Elisa Camahort's blog

Announcing: BlogHer '09 LobbyCon

2009-06-25T18:51:22-05:00

BlogHer '09, BlogHer's fifth annual conference, will be our biggest conference yet. Every year we have sold out and dealt with the dreaded waiting list. This year we sold out BlogHer '09's original capacity in mid-March, which left us with lots of community members wanting in.

We went to work to make it happen. Conference sales woman extraordinaire Miriam Anton was able to secure additional sponsorship that allowed us to let in 300 bloggers off of the waiting list, but that just wasn't enough! We started to hear about people who were going to show up and hang in the lobby, just to meet friends and attend some of the after-parties being planned.

Enter: LobbyCon
We decided to figure out how we could turn more of The Chicago Sheraton and Towers into all-BlogHer, all-the-time from July 24-25, 2009. And this is what we came up with: LobbyCon

Please join us for LobbyCon on Friday and Saturday, July 24 & 25, where you will receive:

Access to the Chi Bar at the Sheraton, where we will be live-streaming of all four general sessions, including the Community Keynote and Saturday morning's powerhouse trio of media mavens taking part in the Traditional Media Chops meet a New Media Calling keynote

Access to the Expo floor, and the 40 sponsors on that floor (and their swag)

Access to both official BlogHer cocktail parties

What are the fees to attend BlogHer '09 LobbyCon?
BlogHer '09 LobbyCon costs $99 for the two-day experience

What is *not* included with your BlogHer '09 LobbyCon pass

Access to the seven tracks of break-out programming, including the Geek Lab

The official conference tote bag

Meals during the day (breakfast, lunch, snacks)

We can take up to 125 folks in the Chi bar, so that is our capacity for BlogHer '09 LobbyCon. Register now!

We hope this provides yet another option for folks who are making the trek to Chicago with or without a ticket in hand!! We look forward to seeing you there :)

Elisa
for Elisa, Jory and Lisa, BlogHer co-founders

BlogHer of the Week: Kristy Sammis

2009-06-22T13:33:48-05:00

You may know Kristy Sammis from She Just Walks Around With It as BlogHer's own former Events Manager.

For those of you who only know Kristy as our Events manager, and not as a life blogger, you have been missing out! And we are thrilled to introduce you to her comic stylings via this week's BlogHer of the Week post, Making It Work for Me and My Pelvix.

You see, earlier this year Kristy went through what you might call the trifecta of big life changes: She got engaged, then married; she discovered she would be having a baby, and she bought a house in Napa and moved. Oh, and along with all of that, she left full-time employment at BlogHer. Her due date (this Wednesday, BTW) didn't exactly mesh well with our biggest conference yet being a mere 4.5 weeks away. One upside for us all (besides Kristy's abiding joy and happiness) is that she's picked up her blogging pace. And events like her first birthing preparation class:

"The instructor began the class by leading intros and then telling us about herself. Turns out, she's been teaching childbirth prep for fifteen years. She's seen a lot of stuff. She knows her stuff. She came across as sweet and nice and caring and as someone whose heart is really in it. Expert!

But then as soon as we got going, despite the three minute discussion on how "there are no wrong questions," she refused to answer any. She clearly hated to be derailed from her spiel. Most of her answers were, therefore, either We haven't gotten to that yet or We don't talk about that until next week. Except for the time the woman asked, "So, do contractions ever last longer than one minute?" and the instructor smiled, gave a slight shake of her head, and laughed a bit, in a "haha, you have no idea what you're in for" kind of way. AND THAT WAS IT.

So no, not especially helpful. Mostly the instructor reeled off hospital-approved information. And I figured I couldn't really do anything but believe everything she says, because even if she doesn't answer questions well, she's got a whole helluva lot more experience than I do.

Until she pronounced "pelvis" as "pelvix."

Not one time. All the times. In diagrams, during the slide show, in discussions, and using the visual aid. Pelvix, pelvix, pelvix."

Need we say more? Well, perhaps only this spoiler: There's a "cervic" to go along with the "pelvix".

No one tells a story like Kristy, and that's as true now as she embarks on this new path, as it ever was. That's why we're thrilled to name her BlogHer of the Week!

Thanks to everyone for continuing to send in your nominated posts. Remember to nominate individual posts, not entire blogs, and keep them coming! If you want to check out all the BlogHer of the Week posts, check out the BlogHer of the Week archive.

Best,
Elisa
For Elisa, Jory and Lisa
BlogHer Co-founders

Announcing the BlogHer '09 Community Keynote Selections

2009-06-15T11:13:33-05:00

Today, we are thrilled to announce the final selections for the BlogHer '09 Community Keynote, our second annual Community Keynote, taking place on Friday July 24th.

Just like last year, we received hundreds of submissions, and I have to start with a shout-out of gratitude to our tremendous Community Keynote grand poobah:

Eden Kennedy from Fussy

And the rest of the Community Keynote committee:

Jes Ferris and Lori Luna from BlogHer

And the topic committee members, each of whom was a Community Keynoter themselves last year (another tradition we hope to continue):
Angela from Fluid Pudding
Casey from MooshinIndy
Megan from Megan's Minute
Polly from LesbianDad
Yvonne from Joy Unexpected

Thanks to all of you stalwart blog readers who helped narrow the list!!

Now, without further ado, here is the list of your 2009 Community Keynoters.

Commentary
Corynne Corbett from That Black Girl Site
Karen Walrond from Chookooloonks
Kelly Graham-Scherer from Don Mills Diva
Tanis from Redneck Mommy

Epiphanies
Black Hockey Jesus from The Wind In Your Vagina
Grace Davis from State of Grace
Heather Spohr from The Spohrs are Multiplying
Sheri Reed from happinest
TW from Retro Food

Family
Catherine Connors from Her Bad Mother
Issas Crazy World from Issas Crazy World
Melissa Ford from Stirrup Queens and Sperm Palace Jesters
Mike Adamick from Cry It Out

Humor
Danielle Henderson from Knotty Yarn
Georgia Getz from I am Bossy
JD from I Do Things So You Don't Have To
Wendi Aarons from Wendi Aarons

Travel
Amy Turn Sharp from Doobleh-Vay
Rainsinger from Laughs! Thrills! Pathos!
Pam Mandel from Nerd's Eye View
Pauline Karwowski from Classy Chaos

What, you ask, will they be reading? Well, that would ruin the surprise, wouldn't it?

So there they are, your Community Keynoters! Congratulations to all, and we can't wait for them to show their stuff on Friday night!

BlogHer of the Week: Schmutzie

2009-06-01T07:00:42-05:00

For a variety of reasons, real and imagined, I tend to be extremely aware of my surroundings at all times. While I'm completely unobservant about landmarks, geographical markings, directions (hence my love for my GPS) I'm always keenly aware of people. And the dark shadows where they may be lurking. I'm aware of it literally, when I walk city streets, and I'm aware of it figuratively.

