Phillip Phillips wins 'American Idol' in 2012

Phillip Phillips was crowned the winner of American Idol's 11th season on Wednesday night, edging out runner-up Jessica Sanchez and becoming the fifth male in a row to emerge victorious on the reality singing competition.

 

Phillip Phillips, a bluesy Georgia guitar man, has been crowned the new American Idol after defeating teenager Jessica Sanchez in record viewer voting. He was the fifth male Idol winner in a row.
Phillips, 21, a pawn shop worker from Leesburg, Georgia, looked stunned after host Ryan Seacrest announced his name, then wordlessly accepted a hug from Sanchez and congratulations from his fellow finalists.
He dissolved into tears as he sang Homem, the song that may be his first single.
Phillips received the winning share of the record 132m votes cast after his final showdown with high school student Sanchez, 16, of Chula Vista, California. The vote count was not announced.
His victory extends the American Idol winning streak for men to five consecutive seasons. The last woman to win was 17-year-old Jordin Sparks in 2007.
Sparks was among the guest stars who helped fill out the two-hour finale show, among them Rihanna, Neil Diamond, Reba McEntire, Chaka Khan and John Fogarty. American Idol judges Steven Tyler, with his band Aerosmith, and Jennifer Lopez also performed.
Besides music there was a marriage proposal for the season 11 finale: former contestants Ace Young and Diana DeGarmo got engaged on stage. Young, a season five finalist, told Seacrest that he and DeGarmo had just moved in together. Then Young got down on one knee and popped the question to her.
"I love you to death. You're my best friend," Young said in his proposal.
DeGarmo, a runner-up in season three, tearfully accepted.
During the three-song showdown between Phillips and Sanchez, the show's judges praised his performance across the board. Sanchez was faulted for a lacklustre rendition of her third song, Change Nothing.
Although some critics dismissed Phillips as a Dave Matthews clone, viewers embraced him for his humility, his on-camera mugging and his memorable acoustic covers of songs such as Usher's U Got It Bad.

Chaka Khan steal 'Idol' spotlight with catsuits

Chaka Khan (born ; March 23, 1953), frequently known as the "Queen of Funk", is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus.

 While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career. Her signature hits, both with Rufus and as a solo performer, include "Tell Me Something Good", "Sweet Thing" which she wrote for her then husband Richard Holland, "Ain't Nobody", "I'm Every Woman", "I Feel for You" and "Through the Fire".

 1 Biography
        1.1 Early life: 1953–1972
        1.2 Early career and success: 1973–1978
        1.3 Early solo career and final years with Rufus: 1978–1983
        1.4 I Feel For You and Solo success: 1984–1996
        1.5 Later career and current work: 1998–present
  
 2 Personal life
   


3 Awards
        3.1 Grammy Awards
        3.2 Soul Train Awards
        3.3 United Negro College Fund Award
        3.4 American Music Award nominations
   


4 Discography
    5 See also
    6 References
    7 External links

Donald Driver wins Dancing With the Stars

There was no Super Bowl ring for Donald Driver this year but he was a champion anyway.

The Green Bay wide receiver won Dancing With the Stars last night along with partner Peta Murgatroyd. "This is awesome," he said.

  On the floor, he took off his magenta shirt to show off his tattooed, muscular torso, doing the last dance in just his bright pants. The ballroom liked it and so did the judges, of course. Said Carrie Ann: "You are determined to win and I think you are the one to beat," Len said. "All three of you are absolute winners." Carrie Ann said Driver is the best football star the show has ever had. Bruno praised his strategy on the show, saying he "peaked at the right time." Scores: 10, 10, 10 = 30 Total: 89

Writes our Ann Oldenberg at Lifeline Live:
On the floor, he took off his magenta shirt to show off his tattooed, muscular torso, doing the last dance in just his bright pants. The ballroom liked it and so did the judges, of course. Said Carrie Ann: "You are determined to win and I think you are the one to beat," Len said. "All three of you are absolute winners." Carrie Ann said Driver is the best football star the show has ever had. Bruno praised his strategy on the show, saying he "peaked at the right time." Scores: 10, 10, 10 = 30 Total: 89

"I would have to say it was a miracle," Driver said. "We did what we had to do on the floor, and we knew we had to leave it up to the judges and the fans. The fans made the decision, and the fans loved our freestyle last night. I think the freestyle put us on top, and after that, there was no looking back."

Katherine Jenkins' Dancing With The Stars performance has wooed the US

SHE’S sold millions of albums across the globe, sang to royalty and performed with the musical elite but it’s her performance of a lifetime on Dancing With The Stars that could transform the girl-next-door from Neath into a world-class superstar.

After winning runner-up position on the popular American reality show in the early hours of this morning, Katherine Jenkins now has the world at her feet and has already expressed a wish to tread the board of the Broadway stage, and with the obvious chord she’s struck with viewers, experts are certain producers will snap up the multi-talented opera-singer from small South Wales rugby-playing community

 Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas at the final of Dancing With The Stars
Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas at the final of Dancing With The Stars

SHE’S sold millions of albums across the globe, sang to royalty and performed with the musical elite but it’s her performance of a lifetime on Dancing With The Stars that could transform the girl-next-door from Neath into a world-class superstar.

After winning runner-up position on the popular American reality show in the early hours of this morning, Katherine Jenkins now has the world at her feet and has already expressed a wish to tread the board of the Broadway stage, and with the obvious chord she’s struck with viewers, experts are certain producers will snap up the multi-talented opera-singer from small South Wales rugby-playing community.

Entertainment reporter and blogger for USA Today, Ann Oldenburg said it wouldn’t be a surprise to see her performing on American soil more often.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ann said: “I think the show has introduced Katherine to America. It will be up to her to manage whatever offers come her way as a result. She has mentioned a desire to perform on Broadway and would be a perfect fit there and it wouldn’t surprise me to see her in a hit show.

“Her singing and dancing abilities make her a great candidate for any Broadway show. It also wouldn’t surprise me to see her tour the US giving concerts. And if she wants to act, she could certainly give that a try if a filmmaker were to see her as a good fit for a certain role.”

ITV’s Daybreak and Lorraine Hollywood correspondent Ross King certainly agrees; he watched Katherine dance on the show and could not believe the talent she exuded.

Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/need-to-read/2012/05/23/how-katherine-jenkins-dancing-with-the-stars-performance-has-wooed-the-us-91466-31028870/#ixzz1vh9yFu94