news articles 30 july

[Inside Australian Idol]

Idol talent 'lacking'
July 30, 2004

VISITING UK band Snow Patrol reckons our Australian Idol talent pool is a contradiction in terms.
At Tuesday's sell-out Gaelic Club gig frontman Gary Lightbody admitted to watching the show while here but lamented the contestants' abilities.

"I was watching it before I came out [tonight] because I'm doing a thesis on talentless p****s," Lightbody vented.

A bit unkind, maybe, but the band definitely has the credentials to make such comments with its latest album Final Straw just nominated for the Mercury Music Prize for UK album of the year.


The Daily Telegraph


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[Inside Australian Idol]

Jet set for ARIAs
July 30, 2004


AUSSIE rockers Jet are the first act to be confirmed to play at this year's ARIA awards, hot on the heels of the news they've been nominated for three MTV Video Music Awards.

Hosting the October 17 awards ceremony, as per usual, will be John 'Rove' McManus.

In the meantime, next Tuesday will see a few gongs handed out to artists who've scored No.1s on the local charts throughout the year.

The ARIA No.1 Chart Awards don't get screened on the box because, well, they're just not as interesting - there's no competition as every local artist who's reached the top spot gets a gong.

Those on the list for the ceremony at Luna Park's Crystal Ballroom include the aforementioned Jet, Kasey Chambers, Pete Murray and the Idol trio of Guy, Shannon and Paulini.



The Daily Telegraph

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[Skip]

Hawkins dazzles Donald
From Sydney Confidential
July 30, 2004

HE'S almost as famous for his coif as he is for his business success but New York property mogul Donald Trump revealed yesterday he has hair envy.

And the object of his jealousy? The long blonde tresses of Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins.

At a reception in Hawkin's honour yesterday, Trump told the crowd at the Australian Consulate in New York that he first spotted the Newcastle beauty while scouting out this year's Miss Universe pageant entrants for a promotion for the second series of his hit reality show The Apprentice, reports Anna Cock.

Hawkins was among 80 entrants but the Trumpster said he spotted her straight away and pointed her out to his camera crew.

"I said 'That one', I want you to take your cameras and just focus on that one," she said.










"She was combing her hair and I said, 'Boy, do I wish I had hair like that'."

Trump now has the former cheerleader in a segment in the second series of The Apprentice.

"Jennifer is an amazing beauty on the outside but I believe she's even more beautiful on the inside," Trump said in a tribute, urging Hawkins not to change.

Hawko yesterday said she would be stopping over in Indonesia ahead of her September "homecoming tour".

While Australians await Hawko's return, Trump revealed the Miss Universe pageant itself could be heading Down Under next year – with Australia a strong contender among 22 other countries.

Hawkins, who is negotiating with Channel 7 for a presenting role once her Trump time is up, said she was still getting over her win.

"My head's still spinning but I'm having a lot of fun though. I get to travel the world," she said.

Looking glamorous in a silver Roberto Cavalli dress, Hawkins nevertheless seemed right at home when she slipped on an oilskin RM Williams jacket – both she and Trump were presented with one – and even chomped down a meat pie in true-blue fashion.

The party also featured a performance by Australian Idol runner-up Shannon Noll, who jokingly devoted What About Me to Hawkins' boyfriend Jake Wall. "It's probably the theme song for Jennifer's boyfriend back in Australia," he said.

Hawkins returns to Sydney on September 1 for two weeks.

The Daily Telegraph


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[Inside Australian Idol]

Unreal dream for Paulini
From Adelaide Confidential
July 30, 2004


THE novelty of hearing her debut single on radio is not about to wear off for Paulini Curuenavuli.
"I was driving in the car (in hometown Sydney) and I heard Nova play it and I was just screaming, 'Oh my gosh, Oh my gosh'," she says of first hearing Angel Eyes on air.

"The people in the car next to me were looking, going, 'Is she all right'?"

The singer of Australia's No. 1 single is fine, actually, albeit in a state of disbelief over her success.

"I kind of feel I've achieved something I've wanted for such a long time," Paulini says.

"Now that it's happened, it's real but it's not real, it's still kind of a dream to me. I can't believe it, I really can't."

Neither can her family.

"My mum sees my clip on TV and she's like 'my gosh, my gosh, my little girl's on TV," Paulini says.

"They're still getting used to it. We sit around the table sometimes thinking 'is this actually happening'?"

In Adelaide on the campaign trail for One Determined Heart , an R&B-based album of covers which hit stores this week, Paulini admits she has yet to adjust to the life of a pop star which, apart from a chart-topping single, is yielding new rewards each day.

The Advertiser

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