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Casey James’s Sleepless (and Emotional) Texas-Sized Homecoming
May 15, 2010
American Idol finalist and Texas native Casey James, 27, had time for everything in his schedule but sleep.
At 6:40 a.m. Friday, James hopped into his stretch SUV limo and waved at the gathering crowd before heading off to the first of 10 scheduled appearances.
“I love everything about Texas,” he said, as he waved at fans in cars with cameras chasing his limo despite a massive police escort. “It is good to be home.”
Starting out at a local television station, the Idol finalist was met with a red carpet of screaming students from his alma mater, Millsap High School, and fans of all ages holding signs and screaming at his arrival.
“I’ve gotten several marriage proposals today,” he said, laughing.
But the singer was thrilled to reunite with his mother, Debra, brother Billy and his dogs, Daisy and Buster. “He started humming in perfect key at the age of one,” his mother said. “It’s obvious that playing music is what Casey is meant to do.”
With a day packed with emotion, perhaps one of the most intense visits took place at Texas Health Harris Methodist Fort Worth Hospital, where James treated six years ago after a life-threatening motorcycle accident where he suffered a broken wrist and femur.
“Thank you for saving my life,” said a teary-eyed James to his former orthopedic surgeon Dr. Cory Collinge, as his weeping mother looked on. He presented the doctor with a black electric guitar and personally thanked all the staff. “I am hugging everyone in this room today because I wouldn’t be here,” he said, “and I certainly wouldn’t be playing the guitar if it wasn’t for all of you.”
And there was music, too.
James pulled out his guitar at Keys Lounge, a packed Fort Worth club, filled with more screaming fans. “I used to play here all the time and no one came,” he said afterward. “And now, the place is filled to capacity … This is completely surreal.”
James and his family were reunited at his house –- which he built himself –- and enjoyed a Texas-sized picnic. Then it was time to face the public again -– this time at the Fort Worth Stockyard, where he was given a key to the city and other souvenirs.
The next day, James headed home to Cool, Texas, the only of the top 3 finalists to have two full days of public appearances, which included a concert at the town’s tiny community center. But the day culminated in a bigger concert at his high school stadium, where 4,000 fans were eager for his performance.
Choking back emotion, James looked at the screaming crowd. “Thanks to each and every one of you,” he told them, beaming. “I can’t explain how this makes me feel. Things will never be the same and it’s all because of ya’ll.” –Alicia Dennis |
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American Idol
Crystal Bowersox Touches a Chord in Toledo Homecoming
May 15, 2010
Crystal Bowersox had a few things she really wanted to do in Toledo, Ohio.
She wanted to reunite with bass player Frankie May at her old haunt, Papa’s Tavern. She wanted to see her family in Elliston, Ohio, and thank her fans by singing her original songs. She wanted to raise awareness about juvenile diabetes. But mostly, Bowersox wanted to move people and lift the spirits of her hometown.
On a car ride back to her hotel after a long Friday, Idol top 3 finalist Bowersox, 24, smiles a weary smile but tells PEOPLE contently, “That was my goal, and hopefully, mission accomplished.”
The American Idol contestant arrived at a private airstrip Thursday night -– then it was right down to business. She visited a local FOX station and, on Friday morning, dropped into three local radio stations. 

After a few more whirlwind stops, it was time for the big event: Bowersox’s parade and concert in downtown Toledo, where she received a glass key to the city from Mayor Michael Bell. She also performed her original song “Holy Toledo,” which has been getting airplay in northwest Ohio, to about 5,000 people, many who sang along and cried.
“She’s really touched a chord with people here,” says Steve Fought, communications director for Rep. Marcy Kaptur and a longtime friend of Bowersox’s mentor, Ron Rasberry. “Unemployment’s high and people need something to hold on to.”

Tim Stahl, the owner of the neighborhood bar Papa’s Tavern where Bowersox and her bassist Frankie are enshrined in a mural on the wall, then tried to keep the crowd to as many regulars as possible when Bowersox came back to perform a mix of covers and original songs.
Onstage, Bowersox finally let her guard down and cried a little. Longtime patron Alberta Smithson, who has watched Bowersox sing there since she was 14, says, “She’s really a good girl. She hasn’t had a lot to smile about, but she is smiling more and more. She’s our baby and she’s come home.”
After lunch at her dad Bill‘s house, and some quality time with her son, Tony, Bowersox performed for more than 4,000 fans at the Ottawa County Fairgrounds -– and made a stump speech.
