"American Idol" Recap: Kree and Candice Go Three Rounds in Final Showdown

FOX(LOS ANGELES) -- American Idol finalists Kree Harrison and Candice Glover went three rounds Wednesday night trying to earn enough votes to take this season's Idol crown. The winner will be revealed on American Idol's two-hour season finale Thursday night.

In the first round, American Idol creator Simon Fuller chose the song, and in round two, the finalists sang the song that would be their respective debut single should they win the competition. The third round featured Kree and Candice singing their favorite song from this season's competition.  

The show took place at the Nokia Theater L.A. Live for a crowd of 7,000 fans. Keith Urban, Nicki Minaj, Randy Jackson and Mariah Carey were on hand offering up their comments on the night's performances one last time. At this point, it looks like all four judges won't be back next season as Idol producers try to reverse a serious ratings decline this season.

Here's what happened:

Kree started the night off singing a countrified version of Sarah McLachlan's "Angel." She looked gorgeous in a pale-colored gown, but Kree didn't pump up the entertainment factor with this performance.

Simon picked Adele's "Chasing Pavements" for Candice, and her gospel-influenced licks really brought the drama. The powerhouse performance earned her a standing ovation from the judges.

The judges commented at the end of each round. Mariah started off saying how proud she has been to be a part of this season. Randy thought these songs were a little sleepy, and host Ryan Seacrest gave Randy a hard time about criticizing their boss Simon Fuller's song choices now that Randy's leaving the show.  Randy gave the edge in round one to Candice for taking some vocal chances, and Mariah praised Kree for turning in a delicate performance.

Kree sang her potential winner's single, a country power ballad called "All Cried Out." This performance was a complete 180 from Kree's sleepy round one performance, and she managed to really connect with each note. There were a few slight pitch problems, and all the judges gave her a standing ovation except for Nicki.

Candice's potential first single is a R&B ballad called "I Am Beautiful," and she really sold the lyrics about a woman overcoming a bad relationship through her faith. All four judges gave Candice her second standing ovation of the night.

Nicki felt she heard a new, deeper part of Kree's performance in this round. Keith said Kree and Candice are both soul singers, and Nicki added she loved the meaning of Candice's song. Keith said Kree won round two, but Nicki gave it to Candice.

Kree went back to a song she sang in the Vegas round this season, Patty Griffin's "Up to the Mountain," for her third round pick. She earned applause when the song really kicked into gear, and all four judges gave Kree a standing ovation for the performance. Keith said it was "absolutely beautiful," and Nicki said the gospel choir backing her up gave it an extra energy. Randy said it was Kree's best performance of the night, and Mariah told Kree she made smart choices with her song choices tonight.

Candice closed out the night with a sultry, powerhouse performance of "I (Who Have Nothing)." It was the performance of the night, and Candice switched things up singing the first part of the song a cappella. She earned her third standing ovation from the judges, and Randy even bowed down to praise her. Keith said the performance was "just crazy." Nicki called Candice a superstar who commands the stage. Randy said Candice shot the night to a whole new level, and Mariah told Candice she would be listening to her for years to come.

In addition to the performances from Kree and Candice, Carly Rae Jepsen took the stage after round one to sing "Take a Picture," the song born out of the Coca-Cola Perfect Harmony program this season at AmericanIdol.com. The lyrics were actually crowdsourced with visitors to the site contributing to the songwriting process.

Tune in for two hours of star-studded performances and the crowning of this season's winner on the American Idol finale Thursday night at 8 ET on Fox.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Jewel on Having More Babies: ‘My Eggs Are in Wheelchairs’

Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage(NEW YORK) -- In 2011, Jewel and her husband, Ty Murray, welcomed their son, Kase, into the world, but in a recent interview with ABC News, the singer-songwriter reveals that she’s not necessarily planning on giving the little boy a sibling.

“I’m really torn about it. I think I have one nailed, and two feels like something’s gonna fall through the cracks!” says the self-proclaimed “perfectionist.”  Also, she says,  ”I think my eggs are in wheelchairs at this point. We’ll have to see.”

