Amid all these performances from the latest batch of Idol alums (and Carrie Underwood), there have been a few names that have gone unnoticed on the airwaves in the recent past. David Cook made it back onto the talk show circuit this morning with a performance of "Declaration" on Live with Regis and Kelly during the show's special stint in Las Vegas. Watch it below:
In the pre-performance chatter, David told Regis and Kelly about how he was successful at Blackjack thanks to being "stupid" and putting all his money in and he had been noticed twice during his time in Sin City.
Antonella Barba was one of the most talked about semifinalists in Idol's history during the show's sixth season before famously being eliminated during Top 16 week, but it was not for her performances on the stage. After being lambasted in the media for racy photos that leaked on the internet, Antonella's singing abilities were overshadowed by calls for her expulsion from the show. Now almost three years since the controversy, watch her performance of Aerosmith's "I Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" on the show making sure to focus just on her vocals below:
Antonella might not have been the strongest vocalist on her season, but she did put up a valiant effort in the face of a nationally publicized airing of dirty laundry. Still, these things happen when relatively unknowns are launched into the spotlight overnight.
Twitter is abuzz with Adam Lambert, as he is currently the #1 trending topic on the social media site following his performance at the 2009 American Music Awards. Naturally, many Idol alums have their own two cents on the extravaganza:
what's up with all the "smoke and mirrors"...whatever happened to just singing a song and selling it with the power of the lyrics?? 13 minutes ago from web
Ama's...Lambert designed all the costumes for his performance..I love the jay z song. had to blaze home to get up early. Home in 6 mins about 1 hour ago from UberTwitter
Wow..I'm just replaying it. That was absolutely horrible. I'm sure there are fans who will absolutely love it...but for me it was top 5... about 1 hour ago from web
...worst performances I've seen on a tv awards show. Let's make it clear that I'm not dissing him as a person...I hope he does great, but.. about 1 hour ago from web
..everything from the vocals & dancing to the set to the dancers...I mean everything was so just not good..o and btw it was Dr. Luke not Max about 1 hour ago from web
but...one thing is for sure...people will FOR SURE be talking about that tomorrow. And that is a darn good thing for Adam! about 1 hour ago from web
I coulda done without the sodomy, kissing the keys dude, and the S&M crap. Besides that it was great. Unfortunately that's all there was. about 1 hour ago from web
Sorry...I'm just kind of in shock at how horrible it was. My hopes were high. I really wanted Adam to be the greatest artist ever. about 1 hour ago from web
After all that he added:
I will however buy his album tomorrow...I'll let you guys know what I think...I'm sure it's great. about 1 hour ago from web
It's good to know former finalists can be candid about commenting on their peers.
Adam Lambert is the second Idol alum from the most recent season of the show to release an album as his For Your Entertainment looks to top the charts during what is traditionally the third-busiest shopping week of the year.
The album features Adam's lead single and title track "For Your Entertainment" in addition to tracks written by some big artists in their own right like "Whataya Want From Me" (P!NK), "Fever" (Lady Gaga) and "Pick U Up" (Rivers Cuomo of Weezer).
Links to purchase the aforementioned can be found below:
The only version of Entertainment featuring bonus content is the deluxe edition on iTunes, which includes two bonus tracks ("Master Plan" and "Down the Rabbit Hole") and two "behind the scenes"video segments filmed during a photo shoot and in the recording studio.
It was a big night for Idol alums at the 2009 American Music Awards, as familiar faces spanning multiple seasons of the show were on-hand to make appearances.
The night was filled with a few shockers (Who's Gloriana?) and a lot of mess ups, plus most of the performances were lackluster. Therefore, it was no surprise that most of the performances from Idol alums were considered to be among the bright spots of the night. Here's a rundown of the performances:
Daughtry was the first alum to perform at the ceremony, as the boys showcased their latest single "Life After You." Watch the performance below:
Although some might accuse it of being boring, Chris and the guys sounded as good as usual. The song will probably have a long and healthy chart life on multiple formats, and this performance will serve as a good launching pad.
