American Idol Season 12 Finale Quick Wrap 5/15/12~ Help Me Now I’m Torn!

“Help Me Now I’m Torn”! Those are the incredibly catchy lyrics from Natalie Imbruglia’s 90′s smash, but they also define my feelings after watching tonight’s American Idol season 12 finale. In a nail biter of an episode, both of our incredibly talented ladies, Kree and Candice, delivered fantastic performances one after the other. Both sounded amazing, looked great, were humble and at the top of their game as they took on 3 songs: Simon Fuller’s Choice, their Single, and a “Favorite Encore” from the season. It was neck and neck up until the last song when one lady sang what I will say was the deciding vocal. However, in a year when supposed front-runner Angie got the surprise boot last week and left us with the two actual best singers in the finals, who knows who will actually win. Both women have a really good shot… But, let’s take a look at my rankings and final predictions for season 12 below and declare a winner.

American Idol Finale Performance Rankings~ 5/15/13

~ the astounding:
1. Candice- “I Who Have Nothing”: from the opening a capella verse to the insane final notes, Candice’s reprise song was a capper to an incredible season for the singer who had more “moments” than anyone else all year. And this was arguably her best. It was simply brilliant beautiful and bold. Simply amazing. And further props for changing up the arrangement yet again Candy Girl!
~ the fantastic
2. Kree- “Up to the Mountain”: with her best vocal of the night and arguably, the whole season, Kreedom rose into the heavens on this one. It was glorious and ethereal and surpassed her previous version by leaps and bounds. As Keith says, “just beautiful”.
~ the great
3. Kree- “All Cried Out”; forgive me but I was a bit cried out at the end of this lovely new single. The sentiment and Kree’s aching vocals really got to me. This could totally be her “Jesus Take the Wheel” and fly up the country charts. This kind of song and performance is just what got me so torn. In fact, Kree really made me emotional in all of her performances tonight and that could totally push her over the top. This single is also a much more marketable one than Candice’s.
4. Candice- “I Am Beautiful”: yes, you are beautiful Candice and so are your amazing pipes. While this song was a little more pop than the R&B sweet spot I like Candice in, it still was a good choice for her and a great vocal. I wonder how this one will do as an actual “single” but It certainly has potential.
~ the good:
5. Candice- “Chasing Pavements”: taking on Adele’s first hit, Candice delivered another winner. She changed up the phrasing and arrangement enough to make it feel like her own song and she sang it beautifully. It was just a little sleepy compared to her other two numbers.
6. Kree- “Angel”: with an angelic (yes I said it) vocal on Sarah McLachlan’s weeper, Kree totally wrecked me. While the song was a little sleepy as well, her emotion was so on point and her voice so perfect, it really left me a little weepy.

Wow~ 6 Incredibly performances. How can I choose a winner? Ok, I’m just gonna call it….

Prediction~
Winner: Candice Glover
(She had the stronger night by a small margin, but her final song really pushed her over the edge for the win. She was also the strongest and most consistent competitor all season.)

And there you have it. I’m ready to crown Candice Glover the season 12 American Idol. Are you? Will America pick the actual best singer this time? (I’d say only Kelly and Carrie were the actual best singers of their entire seasons, so Candice would be in great company.) Will Kree pull an upset and land us another Texas winner? Will Candice become the first returnee contestant to win? … Who knows? It’s gonna be really close and I could see either lady win. In fact, I’m predicting it will be the closest finale since Ruben/Clay in season 2. I also think both women have very good careers ahead of them. I can’t wait to see who what they do and, of course, who wins. Find out tomorrow on American Idol.

My American Idol Quick Wrap 4/24/13~ Love these Ladies!

Tonight, I had the honor of going to the live taping of American Idol and seeing the show’s most talented top four in franchise history strut their stuff, and I was not disappointed. All four ladies are simply fantastic singers and have bright futures ahead of them. What I wasn’t expecting, though, was how much my least favorite girl going into tonight would rise up to the challenge and fight my favorite girl for the top performer of the night. Yes, I’m talking about Angie almost taking out Amber on a night when both women hit it out of the park time and again. So, what did that mean for our two presumed front-runners Candice and Kree? Well, it meant that they struggled a bit (which is still good comparatively speaking). And, where exactly did all the performances land tonight? Check out my rankings and predictions for tonight’s episode where they took on a duet, a song of their own choosing and a one hit wonder. Oh and on a side note, that last theme was a bust as no one performed Kajagoogoo‘s “Too Shy”, Right Said Fred’s “I’m Too Sexy” or Dexy’s Midnight Runners’ “Come on Eileen”…. Alas, I knew that was a crazy dream that wasn’t going to come true…

