SunFun

Updates/News/Photos: -Katharine McPhee: 'Bombshell' rehearsals w/ photo: http://www.playbill.com/multimedia/gallery/a-look-inside-the-bombshell-rehearsal-with-katharine-mcphee-and-megan-hilty-350729#14 -Justin Guarini: 'Company' photos http://www.broadwayworld.com/philadelphia/article/Photo-Flash-First-Look-at-Justin-Guarini-Kate-Wetherhead-and-More-in-Bucks-County-Playhouses-COMPANY-20150605 http://www.playbill.com/news/article/photo-call-first-look-at-justin-guarini-in-bucks-county-playhouse-production-of-company-350683 (Play and Guarini received good to excellent reviews. Too lazy to list.) 'Paint Your Wagon' photos http://playbill.com/multimedia/gallery/keith-carradine-alexandra-socha-justin-guarini-jenni-barber-melissa-van-der-schyff-go-for-gold-in-encores-paint-your-wagon-344521#8 (Also rec'd good reviews, still too lazy to post. Cast album coming.) -Diana DeGarmo: Promo and Rehearsal Shots of Diana Degarmo in The Wizard of Oz at the Studio Tenn Theatre Company http://www.playbill.com/multimedia/gallery/see-the-first-promo-and-rehearsal-shots-of-diana-degarmo-in-the-wizard-of-oz-at-the-studio-tenn-theatre-company-351214#1 -Kelly Clarkson: http://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200 # 120 after 14 weeks. 153,000 sold per Wiki. If accurate, this album might be her first real flop. Kelly Clarkson planning 'on being pregnant' by end of the year http://www.contactmusic.com/kelly-clarkson/news/kelly-clarkson-planning-on-being-pregnant-by-end-of-the-year_4768328 Summertime Ball 2015 photos http://www.justjared.com/photo-gallery/3387415/kelly-clarkson-calls-ariana-grande-sweet-at-summertime-ball-03/ -Carrie Underwood: CMT Awards really love Carrie Underwood w/ photos: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2015/06/11/cmt-awards-really-love-carrie-underwood-and-10-other-lessons-from-the-always-strange-show/ She basically cleaned up.

I've liked Roberts ever since I watched her ages ago on Orlando, Florida local news. She's always been appealing. I'm still willing to give Raven a chance. Also articulate, while unpredictable. However, her scary hair/clothes days have to go. That get-up yesterday was unforgiveable.

You beat me to it Medicine Crow! My thought exactly. Ok. No throwing stuff, but from what I've seen, I like Raven on the panel. *ducks* She's concise, articulate, usually accurate, doesn't interrupt, and has an unpredictable point of view. Heck, I even like to see her unusual yet stylish clothes/hair (unlike Whoop's sloppy mess). She makes it interesting. Yes, she's a highly opinionated youngish whippersnapper know-it-all, but I like the way she expresses her views (unlike Whoop's halting make-it-up-as-I-go delivery). *edited because it's Crow not Cow

Carrie Underwood leads nominations for CMT Music Awards http://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/2015-cmt-music-awards-carrie-underwood-leads-nominations/ar-BBjJDl3 CMT announced on May 13 that Carrie Underwood is the top contender for the 2015 CMT Music Awards with five nominations, including two nominations for video of the year with the Grammy-winning "Something in the Water" and "Somethin' Bad," her duet with Miranda Lambert. Pop lyrics getting dumber, says research http://www.msn.com/en-us/music/news/pop-lyrics-getting-dumber-says-research/ar-BBjXTEK?ocid=U142DHP Country came out with the highest reading level, followed by pop and rock with a tie, and R&B/hip-hop had the lowest reading level. Artists who came out on top included Eminem for hip-hop, Carrie Underwood for country, Nickelback for rock and Mariah Carey for pop.

