Aaron Kelly and Andrew Garcia, however, get some tough words from the judges.
By Gil Kaufman

Tim Urban
Photo: Fox

The top eight men took the stage on "American Idol" on Wednesday (March 10), a night when the front-runners staked a claim for their spots in the top 12, and the weaker members of the herd punched their tickets home. When the dust settled, Michael Lynche emerged emerged as the new one to beat with a performance so strong, it brought judge Kara DioGuardi to tears, and seeming also-ran Tim Urban possibly saved himself with his strongest performance to date.

Lee Dewyze made it clear that he intends to hang around, coming out strong with a Dave Matthews-like acoustic ramble through Owl City's "Fireflies." It wasn't always on key, but he made up for it with his infectious charm and barroom sandpaper drawl.

Randy Jackson thought it was too soft a song for Lee's voice, and a bit pitchy, but he liked how he made it his own, and Kara appreciated the confident vibe he brought to the tune. "There's nothing to rave about after that," said Simon Cowell, who didn't feel his favorite male semifinalist had "a moment" but still displayed solid progress.

As his star has steadily risen on the show, Alex Lambert nailed his song choice with Ray LaMontagne's weary ballad "Trouble," a tune that perfectly fit his dry-throated voice and sad-eyed, innocent demeanor.

"The only thing standing in the way of you winning is you right now," Kara said, praising his unique voice but counseling him to let it rip. Ellen busted out the ripening banana metaphor one more time and said Lambert is getting better and better every week, even as he maintains his innocence. Continuing with the inappropriate advice, Simon said Lambert needs to loosen up, perhaps by imagining Jackson in a bikini.

With two weeks of bad news behind him, Tim Urban went for it by tackling Leonard Cohen's iconic — and hard-to-sing — "Hallelujah." Strumming an acoustic guitar, Urban didn't try to reinvent the wheel but capably hung in there for his strongest effort to date.

Ellen, feeling bad about slagging Urban every week, ran up onstage and hugged him as a kind of apology, and Simon patted himself on the back for giving Urban back his confidence, calling it Tim's best performance to date. "You walked in some pretty big shoes, and I think you did a pretty good job, Tim," Randy said, as Kara predicted he might have sung his way back from the brink with his honest, emotional take on the song.

Needing to find his groove again, Andrew Garcia went back to the well for a cover of Christina Aguilera's breakthrough hit, "Genie in a Bottle." The Santana-like flamenco/soul take felt like another high point, with Garcia making the song his own.

Kara, though, sensed he was fighting with the melody and straining too hard to recapture his "Straight Up" glory, saying, "It just wasn't great." It was a good idea, but too pitchy and not dynamic enough for Randy, though Ellen loved the song choice and wished the genie had come out of the bottle earlier. "It was a little bit desperate," Simon said.

Casey James went with Keith Urban's "You'll Think of Me," a safe, straightforward acoustic country ballad that highlighted his soulful tone. That's exactly what Randy thought, encouraging Casey to go edgier and more rock. For Simon, it was James' second-best effort, one that made him seem sincere and sounded great, even if it was a bit forgettable. His former number-one fan, Kara said she was missing the spark, but was glad he wasn't trying to be a phony rock star anymore.

A singer seemingly on the bubble, Aaron Kelly, also chose a country tune — Lonestar's "I'm Already There" — which started out pitchy and tentative and didn't get much better as he rose from his stool and wiggled awkwardly back and forth, alternating between pure and off-key notes.

The singing wasn't great for Ellen, but she thought Aaron carried himself like a much older, more experienced singer than he is. "I love you, you come out onstage every week and you give it your all," said Kara, who then pointed out that the song is about a man calling home to talk to his kids, which just doesn't make any sense coming from a 16-year-old. Simon, however, totally disagreed, saying it was the right type of song for him and he had the right emotion, even if it wasn't a great vocal.

Todrick Hall's philosophy? If you might go home, go big. His unexpected take on Queen's "Somebody to Love" turned out to be a bold choice for the dancer, who turned the tune into a sanctified gospel showpiece.

"Todrick is back!" Randy announced, calling it one of the best male vocals he's heard in weeks. Cowell took it down a notch, dubbing the performance more fit for Broadway than an "Idol" recording artist while giving Hall props for performing and not just sitting on a stool and strumming a guitar.

Then Big Mike Lynche brought down the house. He also switched it up, singing British icon Kate Bush's classic ballad "This Woman's Work," evoking Maxwell with his silky, between-the-sheets R&B version.

