American Idol
Gossip (Page 9)

The second round of semifinal auditions on season eight of American Idol were scheduled for last night.

Unfortunately, Barack Obama decided that a nationally televised address to Congress, regarding the dire economic situation, took precedent over Paula's latest antics and Ryan's latest immature jokes.

The delay has simply increased anticipation for tonight's performances. Here's a quick rundown of who will take the stage, along with the odds of America voting each singer through to the finals:

• Nick Mitchell (10-1): Sketch comedian that goes by the alter ego "Norman Gentle."
• Adam Lambert (6-1): Theatrical, controversial, over-the-top stage actor.
• Megan Corkrey (8-1): A font designer with a two-year old son named Ryder.
• Kris Allen (20-1): Student at the University of Central Arkansas, majoring in business and not having a lot of air time so far.
• Mishavonna Henson (12-1): 18 years old, California native, long first name.
• Matt Breitzke (15-1): Likable welder, but may have lost "average Joe" status/popularity to Michael Sarver.
• Kai Kalama (22-1): Plays guitar, ukulele, bass, piano and drums.
• Jasmine Murray (5-1): Only 16 years old, adorable, strong voice.
• Jesse Langseth (17-1): Dissed by Simon during the opening auditions; brother is Grammy Award-winner Johnny Lang.
• Matt Giraud (3-1): Michigan native is a dueling piano player and early fan favorite.
• Allison Iraheta (15-1): Junior high school student that has been signing since she was five.
• Jeanine Vailles (30-1): Not a second of air time yet this season.

Matt Giraud, Adam Lambert and Jasmine Murray have each received ample screen time in their run up to tonight's semifinal performances on American Idol.

You've heard them sing in front of a national audience.

Now, let's see what the first three finalists on this season of American Idol - Danny Gokey, Alexis Grace and Michael Sarver - have to say about their experience so far. Each spoke to reporters this week about life on the show...

Gokey, on his late wife, Sophie: “I apologize to everybody if they feel like it’s shoved down in their face but it’s so fresh in my mind. It’s only been 7 months [since her death]. Honestly, this is a sob story I don’t want but it is shaping my life, and it’s causing hope for a lot of people. Now I have my mission set in stone.”

Grace, on being compared to Kelly Clarkson by Simon Cowell: "It just motivates me to do better in the competition and be myself and really connect with songs that I choose."

Sarver, on his working-class appeal: “I believe that real life people can relate to me, especially in the economy and the day that we live. It’s very difficult for a lot of people, and I see it as a chance to see someone rise from the ashes... I think people relate to that and it’s special to their hearts.”

Which of these American Idol finalists is your favorite so far? Click on each pic for an enlarged version.

American Idol fans played Simon says last night.

Despite a mediocre performance of the over-played Gavin McGraw hit "I Don't Wanna Be" on Tuesday, Michael Sarver has been voted through to season eight's final round. The main reason?

Simon Cowell pretty much told fans to vote that way.

Following Sarver's lackadaisacal audition, Cowell said this oil rig worker was a nice guy who deserved another chance; then - voila! - he becomes one of the week's top three vote getters.

Either America will do whatever Cowell says, or producers simply wanted an early upset this season. Do you think this vote was rigged?

The two most surefire contestants were also voted through to the finals. Alexis Grace and Danny Gokey deserve congratulations for making it to the round of 12.

With a special wild card round set to add a trio of finalists later this season, allow us to begin the campaign now: Anoop Desai for Wild Card!!!

Based on audience and judge reaction (with the exception of the always-grounded Simon Cowell), you'd think Danny Gokey cured cancer and ended the credit crisis in America last night.

The response to his semifinal audition on American Idol was that strong.

We thought Gokey was one of the top performers, no doubt, and we quickly voted for him to advance to the next round.

But was the rendition of Mariah Carey's "Hero" as awe-inspiring as Paula Abdul made it out to be? Can Gokey already book sold-out arenas, as the whacky judge implied? Take a look for yourself and let us know:

How far do you think Danny Gokey will advance this season on American Idol?

Tonight's American Idol marks the first round of semifinal auditions on the show. This is where the true talent portion of the show begins!

At 8 p.m., flip the channel to Fox and fire up your Internet to The Hollywood Gossip! Our staff will be live blogging the entire show - and we wanna hear from readers throughout.

Simply refresh your browser every couple of minutes during the broadcast in order to read our thoughts on the latest auditions.

Also, remember to click on the "Comments" link below and share your opinions on which singers were hits, which were misses and which insane asylum Paula Abdul should be committed to.

8:00: And... we're off! Thanks for joining us, readers. Or should I call you the "toughest judges of all," as Ryan just did? The top male, female and then next-highest overall vote-getter will move on tonight.

8:02: Simon likes Ryan's new hair. We like his eyes (did we just write that out loud?).

8:06: Jackie Tohn is up first and she has a goal with "A Little Less Conversation" by Elvis: To get Paula up off her feet. We think she has medication that takes care of that. Tohn is throaty and full of energy. She's like a sex phone operator on Red Bull.

Randy, Kara and Paula all say the voice isn't perfect, but this girl can entertain! Simon calls the song "gimmicky" and refers to Jackie as a "clown." He also hates her pants.

8:15: Ricky Braddy had to give up serving chicken fingers in order to try out for American Idol. If that doesn't move you to tears, we don't know what will.

He's singing "A Song for You," also known as "A Song No One Has Ever Heard of." Paula gives Ricky a standing ovation, while Randy says this was "the start of season eight." Ouch. Sorry, Jackie. Simon says Ricky has no charisma or star quality, but, hey, that's his only criticism. Ricky's parents are wearing "Braddy Bunch" t-shirts. We like it.

8:27: Alexis Grace recounts her first audition, when Kara told her to make love to her fiance. She's singing "Never Loved a Man" by Aretha Franklin (guess Aretha never received that same advice from Kara).

Kara and Randy dug the performance, while Paula wants to make love to Alexis. She thinks she's wonderful, beautiful and fantastic. Simon makes a comparison to Kelly Clarkson. Whoa.

Alexis' dad looks like Meatloaf.

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First, Tom Daschle.

Now, Joanna Pacitti.

Both Barack Obama and American Idol learned this month that you need to conduct research before nominating someone as Secretary of U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services and/or a season eight contestant.

Despite her name originally being included on Idol's list of top 36 contestants - which was officially announced last night - Pacitti has been disqualified from the competition.

It looks like this singer's past connections to 19 Entertainment executives, as well as a previous deal with A&M records, have finally caught up with her. Fox sent out a press release this morning that read:

“It has been determined that Joanna Pacitti is ineligible to continue in the competition."

Do you think it's fair that Pacitti got the boot? Fox announced that Felicia Barton has taken her place.

We'll find out for certain on Wednesday, but all American Idol spoilers thus far point to Kris Allen as one of season eight's final 36 contestants.

This college student auditioned for the show in Louisville, Kentucky, receiving anonymous approval from all four judges to move on to Hollywood.

Unfortunately, Kris Allen was only briefly featured during this round of try outs - as you can see below - but don't worry. We'll be hearing a lot more from him over the next few weeks...

On February 11, American Idol viewers will officially learn the identities of this season's top 36 contestants.

It's never too early to speculate about the favorites, however, as we've scoured initial auditions, conducted interviews and searched the Internet to come up with the 10 singers most likely to following in the championship footsteps of Carrie Underwood, David Cook and others.

Agree with these selections? Disagree? Send in your feedback today!

1. Lil Rounds. This Tennessee native received a standing ovation for her rendition of "I Will Always Love You" this week. A blend of Fantasia and Jennifer Hudson.

2. Danny Gokey. At 28, one of the most mature contestants. Tragic personal story, as his wife who died a month before his initial audition. Gokey's falsetto breaks in "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" suggest unique versatility.

3. Anne Marie Boskovich. Seems shy and a tad unprofessional, but can't argue with these looks and this talent.

4. Brent Keith Smith. Former contestant on Nashville Star. Country singers have a history of success (see Underwood, Carrie).

5. Kristen McNamara. See above description. Mix in attractive blonde looks.

Click on the photos above for a closer look at our (very) early top five American Idol favorites.

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Compared to season eight contestants such as Lil Rounds and Danny Gokey, aspiring singer Joanna Pacitti has scarcely been seen so far on American Idol.

But early spoilers indicate this crooner reaches the round of 36, which may create quite a stir across the Internet.

As previously reported, Pacitti has already enjoyed a career in the spotlight: she starred in a production of Annie, appeared on an MTV series and released an album under A&M Records.

To critics, this ought to disqualify Pacitti from the competition. With that in mind, we can't wait to see how they react to the following news!

Continue Reading...

True American Idol fans, those that watch this show to discover the next great singing talent, turn away now.

Train wreck-loving American Idol fans, last night's group presentations were for you!

By partnering up various contestants with one another, Fox guaranteed itself an evening of cat fights and drama... and it surely delivered!

It started with "Bikini Girl" Katrina Darrell flaking out on her teammates, refusing to learn a routine, subsequently showing up the next day unprepared and pretty much ruining her group's chances. Those 15 minutes of fame are down to single digits, bikini gal.

Watch the breakdown below, as the video also includes Tatiana del Toro going a bit insane:

There was one bright spot to group night, however: the trio that referred to itself as "Rainbow Coalition."

We love drama, but we also love Simon Cowell, who often says this is a singing competition. That point was driven home by Danny Gokey, Jamar Rogers and Taylor Vaifanua: