Casey Abrams Works His 'American Idol' Magic On 'I Put A Spell On You'

Judges want 'more, more, more!' of the unique contestant after Screamin' Jay Hawkins cover.
By Kara Warner

Casey Abrams performs on "American Idol" Tuesday
Photo: FOX

For some "American Idol" fans, the competition doesn't really enter must-watch territory until the decision-making is turned over to the teeming masses and their texting, phone-calling and — new this year — online-voting power. Luckily for those holdouts, that portion of the show began Tuesday (March 1), when the top 12 guys took the stage and performed in front of a live audience for the first time this season.

As is custom with "Idol" performance nights, there were several questionable song choices. (We're looking at you, Jordan Dorsey, who unsuccessfully channeled Usher via "OMG," and Tim Halperin doing a lackluster cover of Rob Thomas' "Come on Over.") There were also predictable ones, namely country crooner Scotty McCreery sticking to what he knows with "Letters From Home" and Adam Lambert wannabe James Durbin, who performed the first-ever Judas Priest song on the show.

Thank goodness, then, for the evening's final performer, Casey Abrams, and his showstopping, passionate performance of the Screamin' Jay Hawkins' classic "I Put a Spell on You."

Abrams — who is leading the dudes in our top 24 online poll and has wowed the judges previously with his style and unique instruments — brought down the house and the audience to its feet.

"That's as good as it gets," Steven Tyler told Abrams. "Crazy good."

"You're sexy, Casey," Jennifer Lopez added. "Do you know that? Somebody wants it bad," she said of Abrams' obvious dedication to remain in the competition.

"You came out with hunger and fire, and we just ate it all up," she said.

Randy Jackson agreed, commenting on the way Abrams transformed himself to embody the spirit of Hawkins' historic tune.

"You are really that one," Jackson said. "You're so different, so unique, I love it, I applaud it. More, more, more!"

What did you think of Abrams' performance? Do you want more, more, more? Tell us in the comments!

Don't miss "Idol Party Live" at 10 p.m. Thursday on MTV.com, following the "American Idol" results show, for analysis, celebrity guests and even some karaoke. In the meantime, get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

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Lil' Kim Video Calls Nicki Minaj A 'Carbon Copy'

Catch Lil' Kim on 'RapFix Live' Thursday at 4 p.m. ET on MTV.com.
By D.L. Chandler

Lil' Kim
Photo: Eugene Gologursky/ WireImage

The battle of the Barbies continues: Lil' Kim and her open war on reigning queen of hip-hop Nicki Minaj has not lost a bit of steam after last week's release of a video in which the former Junior M.A.F.I.A. vet continues to discredit the Young Money starlet.

Before she graces the MTV studios Thursday for "RapFix Live," the Brooklyn rap diva isn't slowing down her relentless attacks on Nicki. The 15-minute "Carbon Copy," called "a documentary exposé about crazed fans with record deals," shows some of the many incarnations of Kim's image over the course of her 17-year career and how Minaj seemingly borrowed some of the looks as her own.

The 35-year-old Kim claims Minaj has been disrespectful after hearing her say during a radio interview that veteran female rappers need to move aside. Using those comments as inspiration, the rapper born Kimberly Jones has taken up a crusade that has morphed into an entire mixtape project devoted to dismantling the Nicki Minaj machine. Kim reported that her Black Friday sold 113,000 copies in 28 hours after she released it February 14, but because she sold it herself using PayPal, there is no way to confirm that number.

The cover of Black Friday shows Kim, bloody sword in hand, next to a pink-haired severed head and a dismembered body wearing the same outfit as Nicki on her Pink Friday cover. Before the mixtape's release, Kim leaked "Pissin' On Em" (to the tune of Nicki's "Did It On Em"), which accuses Minaj of being a "Lil' Kim clone."

And the war of words hasn't been confined to studio recordings: Kim also took to airing her grievances in print via a recent interview with Rap-Up. "People gotta know that I'm not stupid, but I'm having fun. I'm protecting my brand and my empire at this moment," she said. She added, "If this situation is deeper than what everybody would like to think it is, then it will all come to light. I'm a strong believer in how I conducted my strategy with this whole situation."

This isn't Kim's first foray into the circus of hip-hop beefs. The "Get Money" MC is still in somewhat of a feud with fellow Brooklyn artist Foxy Brown, who has been largely inactive aside from a track aimed at Kim released earlier this year. While she hasn't injected herself into the squabble between Kim and Nicki, Foxy has openly sided with her Trinidadian peer Minaj.

Catch Lil' Kim on "RapFix Live" this Thursday at 4 p.m. ET on MTV.com.

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Katie and Suri's Cupcake Quest

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"Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" Release: 10th Anniversary of 9/11 World Trade Center Attacks

 

Hanks and Bullock Headline the Cast under the Direction of Stephen Daldry

Cameras Roll on “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” as It Heads from the Page to the Big Screen

 

Principal photography is underway on Warner Bros. Pictures’ feature film adaptation of Jonathan Safran Foer’s acclaimed novel “Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close.” The film stars Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks, and is being directed by Stephen Daldry (“The Reader,” “The Hours”) and produced by Scott Rudin (“The Social Network,” “True Grit”).

“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” also stars Thomas Horn, making his acting debut as 11-year-old Oskar Schell, an exceptional child with an off-kilter world view and a daunting mission ahead of him.
 

Oskar is convinced that his father (Hanks), who died in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, has left a final message for him hidden somewhere in the city. Feeling disconnected from his grieving mother (Bullock) and driven by a relentlessly active mind that refuses to believe in things that can’t be observed, Oskar begins searching New York City for the lock that fits a mysterious key he found in his father’s closet. His journey through the five boroughs takes him beyond his own loss to a greater understanding of the observable world around him.

Shooting entirely in New York, Daldry directs the film from a screenplay by Eric Roth (“Forrest Gump,” “The Insider”). Celia Costas (“Doubt,” “Closer”) serves as executive producer with Mark Roybal (“Doubt”) and Nora Skinner (“The Reader”).

Also starring in the film are James Gandolfini as Ron, a new friend of Oskar’s mom; Zoe Caldwell as the boy’s grandmother; Max von Sydow as the man renting a room from Oskar’s grandmother, who befriends Oskar and accompanies him on his quest; and Viola Davis and Jeffrey Wright as a couple whose own tenuous relationship has a profound effect on Oskar.

The behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Chris Menges (“The Mission,” “The Killing Fields”); production designer K.K. Barrett (“Where the Wild Things Are”); and costume designer Ann Roth (“The English Patient”).

 

“Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close” is currently scheduled for release in 2011 and will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

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Report says Mel Gibson will face domestic violence charges while Oksana Grigorieva will not be charged with extortion

[HMG Celebrity News] – After one of the longest and most deliberately public feuds in recent memory sources say Mel Gibson is about to be charged with domestic violence for allegedly assaulting former girlfriend Oksana Grigorieva. But she will not be charged with trying to extort him. Insiders close to the case tell TMZ those [...]

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Jennifer Lawrence: Vanity Fair Oscar Party Girl

Wrapping up her Academy Award evening, Jennifer Lawrence was spotted at the Vanity Fair Oscar party last night (February 27).

The ?Winter?s Bone? babe had all the boys drooling in her cleavage-baring red dress as she arrived at the Sunset Tower hotel in West Hollywood.

As for her upcoming movie ?X-Men: First Class,? Jennifer shared that she had a great time working on the project.

Miss Lawrence explained, "It was a really enjoyable shoot. The girls who did my make-up are my best friends in the world now."

Source: http://celebrity-gossip.net/jennifer-lawrence/jennifer-lawrence-vanity-fair-oscar-party-girl-481914

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Jane Russell has died (June 21, 1921 ? February 28, 2011)

(HMG Celebrity News) – Hollywood’s leading sex symbol of the 1940s and 1950s, Jane Russell has died at her home in Santa Maria, Calif. at the age of 89, of a respiratory-related illness. After being signed to a seven-year contract by film mogul Howard Hughes in 1940, Russell made her motion picture debut in The [...]

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