The theme for last night's episode of la Nouvelle Star was 'Chansons Francaises'. So all the contestants had to sing a French song. Obviously they all chose well known French songs but, not being French and not having lived here for very long, I didn't know any of them. I don't think I even recognised one of the songs. So all I could do to judge the performanes was to judge their vocals and presentation.
Canelle was up first and was ordinary as usual. I expected her to be out before the show even started because she didn't even belong in the top 10 let alone make it to the final 8. So yep, she got the least votes and is out of the competition, probably never to be heard from again.
Pierre Darmon was up next. I think he has a great voice and even though I didn't know the song, he was fantastic. I love this guy. He got a red from Dove becuase he felt Pierre doesn't sing with enough emotion but I think that was unfair. I can see Pierre getting better and better as the weeks go along. Pierre came in at 6 after the voting which was a shock for me. I don't think it helps to be one of the first singers.
Alex was his usual funky self. He sang a song by Yannick Noah. I still can't believe Yannick Noah is a famous singer in this country as I'd only ever known him as a tennis player but whatever... Alex sang and performed well but he wasn't outstanding. Alex was voted in at number 5 so that confirms his mediocre status. I'm sure he can do better but will he?
Raphaelle sang an old French song which showed off her beautiful voice. She sings well but is lacking character or personality. I think she'll continue for another week or two but I can't see her winning the comp. Raphaelle got plenty of votes and came in second. She deserved that I think.
Next up was Julie who sang Si Seulement Je Pouvais Lui Manquer. She was great. She did so much better than last week and thankfully the judges and public thought so too. Julie was voted in at number 4. I thought she did better than Raphaelle but 4 out of 9 isn't too bad.
Popular boy Tigane sang J'en Reve Encore. Everyone loves him - except me that is. Yeah, he sings well but he's just not appealing to me. I don't see what he has that is unique. He got the most last night and looks like he'll be safe for a while.
Poor Soma. He started out with such promise and now he's way over his head. He made an attempt at singing Mon Pays by Faudel but he can't sing for shit. As Marianne said, the only reason he's still in the comp is that the young girls who do most of the voting think he's cute. I really thought he was in with a chance when I saw him at the casting but unless he can make some radical changes, he's going to be out soon. He just made it to the next round.
The brilliant Julien Dore sang Comme d'Habitude. He was fantastic last night. I loved his performance. I can't decide who I'd prefer to win, Julien or Pierre but they are both great in my opinion. Julien was voted through at number 3. I thought he would have been first but maybe his style isn't to everone's liking.
Last to perform was Gaetane singing Au Cafe Des Delices originally by Patrick Bruel. I didn't like her performance at all but was surprised that she only just made it through to the next round, coming in number 7 out of 9.
My prediction for next week is that Soma or Alex will be out.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Nouvelle Star | Videos | Interviews
I've been watching all the videos of the Nouvelle Star contestants on You Tube. I thought TV shows were removed from You Tube but there are heaps of Nouvelle Star videos available to watch.
You can check out the videos of some of the contestants including the castings, auditions, and all of the recent live shows from Baltard.
Alex seems to be a pretty fun and easy going guy who can sing reasonably well but I don't think he'll have the support to win the Nouvelle Star.
Gaetane is very, very popular but I can't work out why. She'll probably be one of the last remaining contestants.
Raphaelle isn't a bad singer but is just so damn boring. Hopefully she'll get better because I quite like her.
Tigane is even less interesting than Raphaelle but the judges love him. I don't think he sings that well and his accent needs a lot of work when singing in English.
Still more videos to come then it'll be time for the next round.
You can check out the videos of some of the contestants including the castings, auditions, and all of the recent live shows from Baltard.
Alex seems to be a pretty fun and easy going guy who can sing reasonably well but I don't think he'll have the support to win the Nouvelle Star.
Gaetane is very, very popular but I can't work out why. She'll probably be one of the last remaining contestants.
Raphaelle isn't a bad singer but is just so damn boring. Hopefully she'll get better because I quite like her.
Tigane is even less interesting than Raphaelle but the judges love him. I don't think he sings that well and his accent needs a lot of work when singing in English.
Still more videos to come then it'll be time for the next round.
Monday, April 23, 2007
My Carte Vitale
Quite by surprise today, I got a letter in the mail from the Assurance Maladie stating that I have been added to Ferbent's Carte Vitale health card. So I can finally go to the doctor if I need to without having to worry about paying the full cost.
I originally applied for a carte vitale about a 8 months ago when I received my temporary carte de sejour. I had to fill in some forms and prove I was married to my husband who was employed in France. They then needed to see his carte vitale which he was still waiting for.
When his carte vitale finally arrived I wrote back to Assurance Maladie with a copy of the carte vitale but then they needed my carte de sejour, not the temporary one I had shown them.
So I'd kind of forgotten about the whole thing. I then stumbled upon my 'dossier' the other day so I thought I'd send it back with a copy of my carte de sejour (which I received in February). I didn't even send a covering letter, I just put all the documents in an envelope and that was it.
It turns out that was enough so if I get hit by a bus tomorrow it won't cost me a fortune!
I wonder if they'll reimbourse me for when I went to the dentist last year? Probably not but it's worth a try. I'll send off the documents tomorrow and see what happens.
I originally applied for a carte vitale about a 8 months ago when I received my temporary carte de sejour. I had to fill in some forms and prove I was married to my husband who was employed in France. They then needed to see his carte vitale which he was still waiting for.
When his carte vitale finally arrived I wrote back to Assurance Maladie with a copy of the carte vitale but then they needed my carte de sejour, not the temporary one I had shown them.
So I'd kind of forgotten about the whole thing. I then stumbled upon my 'dossier' the other day so I thought I'd send it back with a copy of my carte de sejour (which I received in February). I didn't even send a covering letter, I just put all the documents in an envelope and that was it.
It turns out that was enough so if I get hit by a bus tomorrow it won't cost me a fortune!
I wonder if they'll reimbourse me for when I went to the dentist last year? Probably not but it's worth a try. I'll send off the documents tomorrow and see what happens.
Saturday, April 21, 2007
Nouvelle Star | Ilyes Out
Ilyes is out of the running for the Nouvelle Star 2007. He didn't really deserve to continue so I think the voting public got it right this time.
I've added videos and interviews for 4 of the contestants which you can check out if you're interested.
Canelle makes a slightly better performance than last week, as did Soma. I thought Julie did well singing in Spanish but she made it through by only 17 votes.
Videos for the rest are still to come.
I've added videos and interviews for 4 of the contestants which you can check out if you're interested.
Canelle makes a slightly better performance than last week, as did Soma. I thought Julie did well singing in Spanish but she made it through by only 17 votes.
Videos for the rest are still to come.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Cologne | Germany | Photos
I completely forgot to post my Cologne photos from my recent trip to Germany (which is not so recent now) so here they are:
I'm not a fan of Gothic architechture but the Cologne Cathedral is pretty impressive although clearly in need of a good clean.
Most of Cologne was destroyed during the war so a lot of the architecture is from the 1950s. This of course translates to a very ugly city. However, there are some character buildings along the river.
Yes, this is a photo of a building with an icecream cone on top of it. I don't know what those Germans are up to here:
Ferbent doesn't seem to be too happy about the cold weather:
They like to ride their bikes a lot in Cologne which is great:
That's it for Cologne, there wasn't much to see but I had a great time anyway. I'm looking forward to my next trip to Germany.
I'm not a fan of Gothic architechture but the Cologne Cathedral is pretty impressive although clearly in need of a good clean.
Most of Cologne was destroyed during the war so a lot of the architecture is from the 1950s. This of course translates to a very ugly city. However, there are some character buildings along the river.
Yes, this is a photo of a building with an icecream cone on top of it. I don't know what those Germans are up to here:
Ferbent doesn't seem to be too happy about the cold weather:
They like to ride their bikes a lot in Cologne which is great:
That's it for Cologne, there wasn't much to see but I had a great time anyway. I'm looking forward to my next trip to Germany.
Wonder Cooker
A quick update on the Wonder Cooker which I've been promoting for a few weeks.
I had my doubts about whether people would be interested in this kind of thing and more to the point, whether people actually buy As Seen on TV products but in fact, it sells really, really well. My conversion rate is around 5% which is great. Well, I think it's great. Other affiliate programs I work with only convert at around 1 to 2% so needless to say I'm pretty happy with the Wonder Cooker.
The only reason I'm not looking at retirement any time soon is that I'm not getting enough volume. People just aren't searching for the Wonder Cooker. Maybe it's only a new product or it isn't being promoted on TV at the moment; I'm not sure. So I'm only getting around 1 sale per day. Yeah, I won't be going on a 5 star holiday anytime soon.
This has motivated me to try promoting other As Seen on TV products. As soon as I finish with the Nouvelle Star campaign I'll be working on promoting other products like with my One Cooker website.
I had my doubts about whether people would be interested in this kind of thing and more to the point, whether people actually buy As Seen on TV products but in fact, it sells really, really well. My conversion rate is around 5% which is great. Well, I think it's great. Other affiliate programs I work with only convert at around 1 to 2% so needless to say I'm pretty happy with the Wonder Cooker.
The only reason I'm not looking at retirement any time soon is that I'm not getting enough volume. People just aren't searching for the Wonder Cooker. Maybe it's only a new product or it isn't being promoted on TV at the moment; I'm not sure. So I'm only getting around 1 sale per day. Yeah, I won't be going on a 5 star holiday anytime soon.
This has motivated me to try promoting other As Seen on TV products. As soon as I finish with the Nouvelle Star campaign I'll be working on promoting other products like with my One Cooker website.
La Nouvelle Star
I'm not that interested in reality TV shows, especially French ones but I have been following the Nouvelle Star with mild interest. Actually my interest in this show is more from a marketing persepective than anything else as I'm interested in the possible money making opportunites it presents.
I know that in the US, American Idol is hugely popular and many marketers do really well promoting the last 10 contestants and especially the winner. They do arbitrage or CPA offers around ringtone or cd offers. So I thought I'd give it a go here with the Nouvelle Star 2007. Naturally the demand won't be as high here as in the US but I won't know exactly until I try.
So my pick to win La Nouvelle Star is Pierre Darmon. He's one of the more experienced singers, has a great voice and is well liked by both the jury and the public. The most unique and talented singer and talented is Julien Dore. I think he's great and the jury loves him but I don't think he'll win. He's a bit too alternative for the voting public I'd suggest.
As for the girls there is Gaetane, who is pretty useless but seems to be popular because she's pretty, if you like the look of French girls that is. Canelle is even more useless than Gaetane but someone managed to get through to the final 10. She doesn't deserve to be there but anyway, that's how they voted. Raphaelle seems nice and has a pretty good voice but I don't think she'll win. She might make it to the top 5 but she's a bit too plain Jane to win. My favourite of the girls is Julie. She's pretty cool and can sing well and I think she's popular so she could go far.
The rest of the line up includes Alex who was saved by the jury at the last minute. He definitely deserved to get through. Soma is hugely popular with the girls. He can sing well but his performances so far have been utter crap. Hopefully he'll improve this week as he could win if he gets it together. Tigane is pretty boring if you ask me but the jury seems to like him. That leaves Ilyes who again is pretty popular with the girls but he's a bit limited in his abilites so probably won't win.
So they are my predictions, we'll see if I get close. I'm still working on getting the sites up and running and will start the AdWords campaign in a couple of weeks.
I know that in the US, American Idol is hugely popular and many marketers do really well promoting the last 10 contestants and especially the winner. They do arbitrage or CPA offers around ringtone or cd offers. So I thought I'd give it a go here with the Nouvelle Star 2007. Naturally the demand won't be as high here as in the US but I won't know exactly until I try.
So my pick to win La Nouvelle Star is Pierre Darmon. He's one of the more experienced singers, has a great voice and is well liked by both the jury and the public. The most unique and talented singer and talented is Julien Dore. I think he's great and the jury loves him but I don't think he'll win. He's a bit too alternative for the voting public I'd suggest.
As for the girls there is Gaetane, who is pretty useless but seems to be popular because she's pretty, if you like the look of French girls that is. Canelle is even more useless than Gaetane but someone managed to get through to the final 10. She doesn't deserve to be there but anyway, that's how they voted. Raphaelle seems nice and has a pretty good voice but I don't think she'll win. She might make it to the top 5 but she's a bit too plain Jane to win. My favourite of the girls is Julie. She's pretty cool and can sing well and I think she's popular so she could go far.
The rest of the line up includes Alex who was saved by the jury at the last minute. He definitely deserved to get through. Soma is hugely popular with the girls. He can sing well but his performances so far have been utter crap. Hopefully he'll improve this week as he could win if he gets it together. Tigane is pretty boring if you ask me but the jury seems to like him. That leaves Ilyes who again is pretty popular with the girls but he's a bit limited in his abilites so probably won't win.
So they are my predictions, we'll see if I get close. I'm still working on getting the sites up and running and will start the AdWords campaign in a couple of weeks.
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