Is there something you've been wanting to ask Lee DeWyze, Crystal Bowersox, Casey James, Michael Lynche or Aaron Kelly? If so, then today's your lucky day, as Idol's ninth season's Top 5 finalists will be available to answer their fans' questions in a live chat sponsored by AT&T. The chat will begin at 5:30 p.m. ET (2:30 p.m. PT) and last approximately 30 minutes, taking place over on AT&T Share's Facebook page. The chat will be simulcast live here on IdolLive below:
AT&T is of course sponsoring the American Idols Live! Tour, which is currently stopped in Anaheim, Calif. and will wrap up on Tues., Aug. 30 in Indianapolis, Ind.
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>Continuing in his "Idols Live!" tour-promoting mode, Lee DeWyze stopped by The View on Monday for a brief chat with co-hosts Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Sherri Shepherd in addition to an acoustic performance of "Hallelujah." Watch the segment below:
Lee didn't have much to say in the interview, but that's not surprising considering the questions he was fielded. Luckily, he delivered an alright performance to make up for it.
>Also on The View this week was Clay Aiken, who served as guest co-host on Tuesday's episode. Surprisingly, Clay "cussed" during a segment in which the ladies discussed spoiled children (or something to that effect). Watch Clay's exit interview in which he apologizes below:
The full episode can be viewed on ABC's website. Clay is planning to begin his "Timeless Tour" with fellow Season 2 alum Ruben Studdard on Fri., July 23 in Asheville, N.C., on which he will promote his new album Tired & True.
>Katharine McPhee promoted her work with the campaign being sponsored by ConAgra Foods and Feeding America on Friday's episode of On the Record with Greta Van Susteren on FOX News Channel. Watch the segment below:
In addition to talking about the campaign, Kat also said she will spend roughly three months putting together her upcoming yet-to-be-titled Christmas album, which she already began recording.
>Kris Allen took a break from his tour with The Barenaked Ladies on Thursday to finally film the music video for his current single "The Truth" in the California desert, however before much could get filmed, rain canceled the operation. Kris was set to film the video with his love interest, model Cindy Vela, and Pat Monahan of Train, but according to one of Kris' recent tweets, it will resume on Monday.
Photos from the set of the shoot were released, however, showing that Kris' wife, Katy, is standing by to show him some support.
>David Cook posted one of his world famous vlogs this week to tease fans about his upcoming release. It basically consists of black and white shots of recording sessions in the studio. Watch the vlog below:
In case you missed it, Season 9's Top 10 finalists took a break from their busy Idols Live! tour (in fact, they even moved a show for it) this morning on ABC's Good Morning America. Following solo performances by Lee DeWyze and Crystal Bowersox, it was time for all 10 finalists to take the stage for a medley of Bon Jovi's "It's My Life" and Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You." Below is how it all went down:
I don't think there's ever been less of a reason to attend an Idol concert as this one. It was like George Stephanopolous and Robin Roberts raced up and down 42nd Street and grabbed the first 10 young people they saw, rushed them to Central Park, pushed them up on stage and forced them to sing on the spot.
Now, I'll give them the excuse that the cramped stage minimized their ability to move around, so dancing in place a la Aaron Kelly was pretty much the only other option. But c'mon, that was an embarrassment to group performances. The sloppy harmonies, the awkward poses the cameramen caught, the rampant out of tune singing, it never ends. In fact, it's more sad than anything, because they seem like a great group of people.
So as the show cancelations keep a'comin', is anyone really surprised why the tour is flailing around? I would not pay to see this on stage, and apparently many others feel the same.
If you didn't know already, the Season 9 "Idols Live!" tour kicked off last week in Auburn Hills, Mich., on July 1. Since then, there have been plenty of poor reviews pouring in, and the news got much, much worse today for the waning franchise.
