The Top 13 Perform - American Idol 2012

Welcome back to another round of American Idol.  This week, the female contestants sang Whitney Houston songs and the males sang Stevie Wonder songs.  They were mentored by Jimmy Iovine and Mary J. Blige. 

The bottom male and the bottom female contestant, according to America's votes, were revealed, and then the judges made the final decision on who was to go home.  But we'll get to that in a few minutes.

First up was Joshua Ledet, who sang I Wish.  He dropped the gospel-ish tone for this song, which was refreshing.  He did a really great job and set the bar high for the other contestants.

Elise Testone was going to sing Greatest Love of All, but Mary J. and Jimmy nixed that and told her to sing I'm Your Baby Tonight, instead.  When she started out, she did NOT have her usual spunk and confidence. It was kind of like someone had made her eat raw liver right before she stepped onstage.  She really picked it up and started performing about halfway through the song, but the judges were not impressed.  I personally thought the judges were a little harsh; at least she stayed in tune.

Next was Knocks Me Off of My Feet, by 6'8" contestant Jermaine Jones.  He really loosened up this week and started performing like a pro.  He put a nice groove to the music, and really got his big sexy on with this song.  He totally made me smile!

Erika Van Pelt was worrying me a little, because Whitney songs do not really seem to suit her voice.  But I guess she proved me wrong, because she was actually superb singing I Believe in You and Me.  There was a great buildup to the chorus, and then she pulled it back at the end for a little touch of softness.  The ending was a nice changeup from her usual power vocals.

Next up was Colton Dixon, who the judges insist on calling "a rocker."  Seriously?  AC/DC is rock. This dude is way too soft to be a real rocker.  He sang Lately, and the last note was really beautiful.  Other than that, I was pretty bored with Colton.

My girl, Shannon Magrane, looked awesome in a short black jacket and sparkly black fitted pants while singing I Have Nothing.  However, she missed one of her biggest notes, which I haven't heard her do before.  I guess it's pretty intimidating to sing Whitney Houston, and her nerves got the better of her.  The rest of the song was okay, but she just never seemed to relax.

Deandre, on the other hand, still looked like one half of Milli Vanilli (go look it up, youngsters!).  He sang Master Blaster with a reggae beat, and showed great timing and rhythm.  He is great onstage for his young age, and this rendition really allowed him to show off his swag.  And his hair.  His gorgeous, gorgeous hair...not that I'm jealous or anything.

Skylar Lane was next, and I'm generally not a huge fan of hers, but this girl brought it with Where Do Broken Hearts Go.  She made a Whitney song country, and it actually sounded like the song was written like that.  I still think the stylists need to get ahold of that tacky ass Loretta Lynn hairdo of hers, though. 

Heejun Han, the funny man of the Top 13, sang All in Love is Fair.  He started out kinda soft and smokey, and honestly, it was a little slow to develop for me.  But by the middle and the end, Heejun was bringing it on home! 

Hollie was next with All the Man That I Need, one of WH's signature blow-your-eyeballs-out classics.  Could cute little Hollie measure up?  *Standing ovation*  Really.  I'm standing here clapping for this chica....which is making it really hard to type.  Needless to say, she was fab!

I'm not really sure why Jeremy Rosado was dressed like Mr. Rogers on his way to the bowling alley.  I was really a bit confused, and slightly disturbed, by his attire.  He sang Ribbon in the Sky, and while it made me want to skip through a grassy meadow, it was not very exciting.  He should join a boy band as the not-so-sexy-but-lovable one in the group.

Jessica Sanchez took the biggest risk of the night by singing I Will Always Love You.  Holy Hell, that takes some guts!  This girl is the real deal, though.  She had the audience (and me) totally mesmerized from the very first note.  She took that song and kicked it right in the ass.  Randy deemed her "one of the best talents in the country," and I must agree, Dawg!

Phillip Phillips rounded out the night with the classic Stevie Wonder tune, Superstitious.  He did a kind of amped up rock verson of the song that really showed a lot of intensity.  He was my favorite male performance of the night.








Ok, they named the bottom 3 guys:  Joshua, Jeremy, and Jermaine.  I guess people don't like contestants with names that start with J.  Of these three guys, Jeremy Rosado was the lowest vote-getter.

The bottom 3 girls were Erika, Elise (something against E's?), and Shannon.  Elise Testone was at the bottom of the pile for the ladies.

When it came down to Elise vs. Jeremy, the judges chose to keep Elise and send Jeremy home.  I think this probably pissed JLo off because she seemed to have some kind of weird crush on Jeremy.  Oh well, she'll get over it by the next episode.

I'll see you fine folks back here then!

American Idol 2012 - Live Semifinalist Round - The Men Perform

iOk, I know I've been missing in action, but I actually have a good excuse:  My darling daughter dropped my laptop (which contained all of my blog info) and broke it.  It is now in the repair shop, and I hope to have it back soon.

So, we are skipping the rest of the auditions and going straight to the first week of the live shows.  On Tuesday evening, the Top 12 men performed.  Actually, there were 13, because the judges brought one male contestant back, but we will get to that later.

First up was wacky dude, Reed Grimm, who sang the popular song "Moves Like Jagger."  He sang a jazzy version of it, which totally made this modern song sound rather old-fashioned.  Strangely enough, I kinda dug it, man.

Adam Brock was next, and sang "Think."  Though it was an Aretha Franklin song, he sang it with masculinity and incredible soul.

Deandre Brackensick, aka Milli (or was it Vanilli?) sang "Reasons" by Earth, Wind & Fire.  His falsetto, hip swaying, and gorgeous hair will turn this young guy into a lady-killer.  And a superstar! 

Much ado has been made about Colton Dixon.  First of all, his Vanilla Ice 'do gets on my last nerve.  Then he said that everyone was used to seeing him at the piano, but tonight he was going to shock people.  Ready for the shocker?  He started out at the piano, and then he STOOD UP!  OMG!  Shocking stuff right there.  The singing (he sang "Decode) was decent, and the judges kept saying that he's a "relevant artist."  I say, "Meh."

Next up was Jeremy Rosado singing, "Gravity."  He has such a silky voice, but showed very little power.  He did a nice job, though.

Aaron Marcellus sang "Never Can Say Goodbye" by the Jackson 5.  The judges loved him, but he didn't really blow my britches off.  I think he would fit it well with an R&B group like Boys 2 Men.  But solo R&B artists are a dime a dozen, and he doesn't really stand out amongst the big dogs.

Chase Likens is a country performer who sang "Storm Warning."  He didn't show a lot of range with this song, but with his unique look, he's very appealing as a performer.

The next singer was Creighton Fraker.  This dude is so dorky!  He sang "True Colors," and managed to sound even more girly than Cyndi Lauper.  He reminds me of my goofy uncle when he tries to sing Patti Labelle at karaoke night.  I probably should mention that I think "True Colors" is one of the most boring and over-rated songs of all time.  It makes me want to hit myself in the head with a hammer everytime I hear it.  Sorry, Creighton, but I'm not a fan.

Now, this next guy....I'm a big fan!  Phillip Phillips sang "In the Air," but did it with a smokey, bluesy vibe.  I liked the chorus much better than the verse because he stayed truer to the melody.  But I can't wait to hear more from this fellow.  He's a true original!

Eben Franckewitz sang "Set Fire to the Rain."  His rendition was nowhere near as good as Adele's.  He didn't hit all his notes, but good try, kiddo.  You did show great confidence.  Get rid of the Justin Beiber hairdo and that snazzy blazer, and you might be a bit more appealing.

Next was Heejun Han, who cracks me up everytime he is interviewed.  He sang "Angels," and I felt like he was holding back a bit at first.  However, when he let loose, it was beautiful.  I agree with the judges that his vocal range wasn't fully expressed with this song.  Step it up, Heejun!  I want you around longer, because you make me smile!

The last of the original Top 12 was Joshua Ledet, who sang, "You Pulled Me Through."  Josh took us to church, and then brought us back home and fed us Sunday dinner.  It was a bit gospel-ly for American Idol, but there's no denying that the boy sang the shit out of that song!








