Posted: 24 Feb 2010 04:36 AM PST

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grand central style

Midnight Sun guest writer John-John Williams IV has this report:

Don't be surprised if Beyonce, Pink, Lil' Kim and Britney Spears have a hint of stubble and an Adam's apple when they perform in Mount Vernon tonight.

The annual Grand Central Employee Show has become a popular event among patrons at the city's largest gay bars.

For close to a decade employees have painted their faces and perfected strutting their stuff in women's shoes. (Employees are required to dress in drag and perform lip syncing performances.)

"The customers look forward to it every year," said Antoine Preston, head bartender at Grand Central who is also directing this year's show. "It is a chance for us to give back to our customers." ...

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Who Is Katie Stevens? - myfoxny.com

Posted: 24 Feb 2010 04:50 AM PST

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MYFOXNY - Only 17 teenage contenders have ever made it to the "American Idol" Top 12, and soulful 17-year-old Katie Stevens is hoping she will add to that count, most of all to cheer up her grandmother back home in Connecticut who has Alzheimer's.

According to The Hartford Courant newspaper, Stevens said: "I want to make my grandma proud. To be in the Top 24 and her see me succeeding, it's just what I want. That would just be amazing."

And based on judge Kara Dioguardi's feedback during her Hollywood group performance of Alicia Keys' song "No One," she could be the potential winner of the competition.

With one of the biggest fan followings of the Top 24 "Idol" hopefuls on Facebook and Twitter so far, the high school senior from Middlebury, Conn. is well on her way to winning over the viewers.

Also according to The Courant , the senior at Pomperaug High School will be worrying about homework at the same time she is competing to become a teen "Idol" winner.

Initially, the first music the Stevens purchased was "probably a Britney Spears CD", reports USA Today . "I was a big Britney girl".

But her musical influence expands beyond the pop princess' vocals to the likes of Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder and Adele.

According to USA Today Stevens thinks she should be the next "American Idol" because: "I'm young, I'm fresh, and I'm personable. And I think a lot of people can relate to me."

Regardless of whether the teenager makes it to the top 12 or not, she has her feet planted securely on the ground.

"Just making it to the point that I'm at," she said of what she is most proud. "If I were to be eliminated tomorrow, I'd leave happy because I've made it a lot farther than a lot of other people, and there are so many people who would love to be in my shoes."

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Lilly Scott: Nerdy girl "Idol" - Salon

Posted: 24 Feb 2010 02:34 AM PST

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I sure hope the country is ready for Lilly Scott, the offbeat nerd girl who rocked "American Idol" Tuesday night. The 20-year-old former street musician has white-blond hair, razor-cut bangs and a mesmerizingly awkward stage presence. Let's just say, she's no Carrie Underwood, and thank god for that. Guitar in hand, she wowed the judges with a jazzy, soulful rendition of the Beatles' "Fixing a Hole." She's a heady mash-up of Feist, Lilly Allen and Zooey Deschanel, and she has all the peculiar intrigue of Adam Lambert.

Isn't it about time America fell in love with an unconventional, quirky songstress? As she told USA Today, "I can revolutionize the mainstream and change it up for everybody. I think people need something else to listen to besides Miley Cyrus or Britney Spears." You can listen to a snippet of her "something else" below.

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Who Is Lilly Scott? - myfoxny.com

Posted: 24 Feb 2010 04:00 AM PST

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MYFOXNY - Bringing an indie classic rock feel to season nine of "American Idol" is platinum-haired Lilly Scott, who hails from Littleton, Colo.

The 20-year-old made no secret of the fact that she thinks people need something else to "listen to besides Miley Cyrus or Britney Spears."

Before auditioning for TV biggest show, according to her Facebook fan page, the musician had been playing in her folk rock indie band, Varlet, for years.

It was her rendition of the Ella Fitzgerald classic "Lullabye of Birdland" that really wowed the judges during the Hollywood week auditions, with Kara Dioguardi calling her style "refreshing."

Scott told the Denver Post that she has sung herself hoarse from rehearsing "a big epic note" she'll hit when America starts voting this week.

As for bringing her individual edge to the show, she said she is quite pleased: "They're letting me do what I want. I got to pick songs I wanted."

She told USA Today her main reason for wanting to be the next "American Idol": "Because I know I can revolutionize the mainstream and change it up for everybody. I think people need to hear something new. It's a new decade."

Taking vocal lessons her whole life, Scott grew up listening to The Beatles and Billie Holiday, strongly influenced by "her style, her tone and voice."

"I feel like my craft is really perfected and I know what I'm doing when I go up there," reports USA Today. "I'm proud I've stuck with the guitar and tried to master that, too. I'm happy where I am as an artist right now."

And TVFanatic.com agrees, calling her "the most impressive so far. If American Idol is all about finding a fresh voice, then the discussion starts and ends with Scott."

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