Saturday, December 20, 2008

In the midst of cloudy days came a ray of sunshine!

In the midst of the cloudy days surrounding my past few months, finally a ray of sunshine shone. I got a message at the beginning of December that MTVTr3s.com took notice of my Ropa Rockero clothing and wanted to include it in their 2008 Holiday Gift Guide! On December 17th it went live!! 2 days after my birthday so that was nice! It was right on the home page in a topic titled "Need last minute gift ideas?" - on page 6 of the MTV Tr3S Holiday Gift Guide 2008 there it was, one of my Ropa Rockero shirts being recommended along with other cool items! That was definitely so cool and brought some much needed sunshine to my life. A big thank you to Sandra!

Thursday, October 23, 2008

The struggle continues for my mom

The past 2 weeks have been really hard and crazy with things going on with my mom's health. Its been a depressing time with lots of long nights of worry and despair on my end. I'm a very optimistic person but the past 2 weeks tested that as I saw my mom weak not only physically but mentally and spiritually as well. The physical weakness is to be expected after all she's been through but it was the mental and spiritual weakness that worried me because without that, one can't fight back to get better. I can understand how she got there after everything she's been through in the past few months but its still not anything you want to see a loved one go through. I felt helpless but I tried to be there for her as much as I could, to let her know that not only I was there and cared but also to remind her that she had her grand-daughters to think about and fight for. I was able to convince her to finally accept to go to a physical therapy center for rehabilitation. She had been refusing to do this for the longest and I kept on urging her to do it because at the hospital and at home, she was not going to do what she needed to do to get stronger but at a rehab place they would push her to exercise and begin moving and feeling vital again. She was transferred on Friday 10/17 to the rehab place and began her physical therapy on Monday. She's already showing signs of getting her old self back and that is such a huge relief!!! Knowing how it goes, I know that she'll have some setbacks along the way but I also know that once she begins to see some results and starts to feel better that will push her to do more and that's what we want. So, coming full circle I am back to being optimistic! Its been a crazy time but I hope to end this year with my mom home and healthy for the holidays! That's all I want right now.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Back to blogging but first let's step back a bit

Hey everyone,

Been a long time since my last post but before I begin let me just pick up where I was before... I'm glad that David Cook won. I love his song "The time of my life" and the message it has. I wish him the best in his career. David A.'s song "Crush" is nice and I wish him nothing but the best of course as I wish almost anyone striving for their dreams.

Well....

It's been a rough past few months. Before I get to that though, I must backtrack a bit to explain what else has been going on with your favorite artist (that's me I hope!). Last year was a very rough year for me, was going through a serious rough patch in my marriage that in the end worked itself out but during that time I had stopped doing my music and working with my other artists. That in turned made my year rougher as the thing that fills my soul with purpose and life had faded. As things got better on the personal front, I found myself needing to get back to that other side of my personal life that I felt I had neglected. I felt frustrated, sad and a bit angry with myself that I had let that happen but family had to come first so I don't regret that. Still, I found it hard to get back to where my head was at before 2007 happened. Slowly but surely and through much introspection and frustration, I found the artist inside and began working towards getting to work on new music and working with new artists. I must admit that it took a long while to get there, much longer than I would have ever imagined. Anyway, so here I was ready to finally get back to things when life decided to throw another curveball my way...

My mom, who had a heart attack and open heart surgery 10 years ago, began having health issues starting back in June when she passed out at her doorstep after coming home from the store on a very hot day. All sorts of tests were done including a stress test and everything seemed fine but in my heart I felt that this would only be the beginning. Man, do I hate being right! Over the past few months my mom has been hospitalized 6 - 7 times (I've lost track already!) with various problems and complications from those initial problems. Some of the more recent issues have been more serious including gall bladder surgery which she had complications from and wound in ICU for almost a week and then they found an obstruction in her artery that required an angioplasty. Even after all this, she's already been back to the hospital for stays 2x more and she's in the hospital now with another complication from everything she's been through. I tell you, its been very rough and I almost feel like a hospital worker with how much I've been to the hospital in the past few months. I've not only had to be there to keep my stepdad and brother informed and calm, informed, etc. - I've also had to do that with my own family, more specifically my girls and its been rough being strong for them and at the same time trying to keep them informed. I can't just tell them that their grandma will be ok when she keeps winding up back in the hospital so that makes it harder for me since I don't lie to my kids. Kids are smart and they can tell if you're not being straight with them so I try to be as straight with them as possible without making them worry too much. So, its been rough on all us. I've wanted to get back to my music, I feel ready, I feel its time, I feel I need to BUT I can't while all this is going on. I have to let this play out and see what God has planned for my mom and my family first and foremost.

I want to thank everyone, my friends and all my MySpace friends who have done an awesome job of lending me support and encouragement through these tough times. Its in tough times where you see who your real friends are and I feel truly blessed to have friends and fans that have taken me and my family's troubles to heart. Thank you for all the messages, e-mails, comments and prayers - it has done my soul a lot of good to see such good hearted friends and fans there for me. THANK YOU.

Sunday, May 18, 2008

America's Next Top Model crowns a new Cycle 10 winner!

Yes, I watch America's Next Top Model! Of course I do! LOL! I've watched every cycle of ANTM and this cylce's winner Whitney was a bold and brave choice by Tyra and the judges! I say bold and brave only because I totally applaud their decision to crown the plus-size (for modeling, in the real world her size 12 is pretty normal) Whitney the newest winner. It sends a great and healthy message to young girls everywhere that you don't have to starve yourself to make it in fashion and modeling. Whitney can be the role model that young girls can look up to and relate to in a real way. Kudos to Whitney and more kudos to Tyra and the judging panel on their progressive and open-minded choice.

American Idol gets down to the final 2!

I was happy to see Jason go. As much as I was a fan of his when this began, I have become that disappointed in him in recent weeks. He just doesn't seem to want a serious career. Even after being booted and doing the media rounds, he comes across as if he's not taking anything seriously. That's a shame because there are hundreds of thousands of other singers who would gladly step in his place and would take things seriously. I hope he shows some maturity and a real sense of priority to his music as he is talented and it'd be a shame to see him waste away this opportunity that has been given to him.

I was happy to see Syesha make it and do well this past week. Even though it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that she would be going home against the 2 Davids, she accounted well for herself and I hope and expect her to go on to big things with her music. Good luck Syesha!

So, it all comes down to the 2 Davids in the Finals. Not a surprise after contestants Carly and Michael were voted off. They were the serious threats to the Davids and their departures made the 2 Davids a lock IMO. Let's hope they both do better than this past week which was a bit underwhelming. I thought Syesha was the more solid of the 3 but even if she did perfect performances this week I think she still would've gone home with America voting for the more popular Davids.

I'm hoping that David Archuleta is the winner and I hope he has a great week this week. Simon and the Producers seemed to target David A. this week after news of his Dad being banned from the backstage area broke out. As bad as the Dad may be, the issue was taken care of and they shouldn't be taking it out on David A.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

The Top 4 go tonight

Yikes, been missing in action here! Doh! Sorry! Anyway, my thoughts on the last 2 weeks is that Brooke should've been gone after Broadway week. Carly should not have been sent home.

Jason should've gone last week, not Brooke. In last week's Entertainment Weekly they had an article on a week behind the scenes with the contestants and one of the revelations of the article was that Jason blew off rehearsal time to hang out with his brother and friend. Look, I know they miss their families, etc. but they are also in this to win, not to slack off now! Anyway, when the reporter asked Jason about it, he said he doesn't really care much anymore and that he's ready to go home at this point. Oh really? He's got it. There won't be another vote from this household for him. And just so you know, we take voting in this household seriously! LOL! My daughters vote after the show and they have done up to 300 votes for our past favorites such as Jordin and Carrie.

I'm hoping Syesha shines tonight so that Jason can go home as he's ready to.

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Kristy is gone and 6 go Broadway!

Kristy went home last week. Mariah week did her in, even though she did better than a few others IMO. Syesha and Brooke were indeed in the bottom 3 though and that should serve notice to them to pick up their game.

It was Broadway week and Syesha did just that IMO. Her performance began a little boring but then she picked it up and did a great job. Her vocals fit the song really well too.

Jason's performance was not the best vocally but I liked the emotion he displayed for the song and its lyrics.
I am an emotional type singer in that I like to show lots of emotion in my vocals so that the listener can hopefully feel the emotions behind my lyrics. I get that from Jason and I really like that aspect of his performance.

On a side note, it was cool to see KISS' Paul Stanley in the audience. That excited me as he's a huge idol of mine. I've had fans over the years tell me that my voice is similar to his and I consider that a compliment. I just wish I had the career he did!

Anyway, back to the show! Brooke imploded again. Her nerves are clearly getting to her. While she got praised for beginning over last time she made a mistake, you just can't keep doing that and for it to happen again just comes across as her being unprepared. It totally sent her into a small tailspin and Simon was right when he said she spent a large part of the song trying to not make anymore mistakes instead of just singing. I also didn't get the emotion from her again. She's going backwards now instead of progressing. Very disappointing.

David Archuleta must've been jumping for joy with this week in line to do. He did a great job as usual.

Carly oversang a bit in the middle of the song but sounded strong and solid.

David Cook was very good.

Bottom 2 is Jason and Brooke with a toss-up for Carly or Syesha for the 3rd but safe person. It can go either way but with this being Brooke's 2nd bad week in a row and probable 2nd straight week in the bottom 2, I think Brooke goes home before she has a breakdown on stage.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Michael is gone and the Lucky 7 sing Mariah!

I had 2 out of the 3 bottom contestants right last week but I didn't see Michael Johns going yet at all. By all the talk on the local radio stations, the DJs and women all loved him. It seems the same can be said about David Cook so hopefully he goes too! LOL! Yeah, I know... bad Mario!

Last night's mentor was Mariah Carey and I figured it would be an interesting night of hits and misses and I was right. I'm a big Mariah Carey fan and was a huge fan of her older material early in her career. I hated to see her go through all she did after doing "Glitter" and her breakdown but I'm glad that she's come back stronger and better. I'm also really happy to see her back to the style of singing where she is using her full vocals instead of the light singing she was doing in recent years. As a mentor she did a good job. She came across very down to earth and she was very helpful to the contestants in giving them ideas and melody lines for their ideas for her song. It was all very interesting to see and must've been a great experience for the contestants.

David Archuleta was in full effect doing "If you believe" from the movie "Prince of Egypt" which Mariah dueted with Whitney Houston. Great way to start the show.

Carly did "Without you" and while it was good, I agree with Simon in that it sounded as if it never really got where it needed to go.

Syesha took on "Vanishing" and while they kept saying she was smart for picking a lesser known Mariah song, with 160 million albums sold world-wide I think there are not many lesser known songs of Mariah's. For true Mariah fans, this song is a favorite because it is such a great song with amazing vocals. Syesha did a nice job but she didn't get the song where Mariah got it and that is probably enough to turn off Mariah fans to voting for Syesha.

Brooke's performance of "Hero" just left me flat. She was overly nervous, her voice never seemed to be in the right key and it was just a very disappointing performance.

Kristy's version of "Forever" was nice. She keeps soldifying who she is as an artist even if she isn't the best. That is an important quality that she is showing and will help her score a record deal in the near future.

I didn't like David Cook's version of "Always be my baby" at all. It was definitely original though! ;)

On the other hand, I loved Jason Castro's version of "I don't want to cry".

So who goes to the bottom? IMHO, I think the bottom 3 will be Brooke, Carly and Syesha although everyone is in danger except for Archuleta. I think Brooke gets to go home 1 week too late. (She was upset this week because she missed her sister's wedding).

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Ramiele is gone and the Top 8 do inspirational songs

Ramiele was sent home last week and unfortunately it was time. She was clearly not ready and not yet sure of her identity and how to use her vocals to their best light. She's a cutie though so we'll hear plenty from her in the future.

Last night the Top 8 did Inspirational songs to kick off "Idol Gives Back" week. As those of you who follow me and my music know, I love to write inspirational music. I truly believe that music has the power to heal, inspire, motivate, move and bring positivity to society and always try to have positive messages in my music. Even in seemingly dark material of mine, that is usually just a superficial layer that if you look past it and dig a little deeper into my lyrics you will see a hidden positive message. My lyrics are a reflection on my personality and how I view things and being an optimistic and positive person, I like to let that be seen through my lyrics. So, with all that said, I was happy to hear last night's theme and am looking forward to "Idol gives back" tonight.

Michael chose "Dream on" and I found it good until the end when he tried to hit the Steve Tyler falsetto screams. Uh no, shouldn't have tried that. No no no. LOL!

Poor choice of song for Syesha to pick Fantasia's "I believe". That is a song so closely associated with an AI winner that it shouldn't even be considered because you will be compared harshly and rightfully so. Fantasia also has a very unique voice which makes the comparison stand out even more. I totally agreed with Randy and Simon in that I also found that she was doing a very good talent show performance but that she totally lacked Fantasia's emotional connection and conviction to the song that made Fantasia's version so special. Syesha continues to pick BIG songs and they are poor choices.

Jason's "Somewhere over the rainbow" was very very good. I'm glad the judges loved it too.

I love Martina McBride's "Anyway", it has an awesome positive message that helped me get through some rough times last year so I was happy to hear Kristy do a very good job with the song. Kristy continues to make very good song choices and she is really connecting with who she is and wants to be. Syesha should take notes.

David Cook's version of "Innocent" was interesting. I'll leave it at that.

I am a HUGE Queen and Freddie Mercury fan and I thought Carly would do well with "The show must go on" but that song swallowed her alive. It was her worst performance IMO. Very disappointed by her performance.

David Archuleta's version of "Angels" was excellent. 'Nuff said.

"You've got a friend" is a song that I did with my band Vogue's Rogues on our "Desecration of an Innocent World" CD so its obviously a song near and dear to me. Brooke's performance was nice but felt a little mechanical for some reason. I'm just not seeing a lot of the emotional connections to the songs that she was getting before. I hope she can get that back soon.

With it being "Idol gives back" tonight, I don't expect anyone to go home but if they were to have a bottom 3, for me it would be David Cook, Syesha and Carly with Syesha going home.

No one will be going home tonight which will make tonight all the more easier to enjoy.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Top 9 is reached and Dolly Parton night?

Hey, I was 2 for 3 with last week's bottom 3. Ramiele squeaks by again and Syesha is again shown no love. It was Chikezie's time though and he knew it. Good luck Chikezie Eze! Gotta love that name!! :)

The Top 9 performed last night and it was Dolly Parton week! Kind of a weird choice for theme of the week but she is a good mentor and legend in the business and that came across well last night.

The performances were a bit scattered all over the place all night long though.

Brooke opened the show and her performance was solid but not exciting. I'm not seeing the emotion of the songs coming through on her performances and that is going to hurt her soon. She needs to connect better with the songs to get the most out of them. She'll be safe though.

David Cook didn't impress me with his arrangement, the vocals were interesting. After last week's Chris Cornell rip-off and not giving credit where it was due, I watched him with disappointment and skepticism last night. It'll take a while for me to warm up to him again.
Bad news for David after the show where he was rushed to the hospital with a high blood pressure. From what I read, he has a relative battling cancer and the person is having a hard time recently and that combined with the pressure and tension from being on the show, etc. seems to be taking its toll. I hope David can deal with it all and that his relative gets better.

Ramiele was better last night. She seemed focused and confident and her vocals were good. She still needs to pick better songs to really show what she can do.

Jason seemed back to his singer-songwriter style last night and gave a solid performance.

I loved Carly's performance and vocals. I also thought that last night she looked the best she has looked so far, I don't know what Simon was talking about but Simon and fashion are 2 things that don't exactly go together. LOL!

David Archuleta's vocal performance was great, loved it. Best of the night. The tone he has in his vocals is amazing. He is definitely blessed with an amazing voice. I was glad to see him with a slower tempo song since he reminds me of Josh Groban and that style of song is perfect to show off his voice.

Kristy sounded good and with it being a country themed week she should be safe this week.

Syesha made a poor choice of picking a song that most people associate with Whitney Houston. Trying to do a mix of Dolly and Whitney's version just left certain parts sounding empty and other parts not full enough. She picked a song way too big for her.

Michael sounded great and I was very impressed with the performance.

Bottom 3 is difficult so I'll pick Syesha, Jason and Brooke. Although picking the bottom 3 is hard this week, picking who is going home seems easy. Bye bye Syesha.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

The Top 10 does their birth year songs

Interesting theme for the night. The judges seemed a bit passive tonight and the performances were on and off all night. Not the best AI night for sure.

First we got Ramiele doing Heart's "Alone" which was a risky choice considering that song distinguished Carrie Underwood as a frontrunner when she did it. Ramiele was said to be sick and I can see how that probably affected her singing and pitch but still, the song seemed too big for her. She did some nice solid big notes in there though. All in all, I am becoming more disappointed with Rami as she still hasn't stepped it up like she should be able to. It seems she doesn't know how to pick a song to best highlight her vocals.

Jason's version of Enrique Iglesias doing "Fragile" was not good. "Fragile" is such a great song, one of my all-time faves so I was hoping Jason, who I have been a fan of would do something good with it. However, it never reached where he was trying to go with it. Hearing Jason agree with Simon that his guitar playing was sloppy and that maybe he should've practiced more really disappointed me. Is Jason getting complacent this early in the show? Not good.

Syesha sounded great. Very professional sounding vocals and performance. She has stepped it up since being in the bottom 3 in the first week. Good for her.

Chikezie sounded good last night as well, even though Randy and Simon didn't seem to like it.

I was not crazy about Brooke's performance. Maybe it was like with "Fragile" in that "Every breath you take" is one of my all-time favorite songs and The Police and Sting are 2 of my favorite artists. Just sounded like Brooke never got on the attack with the song and that lack of edge and urgency that Sting brings to the song was very missing IMO.

Michael was very good and has shown that he can do Queen well. IMO Queen should consider approaching him for the band as he is a much better choice than Paul Rodgers who made me cringe trying to Queen songs. I am a HUGE fan of Queen and especially Freddie Mercury and only George Michael had impressed me up to this point doing Queen songs. After last night though, although he's not nearly in the same league as Freddie or George, I think he would make a good frontman for Queen.

Carly, why did you have to pick "Total eclipse of the heart" to sing? Aaaaaah! That is one song that I have heard so much in my life that if I never hear it again in my life that is a-ok with me! LOL! Man, she deserves to be in the bottom 3 just for picking this song! Ok, not really but it was brutal to sit through hearing that song. LOL!

What did David A. sing? Seems very few know! Listening to the radio this morning, the DJs were discussing it and one of them actually knew the song and mentioned how this song spent 20 weeks at #1 in Australia where the artist is from. It was an ok performance. Hard to compare it to anything though. Simon made a comment of how he'd be shocked if David picked this song and the DJs mentioned how it was a dig by Simon at David's dad who is rumored to be picking the songs for David to sing. Interesting.

Kristy made a great choice to pick a song that would be hard to get her voted off. Simon was right to say that it may have been the smartest song choice a contestant has ever picked. I love that song too.

I wasn't crazy about David Cook's performance and even more so since he didn't give Chris Cornell any credit for the song idea. For those that don't know, Chris Cornell did the original rock version of this song that David C. did last night. Chris' version is much better. Not cool of David to not give credit where its due, especially since you're covering the person's version of it.



All in all, I didn't like last night much. My bottom 3 picks are Ramiele, Chikezie and Jason. Jason is safe and Chikezie goes home.

Thursday, March 20, 2008

AI Eliminations - Top 10 is reached!

Tonight was the AI eliminations to get to the top 10 and what a weird show it was.

The opening show Beatles medley was not very good. They should just scratch that one right off the tour IMO.

I had 2 out of 3 right. Carly was just a crazy pick by America to be in the bottom 3. Very strange. Thankfully she was saved. However, so was Kristy. She was last contestant standing again and she even mentioned that yesterday in her video clip. I was not sad to see Amanda go at this point. She just was too uncompromising and not really offering any different looks or sounds. I'm sure we'll hear some more from her in the future but she'll need to listen to people in the business when they tell her to change things up a bit. Only AC/DC can get away from doing the same things year after year. :)

America may have had the bottom 3 a bit off but they weren't wrong in their choice of who to send home. Good luck Amanda!

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

AI does Beatles x 11!

Another night of AI doing Beatles songs! Fun! Not really. LOL! Not the biggest Beatles fan and it led to me agreeing with Simon more than ever last night! Blech! LOL!

Amanda opened the show and I hate to say it because I liked her whole rocker chick vibe and look but I agree with Simon in that she needs to change it up. Her performances are becoming more and more like one big performance and unfortunately you've seen one performance and you've seen them all. I hope she changes things a bit. Her voice reminds me of Dilana who was on RockStar INXS except that Dilana knew how to use her look and voice to its best advantage. Let's see if Amanda can change before its too late. I did like her defense of trying to show what it would be like to see her in a show but she also has to adapt a little to the show that she's on. Like Chris Daughtry did, he never changed who he was but adapted the songs within the show's format, etc. to show him in his true form.

Kristy went next and while her voice was better, her performance was rather bland. She just needs more experience.

David A. is back as I knew he would be. There was no way he'd have 2 bad performances in a row and he didn't disappoint. Great song choice and very good performance.

Michael just didn't do anything for me again with another indulgent song choice. Its cool to do songs that mean something to you as you can give more emotion to the lyrics but at the same time, this is a competition and he needs to draw the line at doing indulgent songs as opposed to doing songs that can really let him show off his vocals.

I liked Brooke's song choice and the performance was nice BUT it did seem a bit too cutesy, as was some of her faces up there when the judges were offering their critique. It wasn't nearly on the level of Melinda Doolittle's "aw shucks" attitude but it was getting in that area. I'm glad to hear her say that she would be getting back to her style of performing next week. I assume that means she'll go back to playing behind a guitar doing her best Phoebe from "Friends" impersonation! =)

David Cook was good but he also has to change it up a little. I think last week's judge's glowing comments went to his head a bit. This week should help humble him a bit.

Carly was very good! Loved her explanation for picking the song "Blackbird". Something that all artists can relate to. I still don't understand how Simon works with artists since he just doesn't show that he understands or can relate to them the way Randy and Paula do.

I was not crazy about Jason's song choice or performance. I'm still a big fan though.

Syesha totally redeemed herself last night with that performance of "Yesterday". I loved everything about her performance, she was very into the song and it showed.

I liked Chikezie's vocals until the song went all country again. Not sure what to make of the whole thing. It left me with mixed feelings. I hope he's safe though.

Ramiele's song choice was more upbeat but it still bored me a little which is disappointing because I really like her.

Bottom 3 is interesting to pick this week as few were really good. I'll say that Chikezie, Kristy and Amanda are the bottom 3. Amanda will be safe and Chikezie will go home. :(

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Wk. 1 - The Final 12 goes down to 11

I was 3 for 3 but I got the safe person and person exiting wrong. :(

David should've been the safe one. I don't think he deserved to go yet and wonder if this vote for the worst crappola that seems to go on every year is already rearing its ugly head. Based on the performances, Kristy should've gone but maybe David's controversy caught up to him. We'll see if another bad performance goes unpunished next week.

Syesha seems to have been handed a little humility and hopefully she steps it up next week.

Oh well. I think we'll hear a little more from David H. in the future.

Wk. 1 - The Final 12 sings!

They introduced the new set and I liked it. Not a drastic change except for the band and the audience being much closer to the stage and around the judges. The band so spread apart is kind of weird but it works for the show.

Big night for AI with being able to do songs off the Lennon & McCartney catalogue. BIG songs! Admittedly, I'm not the biggest Beatles fan but I do respect their music and lyrics especially. For those of you that follow my music, you know that my lyrics tend to lean towards deeper topics so I definitely appreciate their lyrics. I agree with Simon that these songs can be tough if you pick the wrong songs.

Syesha started off the show and I liked that she undersung for once but it seemed like that made her boring. I think the song was too big for her and her performance was forgettable. That's what you don't want to be on AI.

Chikezie absolutely did a Charlie Brown on the pitcher's mound to me and blew my socks off! :D
His arrangement was amazing as was his performance. IMO he was the performer of the night and had every reason to be as happy about it as he was.

Ramiele needs to stop singing about losing her friends that she's just barely begun knowing on the show and start concentrating on the fact that this can make a career for her! She really needs to step it up! C'mon Ramiele!!

Jason continues to provide solid singer/songwriter performances. I'm a fan!

Carly was very good but I wasn't overly thrilled with her performance for some reason.

David Cook has improved with each show IMO and he definitely is becoming a dark horse in this competition. Another very good performance.

I'm a fan of Brooke's and I loved her emotional, heart-felt rendition of "Let it be" which is one of the greatest songs ever written IMO. I love that she also played the piano. Randy's comment that this was probably something she has dreamed about since she was a kid was so right on. Randy always seems to "get" what the artists are doing (or trying to) and where they are coming from as artists.

David Hernandez was good but it wasn't the best song to do what he was trying to do. I have to say that I liked Tiffany's version better! :D

Amanda, Amanda, Amanda... I'm just not feeling her anymore. It just seems like the same song and performance over and over. She needs to change it up a bit.