After foreboding warnings from the touring finalists themselves via Twitter last week, one shoe dropped as eight dates were re-scheduled, one venue was moved to a smaller-size venue and six dates were canceled altogether. Instead of wrapping up on Sept. 16, the tour will now conclude on Aug. 31. Below is the list of all dates that have been modified:
JUL 09 FRI BRIDGEPORT, CT NEW DATE! ARENA AT HARBOR YARD
JUL 21 WED PITTSBURGH, PA NEW DATE & VENUE! FIRST NIAGRA PAVILION
AUG 21 SAT PORTLAND, OR CANCELLED
AUG 26 THU OMAHA, NE CANCELLED
AUG 26 THU DES MOINES, IA NEW DATE! WELLS FARGO ARENA
AUG 27 FRI KANSAS CITY, MO CANCELLED
AUG 27 FRI MINNEAPOLIS, MN NEW DATE! TARGET CENTER
AUG 28 SAT CHICAGO, IL NEW DATE! UNITED CENTER
AUG 29 SUN TOLEDO, OH NEW DATE! THE HUNTINGTON CENTER
AUG 30 MON CINCINNATI, OH NEW DATE! RIVERBEND MUSIC CENTER
AUG 31 TUE INDIANAPOLIS, IN NEW DATE! CONSECO FIELDHOUSE
SEP 07 TUE WINNIPEG, MB CANCELLED
SEP 09 THU TORONTO, ON CANCELLED
SEP 10 FRI BUFFALO, NY CANCELLED
SEP 11 SAT CLEVELAND, OH CANCELLED
SEP 16 THU PORTLAND, ME CANCELLED
All other dates are in tact (for now). If 19E didn't get the message that Season 9 was a bust, the returns and reviews being generated by this tour must be blatant enough to hammer the point home. Just wait until the first few stops' figures are made public. They will most likely be another black eye for Idol. Hopefully the 10 performers can use their talent to help turn things around.
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>Since there are fans dying of anticipation ahead of this summer's "American Idols Live!" tour (yeah, right), the franchise decided to inform the world of the tour stops on Tuesday. The highlights of the tour? Besides the Top 10 finalists that will be contractually obligated to perform from July 1 until Sept. 14, some exciting stops include the Giant Center in Hershey, Pa., on July 15, the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla., on Aug. 8 and the United Center in Chicago, Ill. on Aug. 30. A full list of tour dates reveals that 49 shows will be performed in 49 cities, including two Canadian locales.
Tickets go on sale beginning Fri., May 14, at 11 a.m., with the majority of them becoming available on Sat., May 15, at 10 a.m.
>It's as close to being official as possible: Kris Allen's second single will be "The Truth," the Toby Gad/Pat Monahan-penned ballad. Interestingly enough, Jive ordered the production of a version featuring the vocals of Monahan, the lead singer of Train, on the bridge, which will most likely be the version sent to radio. Listen to the redone version below:
Kris has yet to weigh in on the selection of "The Truth" as his second single, but regardless of what he thinks of it, he will be performing the song on the Idol finale. You can't ask for a bigger promotional opportunity than that.
>Jordin Sparks was in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday along with U.S. Transporation Secretary Ray LaHood and congressional members to raise awareness for Allstate's "X the TXT" campaign. Per the press release, Jordin said:
"Sending a text is not worth taking a life," said Grammy-nominated Jordin Sparks. "Unfortunately, it can be easy to forget the dangers of texting and driving when you get behind the wheel. That's why it is important for teens, their friends and families to acknowledge the risks and pledge together not to do it."
Jordin also appeared on FOX News Channel to promote awareness of the campaign, which can be watched below:
>Ryan Seacrest recently announced that he will lend his voice to a character in the upcoming Dreamworks release Shrek Forever After, and now we know what his character will look like. Only known as "father of Butter Pants," the character was revealed in a screencap posted on Ryan's official site on Wednesday as seen on the right. Per the post on Ryan's site:
Coincidentally, the pudgy character of Butter Pants is played by "Shrek" director Mike Mitchell who says the scene that Ryan appears in is indeed a "pivotal moment" in the storyline.
Ryan's voice talents will be heard in theaters nationwide beginning Fri., May 21.
>Katharine McPhee announced Thursday she has recorded a new version of her song "Terrified," which features the vocals of Chuck star Zachary Levi instead of co-writer Jason Reeves, who is featured on the album version and seems to be in "Camp Kara" when it comes to his allegiance judging by his recent performance of the song with Judge DioGuardi on Lopez Tonight. Of Levi, Kat said in an e-mail:
He is amazing and the new version is incredible. Next week you'll get to hear the song and there's a great video to go with it as well.
Presumably, the single will hit iTunes on Tuesday. You can already see a rough clip of the video, which will be airing in movie theaters nation wide as part of "Screenvision."