American Idol Performance Rankings 4/24/13~

~ the great
1. Amber- “The Power of Love”: from the initial a capella beginning to her glory note ending, Amber’s vocal on this song was far and away the best of the night. Simply brilliant. And she did it with panache, confidence and looking stunning. It is time for a new Whitney/Celine and I’m crowning Amber Holcomb today!
2. Angie/Candice- “Stay”: now that was one hell of a duet of the current Rihanna/Mikky Ekko smash. Angie almost even beat Candice on it which was shocking. They made the song their own and it was a fantastic battle of belters. So good!
3. Angie- “Who You Are?”: for the first time this season, upon hearing an Angie tune, I immediately thought I should download it. This was just incredible, authentic, and beautiful with a nice rock edge. I think Angie is the new front-runner to win the whole thing ya’ll… especially considering the crazy shrieks from the live studio audience.
4. Amber- “MacArthur Park”: on this Donna Summer classic, ahem Richard Harris one-hit wonder, Amber delivered another whallop with incredible vocals. Her final high notes were insane and she nailed every bit of the song. Discolicious!
~ the good
5. Angie- “Cry Me A River”: giving Amber a run in the Standards genre on this one, Angie was flawless. Maybe she was a little too flawless though as it was reallllly dramatic, but still, I reallllly dug it. I can’t believe how much I loved her tonight.
6. Kree- “A Whiter Shade of Pale”: I rather enjoyed this performance by Kree. She was in her wheelhouse and loosening up a bit. I’m still waiting for her to truly let go, but she almost got there on this one and her voice sounded great.
7. Amber/Kree- “Rumor Has It”: I don’t know why the judges were dissing it, because in the live audience tonight, this number rocked. Amber out sang Kree but it was close.
8. Candice- “Emotions”: Candice’s vocals were stellar as usual tonight despite her cold. However, I did notice that her energy was down and I think the illness affected her solos the most. This was good though, but she needs to return to more dynamic song choices.
~ the decent:
9. Kree- “Hurt So Bad”: Kree did herself no favors with this little known song by Susan Tedeschi (who? She’s a former Grammy winner for Best New Artist, but yea, who?)… It was a cool bluesy song but it never really went anywhere and Kree felt like she was sorta going thru the motions. That said, I still liked it and it was better live than when I re-watched it back on the telecast.
10. Candice- “Find Your Love“: while Candice’s vocals were good yet again, the arrangement of this Drake tune was unfortunately a little boring. It was a nice Urban AC jam, but forgettable in the long run.

Overall Performance~
1. Amber
2. Angie (but it was really close for the top)
3. Candice
4. Kree

Predictions~
Bottom 2: Kree, Amber (only because Candice has such a big fan base)
Going Home: No One (I think it will be a non-elimination week)

So, the final four are fantastic. But which ladies will make it to the top three? I say they will all get an extra reprieve week and then the Idol powers that be will combine the two weeks of votes. Regardless all four ladies could be big stars in several genres~ Kree (Country, AAA), Amber (Pop, Adult Top 40, Dance, AC, R&B), Angie (Pop, Adult Top 40, AC, Contemporary Christian) and Candice (R&B, Adult R&B, some Pop crossover). We will find out if any of them actually goes home and what the big “twist” is tomorrow night on American Idol.

And check out a picture of me, my friend and co-star of my latest short film Dirty Talk, Claude Knowlton, and American Idol musical director Michael Orland on the Idol blue carpet. I’m sure you recognize Michael from Hollywood week and many of his appearances on the show helping out the contestants. He’s such a great and talented guy!

And please enjoy Amber’s insanely good vocals on “The Power of Love” from tonight’s show.

American Idol Quick Wrap 4/10/13~ Candice is the Queen

All Hail Candice Glover…. If there were any justice, American Idol would just hand Candice the season 12 crown and be done with it after tonight’s double dose of amazing performances. Not only was she flawless on both songs, her cover of “Love Song” was easily the best performance of season 12 hands down. I’d argue it’s in the top ten and possibly top 5 best Idol performances EVER! So, on a night when one woman threw down the gauntlet so hard, how is it that another singer gave arguably the worst Idol top ten performances in the history of the series? Yes, I’m takin’ bout Sassaro people. It was that bad… But wait, I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start by ranking all of tonight’s performances and looking at my predictions for who will get the boot home as the top six sang “Songs from the Burt Bacharach/Hal David Songbook” (i.e.: pretty but really old adult contemporary songs) and “Songs They Wish They Had Written” (i.e.: songs they know really well that require less memorization).

American Idol Performance Rankings~ 4/10/13
~ the Amazing
1. Candice- “Love Song“: giving an astounding performance on this Cure classic in the vein of Adele’s recent cover, Candice was perfection. As I said before, this was the “moment” of the season and will go down in Idol history as one of the best performances ever. It was insanely good. Tears! Standing “O”! Just Beyond!
2. Candice- “Don’t Make Me Over”: Nicki (who shockingly didn’t bother me at all tonight) said it well tonight that Candice’s performance of this song was so hot and current that you wouldn’t know it was written more than four decades ago. It was pretty damn flawless as well. Her vocals and inflection are just delicious!
~ the Great
3. Kree- “Help Me Make it Through The Night”: the girl I still think has the best shot to actually win the competition was in fine form again tonight and this performance of the Kris Kristofferson classic was just gorgeous. The emotion that you can hear in her voice is achingly good and she it was such a wonderful effortless performance. It could be a country hit today too.
~ the Good
4. Kree- “What the World Needs Now”: Kree’s take on this Bacharach/David tune was simple yet sublime. It hit all the sweet spots in her voice and she executed it with fabulous precision and heart.
5. Angie- “Love Came Down”: returning to her piano playing glory, Angie was also in her comfort zone on this faith-based ballad. It was a very pretty performance and really spoke to Angie’s true emotions marking her most resonant vocal in weeks. If she goes down the Contemporary Christian route after Idol, she will have a great future with songs like this.
6. Amber- “I Say a Little Prayer”: with the first of two uptempo songs from my favorite little dark horse, Amber delivered another solid vocal on this classic. It was fun and at times fierce.
7. Amber- “Love on Top”: speaking of fierce, Amber took on Beyonce and did a pretty darn good job on this incredibly difficult-to-sing song. It’s a great example of the kind of contemporary music our little Whitney-in-training could make. Another strong performance.
~ the Ok
8. Janelle- “The Dance”: with a lovely subdued take on the Garth Brooks’ 90′s smash, Janelle did a fine job, especially on the first half of one of my favorite karaoke songs. However, she tried to make the song bigger than it is in the second half losing a little bit of the true meaning of the song.
9. Angie- “Anyone Who Had a Heart”: singing the Dionne Warwick hit, Angie showcased her great pipes with a very strong vocal. However, she did it with zero emotional connection and in an overly-dramatic and inauthentic style.
10. Janelle- “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again”: it was a nice vocal, but overall a little bit of a snoozefest and while I admired her for trying to “country-fy” the song, it didn’t really work.
~ the Bad
11. Lazaro- “Angels”: well, let’s see… he didn’t ruin Robbie Williams biggest hit and he didn’t sweat as much as usual… But honestly, that was pitchy and boring. And his outfit was a bloody mess~ seriously.
~ the Horrendous
12. Lazaro- “Close to You”: ok, I’m sorry but Sassaro’s performance of “Close to You” was an incomparable train wreck. It was horrifyingly bad in every way. He was off the beat, pitchy, mumble-mouthed and disconnected. He was just lost and it was a unequivocated disaster~ easily the worst top ten performance by any finalist in the history of American Idol (and that includes Sanjaya!). Sorry Sassy, but you gotta go!

Predictions~
Bottom 3: Amber, Janelle, Lazaro
Bottom 2: Janelle, Lazaro
Going Home: Janelle… but not really. I think the judges will use the “Save” for her (or Amber if it comes to that) because this week is their final week to use it…. That said, if America does the right thing and boots Lazaro, the “Save” will not be used.

And there you have it. It was a night were Candice was crowned the Queen and Sassaro should’ve been sent to the gallows. It’s kind of shocking how enormous the disparity between those two singers is, but this is American Idol. So, America, please get it right and make the first all female top five tomorrow night and send our tight pants wearing Ricky Ricardo on his way.

And just because you know we all need to see it again, take another look at Candice’s transcendent performance of “Love Song” below.

It’s Baauer and Bruno at the Top of the Charts

The “B” boys are at the top of the Billboard Charts this week as Baauer and Bruno Mars lead the Hot 100 Singles and Top 200 Albums Lists with “Harlem Shake” and Unorthodox Jukebox. For the viral phenom Baauer, that makes three weeks on top while Bruno hits the top for the first time in his career as his second album ascends from # 2 to # 1 after 12 weeks in release. Mars holds off debuts from two groups I’ve never heard of called Atoms for Peace and Hilsong United (does that mean I’m getting old?) while getting a boost from cheaper pricing at Amazon. Take a look at the new top ten which also features a return from Adele below.

Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Unorthodox Jukebox- Bruno Mars (last week~ 2)
2. Amok- Atoms for Peace (debut)
3. Babel- Mumford & Sons (lw~ 1)
4. The Heist- Macklmore & Ryan Lewis (lw~ 16)
5. Zion- Hilsong United (debut)
6. Now 45- Various Artists (lw~ 4)
7. The Lumineers- The Lumineers (lw~ 5)
8. All that Echoes- Josh Groban (lw~ 3)
9. Unapologetic- Rihanna (lw~ 9)
10. 21- Adele (lw~ 14)

Back on the Singles Chart, Baauer holds off Macklmore & Ryan Lewis‘s former chart topper “Thrift Shop” again, but his run may be coming to an end as “Harlem Shake” is beginning to lose points for the first time. For more on that and Billboard’s chart methodology, head here. And check out the new top ten below which also features the return of Swedish House Mafia to the upper region with “Don’t You Worry Child”.

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Harlem Shake”- Baauer (lw~ 1)
2. “Thrift Shop”- Macklmore & Ryan Lewis (lw~ 2)
3. “When I Was Your Man”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 3)
4. “I Knew You Were Trouble”- Taylor Swift (lw~ 4)
5. “Stay”- Rihanna w/ Mikky Ekko (lw~ 7)
6. “Start from the Bottom”- Drake (lw~ 6)
7. “Scream & Shout”- Will.I.Am. w/Britney Spears (lw~ 5)
8. “Suit & Tie”- Justin Timberlake w/Jay Z (lw~8)
9. “Locked Out of Heaven”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 9)
10. “Don’t You Worry Child”- Swedish House Mafia (lw~ 14)

And to honor Adele’s return to the Top Ten, please enjoy one of my favorites from 21. This is “One and Only” (live from the Royal Albert Hall concert)

Bruno Mars Grabs Hold of the Charts

Bruno Mars could be the Adele of 2013 as the artist who utterly dominates a year like the British Grammy winner Adele did in both 2011 and 2012. He already spent 6 weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart with “Locked Out of Heaven”, and now his new single “When I Was Your Man” is close to hitting the top as well. This week “Man” leaps up from #8 to # 3 while “Heaven” is still hanging strong at # 9. Mars second album which features both songs, Unorthodox Jukebox, also revisits its peak position at # 2 this week and should hit the top next week. Keeping him from the summit are Mumford & Sons still basking in the afterglow of their Grammy victories…. Take a look at both the Billboard 200 Albums Chart and the Hot 100 Singles chart below. (And PS~ yes, Baauer‘s “Harlem Shake” crap phenomenon still rules the latter chart since Billboard bastardized the chart by adding in youtube views which is absolutely ludicrous and is no true value of a song’s popularity. I mean, what’s next? “A Doggie Flushes the Toilet” video hitting the top ten? Argh).

Top Ten Albums on the Hot 100:
1. Babel- Mumford & Sons (last week~ 1)
2. Unorthodox Jukebox- Bruno Mars (lw~ 3)
3. All That Echoes- Josh Groban (lw~ 5)
4. Now 45- Various Artists (lw~8)
5. The Lumineers- The Lumineers (lw~ 6)
6. Boys & Girls- Alabama Shakes (lw~ 20)
7. 2013 Grammy Nominees- Various Artists (lw~ 2)
8. Some Nights- fun. (lw~ 7)
9. Unapologetic- Rihanna (lw~ 15)
10. Red- Taylor Swift (lw~ 4)

Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “Harlem Shake”- Baauer (lw~ 1)
2. “Thrift Shop”- Macklemore & Ryan Lewis (lw~ 2)
3. “When I Was Your Man”- Bruno Mars (lw~8)
4. “I Knew You Were Trouble”- Taylor Swift (lw~ 5)
5. “Scream & Shout”- Will.I.Am w/Britney Spears (lw~ 4)
6. “Started from the Bottom”- Drake (lw~ 10)
7. “Stay”- Rihanna w/ Mikky Echo (lw~ 3)
8. “Suit & Tie”- Justin Timberlake w/ Jay Z (lw~ 9)
9. “Locked Out of Heaven”- Bruno Mars (lw~ 7)
10. “Love Me”- Lil Wayne w/ Drake & Future (lw~ 19)

And here’s the brand new video for Mars’ “When I Was Your Man”

“Argo” Wins Best Picture at a Surprisingly Unsurprising Oscars

On what was a night many said there could be several big upsets, tonight’s Academy Awards was actually rather predictable. With only Christoph Waltz beating out Tommy Lee Jones and Robert DeNiro in the Supporting Actor race, most of the other winners were pretty easy to guess. Argo took Picture, Editing and Adapted Screenplay while Daniel Day-Lewis, Jennifer Lawrence and Anne Hathaway won their respective races. Ang Lee topped Speilberg for Best Director while Quentin Tarantino won Original Screenplay for Django Unchained. One big surprise was a tie (only the 6th tie in Oscar history) for Sound Editing between Zero Dark Thirty and Skyfall… Take a look at all the winners below and watch here for more on the show, Seth MacFarlane’s decent hosting debut and the amazing performances by Jennifer Hudson and the cast of Les Miserables tomorrow.

2013 Academy Award Winners:

Best Picture: Argo
Director: Ang Lee (Life o Pi)
Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)
Actress: Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)
Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)
Original Screenplay: Django Unchained
Adapted Screenplay: Argo
Editing: Argo
Cinematography: Life of Pi
Score: Life of Pi
Song: “Skyfall”- Adele (Skyfall)
Production Design: Lincoln
Makeup & Hair: Les Miserables
Costume Design: Anna Karenina
Sound Editing: TIE~ Zero Dark Thirty & Skyfall
Sound Mixing: Les Miserables
Visual Effects: Life of Pi
Documentary: Searching for Sugar Man
Animated Film: Brave
Foreign Film: Amour
Doc Short Subject: Innocente
Animated Short: Paperman
Live Action Short: Curfew

Most Wins~
Life of Pi: 4
Argo: 3
Les Miserables: 3
Lincoln: 2
Django Unchained: 2

The Grammy Awards Spread the Love on a Very fun. Night

Tonight’s Grammy Awards were filled with some great performances, some surprise winners and a really happy Kelly Clarkson. No one artist dominated the night as the love was spread out with wins for all the big nominees. In the big 4 categories, Gotye picked up Record of the Year for “Somebody that I Used to Know” (along with 2 other awards) and Mumford & Sons won Album of the Year (Babel) while fun. grabbed Song of the Year for “We Are Young” and Best New Artist. Other winners included Adele, Frank Ocean, Carrie Underwood, Jay Z, Beyonce, The Black Keys, Zac Brown Band, and an overjoyed Clarkson who took home Pop Album and had the best speech of the night. She also gave arguably the best performance with her brilliant tribute to Carole King and the late Patti Page… Other standout performances came from Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars with Sting, Damian and Ziggy Marley, The Lumineers, Elton John & Ed Sheerhan, and the aforementioned Underwood. Check here tomorrow for more on the performances and the show. In the meantime, check out the winners in the big categories below. Then, head to the Grammy website for all the winners.

2013 Grammy Award Winners:

Album of the Year: Babel- Mumford & Sons
Record of the Year: “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w.Kimbra
Song of the Year: “We Are Young”- fun.
New Artist: fun.

Pop Album: Stronger- Kelly Clarkson
Pop Solo: “Set Fire to the Rain”- Adele
Pop Duo/Group/Collaboration: “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w/Kimbra
Traditional Pop Album: My Funny Valentine- Paul McCartney
Dance Recording: “Bangarang”- Skrillex
Dance Album: Bangarang- Skrillex

Country Album: Uncaged- Zac Brown Band
Country Song: “Blown Away”
Country Solo: “Blown Away”- Carrie Underwood
Country Duo/Group/Collaboration: “Pontoon”- Little Big Town

R& B Performance: “Climax”- Usher
Traditional R & B Performance: “Love on Top”- Beyonce
R & B Song: “Adorn”- Miguel
Urban Contemporary Album: Channel ORANGE- Frank Ocean
R & B Album: “Black Radio” by Robert Glasper Experiment

Rock Album: El Camino- The Black Keys
Rock Performance: “Lonely Boy”- The Black Keys
Rock Song: “Lonely Boy”
Alternative Album: Making Mirrors- Gotye

Rap Album: Take Care- Drake
Rap Sung Collaboration: “No Church in the Wild” by Jay-Z & Kanye West, featuring Frank Ocean & The-Dream
Rap Performance: “N****s In Paris” by Jay-Z & Kanye West