Michael Johns vocal performance did nothing for me. I liked how he performed it though.

Kristy's idea of country-fying "8 days a week" sounded like a good idea in theory but in practice it was a trainwreck. That was the worst performance and arrangement of the night. As Simon would say, it was absolutely dreadful. :(

David Archuleta finally stumbled and I'm sure that the other contestants were privately a little happy about it. There were rumors that they were getting upset with all the publicity he's gotten and how some have said that he's already the clear-cut winner. Simon tried to open that door a little with telling David Cook that he's becoming a front-runner. I expect David A. to come back strong though. He was clearly not comfortable with the song or lyrics but could it all have been a pre-calculated mis-step by David? Hmm.

Randy was on with his advice and critique as always. Paula too stepped it up and didn't just parrot what Randy was saying. Simon was his usual rude self. I cannot stand his disrespecting Paula and I'm glad that Paula spoke up when he rudely told her to shut up. He also needs to pay attention to the show that pays him so well. His saying "what is the Irish girl's name?" is inexcusable and disrespectful. At least have the respect to remember the names of the singers who are counting on you to help them build a career in this business. Also, his childish jabs at Ryan need to stop. It has nothing to do with the show and its just a waste of time.

All in all, it was a good night but I think the bottom 3 will be Kristy, David H. and Syesha with David H. being safe. Kristy goes home tonight.

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Semi-finals Wk.3 eliminations

Well, I think America got this one mostly right and so was I! ;)

I agreed with Kady and Luke going home even though I like them both.

I had a feeling that the controversy and negative attention would catch up with Danny. He seems like a sweet kid though and its a shame that his past caught up to him and we won't be seeing more of him. I think he added some personality to the show.

I wasn't happy to see Asia'h go but I probably wouldn't have been happy with any of the other girls leaving either. AI lost a classy contestant in Asia'h though. I was watching the local FOX station's news tonight after the eliminations and I was upset to see former contestant Constantine (that's upsetting enough! LOL!) on there saying that he wasn't surprised to see Asia'h go because as he put it, "who would buy tickets to see her in concert?". Talk about nerve!

I liked them all and I wish them all the best! Unlike some other former AI contestants, I hope to hear more from them in the future!

Semi-finals Night 3 - the girls

We're almost there! We're almost down to the Top 12. Lots of good singing tonight. It will be hard to see someone go after tonight's performances.

The show began with Asia'h Epperson and sounded great doing Whitney Houston.

Kady Malloy went next and I noticed more of an effort from her to be "on" with her smiles and personality. Unfortunately for her she picked a slow sad song which didn't let her show more of her personality. Her vocals however sounded very good IMO. Side note: I love that Queen song she did. Freddie Mercury recorded this song "Who wants to live forever" when he had already been diagnosed with AIDS and knew he was going to die soon. At that time in the 80s, AIDS was basically a death sentence and he had already begun losing weight and feeling the physical ravages of the disease. I can understand writing a song like that when going through something like that. That whole writing about life's pains and bitter experiences is something us songwriters use to express our emotions of negative things to try to make something positive and useful for others out of it. I'm an emotional singer and like to use my emotions to drive my lyrics but I can't imagine myself being able to sing that song going through what he was going through.

Amanda Overmyer has been fading to me. I didn't like her performance. She was looking down most of the time and looked like she was either distracted or trying hard to remember the lyrics. She also didn't show much emotion in her face. Her vocals sounded good but I can't rave about her like the judges did. Wish I could. :(
I hope she picks it up when she makes it to the Top 12.

Carly Smithson sounded good. I felt like she really picked it up last night and I loved her power vocals.

Kristy Lee Cook's country version of Journey's "Faithfully" was very good.
Journey is one of my all-time favorite bands and Steve Perry is one of my all-time favorite singers (but you already knew that from reading my personal bio, right?). In fact, Journey's "Escape" album is what turned me onto rock music! Before that I listened to disco and pop. Journey opened my eyes and ears to another world and the rest as they say is history. :)

I wasn't particularly wowed by Ramiele Malubay's performance but I think she is definitely headed to the Top 12.

I loved Brooke White's acoustic performance of Pat Benatar's "Love is a battlefield". It sounded like something Pat would do in concert to make the song different. Brooke definitely is showing a real artist side to her that should take her far. I disagree that the band should've come in half-way. I can see the song done like that but I really liked Brooke's interpretation of the song.

Syesha Mercado was good.

Overall, I think all the girls were good in their own ways while some were really good. Who do I expect to go home? Being that Kady was in the bottom 3 last week and that Simon trashed her again, I think she'll be going home tonight. I think Kristy is the second to go. I don't know how popular they are but I could also see Asia'h and Amanda being in danger tonight. I hope they stay though!

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Semi-finals Night 3 - the guys

Final night for the guys to show their stuff and lots of stuff going around the net about 2 of the guys that made it for an interesting night. To AI's credit or discredit (depending on how you look at it), they kept the focus on the singing and didn't discuss the rumors and internet stuff going around.

Luke Menard opened the show with a not so good version of a Wham song. Simon seemed to be already tired with having to be there and give his opinion. He of course had to be give his "opinion" in Simon fashion.

David Archuleta went next and was cool to see him using the piano for his Phil Collins song "Another day in paradise" which is one of my all-time favorite songs. For those of you familiar with my Vogue's Rogues songs, my song "A view from a gutter" is inspired from this Phil Collins song. Anyway, I liked David's singing although I wasn't wowed by it as I usually am.

Danny Noriega is one of the 2 with the internet buzzing about his past YouTube rant about baby Jesus, etc. I found his performance pretty good but I wonder how the internet buzz will affect people's votes for him. I think he will definitely feel some sort of backlash for it.

David Hernandez has the internet and offices abuzz with word of him being a stripper in a gay club so who knows how this affects him votes-wise. It adds some backstory to what otherwise had been a contestant with a bland personality. Singing wise though, he was one of the best of the night.

Michael Johns didn't do anything for me with his singing last night. Seems to be trying too hard to be the next Michael Hutchence and there will only be one of those.

David Cook's rock version of Lionel Richie's "Hello" was interesting. I liked it but wasn't totally crazy about it. It was a very risky and bold song performance though.

Jason Castro was the vocal performance of the night! Jason knows his singer/songwriter style very well and he knows how to make songs work into that style. He continues to impress me. I predict that he is going to make a record company out there a lot of money after he's done with AI.

Chikezie was good. I like how he stylized his vocals to fit the song. Simon's focus on that Whitney Houston had done the song, even though Chikezie listed about 3 other performers of the song in the past and even though Whitney wasn't the original singer of this song, was just dumb. Without knowing the other versions, Simon again had an incomplete idea from which to judge his opinion on.

All in all, the guys were very good last night. I wonder how the controversies surrounding David and Danny will play out with the votes but I think in the end it won't matter on Thursday. I think Luke goes home and Chikezie.

Friday, February 29, 2008

Semi-finals Wk.2 eliminations

Well, another night and another 4 eliminated.

I was 2 for 4 again, although technically I could be 3 for 4! ;)

I liked Jason Yaeger but this is a guy that wasn't really shown in the weeks leading up to the semi-finals so he faced an uphill battle right there. I'm glad that even Simon gave him props for his vocals and I hope he continues on his musical path.

I was a little surprised to see Robbie Carrico go. In the past 2 weeks I thought that Idol watchers would vote for certain guys based on looks and age and that's why I have said those that I have said. What I have noticed with this season's crop of singers is that the judges did an awesome job of finding 24 really good singers. There are no Sanjaya's in this bunch. The AI audience has responded by being more serious with their voting as well. That usually doesn't happen until later into the show when there are less contestants but with the contestants all being good then there really aren't many bad decisions that can be made regarding the singers with less talent moving into the Top 12. Anyway, with news all over the net that wannabe rocker Robbie's hair was a wig and with the judges saying that they didn't feel convinced that he was a rocker, it seems that the fans also took note of this and weren't convinced of his vocals and hair either.

Alexandrea being voted out was the right call IMO. I don't think she was the underdog she made herself out to be since the judges really liked her and her performances BUT I do think that she created the image of being an underdog not only in her head but in the fans heads as well. That wound up working against her. I like that she saw David Archuleta being so upset over her being eliminated and went over to him to give him a big hug. Very nice of her.

Alaina and Cady were the other 2 of the bottom 3 and I was not happy with that. I totally expected Cady to go and it looks like Cady did as well. I was very suprised to see Alaina go. I felt really bad for her that she didn't think she could sing afterwards. I've always wondered how and why (besides contractual obligations) someone would sing the song that got them eliminated. I'm glad that the girls (Asia'h in particular) got her to sing. Way to go Alaina. I think that Ryan and Paula were correct in saying that this is only the beginning of her musical career now that she has had AI exposure. I can easily seeing her getting an offer from "Grease" on Broadway ( http://www.greaseonbroadway.com/ ) as she probably now has more exposure than the winner of the Grease show. She can also sing, is young and is blonde - she's tailor-made to be Sandy on Broadway. I hope Broadway comes calling.

Finally, I was really happy to see that Ryan made fun of Simon for his Bullwinkle impersonation! Simon said it was a code but IMO it's just childish and unprofessional to be doing that. Leave stuff like that for off camera. Sigh, its going to be a long season with Simon. I'm glad the singers are all so good!

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Semi-finals Night 2 - the girls

Well, the girls came, they sang and I was still under-whelmed with the singing this week. :(

Not that any of the singing this week by the guys and gals was bad. It wasn't, in fact there was a lot of solid singing but outside of David Archuleta no one was great.

Carly Smithson opened with a nice, solid rendition of a Heart song but she can do so much more it seems yet hasn't picked a song IMO that has really let her shine. She has the potential though. I agree with Simon that Carly, Ramiele and David are the Top 3.

Syesha Mercado once again under-whelmed me. I want to like her but showing her as an actress did little to make me accept her and like her more.

Brooke White picked a perfect song and style for her. She even looked a bit like Carly Simon. Her singing was solid and the song fit her and her vocals great.

This was not the best song or night for Ramiele Malubay. I didn't think the song let her shine much until she got to the bigger notes of it. It seems she over-analyzed her song selection based on internet talk calling her Ramiele Lullaby (which is a cute nickname IMO) and that led her away from a strength that helps her show her big vocals.

Kristy Lee Cook was good, although her performing was a little stiff.

Amanda Overmyer is a favorite of mine but beyond the cool pants she had on, I didn't like anything else including her hair. Her voice was solid but the song selection was pretty bad since it did little to show her range.

Contrary to the judges, I really liked Alaina Whitaker's vocals and song pick.

Alexandria Lushington again did nothing for me with her vocals, attitude or saying in her pre-performance clip how she is an underdog. I don't know how she is saying that when not only was she picked to the top 12 girls but was also raved about by Randy and Paula last week.

I really like Kady Malloy and I agree that she loses something when she performs. She is a very pretty girl with a great smile yet she gets flat when she gets in front of the camera. She has a Britney style and look to her that even extends to when she is just listening to the judges critiques. If you've ever really watched Britney do an interview, etc. she is "on" when she is talking but the minute she stops talking she gets this "bored" look to her face. It's not true boredom but just that look of it and Kady is doing the same thing. Not good, she needs to turn it up and show more of this personality that she has. Could it be that all the great imitating that she does has left her with little know-how on how to show her own personality? I don't know but I hope she can turn it around. C'mon Kady!

I liked Asia'h Epperson's performance. She struggled a bit (and we were told after just how sick she had been all week) at the beginning but she turned it up and left it all out there on the stage. Kudos to Asia'h!

Picking the 2 that will go home from the girls this week is just as hard as it was picking the 2 guys that might go home. I will say though that I think Alexandrea and (sniff, sniff) Kady will go home.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Semi-finals Night 2 - the guys

AI was on last night so I'm back with my thoughts. Hope you're enjoying them. So, last week we had 60s night, tonight we had 70s night and I found the guys underwhelming for the most part.

Michael Johns opening the show didn't help as it set the tone for a show full of vocals that were solid but nothing great (well almost).

I agreed with the judges on Jason Castro in that his vocal was a bit safe and that he needs to put the guitar down and show that he can command the stage as a solo singer as well. He reminded me last night of Teddy Geiger (with dreads!). When I mentioned this out loud to my family as we were watching my daughter made a funny name for him - Teddy Dready! LOL!

Luke Menard was much better than last week and I enjoyed his rendition of Queen's "Killer Queen". I didn't agree with Simon (shocker I know) in him telling Luke that he lacked charisma (everyone lacks charisma if you compare them to the great Freddie Mercury) yet found him too theatrical. And Freddie wasn't?

I totally agreed with the judges on their critique of wanna-be rocker Robbie Carrico. His vocals lacked intensity and edge and it just came across as him thinking he could get by on his looks and a safe vocal. Chances are he will be safe though.

Danny Noriega did really well. I like the kid and hope he does well. His vocal was very solid. I'm not sure how well he will do in the english market but if he can speak spanish and ever decided to go into the spanish market, I think he has a look that would do well in latin america. He reminds me of Ray Reyes of Menudo fame.

David Hernandez was very solid and good as usual. I really liked how he changed the song, it showed a lot of style and his vocals were very good.

Jason Yaeger sounded good to me but Simon doesn't seem to like him or get him. Considering this poor guy didn't get much, if any, publicity in the weeks leading up to the semi-finals, it almost looks like he's being singled out as a non-favorite by Simon to ensure he doesn't make it into the Top 12.

Chikezie did well. I liked learning the origin of his name. I'm glad that he said he liked his suit from last week. I get annoyed with artists that get embarrassed how they looked in the past, etc. His comebacks to Simon are hilarious.

I'm not a fan of David Cook but I found his performance good. Simon seem peeved that the contestants were being very vocal in defending themselves against his attacks but oh well! It seems he likes to give his "opinion" as he puts it but can't take it when an opinion is going back his way. He actually had the nerve to say that he offers his criticism constructively but a lot of his critique has little value to it. I defend him when it does but he hasn't shown much of that so far.

David Archuleta did a spine-tingling performance worthy of all the praise it received. I've seen some other reviews of AI on the net that said that David Archuleta's winning AI is inevitable and I've been saying that all along so far. This kid is amazing. His voice and the way he chooses to stylize a song is amazing for someone his age. Hell, its amazing for anyone of any age. This kid is simply amazing.

With only 1 great performance and 9 good, solid ones it makes tomorrow's elimination difficult to predict but I'll say that Jason Yaeger and David Hernandez go home although they don't deserve to. If it was up to me, Michael Johns and Robbie Carrico would be going home based on yesterday's performances.

Hopefully the girls can step it up tonight. I expect them to.

Friday, February 22, 2008

Semi-finals Wk.1 eliminations

Well, not bad. I was 2 for 4 on my predictions of who would go home. On the guys side, I thought Colton and Garrett would get the young girls vote. Interesting to see them go home already. I would've have picked Garrett over Luke in terms of vocals since Garrett still needs experience and confidence. Was surprising to see him go in the first night of eliminations. Simon telling Colton to get a job and do singing on the side was just rude, even if it may be realistic. It truly mystifies me how Simon can be a music executive yet not really understand an artist's heart and soul. Music and singing is not just a hobby for those that are passionate about it, it is something that they feel to their core. It is not just part of who an artist is, it is who they are. It is their passion, their dreams, their heart and their soul and no one should try to throw a wet blanket of negativity on that. I'm thankful that Randy and Paula are there to give them notes of confidence in their talent in what to many of them is their lowest point in their fledgling musical careers. I know Simon is just trying to portray the business side of it but IMO there is still room for heart in business, especially when dealing with artists.

Paula's music video was very reminiscent of her older videos and the song was cool for a dance track. The ending with Paula, Ryan, Simon and Randy posing was a bit cheesy though. LOL!

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Semi-finals Night 1 - the girls

So, the girls went last night and Simon was still in his nasty mood. So much for the nice Simon of the auditions. Honestly, when he is in his better moods, he gives much better advice and even pays better attention than he does once the show actually gets underway. Strange.

The girls were a mixed bunch, some were good and some not so much, but at least Ryan gave us a heads up that a bunch of them were sick. However, we were only actually told about one of the girls being sick once the show began. It might've helped to know all the girls who were sick to better be able to evaluate them fairly.

Well, here are my thoughts on the girls voices and performances.

Kristy Lee Cook looked sick (she was the one that was publicly mentioned on the show as being sick) and her voice seemed to suffer because of it. Very pretty girl though. Hopefully she gets a bye this week because of being sick.

Joanne Borgella was not very good. Her voice seemed very thin as she got higher.

Alaina Whitaker was a wonderful surprise. I don't recall her getting shown much during the auditions or Hollywood shows but this girl can sing! She also seems to have a really nice personality as well. Her face reminds me of Joss Stone.

Amanda Overmyer is a rock goddess and should easily make it into the Top 12. Of all the singers, male and female, she has the best combo of pro ready sound and image. We will definitely be seeing a lot more of her whether or not she wins or doesn't win AI. I think she's great. I knew that Simon wouldn't get her scatting or the song and there's just something wrong with a judge who doesn't know the songs the contestants are doing (how does he judge its comparison?) and doesn't like or understand certain genres like country and R&B?

Amy Davis was good but the song she picked was too slow and became forgettable. She also looked a bit sick so that may have hurt her vocals a bit.

I love Brooke White and her bubbly, happy-go-lucky personality. I thought she lost a little in her voice shen she went higher but she should be safe. Simon's obsession that she is too nice was such a stupid waste of time. Here they are telling some of the other girls to be themselves and then they are trying to change Brooke from who she is. I guess Simon is one of those that walks through life cynically and with a cloud over their heads. As for me, I'm a glass is half full person and I like Brooke's positivity!

Unfortunately I have to agree with Simon about Alexandrea Lushington. I just didn't get her vocals or performance and thought it was a bit trying too hard (which is a pet peeve of mine). I also wasn't crazy about her attitude, seemed a bit too full of herself and over-confident.

I really liked Kady Malloy and didn't like Simon's attack on her. Comparing her personality to a pencil wasn't funny, it was just flat out rude and mean.

I like Asia'h Epperson and I want to see her get into the Top 12 as a tribute to her Dad. She has a nice husky voice that reminds me of Toni Braxton. I don't know if the pop songs that get used on AI will help her to really showcase her vocals but I want to see her in the Top 12 so she can show us what she's got.

Besides Amanda, Ramiele Malubay is my 2nd favorite. She's a cutie and she can sing too! She easily makes it into the Top 12. I look forward to seeing and hearing lots more from Ramiele.

I like Syesha Mercado and really was looking forward to her performance but hearing it left me flat. I thought she just oversang the heck out of the song and it didn't do anything for me.

Carly Smithson was good but I also felt she oversang her song just to show off how strong her voice is. She has a lot of potential but she'll have to tone it down a bit to let her vocals really shine.

All in all, I was much more impressed with the guys (which is rare, since the girls are usually so much better). I think Amanda, Carly and Ramiele can give David Archuleta a run for his money but as of now, I still think that he is the front-runner.

So, who goes home tonight from the girls? Hmm, I'll say Joanne and Amy.

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Semi-finals Night 1 - the guys

First off I'll say that I agree with the judges choices for the final 12 guys and of the final 12 girls I would've kept the girl with the disabled daughter.

So, last night the guys did Round 1 of the semi-finals and they brought it! I think of all the seasons of American Idol (and I have watched them all!), this is the best semi-finals group of guys ever.

Simon was back to his annoying and smug self which was rather annoying. Randy gave out a lot of great advice last night and I usually find myself agreeing with him. I guess its the producer in me that sees things from the same perspective he does. Paula looked sleepy last night but her advice was pretty right on last night as well.

When did AI begin to do theme nights on the semi-finals? Very strange and strange to use up a theme so early on. Oh well.

Onto the guys and my thoughts on their performances.

David Hernandez - this guy can sing! His image is on the plain side which is why I think that Simon is not crazy about him but his singing should take him into the Top 12.

Chikezie was pretty good. I liked his old school R&B. He got extra points from me for his comeback to Simon on who dressed him - Charlie Chaplin? LOL! Great comeback! He was a little too defensive to the criticism though and that might wind up hurting him for votes.

David Cook is ok. Something about him doesn't do it for me though. He looks like he's trying to sound like Daughtry but he performs like Constantine.

Jason Yeager was pretty good. I would like to see him make it for his son. Cute kid! Reminds me of Steve Irwin's (R.I.P.) daughter Bindi! :)

I expected more from Robbie Carrico. I didn't think his performance was very good but he has a lot of potential.

I am predicting right now that there is no guy that can beat David Archuleta! This kid is amazing and humble to boot! He seems shy and a little dorky and that reminds me of me. Dorky and talented, a great combo IMO! :D

I like Danny Noriega! His Elvis song was good! I could do without his pants riding low in the back but he gave it a good go! Is it just me or does he remind anyone else of Ugly Betty's Justin? :D
Simon was a bit much with his critique on Danny.

Luke Menard was good but his song was too safe and I have to admit that Simon was right when he said it was forgettable. Unfortunately that might get him sent home on Thursday.

Colton was good. I like his personality and think that he would be a good addition to the Top 12. He has a good voice as well.

Garrett Haley was nice and along with Colton looked like they were right off a Tiger Beat cover somewhere. Garrett seems like a nice guy but I think his voice needs more strength and more confidence.

Jason Castro was very good. Very bold performance and he pulled it off excellently. He easily makes the Top 12.

Michael Johns is like David Cook in that he doesn't do much for me but last night he brought it home with the Doors song. Good vocals and performance!

Well, that's my thoughts on last night's show and the performances. My guess would be that Chikezie and Luke go home Thursday night.

Bring on the ladies tonight! Let's see what they got!

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Carrie Underwood & Keith Urban concert

I just got back a little while ago from seeing the Carrie Underwood / Keith Urban concert at Madison Square Garden and it was great!

I've been to dozens of rock & pop concerts over the years and have seen everyone from Ricky Martin to Kiss, etc. I even took my daughters to see Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers in December and enjoyed it! I love going to concerts and truly enjoy myself. With that said, I'm a big fan of country music yet this was my first country concert!

I'm a big fan of Carrie Underwood. She is my favorite female singer, I think she has an amazing voice and I love the lyrics of her songs. She deserves every award she has won. I was really looking forward to her. Carrie opened the show and the crowd was into her concert but I could tell that it was really a KU crowd. Carrie has definitely grown as a performer and her multiple outfit changes and props were very cool as were her video backdrops for her songs. She did most of the songs off her "Carnival Ride" album and her singing of "I know you won't" brought tears to my eyes. She was amazing. I can't wait to see her in concert again.

I'm also a big fan of Keith Urban and knew his concert would be like a rock concert. He didn't disappoint. From his intro to the HD camera following him overhead (which put the video onto a big screen behind him), it was a really good and fun show. I didn't realize that Keith is a outstanding guitar player. That totally impressed me. Halfway into the show, he and his bandmates walked up the ramp that led way out into the audience and he brought his band to the people! That was way cool! They did a bunch of his biggest hits there in what came across as a very intimate setting in an arena. By this time Keith had the crowd eating out of his hand. He went back to the mainstage and played a bit before actually getting off the stage to sing and play among the audience. VERY cool!! The crowd was going crazy as he walked among them and walked up to the lower level to play. THEN out of nowhere, he took out a marker - signed his guitar and gave it to a shocked fan! WOW! That was so cool! Like I said, I've been to dozens of concerts and I've never seen any artist do that! It was a great concert and I would love to see both of them again. I hope they make a DVD of the concert because I would love to get it.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Hollywood Week

After weeks of watching the AI audtions, next week begins the Hollywood shows. Time to get serious. Let's see how many singers do the usual partying instead of getting serious deal. You would think by this point and after seeing so many AIs that singers would be wise to stay focused and not do the partying thing during Hollywood week but we always see it happen. DOH!

Should be good. The commercials show the contestants using instruments so that should be cool to see.

The auditions were interesting. Simon was unusually nice for most of the auditions. Is Simon getting soft on us? Something tells me that the abrasive Simon we all expect will be back soon!

Lots of waste of time singers just taking up TV time by either not being serious, coming in with attitudes or just being dumb to get themselves on TV. I didn't find many amusing this season, instead I found them annoying. Some of the contestants were memorable like Renaldo Lupaz and his "You are my brother" song and Temptress (very sweet girl) to name a few. Some of the singers shown were quite good and I can see them easily moving on. BUT, Hollywood tends to bring out the best and worst in some of these singers - especially the ones that have never travelled, etc. so we'll see. Bring on Hollywood!!

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

American Idol - Season 7 begins tonight!

Hi everyone, I'm a big fan of TV and American Idol is one of my favorite shows. Have been watching since the first one and my family and I always look forward to a new season beginning.

Word is that we will get to know the contestants like never before which can be a good or bad thing. Also, this is supposed to be a young group and supposedly the under 21 singers this season are supposed to be real good. Ryan also says that this might be the best looking bunch of contestants as well. We'll see! It all depends on who America votes in to the Top 12. I could do without all the bad auditions and giving some of the ruder auditionees TV time. I'd rather those 15 minutes of fame be given to other more deserving contestants but its all part of the drama that is American Idol. Should be interesting!