My visit to the Meredith Vieira Show

Katie September 22, 2015 0 Comments

There are two items that are legitimately on my bucket list (along with a few others, but if you’ve been reading this site for a while you know I like to add things sometimes once they’ve happened just to cross them off) and those are: Meet every NSYNC member (1 down, 5 to go) and See every NYC TV show live. (I don’t have a count for this since the shows are always swapping out, but I know I’ve been to about a dozen.)

So when Lance Bass announced he was going to be moving to NYC to be on the panel of the Meredith Vieira show, Christine and I immediately decided we’d try for tickets.  She is a teacher, so she had last Monday off.  I took the day off, we boarded an early train to the city and hoped for the best.

We were told lines would begin forming at 8:15 but were already formed when we got there. They don’t let you get in line until your entire party is present – even if one member is just slower getting to the line and on her way!  It wasn’t too long before they started checking us in and giving us different colored passes and wristbands.  When we got to the check in desk the girl said “this is the last one” and we had to wait but they came back with 2 passes for us.  Then we heard the people behind us getting told that if the VIP people didn’t show up, they’d be able to take their spots.  PHEW! We *just* made it.  (I think the rest of the line did also end up making it in too.)

We then spent some time in the Peacock Lounge which is a top secret room that you’re not supposed to take any pictures of. You also can’t take any pictures in the hallway when waiting to go inside.  You’re not missing much. The walls just say “The Meredith Vieira show” on screens. In the Lounge there were photo monitors that rotated out pictures of Meredith and her guests from last season.

Then it was time to go to the studio! We took a secret elevator to a secret floor and then walked in the studio and were told to go to the left. We went down a bunch of stairs and were sat right in the front row.  This was great, because we were the closest to Lance as possible as an audience member, but also not so great because the cameras were right in front of us so I had trouble seeing Lance most of the show 🙁

Lance had on an… interesting… outfit for the show, something he wanted to wear for one of the fashion week parties but didn’t.  He was out the first half of the show with the panel.  They had the camera on us, we thought for some Lance reaction shots, but they didn’t end up showing any shots in the show.  Bummer.  Being in the front row also meant we weren’t on TV much either.

Christine was also asked what she would do to meet Lance Bass.  Would she sing an NSYNC song?  I mean… cmon we do that all the time for no reason whatsoever… so she sang some of Bye Bye Bye to the whole audience (with Lance on stage.) Did she/we get to meet him? NO! Don’t tease us like that, warmup lady.  She also gives out candy throughout the breaks and I got 2 pieces for yelling out JOEY FATONE. (again, something I do all the time for no reason whatsoever… it was nice to be rewarded for it) and I also got pelted with starbursts because I couldn’t name any Richard Gere movies.

Oh yes, Richard Gere.  In addition to seeing the September 14th guests (Fashion Police – Melissa said “go eff yourself” not censored which led to the show being censored and one of the soldiers who stopped the terrorist attack on the train in Paris) We had an additional segment to be in the audience for.  One the one hand, this was neat to see more… on the other, I bet we could have ran into Lance if we left when the actual show ended. (Fan Girl Problems)  Richard also took a photo with the audience but I have no idea where it ended up.  If you see it somewhere, let me know!

And I almost forgot! Before the last segment, Meredith came by and shook my hand and the girl’s next to me. She asked what I did to my leg so I told her I had CP.  She looked like she was going to come talk to me, but then got called away into the audience to talk to Perez Hilton.  ugh.

Overall a fun day but if you want to actually see the show, don’t agree to sit in the front row when they offer it to you!

iHeartRadio #Ultimate Pool Party

Katie July 10, 2014 0 Comments

There ain’t no party quite like an iHeart Radio party! I know this, because last year I went to the music festival village at the lot in Las Vegas.  This year I unfortunately won’t be making it to any of the shows in person – but fortunately the CW Network has brought the iHeartRadio Ultimate Pool Party to me and aired it last night!  The pool party was in Miami, FL and took over the Fontainbleu Resort’s famous pool.

The great thing about iHeartRadio is that their shows and parties always seem to involve artists from all different genres of music – yet somehow it works!  The pool party kicked off with a set from Lil Jon – where he started with the popular song “Get Low” and then went in to “Turn Down For What”, I have to say – this song has been EVERYWHERE lately and I’m kind of sick of it! Everyone else seems to love it though and Lil John is sure putting on a show!

The party is hosted by Nick Cannon – how many jobs does this guy have? Wow! I remember once we had the chance to meet Nick and didn’t take it several years ago.  Who knew then what he would have become now?

Iggy Azalea was up next with her single “Fancy”, if you ask me if I like her I’ll probably say no – but I’ll let you in on a little secret – more often than not I have her song stuck in my head… Such an earworm! So catchy. who dat who dat i-g-g-y…

Speaking of super catchy songs that are always stuck in my head… next up performing was Ariana Grande with “Problem”, when “Fancy” isn’t stuck in my head, “Problem” usually is!  I got the chance to see Ariana live a couple of years ago – but would love to catch her again! She is such a great singer and performer and just always seems to be having so much fun!  I’m kind of jealous that the people at this pool party got to see the performance with Iggy too!

Next up is Neon Trees’ Tyler &  Tiesto! I’ve actually somehow never managed to hear this song “Red Lights” before. Not sure how that happened?  This is catchy though and I like it! I’ve seen Neon Trees before but would love to see them again – if only to see what kind of fun outfit Tyler is wearing! Tonight he has on blue slacks and a printed top with all sorts of fun colors.

Ariana is back now to perform “The Way”,this song reminds me so much of Mariah Carey!

Neon Trees was up next – Tyler changed so that made me happy – got to see another outfit! They did their popular single – Animal.

Nick Cannon hits the stage to perform his new single that is with Pitbull.  Unfortunately it doesn’t look like Pitbull is there though. If there’s anyone I’d love to see live, it’s Pitbull. (I’ve seen Nick on the All That tour several years ago!)  Nick’s outfit is making me think of old school LL Cool J.

Next up is Magic! who has a super catchy song “Rude” that is currently on the radio that I am absolutely loving. It’s a bit of reggae and a bit of rock and it’s just awesome – and another catchy ear worm! This is definitely a band that has recently been added to my “must see” list, they just seem like their music would be so fun and even better live!

(Side note this Jane the Virgin show looks like it might be pretty good!)

And finishing out the night – my girl JLo! She performed “First Love” in what amounted to her swimsuit.She also performed “On the Floor”, “Booty” and “Jenny from the Block”

Overall the iHeartRadio Ultimate Pool Party did not disappoint – If I couldn’t be there, watching it on TV was the next best thing!  I think that JLo and Ariana were my favorite performances of the night!

Did you watch too? What were your thoughts on the show?

Fall TV Lineup

Katie September 9, 2013 0 Comments

I can’t believe that it is already Fall – which means time to start figuring out what I’ll be watching in the new fall TV lineups! Some of the shows are starting as soon as next week… I feel so unprepared!  I’ve added a few new shows to my list to check them out, we’ll see if they stick (Sleepy Hollow and Once Upon a Time in Wonderland), I’m also going to be giving The Voice another chance after  taking last season off.  I’ve also dropped X Factor and Glee off of my list, but we’ll see if I end up sticking to that.  I’ve been looking for a reason to stop watching Glee for a while now and with the addition of Adam Lambert and Demi Lovato (two of my FAVORITES – note that is dripping with sarcasm) and the death of Cory Monteith I figured it was as good a time as any to just walk away.

So what do you think?  Anything I shouldn’t be bothering with or new shows I should probably give a chance to?  I feel like usually my early fall lists are much, much longer so there’s got to be a couple shows that I’m missing!

Sunday

8pm ABC Once Upon a Time (Sept 29)
8pm CBS Amazing Race (Sept 29)

9pm ABC Revenge (Sept 29)

Monday

8pm CW Hart of Dixie (Oct 7)
8pm NBC The Voice (Sept 23)

9pm Fox Sleepy Hollow (Sept 16)

Tuesday

9pm Fox New Girl (Sept 17)
9pm NBC The Voice Results

Wednesday

9pm ABC Modern Family  (Sept 25)
9pm CBS Criminal Minds (Sept 25)

Thursday

8pm ABC Once Upon a Time in Wonderland (Oct 10)
9pm ABC Greys Anatomy  (Sept 26)

Friday
8pm FOX Raising Hope (Nov 8)
10pm CBS Blue Bloods (Sept 27)

Wheel of Fortune live in NYC!

Katie March 20, 2013 0 Comments

When I had found out that Wheel of Fortune was coming to NYC, I immediately entered for tickets.  They had 4 days available and you could only select one date/time unless you selected that you had no preference.  Of course, no preference would give you the best odds at getting tickets, so that is what I chose.

We ended up getting 4  tickets for the 2pm Monday afternoon show.  We got there around 1 and the line was already wrapped around the block at Madison Square Garden (the show was being taped at the Theater there) and it was FREEZING and we were supposed to be getting a snow storm that night.

Although doors opened at 2, they started moving us in early, but we were herded like cattle through line after line and finally ended up getting in to our seats at about 3.  Jim Thornton, the announcer for the show, came out to talk to us and even sang a song (since we were so close to Broadway he said he had to).  Then a couple of the local news casters came on stage and talked to us a bit as well.

We were in the front area behind the press, but unfortunately could barely see Vanna and couldn’t see the letter board at all (they had monitors set up though so we could see the puzzles, but most of the time this was blocked by the Jimmy camera – is that what it is called? The one that swings?) but sometimes it was up on the middle screen too so we could see it there.

We weren’t sure how many shows they were going to film.  After the first show, Pat and Vanna came to talk (but Vanna had no mic so she just said hello into Pat’s chest) and then Pat said to hang tight they would be getting changed and coming back for another show!

Vanna ended up coming out and talking to the crowd a bit and answered questions and then it was time for the 2nd show.

After the 2nd show, a lot of people left because the snow was starting and it had been pretty long.  We were told to stay in our seats and that if we stayed for the 3rd show we would get a blinky pin!

Pat came out and went through the crowd shaking hands and said “vote for me, vote for me, I’ll let you drink however much soda you want.” Since that is a big topic in NYC about banning large sodas.  Then he pulled a girl from the audience and took her down to meet Vanna and she got a little box with goodies in it.

And then it was time for the 3rd and final show!  It was Best Friends week and the shows will be airing May 13, 14, and 15.  I can tell you that none of the winners got the bonus round puzzle.  And there were a few rounds where most of the audience knew it, but it went around and around and around and it was SO frustrating to not just shout it out at them.  (If you yell it out and they can hear it, the puzzle gets thrown out and then they have to do a different one, so you really have to be quiet)

Overall, it was a long day but a lot of fun and I am glad that I can cross seeing Wheel of Fortune in person off of my bucket list 😉

The Voice – FINALE!

Katie December 22, 2012 0 Comments

The Voice started out with a heart breaking version of Hallelujiah where all the coaches and contestants sang holding one of the victims names from the Newtown shooting.  I don’t think it really hit just how many 27 is, until we saw them all standing there with the names.

Nicholas – Great Balls of Fire  / Let Me Stand Next To Your FIre – Great way to kick off the show! Great to see him play the piano for a little bit and then get up and dance and command the stage.  Love him.

Cassadee – Over You – Cassadee with a repeat of Miranda’s Over You.  She’s ok but has yet to grow on me.  Unfortunately, her large fan base she had before the show disagrees with me and she just may win the thing. (let’s hope not)

Terry & Blake – Dude Looks Like a Lady – I didn’t even recognize that Adam was the “familiar face on the guitar” for a little bit when he first came out! Fortunately I recognized some of the tattoos!  That was a lot of fun!

Nicholas – Lean On Me – My mom prefers this Nicholas to his first song.

Terry – Broken Wings – Seemed like there were problems in the beginning of the song, but he powered through it like a champ.

Cassadee & Blake – Steve McQueen – not a fan.

Terry – I Want To Know What Love Is – I didnt like it this time as much as I did the first time he sang it.  Blake thinks the opposite. LOL

Nicholas & CeeLo – Play That Funky Music – This is perfect.  Wait I spoke too soon! Little Cee Lo!!! More than perfect.

Cassadee – Cry – more country. yay. /sarcasm

Honestly as long as Cassadee doesn’t win, I’ll call it a win.  Though I’d prefer Nicholas over Terry.

–

There seems to be some backlash among Cassadee fans and those of us who don’t think she should win just because she has a fan base.  Well, I don’t think she shouldn’t win SIMPLY because she already has a fan base.  I don’t think she should win because in my opinion, the other 2 have a better voice.  The other 2 contestants I am more likely to listen to after the show ends than her.  It is unfortunate that it is not an even playing field for Terry and Nicholas.  I do hope I am wrong and she doesn’t win… but based on tweets and likes on statuses and the like… her numbers are leaps and bounds ahead of the other two.

I really dont think that the finale needed to be an hour with the performances of past contestants without the finalists. I honestly didnt even remember 90% of the past contestants.  I liked the groups with the finalists though, that was a nice touch.

In theory, the finale could have been 5 minutes… an hour would have been fine.  2 is a bit much.

(ps maybe im biased but did Cassadee sing with WAY more people than Terry or Nicholas? I wish I kept track to go back and figure it out without just relying on my memory…)

In 3rd place – Nicholas

Now we know Blake repeats his win, regardless of who wins.

And, surprise, surprise! Cassadee wins.

I’d like the last 3 years of my life back that I spent watching the show this season…

XFactor – FINALE!

Katie December 21, 2012 0 Comments

XFactor opened up with all the finalists singing “You Are Not Alone” by Michael Jackson dressed all in white to honor the victims of the Newtown shooting.  Very well done.

Carly Rose – Feeling Good – Such a difference hearing this now versus her audition so many months ago!

Tate – Anything Goes – I really have trouble finding things to say about his performances because they are just not my thing in the slightest.

Fifth Harmony – Anything Can Happen – I cant help but laugh about how they  are probably going to come in 3rd and then be the new one direction. I did like this performance a lot though – hey, maybe they can come in 2nd? Anything can happen.

Carly Rose – How Do I Live – I think that LeAnn was supposed to be surprise, but Carly tweeted about it and they were going back and forth so that kind of gave it away.  I also kind of wonder if she sang it extra horribly to make Carly sound that much better because I don’t know WTF she was doing…

Tate – Pontoon – Little Big Town joined Tate for this performance.

Fifth Harmony – Give Your Heart a Break – Surprise surprise, Demi is the guest performer with them. (The cut to her before the commercial break totally gave it away)   I liked their first performance better.  I’m not really sure I liked any of these “duets” or whatever you want to call them.

Carly Rose – Hallelujah – I really think this song is so completely played out, especially in singing competitions – but Carly did a great job.  Just kind of wish she sang something else.

Tate – Tomorrow – All I know is. If he wins. I will cry. (And not in a good way)

Fifth Harmony – Let It Be – Another great performance from fifth harmony.

I really would LOVE for it to be – Carly Rose #1, Fifth Harmony #2, Tate #3.  Except people seem to like Tate and I just don’t hear it!

–

The entrance of the top 3 seemed a bit weird. I don’t know if they did that last season because I stopped watching after Rachel got kicked off.  It also seemed like they didn’t do a dress rehearsal since one of the Fifth Harmony girls was walking, singing and tugging her skirt down lower!

Each of the final 3 did a Christmas song… and we got to see some cute clips of the judges.

Then we found out who came in 3rd – Fifth Harmony! (So they truly are the female One Direction!)  Apparently people are getting annoyed (already!) with the comparisons – but um, they are there, aren’t they?  Put together for the show. Come in 3rd.  We’ll see how the success compares after the show.

Then we got performances from 2 artists that I totally played out earlier this month on my road trip – Pitbull and One Direction!

Our top 2… Carly and Tate sang “The Climb” together…

and I wondered if the show would ever end.

ANDDDD I wasted another season on this show! Tate wins!

Hopefully Carly will go on to have an AMAZING career.  She deserves it!

(And I think I am done with The Voice and XFactor. Imma stick with Idol. Those are my people.)

XFactor – FINALE!

Katie December 21, 2012 0 Comments

XFactor opened up with all the finalists singing “You Are Not Alone” by Michael Jackson dressed all in white to honor the victims of the Newtown shooting.  Very well done.

Carly Rose – Feeling Good – Such a difference hearing this now versus her audition so many months ago!

Tate – Anything Goes – I really have trouble finding things to say about his performances because they are just not my thing in the slightest.

Fifth Harmony – Anything Can Happen – I cant help but laugh about how they  are probably going to come in 3rd and then be the new one direction. I did like this performance a lot though – hey, maybe they can come in 2nd? Anything can happen.

Carly Rose – How Do I Live – I think that LeAnn was supposed to be surprise, but Carly tweeted about it and they were going back and forth so that kind of gave it away.  I also kind of wonder if she sang it extra horribly to make Carly sound that much better because I don’t know WTF she was doing…

Tate – Pontoon – Little Big Town joined Tate for this performance.

Fifth Harmony – Give Your Heart a Break – Surprise surprise, Demi is the guest performer with them. (The cut to her before the commercial break totally gave it away)   I liked their first performance better.  I’m not really sure I liked any of these “duets” or whatever you want to call them.

Carly Rose – Hallelujah – I really think this song is so completely played out, especially in singing competitions – but Carly did a great job.  Just kind of wish she sang something else.

Tate – Tomorrow – All I know is. If he wins. I will cry. (And not in a good way)

Fifth Harmony – Let It Be – Another great performance from fifth harmony.

I really would LOVE for it to be – Carly Rose #1, Fifth Harmony #2, Tate #3.  Except people seem to like Tate and I just don’t hear it!

–

The entrance of the top 3 seemed a bit weird. I don’t know if they did that last season because I stopped watching after Rachel got kicked off.  It also seemed like they didn’t do a dress rehearsal since one of the Fifth Harmony girls was walking, singing and tugging her skirt down lower!

Each of the final 3 did a Christmas song… and we got to see some cute clips of the judges.

Then we found out who came in 3rd – Fifth Harmony! (So they truly are the female One Direction!)  Apparently people are getting annoyed (already!) with the comparisons – but um, they are there, aren’t they?  Put together for the show. Come in 3rd.  We’ll see how the success compares after the show.

Then we got performances from 2 artists that I totally played out earlier this month on my road trip – Pitbull and One Direction!

Our top 2… Carly and Tate sang “The Climb” together…

and I wondered if the show would ever end.

ANDDDD I wasted another season on this show! Tate wins!

Hopefully Carly will go on to have an AMAZING career.  She deserves it!

(And I think I am done with The Voice and XFactor. Imma stick with Idol. Those are my people.)

The Voice – Top 4

Katie December 15, 2012 0 Comments

Time for the semi-finals! Team Blake vs Team Cee Lo! Terry, Cassadee, Nicholas and Trevin are left and THREE will advance, only 1 will eliminated.

Trevin – Wind Beneath My Wings – Not bad except for his higher register. He needs to get better control and he will be amazing.

Nicholas – You Are So Beautiful – Flawless. And his kiddos are so cute.

Cassadee – Stupid Boy – Decent performance. She’ll probably make it through no matter what since she already had a fan base before the show though so what does it matter.

Terry – Let It Be – Another great performance from Terry.

Ideally, I’d like it to be Trevin to go home – but honestly, I have no idea who it will be!

–

Results:

Our first finalist of 3 is Terry!

The second finalist is Cassadee!

We are down to team Cee Lo – Trevin and Nicholas. Who will join the finale?

The last finalist is…

NICHOLAS!

heyyyy I got an elimination right 

XFactor – Top 6

Katie December 9, 2012 0 Comments

Well, I did things a little backwards this week, though not on purpose.  I was at Jingle Ball concerts both nights the show aired so I was “spoiled” on twitter about who went home long before I ever had a chance to watch the episodes.  So here are my thoughts and I will try to temporarily forget who went home to give my thoughts – but I obviously won’t make any picks of who I think will be going home because that would just be silly.

Cece – Edge of Glory – another horrible performance from Cece. It’s sad that she thinks she is so great and isn’t in tune with reality.

Emblem 3 – Just The Way You Are – Demi thinks they stand next to each other? They’ll show her and SIT next to each other.  (but really demi needs to stfu. she is so rude to simon and it is not cute in the slightest)  I didn’t think it was their best performance, although everyone else did.  I must have missed something. (Oh wait. Demi agreed.)

Carly Rose – As Long As You Love Me – I’ve heard this live by Justin the past 2 nights and could only WISH it had sounded as amazing as this rendition.

Fifth Harmony – Fire To The Rain – I thought this was a great performance from them. (And wow LA was harsh!)

Diamond – This is Man’s World – I think the song was a bit too big for her, though the performance was good.

Tate – Living on a Prayer – I feel like it was a bit of a risk to play a rock song unplugged… and I didn’t really like it. (Or I just don’t like Tate)

Cece – Part Of Me – Another crap performance. Wow.

Emblem 3 – Forever Young – I kind of go back and forth with whether or not I like these guys and I wasn’t feeling it tonight.

Carly Rose – If I Were a Boy – another amazing carly rose performance

Fifth Harmony – Give Your Heart A Break – I liked this performance it was fun. Could have gone with a different song, but whatever.

Diamond – Diamond – I liked this performance much better than her first.

Tate – If Tomorrow Never Comes – Better performance and he should stick to country even though I dont love him at all.

–

Results

The lowest vote getter is CECE! Finally.

Safe Acts: Emblem 3, Carly Rose, Tate

Fifth Harmony and Diamond sing for survival!

I think that emotions and nerves took over in Diamond’s performance and that Fifth Harmony definitely did the better job.

Simon chooses to send home Diamond.

Britney chooses to send home Fifth Harmony.

LA, after bashing Fifth Harmony all night – decides to send home Diamond.

Demi seals the deal but choosing to send home Diamond.

Diamond had a great attitude about leaving too!

4th – Fifth Harmony

3rd – Emblem 3

2nd – Carly Rose

1st – Tate

The Voice – Top 6

Katie December 8, 2012 0 Comments

This week I tried things a little bit different. I started watching the show at 9:44 so that I had the option to fast forward through everything that was not really needed for me to watch!

Nicholas – September – Great way to kick off the night. I don’t think that Nicholas can sing anything badly.

Cassadee – Stand – Great performance from Cassadee. Still don’t like her though.

Amanda – Natural Woman – Another fantastic Amanda performance. It is going to be so, so hard to pick who goes home tonight!

Terry – I Want To Know What Love Is – Sounds like everyone is in it to win it tonight! Wow.

Trevin – Walking on Sunshine – Definitely an interesting song choice and a good performance.

Melanie – Crazy – Wow. One of CeeLo’s songs (Except not really. Gnarls Barkley lol)  Still not a fan of her but everyone else seems to be so once again.. who will be going home?

Then everyone sang a second song. (Just when I thought I had watched it all in 35 minutes!)

Terry – Stay With Me – This recap is pretty boring… everyone is good! What else is there to say?

Trevin – And I Am Telling You – Eek a screechy song. Not impressed.

Amanda – Here I Go Again – Another great performance.

Melanie – The Show  – What the hell was that?

Cassadee – I’m With You – Ugh. No comment.

Nicholas – Somewhere Over The Rainbow – He. Is. Too. Good.

If I had my way – Melanie and Trevin would be going home.  That’s not how it is going to go though.  But I can’t figure out how it is going to go.  Terry and Amanda maybe?

–

Results time!

The first America saved was TERRY! So… there goes my prediction. Yet again.

The second safe is Trevin!

Wouldn’t it be funny if the 4 I picked to go home actually end up the top 4? (Not likely though. But you never know!)

The next safe contestant is… Cassadee.

The first person going home is Melanie! (Hey I had 1 right.)

Nicholas is saved by america and we say goodbye to Amanda.

Very interesting final 4…  It could be anyone’s to win.