This and That

IT'S NOT OVER
According to AmericanIdol.com Daughtry has become the #1 top selling album in the country for the second time this year, in an incredible 15-week run that has seen the debut artist, album and single – "It’s Not Over"– shatter so many records that the milestones are becoming too numerous to list. Debuting at #2 on November 21, 2006, the double-platinum album (certified this week by the RIAA) has been in the top 3 of the Billboard Top 200 albums chart for 9 weeks.

"Daughtry" has remained in the Top 10 every week except one since launch, and is the first rock band release in nearly 20 years – since Bon Jovi’s 1988 classic New Jersey– to hit the top spot after debuting below #1 and the first rock band to hit the #1 spot a second time more than 5 weeks after it first topped the chart without debuting there since Santana's "Supernatural" in 2000. The band and album are drawing over one million views per week to their artist site (www.daughtryofficial.com) and remain a Top 10 staple on iTunes since release.

The group's “Home” was chosen as the elimination song this season on "American Idol." This week “Home” moved up from #119 to #62 on the Digital Songs Chart with track sales at 17K, up 81% from the prior week. Other significant uses for the stirring ballad are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

“The tremendous radio and video support, the great crowds we get at our shows, the intensity of our online fans – all of it – is everything any artist could ever ask for,” said Chris Daughtry. “We see all these new faces everyday at our shows, including great, great rock fans who make each performance an adventure ... I want all of our fans to know that every song we play is a thank you right back at each and every one of them for standing by us in such an awesome way.”

And now Chris is giving back something to his fans. Go to his site to find out how to enter Daughtry's "It's Not Over Video Contest". Make a video for the song "It's Not Over" and you could win the grand prize of $3,000, or one of two 1st place prizes of $1,000.

You'll build your video on partner site, Musicbox. Use the online editing tool to drag and drop clips of Daughtry performing the song to the timeline. You can add your own video clips and photos, and drag them around the timeline to create a video sequence you like, then add the complete audio track of "It's Not Over." That's all there is to it. Open to legal permanent residents of the United States 18 years of age or older. No purchase necessary.

SOMEONE THINKS IT'S A LOCK

On his KIIS radio program in Los Angeles, Ryan Seacrest interviewed the four semi-finalists that were eliminated on Thursday. He first spoke with Sundance Head and Sabrina Sloan. Sundance told Ryan that when he heard that he had been eliminated, "I was shocked, I was amazed. I had not prepared myself for that at all ... I was a little angry, I was kind of mad ... I can definitely say my heart was broken. I felt it didn't go the way it should've went." When Seacrest asked Sundance "Is there anybody that thinks they've won this competition, that really believes that they're in already?" Head said, "yes," then added it was a male contestant. When asked if this person actually said that in front of the others, Head said, "Yeah, in ways, yeah" and that he did it "all the time." When Sundance tried to switch the conversation back to himself, Ryan said, "You don't like him," and Sundance answered, "no." Later, when Seacrest interviewed Jared Cotter and Antonella Barba, he told them what Sundance had said and asked Jared who the contestant was. It was obvious Jared knew what he was talking about, but neither he nor Antonella would name the confident male finalist who was, according to Ryan, "creating a little animosity within the group." Guesses? We're thinking Blake Lewis. You can hear Sundance and Sabrina here. And you can listen to Jared and Antonella here.

LYTHGOE ON O'DONNELL

Seacrest also spoke with executive producer Nigel Lythgoe about Rosie Donnell's accusations that "American Idol" is racist and weightist. Addressing the differences between the Frenchie Davis and Antonella Barba cases, Lythgoe said, "It's two totally different cases. Antonella had some personal photographs put on a Web site and Frenchie was actually supplying photographs to a pornographic Web site. They're totally, utterly different."

Speaking about O'Donnell, herself, Lythgoe said, "Once you get in a situation where you can have a view and then put it on television and discuss something, with that comes a responsibility. And that responsibility is you think before you open your mouth.

"And, I'm sorry, if you're going to talk about 'American Idol' being racist that is utterly crazy ... Talent does not recognize color or size. And if you're talking about size, look at our past contestants, Ruben [Studdard]for instance. Randy Jackson, himself. We don't look at size or color of skin on 'American Idol.' LaKisha [Jones], Mandisa [Hundley], you know, these are not small people."

"... And what it does in truth is cloud the true issues of racism, because, you know, if you cry 'wolf' and say this is racist, it just distracts people's attention from true racism that's going on."

When asked, Lythgoe said it had not been his decision to withhold "American Idol" clips from "The View." That decision, he said, was made by Fox. You can hear the entire interview here.

And according to TMZ.com, O'Donnell had this to say in her blog at rosie.com (warning: spellings unchanged):

what can u say really
from the coca-cola red couch
i call it as i see it
nigel l - sam r
same same same
1985 - 2007
blah blah blah blha
blha blha blah blha

O'Donnell appears to equate Nigel Lythgoe with Sam Riddle ("sam r"), the producer of "Star Search," where O'Donnell got her start by winning several weeks in a row.

TAYLOR HELPS AT HOME

KIIS L.A. reports that when reigning American Idol champion Taylor Hicks returned home to Birmingham, Ala., to perform this weekend, he gave back to the community. Hicks partnered with the American Red Cross to raise funds for victims of the violent tornado that struck Enterprise, Ala., on March 2, killing eight students and destroying the local high school.

Hicks, a native of Birmingham, appeared in his hometown at the Alabama Theater on March 10 and 11. Both shows sold out prior to the tragic events of March 2. After the tornado struck, Hicks invited the Red Cross to collect money on site and educate concert-goers on what they can do to help those affected by the tornado. During his Birmingham visit, Hicks will also be presented with the key to the city, which he will dedicate to the victims of the deadly tornado.

"This tragedy affected me very personally," says Hicks. "I know Enterprise, and have friends from there. When I heard the news, I wanted to be able to do something concrete to help all of the folks affected by the tornado. And I wanted to do it sooner rather than later, as these people need our help now."

This is not the first time Hicks has teamed up with the Red Cross. A portion of the proceeds from his first single, "Do I Make You Proud," goes to the charity, a campaign that continues with the sale of every single and paid digital download. "Do I Make You Proud" hit No. 1 on The Billboard Hot 100 and was the magazine's best-selling single of 2006, with over 460,000 sold to date.

Hicks' new single, "Just to Feel That Way," moves up to No. 25 this week on the Adult Contemporary chart this week.

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