Randy Jackson

12 (More) Big Deal Albums We're Hella Excited For

Hey: Albums! In case people still care about these things, here's a batch of potentially interesting releases arriving in the calendar year.

I'm A Judge On Brazilian TV Tonight!

I'm the Simon Cowell of Sao Paolo, the Randy Jackson of Rio. They have a show called Broadway Dreams (Dancando na Broadway) whereby talented folk sing the songs and do the dances from the classic musical that's the theme of that week as a panel of judges observes and picks the best one. And the ep ... More >>

Radio Hits One: Reality TV Propels Aging Stars Back Into The Top 40

​ When I heard that Jennifer Lopez was leveraging her new position as an American Idol judge to launch her new single, premiering the video for "On The Floor" on one episode and performing the song on another, I rolled my eyes at what I thought was her hubris. It'd been less than two years sin ... More >>

Randy Jackson Gives Me American Idol Insight

Photo: Andrew Werner​"The legend!" said Randy Jackson as he approached me at the Lacoste penthouse party for his record label last night. That's now the official way all celebrities must greet me or they don't get a mention. (By the way, he was bowing and scraping too. A nice extra touch.) ... More >>

American Idol: It's Finally Over!

Michael Becker/FOX​A deeply frustrating season of American Idol is over now, having discovered exactly zero future stars, and last night we got the massive glitzathon finale, an annual event that reliably has little or nothing to do with the rest of the season. Scotty McCreery barely even look ... More >>

American Idol Gets Inspired To Believe In Itself (And In Lady Gaga)

Michael Becker/FOXThis guy. ​ American Idol seems like it should build toward a big finale, but it never works out that way. Instead, the real excitement surrounding any season of the show usually peaks around the time of its first shock elimination; this year, that'd be when Pia Toscano went ... More >>

American Idol Breaks Out Its Copy Of Carole King: Her Greatest Hits

Michael Becker/FOX​ The same week NBC attempts to take on American Idol by launching the loud, flashy The Voice, Idol makes one of those baffling decisions that only Idol can make: Devoting an entire 90 minutes to saluting the deeply, overwhelmingly annoying singer-songwriter Carole King. I h ... More >>

"The Voice" Closes Its Eyes And Takes On "American Idol"

​So: The Voice. The big challenge. American Idol has been the dominant ratings force in American TV for a full decade now, but none of the other networks has really managed to do much with that show's format, which seems like a relatively easy thing to steal. (Or they haven't made a big singin ... More >>

"American Idol" Season 10: Ozzfest, Bleep-Outs, And The Persistence Of Will.I.Am

Michael Becker/FOX​About five minutes after Pia Toscano's shock elimination last week, rumors surfaced that she'd signed a big deal with Interscope. Now, a major label deal is pretty much what all these kids are competing for in the first place, and this is the first time I can ever remember a ... More >>

American Idol Season 10: The Kids Honor People Who Are A Bazillion Years Old

Michael Becker/FOXC'mon, dude, you probably never even had detention. ​ Gwen Stefani was on this week's American Idol because somebody paid somebody so she could hawk the clothing line that she apparently still has. But this wasn't Ska Week or New Wave Week or Neptunes Week, as awesome as eve ... More >>

American Idol Season 10, Top 11: The Freaky Rictus Smile of Thia Megia

This person has no idea what Motown is. Photo courtesy Michael Becker/ FOX. ​Since last we spoke, Karen Rodriguez has gone back to MySpaceLand, Steven Tyler's wardrobe has grown impressively more absurd, and Jacob Lusk has bodied the fuck out of Heart's "Alone." I missed the last week of Ameri ... More >>

American Idol, Season 10, "Idols" Week: Ryan Adams Shout-Outs And Soaring Volcanoes

Please, Jacob Lusk, stick around as long as possible. CREDIT: Ray Mickshaw/FOX.​This was the first week we really got to see a lot of Interscope honcho Jimmy Iovine, whose role on American Idol is supposedly to mentor all the kids, but it's already clear he's only going to show up for five-min ... More >>

American Idol, Season 10, Live Show #1: Up With Judas Priest, Down With Edwin McCain

This shirt is a major problem. Credit: Frank Micelotta/FOX.​Before we say anything else about the first live American Idol show this season, we're going to need to talk about Steven Tyler's shirt. Steven Tyler came out wearing this impossible-to-figure silky blouse-y thing with pictures of gig ... More >>

American Idol, Season 10: Bring On The Tourette Syndrome Guy

Better keep that censor button handy. Credit: Michael Becker/FOX.​I don't think I've ever been more excited about an American Idol contestant than I am about James Durbin. It's not because of his voice, though his very Adam Lambert-y turbo-yowl could be entertaining in the context of the show. ... More >>

American Idol Season 10, Los Angeles: How Do You Get To Work?

Stop grinning, bro. Photo by Michael Becker / FOX. ​The other night, a crippling snowstorm hit Chicago, way more crippling than the sad little Snowpocalypses you East Coast whiners are heroically enduring. It knocked out my cable, and no cable means no American Idol, since I'm not smart enough ... More >>

American Idol, Season 10: Not Heartwarming-Sad, Just Sad-Sad

Beware of this dude's absolutely appalling sincere faces. Photo by Michael Becker/FOX.​Tonight, we see the new American Idol judging cadre venture to Milwaukee, I place I don't consider a real city because I can't name any rappers from there. (Bon Iver doesn't count.) We open with Steven Tyler ... More >>

American Idol Season 10: Comfortably Banal Down In "N'awlins"

Way less of dudes like this, at least. Photo by Michael Becker/FOX.​Tonight's American Idol starts off with two bits of welcome news. First off, Bones is on tonight. That means Idol is only an hour long and I don't have to wait all goddamn night to watch Community. (They dressed Malcolm Jamal- ... More >>

American Idol Season 10: Steven Tyler's Sexy-Grandpa Thing Has Got To Stop

Guess which one of these people needs to stop kicking game to 16-year-olds. Credit: Michael Becker/FOX.​Woof. Oh boy. Here we go. Welcome to American Idol's post-overhaul end-times. This is what happens when the only interesting people on America's highest-rated TV show decide that they've ha ... More >>

Was 2010 The Best Year For Music Ever? American Idol Wobbles, R&B Thrives, And The '90s Rise Again

Welcome to Sound of the City's year-in-review rock-critic roundtable, an amiable ongoing conversation between five prominent Voice critics: Rob Harvilla, Zach Baron, Sean Fennessey, Maura Johnston, and Rich Juzwiak. We'll be here all week! At least one song on this record is really good!​Gent ... More >>

On Mariah Carey's Agreeably Bizarre Yuletide Sequel Merry Christmas II You

Thoughts on The American Idol Judges Shakeup

​ *Kara DioGuardi lacked the spark and unpredictability of Paula Abdul. You never felt she might nod off in the middle of the show--and that was a problem. *Ellen DeGerenes seemed similarly awkward about doling out singing advice--plus she knew less than Kara, since her only musical credit is ... More >>

Our Roundtable on Bravo's Art Reality Show

'Work of Art' gets its own 'crit' from three Village Voice writers

American Idol Season 9, Finale Results

Vince Bucci/FOX Alice Cooper and the Idols​ 8:01pm. It's a sad night, and not because we're saying goodbye to another season of Idol, not because we're saying goodbye to Simon Cowell, but because they managed to drag this out to a two-hour production of group sings and product placements. 8: ... More >>

American Idol Season 9, Live-Blogging Idol Gives Back & Top 7 Results

Michael Becker / FOX Baby-Hugger Simon Cowell​ Two hours? Really? Because tonight's annual philanthropic extravaganza adds an extra hour onto the already too long results show (far too much to ask of any live-blogger, in my opinion), I'll be checking in intermittently throughout the night, ... More >>

A Gift Guide for Rupert Murdoch's 79th Birthday: 79 Presents to Give the Chairman

​Happy Birthday, Rupert Murdoch! At the great old age of 79, the media baron's going to have to be gifted well. Who knows how many he has left? It's late in the day and you still haven't gotten him anything, and you don't know what to get him? Funny you should ask. We've got a few decent ideas ... More >>

The Mountain Goats Played Late Night With Jimmy Fallon

Well, it wasn't exactly Stephen Colbert handling vocals on "This Year," but anytime you can get John Darnielle and Randy Jackson in the same room, you kind of have to do it, right? The band went with "Genesis 3:23"; the svelte second guitarist looks to be Perry Wright from the band Prayers and Tea ... More >>

Journey+Heart

Life Lessons From Kissinger, George W., and Randy Jackson: Studies in Crap and Fox News are Going Places

Your Crap Archivist brings you the finest in forgotten and bewildering crap culled from basements, thrift stores, estate sales and flea markets. I do this for one reason: Knowledge is power. Going Places: How America's Best and Brightest Got Started Down the Road of Life Author: E.D. Hill, former ho ... More >>

American Idol Jacksonville: Power Makes Kara Horny, David Archuleta Gave Us the Runs

Sharyn Jackson is your American Idol host for season eight. Last week, Judge Kara became a bitch, this week she unleashed some cleavage. Oy. Kara, whoa that shirt Jacksonville is a town that owes its legacy to Journey--or at least to Randy Jackson--if we're to believe the introduction to last nig ... More >>

Live: "Indie-Rock Karaoke" with Ted Leo and Andrew W.K.

American Idol Week Twelve: Please, God, Let It End

American Idol Week Ten: The Fix is In?

American Idol Week Nine: Broadway Week Sucks Majestically

American Idol Week Three: "Hallelujah" and Bullshit

Tom Petty's Super Bowl Halftime Show: Thoroughly OK

NBC's Live Earth Special: A Running Diary

The American Idol Finale: A Running Diary

Idol Gives Back: A Running Diary

The Grammy Awards: A Running Diary

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