Where the boys aren't....

Thanks to some people that have more free time than even President Bush, I know the song choices before the girls perform. Unlike the guys last week, the girls mostly performed really well, which means someone is due to have a huge let down tonight.

Carly and Kady both picked Heart songs; they should be able to power out some big notes, and in the case of Kady, add a little spunk into her singing. Syesha and Alex will both be really boring tonight unless they add a little something new to their 70s songs. Ramiele, the darling last week, also selected a boring song, but last week she tempered down a big song so this well I’m guessing she kicks up a small song. Kristy, flu girl, should be able to redeem herself with her song. All season long people have compared Brooke to Carly Simon, so of course tonight she is singing Carly Simon. This could be good or bad, since people expect her to be great on this song, she might not live up to expectations, but I think she’ll do fine. The star of the night should be Amanda. She gets to sing a classic rock anthem that should have the entire place rocking. Hopefully she sings it this time and doesn’t just growl in the lower ranges of her voice. The most powerful moment should come from Asiah. Her father died while living in his car…what…or sorry I accidently combined her story with Josiah. Anyway, her father died recently so she is literally all by herself now, which should (assuming she sings well) make for a tear jerking moment. Hey if Paula cries over David’s overdone Imagine Paula should be a nervous wreck when Asiah is done.

“Millions of families are watching, there can only be one show, this is American Idol,” says Ryan to open the show. His introductions are getting more and more abstract. Hey look, David Cook is busting out the hat tonight. I guess since he isn’t performing tonight he can’t be bothered to fix his hair. Robbie also has his head covered. I guess the wig is being cleaned right now. Ryan is totally casual tonight; I guess he is over the whole suit and no tie thing, but I bet he goes back to looking like Dick Clark tomorrow. Ryan asks the judges about song selection. Randy says it’s all about knowing if you sing ballads or up tempo songs best. The songs tonight are all 70s classics. By classics he means songs that did not cost a whole to get their rights.

Carly Smithson

Even though she owns a tattoo shop with her boy, she works in an Irish pub. She loves her house, cooking and cleaning, and getting on stage. I see a future as a singing maid if this whole Idol thing doesn’t work out. She sounds much better than last time. Her voice remains strong on the low notes and she is belting out the higher notes. We are hearing a side of here voice heretofore unheard. She hits the near rebel yell at the end. Unlike Robbie, Carly can pull off the rocker vibe pretty easily. The arm length tattoo on her left arm probably helps a little. Notice she worn an outfit tonight that clearly displayed her body art. This song is not the most melodic, meaning the judges might give her great praise, but this is a pretty good performance, almost outstanding when you consider she was forced to go first. Randy says yo yo yo. He felt she was sharp until the middle and he really liked the ending. It was “alright.” Paula says she can tell Carly loves Heart. She thinks Carly is amazing and welcomes her back to healthy land. Simon thinks she was better than last week, but still doesn’t think she has connected with the right song. He considers her the best female singer, however, she needs to pick a song that connects with people; she has not accomplished this yet. She deserves more praise from the judges, but since she her name is not David A., what can you expect. Carly has a strong following and will be safe tomorrow night.

Syesha Mercado

Wow, we can download out favorite songs from itunes. Like oh my god. She has done a lot of commercials back home in Miami. As an actress she thinks it’s always good to have something that separates you from other actors, and then she busts into the best baby cry ever. If she and Kady combine their talents they could do a traveling vaudeville show where Syesha pretends to be Brittany’s neglected child. She changes the words to Mr. Jones. What a shame, I was hoping we’d have our first lesbian tribute song in Idol history. I wonder if they would let Danny sing a song to a guy. The first third of the song is incredibly boring, but she kicks it up a notch into the second verse. She changes up the melody on the chorus and hits some big notes, especially her last note, which she sustains for quite some time. The last night might have just salvaged an otherwise boring ‘just ok’ performance considering it’s the last thing most people will remember from her song. That being said, I cannot imagine the judges, other than Paula, really loving her tonight. Randy loved her baby cry, but doesn’t think she was a great song choice for her for him, so he wants her to pick songs she can show off her big voice. He feels like she is uninterested in the softer voice. She was just “alright.” Paula thinks she tends to go off pitch on the softer notes. She did like her interpretation and the choices Syesha made. Simon thinks the song was indulgent, and probably a silly song to sing since it was not written for a girl. He was put off the moment she started it and doesn’t consider her choice particularly clever. Syesha says she changed the arrangment a little to make it her own. She did, her own ticket home. Just kidding, she should be safe tomorrow.

Brooke

Wow, she went to beauty school. She enjoys doing hair because it’s an art form. I bet we get a joke of some kind from Ryan about Simon’s hair before Brooke is offstage. Brooke never finished beauty school; she makes the joke we could consider her a beauty school drop out. Nothing is funnier than a joke based on the musical Grease. About 45 people at home got that joke. Me, I’m going to have that song in my head for the next week. MAKE IT STOP! Ok back to Brooke. Interesting she is playing the guitar instead of the piano. She hits the pitch problems when she hits the chorus. She stops playing the guitar halfway through the song for a while. I guess singing and playing is a little too hard for Brooke. She flubs the chorus the second time around too. In fact, she sounds great on the entire song except the first part of the chorus. Maybe she is doing this on purpose, but if that is the case I cannot understand her stylistic decision to sing it this way. I wonder if the judges will ask her. Ok I am probably putting too much emphasis on one note. She sounds pretty good on the song, but like Syesha before her, this has a ‘so what’ feel. This might have been Brooke’s big chance to make an impression on people, but I think she misses the mark tonight. When she finishes the song I think she looks at Simon. Get it? He is so vain. I bet Ryan gave her the idea. You can hear Simon tell Paula “she was looking at me” when she finished the song. See, he really is so vain. Maybe she was looking at the wall behind you Simon! Randy says it was a great song choice, but he doesn’t know if she brought anything different to it. He asks her if she was looking over at the judges for a reason, maybe because one of them (Simon) is vain? Paula loves her voice and thinks Brooke picked the perfect song. Simon absolutely loved it! He calls it the perfect song choice and feels like she geunienly chose the song. Brooke says “WOW thank you so much.” Simon does in fact think the song is about him, as Ryan correctly notes. Brooke was really close to leaving out the guitar, but decided to keep it at the last second. She also thanks the band, which should give her some extra votes from the band and their family and friends. Brooke is really likeable and sounded pretty good tonight, so she should be safe, but I would not be shocked if she went home; Carly Simon is not exactly popular among the teen voters.

Ramiele Malubay

Back from commercial we join Ryan in the Coke room next to Ramiele. She says she was crying last week so much because she lost some really good friends to elimination. She used to Polynesian dance when she was younger. Then she demonstrates how you bust a move Polynesian style. She might just dance for us during a fast song. She is singing really slow to start the song. The song picks up in the middle part and she shows off her crazy big voice packed inside her small body. She might be going a little sharp on some of the higher notes. A few times I think she is screaming more than singing. After such a great performance last week I want more from her than a disco number. Even her outfit tonight is so what. She could wear this to the mall and not feel overdressed, if you are going 70s disco, give me a little sartorial eloquence. I’ve never been in a drag queen bar, but I think they would sing this type of song. Randy is laughing…uh oh this is sometimes really bad. He says tonight was a little rough for him, just ok vocally. He doesn’t understand why she sang this song. Paula loves her amazing vocals, but feels the same as Randy; the song has the same notes all throughout. Astonishingly Simon agrees with Paula. He has heard this song too many times at weddings, and will not remember this performance. The crowd is mildly booing. Simon thinks Ramiele is one of the top 3 best singers, but this wasn’t one of her best. Ryan tells Randy to make a note, “we will not be hearing this song at the wedding.” I assume he is talking about Simon’s wedding because he nearly coughs up his sip from the Coke glass when he hears Ryan’s joke. Ryan asks her about her song selection and she says she changed her song 4 times. She had slow songs and fast songs, but couldn’t decide which style was best. Ryan says sometimes you can over think your song choice. Paula says “right on Ryan.” Randy agrees; maybe we can have Ryan sit in as a judge one night instead of Paula. She can host the show. Can you imagine the train wreck that would ensure? That’s cant’ miss TV.

Kristy Lee Cook

Kristy thinks we would be surprised to learn she is a Tom Boy. Really? We know you love riding horses and are a cage fighter. Yup, never would have thought of her as a Tom Boy. I am so used to hearing her sing Amazing Grace I think I forgot she can sing this type of song. She hits just about every note and does her best to convey a little energy. Although I think a little moving around on the stage could really help. She has a lot of attitude in her voice. I hope the judges talk about her vocals and not her inability to really ‘get into’ the song. The last third of the song is really quite good. She dedicates the song to Jason Yeager. Randy says it’s a hundred percent improvement over last week, but he was looking for a breakout movement. He likes it. Paula welcomes Kristy back and thinks the song choice was in the pocket. Simon can’t even remember what she sang last week, but this week he says it’s a huge improvement. However, he doesn’t know what type of singer she really is, maybe country is her best genre. He thinks she has real potential. Kristy says she was on a ton of drugs last week. She is happy she was able to impress them this week and thinks next week she might do some country. Paula is a little confused about Kristy taking drugs and accosts her back stage screaming ‘give me your stash give me your stash.” Well it could happen, but what should not happen is Kristy going home. I think she should be safe after that song. But two need to go so we’ll have to see how the others perform before I declare Kristy safe and sound.

