This is the day I’ve been waiting for. American Idol has finally added a fourth judge to their panel of … um … esteemed experts, and I know she’ll bring a lot to that little one-sided conference table. Her name is Kara DioGuardi, and her ties to Nashville give her the right to voice her opinion. In my opinion, anyway.
Troy Gentry is no longer able to fish or trap in Minnesota, per court order. But he is allowed to rock, which he intends on doing during Montgomery Gentry’s appearance at the Winstock Country Music Festival.
Look out Tim and Faith, there’s a new adorably-in-love country couple in town: Joey and Rory Feek, one of the final twosomes in CMT’s Can You Duet.
Trisha Yearwood is so passionate about raising money for breast cancer research that she’s teamed up with retailer Coldwater Creek for a viral fundraising program.
Miley Cyrus is in the news again, this time on Forbes‘ annual Celebrity 100 list. She’s blazing trails for the young, powerful and famous.
If you were a musician on an episode of American Idol, then you should get paid any time that episode airs. Or at least that’s what the musicians union says in a lawsuit.
So far, American Idol has introduced two successful female singers into the country format - Carrie Underwood and Kellie Pickler. Unfortunately, time has run out on the guys. A finalist from the 2007 season, Phil Stacey has sold just over 25,000 copies of his self-titled debut album in the month since its release. Josh Gracin, who came in fourth in 2003, isn’t faring much better - less than 45,000 in two months. The debut CD by Bucky Covington, the 8th place finalist of season six, started strong with “A Different World,” but stalled at 345,000 units. Not bad, I guess, considering the current record-buying climate. However, country still hasn’t had a male crossover champ yet - how long until Taylor Hicks, David Cook or Ruben Studdard gives Nashville a try?
Sometimes, one gorgeous and gifted singer-songwriter just isn’t enough. Maybe that’s why Kellie Pickler and Taylor Swift teamed up to write a song for Pickler’s new album.
Who is Emily Noxon? Just a girl from Utah … until she takes the stage with Rascal Flatts on June 14 in Indy. She won their Milk Rock Star contest.
Once again, there’s a Nashville connection to American Idol’s finale. Regie Hamm won the show’s second annual songwriting contest with his “Time of Your Life,” a song Idol winner David Cook sang Wednesday night (May 21).
Nigel Lythgoe may know how to produce American Idol, but he’s off the mark when it comes to sizing up the reasons for Kellie Pickler’s success. Shame on him.
Cancel the babysitter. Tim McGraw’s concert in Pelham, Alabama, tonight has been rescheduled for June 3.
The 9513 makes some definite predictions and observations on the fate of Kristy Lee Cook, this year’s country-lovin’ American Idol contestant who was booted off earlier this season.
Toby Keith has managed to find just the right groove to impress the unimpressable folks at Village Voice.
Hayes Carll creates a country album out of some banjo and some beat poetry. Listen to a few clips of the review of Trouble in Mind here.
Why doesn’t Miranda Lambert write about angels, Jesus, happy days and kids? Parade’s James Brady found out why.
Johnny Cash made him do it. And once Joaquin Phoenix learned to play guitar for Walk the Line, he’s been pursuing his passion for music.
Phil Stacey was a standout during season six of American Idol, both for his vocal chops and his distinctive look — starting with his clean-shaven head. Since leaving the show, recording his self-titled album for Lyric Street (due April 29), and traveling to promote the record, a lot has changed for the former Top 10 finalist, but not his fuzz-free dome.
“I started shaving my hair probably around 2002, and it’s basically been shaved ever since,” says Stacey. “I don’t like having ‘normal’ hair. Before I got into college, I had long, curly hair. I got into a Christian singing group, and they made me cut my hair. I hated having hair that just looked normal. So when I was through with college, instead of growing my hair back out, I just shaved it, and I loved the way it felt.”
Whit Wright is a lucky young man. He brought Taylor Swift to his high school prom in Tuscaloosa, Ala., and the local media report proves it wasn’t just a teenage fantasy.
Naomi Judd has a message for American Idol contestant David Archuleta’s dad: Leave him alone!
Billboard has good advice from Dolly Parton, who says she wakes up with new dreams every day.
So how did it all happen for a kid from Checotah, Okla., who once thought she’d spend her entire life in that small town? And more to the point, how does she keep the sudden fame, fortune and full-on fantasy existence from going straight to her head?
According to Carrie Underwood, it may well come down to the company she keeps. “I’ve just been really lucky and I’ve had really, really great people working around me and making everything happen,” says the singer.
Despite the fact that Carrie was reared in a family without an ounce of showbiz in its blood (her dad was a paper mill worker and her mom an elementary school teacher), her amazing voice proceeded to wow America and American Idol’s team of judges — even surly Simon Cowell. “Simon was pretty good to me,” she insists. “He is notorious for speaking his mind. I think that’s just what he does, and fortunately for me, he didn’t have too many bad things to say!” But even though she might be understating the role that talent and hard work have played in her success, Carrie will concede that it wasn’t all about luck.
Carrie Underwood advises any American Idol contestant to take Simon Cowell’s criticism like a man. Meanwhile, USA Today claims Kristy Lee Cook had no business singing Martina McBride’s “Anyway” on Tuesday night during American Idol’s Songs of Inspiration week.
Charlie Daniels is fightin’ mad that the folks at Guitar Hero messed with “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” He thinks they took the novelty of a fiddle contest right out of the song.
When an album’s cover art is reduced to a thumbnail image, as it is when you buy songs on iTunes, does that mean it’s a lost art?
Who knew Vince Gill was so hot? Apparently, his barber. Gill’s fresh new buzz cut is doing wonders to show off his good looks.
Like most American Idol contestants, Carrie Underwood’s style improved week-by-week on the show, as fashion experts had their way with her dresses and tresses, trading her sweet girl-next-door duds for haute couture frocks.
“I think Carrie’s really grown into her style wonderfully,” says Libby Callaway, fashion columnist for the Nashville City Paper. “Much like Faith Hill, she has the body and the self-confidence to pull off fashion-forward shapes like the short, graphic dresses she’s been wearing a lot.”
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