American Idol Gets Religion

I’d be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the finale of American Idol Gives Back special last night. After performances or appearances by the likes of Robin Williams, Bono, Brad Pitt, Miley Cyrus (my personal favorite), Mariah Carey, Fergie, Chris Daughtry, Annie Lennox, and Snoop Dogg, the remaining contestants dawned some pure white outfits and belted out a great rendition of Shout to the Lord.

The problem is you can’t please everybody. There are Christians jumping for joy in the streets. There are Christians calling American Idol the devil for changing the word Jesus to Shepherd. There are non-religious folks who are up in arms that they did the song period.

What’s your take?

(Other conversations going on here, here, and here.)

**UPDATE**
I’m sure you’ve heard by now, but they opened with the same song last night—only this time with the original version of the lyrics.

New question posed by SWEJ in the comments: Would you be offended had they sung “My Mohammed” instead?

Filed under: American Idol, Charity, Christianity, Giving, Music

I Am Your Brother

Seriously. How can you not like this show?

Filed under: American Idol, Entertainment, Music, Renaldo Lapuz, YouTube

Big Tuesday

1. Macworld happens today. All of the mac lovers out there are geeked up like it’s Christmas all over again. I tend to be on the mildly interested side, due to the fact that I never buy any of this new stuff. But it is fun to see all of the innovation they bring.

2. Michigan votes today. However, democratic leaders voted to strip Michigan of all its delegates to the national convention as punishment for scheduling an early presidential primary in violation of party rules. Some interesting things may happen as a result.

3. American Idol starts tonight. Featuring our own Robbie Seay Bands, Rise, as the theme song! Just for fun, here is a list of my Top Five American Idol Performances of All Time.

Shout to the Heart – Blake Lewis
(Dude is my hero. Best performance on AI ever)

Love is a Battlefiled – Carrie Underwood
(Threw me for a loop with a very un-country performance)

Hemorrhage – Chris Daughtry
(Better than Fuel? IMHO)

I Believe – Fantasia Barrino
(If this doesn’t bring you to tears…)

A Moment Like This – Kelly Clarkson
(First AI performance I ever saw. Very raw and emotional)

Filed under: American Idol, Apple, Democrat, Macworld, Politics, Republican, Robbie Seay Band, Voting

News + Notes

Mute Math Makes Their Second Video [link]

Fake Political Ads [link1, link2]

Robbie Seay Band Featured on American Idol Commercials [link]

Bloggers for Compassion [link]

If 24 Started This Month [link]

Filed under: 24, American Idol, Blogging, Compassion International, Music, Mute Math, Politics, Robbie Seay Band

A Different World

I’m doing a little side work tonight that involves a country song. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned my tendency to steer clear of the cowboy tunes, but it’s something I do quite often. I don’t hate it. It doesn’t make my stomach turn. It’s just not my preference.

I do have a few anomalies however. Not only have I worn out Billy Ray Cyrus’ Some Gave All album, I even attended a concert back in the 90′s. And Garth Brooks’ Greatest Hits album is just good fun. But overall, the big belt buckle music just doesn’t get me excited.

I say all that to say this. As I mentioned earlier I had to work with a country song tonight, and it wasn’t bad. I kinda liked it. Actually, I liked it so much I’m going to dedicate a post to the song soon.

That got me thinking about another country song I heard recently. It happens to touch on a subject I was discussing with a coworker on Monday. So I downloaded it and have attached it for you to enjoy and discuss.

Get your cowboy on!

A Different World — Bucky Covington

Filed under: American Idol, Billy Ray Cyrus, Bucky Covington, Country, Cowboys, Garth Brooks, Helmets, Music

Planes, Mute Math, & American Idol

I couldn’t be more stoked over my trip to Dallas. For starters, it’s Dallas. Secondly I’m heading to see my boy Brandon. Thirdly, we have some serious plans in store…

Thursday — Arrive at 9:30pm, head straight to a sports bar to watch Game 6 of the Dallas/Golden State series.

Friday — Bike riding, and train riding, around town are on the agenda. Museums and Brandons work will be visited. For the evening we’re going to catch a Mute Math concert.

Saturday — Cinco de Mayo. I’ve heard you can have a good time in Dallas around Cinco De Mayo. We will also be doing everything in our power to get into Game 7, should the Mavs make it out of Golden State.

Sunday — Check out Brandon’s church, have a nice meal and chill, then fly back, hopefully finishing up one of the books in my sidebar.