At the moment, her focus is on instilling a sense of empathy in her son, especially now that she’s an ambassador for ReThink, a national public awareness campaign dedicated to destigmatizing public housing and homelessness. When she was a teenager, Jewel, now 38, was homeless and recalls women making cruel remarks while she washed her hair in the sink of a local Denny’s but also how kind people were to her too.

“Hard times make you bitter or make you more compassionate. You either become an activist or someone who’s very disenfranchised,” she says. “If someone is willing to help you understand your own worth when you’re vulnerable, that’s a very touching thing. It makes you want to help other people.”

Now financially stable, Jewel, who stars as June Carter Cash in the Lifetime movie Ring of Fire on May 27, says she and her husband are trying to make sure they don’t spoil their son, but it’s hard.

“He’s everything,” she says. “He has a really funny sense of humor, and he’s a boy’s boy for sure. He loves tractors! We live on a big ranch, so any time he gets to be on the tractor, he’s pretty excited.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Angie Everhart Tweets ‘Thanks’ from Hospital Bed

David Livingston/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Angie Everhart is thanking fans from her hospital bed after receiving a flurry of well-wishes following her revelation that she has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer.

“I’m in the hospital with my gown and my phone reading all the well wishes.. You all all [sic] awesome! Thanks again my Tweet friends!! Xoxo Angie,” the former supermodel and actress wrote on Twitter.

The actress also posted a photo from her hospital bed with her mother posing next to her, along with the caption, “My best friend, the greatest woman I know -- my mother my support.”

Everhart, 43, is in the hospital undergoing surgery for thyroid cancer.

“Word has been trickling out about supermodel/actress Angie Everhart’s health,” her rep said in a statement Monday. “She wants to set the record straight by letting everyone know that it is true that she has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer.”

Her rep added that “the prognosis is very good” and Everhart “expects to be back to work and to mommy duties in a few weeks.”

The former Sports Illustrated model is a single parent to 3-year-old son Kayden Bobby Everhart. She was previously married to Ashley Hamilton in the 1990s and was briefly engaged to Sylvester Stallone in 1995 and Joe Pesci before their split in 2008. Everhart appeared in Last Action Hero and Another 9 1/2 Weeks.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Report: Nicki Minaj Leaving "American Idol"

Brad Barket/PictureGroup(LOS ANGELES) -- Nicki Minaj could be the next judge to exit American Idol, following Randy Jackson‘s announcement that he’s leaving the show after 12 seasons.

Us Weekly quotes an inside source saying, “It’s safe to say she isn’t coming back to Idol. She’s okay with it. She had a great time but was only going to do one season anyway.”

Fox declined to comment on the report. A rep for Minaj did not immediately respond to an ABC News request for comment.

The 30-year-old rapper has been in an ongoing feud with fellow first-time judge Mariah Carey since the season started.

“I think the producers thought that the feud would bring in ratings at first, but then it got away from them,” M.J. Santilli, who writes about Idol on MJs Big Blog, told ABC News.

In recent days, rumors have circulated that the show will be restructured next season with an entirely new panel of judges and a new producer.

Neither Carey nor Urban have commented on their future with the struggling Fox icon. Only Jackson has officially announced his departure.

Last week in a statement to various media outlets, he said, “I have decided it is time to leave after this season. I am looking forward to focusing on my company Dream Merchant 21 and other business ventures.”

“I am very proud of how we forever changed television and the music industry,” he said.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

"Homeland" Actress Expecting First Child

Charley Gallay/Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) -- Actress Morena Baccarin is expecting her first child with husband Austin Chick, her representative confirmed to ABC News.

The 33-year-old Brazilian-born actress married Chick, 41, a director and screenwriter, in November 2011.

Baccarin plays Jessica Brody, the wife of former marine-turned-terrorist Nicholas Brody, on the hit Showtime series Homeland.

Baccarin’s baby won’t be the first on the set, however. Her co-star and former grade-school classmate, Claire Danes, gave birth to a son last December.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Will, Jaden Smith Quash Emancipation Rumors

Photo by Jun Sato/WireImage(LOS ANGELES) -- Doesn’t look like Jaden Smith will be separating from his parents anytime soon.

