Additionally, Kris will open Keith’s upcoming shows at the California Mid State Fair in Paso Robles, Calif. (July 28), the Indiana State Fair in Indianapolis (Aug. 14), the Great Allentown Fair in Allentown, Pa. (Sept. 3) and the Champlain Valley Fair in Essex Junction, Vt. (Sept. 4).

During the ‘American Idol’ season finale last May, Keith and Kris shared the stage for a duet of Keith’s ‘Kiss a Girl.’

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Allen traveled to the embattled island nation last week, and before he takes the “Idol” stage for the first time since his win last May, the singer spoke with MTV News about his experience in Haiti and what he hopes to accomplish during Thursday’s appearance.

“It was a weird trip, because you get over there — everyone’s seen the pictures and stuff and the videos — it’s really bad,” he said. “It’s a lot of destruction. A lot of people have been affected by it. But there’s a lot of stuff going on.”

Allen pointed to the relief efforts of organizations like the Salvation Army and the Red Cross, who have been working on the ground ever since a 7.0 quake nearly leveled the capital city of Port-au-Prince in January. During his visit, Allen stopped by an aid camp that opened the night of the earthquake and now is the temporary home for more than 3,300 Haitians, with more arriving every day. All these relief groups, the singer said, “have done so many amazing things for the Haitian people and gave that nation a lot of hope for the future.”

The idea for the trip to Haiti came from “Idol” creator Simon Fuller. As soon as Fuller made the suggestion, Allen came onboard. He ended up handing out food, breaking up fallen concrete with a sledgehammer and clearing rubble with his hands, all the while working side by side with the Haitian people. Allen’s last stop took him to a tent where mothers come to breastfeed their babies and care for their children.

During Thursday’s show, viewers will be asked to make online or text-message donations to the Idol Gives Back Foundation, with funds going to support the United Nations Foundation’s ongoing efforts in Haiti. “I wanted to go over there and help,” Allen said. “I felt like I did that in a little way. I think that me being on the show is going to be a bigger help than me going there with the little bit of manpower that I have.”

“There were definitely shocking things,” he told OK! of his one-day trip with the UN Foundation.

“Buildings down all over the place, people living in tiny little tents that were blazing hot, with six or seven to a family,” he said. “It was a pretty rough experience for them.”

After seeing the destruction, Kris says he has a renewed drive to give back.

“When you see something like that, it definitely affects you and makes you happy for what you have, but also makes you want to do something to help those people. I think it’s just an innate human thing, like when you see people hurting, you just want to help them,” said Kris.

You can check out footage of Kris’s trip to Haiti below, and you’ll be able to see more film — plus a performance of “Let It Be” by Kris (which will be available on iTunes, with all of the proceeds benefiting Haiti relief) — on American Idol on Thursday, February 25 (8:00-9:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed).

To learn more about the UN Foundation’s work in Haiti and how to donate, visit www.unfoundation.org/idol.

Sound advice as he handled quite a few instruments during his performances on the show including the acoustic and electric guitar, keyboard and the piano.

“But if you can’t do that, obviously eyeliner helps — but not for me,” he laughs, in an apparent reference to his Idol runner-up Adam Lambert.

His deadpan sense of humour is refreshing. In an interview some time before his showcase at the Gardens Hotel last week, Kris did seem rather aloof, but it’s forgivable seeing the strenuous schedule he has been put through since being crowned in the world’s most popular talent show.

In the 15-minute session, he only warmed up almost at the end of the conversation. In fact, this writer had been warned moments before meeting Allen.

Colleagues from other media who had faced him, came out disappointed, what with his monosyllabic answers.

And then there were warnings to steer away from questions related to Lambert. Which was hard, considering that while the flashy glam rocker may have played second fiddle to Allen at the finale, he has kept up with the champion like a shadow ever since, in terms of success.

It was too tempting to see if the Jackson, Arkansas all-American boy would flinch at the mention of Lambert’s name just one more time.

And so, we asked if the gay Lambert being ‘outed’ in some implicating photographs helped 2010 his win in Idol.

“I knew,” he said in reference to Lambert’s sexual preference. But did middle America’s ‘discovery’ of Lambert’s penchant for boas and such help him?

“I mean… people… I guess…,” he trails off, taking time to organise his thoughts.

“How could you have not known?” he says with a wry smile, shrugging.

Still, whether it helped or not, it wasn’t smooth sailing for Allen. He didn’t get much attention throughout the competition, and it was only much later in the Top 11 when Simon Cowell praised him for his interpretation of To Make You Feel My Love noting that the shy lad actually had a shot at the Idol title.

Plus, not to mention, no married individual had seriously posed enough threat to ever take the Idol title prior to Allen’s win.

