In the final round of IDOL LIVE's poll of the week champion series, David Archuleta reigned supreme as the preferred finalist of all time, just like he has done in the past.
After trouncing his peers in the runner-up competition four weeks ago, Arch once again demolishes the field here, earning 745 of the 820 votes cast, or 90%. The only other contender who finished with a respectable total was Carrie Underwood, who had 58 votes (7%).
The fact that six finalists failed to receive a single vote says a lot about the people who voted to get them into the finale round.
To all of you who have cast votes in the champion series rounds over the past few months, thank you very much for your efforts!
Carrie Underwood 58 (7%)
David Archuleta 745 (90%)
Melinda Doolittle 1 (0%)
Chris Daughtry 13 (1%)
Brooke White 2 (0%)
Kellie Pickler 0 (0%)
Jennifer Hudson 1 (0%)
Michael Johns 0 (0%)
Ramiele Malubay 0 (0%)
Chikezie Eze 0 (0%)
Alexis Grace 0 (0%)
David Hernandez 0 (0%)
Total votes: 820
Showing posts with label chikezie eze. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chikezie eze. Show all posts
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Poll of the week: Arch still favorite contestant in 'Idol' history
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Poll of the week: Chikezie is easily favorite 10th-place finalist
There was a little more competition than usual, but Season 7's Chikezie Eze was comfortably the preferred 10th-place finalist of all nine season in the latest round of IDOL LIVE's 2010 edition of the poll of the week champion series.
Chikezie took in nine votes, good for 34% of all votes cast, which was above Didi Benami's six votes (23%) and Michael Sarver's four votes (15%). Neither Chris Sligh (Season 6) nor Julia DeMato (Season 2) received any votes.
In the next round, readers will be asked which 9th-place finalist is their favorite of all nine seasons. Voting will be open for six days.
EJay Day 0 (0%)
Julia DeMato 0 (0%)
Amy Adams 1 (3%)
Jessica Sierra 5 (19%)
Lisa Tucker 1 (3%)
Chris Sligh 0 (0%)
Chikezie 9 (34%)
Michael Sarver 4 (15%)
Didi Benami 6 (23%)
Total votes: 26
Friday, April 2, 2010
'Idol' odds 'n ends: Jennifer Hudson dishes on weight loss on 'GMA'
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>Jennifer Hudson appeared on ABC's Good Morning America this morning to chat with Robin Roberts about how she slimmed down after giving birth to her son, David Jr. Watch the segment below:
Jennifer treated her TV audience to her "sweetest little baby in the whole wide world" song that she gets David Jr. laughing with and talked about the privilege she has in playing Winnie Mandela in an upcoming biopic.
>Stephanie Edwards, who placed 11th on the sixth season of Idol, was arrested Monday night in Savannah, Ga., for being stupid (and fighting in public). Per RealityTVWorld:
Edwards told police that the woman, Laquilla White, had been harassing her all day with phone calls -- so she decided to travel to her home and confront her, which is when things got physical, Moore said.Stephanie and the other woman were let out on $1,300 bail. Now she can go back to having a career in music, right? Right...
>Not as funny (but equally as law-related) was the news that Chikezie Eze will be charged with more serious charges after his botched attempt at shoplifting $1,200 worth of cologne at a Neiman Marcus in LA last month. Per EOnline.com:
Now the Los Angeles D.A. is charging him with misdemeanor attempted grand theft and misdemeanor identity theft. Eze's pretrial hearing is set for May 2.
Something tells me Chikezie will have a lot to talk about over the next month. Wonder if he'll find a TV show willing to hear him out?
>TV Guide Network recently profiled Matt Giraud and Scott MacIntyre in a "Where are they now?" segment, which focuses on their post-Idol activities. Watch the segment below:
It's not surprising that Matt is still fond of how he was the first finalist to ever be saved by the judges. Scott is great at keeping a positive outlook on his career and it's good to see he's still getting noticed for things other than his visual impairment.
>Jason Castro announced his upcoming summer tour in support of his debut self-titled album, kicking off at the Palladium Ballroom on Sat., April 17, in Dallas, Tex. Per the press release:
Castro will kick off his first headlining tour in his home state of Texas with an April 17th show at Dallas's The Loft. The trek will then traverse the US through mid-May (see itinerary below). A further slate of summer tour dates will be announced shortly.