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>After treating fans to a sneak peek at his latest music video on Fri., Sept. 18, Blake Lewis premiered the full video on his official music MySpace page this past Tuesday. Watch the video below:
The video was directed by Ana Veselic. Blake's forthcoming album Heartbreak On Vinyl is due out Tues., Oct. 6, and can be pre-ordered on Amazon.com.
>In other Idol runner-up news, Justin Guarini is back in the news, this time for his upcoming marriage to high school friend Reina Capodici. According to The New York Post, Justin said of the news:
“I’ve traveled all over the world but I found the woman I love right in my own backyard,” Guarini told RadarOnline.com. “I’ve known Reina since I was 15 but we didn't actually start dating until two years ago … Her mother was my English teacher in junior high school!”
The news was originally reported by RadarOnline.com. The wedding will take place at a private estate along the Delaware River tomorrow (Sat., Sept. 26).
>Melinda Doolittle and her friend Kelley Norris recorded a "happy birthday" vlog for Ross Matthews of Inside Dish with Ross Matthews, which was embedded on Melinda's official Web site yesterday. Watch the clip below:
Portions of the vlog were incorporated into Matthews' webisode that aired yesterday, where it played alongside birthday messages from people including Perez Hilton and Lydia Tavera of Big Brother fame.
>Some interesting numbers came in for the 2009 "Idols Live!" tour courtesy of alt.tv-americanidol, showing that it grossed a mammoth $30.1 million in total revenue. Other interesting tidbits:
Total Attendance: 483,512 Number of Tickets Available: 564,938 % Capacity: 85.6% Average Gross: $578,301 Average Attendance: 9,298 Average Ticket Price: $62.19
It was also interesting to see that the last five cities were sold out (Bridgeport, Portland, Providence, Syracuse, Manchester) and the city with the worst attendance was Vancouver (8,203 of 12,533 [65%]).
>Jordin Sparks was recently featured in a segment on the British ITV's Good Morning Television (GMTV) program for a behind the scenes look at her tour with The Jonas Brothers. The segment, which aired yesterday, followed Jordin around backstage at her concert in Las Vegas, Nev., and can be watched below:
As mentioned by the GMTV correspondent that filed the segment, Jordin's current single "S.O.S. (Let the Music Play)," which was heavily featured in the segment, will be released in The U.K. on Mon., Oct. 12.
In results that could be seen only as an overwhelming sense of nostalgia for Season 7, voters in IDOL LIVE's poll of the week chose that season's "Idols Live!" tour as their favorite.
It was nothing short of a slaughter in last week's poll, with 243 votes going to the tour for the season of the Davids in 2008. That's a ridiculous 94% total take of the 256 votes cast in all. None of the other tours got so much as an honorable mention.
In this week's edition of the poll of the week, readers are asked which lead-off single of Carrie Underwood's is their favorite. Voting will be open for exactly one week.
Season 1 (2002) 1 (0%) Season 2 (2003) 1 (0%) Season 3 (2004) 1 (0%) Season 4 (2005) 2 (0%) Season 5 (2006) 3 (1%) Season 6 (2007) 2 (0%) Season 7 (2008) 243 (94%) Season 8 (2009) 3 (1%)
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>It has only been four years since Carrie Underwood rose to stardom, but she will soon be able to say she is enshrined in the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. According to CMT.com:
Carrie Underwood is one of three performers selected as this year's inductees into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. The announcement was made Monday (Aug. 10) during a news conference at the Tulsa Press Club.
It was last December that Carrie was inducted into the Grand Ol Opry. The ceremony and concert will take place on Thurs., Sept. 17, in the Muskogee Civic Center.
>Season 8's Top 10 finalists made a stop by NASDAQ while in New York City on Tuesday, where they partook in the tradition of Idol alums doing the ceremonial ringing of the bell to close out the day's trading. Watch the event below:
The crazy poses in the middle of the video above were used as shots of the finalists displayed out on an LCD screen on the exterior of a building. The group of 10 were in town to perform in concert as part of their "Idols Live!" tour stop at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island.
>Jennifer Hudson became Idol's latest new mother, as the third season's seventh-place finalist gave birth to David Daniel Otunga Jr. late Monday night. According to Us Magazine, the couple's publicist said the 7-pound, 14-ounce baby "is beautiful and perfect."