“Everyone knew I wasn’t single. It was hard… I had hoped that people watching the show would vote on talent, but I know it’s not completely what people consider when they’re voting.

“They’re thinking, can I hang out with this guy? And whether he’s likeable.”

However, Allen admits that his clean boy-next-door image, coupled with his loving husband role helped, as did his religious background.

“I think I’m a relatable guy. I’m a little bit weird to some people… but I think it does play a part.”

Perhaps, Allen’s reluctance to go more in depth during interviews is also partly due to the media’s tendency to focus on fluff and trivial matters.

After countless interviews, one of the most asked questions is how much has his life changed post Idol. Even in the Press conference prior to the interview, Allen was asked those exact words by a member of the Malaysian Press.

“I can only answer that I’m in Malaysia,” he says, shrugging off the obvious.

Allen may come off misunderstood to some, appearing bored at mundane queries but the folksy rocker is a serious artiste who appears to be coming into his own.

While others may jump for joy at an offer to release an album within months of winning Idol, Allen realised that there was much to do.

“Making an album, there are things that I would want.” And while he says he feels “pretty good at how the album turned out,” it was clear that it has not met his own personal expectations.

So much so, that even the ‘coronation tune’, No Boundaries, co-written by Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, did not make it into his debut — breaking away from Idol tradition.

“Well, I just felt there were better stuff to put on the album.

“The studio version is on iTunes, if people wanted they could get it there but I feel that it has run its course.”

While staying away from reading album reviews, Allen is aware that he has yet to find his sound.

The critics have been quick to point out his albums lacks maturity and direction as opposed to Lambert’s debut.

And that doesn’t even include the updated comparisons on the sales of their respective albums. The comparisons don’t irk him, especially when he avoids reading reviews, but Allen finds the whole scenario amusing.

“It’s not disturbing, but it’s funny that people would even try comparing him to me.

“It doesn’t make sense at all because he does his thing and I do my thing and it has worked for both of us.”

As for lack of direction — he admits that writing and producing is hard.

“And to come off the show and go straight into that kind of thing…” he said.

“For the second album, I want to write all the songs and I definitely want to spend more time in production. Ask anybody how you can make an album in four short months.

“I want to spend months and months sitting down by myself and write songs and really perfect a lot of stuff.”

Allen hints at a shift in his music, and it should come as no surprise if he pulls a Kelly (former Idol Kelly Clarkson), who changed her sound after her debut upon being given more creative freedom.

So how different will Kris Allen be in the future?

“I don’t know how different. For me maybe a little bit more raw, emotionally heavy.”

Still, despite the pop machinery at work, Allen is thankful for it all. He says he is clueless as to what he would have done without Idol, not having industry connections and having exhausted his avenues playing small bars.

“I’m just glad it all worked out. The first person I worked with was with David Hodges and he had worked with a lot of big names like Kelly Clarkson and Daughtry and come off after being part of Evanescence.

“I got a little intimidated with the Grammys and all he had in his home.”

Hodges has also written and/or produced for artistes such as Amie Miriello, David Archuleta, Anastacia, Celine Dion, Backstreet Boys as well as Dashboard Confessional amongst many others.

And he’s also in the writing credits for Lambert’s upcoming album, of course.

As for his album, Allen says that the inclusion of the cover of Heartless is the last time he includes reworked tunes.

Despite his many enjoyable interpretations of big tunes in the show, there is almost no chance of any of them making it to future studio albums.

“Can’t imagine that I would (include reworked tunes). All the songs I did on the show, I really loved, definitely suited a live show. But I really can’t imagine I would record them cause it’s already been done.”

Meanwhile, Allen’s continuing his tour around the world for his fans, discovering and ‘enjoying’ new things like the ‘balut’ (a fertilised duck or chicken egg with a near developed embryo inside that is boiled and eaten with the shell).

Or maybe not. “I’d rather just eat a hard boiled egg,” he smirks.

After individual sets, the ‘American Idol’ trifecta come together for a cover of Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Crazy.’

The “American Idol” stars aligned Friday night (February 12), as Allison Iraheta, Adam Lambert and Kris Allen took the stage for an exclusive live event.

Ryan Seacrest’s “Rock My Town” concert brought out hundreds of lucky ticket winners, all of whom braved the cold for hours to make sure they got the best possible spot in the intimate Highline Ballroom.

Those who stayed were treated to a surprisingly loud Allen set. It smartly kicked off with his much-lauded cover of Kanye West’s “Heartless,” which has now evolved into a mash-up with the Coolio oldie “Gangsta’s Paradise.”

