Its Idol Time!

The top 24 contestants of this year's American Idol was finally revealed on Wednesday night. Let me start by saying how disappointed I am that this year's Hollywood week was so short. They aired an hour of them singing in all of Hollywood, not to mention the lack of group performances. They spent weeks on the auditions! Yes, I know a lot people say its their favorite part and yes, I do like the auditions. But c'mon, at least show a good part of Hollywood week. And then of course they have their hour long "chair" show which is incredibly pointless. Anyway, enough ranting, on to the top 24 contestants of Season 7 American Idol.

Lets start with the good, there were a couple of the contestants that made it who really impressed me. David Archuleta was one of the boys who really blew me away. When I first saw him in the auditions, I thought he was pretty good. But after seeing him sing "Heaven" in Hollywood, I was sold. Not to mention, He's Only 16?!?! Talented boy and I'm glad he made it. Another boy that stood out to me was Micheal Johns who has an amazing voice and could possible win this thing despite being Australlian (Hello! American Idol?). Other boys I thought were pretty okay were David Cook and David Hernandez (whats with the Davids?!). Oh and Chikezie Eze cause who can't love a guy with a name like that. There's also Danny Noriega who I think has an okay voice but kinda reminds me of Sanjaya. Then there's the contestants who I really know nothing about cause of the incredibly short Hollywood week, Luke Menard who kinda looks like Orlando Bloom, Colton Berry, Jason Yeager, Garrett Haley, and Jason Castro (don't think I even heard them talk). Oh and there's Robbie Carrico who supposedly dated Britney once (Yes, Britney Spears!).

Now there's the girls. This is going to be quick since most of the girls bore me. Carly Smithson I think is one girl that stands out in the crowd. She has a good voice and I think will make it far in the competition because the judges love her. I'm not really a big fan of her though. She has already had an album out but since it was a big flop, this is her second chance. FYI Carly, this is a competiton for undiscovered talent. You've already been discovered and you failed! Moving on ... you have Ramiele Malubay, Syesha Mercado, Joanne Borgella who can really sing but dont really stand out to me. Amanda Overmyer is the rockstar nurse who the judges love but her voice just doesnt do it for me (she sounds the same everytime she sings!) I was hoping she didnt make the Top 24 but what do I know. Brooke White seems like a sweet girl and was the only one who I enjoyed watching on stage. Kristy Lee Cook has a fairly decent voice but an annoying personality (no, its not just a singing competition). Asia'h Epperson is the girl who's father passed away right before her audition, good voice and will probably make it far. Kady Malloy, I only remember her impressions from her audition. And then of course you have the people I've never even heard of before, Alexandrea Lushington, Alaina Whitaker, and Amy Davis.

And there you have it, your Top 24 contestants of American Idol Season 7!

A Sad Day ...

Valentines Day 2008 was a tragic day at Northen Illinois University. A gunman opened fire with a shotgun and two handguns killing five students and wounding over a dozen before taking his own life. The gunman went a rampage leading to a total of 22 casualties. Police have identified the gunman as 27 year old former student Stephen Kazmierczak and became errotic after he stopped taking his medication.

When I hear things like this happen, it definelty scares me. I can't help but worry something like this will happen at St. Johns. I never understood how universities can let something like this happen, but then I realized people who commit such hostile acts are obviously sick. No person in their right mind would do such things. I think colleges and universities should be more aware of people who need help. They should also enforce more security on college campuses. I know there's only so much security a school can have, but its at least one thing they can do to prevent shootings on college campuses. My thoughts and prayer are with the families and friends who have lost loved ones on this tragic day.

Kinda feel bad talking about this when the title of my blog is "On The Verge Of Something Wonderful"

Is It Over?!

Hollywood's long writers strike could be coming to end. On Saturday, February 10th, union leaders representing 12,000 movie and television writers said they had reached a tentative three-year deal with production companies. The three month long strike began on November 5th has not officially ended but the New York meeting on Saturday was full of optimism. It is expected the strike be over as soon as Monday morning. The end of the strike means great news for producers. The strike has been the longest writers strike since 1988 causing tens of thousands people to lose their jobs. The strike effected a number of TV shows like "Grey's anatomy" and "CSI" forcing networks to air reruns. There has also been an increase in reality shows since they don't require scripts. The end of the strike would also be great news to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences who are planning for Oscar night on February 24th. Late night talk shows like, "The Late Show with David Letterman" and "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" would immediately benefit from the end of the strike. Other TV series might take 2 week to return to production. However, weaker shows might not return at all.


