Trivia Time: Which season four contestant on Idol made many a gal’s heart flutter and later played a singer on the Soap opera “The Bold and the Beautiful.”
By MARK FRANKLIN
Before American Idol’s first show this season, Simon Cowell was quoted as saying he expected a male to win the competition.
Truth be told, the gal talent has been pretty skimpy so far this season. Now we know why. The really talented gals were hanging out in Salt Lake City, waiting for the auditions there.
Wednesday night, we met Frankie Jordan, a 24-year-old from Hollywood; Megan Corkrey, a 23-year-old divorced mom; Rose Flack, a quirky 17-year-old who lost both parents by age 15, and Taylor Vaifanua, a 16-year-old whose family moved from the South Pacific islands?so she could get discovered. And they settled in Utah?
Frankie (left) is hardly a novice in the music business. Her MySpace page lists her status as unsigned, but she has released two singles for Curb Records, “Once Again” in 2006 and “Hot Girl” in 2007. You can also find videos of her singing at the House of Blues on YouTube. Soulful for sure, but another ringer? Taylor has a CD available on various Web sites as well.
Actually, the judges seemed more impressed by Rose (right) and Megan. Next week, we’ll get to see how all four do in Hollywood.
Yep, the audition shows are almost over. Just one more. And you can tell even Idol producers recognize they’re getting a little tiring by this point.
Tonight, they squeeze two cities — New York and San Juan — into one hour-long show. Very unusual for a show that specializes in stretching things out.
OK, it’s flashback time, and you know by the photo at the top of this blog that we’ve made it to season four.
That year’s finale of American Idol has always been my favorite. Maybe because the finalists were so different from those in the first three season of Idol, not to mention from one another.
It was country crooner against southern rocker, the prom queen against the renegade. There was no doubt who would be more marketable once the show ended. But even today, looking back at clips from that season, I wonder if the best performer won.
Oh, well, Carrie Underwood became the Idol and the rest is country music history. I mean, everything this gal has touched has turned to gold. (Ok, everything but Tony Romo, who continues to flop fabulously in the football games that mean the most.)
Her first album, “Some Hearts,” sold more than seven million copies and yielded three number one country hits. Her chart-topping “Before I Cheat” became an anthem for gals who’ve been done wrong by her man, inspired countless similiar songs, became a cross-over hit and spent 64 weeks on Billboard’s Top 100.
How could Carrie top that with album number two? Would she fall prey to the sophomore jinx?
Yeah, right.
Try four straight number one country singles from “Carnival Ride,” which has also gone platinum multiple times. Every time I see a photo of Carrie these days, it seems like her arms are full of trophies from the latest awards show.
Speaking of which, Carrie will be performing at the 51st annual Grammy Awards, set for Sunday, Feb. 8. She’s also nominated for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for the single “Last Name.” And you can hear her latest single, “I Told You So,” for free on her Web site.
Here’s a look back at how it all started.
Carrie talks about her first date and a guy who never asked her out again. Idiot. Then she sings “Independence Day.”
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Carrie talks about how she used to ruin every song she sang. Then belts out “Love is a Battlefield.” Then gets called “a kitten trying to be a tiger.”
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Check out Carrie’s Heart hair. And Simon makes a prediction that proves prophetic.
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Trivia answer: Constantine Maroulis, who left his gig as lead singer of the band Pray for the Soul of Betty to try out for Idol’s 2005 season. He released an album, “Constantine,” that pretty much flopped in 2007. He’ll be a special correspondent this year on “American Idol Extra” on the FOX Reality Channel. Another former Idol heartthrob, Ace Young from season five,?will also be co-hosting.
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