>While making an appearance at Sunday's Teen Choice Awards, Jordin Sparks ran into a familiar face amidst the sea of celebs. Who else but Ashley Ferl (a.k.a. the "crying girl") turned up and was sure to impress Jordin with her awesome crying skills. Jordin tweeted about the meet up, saying:
Look who I saw yesterdayyyy! No, Sanjaya wasn't there! Lol http://twitpic.com/dfb83 4:12 PM Aug 10th from TwitterFon
Looks like not much has changed in two years.
>Kimberly Caldwell will be fulfilling hosting duties for MTV's upcoming series P. Diddy's Starmaker. Per a press release issued earlier this week:
Singer, actress and television personality Kimberly Caldwell has worked as an entertainment correspondent and host for the TV Guide Network. Kimberly first hit the limelight as an artist on another popular reality competition show, which gives her the ability to develop an intimate and empathetic relationship with the aspiring "StarMaker" contestants.
Starmaker premieres on Sun., Aug. 16 at 10 p.m. ET on MTV.
It was an all-Idol affair on this morning's episode of Good Morning America, as David Cook, Kris Allen and Adam Lambert each performed as part of the program's Summer Concert Series in New York City's Central Park. Just one week after Kelly Clarkson headlined the same concert, the three male alums took to the stage to perform either their current single (in the case of Cook) or a song from the current "Idols Live!" tour (in the case of Kris and Adam). Watch the performances below:
Cook's "Come Back to Me"
Adam's "Starlight"
Kris' "Heartless"
Both Kris and Adam are in town to perform in concert with the rest of Season 8's Top 10 finalists as part of the Idol tour at Atlantic City, N.J.'s Boardwalk Hall tonight and the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., tomorrow and Sunday. Cook is currently in an in-between period and will resume his tour on Wed., Aug. 13 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>In the dog days of summer, it does not take much to get one's name out in the news. Exhibit A is Ju'Not Joyner's stirring of a hornet's nest earlier this week with his claims that Idol is rigged. The Top 36 contestant from Season 8 said the following in an interview with AI Now:
"What I mean is that people think AI is a talent show. No. It's a reality show with writers!! We're all actors. All these shows have writers that guide the public opinion. The Hills, Real World. All of them."
So far there has been no comment from the 19E/FremantleMedia camp, and it would be a surprise if anything substantial came from them period.
>One of the aspects of the "Idols Live!" tour that Kris Allen must not be thrilled about are the pesty fans that bug him and the other alums backstage. In the following video, Kris is interrogated about his t-shirt that reads "I'd trade my girlfriend for a Coke":
Obviously Kris does not have a girlfriend, since he is married. Oh well, this is just an example of the joys and pains of allowing backstage passes.
>While Paula Abdul's future with Idol still hangs in the balance, Kara DioGuardi's time on Season 9 as a judge has already been reserved. Although full details of the contract are not yet available, it is assumed that Kara will be making substantially less than any of the other judges, but that's apparently not a problem for her.
>The first season of Idol acquainted millions of people with a few big names like Kelly Clarkson and Tamyra Gray, but Kelli Glover was not one of them. The Top 30 contestant was recently featured on the fourth season of America's Got Talent, but was eliminated in Las Vegas before the show got to the live voting portion. Watch Kelli below:
Kelli sang "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" back in the wild card round of the semifinals, after performing "I Will Always Love You" in group 1.
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>The nominations for the 61st Emmy Awards were yesterday morning announced in Los Angeles, and Idol once again was nominated in the "Outstanding Reality-Competition Program" category alongside Dancing with the Stars, Top Chef and, of course, The Amazing Race. This is the series' seventh nomination since the category was introduced in 2003.
Ryan Seacrest also received a nom for "Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program." The category is in its second year after being awarded to Survivor's Jeff Probst last year. The Emmys will air at 8 p.m. ET on CBS on Sun., Sept. 20.
>Melinda Doolittle saw her exclusive dance remix EP of her single "It's Your Love" quietly released to iTunes on Tuesday, as it was overshadowed by major Idol releases from Daughtry and Brooke White. Per Melinda's official newsletter that alerted fans to the news:
The soulful and moving song "It's Your Love" gets reworked by some of the hottest remixers/DJs in the world, including Jason Nevins, Mike Rizzo, and Smashmode, to create a pulsating rendition of the song that will be sure to get everyone out of their seats. The EP features three club versions of each track, as well as two radio remixes and a free bonus copy of the original music video for the song.
The newsletter also stated that the radio remix done by Jason Nevins will be sent to Top 40 radio at the end of July.
>Playbill.com announced that Diana DeGarmo will be joining the cast of the off-Broadway musical The Toxic Avenger on Fri., Aug. 14. In a statement, Diana said the following of the show:
"I am so excited to be coming back to New York to join the cast of The Toxic Avenger. When I saw the show, I laughed my head off. I can’t wait to start rehearsal – and to be blonde again!"
Diana will star as Sarah, a "sexy blind librarian" for at least three months. The show plays at New World Stages in Manhattan.
>SketchedOutTV.com, the ridiculous brainchild of Justin Guarini and Shaun Ingram, had its latest vlog posted yesterday. The vlog, titled "Sketchy Blog #3," features Justin and Shaun talking about putting our fires and something about a fish. Watch the vlog below:
A GIF of a pad of paper tackling a pair of scissors talking to two girls titled "Pad's Revenge!" was also posted. Who needs to sing for a living when you can post this kind of stuff on the net?
>Kris Allen will no longer be performing his atrocious "corny-n"ation song "No Boundaries" on the "Idols Live!" tour. According to an article posted on LATimesBlogs.com's "'Idol' Tracker":
Reviews of Season 8's finale show widely trashed the victory number and the chilly reception has followed "Boundaries" onto the road. In reviews of the tour, "Boundaries" has been singled out as a misstep, generating a tepid crowd response compared with the other numbers.
The tour's producers have been listening to the sound of few hands clapping. Starting tonight in Sacramento, "No Boundaries" will be disappear from Allen's set, according to sources with the production.
The song that Kris has chosen to replace "No Boundaries" is The Killers' "All These Things That I've Done," which he premiered at the Sacramento show on Fri., July 10. Watch the performance below:
The tour will next stop in Ontario, Canada, where the Top 10 finalists will perform at the Citizens Business Bank Arena.
Allison Iraheta last night performed Heart's classic "Barracuda" on NBC's The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. Watch the performance below:
"Barracuda" is one of Allison's two songs on the "Idols Live!" tour, which she was promoting on the show. The fourth-place finalist was a last-minute replacement for Kris Allen, who canceled his scheduled appearance due to a death in his family.
The American Idols Live! tour last night kicked off to much fanfare in Portland, Ore., at the Rose Garden. As expected, oodles of illegal fan videos found their way onto the net, including the one below of Kris Allen closing the show with The Beatles' "Hey Jude" with the rest of the Top 10 joining him onstage in the final chorus:
Another performance that seemed to receive a lot of buzz was Adam Lambert's duet with Allison Iraheta on "Slow Ride," which was a performance that got a good amount of acclaim during Top 4 week. Watch the performance below:
As for the reviews, they varied widely depending on the source. For example, Scott D. Lewis of The Oregonian had much praise for Adam but left little room for positive things to say about Kris:
Then it was time for the real show, and it belonged to Adam Lambert.
The slightly androgynous gothy singing sensation absolutely tore up "Whole Lotta Love" and, with help from Iraheta, transformed the classic rock dude anthem "Slow Ride" into something sly and fun.
Finally, the huge hall was full of energy.
And then some guy named Kris Allen came onstage and did a few dull songs, including, oddly, "Hey Jude" to end his winner-but-losing set.
What really matters, though, is what the fans thought, and most of them agreed when it came to Adam. On Idolforums.com, member Weazzy had this to say about the runner-up:
The crowds favorite was obviously Adam. They went crazy before the show whenever they showed his pic on the slideshow thing. Well Adam is Adam haha what's to say...He had his little dance moves things whatever you wanna call them haha I love him.
Of the 15,000 or so available seats in the arena for the particular configuration, roughly 12,000 fans attended, which is a pretty good figure to start off the 2009 tour with. The Top 10 will next perform tomorrow night at the Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Wash.
The following are Idol-related odds and ends that happened this week:
>Ace Young is the latest Idol alum to pop the question, as he and girlfriend Allison Fischer were recently engaged. According to UsMagazine.com:
The 28-year-old singer - who finished seventh on the fifth season of the hit Fox show - recently popped the question to Allison Fischer, 20, his costar on Broadway's Grease.
There is no wedding date for the two at the moment.
>Daughtry announced a 13-city tour on Monday, which will run from Aug. 2-22 in smaller venues. The dates and destinations are as follows:
08/02/09 - Orlando, FL - House of Blues 08/04/09 - Foxboro, MA - Showcase Live 08/07/09 - Columbus, OH - LC Pavilion 08/08/09 - Chicago, IL - Vic Theatre 08/09/09 - Minneapolis, MN - The Cabooze 08/11/09 - Nashville, TN - Cannery Ballroom 08/12/09 - Memphis, TN - Minglewood Hall 08/14/09 - Houston, TX - Warehouse Live 08/16/09 - Englewood, CO - The Gothic Theatre 08/18/09 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre 08/19/09 - Los Angeles, CA - Henry Fonda Theatre 08/20/09 - San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore 08/22/09 - Las Vegas, NV - Pure
Tickets go on sale on Sat., July 11, with special pre-sale VIP packages beginning on Wed., July 8.
>The latest batch of Idol alums spoke with EOnline.com a few days ago and it was revealed that Kris Allen will be covering The Beatles' classic "Hey Jude" on the upcoming "American Idols Live!" summer concert tour, which kicks off Sun., July 5, in Portland, Ore. As for what he will doing while he waits for his 5-song set list each night, Kris said:
"I have nothing to do until later, but I'm so weird I'll probably be watching from the wings anyway."
Allison Iraheta, on the other hand, said she will be singing three songs while on the tour, including "Cry Baby" by Janis Joplin.
>Also on the Season 8 train, an exclusive album at Walmart featuring songs from the Top 10 was released this past Tuesday. The album features two tracks from Kris Allen and Adam Lambert and select studio versions that were available to purchase throughout the season on iTunes. The album is $10.00 in Walmart retail locations nationwide and online.
>A TV spot for Sacha Baron Cohen's upcoming comedy Bruno featuring everyone's favorite female Idol judge has begun making the rounds on the airwaves. Watch a short snippet of Paula Abdul being humiliated below:
Paula began bracing for the scene months ago while she appeared on various talk shows to promote the eight season of Idol. Bruno opens everywhere on Fri., July 10.
The dates and venues for the 2009 "Idols Live!" summer tour have been released, and the outlook is pretty bright for the Top 10 finalists. Below is the entire schedule according to AmericanIdol.com, which is of course subject to change at any time:
July 5 Portland, OR (Rose Garden) July 7 Tacoma, WA (Tacoma Dome) July 8 Vancouver, BC (General Motors Place) July 10 Sacramento, CA (ARCO Arena) July 11 Oakland, CA (Oracle Arena) July 12 San Jose, CA (HP Pavilion at San Jose) July 14 West Valley City, UT (The E Center) July 16 Los Angeles, CA (Staples Center) July 17 Ontario, CA (Citizens Business Bank Arena) July 18 San Diego, CA (San Diego Sports Arena) July 20 Glendale, AZ (jobing.com Arena) July 23 Dallas, TX (American Airlines Center) July 24 Tulsa, OK (BOK Center) July 25 N. Little Rock, AR (Alltel Arena) July 26 Memphis, TN (FedExForum) July 28 Tampa, FL (St. Pete Times Forum) July 29 Sunrise, FL (BankAtlantic Center) July 31 Duluth, GA (Arena at Gwinnett Center) August 1 Charlotte, NC (Time Warner Cable Arena) August 2 Greensboro, NC (Greensboro Coliseum) August 4 Washington, DC (Verizon Center) August 5 Baltimore, MD (1st Mariner Arena) August 7 Atlantic City, NJ (Boardwalk Hall) August 8 Newark, NJ (Prudential Center) August 11 Long Island, NY (Nassau Coliseum) August 14 Hamilton, ON (Copps Coliseum) August 15 Rochester, NY (BlueCross Arena) August 16 Hartford, CT (XL Center) August 18 Boston, MA (TD Banknorth Garden) August 19 Albany, NY (Times Union Center) August 20 Philadelphia, PA (Wachovia Center) August 22 Pittsburgh, PA (Mellon Arena) August 23 Cleveland, OH (Wolstein Center) August 25 Columbus, OH (Schottenstein Center) August 26 Auburn Hills, MI (Palace at Auburn Hills) August 28 Milwaukee, WI (Bradley Center) August 29 St. Louis, MO (Scottrade Center) August 30 Kansas City, MO (Sprint Center) September 1 Minneapolis, MN (Target Center) September 2 Rosemont, IL (Allstate Arena) September 4 Madison, WI (Alliant Energy Center) September 5 Indianapolis, IN (Conseco Fieldhouse) September 6 Grand Rapids, MI (Van Andel Arena) September 8 Reading, PA (Sovereign Center) September 9 Wilkes Barre, PA (Wachovia Arena) September 10 Bridgeport, CT (Arena at Harbor Yard) September 12 Portand, ME (Cumberland County Civic Center) September 13 Providence, RI (Dunkin' Donuts Center) September 14 Syracuse, NY (WarMemorial at OnCenter) September 15 Manchester, NH (Verizon Wireless Arena)
It appears that this year's stops seem to be more focused in the upper portion of the country, specifically the northeast and upper midwest. And as usual, the west coast is pretty well represented this year. Some new destinations have been added this year, including Boston (woohoo).
