'American Idol' host Ryan Seacrest accused of misconduct in Variety report

LOS ANGELES - A former stylist for "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest on Monday accused him of sexual misconduct, although Seacrest denied the accusations last November.

Suzie Hardy told Hollywood publication Variety that Seacrest sexually harassed her for six years, starting in 2007, when she became his personal stylist at E! News.

Seacrest, who is also co-host of ABC television's daytime talk show "Live with Kelly & Ryan" and producer of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," made public the woman's accusations last November, when he also issued a denial.

E!, a unit of Comcast Corp, conducted an internal inquiry into her accusations but said in January that it had found insufficient evidence to support her claims.

Seacrest's lawyer Andrew Baum said on Monday that Variety's decision to run Hardy's story was upsetting.

Baum said in a statement that Hardy had previously asked for money to stay silent. "They (Variety) were told that the accuser threatened to make those false claims against him unless he paid her $15 million," he said.

"At that time, the claimant threatened to issue a demonstrably false press statement unless she was paid. Instead, my client proactively and publicly denied the claims and agreed to fully cooperate with E!’s investigation about the matter."

ABC did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Monday. Hardy's lawyer did not reply to a request for comment on Variety's account.

Hardy's interview with Variety on Monday marked the first time she was identified and details of her claims were revealed. Hardy, whose employment ended in 2013, said she felt the E! investigation was incomplete and one-sided.

E! said in a statement on Monday that its investigation by an outside lawyer was "extremely comprehensive and thorough" and that "any claims that question the legitimacy of this investigation are completely baseless."

Talent show "American Idol," with Seacrest as host, is scheduled to return to television on March 11 on Walt Disney Co's ABC network after a 14-year run on Fox ended in 2016.

Seacrest is the latest celebrity to be accused of sexual misconduct in a scandal that has rocked Hollywood and beyond since October 2017.

"To have my workplace conduct questioned was gut-wrenching. I’ve always aimed to treat all of my colleagues with honesty, respect, kindness and compassion," Seacrest, 43, wrote in a February guest column for The Hollywood Reporter. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

After New Year's Eve debacle, Mariah Carey wishes for 'more headlines'

(Note: Strong language in second paragraph.)

Grammy Award-winning singer Mariah Carey shrugged off a botched New Year's Eve show in New York's Times Square, telling fans and critics on Sunday that life does not always go as planned.

"Shit happens," Carey, the world's million-selling female singer, wrote on Twitter. "Have a happy and healthy new year everybody! Here's to making more headlines in 2017."

Carey, named the Grammy's Best New Artist in 1991, was the final musical act on ABC's "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest," taking the stage just before midnight.

In addition to the television audience, the program was watched in person by the hundreds of thousands of people who gathered in what is called the "Crossroads of the World" to mark the beginning of 2017.

Carey's opening song, a rendition of Robert Burns' "Auld Lang Syne," seemed to go as planned. But then the singer, surrounded by dancers and a sea of humanity, appeared flustered and complained of technical difficulties.

"We can't hear," she said, as the music from her 1991 hit song "Emotions" began to play. "It is what it is," she said. "Let the audience sing, OK?"

But the awkwardness persisted, prompting Carey to say: "I want a holiday, too. Can I not have one? I'm trying to be a good sport here."

The next song, "We Belong Together," Carey's 2005 hit, went awry as well. Carey dropped her hand-held microphone to her side and the song went on playing, revealing that she may have been only syncing her lips to the words.

"It just don't get any better," a frustrated Carey said after the song.

After the debacle, some fans came to Carey's defense on Twitter, while others were less than kind. Several tweets compared her to the disgraced pop duo Milli Vanilli, who lost their Grammy for Best New Artist in 1990 when it emerged they had never sung on their records.

A spokeswoman for Carey said later on Sunday that there was no lip-syncing. "It is not uncommon for artists to sing to track during certain live performances," spokeswoman Nicole Perna said in a statement.

Carey's ear piece was not working before or during the performance and technicians could not fix it, but she took the stage anyway "essentially flying blind" so she could honor a commitment, Perna said.

A spokesman for ABC declined to comment.

(Reporting by David Ingram; Editing by Alan Crosby and Sandra Maler)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

IN PHOTOS: 'American Idol' crowns final winner

MANILA – “American Idol” named its final winner on Friday (Manila time) as the singing competition ended its 15-year run.

Trent Harmon, 24, tumbled to the stage as host Ryan Seacrest announced him as the final winner of “American Idol”, beating La’Porsha Renae.

“I know that I have a God-given ability, but I didn’t want to take it for granted. I wanted to work so, so hard, and she pushed me to do it,” Harmon said, referring to Renae.

The final show of “American Idol” featured previous winners and contenders such as Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson, David Cook, Fantasia, Ruben Studdard, Jordin Sparks and Kimberley Locke.

The contest’s celebrated contestants, Sanjaya Malakar and William Hung, also made an appearance.

There was also a reunion of original judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson, who joined Seacrest on stage.

View the slideshow to get a glimpse of the last show of “American Idol”.

Mobile users can view the desktop version of the slideshow here.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Jennifer Lopez says ‘Idol’ judging days are over

LOS ANGELES – Pop star Jennifer Lopez will exit television singing contest “American Idol” as a judge but could return as a guest, possibly as a mentor, she told the show’s host Ryan Seacrest in a radio interview on Friday.

Lopez would follow Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler out the door of the top-rated US TV show which is headed for a major shakeup when it returns in the fall season and struggles to reverse a slide in viewership during recent years.

“I just don’t feel like I can be there every single day all the time like I have been for the past two years. I feel like I have to do other things,” Lopez told Seacrest on his morning radio show in Los Angeles.

A spokeswoman for the Fox TV network, which airs “American Idol,” said the broadcaster had no immediate comment.

Lopez has for weeks been the subject of much speculation over whether she would stay on the program, and as recently as Thursday in an interview on NBC’s morning news program “Today,” she indicated she would leave.

But she used the strongest words yet to indicate she had made up her mind in the interview with Seacrest, who is the host of “American Idol.”

“You dread a conversation like this,” she told Seacrest. “I honestly feel like the time has come that I have to get back to doing the other things that I do, that I’ve put kind of on hold because I like ‘Idol’ so much,” she said.

Seacrest asked, “is the door open,” and she replied: “I feel like no matter what you guys need over there, I’m always gonna be here. Like if you need me to come and be a mentor.”

Seacrest’s radio sidekick, Ellen K., then said “it sounds like you’ve made up your mind,” and Lopez replied. “Yeah.”

source: interaksyon.com