And lastly, the guy that the judges brought back was:

Jermaine Jones!  Awwww, I love this big ole fella!  He sang "Dance With My Father."  Ahhhhh, not many people can jam some Luther, but Jermaine did it with style.  I coulda done without the ginormous purple plaid bow tie, though.





I'm gonna do a separate post for the ladies, so I will go ahead and give you the results for the men now.  The top 5 guys were:

But wait!  It's not over yet!  Each judge gets 1 wild card choice, so they asked the following guys to sing again:  Jeremy Rosado, Deandre Brackensick, and Reed Grimm.  Jennifer chose Jeremy, and Steven chose Deandre. 

You'll have to wait for the results from the ladies to see who Randy picked.

American Idol 2012 - Savannah Auditions, Day 2

American Idol was back in Savannah for Day 2 of the Georgia auditions.

Mawuena Kodjo, age 25 from West Africa was the first contestant of the day. It’s never a good sign when every word you say has to have subtitles. Mawuena tried to sing Rascal Flatts, and it made me cry. Not in a good way. All three judges said no. Shocker. He said he thought the judges were wrong (another shocker!), so Randy told him to go find some people who actually thought he was good. He found 4 little girls and an old country dude. Steven told the kids to get mommy to wash the wax out of their ears, and then they sent Mawuena home…again.  Prediction: He will have a long and happy life as a Slurpee machine repairman.

Ashlee Altise, age 28 from N.C. was lots of fun and had an undeniable spunkiness. I liked her singing and I totally wanna hang out with her. She charmed the judges with her talent and personality and got through to the next round.  Prediction: I will have to hear more, but so far I’m not predicting her for top 12.

W.T. Thompson, age 25 from VA worked for a federal prison, before he quit this perfectly good job with benefits to audition for Idol. And he has a baby on the way. He said he had to make a decision between a job and a dream, and he chose the dream. Yeah, dude…you do that dream shit BEFORE you start a family, because once you’re responsible for a child, that child should be your dream. His singing was good, but not great. Certainly not worth throwing away your job that will provide food, shelter, and insurance for your wife and child.  Prediction: Unless he gets a lot of work on his voice, I don’t think he’s got a chance at making the live show. If your wife is pregnant and you’re gonna quit your job on a lark, you’d better be damned amazing, and this guy isn’t. Sorry I’m lecturing, but it just pisses me off.

Then there were a bunch of clips of Steven Tyler kissing every female in sight, including some grandmas. He’s like the Richard Dawson of modern times.

Erica Nowak age 28 from NY, said Steven Tyler is her future ex-husband. He hugged her and the she grabbed his ass. Way to keep it trashy, Erica! Then she hugged Randy and grabbed his ass too. Poor JLo didn't get her bionic booty grabbed.  Erica didn’t sing worth a crap and didn’t get through. Thank goodness. Prediction: She will soon become the next manager of the Happy Harbor trailer park in Cooterville, AR.

Brittany Kerr, age 24 from NC wins the award for most gorgeous contestant! Very good voice, not the best ever, but combined with her looks, I would say she’s the most marketable so far in Savannah. Does anyone else think this chica looks a lot like Carrie Underwood? I like her because she looked sexy even without dressing provocatively (aka, like a $2 hooker), and that‘s something young girls should take note of today. I would love to see her make the top 12 because I think she would be stunning on stage, and it would be interesting to see what style choices she made as far as clothes, shoes, and hair.   Prediction: I don’t think her voice is quite strong enough yet. *Sad face*

Phillip Phillips, age 20 from GA was the last one of the day, though the judges were all of sudden wearing their clothes from day one. Hmmmmm. Phillip sang Superstitious with more soul than Stevie Wonder. And that’s hard to do. Randy wanted him to play his guitar, so he did an acoustic version of Thriller. Boy has got the voice and the guitar skills. He’s a special one.  And then we got the 1^st “you’re an artist” from Randy and Jennifer.
Prediction: I see this guy in the top 12, and making it very far.

42 total golden tickets from Savannah with some very promising prospects.