Amanda the rocking nurse

We learn Amanda is a book nerd. She likes reading about her favorite rock icons. I wonder if Simon will call her a nerd herd. She starts off the song in the chorus and her hair is huge tonight. She feels like she is about to fall behind the melody throughout the entire first half of the song and her lower register is not that strong. She shines in the chorus though and rocks out while the band plays the guitar solo. She tries to finish it off with a big note, but this is just a mess tonight. My hopes were high for Amanda tonight but she seems out of her league. If she was an athlete someone would investigate her for losing on purpose tonight. She looks like she has no confidence in herself when she finishes the song. She knows. Randy says it was not the right song choice, he thinks it has way too much melody with too many instrumental breaks. He thinks she was pitchy on the melodic verses. Paula loves Amanda’s dancing moves. When Paula leads off with your dancing abilities it’s her way of politely saying you sucked worse than Sanjaya. Paula suggests Amanda do what feels right when she picks a song, but this was not the right song. Simon feels like the entire song, her hair, her clothes, were contrived. He could not wait for her to stop singing. If she wants the popular vote he says she should do something different. Paula says Amanda is beautiful without all this makeup. Randy wants her to do bluesy rock. Amanda says she was raised on this type of music. She looks so devastated right now. She has a strong fan base and was pretty good last week, so I think Amanda should be safe. Who wants to say goodbye to America’s only rocking nurse?

Alaina Whitaker

When we return from the break Ryan is just finishing saying something to the contestants in the Coke Room. They all look like they are having a good time. Alaina cannot stand when the food on her plate touches other food on her plate. She hopes in a few years her obsessive-compulsive disorder will go away. This girl would be no fun at a buffet. She has to do well since I think the judges will be really harsh on her song choice. I have no real basis for this, just a feeling. She probably sang this during a high school production. She has a pretty voice and does really well on the first third of the song. Here comes the big part…she does a pretty good hitting the big note. I think she is adding a little something to it and not missing the note. I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt. She might go a little sharp on the next big note, but overall this is some pretty good singing. Randy doesn’t like her song choice and thought she went sharp. Paula thinks she did a real good job, but forgets how young Alaina is. She never forgets how young David A. is though! Simon likes her, but it’s almost as if her grandmother prepared you for the audition. He thinks she is too old fashioned tonight. It was too pageanty. On a positive note, he considers her a real dark horse; he likes her much more this week than few weeks ago. Alaina says she loves this dress; somewhere Monica Lewinsky is screaming “that’s my dress.” Alaina sang well enough to survive at this point most seasons, but I am not sure about tomorrow’s results. Based on the judges comments, if she survives perhaps we can expect her to slut it up next week.

Alex Lushington

She was the poster child for the Atlanta Fire Department because her dad like to set fires. Actually he was a firefighter. She sang at ground zero shortly after 9-11. Hear that America? If you do not vote for Alex you hate America and want the terrorists to win. This song was boring when Chicago sang it, and so far it’s boring tonight. Will the judges say Alex is more relevant than Alaina just because she is wearing an outfit that looks like Ray Charles put it together. What? Where am I? Sorry I passed out for a second. She literally bored me to sleep. Alright it’s not that bad, but close. Then she throws in an off pitch falsetto section near the end of the song. Wow this is bad, maybe the worst of the night. Why did she want to sing this song? When she finishes she looks away from the judges. She knows. Randy asks her why she did that and Paula says “awww” in the background. He then asks what she thinks about her performance, and she says “it’s over,” I think she means the song, and not her run on Idol. He loves her mad vocals and wants to see her keep away from the safe choices. She should always challenger herself, she says she understands. Paula feels she did let go because she did her own arrangment. She has been impressed with Alex since day one. Simon, a big fan of her early on, thinks she is struggling right now. He says the song is stuck in it’s time period and she was in and out of tune throughout the song. He loves her look, but thinks she was boring. Sge says she knew the song was right for her, and that’s all that matters. She hopes she can come back next week and prove herself.

Kady Malloy

What America doesn’t know is she can sing opera. She thinks we can hear a little opera in her singing. But she really lets loose with the opera in the bathroom. She thinks Simon will probably roll his eyes when he hears she sings opera. She starts at the top of the staircase. It is hard to hear her voice when the song begins. She is singing really low, almost too low, but she might be pulling it off. She sounds really good on the higher notes. I am not sure what to make of this tonight. Vocally she was much better last week but she is having more fun this week. So which standard will the judges use to evaluate Kady? Is singing or appearance more important at this moment? Randy asks her if she loves that song. He thinks it was an interesting song choice, but he never found the pitch from her, she never settled on the note. Paula likes it when she powered, but otherwise, on the low notes, she felt Kady was lost. Simon is struggling and frustrated because everything she does on film is fantastic, but then on stage it’s like she is trying to impersonate someone; the song did not go anywhere for Simon. He doesn’t understand why she can’t be as fantastic live as she is on tape. Paula says ‘let yourself be’ again. I think she said the same thing to Kady last week. Kday says she was just trying to have fun with the song. After two weeks of less than stellar performances, Kady is in trouble. But, he gives her the chance to do her Brittany voice. That should give her a few extra votes.

Asiah Epperson

She was a cheerleader in middle and high school. She loved cheer camp, in fact it was almost like Idol. You have to be excited or you fall on your face. After all that fun stuff, she is singing a sad song. Unlike Danny, her hair is straight. She is a little flat in the first part of the song. Ouch! She just lost her voice going into the chorus. I cannot remember a bigger ‘oh crap she screwed up’ moment in recent Idol history. Everyone knows this song, and everyone knows she just really missed a note. She thankfully hits the note the next time around, but she is screaming and not singing. Danny looks like he is going to cry when they show him on the couches. She finishes off the song powerfully, but that cannot compensate for the first 80 percent. Randy says it’s a difficult song, but he thinks she did a really good job. Paula says they were all rooting for her, but she thinks the low notes were troublesome. Simon says with an all time diva song you need to be one heck of a singer to pull it off, but she could not. She is not a good enough singer he says; the song showed her up and he thinks it was a silly song choice. She should be defending the song selection by invoking her dead father! Ryan asks if Asiah doesn’t take a risk will she be criticized for playing it safe? Simon’s response, “you’ve got to know your limitations Ryan, something you’ve managed to do quite well in your career.” Asiah is apparently really sick this week, maybe she will get the Kristy sympathy vote, if not, she is going home.

Final Thoughts

He says we’ll have at least two full hours to vote. Does that mean we might have more than 2 hours? Ryan once again fails to thank Simon. This should be getting old, but it’s funny every time. Who should go home? Tonight was really all over the place. I’m not sure anyone can really claim the ‘best of the night’ title, but if I had to give out the award, I think I’d give it to Kristy Lee Cook (maybe Carly but she went first so who even remembers her). Yeah, I’m surprised too. The guys really did outshine the girls this week. Because so many Idols forgot to show up, anything is possible tomorrow night. Asiah was the worst of the night, followed in no particular order by Alex, Kady, and Amanda. Who goes home depends on what criteria the audience uses to cast their votes. If they base it on the first two weeks, Kady goes home, but if they include the earlier rounds, Alex has to pack. Perhaps more so than any previous Idol elimination, I cannot make an educated guess for tomorrow’s kicked to the curb girls. One thing is certain however, someone with talent will leave Idol sooner than in previous seasons.

Where the boys are...(Amy Davis gets this pun)

Last week the girls outperformed the guys, yet based on the rules of Idol, two girls and two guys went home; given the choice America would have probably sent home 4 guys. In past seasons when one gender shows up the other, the less talented crew normally returns with a singing vengeance. If history holds true we can look forward to an outstanding night from the guys. Unfortunately, I have a feeling (yes Jason and Luke I’m specifically referring to you) that despite their best efforts many of the guys will fall flat, on their notes, and their faces. The theme is the 70s tonight (does that mean next week is the 80s), which means the songs are all from before most of the contestants were born and their lack of musical knowledge of the era could create some horrible song choices (see for example Jason and Danny from last week). Hopefully someone will deliver a ‘moment.’ Maybe it will be young David A.; I am betting he gets the pimp spot tonight, since he is Barack (‘the chosen one’).

From this simple stage a super star will emerge Ryan says right before promising another outstanding show. Wow Robbie has nothing covering his hair, Chik is wearing a basic and plain outfit, and David A. is wearing a leather jacket. Paula has a hit song? People are buying that crap? Ryan actually gives a friendly, albeit sarcastic, introduction for Simon. Randy says they need to be, “in it to win it.” Paula thinks the nerves will be less severe this week. Simon says guys need to be better this week.

Michael Johns

Michael likes to play tennis a lot; it’s his main sport, since he was 9 years old. Tennis plays a big part of his life. In fact, he says his best songs come from playing tennis. Doesn’t he realize to be a real musician he needs to use drugs and alcohol to take his mind off the whole crazy idol world, not tennis! Michael did well with 60s week and with all the rock and roll available to select, he should be able to find a hard enough hitting rock song capable of bringing down the house. Ok, he decided on a different approach, going instead with a less than hard-hitting Fleetwood Mac song. In fact with this arragnment it starts off like a Christian Rock song. Missing a note pretty badly right before he comes to the chorus, where he sounds pretty good. However, he sounds like he is straining a little to hit the higher notes. Since the rest of the song has about 3 notes, the chorus is the only time for his voice to shine, but it seems a little out of his comfortable range. Rickey Minor is getting down during this song, no doubt still frustrated that he had to play Moon River last week. Michael finishes the song accapella for a nice effect, but this is far less than I expect from the 48-year-old rocker. After giving maybe the best performance last week he opens the show, the toughest position, with an ‘ok’ performance. The judges have been pimping him hard all season. Will they be willing to give a less than ‘dawg that was hot’ critique tonight? Simon looks incredibly bored, maybe he will give us a little truth with his comments. Randy says ‘nice way to start off man’ but doesn’t know if this was Michael’s best stuff. Even though he liked it he isn’t sure it was the best he has seen Michael. Paula compliments him for getting “the whole crowd working!” Did you hear that Hillary and Barack, Michael got the whole crowd working, he gets people jobs baby, let’s see your economic stimulus packages accomplish a similar feat. Paula says he is a seasoned performer; just call him old Paula. Simon says it was coasting along, only ok, and Michael’s worst performance. He thinks it was a weak song choice. Ryan asks Michael what he thinks of the judges comments and he says, “it happens.” Good job Aussie, he realizes he did not hit a home run and is not willing to argue with Simon. However, he supports his song choice because he has always wanted to sing a Fleetwood Mac song. Couldn’t you just sing it in the shower instead Michael? He should be safe tonight. His vocals were pretty good and he is one of the chosen few.

