The winner of Rock Star: INXS announced!

[Bordello]

And the winner is...JD Fortune.

http://entimg.msn.com/i/gal/RockStar/Rockstar%20Week%2001-Monday%20Reality/mg_4300_300.jpg

Go Canada!

[BlazinTrini]

JD did have the best fit out of the 3

[7-Endless]

Congrats JD! He sang "What you need" awesome! Probably the closest rendition to the original compared to anyone else who sang it on the show

Also nice to know that he said he was gonna bring the "Redflag" with him too to Australia ;)

[deep]

Anyone who didn't know this weeks ago must have been dreaming. He's like a slightly less sexy, slightly more articulate "mini-Hutchence".

Including the women was purely a PC move. They had zero chance of making the cut, no matter how talented.

[slice]

i hope he enjoys the pub circuit.

[tessjames]

I knew it!! from the start of the show, he had always been the crowd and the judges' favorite. :lol:

[warpdrive]

JD was my least favorite of the finalists...too much Elvis in his style. I guess I won't be buying any new INXS music.

[7-Endless]

JD was my least favorite of the finalists...too much Elvis in his style. I guess I won't be buying any new INXS music.

Didn't see any traces of Elvis last night and I think he clearly was the best performer on the night. Love him or hate him...he earned it last night.

I might pick it up if Pretty Vegas is on the CD...song always gets stuck in my head when I hear it and it's already gotten radio play in certain areas.

[Bordello]

Elvis?

JD is clearly the best singer of the three. INXS has always praised him about his singing abilities and his reditions of the songs. Marty is not rock, he's more suited to a solo pop career (if he's lucky). As for Mig, his voice is pretty mediocre. He survived this long thanks to the female votes, as evident by his allergies to shirts.

[JimG]

Am I the only one who hasen't heard of INXS? Who are they? What kind of music do they make? And why do they need a new singer?

Jim

[Bordello]

Am I the only one who hasen't heard of INXS? Who are they? What kind of music do they make? And why do they need a new singer?

Jim
They were around in the 80's. They're pretty big in Australia and parts of Europe, not so big in NA. I think their lead singer died of drug overdose or something like that. They were before my time, so I never heard of them before this show either.

[felix]

It's rock music. So if this group is from the 80's, does this mean this JD guy is young and all the other members are oldies? :)

[Bordello]

It's rock music. So if this group is from the 80's, does this mean this JD guy is young and all the other members are oldies? :)
You betcha. The band members look like they're in their late 40's.

[Wildfire]

Well, can't say I'm all that shocked that J.D. won, as I said before, it looked like they were leaning towards him the last few weeks...

I will say that J.D. was the best fit for the band, but he wasn't the best singer IMO. I don't like his signing or on-stage performances, I much rather see Marty perform, but he's way too much into alternative rock to make sense for INXS, so they made the right decision.
As for Mig, he should stick to performing on broadway, he's got a nice voice, but he's way too overly dramatic to be a rock star.

I'm just waiting for when we hear in the news that INXS is on the road and J.D. trashes his hotel room with a bunch of drunk strippers. :lol:

[shuffle]

Michael Hutchence was actually found dead hanging in a hotel room in Sydney. A very common rumor is that he died of autoerotic asphyxiation - a sort of sex high from breathlessness while having sex / masterbating. Who knows what the truth is, but he went in style!

I can't see INXS every getting to the same level of popularity they once had - even with this reality stunt. Like somebody else stated in this thread - hope JD likes the pub scene!

[Tiberius]

INXS will have a great tour so long as they're new album has some hits on it.

For those who don't know who INXS is, it shows your age. ;) (not that that is a bad thing)

They were big in the 80's (even in North America). I recommend checking out Kick (I think that was what it was called). Lots of hits on it and it will give you an idea of what made them famous - great music.

They also released songs into the 90's and were in a bit of a "fued" with Oasis when Oasis was at their peak - Oasis badmouthed them to start it... go figure... That led to lots of rumours that the INSX hit single "Elogantly Wasted" that came out shorted after the insult actually had the lyrics occassionally switched to "Better than Oasis"... (the song is pretty damn good... it was their last big hit before Michael Hutchence death (there may have been other hits.. but that one was pretty huge and memorable).

