tap into the heartstrings of people and make them feel they’ll be OK. And that if I can get through these hard times, so can you,” she says.

And, lastly, what kind of boss is she?

“I wish I could work for someone like Paula Abdul. Honest to God, I am the kindest-of-kind human beings.”

American Idols were all over the lists of top-selling albums and downloads in the first half of 2007, as reported by USA Today. The greatest triumph was all Chris Daughtry; his album is No. 1 for the year so far with 1.73 million sold in 2007 (out of 2.85 million total).

Carrie Underwood also did great, landing at No. 5 with 1.07 million, despite Some Hearts coming out in 2005.

All told, there were 10 Idols in the top 200 for the year to date. The rest:

• 59. Katharine McPhee: 342,000. Outpointed Taylor because the bulk of Taylor's sales came in late '06.

• 77. Elliott Yamin: 294,000

• 79. Kelly Clarkson, My December: 292,000. One week's sales got her this high.

• 116. Kellie Pickler: 217,000. More sold in late '06.

• 124. Fantasia: 208,000. About half of her total sold this year.

• 135. Bucky Covington: 196,000

• 184. Taylor Hicks: 150,000

• 192. Kelly Clarkson, Breakaway: Another 146,000 added to the 5.8 million total.

Take that, Clive Davis!

While the head of RCA was not a fan of Kelly Clarkson's new CD, "My December", fans of the original American Idol appear to feel differently.

"My December" debuted at No. 2 on The Billboard 200 weekly album sales chart, according Nielsen Soundscan figures for the week ending July 2.  Clarkson's third album - the first in which she either wrote or co-wrote every song - sold 291,000 copies in its first week of release.

Clarkson's album trailed only "Hannah Montana 2 (Soundtrack)/Meet Miley Cyrus," two-disc 20-set set that combines Cyrus' debut album with music from the Disney Channel TV show that the 14-year-old stars in.  Cyrus -- the daughter of country singer, Hannah Montana co-star and fourth-season Dancing with the Stars participant Billy Ray Cyrus -- sold 326,000 copies in her album's first week of release.

"My December's" debut week sales surpassed those of "Breakaway," Clarkson's Grammy-winning 2004 second album that has since sold over 10 million copies.  "Breakaway," which was released during the more competitive holiday season sales period, debuted at No. 3 and sold 250,000 copies in its first week of release in November 2004.

Although it beat "Breakaway's" debut, "My December" fell just short of setting a debut week album sales record for Clarkson.  "Thankful," the original Idol winner's debut album, debuted at No. 1 and sold 297,000 copies during its first week of release in April 2003.

FOX will telecast the Teen Choice Awards August 26. Until that date, fans can vote on a handful of America Idol-related nominees. To wit:

Reality/variety show: "American Idol," "America's Next Top Model," "Dancing With the Stars," "The Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll," "The Hills."

Choice TV personality: Nick Cannon of "Wild 'N Out," Ryan Seacrest of "American Idol" and E!, Simon Cowell of "American Idol," Tyra Banks of "America's Next Top Model," Bruno Tonioli of "Dancing With the Stars."

Male reality/variety star: Apolo Anton Ohno of "Dancing With the Stars," Flavor Flav of "Flavor of Love," Jojo, Diggy, Russy of "Run's House," Sanjaya Malakar of "American Idol," Three 6 Mafia of "Adventures in Hollyhood."

Female reality/variety star: Jaslene Gonzalez of "America's Next Top Model," Jordin Sparks of "American Idol," Lauren Conrad of "The Hills," New York of "I Love New York," Paris Hilton of "The Simple Life."

Looks like another American Idol might be going country.

Kelly Clarkson is making like Carrie Underwood, as she climbs her way up the country charts with a duet with Reba McEntire.

Because of You is the first single from Reba Duets, McEntire’s new CD scheduled for release on Sept. 18. (It also features Ronnie Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Don Henley, Carole King and Justin Timberlake.) Clarkson wrote it when she was a kid ad released the song on her last album.

The single made it to No. 2 on the Hot Pop 100 chart and No. 3 on the Adult Contemporary chart.

Now, the tune is at No. 17 this week on Billboard, up from 21 last week, and the video is getting quite a bit of airplay, too. It features both Reba and Kelly in heavy make-up and high fashion.