Post New Year's Day...

IDOL WITHDRAWAL.....

Good morning peeps!

Its the 2nd day of 2010 and lemmetellya, Idol withdrawal was at its peak yesterday. I had no idea I could miss a bunch of people so much, and its not just the Idols I miss, can you believe I actually miss @siproducer (all of them!) and I even miss emails - the long ones detailing the crazy-packed schedules and excel spreadsheets with song details!

Previously, after Season 1, I was so inundated with post-show publicity work (and handing paperwork and artiste over to Hype) that I had no time to really to go into withdrawal. Plus, I got to work with a few of them again on Shooting Stars (that was a weird time). Maybe one day I shall dig into my archives (if my comp will let me) and I'll post up all those Season 1 behind-the-scenes pics! muahahahha, Idol Season 1 Alum beware - I have truckloads on you guys! (they're probably praying my Dell will just konk out or be virus-infected. To be honest, I think its probably the latter, cos I haven't been able to open my archived stuff for years, I'm not even sure if its still in one piece.)

Last night, I dropped by Airi's post-Idol, pre-NS party, thrown by his closest friends. They invited everyone from Top 24 over, not sure who went and who didn't, cos by the time I arrived (at like 12midnight, cos I'm always fashionably late like that - those who follow my tweets will know the REAL reason why I arrived past midnight LOL!), only JonJon and his cute bro Gabriel were left from the Idol-family. The rest were Airi's friends, all musicians.

Never would I have imagined an old industrial building's rooftop would house a studio. The atmosphere was laidback cool and it was clear Airi was at his most comfortable, surrounded by his closest and dearest and of course...music.

I didn't stay long, maybe an hour? Spent most of it just staring (and enjoying) the amazing drummanship (is that even a word?) of Airi's drummer friend who owns the studio, a guy named Riduan Zailani. OMG his hands move super fast. Two words - awesome lor.

Before I left, I had a quick chat with Airi and got updated on his 'album'. He met with Universal Music the other day and it went well. He's looking at possibly a May 2010 release for his album, and its possible that they'll take the singer-songwriter route (which means Airi originals on the album I hope!). So fingers crossed things go smoothly on that front and we'll get an awesome album to buy in May. If there's a pre-order form, you can be sure many will be filling it in - including me!

This morning I woke and Idol withdrawal was still with me, but I was super excited because I suddenly thought of a 'name' for an upcoming project with Izked. IskanDar + TraCy = DarCy. LOL, what do you guys think, 'Project DarCy'! Ok, so its a bit nondescript, but anyway it made ME excited. It probably won't be the final name, but hey, working name can? Our plan is to start a blog that will be co-authored by us both, to follow up with the Top 12 from here on in. More deets to come k?

Ok, shall leave you with some pics from backstage at Celebrate 2010, taken by @izked. All pics belong to @izked, taken from his fb album. Thanks dude - waiting to read your 'thankyou note/last blog entry'.... my tissuebox is on standby.

This is a pic of one of the interns who worked Idol, Clara. Clara dear, sorry I left your name out on the previous post, thank you Clara for always bein' so helpful! Am gonna miss your lil voice and er, interesting insights :)

Iz, our passes! Eh, just realised, I had to return my F1 Rocks one to Eugene! How about timeshare? Just kidding!

xoxo, s.

ps. Ms Tabitha Nauser, if you're reading this, know that I have been craving bubble tea since that day I saw you with one. And I haven't gotten a cup yet. :(

9 Hours To Go.....

Time is just FLYING BY!

In 2 hours, your Top 2 will be reporting at Indoor Stadium for the biggest night of their lives. For Sylvia Ratonel and Sezairi Sezali, their Idol journey is about to hit its peak.

I'll be heading down to Indoor Stadium later at about 3pm, but before that, I have a video to share. Ages and ages ago (about 4 and a half months ago), someone sent me a demo for a great 'Idol song' written specifically for this season's Idol winner. I was just asked to listen and give comments, and truth be told, I was sold from the first demo eventhough it was very raw. The lyrics and melody are all uplifting - characteristic of an Idol winning single. But ultimately, the song selected to be the Idol single would be Uncle Ken's 'Touched By An Angel'. (I'm guessing there were other songs thrown up and the most suitable was chosen).

