Friday, March 30, 2012

Heejun Han voted off "American Idol," eight remain

Contestant Heejun Han gestures at the party for the finalists of the television show ''American Idol'' in Los Angeles, California March 1, 2012. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

LOS ANGELES | Fri Mar 30, 2012 12:14am EDT

(Reuters) - Heejun Han, known for his goofy sense of humor, was kicked off of TV singing contest "American Idol" on Thursday night after his second performance of Leon Russell's "A Song for You" failed to convince judges to keep him on the show.

Han, who found himself in the ranks of the bottom three for the second week in a row alongside fellow competitors Hollie Cavanagh and Skylar Laine, appeared disappointed as he shook host Ryan Seacrest's hand after judge Steven Tyler informed him that he was being sent home.

Han's departure leaves eight contestants remaining from 10 finalists for the show that has given rise to stars ranging from Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood to Adam Lambert.

Seacrest began Thursday's show by sharing tweets from Underwood, Mariah Carey, and others praising the contestants' performances from the previous evening's singing segment, for which contestants chose their songs.

R&B singer Eric Benet made a cameo appearance on the show to deliver feedback to contestant DeAndre Brackensick personally.

Thursday's elimination show featured performances by rapper Nicki Minaj and Season 10 "Idol" winner Scotty McCreery. Minaj performed the single "Starships" from her upcoming album "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded," which comes out on April 3. McCreery, who expressed enthusiasm about visiting the show where he rose to fame, sang "Water Tower Town," his new single.

Now in its eleventh season, "Idol" continues to be the most watched reality TV show in the United States, though it has received stiff competition this year from "The Voice."

Judges critique the contestant's performances, and audiences vote for their favorites by phone and text message each week. The winning contestant receives a recording contract. This season's winner will be decided in a finale on May 23.

(Reporting by Andrea Burzynski; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Saturday, March 17, 2012

Jermaine Jones Was Shocked By American Idol Disqualification

By: Matthew Boyer (GTP) | Tagged: American Idol, American Idol 2012, American Idol season 11, Jermaine Jones, news

AMERICAN IDOL 2012: Jermaine Jones. CR: Nino Munoz / FOX

Jermaine Jones gave an interview to “Showbiz Tonight” and explained he was completely caught off guard by American Idol production’s decision to eliminate him from the Season 11 competition. Jones discussed what he expected at the sit down with Nigel and Ken and how he felt about it being shown to the Idol audience.

“I thought they were bringing it to my attention,” Jones said in reference to his criminal past. “Letting me know that now they are aware of, you know, this, that and the third. I didn’t know what was going to happen, but…

Until they said it, I had no clue what was going to happen … I was shocked, but I can’t really express what my emotions were at that time.”

Jermaine went on to explain that he wished they hadn’t shown the meeting, but how he was humbled by the situation and learned from the incident. Take note,future American Idol Hopefuls, don’t walk in to a room with Nigel and a flock of cameramen for a “private meeting!”

What I found most interesting in the interview was how Jermaine Jones believed he had covered all his bases. Jones explained he had confirmed he had past arrests when filling out his American Idol 2012 application. Combine that with the workhe had done with lawyers to clear up what he thought to be his existing legal issues and Jones was confident he was in the clear. He was not aware of any outstanding warrants and when asked if any actually existed he replied, “Not to my knowledge. Everything that needs to be taken care of, as far as that’s concerned, my team is handling it very well.”

Whether or not you agreed with Jermaine’s expulsion from American Idol, it was certainly an unfortunate turn of events for anyone to experience, especially on an international stage. Best of luck out there.

Source: Today Show

Jermaine Jones: 'I didn't know I broke American Idol rules'

Published Friday, Mar 16 2012, 14:17 GMT | By Catriona Wightman |

SOURCE: CLICK ME!

Jermaine Jones has insisted that he did not know he was breaking any rules when he appeared on American Idol.

The 25-year-old was disqualified from the competition this week after producers discovered that he had been charged with two crimes in 2011 and had used false names with police.

However, Jones has now told People that he informed producers of his past when he applied for the show.

"They did have a question [in which you had to admit] that you were arrested, and that I did do," he said. "And they did an extensive background check. When I went home [after my first elimination] and then I went back, I thought, 'They've done the research at this point'. I was a little bit confused."