The 14-year-old actor and his famous father, Will Smith, set the record straight on rumors that Jaden was seeking to become an emancipated minor during an appearance Wednesday on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

“See, here’s the thing that you need to understand: I’m not going anywhere,” Jaden told DeGeneres when she asked him about the rumors. “The thing that people don’t get is everything at this house is free! So I can get anything and everything at his house, so I’m going to be there 20, 30 more years.”

“He says as soon as I have a movie that’s bigger than one of his movies, I can get my own house,” the Karate Kid star joked.

Father Will Smith joined in the laughs.

“I mean...my baby boy, he’s never leaving me, ever,” he joked.

Rumors that Jaden was planning to get a place of his own by his 15th birthday began swirling after Will Smith was quoted in the U.K. publication The Sun, saying, “I know if we do this, he can be an emancipated minor, because he really wants to have his own place.”

The elder Smith told DeGeneres it was a joke taken out of context, adding, “No emancipation for the Smith kids.”

Father and son are starring in M. Night Shyamalan upcoming sci-fi thriller, After Earth.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Beyonce 'Feeling Much Better Now'

Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images(ANTWERP, Belgium) -- Beyonce is “feeling much better,” a day after a doctor ordered her to postpone her show Tuesday night in Antwerp, Belgium.

The singer posted a handwritten apology to fans for having to cancel the concert on her website.

“I’ve never postponed a show in my life. It was very hard for me. I promise I will make it up very soon. I’m sorry if I disappointed you. Thank you for your concern. I’m feeling much better now and I’m ready to give you a great show.”

The “Single Ladies” singer had two shows in Antwerp scheduled for The Mrs. Carter Show world tour. Though it appears the show will go on Wednesday night, there is no word on when the first show will be rescheduled.

Beyonce released a statement Tuesday morning saying she had been “advised by her doctors to rest as a result of dehydration and exhaustion” and that “ticket holders should keep their tickets to be used with the re-scheduled date.”

Tuesday’s cancellation quickly fueled rumors that the 31-year-old singer is pregnant with her second child. Sources close to the singer have been quick to quash the reports.

“Beyoncé and Jay are planning for another baby after her tour is over and things calm down just a bit,” one source told People on Monday, referring to the singer and husband Jay-Z.

In a recent interview with Good Morning America in London, the mother of Blue Ivy, said she’s definitely open to more children.

“I think my daughter needs some company,” she said. “I definitely love being big sister.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Britney Spears: 'I Like the Salty and Sweet'

Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) -- As the mom of two growing boys, Britney Spears admits it can be hard to stay in shape.

“I love white chocolate, and I love potato chips! I like the salty and sweet,” the “Toxic” singer and mother of sons Sean, 7, and Jayden, 6, recently told Extra. “When [the boys] come over, the snacks are constantly piling up, and I constantly have to feed them. I’m like, ‘Jesus I want fried chicken too!’”

To counter her love for junk food, Spears, 31, sticks to a workout routine.

“I really love doing yoga. I have two separate trainers that come in and we play with it. I don’t like doing the same thing all the time, but my main ritual is yoga. I do a lot of yoga,” she told Extra.

She’s showing off the results of her hard work in a teeny white bikini on the cover of the June issue of Shape magazine.

In the magazine, Spears expounds on her exercise regimen, telling the writer that she does 90 minutes of yoga twice a week, as well as hour-long cardio sessions three times a week with her trainer.

One reason she’s working so hard to stay in shape: a Las Vegas residency that will start this fall.

"The [Vegas] performances won’t be simple … a massive party from start to finish,” she told the magazine, on newsstands May 20.  “And to pull this off, I have to be in top condition and running at full speed.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Zach Braff Adds Star Power to Kickstarter Campaign

Zach Braff Twitter(LOS ANGELES) -- After his successful -- and controversial -- Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for the film, actor and director Zach Braff can apparently afford a star for his upcoming movie Wish I Was Here.

