We’re Live-Blogging The Top Nine ‘American Idol’ Performances!
Buy plenty of bottled water! Say goodbye to your loved ones! Go on a shopping spree you’ll never have to pay off! It’s “Top Downloads Night” on “American Idol.” Contemporary music on “Idol?” CLEARLY the end of the world is near!! This very well could be our final “American Idol” live blog together!
The contemporary quandry is one that’s always plagued the show. How are these contestants expected to compete in a current pop landscape after the show’s over when all they’ve had to up to that point is sing Barry Manilow and tunes from the Great Depression? It baffles me that TV’s biggest show hasn’t figured that out yet. Pop music is less about singing ability and more about image. Just ask Lady Gaga. (Oh wait! The contestants can because rumor has it, she’s slated to appear in some capacity this week.)
Ironic, then, that America and the judges are finicky about showing love to “Idols” covering songs still on the radio. Sound too much like the original = failure. (Poor Felicia Barton!) But deviate too much and they send you packing anyway! (Ju’not Diaz and Dead Wife Guy’s buddy never stood a chance!)
That’s why I’m concerned for Allison tonight. She shines when she can connect to a song on an emotional level, and there ain’t that much emotion in Akon’s catalogue. All signs point to a Kelly Clarkson cover, and it’s nearly impossible to tackle one of those without sounding like your rocking out at a karaoke happy hour.
Megan’s doomed, to, unless she can find a way to deconstruct a pop song and make it play to her strengths. I guess her strength is her beauty, so perhaps she’d be better off turning her song into an instrumental and just stand there and look amazing. Hell, I’d still vote for her!
MTV.COM user pickles had some hilarious ideas regarding Megan’s always-changing name. She wrote, “Whenever I hear Megan Joy, I always think of Almond Joy. Actually, if her name changes to Almond Joy next week, I don’t even think I’d be surprised. She seems to have a new name every week. And the whole ‘Sometimes you feel like a nut, sometimes you don’t…’ phrase kinda suits her. Ooooh. Maybe she can get Lil on this whole name changing bandwagon and she could show up as Lil Mounds.” Hilarious! And delicious!
And lastly, sad news in the Gokey household, as Danny’s grandfather passed away this past week. But look at the bright side, Gokester. At least you have another corpse to dig up and exploit! That will help you last another 3-4 weeks easily.
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‘American Idol’ Poll Results: You Want Jason Castro Back!
This year’s “American Idol” has already seen some serious star traffic thanks to return engagements from three of the show’s first four winners: Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard and Carrie Underwood. This week, last season’s champ, David Cook, is dropping by to sing his new single.
Last week, we asked you who you’d like to see back on the “Idol” stage and by a huge margin, loveable, dreadlocked season-seven strummer Jason Castro beat out the competition. In fact, Castro stole the show with 45 percent of the vote, easily outpacing the tie for second place between season-three seventh-place finisher Jennifer Hudson (who is rumored to be returning to the show) and season-five sixth-place finisher Kellie Pickler, who each got 13 percent of the vote.
Third place was also a tie, between season-two runner-up Clay Aiken and season-six winner Jordin Sparks, who each got 8 percent of the vote.
Not too many of you were eager to see Clarkson’s former pal and season-one runner-up Justin Guarini (5 percent), season-four sixth-placer Constantine Maroulis (3 percent), or controversial season-six mediocrity Sanjaya Malakar (3 percent). And, frankly, none of you voted for season 4 washout Corey Clark, who was disqualified because he had not disclosed some legal issues — and who later claimed he’d had an alleged affair with judge Paula Abdul.
Not so great for them, but the good news is that Castro’s attorney tells MTV News that the singer is currently in negotiations to appear on the show this season.
Disney does 3-D with `Toy Story,’ `Beast’ reissues
Walt Disney is going 3-D on a lot of future films — and some from its past.
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Downey gives Sherlock Holmes an action update
Leave it to Robert Downey Jr. to turn Sherlock Holmes into a wisecracking action hero who ends up handcuffed naked to a bed.
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2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Sedan – Auto Shows
One of our favorite ridiculously powerful sports sedans is redone with more ponies and lots of chassis tech.
BY DAVID GLUCKMAN
Our recent drive of the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 confirmed the latest E-class as being a near-perfect luxury sedan. It’s creamy where it counts and even more refined and involving than the previous generation. Some of us are starting to appreciate the new styling, and we’re slowly coming to grips with the newest electro-nannies, which include a somewhat-silly drowsiness detector that flashes a coffee-cup icon to signal that it’s time for a break. A cup of joe might be a satisfactory wake-up for the sleepy E350 or E550 driver, but it’s a safe bet that pilots of the forthcoming AMG-massaged E won’t need a caffeine injection to stay alert at the wheel. Should the sandman start to work his magic, they’ll simply need to roll down the windows for a dose of 6.2-liter V-8 howl.
The E with the Heart of an SL
The 63-series motor is a favorite engine around our office. We were fans of the last E63, especially in wagon form, which we used to humble the Audi R8 at the drag strip. The engine is fundamentally the same in the new car, but is now tuned to match the output of the latest SL63 roadster: 518 hp, an increase of 11 hp over the last E63. Torque stands unchanged at 465 lb-ft.
The new sedan also benefits from the MCT seven-speed automatic heretofore only seen in the SL63, which has a wet clutch installed where a torque converter normally sits. There are four shift programs to choose from—C (Controlled Efficiency), S (Sport), S+ (Sport Plus), and M (Manual). The engine computer can interrupt ignition and injection during full-throttle upshifts, facilitating 100-millisecond gearswaps in M mode. Barking, throttle-blipped downshifts and a launch-control mode, dubbed Race Start, are among the transmission’s bag of tricks. Mercedes claims the new E63 hits 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, but we hope that’s a conservative estimate, as we ran the previous E63 to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds during a comparison test. Top speed is once again limited to 155 mph.
2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG revealed ahead of schedule
If you’ve been flipping through all the car sites in your RSS reader, you’ve probably noticed many European publications posting all the images and details on the new 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG. Yeah – that’s called an embargo leak. So without further ado – we now present the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG prior to its New York Auto Show debut next week.
Completely redesigned and based on the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class, the new E63 AMG is more aggressive than ever before with improved performance, handling and advanced technology inspired by its sibling – the Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG.
So let’s get down to what you all really want to know. Power comes from AMG’s 6.3L V8 engine that produces 518-hp and a peak torque of 465 lb-ft. Mated to AMG’s SPEEDSHIFT MCT 7-speed sports transmission the 2010 E63 AMG can go from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.4 seconds (BMW M5 and new Jaguar XFR reaching 60-mph in 4.5 seconds and 4.7 seconds) with a top speed of 155 mph (electronically limited).
Click through for more info and the high-res image gallery.
2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG:
Drivers will get four different driving modes including C (Controlled Efficiency), S (Sport), S+ (Sport plus) and M (Manual) The new E63 AMG also features rev-matched shifts and the RACE START function – which enables the “driver to call on the maximum acceleration potential automatically.” Owners can also choose between three ESP modes including ESP ON, ESP SPORT and ESP OFF.
Customers can select the optional AMG Performance Package, which includes:
• Lightweight, forged 19-inch AMG light-alloy wheels with size 255/35 R 19 tires at the front and 285/30 R 19 at the rear.
• AMG Performance suspension with stiffer spring rates.
• AMG rear axle locking differential with 40 percent locking action.
• AMG Performance steering wheel in a three-spoke design.
• Top speed raised to 186 mph.
2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG:
- By: Kap Shah
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