Larry King Interviews Top 10

Girls on Tour - Dancing

Idol Headlines ~ 08/08/08

David Cook & Carly Smithson Appear at Mets Game

David Hernandez Releases Single

Brooke White Re-Releases Album

David Wright was Cooks Mystery Benefactor

Clay Aiken's Baby Born at 8:08 on 08/08/08!

Kristy Lee's Single Debuts at #58 on Billboard's Hot Country Chart

Top 10 Ring the Nasdaq Stock Market Closing Bell

Guitar Hero World Tour Commercial

This is the commercial they play at the end of intermission on the tour. Told ya it wasn't very exciting.

Idols Live! Tour ~ Set List

Here is the complete set list for the Idols Live! Tour:

Chikezie:

“I Believe to My Soul” (Donnie Hathaway)
“Caught Up” (Usher)
“So High” (John Legend)

Ramiele:

“I Want You Back" (Jackson 5)
“Love Will Lead You Back” (Taylor Dane)
“If I Never See Your Face Again” (Maroon 5)

Michael:

“We Will Rock You/We are the Champions” (Queen)
“It’s All Wrong But It's All Right” (Dolly Parton)
“Dream On” (Aerosmith)

Kristy Lee:

“Squeezin the Love Outta You” (Carolyn Dawn Johnson)
“God Bless The USA” (Lee Greenwood)
“Cowgirls” (Kerry Harvick)

Carly:

“Bring Me to Life” (Evanescence)
“Crazy on You” (Heart)
“I Drove All Night” (Cyndi Lauper)

Brooke:

“Let it Be” (Beatles) *piano*
"1,2,3,4" (Feist) *guitar*
“Yellow” (Coldplay) *piano*

Group song: "Pride" (U2) - Only the contestants who have performed thus far participate, IGB footage on screen

Intermission

Guitar Hero video: Top 10 dressed 70's-style, lipsynch to “We’re an American Band” (Grand Funk Railroad)

Jason:

“Over the Rainbow” (Israel Kamakawiwo'ole version) *ukulele*
“Crazy” (Gnarls Barkley) *guitar*
“What a Day for a Daydream” (The Lovin' Spoonful) *guitar*

Syesha:

“Umbrella” (Rihanna)
“If I Aint Got You” (Alicia Keys)
“Listen” (Beyoncé)

David Archuleta:

“Angels” (Robbie Williams) *piano*
“Apologize” (One Republic)
“Stand By Me” (Ben E. King) with “Beautiful Girls" (Sean Kingston) interlude
“When You Say You Love Me” (Josh Groban)

David Cook:

“Hello” (Lionel Richie) *Original AC guitar*
“Time of My Life” (David Cook)
“I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” (Aerosmith)
“My Hero” (Foo Fighters) *NEW AC guitar not seen on the show*
ENCORE: “Billie Jean” (Chris Cornell version) *NEW AC guitar not seen on the show*

Group number: “Please Don’t Stop the Music” (Rihanna)

Idols Live Tour ~ Glendale, AZ ~ Spoilers

The tour kicked off in Glendale, AZ today and spoilers are trickling in from Idol Chatter and MJs Big Blog.

I will be attending the San Diego show tomorrow and post when I get back.

Idol Headlines ~ 6/30/08

Jason Castro's Tour Bus Pictures

Phil Stacey's Benefit Concert

Syesha Answers Fan Questions

Kristy Lee Cook Lands Record Deal

Devo Sues McDonalds over Idol Toy

Cook & Cook: Dish of Salt Interview

Jason & Syesha: Dish of Salt Interview

Brooke & Chikezie: Dish of Salt Interview

Top 10 Young Hollywood Interview Part 2

Top 10 Press Tour Interviews

Young Hollywood Interview


Eonline Interview

The Insider Interview

Top 10 Idols Live! Press Tour

Good Day LA Interview
Entertainment Tonight Interviews The Davids
MyFoxKC Interview

Idol Headlines ~ 6/19/08

Seacrest Produces Momma's Boys

Luke Menard Battles Cancer

Cook's MySpace Celebrity Q&A

Archuleta Drops Out of Murray High

Idols Nominated for the Teen Choice Awards

Mercado, Smithson & White Shoot a Commercial

Idol Headlines ~ 6/19/08

David Cook Makes People's Hottest Bachelor List

Taylor Hicks Music Update

David Cook Raises Money to Fight Cancer

Jennifer Hudson Needs Help Naming Album

Brooke White Joins Malaria No More Campaign

David Archuleta Answers Fan Questions VIDEO

Larry King's Top 10 Q&A

An all-new hour of footage taped the other night but broadcast for the first time tonight. (Because THAT's not confusing or anything...)