Later on, he played another ditty that earned him raves on “Idol,” the Swell Season’s “Falling Slowly,” except now Allen adds a few measures of U2’s “With or Without You” into the mix, making the song feel even more sweeping and emotional. So much so, in fact, that Glen Hansard stole Kris’ unique arrangement for a Swell Season show earlier this week, a tidbit Kris was eager to share with the crowd. (Allen also played his Michael Jackson week offering “Man in the Mirror” but left it untouched, presumably out of respect for MJ, whom Kris called “one of the greatest ever.”)

Allen’s been on the road the most out of the three on the bill, and it has paid off handsomely. His bandmembers sound like they have been playing together for years, and his stage presence has improved tremendously since his days on “Idol.” He no longer looks awkward when he performs without a guitar. In fact, “Can’t Stay Away,” “Written All Over My Face” and his cover of the the Beatles’ “Come Together” all showed off a newfound — dare I say it? — rock-star swagger that delighted the Kris fans bopping in the audience (even if nobody passed out, as Kris jokingly said was his goal for the night).

Even more exciting was when Allen and his band opened up the arrangements to his album songs. “Red Guitar” and “Is It Over” both approached jam-band territory at certain points, giving the 12-song set a dynamic ebb and flow.

The crowd cheered the loudest for Allen’s single “Live Like We’re Dying” (and least for the sore thumb of the night, the Pat Monahan-penned ballad “The Truth”), but the highlight was the infectious sing-along “Alright With Me.” Kris grabbed five fans out of the front of the audience to help sing backup. (A sixth “straggler” joined them.) As he helped one girl up, she suffered from “pants on the ground” syndrome, giving the crowd a nice view of her underwear. Allen, being a Southern gentleman, blushed as he stammered, “Oh gosh! Don’t … don’t look.” (It’s also important to note that Kris neglected to choose the ballsy fan who had thrown an Adam Lambert T-shirt at him earlier.)

Moments after Kris left the stage saying “Kradison thanks you,” Allen’s band returned for an encore, except this time they brought Lambert’s guitarist Monte Pittman with them. The crowd buzzed. Could it be? Would fans be treated to a one-of-a-kind collaboration?

Turns out, yes. Kris, Allison and Adam all traded verses on an electric cover of Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy,” in an epic collaboration that played like a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame jam session: “Idol” edition. As Kris mentioned earlier in the night, “They’re my family, dude,” and that familial bond was on full display. While wailing into their mics, Adam picked up Allison, Allison draped herself on Kris, and Kris and Adam sang to each other while frenzied fans in the crowd desperately tried to keep up with their camera phones. When it all ended, the audience was in full flail mode.

If only those early exiters knew what they were missing.

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The American Idol winner has revealed that he cried during Jennifer Aniston’s 2008 film Marley & Me.

And it wasn’t because of Aniston’s dreadful acting!

“I was in my hotel room & I started watched Marley & Me again,” Allen said of the last time he burst into tears.

“The first time I watched it, I cried on the plane. Then this time, I was like, ‘I am going to make it through’, But I didn’t! I cried like a little baby.”

Kris, 24, recently admitted he feels like an underdog — despite winning Idol.

“Some people still don’t know how I won the show,” said the hunky star, who released his self-titled debut album this past November.

“Not in an I-need-to-prove-myself way. I’m very understated. It worked out on the show, and I think it’s going to work out in my career, too.”

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Kris Allen just wrapped up the first of two concerts he has scheduled in the Philippines. The concert, which took place in Cebu also featured Boyce Avenue and Jabbawockeez. Tomorrow, Kris is headed back to Manila to perform at McKinley Hill Concert Grounds.

Here’s the setlist, put together from various tweets:

1. Heartless, 2. Can’t Stay Away, 3. Before We Come Undone, 4. The Truth, 5. Man in the Mirror, 6. Written All Over My Face, 7. Red Guitar, 8. Is It Over, 9. Falling Slowly, 10. Alright With Me, 11. Live Like We’re Dying, ENCORE: 12. Ain’t No Sunshine, 13. Come Together

Now time for some videos:
001. Heartless

002. Man In The Mirror

003. Falling Slowly

004. Come Together

005. Before We Come Undone

006. Live Like We’re Dying

007. Partial Alright With Me (Kris Invites the Audience on stage!)

008. The Truth

009. News Report

As he takes the stage at the press conference for Musicfest 2010 at the Eastwood Mall Open Park on Feb. 3, the excited local fans that turned up on a breezy Wednesday afternoon welcome their idol with all sorts of cameras clicking up in the air.

“It’s definitely warm here,” Allen attempts to joke. Knowing that “American Idol” has a lot of fans in the Philippines, Allen—who visits the country for the first time—says in gratitude, “It feels really good [to be here]. It’s great to see you guys.”

Headlining Musicfest 2010 alongside YouTube sensations-turned-mainstream act Boyce Avenue and the sensational, jaw-dropping dance crew Jabbawockeez, Allen is expected to perform cuts from his 2009 self-titled album.