American Idol - Season 11 - The Top 13 - Jermaine Jones performs

American Idol Season 11 - Portland Auditions - Jermaine Jones

Jones continued: "I did not know I was breaking the rules, because before I went, I had to obtain a lawyer and take care of some fines before I could go. I just thought everything was taken care of."

However, Jones said that he is doing "very, very well" following his elimination from American Idoland explained that he is optimistic about his future.

"People will judge me or hold it against me, but I don't know anyone that doesn't have a past," he said. "Everyone has a past. It's not like I shot someone or assaulted anyone. I was younger. I got caught driving with a suspended license. I gave a false name. I'm not trying to say it was okay, but I'll be alright."

Sunday, March 11, 2012

American Idol 2012: Top 13 Results Show Recap

By: Branden | Tagged: American Idol, American Idol 2012, American Idol season 11, Top 13

SOURCE: CLICK ME!

American Idol 2012 Jeremy Rosado Elise Testone

We said goodbye to our first member of the American Idol 2012 Top 13 and the results couldn’t have been more predictable.

At the top of the show we were “treated” to a group number. And while it actually wasn’t that bad for a group number, it’s still a part of one of American Idol’sbiggest problems – the results show. Every year I say the same things: It’s too long. There’s too much filler. And people singing in groups of three or more sound awful about 90 percent of the time.

Oh, I almost forgot about the Ford Music Video. Sometimes they’re cool, but most of the time they’re awful. And Thursday night’s might have been one of the worstever. The graphics were TERRIBLE. What is this 1996? Awful.

Finally, some results. Ryan pulls Jessica Sanchez, Elise Testone and Hollie Cavanagh to the center of the stage. Gee, I wonder how this is going to go down. Jessica and Hollie are safe and Elise takes the first seat in the bottom 3 girls.

And before I go any further, can we talk about how ridiculous it is to have a bottom 3 girls AND a bottom 3 guys? Come on. half of the people in their “bottom” groups aren’t even in the bottom. They’re somewhere in the middle. It’s so insulting.

Next up are Heejun Han, Jermaine Jones and Colton Dixon. (Broken record alert) Gee, I wonder how this is going to go down. Heejun and Colton are safe and Jermaine lands in a bottom 3 guys chair.

Up next we get to see that last year’s runner-up gave in to theHollywood/Nashville diet and lost all of her character somewhere in a pilates class.

And it’s time for more results. The remaining girls, Erika Van Pelt, Shannon Magrane and Skylar Laine take the stage. At this point I think, oh, there’s going to be a shocker. All the other results have been so obvious, so I guess this means America is crazy and didn’t vote for Skylar. But luckily, that wasn’t so. Skylar is safe and the other two join Elise in the bottom 3.

The remaining guys step up to find out their fates. Jeremy Rosado takes the second seat in the bottom 3, to no one’s surprise. And finally, there’s kind of a surprise. Not a huge surprise, but a surprise none the less. And that’s Joshua Ledet is in the “bottom” and not Deandre Brackensick.

Ryan immediately sends Joshua and Erika to safety and stops insulting them by calling their rankings “the bottom.”

After Mary J. Blige takes the stage, it’s the final results.

Jermaine and Shannon are sent to safety so that leaves Jeremy and Elise. And just as I predicted, the judges save the girl and send Jeremy home. I wonder who had the actual bottom votes. I would venture to bet that the true bottom 2 were Jeremy and Jermaine. And Elie would’ve been in that third to last spot. But that’s just a guess.

Did America and the judges make the right choices?

Saturday, March 03, 2012

Meet your American Idol 2012 Top 13

Meet Your American Idol 2012 Top 13

By: Matthew Boyer (GTP)

It’s time to meet your American Idol 2012 Top 13 finalists. Last night on American Idol the semi-finalists were whittled down and left us with the season’s Top 10 plus 3 wildcard spots also known as “America didn’t want you, but the judges are going to force us to watch you again” singers.

Starting next week the American Idol 2012 finalists will hit the stage and performfor your votes as we march on the May finale. Here’s who you’ll be watching.

American Idol 2012 Top 13: