Digital sales roundup: "No Air" #7 (5/17/08)

In this week's digital sales roundup, an upgrade to the Top 200 of the latest edition of Billboard's Hot Digital Songs chart shows that there are plenty of Idol alums consistently selling, they just are not selling enough to get into the Top 50. Jordin Sparks once again leads all tracks with "No Air," her duet with Chris Brown, which falls to #7 with 93,462 downloads sold this week. Jordin also is represented by "Tattoo," which comes in at #73.

Carrie Underwood is the most represented Idol, as her latest single, "Last Name," speeds ahead from #91-69, and "All-American Girl" finally goes gold as it passes the 500k mark. Full numbers, courtesy of 2m from Pulse, are posted below.

07 05 Jordin Sparks, "No Air" 93,462 -10.9% 104,868 1,693,370
69 91 Carrie Underwood, "Last Name" 18,286 35.7% 13,480 95,315
72 69 C. Underwood, "All-American Girl" 16,690 -4.7% 17,518 503,848
73 60 Jordin Sparks, "Tattoo" 16,356 -12.6% 18,722 1,613,760
80 59 Daughtry, "Feels Like Tonight" 15,481 -18.5% 19,000 400,334
128 119 Carrie Underwood, "Before He Cheats" 9,523 0.0% 9,520 2,317,066
166 156 Daughtry, "Home" 8,161 -2.1% 8,334 1,472,101

Total sales in bold.

And the coronation song is...

Well, no one knows for sure, but I'm sticking by my original prediction of "Something Like Heaven," which lyrically is the least embarrassing and is malleable enough for either David to personalize and make something listenable out of it.

Even if the whole songwriters' competition was nothing more than to give FremantleMedia a quick buck and only gives writers with prior connections to TPTB a chance, it would be an extreme letdown to see the season be deflated by a lousy song choice.

There are now rumors circulating that "Here I Am" and "All You Will Need" are the coronation/runner-up songs, which are in fact a step below last season's "This Is My Now." but like most rumors, they have no credibility. But if TPTB are truly interested in offering more than the standard drab that will inhabit the adult contemporary wasteland for a few months before falling into obscurity, they will see to it that "Something Like Heaven" wins.

Listen to "Something Like Heaven" below.

'An Evening with the Idols' set for Saturday

Six Idol alums will take to the stage tomorrow night in An Evening with the Idols at the Suffern High School auditorium in Suffern, N.Y., in support of the Good Samaritan Hospital’s Chemical Dependency Unit. The former contestants include Ayla Brown (Season 5, Top 16), Asia'h Epperson (Season 7, Top 16), Kevin Covais (Season 5, 11th place), Brenna Gethers (Season 5, Top 20), Gina Glocksen (Season 6, 9th place) and Melissa McGhee (Season 5, 12th place). They will be joined by four local talent show winners, who were chosen earlier this year in an Idol-style competition.

Chris Richardson was originally slated to appear at the benefit but had to pull out due to a scheduling conflict.

Tickets range from $25-50, with a backstage pass costing an extra $20. Doors open at 6 p.m. for a 6:30 pre-show, with the show kicking off at 7 p.m.

Taylor Hicks to join the cast of 'Grease'

Taylor Hicks is the latest Idol alum to try his hand at Broadway. It was announced yesterday that the Season 5 champ will star as "Teen Angel" in the revival of the classic 1950s era musical Grease beginning June 6 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.

Taylor is not the first former finalist to the Great White Way, nor will he be the last, as Tamyra Gray (Season 1, fourth place) starred in Rent and Bombay Dreams, Clay Aiken (Season 2, runner-up) was in Spamalot, Diana DeGarmo (Season 3, runner-up) played a supporting role in Hairspray, Frenchie Davis (Season 2) starred in Rent, Fantasia (Season 3, winner) was in The Color Purple, as was LaKisha Jones (Season 6, fourth place) among others.

Taylor is also reportedly working on another album after he was released from his contract by J Records earlier this year after his self-titled album failed to sell 1 million copies, stalling at 700,000 copies.

Syesha exits on a classy note

In all seriousness, did anyone not think Syesha Mercado would get the ax last night? That said, she accepted her elimination with grace and class, and was able to sing herself out on a high note one last time with "If I Ain't Got You." She gave a simple "thank you" to her fans and looked relieved upon hearing the bad news.

The night was very anticlimactic, since the results were a mystery to no one. Ryan seemed less engaged as usual, the audience was kind of out of it, and the Top 3 all had tired, worried faces the entire night, beginning with the opening shot of the three of them standing center stage. The 56 million votes cast were basically just a formality in sending Syesha on her way.

But one thing the producers did very well was showcase the finalists' hometown visits. The montages gave a very personal look into how the three contenders are received by their fans. They all went to their past (and current in David Archuleta's case) schools, rode atop car rooftops in parades and performed for hundreds of fans that turned out for the celebration. Syesha was able to take a ride in her local FOX affiliate's chopper, while David Cook surprised his elementary school music teacher with a bouquet of flowers and a kiss and David A. sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Utah Jazz's playoff game.

One thing they all had in common was they all cried upon seeing the outpouring of support they had. David A. even apologized for his crying, followed by a nervous laugh. The Top 3 all appeared on their local FOX affiliate morning shows and select radio shows as well. And finally, all three of them received honors awarded to them by their hometowns, whether May 9, 2008 was declared "David Archuleta Day" or they simply received a plaque congratulating them on their achievements, as in David C.'s and Syesha's cases.

There were also some funny moments when a woman threw her baby at Syesha, asking for her to take a picture with her, to which she obliged but after the fact thought it was crazy. Also, David C. signed a fan's poster, and she cried.

Another portion of the show that the producers deserve credit for is the Top 3's "journey" videos. All three of them were done well and featured different songs that reflected who they were.

Ryan messed up when reading the recap of David C.'s judges' critiques, saying Chaka Kahn sang "First Time Ever I Saw Your Face." Following David's journey video, he corrected himself and said it was in fact Roberta Flack, and chalked it up to "bad research on my part."

But the highlight of the night (and possibly the highlight of the season) was when one of the smartest camera guys ever scored s two-and-a-half-second shot of Simon making the biggest WTF faces ever, including an eyeroll, during Season 3 winner Fantasia's performance of "Bore Me." Believe me, there was nothing boring about the performance. Fanny took the stage with three back-up singers dressed in Beyonce-like black dresses, while she herself was decked out in three sizes too small black pants and backless top, complete with sunset red, barely-there hair and earrings the size of pieces of toast. She lolled her way around the stage, letting out painful spasms and screeches that 33 million people mistook for singing four years ago when the crowned her the American Idol over 16-year-old Snelville, Ga., native Diana DeGarmo. Simon's reaction was classic and will go down in Idol history as one of the best facial expressions ever. Fanny's performance was both the worst and most memorable guest performance this season, and for that she truly has shown America what it means to "act ugly."

So as we look ahead to the finale next week, it will be interesting to see how David A. winning the coin toss will affect the outcome of the competition. History is on his side, as the winner has always performed second except for Season 2, when Clay Aiken went second and lost by a slight margin of merely 134,000 votes to Ruben Studdard. But this season has been very predictable up until now, so in all likelihood something is bound to surprise us.

Fanny's performance...

This could not wait until my recap tomorrow morning. Enjoy Simon's reaction to Fantasia's "performance" of "Bore Me" on the Top 3 results show.

IDOL LIVE Blog - Top 3 Results (5/14/08)

Tonight we blog during the Top 3 results show beginning at 9 p.m. ET, when the Top 2 is revealed and Fantasia performs. Links to download songs featured in tonight's blogcast will be posted at the conclusion of the show.



Carrie Underwood, "Last Name" - download on iTunes
Carrie Underwood, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" - download on iTunes
Carrie Underwood, "So Small" - download on iTunes
Carrie Underwood, "Wheel of the World" - download on iTunes
Carrie Underwood, "Wasted" - download on iTunes
Syesha Mercado, "If I Ain't Got You (Live)" - download
Syesha Mercado, "Fever (Live)" - download
Syesha Mercado, "Hit Me Up (Live)" - download

Top 3 Week Poll Results - Favorite Remaining Finalists

David Archuleta 193 (50%)
David Cook 164 (43%)
Syesha Mercado 22 (5%)

Total votes: 379