Grammy winner LeAnn Rimes has been in the news lately due to rumors she may be joining The X Factornext season as a judge. However, like so many other artists and fans, she has also spoken out about the heartbreaking loss of Whitney Houston. At a concert the day after Houston’s passing, Rimes spoke of how Whitney was a huge inspiration to her and she performed two of her classic smashes, “I Have Nothing” and “I Will Always Love You”. Take a look at her gorgeous rendition of both songs below. What a wonderful tribute.
LeAnn Rimes “I Have Nothing/I Will Always Love You”
Justin Bieber just can’t get out of the news. Following the claims that the 17 year-old fathered some chick’s baby (which he vehemently denies), the Biebs got some good news today as he nabbed his third # 1 album. Selling 210,000 copies, Bieber’s Under the Mistletoe debuts on top of the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart making it the first Christmas album from a solo male artist to debut in that position. (On a personal note, I can’t stand hearing any Christmas music til at least after Thanksgiving~ better yet mid December. So, please don’t be playin’ the Biebs holiday tidings near me, lol). Justin also lays claim to the title of most # 1 albums (3) by an artist under 18 years-old breaking his tie with LeAnn Rimes who had two…. Now, it wasn’t all about tween heart-throbs on the chart this week as 5 other records debuted in the top ten from rapper Wale, Grammy winning country singer Miranda Lambert, Grammy nominees Florence + the Machine, R& B crooner Tyrese and former X-Factor contender Susan Boyle whose latest gave her a third top 5 album, albeit with a huge drop off in sales compared to her last two…. For more on this chart, head to Billboard here and check out the top ten albums below.
Top Ten Albums on the Billboard 200:
1. Under the Mistletoe- Justin Bieber (debut)
2. Ambition- Wale (debut)
3. Four the Record- Miranda Lambert (debut)
4. Someone to Watch Over Me- Susan Boyle (debut)
5. 21- Adele (last week~ 4)
6. Ceremonials- Florence + the Machince (debut)
7. Mylo Xyloto- Coldplay (lw~ 1)
8. Christmas- Michael Buble (lw~ 5)
9. Open Invitation- Tyrese (debut)
10. Stronger- Kelly Clarkson (lw~ 2)
And here’s Miranda Lambert’s rocking current top 5 country smash “Baggage Claim”. Watch for her to perform it on the CMA Awards tonight on ABC.
Looking at the Hot 100 Singles chart, Rihanna makes it two weeks in a row with “We Found Love” featuring Calvin Harris. She is likely to hold on another week despite the quickly rising LMFAO’s “Sexy and I Know It”. Take a gander at the new top ten below.
Top Ten Singles on the Hot 100:
1. “We Found Love”- Rihanna w/ Calvin Harris (last week~ 1)
2. “Sexy and I Know It”- LMFAO (lw~ 3)
3. “Someone Like You”- Adele (lw~ 2)
4. “Moves Like Jagger”- Maroon 5 w/ Christina Aguilera (lw~ 4)
5. “Stereo Hearts”- Gym Class Heroes w/ Adam Levine (lw~ 6)
6. “Without You”- David Guetta w/Usher (lw~ 7)
7. “Pumped Up Kicks”- Foster the People (lw~ 5)
8. “Good Feeling”- Flo Rida (lw~ 12)
9. “You Make Me Feel”- Cobra Starship w/Sabi (lw~ 9)
10. “Party Rock Anthem”- LMFAO (lw~8)
It was adios to our Latina lady last night on American Idol as the affable singer with the poor fashion and song choices, Karen Rodriguez, got her walking papers. It wasn’t much of a surprise due to her forgettable perf of Taylor Dayne’s ballad “Love Will Lead You Back”, but it was a little sad because the girl can actually sing…. Anywho, I wish her well on her way and now I count the days til the other lady in the bottom two, Haley Miley Cyrus Reinhart, gets the boot… Hopefully, it will be before Naima who is certainly on shaky ground as the third woman in the bottom 3 (and the three I predicted would be in danger)… Also, on the show last night some guy named Lee Dewyze came back and sang his new song “Beautiful Like You”. Oh yeah, he was the winner from last year. Forgive me for forgetting him and most of last year’s dreadful season… Then, the incredibly irritating Black Eyed Peas assaulted us with a horrendous new song “Just Cant Get Enough” that I had enough of about 10 seconds in. (And this just in from my roommate~ he was like “is that Fergie or LeAnn Rimes singing with the Peas. What happened to her face?” lol) … Overall, it was a pretty uneventful results show, but what makes this post exciting is that it’s time for my new totally unscientific American Idol Top 11 Power Rankings! And away we go…
American Idol Top 11 Power Rankings (season 10)~