With some urging from both the media and the fans, the Jackson, Arkansas-born singer/songwriter gives in to doing an a capella demo of what the concert holds in store for attendees. Singing the first few lines from his album’s opening cut, “Live Like We’re Dying,” must have sent those still without tickets on a bee-line to the reception table selling them.

While it seems the Filipinos have openly declared Allen as their new idol, Allen is still just getting used to the idea. “I have a friend that’s Filipino-American… that’s kind of it, though,” he says when he is asked if he’s had any sort of Filipino influence in his life.

We’ll leave it up to the Filipino fans to leave their mark with Allen and his band when they finally take the stage and rock it at Musicfest 2010.

The Kris Allen primer:

It’s not enough to know the tunes. For fans, these little details are just as important. Here are the things we learned during Kris Allen’s short meet with the media and the fans on Feb. 3:

Kris rocks it with his band composed of Cale Mills (guitar/keyboards), Ryeland Steen (drummer), Chris Torres (bass) and Andrew DeRoberts (lead guitars).

During the press conference, Kris jokes about Cale being a Cosmo Bachelor of the Year. A quick search online reveals that Cale has indeed landed on the list of Cosmo Bachelors 2009. His profile even has his email address, so what are you waiting for, girls?

Kris Allen’s dream collaboration: with Sir Paul McCartney. “I’m a huge fan of his,” he says. “But it’s definitely a dream, though. It’s not gonna happen.”

Kris still has no clue on what would be the second single off his album. “But you know what’s funny… I was in a car earlier today [after doing a promotional appearance] and I heard ‘Before We Come Undone’ on the radio and it freaked me out…” Guess Manila’s radio stations beat his label to it!

Gone are the days when pop stars would never reveal that they were married. Kris does not mind discussing it… to an extent. While he reveals music may not have played into starting his relationship with wife, Katy—he says he’s never serenaded her—he does admit that she played violin and he played viola in the same band. “Don’t applaud that, it’s not cool,” he says with a lazy smile.

Kris reveals how his song, “Red Guitar” came about: “I bought a red guitar [for my wife] and hung it on the wall ‘cause she never played it. So I took it and started playing and that’s what came out.”

“Live on TV is the worst thing in the world,” he declares. When press conference host Mo Twister asks how he’s able to concentrate during the “Idol” live shows, Kris replies, “I got in trouble a lot when I didn’t look into the camera when they wanted me to…”

According to band mate Andrew, “Kris would rather get up and play without a set list than make one.” Kris, meanwhile, says he prefers playing shows than being on TV because, during shows, they can do pretty much what they want.

His favorite past “Idol” winner is Kelly Clarkson. “She’s incredible… [She’s] been through a lot of crap thrown her way… it’s incredible. She’s the queen of ‘Idol’…”

When asked to weigh in on Simon Cowell’s announcement that he’s leaving “Idol” soon, Kris says, “It’s going to be sad just because he’s been there since the beginning, but I think the show’s gonna go on…”

And when asked how he thinks he would have fared if Ellen DeGeneres had been a judge during his season: “I would like to think that she’d like me… I think she would be hard on me, though, just because she likes me…”

What he’s got on his music player: “Oh geez… a lot of different things. I listen to MGMT a lot. [I listened to the] Switchfoot record the other day… it’s good.”

The one thing that a fan should never ever do: “I had a girl stick a tongue inside my mouth. That was the craziest… That was a little too much,” he says, shaking his head. The man’s got a wife, people!

Musicfest 2010 featuring Kris Allen, Jabbawockeez and Boyce Avenue happens on Feb. 5, 8 p.m. at the SM Cebu North Open Parking 2 and on Feb. 6, 2010, 8 p.m. at the McKinley Hill Open Grounds.

For Cebu tickets, call Ticketworld at 255-4041. For Manila tickets, call 891-9999.

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During a radio interview on B97 FM in New Orleans before performing the national anthem at Sunday’s NFC Championship game, Kris revealed: “I am actually going to Haiti. Obviously, I wanted to do something to help out. I was actually going to do that telethon thing, but then somebody hooked me up with going [to Haiti] and just helping out in the next couple days.”

Kris in fact has an extensive history of doing missionary work overseas. Long before he was crowned season 8’s American Idol, the former church music director traveled to Burma, Morocco, Mozambique, South Africa, Spain, and Thailand, “just doing kind of philanthropy stuff, just trying to help people out.”

Kris explained during his B97 interview: “This is the stuff that means the most to me, going out and helping people. And obviously, the thing that happened in Haiti was just a tragedy. I feel blessed that I get to go over there and help people out.”

Fast-forward to the 3:34 mark of the B97 interview clip below to hear Kris’s discussion of his upcoming Haiti trip: