Why are all the Staples videos just trickling in one by one??? Anyway, here’s the much delayed Idol Tracker interviews conducted by Richard Rushfield. i’ve embedded A/K/A, but you can catch the interviews with the other idols from this link (I hate that page btw – why couldn’t he keep the videos on YouTube – it’s running some kind of script that makes my browser slow down to a crawl & become unresponsive).
“The Resistance” by Muse drops in September. The first single released is “United States of Eurasia” and I’m loving how it sounds so much like Queen when they hit the chorus!
So, here’s the last of the Dish of Salt Adam & Kris answer fan questions videos. Accesshollywood.com’s Laura Saltman caught up with Adam & Kris when they picked up their new Fords last week and managed to score some time with them.
Being an “American Idol” finalist has its perks — like getting to pick your own new car from Ford. But who picked what? Plus, Adam and Kris answer fan questions that were received via Twitter.
As charming as ever A transcript is helpfully provided by Lyndsey Parker, so go read the whole article on the RealityRocks blog.
“Contrary to popular belief, I do not do drag. I’ve done it like, two or three times for Halloween, and just because I’m wearing makeup and weird clothes does not make it drag. People, get your terms straight, all right?”
The new single “Still Unbroken” from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s upcoming new album “God & Guns” out 9.29.09 is available as a free download from RoadRunner Records! Just follow the link and fill out the little form.
It’s DAY ELEVEN of the American Idols Season 8 Live! Tour at the Jobing.Com Arena (Glendale, AZ). I’m gathering all the articles/reviews/videos/interviews here. All tweets are left behind in this post. For a round-up of Tour/Album news for Adam and Kris, click here.
* There was a LOT of late print media from San Diego, so check on this link to catch up with any that you may have missed.
Fair warning : I only care about Adam/Kris/Allison…
Check back – once they are up, All PERFORMANCE VIDEOS (Adam/Kris/Allison) will be on PAGE 2. The Rest of the Top 10 will be on PAGE 3.
So, how did the Season 8 AI runnerup start his improbable journey?
“Well, I drove up from L.A. with a couple of friends and we stayed at my mom’s house in Burlingame,” he said. “Right now the whole year is kind of a blur. “But I was so nervous the night before that I couldn’t fall asleep. Maybe I slept an hour all night. That morning we went over to the Cow Palace and I was so tired I maybe got another hour’s nap while were waiting in line.” “The first song I sang – not in front of the judges – was (I Make You) ’Crazy’ by Gnarles Barkeley. Remember there are a lot of previous rounds before they advance you to be on camera in front of the judges.” “My biggest fear was that they wouldn’t get it. But fortunately they did. When I finally got in front of the judges I sang “Rock With You” by Michael Jackson and “Bohemian Rhapsody” (Queen) which is the song they showed on TV.” “The funny part is that on TV you see Paula rocking out and she is actually dancing to ‘Rock With You’ not ‘Bohemian Rhapsody.’ She probably looks a little coo-coo doing that.”
“There’s a lot of made-up stories about how me and Adam are behind the scenes, like, punching each other and fighting. And me and Adam are like, ‘Uh, hi, guys! We’re buddies! We’re cool!’ ” Gokey insisted.
The reluctant Danny and Adam fans finally came around when Lambert’s Twitter account was hacked (in an unrelated incident) and saw that Adam chose Danny’s account to spread the news. The two singers also began appearing in several video BubbleTweets together.
“Since the BubbleTweets, things are calming down,” Gokey said. “I’ve seen on my Twitter account some people are saying, ‘Oh! You and Adam are cool. OK, we’re fine with that!’ “
“The other day, there was a bunch of people waiting for Adam [Lambert] at the hotel. And as kind of a practical joke, I went into the group of women, kind of really low-key, and waited with them for Adam to come,” Giraud laughed. Matt’s “low-key” disguise wasn’t as good as he thought, because it didn’t take long for the “Idol” fans to recognize him: “They knew it was me, and they were like, ‘What are you doing?’ And I was like, ‘Just waiting for Adam!’ “
But Matt’s level of commitment didn’t end there. “As [the other 'Idol' contestants] came out, I started snapping pictures, and I was like, ‘There he is!’ And I chased him onto the bus,” Matt recalled. At the end of the day, Matt says the practical jokes are all in good fun. “None of us take it too seriously, even Adam. He’ll laugh at that kind of stuff,” Giraud said, adding, “We’re having too much fun, honestly.”
- Trying out for AI, his greatest fear was that his acting career would be his biggest hurdle. “I went into it knowing I could do it,” Lambert said, “but they’re not gonna think I can. I knew that the theatre thing was going to be a stigma. They tend to be like, ‘Oh, you’re from Broadway, you can’t do that recording thing.’” - So, first thing out of the box, the judges looked at him and what did they say? “Of course, they looked at me and they said: ‘Oh, you’re from Wicked!’ I thought, ‘OK, they aren’t going to see past that.’” - After his initial audition he had two of the four judges on his side. “Randy (Jackson) and Paula (Abdul) got it right away and they were really supportive,” he admitted. “Simon (Cowell) and Kara (DioGuardi) were on the fence but they eventually went with it.” - His confidence level skyrocketed during Hollywood Week. Why? “I was really able to prove myself then,” he said. “That was the first point where I saw the competition and I thought, ‘Oh, maybe I do have a shot at this.’” - His goal in the competition? “Just to make the Top 10. That’s all I really wanted to be able to to,” he said. - He had a gameplan throughout the show. “I thought I’d just go left at least 50 percent of the time and then I’d go right to gain back any people I had lost in the voting. I just decided to go back and forth with the performances.” - And what does he think of the AI Tour? “The Tour is just great. When we get out on the stage it’s like WHOOOOAAA! It feels great.”
Thursday: How it all started on AI for Adam; Friday: Adam’s Mad World
The most difficult part of the show for her? “Oh, the song choice without a doubt,” she said. “I mean disco, come on? The Rat Pack, what’s that? And the Grand Old Opry! Not even good old country music, my God!” But that voice and stage presence got her through the competition with “Hot Stuff” (disco), “Someone to Watch Over Me” (Rat Pack) and “Blame It On Your Heart” (Grand Ole Opry). “I got a lot of help with the choice of those songs from Adam Lambert). He was a huge help to me,” she said.
TC: How’s tour bus life with Lil Rounds and Megan?
AI: Oh, it’s the party bus. We have so much fun. The guys have another bus, it’s seven guys, and then three girls on our bus. We have a lot of fun. TC: How’s the album coming along on the road?
AI: It’s coming along very well, you know, getting some songs. The recording and the writing, it’s all in the works. TC: Is there one song that sticks out to you so far that you’ve done?
AI: Not yet, not yet. We’re still trying to finish it up and find that one good one. TC: Do you have a tentative release date?
AI: The fall.
Does Kris feel any pressure to be a role model of one sort or another, as the Christian guy who’s pals with the gay guy? “No,” he answers flatly. “What would I have to be pressured about? I’m just trying to be me. If people don’t want me to be friends with Adam, that’s their problem, not mine. Adam’s an amazing person, and I’m so happy to call him one of my really good friends.”
Meanwhile, Kris is squeezing in time to write songs for his major label debut album, which is slated for a fall release by Jive Records. “I haven’t done so much co-writing in my life. That’s a little bit different for me. It’s going real well,” he says. “The multitalented musician adds, “It will have a sound that will be a surprise to people, but I think a really good surprise.”
“I actually messed up some words and I felt so bad because the band played along,” winner Kris Allen told Tarts prior to their Los Angeles show last week. “So I’m admitting that, I’m sorry.”
But age aside, if he was straight and she was single Miss Wood admitted she would totally go for “Idol” runner-up Adam Lambert.
“I probably couldn’t help myself, that guyliner is so amazing,” she gushed. “But he’s got an incredible voice, talent is very sexy. I love that he’s so androgynous, he just doesn’t care, has fun and wears whatever he wants.”
Your three solo numbers in the tour are Pink’s “So What,” Janis Joplin’s “Cry Baby” and Heart’s “Barracuda.” What made you select these particular songs?
