Strollerderby : singers

12 Year Old Knocks Em Dead On Britain's Got Talent

Brett Singer — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 18:30:00 GMT

Allow me to lapse into nitwit entertainment reporter speak for a moment:

Move over Susan Boyle! That's right, there's a new kid on Britain's Got Talent. And when I say kid – I really mean it. Shaheen Jafargholi is only 12 years old. But his performance of Michael Jackson's "Who's Loving You" knocked Simon's socks off.

"This is how one song can change your life," the typically cantankerous Cowell told the little Welsh boy. "And this may be the start of something special for you, young man."

OK, I'm back now. Wasn't that fun? If I looked like that guy from Sugar Ray, I could've been an on-camera entertainment nudnik. Ah well.

For those who don't know (or care), Susan Boyle was the woman who sang the heck out of a song from "Les Miserables" on Britain's Got Talent, which is basically American Idol but they call elevators "lifts" and stuff like that. The show features talents other than singing, but its the singing that seems to capture the most attention. (Personally I prefer Darth Jackson, a guy who moonwalks like Michael Jackson while dressed as Darth Vader. A somewhat limiting act, I suppose.)

So Shaheen is the latest to get the Brits all hopped up. Unlike Susan Boyle, he's had stage experience; according to WalesOnline, the boy "has been singing since the age of five and played a young Michael Jackson in stage musical Thriller Live. Appeared alongside Gary Lineker in a Walkers advert and had bit parts in Casualty and Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood." (For the record, the song that Shaheen sang was written by Smokey Robinson and was performed by the Jackson 5. It's hard to be specific when using nitwit entertainment reporter speak.)

Susan Boyle's youtube video has been viewed over 30 million times, whereas Shaheen's is still under 500,000. But that could change quickly.

Simon Cowell doesn''t like the embedding of these videos for some reason, so click here to watch Shaheen sing. There is one good moment of semi-drama where Simon stops the kid from singing his first number, something by Amy Winehouse. Then he moves on "Who's Loving You", getting a positive reaction. It does look somewhat staged, although I don't care enough to try and figure out if it is.

My one problem with all of this is that every time a kid has success like this, it inspires hundreds of parents to think that they can do the same with their children. Which they can't. Shaheen can really sing. If your kid can sing too, go for it. If not, don't put them on TV.

Then again, maybe they don't need to be on TV at all, no matter how well they sing.

There's a question: if you had a kid who could sing like this, would you push them to be in show business?

Image/Souce: CNN

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Three-Year-Old Romanian Girl Youngest Singer, and She's Cute As All Get Out

JeanneSager — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:59:00 GMT

I hope they have access to Babble in Romania. With the economy the way it is, I'm thinking a move to South Central Europe is in order. At least there my 3-year-old could be making some big bucks to keep Mommy and Daddy in the lifestyle to which we've become accustomed (and yes, by lifestyle I mean the Noggin-watching, orange juice-drinking, early morning-rising life of parenting).

Turns out the youngest person to EVER have a number one hit, a record contract and an MTV contract is Romanian born Cleopatra Stratan. The cute-as-a-button daughter of Romanian star Pavel Stratan was 3 when she performed for two hours in front of a live audience, 3 when Ghita hit number one.

The video is adorable. . . and a little disturbing. Have you ever seen a 3-year-old sit that still? Introduce me, will you?

That was three years ago, which puts Cleopatra past her prime of course. Think Britney, not Miley. There's even a section of her Wikipedia page that refers to her early life - I guess that would be pre-potty training? But with her getting older every day, I'm thinking my 3-year-old can move right in there. We've already got the advantage - I can't understand a word of Ghita, and the Romanians won't be able to understand a word my daughter says. So how will they know if she's been practicing or just watching Noggin?

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The Singer Family says these people can't call themselves Singers anymore

Brett Singer — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 15:00:00 GMT

The Maverick family has decided that John McCain and Sarah Palin should stop calling themselves "mavericks." Well, if the Mavericks can do it, why can't I? Here are a few people that I, Brett Singer, have decided should no longer be called "singers".

Miley Cyrus: You are, at best, an entertainer. I do not find you entertaining, but clearly billions of others do. Fine. Whatever. No accounting for taste. But a "singer"? I think not.

Celine Dion: Come on. It's possible that she can sing, but if that's the case, she hides it really well.

Paris Hilton: She has a new album coming out. The last one sold about four copies. This time it's tied to a reality TV show. So maybe this one will sell six copies. Even if it goes triple platinum (which would be a sign that the apocalypse is nigh, as if we needed any more evidence), she's still not a singer.

Anyone else you'd like me to add to this list? I'm willing to use the power of my name to protect your ears, and the ears of our children. If we work together, we can make it happen.

image: Amazon.com

Strollerderby : singers

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