American Idol Lowdown

Some Stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 20:42:00 +0000

If anyone is still checking out this blog, I just want to say that though there has been no shortage of news, I'm just finding it hard to muster enthusiasm for AI in general.

This season I liked a couple people (Allison, Danny), but I wasn't excited about anyone.

I've been keeping up with my few favorites - Taylor Hicks, Michael Johns and Elliott Yamin. I've been fortunate enough to talk with each of them, and I am hoping for their continued success.

Michael Johns is preparing to tour with Brooke White. I've been told that the tour should start in September. I'm just waiting to hear dates.

In the meantime - on a personal note - I have been very busy. My husband and I are in the middle of an international adoption (Poland).

In fact if you are in the Seattle area and want to hear some great music (including yours truly and her husband), check out our benefit concert on August 15th. All info and tickets are available at our website - Mission To Adopt.

Michael Johns Covering Beyonce's "Put A Ring On It"

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Sun, 31 May 2009 14:38:00 +0000

My Interview With Elliott Yamin

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Sat, 16 May 2009 23:30:00 +0000

Recently I had the chance to interview season 5 3rd place runner up Elliott Yamin. Elliott was one of my favorites that season (my second favorite after Taylor Hicks). He was a pleasure to talk to.

You can read my interview on BlogCritics.

Here is an excerpt:

How do you feel this album differs from your first one?

My approach was different because I actually had a well devised plan of what I wanted the record to sound like this time around. I had more time to do that. This album differs drastically from the first one. First of all, I’ve just really grown as an artist and a writer.

I was a co-writer on a lot of these songs, and I got to arrange a lot of the vocals. I’ve really learned how to use my voice and get the best out of it in the studio. I’ve just grown up as an artist. I think it’s quite evident on this new album, which is a lot more contemporary than the first one.

Michael Johns to be on American Idol Extra

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Look for Michael Johns to perform his new single "Heart On My Sleeve" on Fox Reality Channel's American Idol Extra this Thursday - check your local listings.

The new single is currently available on iTunes and Amazon. Check it out.

Michael Johns and Carly Smithson to appear on Results Show Tomorrow

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 22:54:00 +0000

Well my time off from Idol writing is over. I had a lot going on so I decided to take a little break until performances started. So that's tonight and I should be grading the performances tomorrow.

I was a little bored with the auditions. The crazy stuff doesn't do much for me anymore and so far I haven't taken any real interest in any of the contestants that made it to the top 36.

I was not surprised at all that Joanna Pacitti was replaced. I'm just surprised she made it as far as she did. She just has too much professional experience. A lot of professionals find themselves in between recording contracts at some point in their career, so it's kind of weird she headed straight for Idol auditions.

And as my headline says - Michael Johns and Carly Smithson will be performing a duet on tomorrow's results show!

Michael Johns exclusively told EW.com -

"The thing about Idol is, if you're respectful of it, and you enjoy it, and you're a good ambassador for the show, you're in it for life."

Johns and Smithson, who finished eighth and sixth, respectively, on season 7 of Idol, had expected to appear this year during the "Hollywood Week" episodes, where they had served as ''Idol boot-camp'' mentors for the current crop of hopefuls; that footage, however, wound up on the editing-room floor. "Ken [Warwick] felt bad about it," explained Johns, and thus, the duet plans were hatched

American Idol Premiere

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 15:09:00 +0000

Last night's group of auditions - from Phoenix Arizone - were the usual fair of good and horrible. A couple weeks ago Simon Cowell had said during a press conference that they would be focusing more on the good singers that would eventually end up on the show. His reasoning was that the "bad" audition thing had worn itself out.

While I agree with him on that I didn't see any evidence that they were focusing on the good over the bad, so I was a bit disappointed so the usual fair of crazy stuff.

New judge Kara DioGuardi didn't say much...that is until the bikini girl. The bikini girl came in, obviously hoping to woo the male judges into saying yes based on her appearance. And unfortunately they did. Simon wouldn't even give a reason for his pass through to Hollywood.

This did not sit well with DioGuardi who argued with the judges and the contestant. DioGuardi may have gone a little overboard with her own singing demonstration, but it was an entertaining segment and I guess that's what we're looking for in a new judge.

I personally thought the judges should have let the guy that sang some song about a cactus through. He was a little bit over the top in his presentation, but I thought he had a pretty good voice and he was entertaining. They should have asked him to sing a regular song.