I don’t imagine much posting during this time. There will be a new Mud & Steel up tonight or tomorrow. We’re filming today since we’re both off tomorrow. (And I’ll be out of state).

For my parting thoughts, I thought it would be cool to give my Top Five American Idol Performances of All Time. Inspired by the most recent performance by Blake Lewis.

1. Shout to the Heart – Blake Lewis
(Dude is my hero. Best performance on AI ever)

2. Love is a Battlefiled – Carrie Underwood
(Threw me for a loop with a very un-country performance)

3. Hemorrhage – Chris Daughtry
(Better than Fuel? IMHO)

4. I Believe – Fantasia Barrino
(If this doesn’t bring you to tears…)

5. A Moment Like This – Kelly Clarkson
(First AI performance I ever saw. Very raw and emotional)

Filed under: American Idol, Blake Lewis, Carrie Underwood, Chris Daughtry, Dallas, Fantasia Barrino, Kelly Clarkson, Mute Math, Vacation, YouTube

Hodge-Podge

» Are humans hard-wired for faith? — Sounds a lot like a book I’ve read.

» Obama the Christ? — Artists. Gotta love em.

» Lord I Love You — It’s Catchy.

» Half Past Forever — What that American Idol guy did before meeting Simon Cowell.

» Let The Bodies Hit The Floor — Benny Hinn doing his thing.

Filed under: American Idol, Art, Humor, Life, YouTube

American Idol

I admit it, I watched American Idol. I never got so into it where I would re-arrange my schedule or tape an episode or vote for a contestant (unlike someone’s mom whom I will not mention here), but I did watch it. And enjoyed it. It’s actually a good wholesome family show. They could have trashed it out and made it more like an MTV video in how they promoted it, but they didn’t. I also enjoyed watching the different entertainers come in and work with the contestants. Like who knew Kenny Rogers was addicted to plastic surgery before that?

I’m also not sure why Ryan Seacrest gets so much bad hype. I really like that guy. He sincerely cares for the contestants and brings a good vibe to the show. And the fact that he doesn’t put up with Paula or Simon makes him all the better.

The last thing I’d like to touch on is the fact that the last pairing drew in more than 63 million votes, which is more than any presidential election. At first this made me sad about the priorities of Americans, but then I thought, “what if it was as easy as dialing an 888 number to vote?” I bet we would double the number of voters the first year. Not to mention having Seacrest hosting a weekly show on the nominees, having them answer questions by three judges who would judge them on their responses, narrowing them down to a final two pairing in which America could call in or text message their vote.

Man, did I just fall into a perfect way to pick a new president? Who should I call about this idea? Does this warrant a patent? Give me the number to Simon Cowell stat!!

Filed under: American Idol, Nonsense Ramblings, Presidential Elections

Making The Most

I have to give extreme props to Mandisa for taking advantage of her opportunity to use one of the biggest stages in the world (second only to the Superbowl) to profess her faith. There are over 40 million viewers watching American Idol on Tuesday nights. It was so cool. I have to admit that I wasn’t blown away by her rendition, but I know somebody who wasn’t interested at all in her pitch last night!

Here was her song choice. If I ever find audio or video I’ll post that too.

Song: Shackles (Praise You)
Artist: Mary Mary

Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance
I just wanna praise you
I just wanna praise you
You broke the chains now I can lift my hands
And I’m gonna praise you
I’m gonna praise you

In the corners of my mind
I just can’t seem to find a reason to believe
That I can break free
Cause you see I have been bound for so long
Felt like all hope is gone
But as I lift my hands, I understand
That I should praise you through my circumstance

Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance
I just wanna praise you
I just wanna praise you
You broke the chains now I can lift my hands
And I’m gonna praise you
I’m gonna praise you

Everything that could go wrong
All went wrong at one time
So much pressure fell on me
I thought I was gonna lose my mind
But I know you wanna see
If I will hold on through these trials
But I need you to lift this load
Cause I can’t take it no more

Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance
I just wanna praise you
I just wanna praise you
You broke the chains now I can lift my hands
And I’m gonna praise you
I’m gonna praise you

Been through the fire and the rain
Bound in every kind of way
But God has broken every chain
So let me go right now

Take the shackles off my feet so I can dance
I just wanna praise you
I just wanna praise you
You broke the chains now I can lift my hands
And I’m gonna praise you
I’m gonna praise you

Filed under: American Idol, Lyrics, Testify