Kelly Clarkson's hit single "Already Gone" received a warm reception thanks to a stringed accompaniment, which was a new approach for the performance. Watch it below:
Kelly is the original Idol, and she will always have a special place in fans' hearts. The fact that she got a standing ovation just goes to show she is one of the most respected artists in the industry, and her vocals were among the best of the night (if not the best).
Carrie Underwood delivered one of the hottest performances of her career when she took to the stage to sing "Cowboy Casanova." Watch the scorcher below:
Notice the reaction shot from Paula Abdul? Either they caught her at a bad spot or she was not impressed with the fourth season's champ. Carrie's performance is being widely considered to be one of the highlights of the show even though she didn't seem all too happy with herself judging from her reaction at the end.
And then there was Adam Lambert and his much hyped performance that everyone "would be talking about" the next day. Well, it looks like he accomplished his goal:
Sorry, everything about that was atrocious.
As for the actual awards, neither of the two Idol-related alums took home any hardware. Both Carrie and Daughtry were nominated, both of them lost to Taylor Swift. But at least now they have something in common with Michael Jackson, as the former King of Pop lost out to the up and coming country music star in the "Artist of the Year" category.
Other Idol personnel (or former personnel) were in the building, as Paula presented the category for "Favorite Band/Duo/Group" for Pop/Rock and Ryan Seacrest presented for "Artist of the Year." He was also sure to plug his "Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years Eve" special this New Year's Eve while on the stage. Kris Allen was also there to present, as he and Demi Lovato presented the "Best Female Soul/R&B Artist" award to Beyonce, who was not in the building.
There was a Blake Lewis sighting on the red carpet, and he tweeted a picture of himself with Perez Hilton. If that's what he considers to be a photo opp, then good for him.
All in all, the night was a big one for Idol performance-wise, but in the scope of things no one will really remember anything special taking place. Possibly the fact that Swift one a few too many awards, but that's nothing new.
The 2009 AMAs were held at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, Calif., and was broadcast on ABC.
In what will most likely be the second-biggest opening sales week for an album by an Idol alum this quarter, Adam Lambert's For Your Entertainment hits store shelves for one of the traditionally biggest sales weeks of the year.
One thing that will help Adam greatly in his quest to move the most units possible is the media' fascination with him as a person. He is the most talked about finalist to ever grace the Idol stage, which has allowed him to snag some of the most coveted promotional outlets available including a high profile performance at tonight's American Music Awards. Other big appearances coming up include Good Morning America and The Late Show with David Letterman on Wednesday and Ellen on Tues., Dec. 1.
There are some causes for concern, however, as Adam's lead single "For Your Entertainment" has been shown no love at radio to this point and the track's sales have been much lower than anticipated. Similarly, Adam's "Time For Miracles" from the 2012 soundtrack fell drastically after opening with 46.5k downloads. When sizing these sales data up with Adam's post-Idol sales, which were noticeably below winner Kris Allen's sales on average considering the attention he had even back then, the question is raised as to whether Adam's hype will translate to transactions.
But the most important factor will be whether Adam's disc will be able to stand out from a crowded roster of competition. Despite the fact that Entertainment will literally catch the eyes of shoppers thanks to its colorful cover, it may have a tougher time convincing shoppers to spend their hard-earned cash when albums from more established acts like Tom Petty, Shakira, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Beyonce, and popular newcomers like Susan Boyle and Jay Sean. Add in expectantly strong second week sales from albums like John Mayer's Battle Studies and there are plenty of options for music fans.
When all these factors are considered, Adam will probably have a healthy opening week that will be way ahead of past runners-up like Blake Lewis and Diana DeGarmo, but it will also most likely be below debuts from runners-up like Clay Aiken and Bo Bice. Therefore, I'm calling for Entertainment to open with 175k copies, coming in on the charts at #8.
