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Katharine McPhee

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Katharine McPhee

Katharine Hope McPhee (born March 25, 1984) is an American pop singer, actress, and model who was the runner-up on the fifth season of American Idol in 2006.

Personal life

Born in Los Angeles, California, McPhee moved with her parents and sister to the Sherman Oaks neighborhood at age 12. McPhee has been singing since the age of two. Her mother, Patricia Burch McPhee[1] (stage name Peisha Arten[2]), a vocal coach and accomplished cabaret singer, recognized a talent for music in her daughter and decided to train her. Her father, Daniel McPhee, is a television producer and her older sister, Adriana Burch McPhee (born June 30, 1982) is an aspiring producer as well. McPhee has Irish, Scottish, and German ancestry.

McPhee graduated in 2002 from Notre Dame High School. At Notre Dame High School, McPhee was a swimmer and a thespian. She performed in school plays with her elder sister Adriana; both sisters were Homecoming Princess nominees in their senior year. Afterward, McPhee attended Boston Conservatory for three semesters, majoring in musical theater. McPhee left the college due to her manager's suggestion that she try out for television pilots in Los Angeles. In a People news article, it was reported that she was rejected in "only 195 out of 200 auditions."[3] She was eventually cast as "Paramount Girl" in the 2006 musical film about the life of Hank Garland, Crazy.[4] Other early acting endeavors included lead actress in local professional productions of Annie Get Your Gun and The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. She was nominated in 2005 for the Theatre L.A. Ovation Award for her lead role in Annie Get Your Gun. McPhee was also part of a failed mall-based MTV soap opera entitled You Are Here, playing the older sister of a more popular younger sister. In the soap opera, she was jealous of her popular younger sister.[5]

On February 2, 2008, McPhee married 43-year-old boyfriend Nick Cokas in a Beverly Hills Presbyterian Church with a gospel choir.[6] There were about 300 guests in attendance, including The House Bunny co-star Rumer Willis. Country music artist and fellow American Idol 5 contestant Kellie Pickler was a bridesmaid. McPhee supports Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton for President 2008. [7]

American Idol

McPhee was persuaded by Nick Cokas and her parents to try out for American Idol. She auditioned in San Francisco, and sang "God Bless the Child", originally performed by Billie Holiday. Paula Abdul said that McPhee was "absolutely beautiful", Randy Jackson hailed her audition as potentially the best so far that season, and Simon Cowell complimented her for being "current" and her audition being "absolutely fantastic".

McPhee listed Whitney Houston and Brian McKnight as her favorite artists[8] in the American Idol interview of the top 24 semi-finalists.

During the week preceding the top three show, she was a runner-up in the Kennel Club Finals. McPhee visited her former high school for her hometown celebration.[9] Antonio Villaraigosa visited Notre Dame High School and proclaimed McPhee's visit as "Katharine McPhee Day."

McPhee's run on American Idol led to the popular use of the term "McPheever", coined by Ralph Garman of Los Angeles radio station KROQ's morning show Kevin and Bean. She also referred to her fans as the "Kat Pack" and "McPhans".

McPhee was congratulated by Congressman Brad Sherman of Sherman Oaks, the 27th district of California, who raised a flag in her honor at the United States Capitol on the day of the finale show.[10]

McPhee performed KT Tunstall's "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" during the Idol final run.

During the Idol Finale, McPhee duetted with Meat Loaf. They performed "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", which he had previously recorded with Rocker Chick Marion Raven, whose voice has been compared to Katharine's.

During the competition, McPhee roomed with fellow contestant Kellie Pickler, and when Pickler was eliminated, she roomed with Paris Bennett.[11] Pickler was later involved as a bridesmaid in McPhee's wedding in 2008.[12]