The sixth season's Justin Timberlake lookalike, 24-year old Chris Richardson, has been busy prepping his debut album following the "Idols Live!" tour last year. Chris, who placed fifth, released his single "All Alone" in March to iTunes via Chris Richardson Music/Combustion. The song is available to listen to in full on his official music MySpace page along with a 26-second clip of another track called "Guilty." No word yet on when fans can expect the album to be out.
"All Alone" was featured on the American Idol compilation promotional album Edy's Slow Churned Hot Tracks along with fellow alums like Nadia Turner and Constantine Maroulis.
Chris will next perform at The Canal Club in Richmond, Va., on Nov. 5 at 8 p.m. (fellow season 6 alum Blake Lewis will perform there tomorrow).
The hugely popular video game Guitar Hero will have a place on the American Idols Live! tour this summer. According to an article published on Melodika.net, the Activision, Inc. phenomenon will be featured in a video that will air during intermission of every concert in which the 10 finalists will be shown playing Guitar Hero: World Tour, which will be released in the fall. Iain Pirie, head of 19 Entertainment U.S., said the following of the partnership:
"The American Idols Live! Tour is for families to immerse themselves in the Idol experience first-hand, and what better way to bring a personalized, super star feeling to life than by playing Guitar Hero. Integrating Guitar Hero into the tour gets fans actively involved and provides an added dose of entertainment that we know they’ll love."
Also available at the concerts will be booths where fans can play Guitar Hero: Aerosmith and Guitar Hero: On Tour.
The partnership between the Guitar Hero franchise and Idol began on May 22, when two commercials featuring David Cook and David Archuleta playing the game in a recreation of the famous scene from Tom Cruise's film Risky Business aired during the finale.
Well, it looks like David Archuleta's homecoming concert will have to wait. The event, which was dubbed "Back Home With David Archuleta" and was originally slated to be held Friday at the E-Center in West Valley City, Utah, will have to wait until after Arch's contractual obligations to Idol are fulfilled (a.k.a. after the Idols Live! tour wraps up in September). It looks like pesky 19 is already up to its usual tricks. Per an article in the Archuleta family's hometown paper, The Salt Lake Tribune, dad Jeff tried to skirt around the "evil Idol" reason, and said the following:
"They're just going to reschedule the event for a later time. When all the minds met, everyone concluded this wouldn't work out for this particular weekend, and they just want to reschedule it for toward the middle or the end of the ["American Idol" summer] tour."
Portions of the sales from the concertbration were said to be going to the Multiple Sclerosis Society and Make-a-Wish Foundation.
The preliminary schedule for the 2008 American Idols Live tour has been posted on AmericanIdol.com. The tour will kick off at the jobing.com Arena on Tues., July 1 in Glendale, Ariz., and will conclude on Sept. 13 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla. The schedule currently includes 49 shows in 29 states and one province.
To view a full listing of the tour, see here. While there, you can also sign up to receive the latest news regarding the tour via e-mail.
IDOL LIVE is the place to stay up to date with the most current news on past, present and possibly future American Idol contestants, in addition to discussing the show in real-time as it happens.
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