Anyway, I still think this is a great song, and I've just seen this vid by Izked and he's using the song I mentioned above. For whatever reason, he has not revealed the singer/composer, so I'll keep it as that as well. Suffice it to say, the boys who wrote this *wink* are the coolest and so very very talented. Kudos to you for such a beautiful song!

Now watch this, a very touching video of your Top 2, made by Official Blogger Iz, you made me cry dude! This is a great way to remember their journey - better than the usual exit VTs on the show!

Look out for more updates via my tweets later today!

I gotta feeling....woo hooo....

xoxo, s.

ps. OMG OMG OMG FINAL IDOL DAY!!!!!!

Vids Galore by Izked

Good morning peeps! Quickie post to point you in the direction of the Official Blog!

Looks like Izked was on a roll (and some super effective panadol!) last night and he's uploaded like tons of vids since last night! Go watch!

You can check out his youtube channel here...

Or go straight to the video-infested blogpost! :)

And thanks to tabithasfanclub, here's this week's music video for show sponsor Strepsils. Probably my fave Idol video now :) I think the 4 of them sang the song really well :)

Ok, now go watch more vids at Iz's!

xoxo, s.

Izked's Dance Rehearsal Vid-Lov It!

I LOVE THIS! :)

I was gonna go sleep already, then decided to check one last time to see if Iz's vids/blogpost are up yet and lo-and-behold, this one is up!

And.I.LOVE.It!

The whole vid is great, but to me, the most touching part is right at the end...where you see the Top 4 leaving MediaCorp, and they turn round in slo-mo to wave'bye'. Made me smile, and feel a lil sad too, cos one of 'em's goin' home tonight....

Great job Iz! Props to the Official Blogger, can't wait to see his blogpost later!

Idol Day today. Tx in about 15 hrs ...

xoxo, s.

ps. Airi looks like he could do ballet :)

AWESOME MTV by OFFICIAL BLOGGER

Hey peeps, check out this cute lil MTV done by Official Blogger Iz. It was shot during last Friday's Burger King Music Video shoot....behind-the-scenes stuff...hilarious :) and I love the music - 'Call Me!' <-- vote for your Idols! Idol Day is just TWO days away!

Kudos to Iz for the cool vid - keep 'em comin'! For more stuff from Iz, do check out the Official Idol Blog here!

xoxo, s.

Idol Papparazzi?

Idols at Ion Orchard

Despite not getting any sort of invite (aiya, why Ion, why liddat?) to the Carrie Underwood do, our Idols were not deterred nor disheartened.

CARRIE fans Tabby, Malaque, Duane and Farhan, along with Official Blogger Iz and I decided to go (The Husband, Kids and The Godmother also in tow!). Free concert, big star, Idol alum, why not? Who cares if its smellypits in the moshpits? Its CARRIE.

Strangely, the moshpit wasn't that moshy. So no smellypits. It was all quite civilised, except for the rather rude-ish wubby who kept picking on a poor Security guard (I mean, c'mon, so what if he's not a Carrie fan, he's there to maintain decorum, not be a groupie). Thank Gawd the real host for the night was Utt.

Anyway, once we got 'in', we realised we couldn't see the stage at all, so the 'emptiness' (or lack of moshyness) made sense. But the empty seats at the VIP section didn't make sense - I had assumed they had no more VIP seats to give out which was why the Idols didn't get an invite, you can throw THAT assumption out da window.... go figure!

But oh well, not a big deal anyway right?

I wasn't able to stay on, The Kids were restless (the promos said come at 6.30, so we were there at 6.30pm and after 90 minutes of waiting around, I couldn't keep them there anymore..tsk!). The Idols also decided that they'd try and get a better vantage point from the Prada store, so we split up...hope they saw more than I did!

Aiya, now I regret not taking more pics...

Ok, am off to bed....just 3 hours left til The Kids are up!

Before I go, here's an interesting vid Tabby found on Youtube! LOL! Stalkers? Fanarazzi? Love it!

xoxo, s.

ps. Heard from a reliable source that Ion Orchard paid millions to bring Carrie here for their Official Opening, so it kinda makes sense that they wouldn't want anyone to 'piggyback' on this 'paid gig'. Just seems like such a waste though, an Idol winner comes to SG but doesn't meet the current Idols in waiting. Am surprised they weren't keen to get some free tv airtime (because if our Idols got to meet Carrie, you can bet it will be recorded and aired on the show).