I chose “So What” for the tour before we did it on the show. Then I was like, ‘Dang, I should have picked something else.’ But it’s a hell of a song, it’s really fun, and it’s a song that everybody knows, so I stuck with it. “Cry Baby” and “Barracuda” are the two I wanted to do on the show really badly. I got to do “Cry Baby.” I didn’t get to do “Barracuda,” but now I get to. I still love “Cry Baby,” even though I got eliminated with that song. I feel like you can do old songs and still be contemporary with yourself.
At the very least, Kris talked to me about ditching “No Boundaries,” the victory song written by judge Kara DioGuardi that both he and Adam Lambert had to perform on the show’s finale. And he followed through on his “I’ll follow you on Twitter” promise. So it wasn’t a complete wash, right?
During the Los Angeles tour stop on Thursday, Allen told MTV News, “We were talking to the tour director and stuff, and it kinda just didn’t work with the set.” Allen first replaced “No Boundaries” with the Killers anthem at the Sacramento, California, tour stop and immediately noticed a big difference in audience reaction. “Obviously, adding the Killers song was a, you know, boost in the energy,” Allen said.
In addition to the American Idols Live! shows, Allen is hard at work on his major-label debut. (In June, Kris confirmed to MTV News that he’s in the process of co-writing a song with the Fray’s Joe King.) There’s no word yet on whether this set-list switcheroo indicates that “No Boundaries” will be noticeably absent from his album when it hits stores in the fall.
Fourth-place finisher Allison Iraheta landed somewhere in the middle, entertainment-wise. Dressed all in black, she stuck to such femme rock standards as “Barracuda” and “Cry Baby.” Though she can certainly sing, she did virtually nothing to break out of the rocker-chick stereotype. She also didn’t seem particularly comfortable speaking to the crowd, which doesn’t bode well for a career as a front woman.
Of course, second-place finisher Adam Lambert already has the showman thing down pat. The screams in the arena pretty much hit ear-piercing levels when he appeared, dressed liked a character from “The Road Warrior.” Lambert is enormously confident on stage, although a suggestive bit involving the microphone stand may have been a bit much for such a family-friendly show. As a vocalist, his technical skill is astonishing, but he could learn to rein things in a bit – his manic take on Led Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love” started at the nth degree and had nowhere to go. Better was his reading of “Mad World,” in which his natural theatricality was used to spooky effect. It was the most memorable thing he did during the TV season, and it was the high point of his time on stage.
Kris Allen seemed to sneak up and claim the grand prize on “Idol” with some smart, understated performances. Perhaps because he followed Lambert on stage during Monday’s show, he emerged as decidedly unflashy and low-key. His song choices (“Hey Jude?” Matchbox Twenty?) were also wildly unadventurous, though he did have the good taste to forego “No Boundaries,” the dud of a victory song he was saddled with.
Before and after every gig on tour, Adam Lambert, Kris Allen and the rest of the contestants pose for blurry camera-phone pics, sign autographs and meet their supporters face to face in a ritual that has become as important to the “Idol” tour as the singers’ set lists. The get-together, referred to by the fans as being “At the Buses,” gives the die-hards the chance to share an iota of a moment with their favorites (as well as tossing them letters, gifts and kisses) before they jump on the tour bus to leave town.
If there’s anything Adam Lambert proved this past Thursday night during the LA concert, it’s that winning American Idol is so overrated. You don’t have to come out victorious to steal the show – just be over-the-top fabulous. If the game of popularity is measured by the shrieks of adoring fans, then Lambert has won, hands down.
… Aside from Adam, Allison seemed the most ready to tackle the stage. With a wind machine blowing her purple-and-red hair, she looked like a rock goddess complete with leather and an electric guitar. Her version of “Barracuda” was a thousand times better than it’s ever sounded on the Idol stage.
It’s certainly not an easy task to follow the likes of Lambert. It’s like having Elvis Presley as your opening act. Nonetheless, Allen seemed to hold his own. There was the little issue regarding his song “No Boundaries.” News broke a few days ago that the song was a big dud at the first couple shows of the tour and had been scrapped. Well, folks, it’s still scrapped. But Allen received the second-highest decibel reading from the fans with a solid set of songs and his wonderful, yet often meek, stage presence.
Glambert was out in full force. The sparkly green eye shadow! The razor-cut punk hair-do! The faded denim ensemble! The slashed jeans! And then there was the performance. Needless to say, 95 percent of the audience had probably never been to a gay nightclub before. Well, they have now. How he managed to pull off the provocative dance moves without insulting the array of moms and grandmas was shocking. Whether you like him or not (although, after that divalicious performance, how can you not like him?) Adam clearly stole the show, even delivering the line of the night: “You better get out of your seats, bitches! Dance!” And dance they did.
VIDEOS OF INTERVIEWS/ W/ FANS
Kris’ Radio interview with Q107.5 Memphis (Maney & Riley in the Morning)
Kris’ Radio interview from FM 100 Memphis’s Chad Pitt and Jill Bucco
Adam with fans
Adam, Michael, Anoop, Scott, Matt and Kris with fans
2009 American Idols chat with Charr Crail of eMusiConnect / EyeStreet Chronicles (This is waaay back in Sacramento – but I missed it)
TMZ Coverage of Adam & Kris Getting Their Ford Cars – I’m sure that Adam paid for the difference in $$$ and it’s sweet that Kris chose the fusion for his wife. I’m sure that if he were single, he’d have gone for the Mustang too…
Jim Cantiello Interviews (delusional BSC) Fans at the Buses (Staples) – seriously, one of the funniest vids I’ve watched from MTV (second only to that happy dance Jim did when Gokey got voted off). Jim Cantiello is hilarious (I wonder whose idea it was to have that white light shining down on the Glambert)!
Most self-effacing Idol Champ ever! Check out the article “Kris Allen: Backstage At L.A.’s Staples Center” by Lyndsey Parker where she helpfully provides a transcript since the audio is not good.
“…he was in surprisingly good spirits–and still as nice and astoundingly humble as ever–despite his recent loss. And thankfully I got a few pre-concert minutes of kick-awesome conversation with him, during which we chatted about how it felt to be headlining one of America’s biggest concert venues (although he humbly refused to consider himself the “headliner”), his new Killers cover, why “No Boundaries” got dropped from his tour setlist, and, most memorably, his grandmother. The interview was short and sweet, just like Kris.”
So, are you a fan of the TV series but never had the chance to check out the books the series is based from? Well, you can check out the first book for FREE.
“At a New York City jet-set private school populated by hard-drinking, bulimic, love-starved poor little rich kids, a clique of horrible people behave badly to one another.
An omniscient narrator sees inside the shallow hearts of popular Blair Waldorf, her stoned hottie of a boyfriend, Nate, and her former best friend Serena van der Woodsen, just expelled from boarding school and “gifted with the kind of coolness that you can’t acquire by buying the right handbag or the right pair of jeans. She was the girl every boy wants and every girl wants to be.” Everyone wears a lot of designer clothes and drinks a lot of expensive booze. Serena flirts with Nate and can’t understand why Blair is upset with her; Blair throws a big party and doesn’t invite Serena; Serena meets a cute but unpopular guy; and a few less socially blessed characters wonder about the lives of those who “have everything anyone could possibly wish for and who take it all completely for granted.”
Intercut with these exploits are excerpts from www.gossipgirl.net (the actual site launches in February), where “gossip girl” dishes the dirt on the various characters without ever revealing her own identity amongst them.
Though anyone hoping for character depth or emotional truth should look elsewhere, readers who have always wished Danielle Steel and Judith Krantz would write about teenagers are in for a superficial, nasty, guilty pleasure. The book has the effect of gossip itself once you enter it’s hard to extract yourself; teens will devour this whole. The open-ended conclusion promises a follow-up. Ages 15-up.”
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Click here to be able to read the novel, “Gossip Girl #1: A Novel”, in its entirety online (hurry, since it’s not indicated when this offer expires).
It’s not really a free e-book in the sense that you can download and read later at your leisure, but hey, beggars can’t be choosers, right?
The site uses “Open Book” technology and looks like pages of pdf actually. Very easy to use and the pages are set at 100% with clear font, so it’s no biggie And if you like it, buy it!
A transcript is helpfully provided by Lyndsey Parker, so go read the whole article on the 
