'Idol' odds 'n ends: Carrie Underwood & Kellie Pickler receive CMT Award noms

The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:

>The nominations for the 2010 CMT Music Awards were revealed in a ceremony on Tuesday, and as expected, only two Idol alums represented. Carrie Underwood led the way with three nominations (Video of the Year and Female Video of the Year for "Cowboy Casanova" as well as CMT Performance of the Year for her invitation only performance of "Temporary Home") while Kellie Pickler's teamwork with friend Taylor Swift paid off as the duo earned a nom for "Best Days of Your Life" in the Collaborative Video of the Year category.

Kellie and Carrie also saw their music video directors receive noms for Director of the Year (Deaton Flanigen, "Temporary Home" and Roman White, "Didn't You Know How Much I Loved You" / "Best Days of Your Life"). The CMT Music Awards will be hosted by Kid Rock and will air live on the network on Wed., June 9 at 8 p.m. ET.

>Carly Smithson did a lot of press ahead of her band We Are the Fallen's Tear the World Down album launch, which hit stores this past Tuesday, including a Q&A with The Los Angeles Times' Idol blogger Shirley Halperin that was published on Monday. Read an excerpt from the interview below:

Are you referring to after “Idol”? What kind of things were you turning down?
After “Idol,” a lot of people misunderstood where I was trying to go as an artist. I remember having a conversation with my husband where I said, “No compromise.” I had to start writing the music myself, because nobody is there to understand exactly what your goal is, but I knew and when I met these guys, I saw it was their goal too. So we all came together and just blended perfectly. We complement each other. For me, I was either gonna have this or nothing at all. I had to have the realization that I could be completely screwing myself forever, by being so adamant that this was going to be the only type of music I was going to make, but it all worked out and I’m stoked.

We Are the Fallen has had its lead single "Bury Me Alive" featured on various TV shows, from MTV's The Hills to The CW's Vampire Diaries. Tear the World Down is now available to purchase at Amazon.com.

>It was announced on Monday that Kris Allen will be supporting Maroon 5 alongside V.V. Brown on the band's current North American tour on four select dates beginning Aug. 19 at the Bayfront Park Amphitheater in Miami, Fla. Ticket sale information is available at Kris's official website.

This news comes after it was revealed two weeks ago that Kris will be keeping busy during the majority of the summer by co-headlining a tour with The Barenaked Ladies beginning July 8 at Harrah's in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

>Following his elimination last week, Aaron Kelly followed in the footsteps of his fellow Idol castoffs when he appeared on CBS's The Late Show with David Letterman Monday night for a little back and forth with Letterman and a mini performance. Watch what transpired below:




Aaron got chastised for mumbling his hometown and going to school via a computer. Aaron's performance of "My Girl" was nice but nothing to write home about. Still, the country vibe it had was custom tailored for Aaron's style.

>And only one Idol-related personality made Maxim's annual Hot 100 list, and it wasn't a contestant. That's right, Kara DioGuardi was selected as the 93rd hottest woman of the year by the men's magazine, coming in right ahead of Kelly Ripa and right behind Helena Mattsson. A portion of Kara's interview can be read below:

Does Simon ever lay into you the way he did Paula?

Definitely. It's hard for me to say something negative to a contestant without giving something constructive back, and that annoys Simon. But they're kids, and you feel for them - especially when they have a story, like they've overcome cancer or something.

It's a bit of a surprise that neither Carrie Underwood nor Katharine McPhee made the list this year. Maybe that's a sign Kat shouldn't have gone blonde? Either way she's back to brunette, so maybe Kat already had an inkling she wouldn't make the cut this year?