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Naja
Member
06-28-2003
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 10:46 am
I just finished watching. Melinda was by far my favorite performance. She was amazing. I am in the 50% that didn't appreciate Blake's version of the song. It had me cringing in parts and his was my least favorite performance of the night.
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Dfng
Member
08-04-2005
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 10:51 am
I would never buy a Melinda or Lakeesha CD. I think they have a wonderful voice but to me they are missing the wow factor and their performance is old fashion. I like Blake and Phil - I think Jordon is going to be very successful as well.
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Texasdeb
Member
05-23-2003
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 11:10 am
I also would never buy a Melinda or Lakesha CD for the same reasons Dfng stated. I will admit that I totally enjoyed Melinda last night but, usually she does nothing for me. I can't get past Lakesha's lisp & the way she seems to turn her lips inside out when she sings - oh & the way she dresses is not becoming for a person her size. I adore Jordin & have excused her less than perfect performance last night. Phil did such a good job the last several wks. I don't think he will win - but the guy has a gorgeous voice. Blake entertains me - - he's not like anyone else & I like that. Chris has never caught my attention - I was actually shocked that he even made top 12. Fingers are crossed for Lakesha & Chris to go home tonight.
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Lurknomore
Member
07-07-2001
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 11:51 am
Well came to see what everyone is saying. I'm horrified DialIdol has Melinda 3rd from last. To me the 2 that I would love to see go tonight are Chris and Blake. I don't enjoy either, but sadly Blake has a very strong fan base and probably is marketable in this market which explains why I seldom by any new CD's lol. I am truthfully not sure I would buy a CD by any of them...maybe Melinda. If they were doing a TV appearance I would tune in for Jordin, Melinda and Phil. Lakisha if nothing was great was on opposite it lol. I personally could care less if I ever hear Chris or Blake again. But the problem I have with many of this years Idol's is the reason why Blake is popular. He is the only one who has an established sound and knows who he is musically. Or at least the only one who shared it with us. Phil has said country but we only saw it once. The others have great raw talent but I have no clue what sound they would go for...so it would likely be whatever drivel Idol thinks would sell. I would love to see more of who these folks are musically and what they want to do with the music. I still think the biggest thing missing in Idol is not having a "singers choice" night early on, so we can hear what THEY want to do--it's hard to tell if some are just limited by the format and aren't strong enough from a production/arrangement view to put their own twist into it, like Taylor always did (yeah and Blake but I like Taylors voice and style and just don't enjoy Blake sorry lol). As for Jordin, I think she has the potential to be very successful but if they turn her into a cookie cutter top 40 sound, I'm not sure. I almost wish she did the show in another year or so, when she would know better who she is vocally. Said it yesterday, saying it today, I'm scared about the second booting!
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Bonbonlover
Member
07-13-2000
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 11:54 am
Will someone please explain to me how these contestants can afford to be away from their life for so long? Now if I recall, Phil was in the service, Lakesha was a bank teller, Melinda a back-up singer... how are they supporting themselves??? And every week we see "their friends and family". Have they all put their lives on pause and moved to LA? What about their small children?? Do you think American idol provides a babysitter for Phil's newborn and Lakesha's daughter??? Do the families all stay in the quarters with the contestants or are they paying a second morgage while out in LA???
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Naja
Member
06-28-2003
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 12:07 pm
Bonbon, I'm not sure how they do it before top 12 happens, but according to this article, once they hit top 12, they have to join the union and get at least $921 a week per one hour TV show. And then more when they start the tour. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17861805/
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Naja
Member
06-28-2003
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 12:17 pm
Nigel's interview about last night's show just showed up on tvweek http://www.tvweek.com/docs/docs/Idol_BLT_5_2.mp3
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 12:19 pm
I suspect (although I have no reason to think otherwise) that AI foots the bill for the families to be there. I'm sure Phil is on extended leave from the service and I'm sure his children are being cared for by family members nearby. (I recall Josh Gracin was able to get an extended leave...the public relations of AI was more than enough to talk the Marines into it, although if I remember correctly he didn't get to tour.) Kiki is probably betting on a dream, and she can probably get her job back if things don't work out. She probably has family that is taking care of her daughter -- after all, she's a single mom and she probably has a strong familial support group around her. (And by the way, I notice she hasn't trotted her little girl out for show and tell and I commend her for that.) I think the contestants now stay in hotel rooms so at this point, where there are so few of them, family can probably stay with them. Some, like Jordin, would probably HAVE to have a family member stay with her because of her age, even though Jordin seems quite capable of taking care of herself. Melinda is, as we'be often said, a professional singer. She probably knows the value of saving for a "rainy day" so is probably able to keep herself afloat. She also seems to have many friends to assist her if necessary (although I'm not sure about their fashion choices!). And quite honestly I don't feel we've gotten any background on Blake and Chris so who knows what goes on in their lives!
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Hobbs
Member
08-05-2002
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 1:42 pm
Not that there's anything wrong with that. (Sorry. Hobbs had to say it.)
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Ladybug6377
Member
09-04-2006
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 1:52 pm
I voted 4 straight hours for Phil lastnight, i sure hope he stays tonight, I really love his voice and his personality, I dont think he gets the respect he deserves, he has a very strong voice, i was very proud of him lastnight, i felt good about his performance because he felt good about it, anyway jmo, best of luck to Phil.
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Brenda1966
Member
07-03-2002
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 2:20 pm
I thought that once they were top 12 or 10 they stayed in some kind of house? But maybe I am confused with other reality type shows. I think they probably have family helping them out. If the needed the 9-5 type income I doubt they would have applied in the first place or been able to get away for tryouts. I have no doubt that there are a lot of sacrafices going on to help them be here trying for their dream.
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Kizz
Member
07-26-2001
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 2:52 pm
I thought I read something about Blake getting in trouble for sneaking out. There's some kind of Idol wrangler around to keep them from getting in trouble. I know there was a house the first season, they made a big deal of it. I'm not sure if there still is...
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 2:56 pm
I know the Bo/Carrie season they were living in hotels, because it was discussed in interviews. I don't know if and when they discontinued the "house" stuff, but I believe if they were still doing that they would have mentioned it. But I'm just guessing.
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Supergranny
Member
02-03-2005
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 3:01 pm
The money that AI is making off these people....they darn well better be paying them and paying them good!
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Lurknomore
Member
07-07-2001
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 3:21 pm
Bonbon, I think the bottom line is if you get as far as Hollywood, ANY musician would beg, borrow or steal for this type of opportunity. At worst it is exposure and press release material worth any expense they had to pay. And once they make it farther they will then likely earn FAR more after Idol than they ever would have otherwise. They can't afford not to. And as it's been pointed out, come a certain point their expenses are paid, and I would even bet they get free airfare etc fairly early on. (IE Hollywood round, since I remember someone saying how more of her family came than they allowed so I'm thinking they give em 2 plane tkts). But think about it, most of us have some combo of savings or credit cards...esp the latter lol. If ever there is a time in life to use em this is it. They are securing a higher earning future with a shot a big time deals. Heck how many of us have had to take time off from work for illness or things without this type of payoff at the end. Be it savings, charging, borrowing from family & friends and some bill juggling we somehow get by. I would think they could too. And once they get to the serious point there will always be folks offering to help them out for a variety of reasons. My gut says none of them are hurting from the time there. Though Supergranny, I'd be surprised if Fox is paying them really well. This show has been SUCH a huge money maker for Fox, but they aren't known for their generosity lol. Rosie raised a great point on The View today. Why didn't Fox offer to match what America donated last week?? Made me realize that they didn't say Fox was giving one dime. But they sure got huge ratings from it eh???? Ironic it was called "Idol give back" when Idol didn't give anything far as I know.
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Lurknomore
Member
07-07-2001
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 3:36 pm
And after going to read the interesting articles posted above...sure proves how cheap Fox is. They make how many million on the tours and pay them how many thousand?? They have em over a barrel so no one is going to complain, especially since it is big bucks to most of them, and their payday is soon to follow if they are smart/lucky. But this just makes me even more annoyed that TPTB didn't pitch in more to the the charities...I realized I shouldn't just blame Fox, but how about the Idol's producers...what is it 19. (Of which I know Simon owns a large share). They both should be ashamed for not contributing cash here IMHO! They've all made a fortune off this show...can't they give a little back? ETA just realized they did make a fuss over the Fox parent company donating 5 mil, but that is such small potatoes compared to the vevenue this show generates!
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Shel
Member
07-27-2005
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 6:16 pm
FWIW, Phil is a great recruitment tool for the Navy. He's promoting a good image and free advertising for the Navy. He would be on unpaid leave during the comp, then during the summer tour. If he wins, the Navy will most likely let him out early, or possibly just move him to the reserves.
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Iheartkaysar
Member
08-16-2005
| Wednesday, May 02, 2007 - 7:44 pm
I'm glad they raised some $$ for charity, but only $70 million (I know, "ONLY"). I live in a Canadian province with fewer than 1 million people. Every year we have a local telethon; this year we raised over $5 million. And I think it's kind of sad to see further pleas for money once the telethon is over. A good idea, just not the results TPTB were hoping for, I guess.
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Roxip
Member
01-29-2004
| Thursday, May 03, 2007 - 6:40 am
We don't know that the people of 19 Entertainment, Simon, Randy, Paula and Ryan didn't give their own personal money, so I'm not about to judge them. I don't believe that Fox has much invested in the tour...that is probably 19 Entertainment.
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Aurora
Member
11-24-2006
| Thursday, May 03, 2007 - 7:14 am
Didn't Ryan say that Idol was going to donate 10 cents for every call made during the first four hour voting block? I'm sure I heard that because as I was dialing I was wondering if I called all night I could claim the accumulated 10 cents on my taxes as a charitable deduction. lol Then it occurred to me that it was Idol money, not mine being donated.
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