McPhee is talented, and deserves a better vid than that. And some clothes. Justin Guarini news: Guarini to Co-Host this year's Times Square Tony Awards Simulcast (also hosted last year). Will star as Bobby in Sondheim's "Company" starting May 29. Last starred as Julio in NYC Center's "Paint Your Wagon" w/ Keith Carradine (w/ great reviews). Vid highlights of PYW (Guarini appears throughout vid, dancing/singing): http://v.playbill.com/services/player/bcpid82993908001? bctid=4119858038001&bckey=AQ~~,AAAAEX25ttk~,qVVep19cvaUd_MvoBnuGVanJsQIaFNkH In-studio recording of a duet. For fun I guess. In any case, great harmonies.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTznMIo_DB8&feature=youtube Sorry, can't figure out how to embed vids. *ETA: Thanks MarkHB! But, apparently I'm a dummy... 6 tries, no luck.

Evil editing genius. Bachelorette Contestant Clint Confesses He's in Love With Fellow Contestant JJ, Reveals They've "Grown Close in the Shower" — Watch Read more: http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/bachelorette-contestant-clint-says-hes-falling-in-love-with-jj-watch-2015275#ixzz3bSSaI9pu Follow us: @usweekly on Twitter | usweekly on Facebook

That Hoda/KLG clip... LOL! Can someone please book that cook for The View!

Britt's Brady reminds me of a stoned adult Edward Furlong. HATED the boxing. Actually angered me. Stupid show.

Philips' and Cook's debut albums were more "quiet" than most. I like hearing "real" voices, and music that sounds like it comes from the artist, not the handlers. Daughtry's debut album came from that place, too. Carrie probably had the most overall professional-feeling debut. Solid music, that didn't read "talent show winner" obligatory album. The gal oozes STAR quality now-a-days. Clarkson's debut was a mish mash of genres, mostly recycled. Later albums had really great individual pop songs. Of course, I like the less bombastic/less produced songs like "Sober", "Dark Skies". Hated the most popular ones, "Miss Independent", "SUBG", "Stronger". The voice is too enhanced on those, too. Probably the strongest catalog of good songs though. Excluding last album. Not a debut album, but I respected Justin Guarini's 2nd album (Jazz). Pure vocals and music, by a gifted vocalist working with sophisticated musicians in a quiet music-driven way. "Sing" is so simple, but the delivery pulls at the heart.

Nope. It would not.

The show needs Joy. Miles better w/ her. Also, as mentioned by many... Joy's a great counter for Nic's delusional spins. Haven't seen an entire show this week... but Raven didn't bug me. I'm going out on a limb, and saying I think the show might have legs again w/ the revised panel.

FYI: Jamie Foxx does play the piano, and I've seen him play/sing several times. Even impromptu stuff, so he's for real as a musician. Enjoyed the song, and the well-balanced duet. Odds and ends: -Not properly acknowledging recent winners Celeb and Candice was awful. Even more so if they were contractually forced to attend. Take heed Nick, this could be you. -Steven Tyler knew he was sounding good last night. He was in no mood to babysit the rookie. Nor should he. -Too much judge face time. Although, I do think Urban was great, and JLo sounded good (and live). -Learned I miss seeing Quentin. -Trevon looked very comfortable as a performer in every circumstance. Surprisingly so. -Final two seem nice, not untalented ... but safe and uncharismatic. Unintentionally hilarious: - Clark's "dancing". And his girl hips. - one of the prior gal contestants making sure to face the camera when hugging the winner

Missed the show today... I had to take a call from my husband.

That comparison, my friend, is Hall of Fame worthy. I couldn't get all worked up over the Quentin/Harry (and Ryan) exchanges that probably cost Q a trip home. All three over-reacted. I also won't assume Q's (or Harry) an ass because of it. Post-AI, some the "nicest" past contestants haven't been true to their show-contrived personality, and some of the so-called arrogant ones have proved to be nice. Time will tell the truth. In any case, I liked to watch Q because he was interesting. Baffled by his pitch issues being hammered, while Clark's and others' pitch issues aren't. At this point, I'm at a loss as to which of those left would make a compelling winner. *edited to get Clark's name correct.

I like the beginning of Lambert's new release (deeper tone), but then it gets too over-produced for my taste. Fewer (or no) studio-enhancements, the better to me. Adam has a good voice, let it speak for itself. Good performer, too. For what it's worth: -After 7 weeks, Clarkson's recent album keeps dropping, now at #55. Theories? -Underwood is at #52 after 19 weeks. -Jennifer Hudson will be on the mega-hit show "Empire".

View, You're killin' me. Slowly and painfully.

Derek Hough Injured, Spends 'Long Night' In ER! Will He Return to 'DWTS'? http://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/celebrity/derek-hough-injured-spends-long-night-in-er-will-he-return-to-dwts/ar-AAbs2Fj?ocid=U142DHP I hate it for the guy. Messes up his great opportunity w/ Radio City Music Hall. I hate it for me, too. Love to watch him dance.

Julie Chen (in general) and her chant discussion at 1:00 min mark (specifically), is why I've decided to root for The View... https://youtu.be/q9EY3ZVXGe8 Egads.

You might nailed it, Missed seeing this show, so I went to YouTube. For what it's worth, I immediately searched Quentin, then Jax, then Joey. Then realized I had no real interest in watching the others, so I stopped.

The show brought a lot to them, too. Speaking for myself, neither wowed me much during their seasons (with the exception of Clarkson's Big Band night). However, I recognized she played the show smartly, and should win. That said, Clarkson wasn't the most impressive on the AI tour as an untethered Guarini was a remarkable overall performer. Common factor: Both Kelly and Carrie were talented, and, importantly, relatable with viewers. Both have improved since their seasons. Post shows, Carrie has conducted herself impressively, professionally and personally. She's projected genuine star quality, and a graciousness to the show that made her a star. Kelly can be funny and quite savvy, but also benefits from being seemingly bulletproof. No questionable performance or behavior sticks to her enough to derail her career, so in that sense she was perfect for the show's first winner. I like that Underwood's fans don't insist everyone love her. Hint. Hint. I've been restrained in my comments here out of politeness, but pushed, I can be brutal. Amen. In some cases the albums continue to be over-produced, especially Pop genre. Drives me nuts. As does overly photo-shopped pictures. Too manufactured for my taste. I'll give Phillips and Cook (probably my favorite) the nod for least manufactured albums. Too bad about Candice's album, as that gal has great pipes and delivery.

Lesson learned. Sweet kid, too sheltered.

Oh I do love a good debate. Change "best" to "successful", and we can agree. Mostly. However, I might argue that being the first winner helped because the show needed a successful winner, so more support was given than in most subsequent seasons. One could argue that those who've carved out careers on their own are successful in a different way. Here are the givens: She's a talented singer, and commercially successful. The rest is subjective.

Dizzy, I don't know enough about her albums/sales to answer your questions. I only checked Billboard after her AI appearance. She was trending downward at 32 after four weeks on the chart. The album dropped quickly after debuting at #1 with less than 90,000 sold. Not impressive as far as #s go. No need to go to Swift heights for a comparison. Doesn't compare. FTR, albums sales isn't what I care about as a way to measure if someone's the "best". The whole "best" argument seems pointless to me, especially if it's based on #s. It's like... who cares. If you like an artist, you like them for their work, or their talent. If someone doesn't agree, that's fair, too.

The Idol World is a relatively small world for (arguably) being the best of anything. But, get your point. Her fans should be pleased. Speaking of Clarkson, what's up with her current album's lackluster sales? Tepid album reviews didn't help, but I thought the Idol appearance would bump sales.

Rick, From Wicked (w/ Justin Guarini) playlist on You Tube : (The entire cast is terrific, btw.) My 2 favorite Wicked vids featuring Justin: As Long as You're Mine https://youtu.be/mZFV-mBU-sE?list=PLVAZlIWqTg9OK7OCkY-qIjWZh4ZMc3typ Dancing Through Life https://youtu.be/24je62FZpQ4?list=PLVAZlIWqTg9OK7OCkY-qIjWZh4ZMc3typ That he can be Lil Sweet and be a sexy Fiyero (and be athletic) appeals to me. The channel also has random videos relating to all his stage musicals/plays in the other playlists.