Click here for the rest.

Top 10 on Larry King Live

David Cook interview

David Archuleta interview

The David's interviewed together

Syesha & Jason join in

Brooke & Carly

Kristy, Michael (via satellite), Ramiele & Chikezie

The top 10 (sans MJ) list their song picks for the tour, their Idol yearbook superlatives, and sing a little "Freedom"

American Idol Trivia

So far, the winner of American Idol has never been in the bottom 3 during the first five weeks of finals.

Taylor Hicks was the oldest winner at 29, Jordin Sparks the youngest at 17.

Bo Bice remains the only contestant to ever perform a capella outside of auditions.

Jason Castro was the first contestant to play an instrument, and is the only one to ever play a ukulele.

Brooke White remains the only female to play an instrument on the show, and was the first of those that did play instruments to be eliminated (with the exception of Chikezie’s brief harmonica “playing”).

No contestant to perform last has ever been eliminated that same week prior to the Final 4.

The top 5 has always contained at least one African American contestant (mostly female).

The top 3 has never contained a married contestant. (Chris Daughtry came closest in 4th place.)

The first 5 AI winners were from the South, two of which (Ruben and Taylor) were from the same city (Birmingham, AL).

In season 4, viewers had to re-vote when a few incorrect phone numbers were displayed during top 11 week.

Thus far, David Cook has done four covers of covers. Chris Daughtry did two.

More often than not, the person who opens the show is also the one to be eliminated that week, or at least find themselves in the bottom 2/3.

Phil Collins’ “Against All Odds (Take A Look at Me Now)” has been performed every season during competition except last year, which makes it the most popular contestant song pick.

Brooke White is the only Idol contestant to ever stop and restart her song during a live performance.

Chris Daughtry is the most successful contestant to not finish in the top 2 of AI. He is the 4th most successful Idol behind Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Clay Aiken.

Corey Clark (season 2) remains the only contestant to have ever been disqualified during the voting rounds of the competition. Frenchie Davis and The Brittenum twins were disqualified before making the top 12/24.

So far this season, every contestant to wear a black vest during a broadcast (Garrett Haley, David Hernandez, Ramiele Malubay, Michael Johns and Carly Smithson) was eliminated that week, with the exception of Brooke White who survived until a later date. The opposite is true of those who wore grey vests.

Clay Aiken is the only runner-up to avoid the bottom 2/3 during finals. Melinda Doolittle and Tamyra Gray also managed to go far while avoiding the bottom 2/3 before the night of their elimination.

There has been a “shocker” vote off every season but season 2. (Tamyra Gray, Jennifer Hudson/LaToya London, Constantine Maroulis, Chris Daughtry, Melinda Doolittle and Michael Johns, respectively.)

Mario Vazquez remains the only contestant to ever willingly withdraw from the competition after making it into the voting rounds. (Season 4, top 12). Nikko Smith took his place.

Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Taylor Hicks are the only contestants to ever finish the competition without ever hitting the bottom 2/3. So far this season, David Cook and David Archuleta have done the same.

Anthony Fedorov and Melinda Doolittle are the only contestants to ever be eliminated after performing last that same week. (Finale week doesn’t count since no one is “eliminated.”)

Until David Cook broke the curse this week, every contestant to perform second during top 5 week was promptly eliminated.

The first five contestants who performed first during top 3 week were then eliminated. Jordin Sparks broke the curse.

Bo Bice holds the record for making it the furthest in the competition (runner-up, season 4) without receiving any airtime prior to the top 24 episode. Jason Castro is currently closing in on Bice’s record.

