Taylor Hicks - The Journey So Far....

Ya know, I've been thinking about the impressive list of achievements Taylor has under his belt lately and I can say without hesitancy that he has been the best businessman, the most productive and the most well-rounded entertainer ever to come out of the American Idol franchise. He has total control over his own career, total control over his own music, and ownership of a wide variety of products available to purchase worldwide. By breaking ties and obtaining total independence from Sony BMG and all things American Idol, which I'm sure was a tricky needle to thread, he has been able to now lay claim to being a book author (his memoir "Heart Full of Soul"), executive video producer (Whomp At The Warfield), record label owner (Modern Whomp Records), music publisher (Modern Whomp Music), broadway actor (Grease), platinum selling musician, singer, songwriter and live performer. By February 2009 he will have 3 CDs available, one of which is a compilation of his pre-Idol music - "Early Works" - all this in just a 2 1/2 year timeframe of being in the national spotlight when he took the Season 5 crown.

It is truly an unbelievable feat when you think about all the obstacles that were thrown his way after he triumphed in the show's 5th season. Being the true musical maverick he is, and being thrown under the bus by refusing to be handled and puppeteered by the PTB - being sabatoged without radio support or sufficient advertising - he has without a doubt come up smelling like a beautiful rose, about to bloom in his own sunshine in 2009.

What do we have coming up with Taylor? Well, first we have the national tour with Grease starring Taylor Hicks (Dec 2008-May 2009) and then a big US and International tour to support his brand new DVD, "Whomp At The Warfield" which drops February 17, 2009 and his brand new kick-ass music CD, which drops February 10, 2009. The tour will undoubtedly last at least through the end of the year and possibly into 2010. Like my man, President-Elect Barack Obama, Taylor has a spine made of steal and an ambition second to no one. I'm proud to be a fan of both.

False Alarm! Taylor Hicks Will Not Be Appearing At The RNC!

BREAKING NEWS! Taylor will NOT be appearing at the Republican Convention this year according his people. Sorry for the false, heart stopping blog yesterday. It was traumatic for me to have to print that, but thank goodness it turned out to be a false alarm. Whew...!

To celebrate, how about some hot pics of Tay?

Taylor Hicks to Appear at the Republican Convention?

According to the jaunted.com website, Taylor will be making an appearance in Minneapolis, MN at the Republican Convention. It's okay that we have differing political agendas. Some of you might have noticed my Obama banner at the right. (His guy is gonna lose in Nov!) Hehe! Then again, this might be just a networking opportunity for Taylor to play in front of a LOT of people. He's given indications in past interviews that he's 'purple' politically. Either way, if it's televised, I'll definitely be watching. And after I watch, I'll send a donation check to the Obama campaign. More information coming when available!

The Democratic National Convention will be held August 25-28, and we bet a lot of people would love to be there whether they support presumptive nominee Barack Obama or not. And stars are no exception: Gossips are predicting an unprecedented level of celeb sightings next week in Denver.

For some, the stop in Colorado is just another day on the job: Ed Norton has been working on a documentary about Obama, so of course he'll be there armed with a camera, and Ben Affleck will be joining a panel on international relations with former Secretary of State Madeline Albright. And the Black Eyed Peas (including "Yes We Can" songwriter will.i.am.) are headlining a gala for conventioneers who don't mind the screeches of Fergie.

Others, like Scarlett Johansson, seem to be signing up just to hang out without any particular agenda. To no one's surprise, early Obama promoter Oprah will be in for the convention; she even rented a house in Denver instead of booking a block of rooms in a posh hotel.

Will there be any famous people left for the Labor-Day-adjoining Republican National Convention? Sure! Gretchen Wilson will perform and Patricia Heaton and Taylor Hicks are expected to make appearances in Minneapolis. And of course, there's always Ahhhnold!