Half Past*Forever

While Chris Sligh looks to be the next Idol, his former band looks to win an online video music competition. After surviving last night's elimination, Sligh has officially cracked the top 10 of this season of "American Idol." While he is looking to follow in the footsteps of former Idol winners Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson, his former band Half Past*Forever is looking to capitalize on Chris' sudden fame by looking to win a record deal of their own through Music Nation, an online video music competition that is awarding three contracts with Epic Records. While Chris is on leave from the band, he can be seen singing lead vocals on the band's single "Know".

Whereas on Idol, Chris has to deal with Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul , on Music Nation, Half Past*Forever is being judged in the rock genre by Joel and Benji Madden from Good Charlotte and Grammy-nominated producer Howard Benson.

So will it be Chris Sligh or his former band Half Past*Forever walking away with a recording contract and the chance of a lifetime? Chris appears to be hedging his bets as according to the American Idol official site he says he'll "travel with his band" if he doesn't make it on Idol. Currently in its seventh week, the Music Nation competition is halfway through to the finals.

You can watch the group's video entry below. It's awesome!

Vote Now at MusicNation.com

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PAULA FOR PEACE

Yes, she does seems like a flake at times (OK, often), but when Paula Abdul does have her head screwed on straight, she works for some good causes, including The Peace Alliance, a citizen lobbying effort to create a U.S. Department of Peace. There is currently a bill before the U.S. House of Representatives (HR 808) that will provide practical, nonviolent solutions to the problems of domestic and international conflict.

Domestically, the Department of Peace will develop policies and allocate resources to effectively reduce the levels of domestic and gang violence, child abuse, and various other forms of societal discord. Internationally, the Department will advise the President and Congress on the most sophisticated ideas and techniques regarding peace-creation among nations. Abdul has taped a message for the group (as have Willie Nelson, Walter Cronkite, Joaquin Phoenix, Frances Fisher, Tyne Daly and Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers. To hear Abdul's (or the other) message/s, click here.

KATHARINE'S PICK

In New York City, last year’s “Idol” runner-up Katharine McPhee told “Extra’s” A.J. Calloway that she has her own favorite this year. “I like Blake [Lewis],” she dished. “You know, he’s just cool.” The show caught up with McPhee at the Self magazine party for her new hot body cover issue, where the “Idol” alum revealed she’s pulling for a battle of the sex’s showdown. “I don’t know if Blake will take it, but I always think a guy-girl finale is best, they’re the most exciting,” McPhee gushed.

MARKETING MAROULIS

Yahoo! Buzz is expanding its coverage of "American Idol" this season by hiring Constantine Maroulis as Buzz spokesman. Each week he will reveal the inside track on "American Idol" according to Yahoo! Buzz. This week's content includes information such as "American Idol has more searches this week on Yahoo! than Britney Spears and Beyonce", "Simon Cowell receives four times the searches than Ryan Seacrest" and "Sanjaya Malakar is the top searched contestant on Yahoo! with searches for his hair even sparking major searches this week."

In his new role, Constantine will be representing the Yahoo! Buzz brand in media appearances and providing audiences with exclusive data on top American Idol Yahoo! searches. As a former American Idol contestant, Constantine will speak first hand about the Idol experience and provide insight as to why certain topics are popular on Yahoo!

"This is an amazing opportunity to align with a leading global internet brand that is really in tune with what is going on out there" said Maroulis. "Yahoo! Buzz not only gives the scoop to American Idol fans, but keeps them involved, and as an artist I'm thrilled to be a part of it."
Constantine's solo album drops late spring or early summer on Sixth Place Productions/Sony RED.

CALLING ALL CANADIANS

Well, at least that is what VotefortheWorst.com is trying to do in their effort to keep Sanjaya Malakar on the show. The site says that Canadians can vote on "American Idol" by downloading some software:

"Canadians, don't think you can vote? You're wrong! Go to gizmoproject.com and download the Gizmo software. It's a free to use program that acts as a phone through your computer. You can use it because Gizmo calls are sent out through the United States, so it thinks that you're voting from the US. So all of you Canadians who want to help, get Gizmo and vote your butts off for Sanjaya too!"

OK, so now that we've given VFTW its free plug, we're encouraging all our Canadian friends who don't favor Sanjaya to vote for the other contestants as well. Let the best (or most popular) singer win.

And speaking of VFTW, check out this opinion of it on LiveJournal. We especially can't argue with Myth #3, because we feel the same way:

"Myth #3 - VFTW is "ruining the lives"/"shattering the dreams" of the (oh so) talented contestants by MANIPULATING Am. Idol. Sorry... but AI beat us to the punch on this one. American Idol is so heavily manipulated from the get-go that it would be much much more accurate to say that it is AMERICAN IDOL ITSELF that is "ruining the lives" and "shattering the dreams" of talented singers ... as in, the actually talented singers that don't make it to see the judges, or don't make it to Hollywood, or once there, are not chosen for the top 24. Tell me something ... if it was so unjust, so endangering to the dreams of the likes of Phil Stacy, Haley Zzzzcarnato, Beat Box Blake for us to vote for Antonella, Sundance, or now Sanjaya ...

THEN WHAT ARE THEY DOING IN THE VOTING POOL TO BEGIN WITH?

I'm sorry, but if you review the unbelievably boring "chair episode" - and drink a case of red bull to stay awake through it - you'll notice two very telltale events at the end. Both Sundance and Antonella are advanced over considerably more talented singers who didn't fit what the producers/judges were "looking for". I guess this means the judges were looking for "easy cannon fodder" and "hot-looking easy cannon fodder", in this case. Just like when they "picked Pickler" and Chicken Little last year, and the red-headed crooner, or Scott Savol, etc. etc. Hilarious? Yes. Do I love it? Yes. Did I vote for them? HELL YES! But was it the fault of VFTW that these contestants could even *be* voted for? We hear constantly that Sanjaya, Sundance, Antonella, Chicken Little, etc. were "not talented enough" and "didn't deserve" to be kept on over other contestants. So, I ask again: what are they doing in the voting rounds?

If they (AI producers/judges) are going to open that door, then they have to live with the consequences. Simon reminds us week after week that it's a singing competition. If this were actually true, we'd have 24 actually talented singers in the top 24, instead of a few contestants they feel are worth pimping, a couple they think will add drama, and a whole slew of second and third tier shills who are not (supposed to be) a threat to their faves.

Don't believe it? Think about season three (I think) where Lisa Leuschner was up for a chance to compete for an additional slot in the top contestants. Randy Jackson actually formed a complete sentence without "yo" "dawg" or "good lookin' out" to say to her: "Well, you may be the most talented singer we have this year, but no, you won't be performing". Instead, Jon Peter Lewis got the chance and went on into the finals where he looked like a runaway from an emo band having a seizure while perfoming Elvis, bringing in more tweeny OMGZCUTEE ratings, and posing no threat to Fantasia or the other "serious contenders". There are so many examples of this, it's not funny: Jasmine Trias, Ace Young, spring instantly to mind, but every year it's the same thing. AMERICAN IDOL DELIBERATELY PUTS LESS TALENTED CONTESTANTS THROUGH TO MANIPULATE THE OUTCOME. Our manipulation pales in comparison, and any displeasure they feel at our voting tactics is due to their policies."

Now, you may not want to believe what writer cry_me_ariver is saying, but even Paula Abdul just about admitted the truth of it on Letterman last week on Letterman last week when Dave asked her: "Do you select some people who have no business being selected, just for the fun of it?"

As the audience burst out in knowing laughter, Abdul thought with a smile on her face and after a couple of seconds answered, "Er, no, I think that comes from the producers, who invite the talent there for us to see. We get to see that." And then backpedaling added, "But, no, are you kidding? These kids are real good singers. What happens is, through the process, there are ones that end up being much greater." Uh-huh. Say goodnight Gracie.

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© 2007

Simon Is Not Nigel's Bitch

Got your attention? OK, it's not our headline, it's TMZ's, but we just couldn't resist using it. The site that loves to stir things up on Idol -- and use the most unflattering pictures of executive producer Nigel Lythgoe that they can find -- says that Simon Cowell does not get his best lines from Lythgoe.

Star magazine reported in its current issue that "The executive producer of the show, Nigel Lythgoe, watches the rehearsals and writes notes on who Simon should make snarky comments about. That's what's on the sheets of paper on the judging desk. Simon is not the evil guy you think he is. . . . The truth is Ryan is just as focused on the show's popularity as Simon. There's no real drama. It's all for the cameras!"

TMZ spoke with Lythgoe, who says it's a bunch of baloney. "I don't make notes," Lythgoe says, adding, "Simon keeps to himself in his trailer before the show with a feed, so he can listen to the music." Lythgoe also told TMZ that none of the banter between Ryan [Seacrest] and Simon is scripted -- "If I would have written any of that it would have been a lot funnier, to be frank," adding "I wouldn't have kept this gay angst going for so long. They would have both come out by now in my story." Hmmmm, OK.

SHE'S NOT A DIVA BUT ...

You'd think winning an Oscar would be enough publicity for Jennifer Hudson for a couple of months. But the former Idol finalist just can't seem to stop generating negative vibe. And this time it looks as if she's the victim of her own peeps.

Latest word comes from -- surprise! -- TMZ.com. The Web site says it has learned that Hudson was drop-kicked by Starbucks after her agent made some crazy demands over a performance.

Sources say Hudson was slated to perform Wednesday (3/21) at the Starbucks annual shareholders meeting in Seattle ... until the demands started pouring in, among them five town cars for herself, hair and makeup artists, security and her assistant; and humidifiers backstage. The final straw was when Hudson's William Morris agent notified Starbucks that singer would need baked chicken wings at 10:00 AM. At that point, the TMZ says, Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz had enough and pulled the plug because he didn't like the way the agent was dealing with his people.

The site also said that they've learned that Hudson had no idea that these demands were being made and that her agent put together a wish list on her own, and it was sent over to Starbucks with Hudson in the dark. William Morris had no comment. Maybe Hudson should burst into a chorus of "I Am Changing" ... agents!

DANCING WITH THE FOX

Fox has announced that on Tuesday, March 27, Idol will be extended by 7 minutes and will conclude at 9:07 p.m. "to accommodate all 10 live performances." "House" will follow in its entirety.

So, what's the big deal? ABC is said to be seething over Fox's decision to step on its toes and run Idol 7 minutes into the opening of "Dancing With the Stars' " first Tuesday results show.

In January, ABC announced that "Dancing With the Stars' " fourth installment would move from its fall Tuesday/Wednesday schedule to a Monday/Tuesday schedule. The move would avoid having "Dancing" go toe-to-toe with "Idol," a ratings gamble that ABC wasn't willing to risk.

"The great thing about this air schedule is that fans won't have to choose between the two reality hits this spring," ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson stated in the network's press announcement at the time.

But when "Dancing" premiered to big ratings on Monday, Fox apparently decided to act, claiming that although it's known the March 27 broadcast would feature 10 finalists since Idol's season began back in January, and that the sudden seven-minute expansion of next Tuesday's Idol was being done "to accommodate all 10 live performances."

On Thursday, The Washington Post reported that the rest of the television industry isn't buying Fox's explanation for the Idol broadcast's sudden expansion and considers the scheduling change to be a "kill-it-in-the-cradle school" counter-programming strategy.

BIG THINGS IN SMALL PACKAGES?

When Paula Abdul appeared on David Letterman's show Monday, Dave kept prodding her about her love/hate relationship with Simon Cowell. Eventually, Dave asked Paula, if it wasn't true that she really hated Cowell "because he's smug and he's arrogant and he thinks that you want to have sexual activities with him." After laughing and thinking about it for a few seconds, Abdul retorted, "Well, you are right about that, but that would never happen because I found out that in the U.K. his nickname is 'Small Ben.' " You can watch a clip here ...



Paula also sat down with Extra's Terri Seymour (Simon's girlfriend) and told her, "I love the show because it's just so unpredictable." She also said that she expects more Simon and Ryan fireworks in the future, "Every single night it's the joke. It's a contest to see who can throw each other off," but admitted that she prefers to stay out of the line of fire when it comes to dealing with the dueling egos: "Good thing I'm small, and I somehow fit in the middle," she teased. "If I gain anymore weight I'll be in big trouble."

Talking about her romantic life, Abdul said "People perceive and misunderstand me completely. Just because I'm famous doesn't make me exempt from love. I’m just uber-busy …the schedule provides a lot of area to do other things."

STUFF MAGAZINE: RYAN YOU'RE A WIMP

Stuff Magazine has named Ryan Seacrest one of the wimpiest men on TV, saying being a TV star might get you fame, but it doesn't always make you manly. It continues, for every tough guy like Michael Chiklis and Christopher Meloni on TV, there's at least one wimp trying to win audiences over with their boyish charms. Some people find it endearing. We find it a little sad … and sometimes really hilarious.

American Idol's Ryan Seacrest
Wussiness factor: 10 jumbo-size jars of hair gel
Since a lot of people here in America aren't very familiar with pretty boy David Beckham, many consider Seacrest to be the poster boy for metrosexuality. With always-perfect hair and clothes he didn't buy just because the cute sales girl at Abercrombie thought they were "totally awesome," Ryan is prettier than most of the female contestants Idol has seen over the past few seasons.

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© 2007