Let’s continue with our face off of American Idol finalists, shall we? With the final 13 named last week and all contestants performing live for your vote on Wednesday, we’ve been pairing off men and women against each other in order to determine the season 11 favorites. Deandre Brackensick, for example, is currently a more popular finalist than Joshua Ledet, according to THG readers. Now we’re back to the fairer gender, specifically two contrasting crooners: Shannon Magrane and Skylar Laine. The former was compared to Lauryn Hill during her semifinal rendition, while the latter rocked out to some country . Which will advance father? Vote now:
Thanks to Kanye West, Maison Martin Margiela is more familiar to Hip-Hop heads that don’t necessarily keep tabs on what’s poppin’ on the runways. But the couture fashion house makes more than just the jackets Yeezy shouted out on “Ni**as In Paris” (see Jay-Z on “Run This Town” for another reference). But Hov and Ye can afford the Belgian designer’s gear, which is on the pricey side; like this season’s $795 Mason Martin Margiela high top sneakers… Continue
Oh, how we miss Simon Cowell. He would have torn into Eben Franckewitz last night. Not that we want to see a 15-year old cry on stage, but let’s be honest: this Justin Bieber lookalike is not ready for primetime, and certainly not ready to try his voice on an Adele single. But that’s exactly what Eben attempted, covering “Set Fire to Rain” and simply failing to hit any of the proper notes, while looking overwhelmed on such a grand stage. No, Randy Jackson, Franckewitz did not “collect himself like a pro,” which is understandable: he’s not a pro. He’s only 15. And he may have a bright future in the business, but he doesn’t on season 11 of American Idol . Eben Franckewitz – “Set Fire to Rain”
Jenelle Evans, Leah Messer, Kailyn Lowry and Chelsea Houska reunited last night in part two of the MTV reality show’s time-honored “checkup” with Dr. Drew Pinsky. Last week, in part one of the reunion , Kailyn and Jenelle were in the hot seat. This time it was Leah and Chelsea on the receiving end of Dr. D’s burning questions. What did we find out? Not a lot, but here’s our recap! Minus 20 right off the bat because so much has changed in the girls’ lives since this show was taped last summer that this feels like watching some other season. The real reasons for the end of Leah and Corey’s marriage: Lack of intimacy. Infidelity. The constant battle with their girls’ health problems. Beef hot dogs. Plus 30 . Seriously. This came up. You knew Corey had checked out of the marriage when he came home with beef hot dogs, not “pork and chicken.” The horror. Minus 5 . Speaking of pork(ing), Leah cheated with her ex-boyfriend a week before her wedding to Corey, AND at her Bachelorette party with the same dude! Minus 40 . Drew finally persuaded Corey to go to therapy with Leah, and they made such AMAZING progress … not! She’s engaged to some other guy! Timing fail. Minus 10 . Speaking of which, be advised, Jeremy Calvert. Just be advised. Minus 5 . Dr. Drew is crushing hardcore on Adam Lind for some reason. Plus 15 . “He’s actually changed,” Pinsky said of the abusive a-hole texter who once referred to Aubree as a “mistake.” Really? Have you watched Season 2? Minus 20 . Drew encourages them to profess their love on TV. Uhhh, Minus 5 . This is even more pointless because Chelsea is now reportedly involved in a made for MTV romance with a Caged MMA fighter, but Plus 25 since he’s not Adam. Did Chelsea get her GED? Will she and Adam continue this unhealthy pattern and end up in bed again? Who knows! Bring on Teen Mom 2 Season 3! Plus 5 . EPISODE TOTAL: -25! SEASON TOTAL: +33!
After emotional hometown dates , The Bachelor jetted off to Switzerland for the penultimate episode of the season (the Women Tell All special is next week). Nicki Sterling, Lindzi Cox and Courtney Robertson vied for the final two roses doled out by Ben Flajnik … as did another familiar face in a non-shocking return. Could Kacie Boguskie cajole her way back into the mix? Clearly contrived time-filling plot twists aside, Courtney preemptively shifted into damage control mode and Lindzi made her case as the season’s dark horse. Yes, we went with a horse joke there. Again. Too easy. Who made the final two heading into the March 12 finale? Were The Bachelor spoilers right, or did Ben pull a surprise? Here’s THG’s +/-
Sneakerheads don’t play when it comes to snatching up the latest Foamposites ! My Fox Orlando reported a riot popped off at a mall in Orlando, Florida once eager buyers saw the Nike truck pull into the parking lot, at which point all hell broke loose. Police showed up in riot gear at 9:45 pm to calm the crowd. People began fleeing the scene once the police showed up. Though nobody was hurt, two were arrested for trespassing. The two arrested got flippant with police because they didn’t want to lose their spot in line for the Nike kicks. What do you think of a riot happening because of sneakers? In related news, a mall in Maryland has canceled the release of the Galaxy Foamposites sneakers. Read more at HipHopWired . RELATED: Woman Burns Boyfriend’s Concords Because He Cheated! Tyga Addresses San Diego Incident! Doing Free Show For Fans! [VIDEO] Riot Breaks Out Over Webbie No-Show; Two Officers Injured In Melee
I don’t really care for this season of Basketball Wives, but it’s not stopping their great ratings.Vh1 is thrilled to report that the season premiere of Basketball Wives pulled in nearly four million viewers{3.7 million}, a record high for the series. That’s up 42% from the season premiere, which is a huge leap. But then again, this show and especially this season, has reached epic proportions. Check out the press release below for more information about this record-breaking premiere: 3.7 Million Total Viewers Tune In To Season Opener VH1 Ranks As the #1 Cable Network Among Women 18-49 In Primetime on Monday Night; #3 Network Among Adults 18-49NEW YORK, February 22, 2012 – VH1′s new season opener of “Basketball Wives” set in Miami tied as the highest rated episode yet of the “Basketball Wives” franchise, averaging a 1.7 in the key adult 18-49 demo. The 8PM* episode was seen by 2.5 million total viewers. When combined with its 9:30 PM* encore, the premiere episode attracted 3.7 million total viewers. This season’s premiere was up +42% from the prior season opener of “Basketball Wives.” In social media, “Basketball Wives” generated 17 trending topics on Twitter a half hour before the show started and secured the number one spot throughout the premiere. VH1 hit series “T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle” continued its winning ways on Monday night, averaging a 1.6 in the 18-49 demo in its 9 PM time slot .
‘We just wanted to make sure that they had … resources to tell that story properly,’ Trevor Project interim CEO tells MTV News. By John Mitchell Daniel Roebuck and Max Adler in the “On My Way” episode of “Glee” Photo: FOX Tuesday night’s winter finale of “Glee” tackled the difficult topic of teen bullying and suicide. David Karofsky (Max Adler) — who bullied Kurt (Chris Colfer) because of his sexuality only to be revealed later as gay himself — tried to kill himself after teammates at his new school discovered the football player was gay and viciously harassed him verbally and online. Karofsky’s attempt was unsuccessful but it brought the subject to the forefront for all of the characters. And while the show’s decision to take on the topic was bold, the portrayal has inspired a mixed reaction. Among the viewers who felt the topic was handled deftly and with great care is David McFarland, the interim executive director and CEO of the Trevor Project , a national organization that provides crisis and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. The group aired a much-discussed PSA featuring “Harry Potter” star Daniel Radcliffe during the episode. “It’s clear after last night’s episode that Ryan Murphy and his team did an excellent job of doing their research to tell a tough story and we were very proud to be involved and have the opportunity to air Trevor’s PSA with Daniel Radcliffe,” McFarland told MTV News on Wednesday (February 22). Others, however, complained that the episode had too many additional story lines — a teen wedding, the Regionals’ singing competition and a major incident for one of the principal characters that we won’t spoil here — which ultimately served to oversimplify and trivialize an important topic. MTV News’ own “Glee” re-capper, Kevin Sullivan, took particular offense to a comment made by Mr. Schuester, who revealed that his own suicide attempt was prompted by being caught cheating on a math test. “Suicide has so many aspects to consider that it cannot be glossed over in the same hour that features a regional show choir competition and a fictional wedding,” Sullivan said. McFarland disagreed, however, saying he thought the episode was an example of responsible storytelling. “[The Trevor Project wasn’t] told in advance … what the episode was going to be, we weren’t on-set advisors to the episode,” McFarland added. “We’ve been involved to the extent that if they were going to tell the story about suicide, we just wanted to make sure that they had access to resources to tell that story properly.” What seemed to be sloppy product placement also raised some eyebrows given the subject matter. After a member of McKinley’s Christian student club (a.k.a. the “God Squad”) mentions that they’re sending Karofsky an Edible Arrangement, we later spot the fruit bouquet when Kurt visits the hospital. And when Warbler Sebastian announces that his team will be taking donations for Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation at Regionals, some couldn’t help but cringe. While the Born This Way Foundation’s anti-bullying mission aligns well with the episode’s message, some fans questioned the wisdom of plugging the yet-to-launch organization of a major pop star when other, less-visible organizations have demonstrated their work on the matter. Still, McFarland thinks the show did a great service by putting the topic of LGBT teen suicide on a large national platform; he’s happy the subject is getting the national attention it deserves. “It’s being discussed on many platforms and levels throughout this country, including on the radar screen of the president and first lady of the United States,” McFarland said. “And a story like this reinforces the important attention that this country needs to give to what is truly a health crisis in America. “We really need to provide safe spaces and environments for our youth and that episode told that story beautifully,” he continued. “More of these stories need to be told, more work needs to be done. Overall, we need to do a much better job for our young people in providing safe environments and they need to feel socially, emotionally and physically safe and supported at home, in their communities and their schools.” Share your thoughts on Tuesday’s episode of “Glee” in the comments below.