For Your Entertainment will be out tomorrow and is now available to pre-order on Amazon.com.
The amount of Idol-related sales data available from the latest edition of the Billboard Top 200 album sales chart was even sparser this week than the last.
This time around, only the Top 20 albums had full sales data reported, which showed Carrie Underwood's Play On slide two spots to #3 with another 128.4k copies sold thanks to a sales dip of 60%. After two weeks, the album is just shy of attaining gold certification with 446.3k in the bank.
Partial chart positions and sales numbers courtesy of Rodze on Pulse as follows:
003 001 Carrie Underwood - Play On 128,443 -60% 317,695 446,254
Judging by the list of Idol alums making appearance at the 2009 American Music Awards, one would think many would be ready to take home hardware at the music event. In reality, only two are nominated (Carrie Underwood and Daughtry), and it's a good bet that neither will be victorious. My predictions are as follows:
Favorite Female Artist (Country) Reba McEntire Taylor Swift Carrie Underwood
Carrie will unfortunately suffer one more bout with "Taylor Swift-itis" this season, as she will not be enough competition for the 19-year-old, who happens to be having the best year of her young career. Swift stole Carrie's thunder at the CMA Awards in the "Female Vocalist of the Year" category, so it only seems fitting she follows suit here, especially considering the AMAs are fan-voted.
Favorite Artist (Adult Contemporary) Daughtry Jason Mraz Taylor Swift
See above.
Despite the huge probability that no Idol alums will take home awards this time around, there will be plenty of reasons for fans of the franchise to watch, mostly thanks to performances from Carrie, Daughtry, Kelly Clarkson and Adam Lambert, plus presenters like Kris Allen. So don't forget to tune in to ABC tomorrow at 8 p.m. ET for an Idol extravaganza.
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>Allison Iraheta's music video for her debut single "Friday I'll Be Over U" premiered yesterday on Yahoo! Music. Watch the video below:
Yahoo! Music also features a "making of" segment filmed during the video shoot that was released earlier this month to promote the single. Allison's debut album Just Like You will be released on Tues., Dec. 1, and can be pre-ordered on Amazon.com.
>Jordin Sparks underwent surgery to remove her appendix yesterday after she had to cancel appearances in Australia due to acute appendicitis. Now bedridden, Jordin has taken to her official Twitter account to tell fans all about the experience:
I can't keep my eyes open anymore. (rip appendix) Goodnight twittlets. <3 about 18 hours ago from Twitterrific
Jordin was cheered up to hear she received what she calls her first #1 on a U.S. Billboard chart, as "S.O.S. (Let the Music Play)" hit the top spot on the latest edition of Billboard's Dance chart.
>Rolling Stone unveiled its candidates for its "Decade End Reader Poll," in which readers are asked to vote for their top album, song and artist of the decade, and one Idol alum made the list. Kelly Clarkson is up for "Artist of the Decade" alongside such industry heavy hitters as Justin Timberlake and Bruce Springsteen. The ballot can be found here. Voting is open until Wed., Nov. 30.
>Danny Gokey premiered his new single "My Best Days Are Ahead of Me" on Los Angeles' FOX affiliate KTLA earlier this week. Listen to him perform the song live on yesterday's "The Waking Crew" morning show on 94.1 KMPS-FM below:
Danny's first single was originally slated to be the ballad "It's Only," but RCA Nashville thought better of it and swapped the "Jesus, Take the Wheel"-esque track for this uptempo offering. Looks like Danny's country career is off to a good start.
>It was announced yesterday that Jennifer Hudson's next main starring role will be as Winnie Madikizela-Mandela in the biopic Winnie. Mandela is of course the wife of former South African President Nelson Mandela. The film will be directed by Darrell Roodt and filming is set to commence in South Africa in May 2010.
IDOL LIVE is the place to stay up to date with the most current news on past, present and possibly future American Idol contestants, in addition to discussing the show in real-time as it happens.
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