The praise was unanimous. Simon said it was the best performance of all the live shows so far, Ellen declared the personal trainer the new one to beat, and DioGuardi literally burst into tears at the emotion the new dad put into the tune. All a dumbfounded Randy could say was "Really?"

Four more singers go home Thursday night as this year's top 12 is revealed.

What did you think of the men's performances? Who killed it? Who blew it? Who is definitely making it to the top 12? Let us know by leaving your comments below.

Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

• 'American Idol' Season Nine Performances
• The 'American Idol' Season 9 Top 24

Actress says Mount Kilimanjaro 'was like this mysterious, foreboding, ominous woman.'
By James Montgomery

Jessica Biel
Photo: MTV News

NEW YORK — While climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, as part of Kenna's "Summit on the Summit" mission, Jessica Biel got to know the 19,000-odd feet of rock pretty well. In fact, she's pretty sure the mountain is actually a woman.

"She was like this mysterious, foreboding, ominous woman. And she was hidden almost all day long, and just when you were unmotivated, and feeling like crap and uninspired and thinking, 'What am I doing here?' the clouds would part and she would peek out, and the beauty would strike you, and then you'd be inspired again," Biel told MTV News on the red carpet for the premiere of "Summit." "And she was literally, like, this woman who would pull this veil over her face and disappear, and then she'd show a little bit of herself, and then she'd disappear again. It was kind of this running joke, but I really felt that way. I felt like, 'I respect you. Please let me get up, please.' "

But just because Kilimanjaro was inspiring doesn't mean she also couldn't be positively dominating too. In the film — which debuts Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on MTV — Biel and her fellow climbers (a team that also featured Lupe Fiasco, Santigold, Emile Hirsch and a team of scientists, United Nations ambassadors and experienced mountain guides) were brutalized by freezing rain and snow, gashed and twisted on stones and dizzied by the rapidly thinning atmospheric conditions. But that was just the physical trauma. The real challenge, for Biel at least, was overcoming the mental aspects of scaling the peak.

"It was a combination of the mental and the psychological aspects of the mountain, of the slow-but-steady pace that you had to go up it, and that sometimes made your brain just want to explode, because you just wanted to get there so badly," she said. "And then you couldn't see anything at night, when we were doing our ascent attempt, and you start thinking that it would never end and you'd start to think, 'Why am I here? This is miserable!'

"But then you'd get this rush of inspiration of 'I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing this for something bigger than me, for people who don't have a voice, for people that need water around the world,' and then you'd power through," she continued. "Your mind started to play tricks on you. And then, with the altitude, you just felt so strange. You didn't know why you were lethargic, you didn't know why you were so tired. It was an intense experience."

And that bigger goal was to raise awareness about the global clean-water crisis, a problem much bigger than any mountain. But Biel was inspired, not just by her trip to the top of the world, but by the larger message the mission carries: that together, people can conquer even the most insurmountable of challenges.

"That's a part of all movements. One voice is something, but a group of voices can change the world. All grassroots movements started that way, and with the Internet and people following us and watching our ascent, it really feels like people were excited by what we were doing and hopefully were inspired to create challenges for themselves, whatever that may be, and for whatever cause that may be," Biel said. "To get involved with their community, or pick something around the world that they care about, that they feel they should stand up for. That was the idea behind this. Kenna wasn't going to stop, because he had this group of friends behind him, who were supporting him. And I wasn't going to stop, because I wanted to be there for Kenna, and I didn't want to take the group down. It was such a group mentality, and I don't think we could've done it without everyone being there, and 100-percent ready for the challenge."

Don't miss "Summit on the Summit: Kilimanjaro," airing Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on MTV.

• Check Out A Preview Of 'Summit on the Summit: Kilimanjaro'

Feldman also reveals the pair's plans to make two 'License to Drive' sequels on 'Larry King Live.'
By Josh Wigler

Corey Feldman on "Larry King Live" Wednesday
Photo: CNN

Actor Corey Feldman, 38, appeared Wednesday night (March 10) on CNN's "Larry King Live" to discuss the death of his best friend and colleague Corey Haim, 38. Feldman, who co-starred with Haim in movies such as "The Lost Boys," "License to Drive" and "Dream a Little Dream," said he was "in shock" over the news of Haim's passing and that he had seen the late actor as recently as "three or four days ago."

"He was fine," Feldman said when asked about Haim's appearance at the time of their last meeting. "He was actually giving me some advice about something I was very upset about. He was being very positive."

According to Feldman, reports that Haim died of a drug overdose are premature, citing other possible factors including kidney and heart failure, an inadvertent lethal mixture of prescribed drugs, or simply his body shutting down after years of drug abuse.

"Until the coroner's report comes out and until we get specific evidence and until we know exactly what the toxicology report says, nobody knows [how Haim died], and nobody is going to know," Feldman said. "We are aware of the fact that Corey Haim has a long and detailed drug history and battled addiction for many, many years. I know it better than anybody, because I've been the guy stuffing charcoal down his throat when he was [overdosing]. I've been the guy trying to make him stand up or say a complete sentence. I've been through it with him many, many times, and it's happened very badly and very intensely through the years."

While Feldman said he appreciated the outpouring of condolences from Haim's many mourning fans, he was disappointed that the late actor's support didn't reveal itself sooner.

"At the end of the day, where were all of these people the last 10 or 15 years of Corey's life?" Feldman asked. "Where were all of these people to reach a hand out to him and say, 'You're a legend. You're an amazingly talented and wonderful person.' "

Feldman said mean-spirited remarks from tabloid magazines and Web sites such as TMZ were quite troubling not just for Haim, but also for himself. In light of Haim's death, Feldman suggested that society needs "to grow up and think about every time we laugh at somebody in the tabloids, every time we poke a finger at somebody and say, 'They're a joke' or 'They're fat' or 'They're a drug addict' or 'They're washed up' or 'They're a loser,' we need to look at ourselves and say, 'Who am I?' "

Haim had filmed several movies prior to his death, Feldman said, including a celebrated role in "American Sunset." Feldman also revealed that before Haim's death, the longtime collaborators "were negotiating a deal to do [their] first movie together in nine years." Haim was apparently in the process of pitching a sequel to "License to Drive" called "License to Fly," which would have been followed up with a third installment called "License to Dive."

There are currently no funeral plans for the late actor, Feldman said, though he hopes to arrange a memorial service where members of Hollywood would pay their respects to the actor, citing "Lucas" and other films as reasons to fondly remember Haim's contributions to the industry.

"Hopefully, he's going to be remembered as a beautiful, funny, enigmatic character who brought nothing but life and light and entertainment and art to all of our lives," Feldman said.

• Remembering Corey Haim
• MTV Rough Cut: Corey Haim
• 'Lost Boys: The Tribe': Exclusive Trailer And Details

• Corey Haim: A Life In Photos

'We shook hands, did the little chest bump,' he tells MTV News of their heart-to-heart about Auto-Tune.

T-Pain
Photo: MTV News

The Jay-Z and T-Pain saga has officially been laid to rest. When Pain stood onstage with Jay over the summer at the Hot 97 Summer Jam concert, people thought Pain was in support of Hov's "D.O.A. (Death of Auto-Tune)." Jay even said he wasn't dissing Pain on the track, rather people who were trying to take away from Pain, Kanye West and Lil Wayne by saturating the market with Auto-Tune.

Last September, though, during a Las Vegas pool party, Pain grabbed the microphone and dissed Jay-Z, implying he was old and out of touch. Later that month, Pain apologized to Jay on a record called "More Careful."

Well, Pain said he and Jay finally talked face to face last month about their controversy.

"We talked at the Grammys," Pain told MTV News last week. "It was a pretty big thing. Word for word, he said, 'That's f---ed up the way you took that song.' I'm a [crazy] n---a, so we gonna take the song like that. That's how we take songs. He was like, 'I didn't mean nothing by that.' I was like, 'I already put out my apology song. So there you go. My bad. I apologize. Apologize for taking the song like that.' We shook hands, did the little chest bump. That was the end of that."

Pain is preparing to put out his next album, Revolver, later this year. It features some of his familiar hallmarks: Auto-Tune and "a lot of sex and alcohol. That's a main topic," he said.

One thing he won't have this time is a lot of guest spots. "I had to slow down on guest appearances, because a lot of people were saying that Thr33 Ringz was only as good as it was because it had a lot of people on there. I just wanted to prove some people wrong. I wanted to test myself to see if that was the case. It was so many people on the last album, it should have been a DJ Khaled album."

• T-Pain
• Jay-Z

Simon Cowell dubbed it 'the best performance we've had of all these live shows so far.'
By Gil Kaufman

Michael Lynche
Photo: Fox

Praise from the "American Idol" judges is one thing, but tears? That's when you know you've really nailed it.

And Michael Lynche definitely brought down the house Wednesday night (March 10) when he closed the top eight men's live performances with a seductive, between-the-sheets cover of one of British singer Kate Bush's most iconic tunes, "This Woman's Work," that made judge Kara DioGuardi openly weep.

Wearing a black suit coat with a red pocket square, black tie, jeans and a white dress shirt, the brawny Lynche opened with a fragile, operatic falsetto vocalization over piano that sent chills. The choice was a bold one, as Bush is a beloved figure and the song is a tricky-to-sing modern classic that has been used to dramatic effect in a number of TV shows over the years ("Felicity," "Alias," "Party of Five"). It was also famously covered by soul singer Maxwell on his 1997 MTV Unplugged album and later on his 2001 Now studio album, a version that clearly informed Lynche's take on the song.

Bush wrote it specifically for a sequence in the 1987 John Hughes film "She's Having a Baby," during which Kevin Bacon is pacing outside the delivery room where his wife is having their first child and he's fretting about the changes they're about to face and the rush of emotions he's feeling.

Making expert use of his breathy falsetto, Lynche, a new father whose firstborn arrived while he was toiling during Hollywood Week, wrenched every bit of emotion from the lyrics about life-changing events. "Ooh, it's hard on the man/ Now his part is over/ Now starts the craft of the father," he crooned in a clean, clear voice. On a night when the judges said some of the singers didn't connect with their chosen lyrics, Lynche astutely picked a song that mirrored the tumultuous adult changes he's going through in his personal life, helping to give the performance an added gravity and believability.

As he leaned into the second verse, Lynche came out from behind the mic stand and began laying a gospel edge on the song, shaking his head and shoulders, bobbing up and down and waving his hands as if giving a Sunday sermon. With a long, sustained note on the line "Oh, darling, make it go," Lynche provided the night's much-needed "wow" moment and easily punched his ticket to the top 12.

How good was it? DioGuardi was literally brought to tears. "I've never cried after hearing something like that," she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "It's amazing. You were amazing. And it's so relevant for you, and I can feel it. It's your life right now. It's your respect for your wife, what you've gone through ... and as a woman who doesn't have a child, I can relate to it so much and it brought me to tears."

All Randy Jackson could say was, "Really?" telling Mike he was going to put Maxwell on notice that he should watch his back. "For everybody that doesn't know, it was dope, it was unbelievable," he said. "I wanna call Maxwell and tell him, 'Yo, Big Mike is knockin' on the door, dog, be ready!' But the last note? ... I was like, what?"

Ellen DeGeneres said it was so good it felt like the show had just begun and Lynche was suddenly the one to beat. "This was so needed tonight," Simon Cowell said of the breath of fresh air on an otherwise-boring show. "You come out with an incredibly difficult song to sing and you 100 percent nailed it. Not just the best performance of the night, it's the best performance we've had of all these live shows so far."

What did you think of Big Mike's performance? Were you just as moved as Kara was? Let us know!

Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

• 'American Idol' Season Nine Performances
• The 'American Idol' Season 9 Top 24

It was already a good night for the guys. Lee DeWyze demonstrated how to rock the electronic pop of "Fireflies." Tim Urban proved that he did have a reason to still be here on a quality version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah." Todrick Hall even got to show off his gospel roots in an interpretation of Queen's "Somebody To Love." Then Michael Lynche took the stage starting with an impossibly high note on "This Woman's Work," a classic originated by Kate Bush and then recorded by R&B master Maxwell. Michael Lynche demonstrated his vocal virtuosity while also connecting solidly with the emotion in the song. We all knew he had strong entertainment skills. Now it's obvious he really does have the vocal chops, too.

My two choices for who might be leaving seemed like potential frontrunners just weeks ago. On a night where everyone was stepping up their game, Andrew Garcia's guitar strumming take on Christina Aguilera's "Genie In a Bottle" took on a little air of desperation. He is still looking for "Straight Up Part 2," and he may just go home this week. Casey James made an effort to turn away from his ill-fated rockstar turn last week. What resulted was that he took a comfortable, safe country song and this week looked forgettable. Aaron Kelly followed immediately with a demonstration of how to apply a big full voice to country music. So, I think it is a real possibility we might be saying goodbye this week to both Andrew Garcia and Casey James.

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_{Photo by Fox Television}

American Idol Top 8 Guys - Michael Lynche Steps Into the Spotlight originally appeared on About.com Top 40 / Pop on Thursday, March 11th, 2010 at 01:15:55.

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Do you want to know more details about the songs performed by the contestants on American Idol? Each week I'll provide information on the original recordings as well as video and purchase links for all of the songs performed during the season 9 elimination rounds of American Idol. Check out the details below on songs performed by each of the top 8 guys.

• Lee DeWyze Songs
• Andrew Garcia Songs
• Todrick Hall Songs
• Casey James Songs
• Aaron Kelly Songs
• Alex Lambert Songs
• Michael Lynche Songs
• Tim Urban Songs

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American Idol Songs Season 9 - The Top 8 Guys originally appeared on About.com Top 40 / Pop on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 22:10:16.

