Who says "American Idol" rejects are a bunch of hopeless losers -- we found one who actually managed to turn his flash of fame into a lucrative profession ... begging for money on the side of the road.
His name's Magic Cyclops -- and you may remember him as the air guitar-playing bandana-wearing weirdo who fired confetti out of his pants during his audition in Aspen last month.
The judges unanimously rejected him -- no surprise -- but now he's found success outside the music biz, panhandlng on the side of a freeway in Fort Collins, CO.
Magic tells us, since his massively public "Idol" rejection, no one has wanted to hire his one-man band -- because "now people know I don’t have the talent I thought I had.”
But after reading an article about homeless people making up to $30k a year just from begging, Magic was inspired -- and decided to hit the road with a cardboard sign ... earning an impressive $0.35 his first day.
For the record, Magic isn’t actually homeless -- he lives at home with his parents, owns a car, cellphone and a computer. But he is kind of a dumbass.
As for Jenny and Jim ... they had a pretty weird breakup ... with Jenny telling Oprah the relationship had stopped being fun ... and Jim tweeting, "I am now free 2 be my whole self."
Ethan Jones made it to Hollywood this week on "American Idol" and told a story about how his dad was in rehab -- but Todd Jones wants to clear the air ... he was not actually in rehab when his son auditioned.
Ethan explained on the show (see below) that he was in a band back in St. Louis with his dad, but pops had to leave the band to go to rehab. Steven Tyler, no stranger to addiction, even said, "I want to meet your father when he gets out."
But Todd tells TMZ he's out of rehab for six months and couldn't be with his son at the audition because he was attending a funeral.
Jones says he'd love to take Tyler up on his offer to meet feels it would be "enlightening" to hear Tyler's experiences.
"American Idol"honcho Nigel Lythgoe has balls -- he's asking Prez Obama to come on the show to do the song that made him even more famous -- with Al Green.
Seems Nigel was blown away by Obama's short rendition of "Let's Stay Together" at the Apollo Theater earlier this month.
So Nigel just tweeted the Prez, "We loved your vocal performance so much we'd love to invite you on to American Idol this Season for a duet with Al Green."
"American Idol" wannabe Angie Zeiderman loves Lady Gaga (as she proclaimed during her audition) but she's not trying to be like her ... she's just being herself.
Zeiderman tells TMZ she's theatrical by nature, and took it as a great compliment when Jennifer Lopez said most contestants couldn't sing a show tune like she did. Angie says she performs every Thursday night at a gay bar in Delray Beach, FL (the only girl who does so) and performs as part of a burlesque troupe that performs all over Miami.
If the "Idol" thing doesn't pan out, she should have no problem getting a gig ... as a Lady Gaga impersonator.
"American Idol" cheerleader babe Brittany Kerr is more than a pretty face -- she's a pretty face with a black belt in taekwondo!
Brittany tells TMZ she started studying martial arts in Charlotte when she was 8 (above) -- and earned her black belt after 4 years of kicking girls' and boys' butts. Brit says, "I definitely made some boys cry while sparring ... I had a killer high kick!"
Kerr is now 24 and says she's laid off the taekwondo, but still does some kick boxing to stay in shape.
Instead of a golden ticket to Hollywood ... "American Idol" contestant Alanna Snare got a one-way ticket back to her life of fried bulls' balls -- and it looks like she's thrilled.
Alanna was rejected on last night's episode, but used her 'AI' platform to educate America about the delicacy known as Rocky Mountain Oysters ... aka bull testicles.
We got pics of Alanna back in action as a waitress at Bruce's in Severance, CO ... where the house specialty is testes from all sorts of animals.
Alanna tells us she was disappointed about her 'Idol' performance, but on a positive note ... she says her job is a "real ball of a time."
The midriff and booty baring girl who got booted from "American Idol" is pissed at Steven Tyler ... because she claims he approved of her skimpy outfit before her audition ... and even told her she "already won the damn thing!"
Jennifer Diley was dismissed Sunday night after attempting two songs -- "With You" by Jessica Simpson and "Hero" by Mariah Carey. Jennifer tells us she was thrown off because she hadn't rehearsed either song -- and was forced by producers to pick from a list of "flirty" songs.
Jennifer is mostly ticked at Steven though. She says he loved her barely-there tube top and booty shorts 10 minutes before she sang -- but then sat silently as she was ridiculed for it.
FOX had no comment about Jennifer's song list claim. As for Steven -- his manager Eric Sherman says, "You are telling me some provocatively dressed woman is claiming Steven Tyler flirted with her? I am shocked. Next thing you will tell me is Harvey Levin isn't 6' 2"."
You weren't the only one who Googled that smoking hot NBA cheerleader from "American Idol" this week -- THOUSANDS of other people did too ... and TMZ has learned, the massive surge in traffic crashed her manager's website.
In case you missed Wednesday's episode, the smokeshow's name is Brittany Kerr -- a cheerleader for the Charlotte Bobcats. J.Lo wasn't that impressed with her audition, but Steven Tyler and Randy Jackson eagerly handed the girl a ticket to Hollywood.
But the fanfare didn't end there ... a rep for Kerr's management company -- which hosts multiple photos of her on its website -- tells TMZ, its site was forced to shut down for hours after a massive surge in traffic crippled its servers.
But Kerr's management company wasn't the only thing affected ... photographer Jim Merrill -- who recently snapped Kerr in a bikini shoot -- tells TMZ, he had to scramble to buy additional bandwidth for his website to accommodate all the voyeurs.
Merrill tells us, he typically gets about 5,000 hits a month on his website -- but just moments after Kerr's audition, his traffic ballooned to 20,000 hits.
Never underestimate America's online stalking abilities.
"American Idol" reject Shaun Kraisman's pro singing career might be off the table -- but TMZ has learned, he already has a potentially lucrative back-up plan ... impersonating Ryan Seacrest for a living.
You probably recognize him -- he's the guy from Wednesday night's episode who's a dead ringer for the "Idol" host ... right down to the way he talks. It's scary.
Shaun didn't make it to Hollywood (his audition was ... less than stellar) ... but he's unfazed -- telling us, he got such a positive reaction from his Ryan Seacrest impression on Wednesday night's show, he has decided to pursue a career as a Seacrest impersonator.
Shaun tells us, he has already booked a gig with a local radio station to do his Ryan act -- and is currently reaching out to as many people as possible to get his new career off the ground ... friends, managers, agents.
His ultimate goal -- Shaun says he wants to host parties, shows, you name it ... all doing the Seacrest thing. Way to aim high.
The midriff and booty baring girl who got booted from "American Idol" is pissed at Steven Tyler ... because she claims he approved of her skimpy outfit before her audition ... and even told her she "already won the damn thing!"