The only reason I could see for Mig getting the "fan votes" for so long was that he is Australian. My guess is that the show was more closely followed in Australia (since INXS is from Australia)... and they voted heavily for Mig. I never really liked Mig and did not want him fronting INXS.

[7-Endless]

Well, can't say I'm all that shocked that J.D. won, as I said before, it looked like they were leaning towards him the last few weeks...

I will say that J.D. was the best fit for the band, but he wasn't the best singer IMO. I don't like his signing or on-stage performances, I much rather see Marty perform, but he's way too much into alternative rock to make sense for INXS, so they made the right decision.
As for Mig, he should stick to performing on broadway, he's got a nice voice, but he's way too overly dramatic to be a rock star.

I'm just waiting for when we hear in the news that INXS is on the road and J.D. trashes his hotel room with a bunch of drunk strippers. :lol:

Yup, he wasn't the best singer but neither was Marty. But what got them to the final two (and well deservedly) is that they stepped it up a notch and were hands down the best two performers in the last few weeks.

If INXS stays true to what they said about Marty opening up for them, then fans may get the best of both worlds...


Just reading some of the articles today and I wonder if I've ever passed him during his subway busking days :|

[Bordello]

Just out of curiousity, who do you guys think are the best and worst singer in the competition.

My vote is for JD. As for the worst, I'd have to say Jordis.

[7-Endless]

Just out of curiousity, who do you guys think are the best and worst singer in the competition.

My vote is for JD. As for the worst, I'd have to say Jordis.

Without taking style into consideration, I was really impressed by Suzie and have to agree with INXS in their statement that she seemed to have the best vocals...Ty is a great singer too but sounded too broadway-ish like Mig sometimes...

As for worst, I didn't like that Heather or that Neal guy very much. I would put Marty in there too before he smartened up and toned it down because he didn't really sing...he screamed...

[HunkaHunkaBurningLove]

I'm so disappointed that Marty didn't win. :( I should have figured JD was the shoe-in, but I was hoping INXS might take a chance with Marty's wide range of singing ability to refresh the band and take them in a new direction. I admit that JS nailed his INXS performances right on the money, but I wish they had a "sing-off" with both singers performing the same song just to compare.

I missed a few episodes so I never did hear Marty perform an INXS song besides that one at the end which I never heard of before. I didn't like him too much in the beginning - he seemed a little too "psycho," but I think that was just his rocker style on stage. Behind the scenes, he seems like a really quiet, introspective kind of guy. Maybe he's more the Red Hot Chilli Peppers type of singer than suited for INXS. I don't know if I'd buy an INXS CD with JD at the helm. Maybe we'll have to see what kind of songs they put out in November. "Easy Easy" wasn't that memorable for me.

[7-Endless]

Yeah, Easy Easy didn't thrill me either but it was definitely better than Us. Hopefully the other singles will be better. At least it looks like Pretty Vegas will also be released as a single as I've been hearing it on the radio a couple times now and it will be available on iTunes starting Oct 4th. Supposedly they recorded it the day before the finale...

Also read an interesting article today that said that Zack Werner from Canadian Idol used to be a partner of one of JD's past managers and said that he can "skate but can't play in the NHL"...LOL. Kinda funny coming from a guy who was comparing Ryan Malcolm to Kelly Clarkson at one time...

I have to say that although I was very skeptical of Rockstar INXS at first, I found it 100x more enjoyable then Idol. Much better songs and it's amazing how much difference a great house band can make!

[HunkaHunkaBurningLove]

Yep, that house band was amazingly good with those covers. It was cool at the end to hear the real INXS band members play their tunes with all those lasers zapping around... I would have loved to see their KICK concert when they were making the rounds way back, but sigh... missed that boat. :(

It's funny how some people haven't even heard of INXS! >:( LOL I know someone who never heard U2's With or Without You before... youngin's! :lol: I was listening to Easy Easy again, and well, it does kind of grow on you. :|

I've been watching some of the videos from the msn site, and if you watch the one showing them working on lyrics with Andrew Ferris I think it was, JD comes in with barely nothing at all! That makes me wonder how good of a lyricist he is and whether he's just going to be a "figurehead" singing the bands' songs.

