American Idol News

posted by AINews on Aug 7

Carrie Underwood continues to make and break records on the Billboard charts. She has outlasted her competition to have the longest-running title among all of the songs that have peaked in 2007. “Before He Cheats” dips 13-16 in its 44th chart week.

That breaks a tie from last week, as the Red Jump Suit Apparatus had a 43-week run with “Face Down,” which peaked at No. 24 in April. In third place is John Mayer’s “Waiting on the World to Change,” which remained on the Hot 100 for 40 weeks, peaking at No. 14 in March. Carrie will have to remain on the Hot 100 for another 19 weeks to own the record for the longest-running song of the 21st century. The current champ is “You and Me” by Lifehouse with a 62-week stay.

posted by AINews on Aug 7

Standing outside Texas Stadium with thousands of other “American Idol” hopefuls Monday, LaCondra Davies knew she was bound for Hollywood. Again.

“I know the game now,” said Davies, 29, who was booted from the show last season after making the first cut. “You can’t give them everything at once.”

At they resumed auditions Monday for the seventh season of “American Idol,” producers from the Fox ratings juggernaut gave about 15 seconds to each of the of would-be singing stars who turned out. Last week in San Diego, more than 12,000 people showed up when the show kicked off its seven-city casting call.

Producers shied away from estimating the size of the horde that ascended on Texas Stadium, but the line stretched as wide as 30 people and snaked around a fourth of the building.

They sang (though not always well), waited and sometimes wilted under a stifling morning sun in the parking lot as they waited to get inside. Ice packs were given to some who struggled with temperatures that climbed past 90 degrees.

Dallas has proven fertile ground for “Idol” talent before. Kelly Clarkson, the first and most successful “American Idol” winner, is from the neighboring suburb of Burleson. Nikki McKibbin, who finished third to Clarkson, is from nearby Grand Prairie.

Patrick Stephens, 23, said he auditioned in Birmingham, Ala., last year only to file out “like a loser.” His approach Monday was more laid back as, like scores of others, he fiddled with an iPod - not rehearsing songs but instead watching videos of standup comedy.

“I don’t have an interesting back story if I get picked,” said Stephens, a technical recruiter from Plano.

Those who advanced Monday must still pass another audition in front of show executives before getting the chance to sing in front of judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson for the taped portions of the show.

In coming weeks, auditions will be held in Omaha, Neb.; Atlanta; Charleston, S.C.; Miami and Philadelphia. The show returns to the air in January.

posted by AINews on Aug 7

Fox’s “Idol Gives Back,” which provided millions of dollars in aid to children in extreme poverty, and HBO’s “The Addiction Project” educational campaign will receive the television academy’s 2007 Governors Award.

“We salute these programs for harnessing the power of television to educate and inform viewers about two very significant issues that touch all of us,” academy chairman Dick Askin said in announcing the award Monday.

Part concert and part public-service campaign, “Idol Gives Back” joined “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest and Ellen DeGeneres with musicians, humanitarians and corporate sponsors to raise more than $74 million for poor, homeless and sick children in the United States and Africa.

“We are so proud to have been able to leverage the power of `Idol’ with the support of our dedicated viewers across America to raise so much money and awareness for such worthwhile charitable organizations,” creator and executive producer Simon Fuller said in a statement.

“The Addiction Project,” a partnership between HBO, the National Institutes of Health and the Robert Wood Johnson foundation, included a series of documentary films and outreach events in more than 100 cities to build awareness of addiction as a chronic brain disease that responds to medical and behavioral treatments.

“It’s a topic which affects the lives of millions of Americans, and HBO considers it a privilege to have made some small contribution to helping people understand the challenges and treatment opportunities of this terrible disease,” HBO chairman and chief executive Bill Nelson said in a statement.

The Governors Award is the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences’ highest honor, recognizing the achievements of an individual, company or organization. Past recipients include Jerry Lewis for his work with the Muscular Dystrophy telethon and mtvU’s Campaign for Darfur.

The awards will be presented Sept. 8 at the creative arts Emmy ceremony, which honors technical achievements and guest actors in series.

The prime-time Emmys are scheduled to air live on Fox on Sept. 16.

posted by AINews on Aug 3

Sabrina Sloan signs with Universal Records Motown and will work on duet album with American Idol finalist Sundance Head

Sabrina Sloan, finalist from season six of the hit Fox television show American Idol, has just signed a record deal with Universal Records Motown. The first project on tap is a duet album with fellow season six contestant, Sundance Head. Recording is set to begin mid-August. The upcoming duet album is slated for release in November 2007, which will be followed by her solo album.

Speaking about the breaking news, Sloan shares, “I can’t wait to get into the studio. Sundance is an amazing talent and it’s funny that both of us joked about working together when we left the show on the same night and now here we are both signing on with Universal Records. We are thrilled!”

Just days after her departure from American Idol, Universal Records contacted Sloan’s camp. Jolene Cherry, senior VP of A&R at Universal Records Motown had seen exit interviews on television with Sloan and Sundance, and thought it would be great for the two to combine their talents. Sloan adds, “Singing duets was Jolene’s idea. She felt that the combination of our soulful voices would make for an amazing album. We all met together to kick around the concept and now we’re really excited about the direction of the record. I’m personally grateful to my attorney, Howard Siegel, for handling all the details with the Idol contract.”

Cherry says the album will be produced by Peter Collins (Bon Jovi, Rush) and include a mix of new and classic material. ”I usually am not so much in sync with things that are on American Idol,” Cherry noted, ”but both [Sloan and Head really caught my attention. I was really impressed by the quality of their vocals.”

posted by AINews on Aug 3

The X Factor and American Idol judge Simon Cowell is to make a movie set behind the scenes of a TV talent show.
The film, currently titled Star Struck, will tell the fictional story of 10 contestants in a singing contest.

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, the former Pop Idol judge said: “We want it to be the musical version of Rocky - an underdog story, a feelgood film.”

Cowell will help pick the lead characters from open auditions like those used on his talent shows.

Cowell, who will produce the film, said he wanted complete unknowns to be the stars.

‘Summer release’

“To enjoy the film, you’ve got to watch the actors and believe that they are contestants on a reality show,” he told the Hollywood Reporter.

“We always believed that a TV show like Idol would be successful. I have the same feeling about doing the movie.”

Cowell hopes the movie will be ready for release next summer, the magazine added.

Last month, he sat on the judging panel for ITV show Britain’s Got Talent, which was won by opera-singing mobile phone salesman Paul Potts.