American Idol: Downside of democracy

I cannot believe Katelyn Epperly made it through another week after turning the Beatles' "OMG! Darling" in to a textbook example of soulless while dressed like a Glamour Shots dropout.

They was easily the lamest, most embarrassing performer of the week, as opposed to the girls who did get voted off the show - Janell Wheeler and Ashley Rodriguez. At least my top three female singers got another chance.

I'd have put them both through, which is not the same as saying I was blown away by what they did this week, because I wasn't. But at least they didn't make me wish I'd died before the show, like Epperly.

As for the boys, there is no way that Tim Urban kid is better than the first guy voted off the show, Joe Muñoz. Does it come down to hair when guys sing? I mean, Urban definitely has the better, more "relevant" hairstyle. But Muñoz can actually sing.

At least they got it right on Tyler Grady, who did his best to be Jim Morrison but came across more like that Bobby Wheeler guy on "Taxi."

In closing, has that fool who played piano for Kris Allen's "Let it Be" ever seen a piano before? Or is the problem that he is seldom heard the Beatles version of the song? I know those guys were doing it for Haiti, but I'd donate 50 bucks if they could promise me that Allen's mate would seldom, ever play a Beatles song again.

Whitney's Fans Walk Out of Concert

According to perezhilton.com, Whitney only sang two songs before they exited the stage to take a break. They appeared out of breath, coughed through songs and when they returned to sing through four more numbers, they handed the microphone over to her father Gary to sing.

After her a concert in Australia on Monday, fans walked out of Whitney Houston’s concert early declaring it a disappointment.

“She was not fit to perform. They appeared to be on another planet, and the concert was laughable. When the back up singer’s performance is the stand out for the night you know something is wrong,” said a concert goer.

Sade repeats at No. 1 on album chart

It was a close match, but in the finish Sade took the No. 1 spot again, selling 190,000 copies of their Soldier of Love, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Lady Antebellum was behind with 144,000 units moved of their Need You Now, for No. 2 — which puts them over the million-sold mark in a mere month’s time. Both Sade and Lady Antebellum have now shown they can go on drawing six-figure numbers for over four sales frame. Keep an eye on the charts in the weeks to come to see which act ultimately has more staying power.

Last week didn’t see plenty of big-selling new releases arrive in stores, so the battle to win the latest Billboard 200 album sales chart came down to four familiar contenders: Sade, who debuted the previous week with a spectacular 502,000 copies sold, and Lady Antebellum, who have continued to post strong sales since bowing with 481,000 in January.

Otherwise, as noted, this was a static week on the charts. The Black Eyed Peas‘ The E.N.D. made a little but notable leap from No. 8 to No. 3 after they released a buzzy music video, helping them sell 65,000.

Jennifer Lopez splits from longtime record label Sony; future of JLo's new album in doubt

JLo & Sony Music's Epic Records, where she is spent the bulk of her recording career, have parted ways, according to DeadlineHollywood.com. But Jennifer Lopez is no longer making music for Sony. She'll always be Jenny from the Block.

There's conflicting reports about how the ties were severed, according to the site's editor, Nikki Finke. The disagreeable version is that JLo was dropped by Sony.

The lovely version is that the contract was up & since Lopez fulfilled her obligation with her last four singles, it wasn't renewed. A mutual decision was made not to go ahead with an album.

Whichever version of events is true, a query mark surrounds the future of Lopez's seventh studio album, "Love?", which in the context is an ironic title if ever there was one.

Some Net reports say that "Love?" — which featured a pre-release dance hit "Fresh Out the Oven" as well as a pre-release dance dud "Louboutins" — was done & set to come out in April.

Other reports suggest that JLo has lost her edge, citing the failure of both "Louboutins" & her performance at the American Music Awards to generate heat.

But Lopez's camp told Finke that "Love?" was still a work in progress & "by no means done" & that record release dates tend to be flexible.

Execs "aren't sure who her audience is anymore," a source told Finke. "Where four times he had tiny girls, she is been supplanted by Beyonce, Gaga, & Rihanna." Lopez's manager, Benny Medina, confirmed the divorce between star & studio.

"Jennifer had a wonderful relationship with the Sony Music group," they noted, "and they have shared plenty of successes together, but the time was right to make a alter that best serves the direction her career as an actress & recording artist."

One rumored direction when it comes to her recording career is Island Def Jam, where she is reportedly been in talks.

In the meantime, JLo still has a movie career. Her new rom-com "The Back-Up Plan" is set to come out on April 23rd, when it will go up against "Wall Street 2" & "MacGruber."

All this tumult will give the writers at "Saturday Night Live" plenty of grist for material. Lopez is slated to host the show next weekend.

Lady Gaga leads Grammys’ fashion parade

Lady Gaga has become fashion's favorite chameleon & they didn't disappoint with this shiny, silvery, three-dimensional number that was created in collaboration with Giorgio Armani. They then opened the show in a green fairy-wing bodysuit — with matching green sparkle booties, of work.

All eyes on the red carpet at Sunday's Grammy Awards went straight to Lady Gaga & her solar-system gown that was out of this world.

"I am honored to be wearing Armani this evening. The series of pieces Mr. Armani created for me are truly iconic; they represent not only stunning fashion, but my spirit & essence as an artist," they said in a statement. And now new way is coming, lady gaga's new hits song after Bad romance.

Sade’s Comeback Succeeds With Quiet Application of Old-School Approach

Last week Sade, the Nigerian-born singer whose song “Smooth Operator” has been a radio staple for a quarter-century, released “Soldier of Love” (Epic), her first album in 10 years, and it zoomed past all competition. It reached No. 1 with a remarkable 502,000 sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan, a better debut week than Jay-Z, U2 and Britney Spears had for their latest albums.

“Soldier of Love” has received strong reviews. But the album’s success also points to the consumer power and loyalty of older listeners, who helped make Susan Boyle’s album “I Dreamed a Dream” (Syco Music/Columbia) the second-best selling album of 2009. No. 1 was “Fearless” Taylor Swift (Massive Machine). He is not the only R&B artist to have come back recently from a long absence with a splash, however. Last year Maxwell, gone for four years, came back at No. 1 with “BLACKsummers’night,” as did Whitney Houston, whose “I Look to You” was her first since 2002.

“Soldier of Love,” Sade’s first No. 1 album in 24 years, runs contrary to prevailing sales trends. Her previous album, “Lovers Rock,” sold 370,000 copies in its first week in 2000. Since then overall album sales have dropped by over 50 percent, and most artists have gotten used to the pattern of gradual sales erosion; Sade’s sales — at least for this first week — have increased significantly.

Also on this week’s chart Lady Antebellum’s “Need You Now” (Capitol Nashville) falls to No. 2 with 208,000, and Lil Wayne’s “Rebirth” (Money Money/Universal) drops one spots to No. 4 with 89,000 sales. Several new albums charted high: Jaheim’s “Another Round” (Atlantic) opened at No. 3 with 112,000, Josh Turner’s “Haywire” (Mercury Nashville) is No. 5 with 85,000, and “Tonight” (ForeFront) by the Christian rapper TobyMac is No. 6 with 79,000.