For me, I couldn't be more thrilled that the strike is about to come to an end. I am an avid TV watcher so this strike ending is a dream come true for me. Plenty of the shows I watch were effected by the strike. I was stuck watching reruns of my favorite shows every week. When the writers strike first began back in November, I didn't quite understand what it meant. I hadn't thought it would last as long as it did. Also, before the writers strike, I never really thought of how important the writers jobs were. Now that it is about to end, I certainly appreciate their jobs much more now. I really hope they never go on strike ever again!

LINK!

The Reigning Champ!

Enough Britney! Hello Jordin! The reigning American Idol champion Jordin Sparks has released her self-titled album, 'Jordin Sparks', just a few months ago. The seventeen year old (now eighteen) graced the Idol stage as the youngest American Idol winner to date. Her debut album is considered a mix of hip-hop and R&B and varies from powerful ballads to some up-tempo songs. Songs like 'Permanent Monday' and 'Now you Tell Me' really show her power house voice while songs like 'Shy Boy' and 'Young and In Love' show a funkier side to her voice. Her hit single, 'Tattoo', is soaring up the music charts and hitting the radios everywhere. Jordin also teamed up with superstar Chris Brown for a ballad duet 'No Air' which has also been blowing up on radio stations all across America. Her recent super bowl appearance in her hometown of Glendale, Arizona blew viewers away with her memorable rendition of the nation anthem.

I have been a fan of Jordin Sparks ever since the very beginning. She caught my eye when she first auditioned in front of Randy, Paula, and Simon in Seattle, Washington. Even though she wasn't who I was placing my votes for every week in the competition (I'm a big Blake Lewis and Chris Richardson fan), she has quickly become one of my favorite artist to come out of American Idol and her album has become a fast favorite. Not only does Jordin Sparks have a unstoppable voice but her bubbly personality and an appealing enthusiasm about getting to be the center of attention make you can't help but like her. I feel that Jordin is such a positive role model to younger girls today. Even though she might be a few months younger than I am, I certainly look up to her. Everyone should go out and buy this album! You won't be dissappointed. (oh and since you're there anyway, pick up Blake Lewis's album too!=)

You Want A Piece Of Me?

Britney Spears was released from UCLA Medical Center wednsday ealier than intended. She was taken to the Medical Center on January 31st and was held under a 72-hour psychiatric hold, which was extended to 14 days. She was releases seven days ealier than expected. As soon as she was released from the hospital, paparazzi, of course, swarmed her vehicle. News helicopters even followed her to the hotel.

My solution for Britney Spears: Get as far away from Los Angles as possible!! Seriously, I don't understand why that girl is still hanging around L.A. She wants the paprazzi to leave her alone, then do your part and get away from them. Sometimes I think Britney actually wants the Paparazzi to follow her. I wonder if she actually calls the paparazzi and tells them where exactly she is going to be at what time. Instead of getting away from them, she is actually friending them. Yes, I admit, I do feel bad for her. But I feel like she is not really trying to get her life together. I think she should move somewhere far far away for a while. Yeah, sure, maybe paparazzi will follow her there. But certaintly it wont be as bad as it is now. Britney Spears has took her shot at the media and paparazzi with her new single, "Piece of Me" before. Lyrics include, "I’m Miss American Dream since I was 17, Don’t matter if I step on the scene Or sneak away to the Philippines They still gon put pictures of my derrière in the magazine." Britney please, do us all a favor, and Get Out Of Los Angeles!

Super Bowl Sunday!

So, what better way to start off my blog than by talking about the Giants in the super bowl, since they are on the verge of something wonderful. They are in the super bowl for the first since 2000 when they lost to the Baltimore Ravens. The Giants are going to play the New England Patriots, who are undefeated. It is going to be a tough game for the giants and they are 12 point underdogs (even though I don't support betting on the game). To get here the Giants have won 10 straight road games, which is really hard to do, so they are on a roll. But the Patriots have one 18 games in a row during the whole season, the first time in football history. Some say that this Patriots team is the best ever, but this game will determine everything. During the season the Patriots set many records, like the most points scored in a season, most touchdowns thrown by a quaterback (Tom Brady) and most touchdown receptions by a receiver (Randy Moss). But the Giants are on the verge of possibly defeating the greatest team in NFL history and completing the greatest upset in sports history. It may seem like I know a lot about football, but I really don't, but over the past two weeks this is all they been talking about on all these sports shows my brother watches.

I am excited to watch the game even though I'm not a big foootball fan. I like to watch the commercials and if the half time show is any good I like to watch that. This game is so big, and people have been talking about it for two weeks, I'm sort of getting sick of the game itself. I must have seen that video of Tom Brady walking around the city with that boot thing on over a hundred times. My brother has been telling me everything about this game and really I just want the Giants to win. I hope it's exciting like their last game against the Packers, that was exciting. Other than that the super bowl is considered like a holiday. Their pregame show is 4 hours long!