American Idol performances

  • February 21, 2006 - "Since I Fell for You", Lenny Welch
    • Cowell said that she was the best singer of the night.
  • February 28, 2006 - "All In Love Is Fair", Stevie Wonder
    • The judges stated that they thought this performance fell victim to poor song choice, but Abdul thought that she was "still a star."
  • March 7, 2006 - "Think", Aretha Franklin
    • The judges stated that they loved this performance because she "had fun with it."
  • March 14, 2006 - "Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)" by Aretha Franklin
    • The theme was Stevie Wonder, and the judges stated that they loved this performance of the Aretha classic (written by Stevie). Jackson said that the McPhee he "met during the auditions" was back. Cowell compared her gaining of momentum to Kelly Clarkson in the show's first season.
  • March 21, 2006 - "Come Rain or Come Shine" by Ella Fitzgerald
    • The theme was 1950's, and once again the judges were very impressed. Jackson noted that it wasn't her best vocal performance, but it was still great. Abdul agreed wholeheartedly. Cowell noted that it was the performance that made her a star.
  • March 28, 2006 - "The Voice Within" by Christina Aguilera (Bottom 3)
    • The theme was songs of the 21st century. Jackson thought she should have changed the performance up to make it her own. Abdul said she wouldn't change a thing. Cowell said it was the best that night so far, and almost as good as Aguilera. During the results show, however, McPhee was placed in the bottom three, and Cowell stated that upon viewing the playback, she wasn't nearly as good as he thought.
  • April 4, 2006 - "Bringing Out The Elvis" by Faith Hill
    • The theme for the night was country. McPhee was the eighth of nine performers that night. Jackson said: "Kind of bluesy country, yeah? I like it. You sang it very nice, very nice. Good job, dog, good job." Abdul said: "That is your style; that's your niche. You look sexy, hot. You're cool." Cowell, looking a bit bewildered, said: "I don't know what to say anymore; I really don't. That song was just so peculiar." At this point McPhee spoke up and said: "Simon, you just don't like country music. It's okay. Just say it," with which Cowell agreed, saying: "You're right, I don't, I don't. I hate it."
  • April 11, 2006 - "Who Wants to Live Forever" by Queen
    • The theme was songs by Queen, and McPhee performed fifth out of eight contestants. The judges' reactions were as follows: Jackson said: "This is your element, I mean a little Broadway, big song, kind of big voice. It was a little pitchy in spots, and I thought at some points it was a little big for you, but you did a good job, I think, all in all." Abdul said: "You made the right decision to just stand there and be glorious, with your glorious voice. I mean it's a song that big singers like Celine Dion and Barbra Streisand take on; and you, Katharine McPhee, can handle it, and you did a great job." Cowell said: "Katharine, I mean that was almost the moment. You know, I agree with Randy [Jackson], I think there were some tuning problems at parts. I think you owe a big kiss to the director and the lighting director there, because they made you look amazing — I mean really good. But overall I think it was probably one of the strongest tonight. Yeah. Very good." She turned and thanked them.
  • April 18, 2006 - "Someone to Watch Over Me" by Ella Fitzgerald
    • The theme was "The Great American Songbook", after the series of hit albums by Rod Stewart. McPhee performed the George Gershwin standard last that night. Jackson said that McPhee was in her "element." Abdul believed that she picked the perfect song and told her that it was like watching her for the very first time, and that she had fallen in love with her all over again. Cowell said that she made the others look like "good amateurs." He told her she was the best of the night, and that she was elegant and sang like a returning pro. Rod Stewart made some very positive comments about her: "Katharine I believe, is born to sing the standards. I would imagine big things for her. There's not much I can say about this girl - she's fantastic."
  • April 25, 2006 - "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston (Top 6)
    • The theme was "Greatest Love Songs." Jackson said that it was a good song choice but it was too big for her. Abdul said she was stunning but believed it was too pitchy. Cowell said that by coming out and singing that song she was saying she is as good as Whitney Houston. Seacrest jokingly remarked that McPhee would get votes from anybody with the volume turned down. The following night, Cowell took back his statement, saying that when he watched it back, it wasn't as bad as he had told her. Jackson also apologized by saying that he had been a little bit "too harsh." Abdul said that she has never been harsh, and later said that she still didn't feel that Katharine had had a good night.
  • May 2, 2006 - "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)" - Phil Collins; "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" - KT Tunstall
    • The theme for the night was for them to pick a song from the same year they were born, and a song from this week's Billboard charts. For "Against All Odds", Jackson thought her performance may have been in the wrong key for Katharine's voice, but it was OK. Abdul said it wasn't her favorite song choice for her. Cowell said that in parts the song was a mess, and that it ran away from her. They all thought she looked stunning in her dress. For "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree", she was accompanied by two cajun box drum players. Jackson liked seeing the old McPhee back. Abdul loved the intimacy and the choreography. Cowell said the song choice was great for her and it really showed her personality. She performed barefoot, and he liked how her toes matched her top.
  • May 9, 2006 - "Hound Dog/All Shook Up" and "Can't Help Falling in Love" - Elvis Presley - (Bottom 2)
    • The theme was Elvis Presley. For "Hound Dog/All Shook Up", Jackson asked if she forgot the lyrics but Abdul said she handled it well and that the performance was "really fun". Cowell said it was a "desperate manic audition" and that the song was also "shrieky" and for him, he just thought that it "wasn't a great performance", although he previously mistakenly said that it was a great performance, but then corrected it. When Ryan Seacrest asked him "is that your final answer?" (an obvious reference to Who Wants to Be a Millionaire), Cowell said yes, it wasn't a great performance. For "Can't Help Falling in Love", she received mixed reviews, as well as Abdul commenting that she preferred "Katharine having fun" and Simon noting the song as being "pitchy." On May 10, 2006, McPhee was in the bottom two with Chris Daughtry. Daughtry was eliminated from the competition.
  • May 16, 2006 - "I Believe I Can Fly" - R. Kelly; "Over the Rainbow" - Judy Garland; "I Ain't Got Nothin' But the Blues" - Ella Fitzgerald
    • Clive Davis chose R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly" for McPhee. Jackson thought she did well, but the song choice was bad (this comment led Katharine to state that she had no control over the song choice) and she wasn't "that singer." Abdul, after some pause and inspiration from an audience member, said that McPhee was incredible, and that she looked fabulous. Cowell enjoyed the performance and said that McPhee had created a bit of a "moment" for herself.
    • Cowell chose Judy Garland's theme song, "Over the Rainbow", for McPhee. She sang a hybrid version using Jane Monheit's version of the rarely heard introduction, and Eva Cassidy's 1996 rendition for the rest of the song.[21] Jackson called her "a hot one", and declared that she had the best song of the season. Abdul said that that song was her "element." Cowell said that he was very happy for McPhee and, putting the fact that he chose the song aside, he thought it was the best performance of the competition to date. He also added that it was brilliant.
    • McPhee chose Ella Fitzgerald's "I Ain't Got Nothin' But the Blues" (from Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Songbook) for her final song. Jackson said it was good, but not to the extent of her second song. Abdul agreed, once again saying that McPhee's second song was her "element." Cowell said it was okay, and he wished America had seen her second song last instead. McPhee made it to the final two, along with Taylor Hicks.
  • May 23, 2006 - "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree"; "Over the Rainbow"; "My Destiny"
    • McPhee's first song was "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" from the Final 5. Randy Jackson said it was better than the first time. Paula Abdul said that Katharine was brilliant. Simon Cowell said it was good, but not big enough for this event.
    • McPhee's second song was "Over the Rainbow" from the Final 3. Jackson said it was amazing and hot. Abdul said it was great. Cowell said it was her best performance of the season.
    • McPhee's third song was an original single called "My Destiny" written by singer/songwriter Hanne Sorvaag. Jackson said McPhee looked and sounded amazing, but she was better than the song. Abdul agreed that McPhee sounded amazing. Cowell said that this song made her go from "brilliant" to only "quite good", but her second song was where she truly shined.
  • May 24, 2006
    • At the end of the 2 hour season finale, the final votes revealed that McPhee did not receive a majority of the votes, thus crowning Taylor Hicks the new American Idol. Ryan Seacrest stated there were over 63.4 million votes.

