Former Reality Show Contestants

Hey yeah what happened to Jordis? I liked her. I guess JD is still touring with Inxs.

That's right! Jordis! Not Jordin! How easy we forget past reality show stars sometimes!

You can see pix of Taylor from his Broadway debut in "Grease" here! Looks like he is having a blast!

http://photo.wenn.com/index.php?ref=grease%20070608&version=us

Taylor also did his handprints at Planet Hollywood after the performance last night (stuck his harmonica in cement too).

I am very happy for Taylor and he looks excited to be there!! FC, have you heard how long he is scheduled to be in Grease?

I saw his show when he was here during his own tour. I enjoyed it for the most part, but I can't say I would see it more than once. It could be the music or it could be that I thought he seemed mostly detached from the audience. He sang his songs and that was about it. Maybe it is because pre-AI he spent so much time performing in small clubs and bars where the patrons do not necessarily give their full attention to the performers.

If he does well in this part, perhaps it will open other doors for him....or teach him how to act like he is thrilled to be in front of the audience where he is performing in his own show.

I'm not sure Janice. I will go check and see if I can find the dates of his run.

I have read many comments about how distant Taylor appears on stage. I had read that when he was on Good Morning America for the summer concert series the summer after he won - that he totally ignored the audience during his rehearsals even when they called out to him. I was so surprised about that.

OK, none of the articles I found at The Clack House give a closing date for him.

You can hear his opening night performance here:

http://soulthing.blogspot.com/2008/06/taylor-hicks-another-light-on-broadway.html

Off to the side you can watch a pretty bad fan video of the performance. The camera was hidden so it is hard to find him.

The reviews from his FANS are horrible. I listened to as much of it as I could. Sadly, he was terrible. He even forgot the words and he only has ONE song to sing! Nerves maybe? We will have to wait and see if he gets better.

I also just found out that the kids who won the leads on that show have been severely panned and their contracts were not renewed. Well, neither of them were my first choice. Both of my first choices came in second

I just watched that video of Taylor singing in Grease. As rough as it was, I see nothing wrong with it for being his first performance.

People forget that he about 2 weeks to get ready and he probably did it for the first time with the whole cast right then. The remainder of the cast has been doing their parts for about a year now. This was his first time.

There will be director's notes made on every performance he does for awhile. These notes will point out problems and suggest improvements. He's going to be fine.

Loved the harmonica at the end.

I heard about the harmonica. I bet that part is cool! I just couldn't watch/listen to it all. I thought he sounded really rough. I have to admit though that I love Frankie Avalon in the role in the movie and the type of voice he has for the part. Taylor just does not seem right for it and I have to admit I sure never expected Taylor to do a musical. He was always the soul man!

THey really ought to find a way to prevent recordings like this. I imagine he will be pretty good after he gets used to it.

frazzle wrote:

THey really ought to find a way to prevent recordings like this. I imagine he will be pretty good after he gets used to it.

They do try, but some of these new cameras are so small and so unobtrusive they just sneak in almost easily.

You make a good point here frazzle. It's totally unfair to film him the first time. If that's out there, people will talk negatively and not give him a chance. Personally, I think he will be really well in the next few weeks.

I think he is scheduled to do the role until sometime around the third week in September.

Go Bucky!

Quote :

Bucky Covington to make movie debut
Life will imitate art for Lyric Street recording artists Bucky Covington and Marcel when the two appear as musicians in the upcoming Hannah Montana feature film.

Their appearance comes at the personal invitation of Billy Ray Cyrus.

“I’ve never been on a movie set so I don’t know what to expect,” Covington said. “I’ve always been a fan of Billy Ray’s music, and it really is an honor for him to ask me to be a part of what is sure to be the biggest movie released next year.”...

Quote :

For The Record: Warren G, Justin Guarini, iPhones And More
Guess who got their own radio show (kind of)? “American Idol” season-one runner-up Justin Guarini. On Tuesday, the co-star of “From Justin to Kelly” will debut “The Justin Guarini Show” on BlogTalkRadio.com, where he’ll “take to the Internet airwaves to help aspiring musicians find their inner idol” by playing unsigned artists and interviewing producers, managers and agents. Whew, at least he’s not still skating along on the whole “Idol” thing.

You can watch some clips of Taylor from his opening night here:

http://www.broadwayworld.com/videoplay.cfm?colid=28810&a=on

Actually these clips look pretty good. I do just love when he wails on the harmonica!

It looks like many of the AI alums are able to make a living in the biz. I guess that bodes well for Jason, who is the only unestablished alum I'm really interested in at the moment.

If Jason wants to make a modest living as a musician (as long as he doesn't need to get rich or live in L.A. or NY) I think he can do it.

Silly me. Wrong thread. S7 is still the current cast.

Idols On Tour: Former Idol Contestants Launch Cabaret Tour in San Franscisco

Quote :

Starting July 17th, some of the eliminated Idol contestants from the first six seasons will be performing for a nine-week engagement at the Rrazz Room at Hotel Nikko in San Francisco. The city is the first stop for what producers hope will be a traveling cabaret.