To The Official Blogger

Chill people chill.....

When I woke up this morning, I saw a rather 'upset' sms from my friend Official Blogger Iz.

"I hardly read forums and comments on the web but when I came home today, my blog was flooded with comments and I had to moderate them all. Honestly its not a good thing...it all started with the f1 ticket I got. People call me a leech, people call me ungrateful, copycat, useless, liar, and began to curse my family.. Normally I won't be bothered but now it really dampened my spirits big time, don't know whats the point of being a damn blogger. When everything just hurts man. Just too much after a tiring day. My heart just break man. Hai! Wa trace really sorry I don't copy your entries, don't know why people are saying I copy word for word?"

2.38am

Guys, listen, let's all give the guy some love k?

He works super super hard at being the Official Blogger and he does it the best he can. He's so dedicated to this 'job'. He loves the show as much as I do. And loves the Idols even more. He got home from a long day following them from their morning radio interviews all the way to the end of choreo late last night, so that he would have content to share, only to find people bombarding him for a job he doesn't even get paid to do.

For the record :

1. Iz and I are both NOT paid for the work we do here on our blogs. Iz won a camera from MediaCorp. And his site is hosted by them. But thats all. His taxi fare and any other expenses incurred to follow the Idols around are not reimbursed to him at all. So basically apart from a digital camera and some allotted cyberspace, he's just like me.

*Eh, twitpiccing is NOT CHEAP k. But we do it cos we know you all can't wait to kaypoh on the Idol front.

2. Iz has a day job, we both do. He's a freelance graphic designer, thats how he pays for his Idol stuff, he works. I'm a full time Mom, and if you dare tell me its not a job I will so *kok* you over the head. I dip into my grocery budget for taxi rides to MCS, if The Husband doesn't send or pick me. Bottom line is, we aren't on IdolWatch 24/7 cos we have other things to take care of - which is why some posts are a little late sometimes (plus Iz needs to wait for his graphics to render - how else do you think his pics are always so awesomely decked out?)

3. We are NOT competing. What's to compete anyway? Both Iz and I do this out of genuine love and support for the show. We are given the same amount of access to the Idols and we give as much as we can, to take you behind the scenes so you can get a little closer to your idols. There really is no need to compare our blogs.

4. We both have our own take on things and most times we try not to overlap in terms of content, but when you're blogging at 2 or 3am on your own, how would you know what the other fler's thinking rite? Sometimes we discuss stuff over MSN, and I guess if you're on the same wavelength you end up talking about the same things. Its not like we sit side by side and blog you know, and 'copy' each other...what are we, sitting for PSLE mock papers?

Anyway, I just wanted to say, show him some love la people. He's hardworking and loves this job, and he has feelings too (there really is no need to resort to calling him obscenities or ridiculing his upbringing and his appearance - please la, what are you, in 4th Grade?).

Cut him some slack for language, he's not an English teacher. Look for the good - he's always got great ideas - Idol TV with Jon Cheok as host is a great idea, I love it (mostly also cos I love Jon cos he's a sweetie ;)).

A big hug to Iz. Don't let them haters get you down boy, you're doin' a great job, keep up the good work. You can find Iz's work at the Official Idol Blog, go check it out if you haven't already.

Much much love, s.

ps. Its IDOL DAY tomorrow! WOOT! Can't wait to see ya Iz and the LODIs - miss you guys tons! Haven't seen you all since Beyonce night! OMG I haven't changed my pass...die....skali the ban me from MediaCorp...no wonder I couldn't find my driver's license.

IDOL DAY in 2 Days time!

Long post : From Piano Pokerface to Sembawang Shopping Centre (my update for the past 'idol-less' week...)

So the weekend's come and gone (well, not totally, since today's a public holiday - woot!)

Were you a true Idol fan this weekend? Did you trek all the way up to Sembawang Shopping Centre to see the Top 13 in person?