Some of the people they let through had good voices, but there wasn't much else interesting about them. I didn't think the girl witht he tatoos who sang "Barracuda" was all that great.

Overall no one left much of an impression on me. I'll be curious to see how the guy who works on the oil rig does, and also the guy with the vision impairment.

Season 8 Of American Idol Tonight!

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 02:29:00 +0000

Tonight is the season premiere of the 8th season of American Idol. Look for my weekly write-ups critiquing the performances and my overall thoughts on the show. Once competition starts I will being doing my infamous weekly report cards.

Their are a lot of changes in store for this season - wild cards, a new judge, and many more.

Michael Johns Featured on the soundtrack to Shaun White's Don't Look Down DVD

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 07:50:00 +0000

Michael Johns has three songs featured on the soundtrack to snowboarder Shaun White's "Don't Look Down" DVD.

You can listen to a track exclusivlely at Michael Johns Online. The track is called "Life is Okay" and is a duet with fellow Season 7 contestant Brooke White.

It's pretty good!

David Cook - "Happy Christmas"

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Thu, 25 Dec 2008 22:39:00 +0000

Bo Bice Interview is Published

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 19:45:00 +0000

My Bo Bice interview is now published on Blog Critics - A Conversation With Bo Bice.

Bo was very nice and very talkative. He was very open about his life and his career and was a pleasure to talk to. Be sure to check out his site to download his free Christmas Song "Verry Merry Christmas."

My Taylor Hicks interview featured on the official Idol site!

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 01:35:00 +0000

Two days before Thanksgiving I had the opportunity to interview Taylor Hicks for BlogCritics. To my surprise I just noticed the interview was featured on the official AI site in the news section.

I have been a long time fan of Taylor's, in fact he's the main reason I ever started watching Idol in the first place. I was extremely excited to finally get the chance to interview him. I had been trying for a while and it was so great for it to finally happen.

He was very friendly during the interview and very enthusiastic about his participaition in the Grease tour and his upcoming album release.

Read the entire interview here.

Coming Soon: Last Friday I had the pleasure of interviewing Bo Bice! It was another great interview that I hope to have published on BlogCritics within the next couple of days.

Michael Johns "Another Christmas" single available today

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:47:00 +0000

Just a reminder that Michael Johns' "Another Christmas" is available on iTunes today.

50% of proceeds go to the Red Cross and the other 50% go to the ALS Association.

Go to the Red Cross Blog to read about it - "Sing A Song For Michael Johns"

Michael Johns' Christmas song will be available on iTunes 12/9

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 04:11:00 +0000

Michael Johns song "Another Christmas" will be available on iTunes starting December 9th.

He will also be performing the song on Access Hollywood on December 8th.

He performed a bit of the song at the Christmas tree lighting ceremony at Legoland. He also performed "Feelin' Alright" - check Michael Johns Online for the video.

David Cook's new album sells 279,000

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:41:00 +0000

David Cooks album sold a reported 279,000 copies putting him in the #3 spot (behind Beyonce and Nickleback) on the Billboard Top 200 album chart. Though he once again debuted one spot lower on the Billboard charts than runner up David Archuleta, Cook's album sold around 100,000 more copies than Archuleta's.

The Billboard 200

#3 David Cook - David Cook

#11 David Archuleta - David Archuleta

Top Digital Albums

#1 David Cook - David Cook

Top Internet Albums

#2 David Cook - David Cook

Top Rock Albums

#2 David Cook - David Cook

Michael Johns sings "Purple Rain" in the Phillipines

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 02:42:00 +0000

"Purple Rain"

Check out Michael Johns Online for more video from the concert.

David Archuleta's Album debuts at #2

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 18:42:00 +0000

David Archuleta's self-titled debut album debuted on Billboard's Top 200 albums in the #2 spot with 183,000 in sales.

From Billboard

The next three slots on The Billboard 200 are debuts, with "American Idol" runner-up David Archuleta starting at No. 2 with his self-titled 19 Recordings/Jive album on sales of 183,000.

Michael Johns to release Christmas single

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:26:00 +0000

Michael Johns will release his original song "Another Christmas" for digital download on December 9th.

All proceeds will go to charity.

You can listen to an exclusive preview at Michael Johns Online.

David Cook on Leno tonight and David Archuleta on Ellen right now

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 19:12:00 +0000

Don't forget to tune into The Tonight show tonight to see David Cook perform.

Also

I happen to be home and I just heard Ellen (my dog likes to watch her dance) say David Archuleta is coming on today. I'll try to find some video of that later (and of David Cook as well).

I think David Cook is going to be on Regis and Kelly next week. I'll have to do some checking.

David Cook's "Light On" Video at I Heart Music

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 15:30:00 +0000

"Light On"

David Cook SNL

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 02:19:00 +0000

"Light On"

Michael Johns National Anthem at Nascar 500

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 01:50:00 +0000

From my friends at Michael Johns Online.

I know I'm a fan, but this is one of the best renditions of the National Anthem I've heard! Awesome!

Also check out MJO for Michael's pre-race songs - "Alive" "All Right Now" "All Right Now" and "Sweet Home Alabama"

Jennifer Hudson

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 01:46:00 +0000

Normally I don't like to write about the Idols' personal lives, but I just wanted to say a little something about these tragic events.

My sorrow and condolences go out to Jennifer and her family for the loss of her mother, brother and nephew. This is truly the saddest of circumstances. I sincerely hope the perpetrator(s) of this awful crime is caught and prosecuted.

News Roundup

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 01:32:00 +0000

My interview with Raine Maida - A Conversation With Raine Maida

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to interview Raine Maida. I hadn't heard of Raine prior to David Cook talking about him on Idol, but I was attracted to seek out his solo album after reading some good write-ups on it. I found Raine to be very interesting to talk to. He has a lot of perspective on the music industry. He also had a lot to say about current affairs and his social activism. Click link above to read the exclusive interview I did for BlogCritics.

David Cook will be the musical gues on Saturday Night Live on November 1st.

Saturday is a big day because also....

Kristy Lee Cook to be on Grand Ole Opry this Saturday

Michael Johns posted a new blog - he may release an original Christmas song

Also the album is coming along great. I am so happy with the songs and the sound we have. It's very soulful yet still rockin and fun. I know you guys are gonna love it. I wanted to get a single out in Nov but with all the appearances and travelling i've been doing we've run a little behind. I won't rush anything just to rush it. Besides until Jan/Feb i have the David Foster and Friends DVD coming out i have the Shaun White Don't Look Down Documentary coming out on ESPN with a full CD of songs attached too. So there is new music for yall just not my first single just yet. Also we are in talks right now to release a Christmas song i wrote. It would be an acoustic performance of the song. Its calles Another Christmas.

Carly Smithson also posted a new blog on her MySpace - she can't wait for her fans to hear her new music.

Unfortunately I didn't go to Michaels B-Day bash on Sat . I heard it was epic though from the man himself . We have just recently decided on the perfect songs for our duet so we should be going onto the studio very soon to record them . We have done two events together since the tour ended . A charity event in Orange County where I got to meet Tony Hawk and another in Vegas to launch a new Car for Toyota . Sheryl Crow , Santana and the Blue Man Group also performed . I met one of the blue men backstage . I tried to talk to him but I think he was in character cause he just stared at me and did some mime thing . Michael said they have to stay in character if their faces are blue so I left him alone

David Cook making a video for Light On

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 14:32:00 +0000

From Entertainment Weekly

With his single "Light On" just starting to impact radio, and a debut album expected to chart big when it's released next month, is it any wonder David Cook would need a venue the size of a football field for his first video? On Oct. 16, the reigning American Idol and his newly assembled band (Neal Tiemann, lead guitar; Joey Clement, bass; Kyle Peek, drums; Cook, vocals/guitar; Andy Skib, keyboards/guitar) took to the field at L.A. Valley College to film a performance clip for "Light On." But while the stadium vibe may have felt a bit like the Beatles at Shea, surprisingly, there was no audience in sight. Rather, the overnight shoot focused on Cook, who's by now well-versed in the art of emoting for the cameras, and was purposely light on extras and volume, due to the school's proximity to residential areas.

First Look at David Cook's new album

noreply@blogger.com (Sherry L) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:08:00 +0000

Track List

01 Declaration
02 Heroes
03 Light On
04 Come Back to Me
05 Life on the Moon
06 Bar-ba-sol
07 Mr. Sensitive
08 Lie
09 I Did It for You
10 Avalanche
11 Permanent
12 A Daily Anthem

BONUS TRACKThe Time Of My Life

Looks like they compromised and put Time of my Life as a bonus track.