But Can They Sing?

"But Can They Sing?" was a reality television series that premiered on October 30, 2005 on VH1 as part of its celebreality programming. Hosted by Ahmet Zappa, the series was partially based on NBC's announced but abandoned project "I'm a Celebrity but I Wanna Be a Pop Star" (originally entitled "Celebrity Pop Superstar"). Like its network predecessor, it was produced by Granada Productions. In January 2006 VH1 announced that the show would not return for a second season.

Premise

Nine celebrities set out to prove their singing prowess in an "American Idol"-style competition, while viewers voted online on their favorite performers. The celebrities were aided in their quest by movement/dance instructor Tony Michaels and vocal coaches Jackie Simley-Stevens and Rachel Riggs. The winner's favorite charity received $50,000.

Contestants

*Joe Pantoliano
**"I Get a Kick Out of You" (Frank Sinatra) (week one)
**"Volare"* (week two)

*Michael Copon
**"I Don't Wanna Be" (Gavin DeGraw, 2004) (week one)
**"American Woman" (The Guess Who) (week two)
**"You Give Love a Bad Name" (Bon Jovi, 1986) and "Don't Go Breakin' My Heart" (Elton John & Kiki Dee) duet w/Larry Holmes (week three)
**"This Is How We Do It" (Montell Jordan, 1995) (week four)
**"Hot in Herre" (Nelly, 2002) and "Walking on Sunshine" (Katrina and the Waves, 1985) duet w/Morgan Fairchild (week five)
**"Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" (JC Chasez, 2002) (week six)

*Larry Holmes
**"I Got You (I Feel Good)" (James Brown) (week one)
**"Let's Get it On" (Marvin Gaye) (week two)
**"Brick House" (The Commodores, 1977)* and "Don't Go Breakin' My Heart" duet w/Michael Copon (week three)

*Morgan Fairchild
**"These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" (Nancy Sinatra) (week one)
**"I Will Survive" (Gloria Gaynor, 1979) (week two)
**"You're So Vain" (Carly Simon, 1972) and "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" (Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes, 1987) duet w/Antonio Sabato, Jr. (week three)
**"Believe" (Cher, 1999) (week four)
**"Son of a Preacher Man" (Dusty Springfield) and "Walking On Sunshine" duet w/Michael Copon (week five)
**"Heartbreaker" (Pat Benatar, 1979) (week six)

*Bai Ling
**"Like a Virgin" (Madonna, 1984) (week one)
**"Call Me" (Blondie, 1980) (week two)
**"Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" (Cyndi Lauper, 1984) and "Summer Nights" duet w/Carmine Gotti Agnello (week three)
**"I Wanna Be Sedated" (The Ramones) (week four)
**"Volare" and "Rock and Roll All Nite" (KISS) duet/Carmine Gotti Agnello* (week five)
**Special Performance: "I Touch Myself" (Divinyls, 1991) (week six)

*Antonio Sabato Jr.
**"Every Breath You Take" (The Police, 1983) (week one)
**"I Want You to Want Me" (Cheap Trick, 1978) (week two)
**"Addicted to Love" (Robert Palmer, 1986) and "I Had the Time of My Life" duet w/Morgan Fairchild (week three)
**"Nothin' But a Good Time" (Poison, 1988)* (week four)

*Kim Coles
**"Crazy In Love" (Beyonce, 2003) (week one)
**"Love Child" (The Supremes, 1964)* (week two)

*Myrka Dellanos
**"Don't Know Why" (Norah Jones, 2002) (week one)
**"It's My Life" (No Doubt, 2003)* (week two)

*George Lopez
**"Ride wit Me" (Nelly) (week one)
**"Drop It Like It's Hot" (Snoop Dogg & Pharell, 2004) (week two)
**"U Remind Me" (Usher, 2001) and "Summer Nights" duet w/Bai Ling (week three)
**"My Prerogative" (Bobby Brown, 1989) (week four)
**"Hey Ma" (Camron) and "Rock and Roll All Nite" duet w/Bai Ling (week five)
**"Gold Digger" (Kanye West & Jamie Foxx, 2005) (week six)

During Week 6, all nine contestants (except Joe Pantoliano) returned to perform "Bohemian Rhapsody" (Queen, 1975).

*Not aired (*)

Eliminated

* Week 2: Myrka Dellanos, Kim Coles, Joe Pantoliano
* Week 3: Larry Holmes
* Week 4: Antonio Sabato Jr.
* Week 5: Bai Ling
* Week 6: Morgan Fairchild, George Lopez

Winner

* Michael Copon performed "This Is How We Do It" with the other contestants (except Joe Pantoliano) singing back-up to close out the week 6 show. Copon's charity, [http://shakenbaby.com Shaken Baby Alliance] , received $50,000 from his win.

External links

* [http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/but_can_they_sing/series.jhtml Official site @ VH1]
* [http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/cabletv/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001261678 MediaWeek article]
* [http://tv.zap2it.com/tveditorial/tve_main/1,1002,271|97914|1|,00.html Zap2it article]
* [http://www.boston.com/ae/tv/articles/2005/11/01/but_can_they_sing_makes_the_answer_painfully_clear/ Review of first week's show]
*imdb title|id=0487237|title=But Can They Sing?
*Tv.com show|id=46973|title=But Can They Sing?
* [http://www.nydailynews.com/news/gossip/story/360003p-306543c.html NY Daily News]
* [http://www.hollywoodtickets.com/ShowPages/ButCanTheySing.asp]