Melody Plant

It probably doesn’t come as too much of a surprise that Tim Urban’s performance from Tuesday night landed him the bottom three on American Idol… and he probably would’ve gone home had it not been for the reinstatement of the judges’ save ability. Yes! Tim Urban was the first to receive Simon Cowell and the other judges’ blessing by being saved. So it’s back to the drawing board for him. Since he’s been saved, he’s probably going to have to come up with one amazing performance next time because it already looks like his amazingly abundant supply of good fortune is running out.

The Top 12 aspiring singers of American Idol have sung, you’ve placed your votes, now all that’s left is to reveal the results. Tim, Urban, Paige Miles and Lacey Brown were revealed to be in the bottom three. If you knew just that, it’s a tough one to pick. Tim looks as if he’s got a huge backing, Paige finally had a decent performance and Lacey has survived terrible performances week after week. Before the elimination, Ryan Seacrest announced that the Judges’ Save has returned. If all 4 judges agree, they can save someone from elimination all the way down to the Top 5. However, that wasn’t the case as Lacey was revealed to be the one going home.

Ke$ha will be performing her smash single ‘Blah Blah Blah’ during the American Idol results show tonight. The 23-year old singer went on her Twitter a couple of days ago to say “Party time american idol woot t minus 3 dayz.” Fellow pop singer Orianthi will also perform her hit ‘According to You’. And if that wasn’t enough for you, American Idol champ David Cook is also supposed to take the stage, tweeting “Oh and I brought a present back for everyone. We’ll be performing on Idol this Wednesday! Be sure to check it out!” 3 great performers and an elimination – what more can you ask for?

It seems the first contestants to go home are from among the girls of American Idol. And America has decided that it should be Katelyn Epperly and Lily Scott. Katelyn Epperly didn’t give much of a farewell speech, but apparently limited herself to saying the usual: “It was definitely a great experience, and I’ve learned a ton.” Ah yes, the disheartened bull stuff of anyone who is forced to go home before their time. Lily Scott however does allow herself to be a bit more emotional: “I don’t know, I thought I did really well. I thought I was appealing to a lot of people. I don’t know what America wants to hear. I don’t.” Well, at least she had the decency to let it all out. So it’s down to just six more girls now… the end draws near.

I knew that the results would be bad when Ryan Seacrest started off the show by saying we could be in for a surprise or two. Before the American Idol top 12 were revealed, we were treated with the top 16 singing Michael Buble’s ‘Just Haven’t Met You Yet’. It looked like a reunion of the Brady Bunch. Scott McEntyre and Matt Giraud also returned to the AI stage with a duet straight from Elton John and Billy Joel, complete with pianos. As for who got eliminated, Kaitlyn Epperly, Todrick Hall, Alex Lambert and Lilly Scott failed to make it to the top 12. Kaitlyn and Todrick I understand but Lilly and Alex, come on! Even though I didn’t care about Lilly’s Patsy Cline cover, she’s more talented than a few of the girls left. And I thought Alex hit it out of the park with ‘Trouble’. I am seriously disappointed.

Even though he was pretty near to getting the privilege to go home, Tim Urban was saved to sing another day and more than made up for it last night. He chose a pretty hard song to cover, “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen, but he did it with flying colors and that got the admiration of both Ellen DeGeneres who even gave him a hug and Simon Cowell who said: “This week, very, very smart with that song, because it’s a song that reacts. By far, the strongest performance you’ve given in the competition.” So Tim Urban is safe once more. It looks like his voice finally managed to catch up with his good looks. Now Tim Urban just has to figure out how what other aces he can stuff up his sleeve.

The American Idol contestant who seems to have a thing for songs of ages past might have overstayed her welcome this week. Lily Scott’s song choice for last night, Patsy Cline’s “Fall to pieces”, seems to have impressed the judges well enough, but perhaps not the public as well. Ellen DeGeneres commended Lily Scott for her style, but Simon Cowell remains the eternal skeptic and thinks that the song choice might have not been the most inspired one. Maybe Lily Scott will have garnered the support of a lot of people who love good music who’ll manage to save her this week too and she will probe Simon Cowell wrong. Those are two big achievements for just one week.