Heejun Han was among the contestants who will move on to the live episodes; 10 more will be announced Thursday. By Adam Graham Reed Grimm celebrates on “American Idol” Photo: Fox Rest easy, America. Heejun Han made it through. Han, the biggest personality to emerge on “American Idol” so far this season, was revealed on Wednesday’s (February 22) episode as one of the 24 seminfinalists who will make it through to the live episodes, which begin next week. From a final pool of 42, 14 semifinalists were unveiled during Wednesday’s episode; the final 10 will be made public during Thursday’s one-hour episode. Joining Han — producers cued “Hey Jude,” which almost sounds like “Heejun,” when he made it through — on the guys’ side are the incredibly named Phillip Phillips; tiny soul man Creighton Fraker; former family band singer Reed Grimm; gospel-voiced Joshua Ledet; and the mohawk-mulleted Colton Dixon. Representing for the ladies are Erika Van Pelt, Jen Hirsh, Haley Johnsen, Elise Testone, Chelsea Sorrell, Baylie Brown, Jessica Sanchez and Brielle Von Hugel. This being “American Idol,” however, a simple “you made it!” is never quite dramatic enough. Instead, the judges have to drag out their decisions, cruelly suggesting the contestants have been cut and telling them everything short of, “You’ll never sing in this town again, baby,” before waiting a beat and then adding, “because this town’s no longer big enough for you, because you made it through!” Consider Randy Jackson’s speech on Wednesday to Ledet. “You know what, sometimes in life, you know, you do these shows and you do these things, and sometimes the better singers don’t quite make it, because everything doesn’t quite line up,” Jackson told him. “You know, it’s heartbreaking for us, you know what I mean? It’s like, that’s why this day is so hard, because we have to say ‘bye’ to so many people that we love that are so talented, that everything just didn’t line up. And this season’s definitely tough, you know; we’re trying to find the exact right 24. So for you man, you made it bro.” Ledet reacted to the news by singing, “Thank you, Jesus.” Likewise, when Jennifer Lopez told Van Pelt the news that she’d made it through, she framed it by telling her — deep breath — “You know, watching everybody over the past few days, we were just saying some people just blew us away, but we had a lot of people who didn’t do as amazing as we thought they were gonna do, and unfortunately you were one of those people. Because we had our eye on you so much from the beginning, because of that voice that comes out of that body, you know? And we’re all such fans, and so yesterday was difficult, ’cause we have to decide who we’re gonna take a chance on and who we’re gonna say, ‘Maybe next time.’ ” Then she told dropped the hammer: “We’re gonna take one more chance on you, Erika.” Well, at least it’s more dramatic than just texting the singers, “congrats, u made it!” “Idol” also got rid of a few familiar faces during Wednesday’s episode, and this year’s resident cowboy contestant Richie Law was one of the singers shown the door. Others who were cut included St. Louis standout Lauren Gray and an assortment of contestants who haven’t received much camera time, including Blaire Sieber, Naomi Gillies, Neco Starr, Clayton Farhat, River St. James and Caleb Johnson. Most of them seemed to be delivered the news in a less-harsh manner than the ones who made it to the next round. Thursday’s episode is set to showcase the rest of this year’s semifinalists, as well as reveal the fate of Adam Brock, the family man whose destiny hung in the balance during Wednesday’s cliffhanger ending. What did you think of Wednesday’s “Idol,” and are you ready to vote for Heejun already? Let us know in the comments!
She can’t exactly carry a tune, and she’s never been known for her quick wit or intelligence… but her songs are sure catchy. And is there any doubt she’s rake in the ratings? According to Us Weekly , Britney Spears has reached out to Simon Cowell and The X Factor producers in order to campaign for spot on the season two judging table. If Britney’s name is really in the mix, it would be included with other famous ones such as Beyonce, Pink, Fergie, and perhaps the most likely candidate, Janet Jackson . Do you think Spears would make a good X Factor judge?
