IdolPhenomena

Okay finally we’ve had a chance to see all Top 24 contestants perform. And I don’t know if you were as disappointed as I am but I expected so much more. The vocals overall are just there people are pitchy and constantly picking the wrong song. Since I wasn’t able to watch the show as it aired to the East Coast tonight I had to ignore all the tweeters that I normally chat with during the performances tonight so I could give my honest opinion about tonight. However, I feel like I would agree with many of them.

Tonight started off with 24 yr old Todrick Hall from Arlington, TX. His initial audition was amazing and then in Hollywood week he has a rocky group round. However, tonight he sang Kelly Clarkson’s Since You Been Gone. Ellen said the chorus was rough and that he wasn’t the best singer but a good performer. Randy followed that up with expressing how he didn’t even know what song he was singing. He then advised Todrick not to completely obliterate the songs he chooses. Kara assured him he was a strong singer and that he did not to change a song as much as he did. Simon felt he was a dancer trying to sing who murdered the original song and was on the verge of being stupid. In my opening Todrick’s performance was a bit catchy and original. I personally was just unsure how to feel about it. It just made see like I was going to be in for a long night. Yay for being creative here, right Ryan?

Up next was 16 yr old Aaron Kelly from Sonestown, PA. He belief that his most defining moment is when he forgot the word Hollywood Week while singing Angel. His experience on idol so far seems to be surreal and dream like. His rendition of Here Comes Goodbye by The Rascal Flatts was very good and this time he remembered all his lyrics. He definitely hit some great high notes. Overall Simon felt it was a good performance however Randy felt that it had pitchy moments and that he needs to believe in himself. Ellen expressed the same feelings and said she loved how humble he is. Aaron is definitely another young contestant with an amazing voice and great potential.

Jermaine Sellers was the third performer of the night. This church singer from Joliet, IL through the band under the bus during Hollywood Week for not playing the music the way they had planned. Most noted for his diva move surrounding that incident he definitely was one of the worst performances of the night. Ellen loved his look and expressed that he pushed the song too much. Randy again expressed the need to sing the Melody especially for an Oleta Adams song Get Here. Kara believed that Jermaine attempted to show everyone what he could do by showcasing his range. Is this the judge’s panel way of telling the contestant politely that they suck??? This performance totally my ears cringe and think that someone somewhere was killing a cat. I was also under the impression that what he was singing was nowhere near the key of where the band was playing.

Up next was Tim Urban who replaced Chris GoLightly in the Top 24. First off I can’t believe that he didn’t tell his family that he going to Hollywood after being cut. So he sang and awkward rendition of One Republic’s Apologize. Throughout the whole performance I wasn’t sure if he was singing in tune. It appeared almost as if he were singing in a different key than the band was playing in. My prediction is that he won’t make it past this Thursday night. Simon starts off by saying that they were right to have made their decision to initially have cut him. –OUCH! Kara than says that it’s almost as if the music it ate him up that his vocal was buried under the instrumentation. This is quickly followed with another wrong song dude from Randy. And Ellen gets slightly critical and says that he wasn’t able to hit the high notes but on the plus side you are adorable. This is followed by Ryan proceeding to ask Tim why he chose this song and the answer is simply because it was fun to perform. That’s a whole good two or three minutes of my life I won’t ever get back I definitely did not have fun.

Up next was Joe Munoz. I have never been sure how to feel about this contestant simply because he has not had a lot of air time. However this 20 yr old student from Huntington Park, CA really surprised me. Compared to most of the performances before him this one was actually half way decent. Ellen is pleased with his performance and proceeds to say that he belongs there in the top 24. Kara, like myself agrees that Joe is the best singer so far that we’ve seen all night. Randy agrees and then Simon has to oh so bold to say that his song choice was okay that it was safe and forgettable. Will no one please him tonight?

Tyler Grady hits the stage next. I am still amused by the what planet are you from remark Kara says in the montage? He definitely can sing and American Women in my opinion was safe for him. Simon said that Tyler’s performance would be remembered because it reminded him of some pretending to be a rock star. Also this cliché performance screamed Jim Morrison all up in your room as Kara said. Also Ellen states that his performance lacks charisma and Randy wants to see something with more substance. Ryan’s words of wisdom for Tyler are to take a trip to the mall to get rid of the 70s vibe.

