Lisa Tucker in Memphis

It was my great pleasure this past Sunday to meet and greet American Idol 5's Lisa Tucker. She was in town doing a Macy's promotional event (launching the sale of American Idol T-shirts) and the chance to hear her live was too much for us to pass up. Lisa and I email from time to time, and I've already interviewed her once, so I couldn't wait to meet the girl on the other end of the phone.

The first glimpse I caught of her was in the checkout line. Seems Lisa had a bit of pre-show shopping to do. Must be a female thing, because my wife was wanting to do the same. I noticed her there with her mom, who I also got to meet later.

Most of the crowd who turned out to see Lisa were of the younger sort: tweens and younger. And they were pretty psyched to see her. There was a security rope set up to keep people back from the stage, but the crowd wasn't too rowdy (except one kid who was crying in the background.) The first thing Lisa did when she stepped onto the stage was to do away with the security cord and gather all the kidlets on stage with her to perform "Tell Him." Her security detail (three mean and ugly lookin' dudes) could not have been less happy about it, but she wouldn't have it unless the kids were on stage dancing with her. She also performed a new song, "Forever Isn't Long Enough" and took questions from the crowd for a long while.

After, she signed autographs, my wife ran off with my credit card and bought an American Idol shirt, and fun was had by all. Lisa owed me an autographed picture from earlier, and she had promised me she'd bring it to the event. When I introduced myself, she slugged me in the arm and she said "oh THAT J.D." and then she immediately went into sheepish mode and explained she'd only remembered that she left my autographed pic at home by the time she made the layover in Atlanta. So somewhere out there I have a Lisa picture floating around. Who knows where. She signed my A.I. book and promised me I'd get the new single on mp3. She also signed Priscilla's shirt, and the two of them chatted for a minute.

I also met Lisa's mom, Eleanor. I just love her accent. And she's so nice too. She also explained to me about the picture being left at home.

So as for Lisa's upcoming projects, there are quite a few. She has a show in Anaheim on June 2 with her band. She'll be doing some more shows with Zoey 101 on Nickelodeon, but the main thing she's excited about is her new Fox TV pilot, Born in the USA. She's already shot the pilot, and they're anxiously awaiting the fall lineup on Fox.