Wednesday, February 28, 2007

American Idol: Top 10 Girls Perform




Short Blog again tonight folks as I am splitting time with LOST! Only one more week of this 3 Days of Idol and then we can get into a normal groove for 11 weeks! Anyway, tonight's performances were okay. Some big stand-outs, some pretty gut-wrenching performances. But, like the guys, the Top 12 seats are starting to fill up and there's just a couple up for grabs.

Did real-time blogging again tonight. Here's my notes:

  1. Gina Glocksen - Dedicating to boyfriend Joel - "Alone" - Well, when you do a song that is the most memorable Carrie Underwood performance from Season 4 (oh yes, i'll reference youtube clips now!), you're bound to be compared. Verdict? NOT even close. And very flat. But probably not the worst we'll hear tonight, though. She should be safe.

    Judges: Randy says AIIGHT, Paula references Carrie but still says blown away. Simon says Gina has an identity crisis. Needs to have edgier look to stay in the competition.
  2. Alaina Alexander - Dedicating to Mom - "Not Ready to Make Nice" (Dixie Chicks) - Well any Idol fans from south of the Mason-Dixon line won't be happy with this choice. They hate their Dixie Chicks these days! But you know what? I don't think the northern folk were too thrilled with it either. Alaina just doesn't have the voice for this competition. Seemed to be off key the whole performance.

    Judges: Randy - 1st couple bars were good, then pitchy. Paula - Pitch was a bit off. Simon - You Ran out of Steam

    Me: Not looking good for Alaina. This week plus last week's lackluster performance all comes together and sounds like a big BOOT coming her way!
  3. Lakisha Jones -Dedicating to Grandmother, Ruth -"Midnight Train to Georgia" Okay, I was able to tolerate Lakisha a bit more this week. She was a little more toned down and I could appreciate the voice and the skills. But how about the Lakisha Fanclub in the background acting like background singers...finger pointing and all? Good times...

    Judges: Randy - That was Hot! Paula - YOU'RE Lakisha WOO WOO! Simon - loves the singer, hates the outfit and wants her to "Act like a star" great...he's egging on the Diva'tude! That is the thing I hate the MOST!
  4. Melinda Doolittle - Dedicating to her 2 friends (Gayles) - "My Funny Valentine" There is no doubt that she has a fantastic voice, sense of timing, and just the skills. Even with a boring song that even Jon Stevens couldn't make exciting...she somehow did (was joking about the Jon Stevens thing! He made even the easiest songs to sing unbearable!)

    Judges: 3 Thumbs up! Simon likes how she doesn't realize how good she is, which is a breathe of fresh air to the egos with no talent out there today.

    Me: Top 12 Lock, no doubt.
  5. Antonella Barba - Dedicating to brother - "Because You Loved Me" Celine's a tough act to pull off and I just don't think she was up to the challenge. Stage Presence was bad, and while she hit the notes, they didn't sound very lovely! It just doesn't match up to the other contestants in this competition.

    Judges: Randy and Simon came down hard on her. Paula said it was better than last week.

    Antonella: Simon was wrong about Jennifer Hudson. Simon: We put Jennifer Hudson through...america voted her out.

    Me: Okay, everyone has probably heard about the infamous racy pitcures by now. Well, they kicked out Frenchie Davis in season 2 for similar issues. I think Idol is planning to let Antonella work her own way out of the competition. While the performance wasn't great, it seemed like the judges were told to be overly critical to Antonella to speed up her exit. Or at least to EXPLAIN why she'd be getting the boot. I am a firm believer that Idol will say America voted off a contestant even if they get higher votes! It's all about the integrity of the show! But with this performance plus Antonella's Jennifer Hudson comments, no one will question if she leaves the show Thursday night. (I love conspiracy theories, don't you?)
  6. Jordin Sparks - Dedicating to younger brother - "My Reflection" - Jordin takes on Miss Aguilera. How did she do? For the most part...pretty decent. Some rough notes here and there, but she just has that Idol Appeal to her and I'm just surprised that I like this girl considering her young age of 17! Crying during the performance helps a bit to win votes too!

