Fashion show, AMTSJ among upcoming April appearances

Diana has several appearances set for the month of April, including a gala celebrating key behind the scenes workers at the American Musical Theatre of San Jose and a performance at a fashion show benefiting the fight against breast cancer.

Before April, Diana will sing The National Anthem at the Atlanta Braves' opening day at Turner field on Mon., March 31 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pre-game ceremonies kickoff at 6:30 p.m., followed by the first pitch at 7:10 p.m.

On April 6, Diana will appear at AMTSJ's Spring Gala at the San Jose Marriott. According to an article in the Mercury News, Christiane Noll and Aaron Ramey will also be in attendance to honor John Michael and Abby Sobrato, Star One Credit Union and the city of San Jose.

Diana is also set to appear at the 2008 CMT Music Awards on Mon., April 14, but it is unknown whether or not she will be presenting or taking on any other active role in the ceremonies. The awards will be hosted by Billy Ray and Miley Cyrus.

And finally, Diana will wrap up her busy month with a performance at the "A Diversity of Talents" fashion show, presented by the Sean Maxwell Project. The event will benefit the fight against breast cancer and will be held at the Atlanta Opera on Sat., April 26 at 6:00 p.m.

Diana to perform on 'American Idol Extra'

Diana is one of 12 Idol alums slated to return to perform on FOX Reality Channel's American Idol Extra this season. According to Fred Bronson of Billboard, Diana will perform her new single "Right Back Where We Ended," which was produced by John Rich, whose production company she has signed with. The air date has not yet been announced.

Diana performed "America the Beautiful" on the show in 2007. Other past finalists that will appear on the show include Bo Bice, Ace Young and Haley Scarnato. American Idol Extra airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Diana on FOX 5 New York

Diana appeared on FOX 5 New York news Wednesday morning for their "Idol Chatter" segment to discuss the American Idol Top 12 performances. She briefly mentioned Gone Country and her time on Broadway in Hairspray.

You can also watch the segment here.

Gone Country finale nets 2 million viewers

The seventh and finale episode of CMT's Gone Country pulled in more than 2 million viewers in its premiere night on Fri., March 7, according to a press release issued yesterday. The series garnered an estimated average of 769,000 total viewers for each of the seven episodes on their debut nights. The ratings gave Country the distinction of being the 25-year-old network's top-rated series.

Diana named honorary spokesperson for Global Youth Service Day

Diana will act as the honorary spokesperson for the 2008 Global Youth Service Day, which will be held from April 25-27, CMT News reported today. The three-day event, which is its ninth year and is co-sponsored by CMT One Country and Youth Service America, is the world's largest volunteering event. Of the event, Diana said:

"On behalf of CMT One Country and Youth Service America, I am delighted to speak to youth about the importance of volunteering. I am inspired and honored to be part of a generation that is recognizing more than ever the importance of giving back."

Ways to get involved in support of the global initiative are outlined on the organization's Web site.

Rolling Stone recaps Gone Country finale

A recap written by Daniel Kreps titled "Rock Reality Recap: 'Gone Country' Season Finale Shocker" of last Friday's episode of Gone Country appeared on RollingStone.com yesterday. In the article, the following was said about Diana:

Diana DeGarmo, who was criticized by Rich last episode for being “too Aguilera” belts out a countrified version of her song, turning her into the favorite to win this thing. “That was frighteningly good,” Rich says. But DeGarmo has one more hill to climb: Mt. Bobby Brown. Despite a pre-performance diet of Grey Goose-on-the-rocks, Brown brings the house down with his rousing performance, reminding the viewers at home that before he became a walking punch line, he was once a talented performer. Before we find out who wins the battle of DeGarmo vs. Brown, we must an endure a Sisqo performance (complete with ridiculous dancing) and Dee Snider’s juvenile “Rock Out with Your Rooster Out,” which started off well but ended with him dropping an eff bomb and a middle finger on the conservative audience, thus killing his slim chances of winning.

Kreps finished the article by pointing out Rich's hopes to "mine the lucrative 'Latinos who buy country music' market" by choosing winner Julio Iglesias, Jr., and proclaiming that Bobby Brown should have been chosen instead.

Diana at Country Radio Broadcasters' 39th annual seminar

Diana appeared at the 39th annual Country Radio Broadcasters' seminar on Wed., March 5. The seminar took place at the Nashville Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn. from Tues., March 4 to Fri., March 7. Below is a photo of her with country singer Rodney Atkins. The CRB is an independent organization that links the country music industry with country radio in order to promote a continuing growth between the two industries.

Watch Diana's performance of "Right Back Where We Ended"

Although she was not chosen as the winner of Gone Country, Diana's performance of "Right Back Where We Ended," the song she co-wrote and performed at the Wildhorse Saloon, is now available to watch on CMT Loaded.

It would also be a good idea to post some praise and congratulations to Diana and the other GC contestants on CMT.com's message board.

Next on Gone Country: "Finale: Who Has Gone Country"

"Finale: Who Has Gone Country" the seventh and final episode of Gone Country, airs tonight at 8 p.m. ET on CMT. The following is a synopsis of the episode.

The final performance is upon the cast, and their nerves are on edge as they prepare to present Nashville with their songs. The cast enters the Wildhorse Saloon, where they will be performing that evening, and gets ready for their performance with rehearsals, sound checks and hair & make-up. Rich arms the gang with one of the things that inspired him most in life as a performer, an inspirational prayer and a pep talk from his father, the preacher. The cast takes the stage and performs. In the end, only one is named the Gone Country winner.

To take part in discussion with other fans of the show, visit the official Gone Country message board on CMT.com.

Winner of Gone Country leaks

The winner of CMT's Gone Country has leaked. Apparently the singer's digital single is already available at country radio so stations can begin playing it as soon as the winner is announced tomorrow night following the finale. If you would like to find out who wins, highlight the following:

Julio Iglesias, Jr.

In addition to the single being released to country radio, it will also most likely be available on iTunes following the finale.

Catch up on Gone Country before the finale

For those who have missed any of the first six episodes of Gone Country, they can be found available for download on DianaMedia.net. If you would just like to stream them without downloading them, you can check out the series' video page on CMT.com and watch the first two episodes online.

Rolling Stone recaps episode six of Gone Country

A recap written by Daniel Kreps titled "Reality Show Recap: Hopefuls Croon Original Tunes on 'Gone Country'" of last Friday's episode of Gone Country appeared on RollingStone.com yesterday. In the article, the following was said about Diana:

After Carnie Wilson strikes out with the judges, former American Idol hopeful Diana DeGarmo, the series’ dark horse, is accused of being “too Aguilera.”

“I’ll kill for country music,” Rich warns our contestants, concerned that the seven wannabes aren’t giving it their all. To quote DeGarmo, “Rich made Simon Cowell look like a pussy cat.” DeGarmo closes out the episode in tears, transforming herself into some kind of feel-good character and making her most likely to wrestle the championship away from Bobby Brown at next week’s series finale concert.

Whether Kreps' prediction materializes remains to be seen.