Mariah Carey is at it again — in a new interview, the former judge criticizes Nicki Minaj and the drama that surrounded the two of them last year. Also in today’s Roundup, Candice Glover has released previews of her debut album. And Kris Allen is performing brand-new songs on his tour.
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Mariah Carey on Idol, Being a Judge and Nicki Minaj
Just when we thought we could put the drama of season 12 behind us, here comes Mariah Carey to further stir the pot and make headlines. The one-time judge was interviewed by Z100 radio and further discussed her time on the show. As always, she continues to claim innocence, saying, “I was very professional on that show, that’s all I have to say, I was a complete professional.”
It didn’t take long for the DJ’s to bring up Nicki Minaj’s name, to which Mariah replied, “Who? What? I don’t even remember what that was. That was a moment in my life that I’m going to press Delete.”
When asked if she regrets joining Idol, she didn’t answer, but when asked about the $12 million paycheck, she claimed the amount was actually larger than that because, as she put it, “I wouldn’t have done it for $12 million.”
There’s a clear difference in the role of the judges on Idol versus The Voice and The X Factor. On Idol, they’re strictly judges, whereas on the other two shows they’re also mentors and coaches. Mariah must not have understood that. “I was hoping to be more of a mentor for the people there on the show, for the contestants. And I did give them input on the side — when I could.”
Also, the Grammy winner reiterated a point that season 12 was only supposed to have three judges instead of four. “I wasn’t happy there because I felt like I couldn’t be real. And I thought it was going to be a three-person panel, and that would’ve been cool.”
As we all know, Idol did go in a different direction and hired hip-hop/rap artist Nicki Minaj. “If I had known that there was another female that they planned on emphasizing, and making it about jokes and laughs and doing whatever,” she continued, “then I would have been like, ‘Okay, do that and I’ll catch you guys next time.'”
Mariah also talked in the interview about Lenny Kravitz possibly joining the show and seeking advice from Prince on if she should sign on, which you can watch below. The whole thing showcases the parts about Mariah that we disliked from Idol: the stuck-up attitude, the diva behavior and all the rest.
Preview Candice Glover’s Album Music Speaks
Season 12 might have been all about the drama at the judges’ table, but there’s no denying the talent of that year’s winner, Candice Glover. Her debut album is set to finally be released on February 18.
Ahead of the launch, Yahoo is giving fans a chance to listen to 90 seconds of each song from the album, which you can listen to below:
Songs include “Cried,” “Damn,” “In the Middle” and an acoustic rendition of “I Am Beautiful,” tracks that been either been released as singles or otherwise posted online in the past.
But taking a listen to the preview above, you’ll notice that her breakout performance from American Idol, “Lovesong,” is also on the album. She told Yahoo the story of how that came about: “[Idol] didn’t want me to sing ‘Lovesong’ at all. … Everybody was more supportive of my big voice, and so I said I didn’t want to scream at America every week, I wanted to do something sensual and about love. … They were like, ‘We think you should sing blah blah blah or this or that,’ and I was like, ‘No, I want to sing this.'”
The tune wasn’t on the approved song list, but when The Cure, whose song that is originally, found out that it was Candice who wanted to perform it, they gave their approval.
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Kris Allen Performs New Song “It’s Always You”
Season 8 winner Kris Allen has been pulling double duty lately, what with recording a new album and heading out on tour, the latter of which is a great avenue for him to try out some new material for fans, which is exactly what he did recently in Watseka, IL.
The new tune is called “It’s Always You.” He co-write it with Adam Hambrick, a friend from college.
While “It’s Always You” is a ballad and more serious, Kris still makes time to have fun on tour. He closed out his concert by performing a lighthearted and somewhat humorous song called “This is the End of the Show.” Keep in mind it’s not a track that will be on his album.
(Image courtesy of WENN)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
Jeff Dodge, a graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena.