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When the official Billboard charts come out tomorrow morning they will show British R&B singer Taio Cruz setting a new all-time chart record. His song "Break Your Heart" leaps 52 notches on the Billboard Hot 100 chart to #1 this week. That is the biggest jump to #1 by an artist's debut single ever. Taio Cruz breaks the old record by one. Back in September 2002 Kelly Clarkson jumped 51 places into the top spot with her American Idol victory song "A Moment Like This."

The #1 placement is due in large part to a stellar sales figure of 273,000 digital downloads in the past week. Last September "Break Your Heart" debuted at #1 in the UK and stayed there for three weeks. At home in the UK Taio Cruz has seven top 40 hits including three that have made it all the way to the top 10. We could be looking at a multi-week stay at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 as radio airplay for "Break Your Heart" is just beginning to explode.

• Watch "Break Your Heart"

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_{Single cover courtesy Mercury Records}

Taio Cruz Makes Record Leap To #1 With "Break Your Heart" originally appeared on About.com Top 40 / Pop on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 18:58:15.

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So far it looks like the duo project of She & Him has been primarily a side project for actress Zooey Deschanel (500 Days of Summer) and singer-songwriter M. Ward. However, if pop songs of the quality of "In the Sun" continue to emerge from the partnership, this could become a primary gig. "In the Sun" is the first single from the duo's upcoming second album Volume Two. It was first released in late February and now a thoroughly charming video is available.

She & Him's first album Volume One was released in 2008 to strong critical acclaim. Paste magazine declared it the album of the year for 2008. Watching the video and listening to "In the Sun" you are highly likely to start daydreaming of summer. Volume Two is due in stores March 23, 2010. Check out "In the Sun" below.

Watch "In the Sun"

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She & Him, featuring Zooey Deschanel, Keep It "In the Sun" originally appeared on About.com Top 40 / Pop on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 16:51:27.

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Step aside from all of the tabloid news. It's time to remember that Jessica Simpson is also a pop singer. Her latest release is available now for free. The song "Who We Are" will be the theme for the upcoming VH1 series The Price of Beauty which debuts Monday, March 15, 2010. The show examines concepts of what beauty is and means in eight other cultures around the world.

The song is the fruit of the much publicized recent collaborations between Jessica Simpson and the Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan. Evan Bogart and Shari Short also contributed in writing "Who We Are." The song is a straightforward pop-rock power ballad that could easily find a home at top 40 radio. Jessica Simpson has seven top 40 pop singles to her credit. Get your free copy of "Who We Are" below.

Download Jessica Simpson's new "Who We Are"

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_{Single cover courtesy Columbia Records}

Jessica Simpson's New "Who We Are" Available for Free Download originally appeared on About.com Top 40 / Pop on Wednesday, March 10th, 2010 at 16:03:28.

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AP - Michael "Big Mike" Lynche made Kara DioGuardi cry and turned the rest of the "American Idol" judges giddy with a moving performance of "This Woman's Work."

Reuters - British newcomer Taio Cruz has broken a seven-year-old record by soaring to No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart in the United States.

AP - After selling more than a million tickets to her last concert tour, Carrie Underwood is aiming higher this time.

... ORG has been campaigning about that). It?s a double handed attack, because what may go down in the US could pop up here, and vice versa. They also cover CCTV and ID card and other security worries where technology is possibly going to infringe on civil liberties and privacy ? things that are more specific to the UK. Pirate Party is also getting bigger here in the UK, I?m a member there too,...

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... number one hit ?Hip Hip Hooray? which managed only to remain on the top spot for a week on the US R&B chart, and number 8 on the US Pop chart. If you missed the performance on ?The Buried Life? last night, we have the video below for your viewing pleasure. So without further or do, scroll down and press play. Source: Gather

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US pop star Lady Gaga announces three more dates on her UK tour, but some tickets nearly double in price.

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... Lewis 1983: Rise The first Album (Rhapsody in White) was L.U.O Biggest Hit, it charted in th US pop chart at number 8 & number 2 in the R&B Chart! This Album also contained L.U.O biggest selling Single "Love's Theme" it reaches number 1 in US Hot 100 & number 10 in R&B Chart. The next Blog entry in this series will actually be about Barry White 's Music! To Download the Best of Love Unlimited...

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US POP star Jason Derulo nearly lost an uncle in the Haiti earthquake ... so he wants to thank everyone for buying the Simon Cowell charity record.

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