All in all it's good to see a growing interest in INXS again. They were always a favorite of mine way back. Hopefully younger listeners will take a new liking to the revamped sound.

[tessjames]

Just out of curiousity, who do you guys think are the best and worst singer in the competition.

My vote is for JD. As for the worst, I'd have to say Jordis.

yeah, I think JD was one of the best singers in he competition. He was an Elvis impersonator before, rigth!? Worst singer was Will, Im not sure of the name. I think he was the second one to leave the competition.

[7-Endless]

It's funny how some people haven't even heard of INXS! >:( LOL I know someone who never heard U2's With or Without You before... youngin's! :lol: I was listening to Easy Easy again, and well, it does kind of grow on you. :|

Yeah, it does seem like a song that can grow on you...definitely much better than Us!

I've been watching some of the videos from the msn site, and if you watch the one showing them working on lyrics with Andrew Ferris I think it was, JD comes in with barely nothing at all! That makes me wonder how good of a lyricist he is and whether he's just going to be a "figurehead" singing the bands' songs.

Just reading some of the post show interviews and the band said that besides his on stage presence, his songwriting skills was the other big factor of why he won. When I first saw the background show of that particular songwriting clinic, I thought JD was in trouble but by the end of it Andrew and JD seemed to click really well and even embraced at the end. I think that Andrew just wishes he would write down his ideas instead of just keep them in his head. In any case they seem to have co-written their first hit with "Pretty Vegas"...they already have the single cover on the INXS website and will be on Ellen Degeneres and Late Night with Craig Ferguson tonight.


All in all it's good to see a growing interest in INXS again. They were always were a favorite of mine way back. Hopefully younger listeners will take a new liking to the revamped sound.

Definitely nice to hear some of those songs again...I almost forgot how many hits they had

[warpdrive]

All of this is just a publicity stunt for INXS anyway

[sleepyguy]

exactly... get people talking and then buying some cds. what they should do is make the damn contestants write their own songs to see what 'REAL' talent they have.

All of this is just a publicity stunt for INXS anyway

[7-Endless]

exactly... get people talking and then buying some cds. what they should do is make the damn contestants write their own songs to see what 'REAL' talent they have.


Which is pretty much what they did near the end and that explains why JD and Marty were the two finalists as they had the best original songs and worked the best with Andrew Farriss.

I'm not sure how much input JD will have on "Switch" but it will be interesting to see how much input and songwriting credits he'll have on the next album...if there is one...

[Tiberius]

All of this is just a publicity stunt for INXS anyway

You get the award for the "DUH!" statement of the day... ;)

Of course this was a publicity stunt! An incredibly brilliant one at that! If they would have just picked a new singer and released a new album... it would have been an uphill battle all the way. The new singer would be critiqued and compared to M.H.... there would be no momentum or pent up expectation and demand for an album from fans (past fans), etc...

This show put INXS back on the map. Fans from the past re-connected with the band, became familiar with their new lead singer... and even became engaged in helping select the new lead singer. People who had never heard of them were introduced to their music, and the new "personality" who will be their new lead singer.

Brilliant all around. Cheesey?... sure.... selling out? Perhaps. Effective? Definitely. :twisted:

[TheHans]

Hi,

What I thought was funny was how, at the end of the show, Brooke Burke was soliciting singers for the *next* "Rock Star" series. Are the Rolling Stones going to kill off Mick Jagger or something so we'll have "Rock Star: Rolling Stones" next summer? Keith Richards: "Oh, after Mick's death, our band just won't be complete until we find a new singer to replace him." And this time Carmen Electra will be Brooke Burke so she can keep an eye on Dave Navarro as he's drooling over the female rock star wannabees...

