One ... two ... three ... four ... five.
No, we're not counting how many albums Chris Daughtry has sold (that would be A LOT more than five).
But we did almost run out of fingers on one hand for the number of trophies Carrie Underwood took home last night at the Billboard Music Awards. The American Idol victor won for Country Album of the Year and Country Artist of the Year.
Paula Abdul presented at the show.
Football on Thanksgiving.
It's as traditional as a turkey in the oven.
This year, however, viewers that turned in to the Dallas Cowboys/Tampa Bay Buccaneers game were treated to a surprise far more welcome than any Terrell Owens outburst: a double dose of American Idol beauty and talent.
First, Dallas-area native Kelly Clarkson (decked out in an Emmitt Smith jersey) sang the national anthem. She did a wonderful job.
Then, the halftime ceremony featured yet another winner from the FOX reality smash: Carrie Underwood, a native of nearby Oklahoma.
Dallas may have won big, 38-10, but fans of these singers also walked away as winners. We hope positive news like this takes away from the tired Clay Aiken/Kelly Ripa feud.
Last week, we took a glimpse at the changing styles of Katharine McPhee. The reigning runner-up can pull off many looks, but she's not the only starlet (or star) in the American Idol universe who can make that claim.
Another well-known second-place finisher, Clay Aiken, has adopted a very different look of late. His longer locks make him look mature, to be sure, but do you prefer the shorter-haired, baby-faced Clay we first got to know back when he narrowly lost out to Ruben Studdard in Season 2? Or do you dig the new look?
Speaking of Idol legends coming into their own, below we see the lovely Carrie Underwood. The Oklahoma cutie has recently adopted a bold, almost vixenish look - as seen in the video for "Before He Cheats" along with numerous public appearances. Which do you prefer the traditional, sweet and innocent Carrie or the slightly-more provocative version?
Country star Leann Rimes needs a lesson in getting your friend's back: Never defend said friend for doing what he/she is denying doing in the first place!
Everyone saw Faith Hill freak after Carrie Underwood won the CMAâs female vocalist of the year last week. We then went on to believe (or not believe) the longtime star when she claimed she was only âjoking.â
Regardless, it wasn't a big deal. But Rimes (right) decided to add fuel to the fire when she backed up her friend Faith on her website:
âOkay, I usually keep quiet on topics like this but I feel I need to stand up for my friend, Faith. She was just being honest and emotional like every other person sitting at home with an opinion. I donât think Faith was angry about her loss, she probably felt, as I did, that Carrie Underwood has not paid her dues long enough to fully deserve that award.â
Yikes, Leann. She was only kidding, remember? In any event, apparently you have to be around for a certain number of years before you can win awards, rather than simply winning them if voters deem you the best. Not to say that Faith and Leann aren't tremendous performers in their own right, but how about giving our girl her due as well?
Come on. Suffice it to say, the Oklahoma cutie who brought us Some Hearts would never make such remarks about a fellow singer. Neither would Kellie Pickler, who may end up winning some CMA honors next year and beyond.
It's hard to imagine anyone not adoring Carrie Underwood, but that's just what media outlets are insinuating about another extremely likable singer.
Faith Hill says she was joking when cameras showed her screaming "What?!" in apparent anger when she lost the female vocalist of the year award to Carrie Underwood at the Country Music Association Awards Monday night.
"The idea that I would act disrespectful towards a fellow musician is unimaginable to me," Hill said. "For this to become a focus of attention given the talent gathered is utterly ridiculous. Carrie Underwood is a talented and deserving Female Vocalist of The Year."
Media outlets and blogs zeroed in on Hillâs reaction after Carrie Underwoodâs name was announced at the ceremony.
Joke or not, it was a stark contrast to the gracious nodding of the other nominees, Sara Evans, Gretchen Wilson, and Martina McBride.
Even if Faith expected to win and was momentarily miffed, we're sure she meant no disrespect. After all, how can someone, especially a fellow country star, not love Carrie Underwood music or the Oklahoma cutie herself?
Kelly Clarkson officially has some company.
Making the leap from American Idol champ to award-winning recording artist is not easy, but Carrie Underwood is making it look like it. The Oklahoma native won female vocalist of the year at the 40th Annual Country Music Association Awards in Nashville Monday night.
Underwood, whose debut album, Some Hearts, was released a year ago and became a smash hit, tearfully accepted the award.
"Two years ago I was sitting at home watching these very awards and watching all these other people win and having the best night of their life, and this is the best year of my life," the fourth-season American Idol winner said.
The singer also won the Horizon award, given for most significant creative growth. Backstage, the 23-year-old sweetheart said she was happy just to be nominated, let alone win twice.
"I would have taken male vocalist if they had given it to me," she joked.
It also appeared that Carrie was at the show with Anthony Fedorov, but we can't confirm that at this time. We welcome comments from anyone who can!
That top male vocalist honor went to Keith Urban for the second year in a row. Urban, who had to drop out of the show after checking into a rehab clinic last month, received a standing ovation his name was announced.
His prize was accepted by Ronnie Dunn of Brooks & Dunn, who read a letter from Urban in which in which he thanked his friends and family and wife Nicole Kidman. "To my wife, Nicole, I love you," Urban said the in the letter. "I'm looking forward to coming home and seeing you all soon."
Added Dunn: "We love you Keith -- good luck, brother."
Dunn himself, along with partner Kix Brooks, co-hosted the show and took home three awards for their song "Believe."
Kenny Chesney took the night's top award, entertainer of the year, which he'd also won two years ago. The vocal group award went to Rascal Flatts.
Besides Urban, the most buzzed-about star was former Dancing With the Stars contestant Sara Evans, who dropped out of the reality show amid a divorce scandal. While she didn't win female vocalist of the year, she performed her hit, "Real Fine Place to Start."
In our mind, of course, the night belonged to Carrie Underwood. Congratulations to a great singer, person, and one of our favorite American Idol people.
Here's some information we've come across from around the world of American Idol. There's certainly a lot going on with our favorite stars, and we try our best to keep you updated! Below is our breakdown...
CARRIE UNDERWOOD
As youâve probably heard, Carrie Underwood will perform at the Charleston Municipal Auditorium December 9. Tickets go on sale this Friday at 10 a.m.
Speaking of Carrie, we caught her video for "Before He Cheats" the other day. Though sheâs come a long way from her simpler American Idol days, it is still not easy to believe she's the kind of girl who would bash her boyfriendâs headlights in with a baseball bat.
Look at her! She's just too sweet! We don't buy the vengeful angle... we will, however, buy her music!
KELLIE PICKLER
Kellie Picklerâs CD, Small Town Girl, is in stores as of today! Be sure to check out our review in a separate post, coming very soon. Kellie will perform her first single, "Red High Heels" on The Tonight Show Friday.
BUCKY COVINGTON
Bucky Covington and his wife are moving to Nashville today. We hear he plans to go straight to the studio to record some tunes. Good luck, Bucky!
ACE YOUNG
The new single from Ace Young, âScattered,â is officialy available for download on iTunes. We thought it was a little cheesy, to be sure, but it grows on you. And yes, his falsetto is on full display. As far as we know, though, Ace has not signed with any record label.
KATHARINE MCPHEE
Looks like Katharine McPheeâs a little gutsier than I gave her credit for. Katharine was scheduled to sing âOver the Rainbowâ at the Carousel of Hope Gala, but when she saw Whitney Houston in the audience, she changed to âI Have Nothing.â
Considering the performance of that song that she gave on American Idol, it was certainly a testament to McPhee's courage to get up there and try it a second time. It paid off, though, as Whitney nodded her head in approval at the performance.
You might remember that Katharine (seen here with beau Nick Cokas, right, at the event in Beverly Hills) was roundly criticized by the judges after performing "I Have Nothing" On American Idol. The viewing audience, however, disagreed and voted her into the Top 2. Simon Cowell apologized to her on that week's results show.
TAYLOR HICKS
Taylor Hicksâ CD release date has been moved to December 5, which means he will be after Katharine (November 28) and on the same date as Fantasia. According to GrayCharles.com, he continues to work on his upcoming album, 75 percent of which is complete.
The producers are beginning to mix some of the songs. If you, like many of his fans, are eagerly looking forward to seeing Taylor Hicks in concert, the Soul Man will start a three-month tour in February and plans to "play lots of different size towns, even smaller ones."
Hopefully, that's going to be a town near you.
CHRIS DAUGHTRY
Chris Daughtryâs release date is still set for November 21, but he's ditching the first name thing... the release will come from Daughtry -- the Bon Jovi-esque name of his new band. Howard Benson, who worked with All-American Rejects and My Chemical Romance, is the producer. Chris says he realizes not winning Idol was better for him.
According to a blurb posted on puretonemusic.com, here are all 12 confirmed song titles (in sequence): It's Not Over, Used To, Home, Over You, Crashed, Feels Like Tonight, What I Want (featuring Slash), Breakdown, Gone, There And Back Again, All These Lives, and What About Now.
The site also reported that the song, "Sorry" will be exclusive to iTunes and the newly recorded acoustic versions of "Home" and "Crashed" will be exclusive to WalMart.
JOSH GRACIN
Josh Gracinâs next CD, All About Yâall will be released in early 2007. I was a little worried about Josh since his original release date came and went and his website had not been updated in months. His new single, "I Keep Coming Back" is from the same songwriting team that wrote "What Hurts the Most."
KIMBERLEY LOCKE
The second CD released by Kimberley Locke, Based on a True Story, will hit the shelves of record stores in March 2007. It will be great to hear what the Supawoman has in store for us then!
CLAY AIKEN
The one and only Clay Aiken is scheduled to appear on The Megan Mullally Show this Thursday, November 2.
And, as we reported last week, Clay will also appear on Days of Our Lives as himself December 22, serenading Steve and Kayla with âEverything I Have.â Clayâs version of âO, Holy Nightâ will also be featured in the episode.
Fantasia Barrino's single, "Hood Boy" is being released to radio. Her album is set to be released on December 12. You can listen to a stream at her MySpace. Lastly, Season 5 semi-finalist Patrick Hall releases his single "One For the Ages" tomorrow. The album, One For the Ages, will be available February 2007.
âI never, ever had my heart set on being a singer,â says Carrie Underwood. âThat was something I thought I would like to do, but I always knew most likely it would never happen.â
But, oh, how it happened.
It was only two years ago that Underwood took her very first airplane trip â to fly to the American Idol tryouts in L.A. She showed the world she was a singer and won the TV contest, turning instantly from small-town girl into a star.
On the strength of the American Idol win, Underwoodâs debut album, Some Hearts, went triple platinum, launching her into the forefront of country music. At the 40th annual Country Music Association Awards, to be held in Nashville on November 6, Underwood will be looking to win in no less than four categories:
âI always told my mom, âIf I am supposed to sing, then the doors will open,ââ Carrie said. âI feel like God totally stepped in and opened these doors for me.â
And they have opened fast and wide.
âIâve started out in a place that new artists just donât start out in,â Underwood tells Parade magazine in an interview in Pennsylvania. âHardly any people actually have a fan base before they have an album.â
For her wide and possessive public, Underwood has become something more than a music star. Radiating sincerity, simplicity and accessibility, the petite blonde with the big voice is a surrogate best friend, sister or daughter. Underwood is the real deal -- a girl next door, a little goofy around the edges.
The wonderful Kellie Picker seems to be gaining credibility these days, as she is set to storm the most hallowed bastion of country music, the Grand Ole Opry, on October 27, playing on a bill that includes Glen Campbell and bluegrass great Del McCoury.
A North Carolina native, Pickler was a finalist on last season's American Idol. The previous season's champion, Carrie Underwood, is currently one of country music's brightest stars. Carrie performed, and was well received, on the Opry, so the precedent is there for Kellie.
Underwood, by the way, returns to the Opry stage herself on November 7. Pickler's debut album is due to be released later that month. Good to see these country cuties making names for themselves!
While sales of physical CDs have plummeted in 2006, big increases in the demand for digital tracks and albums have kept the overall music business in line with 2005 totals.
According to estimates for the week ending October 1, marking the end of the third quarter, physical album sales so far this year totaled 370.5 million units, down 8.3 percent from the 404.2 million racked up during the same period a year ago.
However, digital album sales climbed 115 percent, with 22.6 million sold through September. Downloaded tracks soared 72 percent, to 418.6 million.
Adding digital albums and track equivalent albums (with 10 digital tracks equaling one album) to physical sales, a total of 434.9 million albums have been sold in 2006. The comparable year-ago figure was 439.2 million.
Walt Disney Records' High School Musical soundtrack remains the top-selling release so far this year, with 3.1 million copies sold to date. Second is country act Rascal Flatts' Me and My Gang, accumulating 2.5 million sales.
Three '05 holdovers have remained in the top five throughout this year. The No. 3 title, U.K. singer-songwriter James Blunt's Back to Bedlam, has sold 1.9 million of its 2.2 million-unit total, while Some Hearts, the first album from our own Carrie Underwood, has reaped sales of 1.8 million in '06, giving the fourth season American Idol winner's debut album an impressive 3.5 million sales overall.
Coming in at No. 5 was The Breakthrough by Mary J. Blige, which has sold an impressive 1.6 million of its 2.6 million-unit total this year.
It will be interesting to see how digital sales impact the figures of other American Idol favorites once more data is gathered. Clay Aiken released his second album two weeks ago, and a number of new Idol stars, including last season's winner Taylor Hicks and runner-up Katharine McPhee, are due to put out their debut efforts this November.
