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Access Atlanta > American Idol Buzz > Archives > 2006 > August > 02
Wednesday, August 2, 2006
8/2: Taylor’s high school prom date
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Taylor’s high school prom date Brooke Campbell is attending the concert tonight. A friend of hers, Barb Evangelista emailed me about this:
“This Thursday the “Fur Bus” will be taking 12 ladies(ages 28 to 60 years old) to the American Idol concert. On board will be Brooke Campbell, Taylor Hicks’ high school prom date. Brooke is a third grade teacher at Rocky Mount Elementary School in Cobb County. Her mom and 11 other staff members and friends will be joining her. Brooke bought Taylor his first harmonica. She is now happily married (to Jason Campbell) and has a son Drew. As a faithful reader of the Peach Buzz, I thought this might make for a fun article for your column…”
I called Brooke and she sighed. Apparently, she isn’t comfortable talking about this because her husband Jason is sick of it, which is odd because I don’t get the impression she’s been inundated by media over this situation. (One of the faithful bloggers below mentioned that she was profiled in People magazine. Well, that’s probably it!) In an email to me, Jason said, yes, he is indeed sick of it and doesn’t want her to talk about it anymore. Whatever works for them!
Later in the day, I mentioned Brooke to Taylor and he smiled. “That’s great man. I hope her all the best. She’s a great person.”
8/2: Idol tour questions answered
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s some info about the tour appearance tomorrow.
Are the two local shows sold out?
Not quite. Soon after tickets went on sale in the spring, Ticketmaster no longer had two seats together for the Aug. 3 or Sept. 12 concerts. That equates to “sold out.� But many seats are held back by “Idol� organizers for contestants, sponsors or other reasons. If they aren’t claimed, seats are “freed up� for sale, often just days or hours before the concert. Indeed, in recent days, decent seats had opened up for today’s concert. As of Wednesday afternoon, tickets were only available on Ticketmaster at the side of the stage, meaning you’ll be close to the singers but the sound might not be so hot and you might spend lots of time seeing the back of Hicks’ graying mound of hair.
Of course, you also can always take your chances with eBay or a ticket broker, paying above face value and praying the tickets are legit.
Will Katharine McPhee be there?
Mostly likely, yes. The runner-up, citing severe bronchitis and laryngitis, skipped the first 18 dates of the concert tour. But she returned last Friday in time to visit Pres. Bush and sing during the Washington D.C. concert. She did “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree� and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.� It’s possible she might have a relapse, so Kat fans, keep your fingers crossed.
What songs will we hear?
The finalists sing plenty of tunes they did on “Idol� as well as a few curveballs, though the playlist could potentially change. On earlier dates, Taylor Hicks tackled “Takin’ It to the Streets.� Chris Daughtry growled through “Wanted Dead or Alive.� Paris Bennett, who lived briefly in Fayetteville, is certain to sashay through “Midnight Train to Georgia.� Mandisa, who resides in Nashville but has family in metro Atlanta, said she had to sing “I’m Every Woman,� a song she did on the “Idol� compilation CD. But she’ll also croon “If I Was Your Woman� in honor of her crush, second season winner Ruben Studdard.
Any chance of catching “Idol� contestants outside the concert venue?
We don’t know which hotel they’ll be staying at, but the Wild Wing Café at 3265 Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road in Suwanee is holding an “American Idol� after party with Taylor Hicks’ pre-“Idol� band, the Little Memphis Blues Orchestra. John Jones, the director of operations, said the concert is free and for all ages. The band will start at 10 a.m. and play until 1:30 a.m.
Jones said he can’t guarantee if Hicks will show up but he heard Hicks did play for 90 minutes at a bar in Charlotte after Tuesday night’s “Idols Liveâ€? concert. A great first person account is at mj’s blog. Just in case, Jones said Wild Wing will pull most of the tables so they can handle up to 800 people and he’s using two uniformed officers and eight security guys, up from two on a typical Thursday night.
Will there be any dreaded group sings?
Unfortunately, yes. But they come at the end of the concert and don’t take up too much time. At least when they sing James Brown’s “Living in America,� Atlanta will get namechecked.
How loud will it get?
Very! It’s a rock concert, so bring earplugs to save your hearing.
