August 2007 News Archive (Page 2)

Past American Idol finalists Elliott Yamin and Constantine Maroulis will be sharing the stage along with singer-songwriter Jon McLaughlin for a concert in an episode of The Bold And The Beautiful airing tomorrow.

Maroulis, who plays record promoter Constantine Parros on the daytime drama, will be joined by fellow cast members Mackenzie Mauzy and Kyle Lowder.

The concert is tied in to an online contest called "Boldface Challenge" which ran in the first few weeks of August.

Viewers were invited to choose between duets by Maroulis' character with his young protegee, Phoebe Forrester (Mauzy) and Phoebe's duet with her former boyfriend, Rick Forrester (Lowder). Videos of each duet were posted on the site of Parros' fictional record company, Boldface Records.

Viewers, who voted by text or online, were automatically entered into a sweepstakes for various prizes and a grand prize of a trip for two to Los Angeles to visit the site of the popular daytime drama.

The grand prize winner of the sweepstakes will be announced on Friday's episode, while the duet challenge winner will be announced on Monday.

During the concert, Yamin will perform his single, "Wait For You," McLaughlin will perform "Beautiful Disaster" and Maroulis will present his rendition of Celine Dion's hit "Fading Into You."

Haley Scarnato is the latest season six finalist - following Melinda Doolittle and Jordin Sparks - to be interviewed during the American Idols Live Tour.

Let's see what she had to say to TV Guide about the gig...

TV Guide: What's the best part about being on the road?
Haley: Just that the stress is gone and now we're performing for our fans. That's a nice feeling.

TV Guide: Is it easier performing on tour than on TV?
Haley: Well, it's different. The tour is more about us going out there and doing our thing. The judges aren't there so we don't have to worry about what they're going to say. We go have fun.

TV Guide: Is that a relief for you since Simon Cowell was pretty hard on you?
Haley: Yes! It's definitely a relief.

TV Guide: Have you done any sightseeing?
Haley: A little bit. We always try to go shopping on our days off.  I bought some hats and some shirts and stuff, just comfortable clothes. Shopping in Chicago was especially fun.

TV Guide: Are you collecting anything from each city on the tour?
Haley: I am trying to get shot glasses in every city so I can have a shadow box of them. But it's not working out, so I'm going to have to go on the Internet to find the rest.

TV Guide: Do you just go to a bar in each city?
Haley: Normally, I'll try to get them in the gift shop in the hotel.

TV Guide: What's it like traveling in a bus with the other girls? Is anybody a neat freak or really messy?
Haley: No, we're all just kind of chill on the bus, so it kind of works out.

TV Guide: Did you bring anything to remind you of home?
Haley: I brought pictures and stuff, but I don't have it on my bunk because there's not that much room. They're still in my suitcase.

Continue Reading...

Kelly Clarkson admitted to eating a marijuana cookie in Amsterdam the other day... but not smoking the drug.

Below, she jokes around during an appearance Monday on MuchOnDemand in Toronto.

It's official: Ryan Seacrest is the host of everything.

The American Idol emcee was recently put in charge of the Super Bowl festivities in February.

Now, he's tapped to host the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards.

"Ryan Seacrest appeals to a broad audience, including the highly desirable young adult demographic, so he should serve as a magnet for attracting a diverse array of viewers to our Emmy telecast," said Dick Askin, chairman and chief executive officer of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

In related news: we hope Heroes wins for Best Drama. What a cool show!

A pair of exciting tidbits for Jordin Sparks fans:

First, the American Idol winner has signed with Jive Records, the same label that represents Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake and the Backstreet Boys.

In a statement, she said: “American Idol has truly been a life altering experience. [This] is hopefully the beginning of another dream opportunity for me to deliver the kind of meaningful music I love. I can’t wait to share this next chapter of my story with all the fans that have supported me so far.”

Clive Davis, who has guided Idol winner careers in the past - and argued with Kelly Clarkson - said of the signing: “Jordin is a terrific young singer who has found a great home at Jive. [They] know how to patiently nurture career artists, and Jordin Sparks hints of a legacy and longevity waiting to be fulfilled.”

Also, Jordin's first single, "Tattoo," will be released August 27. We cannot wait.

You'll miss him when he's gone.

Simon Cowell says he won't be on American Idol forever. In fact, he's pretty much announced his departure date from the blockbuster show:

"There has to come a point when I will step down from being on camera and remain behind the scenes because you can't keep doing this for ever.

"I have three more seasons under contract with American Idol and that will be it. And it will probably come at the same time (for talent show The X Factor) in the UK.

"I am contracted for another two or three seasons in Britain and I think by that point the public will be sick to death of me anyway and it will be time to go."

Clay Aiken is nothing if not original.

Need proof? Here's a clip of him performing the Justin Timberlake classic, "SexyBack." It's very entertaining:

The crowd at Nashville's Wildhorse Saloon got an extra special treat last Friday when American Idol victor Carrie Underwood got down with Motley Crue singer Vince Neil.

Turns out this country star is a huge fan of 80's rock band. When she went with some friends to the show, she just couldn't help herself and jumped on stage in time to sing "Kick Start My Heart" with group's lead singer.

However, this model artist was only willing to transform herself so much.

"The lines in the song he had her sing have some cuss words," Carr'e rep said. "[But] she wouldn’t say them!"

Awww, that's adorable.

We don't hear a lot about Ruben Studdard, but here's some news about the season two American Idol champ, courtesy of The Birmingham News:

A $50 million entertainment district planned for downtown Birmingham got a shot of star power Wednesday, as officials announced that city native Studdard plans to open his own club there.

In addition, Memphis-based Performa Entertainment Real Estate, the planned district's developer, is working with another American Idol winner who hails from Birmingham, Taylor Hicks, on the possibility of opening a club there.

The working name for Studdard's venue is Ruben's Club 205, and it would offer the kind of soulful music he's known for, Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex Executive Director Jack Fields said during a BJCC board meeting.

Such an establishment, along with the prospect of a club with Hicks' stamp, would draw people to Birmingham and fall in line with Performa's goal of reflecting the city's history, culture and music in the district's tenant mix, Fields said later.

"That offers two very distinct types of entertainment that provide a broad spectrum for people to come and enjoy," he said. "These household names would create excitement for people to come to Birmingham and select Birmingham as a site for their meetings."

Economic developers have touted the district as a recruiting tool for conventions and businesses. Plans call for two hotels and dozens of restaurants, nightclubs and retail shops that are expected to begin opening as early as summer 2009.

Performa, best known for its Beale Street development in Memphis, has said it wants to capitalize on the national attention metro Birmingham has gained as the home of three American Idol alumni: 2003 winner Studdard, 2006 winner Hicks and Bo Bice, runner-up in 2005.

The American Idol presence on the digital songs chart increased by one this week, as Daughtry's Over You joins the group. That gives him three songs on the chart, more than any other Idol at present...

• Over You makes a pretty low-key debut, entering the chart at No. 121 with about 8,000 downloads, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It's further down than either Home, which drops 47-61 after selling 17,000 downloads, a 13.1% drop from the previous week, for a total of 959,000; or It's Not Over, which falls 93-104, selling 9,000 (-14.2%) for a total of 1.43 million.

• Elliott Yamin's Wait for You remains the top Idol download as measured by this week's sales, although it slips 24-32 on the chart and falls 21% in sales to 27,000. Total is 526,000.

• Carrie's Before He Cheats falls as well, 39-51, selling 20,0000 (-12.3%) for a total of 1.72 million.

• Kelly's still got two tracks on the chart. Never Again drops 69-81, selling 13,000 (-15.2%) and hitting the 800,000 total mark. Because of You, with Reba McEntire, falls 86-109, selling a rounded 9,000 (-25.1%) and hitting 100,000.

• Bucky's A Different World is also down, 127-133, selling 7,000 (-4.4%) to total 146,000. It stays just ahead of Kellie Pickler and I Wonder in total sales; Wonder now has 144,000 after selling 7,000 this past week (-11.3%). It completes a rather downward-oriented chart week for the Idols by dropping from 130 to 148.