Post-Idol career

On June 6 2006, Sony BMG and 19 Entertainment announced that McPhee had signed to American Idol series creator Simon Fuller's 19 Recordings Limited and Sony BMG's RCA Records.[13]

McPhee's debut single, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny" was released on June 27, 2006 by RCA Records. "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" peaked at #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and "My Destiny" peaked at #60.[14] Thirty-two weeks after its release, Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny had climbed to #4 on the Billboard Hot Singles Sales charts.[15] It was 2nd highest best-selling single of 2006 after Taylor Hicks's "Do I Make You Proud?". After 58 weeks, "Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny" continues to chart, #47, on Billboard Hot Singles Sales chart, the week of Sept 1, 2007.

McPhee toured with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, and performed duets, "Somos Novios" and "The Prayer" in three of his concerts during his tour in the United States from June 9 through June 11, 2006.[16] She and Bocelli also performed and recorded duets, "Somos Novios" on the JC Penney Jam album and "Can't Help Falling in Love" on Bocelli's Under the Desert Sky album.

In June 2006, McPhee revealed to People magazine that she previously suffered from bulimia. After a period of about five years, she began treatment after qualifying for American Idol.[17] During her run on American Idol, she lost 30 lbs.

McPhee missed the start of the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2006, due to severe bronchitis and laryngitis.[18] McPhee commented on her illness in a public interview, saying "I just have to sing easily so I can get through the tour... I bruised [my vocal cords] because I was doing so much coughing".[19] McPhee eventually joined the tour on July 28, in Washington, D.C. just in time for all ten finalists to visit the White House to meet President George W. Bush. The day prior to returning to the Idol's tour, McPhee was a guest co-host on The View.