There's a word for that, and I think this week's BlogHer of the Week, Schmutzie, knows it too...

Hypervigilance: /hy·per·vig·i·lance/ (hi″per-vij´ĭ-lans)

Dictionary Definition:
Source: The Free Medical Dictionary

Abnormally increased arousal, responsiveness to stimuli, and scanning of the environment for threats.

Alternate definition:
Source: Schmutzie, in this week's powerful BlogHer of the Week post: Like There's a Guy with a Knife on My Lawn

There is a wolf at my door, barbarians at my gates, monsters under my bed, and I keep every aspect of myself reigned in like children I'm trying to defend against an angry father. I was bullied in elementary school, I have been bullied at work, there are a couple of incidents in which I was bullied within my own family, and I think I have been unwittingly living under the assumption (yes, that does make an ass out of the ump and tion) that the next stab to my heart is just around every corner. If I do this, go here, feel that, I feel as though I am putting my own well-being into danger, because that's what experience has taught me, or, rather, that is what I have thought my experience was teaching me.

If you've got hypervigilance in spades, you can begin to take pride in it. Credit your hypervigilance for every bad thing that never happened to you. But it's a rude awakening to start to imagine all the good things that also may never have happened to you...thanks to your self-protecting, armor-building, wall-around-your-heart-reinforcing hypervigilance.

Schmutzie's post starts out as pure storytelling. You can see the first apartment of her married life in your mind's eye, complete with all of the "interesting" inhabitants. And when the story turns into an episode of Law & Order, with Schmutize cast as potential crime witness, she has you on the edge of your seat.

But it's the twist ending that broke through the walls around our hypervigilant hearts: the part where Schmutzie begins to realize that her hypervigilance may have sold her own strength short. May have given more power to those who have hurt her than they deserve.

And that searing insight is why we chose Schmutzie as BlogHer of the Week.

Thanks to everyone for continuing to send in your nominated posts.
Remember to nominate individual posts, not entire blogs, and keep them coming! If you want to check out all the BlogHer of the Week posts, check out the BlogHer of the Week archive.

Best,
Elisa
For Elisa, Jory and Lisa
BlogHer Co-founders

BlogHer Food Update: Another waitlist, and a unique opportunity for male food bloggers

2009-05-27T14:59:15-05:00

Under two weeks ago, we announced BlogHer Food '09, our first foray into a food blogging event, and our second topic-focused event, after BlogHer Business. We have two announcements about BlogHer Food today:

Registration Status
Like BlogHer '09 before it, BlogHer Food '09 has sold out its initial planned capacity in record time!

So, we fully intend to do exactly what we did with BlogHer '09: Get more sponsors in the door, so we can open the doors to more bloggers. Obviously the interest and enthusiasm is there...which excites us to no end, and will excite sponsors too! It is the sponsors that subsidize these events for the bloggers, which is how we keep our registration fees so affordable for such a range of bloggers.

The beautiful Hotel St. Regis does have room for us to let some more bloggers in, and we will do everything in our power to do so. This will not approach the size of BlogHer '09, but we hope to accommodate more of you.

In the meantime, please add yourself to the waiting list!

As over 100 bloggers going to BlogHer '09 can tell you: It does pay to add yourself to the waiting list!

Men speaking on panels at BlogHer Food
Last week we announced the Call for Ideas for BlogHer Food, and with it we asked a question of our food blogging community. Namely: Should we change BlogHer's current policy of only women speakers on programmed panels for BlogHer Food?

The reason we asked at all?:

And the feedback we're getting on this is that food blogging is already a female-dominated segment of the blogosphere, or seems so. That it is, in fact, the male food bloggers' lights that sometimes get hidden under a bushel. So, we thought it was appropriate to ask you, our food blogging community, what you thought should happen for this BlogHer Food '09 Conference. We're asking you, because that's what we have always done, and it's what we will always do, and it seems like this conference and this part of the larger blogging community deserves to have a decision made specifically for it!

The results are in: Over 70% percent of respondents answered "Yes" when asked whether men should be invited to speak on programmed panels at BlogHer Food '09. (Note: This number is almost exactly the same as the percentage of attendees who consistently answer "No" when asked whether men should be invited to speak on programmed panels at BlogHer's annual conference. Interesting, no?).

In other words: You are happy to hear from men at BlogHer Food '09. And we are happy to oblige. Thank you for your votes and thoughtful comments on the subject.

Big news all the way around, and this for an event that is less than 2 weeks old!

What is coming next?

Stay tuned to find out!

And don't forget: You can still submit your ideas to our Call for Ideas for BlogHer Food programming until June 7th. We have reserved slots for speakers, so even if you're on the waitlist, please do submit!!

We've gotten some amazing ideas already, and I'm sure more are yet to come.

Announcing the official BlogHer Food '09 Call for Ideas

2009-05-20T20:22:50-05:00

Last week we were thrilled to announce the first ever BlogHer Food 09, this September 26th in San Francisco. Today I am announcing our Call for Ideas for programming for that conference. For those of you who are not that familiar with BlogHer, we call our events the "conference the community built", and getting your input on the programming is one of the most important steps.

BlogHer's conference programming manager, Jes Ferris, and I will be ably assisted by:

The BlogHer Food Conference Advisory Committee:
Karina Allrich from Gluten-free Goddess
Matt Armendariz from Matt Bites
Elise Bauer from Simply Recipes
Kalyn Denny from Kalyn's Kitchen
Jaden Hair from Steamy Kitchen
Alanna Kellog from A Veggie Venture
Heidi Swanson from 101 Cookbooks
Sean Timberlake from Hedonia

Note: Not all Advisory Committee members are guaranteed to appear at BlogHer Food '09.

Why a "Call for Ideas"

So, why do we call it a "Call for Ideas" and not a "Call for Speakers" or "Call for Proposals" or something like that?

Answer: Because BlogHers are a generous bunch, and there are plenty of you who like to recommend other people to speak and want to suggest panels you'd like to attend, not personally speak on. And we're are all for that...any idea is welcomed, collected and reviewed by humans.

What will the Conference tracks be?

Actually, that is one of the first orders of business. There will be two tracks, and we could go a lot of different ways with them:

Beginner and Advanced?
Technical Skills and Editorial Skills?
Food blog as business and Food blog as avocation?
Food blog: how to do them well and Food blogs: Why we do them

As you can see, lots to talk about, and lots of potential themes. We'd love your feedback on sessions and tracks.

How to submit

If all of the above triggers some great ideas, then please email both me (elisa@blogher.com) and Jes Ferris (jes@blogher.com) and tell us as much of the following as is applicable. (If you're submitting someone else as a speaker you'd like to see, then tell us what you think we should know about them):

- Who you are and why you want to speak
- What two tracks you'd like to see
- Which track you'd like to participate in, and your experience/expertise/knowledge/perspective about that subject
- Any specific session ideas you have
- Specific links that highlight your experience/expertise/knowledge/perspective
- Your contact information and a link to your blog(s)
- Who else you think should be contributing and why

What's the timeline?

Because the planning schedule for this conference is so compressed, so too is our call for ideas schedule:

June 7th, Midnight (PT) is the deadline to submit your ideas. That's just under 3 weeks, so please spread the word!!

Taking your pulse on BlogHer's speaking policy

=========================
[UPDATE 05/27/09]: Thanks for taking the poll everyone. As we announced in this post, the results of the below poll were clear. The BlogHer food blogging community wants to invite men to speak on panels! Submit away!
=========================

As you may or may not know, every year BlogHer polls its community after the annual conference to see how they feel about our policy to have 100% women speaking on BlogHer-programmed panels. [We can have and have had men speak in community-programmed sessions, such as the Community Keynote and the Room of Your Own sessions.] Each year, so far, the community has continued to feel strongly about this policy, so each year we have made the decision that the following year's conference will adhere to it. It's a year-by-year policy, which we are ready to adapt when the community is ready to adapt.

We have never, however, done a food conference before. And the feedback we're getting on this is that food blogging is already a female-dominated segment of the blogosphere, or seems so. That it is, in fact, the male food bloggers' lights that sometimes get hidden under a bushel. So, we thought it was appropriate to ask you, our food blogging community, what you thought should happen for this BlogHer Food '09 Conference. We're asking you, because that's what we have always done, and it's what we will always do, and it seems like this conference and this part of the larger blogging community deserves to have a decision made specifically for it!

We appreciate you taking the poll. We will run it for just about a week or so and then make the call. In the meantime, we encourage everyone to submit their ideas, but we certainly understand if you prefer to wait for the update before doing so.

Please feel free to leave us your comments on programming, tracks, sessions and the speaking issue below.

American Idol Recap: The Finale

2009-05-20T18:15:44-05:00

Like Dancing with the Stars, a bit anti-climactic. Mostly because that original song was atrocious...for both contestants!

Adam vs. Kris. I saw one commentator call it Elvis vs. Pat Boone, but i think I'll call it the battle of the brunettes with big puppy dog eyes. Granted one of those guys wears a lot more guyliner than the other, but basically they're both sweet boys, don't you think? Underneath that goth facade, Adam's so polite, even after he gets done wailing some rock anthem. Kris is so humble, with a gosh-darn-it, lopsided grin. Seriously, wouldn't you take either of these boys on a church picnic?

What I wouldn't do, however, is make either of these nice, sweet boys sing a typical, atrocious, cliched American Idol "original" single for the finale. It's time for them to lay the originals to rest. (Unless they make the contestants write them, which at least would be interesting.) And because 3rd wheel 4th judge Kara DioGuardio co-wrote the damn thing, everyone had to pretend to like it (except Simon...who i really wish HAD judged the song!)

Is it possible that the memory of one of the best American Idol seasons ever, featuring loads of talented people, could really be forever tarnished by just how bad "No Boundaries" (the song from hell in question) was? I'm thinking, yeah, pretty much.

But it didn't start that way. It started with so much promise. Each finalist was going to sing one song of their choosing, one song chosen by the producer and the aformentioned dreck. Sadly, it has also become typical for finalists to reprise big performances from previous weeks at the final, instead of singing all new songs. At least the both made good choices for that.

1. Adam led off the evening with a reprise of his best performance of the season Tears for Fears' "Mad World" (the Gary Jules version.) I'm not sure there was any way for him to recapture the sense of wonder and surprise of his first rendition. I think it was smart of him not to repeat sitting in a chair the whole time, instead coming down the center staircase and standing. This performance will stand with Fantasia's performance of "Summertime" as probably the best two marriage of American Idol contestant and material ever on the show. Not sure what Simon's bug up his butt was, nor am I sure how they could call the round for Kris, even though he did perfectly well, just because this didn't have all the amazing oomph of the first performance. It was still haunting, vocally perfect and incredibly well done.

The producer, Simon Fuller, chose Sam Cooke's "A Change is Gonna Come" for Adam's second song. At first I was feeling a little wary of this choice of one of the civil rights movements' anthem from the 60s. Sung by a suburban white boy no less. But then I realized that Fuller is bloody brilliant. Adam's version of this song is destined to become the anthem of this century's civil rights movement: LGBT rights. And Fuller's company will own the recording, I'm sure. Brilliant. Oh, and by the way. Stellar vocal, deep connection to the song, moving rendition. You heard it here first: New life as an LGBT anthem.

Finally, Adam gamely attempted "No Boundaries"...and failed. First time, ever, that he's actually been pitchy. I don't even want to say much more. The song is insipid (as all the AI originals have been...and as Simon pointed out...but here's my question: Can't he fix that? I mean, seriously, is he the power behind AI or not?) The less said abot this, the better.

2. Kris's choice for himself was Bill Withers's "Ain't No Sunshine". Personally I would have gone with "Falling Slowly" or "Heartless" if he indeed was going to repeat something (as now seems requisite.) Last time he was forced to perform this on a little keyboard set out amongst the screaming girls, and it made for an akward rendition. being able to sit at the piano alone on stage was a much better choice. It seemed more heartfelt, more connected.

Producer Fuller chose Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" as his second song, and again I wondered about the choice for a nice white boy. Of course I also liked the anti-war political message here, and thought Kris did a decent job of making the song his own and appropriate for him. Two things helpd this back from being a great performance, though. Kris has his full-on Dave Matthews/Jason Mraz beatific (read: slightly high) smile on his face, which didn't really fit with the message at all. Also, the ending was dragged out, indulgent, and lame. Especially the big breath and pause before the final "on" in the final phrase "What's Going On". Don't do that. Ever. Nice arrangement, but nowhere near the connection Adam had going on.

Finally, Kris attempted "No Boundaries" and failed even more miserably than Adam did. The judges tried to say it was the wrong key, but no. It was the song. The awful, awful song.

So, what the bottom line here?

Um, Adam should win. I mean come on.

I'll say this again: It is totally true that it's a no-brainer that I would buy whatever album Kris might put out. I like his style and voice and song selection. It fits right into that DMB/Train portion of my record collection.

With Adam, I might by song by song. I have little interest in Aerosmith or other kinds of music he might do. I like his sensitive side far more than his wailing side...at least for my own music listening pleasure.

But from a pure talent and artistry perspective, Adam is the real deal and far more original and out-of-the-box than Kris, and he deserves to be rewarded.

Will he? I'm really not sure.

Big question: Who will Danny's fans vote for?

Last night Shawn Johnson won DWtS, and I believe it's because those who were voting for that good old boy, Ty, would rather vote for a spunky Olympic gymnast than the over-sexed Frenchman.

Will Danny's fans, especially the ones who love his church-choir-leading self, go for Adam or Kris.

It could easily be the latter. Which is why i think Kris has a slight edge.

Look, they'll both have careers, I'm not worried. I certainly hope Adam wins. I just easily see it going to Kris. And it's not such a big upset when you think it through.

but what did you think?

Dancing with the Stars Recap: The finale...strangely anti-climactic

2009-05-19T14:52:32-05:00

I loves me some Paso Doble, but that was too much even for me

I had high expectations for last night's Dancing with the Stars finale. The best three dancers actually made it to the end, and each of them has had moments this season when it was hard to tell apart from the pros. This should have been the best finale ever!

And yet it wasn't.

Maybe it's because Shawn, Melissa and Gilles may be the best finalists ever from a dancing skillz point of view, but they're not exactly the most vibrant personalities ever.

Maybe it's because they beat us into submission with a Paso Doble dance-off...which simply didn't provide the variety of having each couple dance different dances from one another.

Maybe it's because they're al so good I have no real vested interest in who wins. (And that may mean that tonight's American Idol finale will be a similar let-down!)

All I know is that I felt less than pumped up when it was all over. Is it only me?

Now that I'm done whining, let's dig in:

1. The Paso Doble Dance-off

I really enjoy the Paso Doble (probably because it reminds me of Strictly Ballroom, a movie I could watch a hundred times.) But seeing these three couples do the Paso Doble consecutively...to the same music, and with similar choreographic content? It got old. They were all really good, it just started to blend together. If I had to rank them, I'd rank Gilles and Cheryl first, Shawn and Mark second and Melissa and Tony third. Shawn continues to excel at being sharp and precise, almost perfectly executed, but her face in these serious dances can tend to be more impassive than passionate. Meanwhile Melissa has the most natural grace and talent, but she's also the least confident and most prone to small, noticeable errors. I thought there were enough such visible errors that it was shocking that any judge would give them a 10! Finally, Gilles and Cheryl were as accurate and sharp as Shawn and Mark, but with more emotion, more passion. So they win this round.

2. The Freestyle round

1. Shawn and Mark kicked it off in creepy costumes that were a cross between Cirque du Soleil, Jason from Halloween, and those creepy Eric Clapton acolytes in the movie "Tommy. Seriously...expressionless masks? Creepy. And they were wearing so much (sweats and those masks) that the moment when they stripped them off and started the dance for reals was a bit stressful. Oh no, will they make it in time? Is the mask getting caught in her hair? What is going on up there on the steps? Anyway, once they got started this was really fun, and I did indeed appreciate that they did some tricks, but also danced a lot. And she got to show how she's come pretty far in letting go and letting her personality show through. Very very good, fun and interesting.

2. Melissa and Tony did a number to "Gonna Make You Sweat", and just hearing those opening power chords I think we all expected the best of Melissa's Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders past to come to the fore. She didn't, however, actually seem to be in her element. She has always been at her best when asked to be graceful, elegant, frothy, lovely. She has amazing lines and extension. This routine, on the other hand, focused almost exclusively on lifts and throws. With little connective tissue in between. Each individual trick was impressive (although occasionally clunky) but as a whole, this didn't impress like it could have. I will, once again, question Tony's skill as a choreographer.

3. Gilles and Cheryl got the plum closing slot and nearly botched it with an awkward beginning. Melissa and Tony seemed to go form lift to lift without enough dancing in between. Gilles and Cheryl seemed to go from grope to grope without enough dancing in between. Seriously I felt like prudish Len, wanting to tell them to get a room. I just didn't think it was as hot as they were trying to make it, and that it might have been hotter if they weren't trying so hard.

If I had to rank the Freestyle round it would go Shawn and Mark, Gilles and Cheryl, Melissa and Tony.

So, what's the Bottom Line?

I think Melissa will come in 3rd.

After that, it gets harder to predict.

A woman has won the last two rounds (Kristi Yamaguchi and Brooke Burke) so it might be a man's turn, and Gilles has definitely got the heartthrob factor going for him.

However, Shawn has the wholesome and cute factor gong for her. Folks who kept Ty in the competition so long might find Shawn way more appealing than Gilles. Would Gilles and Chery's grope-fest turn *off* more people than it turned on?

I'm still going to guess that Gilles will win.

What do you think?

Announcing BlogHer Food '09: September 26 in San Francisco, CA

2009-05-14T18:33:12-05:00

Today we are thrilled to announce BlogHer Food '09, our second focused BlogHer event, after BlogHer Business. BlogHer Food will take place this September 26th at the beautiful St. Regis Hotel in San Francisco, CA and will bring FoodBloggers from every walk of life together...to meet, to eat, to learn, to eat, to share best practices, to eat, to blog...and to eat!

Our food blogging community has been clamoring for more foodie content since at least 2007, and we are thrilled to finally be able to launch this event to bring that content and much much more.

Some of you may know that I am not only not a foodie, but BlogHer's notorious vegan too. Never fear, we are assembling a crack advisory committee of FoodBloggers to make sure the content is as diverse and broad as the food blogging community itself, led by our core FoodBloggers here on BlogHer.com, Elise Bauer, Kalyn Denny, Alanna Kellogg and Sean Timberlake.

Here are the details we know now:

WHAT: BlogHer Food '09
WHEN: September 26, 2009, 9AM to 9PM
WHERE: St. Regis Hotel, San Francisco, CA
WHO: Anyone and everyone who is or wants to be part of the Food Blogosphere. BlogHer is open to all, and you don't have to be an advanced or long-time blogger to attend. There will be programming for all levels and for many different interests from within the food blogging community.
HOW MUCH: We maintain the $99 registration fee that we have had since 2005!
WHERE CAN I REGISTER?: Register here!

Here are the further details to come:

Early next week we will issue our usual Call for Ideas, and at that time we'll ask you what kind of topics you'd like to see covered, and who you would love to see cover them. BlogHer remains the conference the community built, and we will take your lead. We will also be adding more folks to the Advisory Committee, and we'll let you know who they are.

Also, BlogHer Food '09 will be add to our Conference web site next week. Watch that space as we add more details, sessions, speakers, sponsors etc. etc.

We hope you are excited to hear about BlogHer Food '09 as we have been in deciding to strike out into this new territory! And since it wouldn't be a BlogHer Conference without some blog bling, we hope you enjoy this first BlogHer Food '09 Blog Bling:

Best,
Elisa
for Elisa, Jory and Lisa, BlogHer Co-founders

American Idol recap: The Top 3 (and once again four judges means we're gypped!)

2009-05-13T15:55:58-05:00

I want three songs...there was only about 9 minutes of singing last night. But a half hour of yapping. And oh, BTW: This is the post in which I commit blasphemy.

OK, my reality TV recaps are a little bitter this week, I admit it. At least America did the right thing last night and finally eliminated Ty (see my Dancing with the Stars recap for that little amuse-bouche of bitter.) But will American Idol producers do the right thing and realize that lots of us do actually watch the show for the singing, not the yapping. I know, shocking. No one asked me, but if Simon left it would. not. matter. one. bit. (To me, IMHO, YMMV, etc. etc.)

So let's get to what little singing there was. The final three each sang one song chosen by a judge(s) and one of their own choice. No Clive Davis eyes this year. Only because they have FOUR judges, and are only branching into two songs each for the Top THREE, not the Top Four as they have in the past, they had to have Kara and Randy pick a song TOGETHER for Kris. LAME.

Grumble grumble.

OK, OK, I'm moving on with my life and starting the recap now, I swear:

1. Danny

a. First he sang the song Paula chose for him...Terence Trent D'Arby's "Dance Little Sister"
I will give Paula props for an unexpected song choice. great for Danny's soulful white boy rasp, but as I've said before: His vocals always shine, but his performance skillz do not always shine. I have never bought into his upbeat songs as much as his ballads. Mostly because he can't dance, it's true. He looks sort of awkward and, I don't know, older than his years. He just tends to look aimless when he's moving around...without purpose, and certainly without grace. This time he tried to come on with a little more sex appeal than he usually does, and that worked for me. The awkward boogying did not. (Oh, and side note: The physical muzzling of Paula also did not work for me. It makes me uncomfortable and feels extremely sexist...and last nights' lasted a particularly longtime until it really seemed quite over the line...is it just me?)

b. Then he sang his choice: "You Are So Beautiful" (and while Joe Cocker's is the most familiar version, I was glad that Randy let us know that Billy Preston actually wrote the song.) OK, so I'm going to say one snarky thing and then move on. The first line of the song, Danny did that annoying thing where singers put an "h" front of a vowel, so instead of singing "You are so beautiful to me", it sounded like he sang "You whore so beautiful to me" (OK, well really it sounded like "You har so beautiful to me", but "You whore so beautiful to me" is way funnier.) I thought he was going to do a Tom Waitsian revision of the song set in a dockside bar or something, but no...he reined in the inappropriate H-sounds for the rest of the performance.Let me be fair and say that the S.O. loved this and was absolutely shocked when I turned to him after the song and said, "Meh." "Meh?" he said, "That's what you have to say?" Yes. Meh. I didn't recognize the whole middle portion of the song and continue to think that enduring melodies are probably enduring because they're pretty great. Sure, embellish a little, play a little...but if you totally re-work the melody of a great song, don't expect me to love it. This theme will recur in this recap, don't you worry.

Bottom line: When Danny sticks to what he does best, he sounds great, but he's not wildly original, and I don't know about you, but I never spent any time wondering what would come from Danny next...i knew it would be some highly competent white boy soul singing. Still, I'm guessing he may have the most hardline, strong fan base out there. I think he should be at risk to go, but I worry he is not at all.

2. Kris

a. First he sang the song that Kara AND Randy chose for him: "Apologize" by One Republic. He played the piano. And he sang. And what everybody said is basically all you can say: It was a fine copycat verison, but there was not one thing special about it...and that is not what we have come to expect from Kris. Didn't make it his own at. all. Competent, indeed. Thrilling? No.

b. Then he sang his choice: Kanye West's "Heartless", but leaning more towards the Fray's cover version. Either way - this was the song that will put him into the final, if he makes it. I loved the arrangement, the vocals, the guitar. Now, he did have a little too much of the beatific Kris expression going on. He could have poured a little more of the emotion he had on "Falling Slowly" into it. But it was, indeed, as Randy said: #betterthankanye

Bottom line: I tend to think Kris is gone, but truth be told, occasionally inappropriate beatific expression or no, I'd rather have an Adam/Kris finale than any other combo. I like all three guys, but Adam and Kris have kept me most intrigued and most curious about what they'll do each week.

3. Adam

a. First he sang the song that Simon chose for him: U2's "One". If you want a master class on how to cover and update an already amazing song, please U2 inviting Mary J. Blige to sing "One" with them. Kick-ass, but faithful to the melody. Sounds absolutely current, without completely bastardizing the song. And then there was whatever abomination that was last night when Adam completely destroyed that song. I hated it. I loathed it. It was appalling. Usually when he plays with the melody it is so excellent because he does it with taste and discretion and restraint and creativity. This time around, after a somewhat promising and tender start, he just decided to pick whatever the highest note in the existing chords were and wail them out, quite indiscriminately and without any discernible actual melody in there. Adam has, quite often, not been my particular cup of tea. I'm fond of saying that. But usually I give him total props and admiration. This was a hot tranny mess (and I know I'm mixing my reality show references, but that's how bad it really was.) Shudder shudder. If he goes home it's because he offended U2 fans the world over!

b. The he sang his choice "Crying" by Aerosmith. Adam's judgement was just way off last night. If we was going to turn U2 from a heartwrenching ode to a hot wailing mess, then his second choice should have been something that evoked what he did with "Mad World". This was fine, but there was nothing surprising or captivating about it. It was Adam wailing. Again. With more of that disturbing tongue sticking out of his mouth on the high notes stuff. Totally unnecessary and annoying. yes, yes, he can sing. No doubt. But he's also an artist. Artistry was not what he chose to focus on last night.

Bottom line: Yes, I'll say it! I did not like Adam last night. Not one bit. Gasp! Blashpemy! And if he goes home (which I think is entirely possible) it will be because he decided to turn the amplifiers up to 11, instead of just doing what got him this far.

So, what the real bottom line?

The Top 2 should be Adam and Kris.

I think the Top 2 will be Adam and Danny.

But really, they are all three talented, and they all three had an up and down night. So I won't be surprise at any outcome.

But what did you think?

Dancing with the Stars Recap: The Top 4

2009-05-12T19:29:17-05:00

Oh, America, what have you done?

Much as I don't think Lil Kim was going to win, I'm still a little peeved that she's gone...particularly because it was to save Ty. I'm just going to get all the bitter out right now about that, so that I can try to be much nicer below. Because, dudes, Ty may have improved a lot, but it doesn't mean he's approached even how good the other three in the top four were on week two. He's still stiff as a board (although not, I'm sure, light as a feather.) And I'm actually kind of over his whole "macho" cowboy manly man packaging to, BTW. Because doesn't he pretty much look like a younger version of Ross Perot? OK, I think I'm going too far. Let's get on to the recap.

Each couple danced one ballroom and one Latin, just like last week, so here goes:

1. Melissa and Tony

Their ballroom dance was the Quick Step. This was fun and frothy and lovely. And certainly entertaining. I can see why it didn't get perfect 10s. If we're being picky, I didn't actually see all the heel leads all the time that Len has been harping on her about. And it didn't have quite the effervescence of the my favorite DWtS Quick Step of all time: Julianne and Apolo's form a few seasons back. disagree that her soul wasn't in it, or that she doesn't look like she's having "fun"...but would agree that that "fun" doesn't seem to spill over into "joy". It's a big problem on American Idol too, by the way, when singers can't seem to infuse their singing with joy...or perhaps "passion" is really the right word that applies to singing/dancing both of upbeat and melancholy/dramatic pieces.

Their Latin dance was the Cha Cha Cha. This was very nice and very precise and accurate. Again, I felt that it wasn't the most dynamic Cha Cha Cha I ever saw, and it makes me start to wonder about Tony and the choreography. How far has he actually gotten in this competition...what's the highest he's ever placed? Because I'm trying to remember if he's made it this far before, and if not: Could it be that he doesn't come up with the kind of snazzy "crowd-pleasing" steps that would get a couple this far regularly. (Bonus points for recognizing my movie reference!)

Bottom line: Well, I hope to GOD they are safe for the final, but I tend to think if Ty is going to knock out anyone else that he in no way deserves to knock out, it will once again be on of the women.

2. Gilles and Cheryl

Their ballroom dance was the Waltz. I get that this was simple and lovely and very very well-executed. But where was the criticism that at this stage of the competition they expect more content? Because they hand out that criticism pretty freely, usually, and I thought it was really true about this. There were no great little details in this (as opposed to some of the other routines.) Yes, great to perfectly execute, but when it's so simple, is it still a 10? I didn't get the judges' raves, in other words. Or lack of complaints about lack of content.

Their Latin dance was the Salsa. This was really very good...better than their waltz, I thought. And yes, excellent hip action from Gilles :) Although, I might not have gone so far as Bruno did to say "Lil Kim is alive and well, and she's hiding in your pants!" Um, OK, hope his wife doesn't mind!

Bottom line: Oh, Gilles is beyond safe. And to think people thought his lack of fan base in the US would hurt him. You know why it didn't? Because he's actually also really good.

3. Shawn and Mark

Their ballroom dance was the Argentine Tango

See, this had the detail that Gilles and Cheryl's Waltz did not. Sure, you could say the Tango is a more intricate dance, but they had lots of quality and small details even when they were in the transition portions of the routine. As always, lots of difficulty. And as always, lots of sharpness and precision. I thought this deserved every 10 it got.

Their Latin dance was the Jive. I actually didn't love this for two reasons. She seemed a bit behind the beat at times...worse as it progressed and at the very fastest parts. And Mark continues to be annoyingly over-expressive. And you know I don't say that very often. Finally, I also felt this routine didn't have enough *dancing*, which I guess is exactly what Len meant when he said he wanted to see less jumping about and more steps.

Bottom line: LIke I said above: If America is CRAZY, and keeps Ty...it will be a woman who suffers. I hope it's not Shawn.

4. Ty and Chelsie

Their ballroom dance was the Viennese Waltz. Wow, this was really bad...worse than I expected it would be when it started. But his nerves seemed to get to him and by the end? Well, let's just say Chelsie is lucky he did not drop her on her ass during one of the spins. Look, he totally has improved. But his very best is never going to get past the level most people reach on week 3 or 4. He's plodding and stiff and has no grace or fluidity to his movements. Good posture should only carry one so far. In a dancing competition.

Their Latin dance was the Samba. So, you know, not a total joke at all. Which is NOT THE CRITIQUE YOU WANT TO GIVE DURING THE SEMI-FINALS!!!!! OK, I guess I didn't get all my bitter out up above. 'nuff said.

Bottom line: Do you even need to ask?

I think it will be Ty and Melissa in the Bottom 2, and I certainly think Ty can and should go home. Will he? Let's hope so. Enough is enough. You've had your fun, America, and I'm sure it was hard to warm to rapper/felon Lil Kim...I'm proud you did as much as you did. But now you've got a Dallas Coboy cheerleader, a gold-medalist and a fine, fine Frenchman. Isn't that enough for you? Isn't it!!??

But what did you think? :)

Just In Time Blogging: The American Idol Recap: The Top 4 Rock Out!

2009-05-06T19:17:53-05:00

Well, at this point, can I just say I like them all, but I loves me some Adam Lambert? And I really really would rather see two solos from each of these contestants than those silly duets.

The biggest down side to four judges? Too much talking, not enough singing. By the point of being to the Top 5 in past years, they were singing two songs apiece, but last week we only got one.

And this week, instead of two solos apiece, we got one solo apiece and a couple of duets. And the duets idea? I say can it. Don't care. How about you?

1. Adam sang Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love"

Yeah, well, vocally he's about the only guy I can think of that could take on Robert Plant's mantle. Jeff Buckley had the range but was a bit too ethereal, not quite powerful and earthily sensual enough. Adam had the power thing going in spades, but he could have been a little more sensual and a little less fierce. That is about my only criticism. This one was my cup of tea.

2. Allison sang Janis Joplin's "Crybaby"

This was supposed to be Allison's week, and in my mind: She did not disappoint. I actually don't know what Randy/Kara's problems were, except for the fact that they weren't as familiar with this Joplin song as with others. The song did absolutely have levels. She did have moments when she brought it down. And she showed great control and command...not just for her age, but for any age. I thought this was one of her best performances. And a terrific vocal.

3. Kris and Danny sang a duet of Styx's "Renegade"

Is it just me or did Danny look totally disengaged at the beginning of this? And then didn't he go all wacky and over-the-top at the end? Meanwhile Kris kind of beatifically did his thing in a weird Kris-like vacuum. This sounded pitchy. i did not like this. At all. Kind of a fun, unusual song choice, but that was about the only positive.

4. Kris sang the Beatles' Come Together

OK, that weird break aside, where he dropped the melody by an octave and got completely lost amongst he band and backing vocals? Let's forget that. The rest of it was nice. He's very nice. He's a talented guy with a great voice. But this didn't really show him off to great advantage. In offensive, but not impactful.

5. Danny sang Aerosmith's "Dream On"

Can I just remind Kara that "Dream On " is in fact "early Aerosmith"? Seriously, that was a bizarre incorrect reference. OK, to Danny. Sounds like he had a much better rehearsal than performance. I wouldn't agree with Slash that it's ALL about the last note, but that is a big moment. And it was way out of control. And not in a good way. Also, can he please stop saying his oooo vowels like Gomer Pyle. k thx bai. Still, I thought for most of this he rocked it. It was nice to see him go this direction, and I went along for the ride.

5. Adam and Allison sang Foghat's "Slow Ride"

Of course this sounded way better on Adam, being higher in his range and letting him wail, than it did on Allison, where most of it was somewhat low in her range. Together they made for a great pair though. So much more well-aligned than Kris and Danny. But Adam? please put your tongue back in your mouth. k thx bai.

Bottom line: I'm going to guess that the Bottom 2 will and should be Kris and Allison.

As for who goes home? I'm going to guess Allison. I think Kris had a worse night, but I think he clearly has a fan base that she might not, and it will be clear he is at risk, so his fans will get to work.

But what did you think?

Announcing the BlogHer '09 International Activist BlogHer Scholarship Winners!

2009-05-05T16:36:13-05:00

Back in December we announced the BlogHer '09 International Activist BlogHer scholarship program and invited you to submit yourself or your favorite international activist BlogHer for consideration for this scholarship.

Dozens of submissions rolled in, and our amazing Scholarship Selection Committee (Julie Godar, Jenifer Scharpen, Denise Tanton, Kim Pearson, Georgia Popplewell and Nelly Yusupova) helped us narrow it down to five scholarship winners. We were looking for sites that were, in fact, bloggy, and for those that had a specific activist intent. The five selections certainly do not represent every nominee that garnered votes from our committee...there were many, many worthy submissions. But they do represent those submissions that garnered the most votes and support from the committee.

While the selection was made almost three months ago, it has taken until today for all five to get their visas approved for travel to the conference, so I am happy to introduce you now to our BlogHer '09 International Activist Blogger Scholarship Recipients!

Annie Zaidi, India, publisher at http://www.anniezaidi.com

Blog Mission: The self-stated mission of this blog is "to use writing to force people to rethink positions or examine established ideas, and to break stereotypes about certain communities or groups based on gender, religion or race. It takes, by and large, a non-judgmental stance on most issues, and it seeks to raise questions as part of a genuine attempt at understanding human society and its structures. This is a crucial aspect of journalism, but an aspect that is increasingly overshadowed by the necessity of creating drama around each piece of news, and the mad scramble for exclusivity and one-upmanship between media organisations."

Cristina Quisbert, Bolivia, publisher at http://boliviaon.blogspot.com

Blog Mission: According to Cristina's nominator: "The mission of this blog is to strive to show indigenous communities as a source of pride. There are a lot of misconceptions about indigenous people, and Cristina shows a more personal side and uses her own voice to represent other members of indigenous communities in the Bolivian Altiplano. Cristina is a bridge blogger, allowing fellow Bolivians who may not identify themselves as a member of an indgenous community, to interact and learn about indigenous communities in another region of the country. By also writing a blog in English, she is able to reach a much wider audience and show another side of life in El Alto, Bolivia."

~~Esra'a Al Shafei, Bahrain~~, publisher at www.mideastyouth.com

UPDATE 05/14/09: We are sorry to report that Esra'a will be unable to attend this year after all. No need to worry about her: it is due to another wonderful opportunity that has arisen for Esra'a. Of course, we are disappointed, but we hope perhaps she can come next year instead. In the meantime, please do check out her work.

Pilirani Semu-Banda, Malawi, publisher at http://pilirani.blogspot.com

Blog Mission: According to Pilirani's nominator, this blog's mission is: "To bring awareness and change to Malawi's social and economical problems. Some development projects have been kick-started based on stories published on the blog, including the improvement of monitoring programs to get rid of child labour in the tobacco industry and an increase of treatment to women suffering from fistula."

Toyin Ajao-Dawodu, Nigeria, publisher at http://genderandme.blogspot.com

Blog Mission: The self-stated mission of this blog is "To provoke more thorough examination and investigation of gender and equality issues. She also writes a weekly series highlighting other women around the globe who are committed to helping women."

We are proud to bring each of these women to BlogHer '09 and to provide a forum for them to share their work during the conference.

We are convinced that we can all learn practical advice about affecting social change via blog from our scholarship winners...and we can all walk away inspired by their courage, their perseverance, and their accomplishments!

Congratulations Annie, Cristina, Esra'a, Pilirani and Toyin!

Elisa
on behalf of Elisa, Jory and Lisa, BlogHer Co-founders

Dancing with the Stars Recap: The Top 5 Tackle Two Dances

2009-05-05T10:50:28-05:00

OK, America you had your fun, but seriously? We're down to what they call the "quarterfinals", and the next step is the Final Four. With four excellent dancers and one guy that tries real hard still left in the competition, I gotta say: You can like Ty. You can admire how far he's come. You can find it not-at-all-creepy to see him gyrating his pelvis right at his wife's face-level in front of a cheering crowd. but can you really say you want him to beat out the other four to keep on dancing?

OK, now that I got that out of my system, let's get started:

Each couple had to do one ballroom dance and one Latin dance last night. Am I the only one confused that a Paso Doble is a Latin dance, while the Tango is a ballroom dance? Confusion aside, doing one from each kind of dance was bound to put the contestants' strengths and weaknesses on full display all in one night.

1. Shawn and Mark

First they danced the Quick Step. I was actually a little worried about Shawn on this one, because if I'd fault her on anything it would be on not always being exactly on beat. She does sometimes seem to be a milli-step behind Mark. Not this time, though. She was light on her feet and seemed to move with lightning speed. If she had a weakness it was that she is not wildly expressive facially. So, I have a message for her partner Mark: Mark, when you first came on the show, I didn't like you because you seemed like a showboater. You went over the top on your moves and your expressions...and it didn't actually help your star, it hurt them by making it more obvious where they lacked. So it was last night. Calm your face the frak down, m'kay!? Shawn's strength is not her facial expressiveness, and you over-compensating by mugging and making huge faces does. not. help. OK, moving on.

For their Latin, they danced the Paso Doble. Again, she was right on it...sharp, fast, no sign of being behind the beat. Again, I have only one criticism. Yes, she managed to avoid smiling or giggling or letting her bubbliness peek through, but what we got instead was a very stoic, impassive expression. Serious, yes. Dynamic, no.

Still, with every below the face, she proved she belongs in the Final Four.

2. Ty and Chelsie

First they danced the Argentine Tango. Look, Ty did a respectable job...for the early weeks of the competition. I totally admit he didn't come in with the skill, grace, natural talent or musical background of the rest of the four competitors. But it's certainly not their fault they were cast in the show with those advantages. We can tell the producers we don't like ringers, but in the end, it should be about who does a better job. Ty had good posture and surprisingly good sharpness, but he's always going to be the guy stomping about the dance floor, not stepping. And the minute he's out of hold and has to extend his arms, you see how his very proper, upright posture gets taken too far...making him look stiff and robotic. Respect what he has accomplished, but come ON.

For their Latin, they danced the Rumba. Again, cute effort, truly. I appreciate he finally got his hips moving (although I don't so much appreciate the kind of manly-man, bordering on homophobic, attitude that always accompanies any clip of these kind of guys learning to loosen up). Again. Come ON. If another couple goes home, it's not fair. (And did anyone else feel like averting their eyes while he gyrated his hips in front of Jewel?)

I think it's clear that Ty does not belong in the Final Four.

3. Lil Kim and Derek

First they danced the Waltz. Although Lil Kim came out of the gate strong, surprising everyone with her skill and grace, I would not say she is closing well. I don't see a ton of progress. She seems about the same level of skill she's been since the beginning. But also the same level of intermittent awkwardness or hesitation. If she had really worked through those gawky moments over the course of the show, I think she'd have had a shot at winning...because her story is also one of "who'd a thunk?" But as it is, I think she is the most likely to be sacrificed on the altar of Ty being inexplicably charming to a lot of people. This Waltz was actually quite difficult because Derek played a lot with the rhythms within the Waltz time constraint. It wasn't just ONE-two-three, ONE-two-three. So while I didn't see the mis-steps that one of the judges pointed out, I did see an occasional bit of physical stuttering or hesitancy. On the plus side there were TONS of spins, and there's no reason Lil Kim would be good at those (unlike either a gymnast or a former ballet dancer) so I gots to give her props on her mad spinning skillz!

For their Latin, they danced the Salsa. And I think our expectations were set way too high. This was actually better when they were dancing together in hold...I think Lil Kim has better balance and stability when she can rely on her partner. Some of her solo stuff just seemed awkward. There were good tricks and some high quality moves, but I also saw mis-steps. Bottom line was that this was built up to be in her wheelhouse, so it seemed disappointing.

Lil Kim deserves to be in the Final Four, but I think she is most at risk to lose to Ty's inexplicable charm.

4. Gilles and Cheryl

First they danced the Foxtrot. It was terrific. Gilles' face occasionally gets frozen into position, but other than that minor critique (similar to my only minor critique for Shawn) this was entertaining and well-executed. It didn't seem like the most difficult Foxtro I had ever seen, but the style was terrific.

For their Latin, they danced the Rumba. And I'm so glad that the judges were as confused by his Michael Jackson moonwalking in his solo as I was. It was truly bizarre. I also agreed that the rolling about on the floor was awkward and more messy than sexy. The rest of it was very nice, but a bad beginning and end pretty much mars one's memory of the entire thing!

It's obvious that Gilles belongs in the Final Four.

5. Melissa and Tony

First they danced the Viennese Waltz. I wouldn't say it was the most interesting Waltz I've ever seen, for two reasons: 1. There was not a lot of expressiveness or chemistry between the two. 2. Tony relied on way too many developes in the choreography. (That's where she did those high, slow kicks.) Yes, she's great of them and you gotta take advantage, but they were in there every other phrase. Show me something else. Find another way to leverage her flexibility.

For their Latin, the danced the Samba. This was mostly terrific, but I do have two small comments: 1. Her hips don't actually move that much...she's great at loosening up her upper body, but her lower body still seems a bit more balletic than frenetic! 2. I felt they got out of synch with one another towards the end. Just a tiny bit. It really is nit-picking when it comes to most of these contestants at this stage.

So yes, Melissa deserves to be in the Final Four.

Bottom line: I think it will be Lil Kim and Ty in the Bottom 2, and I HOPE Ty says adios tonight.

But what did you think?

American Idol Recap: The Top 5 sing standards! No, they sing Rat Pack songs! No, Jamie Foxx is an R&B hitmaker!

2009-04-29T18:59:23-05:00

Amidst mixed messages the Idols find the challenge in singing simple standards

They don't do a Standards or Big Band theme every year on American Idol, but I like it when they do. Standards seem simple, but it's deceptive. We have gotten so used to power wailing pop ballads that we don't notice how little ability to sustain such wailing requires. We don't even notice as modern-day singers take a breath every other word, or in the middle of words. They can hold single notes for a long time, or do runs for a while, but they often can't sing a sustained phrase. We don't have a chance to hear what their voice sounds like just hitting a note and staying on it. Or singing a whole sentence and making sense of it. We've lost the appreciation for dynamics and vibrato control. And sometimes, in all that wailing, we also lose the meaning. Of every. single. word.

Singing standards provides the perfect opportunity.

And while the Top 5 acquitted themselves admirably in general...we certainly saw and heard where they could use some work.

Where you ask? Well, let's dig in.

1. Kris kicked it off singing one of my very favorites: "Just the Way You Look Tonight"

Both Bennett and Sinatra had big hits with this, the former as a balladeer, the latter as a swingster. Given a choice I'll take the former any day. Kris actually tried to split the difference, starting out with a tender opening and then kicking into the swing temp halfway through. Similar to when Anoop took the half and half approach to Dim all the Lights, I didn't think switching it up really served Kris. He sounded too needy as a balladeer and too wanna-be as a hipster. Despite those lovely puppy dog eyes, I really didn't buy either part of the song. Don't get me wrong: Kris can sing, and Kris has a basic, sincere approach. This wasn't painful or bad...it just didn't drive me wild. he seemed a pale version of both the big guys he was emulating, and I think he could have made a stronger impression if he had picked an approach and committed 100% to it.

2. Allison sang "Someone to Watch Over Me"

A Gershwin classic that Linda Ronstadt revived, Someone To Watch Over Me is sweet, but a bit over-done, I think. I thought it was glaringly obvious in this song that Allison has an amazing voice and pretty much no actual technique. She is naturally gifted, which is awesome, but this girl couldn't sing more than three words in a row without a breath. Obviously she has enough lung power to hit some amazing big notes...as Randy would say, "she can really blow", but not being able to use that same power to make it through an entire phrase of lyrics? Sorry, it bothers me. I thought Allison looked lovely, and sounded great at those points when she was really wailing, but I didn't think she had the finesse on the verses. And I'm worried about her.

3. Matt sang "My Funny Valentine"

I have to say I was shocked Simon loved this. I totally acknowledge that Matt can sing, but this had an erratic, nervous quality that made me very uncomfortable. I agree completely with randy that he was sometimes pitchy and that some of the runs were quite good, while others just didn't seem to fit. I agreed with Kara that it didn't hang together. Bottom line, I thought it was pretty terrible, actually.

4. Danny sang "Come Rain or Come Shine"

Danny has a really really bad habit: He sings perfectly nicely from the start, but with a weird kind of expressionless lack of energy. Then at about the mid-point he gets possessed by a singing demon and suddenly the energy pops in; he's all over the place, and he's strutting his stuff. This isn't the first week I've remarked upon that, but this week was perhaps the most glaring example yet. I'm actually not talking about volume, for example, one can have quiet intensity, after all. I'm talking about that fire inside. He needs to have it form note one, not from the middle of the song.

5. Adam sang "Feeling Good"

This is an interesting song, written for the Broadway musical "Roar of the Greasepaint, Smell of the Crowd" by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse. The song was actually popularized by Nina Simone in the 60s and more recently by Michael Buble. So, let's just say it has a theatrical background to begin with, unaided by Adam's natural theatrics. As always: A great vocal. Kara actually had a pretty funny comment, calling Adam "sleazy and superb". I think I agree on both counts! You also already know I'm not a fan of the tongue sticking out when singing a big note, but it's hard to argue with the results! And yes, he strutted down that stairway like a pompadoured peacock! I always have the same comment about Adam: Doesn't matter if it's my personal cup of tea or not...he is another level above any of these other contestants.

Bottom Line:

I think the Bottom 2 will clearly be Matt and Allison. I think they deserve to be. And I think Matt deserves to go home. I'm kinda hoping that's the way America goes too.

But how about you?