Ruben Studdard News

According to a recent Tweet from pop star Lady Gaga, the singer will appear on the hit television show 'American Idol' on May 5th. The tweet read 'See you on American Idol. May 5th, Little Monsters.'

The contestants stepped out of their comfort zone tonight on a week featuring pure crooning, something surprisingly lacking from 'Idol' this season. Stage and screen star Harry Connick, Jr. mentored the contestants on the songs of Frank Sinatra, even going so far as to create the arrangements and orchestrations for each song, as well as joining the singers on stage as the pianist. It's nice to see a mentor who put such dedication into his work on 'Idol,' though it is not the least bit surprising that this dedication came from Connick, Jr., always the consummate musician as well as performer.

The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park ends its Marx Theatre season with the music of jazz great Fats Waller in AIN'T MISBEHAVIN'. This supercharged sizzle of song and dance will run April 30 through May 29 in the Robert S. Marx Theatre.

When 'Idol' gets down to the top six, each week is a shocker. With so few contestants left, it is nearly impossible to predict who will head home each week and, at this point in the competition, it really feels as though it's anyone's game. Tonight featured a slew of performances and was the first real reminder of how close we are to finding a winner of 'American Idol' season nine.

Tonight, 'Idol' saw the return of Shania Twain, who joined the audition process in Chicago, as the contestants sang from her vast catalog of songs. Twain is primarily a country artist, which resulted in a marked change for some of the contestants. The majority of the themes thus far have fit nicely into the pop genre and, while Twain's songs are definitely pop, the country influence allowed us to see the versatility of the performers as they tackled a new challenge.

Tonight, 'American Idol' presented a special episode, benefitting 'Idol Gives Back,' the historic Emmy Award-winning television event and music celebration, that has raised more than $140 million to benefit charities around the world and across the United States. Tonight, 'Idol' saluted a number of charities, including Feeding America, Save the Children, the United Nations Foundation, the Elton John Aids Foundation, and Idol Aid.

Big band sound transforms the Lincoln Theatre into a Duke Ellington jazz club as Arena Stage presents Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies, choreographed by and starring Maurice Hines (Broadway's Sophisticated Ladies and Uptown... It's Hot!) with direction by Charles Randolph-Wright (Arena's Guys and Dolls and Blue).

The top seven contestants of 'American Idol' kicked off the week with a set of inspirational songs led by the incomparable Alicia Keys. Keys was brought in due to her talent as well as her charity involvement, specifically working with families suffering from HIV and AIDS, as the show celebrates 'Idol Gives Back' this week. Some of the performances were perfect for the theme, while other lacked inspiration and felt as though they could have been performed any other week. As the competition heats up, the contestants will have to give standout performances weekly, and some of them failed to grow this week, while others had fantastic showings.

According to a recent tweet from pop star Christina Aguilera, the singer will appear on season finale of hit television show 'American Idol' on May 26th.

After much anticipation and speculation, Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard confirmed plans to tour North America. Kicking off July 23, 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina, Clay and Ruben will bring their 'Timeless' tour to 17 cities including appearances at famed venues such as New York's Hammerstein Ballroom, Club Nokia in Los Angeles, and Pennsylvania's American Music Theater. This is the first time the two artists will tour together.

According to a recent Tweet from pop star Lady Gaga, the singer will appear on the hit television show 'American Idol' on May 5th. The tweet read 'See you on American Idol. May 5th, Little Monsters.'

"Idol" lost two of its contestants tonight, a consequence of Michael Lynche receiving the judges save last week. After receiving more than 34 million votes, two contestants were voted off, bringing the number down to seven. It was a tough night, as some of the audience favorites went home, but, the remaining contestants are a very solid group that is chock full of talent.

The Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park ends its Marx Theatre season with the music of jazz great Fats Waller in AIN'T MISBEHAVIN'. This supercharged sizzle of song and dance will run April 30 through May 29 in the Robert S. Marx Theatre.

Tonight, 'Idol' saluted one of the greatest performers of all time, Elvis Presley. Tonight separated out the true performers, as Elvis is the epitome of stage presence. Thankfully, many of the performers were able to live up to his legacy and give great performances. Last season's runner up, Adam Lambert, was aptly chosen to coach this week and, out of all the coaches so far, seemed to have the most constructive criticisms for the contestants. He was almost always spot on with his suggestions and really helped up the ante for tonight's performances.

This week, former AMERICAN IDOL finalists from all around the country, including Amy Adams, Bo Bice, Didi Benami, Lacey Brown, Kevin Covais, Bucky Covington, Diana DeGarmo, Julia DeMato, Melinda Doolittle, Chikezie, Gina Glocksen, Danny Gokey, Mikalah Gordon, RJ Helton, David Hernandez, Mandisa, Michael Johns, LaKisha Jones, Megan Joy, Blake Lewis, Kimberley Locke, LaToya London, Melissa McGhee, Jorge Nunez, Amanda Overmyer, Brandon Rogers, Phil Stacey, Ruben Studdard, Elliott Yamin and Ace Young, will volunteer to help support Feeding America's local food banks and IDOL GIVES BACK, which airs Wednesday, April 21 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX.

Big band sound transforms the Lincoln Theatre into a Duke Ellington jazz club as Arena Stage presents Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies, choreographed by and starring Maurice Hines (Broadway's Sophisticated Ladies and Uptown... It's Hot!) with direction by Charles Randolph-Wright (Arena's Guys and Dolls and Blue).

In a shocking turn of events, tonight featured the first of the top six gentlemen to head home. Each of the three ladies were called up first, eventually learning that they were each safe on the night. After that, the night was a complete shocker, ending on a sad note for one of the contestants.

Tonight, the 'Idol' contestants were given the task of taking on the rather extensive Lennon/McCartney songbook. Given the sheer number of tunes to select from and the vast differences in types of songs, it would seem each contestant should have been able to find a song that would suit both their voice and personality. Many of the contestants, thankfully, did so, giving one of the best shows so far this year. As the competition heats up, it's interesting to see the bar set to a new level each week , although, each week it also becomes all the more clear who doesn't belong.

After much anticipation and speculation, Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard confirmed today plans to tour North America. Kicking off July 23, 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina, Clay and Ruben will bring their 'Timeless' tour to 17 cities including appearances at famed venues such as New York's Hammerstein Ballroom, LA Nokia Live in Los Angeles, and Pennsylvania's American Music Theater. This is the first time the two artists will tour together.

Finalist Didi Benami was eliminated tonight on AMERICAN IDOL after she received the fewest of America's votes. On Tuesday's performance show, the Top 10 performed R&B/Soul songs, and Benami, 23, from Knoxville, TN, sang 'What Becomes of the Broken Hearted.' In addition, this week's mentor, Usher, performed 'OMG' with Will.i.am, Diddy and Dirty Money had the audience on its feet with 'Hello, Good Morning' and Ruben Studdard sang his latest hit, 'Don't Make ‘Em Like U No More.' On Tuesday, April 6 (8:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed), the Top 9 finalists -Crystal Bowersox, Lee DeWyze, Andrew Garcia, Casey James, Aaron Kelly, Michael Lynche, Siobhan Magnus, Katie Stevens and Tim Urban - will perform selections from the legendary songbook of John Lennon and Paul McCartney.