David Cook appeared on The Fuse’s No. 1 Countdown where he talked about his eclectic taste in music.  I also love music from all genres so I think that’s pretty cool.  He also mentioned how weird it was to see his own face all over iTunes after he won American Idol – I can’t even imagine how crazy that must have been.  He credits his father for encouraging him to play the guitar and for shaping David’s musical style. 

He also talks about a lot of different topics including what it was like when he moved out on his own for the first time, what kind of instruments he’s been learning to play and which groups influenced him when he put together his own band.  It’s a fun interview, check it out!

Last night when I was looking through Twitter before I went to bed, I noticed this Tweet from American Idol winner, Jordin Sparks: “Hey everyone! Please go pre-order my new album BATTLEFIELD on iTunes now! If you do you get my new song VERTIGO! RT please! Looove you! ”

The album details on Amazon don’t include previews of the songs yet, but you can check out the tracklisting below:

1. Walking On Snow
2. Battlefield
3. Don’t Let It Go To Your Head
4. S.O.S. (Let The Music Play)
5. It Takes More
6. Watch You Go
7. No Parade
8. Let It Rain
9. Emergency (911)
10. Was I The Only One
11. Faith
12. The Cure

Have you pre-ordered the album?  I’ve noticed that the first single “Battlefield” (watch her perform it live with the Jonas Brothers) is getting more and more airplay (I can’t go shopping without hearing it).  I’m happy for her and I hope this album is a huge success.  It seems like she’s matured as an artist so I’m very interested in hearing the whole thing.

Jordin Sparks sophomore album, Battlefield, becomes available on July 21, 2009.

image: Amazon

According to Usmagazine.com, former American Idol finalist, Ace Young is engaged to his Grease co-star.  The 28-year-old has been dating Allison Fischer, 20, and says that he found his “true love in Grease.”

I don’t know how long the two have been dating but he must have met her sometime during his Broadway run between September 9, 2008 to January 4, 2009.  Anyone know some more details?  Leave them in the comments.  I know that they probably haven’t been dating long and there is an age difference but you never know – it could be true love!

Last year’s American Idol winner, David Cook, sang a version of “Billie Jean” while he was competing on the show and it was a huge hit.  I loved what he did with the classic song and I’m sure the fans on his tour were hoping he would perform it as a tribute to the late Michael Jackson. 

I saw this video on MJs Big Blog and it brought tears to my eyes.  David mentioned “Billie Jean” and the crowd went nuts with excitement but it was short lived – David said that he didn’t want to “half-ass it” since he hadn’t practiced the song in a while but, instead, he asked his audience to participate in a moment of silence as he dimmed the lights in honor of the King of Pop.  Very classy.

Mikalah Gordon, who you might remember from the fourth season of American Idol, was spotted on the red carpet at the 2009 Braylon Edwards Foundation Arts & Stars Gala in Detroit, Michigan.  It looks like it was quite an event but it also benefited a worthy cause – a portion of the evening’s proceeds went to the Music Hall, The Detroit School of Arts (DSA) and the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit. 

I lived in a suburb of Detroit for a couple years and I know that this is a city that needs a lot of support from the more affluent people in the community.  I’m glad that NFL star Braylon Edwards found a way to give back (his father, Stan Edwards, actually played for the University of Michigan and the Detroit Lions).

Former American Idol finalist, Kellie Pickler, has revealed (watch the video) that she has been dating Kid Rock for more than a year but the couple have managed to keep their relationship a secret.  What do you think of this?  I would have never paired these two up in a million years.

If she’s happy then I’m happy for her.  I just can’t get over his marriage to Pamela Anderson and how abruptly she filed for divorce.  Hopefully, things are different with Kellie.

The rest of the world has been mourning the loss of Michael Jackson and the American Idol judges are no exception.  I haven’t seen anything about Simon Cowell but I know that Randy Jackson (no relation) and Paula Abdul have voiced their sadness.

Randy told Spinner: "I am so saddened by the loss of a great idol and icon, Michael Jackson," the ‘American Idol‘ judge tells Spinner. "He was, to me, the greatest entertainer of all time. He was a huge inspiration for performers across all music genres. He taught us all how to light up the stage. Wow."

While speaking with Entertainment Tonight, Paula said: "Words cannot begin to express my heartfelt sorrow upon hearing the new of Michael Jackson’s passing. I was blessed to be able to work with, and witness first hand, his tremendous talent and growth through the years as he truly became an icon. Today we have all lost a legend who has touched each of our lives through his music and showmanship over the past five decades."

It’s been floating around that Paula, who has worked with Janet Jackson in the past, could help choreograph an episode of So You Think You Can Dance that will pay tribute to the late King of Pop.  I hope it works out – that would be amazing!

The Top 10 from the eight season of American Idol are getting ready to go on tour and during a press conference, they sang Journey’s iconic hit “Don’t Stop Believing” as a group number.  I know that the acoustics in the room aren’t all that great and they are still rehearsing but I actually thought that they sounded pretty great! 

Matt Giraud and Scott MacIntyre were on the piano providing the only music but I think that, for the most part, they all go their harmonies down.  This is such a good song so I really enjoyed listening to it. 

During the results show of So You Think You Can Dance, it was announced that the Top 13 American Idol performances during “Michael Jackson Week” would be rebroadcast by Fox this Monday at 8pm to honor the artist who tragically died yesterday.

You may remember it well since there were some stand out performances (Adam Lambert’s “Black or White” comes to mind) and two contestants were sent home that week.

Here’s a list of the performances.  Do you remember which ones you liked the most/least?  I think the encore of this episode is a really nice tribute to Michael Jackson’s career.

• Lil Rounds – “The Way You Make Me Feel”
• Scott MacIntyre – “Keep the Faith”
• Danny Gokey – “Pretty Young Thing”
• Michael Sarver – “You Are Not Alone”
• Jasmine Murray – “I’ll Be There”
• Kris Allen – “Remember the Time”
• Allison Iraheta – “Give in to Me”
• Anoop Desai – “Beat It”
• Jorge Nunez – “Never Can Say Goodbye”
• Megan Joy Corkrey – “Rockin’ Robin”
• Adam Lambert – “Black or White”
• Matt Giraud – “Human Nature”
• Alexis Grace – “Dirty Diana”

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

American Idol season 7 finalist, Syesha Mercado, has landed the role of Deena Jones in the international touring production of Dreamgirls.  I think that she’s a great fit for the role which was played by Beyoncé Knowles in the movie.

Of course, Syesha isn’t the only Idol finalist to be linked to the play.  Jennifer Hudson earned the “Best Supporting Actress” award at the 2007 Academy Awards for her break-out performance in the film adaptation. 

image: Jyle Dupuis