On July 21 2006, Broadway World announced that McPhee is co-producing Michael Albanese's play Red Herring along with Robert Hawk, Angelina Bruno, and Jeff Kasal. McPhee was quoted in the promo as describing a desire to become involved in theatre, stating that although "audiences know me best from American Idol... my passion has always been theatre." The play will be a part of the 10th Annual New York International Fringe Festival.[20]

McPhee and her sister appeared on debut of The Dr. Keith Ablow Show on September 18, 2006 to discuss her struggles with an eating disorder, bulimia, and her childhood fear of her father.[21] On the show, McPhee stated that she was thought to have a learning disability during her middle school years but was finally diagnosed with a vision problem.

In October 2006, McPhee dedicated a performance of Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing" during the Carousel of Hope Ball which Whitney attended.

Music career

2007: Katharine McPhee

See also: Katharine McPhee (album)

McPhee's much-anticipated, self-titled debut album, Katharine McPhee was released on January 30 2007 and sold 116,000 copies its first week, debuting at #2 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.[22] The first single from the album was the hit single, "Over It", which was officially released on the same day as the album and peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song's music video hit #1 on both TRL and VH1's Top 20 countdown, maintaining the top position on VH1 for 3 consecutive weeks. The video also hit #1 on MTV Asia's Pop 10 Chart for a massive 12 consecutive weeks.

On May 22 2007, McPhee released "Love Story", the second single from her debut album. Unlike "Over It" however, McPhee's second single failed to crack the Billboard Hot 100, though it did reach #38 on the Canadian Hot 100 and its video stayed at #1 on MTV Asia for 5 consecutive weeks.

In mid-2007, McPhee was named one of the year's 100 Most Beautiful People by People Magazine. She was also voted #2 on FHM's 100 Sexiest Women in The World of 2007 and #47 on Maxim's Hot 100 Women of 2007.

On October 23, McPhee sang "The Prayer" in a duet with 16-year-old Cody Karey at the Young Musicians Foundation Gala at the Hilton in Beverly Hills, Californian, as well as the American national anthem during the opening of the 2007 California Governor and First Lady's Conference on Women, which was held at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center. Three days later, during a concert tribute for Neil Sedaka at the Lincoln Center in New York City on October 26, 2007, Grammy award winning producer/songwriter, David Foster, announced that he and Katharine McPhee would be collaborating on her second studio album.

At the end of November, McPhee sang the National Anthem before a national audience in Detroit before the Thanksgiving Day NFL game between the Green Bay Packers and the Detroit Lions, and on December 3, McPhee and her mother Peisha McPhee performed 'Silent Night' at the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony in Sacramento, California. [23]

2008-present: Second studio album

On January 11 2008, it was reported by Billboard.com that McPhee had parted ways with RCA Records. A spokesperson for the label confirmed this in a statement reading: "Katharine McPhee has moved on to support her other entertainment activities. She is going to record her next album on her own." [24] McPhee's departure from RCA was reportedly due to the underperformance of her first album[citation needed], which debuted promisingly at #2 but failed to reach gold status, having so far sold only 370,000 copies.

On March 11, 2008, Katharine McPhee appeared on the album Randy Jackson's Music Club, Vol. 1. As part of a duet with fellow American Idol 5 contestant Elliott Yamin, McPhee recorded the song "Real Love". The following evening, McPhee returned to the American Idol stage during the Top 12 results night of the seventh season of the competition. She performed the Beatles song "Something", with Grammy-winning producer David Foster on piano. After the performance, Foster confirmed that he and McPhee were still collaborating on her second studio album. McPhee's new album is due this December and will contain Celine Dion, Whitney Houston, and Leona Lewis type power ballads.[25] She has also signed a two-year endorsement deal with Neutrogena to become the new flawless face for their skin-care product line. On March 16, 2008, she filmed her first commercial, which is scheduled to begin airing on television in May 2008, with print ads to follow. [26] "Real Love" was released as a second single, due the high popularity of the song on Itunes. The song is starting climbing in Mediabase charts. Now the songs sits in the top 150.

On May 23, 2008, Katharine McPhee appeared in a concert tribute for 15-time Grammy Award winning producer/songwriter David Foster, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas. McPhee sang "Somewhere" and "The Prayer" in a duet with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli.

Acting career

McPhee will make her studio acting debut as a pregnant hippie in a comedy titled The House Bunny (formerly known as I Know What Boys Like) starring Anna Faris and directed by Fred Wolf for Columbia Pictures and Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions. The film co-stars Rumer Willis, Emma Stone and Colin Hanks.

