Alabama native and American Idol season 5 winner Taylor Hicks joined The Hollywood Reporter music editor Shirley Halperin on the morning of the season 11 finale for the last episode of THR's web show Idol Hangover.
Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips duked it out Tuesday night on American Idol's penultimate performance show: in one corner, the 16-year-old powerhouse from Chula Vista, Calif., gave it all she had, starting off strong with an effortless Whitney Houston cover but losing steam on a boring ballad from the show's storehouse of original songs.
Phillips, in the other corner, began on a blah note himself with "Stand By Me" and finished with an electrifying, shockingly good new song called "Home."
History will be made on American Idol this year if season 11 finalist Jessica Sanchez takes the title in tomorrow's finale.
The 16-year-old Chula Vista, Calif., powerhouse, is the first recipient of the judges’ save to persevere and advance to the top two (point of technicality: Clay Aiken, brought back as a wildcard pick in Season 2, also qualifies). If she wins, she will be the first eliminated contestant and the youngest Idol to be crowned the winner.
As American Idol winds down to its 11th season finale this week, another question looms besides whether Jessica Sanchez or Phillip Phillips will take home the crown. The second biggest head-scratcher: will Jennifer Lopez return next year?
Does it get any better than Wednesday night for Georgia's Phillip Phillips? He nailed Four Seasons' “Beggin,’” as chosen by judge Steven Tyler, gets compared to a “new age Boss,” as in Springsteen, then may have clinched the competition with a downright swoony “We’ve Got Tonight” by Bob Seger. Phillip certainly seemed pleased with his performance following Wednesday’s show when he stopped to answer THR’s burning questions…
We're a week away from the season-11 finale, but American Idol's TMI-prone judge has already crowned the winner.
"When you sing, you make people hang on your every note," Tyler gushed following Jessica Sanchez's subdued yet stunning rendition of Mariah Carey's "My All," adding: "I hope you get used to encores. And on another crazy note, I think you'll be the last person standing there."
From the time Jessica Sanchez stepped in front of the American Idol cameras with her audition song, ArethaFranklin’s “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman,” it was obvious the pint-sized teen from Chula Vista, Calif., was special -- and a serious contender to win the whole thing.
Joshua Ledet shouldn't be the next American Idol: He's a bit shy and socially awkward, at least on camera, and his old-school, throwback vibe seems initially out of step with today's Top 40 radio.
Poor Hollie Cavanagh: she couldn’t make the American Idol judges, Jimmy Iovine or the voting public love her version of Bonnie Raitt’s classic “I Can’t Make You Love Me.”
Still, the fourth-place finisher has no regrets about the performance that did her in.
Like many American Idol hopefuls, Top 4 finalist Hollie Cavanagh says she "had a gut feeling" her journey would end on Thursday night. In fact, Hollie spent much of the day looking for signs, surveying various crew members' expressions to see if they were looking at her differently, she tells The Hollywood Reporter in a post-show interview.
Elise Testone’s permanent vacation home in the bottom three now has a “vacancy sign,” as the South Carolina blues rocker was eliminated on last night’s American Idol results show.
After last week’s shocking elimination of Colton Dixon, Testone’s dismissal seemed a foregone conclusion. She was in the bottom three almost every week, no matter what she did.
Ever since Steven Tyler picked him as wild-card finalist on American Idol, DeAndre Brackensick knew he was on borrowed time.
The 17-year-old singer from San Jose, Calif., persevered through more rounds of auditions, another grueling week in Hollywood, and the top 24, before he was cut and then saved once more by Tyler.
When he wound up in the bottom three on Thursday's results show, Brackensick -- who auditioned for season 10 but went much further during the 11th cycle -- had a gut feeling it was over for him.