Short Form Music Video: “We Found Love”- Rihanna w/Calvin Harris
Musical Theatre Album: Once
Compilation Motion Picture Soundtrack: Midnight in Paris
Original Film Score: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Song Written for Visual Media: “Safe & Sound”- The CIvil Wars & Taylor Swift (from The Hunger Games)
Comedy Album: Blow Your Pants Off- Jimmy Fallon

And here’s Kelly Clarkson’s amazing performance of “Tennessee Waltz/(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman”

It’s Time for my Big Bold 2013 Grammy Award Winner Predictions

Sunday night is the biggest night in the music industry with the Grammy Awards airing on CBS. Some of the big nominees include fun., The Black Keys, Mumford & Sons, Kelly Clarkson, Frank Ocean and Hunter Hayes, but just who will win? … Well, let’s take a look at my big, bold, but totally unscientific predictions below and see… Then, watch the show Sunday night with performances from the above mentioned artists plus Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and Justin Timberlake at 8pm on CBS.

My Big Bold 2013 Grammy Award Winner Predicitons~

Record of the Year:
“Lonely Boy”- The Black Keys, “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”- Kelly Clarkson, “We Are Young”- fun. w/Janelle Monae, “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye, “Thinking ‘Bout You”- Frank Ocean, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together”- Taylor Swift
Will Win: “Somebody that I Used to Know”
Should win: “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”
~ spoiler: “We Are Young”

Song of the Year (award to the songwriter)
“The A Team” (Ed Sheerhan), “Adorn” (Miguel), “Call Me Maybe” (Carly Rae Jepson), “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” (Kelly Clarkson), “We Are Young” (fun.)
Will win: “We Are Young”
Should win: “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”
Spoiler: “The A Team”

Album of the Year:
El Camino- The Black Keys, Some Nights- fun., Babel- Mumford & Sons, channel ORANGE- Frank Ocean, Blunderbuss 2- Jack White
Will win: Mumford & Sons
Should win: fun
Spoiler: The Black Keys

Best New Artist:
Alabama Shakes, fun., Hunter Hayes, Frank Ocean, The Lumineers
Will & Should win: fun.
spoiler: Frank Ocean

Best Pop Solo Performance:
“Set Fire to the Rain”- Adele, “Call Me Maybe”- Carly Rae Jepsen, “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”- Kelly Clarkson, “Wide Awake”- Katy Perry, “Where Have You Been?”- Rihanna
Will & Should win: Kelly Clarkson
Spoiler: Adele

Pop Duo/Group/Collaboration:
“Shake It Out”- Florence + the Machine, “We Are Young”- fun. w/Janelle Monae, “Somebody that I Used to Know”- Gotye w/Kimbra, “Sexy and I Know It”- LMFAO, “Payphone”- Maroon 5 w/Wiz Khalifa
Will & Should win: fun.
Spoiler: Gotye w/Kimbra
Pop Album:
Stronger- Kelly Clarkson, Ceremonials- Florence + the Machine, Some Nights- fun., Overexposed- Maroon 5, The Truth About Love- Pink
Will win: fun.
Should win: P!nk
Spoiler: Kelly Clarkson

Country Solo Performance:
“Home”- DIerks Bentley, “Springsteen”- Eric Church, “Cost of Livin’”- Ronnie Dunn, “Wanted”- Hunter Hayes, “Over”- Blake Shelton, “Blown Away”- Carrie Underwood
Will & Should win: Carrie Underwood
Spoiler: Blake Shelton or Eric Church

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg in some of the biggest categories. If you’d like to know my thoughts in the other fields like Rock and Dance, shoot me a private message. In the meantime, please enjoy my favorite Grammy nominated song and artist, Miss Kelly Clarkson with “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” below.

“Les Mis” Wins Big at the Golden Globes

Did you hear the people sing? Or at least the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press? You did if you watched tonight’s highly entertaining Golden Globe show where they awarded Les Miserables with a leading 3 awards including Best Picture (Musical/Comedy), Best Actor Musical/Comedy (Hugh Jackman) and Best Supporting Actress (Anne Hathaway). I was thrilled with these incredibly deserving wins for what I consider the Best film of last year…. Other big wins included Daniel Day-Lewis and Jessica Chastain for Drama Actor and Actress, Jennifer Lawrence for Musical/Comedy Actress and Christoph Waltz for Supporting Actor… Ben Affleck continued to stick it to the Academy as he won his second Director trophy this week for Argo which also usurped Lincoln to take home the Best Picture Prize….
On the TV front, Homeland and Game Change won big with three awards while Girls  picked up two…. Check back here tomorrow for my take on the telecast and see all the winners below… For more on all the winners and the show which was hosted by the incredibly hysterical and brilliant Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, head here.

2013 Golden Globe Award Winners:

FILM~

Best Picture (Drama): Argo
Best Actor (Drama): Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln)
Best Actress (Drama): Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty)
Best Picture (Musical or Comedy): Les Miserables
Best Actor (Musical/Comedy): Hugh Jackman
Best Actress (Musical/Comedy): Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook)
Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)
Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables)
Best Director: Ben Affleck (Argo)
Best Screenplay: Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained)
Best Score: Life of P9
Best Original Song: “Skyfall” by Adele (Skyfall)
Best Animated Film: Brave
Best Foreign Film: Amour

TV~

Drama Series: Homeland
Actress Drama: Clare Danes (Homeland)
Actor Drama: Damian Lewis (Homeland)
Musical or Comedy Series: Girls
Actress Musical/Comedy: Lena Dunham (Girls)
Actor Musical/Comedy: Don Cheadle (House of Lies)
Supporting Actor TV Movie/Drama Series or Musical/Comedy Series: Ed Harris (Game Change)
Supporting Actress TV Movie/Drama Series or Musical/Comedy Series: Maggie Smith (Downton Abbey)
TV Movie or Miniseries: Game Change
Actress TV Movie/Miniseries: Julianne Moore (Game Change)
Actor TV Movie/Miniseries: Kevin Costner (Hatfields & McCoys)

Cecil B. DeMille Award: Jodie Foster

They’re Here~ My Big Bold 2013 Golden Globe WINNER Predictions!

Sunday night brings what NBC claims is the biggest party of the year in Hollywood, The Golden Globe Awards and no doubt, it’s always a good time. This year the hosts are the brilliant and hysterical Tina Fey and Amy Poehler who are also nominees. I can’t wait to see what they bring to the show that often favors big stars as its winners…. So, just who do I think will take home the golden hardware and who actually deserves to? Take a look at my predictions below and watch the Golden Globes Sunday night on NBC.

My BIG BOLD Golden Globe WINNER Predictions~

FILM

Best Picture (Drama)
Argo, Django Unchained, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty
Will win: Argo
Should win: Zero Dark Thirty
~ spoiler: Lincoln

Best Actor (Drama)
Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln), Richard Gere (Arbitrage), John Hawkes (The Sessions), Joaquin Phoenix (The Master), Denzel Washington (Flight)
Will & Should win: Daniel Day-Lewis
~ spoiler: Denzel Washington

Best Actress (Drama)
Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty), Marion Cotillard (Rust & Bone), Helen Mirren (Hitchcock), Naomi Watts (The Impossible), Rachel Weisz (Deep Blue Sea)
Will & Should win: Jessica Chastain
~spoiler: Naomi Watts

Best Picture (Musical or Comedy)
The Best Marigold Hotel, Les Miseralbes, Moonrise Kingdom, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, SIlver Linings Playbook
Will & Should win: Les Miserables
~ spoiler: Silver Linings Playbook

Best Actor (Musical or Comedy):
Jack Black (Bernie), Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook), Hugh Jackman (Les Miserables), Ewan McGregor (Salmon Fishing in the Yemen), Bill Murray (Hyde Park on Hudson)
Will & Should win: Hugh Jackman
~ spoiler: Bradley Cooper

Best Actress (Musical or Comedy):
Emily Blunt (Salmon Fishing in the Yemen), Judi Dench (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel), Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook), Maggie Smith (Quartet), Meryl Streep (Hope Springs)
Will win: Jennifer Lawrence
Should win: Meryl Streep or Maggie Smith
~ spoiler: Maggie Smith

Best Supporting Actor:
Alan Arkin (Argo), Leonardo DiCaprio (Django Unchained), Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln), Phillip Seymour Hoffman (The Master), Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained)
Will win: Leonardo DiCaprio
Should win: Tommy Lee Jones
~ spoiler: Christoph Watlz

Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams (The Master), Sally Field (Lincoln), Anne Hathaway (Les Miserables), Helen Hunt (The Sessions), Maggie Smith (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel)
Will & Should win: Anne Hathaway
~ Spoiler: no one. She deservedly has it in the bag.

Best Director:
Ben Affleck (Argo), Kathryn Bigelow (Zero Dark Thirty), Ang Lee (Life of Pi), Quentin Tarantino (Django Unchained), Steven Spielberg (Lincoln)
Will win: Ben Affleck
Should win: Kathryn Bigelow
~ Spoiler: Steven Spielberg

Best Screenplay:
Argo, Django Unchained, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, Zero Dark Thirty
Will & Should win: Lincoln
~ spoiler: Django Unchained

Best Score:
Anna Karenina, Argo, Cloud Atlas, Life of Pi, Lincoln
Will & Should win: Lincoln
~ Spoiler: Anna Karenina

Best Original Song:
“For You” (Act of Valor), “Not Running Anymore” (Stand Up Guys), “Safe & Sound” (The Hunger Games), “Suddenly” (Les Miserables), “Skyfall” (Skyfall)
Will & Should win: “Skfyall” (yay, Adele)
~ spoiler: “Suddenly”

Best Animated Film:
Brave, Frankenweenie, Hotel Transylvania, Rise of the Guardians, Wreck It Raph
Will win: Rise of the Guardians
Should win: Wreck It Ralph
~ spoiler: Frankenweenie

Best Foreign Language Film:
Amour, A Royal Affair, The Intouchables, Kon-Tiki, Rust & Bone
Will win: Amour
Should win: The Intouchables
~ spoiler: The Intouchables

TV:

Drama Series:
Breaking Bad, Boardwalk Empire, Downton Abbey, Homeland, The Newsroom
Will & Should win: Homeland
~ spoiler: Downton Abbey (remember this is the FOREIGN press and Downton is all about the Brits!)

Best Actor Drama:
Steven Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Jeff Daniels (The Newsroom), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Damian Lewis (Homeland)
Will win: Damian Lewis
Should win: Bryan Cranston
~ Spoiler: Jeff Daniels

Best Actress Drama:
Connie Britton (Nashville), Glenn Close (Damages), Clare Danes (Homeland), Michelle Dockrey (Downton Abbey), Juliana Marguiles (The Good Wife)
Will & Should win: Clare Danes
~ spoiler: Michelle Dockrey (this category rarely has repeat winners and since Danes won last year, Dockrey could prevail)

Best Musical or Comedy Series:
The Big Bang Theory, Episodes, Girls, Modern Family, Smash
Will & Should win: Modern Family
~ spoiler: Smash

Best Actor Musical or Comedy:
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Don Cheadle (House of Lies), Louis CK (Louie), Matt LeBlanc (Episodes), Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)
Will win: Louis CK
Should win: Matt LeBlanc
~ Spoiler: Jim Parsons

Best Actress Musical or Comedy:
Zooey Deschanel (New Girl), Julia Louis-Dreyfuss (Veep), Lena Dunham (Girls), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Amy Poehler (Parks & Recreation)
Will win: Julia Louis Dreyfuss
Should win: Amy Poehler
~ spoiler: Lena Dunham

TV Movie or Miniseries:
Game Change, The Girl, Hatfields & McCoys, The Hour, Political Animals
Will & Should win: Game Change
~ spoiler: Political Animals (and wouldn’t that be fun?!)

Best Actor TV Movie/Miniseries:
Kevin Costner (Hatfields & McCoys), Benedict Cumberpatch (Sherlock), Woody Harrelson (Game Change), Toby Jones (The Girl), Clive Owen (Hemingway & Gelhorn)
Will win: Kevin Costner
Should win: Woody Harrleson
~ spoiler: Benedict Cumberpatch

Best Actress TV Movie/Miniseries:
Nicole Kidman (Hemingway & Gelhorn), Jessica Lange (American Horror Story: Asylum), Sienna Miller (The Girl), Julianne Moore (Game Change), Sigourney Weaver (Political Animals)
Will & Should win: Julianne Moore
~ spoiler: Jessica Lange

Best Supporting Actor TV Movie/Miniseries/Drama Series or Musical/Comedy Series:
Max Greenfield (New Girl), Ed Harris (Game Change), Danny Huston (Magic City), Mandy Patinkin (Homeland), Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family)
Will win: Mandy Patinkin
Should win: Max Greenfield
~ spoiler: Ed Harris

Best Supporting Actress TV Movie/Miniseries/Drama Series or Musical/Comedy Series:

Hayden Panitierre (Nashville), Archie Penjabi (The Good Wife), Sarah Paulson (Game Change), Maggie Smith (Downton Abbey), Sofia Vergara (Modern Family)

Will & Should win: Maggie Smith

~ spoiler: Sofia Vergara