The Unofficial Danny Gokey FanSite |  |
- “No Surprise” Goes Platinum
- Happy Birthday, LaKisha Jones!
- ‘Idol’ stop number two: Pantslanta!
- Best of Boston: babes, bozos and Beckham
- Former ‘Idol’ finalists react to Cowell’s exit
- Ann Powers on Simon Cowell’s legacy: The good, the bad and the snobby [Updated]
- dannygokey: Text "ONEHEART" to 85944 to donate $5 (charged 2 ur phone bill) ALL funds raised will go towards relief efforts in Haiti~They need ur help
- dannygokey: Sophia’s Heart of Compassion is raising money all day to help Haiti in light of the devastating earthquake suffere (cont) http://tl.gd/3hidj
- dannygokey: To make a $5 donation from your phone text "ONEHEART" to 85944 & confirm by replying "YES", or go to www.sophiasheart.org to make a donation
- dannygokey: Sophia’s Heart of Compassion is raising money 2day 2 help Haiti. All the money raised 2day will be given 2 relief efforts. 2 ways 2 give:
- dannygokey: Watching A.I. & I have a huge smile on my face~ American Idol was 1 of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Good luck 2 all the contestants
| Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST It is probably no surprise to you that Season 5s Chris Daughtry and his rock band Daughtry have found major success since forming as a group in 2006. The group’s latest achievement is that their hit single No Surprise has gone platinum. According to Soundscan sales figures, the track crossed the one million downloads mark this week. No Surprise is the first single from Daughtrys hit sophomore album, Leave This Town. The album itself is heading towards the platinum mark, and its second hit single, Life After You, is currently climbing the national charts. Last year, Daughtry’s self-titled debut album went 5x platinum. They accepted their framed record during a Season 8 results show. View photos from that show. Starting this weekend, the band will head out on a European tour with rock band Nickelback. To view the tour schedule, click here.
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| Happy Birthday, LaKisha Jones! Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST Season 6s LaKisha Jones celebrates her birthday today. Her big voice was a standout on the very first live episode of the season when she sang Jennifer Hollidays And I Am Telling You Im Not Going, during the Top 24 performance show. LaKisha, or KiKi, continued to soar through the competition and was eliminated during the Top 4 Bee Gees week. Just a month after the Season 6 competition was over, LaKisha released Lakisha Jones – EP. The EP was a collection of her five most downloaded songs that she sang while on American Idol: This Aint a Love Song, Stormy Weather, Last Dance, Diamonds Are Forever, and God Bless the Child. Later that year, LaKisha got to star in Oprahs The Color Purple on Broadway and got to work with Chaka Kahn. On the day of the Season 8 finale, LaKisha released her debut album, So Glad Im Me. The record made it to #47 on the US R&B chart and #24 on the US Indie chart. Two singles have been released off this album: Lets Go Celebrate and Same Song. In 2008, LaKisha married Larry Davis, and she had a baby, Ava LaRynn, in September 2009. KiKi is working on her music while being a mom to Ava and her older daughter, Brionne. Happy Birthday, LaKisha! AmericanIdol.com interviewed LaKisha exclusively last spring. Read the interview.
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| ‘Idol’ stop number two: Pantslanta! Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST
It's a good thing "Idol" producers rolled out ineligible Atlanta auditioner General Larry "Pants on the Ground" Platt to bookend season nine's second night, otherwise, we wouldn't have all that much to talk about. Am I right or am I right? Brian Mansfield over at USA Today's Idol Chatter uncovered some interesting background info about the man, the myth, the instant pop culture footnote. Namely that in his youth, Mr. Platt was a civil rights activist of some regard. Amen to that. As for Platt's peers down south… Atlanta started off slow, with a mellow Mary J. Blige sitting in as guest judge and record crowds hoping to be the next Fantasia or Clay Aiken. Unfortunately, few would even come close. Here, my four favorites. Keia Johnson: I was starting to worry that strong soul singers were underrepresented so far in season nine, but the congenial Keia, the next Jennifer Hudson/Melinda Doolittle/Syesha Mercado combo, put a stop to that. This girl has a good energy about her, and could go far. Vanessa Wolfe: The next Kellie Pickler is this six-string-wielding Tennessean who also hails from a trailer park. And like Kellie, Fantasia and a handful of others, it's the dream or nuthin'. Now, she could've gone the safe, mainstream route and chosen Miley Cyrus' "The Climb," but she went with Old Crow Medicine Show and killed it. Here's looking forward to her Hollywood makeover. Skii Bo Ski: He might not make much sense when he speaks and his fashion choices may be a bit questionable, but when it comes to a double threat — comic relief and a voice to match — I'm all for Antonio Wheeler. "Idol" could use more contestants like Skii Bo Ski, people who are in it for the fun. Bryan Walker: The prize for the night's best song choice (with the exception of "Pants on the Ground," 'natch) goes to this off-duty police officer, who delivered a soulful cover of the Carpenters' "Superstar," which was surprising to say the least. Is he this season's lovable lugg a la Michael Sarver? Time will tell. That's all she wrote in Pantslanta. What do you guys think of the talent so far? – Shirley Halperin (Follow me on Twitter @shirleyhalperin) Photo: General Larry Platt; credit: generallarryplatt.com
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| Best of Boston: babes, bozos and Beckham Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST
It's back to business, people. "Idol" kicked off last night with the first of seven semi-torturous audition episodes. What did we learn? That Simon has pretty much checked out, that Kara means business, and that Boston boasts more than its share of freaks, geeks and, surprisingly, babes of the buzz-cut, male persuasion. Now, I'm not one to belabor the freak factor, unless it involves guest judge Victoria Beckham looking like a runaway CGI character from "Antz," so other than this photo of auditioner Norberto Guerrero and a gratuitous mention of Michael Ian Black's doppleganger, Andrew Fenlon (who I actually liked!), I'll leave the dissection to others. By all means, pipe in. But staying on a slightly more positive note, here are my top five standouts from last night's "Idol." Maddy Curtis: I'm digging this do gooder's crunchy vibe — the Birkenstocks, the product-less hair, the always credible choice of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," and, lest we forget, the tearjerker backstory. Luke Shaffer: Understated but potentially stellar, I'm curious what lies under that beenie cap and behind those hazel eyes… Oh, and I liked what I heard, too. Tyler Grady: Oh yeah, this guy is my jam, broken limbs and all. Even though the sultry gaze on "Let's Get It On" was a bit creepy, Tyler did indeed "rock" his audition, and even managed to impress the increasingly hard-to-please Kara. Justin Williams: What's up with the blue-eyed-soul coming out of Sandy, Utah? Is it something in the water? Hopefully, Justin with the smooth-as-buttered Bublé voice will not heretofore be known as "cancer boy," as the Twitterverse so callously titled him last night. Leah Laurenti: They didn't exactly save the best voice for last, but there's no doubt this contestant has Kelly Clarkson potential. Every season has one. Too bad last year's great hope Alexis Grace was knocked out early. I'm still feeling like we were jilted. – Shirley Halperin (Follow me on Twitter @shirleyhalperin) Photo: Boston auditioner Norberto Guerrero; credit: Fox
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| Former ‘Idol’ finalists react to Cowell’s exit Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST
Jordin Sparks: Reached by email, the season six winner tells Idol Tracker, "I Blake Lewis: We actually broke the news to Jordin's runner-up, who told us he needed a day to process the information. On Tuesday, Blake Lewis had come up with this analogy: "Simon leaving is like what happens when a great movie swaps a lead character for a B actor in the sequel. Like if James Cameron made 'Terminator 2' with Jean Claude Van Dam instead of Arnold — It wouldn't be the same movie. So I'm not so sure the American public will like 'American Idol' without the lovable Simon Cowell. Who could replace him? He once said I was over the top, but who can top Simon Cowell?!" Constantine Maroulis: The always outspoken season four finalist put it bluntly. "There is no 'Idol' without Simon," he told us. "It's been a great ride, but all things must come to an end." Jon Peter Lewis: Never one to mince words, season three finalist and "American Nobody" host Jon Peter Lewis tells Idol Tracker, "Well, I think the show won't last too many seasons beyond his And there you have it — a nearly unanimous view . What do you guys think? – Shirley Halperin (Follow me on Twitter @shirleyhalperin) Photo: Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis in 2007; credit: Frank Micelotta / Fox
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| Ann Powers on Simon Cowell’s legacy: The good, the bad and the snobby [Updated] Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST
In the course of a long goodbye, emotions simultaneously sharpen and blur. We toast the soon-departed, gobble cake at the office party, talk about the good times until those memories grow color-saturated and bright. The other kind, we put aside. The irritations and worse that may have led to this parting become fuzzy, temporarily forgotten. Everyone wants to feel good while we're singing that we had the time of our lives. Simon Cowell's announcement Monday that he'll leave "American Idol' at the end of this season to executive-produce and judge an American version of his hit English program "The X Factor" was designed to commence one of those extended, heartwarming farewells. What an instant ratings booster! Now, even viewers skeptical about the ascent of self-described fan's representative Ellen DeGeneres to the judges' table will have to tune in — if only to savor the twilight of Simon's patented nastiness. Instead of waxing poetic about how Simon introduced a new generation to the stereotype of the fussy Brit, or listing the five most ridiculous metaphors he used to describe bad singing, or basking in the glow of his whitened teeth, let's talk about something serious. The fact is, Cowell helped change the way Americans think about popular music. Embodying the role of the music snob while voicing opinions distinctly different from what that character usually expresses, he helped make room for a wider vision of what great American music can be. Or a degraded one. For many serious music fans, "Idol" has long represented the triumph of puffery and schmaltz over sincerity and real skill. The show's run has coincided with the collapse of the conventional music industry, the retreat of "meaningful" mainstream rock and the rise of the multi-platform pop star — an era in which the musicians making the greatest splash are neither dazzling virtuosos nor rough-hewn poets carrying forth three chords and the truth, but the thinking showgirls of dance pop and the self-made androids of the Auto-Tune revolution. It's also been a good decade for divas, the soaring sentimentalists long scorned (and even feared) by rock purists. [For the Record: An earlier version of this blog said Susan Boyle appeared on "The X Factor." She appeared on "Britain's Got Talent," a television contest show on which Cowell appears as a judge.] Onto this shifting stage came Cowell, who walked and talked — or rather, sat and furrowed his brow and snarkily quipped — like a rock snob while expressing exactly the opposite worldview. Here was the very cliche of the arts critic: a stuffy, middle-aged man, somewhat humorless and very sure of himself, who wore his superior opinions like gilt secret society pins affixed to his chest.
The addition of judge Kara DioGuardi last season messed with this formula and may have proven more threatening to Cowell than he expected. Her similarities to Abdul and Jackson were obvious — she's female, as her bikini-baring stunt on the finale painfully reminded us, and she moves in a younger version of the studio-session scene that earned Jackson his fortune and his peculiar form of street cred. But she also proved able to judge, in musicianly detail, what makes a pop performance great. Being both commercially savvy and aesthetically motivated is Cowell's shtick, and he seemed to wilt a bit when DioGuardi showed she could do it too. Cowell needn't have worried. DioGuardi can't fill his Cuban-heeled shoes, because she is a woman, and even though female singers and dancers dominate American pop right now, certain old attitudes persist, including the one that values men's thoughts and women's emotions. (That's why there are still so few prominent female producers, lead guitarists or rappers — all jobs that call for "masculine" brain power and technical skill.) As last season wore on, DioGuardi scaled back her musical analysis, maybe in response to the backlash that characterized her assertiveness as annoying. On "X Factor," a show he largely controls as executive producer, Cowell may choose to reunite with his old foil Abdul at the judges' table. He could regain his balance playing the smart, stern Daddy to her Mama-Baby. But he'll never have the cultural influence he had as the authoritative voice on "Idol" — not only because "X Factor" is campier and more crass than "Idol," but because the shift in attitude that he embodies has already taken place. Or has it? Besides negotiating the deal that's led to his For all of the success he's had mixing up highbrow attitude with middle-to-lowbrow taste, Cowell still has some work to do. Pop history may still feel the effect of that withering grin. – Ann Powers Top photo: Simon Cowell at "Idol" auditions in Denver; credit: Charles Pulliam / Associated Press. Bottom photo: Randy Jackson, left, Kara DioGuardi, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell; credit: Michael Becker / Fox
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| Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST dannygokey: Text “ONEHEART” to 85944 to donate $5 (charged 2 ur phone bill) ALL funds raised will go towards relief efforts in Haiti~They need ur help
 |
| Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST dannygokey: Sophia’s Heart of Compassion is raising money all day to help Haiti in light of the devastating earthquake suffere (cont) http://tl.gd/3hidj
 |
| Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST dannygokey: To make a $5 donation from your phone text “ONEHEART” to 85944 & confirm by replying “YES”, or go to www.sophiasheart.org to make a donation
 |
| Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST dannygokey: Sophia’s Heart of Compassion is raising money 2day 2 help Haiti. All the money raised 2day will be given 2 relief efforts. 2 ways 2 give:
 |
| Posted: 14 Jan 2010 01:40 AM PST dannygokey: Watching A.I. & I have a huge smile on my face~ American Idol was 1 of the best experiences I’ve ever had. Good luck 2 all the contestants
 |
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