IdolPhenomena

Tonight was a very interesting theme, the Rolling Stones. I am not sure how these top 12 contestants are going to do with something like this rock band so as I start watching my fingers are crossed. Michael Lynche is the first to take the stage tonight singing Miss You. Again having a neo soul vibe it was definitely the right way to kick off the night. Randy felt he slayed it. Ellen said he was amazing Kara expressed it’s about being hot on stage. And Simon felt he sang well but the dancing was corny. Up second was Didi Benami. I personally have nothing to say about this performance. I just don’t know what to think. I did find it humorous when @thepopmatrix tweeted that Didi Benami sounds like something you’d order at a sushi place. I totally ReTweeted that-LOL. Randy felt she was on fire. Kara said she was taking steps in the right direction and Simon felt it was a cool song choice. Next Casey James chose to perform It’s All over Now. His performance tonight seemed so natural. Randy loved it and Ellen said it was fantastic. Kara exclaimed that he was a rock star best performance yet. And typical of Simon he was unimpressed. Lacey Brown best dressed of the night took on Ruby Tuesday. I liked how the strings introduced her song. She is definitely growing vocally. I can’t help but feel like she is holding back. She needs to let it all out. She has an incredible presence on stage and unique voice. Randy said she was the most interesting of the night. Ellen felt her performance was sleepy. Kara rated it 50/50 and Simon said she needs to let go and to stop over thinking. Almost at the halfway point next was Andrew Garcia with Gimme Shelter. As we move from a small stage to something large I felt like he was uncomfortable performing, or possibly completely out of his element. I still like his vocal talent but I am curious to see how far he makes it. Randy said his performance was pitchy unlike Ellen who felt it was his best yet. Kara wants to see more intensity and connection in his performances while Simon felt that Andrew may have done a lot better in rehearsal. CT represent with Katie Stevens. I still think that it’s exciting to have another contestant from CT on this stage; the first being Julia DeMato. Tonight Katie decided to go with Wild Horses. I can’t get over the fact about how mature her voice sounds for such a young age. Randy said it was a strong performance and Kara felt it was better than last weeks. Simon agreed and said she gave it 100% with a well done added to the end of it. Next we are invited to meet Tim Urban’s family- I can’t help but be slightly scared. Lots of siblings but Siobhan has way more. Tim chose Under my Thumb. I am going to be bold and say that this is his best performance yet. He made the song his own and changed it up with a reggae vibe. It surely makes me not want to hate him as much. Randy on the other hand said his performance was bizarre and weird. Ellen felt like she was at a resort sip’n pina coladas. Kara felt he made the song his own and Simon said it didn’t work. Dare I say we will see him a few more weeks? Up next was the amazing Siobhan Magnus with Paint it Black. The best performance of the night; she made it seem like she was doing this for years. She made tonight dramatic and definitely stood out. It was absolutely incredible and I loved the ending how it was eerie and the high note wow. Randy said it was hot. Ellen said she stands out. Kara felt it was the best interpretation of the night. Simon agreed saying it was the stand out performance of the night. Up next is one of my favorites Lee DeWyze singing Beast of Burden. I like the laid back vibe he gives off. His performance sort of draws you in like DMB or Jack Johnson. It has melancholyness to it but for me it works. Randy felt it was a singer songwriter performance. Ellen expected more. Kara acknowledges his tremendous growth and Simon feels that it was a safe choice. Paige Miles takes the stage with Honky Tonk Woman. I feel she is still confused as to who she is as an artist however she has definitely stepped up her game. She may not be the first to go home like I was anticipating. Randy felt she did alright. Ellen likes her stage presence and Kara feels that the Paige they fell in love with in Hollywood is back. Simon felt she did great but she is in fact better than the song. Aaron Kelly takes the stage singing Angie and surprises us all. Each week he has been growing and I am personally impressed he is definitely in this contest to win it. Randy said he was born to sing. Ellen felt it was a great song choice another stand out performance second to Siobhan’s. Kara felt he was really great and Simon agrees by saying it was one of his strongest performances. Aaron may be the guy to watch in this competition. I am definitely curious to see how the public votes. Last performance is the Crystal Bowersox with You Can’t Always Get What You Want. Every time she gets on stage she makes it seem effortless. She is such a natural I feel like she doesn’t even realize how good she is. She just gets on stage and does her thing. Randy said it wasn’t his favorite but he still loves her. Ellen felt we got a glimpse of her personality. Kara felt that she is easy to watch. So now with the recap my top 6 of the night are in no special order Siobhan, Lee, Aaron, Crystal, Mike and Katie. I feel this week Lacey and Andrew are in danger of going home but America always has a way of surprising us.

So we started off tonight with a twist. After expecting to have the girls take the stage once again we actually got to see the Top 10 Guys perform tonight. It was revealed that the lineup change was due to Crystal Bowersox being rushed to the hospital earlier that day. Hopefully everything is okay and I know her fans everywhere are praying she’s okay to take the stage this Wednesday night.

Tonight each of the contestants share a little about them and first up tonight is Big Mike (Michael Lynche). Tonight we find out that he went to a performing arts high school but still made time for football. We also find out that he can bench about 3-4 Ryan Seacrest’s depending if Ryan’s wearing a suit or not-LOL. Tonight he has chosen to sing James Brown’s It’s a Man’s World. This performance is 10X better than last week. It definitely showcased his vocal ability he will definitely be sailing through to next week. Randy stood up after this performance and was excited that this season is finally really getting started. Ellen has loved every song he has chosen and believes he will be the one to beat tonight. And both Kara and Simon believe that he has gone from singer to artist tonight.

The second performance of the night was John Park with John Mayer’s Gravity. This song is definitely more relevant than the song he chose last week. As for the guys performances tonight I am definitely impressed with two down and eight more to go. J. However, the judges definitely saw it differently. Randy felt that it was not as good as the original. Kara believed it was safe and wants to see him take some risks and Simon thinks that Purple Haze will have their singer. For those of you who don’t know, Purple Haze is an a capella group John is in back home. In contrast Ellen feels that it was the right song choice.

Casey James who wowed us last week tackled Gavin Degraw’s I Don’t Wanna Be. Performed by idols such as Bo Bice and Chris Richardson he had big shoes to fill. In terms of a performance it was amazing what he did on the guitar. However in reality this being a singing competition the vocal wasn’t all there. Randy felt that this is the type of musical genre he could see Casey recording. Ellen felt that “everything on paper” was there. However Kara and Simon thought he took two steps back and that this was another one of those performances where someone who was trying to be a rock star.

Tonight Alex Lambert choosing to perform John Legend’s Everybody Knows. As we learn something about him he shares with us that he has made up his own language that helps him write music. I am sad to admit that I am an Alex Lambert fan, as to why I have no idea. Tonight he was indeed better than last week but he does have a lot of work ahead of him. Randy shares my view as tonight being improvement to last week. Kara feels he has an incredible recording voice that he doesn’t know what to do with and Simon feels he was a million times better than last week. Ellen references the banana again when she says it’s almost as if someone has taken the unripe banana and placed it in a paper bag.

Todrick Hall takes the stage performing Tina Turner’s What’s Love Got To Do With It. He tells us that he wasn’t going to change the song up too much and what does he do? I feel like he lied to us tonight about his performance. I feel just as ripped off as those kids he was supposed to be doing some program for. I can’t help but think that he still a dancer trying to sing. Randy wants him to sing a nice song. Ellen shares his sentiment with agreeing that it wasn’t the right song. Kara wants to know what happened to Todrick and Simon wants him to move but not sing. I as well want to know what happened to that unique talent that walked into his audition with a great voice and original tune. He needs to recapture that. I am crossing my fingers that he makes it to next week because I feel he will definitely bring it.

Jermaine was up next rockin’ the onesie??? He chose Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. A great song in its own right however the only thing I liked about Jermaine’s performance is his vocal acrobatics. Overall he definitely did not have it tonight. Kara feels just one trick would mean enough. Simon doesn’t want him to water down the songs and Ellen feels he has a great sense of style. Do I sense going in his future???

Up next was Andrew Garcia who notably gave one of the best Hollywood performances with his acoustic performance of Paula Abdul’s Straight Up. However since then he hasn’t been able to recapture the magic. Tonight he chose to perform Jim Morrison’s You Give Me Something. I liked the fact he was taking a risk by not accompanying himself with his guitar, however I was disappointed again. I expect so much more from him. On a brighter note I felt that while he was singing that part, “You wanna stay with me until the morning,” every girl in America has like heck yeah I do-LOL. J Andrew definitely deserves to stay and I hope America gives him that chance. Randy didn’t get the performance while Kara see’s potential. And like Me Ellen misses the guy that performed Straight Up.

Tonight Aaron Kelly instead of choosing something current tackles something from the past with the Temptations My Girl. All I can say is hmmmm… and what did they say about Justin Bieber. Randy felt that it was definitely better than last week and Ellen felt he was likeable. Aaron will definitely be around for a while.

Up next is Tim Urban who they felt they made the right decision last week in Hollywood to cut based on his performance of Apologize. I just feel that this competition isn’t the right thing for him and I can’t help but be disappointed. I am also curious as to how the guys would be if Chris Golightly were there. Every time I see Tim I think horrible much?

Lee closed out the night with another incredible performance. Taking on Hinders Lips of an Angel. He definitely was passionate tonight and I liked the risk he took by not using his guitar. You could tell he was kind of nervous though. Randy like the performance despite the pitch problems and Ellen felt it was great. Kara saw it as a big improvement from last week. Surprisingly Simon believes that vocally Lee is the one to beat. He just needs to believe in himself. From day one I have been a Lee Dewyze fan, he is totally in my top 5. J

As to which guys I foresee going home this week I feel we are going to say goodbye to Tim Urban and Jermaine Sellers. I can’t for Wednesday night to find out how much growth the girls have made in a week.