AI 8 3-3-09 Semi-Final Round 3 or did I really Step Into a NEW AGE growth Class

Our final group of 12 is performing for their lives. It is now or never for some of them. Ryan explains they have let their families behind and put their lives on hold, THIS IS AMERICAN IDOL!

Last night’s episode was surreal in the extreme but we can get to my thoughts on the atmosphere of the show later. We need to dish about the contestants.

The theme continues to be Billboards’ Top 100 or why contestants have such a hard time in selecting the right song. Perhaps it is because there were so many to choose from the list.

I did have to laugh out loud when Ryan and Simon were going at in relationship to song selection and Simon indicated there should be a Simon Cowell week where he gets to choose each contestants song to perform. My gut tells me it would be a good week; I think he has great instincts for choosing the right song.

Von Smith

Von was looking good and I loved he coordinated his shoes with his shirt because it shows style. Von goes with “You’re All I Need to Get By” and he surprised me. I could tell he had a great voice but this was a truly great performance. It was the best lead off performance of any group. Von had control of his vocals and he hit virtually every note. Von was having fun on stage and seemed very comfortable; he did really look like a seasoned performer. My only issue were his cheesy facial expressions, come on Von they were not needed. I really loved the interesting arrangement and interpretation of the song. Von deserves to be in the top 12 based on talent alone but I am afraid he was first and America will forget about him which is really too bad.

Randy – great way to start the show, very hot performance, better then we have seen you, you are finding yourself

Kara – you are coming into your own, you seemed very comfortable up there, you really listened to our advice and went for it

Paula – it is hard to go first but this was a memorable first performance, you know when to pull back and when to push forward, you are very seasoned, I loved it

Simon – I am not sure how you will take this but you remind me of Clay Aiken, your dress sense, your voice and performance. You sang very well and I believe this Clay Aiken likeness will serve you well.

Taylor Vaifanua

Taylor looked great however; her outfit was ridiculous and very distracting. I cannot believe her mother would let her out on stage in that get up. The beginning of the song was a horrible train wreck but she did rally for the money note. This was just okay for me; it was rather boring especially at the beginning. The backup singers were over powering her as well in some spots.

Kara – you obvious have a voice, you hit the notes and aside from a few issues (excuse me), you have talent, I wanted to see more of your personality and who you are as a person, what is it like to go shopping with you, I had no insight, you left me cold. (More about this later but who frigging cares who they are as a person if they have the vocal chops to be the next American Idol).

Paula – you have a beautiful gift, I was confused because you sang the same song you did in Hollywood, you needed to take a chance

Simon – I don’t get the shopping comment and then asks Taylor what kind of cereal do you like? My problem is you are not memorable, you are very generic, bland, you struggled tonight.

Randy – you have a great voice but you did not share anything that is special about you, it was boring

Alex Wagner-Trugman

Poor Alex and his I do not want to be known as the dork so I am going to the gym to bulk up, give me a break. To borrow from the judges, be who you are! It was also strange he offered to be a boyfriend for a night for anyone in a long-distance relationship – what is that about? I think Alex knew he had a slim chance so he just wanted to stand out in a crowd, which he did, but not in a good way. Alex chooses “I Guess That’s Why They call it the Blues.” I love this song but Alex did not do it justice. This was a totally weird performance and his dancing was crazy. The very beginning of the song you could hear his voice and it was very nice but then he did that strange key change and started growling really just shouting the rest of the song. He also threw in some unnecessary runs, scary! Nothing works in this performance at all.

Paula – you are definitely a showman, you gave us our moneys worth, (then Simon and Paula got into some stupid discussion – shut up already) you were entertaining, fun, I am glad you got to channel your inner rock star.

Simon – you were fun to watch but not to listen to, you were growling, you are a hamster trying to be a tiger, it didn’t work and when the audience booed him Simon bit back with “May I remind you that on this show we do not allow democracy!”. I laughed out loud with that retort as well.

Randy – it was crazy, you were screaming it instead of singing it

Kara – you do you, you are a fun guy, “you can’t pay for that kind of choreography” (naturally, because it sucked), if you get to come back you need to ditch the growl.

Arianna Afsar

Arianna is very cute so deal with it girl! I also liked her simple outfit. For some very strange and unknown reason Arianna chose an ABBA song, “The Winner Takes It All”. I totally adore ABBA, Meryl Streep nailed this number in “Mamma Mia” singing it with all her heart and soul, and it literally brings me to tears every time I hear it. Arianna is too young to understand and project the feelings of lost this is about. On top of it her vocals were f*^king horrible. Arianna was clearly nervous and her voice cracked and wavered at the beginning, she was constantly falling off the music and then trying to catch up, there were some really horrible notes, the worst was when she hit “cards”, I actually tensed up at the note. There was only one money note she was able to hit and it was good. This was just terrible.

Simon – the lyrics are ironic because it was absolutely terrible, it was too big for you, huge mistake, it was a dreary arrangement almost like a funeral, awful, worst performance by a mile.

Randy – it was not the right song, it wasn’t good

Kara – you were a ray of sunshine at your original audition, “Cute as a button” is a compliment, this was dark and depressing, it wasn’t you, you need to smile and to be young, you need to touch people, this was too scary

Paula – there were some bright moments to the song (are you nuts?) but it was too old-fashioned for you, there were some nice riffs (again are you crazy), but sometimes you just need to stick to the melody

Ju’Not Joyner

Ju’Not goes with “Hey There Delilah” and all I can say is it was boring. I hated this arrangement. It was so slow and dreary. I just did not like anything about the performance either. Ju’Not has a nice voice and he did get the one money note but I was not impressed.

Randy – cool, you have the R&B feel but you switched it up, it was a smart choice, I loved it (are you drinking from Paula’s cup?)

Kara – very smooth, fluid, you killed it, next time you need to really bust it out

Paula – you changed it up, the liberties you took paid off, nice vocal

Simon – it was better than I thought it would be, it was safe, you were nervous

Kristen McNamara

I almost fell out of my chair when she said she was a karaoke hostess. Oh my god I can hear the comments now. I was not even aware there was such a job. I must admit I really have not been impressed with Kristen. I totally hated her horrible outfit. I will give her credit she has confidence and was working the crowd but then again she has been on Star Search and Nashville Star. I was totally put off because she has the old “tapping” the mike habit – I freaking hate that! Kristen’s voice was okay but not memorable and she had quite a few pitch problems.

Kara – I like your hair, great singer, great tone, hit notes, I can see you singing Kelly Clarkson or Pink type songs, not a fan of the outfit, not a perfect song choice

Paula – you sang “Because of You” in Hollywood, this was safe, I was expecting more but you showed talent

Simon – you leave me puzzled, it was an odd song choice but you have a great voice

Randy – you don’t know who you are, you didn’t do much with it, it was like being in a karaoke bar (I knew I didn’t have to use it because one of the judges would)

Nathaniel Marshall

Here is our resident drama queen. I like Nate. As he explains in his video, America has seen many different Nates but not the true Nate, the goofy, humble and good-natured Nate. The piercings are not helping me along with the tattoos, my eyes are not good so I could not see what the tattoo writings were on his chest and it was very distracting to me along with all the jewelry and that ridiculous headband. Do not get me started on those skinny jeans he wears. Perhaps I am just jealous because I could never wear skinny jeans. Nathaniel wins the night with the strangest of all song choices, “I Would Do Anything for Love”, oh my god. The song started very weak and he was never able to really fill the song nor could he sell the emotion. The performance was weird as well given the dance moves and what was up with those random hand pointing. Nathaniel has a good voice as he demonstrated in Hollywood after we got over the drama but he was not showing it here, which is too bad.

Simon – “I think you probably would”, some will like this must but most will hate it. It was verging on uncomfortable, people will remember you, you are fun and I like you

Randy – I like you, why did you choose this song and we get Nate’s story about how he and his mother would dance to this song when he was a kid, you definitely can sing, what I don’t know is what type of recording artist you would be

Kara – you have a voice, you need to show more of your serious side to be taken seriously, I want to go to karaoke with you (What the f*^k?)

Paula – I love you, when you sang Disturbia with your guitar during Hollywood week you were bold and relevant, this was like a Boy George version and it took away from your coolness, you need to make smarter song choices

Felicia Barton

Felicia is in a very bad spot given America has not seen her and she is a replacement for one of the original 36. It is too bad because I really like her. Felicia goes with “No One” and while she started too low, she has a great voice. There were some rough pitchy notes probably nerves and at one point she was shouting. I believe this was the best performance by a female tonight so far. Felicia had confidence and was having fun. Felicia sold the emotion of the song.

Paula – the universe works in weird ways, you are gorgeous, talented, unbelievable, I hope you get to stick around

Simon – the first part was better than the second part, it was a bit of a copycat

Randy – you have an amazing voice, you have a different tone, hot

Kara – I love your attitude and presence, there were a few bad notes, this was the first time I really noticed you, you did really well tonight

Scott MacIntyre

Scott is going with “Mandolin Rain”. The beginning was okay but he had some very serious pitchy moments throughout the song. I think he really needs to have his keyboards but oh well. There is great tone to his voice and he has some range but last night’s performance was average at best.

Randy – this was not a perfect vocal, the good parts were really good though, props for a job well done

Kara – you can move mountains on stage, you are passionate, make no excuses, there were some issues with the vocals, I hope America will keep you around

Paula – I am happy and proud, one of our finest

Simon – I am not crazy about the song, you are growing on me, there are better singers in the competition but you have relevance and I would be surprised if you don’t sail through to the next round.

Kendall Beard

Kendall looked great, her outfit was adorable, and how cute her mother put it together. If she goes through, I would choose her mother over the American Idol stylists. Kendall’s smile is infectious. Kendall chooses “This One’s for the Girls” and while country may be her thing, Martina McBride is hard to do and the choice of song was her kiss of death. Kendall had some serious pitch issues and do not get me started on her squeaky high notes. Kendall also pissed me off because her enunciation sucked, she was slurring her words, diction my girl. Kendall was having fun but I was not.

Kara – you have a big personality, you were smart to pick a country song, there were some issues with notes, you had the flat thing going on

Paula – you take the prize for best outfit of the night, good job, you are adorable

Simon – you did the right thing tonight with the country but half way through I couldn’t wait for it to end, it was shrilly towards the end, you should have chosen a better song to suit your voice, not my cup of tea

Randy – I liked the song choice, the outfit and the performance just not the vocals, you over shot the notes

Jorge Nunez

Jorge is going with “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” which is one of my favorite songs but it is so overdone on this show. Jorge has a good voice and there was power and passion in the performance but I am not sure why but something was off for me. I will give him kudos for his enunciation for the most part.

Paula – I am so proud of you, you sounded so good, and you have worked hard with a dialect coach, I could just squeeze you (Paula I don’t want to hear about your bedroom issues)

Simon – to Paula – “You heart him don’t you”. I think we were wrong to tell you not to sing with an accent, it is who you are. You have a good voice, you are a good singer.

Randy – accent or not, it is the vocals that matter, they weren’t perfect but you were really, really good

Kara – you were born to sing, your tone is beautiful, you sing from the heart, you have a gift to touch people (again with the touching)

Lil Rounds

Lil was looking great and I loved her outfit. Lil has chosen “Be Without You” and this was one great kick-ass performance. She sounded great. Lil has raw power and the personality to back it up. There was great stage presence as well. I have to mark her down for the shameless plug for votes when she changes the lyrics at the end “call this show if you just can’t be without me”.

Simon – brilliant, I wouldn’t have chosen that song since you sounded too much like Mary but my favorite performance of the night

Randy – you didn’t lose your swagger, unbelievable vocals, loved it

Kara – powerhouse, you are great, steady as a boat

Paula – first class


Now let us talk about this very strange show. Were the judges on something last night? I thought I was in some new-age self-help growth class with all the talk about getting to know someone, knowing what type of personality you have, what type of artist you would be – give me a freaking break! These people have a minute and a half to sing their hearts out. Who cares whether I would go shopping with them or go to a Karaoke bar? This is a singing competition, plain and simple. Leave the new age stuff to a different program.

It is also shameless how the producers are promoting some while ignoring others. I do really adore Nate but he got more airtime then any other contestant and what was up with taking him over to the judges table and trying to get him to sit in Simon’s lap although Paula won the honors. Ryan trying to put the headband (although he referred to it as a garter) on Simon’s head was just stupid.

I want to spend more time with the contestants hearing them sing then the antics of the judges especially last night since they seemed to be in outer space.

I only put through 774 votes last night. I gave Von 437, Felicia 212, Jorge 65, Nate 50 and Lil 10.

Based on performance alone I believe Lil, Von, and Jorge should go through but I am predicting Lil, Scott and Jorge will be the ones moved into the top 12.

Until tomorrow…