The Hans

[7-Endless]

Hi,

What I thought was funny was how, at the end of the show, Brooke Burke was soliciting singers for the *next* "Rock Star" series. Are the Rolling Stones going to kill off Mick Jagger or something so we'll have "Rock Star: Rolling Stones" next summer? Keith Richards: "Oh, after Mick's death, our band just won't be complete until we find a new singer to replace him." And this time Carmen Electra will be Brooke Burke so she can keep an eye on Dave Navarro as he's drooling over the female rock star wannabees...

The Hans


Mark Burnett said they are currently interviewing bands but he didn't say which ones...guess we'll just have to wait and see...

[HunkaHunkaBurningLove]

They mentioned that they were releasing the new INXS album this November, so I would take it that most of the songs are already written. Doesn't it normally take months and months to get a decent number of songs together and mastered? I wonder if they will just have JD singing what they have already laid down. I guess they want to get the album out while the iron is hot and interest is still high.

Does JD play any musical instruments? I liked the fact that Marty did that acoustic number of The Killers "Mr. Brightside" without the house band. I bet that Marty will have a bunch of producers wanting him to release his own album pretty soon.

I saw a short clip on Entertainment Tonight Canada about JD, and it seems that Mig was less than impressed with him as a fellow housemate. Also, what's up with the HUMAN BEING tattoos? LOL that's quite odd. :confused:

EDIT: Mini INXS videos! (http://www.inxs.com/index.php?section=soundvision&page=video)

[Spare-Flair]

i hope he enjoys the pub circuit.

Hey, it beats his previous life of homeless panhandling, sleeping in his car, and doing Elvis impersonations.

[Spare-Flair]

INXS will have a great tour so long as they're new album has some hits on it.

For those who don't know who INXS is, it shows your age. ;) (not that that is a bad thing)

They were big in the 80's (even in North America). I recommend checking out Kick (I think that was what it was called). Lots of hits on it and it will give you an idea of what made them famous - great music.

They also released songs into the 90's and were in a bit of a "fued" with Oasis when Oasis was at their peak - Oasis badmouthed them to start it... go figure... That led to lots of rumours that the INSX hit single "Elogantly Wasted" that came out shorted after the insult actually had the lyrics occassionally switched to "Better than Oasis"... (the song is pretty damn good... it was their last big hit before Michael Hutchence death (there may have been other hits.. but that one was pretty huge and memorable).

The only reason I could see for Mig getting the "fan votes" for so long was that he is Australian. My guess is that the show was more closely followed in Australia (since INXS is from Australia)... and they voted heavily for Mig. I never really liked Mig and did not want him fronting INXS.

No, the show was only on pricey cable in Australia and apparentely not very popular there. Australia also has less people than Los Angeles in terms of population. It also costs Australians to vote, it's not free.

[7-Endless]

They mentioned that they were releasing the new INXS album this November, so I would take it that most of the songs are already written. Doesn't it normally take months and months to get a decent number of songs together and mastered? I wonder if they will just have JD singing what they have already laid down. I guess they want to get the album out while the iron is hot and interest is still high.

I don't think he will be writing on Switch as most of the tracks are already laid down, I'm assuming that they just need to add vocals to it now. Pretty Vegas is the only track that will be added as it is now the first single. If Marty or Mig had won they would have used one of their original songs as all three finalists went into the studio to record with INXS before the finale.

Does JD play any musical instruments? I liked the fact that Marty did that acoustic number of The Killers "Mr. Brightside" without the house band. I bet that Marty will have a bunch of producers wanting him to release his own album pretty soon.

Yeah, he plays guitar too and has said that Devil Inside was the first song he learned to play guitar to.

I saw a short clip on Entertainment Tonight Canada about JD, and it seems that Mig was less than impressed with him as a fellow housemate. Also, what's up with the HUMAN BEING tattoos? LOL that's quite odd. :confused:

Actually, I'm not sure if the ET Canada comments were referring to the comments Mig made earlier in the show where he blabbed his mouth to the media about what he thought of JD but then felt bad afterwards and went to JD to talk about what he said. I think this actually got voted as one of the show's top moments.

JD just ended forgiving him and said something about how sometimes people are just "being human" but that we are always "Human Beings" which is why he has that tattooed on his arm...was a slightly cheesy melodramatic moment but it seemed Mig was quite impressed and surprised with him after that.