1. Pia: my current pic to win the whole shebang delivered her 3rd fantastic vocal in a row and even showed some spunk in her clip package. Plus the touching footage about her Grandpa will keep the older viewers happy. Pia is the total package and she holds on top of the Power List again this week. (last week~ 1) 2. Stefano: the little Italian engine that could keeps climbing up the list all the way to the runner-up spot this week. His Simply Red cover was by far the best on Wednesday and he was fantastic in the group number again tonight. He is the consumate performer and a fantastic singer. (lw~ 4) 3. Scotty: he may be missing baseball season, but I think it’s all worth it for this teen as the country crooner holds steady with another strong song on Wed night. He’s pretty much a lock for the final five. (lw~ 3) 4. Lauren: taking a few steps forward this week our teen country girl was back on track with her Melissa Etheridge tune. She has great pipes and a fun personality. Now, she needs to conquer the flu and her terrible outfit choices. (lw~ 5) 5. James: he may have held back a little on his Bon Jovi track this week, but I enjoyed the tasteful move and he continues to look solid every week. (lw~ 2) 6. Jacob: despite a little bit of a wonky turn on “Alone”, Jacob has the fans and the voice to cruise into the top ten. Plus, he has Jesus on his side! hehe (lw~ 6) 7. Casey: ok, this fun guy took a big chance with his woeful Nirvana cover the other night. However, the audience and judges have mad love for him. I just want him to wow us again and see if he can contend for the upper regions of the power list. (lw~ 7) 8. Thia: clearly somebody out there likes this robotic but cute teen as she has avoided the bottom three despite a couple of lackluster performances. She does have a cool voice, if only she knew what to do with it! (lw~ 9) 9. Paul: yes, he’s cute, funny and incredibly likable with a blinding smile, but holy hell, he was horrible on Wed night. Get it together mister! I don’t know how many “Get out of Jail Free” cards you’re gonna get. (lw~ 10) 10. Naima: after a nice surge up the list last week, our most interesting female singer took a hit after her misguided attempt at covering Tina Turner. At least she is taking the “pitchy” notes the judges are giving her to heart. Let’s see if she can regain some ground next week because she is certainly good tv. (lw~8) 11. Haley: how on Earth is this girl continuing to survive on this show? Everything about her is an affront to artistry, performance and good singing. Blech! (lw~ 12)
Oh, snap, that’s who has “The Power”! … What do you think? Are you favorites still doing well? Are you the ones voting for Miley Cyrus, oops, Haley and keeping her in the competition? Are you still loving the judges like me? Sound off below. And be sure to watch next week when Scotty may take a tumble as the singers attempt “Motown” week! … and here’s one final treat for you… Please enjoy the first actual “LIVE” singing from the Idols on a group number in ages.
This past weekend, the Gay Mens Chorus of Los Angeles performed their annual holiday concerts and this year, they invited a special guest, Grammy Award winner LeAnn Rimes. After taking on a number of holiday tunes, the chorus and LeAnn joined forces for a gorgeous rendition of Bette Midler’s “The Rose” that was dedicated to those LGBT teens lost to suicide this year and their friends and family. LeAnn gave a heartfelt message before the song in the tradition of the “It Gets Better” video series. Take a look at their gorgeous performance below and for more information on It Gets Better, click here or head to the Trevor Project here.
Oscar and Grammy winning superstar icon Cher is about to be everywhere again as she promotes her brand new movie musical Burlesque co-starring, in her musical debut, Grammy winner Christina Aguilera. She plays the proprietor and former star of a Burlesque dance club in LA that Christina aspires to perform in. The film opens Nov. 24 and the soundtrack featuring 8 new songs from Xtina drops on Nov. 22. The other two new tracks on the record are from Cher herself, “Welcome to Burlesque” and the gorgeous ballad “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me”, which I’m predicting may be the highlight of the film. Anywho, the latter song just hit the web and it’s written by 6 time Oscar nominee and Grammy winner Diane Warren. Could she be grabbing her 7th nod for this one? I sure hope so and then Cher could sing it on the Oscars! Ooooh, think of the wardrobe possibilities too! … In the meantime, check out the brand new Cher song below…
Cher “You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me” from Burlesque
Diane Warren’s Oscar nominated songs…
1988: “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” from Mannequin (performed by Starship)
1997: “Because You Loved Me” from Up Close and Personal (performed by Celine Dion)
1998: “How Do I Live” from Con Air (performed by Trisha Yearwood… It was originally performed by LeAnn Rimes, but execs decided to go for a more mature version for the film)
1999: “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” from Armageddon (performed by Aerosmith)
2000: “Music of My Heart” from Music of the Heart (performed by Gloria Estefan & NSYNC)
2002: “There You’ll Be” from Pearl Harbor (performed by Faith Hill)
