By MARK FRANKLIN
First, Carrie Underwood won a Grammy for the third straight year.
Then she earned my award for best interview question on Grammy night.
She was on the red carpet, being interviewed by American Idol host Ryan Seacrest, and the questions had turned personal.
Why did she come alone? Didn’t she normally show up with a romantic jock? Didn’t she like jocks in high school? Doesn’t she have lots of opportunities, pretty much her pick of men?
Carrie ran out of answers, then touched cheeks with Ryan and prepared to leave the red carpet spotlight.
“I won’t make out with you like Bikini Girl,” she said. “How’s that going?”
Touche.
Ryan’s answer: “Not so good.”
By now if you care, you know the Idols extended their streak of winning Grammys to four years.
But unless you sat through all the red carpet nonsense, you might not know that National Enquiror got it wrong when it reported that Simon paid for Fantasia’s home — surprise, surprise — or that we can soon expect new music from Paula Abdul.
Paula was the first person Ryan interviewed when the red carpet show on E! began Sunday.
Among the hard-hitting questions: Now that Simon is single, is it true he’s asked her out. Paula’s answer: “There’s some truth to that, and no truth to it … You know, Simon and I are like oil and vinegar.”
When they finally got down to talking about something other than Simon, we learned that Paula will be releasing new music in mid-March, including one track that particularly impressed Ryan.
Other Idols Ryan cornered on the red carpet:
* Jordin Sparks, who said there’s nothing between her and Chris Brown, despite their sultry performance on the Grammy-nominated hit “No Air.” Of course, neither Chris or girlfriend Rihanna showed at Sunday’s event, though both were supposed to perform. Los Angeles police announced that Brown is the subject of a felony domestic violence battery investigation.
* Jennifer Hudson, who introduced us to her fiance, David Otunga (left) and talked about moving on since the murder of her mother, brother and nephew in October.
* Fantasia, who said Ryan “shouldn’t believe everything you hear” in regards to reports that Simon paid for her house, but then added jokingly,”but if you have Simon’s number, we could call him and get a few bucks.” Then she announced that she’s started work on her third album, which she expects to be her most personal yet.
As for the Grammys, Carrie won for “Last Name,” her third straight award for Best Country Vocal Performance and her fourth Grammy in three years.
Jennifer, a sentimental favorite because of the October murders, wound up receiving the first Grammy when the pre-time show started, winning Best R&B Album for her self-titled debut.
Jordin wasn’t so fortunate, missing out of the Grammy for Best Pop Collaboration for “No Air.” That award went to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss for “Rich Woman.”
And Jennifer missed out on the other two Grammys for which she was nominated.
The Grammy for R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals went to Al Green, featuring John Legend, for “Stay With Me.” Jennifer and Fantasia had been nominated for “I’m His Only Woman.”
The Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance went to Alicia Keys for “Superwoman.” Jennifer had been nominated for “Spotlight.”
For more Grammy coverage, including a complete list of winners, visit York Weekend.
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