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Access Atlanta > American Idol Buzz > Archives > 2008 > October > 26
Sunday, October 26, 2008
10/27: Michael Johns at Atlanta Motor Speedway NASCAR race
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“American Idol” finalist Michael Johns, formerly of Buckhead, flew into town for a gig in front of 80,000-plus NASCAR fans Sunday to do a pre-race concert and the National Anthem.
He sang three cover songs. He said there’s no reason to introduce anything new in this environment. He chose Free’s “All Right Now,” Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama,” and Pearl Jam’s “Alive.” (When he performed at C.J.’s Landing earlier this decade in Buckhead, he loved channeling Eddie Vedder.)
Here’s video I took of him singing “Sweet Home Alabama”:
I left the media center a bit late and didn’t make it to stage in time for his National Anthem. I heard it from the infield, not too clearly. He joked before hand that he hoped to get the song right and remember the lyrics because he didn’t want to be remembered like Roseanne Barr. “Hopefully, I don’t suck,” he said. It sounded like he did just fine. He said he’s done the song for the Braves, the Falcons and most recently, the Cubs.
After his pre-concert, he sat down with me a short interview. He apologized for looking a bit out of it. He said he suffered food poisoning Friday from a fast-food eatery well known for its chicken and wasn’t quite 100%. The gas fumes from the stage at the starting line didn’t help matters. As a result, he wasn’t nearly as gabby as he normally is. When I asked him about this 30th birthday party for instance, he merely said it was “awesome.” A few friends from Atlanta Blaine Terry and Jason Ingram flew in.
Since the end of the “Idol” concert tour in September, Johns has been doing virtually non-stop gigs, including corporate gigs (paycheck!) and charity events. He said he just did a promotion for a new Toyota car launch in Vegas with Santana, Sheryl Crow and Blue Man Group.
When I saw him in August, he said he was planning to work with Andrew Farriss of INXS but he said their schedules didn’t match up. He said he readily admitted though he loves his home country, he prefers to live in the States. “Idol” aired on a secondary cable channel, he said, but still drew a million people a week. So many folks there knew him. (Too bad he couldn’t get votes from them, too!)
Johns gave props to www.michaeljohnsonline for keeping track of him. He said he’s deeply flattered. “I had an interview with Star 94 and within an hour, it was up on the site!” he said. MJ has a summary of those interviews here.
His favorite Mavid dances from the tour: the Titanic “I’m the king of the world” moment and the “Singin’ in the Rain” umbrella homage.
He said he wanted to release a single next month but has run out of time. “I didn’t want to just put something out for the sake of putting it out,” he said. He’s still targeting a release of his indie album early next year, which he’ll have total control. He said he’s had too many bad experiences with big record labels to deal with that, even if it means potentially fewer albums sold
When I mentioned David Archuleta is coming to Q100 Monday, he gave out that Archie is ticklish and they should pretend to do so. “He’s really jumpy!” Johns said.
He also mentioned he’s going to do four dates in the Phillipines. “Apparently, I’m big there!” he said. (Just like Jasmine Trias!)
A couple of producers he’s working with besides Diane Warren: David Cobb, an up and coming Atlanta producer and John Shanks. Shanks has worked with Bon Jovi (“Have a Nice Day”), Sheryl Crow (“Wildflower”), Bo Bice (“The Real Thing”), Jessica Simpson (“Do You Know”) and Kelly Clarkson (“Breakaway”). He’s also planning to work with folks affiliated with Gnarls Barkley and has been invited to sing for the Winter X Games. He’s working on the soundtrack to a documentary on snowboarder Shawn White to be aired on ESPN.
He didn’t plan to stay long at the race. “I need to get some sleep,” he said. And instead of a hotel, he stayed at his friend Blaine’s pad.
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10/26: Jennifer Hudson offers $100K reward for missing nephew
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Before I get to the Michael Johns appearance at the NASCAR race today, I do need to get this tragic story out:
Jennifer Hudson is offering a $100,000 reward for her missing 7-year-old nephew after her brother and mom were killed Friday. This from the Chicago Tribune.
A suspect in the slayings was believed to have abducted the boy, but when the man was arrested Friday night the boy was not with him.
About 3 p.m. Friday, a relative found Hudson’s mom Darnell Donerson, 57, fatally shot in her living room, law enforcement officials said. The family member notified authorities, who then found her brother Jason Hudson, 29, dead in a bedroom.
Police believe the murders happened about 11 a.m., and started outside with the gunman firing through the door and striking Hudson’s brother, according to a law-enforcement source. The gunman then entered the house and continued to fire, striking Hudson’s mother when she entered the room. Police have recovered shell casings from the scene.