Next was Lee DeWyze who has been one of my favorites throughout the competition. This 23 yr old Chicago, IL native chose to sing Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol. This is definitely not something I would have chosen for his voice type by it was still good. I love the tone to his voice. Ellen seemed to think he chose a good song and agrees that he has a good tone to his voice. Like Ellen Randy also is a fan of Lee’s voice. Kara said that the songs range limited him to what he could do vocally even though he did attempt to make parts of the song his own they became unrecognizable. But would like to thank Simone for dubbing this the best performance of the night cause I could not agree more about how authentic Lee sounds vocally. So Ryan proceeds to ask Lee how he feels performing in front of millions of people and his answer is that he wants to have this same exact feeling the rest of his life.

John Park is up next singing God Bless the Child definitely wrong song to chose. I was just not impressed. This performance was given a whole lot of you haven’t the voice to sing this, old and all out of sort, and the classic wish you would have chosen another song. He tells the viewers that he chose this song because of his parents and money –awkward much???

Michael Lynche is up next performing This Love by Maroon 5. At one point in his performance it almost appeared as if he were eating the mic, I’m just sayin. Why must tonight’s contestants continue to deviate from the melody? All of these songs were made popular because of their melodies. Ellen starts off by saying that his performance was infectious and that it displayed his personality. But the general consensus is that his performance was safe and that his personality is overpowering his vocals. And oh yeah this just happens to be a singing competition and not a personality competition-LOL. My favorite judge’s comment of the night is when Simon compares his performance to the supporting performance for a main act.

I can’t believe there are three more performances to critique it feels like this episode is incredibly long and drawn out. So this next performer surprises me. Alex Lambert performs What a Wonderful World by Jim Morrison. He definitely has a decent voice. I’m not a fan of bobbing around on stage though. I definitely agree with Simon when he says that the performance made him feel uncomfortable because it would appear as if Alex himself was uncomfortable. Kara for some reason just wants to give out hugs here- definitely getting late-LOL. She then says he has a good tone to his voice and great potential. Randy then follows with his critique and expresses that Alex needs to do it with conviction. Ellen just loves how he is rock ‘n the mullet J. Ryan then asks Alex how many times has he performed in front of people and his answer is like three at a coffee shop and that performing on stage tonight was absolutely terrifying. Oh don’t worry Alex all you need to do is ripe ‘n up. – Can’t forget the BANANNA reference right Ellen?

Casey James does an absolutely flawless performance of Heaven which for some reason has Kara all flustered-LOL. Kara expressed how Casey is both eye and ear candy and how she doesn’t recognize him with his shirt on. This followed with Ellen stating that she could feel Kara undressing him with her eyes. Randy then proceeds with saying that he likes Casey but not the same way Kara does. Simon gives out his second positive critique of the night by saying Casey absolutely chose the right song. The performance was honest and sincere. Simon I couldn’t agree more.

The last performance of the night was the most anticipated in my mind. Andrew Garcia from Moreno Valley, CA took the stage tonight with his own acoustic rendition of fall out Boy’s Sugar We’re Going Down. I’m not quite sure how to feel about this performance. I kind of felt slightly let down because of all the hype surrounding Andrew as an artist. The arrangement itself was definitely unique. Simon expressed similar feelings by saying that he was disappointed and that this performance was not original enough. Kara too felt the acoustic version of the song was strange. And Randy and Ellen distinctly remember him from Hollywood because of his version of Straight Up. Which is definitely still fresh in a lot of his fans minds which is what’s going to keep him here in the competition.

Overall tonight’s performances were not as disappointing as the previous nights. And yet I still can’t wait to find out who leaves. My prediction for which males we are going to see leave tonight are Tim Urban and possibly Jermaine Sellers for yelling at us through the TV or John Park for his forgettable performance. I anticipate the results show. Who knows the results may be shocking.

Photo Credit: AmericanIdol.com