McPhee will also be the star of the indie dark romantic comedy, The Last Caller, according to The Hollywood Reporter. McPhee's character will be a narcissistic woman searching for love and other meaning. The role reportedly does not involve singing.

According to MTV, McPhee will start shooting an indie film called "Success" in November. "I play this sweet, nice girl who gets the attention of this guy," she revealed, " It's one of those interesting indie films." The movie is based on the 1978 novel of the same name by Martin Amis. The movie is to be written and directed by Ethan Goldman.

It has also been announced that McPhee will star in the indie suspense thriller, The Storyteller. The movie is being directed by Robert A. Masciantonio, according to IMDB. Katharine will play the role of Tina. Masciantonio has also said himself, earlier in 2008, that McPhee was in talks to sign onto the movie, but as of April 2008, all signs pointed to the direction that McPhee has signed on. Filming is scheduled to begin in early summer 2008 in Philadelphia.

Discography

Albums

Statistics Singles
Katharine McPhee

Singles

Year Single Album Chart positions
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 U.S. Billboard Pop 100 Hot Digital Songs Canadian Hot 100 RIAA certification
2006 "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" Somewhere Over the Rainbow/My Destiny 12 12 21 — —
"My Destiny" 60 42 31 — —
2007 "Over It" Katharine McPhee 29 21 21 25 Gold
"Love Story" — — 126 38 —

Other Charted Songs

Year Single Album Chart positions
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 U.S. Billboard Pop 100 Hot Digital Songs Canadian Hot 100 Mediabase RIAA certification
2006 "Think" American Idol Encores 121 90 102 — — —
2007 "O Come All Ye Faithful" Digital Release Only — — 124 — — —
2008 "Real Love" (with Elliott Yamin) Randy Jackson's Music Club, Vol. 1 — — — — 71 -

Filmography

Television

Films

Year Title Role Notes
2008 The House Bunny Harmony

Awards and nominations

References

  1. ^ Peisha McPhee's website
  2. ^ Peisha Arten at IMDb (Accessed on October 23rd 2006)
  3. ^ People.com : The #1 Celebrity Site on the Web
  4. ^ Crazy at IMDb
  5. ^ "Ask Ausiello" column TVGuide.com, May 31, 2006, accessed July 26, 2006
  6. ^ "Idol" Katharine McPhee Weds
  7. ^ "Katharine McPhee Teams Up With Hillary Clinton"
  8. ^ SouthCoast split on which 'Idol' left standing, SouthCoastToday.com, website for the New Bedford, MA Standard-Times, May 24, 2006, accessed May 27, 2006
  9. ^ High school fever for 'American Idol' finalist Katharine McPhee
  10. ^ There is Glee for McPhee in Sherman Oaks, press release from Congressman Brad Sherman's office, 24 May 2006, accessed 27 July 2006
  11. ^ Interview: Paris Bennett, Entertainment Weekly, May 4, 2006, accessed June 1, 2006
  12. ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Katharine McPhee's Wedding Album!". People. 2008-02-08. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
  13. ^ Katharine McPhee Signs Record Deal - Katharine McPhee : People.com
  14. ^ Chart Beat, Billboard.com, July 6, 2006, accessed July 26, 2006
  15. ^ "Hot Singles Sales: Issue date 2007-02-17". Retrieved 2007-02-11.
  16. ^ 'Idol' runner-up Katharine McPhee to perform with Andrea Bocelli in San Jose, San Jose Mercury News, June 1, 2006, accessed June 29, 2006
  17. ^ Katharine McPhee's Bulimia Battle - Katharine McPhee : People.com
  18. ^ Update From Kat: July 11, 2006 July 11, 2006. Accessed on July 21, 2006.
  19. ^ 'Crazy Schedule' For Kat McPheeJuly 26, 2006. Accessed on July 28, 2006.
  20. ^ Katharine McPhee Co-Produces Red Herring for FringeNYC July 21 2006. Accessed on July 23 2006.
  21. ^ "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution". "American Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee reveals reading disorder and struggles with father to talk show host Dr. Keith Ablow. Retrieved September 15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |first_name= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |last_name= ignored (help)
  22. ^ Jonathan Cohen, "Better 'Late' Than Never: Jones Debuts At No. 1", Billboard.com, February 7, 2007.
  23. ^ Katharine and Peisha McPhee - Silent Night You Tube clip
  24. ^ Katharine McPhee: the latest Idol to go indie
  25. ^ 'American Idol' axes first finalist
  26. ^ Serpe, Gina (2008-03-26). "Neutrogena Catches McPheever". Eonline. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
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