OMG... watching Leno and he JUST said that she's going to be on tomorrow AND she's bringing #TeamXtina from The Voice and they are all performing together on the show!
Christina Aguilera gave the performance of a lifetime when she sang "At Last" at Etta James' funeral. Aguilera poured all of her heart and soul into the performance to pay tribute to a woman she called "her idol."
Christina was dressed in a black suit and had her hair pulled into a sweeping up-do as she bravely stood before James' family and close friends and said,
"Out of all the singers that I've ever heard, she was the one that cut right to my soul and spoke to me."
It was clearly an emotional experience for Aguilera and it appeared that she had tears in her eyes as she began to sing.
She brought the crowd to their feet as she finished the song belting out notes that are impossible for most of today's stars. She has always been a fan of Etta's, she even sang the Etta James' song "A Sunday Kind of Love" on Star Search in 1990. That performance earned her second place on the popular televised talent show.
As much as Christina loved Etta, Etta seemed to love her too. Back in 2006, Etta had this to say about Christina,
"When I first heard her stuff, and I heard her say on TV, [in response to the question] where she got her style, 'I grew up on Etta James,' that made me feel so good. The last person who said that was Janis Joplin, but Christina can sing. Janis was good, but there's a difference in the quality of voice. I couldn't believe that big sound, that big voice was coming out of her. Tell me who you've seen that sings like her, because we don't have anybody."
Then to Aguilera she said,
"It's like you were here many years ago. You don't look exactly like them, but there's something about you that's like Dinah Washington, Billie Holiday, those kinds of chicks. I've never seen a girl sing as tough as you sing, as little as you are. It's like you're an old soul."
It was only fitting that Christina Aguilera sing "At Last" at Etta James' funeral. No one else could have done it better. Click HERE to see the performance, but you should probably grab some tissues first!
More than 200 artists have performed on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve since it debuted 40 years ago, and in tonight’s countdown of the Top 40 performances, Jennifer Lopez (and her bedazzled bodysuit) took the crown.
See the full list below.
Things we learned watching Fergie and Jenny McCarthy host tonight’s live two-hour countdown special: The crowd dancing in the ’80s was so much better than today, Rick Springfield actually pulled off that pink suit (which is, we assume, why his name and “Jessie’s Girl” trended on Twitter), and meeting McCarthy was one loud man’s life dream.
40. “Celebrate,” 1973 — Three Dog Night 39. “Just Another New Year’s Eve,” 1981 — Barry Manilow 38. “Like a G-6,” 2011 — Far East Movement 37. “Who Let the Dogs Out,” 2001 — Baha Men 36. “All Night Long,” 2009 — Lionel Richie 35. “Last Dance,” 2004 — Donna Summer 34. “Hold My Hand,” 1995 — Hootie & the Blowfish 33. “Home,” 2010 — Daughtry 32. “Shoop,” 1995 — Salt-N-Pepa 31. “Walk Like an Egyptian,” 1987 — The Bangles 30. “Unfaithful,” 2007 — Rihanna 29. “Ain’t 2 Proud 2 Beg,” 1993 — TLC 28. “Girl’s Night Out,” 2008 — Miley Cyrus 27. “White Wedding,” 2005 — Billy Idol 26. “Conga,” 1987 — Miami Sound Machine 25. “S.O.S.,” 2008 — The Jonas Brothers 24. “Maneater,” 1983 — Hall & Oates 23. “I Honestly Love You,” 1975 – Olivia Newton-John 22. “One Time,” 2010 – Justin Bieber 21. “Fergalicious,” 2007 — Fergie 20. “Picture to Burn,” 2009 – Taylor Swift 19. Medley/“Larger Than Life,” 2011 — NKOTBSB 18. “Good Vibrations,” 1975 — The Beach Boys 17. “Shout,” 1986 — Tears for Fear 16. “Get the Party Started,” 2002 — Pink 15. “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye,” 1992 — Boyz II Men 14. “Get Down Tonight,” 1976 — KC and the Sunshine Band 13. “Don’t Cha,” 2006 — The Pussycat Dolls 12. “Hart of Glass,” 1980– Blondie 11. “Jessie’s Girl,” 1982 — Rick Springfield 10. “Before He Cheats,” 2008 — Carrie Underwood 9. “We Got the Beat,” 1983 — The Go-Go’s 8. “Boom Boom Pow,” 2010 — The Black Eyed Peas 7. “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble,” 1989 – DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince 6. “Wannabe,” 1998 — The Spice Girls 5. “Candyman,” 2007 — Christina Aguilera 4. “Karma Chameleon,” 1984 — Culture Club 3. “Y.M.C.A.,” 1983 — The Village People 2. “We Belong Together,” 2006 — Mariah Carey 1. “Let’s Get Loud,” 2010 — Jennifer Lopez
When he considers the AMAs, what he's most excited about is "to be around such walking empires and song brands.
"What I love at the awards show is to just sit there and observe and study everybody," he says. "You can tell who has longevity in the business as to how they handle their team."
Like most of those interviewed, Adam Levine of Maroon 5 is excited about whom he may meet at the awards.
"It happens all so randomly, and everyone under the sun will be there," Levine says. If he had the chance to meet anyone, "Paul McCartney would blow my mind," he says.
Maroon 5 will sing "Moves Like Jagger" with Christina Aguilera.
"It is hard singing on a stage with her because she is so good," Levine says. "I will have to flail my arms around and run around like a maniac."
Though it's a huge audience filled with music's top talent, Levine has played in front of 1 million people, and one of his first concerts was at producer Clive Davis' in front of Jay-Z, Missy Elliott and Smokey Robinson, so he doesn't give in to jitters.
"A huge crowd of people is a huge crowd of people," he says. "You know when you are in a club or when you are in an arena it makes no difference. It's like seeing a bear -- you act like you are taller than the bear. That's what performing is."