[HunkaHunkaBurningLove]

Thanks for filling me in with that info! I must have missed that clip about Mig's apology. There must have been some reason why Mig said those things, unless he got to know JD better and changed his mind later.

I didn't realize that JD was an Elvis impersonator. That explains some of his vocals where he almost sounds like he's hamming it up lounge singer style! I like Elvis so I guess I shouldn't complain! :cheesygri Did anyone notice that JD sure likes to kiss other men? Yikes, I didn't notice that until I watched a few of his performances... what's up with that? :confused: Hehe, not that there's anything wrong with that, I guess, but ahem, it's a little strange.

I just ordered the "Live Baby Live!" DVD from Amazon.ca. It's going for $27, but if you order something else like U2's Rattle and Hum DVD for $16, they throw in free shipping. Otherwise it's about $5 for the postage. I figured I may as well pick up that U2 movie while saving on shipping. The reviews seem to say that the Wimbley Stadium concert shows INXS at it's peak so it should be a good watch.

It's weird... I haven't had much interest in INXS since their Kick album. Elegantly Wasted was the only other song I ever heard much airplay on the radio up until MH's death. It was neat going to the INXS website to listen to some of the older singles like "Listen Like Thieves." I still remember signing that record out from the library to tape a few songs from it.

[Spare-Flair]

Well, lets I saw INXS featuring JD on Craig Ferguson last night. Man that was horrible. Ferguson had no idea what he was talking about. Couldn't drum a damn thing out of the audience, and INXS was in a horrible cramped space and couldn't even move. JD looked completely out of place in the middle.

They added some new lines to pretty Vegas. Something about the road being long. Sounded okay though but the presentation was ghastly (horrible host) and claustrophobic.

[7-Endless]

Well, lets I saw INXS featuring JD on Craig Ferguson last night. Man that was horrible. Ferguson had no idea what he was talking about. Couldn't drum a damn thing out of the audience, and INXS was in a horrible cramped space and couldn't even move. JD looked completely out of place in the middle.

They added some new lines to pretty Vegas. Something about the road being long. Sounded okay though but the presentation was ghastly (horrible host) and claustrophobic.


I saw both the Ellen and Craig Ferguson performances...both performances sounded good but tv appearances never seem to capture the same energy as the bands are always so separated from the audience and like you said they have to play on some small stage. At least with the Ellen performance he was able to actually go into the audience for a little bit though...

The new lyrics are from the CD release version of Pretty Vegas that is playing on the radio now....looks like Andrew and JD changed a couple things up...

[7-Endless]

Thanks for filling me in with that info! I must have missed that clip about Mig's apology. There must have been some reason why Mig said those things, unless he got to know JD better and changed his mind later.

I didn't realize that JD was an Elvis impersonator. That explains some of his vocals where he almost sounds like he's hamming it up lounge singer style! I like Elvis so I guess I shouldn't complain! :cheesygri Did anyone notice that JD sure likes to kiss other men? Yikes, I didn't notice that until I watched a few of his performances... what's up with that? :confused: Hehe, not that there's anything wrong with that, I guess, but ahem, it's a little strange.



Yup, he was an Elvis impersonator and supposedly still carries a picture of him and George Chuvalo when he performed for a Toronto Sun party about 10 years ago...LOL.

I was reading some Canadian Idol board a couple of weeks ago and coincidentally, JD sang Suspicious Minds the same night Cdn Idol did their Elvis tribute night...one of the posters said "There was only one good Elvis song heard tonight but it was from JD Fortune and unfortunately he is on Rockstar: INXS and not Canadian Idol" LOL...

[HunkaHunkaBurningLove]

His version of Suspicious Minds wasn't all that great I thought.

Hey, they've got a new Pretty Vegas live video at rockstar.msn.com (http://rockstar.msn.com/video/finale). Watch for the part when JD goofs up his timing and something goes awry with that loudspeaker! :D

Also, check out the other rockstar members' comments about JD winning. Some of them don't seem too genuine about their well wishes.