Under the direction of “American Idol” pianist Michael Orland, finalists such as Gina Glocksen, Constantine Maroulis, Lisa Tucker, Christina Christian and Paris Bennett, plus a handful of less memorable names - most of whom placed between fifth and eighth in their respective seasons - will reprise the performances that got them the most votes on the series. Each week, the Rrazz Room will host three acts. The residency kicks off July 1-5 with Anwar Robinson, Lakisha Jones and Jon Peter Lewis.

Each performer will be given a 15-minute spotlight to feature songs of their choice. There is also some talk of closing each set with a couple of duets and ensemble pieces.

Quote :

Idols On Tour: Former Idol Contestants Launch Cabaret Tour in San Franscisco

What will Simon say?

Josh Gracin Expecting Baby No. 4

Quote :

Clay Aiken isn't the only American Idol alum who's a dad-to-be.

Season four finalist Josh Gracin and his wife of seven years, Ann Marie, are expecting their fourth child together, the singer's rep tells OK!.

"We're all excited about the new addition to the Gracin clan," Josh says.

Their children, Briana, 6, Landon, 2, and Gabriella, 1, he adds, "can't wait to meet their new brother or sister."

No word on a due date for the couple.

A former Marine, Josh, 27, finished in fourth place on Idol and has since found success in country music. His 2004 self-titled debut album was certified gold and spawned three top 5 hits. His second album, We Weren't Crazy, was released in April.

Hmmm, I bet Ann Marie isn't 50 either...sorry FC-I have a real problem with Clay's latest life choice.

Luca wrote:

Hmmm, I bet Ann Marie isn't 50 either...sorry FC-I have a real problem with Clay's latest life choice.

No problem Luca. I find it bizarre myself. Did you know they are supposedly already planning baby number 2?

You should join us in Clay's thread and tell us what you think. There has been good discussion in there.

Oops! I see you did!

Yes, My laydee...I had to! Bizarre definitely describes Clay's latest family enlarging plans.

Reminds me a bit of Michael Jackson's strange arrangement with his babies' Mama.

I went to see Constantine do the role of Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar the other night. The entire production was very well done.

The set was a very nice, basic, but a totally functionally design that allowed for a tremendous amount of movement on the stage. The theater was very new, had excellent acoustics and very comfortable seating. The lighting was well thought out and used to emphasis major components of the plot and expressions of the actors.

The orchestra was large and had everything from the very necessary guitars right down to French Horns and clarinets. And of course the music is so powerful from the show.

Constantine played an amazing Judas. His portrayal was one of a man who was deeply conflicted inside of himself about what was happening with the entire movement of Jesus, the crowds he drew, and how the Roman government was viewing it all. His fears for Jesus were really brought out by Constantine's movements and facial expressions. And of course the Judas role has some of the most choice songs in the show. "Heaven on their Minds" is the opening song which sets the stage for what has been going on and how Judas sees the current situation. Con's voice was totally on target as he did the storytelling so necessary to set the stage.

I think Con was exceptional on the two songs that deal with the acceptance of the 30 pieces of silver and his final deliverance of the information needed to capture Jesus. Judas is so torn and conflicted at this point that he goes down on his knees in the front part of the stage and symbolically pleads his case to the audience. It was very moving. I had to hold back from yelling out "don't do it!"

It was a very emotional journey watching this show. Con's singing and acting were first rate. The man who played Jesus, Joe Russo, has a great singing voice and played the role wonderfully. The entire cast was really good and as I said above the music was superb. It was a wonderful night at the theater for me.

That sounds awesome Lau! I am so glad you got to go and that Con did a great job and that the whole production was good! I do love that play and I think if I were an actor Judas would be the role I would want to play. His songs were always my fave on the soundtrack.

Well, good for him. By all accounts he loves this play and does it well.

This just in - wow, this has been a dark weekend among Idol alum that have my attention. One of Con's Wedding Singer co-stars died today as well as Jason's grandfather.

Blake announced in a radio interview today that he was dropped by J/Arista last week.


ETA:

From Rodney Ho at the AJC:
Blake Lewis dropped by Arista

Quote :

Lewis casually drops the news of losing his Arista deal at the 2 hours and 6 minutes mark about eight minutes into the interview: “It’s a huge success for me,” he said. “It went great.” Then he added, “I got dropped from my label two days ago. I never wanted to be with a major label. I wanted to be with an independent label. After ‘American Idol,’ I was forced into the deal. I still got 80% percent control of my record and making a record I’m really proud of… I don’t feel I got the support I needed at that record label. It’s a good thing.”

I just read about it over on Chris Sligh's blog a little while ago.

It's a vicious circle. It's very difficult to have a truly successful CD unless you have great promotion and radio airplay. But you aren't going to get great promotion and radio airplay unless you have a truly successful CD.