At a whopping 6 times, Syesha Mercado is currently tied with Nikki McKibbin for the most appearances in the bottom 2/3.

Clay Aiken holds the “pimp spot” record for closing the most shows at 5 times. Ruben Studdard and Diana DeGarmo each closed 4 shows (this does not include “specials.”)

This year’s Idols Live! Tour will begin in the hometown of our current Idol Jordin Sparks, and, if David Cook wins, it will end in the city of our newest American Idol.

Despite rumors that this could be the last season due to the lowest ratings the show has seen in five years, American Idol has been renewed through 2011.

Babbling Brooke Runs Dry

The results are in, America. Is your favorite out?

KLC is in the house. (Methinks she came to try and swipe one of The Diamond's sparkly shirts.)

Ryan is still out of breath...from all the damage control he had to do over Paula-Gate 2008.

Time for an especially crappy group medley of Neil Diamond songs. There were parts of this where I felt like I was watching some horrible talent competition. (Oh wait...) Jason kicks things off with "Cracklin' Rosie" and his voice is a-cracklin' alright. The others sit and sway on the couches like they're fighting traitorous waters on a sinking ship, further inspiring seasickness in those at home. Due to a tricky camera maneuver, I actually thought Archie's too-low register was coming out of Brooke the Tranny for a sec (scary!). Girls do a seat-changing twirl on the couches before getting up to flank Archie with some awkward go-go dancer moves. DC sings, and the hoi polloi doesn't seem to notice that something is wrong with his voice. (Nurse SB prescribes some vocal rest, stat. I'll even cut down our late night phone convos for the cause. Don't need him getting Daughtry-ed next week.) They segue into "Song Sung Blue" and do the infamous Idol side-step while reading the words off the monitor. And finally, the misery ends with a lil "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" preaching. Hallelujah...it's over.

After the break, Ryan spends an unsettlingly brief amount of time addressing Pauler's gaffe, and still no one apologizes to Jason.

We get a 2 1/2 minute recap of the performances, and The Diamond calls the contestants "tops."

Contestants are huddled backstage awaiting their fate, and J-Cast is called out first and sent to safety. While many of my fellow posters seem to think this was the least they could do, it totally killed any suspense over who was going home. I also think it might have been a strategic maneuver on the production's part to give the Dreadheads a false sense of security in order to push Syesha into the top three.

Archie is safe. Judging by her outfit, Mama A is ready to celebrate with some serious salsa dancing after the show. (Either that, or she wants to audition to be one of The Diamond's back up singers). Seriously, could Archie's parents BE any more oddly matched?

Ryan announces that next week's theme is songs that helped shape and inspire rock 'n roll according to the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame. Before you get too excited, I checked the list, and it really isn't as good as it sounds.

We get an extended SYTYCD preview. Question: Is this just footage from previous seasons, or is Sex really back for more?

Time to announce the winner of the Coca-Cola Cup-Designing Contest. OMG! That's almost as exciting as the notoriously bad American Songwriter Contest. Congratulations guy who won, your parents must be so proud!

More results. Cookie survives The Curse of Going Second on Top Five Week, and it looks like his mom borrowed some of his black nailpolish. (Oh crap, my future MIL is edgier than I am.)

Brooke & Syesha are called center stage. Notice that they are never officially declared the bottom two. Because there's still a good half hour to kill, they are temporarily sent to the couches. Brooke says, "We'll stay as long as we can." Aw!

Natasha Bedingfield performs "Pocket Full of Sunshine" in a horrible Brooke-esque outfit. I like Natasha, but the whole thing pretty much blows. She then gets cuddly with Archie on the couches. Creepy.

Oh God, we still have the "live" call-in segment to get through, and this time the contestants get no love, as all of the questions are directed to the judges table:

-10-year old Michael from Landcaster wants to know why Paula always gives everyone a break. It's because she's the Anti-Simon, Mikey. Everyone's got a role in this thing.

-Miranda from Louisiana wants to know if Paula plans to do another wind-blowing music video with Randy. Simon crosses his fingers, and Paula says she plans to keep on Dancing Like There's No Tomorrow.

-Tara Miller wants to know if Simon remembers their kiss in his garden when he was nine, or if locking lips with Paula has erased that memory. Simon remembers her, and asks if she still looks cute. Ryan wants to know if kissing Simon is really as good as his fantasies.

Hybrid Ford Video to the tune of "Catch the Wind" in which the Idols transform a run-down part of town into...a run-down part of town with some trees and less smog and trash. This might have been a good one for Earth Day last week, geniuses.

Neil Diamond forgoes a sparkly shirt with fringe in favor of a Johnny Cash Man in Black outfit instead. This disappoints me. He sings "Pretty Amazing Grace" and looks to have aged 15 years since he mentored the contestants on Saturday. I suddenly have a horrible vision of D-Cook as a wrinkly old man rocker.

After over 45 million votes, we say goodbye to Brooke who has to choke through tears to reprise "I Am, I Said." Oh boy. At least hubby can cut his hair now.

Diamond in the Rough?

Once again I braved the heat, the multiple hours of waiting in line, the Arch Angels (way more intimidating than the Hells Angels IMO), and risked losing my snark cred to bring you my front-row rehearsal report. The front row does not come without a price, dear reader. Not only does it involve dressing like Britney Spears (it's sleepingbeauty, bitch!) but this week I had to deal with the Ryan Seacrest Fan Club (Amazon blondes who kept edging me out and screaming "I love you Ryan!" over and over and over and over and I'm not kidding over and over and over...and OMG shut-the-hell-up over again) as well as a gaggle of the most clueless brunettes I've ever encountered. Should the curse of the top 5 strike again, I doubt I will be able to put up with this crap. (In case you are as clueless as the brunettes on this one, EVERY contestant who has ever performed second during top 5 week has been eliminated the next night. My man performed in the spot of doom. So for everyone's sake, you better hope DC is exempt from the curse. Honest to blog.)

Before we get to the performance reviews, here are some behind-the-scenes tidbits:

Paula Abdul made a special appearance in the studio. Normally the judges aren't in the studio during rehearsals (they have sit-ins) but she came in and silently hugged half the audience (including those damn brunettes) and tripped in her monstrous stilettos.

David Hernandez was in the rehearsal audience. Some people (guess who?) didn't know who he was, despite the fact that he performed on that very stage not two months ago.

Nigel was sporting some sort of bandage on his hand. When asked what happened he replied, "Surgery."

David Cook was the first to be spotted waiting in the wings and when people began waving at him, he waved back, and then more people started waving, and he waved at them, and then still more people waved, and so he decided to do a crazy all-over hyper wave to end the madness which was funny.

When we filmed the results package for tomorrow's show, Jason was yawning, Brooke took the longest to come out again, and D-Cook was teasing Debbie who said, "I got to touch Brad Pitt and now David Cook" to which he exclaimed, "Make the face!"

Anyways, Neil Diamond met and mentored the final five on two songs apiece. I have nothing to say about Neil except his collection of sparkly shirts is surely the envy of Kristy Lee Cook. And Ryan Seacrest. Oh, and did anyone else think Brooke sounded like a tranny when she met Neil? Scary.

Jason was up first with "Forever in Blue Jeans" in a pair of (what else?) blue jeans that fit in all right places. He sings out of the side of his mouth like a stroke victim, but still manages to look adorable. This performance was okay, and definitely better in person. I liked his little guitar swagger and the sweet smile he threw in at the end. In rehearsal the Amazons complimented his snakeskin boots and asked him for a hug before he started, and he looked down at the stage and said, "Um, I think that would be kinda awkward...How 'bout high-fives instead?" He then hand-slapped everyone in the front row, including yours truly. (I can die happily.)

Up next: Cook & Brooke, the newest superhero team. (For those of you whose Idol obsession does not extend to behind-the-scenes videos, Brooke was asked to name their superhero duo on the set of last week's Ford video and came up with "Cook & Brooke" which DC praised before looking into the camera and mouthing, "That's terrible!")

Cook is interviewed, or rather, turns the question on Seacrest, asking him how he prepared for The Diamond. The rehearsal interview is usually not the same as the one they do in the live show but this time it was.

D-Cook then rocked "I'm Alive" complete with electric guitar, his hottest rockstar look to date and flashy lights (which were fortunately briefer than the ones he blinded me with during Eleanor Rigby). I couldn't comprehend a word of this in rehearsal, so engaged was I in trying to catch his eye and deciphering the inscription on the dog tags among his 50 necklaces to verify that they were indeed the ones the Word Nerds sent him (they are). He responded to my wave with a smile this time. Due to an issue with his guitar they had him perform this a second time. As you can imagine, no one complained. I felt his live performance wasn't as strong though--his voice sounded gravely and more mumbly than usual and things weren't as amped. Also, talk about a 5 o'clock shadow! I swear he grew more facial hair in the one hour between the time I saw him and the live show.

Brooke nailed "I'm A Believer" in rehearsal, and I thought it was a very fitting Shrek soundtrack song for her. (I also gave her bonus points when she told us it was, "scary to have to sing after David Cook.") Then on camera...WTF happened? She started with wide eyes, added some crazy faces and headbobbing, forced...everything, sounded once again like Brooky the Tranny (seriously, listen to the audio alone) and then, she eventually got better as the song went on. Um, there went my Brooke-might-be-safe-this-week theory.

Archie, dressed like the Hamburgler, then decided to diva-fy the most popular bar song evah: "Sweet Caroline." Oh no he di-in't! I like my Sweet Caroline straight up with a twist of lime at 2 a.m. when the bar is closing and everyone is drunk and happy. This song was never meant to belted with goshdarn GLORY NOTES and his infamous hand-reach. That said, he sounded great. Also, ArchuD2: The Forbidden Fruit (thanks Mags!) is the only one holding true to the no-touching policy, so maybe it is a Dadchuleta rule after all.

Syesha performs "Hello Again" seated and barefoot, then rises for the big finish. (Why does this performance remind me of Fivel from American Tale? Seriously wondering...) She sounds great, but nobody cares. Seriously, people in the audience got more excited when a stagehand grossly mispronounced her name than when she finished her song, which might have been the best vocal of the night.

Ryan then consulted the judges for brief comments on the FIRST round of songs and Paula provided her take on BOTH of Jason's songs which caused a stir, awkwardness and some vicious "AI IS SCRIPTED!!!" posts online. Um, seriously people I've already attested to the fact that Ms. Abdul was in the hizzouz before the rehearsal began. The judges watch from backstage while getting their hair and make up done to get an idea of what they're going to say. It actually looked like she took notes for the purpose of being concise, and part of the reason she WASN'T on it could have had something to do with the fact that Ryan announced at least twice before that that they judges would be asked for their feedback AFTER everyone sang their second song. And yes, it's a sad day when I defend Pauler. (Must have had something to do with the fact that she was within hugging distance today.)

Castro, take two: "September Morn." He was nervous and running through the lyrics in rehearsal and told us that he "never remembers the words" and that it was even harder to have to learn two songs this week (how many times have we heard that one?). He assumed the position on his BFF The Stool and...it was kind of a mess. Better in rehearsal, but still along the lines of last week's "Memory" debacle. And what was with those hyper-hand wavers on TV? (Once again my audience managed to completely escape the hand-waving horror. Victory!)

Holy smouldering eyes Batman! D-Cook made me swoon with "All I Really Need is You" when he looked down at me with those half-lidded bedroom eyes as he sung part of it. LOOOOVES it. Pure, sweet perfection. :::Prays to iTunes gods::: Please let this be the single you release!

Ry asked Brooke about Neil during her rehearsal interview, but she was more interested in going back and forth to the piano to check if it was in tune and if the bench was positioned properly and if they placed her shoes in the right place than having a chat. Those shoes (same pumps Ryan got cheeky with during top 12 week) were once again given to Ry to...enjoy. Brooke performed "I Am, I Said" with some of the lyrics written on hand and changed NY to AZ per Neil's suggestion (I thought she was from Van Nuys?). She sounded both hoarse and screechy with a few broken notes, but it was still better than the "I'm A Believer" you saw on TV.

The Archburgler then decided to pull a Kristy Lee on us and get patriotic with "America" complete with cheesy American flag screensaver. Closer inspection of the words reveals that he's actually pandering to/preaching about immigrants. A very wise song choice indeed. In rehearsal he had a coughing fit at end of his song and tried to apologize for it along with his Forbidden Fruityness which resulted in the following: Sorry! *cough* I can't! *cough* Sorry! *cough* I'm not allowed! *cough*

Ryan gives an iTunes shout out and I get excited when I spot an adorable bro and sis from FL who I met in line that end up on camera for a good 15 seconds. Yay for them!

Syesha closes the show with one of the songs I recommended for her: "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" (thanks for listenin' girl). She asked our audience to have fun with it and clap and do the moves along with her. A grouchy stagehand questioned her decision to go barefoot again, but Sy held firm ("No, I don't have any shoes for this dress.") As I anticipated, the song was a great fit for her and she had fun with it.

On the way out I saw Brooke's husband and Jason's brother, and met Archie's aunt and model-hot cousin.

B-2 prediction: Brooke & Jason with Brooke on the outs.

Idol Headlines ~ 4/26/08 & 4/27/08

Top 5 Attend Brit Week Launch Party

Jason's Uplifting Gift from Fans

Carrie Underwood Breaks Down

Michael Johns at the White House

Preview Phil Stacey's New Album

Former Idols Perform at Christian Dove Awards

Neil Diamond Theme: Song Suggestions

Next week the top 5 will be singing the songs of Neil Diamond. It has not been confirmed if they will each be doing two songs or not. Traditionally, the top 5 have done two, however I'm leaning towards the idea that this year they might not based on the following: 1) The show is only set to be an hour (when the top 10 each performed once the show was an hour and a half). 2) There is no mention of two songs in the official press release, and the AI moderators seem to know less on the subject than I do. 3) In Carly's exit interview she mentioned that the song (singular) she had planned to do was a ballady version of "Sweet Caroline." Still, I'll list more than one song suggestion for each contestant just in case.

For me, sorting through the Neil Diamond songbook was about as enjoyable as listening to the cheesefest that is the American Idol Songwriter contest submissions. Sorry Diamond fans, but I can't honestly say I found anything I actually WANT to hear. My 7-year old daughter (who hated Hannah Montana until IGB) agrees, and suggested they do a Miley Cyrus theme instead. Somehow I think that might be preferable.

I expect to see "I'm a Believer" as the group song since this year's finalists seem to have a penchant for songs from the Shrek soundtrack, and also because "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother" (which I loathe) has already been group-numbered.

Here we go:

D-Cook (on top, 'cuz that's where I like him): "Solitary Man," "If You Know What I Mean" or "Longfellow Serenade." Best of all would be "Girl, You'll be a Woman Soon" if dedicated to the 17-year old female version of ALW.

Castro: The most obvious and fitting song for our Dreadlocked friend is UB40's version of "Red, Red Wine" which both me and my buddy IdolJenn have suggested previously. I also think that--if done in a higher key--"If I Never Knew Your Name" suits Jason's phrasing and falsetto. And finally there's "Play Me" because Jason's guitar called to say she misses his long and loving...fingers.

Brookie: I had "slowed-down version of 'Sweet Caroline' (perhaps without the "oh-oh-oh's")" written down for Brooke before I heard Carly'd planned to do it, and am sticking with it as my top choice. Then there's "You are the Best Part of Me" and "September Morning" (which requires a lyric change).

Syesha: "I've Got a Feelin' (Oh No, No)" (which also would need a lyric change) since I prefer non-ballady Syesha. Otherwise "Thank the Lord for the Night Time" (which is as close as I get to suggesting anything with religious connotations) or "Hello Again."

Archie: "Be," "The Gift of Song," and--even though it's WAYYY too schmaltzy for my taste--"Heartlight."

I am aware that my list omits the majority of Diamond's #1 hits, and I'm all right with that.

What would you like to hear?