Complete with a pic of him with his arm around the former Criminal Minds lead, Braff tweeted, "One of my favorite actors of all time...Mandy Patinkin will play my father."

In just over three weeks, Braff's Kickstarter effort has gained over 38,000 backers and raised over $2.6 million.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

ABC Shrinking "DWTS" to Single Night for 2013-2014 Seaon

ABC/Adam Taylor(NEW YORK) -- ABC is making a drastic change to Dancing with the Stars for next fall.

The network announced on Tuesday that it will no longer air the reality series on two nights per week.  Instead, it is folding the Dancing with the Stars results show into the competition's performance show as part of a two-hour block on Monday nights.

ABC has traditionally aired a one-hour Dancing with the Stars results show on Tuesdays, one day after the performance show.

ABC Entertainment President Paul Lee explained the decision to reporters: "We think that by taking the results show and building it in to the two-hour block, from 8 to 10 on Monday night, we can really build a sense of occasion to that and drive viewership to Monday night."

Not only that, but the downsizing of Dancing with the Stars also helps make room on Tuesdays for ABC's most-hyped new series: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., from The Avengers director Joss Whedon. At ABC Tevelision's Upfront presentation Tuesday night in New York City, Whedon told ABC News Radio that the TV series is completely different than the silver screen version.

"It’s about the small people because even though we touch on superhero things -- and there’s a certain amount of spectacle -- unlike the movies, this is about the people who didn’t win the lottery," he added. "What happens if you live in that world and you’re not burdened by greatness?"

ABC has added a total of eight new shows for the fall.  Aside from S.H.I.E.L.D., they are:

• Super Fun Night, a comedy featuring Bridesmaids actress and recent MTV Movie Awards host Rebel Wilson as an attorney who bonds with her two BFFs every Friday during what they call a "Fun Night" date;

• The Goldbergs, a Wonder Years-esque comedy focusing on an 11-year-old boy in the 1980s who captures the goings-on in his eccentric family with a video camera;

• Trophy Wife, a comedy starring Malin Akerman as a reformed party girl who's integrated into the extended family of her new husband and his two ex-wives;

• Lucky 7, a drama executive produced by Steven Spielberg.  It will revolve around seven gas station employees who win the lottery;

• Back in the Game, a comedy centered around a former star softball player who agrees to coach a team of misfits;

• Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, the previously-reported Once Upon a Time spin-off;

• Betrayal, a drama that dwells on an affair between a photographer and an attorney, and how it plays into a murder investigation.

In addition, ABC will air a Toy Story special titled Toy Story of Terror in October.  You can check out all of the new programs, including the network's midseason offerings, at ABC.com.

ABC is throwing a new wrinkle into its schedule for the 2013-2014 season: it plans to air some of its series in blocks of 12 episodes.  In other words, certain shows will air 12 episodes, then go on hiatus before returning later in the season for another 12 episodes.

Here is ABC's 2013-2014 schedule.  All times Eastern:

Monday
Dancing With The Stars -- 8-10 p.m.
Castle -- 10-11 p.m.

Tuesday
Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. -- 8-9 p.m.
The Goldbergs -- 9-9:30 p.m.
Trophy Wife -- 9:30-10 p.m.
Lucky 7 -- 10-11 p.m.

Wednesday
The Middle -- 8-8:30 p.m.
Back in the Game -- 8:30-9 p.m.
Modern Family -- 9-9:30 p.m.
Super Fun Night -- 9:30-10 p.m.
Nashville -- 10-11 p.m.

Thursday
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland -- 8-9 p.m.
Grey’s Anatomy -- 9-10 p.m.
Scandal -- 10-11 p.m.

Friday
Last Man Standing -- 8-8:30 p.m.
The Neighbors -- 8:30-9 p.m.
Shark Tank -- 9-10 p.m.
20/20 -- 10-11 p.m.

Saturday
Saturday Night College Football -- 8 p.m.

Sunday
America’s Funniest Home Videos -- 7-8 p.m.
Once Upon A Time -- 8-9 p.m.
Revenge -- 9-10 p.m.
Betrayal -- 10-11 p.m.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio