I had no idea I was going to meet Haley Reinhart when I woke up this morning.
Actually, I could have never imagined typing that last sentence at the height of American Idol Season 10 frenzy, when I was rooting for her week in and week out. Even when I found out about the Philippine tour a couple months back, I knew there was a slim-to-none chance for me to either score a Haley Reinhart autograph or actually see her up close.
My sister, who’s an intern at The Peninsula, teased that the Idol contestants might stay at the Hotel, seeing that Ovation Productions booked Korn there last August. Naturally, I asked her to move heaven and earth to get me an autograph from Haley. But alas, it turns out the Idols were billeted elsewhere.
So you can just imagine my elation and disbelief that not only was I able to get my Haley Reinhart CD signed by Haley Reinhart herself but I also got the chance to briefly talk with her and shake hands!
Like I was saying, I had no idea all this was about to unfold today when I woke up. I have my lucky stars to thank for situating me at the right place, at the right time.
The Top 11 finalists of American Idol Season 10 will perform in Manila on September 20! I was beside myself when I found out about this news.
And here I was telling myself that I wasn’t into in any of the foreign acts that have been performing in the country lately. Little did I know all it would take to get me interested was an American Idol tour! My first reaction, of course, was to see the show come September. But, learning about the ticket prices has made me think twice:
I haven’t been to a proper concert (such a losar!) but I know these are standard ticket prices. I guess I just can’t bring myself to spend this much on a one-night show. Or maybe it’s because Haley Reinhart is the only one I care to see, but she’ll probably perform only two-three songs max. If this were a solo Haley concert I wouldn’t mind paying up!
What a wonderful find on YouTube — Haley Reinhart’s performance of Baby It’s You during Hollywood Week! We got to see only a snippet of this when the judges were going to announce that she’d made the Top 24. It’s a fine performance, of course, even if she hit her mouth on the microphone a couple of times. But watching it you can’t help but think how much she’s progressed over the competition.
Haley Reinhart sat in for an interview and performed House of the Rising Sun on Live with Regis and Kelly.
Sigh… if she’d only lasted one more week and cracked the finale. As I mentioned before, I haven’t been this enamored by an Idol contestant in the longest time. In fact, her studio recording of Bennie and the Jets is now in my overall top tracks on Last.Fm. That’s quite notable considering that: 1) almost all of the songs in the chart have not changed since I signed up in 2006; and 2) it’s been only two months since I started listening to Haley Reinhart in general and this song in particular.
Now I’ve been a fan of hers since I heard her sing God Bless the Childin Hollywood week but I loved her even more after Bennie and the Jets. And just when I thought her best was behind her, she outdid herself with House of the Rising Sun, which I thought was the performance of the season, bar none.
Admittedly, this is not my favorite Alanis Morissette song and I’m a huge Alanis fan. I scratched my head when I found out that this was the judges’ pick for her. I at least hoped that Haley would sing it the way Alanis did in the 1996 Grammy Awards. But Randy was right, those were some great choruses from her. I cringed a bit when she messed up a few words but it really is a tough song to sing, and sell too. Interesting that some words were changed (e.g., “would she go out with you to the theater”) and I’m curious to find out if she dropped the F-bomb in the studio recording.
Scotty’s a lock for top two and it’s his competition to lose. So the question is, who’s joining him in the finale? DialIdol ranks Haley third but it’s too close to call because her score does not appear to be significantly far from Lauren’s. Of course I think Haley is the most talented and original of the three, and will have earned her spot in the finale if she does make it. But if it’s her time to go tomorrow, I’ll be okay with it. After all, I did mention in a past entry that I hoped Haley would make at least top three, and here she is, the most improved contestant of the season. I couldn’t be happier.