It was recently announced that Kelly Clarkson will be joining the Lilith Fair this coming summer along with The Bangles, The Go-Go’s, Dixie Chicks’ Emily Robison and Martie Maguire’s new band The Courtyard Hounds, Martina McBride, Suzanne Vega and several others. The American Idol alum posted her excitement over at Twitter and also shared that she believes that she will be performing for 11 dates on the festival tour. Are you excited to catch the singer on Lilith Fair? I’m quite excited to catch a show but I’m not entirely sure about some of the performers. Oh well, I guess we’ll just see if it’s any good when it gets here.

Unfortunately, it is not like the two contestants from American Idol have any choice as the public deems it fit that they have been all of the bees that they can be and now it’s time for them to get back to the hive. It looks like being cute actually excused Tim Urban from the fact that his singing voice isn’t really that good… at least as far as the judges were concerned. It’s too bad that John Park didn’t have that sort of advantage… or Jermaine Sellers for that matter. The boys’ litter grows ever more thinner and Tim Urban had better get some wholesome hours of practice… his good looks aren’t going to save him forever.

Katharine McPhee may have lost the title of being American Idol to Taylor Hicks but no one can say that the singer hasn’t done well for herself. It was recently announced that Kat will be starring in NBC’s sitcom pilot ‘The Pink House’. The AI runner up will play the “neighbor of two guys who move to LA and are determined to nab their dream jobs.” It sounds fairly generic and dull but we never know. It could have some promise. And speaking of Taylor Hicks, where is the guy anyway? Has he gone to the AI reject hall of shame already?

Simon Cowell sometimes manages to shock even himself with his caustic criticisms.

The star judge of The X Factor, Britain’s Got Talent and American Idol said of some of his judgements on the wannabe star acts that come before him on two continents: “There are many, many times where I’ve watched the show back and I’m absolutely appalled.”

Softening with age – or romance – or both? The newly engaged and just turned 50 Cowell said: “I think that you’ve got to be able to take it back as much as give it out – and it’s a delicate balance.”

Cowell spoke to fellow judge Piers Morgan on his Piers Morgan’s Life Stories in a show that will air this Saturday in the UK on ITV-1. He has just become engaged to US make-up artist on Idol, Mezhgan Hussainy, 36.

Adam Lambert recently commented on the controversy surrounding Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir, commending him for being a trailblazer. The American Idol alum said “I’m glad he’s a trailblazer. He’s comfortable in his own skin, clearly. And he’s expressing himself. I think that’s what art’s all about. Whenever you do something that hasn’t really been done…You’re going to get love. [And] You’re going to get hate.” As for Johnny, he hasn’t let the BS get him down. When asked about the homophobic remarks made during his performance by Canadian broadcasters, he said “Every little boy should be so lucky as to turn into me. And that’s all I have to say.”

Adam Lambert recently revealed in a radio interview that he made out with none other than trashy pop singer Ke$ha. The American Idol alum said “I made out with Ke$ha actually a couple nights ago…She’s really pretty and we were laughing and just started kissing, I don’t know…She was great. It was pretty innocent to be honest with you. I mean, it wasn’t too dirty.” This is Ke$ha we’re talking about. That was dirty by default. If Adam was going to cross over from his being gay from time to time, he could have definitely done much better than Ke$ha.

Top 24 American Idol contestant Chris Golightly has been removed from the competition. Fox released the following statement regarding the aspiring singer’s sudden departure from the TV show saying “It has been determined that Chris Golightly is ineligible to continue in the competition. American Idol contestant Tim Urban has replaced Golightly as part of the Top 24.” I wonder what made them decide to cut Chris from the show. Does he have a criminal record? Does he have a sex tape? I’m really curious. If you’re unsure who Chris is, he’s the 19-year old from Texas who was bounced around foster homes during his childhood.

American Idol alums Diana DeGarmo and Ace Young are ready to get their turn in the spotlight as the two once aspiring singers were recently announced to be part of the new cast of ‘Hair’ on Broadway. The two will be joining the cast on March 9. Both Ace and Diana aren’t first timers on the Great White Way. Ace has been part of the cast of ‘Grease’ and Diana has been in ‘Hairspray’. Diana went on her Twitter once she heard the news and said ““God, I looked just LOVELY at the press conference today… what can I say, I was in rehearsal gear….. hahahaha good times.”

Star judge Simon Cowell has tipped a female will win his last season of American Idol.

Cowell, 50, made the forecast as his engagement to Mezghan Hussainy slowly turned from fiction to fact this week and ahead of his own sudden departure from the show.

Exactly a dozen women are among the ninth season’s 24 semi-finalists with a good shot at the Fox singing contest.

Cowell said: “We’ve had a few years of guys winning the show, and I would say there is definitely a better chance of a girl winning the show this year, certainly, than last year.”

Last year, Cowell fulfilled the prediction for the UK with what could be seen as the greatest discovery in talent show history emerging in the face of Susan Boyle – on Britain’s Got Talent. With plans to take the X-Factor on the road to Vegas, Cowell was not stopping with SuBo. “I’d love to find a Taylor Swift,” he said.

Adam Lambert put one of his own fans on blast earlier this week and in the middle of a live performance too! The rude fan was caught babbling away on her phone while the American Idol alum was trying to sing. It all went down while the singer was performing a song for the iheartradio in New York when Adam heard the girl talking, stopped mid-song and said “Can you get off your phone?! You’re yelling into it … wait, sorry, we’re going to start over.” Adam then continued to go after the fan saying “Really?! Dominoes … we deliver! You’re not watching TV honey … it’s a live show.” I guess he doesn’t like being interrupted.

Simon Cowell has said he is ’smitten’ with new girlfriend Mezhgan Hussainy and said she could be ‘the one’.

The 50-year-old music mogul recently sat down for an interview with pal Piers Morgan for his Life Stories show and opened his heart about his life.

When asked about Hussainy, he said: “I’m smitten with Mezhgan – I think she’s the one. She’s very special.”

Hussainy was sitting in the audience while he filmed the show and it is claimed the pair pulled faces at each other.

Talking about kids, he added: “I think I need to have little Simons around.”

Nick Williams, who was part of the audience at the interview, said: “She was two or three rows back, but they kept exchanging glances.

“Piers asked him several times whether he was engaged, but he would not confirm anything.”

Ellen DeGeneres provided the laughs as she made her American Idol debut.

The US chat show queen had fellow judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi in stitches as a week of Hollywood auditions began.

Idol host Ryan Seacrest introduced DeGeneres to the hopefuls on stage at the Kodak Theatre.

She told them: “I don’t know how you feel right now but I’ll tell you one thing. When I’m asked, ‘what do I know about music?’ Well, I know what it’s like to stand on stage and try to please a whole room full of people. That is a hard thing to do.”

The first auditionee to feel DeGeneres wrath and humour was Antonio “Skiiboski” Wheeler. After his performance DeGeneres said: “You frighten me. You were like a leopard stalking us. Seriously, don’t frighten your audience, don’t get so intense. Sexy and scary – it’s a fine line.”

Caitlin Crosby recently debuted a new music video for the title track of her new album ‘Flawz’. The 26-year old singer/songwriter compiled footage and photos from hundreds of people, including celebrities like Jennifer Love Hewitt, Olivia Munn, Jordin Sparks, ex-boyfriend Zachary Levi, and American Idol alum Jason Castro and more. Caitlin said “My biggest passion is body image issues with women. Everyone struggles in that area; I struggle with it too! Let’s try to support each other and encourage each other instead of tear each other down.” Preach! That’s what every girl with insecurities needs to do instead of bringing other people down.