Even if you didn't, its okay, because like a gazillion others did! Despite having to run helter-skelter (translate that as siao char boh) organising my daughter's princess party (I was told it was a carnival-like success by the way, not that you Idol crazies care right, cos you're only reading this to know more about Idol), I snuck in some time here and there to check out Iz's 'live' tweets and twitpics (featured here, thanks Iz!) from the roadshow - looks like the turn out was amazing. Idols, it will only get even crazier as the weeks go by!

Whats up with Idol this week?

lemmesee...

We're back in full Idol gear as of TODAY, Monday, 21st Sept!

Radio interviews with Mae, Charles, Syltra and Sylvia right this morning on 987FM at 9am. The rest will take their turn at the mic on Tuesday and Idol Day (check the Idol Spotter for deets, left side bar, right at the top!)

what else...

oh...nothing much....just a lil show we like to call THE SPECTACULARS!

yep folks, we're FINALLY at the Spectaculars - that ONE week break felt like ages right?

Check out my new 'Idol Songs & numbers' on the left sidebar that will give you quick recap of who's singing what in what order. For sms voting, just take the last digit of the phone number (eg for Mae you send '1' to IDOLS (43657) for Idols 1 - 9. For Idols 10 - 13, send the last TWO digits of the phone number (eg for Malaque, sms '11' to IDOLS (43657)). Each vote costs 60 cents.

And now, here're some vids I recorded over the past week.

Pokerface on piano

Check out Duane's raw, piano-accompanied version of Pokerface. This was recorded at his choreo session with Zaki. It still needs a little bit more work, but I think the boy's got something there - a breakout performance perhaps? Zaki said 'cool' :)

Meet the new host of Idol TV!

Also, here are some pics of Jon Cheok who's now been 'hired' by Iz to be the 'host' of Idol TV. First episode airs....tonight maybe? Not sure.

Am so dreading it cos they blardee sabo-ed and filmed me...(me and cameras = not a pretty sight, from now on, if Iz is in vid mode, I'll be in SIAM* mode).

By the way, I recorded this following vid of Iz and Jon to help them promote their new Idol TV ...but LOL, epic fail lor - they just rambled - watch it just for fun, don't judge, there was no prep. We shall get them to do a DO-OVER soon (on Idol Day).

The reason I have so many pics of them is because while the 8Days shoot was ongoing, we were not allowed to communicate with the Top 13 at all. Forbidden was the word. They were 'In The Zone' and apparently the stylist was very happy. So was 'Manny-for-the-day' Byron, who said, "the children were VERY well-behaved today." :)

Anyway, here are two pics of the the Top 13 at the shoot at Que Pasa, taken from my hiding place :) (I was perched precariously atop a stairwell!)

I later managed to capture this vid from a different 'hiding spot'. Uber 8Days stylist Fong Fan got the Idols singing and boy where the 'in the zone' and I'm thinking Ka-Ching - am sure they'll get some pretty awesome pics from this session. I've always been a fan of Fong Fan's work. She has such a great eye and the clothes/styles always suit the celeb to a tee. Tuesday's 8Days cover shoot was no different - everyone looked fab. I only wish I had a chance to take individual pics before they ran off to change :P (lets hope Iz did).

They're singing Blackhorse and a Cherry Tree.

Lastly, I'd like to share this vid that I recorded of Mae.

Generally people think Mae's a great singer, but the one brickbrat that keeps gettin' thrown at her is the fact that she was living in Australia and has perhaps become 'Australian'. I think what these folks are forgetting is that most people, at a young age, get sent overseas for education purposes. In Mae's case, her parents decided to try to make a living there to give their kids a better life. It wasn't Mae's choice to 'give up' Singapore. And now that she's an adult, she's DECIDED, with much loving support from her Aussie husband, to make Singapore their home and her base.

She once told me with tears welling up, 'Its so awful being in a place where nobody wants you, but I want to be here, I choose to be here, why won't they support me?"

Anyway here's her vid...

Whatever it is Singapore, please vote based on talent. There is a lot of it this season, and honestly it would be such a waste if the ones worthy of the title don't make it all the way to the end - you want an AMAZING finale at Indoor Stadium right?

MAKE.IT.HAPPEN.

VOTE.

xoxo, s.

ps. More silly vids coming up tonight!

A touching Vid for MJ by Official Blogger Izked

OMG, had to share this....so touching!

MJ ARE YOU SEEING THIS BABE! We miss ya!

Look out for more at the Official Blog cos Iz is working hard on his super long post that covers the last coupla days from the theme, the photo/trailershoot and MJ's decision to leave. Check out the full post on the Official Idol Blog here.

Big *clap* to Iz for making such a lovely video, please make more! OMG, I am so gonna tear up if you make 'exit' videos next time....

xoxo, s.

ps. If only I knew how to edit videos...but that would mean more Googling for online tutorials. So not doing that this week...I only 2 more days to pull off a magnificent princess party for my daughter....*breaking out in cold sweat*.....have bought out half of Phoon Huat convinced I need like 16 different type of sprinkles for what I believe will be only about 24 cupcakes. Tsk.

First Top 13 Media Conference TODAY!

Media Conference for the Top 13 today at 2pm. Thats just 10 minutes away!

here are some pics, courtesy of Izked who's been twitpiccing from Mediacorp. The Idols arrived early for hair and makeup.

follow him on twitter to get onsite updates about the media conference, I'll be heading there shortly (which means I'm gonna be late, but I'm still feeding my kids their lunch! Acks! and yes, I multitask a lot these days.... ), so you can follow my tweets too...

xoxo, s.

Twilight Idol

Even the Ghosts want a piece of Idol action!

Its the Hungry Ghost month for the chinese and the holy month of Ramadhan for the Muslims, time is ripe for some spooky tales and ghostly happenings, and this time, it happened to one our very own. Two in fact, am counting the Blogger as part of the Idol family mah!

As many of you may know, Caldecott Broadcast Centre has long been touted as haunted (as are many old buildings). And the Training School where there Idols spend most of their time is said to be one of the most haunted (hearsay of course).

Last Saturday, after the roadshow, Group 1 contestants were scheduled for their vocal training sessions at 6.30pm.

This spooky story was told to me by our very own Official Blogger.

At about 7.30pm (twilight*!!!), one of the Top 24, got locked out outside the building because she forgot to bring her pass and her handphone (alamak!). She'd gone out to reception to buy a drink because for some unknown reason, the vending machine at Training School was shut down (and this machine is always on k...I wonder how it got shut off? *cue eerie music*)

After about 15 minutes of waiting, a kind MediaCorp staffmember opened the door for her and she finally rejoined the group.

At about 8pm, her mobile starts to ring. The number that's flashing is Izked (Idol Official Blogger). She picks up the call and Izked tells her he's locked outside, and to come open the door for him. (Seriously, why do our passes all not work on that door?)

She goes to open the door, but Iz isn't outside. She braves the dark and opens the other entrance by the dark toilet, and he isn't there either.

Then, as she walks past the vocal training room, she sees Iz sitting inside.

OK, start freaking out. Another Top24-er who was with her confirms Iz was inside the vocal training room all the time.

When the door to the vocal training room opened (its closed during each individual's session), our freaked out Top24-er rushes in to ask Izked if he'd called her on her mobile just now.

Nope. He didn't.

A quick check on his mobile shows no record of any made calls in the last half hour. Last call made was to Jannah over an hour ago. Iz had been inside the whole time recording Ryan's session on his camera.

FREAK OUT NOW.

Our poor freaked out Top24-er shows Iz the phone, and there is indeed a record of 'his' call to her. When asked if the voice on the phone sounded like him, she said it was kind of muffled and mumbled, and it was a quick call.

Poor girl was in tears from this episode (which is why her identity is not revealed).

We hope she's alright now and will always remember to go anywhere in crowds when at Caldecott Hill.

UPDATE!!

Izk just posted his first hand account of the 'ghostly encounter!'.... go read his story CLICK HERE!

xoxo, s.

*twilight is known be the witching hour for many cultures. It is the transitional time between day and night. Muslims believe that the time between the prayer times of Maghrib (7+pm) and Isyak (8+pm) serves as a portal for ghosts and lost souls. This time coincides with twilight.

ps. I've heard numerous ghost stories from Mediacorpers. I generally RUN through Mediacorp when its dark and I'm alone.

pps. Its IDOL DAY today! So don't forget to tune in tonight at 8pm to catch the first group of 12 perform! And then VOTE like siao! Only 6 will go through tonight, results show at 10pm.