Jason Castro

The long hair Travolta is next, and we learn he really hates doing interviews. He is surprised how much time the Idols devote to non-music related activities. They are letting him play the guitar again this week. Is he the only one that can play an instrument, or just the only one allowed by the producers? After doing so well last week Jason is under a lot of pressure to avoid a let down. The song starts off featuring him on his acoustic guitar. He sounds ok, but the song overpowers his thin voice. There is more backing noise this week than last, including three back up singers and I can’t help but think he is swallowed by their sound. He sings all the right notes, but this is a far less gripping performance than last week. He selected a boring, not well known song that gives him no chance to display his shy yet fun personality. Tonight, Jason is like a movie you pay 8 dollars for and when you leave you think, “why did I pay 8 dollars to see this movie.” Right now I am thinking, “wow I really wish I could have those two minutes of my life back.” If Simon gives him positive reinforcement after this I will be shocked. A laughing Randy says the guitar is all cool as an act, but as a vocalist, the vocals weren’t that great dude. He says this is a vocal competition. Upon hearing this Kady runs up on stage and screams, “ARE YOU ****ING KIDDING ME RANDY! LAST WEEK YOU DIDN’T EVEN TALK ABOUT MY VOCALS AND JUST SAID I DIDN’T HAVE ENOUGH FUN ON STAGE.” Ok she didn’t, but I bet she wished she could and not get throw off the show. Randy even invokes the dreaded “K” word when he calls it just “ok.” Paula says Jason wasn’t quite that bad. She thinks he made a clever choice with the song by bringing the band in and out, but next week she wants to see him without the guitar. Let in a little vulnerability she says. Simon says it was horrible, he had weak vocals, and nothing went together this week. He wonders why he selected such an average song with all the songs he had at his disposal. Ryan, pressed for time, does not even try to rehabilitate Jason. Despite his less than stellar performance, Jason should be fine this week.

Luke Menard

He is part of an acapella group called “Chapter 6.” They travel all over the world singing, mostly to college crowds; they have been doing so for the last 6 years. He is trying a Queen song…good luck dude. I’m not really liking the upper register on this song. He goes a little sharp every time he gets up too high. When he comes back down he doesn’t have the breath support to sustain the lowest notes. To his credit he is singing a different arrangement than the original, but his arrangement is horrible. Maybe if he grew a mustache and paraded around the stage in skimpy shorts I would have found his performance more believable. The back up singers sound really good, but he is so bad not even they can save this song. Randy commends him for choosing a really tough song and likes him better this week than last, but notes some pitch problems. Paula is so glad this week was great for him. She thinks he picked the perfect song and she is glad she fights for people like him to get into the top 24. Simon says Luke made a mistake because he will always be judged against he original and the singer of that song had charisma and personality and you do not. He thinks it was verging on whiny. Luke says last week he was 0-3 and this week he is 2-3, so he likes the improvement. Ryan says if you want to vote for Dawson’s Creek here, vote for Luke. Maybe Luke should change his name to Dawson or Pacey. Bye bye Luke.

Robbie

Robbie and Ryan are sitting in the Coke room when Ryan asks him about his authenticity. Robbie says he has to be me because he is me, because there are so many levels of rock with different styles, and tells Simon to get used to it! Robbie, the former boy/girl member likes to drag race cars, but warns kids to avoid doing it on the street. Robbie is so hot blooded he is holding the microphone stand Bo Bice style. If he wants to be taken seriously as a rocker he needs to not have such a nicely groomed beard. He his a big note halfway through the song; I would not have guessed he could get his voice so large. I’m still not sure if I buy the whole ‘rocker’ thing, but his vocals were good tonight. Really good in fact, better than the three before him, even if his performance feels a little fake, he probably is the best of the night. Randy says he thinks the different forms of rock comment was interesting, but he kinda agrees with Simon that he isn’t sure this guy is really rock. He wanted more from him, he wanted him to “kill him.” Paula understands why Robbie is frustrated with the whole ‘fake rocker’ thing, but she thinks he played it a little too safe. Robbie wonders why he has to prove he is a ‘real rocker.’ Simon, arms folded, tells Robbie not to be so defensive and actually praises his vocals, saying they were, “ok” tonight. Remember an ‘ok’ from Simon is really good, but an ‘ok’ from Randy means you pretty much sucked. An ‘ok’ from Paula means, well it all depends on the night and what pills she took that day. Robbie, who closed his eyes when Randy was talking, tells Ryan he doesn’t know what he was thinking about during his little lights out moment. He knows he has to step it up every week. Robbie has no chance of winning Idol, but he could stay around far longer than most people expect. It is not impossible Robbie could go home this week, but I think he will be safe.

Danny N.

Ryan says if we want to say anything about Idol we can blog on their site. Danny then tells us America would be surprised to know he likes girls. Ok I made that up. He actually says he was in a punk rock band in the 9th grade. They played one show, but were so bad the band broke up soon after. The song starts off a little too low for Danny, although he is almost getting the notes. I’m not saying this song is a cliché now, but this is the 458 time someone sang this song in only seven Idol seasons. Near the end of the song he opens up a little and shows off his voice, but that brief display of talent does not atone for the beginning and middle, which featured some extremely boring moments. Danny can sing, I know this, but he really has not shown his ability. Randy is a fan of Danny, but says there were some problems with the vocals. He thinks Danny should have sped up the song a little. Randy advised him to just ‘let it go.” Paula says Randy was right and Danny needs to just perform. She loves his magical vibrato. Simon says this week was better than last, but he thinks Danny was trying way too hard. What? Simon just told Danny he looks great on camera. Isn’t that Paula’s job to completely ignore the vocals and focus on how the person looks? Maybe Simon is trying to become a compassionate critiquer. Ryan asks Danny if he agrees with the judges, and Danny says he agrees last week was a disaster. Danny is more likeable this week, with less attitude, which should help him pull in more votes and ensure his safety.

David Hernandez

Before the break we see David putting on some type of rocker face. You know, I am not looking forward to hearing David sing, I wonder if anyone not related to him thought ‘wow I can’t wait to hear David Hernandez sing tonight’ during the day. David says we would be surprised to learn he used to do gymnastics when he was younger. He won several medals when he was a younging. But can he win Idol. He actually sounds good when the song starts, but he has such annoying facial expressions it’s hard to focus on his vocals. I cannot believe I am thinking this, but David might be singing really well tonight. He crackled a little bit on the final note, which might be on purpose, but otherwise had no real mistakes. In fact, gulp, David is awesome. He even threw in some big power notes. I did not see this coming and I’m curious if the judges will give him his proper due or find some way to downplay his moment. The girls give him a standing ovation. Randy says this is the David they feel in love with, and says it was hot. Paula loves his pure heart piercing voice and thinks he was great. He was perfect she says. Simon says this was the best vocal of the night so far. David looks like he just won the lottery. Simon likes the fact David accepts criticism as a challenge and admits he was wrong to not want him in the top 24. Simon is now a fan. David is so happy he almost knocks Ryan over grabbing him around the shoulder. Remember, Ryan is so small he was once knocked over when he was hit in the back with a pencil thrown by a 5 year old. If he goes home this week I think I might cry.

Jason Yeager

Jason is next. Can he deliver an unexpected incredible performance like David, or will he suck like last week? My guess – the latter. We learn he plays multiple instruments, the piano, drums, and guitar. After all this talk about his talents, will they let him play one of his instruments? He says he is saving his guitar abilities for a monster song, apparently that monster song is not tonight, because he is guitar less. I wonder what time we dock? What? I am not on a cruise ship? It is so hard to tell listening to Jason. The only worse than his vocals is his awful attempt to dance. Is it dancing or does he just have a cramp? Everything about Jason is corny, ESPECAILLY the ending where he does some weird jabbing thing with his hands three times. His vocals are not actually that bad, but I cannot take this guy seriously. If the judges like this I’ll be more surprised than Barack when he found out people are allowed to say mean things about the ‘chosen one.’ Randy says ‘check it out,’ whenever he says that you know he did not like your singing. He continues, “oh god dude,” wondering why he picked this song, and of course, he thinks Jason was pitchy. Paula says the song does not show his vocal range and he should pick singer songs instead. Simon says the simple truth is last week was boring and this week was awkward and ordinary. He did not understand the horrific ending with the hand motions. He says even though Jason can sing he is not a good performer. Ryan asks him about song selection and Jason says ‘we are all killer singers’ so song choice is key. He says he tried to dance and be lively, but he guesses the judges were not feeling it. Jason says he will have to come out with something straight from the heart next week and show his wide range. Jason is just rambling on and on, until Simon says this is not the Oscars with never ending speeches; he wants the music cued up to get Jason off the stage. As they go to commercial Ryan gives Jason a ‘you have no chance of staying this week’ handshake. Jason will be back to singing and server any day now.

Chikezie

When they come back from commercial Ryan and all the guys are standing along the Coke room’s railing. Ryan gives a shout out to the girls and Kady busts a serious move. Chikezie tells us where his crazy name came from – Nigeria. His name means ‘well made by god.’ He shows off the good side of his personality, unlike his arguing last week. He sounds really good this week; in fact I want to hear him sing Jesus Christ Superstar. This is what I thought he would do last week – not suck. His lower notes are strong and he throws in a falsetto scream. This is not a well-known song so he can ‘make it his own’ pretty easily. Step aside David, I think Chikezie is out singing you tonight. I have no complaints about Chikezie tonight and I’m feeling much better about my prediction he advances into the top 12. Wow he is hot tonight. Randy welcomes Chikezie back. He says this is the guy they all feel in love with and was hot. See I’m talking like Randy now. Paula thinks he was clever and brilliant tonight. Simon almost misprounces his name, then says he looks better, sounds better, and was a million times better than last week. Simon asks Chik if he regrets last week, and Chikezie says no he loved his suit, but he will not wear it on TV again because you can’t wear things twice on TV. Then he adds only Simon does that, he realizes he is being arrogant again and laughingly says, “I’m sorry” over and over and over. Ryan, a fan of anyone that makes fun of Simon, high-fives Chikezie when he joins him on stage. Simon says just when he is beginning to like him again he turns obnoxious, then points out how horrified Chik’s mother is at the insult to Simon. Chik’s mother is holding her hand over her heart like a Super Fan. Chik should be safe this week, unless people are turned off by his arrogance.

David Cook

We learn David is a huge word nerd. He does a lot of cross word puzzles and then shows off his knowledge of big words. He is addicted to words, which is cheaper than a cocaine habit. David is the first with an electric guitar this season. I still do not like the instrument decision; this is a singing competition. Yet, the chance to hold a guitar lets average singers, like David Cook, escape behind their instrument. Walking around the stage as the big bad guitar player is a lot easier than standing ‘naked’ on stage and just singing. His vocals are just ok. David puts more time and effort into his guitar than his voice, and his vocals suffer. I wonder if he would sound better if he was fully focused on this singing and not busy being Eddie Van Halen. You can hear this is any bar in any city in America. Except in the bar you will probably be a little drunk, so David will actually sound like an accomplished vocalist. If the judges judge him on his vocals they will say he is not that good, but if they fall into the hype of the fun performance, they might just love him. Randy loves that David threw his pick out into the crowd like a real rock show. For Randy, David is the real rocker, and Randy liked his song choice. Paula compliments the band for being on fire and says David is the real deal and he has ‘it.’ Simon says it was solid and believable but he doesn’t think the film helped him. Crosswords are boring, which is partly his problem Simon says. He doesn’t think David has a lot of charisma. David says thankfully he doesn’t have to win over Simon, just the public. Paula disagrees with Simon regarding the word nerd segment, she thinks women love smart men. Of course to Paula smart men comprise almost 3 billion people. Let us not forget, she hooked up with Corey Clark, who has the intelligence of a slightly retarded mule. Ryan joins David on stage and asks Simon if he is annoyed. He say no, but he is slightly irritated with David, and insists his criticism is meant as constructive. Notice, none of the judges really comment on David’s singing. If he did not have the guitar with him the poor vocals would have been much more apparent and the judges would have lamented his inability to ‘bring it dawg.’ I think David Cook will be safe, but if he does not start singing better he will not make the top 12.

David A.

The young wonder is in the official pimp spot, which means no matter how well he sings the judges will declare him the best singer in the history of the world. He is doing Imagine by John Lennon, which means I am predisposed to unfairly compare him to an all time great. We learn he met the season one Idol finalist in a hotel lobby shortly before the season finale. He even sang for them, overcoming his terror. Their overwhelming praised raised his self esteem (then why are you still so golly gee whenever you get a compliment). Kelly Clarkson likes him so much she even gives him an Elaine style slap. NO ONE THIS HUMBLE AND SHY WOULD SING IN A HOTEL LOBBY FOR THE SEASON ONE FINALST LIKE THAT - WHICH MEANS THE DAVID THING IS PROBABLY AN ACT. Why a leather jacket for this song? He has to take a quick breath into the first phrase, is that on purpose? I doubt it, but I know the judges will not mention his lack of breathing technique. He is definitely not doing the original version. The leather jacket is really bothering me, does he even hear the words he is singing? I know I will be in the minority as an anti-David person, but I do not like the way they altered the melody, the beginning guitar lick sounds more like “Tears in Heaven” than Imagine. Adding all the extra notes goes against the entire nature of the song, which is simplicity. His voice still sounds thin when he tries to go low, but he is really good on the soaring notes. I am conflicted with David tonight. His vocals are good, but I cannot stand this version of the song. Please do not take a classic song and rewrite it to fit your voice, instead pick a song you can sing without recreating the wheel. I know he sounded good, but no one as shy and humble as David portrays himself would have the courage to alter a timeless classic. Phony much David? The judges are going to eat this up and probably call this the best thing they have ever seen. Literally the second after David stops singing he goes into the Gomer Pyle face. Randy says he has been saying all this year it’s about the young ones, and he thinks David just gave one of the best vocals he ever heard on this show. David says he only sang the third verse because of time constraints. Paula says David is ridiculous and she wants to dangle him from her rear view mirror. She calls it one of the most moving performances she has ever heard. Good lord stop with the hyperbole judges, it was not that good. Can we rely on Simon to inject a little reality into the comments? Paula thinks David is destined for superstardom. Simon says David’s performance worked, despite being risky. He believes there are 19 very worried contestants now. Seriously, someone needs to slap that grin off of David’s face. I think if Chikezie makes it into the top 12 he will eventually give David a serious beat down to remove that grin from his face. I bet a lot of people at home fall prey to the ‘David just sang so well’ fallacy and vote their little hearts out for Gomer, but he is not as good as the judges claim and I refuse to believe he is as humble as he appears. If he really is this humble he has at least a mild form of retardation. Paula is crying and David A. says the comments from the judges mean so much to him and make it all worthwhile. I know I am being too tough on David. He is a good vocalist, maybe better than anyone else on the show, but he is NOT the best singer of all time. I haven’t seen someone pimped this hard since Daughtry. He is safe.

Final Thoughts
It’s been nice knowing you Luke and Jason.

America Doesn't Want A Woman President, But Do They Want A Woman Idol?

Despite being promised the best ever top 24, the men failed to deliver last night. Sure there were some good performances, but no one, not even David A. or Michael had a “moment.” Will we have a ‘moment’ tonight?

The girls have more pressure on them tonight than the males. Why? There are a few guys that we KNOW will make the top 12 and a few we KNOW will not. However, the girl’s forecast is far less clear; as many as 11 contestants have a legitimate chance to advance into the next round. A bad performance tonight could erase all the good will of the early rounds and send a possible favorite back to their pedestrian life. I feel far less confident with my selection of the top 12 girls, but that won’t stop me from possibly making an idiot of myself. The girls have two can’t miss finalist in Carly Smith and Amanda Overmyer. If you gave these two any more screen time they would need their own time slot. Perhaps the biggest question facing Idol this season is the effect of all the good looking blonde girls splitting the ‘hot girl’ vote. I think the two blondes to advance will be Brooke White and Alaina Whitaker. Brooke because she is a little different and might inspire a different fan base, and Alaina because she not only looks like Carrie Underwood, but she can sing almost as well. Since the top 12 needs a plus side model Joanne should slip in, leaving Ramiele to round out the women. Ramiele’s massive voice in such a small package should earn her early fan support. With the exception of the rocking nurse and the failed Irish pop star, any of these girls might well not make it past the first elimination round – that’s how close the women are in talent! Now on to the show!

Ryan walks down the stairs and tells the women to “bring it on.” Tonight is all about girl power. Uh oh, the flu has hit the girls but the show must go on! Carly is last to walk in front of the camera, which means she gets the pimp spot. Maybe they just do it by age? Oldest goes last I guess. It’s almost like the Idol producers are giving a big **** you to the people complaining that Carly and Michael are both ringers inserted into the competition. Ringers? You want ringers – we’ll just put Carly and Michael last every time, you can’t stop us! Michael is in good shape though, even if he doesn’t win Idol he can go on social security in only a few years. Ryan recaps the previous night with the judges and asks Simon if he enjoys bickering with the contestants, and of course, he said he yes.

Kristy Lee Cook

Can she sing anything other than Amazing Grace? Awww she sold her horse to try out for American Idol and then a tough Hollywood Week almost derailed her chances. She says she wants to win Idol so she can buy her horse back. Huh? She wouldn’t have sold her horse if she didn’t try out for Idol. Does she realize this? Equestrian lovers of the world might untie behind Kristy giving here a heretofore untapped demographic. When you think about it the life of her horse is in America’s hands. If Kristy does not win American Idol her horse will die. Maybe this year on Idol Gives Back they can give back her horse. Come on Simon you are worth like 200 million dollars, do a good deed and buy back this girl’s horse! She is singing a pretty basic song without much room to show off a big voice, but the song is certainly capable of more vocal power than she has tonight. I do like hearing her sing something other than Amazing Grace, especially an upbeat song. If Grace was from the 60s I bet she would have tried to sing it, like Kimberly Locke managed to sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow every other week during her Idol season. She sounds good and is hitting almost all the right notes, but despite her attempts to move around the stage add some energy into her performance, this is pretty boring. This is a standard, “So What” performance; no major mistakes but nothing to really grab you by the collar and scream, “listen to me or you’ll regret it tomorrow when everyone is talking about this performance.” At least she remembers all the words, but considering she says the word baby 5 times in 12 seconds near the end of the song this isn’t exactly “We Didn’t Start the Fire.” If Kristy could just add a little soul to her voice this might be a really good performance. Randy says she did ok but had some pitch problems. Paula lets us Kristy is sick, but still thinks she did a pretty good job. Simon asks what is the matter with her, and Randy says she has bronchitis. I like how even though Ryan mentioned the girls are all battling the flu at the start of the show Simon is shocked that one of the girls is sick. Does he not get the same memos as Ryan, Randy, and Paula? Simon says we didn’t get a lot from that performance. He felt she was robotic and doesn’t care if she is sick; the sickness didn’t choose her song, she did. Ryan asks what consideration the voters should give the sickness of several of the women. Randy says they should consider everything, even the preliminary rounds when casting their votes; great news for the girls with little to no screen time before tonight. Somewhere Luke Menard just started crying. Kristy is a horse loving cage fighter with a good voice and lots of preliminary screen time, which should make her safe, despite a bronchitis inhibited performance.