    Judges: Mostly 3 thumbs up. Simon said it wasn't her best but she is just likable. Paula finally used the word INFECTIOUS this season. Should I start a tally?
  7. Stephanie Edwards - Dedicating to Mom and Dad - "Dangerously in Love" Beyonce - I did say she had a Beyonce sound to her voice last week. And now, we know why. she wants to be her! Seemed like she was a little behind the music. There is no debating she has a good voice, but I kinda lost her in the middle of the performance and never found myself interested again. While she may make the top 12, she is being out-performed by some heavier talent in this competition. She's going to have to fight to get in there.

    Judges: Randy started off saying it was great but then told her not to copy Beyonce. Paula and Simon raved.

    Me: Apparently, we were watching a different show! But I did agree with Randy a bit. She's safe this week though.
  8. Leslie Hunt - Dedicating to Grandfather - "I gig! I'm so cool!" "Feelin Good" - Okay, here is the exact reason why A.J. Tabaldo had no place singing this song! It's a woman's song!! Not to say that Leslie was any good. Cause I really don't think she was. And the scatting? Seriously? Boring....snoring. And is anyone else scared by her crazy eyes? Remember that runaway bride from a few years ago? Remember those crazy eyes?

    Judges: So-So Comments. Paula liked. Loved Simon saying how the scatting sounds like Paula's critiques. Paula's response? I like Ice Cream!

    Me: I agree with Simon. And Paula, I like Ice Cream too but I try to limit by sugar intake!
  9. Haley Scarnato -Dedicating to fiance' - "Queen of the Night" Well you can't deny she has a marketable appearance! She definitely can't match up to her competition in the voice department. But with a good song choice, she might be able to hold her own. Unfortunately, I didn't like the song.

    Judges: Randy - more background parts than lead in that song. Paula - Better than last week. Simon - A for Effort, but vulnerable tonight. When singing Whitney, you will be compared.
  10. Sabrina Sloan - Dedicating to Grandmother - "He Fills Me Up" Well, she did Whitney too, but seemed to pull it off better than Haley. Then again, her voice is in a different league than Haley's. She pretty much locked her top 12 spot last week. This performance, while not as good as last week, keeps her in the running.

    Judges: 3 Thumbs up. Simon mentions Whitney thing again and prefers last week.

The Breakdown

Top 12 Locks: Lakisha Jones, Melinda Doolittle, Jordin Sparks, Sabrina Sloan
Should be Safe: Gina Glocksen
Judges Thought was good but I disagree: Stephanie Edwards
Worst Performances: Alaina Alexander, Antonella Barba, Haley Scarnato, Leslie Hunt

The Picks

Elimination Picks: Antonella Barba, Alaina Alexander Wildcard: Leslie Hunt

Only thing going against the Barba pick was that she was high on the dialidol.com list last week. So, if it actually is based on votes, then she might be safe. But I really think the producers don't want this issue following the show around all season. If she's not out this week, she'll be gone next week.

Okay that's it for tonight! Share your thoughts! See you tomorrow for the results!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

How come it is ok for Stephenie to copy moves from Beyonce but Blake wasn't original? I usually agree with Simon.
I was a little bored this week...Still like Blake and Chris R.!!
Some of the girls do stand out and are great singers...however, I don't think I would like anything that they would put out on an album...like Rueban and Fantasia and the God awful Taylor Hicks.

Mike V. said...

I agree that they can be a little hypocritical with their critiques. It's all based on who they like I guess.

I would go a step further than you though and say I am not interested in ANY of these contestants enough to buy an album from them. Not yet. And I only had that urge TWICE. Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.

They really lucked out with those 2. I haven't seen anything else on the show that really compares to their package deal of appeal and talent.

Unknown said...

I totally agree about the albums. There was another time when Simon contradicted himself last night...oh yeah...his critiques of Lakeisha and Melinda. He loves Melinda because she is so humble and down to earth and likable...but Lakeisha needs to be more of a diva...wtf? Make up your mind you crazy Brit!!!