Well, Carrie Underwood has plenty of reasons to be pleased with the chart success of her fourth album. Let’s count the reasons why. 1. “Blown Away” debuted a number one on the Billboard 200, beating the new release from Norah Jones. It’s the third straight Carrie album to land at number one upon its release….
The remaining Idols took on two themes Wednesday, songs from California artists and songs they wish they had written. Oh, and they all took a ride on swings, an Idol first, during the duets portion of the show. See the photographic evidence below. If you missed the show recap, head here. And check back in…
Well, I could go on and on complaining about how bloated that two-hour American Idol performance show felt. I could complain about that extended in-show commercial for Rock of Ages that didn’t get interesting until Ryan appeared on the verge of proposing to Julianne Hough. And I could point out that Idol could have given…
This week, Idol makes one of its cruelest cuts of the season. Perhaps it’s second-cruelest, after the cut to get down to the 10 singers who make the American Idol summer tour. The singers who survive this week get one of those coveted trips home over the weekend. There will be parades, visits to old…
For a while earlier this year, it looked like The Voice might challenge American Idol for singing show supremacy. Then interest faded and the ratings trailed off. And The Voice has no one but itself to blame. The show took a major step backward in Season 2, continuing and expanding a flawed format designed to…
Update: Wow. Jermaine Paul? Really? I’m not even sure what to write. I mean, if I were ordering the contestants in order of worthiness, I would have had him fourth. Instead, he wins Season 2 of The Voice, followed by Juliet Simms, Tony Lucca and Chris Mann, in that order. Congrats to Jermaine. He overcame…
The song might not have thrilled Christina Aguilera, but it apparently struck a chord with an awful lot of viewers of The Voice. Tony Lucca’s folk-style version of Jay-Z’s “99 Problems” was the third-most downloaded single on iTunes as of 2 p.m. Remember, downloading the singles is one of five means of voting on The…
This week’s theme on American Idol is California Dreaming. Somehow, I imagine the only contestant with California dreams will be Jessica Sanchez. Phillip Phillips will likely be dreaming of Leesburg, Ga.; Joshua Ledet of Westlake, La.; and Hollie Cavanagh of McKinney, Texas. Because that’s where they’ll be bound if they make the final three. This…
Well, The Voice kept the music coming Monday night, didn’t it. In addition to the promised solo from each artist and in addition to the promised duet with their mentors, we got an added bonus. Each of the four finalists also sang a solo tribute to his or her mentor. In other words, one of…
Can a singer-songwriter named Tony Lucca pull off a third straight, high-energy, crowd-pleasing performance? Can opera-trained Chris Mann, no longer interesting in shrinking his voice, deliver a performance that will appeal to the masses? Can former background singer Jermaine Paul and mentor Blake Shelton finally find the right match of singer and song? And will…
