American Idol Season 7 finalist, Carly Smithson, has been tapped to perform during the Opening Ceremony of the 2009 State Games of America on July 30 at the Colorado Springs World Arena. 

“This will be something special for the athletes and the fans,” said Colorado Springs Sports Corporation President/CEO Tom Osborne. “Carly Smithson is one of America’s most popular performers, recognized by millions of young fans everywhere. We are grateful to our Opening Ceremony sponsor, AT&T, for its support and huge role in helping us bring Carly Smithson to the event.”

Uhhh, I love Carly Smithson and she was a real sweetheart in person (very energetic!) but I don’t know if I’d say that she was recognizable to millions just yet (although, she might quickly rise to fame as part of the new group We Are the Fallen).

I have to admit that I had never heard of this Olympic-style event so I looked it up.  It seems pretty cool.  There are a wide variety of sports to take in from archery to diving and soccer.  For more information, check out www.stategames.org! 

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

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 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.

I wanted to write about this earlier but between technical issues and a hugely busy schedule, it just didn’t happen.  As I wrote earlier, Carly Smithson has joined up with some former members of Evanescence to create a new band called “We Are the Fallen” (it was originally “The Fallen” but they had to change it because some other band claims to have had first dibs on the name).

Have you had a chance to listen to their first single “Bury Me Alive”?  If not, you can go and listen to it on their MySpace page (or listen to a live performance below).  Before I go any further, I’d like to say that I am happy for Carly and she does fit this genre and style of music.  However, this song sounds too much like something Evanescence would release and, as a result, I feel that Carly is going to have to endure endless comparisons to Amy Lee who, I believe, is an incredible singer.  It’s not even just the song, it’s the band’s image too.  I just don’t know how I feel about this yet.  I like Carly so, if it was anyone but her and I heard this on the radio, I’d say something like “what is this Evanescence rip-off.” 

Anyway, I’m going to try to keep an open mind but I’d love to hear what you have to say about it.  Leave me a comment.

Like his fellow season 7 alum, Brooke White, former American Idol finalist, Michael Johns, is releasing some music today and I’ve got to say that I’ve had the chance to preview his Hold Back My Heart album and it’s soooooo much better than I was expecting. 

Michael definitely has a great voice but my impression of his was slightly marred by the end of the competition since I think the theme weeks didn’t agree with him.  It’s clear now, however, that he’s very talented and has put out a collection of songs that are reminiscent of music from the 1960s up until today and I can definitely see myself putting this CD on and having a BBQ or heading on a fun road trip.

Here’s the tracklisting:

1. Heart on My Sleeve (download for FREE)
2. To Love Somebody 
3. Feeling Alright 
4. Little Bear 
5. Fools Gold 
6. Mountains 
7. Fire 
8. Hold Back My Heart 
9. This Is Goodbye 
10. It’s Too Late 
11. Heart Is Weak 
12. Turn To You

My favorite tracks are “Heart on My Sleeve,” “Fools Gold,” “Mountains” and “Turn to You” although I have to admit that the second half of this disc doesn’t seem as good as the first.  It’s still a pretty decent effort so I hope it does well!  Have you heard it?  What do you think?

image: Amazon

There were so many stars on the red carpet last night for the American Idol season 8 finale that I wouldn’t even dream of trying to list them here. 

Of course, there were the finalists, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert, along with the rest of the Top 13 and judges but the celebrities (and former contestants) came out in droves to see who would win the singing competition. 

It looks like season four winner, Carrie Underwood, hurt her knee somehow since she’s got her “owie” all covered up with four Hello Kitty bandaids. She still managed to look absolutely fabulous!

SEE MORE GREAT RED CARPET PICS AFTER THE JUMP!

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Can you believe the eighth season of American Idol will be over tonight?  It started with a great recap of the best judges moments from this year which, of course, included some clips of Kara DioGuardi.  I never realized how much she said “sweetie!”  Too funny!

After they checked in with the hometowns of finalists, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert, the Top 13 performed Pink’s hit song “So What?”  I am not sure why they picked this since I don’t think it works well as a group number.  It sounds kind of cheesy to be honest.  Kudos to Scott MacIntyre (Idol’s first visually impaired contestant) for navigating his way through the performance!

American Idol season 7 winner, David Cook, performed a song called “Permanent” and I really liked it.  He really is an impressive artist and I’m so happy with how great his career has progressed since the show ended.

More “Golden Idol Awards” (these are a little mean, aren’t they?).  They showed clips of the worst auditions of this season.  I am ashamed to admit that I could not stop laughing!  It great to see a whole highlight reel of Nick Mitchell/Norman Gentle material.  He won, of course

Queen Latifah took the stage along with former contestant, Lil Rounds.  They performed “Cue the Rain” and it was a pretty good performance.  Did you like it?

Jason Mraz, along with former finalists, Anoop Desai and Alexis Grace, sang his huge hit “I’m Yours” (the rest of the Top 13) and I really thought it was a bit choppy and off.  I really love Jason Mraz and he was great but it felt a little strained and weird. 

We next got to see “The Journey of Kris Allen” and those montages always give me the chills.  I love to see how far they’ve come since we first saw the finalists in the audition round.

Kris thrilled his fans by coming out on stage with Keith Urban where they sang “Kiss a Girl” and I thought it was fabulous!

The great pairing just made the girls’ group performance stand out as mediocre.  Okay, really it was mostly Jasmine Murray who was seriously struggling (as she did in the Top 13 group number earlier) as she and Megan Joy started by singing “Glamorous.”  Allison Iraheta introduced Fergie who sang “Big Girls Don’t Cry” but the action didn’t stop there. 

The rest of the Black Eyed Peas came out and they performed their new single “Boom Boom Pow.”  It was an awesome performance and, is it just me, or is Fergie looking better these days?

Yuck, we get to see Katrina “Bikini Girl” Darrell again as a nominee(and winner) for the “Golden Idol Awards” in the “Best Attitude” category.  Why does she get to sing?  Ugh.  She butchered “Vision of Love” and I’m wondering if Nick Cannon is going to come out and defend his wife, Mariah Carey’s honor this time.  Uh oh.  Kara DioGuardi, Bikini Girl’s nemesis, came out on the stage and stole the spotlight by not only outsinging her but by also flashing her own bikini on stage.  That was awesome!

Allison Iraheta and Cyndi Lauper performed “Time After Time” and I thought it was a pretty great pairing.  It was a nice, mellow performance.  There were a couple weird moments but they are both, um, unique artists so what can you expect?

After Ryan talked to Kris Allen’s parents, Danny Gokey sang “Hello” (yikes, not sure I would have been brave enough to since that song after David Cook slayed it last season) and was joined by Lionel Richie and they sang some of Richie’s other music.

We got to see “The Journey of Adam Lambert” and then he took the stage with KISS.  Does it get much better than that?  I loved his outfit too!  I absolutely LOVE KISS and the fireworks and makeup are the only thing this year that has been more over-the-top than Adam Lambert on Idol.  What a show!

Carlos Santana had the bad luck to follow KISS and Adam Lambert but he was amazing, of course.  I love Santana.  He was joined by Matt Giraud and then the rest of the Top 13 when he started playing “Smooth.”  So good. 

After a Ford commercial with Adam, Kris and David Cook, Steve Martin took the stage with Michael Sarver and Megan Joy.  It was a cute banjo/bluegrassy kind of number. 

The Top 13 guys sang a group number where they performed “If You Want My Body” and introduced Rod Stewart.  I love him too!  He sounded a little rough but who cares!?

The last “Golden Idol Award” was awarded to Tatiana Del Toro for Outstanding Female.  She ran up on stage (even though Ryan pretended he needed to go to a break), accepted her award and started signing “Saving All My Love For You.”  Gotta love Tatiana.

For one last time, the Top 2 are singing together.  Kris and Adam sang “We Are The Champions” and it was really good.  I’m freaking out.  I don’t even know who I want to win tonight. 

Over 100 million votes were cast (recording breaking!).

FIND OUT WHO WON AMERICAN IDOL AFTER THE JUMP!

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In a very short video, American Idol season 7 winner, David Cook, talked a bit about this year’s finalists, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert.  I get the impression that David realizes that Adam likely has the upper-hand in this battle and he said that, in order to be in the running, Kris needs to really focus on putting his own signature on the songs he performs.  I think that, going into the finale last year, many felt that David Archuleta was a shoo-in but Cook really was a dark horse for most of the competition and then he just came surging towards the finish line.  I am trying to remain objective.  It’s possible that Kris stands a real chance. 

He also said that he and Kimberly Caldwell remain good friends but then the interviewer said that she heard he was asking for Bikini Girl’s phone number and he told her that it’s dangerous to spread rumors like that.  No kidding!  Bikini Girl might take that seriously and show up on his doorstep!

Would you like to see more?  Check out this video of Zack Taylor talking to David Cook, Nigel Lythgoe and Michael Johns about their predictions!

With the recent outbreak of the H1N1 swine flu virus, other nations are being very cautious about who they let in to the country. The United States and  Canada have been hit the worst with the swine flu, so it’s only natural that  David Cook and David Archuleta, of season 7 on American Idol, were checked for the virus upon arriving in the Philippines on Saturday.

As soon as the two Davids made their way to their hotel rooms, quarantine officials arrived to inspect them. They were both told that if they did not cooperate with orders from the health officials, they could be held, arrested or detained.

After a few hours of examination, they were both cleared (thank goodness) and were forced to agree to terms that they would check for symptoms and watch their temperatures twice a day.

I know that there are some people who are not taking this outbreak seriously, but in reality it’s important to do as much as we can to make sure the virus doesn’t spread. I’m pretty glad that they were both checked for the swine flu and obviously that they were both cleared.

Image: Bauer-Griffin

After learning that his American Idol rival, David Cook, had tragically lost his older brother, Adam, to cancer over the weekend, David Archuleta had some kind words to share. 

"It really struck me when I heard about the news of Cook’s brother," Archuleta told Usmagazine.com.   "I know they had been struggling with it for a while, so my heart really goes out to them.  It’s so admirable the way he’s handling it though, and it’s amazing to see him there as an example for millions of other people who have also been affected the same way he and his family have."

"I’ll be keeping him in my thoughts and prayers, and hope the Cook family stays strong," he said.