The tour will wrap up at The Note in Philadelphia, Pa., on Sun., May 16. Jason Castro features the single "That's What I'm Here For" and is set for a Tues., April 13 release.
Friday, February 26, 2010
'Idol' odds 'n ends: Chikezie arrested for buying cologne
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>Alright, so there was more to the story. But what it comes down to is Chikezie Eze was arrested last night for using his Neiman Marcus credit card at the store in Beverly Hills, Calif., to purchase two bottles of expensive cologne. Really, Chikezie? Per TMZ:
Chikezie says, "They said they were waiting for someone to use the card and when they did they would pull them down."
Chikezie responded to fans on his Twitter, telling them "I'm sure this'll all be resolved soon." We'll see, Chikezie. We'll see.
Chikezie says he has no idea what information on the application might be false, adding, "I am who I am. It's not like I can hide that." He mentioned security said something about the name of his company -- Advanced Business Strategic Solutions -- on the application, but didn't know if that's why Neiman's flagged the card.
The Afghan-born Hussainy's announcement — which came with a sparkly engagement ring — put an end to rumors swirling that Cowell was maybe, possibly, perhaps about to get hitched.The 36-year-old currently lives with the 50-year-old Idol judge. There's no word yet on when the wedding will take place, nor whether Paula Abdul will be on the invite list.
The pair has reportedly known each other since meeting on "Idol" several seasons back.
>Adam Lambert got himself back into the spotlight when he dissed Susan Boyle's album in an interview with the UK's Gay Times. Said Adam of Boyle's rendition of the Rolling Stones' classic "Wild Horses":
“I’m happy for her success, but that album is terrible. Wild Horses is the one that made me laugh the hardest. I just died when I heard it, I was crying with laughter. It was the most horrendous, sacrilegious treatment of that song!It is not known whether Boyle had something similar to say about Adam's single that barely was, "For Your Entertainment."\
>Katharine McPhee continued to make the rounds this week with nationally-broadcast appearances on TV shows, including a performance of "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the 2010 NASCAR Fontana on Sunday. On Tuesday, an episode of The Rachael Ray Show that she appeared on aired, which can be watched below:
During her segment, Kat mainly focused on her blonde hair, even taking the time to oversee the transformation of a viewer who underwent the same hair color change as Kat. She also performed "Say Goodbye" later in the episode.
>The LA Times this week wrote about facts and figures regarding the infamous Idol contract that contestants must sign in exchange for performing on the biggest stage in the world. Among the interesting revelations were the fact that Kris Allen has earned $650k since winning the show and every winner has earned $1 million in the span of a year following their victory. Other tidbits:
Those $650,000 in earnings do not come without strings, of course, strings that bind “Idol” contestants to 19 Entertainment for years. The company can sign a management contract with any contestant it chooses, binding the contestant to pay 15 percent of his earnings, not including those from recording and merchandising contracts, to 19 Entertainment-related companies as a manager’s fee. The initial contract extends for three years, although 19 continues to collect a percentage of some of the contestant’s earnings for 10 years.Other items of note from the contract details include show pay rates for contestants, which are $1,011 for a one-hour show and $1,540 for a two-hour episode. Nothing amazing, but better than nothing!
The winner is not the only contestant who earns after the show. Last year the runner-up — Adam Lambert, whose first-week album sales were more than double those of Mr. Allen — earned $300,000 in advance royalties for his album, a $75,000 merchandising contract and $50,000 in fees from Disney World for the Idol Experience attraction.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Beatles night redux a bust
Although it is hard to blame Nigel & Co. for trying to milk their rights to the Lennon-McCartney songbook for all it's worth, even Simon had to concede it wasn't a good idea to feature the theme two weeks in a row.
Bingo! Especially considering how most everyone fared well last week, the only direction the finalists could really go was down. And for the most part, they did.
Amanda Overmyer started the show off by reverting to her mumbling jumbling indecipherable "singing" with her take on "Back in the USSR" After actually doing not half-bad last week, Amanda responded to Simon's suggestion that she do a ballad by exclaiming "ballads are boring!" Well, so is singing the same exact style of music every week.
But the rock 'n roll nurse wasn't the only one to receive negative feedback. Brooke White seemed to get more of a reaction from her bright yellow sundress and her awkward dancing than from her singing, which was probably her weakest vocal delivery to top it off. Simon called her rendition of "Here Comes the Sun" "terrible" and "wet" among other things, prompting Brooke to nervously talk over his critique as she tried to excuse her performance away.
Another finalist that drew the ire of the judges was Michael Johns, who by their accounts should be doing much better than he has done the past few weeks. Although his performance of "A Day in the Life" wasn't "a mess" as Simon called it, it was definitely lackluster. Paula also found herself back peddling when she tried to explain that it was because Michael was wearing an ear piece that caused his underwhelming vocals, only to be told by Michael that he was not wearing one. So much for that theory, Paula!
And then there's Chikezie, who basically decided that because the theme was the same as last week's, he had the green light to deliver the same exact performance as he did last week. Starting out slow with "I've Just Seen a Face," then morphing it into a southern/country/rock mesh of harmonica-playing and toe-tapping, the judges were split on what they had just witnessed. Randy liked the second half better than the first, while Simon hated the first half and only disliked the second. He said it was gimmicky and that there were too many artists mixed into one performance, which Paula vehemently disagreed with.
Jason Castro also got mixed reviews for his take on "Michelle." Although his performance was boring to the max, he did score points with the French-speaking population by nailing the annunciation of the infused foreign lyrics. Too bad France and Canada can't vote. Randy and Paula pinpointed his lifeless performance on the fact that he was disconnected, especially since he was away from his guitar, though they still thought it was "alright." Simon put it more bluntly, saying if it were a radio show instead of a television show he would have turned it off. Ouch.
But it was Kristy Lee Cook who once again took the worst beating of the night for her delivery of "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away." Described as being "musical wallpaper" by Simon, the performance was very up and down in terms of the stark contrast between her upper and lower register (the latter being much worse). He also said she's only memorable when she's terrible like last week. But her comeback to Simon of "I can blow you out of your socks next week and you know it!" pretty much made up for her awful performance.
But the night wasn't all a wash. David Cook pulled off another week of solid rock with his version of "Day Tripper," which he performed in the Whitesnake arrangement. Despite being accused of being "smug" by Simon (oh, so he really is the next Daughtry?), Cook's talents of playing the guitar, voice box and singing showed that he was talented more than he was full of himself.
Carly Smithson also had strong vocals, though "Blackbird" never did sound so dreary as it did last night. After Paula and Randy gave praise to her control, emotion and inflections among other things, Simon picked on Carly for the song's subject matter and lyrics, and calling her choice "indulgent." The discussion got more philosophical than he bargained for when Carly said the lyrics were meaningful to her as they represented how the music industry is a cruel place and like birds trying to learn to fly free she was trying to break the stranglehold the industry has on her, to which Simon launched into sarcasm mode ("Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you were all poor little birds on this show").
But it was David Archuleta who showed the most improvement from last week's lyrical disaster. He once again proved that he's the one to beat, as his rendition of "Long and Winding Road" was definitely more in his comfort zone. It wasn't nearly on an "Imagine" level but it sounded like a Grammy-winning performance compared to the rest of the finalists. All three judges lobbed comments like "amazing!" "wonderful!" and "that was hotness!" his way, and the world returned to order once again.
The big surprise of the night was Syesha Mercado, whose vulnerable and controlled performance of "Yesterday" won her mostly praise from the judges. Although she looked beautiful and sounded pleasant compared to her usual over-singing and sometimes even shoutfests, Paula wasn't the only one to notice her blatant disregard to look into the camera or at the studio audience. Instead, she opted to fix her eyes on something on the stage floor (maybe Ryan left a gum wrapper down there?). Either way, the judges liked it, and Simon predicted she would make it through to the Top 10.
Finally, Ramiele Malubay closed out the show with "I Should Have Known Better." It was definitely a step up from last week's snorefest, and she was wearing a cool hat. But the judges still gave her bland comments, probably the most generic of the night. Randy liked her confidence but said it was "alright." Paula liked her better this week than she did last week. And Simon thought she picked the wrong song and the whole thing was amateurish. So Ramiele will just have to make do with whatever all that is supposed to mean.
Predictions
Bottom 3: Kristy Lee, Amanda, Chikezie
Bottom 2: Kristy Lee, Amanda
Eliminated: Kristy Lee
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Beatles night shows competition is still fluid
Besides the tired infighting between the judges, Ryan's usual flirting with Simon and a new monstrous set, the Top 12 for the most part managed to take control of the 25 limited Lennon-McCartney songs they had to choose from.
The show opened up on a forgettable note when Syesha Mercado tackled "Got to Get You Into My Life." Although the vocal wasn't all that bad, it really was very lifeless despite her use of the Earth, Wind and Fire arrangement. The arrangement factor truly played a big role in the night, as it made or broke many of the finalists' performances. In Chikezie's case, his folk-turned-southern rock interpretation of "She's a Woman" really validated why he was still in the competition, and his performance was actually one of the better ones. Carly Smithson also pulled off another surprise, as she put her special touch on "Come Together," one of her favorite songs. The sound was very reminiscent of something Sheryl Crow would do, and she won much praise from the judges. But in Kristy Lee Cook's case, the arrangement led to her downfall, as "Eight Days a Week" was never intended to be sung in an up-tempo country style.
While the arrangements were important factors in many performances, other finalists' vocals defined how well they did. In Ramiele Malubay's instance, her vocals on "In My Life" were pretty but too reserved, which garnered criticism from the judges that she played it "too safe." David Hernandez gave the word "melisma" a whole new meaning when he took on "I Saw Her Standing There," which also brought forth a barrage of calls to not overdo it, and even David declared he would "try to turn it down a notch" next week (if there is a next week).
Two consistent performers did even better tonight than in weeks prior. Coffee shop soul/pop chanteuse Brooke White delivered a knockout punch with a beautiful rendition of "Let It Be." Her talents on the piano coupled with her rich vocals really give her an under the radar frontrunner status. The other finalist that was on top of his game was David Cook. After he delivered a stellar rocked-out version of the Lionel Richie classic "Hello" last week, David again channeled Chris Daughtry in his performance of "Eleanor Rigby." He received praise from the judges as being a dark horse, with Simon even toying with the possibility of an outside shot of him winning.
Proving that falsettos should only be used every once in a while, Jason Castro's version of "If I Fell" gave Paula a heartfelt connection, but his vocals were otherwise very vulnerable and showed his style of singing definitely has limits. Amanda Overmyer was also only lukewarm this week after she nailed her song last week, which was possibly the only reason she made it through. Her take on "You Can't Do That" was a certified, signature rock 'n roll nurse performance, though it was not nearly as bad as some of her past ones. Michael Johns also was only so-so once again, as he sang "Across the Universe" well but didn't really go anywhere with it, which drew the ire of both Simon and Randy.
But the biggest shock of the entire night was hands down David Archuleta's awful Stevie Wonder version of "We Can Work It Out." The favorite to win did everything from forgetting the lyrics to losing his meter and missing some key notes. If this was the first time the American public saw him perform, David would be on the first flight back to Utah. But his dedicated fanbase and history of amazing performances will be more than enough to sail him through to next week.
Predictions
Bottom 3: David H., Kristy Lee, Syesha
Bottom 2: Kristy Lee, Syesha
Eliminated: Kristy Lee
Friday, March 7, 2008
Where are the shockers?
Four more contestants fell short of making the Top 12 last night, but something was different this season compared to seasons past. Why were there no shockers? In season four there was Amanda Avila. In season five there were Ayla Brown and Gedeon McKinney. And in season six there was Sabrina Sloan. But there was nothing comparable this season.
After Blake Lewis fell flat on his new single "How Many Words," Kady "Robot-dancing" Malloy was the first girl eliminated. She truly was one of the more talented remaining contestants, but her inability to chose the right song three weeks in a row led to her downfall.
Next was Luke "Go Go" Menard. Not much to say here except his song choice was more than fitting for tonight's episode.
It was apparent that TPTB tried to create another Ayla/Melissa or Sabrina/Haley scenario by pairing up Kristy Lee "Cage-fighting" Cook with Asia'h "Apostrohpe" Epperson, but not even Simon fell for it this time. When Ryan asked whom he thought was leaving, Simon had no problem proclaiming it would be Asia'h based on her song choice, Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody," which historically has led to the exits of contestants that choose to perform the song. It's hard to believe anyone thought Kristy was a goner, and even Asia'h appeared to have accepted her defeat.
Flash ahead to Chikezie "Easy" Eze and Danny "TMTH" Noriega, the last two guys sitting on the couch. Here's another case where both could have had equal shots at going home, but Danny's attitude and sub-par vocals on Tuesday was enough to send him packing, sadly squashing any chance of Sanjaya 2.0 this season. The only question is...how will Ramiele "Cry Me a River" Malubay cope?
We'll have to tune in next week to find out. Who knows, maybe we'll be shocked.
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