Joanne

America’s favorite plus side model is up next. Isn’t that kinda offensive? Why not just call her a model. It’s like they assume people will hear she is a model and think “there is no way she is a model, not carrying that much weight,” these Idol people are lying! Just call her a model, leave out the plus, and give the people at home a little credit. Fans of ‘My Best Friends Wedding’ are excited to hear Joanne’s song choice. Not a really good song choice, but unlike Kristy, this song goes a little too low for Joanne. She is struggling on the lower notes but gets a little better near the end of the song. This is our second “So What” performance tonight. She is just ok, nothing great, but nothing bad. Will the voters accept such a thin voice out of a plus size model? In previous seasons of Idol the size of the contestants has never held them back, but the stereotype is big girl big voice. Joanne has a sweet voice, not a big one, which might mean the audience will not look past her plus side and instead turn their support to one of the Barbies. I really think I would rather hear Rupert Evert sing this song than Joanne; this is not a good sign for her safety. Randy says the nerves are apparent, he calls her pretty good, despite not liking the beginning. Paula wants Joanne to get her earlier rounds confidence back. Simon says he didn’t like it at all. He says what she did was a very average version of the song sans confidence, and he found nothing in her vocals that would indicate she would be a recording star. If the contestants cannot control their nerves by now they do not deserve to be on the show he continues. The camera quickly shows her father; if he has a gun Simon better get out of the building. Joanne says she will take both Randy and Simon’s comments into consideration, and Simon interjects if she does that then the entire thing would be awful. After the first two contestants the guys aren’t looking nearly as bad as they did about 22 hours ago.

Alaina Whitaker

Alaina is younger than David A., but will she get the same kids glove treatment. Tomorrow is her birthday and she wants our votes as her birthday present, and some great shoes. Ryan asks her how she prepared for the song and she says she has a lot of energy and wants to have fun. If she continues to not answer questions like that this girl has a future as a politician. Only a junior in high school, she never thought she would make it this far into Idol. She says it’s a once and a lifetime opportunity, which is wrong, just look at Carly and Michael – they get chance after chance! The Carrie look-alike starts off singing a really slow song that speeds up and there is no doubt she has a really good voice. 45 seconds into her song she has already claimed the ‘best of the night so far award.’ Her fellow contestants are clapping away, which confirms she is doing well. She is BY FAR the best of the night (granted only 2 people have gone already). She sounds really good. Randy is amazed by her confidence and once she got going really loved it. Paula says she nailed it and had the best ending she has ever heard on that song. No hyperbole there Paula. Simon says, “I think you are very good.” This was the first time tonight he didn’t see any nerves, but he really didn’t like the song itself, in fact he has never heard it before. Neither has Alaina, who says she didn’t know of it until just a few days ago. Normally picking an unknown song is a risky move, but not for the soon to be 17-year-old. Simon thinks on a decent song Alaina will be great. He predicts she will sail through the first round. Alaina is so happy she can barely put together a complete sentence when Ryan gets to her side. It really is like they cloned Carrie for another Idol run. Tonight Alaina is as good as any of the guys were the night before and will advance into the next round.

Amanda Overmyer

The rock and roll nurse survived a wreck with a semi, so she is not too worried with the pressures American Idol presents. She says she will not sing Janis anymore. Good for her! Most of the time when a contestant finds a singer they can emulate they sing those songs as often as possible (see Michael Johns). I wonder if she will keep that up all season or bust it out when she gets in the finals. She is rock scatting to start the song, but the key is too low and her voice disappears at the end of the first couple phrases. The band is rocking, but her vocals are at times barely audible. This is not a good song choice, but she manages to slip in some nice vocals when she goes into the higher notes. She has almost no enunciation skills on this song, in fact she sounds like a goat a few times. Rickey Minor and the band are the stars of this song, not Amanda. Yet, this is a fun performance, just not the best vocally. Randy loves the bluesy rocker feel to her song, he also likes her pants. Paula loves everything Amanda does because she is the real deal. Simon, laughing, says he really likes her because she is authentic. He asks her if she forgot the words halfway through, she says no. Even though he doesn’t consider this a great performance, he still likes Amanda. Notice none of the judges say “great vocals.” They all managed to compiment her without really saying you sang the song well. Ryan asks her what’s been the hardest thing so far, and she says when they had to dance after they made the top 24. She apologized for pulling out in front of the semi. Well at least she probably will get that guy’s vote.

Amy Davis

She is a trade show model and a grad student back home. I know when I think trade show model I think graduate degrees. We learn she was terrified during Hollywood Week, but overcame. She says being on Idol is like 100 Christmases to a little girl. Hear that? She hates Jesus. She just compared his birthday to a TV show. Oh sorry, I thought I was the media covering Hillary for a second. Amy is off pitch to start the song. After her early difficulties, she is recovering nicely. I hate this song choice, it’s really boring, yet it’s a hard song to sing. With all the vocal jumps this is the hardest song of the night so far. She has a nice voice and ends the song significantly better than she started, but in a field crowded with good-looking girls she needs to have a lot more life on stage. Randy says he doesn’t think it was great because she missed some pitches when she scooped up the notes. Paula, ever the one to put looks over ability, says the camera loves Amy, but even Paula thinks it was lackluster. Simon says she didn’t sing as well as she looks. He says the song was dull and felt like 10 minutes because she did not have the right ‘country’ voice for her song selection. Amy says she was somewhere between terrified and shaky when she started singing. Tomorrow night she will be far beyond shaky and fully terrified, because she is in a lot of trouble.

Brooke White

Brooke is a nanny, unlike Carly who has been in the music business longer than Keith Richards. During the early rounds we learned Brooke is the best person of all time. She has never seen a rated R movie, but how do we know she hasn’t seen some rated X stuff? She says she will never fall to the dark side, even though Simon might try to corrupt her morals. Prediction – if she wins she is a cocaine junkie inside of two years. She is singing a scaled back version of the song with only a guitar to start off; I like this arrangement. She has a really nice voice and is hitting all the right notes. The song is in the perfect key for her and she can show off her range, including some nice lower notes. She might be the best of the night. It’s refreshing to hear someone not go for every big not possible, avoid unnecessary runs, and just sing the song. Randy says it started rough for him but felt she got her confidence back near the end. He thinks she ‘slayed’ the last part of the song. Paula loves Brooke’s originality and thinks she picked the right song. Simon says it was the right song, but he feels like he is stuck in the 1960s right now. Really, does he understand they are doing a 60s theme tonight? Sometimes I wonder if he took some of Paula’s pills by accident. He says it was “very you.” Even though he cannot find the relevance of performance, he credits her for singing well. Simon still wants her to turn to the dark side, but she vows to say nice throughout the entire competition. Brooke is unlike most successful Idol contestants, in that she is not a ‘big’ singer, doesn’t advertise her sex appeal, and doesn’t have an infectious personality, but she can sing. I hope the voters will keep her around for a while; I think they will.

Alexandrea Washington

She is only 17, but in her audition she sang an older song, so she might be well suited for 60s night. Whoa, she is starting at the top of the stairs, is that even legal? Even though she is young, she looks and performs much older. She is going off on the song moving around more than everyone else combined – including all the guys last night. She is showing off several different parts of her voice, from high to low. She does have a few pitch problems, going flat in the middle of the song, but overall she is great. She just took the crown for most enjoyable performance of the night, maybe even the best so far. Randy says no matter what her age, she blew the door off the song; it was hot! Paula loved her entrance, her dope outfit, and saw more confidence in her than any other contestant. She thinks Alex is relevant and could be successful on the radio today. Simon did not get it. He didn’t think the vocals were great and it reminded him of a horrible little show you see where people do awful musicals. Simon cannot imagine this song on the radio. Alex tells Ryan he is not pronouncing her name correctly, you go girl! Ryan asks why Simon diverges from the other judges so much, and he says it’s because he expects more from the contestants, but has only heard one outstanding vocal so far. Alex won two out of the three judges tonight and should win plenty of votes, making her safe.

Kady Malloy

Ryan is in the Coke room sitting next to Kady who is fired up and ready to go. Kady was shocked when Simon said she was the best one he had seen so far. Kady is obsessed with music and can do the best Britney Spears impersonation I’ve ever heard. She starts the song sitting on a stool, which denotes seriousness. How long until she stands up? She sounds like someone right now, almost Celine at times. Kady has a really pretty voice. However, her face looks sad the entire time devoid of any happiness. Shouldn’t she be happy to share a groovy kind of love?
Randy loves the Spears impersonation, but felt Kady was too reserved tonight, even getting a little lost in the middle of the song. Paula says Kady is really pretty but wants to see the life of her more. She wants more the fun Kady version. Simon agrees with Paula, but goes further calling it night of the living dead, in fact, he felt she came across as 80 years old. Only a pencil could impersonate Kady, that’s how boring he thinks she was tonight. The judges do not say she sang poorly, instead they just say it wasn’t fun. The judges are incredibly inconsistent every year. They talk about how this is a singing competition, but when the rocking nurse gives a great performance with poor vocals they LOVE it and genuflect at her feet. Then Kady gives a great vocal but a weak performance and they crucify her for not having more fun. Who cares about the fun, how did she sing? They never say she didn’t sing well, but when a contestant butchers a song missing pitch after pitch would have had a more positive evaluation than Kady.
Ryan, surprised Simon turned so negative towards Kady, says Simon did a 180 and Randy says no, it’s more of a 360. Randy is not really good with the whole math thing I guess. Kady says she would have had more fun with an upbeat song, but she was trying to be serious. Randy wants her to let the vocals go and just sing. Kady looks blown away, but still manages 8 held up fingers. Paula’s parting words of wisdom, “just be.” Randy then says, “this is a singing show, just sing.” Are you serious? You just spent the whole time talking about HOW THEY WANTED MORE FUN FROM HER BUT NOT TALKING ABOUT HER SINGING NOW HE SAYS THIS IS A SINGING SHOW JUST SING! Geez.

Asiah

Her dad died during her American Idol journey but still managed to survive her audition. She is living her father’s dream she says, which means her dad wanted to be a 19-year-old girl. She starts the song near the bottom of her vocals, but is enunciating the words. Amanda is screaming back stage, “How dare you do Janis you whore!” I am not feeling Aisha on this song. The vocals are too big for her and the entire time all I can think is how Amanda would sing this song much better. I am not feeling this song on Asiah and think Janis is rolling over in her grave right now. Randy says she did her thing with the song and he was impressed. Paula thinks she had some really good moments in the song and had a lot of fun. For Simon, she is his favorite of the night because he likes likes her voice and the way she doesn’t take herself too seriously. Ryan asks how she can manage to still have fun with all she has endured, and she says she is just naturally happy. Hear that dead father of Asiah…she is happy you are dead. Sorry, thought I was the media analyzing Hillary again. Even if the judges won’t say it - this should be on a cruise ship.

Ramiele (The Desert Fox)

Even though she cannot get on the rides at most amusement parks she has a powerhouse voice. She is excited to get on stage and show people what she can do. The song starts really soft. Will she build form there or make the mistake of keeping it small the entire time? She has a really thick rich voice capable of hitting the lower notes with strength. The song has a lot of pitch variations, making it hard to sing the right notes, but she does a good job. However, she had no more fun on stage than Kady, will the judges give her the same ‘have fun’ on stage treatment they gave the faux Spears? No. Randy loves the way she built up the song and the way she stuck to the melody. He thinks she was hot. Paula wants her to sail ‘all the way in there,’ and loves her voice. Simon admits he didn’t like her when he first saw her, but grew to like her in Hollywood, and thinks she ‘outsung’ everyone tonight. She is shocked! She says hair and makeup has been the best part of the entire Idol experience, along with some great shoes. Alaina and her would have a lot of fun shopping together. I bet Ryan likes talking to her, since he looks like a giant for the first time since he hosted the “4th Annual Midget Toss” in 1997.

Syesha

Ryan is in the Coke room with her on the couch while she sits on her knees. She looks like a giant human being in that position. It gets a little awkward when Ryan asks if she is trying to stay away from the sick ones. She says they keep us separated, so no worries. Who do they keep separated? The whites and the blacks? The young and the old? Her recap reminds us she lost her voice during Hollywood Week. She is singing a fast song, which is good since the judges don’t seem to like the slower ones tonight. She has the best lower register of anyone, even hitting the deep ‘road’ note. It sounds like she almost gets behind the melody but if she did she quickly recovers. She is now the best of the night. Randy says she can definitely sing. Not his favorite performance of the night (Really? Who was better?), but he did like it, even though he spotted some pitch problems. Paula says the song was joyful and gives her a ‘way to go.” Simon agrees with Randy that this wasn’t her best performance, but says it doesn’t matter because she is one of the most talented girls in this competition. He thinks she was terrific tonight. She is safe tomorrow even though he father didn’t just die, she wasn’t in a car accident, and she didn’t have to sell her horse.

Carly

They actually mention that she had a record deal when she was 15 years old. However, she crashed and burned and was washed up 17. She is just here to sing, not be a diva, she is just a girl with a changed name. Since she didn’t sit with the rest of the girls last night I’m guessing she is really sick. She seems unable to complete the entire first phrase of the song; her voice disappears on the last note. Her lower register sounds a little weak and she has a few pitch problems interspersed with some really nice vocal prowess. I’d like to hear her sing this song completely healthy. I think the sickness if forcing her to scream a few notes she can normally sing. A smiling Randy says that’s what the show is all about, her going out there singing even while sick. He calls her the best vocal of the top 24. He says she is hot, hot, blazing hot. I’m not saying he is pimping the Irish princess, but they are sure impressed she is singing while sick. I wonder if Kristy is sitting in the Coke room thinking, “umm why didn’t you mention I was sick too Randy.” Paula says it doesn’t matter Carly is sick because the tenderness of her voice carries through. Carly is nervous for Simon’s views and calls him Captain Fantastic. He says there is so much hype about Carly but he just didn’t get it tonight. Simon says the song was way too old fashioned for her and even criticized the way she held the microphone; he felt she was way too cabaret. Everything about this song was a let down because he expected something fantastic from her; she gave him no reason to jump and up down. Carly is not pleased with Simon, but she puts on a fake smile as best she can.


Final Thoughts

Ryan asks Randy to compare the guys and the girls. Randy says the girls were a little hotter than the guys this week. Well I hope so Randy, unless you are gay you should think the girls are hotter. Oh, you mean their singing was hotter. Paula says nerves are always there, but you have to do good job and then utter something completely nonsensical. Simon is so bewildered by Paula’s statement he stares at her in disbelief. Ryan asks the judges to predict if this is a guy or girl season. Simon says they are about equal, with 3 great guys and 3 or maybe 4 great girls. As the show ends Kady is standing right behind Ryan and looks depressed in the background. Her pouting will probably pick up a few extra votes. So who goes home tomorrow? Amy Davis for sure and then it gets far more difficult to prognosticate. I think Joanne and Kristy are in a lot of trouble, and unfortunately, Kady might be as well. I’ll assume Kristy being sick will save her and Joanne will join Amy in the “I used to be on American Idol” support group

Men Men and More Men all Singing

Just the other day I was thinking, “Boy I wish Idol was on for five hours this week.” Sometimes dreams do come true, and tonight we get two filler filled hours of men singing on American Idol. Everyone expects this top 24 to be perhaps the best yet. Unfortunately, with so much hype often comes great disappointment.


I wonder what Ryan will wear tonight. Gone are the ‘I’m so cool I can wear vintage tee shirts from a designer shop that look like they cost 4 dollars at Goodwill but actually cost 75 dollars. I’m guessing suit with no tie - and I am right, dark suit with no tie. Ryan mentions this might be the cast ever. These guys have a whole lotta pressure to not suck tonight. Ryan starts the show descending the staircase, but no high fives on his way down. I guess these male contestants aren’t into the whole touching other people thing. Ryan says our task is to get them from 24 down to 12. If they sing in the order they were introduced, David Hernandez is going home week one. He did not get that much attention in the early rounds and it looks like he might be in the dead on arrival first spot of the evening. Michael looks to be in the final “pimp spot,” no Hillary I am not talking about your daughter, calm down. The pimp spot usually goes to someone that was fantastic in rehearsals, so if Michael goes last you can expect him to be outstanding tonight. No one looks to have committed any fashion ‘omg’ but Chikezie is wearing a really bright red suit; he looks like he is in the green room of the NBA draft; Jalen Rose would be proud. The guys all move upstairs to lean over the railing. Just once, I want someone to fall off of there when they get a little too into the whole swaying back and forth and clapping motion. The judges occupy their normal spots with Paula womanning the middle. Ryan says this season’s audition had more originality in the dudes than ever before. He tells them to “keep it real, come on ya’ll.” Paula and Ryan make fun of Randy’s overuse of dawg and man and Paula tells the contestants to pick the right song. I’m thinking it’s probably too late to change your song for tonight’s show. As they go to break they show everyone making it to Hollywood and then making it into the top 24. With this short clip montage Luke Menard just doubled his screen time for the season. American Idol hooked up with Itunes, meaning they found yet another way to make money off this show. Tonight has a 60s theme, this should be interesting.

David Hernandez

Hey David, we aren’t really going to give you any screen time until Hollywood Week and then we are going to make you go first among the top 12 guys – good luck! David says when he sings it comes from his soul. He says being raised by a single mom made his life hard. Big deal David, did you hear the other David couldn’t sing for like 6 years? They remind us Simon did not want David in the top 12, but he was excited for the challenge to prove Simon wrong. Uh oh he starts off looking down at the stage, which means he is going to be really serious to start the song. I think his shirt is silk. The song starts off with just an organ playing chords in the background and David is singing with all of that pent up ‘soul.’ I’m guessing the entire band comes in pretty soon. Hey is that Melinda as a back up singer? He has a pleasant albeit bland voice. His stage prescence is awesome, if you consider standing still and occasionally raising your left hand away from your body as awesome. He is doing over ok, until he hits the last few notes. Wow, it’s like when someone is walking their dog and the dog gets excited and starts running and the owner of the dog is suddenly pulled along before they can recover and halt the dog. That’s what his voice sounded like when he tried to hit the big notes at the end. I was expecting a falsetto note, but he didn’t hit it, maybe he chickened out and then didn’t know what to do with his notes. That might explain the total train wreck at the end. Randy liked the initial gospel vibe, says David can definitely blow, but points out he fell apart at the end. He says way to start it off. Paula feels for him, but thinks he has brilliant vocals with perfect vibrato. Simon says it was better than he thought it would be. He loved the beginning and thought he lost the note at the end of the song. Simon wanted to hear something distinct from his voice, but overall thought he would suck much more. Considering he did not want him in the top 12, that is actually a pretty good compliment. David needed a fantastic performance to guarantee his safety, but he did not deliver, which means barring some bad performances following his, he is in a lot of trouble tomorrow.

Chikezie Eze

They remind us Chik almost made the top 24 before and he fought hard for his dream to finally come true. They should inside the Coke room with the other contestants looking at the story on Chik, but none of them clap when it’s over. I don’t think they hate Chik, they are just completely terrified right now. Chik starts off a little flat on the song. He shows off his voice in the middle part of the song, but this is pretty boring. None of his fellow contestants are even clapping for him while he sings. Don’t they realize the importance of the clap and sway from the balcony. He sounds ok, but I will forget this performance in about 30 minutes. He is like Chinese food, sure its good when it happens, but a few minutes later you few unsatisfied. Randy says it was pretty good man, the only problem is Chik is an old fashioned singer, so he has to be careful to make things fresh and fun. Paula says he came a long way and he is here…he is here. I think that is a compliment. Paula calls him an infectious throwback and finally comments on his performance, saying he did a very nice job. Chik’s mom and dad are having a great time in the crowd. Simon butchers Chik’s name and says he hated the whole performance. He hates the suit, but Chik interrupts him and makes fun of Simon’s tee shirt colors. Simon says this is something that could have been filmed 40 years ago – it was that old fashioned. Chik defends himself saying it was 60s night, he was taking a 60s song of one genre and taking it to a different genre of the same era, and he is sorry Simon didn’t understand his approach. Huh? What? I DON’T UNDERSTAND what he is saying either. Chik’s defiant attitude will endear him to some voters and turn him off to others. He needs to reel his personality in or it will be his downfall. I still don’t think there are many people to pull votes away from him, so despite a weak performance tonight, I think Chik should be safe tomorrow night.

David Cook

Back from the break Ryan is sitting with Colton and David in the Coke room. Colton says from certain angles he looks like Ellen Degeneres. What better way to sell yourself to America than comparing yourself to American’s favorite lesbian talk show host. Ryan introduces David who is a bartender and musician. He gets to show his humor is the montage; he is very likeable, which should help him get some votes even if he doesn’t sing well. They make fun of his audition where Simon said he was wordy? Or was it worthy? No one seems to know. David says it’s nice to hear that you don’t suck. He is singing his own version of the song, slowed down a little at the start. You can tell he has been on a stage before. His vocals get a little lost on the lower note runs, but his fellow contestants are clapping along! Finally! This is how you update an old song. His vocals are not that great, but unlike the first two guys, he is performing. Halfway through the song you forget he isnt’ the best singer and just enjoy him on stage. He does really well at the end of the song, even hitting an off color note that led into a big finally. He is the best performer of the night and despite not really nailing all the vocals he is the best Idol so far. Randy says it is kinda funny for me, and then thought oh my god no, but you know what, you made a rock joint out of it, he calls it crazy. He thinks he can do anything. Paula says it was a bit worthy of great praise! Pretty decent joke from Paula. Simon says he can’t remember if he said worthy or wordy in the audition rounds, and despite some shouting he thought it was really good. He feels David almost made it believable. Randy loved the whole rock edge.

Jason Yeager

I wonder if it was his dad that broke the sound barrier? Jason is a singing server with a son. His son looks like he is 17 years old, geez how young were you when you got the girl pregnant Jason. Jason cannot believe he is actually here; he might be lacking in self confidence. Jason is sitting down singing Moon River. Wow this is a weird song choice. He does not have a big enough voice for this song and hits pitch problems half way through. This is the first awful performance of the night. Branson Theater here we come! His voice is way too thin for this song. He is the first guy tonight to miss a bunch of notes. I have a feeling he performed this song as a singing server to rave reviews and thought the same thing would happen on the Idol stage. I don’t know how to break it to you Jason, but somewhere, your son just pretended he was not related to you. “What, no way man, that’s not my dad, umm my dad’s name is umm Frank Yeager…yeah that’s it, Frank Yeager. Oh never mind, his kid is sitting in the audience. Randy says he did a pretty good job on a hard song, but warns him not to lose his concentration. He thinks Jason went somewhere else in the middle of the song. Paula says a simple song is hard to sing and we learn she did her first ballet recital to that song. Jason dedicates his song to his grandmother…awww. You still can’t sing Jason. Simon says he bought his first puppy to that song and says Jason came over very old in the song and felt like he was on a cruise ship. He also thinks the young people at home will not understand this song because it was neither here nor there. He thinks of Jason as an old dependable dog, nothing too exciting but reliable. Ryan will probably try to redeem Jason a little. Jason says picking that song was troublesome, but he wanted to give it his best shot. Dude, why did you pick that song then? Jason says he tries not to take Simon to heart too much, and hopes to come back next week. Sure he was not as good as Chik, but I’d rather see him and his attitude back then Chik and his talking back. I wonder if voters at home might feel the same way.

Robbie Carrico
Robbie is ready with his hair covered up again. Does he have a hole in his head he is hiding? He used to be in a boy band thing involved with Brittney Spears. Maybe if he had done a better job convincing her to wear underwear at all times she would still have her kids. He has the mandatory “I’m cool” key chain hanging from his side. He picked a good song and sounds good singing it, showing off a pretty good range in the process. He is not as good a performer as David Cook, but he is better than the other two. He has fun singing the song but his facial expressions might have been a little forced. Overall he does pretty well tonight. Randy was rocking out and says Robbie moved him baby. Paula think he is authentic and looks fantastic, she thought his vocals were right in the pocket. Simon calls it the only performance tonight that has any semblance of making sense. It was the only current performance. Simon still isn’t sure Robbie is a rock and not a pop singer. He needs more convincing from this former boy band boy turned rocker. Robbie might be the best so far tonight.

David Archuleta

David is so cute and adorable he is almost destined for a cocaine addiction in the near future. He has a new hair cut but his voice isn’t any deeper than Hollywood Week, meaning this song’s key is too low for his rediscovered voice. David does best, so far, on ballad type songs. So, I have no idea why he picked a fast song that required low vocals. He redeems himself a little bit at the end of the song, but he is just not that good tonight. In fact, Robbie and David Cook were both better than him. Young David is a living example of how a bad song choice can derail your performance before it even starts. Randy asks how old David is and says he thought it was really brilliant. He thinks David is ready to go, and loved his singing. Paula love seeing a new side of David and loves seeing this confident older soul. She thinks he did a great job. Simon says when you got it you got it and calls it by a mile the best performance of the night so far. David gets all shy and humble, he is this season’s Melinda. Oh golly gee, shucks. This kid was on Star Search and he is still this shy? I’m not sure I believe this ‘omg wow me really geez’ personality of David. Even if he is totally genuine some people will think he is faking his charm and elect not to vote. Even though the judges totally disagree with me, I really am not wowed by David tonight. There is nothing bad, but nothing outstanding either. I half envision Simon saying on Thursday night that when he watched the show back he realized David was not quite as good as he originally thought. Regardless, David is guaranteed safe from elimination.

Danny Noriega

Danny was in Hollywood last year too, but they cut him after the first day. Danny says he wants to be ‘hot’ tonight with his attitude. He is singing Elvis – a bold choice. This is a fun song choice but a few times I can feel the lyrics and the beat getting away from Danny and this is not a singing song. By that I mean there are only a few notes in the entire note, which means you get few chances to show off your vocal abilities. He has a fun time singing, but this is very cruise ship, as Simon might say, and not a very good performance. Randy says he loves that Danny has a good time no matter what, but thought the vocals were only ok. He thought it was kinda “hot.” Paula loves hearing how his voice goes in and out of colors, but though the song was safe, but is sure lots of colors of Danny will come out, but will he come out of the closest I wonder. Simon thought the performance was verging on grotesque. He says if you take on Elvis, you better do it well, and hopes no one tuned into the show for the first time while Danny was singing. The judges are all debating if the performance was safe. Randy and Paula defend him while Simon criticizes Danny. Danny says he thought the song would be fun, but he guesses some people weren’t liking it and looks at Simon. Danny manages to disagree with Simon and keep his likeability, Chik are you taking notes?


Luke Bernard

They show the girls and the nurse looks like she is wearing a hat because of the highlight in her hair. He tried out before and his failure inspired him to improve and try out again. He is married, but very stupidly, did not have a child before he got on Idol, doesn’t he understand talking about your kids gets you more votes. A little midnight cowboy in the house starts off a little flat. His voice is thin as an anorexic monkey but we do get our first split screen of the season I think. Wow he is really having some pitch problems. I can already hear Randy saying “It was pitchy dawg.” Luke is vanilla ice cream except with facial hair. He hits a pretty decent falsetto note, but that cannot save the rest of the song. He is the worst of the night I think. Randy says he was pitchy and sharp the entire time, calling it not great. Paula agrees with Randy, saying Luke did not pick the best song. She compares him to Kenny Loggins. This just in, Kenny Loggins found dead with a self-inflicted gun shot wound. Simon says he is forgettable, which is the worst trap to fall into. Here comes redeeming Ryan asking Luke if he might have over thought his song choice tonight. Luke felt good when he sang the song and did not agree with what the judges said about his singing. He believes people will remember this tomorrow because he was very comfortable. Huh? Yeah I can see it now at watercoolers around America. “Hey John did you see that guy last night on Idol, oh my god dude, he was so comfortable on stage.” Simon blurts out, “no one is ever going to admit to being forgettable.” Ryan does not respond and instead goes right into the numbers.

Colton Berry

We learn Colton likes to sing the Teletubbies theme song in his head when he is nervous. I bet Danny can tell him all about the purple Teletubby. Colton looks comfortable on stage and his fellow contestants are clapping along, which is always a good sign. Again though the song is a little too low for him, don’t these guys know they can change the key on these songs? He sounds good during the slower middle section and despite standing in place the entire time puts out a lot of energy. I really like his version of the ending. He made the song his own. Randy loves the song and thinks he did a good job by the end; all in all pretty good. Paula likes seeing a different side of him, but doesn’t think it was his best performance. Simon says it was ok, not quite as bad as the other Elvis song, but doesn’t know if Colton has any relevance in today’s charts. He didn’t feel like he was listening to a recording artist. He wanted something more original, not karaoke. Paula stammers through some explanation while Simon says maybe Colton should spend more time on his voice and less time on his hair. Ryan gets in his best Simon insult of the evening pointing out the lack of style on Simon’s head.

Garrett Haley

Garrett could have been in the witness protection program and still alive after the early Idol rounds. We know NOTHING about this kid. Garret thinks he too looks like Ellen Degeneres. His voice sounds really small and weak when he talks, I hope he sounds better when he sings. He is only 17 too, I wonder if they will play up his youth the same way they do with David A. Garrett struggled with his confidence in Hollywood, will he tonight? The song starts off slow and boring. He has a pleasant voice, but what will he sound like when he hits puberty? What? He already did? Oh crap, that’s too bad. This performance has about as much life as Lincoln’s corpse. He is hitting the right notes most of the time, whoah take that back he is now missing notes in addition to boring me to tears. I’m crying right now. Ok not really, but I’d rather listen to paint dry than hear Garrett sing again. Randy loves the song, but wishes Garrett did something with it to make it his own. He wants him to bring something new and interesting to it. He says it was pitchy and boring. Paula tells him it’s ok to change up the song because the slow tempo brought the performance down. Simon calls it boring and says his voice was whiny and he looked terrified. He thinks Garrett looks haunting, like he was trapped in his room sans sun for a month. Paula puts her head down in embarrassment. Notice, they never say hey good job for a 17 year old. Double standard much? The judges are killing this kid. Jason Yeager’s kid just smiled thinking, “I’m glad there is someone that sucks more than my dad.”

Jason Castro

Ryan is in the Coke room sitting next to Jason and his hair. Jason grew up playing drums and we finally see his audition. Jason is the first contestant to play an instrument. Not sure how I feel about that, no wait, yes I do. I hate it! This is a singing competition not a what instrument can you play competition. However, they obviously feel the need to alter the show to keep it fresh and think letting people play some of their own music is the best way to accomplish that goal. We’ll see over the next few weeks if they might regret that decision. Everyone is clapping and enjoying his song. He is doing a good job making a relatively boring song interesting. His voice sounds really good and he throws in some falsetto. He does a pretty good job making this song sound pretty fresh and might have the best performance of the night. I don’t know if the judges will agree but I really like Jason tonight. Randy liked the guitar vibe and thought Jason tried to make a few things happen vocally, but felt he went sharp. Paula is blown away and loved his song choice. She felt his joy! He is a blend of every favorite color she knows. Simon says he was in the top 2 performances of the night because Jason, like David, just has it, and would have preferred it without the entire band. He feels the song felt current and thought it was terrific. Jason looks terrified on stage and can barely get out a complete sentence. When they go to commercial they show Michael, who looks extremely confident. I have a really good feeling about him tonight. Maybe a Doors song?

Michael Johns

Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie Aussie! He now lives in Atlanta, but he still speaks like a down under kinda guy. Man I am good, he is doing a Doors song. He has a thick rich voice, the only singer tonight that can hit the lower notes. His years of singing show during the song as he has the best stage presence of the night. He sounds really good and wisely does not mimic Morrison but instead gives the song his own feel. This is by far the best of the night and he is declaring himself he ‘one to beat.’ He even is wearing a scarf. Who can pull that off? I know I can’t. Randy loves him and always feels like he is seeing a real rock performer. Paula says he set everyone on fire. Simon says he is the most consistent contestant we’ve had. He loved everyone of his auditions. Michael just has it Simon says. Michael is also tall and good looking, which means no worries for him on Thursday night.

Final Thoughts
David Hernandez is in trouble, Jason Yeager is in trouble, Luke Menard is in trouble, Garrett Haley is in trouble. However, Garrett was so bad I think he might be Sanjaya like and stay around awhile. That means David, Jason or Luke will go home tomorrow. I will predict the departing two will be David and Luke, not because Jason was better, but he has a really cute kid. Ryan thanks everyone but Simon, which is pretty funny stuff. After they show the girls dancing in the preview for tomorrow Ryan says “Nigel that remids me of your show.” Get it? He means “So you think you can dance.” Welcome back Idol, we missed you.

They'reeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Baccccccccckkkkkkkkkkk

The people of Wisconsin are excited and inspired today. They get to cast their votes and maybe even make history. Of course, I am not talking about the Wisconsin primary, I’m talking about the return of the top 24 on American Idol (more people in Wisconsin will watch Idol tonight than will bother to vote). The early “freak” rounds are over and the survivors of “Hollywood Week” are ready to sing for our votes. I have seen most of the men sing already, but like every year a few slipped through the preliminary rounds barely seen and never heard. Despite not knowing anything about a few of the contestants, I am man enough to predict the male component of the top 12. This is merely for my amusement, so please, no wagering.

David Archuleta

Preliminary Exposure: David got almost as much airtime as Randy Jackson. We not only heard him but we got to know his story. Let’s face it, when you have once lost the ability to sing you are going to get some sympathy votes.
Ability: He really can sing. He has a pleasant voice, tailor made for ballads and ‘pretty’ songs. However, I wonder how he will do with a harder song that requires a little edge or a country song, or a song with a complicated rythmn.
Demographic: He will get the Jordin Sparks/Sanjaya vote along with a lot of older voters. He has perhaps the largest collection of potential votes. Teenage girls will love his adorableness and wear out the number pad on their phones texting and calling for the soon to be teen idol.
Prediction: He will make the top 12
Confidence in Prediction: 10 (10 means I’m positive – 1 means who knows)

Michael Johns

Preliminary Exposure: Almost as much as David, although I don’t think he ever lost the ability to sing. He got a plush spot during Hollywood Week where they featured him singing Queen better than most people can.
Ability: He is really good, maybe the best male singer we heard in the early rounds. He has a strong rich voice and his age should provide him with the experience necessary for toggling between different musical styles.
Demographic: He will have a lot of girls voting for him, if for no other reason listen to his accent, like omg! He is also manly enough to get the male vote as well.
Prediction: He will make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 10

Danny Noriega

Preliminary Exposure: He had a significant amount, including a brief glimpse of a possible gay companion. If Danny is openly gay I wonder how idol will handle his relationship. Would Fox, on a family show, talk about his partner, or just refer to him as ‘his good friend.’ I am betting they will not change that graphic that says “Danny’s Friends” when they show the audience to “Danny’s Homosexual Lover.”
Ability: Despite his melodramatics, Danny has a really good voice, but like David I worry about him singing different styles of music.
Demographic: He has the Clay vote locked up, however if he is too much of a Diva, he could alienate potential voters. He needs to refrain from talking back to the judges; if he remains humble he will be in excellent shape.
Prediction: He will make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 8

Jason Castro

Preliminary Exposure: Almost none, I have not heard him sing on the show but I did listen to him on Youtube.
Ability: He has a nice pleasant sound and should excel on pop/rock songs, but I have no idea how we’ll handle a ballad or a country song.
Demographic: He has the vote of ‘people who love crazy hair’ locked up. He should also get a lot of girls voting for him. He is this year’s Blake – a bit quirky look but talented.
Prediction: He will make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 7

Chikezie Eze

Preliminary Exposure: He had a lot, even some back story. He seems like a nice guy and should earn some bonus points for his likeability.
Ability: He sounds pretty good, like a slim fasted Reuben Studdard.
Demographic: He will get the votes of R&B lovers. Since he is the only one in the top 12 I know will sing with this style, he should have a strong voting bloc.
Prediction: He will make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 6

Robbie Carrico

Preliminary Exposure: He had a lot, we saw Robbie in the auditions and in Hollywood.
Ability: He sounds pretty good, he has a nice voice but I am not sure if he can be dynamic.
Demographic: He will get the Ace Young vote. He already has the beanie cap ready to go. He is attractive enough to get the ladies votes while still manly enough to get male votes as well.
Prediction: He will make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 5

David Cook

Preliminary Exposure: David got plenty of screen time, but he sounded better in the initial audition than he did in Hollywood.
Ability: He has a nice voice, but he sounds like a less talented Michael Johns.
Demographic: Unfortunately for David, the same as Michael Johns, which ensures he will not get enough votes.
Prediction: This is very hard, he might be able to slip by Robbie, but I think he will NOT make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 5

Colton Berry

Preliminary Exposure: He got some air time in Hollywood Week, including the much coveted last spot in the top 24.
Ability: He sounded pretty good, like he was ready to join a boy band immediately.
Demographic: Unfortunately for him, the same as David A.
Prediction: He could slip in, but he will not make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 5

David Hernandez

Preliminary Exposure: Very little until a really good Hollywood Week audition.
Ability: He can sing, but he sounds like a cookie cutter type singer that will bore you after the first 30 seconds.
Demographic: I’m not sure he really has one, which is why…
Prediction: He will not make the top 12.
Confidence in Prediction: 10

The Remaining Guys

I have heard nothing from Garret Haley, Jason Yeager, or Luke Menard, because they received no exposure during the preliminary rounds. Although the deck is stacked against them, Bo Bice and Elliot Yamin proved little exposure doesn’t always mean certain death. They have no room for error though, and one bad performance earns them a bus ticket home. Garret will lose votes to David and Danny. Jason and Luke will probably be competing to steal votes away from Michael Johns. If any of these three pick the right song and sing well, they have the chance to make me look silly.