Unlikely American Idol finalist Antonella Barba has been a boon to the blogs on the level of Britney Spears’ weeklong crotch-a-thon last year. There are countless photos of her in lots of well-worn slutty poses like hot schoolteacher, wet t-shirt, and bored housewife. The search phrases “antonella barba bathroom pics” and “antonella barba blow job” are the top ones leading people to the site, so who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth?
Antonella retorted that she would listen to Paula’s (nicer) criticism because “Simon was wrong about Jennifer Hudson, so…” Simon didn’t hesitate to respond, “Let me be absolutely clear. We put Jennifer Hudson on to “American Idol”. The American public voted her out, okay. I didn’t kick Jennifer Hudson out.”
Such arrogance and bad singing would normally be grounds for dismissal from Idol, but when you’ve got half-naked photos plastered all over the ‘net people are bound to vote you in. I wonder how long this chick will stay and if producers will pull her if she gets into the top 5 on slut factor alone.
Simon Cowell is pissed that Jennifer Hudson called American Idol a “stepping stone” to her fabulous career. He thinks she’s downplaying the role of his show in making her famous, and that without Idol she’d be nothing. He also thinks Taylor Hicks sucks and says he doesn’t have what it takes to sell records despite winning last season.
Cowell did all this trash-talking at a discussion panel for the Museum of Radio and Television:
“Jennifer Hudson said American Idol was a ’stepping stone’ for her. Stepping stone? It was her big opportunity to become noticed and she got noticed and she got Dreamgirls,” Cowell said, noting that other past contestants “deliberately turn against the show that made them successful. The reason (people) come on the show is because all the doors had been slammed in their face.”
As for Taylor Hicks, who won season 5’s competition, “They (Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson) loved him. I couldn’t stand him. I didn’t get it,” Cowell snapped, adding that “at the end of the day you have to find a bona fide recording artist. Just because you win the show doesn’t mean you will sell a lot of records. Chris (Daughtry) is the one who sold the albums, not Taylor.”
This isn’t surprising coming from Cowell as he always talks smack. Hudson should have called American Idol her big break, but maybe she mischaracterized it or wants to downplay it as she moves on to other things.
It doesn’t seem like it matters how far finalists get in the competition as long as they’re given other opportunities. People has a nice gallery of Idol runners up on their website. Diana Degarmo, who was runner-up in Season Three to Fantasia Barrino, is performing on Broadway but until I read about it I had completely forgotten her. I found her rather annoying on Idol and although she could belt out the tunes and did a wide range of numbers I was surprised she made it so far.
Hudson finished Season Three in seventh place, and it was a shocker when she was voted off so early. Elton John called the voting “incredibly racist” after he noticed Hudson’s talent and she was voted off. It looks like it really didn’t matter and she was spared a lot of stress in the finals as she moved on to better things. Since she was voted off the show realitively early, maybe that’s why she’s calling it a stepping stone instead of a milestone.
The many photos of 20 year-old Idol contestant Antonella Barba in slutty poses in various stages of undress and drunkenness just prove why that douche Joe Francis is a multi-millionaire: there are always hot vain girls willing to take off their tops, grope their friends and pose for pictures for little or no encouragement.
I pretty much ignored this Antonella Barba sex pictures scandal until it reached a fever pitch and I saw it on Yahoo! this morning. Since I’m not in the states and am deprived of seeing Simon’s many styles of black t-shirts, Paula’s slurry enthusiasm, and Randy’s vascillation this season, Antonella Barba just doesn’t register for me. This seemed like something on the level of all the slutty beauty contestant photos that came out. Interesting, but not Britney vag caliber material.
When the blowjob pictures came out everyone was like “This chick is done for on Idol.” Idol contestants have certainly been booted for less this season, one for a misdemeanor pot bust and another for an arrest stemming from pouring sugar in an ex-boyfriend’s gas tank. That was in the first round, though, and Idol producers seem to indicate in recent statements that they’re standing by Barba, who must be getting a lot of votes after this scandal hit the net. She is now in the top 24, and Vote for the Worst, a site urging people to vote for the crappiest singers on Idol, is gunning for her.
She doesn’t seem like a great singer to me in the one video I watched on youtube. She can sing, but she’s doing a lot of “runs” or whatever you call them and the judges all call her “pitchy.” She’s not on the level of past contestants and I would expect her to get voted off soon if it wasn’t for all those pictures. It doesn’t seem like she would have been able to get this far on Idol if she wasn’t so hot.
Now her best friend, Amanda Coluccio, who was with her on Idol (link leads to YouTube video) but got voted off after they were in the Hollywood initial round together, says she’s certain the BJ pictures are fake, but that all the other pictures were like, only meant for one person despite the sheer volume and number of different poses she’s seen in.
Speculation was that maybe-bitter Amanda was behind the release of the photos after an idol producer said on Friday that “It’s sad, isn’t it, that your best friends are the ones that come forward with information that will go to Smoking Gun or put your photographs on the Web?”
Amanda denies leaking the photos and says that Antonella’s position on Idol is not in jeopardy and that producers are now, uh, reviewing the latest material. She says Antonella is “horrified” and has been crying a lot over the scandal.
At first I was thought the pictures were kind of innocent because she’s seen topless on a beach with her friends posing and stuff. The party pictures are a little more racy, but most of them are not that damning to me and just seem like regular college stuff that you can see on myspace. (Pseudo-lesbian poses just do not register as scandalous to me anymore, but I look at this shit all day.) She’s also pictured on the toilet, which is dumb to let someone take a picture of, but not such a big deal. The pictures she’s probably most ashamed of are a lot of slutty ones of her in various naughty outfits, including one of her as a sexy schoolteacher and another of her frolicking in a fountain in a wet see-through top and panties. If an ex leaked them she should sue the hell out of him. She’s seen in two different slutty lacy lingerie outfits at what looks like a party. As these pictures only show her or her and one other person, it’s unclear if she’s just with her boyfriend and drinking a champagne while wearing a New Year’s hat or if she’s really wearing lingerie and an incredibly slutty Halloween outfit at two different parties.
Barba was an architecture major at a Washington, DC Catholic University before she went on Idol. She is from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, where residents have put up signs to support her in this trying time.
So you have to be at least sixteen years old to try out for American Idol. But what if you really have the talent and you think you can make it?
Well the greedy marketing group known as FremantleMedia and Simon Fuller’s 19 Entertainment have decided to create a summer camp for those between the ages of 12-15.
Idol Camp will cost aspiring Kelly Clarksons and Clay Aikens $2,900 for a 10-day session, four of which will take place this summer at a private school in Massachusetts. Some attendees will be eligible for scholarships, however, so that a broader mix of backgrounds will be able to come together.
Wow, that’s great they’re only gouging those that can afford to be gouged. Even though you’re shelling out three grand for a little over a week’s worth of training, and you get to see celebrity guests, Idol contestants (William Hung, is that you?!) and other “important people”
…completing a session of Idol Camp does not guarantee a golden ticket to Hollywood or a spot on the inside track during tryouts.
So basically this is like any other performing arts dance/song camp. To justify the decision, Mark Brittain, head of Idol’s commercial division for 19 Entertainment says,
“Utilizing the power of the American Idol phenomenon, we can provide a truly one-of-a-kind experience.”
What he failed to mention was how much of a kickback he gets from the 700 kids each shelling out 2900 bucks for the camp.
Damn, so if you want to go to Idol Camp, you better get started on that Pet Walking Business and Lemonade Stand.
With so many routes to five minutes of pop success presently available – retreads, also-rans and never give-ups are likely to show up in more than one venue. Is it fair that poor (by which we mean very, very rich) Simon Cowell should be accused of cheating? Probably not, but then Cowell hasn’t spent a lot of time putting together a persona that everybody want to love. Now those loveless chickens are coming home to roost. To roost all over his man boobs. There’s a pretty picture.
Music mogul and reality show judge Simon Cowell has been accused of planting a British pop star who was once signed to his record company in the second round of American Idol.
Former Take That backing singer Tom Lowe has made it through to the TV singing contest’s Hollywood stage after wowing the judges in Seattle, but he stunned Cowell at the end of his audition by saying, “I was at BMG Records in London at the same time that you were there.”
Lowe was a member of British boy band North And South, who scored four minor British hit singles on Cowell’s record label before splitting in 1998, but Cowell claims he can’t remember him.
Celebrity Alzheimers has been invoked recently by everyone from drunk air-hazard Jade Jagger to giantess Kimora Lee Simmonst. It’s like pleading the fifth amendment cause you drank a fifth of scotch.
Nonetheless this seems an eminently reasonable case of happenstance - emotions run so high among the deluded souls who throng to the fame lottery that is American Idol (or UK Idol or Swedish Idol or German Idol). It doesn’t take much to get a conspiracy theory going.
However, a furious contestant tells British newspaper The Daily Star, “It’s really suspicious that they were at the same record company. Simon claims he doesn’t remember him but there’s a feeling among some people that this could be a fix. A career in the States could be worth $195 million so there’s a lot at stake and people aren’t happy.”
I wonder if any Idol to date has made that 195 million figure … where in the world does it come from, so specific, so precise, so out of the blue. I mean I doubt Kelly Clarkson is closing in on 200 million personal worth and Clay Aitken would be shopping for a more expensive and more discrete form of man whore with that kind of pocket change.
I’m sorry to hear the American Idol contestant crowd aren’t happy. Their constitutional right to the Pursuit of Happiness (not the Will Smith in a wig kind) should never be compromised by British conniving – why else did we fight and win the Revolution against those moobish toffs?
American Idol runner up Katherine McPhee, 22, is dating 41 year-old Nick Cokas. Cokas is a broadway performer and met McPhee when they were performing in the musical “The Ghost and Mrs. Muir” in Hollywood from May - July, 2006.
You might call Cokas McPhee’s sugar daddy since he’s so much older, but it’s doubtful that he’s loaded. People suggest that Cokas bankrolled McPhee’s Louis Vuitton luggage set, but how much money can the guy have if he’s a broadway actor? His production company doesn’t have a lot of work to their credit as far as I can find. Maybe his business ventures are more profitable than I can assess through Google.
He dresses pretty normal and his watch doesn’t look expensive from these low-res photos. They probably have a lot in common and enjoy each other’s company.
Here are McPhee and Cokas in NY this weekend. Pictures [via] and [via]
Prince made a surprise performance in the finale of American Idol last night, despite passing up a guest judge opportunity by refusing to meet with contestants. He is also said to hate the show and to have never watched it. That didn’t stop him from cashing in on the show’s astronomical ratings though.
Last season’s victor, Carrie Underwood of Checotah, Oklahoma, opened the finale, joining Hicks and McPhee on “I Made it Through the Rain” and later soloing on “Don’t Forget to Remember Me”…
Other pairings of contestants and stars included Paris Bennett and Al Jarreau; McPhee and Meat Loaf; Chris Daughtry and Live; Elliott Yamin and Blige; Hicks and Toni Braxton, and the dozen finalists with Burt Bacharach and Dionne Warwick.
Prince was a surprise final performer, taking the stage for two songs, including “Satisfied” — and without an “Idol” contestant alongside.
29 year-old Alabama soul singer Taylor Hicks was crowned the Idol on the fifth season of the show. His win was not surprising, as he was expected to beat polished Katharine McPhee, 22.
Idol continues to pull in impressive ratings.This year’s season was the highest rated ever, with an average viewing audience of 30 million each week.
Here’s a video of the announcement and part of Taylor’s performance afterwards:
And here is Clay Aiken performing along with his impersonator:
On American Idol Tuesday night Simon Cowell told Ryan Seacrest to “lose the beard” in a veiled reference to his sham publicity relationship to Teri Hatcher. He got away with it because Seacrest had new facial hair, but he clearly was referring to Hatcher:
Ryan Seacrest told Simon Cowell, “And if you read the dictionary, you’d know what ‘constructive’ means.” To which Cowell replied, “Ryan, with respect, I’m not the one trying to look like someone out of ‘Desperate Housewives.’ Lose the beard.” While Seacrest was sporting a beard, the jab was more at how Seacrest, a confirmed bachelor, had himself photographed kissing “Housewives” star Teri Hatcher. Hatcher, a press hound herself, has since said the two are not dating.
Cowell should not be picking on Seacrest. While Seacrest may be trying to hide his gayness, he’s not hurting anyone. Cowell is jeopardizing his current relationship and taking advantage of a young contestant. His constant flirting with 19 year-old Idol contestant Kellie Pickler has royally pissed off his long-term girlfriend, TV presenter Terri Seymour:
Cowell’s appreciation of this season’s pretty blonde, 19-year-old Kellie Pickler, has apparently carried on off-screen - much to Seymour’s annoyance.
The flirting has even sparked furious rows between the couple.
An insider told The Daily Mirror: ‘He is really affectionate to Kellie… They are often seen having intimate chats in the corner.’
On the show, Cowell had praised Pickler several times by calling her ‘cute’ and ‘a naughty little minx’.
Seymour, 31, apparently told a pal: ‘Simon knows I’m annoyed and insists it’s just ‘fun and games’ that makes for better television. But I see how his face gets flushed when Kellie’s around.’
As for Taylor Hicks, who won season 5’s competition, “They (Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson) loved him. I couldn’t stand him. I didn’t get it,” Cowell snapped, adding that “at the end of the day you have to find a bona fide recording artist. Just because you win the show doesn’t mean you will sell a lot of records. Chris (Daughtry) is the one who sold the albums, not Taylor.” 
Hudson finished Season Three in seventh place, and it was a shocker when she was voted off so early. 
