Scotty McCreery is growing accustomed to finishing in first place. The talented young country crooner did so on American Idol in May, of course, and now he’s done so again on the Billboard Top 200. McCreery’s debut album, “Clear as Day,” sold 197,000 copies in its first week out, according to Nielsen SoundScan, placing it atop that chart. Scotty McCreery – I Love You This Big “My head is just spinning,” Scotty says. “It started out kind of low: They said 100,000 maybe. Then every day I saw the numbers climbing. It’s wild: It wasn’t a year ago that I was a normal cat, and now I’m number one on Billboard. It’s insane, it really is.” McCreery is the first Idol champion to hit number-one with his initial release since Ruben Studdard in 2003. Lauren Alaina , meanwhile, released her first effort this week and will try to match Scotty’s total.
Scotty McCreery has announced the named and the release date of his debut album. Titled “Clear As Day,” it will be available on October 4. “We’re putting what I believe are the best songs we could find on it and I really hope everyone likes it,” Scotty said Friday on Good Morning America . “The whole experience has been amazing! I love working with my album producer, Mark Bright, and have gotten to work with some of the best musicians in Nashville!” Fans can actually pre-order to the CD via McCreery’s official website and receive an autographed 8×10 photo, a personalized poster and an instant download of the track “I Love You This Big.” Scotty released the official video for that single last week. Check it out NOW . [Photo: WENN.com]
The impressive start to Scotty McCreery’s career has now reached historic proportions. The new American Idol champion’s first single, “I Love You This Big,” is now the highest-charting debut for a new country artist in 20 years. The track shot to number-one on iTunes and number-three on Billboard’s Digital Songs chart; while his compilation CD peaked at number-three on the country chart. Scotty McCreery – I Love You This Big In response, Scotty – who will head to Nashville next week and start recording his first album – released the following statement: “I am humbled and shocked by this news. I can’t tell you what it means to me to be on the same charts as my musical heroes. I want to thank my fans and especially country radio for their support. “I continue to be amazed by everything that has happened to me in such a short time. “This is such a special song to me, so I am thrilled that it is getting such a great reception at country radio. What I love about ‘I Love You This Big’ is that it can mean different things to different people.
Jackie Rozo, the 27-year-old daughter of Arnold Schwarzengger’s secret baby mama Mildred “Patty” Baena, is breaking her silence about the love child scandal. Rozo’s reason for speaking out? To decry how RACIST everyone is! The ONLY reason people care about Patty Baena , she claims, is because Arnold was in an interracial affair. We can think of a handful of other reasons … “It’s just a big thing because she’s Hispanic, and he’s a celebrity,” Rozo says. And because he’s been married to Maria Shriver for the past 25 years. And employed Baena for the past 20 years. And kept this secret the past 14 years. And has four legitimate kids. And was the GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA. Either way, it’s still all news to her. Like the guy who thought he was the dad , Jackie claims she had “no idea” that her half-brother was fathered by Arnold until the news broke last week. But now, Jackie’s coming to her mom’s defense – adding, “She’s like a superwoman pretty much” … “My mother does not need to justify herself.” Perhaps … but neither do people for being flat-out amazed by it. Nor does it make one racist to expect better from an elected official. Just saying.
Welcome to THG’s new feature, in which two of our celebrity gossip experts debate topical issues in the entertainment world and you decide who wrote the winning argument! Today, THG Asks : Did Scotty McCreery deserve to win American Idol? YES by Free Britney Two words: 122 million. That’s the number of people who crowned the newest American Idol this week. Not exactly a small sample size. We could keep playing the numbers game – how many songs, how many aspirants he bested – but you get the idea. Some will say Pia Toscano was ousted too soon, and she probably was. Ditto James Durbin. But can anyone really dispute Scotty McCreery ‘s worthiness? Many of this year’s eliminations were controversial, but only relative to some of the contestants who outlasted them – not to Scotty specifically. He’s got an outstanding voice perfectly suited for country, and he proved it time and again. What he lacks in flair, he makes up for with talent. Slow, smooth and steady won this race, and deservedly so. NO by Hilton Hater Scotty McCreery is a fantastic singer. If I were going purely by voice, he’d have earned my vote as American Idol champion after his first audition. But forget what the judges say: This is not purely a singing competition. There are, and there should be, other factors at work. The legitimacy of Idol itself is at stake, especially with new competition such as The Voice and The X-Factor. It really needs to crank out a successful winner, and Lauren Alaina stands a better chance at sustained success than Scotty does. For whatever reason, male victors simply don’t do well on the charts. Kris Allen? David Cook? Lee DeWyze? Can anyone name a top 10 single by any of them? As evidenced by her duet with Carrie Underwood , Alaina has a long way to go. But she’s tough. She overcame a sprained throat to compete in the finals. She clearly wants this and I have no doubt she has more potential to be the next Carrie than Scotty has to be more than a one-month wonder. THG Asks you … did Scotty deserve to win?
Was there any doubt Scotty McCreery would take on “Country Comfort” last night? As the young artist himself said, it’s Elton John’s only country single, and he’s an aspiring country singer, after all. Randy loves the performance, which includes a shout-out to Scotty’s grandmother, but a similar dilemma faces McCreery that faces Thia Megia : will he need to mix up his song choices if he hopes to go all the way? Or is natural, impressive talent all one needs, even if such talent is only ever presented within the same genre? Scotty McCreery – Country Comfort
