AMERICAN IDOL went all Broadway last night dedicating the evening to the world’s most successful musical theatre composer Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber [ALW]. What an interesting night it was as the contestants had to sing a song out of the Lloyd Webber song book.
ALW has been the best IDOL coach yet. He is an expert at this reality show game with the British hits HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE MARIA [SOUND OF MUSIC], YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT [GREASE], ANY DREAM WILL DO [JOSEPH] and now I’D DO ANYTHING [OLIVER]. He didn’t gush over each contestant choosing instead to be enormously constructive and really helpful with making them better singers and stronger performers. With his cheeky British humour ALW gave one of the best performances of the night. The same can’t be said of all the contestants.
Syesha Mercado scored the best performance of the evening. She took an uptempo song not well known, One Rock & Roll Too Many from STARLIGHT EXPRESS, and radiated personality and talent. She performed like a true contender and should have had greater praise heaped upon her by the judges. You could hear Broadway producers drafting offers prior to her belting out her last note.
The TV Addict knows a good idea when he see it. Which is why I’m taking a page from the CW’s controversial GOSSIP GIRL ad campaign to present my very-own edition of THIS WEEK IN TV: OMFG Edition!
Teri Hatcher gets desperate for attention is exactly the type of catchy headline I’d use if it wasn’t for such a good cause. But since Hatcher headlining ‘Band From TV’ on Wednesday’s IDOL GIVES BACK benefited six incredibly worthy charities, I’ll just say this. Teri, don’t quit your day job.
As if you have to ask! New episodes of 30 ROCK, THE OFFICE, SCRUBS, ELI STONE in addition to the AMERICAN IDOL result show! Who else is counting down the minutes until 8:30PM tonight.
Over the past four weeks, TiVo has been using its second-by-second audience measurement to determine which AMERICAN IDOL performers had the highest and lowest viewership.
It turns out, this information, especially among viewers who are watching on a time shifted basis, is highly predictive of which contestant will be voted off. Viewers tend to rewind and watch their favorite performances multiple times, while fast-forwarding through the ones they don’t like. Not surprisingly, these viewing preferences correlate with voting patterns (for each week TiVo has measured). And as a result, TiVo is predicting that Syesha Mercado will be sent packing tonight.
Now, this TV Addict is all for TiVo using its second-by-second audience measurement to determine harmless things like who may-or-may not win AMERICAN IDOL. But imagine what would happen [in this purely hypothetical situation] should YOUR viewing habits fall into the wrong hands!
1. Because even though FOX is making millions off this very-special-extra-long-commercial-filled installment of IDOL GIVES BACK, six very worthy charities including The Children’s Defense Fund, Children’s Health Fund, The Global Fund, Make It Right, Malaria No More, Save the Children. will benefit greatly. [click for more on the charities]
2. We’re guaranteed to get a smile from Simon.
3. The cast of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE opens the show. And we’ve promised ourselves that this is the summer we’re finally jumping on the SYTYCD bandwagon.
For more information on tonight’s show including ways in which you can help… as if you can say no to Brad Pitt and Miley Cyrus, click here to visit americanidol.com/idolgivesback
The facts are these. Simon, Randy and especially Paula’s opinions are insignificant in the grand scheme of things. The real measure of an IDOLS’s popularity is if they get you reaching for your proverbial pocket book.
Which begs the question, one that may in fact accurately predict who will win this year’s competition. Who’s performed well enough to actually get you to head on over to iTunes and purchase a song for 99¢?
Thus far, I’ve purchased David Archuleta’s rendition of ‘Imagine,’ David Cook’s ‘Billie Jean’ and am planning to pick up [when it’s released] last night’s Jason Castro version of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’. And bonus points if you can tell me which popular TV show killed off one of their most beloved leading characters to ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow.’
As much as I’d like to take credit for the following observation, journalistic ethics preclude it. This hilarious seperated at birth is brought to you by CFRB’s Bill Caroll. Agree, Disagree, wondering when Jason Castro will stop phoning in his IDOL performances? Post away.
When Sarah Burgess made it to Hollywood Week on AMERICAN IDOL last season, she cried buckets (see Exhibit A above). But when she was cut from the competition, it was our turn to wail. Well, nobody’s bawling now, because the vivacious vocalist is back with a vengeance. She’s landed herself a management deal and a recording contract, and is currently putting the finishing touches on her debut album, ONE, which she describes as “soulful pop.” To celebrate today’s release of her new single, “Dangerouz” — which may well be the catchiest diss Christina Aguilera never recorded — theTVaddict.com’s Couch Tater sat her down for an abridged game of 20 questions.
OK, first things first — how scary is it to sing for Simon Cowell?
It’s terrifying but not so much because of him — he was actually incredibly sweet to me. It was nerve-racking because, you know, my whole life was on the line.
Were you surprised to find yourself eliminated after they’d focused on you so much during your audition episode?
I didn’t even know that I had been on so much until it was all over, because I was in Hollywood. It’s just as well I didn’t know, though, because if I had known, I might’ve been overconfident.
Why DID they cut you?
I wish I knew — even just to get the feedback — because I thought that that had been my best performance at that point. But they got rid of my whole group all at once, and all they said was thank you.
After getting the ax on Wednesday, Chikezie spent Thursday facing a fate far worse than Simon Cowell — television reporters. The following is what Chikezie had to say about his AMERICAN IDOL experience, the now infamous IDOL mosh pit and of course, his Grammy aspirations.
Along with David Cook you were one of the season’s biggest risk takers in terms of song choice and selection. I was curious about your take on both ‘She’s a Woman’ and ‘I’ve Just Seen a Face’. Did you have any idea that they would play out as they did with the judges as far as reception and would you make the same risks again if you had the chance?
Chikezie: I had absolutely no clue how the judges would feel about it and I think that was why I did it because if I knew how they would respond then, it wouldn’t be as much fun.
Chikezie, you always seem to be one of the most joyous contestants I’ve seen in any area. You always seem to be smiling and happy. Is that real? Are you really that happy of a guy or are you just a guy who kind of smiles when he’s nervous?
I don’t smile– I tend to wear my emotions on my face most of the time so if I’m nervous, you can usually tell. I’d probably be like sweating without doing any kind of work, but I tend to be pretty happy because I just feel se blessed to be in this position – to have this opportunity. I’m really, really blessed.
Welcome to theTVaddict.com’s new AMERICAN IDOL recap. As Simon likes to remind us it is a singing competition so we don’t plan to judge interviews, video packages, fashion choices or the coherency of judges…who are we kidding this is reality television!
Last night had the theme of songs from the year you were born. Birth is a celebratory event but only a few performances deserve a cigar. The clear winner of the brass ring was David Cook. This may be the first Addict recap but I have been at the front of the David Cook fan club for weeks. Cook takes risks that result in massive payoffs. He is ripping 80s pop from our walkmans and churning them out for repeat play on our iPods. His Billie Jean last night was incredible and he has managed to do what a great singer on a reality television should do, get us excited to tune in to see what he will do next week. David Cook will be on the stage of the Nokia Theatre saddled with an ill fitting finale song which may force the crown to David Archuleta.
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