“It’s not up to me,” she told the crowd, asking for their votes. “It’s completely up to you. God bless you all for carrying me this far. I’m just very thankful.”
To end her jam-packed day, Bowersox and her family head to Fifth Third Field, home of the Toledo Mud Hens, where she threw out the first pitch and performed the national anthem before a record crowd.
“The whole day was great,” she said. “I’ve always had an idea of it happening — a far-fetched idea — but to actually see it manifest into reality, it’s moving.” –Cynthia Wang |
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Reply 1868# sweetmm
Sweet, thanks for all the lovely pixes of Casey. Aku dah tak larat tunggu dia buat show, dah tgh mlm buta kat Malaysia Jumaat tu. BTW, I find this picture hawt 
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Reply 1871# sweetmm
Without a doubt the next American Idol....  |
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Reply 1888# sweetmm
perfect pictures babes ! . Now this is an artist, where people have no shame of admiring his talents and good looks. |
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Reply 1884# sweetmm
Sweet, another hawt picture  I am shameless.
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Reply 1901# sweetmm
the only of the top 3 finalists to have two full days of public appearances, which included a concert at the town’s tiny community center.
Jangan2 Idol saja aja bagi dia penat, so dia tak ada masa dan energy nak rehearse lagu2 dia for next week. 
Tapi satu je, mak dia ni pun nak tumpang glamer. Byk tul cakap masa interview kat Fox affiliate pagi tu.
I bet you that ex wife Casey, Kellie, tengah gigit jari ... |
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Ada org kata concert Casey cuma 4,000 org je yg attend kat Cool (compared to Lee's 41,000) , no wonder lah penduduknya 400 org je. Tapi itu tak termasuk concert di FW.
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette:
COOL, Texas – Casey James isn’t just an “American Idol” heartthrob. The guitar-playing crooner is also the King of Cool.
Cool, Texas, that is.
The tiny ranching and farming community where James grew up is rallying around the musician who is one of the last three contestants left on this season’s show.
A marquee outside the Cool Community Center reads “Am. Idol Casey James!” At his former high school in nearby Millsap, a banner proclaiming “MHS (hearts) Casey James” hangs over the main entrance, where the doors are covered with dozens of signs: “Vote Casey – He’s the Best” and “Casey James Rocks!”
A Millsap High teacher has made a shrine to James in her classroom, featuring a candle, his senior yearbook and a poster covered with his photos. Last week, about 200 people watched “American Idol” on big-screen televisions at the school, which has about 265 students.
“It’s a really big thing at school and all over town because Millsap has never had anyone famous,” said Jerra Lewis, who taught James in her theater class before he graduated in 2000.
James has been a fan favorite since his Denver audition for the Fox show’s ninth season, when some of the judges asked the 27-year-old to remove his shirt and take down his ponytail – revealing wavy, dirty-blond locks.
Hollywood is a long way from Cool, a 200-resident town about 40 miles west of Fort Worth. But while playing the guitar and singing on the front porch or performing with his mother’s band in local festivals, he had big dreams. Under his senior yearbook photo where he sports short, spiky hair, his plans are listed as being “a famous blues musician.”
While trying to start his career, James moved to Fort Worth and played with bands of various genres and even performed solo for tips in coffeehouses. He sang and played the guitar and mandolin on his mother Bybee D. “Debra” James’ 2006 country and folk CD, “Cross That Line.” His website says he formed the Casey James Band with his older brother and a drummer in 2008.
Bono Saunders, who runs the booking and management company Bono Entertainment, said he started lining up gigs for James in the Dallas and Fort Worth areas after hearing him play the acoustic guitar more than a year ago.
Saunders said he was impressed by James’ range – seamlessly moving from a John Mayer song to a Merle Haggard tune – and his unique sound that he called funky and soulful with Texas roots.
“He was just hungry. I think he wanted to get out of a little town and do his thing,” Saunders said. “He doesn’t have any aspirations other than to play music, and it didn’t matter how big or small the venue.”
James brought audiences to their feet cheering after performing solo or with his band in biker bars and alternative rock clubs, Saunders said.
His good looks also made him a “chick magnet” but he always focused on the music, Saunders said.
“With his piercing blue eyes, he could look into an audience and draw them in,” Saunders said. |
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Reply 1907# nanu_nanu
ehh...casey ni duda lah erk...with or w/out kid? sape x wife dai? lawa tak? |
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aku dah lama nk share kat sini ... tp always forgot ... kekadang aku takut tgk muka mak si abe casey ... mgkn mekap tebal kot? ... unlike lee's mom ... she looks sweet wlupun dh otai ... |
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Reply 1910# pokokbunga
tak ada anak lagi. gambar ex wife dia takat ni memang tak ada. rasa2 dia tak nak tonjol kan diri.
American Idol Casey James, best known as Idol’s “cougar bait”, is completely and absolutely in love with music and right now there is no place for a serious relationship with a woman, according to his ex-wife Kellie James. Sorry Kara DioGuardi! [Casey James Shirtless American Idol Audition]
Casey and Kellie were married for three years between 2005 and 2008 but when it came to a dead end Casey chose music over his marriage. Kellie also claims Casey is very humble and doesn’t see himself as a heartthrob.
“Music is everything to Casey,” said his ex-wife Kellie, 31, a respiratory therapist. “Girls have always had crushes on him, but Casey doesn’t encourage it. He’s not conceited or full of himself. He just does what he loves to do, which is music, but he’s never thought of himself as a heartthrob. Frankly, I think it embarrasses him.”
Kellie recalls the motorcycle accident that almost ended Casey’s dream of a career in music. Casey broke his left wrist, right femur and was in a wheelchair for more than six months. After the near-fatal motorcycle crash, Casey thought he would never be able to use his hand again and play the guitar.
“The doctors told us that they didn’t know whether Casey would be able to use his hand again, much less play the guitar,” revealed Kellie. “When he was finally able to play again, Casey felt he had a new lease on life.”
The 27 year-old Idol, who had some wild teenage and early 20s years which included two arrests for driving while intoxicated, driving with an invalid license and reckless driving, is now a different man and devoted to his church (Leaning Tree Church In Mineral Wells, Texas).
“It’s a very contemporary church, and Casey gravitated toward the musical people in the congregation. Eventually, he played and sang in the praise-and-worship band,” Kellie said. “Church is still very important to him, and he plays music for a congregation in Fort Worth, where he lives now.”
Casey must have done something right! When an ex-wife talks so sweetly about the man who chose music over her, he has to be a good man and good person. LUV Casey! He is not only “eye candy” but also “ear candy” as Kara said. Casey has what it takes to become the next American Idol.
Read more: http://bumpshack.com/2010/03/09/ ... life/#ixzz0oA8Tv9DE
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Reply 1911# belon_cumil
Mak Casey ni mmg over. Anyway, mak dia pun penyanyi tapi takat2 penyanyi kampung gamaknya. |
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Reply 1912# nanu_nanu
ohhh..thks 4 the info, mmg tak tau selama nih casey pernah kawin... |
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Lagu Daughters tu musically tak ada apa2 special. He can't do much on his guitar. Kesian Casey.
Casey James will sing the John Mayer song “Daughters” this upcoming week on American Idol as one of his two songs because the show’s judges have picked it for him. The song choice seems to be a bizarre move on the part of the judges, who last week criticized Casey for his spare rendition of Mrs. Robinson. While “Daughters” won John Mayer a Grammy, the overly spare song was one that Mayer himself used his Grammy acceptance speech to opine that he still didn’t think the song was single material. Nonetheless, Kara DioGuardi and Randy Jackson have chosen the overly spare song for Casey to perform in a week in which most observers expect him to be voted off. The good news for Casey in this circumstance is that the show’s voters appear to have completely tuned out the judges’ criticism toward him, although it appears that if he wants to survive another week, he may have to do it on the strength of whichever other song he chooses on his own.
http://www.beatweek.com/news/603 ... n-mayers-daughters/ |
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Reply pokokbunga
tak ada anak lagi. gambar ex wife dia takat ni memang tak ada. rasa2 dia tak ...
nanu_nanu Post at 17-5-2010 13:42 
Tak silap artikel wife dia ni keluar after ada mamat ngaku ber-bf dgn si casey |
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Reply 1918# jpl_fan
padan tak kuar gambar ... anyway, tua sikit je...31 thn. and I don't think he's gay. ada org nak buat kacau tu. dulu David Cook pun orang kata gay. kalau ada bukti mcm Adam Lambert, baru aku nak percaya. |
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Post time 16-5-2010 11:53 PM
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