Radio Interviews in less than 4 hours!

Check out Ryan, Malaque, Nurul and Farhan on 987FM this morning at 9am.

Plus, if you can't survive on no Idol news for just a day, check out the Official Blogger's latest post full of vids from the weekend and last night's choreo session. Thanks Iz for the vids.

I'm lovin' Charles' solid vocals on Rihanna's 'Take A Bow' (see vid below).

Better yet, go straight to Izked's youtube channel.

Don't forget to tune in to 987FM at 9am today, the Idols are on with Dan & Young!

xoxo, s.

Singapore Idol Piano Show Vocal Training Session : Group 2

Vocal training this week was a low-key event. It wasn't as manic as the week before with the loud singing up and down the corridors. The second group of Top24 contestants arrived on time, ready to work (SI Producer was smiley, and hardly any scolding or lecturing today about tardiness bla di bla :)). Happy day!

Today's group seemed more prepared vocally, knew their lyrics, did not request for key changes (big no-no!) and were just basically all more 'obedient' :) LOL at the word 'obedient', what are we...in 2nd grade?!

Anyway, it was a nice change. I was prepared for manic. But I got mellow, which was superb by me on a Saturday afternoon. Plus, its the first day of Ramadhan, so I think those fasting appreciated the pace and efficiency at which today moved.

Today's Group Song was a Jonas Brothers tune. At least it didn't have lines about vegetables and buffets....

They nailed it in like, half an hour. Amazing. With harmonies and all.

Instead of the big echo-ey dance studio from last week, this week the 'waiting' room was the one next door with two ping-pong tables. Ideal for sitting on and strumming a guitar.

The highlight of today's random chatter (because Idol chatter is always random) was a youtube video that Grammarboy found revealing that Lady Gaga is a hermaphrodite. We all watched it and there were lots of OMGs and 'can I see that again' and 'sure not?!'. The shock was of course followed by 'whats a hermaphrodite?', 'how does that even work?' and 'hey I knew someone like that, etc etc'. Like I said, random chatter.

One Top 24'er wore a bright tee shirt that screamed 'Kill Your TV'. Ironic much? Especially since you're a contestant on a Reality TELEVISION show? Blasphemous almost! But thats okay, we have a sense of humour, as do you :)

(oi, why la you run away so fast, I wanted to take a pic of your slogan tee! i lurved the irony of it!)

Another youtube video that became a talking point was the Literal Translation of Bonnie Tyler's 'Eclipse Of The Heart' music video. HI.LA.RIOUS. Search it up on youtube if you haven't already!

At this point, I realise 3 things about today's group of 12.

1. They love youtubing.

2. They are a really great bunch to hang out with.

3. I have a new name for Pet. She shall henceforth be known as Blushy. Because she can really blush, she goes from normal to beetroot red in less than 5 secs!

Apart from the Idols busy humming a tune or strummin' the guitar, the other busy bee was the Official Blogger.

Check Izked out, all professional, snappin' pics for an upcoming blog entry - lovin' the idea - 'What's In Their Bags?'. Izk, do tell when that entry will be out.

What was this blogger doing? Nothing lor, hangin' out. Listening to Guitarhero and Turtle singing 'My Boo' and I was mesmerized (and smiling like an idiot to myself). Will upload that vid after Wednesday.

Since the sessions went off without a hitch, we all headed down to Far East Plaza for some makan (for those who weren't fasting and hadn't eaten lunch).

Check out the Happy Soda that Turtle ordered. Its like bandung with fizz....I just liked the name. I also liked Teh Botol ...which doesn't come in a bottle, irony again!

The Fried Chicken set was superb! Thanks Guitarhero for the recommendation. Gotta come back to Esteller (<--correct not?) again some day!

Anyway, its been a happy day :) can't wait to catch up with all of them soon (first road show ever next Saturday at The Cathay).

Check back on Wednesday to see if you guessed the Top24 correctly and don't forget to get your cameras and yourselves down to the Cathay next Saturday!

xoxo, s.