The theme for this evening is to sing songs that are "inspirational" on a personal level. After Paula dropped the profound knowledge to "just have fun", we get into the singing portion. And awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay weeee gooooooo!
Phil Stacey-inspired by his military background, Phil sings us "Missing You" by John Waite. Odd performance because he struggled on some easy parts but powered it up for the difficult parts. He is really starting to have some uniqueness to show off in my opinion, and I believe that he did a good job. But, as alot of times, I agree with the judges that it was good but not necessarily great.
Score: 2.5 stars
Ryan interviews Sundance to where he says people have been saying to be "less crappy". Again, profound advice. AJ says its been a little "mixed".
Jared Cotter-dedicating his performance to his parents (Cue Audience "AWWWWWWWW") And onto the music. "Let's Get it On" by Marvin Gaye, a fun song but tough to try and emulate because of Gaye's unique sound that made it great. However, Jared did a pretty good job with it, had a few off notes, but a song like this in a singing competition was kind of "awkward" sounding. He had a decent strong finish, but it was pretty forgettable. Paula actually gets a good ribbing in on Randy, and makes a fool of herself with off-color commentary.
Score: 2 stars
AJ Tabaldo-another dedication to good ole mom and dad. I wasn't familiar with this song, which is sometimes a good thing with this. It sounded a little like a Harry Connick song that would be a little "souled" up. His performance this week was much better than last, in my opinion. A different song choice, I think it was a great move for him overall. The judges gave him some decent marks, it was in my estimation spot on--except for the obvious homophobic remark yet again from Simon.
Score: 3 stars
Sanjaya Malakar-a dedication for his grandfather. The photos were very endearing to an already "cutie" that the teen girls online are swooning over constantly. "Steppin Out" is his song choice, and when I first saw him with the hat, it reminded me of a young Michael Jackson. Well, I guess he is still darker than the King of Pop. The song could have been much better if he showed some emotion and showmanship, but because he just "sang" it, it really took a lot away from it. The song was WAY too big for him. Poor performance. The judges hit it right on again, although for the second straight week Simon was really tough on him.
Score: 1 star
Chris Sligh-Chris again uses his comedy in dedicating the song to his wife. (They really do make an odd couple) He slows it down this week, and the song is perfect; it had a nice little draw to it, but when he tried to really rock it a little, it again seemed a little awkward, but he still had a good showing. Solid and satisfying. Randy and Paula gave him kudos, Simon really gave him props.
Score: 3 stars
Nick Pedro-Nick's inspiration is his girlfriend Katelyn (another AWWWWWWWWW). Nick needs to craft his interviews better, he talks way too fast!! Another decent song choice in "Fever", but his kind of soft voice mixed with rasp was not a great match. Another situation where a song was a bit too big for the singer. Not something that would be memorable by any means. Randy gives a mixed review, Paula sputters out some fragments, and Simon gives constructive feedback.
Score: 1.5 stars
Blake Lewis-another dedication to his parents (at least these contestants are good role models for all the tweeners watching). "Virtual Insanity" by Jamiroquai was a perfect song choice, and really explored his range and strengths. The bridge with his "talent" made it even better. An outstanding performance that will surely catapult him to a front-runner. The judges gave him high remarks except for Simon (big surprise). I disagree with Simon--because copycatting Jamiroquai is something to be proud of, not ashamed of.
Score: 3.5 stars
Brandon Rogers-a very sentimental dedication to his grandmother. He seems very genuine and just a good man. "Time after Time" was a decent idea, but his execution seemed again, awkward--not a real great choice for his voice type and ability--I felt he could have had something that could have been much more powerful. He has the pipes--it's time to show them!! Not a bad performance, but still kind of average overall. The judges really stressed this to him as well, and Simon really stressed the "Wow" factor need. I agree 100%.
Score: 2 stars
Chris Richardson-"Big Mama" gets the call for the dedication from the 22-year old, he reminds me of Elliot Yamin with his purity. "Geek in the Pink" was his choice, and when I first heard him start, I thought "this will be difficult to pull off." One, because it doesn't have a huge range for vocals, and it takes precise timing with all of the words. Chris did a good job with what the song offered, but the choice overall was not the best. Still, the fact that it was not pitchy at all is a very good accomplishment. The judges raved over it, I thought it was good, but not THAT good.
Score: 2.5 stars
Sundance Head-A very emotional dedication to his son. He's such a nice guy, but I think he knows he's gotta bring it this week. And believe me--"it was broughten". :) He really turned in a much better performance and this is exactly the type of genre that fits his singing style and voice. He rocked it HARD tonight. I was impressed by his ability to bring it back to the way he started out in the auditions. Randy was very impressed and his consensus is exactly how I feel; an excellent job.
Score: 3.5 stars
After this week, the guys really showed their abilities that most people expected from them. This is actually a tough night to choose, but if I had my choice, I believe it SHOULD be Sanjaya and Nick. But since Sanjaya's clan will follow him through garbage song after garbage song, I think it will actually be Nick and Brandon.
Until next time.....GOOSEY--OUT!!!
Labels: American Idol, American-Idol, Blake Lewis, Blake-Lewis, Chris Sligh, Idol, Idol results, reality TV, Simon Cowell, television, tv |
