American Idols Become Wedding Crashers

via Reality Rocks


You know, there was a time when one of the biggest insults an "American Idol" contestant could receive was to be compared to a wedding singer. But this week, Season 9 finalists Casey James, Michael Lynche, and Andrew Garcia were proud to moonlight at the Detroit-area wedding of lucky couple Michelle Ricketts and Bobby Belke.

According to an Andrew interview with Fox Detroit, the three Idols were in Michigan this week rehearsing for the Idols Live Tour (which kicked off Thursday, July 1, at Detroit's Palace Of Auburn Hills), and were dining at the Royal Park Hotel when wedding guests approached them and invited them to the Ricketts/Belke reception taking place in the hotel's ballroom.

One thing led to another, and before long, the Idols were actually jamming on Motown oldies with the wedding band (luckily, Casey didn't play the buzzkill song "Jealous Guy"). And judging by the delighted expressions on wedding guests' faces in the reception photos, not a single spectator in the crowd seemed to think these surprise performers were "pitchy," dawg.

Michael reportedly seemed especially at home onstage, having sung in wedding bands professionally before his big "American Idol" break. "I just know that scene so well. It was surreal," he told Fox.

"Michelle's a big 'Idol' fan," maid of honor Katie Avesian told Fox. "She and Bobby were up onstage dancing with [the Idols]. I think they might have even hit up the dessert bar."

Sweet--literally. No wonder Big Mike told Fox that he loves to crash weddings.

So congratulations to the newlyweds, and here's hoping the audiences on the Idols Live Tour are as appreciative and excitable as those wedding guests. I guess the only question left to ask here is...are the Idols also available for birthday parties, quinceañeras, and bar mitzvahs?

No More Season 9 Shirts

For those of you interested in purchasing an American Idol Season 9 shirt from Idol Shirts (or any other shop), you better act now to make sure you get the design you want. I received an email from Cafepress this morning stating the following:

As Season 9 has now concluded, CafePress can no longer offer merchandise featuring the specific contestants from American Idol Season 9. Therefore, as of June 23, 2010 you Season 9 designs will be pended.

After that date, please do not create any designs that feature specific Season 9 contestants nor tag your generic American Idol designs with those contestants' names. Also, if you find a Season 9 contestant-specific design in your Media Basket that we missed, we would appreciate you removing the design on your own.

I'm not 100% sure, so don't quote me on this, but I believe they are only taking down designs with the contestants full names. Again, I'm not certain about this. I guess we will find out on Wednesday.

Also, you will no longer be able to do a search for the contestants on Cafepress. If you do, you will receive a message saying "No Matching Results Found." However, you still should be able to purchase designs directly from our store.

The Idol Shirts store can be found here: www.cafepress.com/Idol_Shirts

Get Ready for the American Idols Live Tour

In less than a month, your favorite ten Idols will be traveling from city to city to perform for you. You've watched them all season and soon you will have the chance to show the Idols how much you love them. We have several t-shirts available for each of the ten Idols. Here are some of our favorite designs.

You've Got Mail

My mail is normally very boring--junk mail and bills. However, today was a different story. I received a large, brown evelope with a return address reading "Andrew Garcia." I cannot tell you how thrilled I was to see his name on that envelope! I opened the package and pulled out two autographed pictures of Andrew!

From the beginning of the competition, Andrew was one of my favorites. His story made me respect him and his rendition of Paula Abdul's "Straight Up" completely won me over. He became even more special to me after his friend wore one of my t-shirt designs on American Idol. I wrote Andrew a letter and expected nothing in return, especially since it arrived at the studio after he was voted off the show.

Thank you, Andrew, for sending autographs and making my day! I'm looking forward to seeing you on tour. Hopefully, I'll be able to thank you in person.

Memorial Day Sale

Idol Shirts is having a special Memorial Day sale that ends Monday, May 31. You can save 20% off your purchase by simply entering the code 20BACK at checkout. If you are preparing for the upcoming American Idol tour, take advantage of this sale now. You're going to show your support for your favorite contestant anyway, so why not save 20% while doing it?

Again, that's 20% off t-shirts, tank tops, buttons, bags, etc. Enter the code 20BACK while checking out.

www.cafepress.com/Idol_Shirts