You really learn a lot about an artist when you take them out of their element.  Some nail it, and some not so much!  Two of the more talented artists/groups nailed it here!

In case you missed it:

Tonight on the Idol finale, they will do what they always do:  surprise the finalists by having them sing duets with their favorite singers.  And since the two top finalists are country singers, you can count on lots of country on the show tonight (Fox 12, 8 pm).  So who will it be?  Well, even though it’s supposed to be a surprise, I’ve done some digging and I’m pretty sure it will be Carrie Underwood for Lauren Alaina, and Tim McGraw for Scotty McCreery.  Some reliable sources are saying this, and I believe them.  So be sure to check it out!  And get to know both Scotty and Lauren, since they’re both pretty much guaranteed to be country stars from here on out.

Did you miss the interview?  Click below.  Mike & Amy talk with Keith about . ..

– Without You – Keith’s 25th Top 5 single and 2nd single from Get Closer.

– His upcoming performance on The CMT Awards on June 8th.

– Keith’s nomination for two CMT Awards:  Male Video of the Year for Without You

Keith Urban 2011-05-26 8-20a

Wow, what a week for country stars on TV.  First John Rich wins Celebrity Apprentice.  Then Rascal Flatts serenades Oprah and every celebrity known to man.  So what’s on tonight?  a ton!  Here’s the scoop:

What a difference 5 years makes!  In 2006, Sara Evans was a contestant on “Dancing With the Stars” until her sudden, messy divorce forced her to quit the competition.  Now happily remarried with a #1 single and album under her belt, Sara returns to this season’s finale, not to dance but to sing that #1, “A Little Bit Stronger.”  Catch it tonight on ABC at 9pm…

For the slightly younger set, turn over to MTV to catch a whole show dedicated to Taylor Swift and her new video for “The Story of Us.”  This is definitely one of her poppier songs, but Taylor is Taylor, and she’ll be taking questions from fans, etc., at 8 eastern time. 

Brad Paisley has a brand new CD this week, which means he’s doing the rounds as well.  He’ll be on “Hannity” on Fox, and then later tonight he’ll show up on “Late Night with David Letterman.”  (CBS Ch 6, 11:30).

More?  Yep.  We can’t forget our pal Blake Shelton, who returns to “The Voice” on NBC tonight at 10.  This is the last pre-recorded show before the live ones kick in.

So Rascal Flatts sang for Oprah yesterday on part one of her goodbye extravaganza, and she sang along every word to “I Won’t Let Go,” their latest #1 hit.  What really blew my mind was that at the very end of the song,  this huge cavalcade of stars filed up onto the stage…everyone from Madonna to Tom Cruise, Beyonce, Halle Berry, etc. etc.  How the heck did Gary keep it together?  Watch it by clicking here and you’ll see what I mean.

Yep, he won Celeb Apprentice, just like we knew he would.  I will admit to a moment of doubt though, when he was standing up on that stage at his 7-UP event, introducing Def Leppard, and no band was showing up. OUCH! But in spite of the rocky live event, JR’s overall performance on the show, which was otherwise flawless, helped him win in the end. If you want to watch the whole shebang, just click here.

By the way (or BTW as my daughter would text), JR assures us that The Donald’s hair is real.  At one point, he says the Playboy lady, Hope, was teasing Trump and he insisted that she run her fingers through his hair to prove it was real.

For years, Mike has never believed me when I told him that Kelly Clarkson was still the highest earner and biggest seller out of all of the American Idol winners. Well it was true for many years, but it’s not true anymore. According to Billboard, who tracks all of this stuff, Carrie is now officially #1. Last year, Kelly had sold a total of 10,600,000 albums and 15,900,000 digital tracks since 2002. But now as of this year, Carrie’s album sales have topped 12,296,000 with 18,482,000 downloads since 2005. Yowza! Carrie also way outdoes Kelly in terms of concert earnings, with $66 million to Kelly’s $32 million.

So whoever wins American Idol now will be a country star.  It’s a done deal!  Either Scotty, aka Josh Turner junior, or Lauren Alaina, who kind of reminds me of a cross between Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson (even her hair is half and half!).  They’re also the youngest-ever duo to make it to the finale, at ages 17 and 16 respectively.  So get ready to welcome a new, teenage star to our little world of country folks. 

In case you missed their homecomings: