AI 10 2-16-11 The Heartache of Group Night

Nothing compares to the most difficult challenge of Hollywood week. Prepare yourself for the heartbreak and devastation! Get ready for Group Round if you can handle the pressure. This is AMERICAN IDOL!

It is 8:30 p.m. after day two with 168 contestants surviving for the group round. All the contests from day one hip to what is coming have formed their groups and made their song selections from the list of 20 songs available. They have been practicing during the day two auditions thinking this will give them an advantage. Oh wait, executive producer Ken Warwick dashes their hopes by explaining the rules. Each group must be a mixture of day one and day two contestants. Get over it contestants this is called being fair.

Cue the video montage while every group struggles to obtain the required members. Oh the drama of it all which includes the begging, the tears, the hissy fits, choosing songs, putting together choreography, everyone fighting to control the group, how will it all, who will move forward and who will shatter into a million pieces.

Denise Jackson and Brett Lowenstern seek another member but their first choice bolts to another group. Jessica Yantz agrees to step in and the “Sugar Mamas” are complete.

Tiffany Rios (why is she still here?) apparently alienated everyone after her comment, “I’m tired of seeing people try to do what I know I can” is unable to find a group willing to take her on. Karma is a bitch Ms. Rios. She tells us that her choreography skills will help any group out (Whatever!) Tiffany tries to recruit Scotty McCreery and he asks her to sing something and after hearing hear leaves telling her another group is interested in him. Tiffany somehow convinces Jessica Yantz to ditch her group leaving “Sugar Mamas” short a day two person.

Scotty continues looking for a group, meets up with Jordan Dorsey (otherwise known as a jerk), and Jordan tells him it will not work. Jordan remains upset because he had a group already put together from day one. He disagrees with his other group members on a day two person until they find Shane.

Scotty then talks to Clint Jun Gamboa and Jacee Badeaux but Clint is not thrilled with the idea of having a fifth member.

Tiffany and Jessica even after using the microphone and begging for another group member are ignored and they do not know what to do. They finally talk with a producer who allows them to go forward as a duet.

We then have video montage as different groups try to find places where they can practice because of all the noise. One group uses the garage and another group is harmonizing in an empty bathroom.

“The Minors” a group made up of 15 and 16 year olds seem to have an advantage because they have the energy to work into the night and their stage mothers pushing them. James Durbin is not happy with this situation because the mothers are providing the choreography. This is not fair and his group is worried because they are singing the same song, “Somebody to Love”.

Jacqueline Dunford is in a trio called “Three’s Company” (What a cute name – NOT!) with our favorite exes Chelsee and Rob. Rob explains they are not on speaking terms and there is a lot of tension. Jacqueline just says Rob is nervous about dancing. The problem is none of them is listening and they are all fighting for control.

Ashley Sullivan begins to cry under the pressure in her “ever-dramatic” way as Ryan tells us. She is thinking about quitting and the other members tell her to make up her mind quick because they would need to find someone else. Ashley cries to a producer who tells her to think it over. Lucky for Ashley her boyfriend is there and they go off to the garage so she could make a decision.

Clint, Scotty and Jacee’s group is still having trouble because Clint does not like the quintet idea. The group kicks out Jacee even though he is a good singer they just do not feel it will work. Jacee handles it well and seeks comfort with his parents but now must find a group and it is 1:00 a.m.

Jordan (Mr. Jerk) does not like that his group picked a fast song and wants to leave. Lauren Turner urges her fellow group members to keep working because they need to look out for themselves. I will not rely on anyone else for my dream. Jordan leaves and joins the group with Robbie Rosen.

It is 2:30 a.m. and Ashley finally decides to remain in the competition but will her group mates let her back in. They do and are very gracious about it as well.

Brett’s group is still looking for a fifth member and he recruits Jacee even though he does not know their song “Mercy”. The group accepts Jacee.

The groups are beginning to head to bed for some rest but not “Three’s Company.” Rob is having a rough time and tells Ryan, “I do not dance with people. I do not perform with people. I am a musician.” Really Rob, if there were no people who would be listening to your music?

The morning of group day arrives and everyone is dragging themselves out of bed to get in some last minute rehearsing. The judges arrive and try to give advice. Steven explains something but I did not understand a word. Jennifer advises them not to worry about by being in a group because they will be judged individually. Randy simply says “DO NOT FORGET THE WORDS!”

There are 39 groups to get through so let the blood bath begin!

Our first group with Pia Toscano, Alessandra Guercio and Brielle Von Hugel go with “Grenade.” I like their performance but Pia Toscano had the best voice. Steven thinks they “slammed” it and Randy likes their harmonies. All three are through to the next round.

Jordan (Mr. Jerk) and Robbie Rosen’s group is next with a performance of “I Want You Back”. I thought Jordan was off the melody but Robbie was good. All five members of the group go through to the next round.

It is time for Jordan’s former group to step up to the mike. Adrian Michael starts them off with “Forget You” and let us just say I wanted to forget him. Lauren Turner did a better job but she was tries way too hard by throwing in way too many runs and over sang. All four members get another chance and move forward.

Jessica and Tiffany or should I say “Rebel Star” are up next and Tiffany single-handedly murders “Irreplaceable” and trust me when I say she could not choreograph her way out of a paper bag! Jessica sounds okay but Tiffany drags her down. Randy stops them and asks why there are only two of them. Randy tells them it was “really bad” and they are both going home. Ronald is doing his happy dance.

The next group “Spanglish” is looking for one of their members and the producers find Kevin Campos asleep in his room. While the group was looking for their member, Steven entertains the masses by playing the drums.

“Spanglish” members Jovany Barreto, Kevin Campos, Jorge Gabriel and Karen Rodriguez manage to murder their rendition of “Just the Way You Are” individually and collectively. I thought the entire performance was horrible. Jovany also manages to forget the lyrics. Steven tells them it was bad and he is very disappointed in Jorge since he was one of his favorites. Jovany and Karen are going through – really.

Our next group knows how to play the game as Lauren Alaina asks Steven to come up to the stage and the group then sings “Some Kind of Wonderful” to him. Steven even joins in during the chorus. I thought they sounded good together. As Steven returns to the judges table Ryan asks him if he wants a number for votes. In the end, only Lauren goes through to the next round.

The next group includes Colton Dixon and Matt Dillard with “Just the Way You are”. I did not enjoy the performance at all and thought the entire group was just not connecting. Steven likes Colton and tells Matt this was not your best performance. Colton is the only member going on to the next round.

Cue video montage of several other random contestants going home including Shannon Livewell, Briana Tyson, Janelle Arthur, Alyson Jados, Caitlin Koch, Paris Tassin, Emily Ann Reed, Adrienne Beasley, Courtney Penry, and Aaron Gutierrez. The river of tears was flowing.

Our next group members are Keeira Lyn Ford, Ashley Sullivan, Ashton Jones and Jacqui Elliott go with “Hit ‘Em up Style.” The performance itself was very good but the strongest singers were Ashton and Jacqui. I thought Ashley was just a little over the top. Randy tells Ashley she was pitchy but they were the best harmonized of any group. The entire group is on to the next round.

The next group has James Durbin, Emma Henry, Danny Pate, Caleb Johnson and John Jordan with their version of “Somebody to Love”. James and Danny were good although James was trying way too hard to hit that high note. The rest of the group sucked big time. Jennifer tells them the song was good because there were strong voices in the group but the harmonies were “like a bad Glee audition.” Caleb and James are the only two moving on. I do not agree with this, Danny should have been the one going through.

Next up is our “Minors” and let us say the kids rocked it. This was my favorite performance of the evening. Keonna Evans, Jalen Harris, Sarina-Joi Crowe, Felix Ramsey and Deandre Brackensick are all on to the next round. Their mothers on the other hand should never sing again. When they were backstage, harmonizing along I wanted to mute them out.

The next group contains Steven Clawson, Corey Levoy and Hollie Cavanagh. The group chooses, “Grenade”. Steven murders his portion and laugh out loud had the words written on his hands. I thought Corey was okay but there were some sharp moments but he does have a nice tone to his voice. Hollie was okay as well. Corey and Hollie move on while the rest of the group goes home. Corey pulls the stupid moment of the night when he questions the judges as to why they are the only two going through and then the light bulb goes off and he says, “Never mind!”.

Dan Noguchi, Lara Johnston, Julie Zorrilla, Melissa Lucas and Casey Abrams perform a song I did not recognize and the performance was okay. Casey and Julie are the only members going forward.

Da’Quela Payne, Matthew Nuss, Naima Adedapo, and Jacob Lusk go with “Get Ready” and I thought they did a great job. Steven loved it and all members of the group move forward.

Our “Four Non-blondes and that Guy” group are next. Caleb Hawley, Devyn Rush, Eryn Kelly, Chris Medina and Carson Higgins are next. They go with “Forget You” and again the group is okay. Carson goes sharp on his high note. Randy thinks Devyn was wild and “kind of screamy.” Everyone but Devyn is on to the next round.

We next have a montage of Steven making funny remarks but I was not able to capture them.

“Sugar Mama and the Babies” are next with “Mercy”. Denise Jackson, Stevie Cain, Natalie Hanson, Brett Loewenstern and Jacee Badeaux did a good job. Brett knocks it out of the ballpark and is a good performer. Denise sounded good as well but I did not like Stevie or Natalie. Poor Jacee forgot the lyrics and on the spot and in tune inserted his own words, which were hilarious, and you could tell the judges were enjoying Jacee.

Randy tells Jacee that he looked a little lost and the group then explained the situation about Jacee being dumped by his prior group and their letting him join their group. Jacee is a class act because he simply says it was not working with his other group and never blames anyone or asks for sympathy. Right on Jacee! The judges send the entire group on to the next round.

The group, which dumped Jacee, is next with “Get Ready.” Clint Jun Gamboa, Scott McCreery, Monique De Los Santos and Frances Coontz were good as well. I thought Clint was the villain in this story but unfortunately, he can sing. Randy calls them out about ditching Jacee. Scotty apologizes for not sticking up for Jacee, saying he’s “the best kid in the whole competition.” Steven Tyler was my hero though when he told them “For that alone, we should all make you step back one.” The entire group gets to move forward.

Our final group of the night is “Three’s Company” who totally botched “Forget You”. I would have sent them all packing but in the end only poor, Rob is going home. I am just happy I will not have to hear about this couple ever again.

I really would like to see this list of 20 songs so I could help these groups make an appropriate song choice. If there are 20 songs on the list, why did we only hear five or six of the songs? I want to ban “Forget You” forever.

At the end of the group round 68 contestants, have their dreams shattered while 100 remain for one last chance. The contestants will have one last chance to wow the judges with a solo performance before another 50 contestants leave the competition.

Until next time…

AI 10 2-10-11 Hollywood Week Round 1

On this stage, countless dreams will be tested. This is the start of an epic journey known as Hollywood week. This will be twice as hard, twice the drama and twice the talent. Brace yourselves - this is AMERICAN IDOL!

Hollywood is like no place on earth explains Ryan. 327 contestants are here to cash in their golden ticket for their one chance to make it through. Cue video of the judges arriving. Jennifer Lopez is ready to “separate the men from the boys and the women from the girls.” Randy knows that these kids must bring it hard. Steven indicates, “I won’t go easy, even if the contestants beg. This is their one chance.”

The contestants will be broken out into groups of 10 and will sing a Capella but individually and there will be no feedback from the judges except for the announcement of who makes it to the next round and who will be going home in defeat!

Day 1

In the first group, the only contestant who gets real screen time is Brett Loewenstern who goes with “Let It Be.” I thought he added too many runs but he does have great control of his voice and this was an emotional performance. Brett moves forward along with a woman named Symphony (who we do not get to hear sing) and a few other anonymous contestants.

In the second group, we see Rachel Zevita, Thia Megia, Casey Abrams and Victoria Huggins. Rachel, Thia and Casey seem to impress the judges while poor Victoria does not do so well. Victoria ends up in the row going home but tells us she is still leaving feeling special and she is sure that North Carolina will be proud of her. The video shows she came to Hollywood with 11 pieces of luggage. What is up with that since it is just a short trip even if she manages to get past Hollywood she would still be home for sometime before she would have to come back. I went to Paris in 1979 for 8 weeks to go to school and only took two bags.

The next group includes Paris Tassin, James Durbin, Lauren Alaina and Stormi Henley. The clips of the singing are so brief but Stormi was definitely having problems and surprise, surprise is cut while the other three move on.

In the next group, the only contestant we hear is Chris Medina and I did not think he did well at all, cracking a bit under the pressure but Chris is given another chance.

It is 5:00 p.m. and the end of day one is fast approaching. The final group of contestants includes Jacee Badeaux, Hollie Cavanaugh, and Robbie Rosen. All three make it through to the next round.

As day one concludes, we are told that Steven Beghun, Sarah Sellers, Jacquelyn Dupree and Heidi Khzam are heading home.

Day 2

Welcome back to the City of Angels where Ryan explains there were 160 contestants heard yesterday leaving the remaining 163 for today. Excuse me, 327 golden ticket winners arrive in Hollywood, which means somewhere we lost four of them, isn’t that interesting?

Cue the video of exes Rob Bolin and Chelsee Oaks along with our loving couple Jacqueline Dunford and Nick Fink. How cute the producers have put Jacqueline and Chelsee together next door to Rob and Nick. This is not going to end well. Surprise, surprise they all auditioning in the same group of 10. Rob is up first and is okay but very boring. Chelsee is fine but boring. Nick definitely is having problems and was totally off the melody the entire time. Jacqueline is a little better but nothing spectacular. Oh my, Nick is in the line going home while the other three are on to the next round.

Poor Nick embarrasses himself by begging for another chance because he wants to be with his baby. Cry me a river, shut up, and get the hell out of town. Randy explains to Nick once again he only gets one chance. Wait I guess Nick suffers hearing loss as he continues to sing as he walks up the aisle.

Our next group includes Scotty McCreery, Jackie Wilson, and Jerome Bell who advance forward to the next round.

The final group of the day includes Tiffany Rios and Travis Orlando. Ms. Rios goes through while poor Travis (no pun intended) is heading home.

Ryan explains only 168 contestants will advance to the next round which includes Clint Jun Gamboa, Julie Zorilla, Naima Adedapo, Mark Gutierrez, Aaron Gutierrez, Molly DeWolf, Emily Anne Reed, Stefano Langone and Ashley Sullivan.

This episode moved very fast but we do not get to hear the majority of the singers. I think this has to be the worst Hollywood week episodes from prior seasons because we did not get to hear any new singers. We were shown only contestants who got face time in the audition episodes. In fact, except for the woman named Symphony, we did not even get to know their names.

I hope the producers are saving some surprises for the group numbers. The group numbers are always my favorite train wrecks of the season. I laugh because we are looking for the next American Idol not the next American group Idol but it creates drama.

Until next week!

AI 10 2-9-11 San Francisco or what is dropping from the sky?

The date November 9, 2010 flashes across the screen as Ryan indicates San Francisco is our last stop and a place where first impressions are everything and we see a woman crying as she is walking and she turns to the camera and says, “Just because someone farts you should let them finish singing.”

Cue the space age introduction to American Idol.

Can it be the producers are taking us down the road of juvenile humor? I can see this episode going downhill fast.

The judges may have seen contestants in November but the actual auditions in San Francisco was in the middle of August which is where all those 9,000 people were hanging out, not in November. I suspect the producers picked a pool of people and then brought them back for the judges to see. The editing of tonight’s episode was interesting in that whenever the winners came out with their golden ticket there was a room full of people including the last contestant of the day. There use of what time it is was ridiculous as well.

Enough of my bitching about petty details and we can move into discussing the actual auditions.

Cue video as Ryan explains we are six cities down with one final stop in San Francisco, which lies 400 miles north of Los Angeles. San Francisco is the city by the bay where the judges will be searching for a golden voice in the golden state. It was two years ago in San Francisco where we found one of the most electrifying contestants of Idol history, Adam Lambert.

Day 1

Our first contestant is Inessa Lee who is originally from the Ukraine. Given the introductory video and her stating her dream is “to be famous”, I am thinking the exact opposite is going to be true. It appears she has posted videos of herself all over the internet. Inessa goes on about how Shakira and early Madonna are her influences. She claims to look like Katy Perry.

Inessa enters the audition room like little Mary Sunshine all chipper and over the top. She explains to the judges she is a belly dancing, yoga, musical star/actress and she can be anything they want her to be. Randy asks her to demonstrate some belly dancing while Ronald just shakes his head.

Inessa starts to sing and I have no clue what song it was but she certainly cannot list singing as one of her talents because she was incredibly bad. I hated her voice and poor Inessa is even more tone deaf than I am which is saying a lot!

Steven explains she is cute and precious and he had hoped she would be good but he was disappointed. Your pitch and melody were all over the place. Jennifer tells her she has a young spirit and Randy simply says no. Poor Inessa is leaving without her golden ticket but the camera follows her out as she throws a tantrum insisting the world has not seen the last of her. I pray that we have definitely seen the last of Inessa!

Cue video montage where we learn the morning talent has been bottoming out as we see all the crying contestants leaving without their golden ticket. Heaven help us as the producers are having Ryan talk about bird poop and showing umbrellas covered with the stuff. Do we really need this?

We next see a video montage of several contestants who are getting their golden tickets. The clips were too short to judge but Brittany Mazur, Lara Johnston, and Matthew Ness are very happy they are heading to Hollywood.

Next contestant comes with a better than average sob back-story. Stefano Langone from Kent, Washington was in a serious car accident on May 28, 2009. The fire fighters pulling him out thought he was dead and the hospital staff did not have high expectations for his parents. Stefano was told he would not be able to walk normally again and would not be the same. Stefano fought hard to get out of the wheelchair and was walking again in 4 months. While Stefano is left with physical scars, he explains something like this causes a flame in you and he is hungrier to make an impact.

Stefano auditions with “I Heard It through the Grapevine.” Stefano does have a good voice and is able to hit each high note with perfection. Jennifer tells him, “You have star quality and movie star looks. You are definitely here for a reason. You have S T A R all over you!” Steven says it was nice while Randy tells him it was “up in the hood”. Stefano is heading to Hollywood.

Wow the next video indicates it is the end of day one and we are lucky enough to see all the contestants camping out to get the best slot for the next day’s audition. Trust me those people would not be camping out in November in San Francisco.

Day 2

Clint Jun Gamboa or “Jun Bug” works as a host in a karaoke bar in Long Beach, California. The customers there tell him he is too good to work there so he has decided to audition. Clint chooses “Billionaire” as his audition song. I think Clint has a nice voice but he was trying too hard with the runs. Randy asks him about his background and Clint explains he grew up singing gospel. Randy tells him not to lose that and says he is the best they have heard so far. Jennifer says his vocals were good and the judges send him to Hollywood.

Cue the video of all the colorful crazies who came to San Francisco for their 15 minutes of fame, which leads to quick clips of contestants crying as they leave without a golden ticket. We do get to hear a little of Kenneth Berba and Weston Lee Smith. This is one time I would have been happy if the sound had been muted temporarily.

This leads to our next contestant Drew Beaumier who lists his occupation as Bartender/Autobot. Yes, Mr. Beaumier came to his audition dressed as a Transformer and he actually transforms into a car prior to singing. This audition cannot be good. Drew goes with “Born to be Wild” which he flubs at the beginning and he does not improve before the judges cut him off. I would suggest when you are singing you should not be so low to the ground or have your mouth covered by car parts. The judges tell him no and as he leaves Steven asks him, “Before you go, how many gallons per mile?” We see a clip of Drew pleading that he does not want to be a car for the rest of his life. Really, then Drew perhaps you need to choose never to wear the costume again and never to pretend you are an Autobot. Give me a break!

We are back to the city by the Bay and it is afternoon where the girls are hitting a home run. Naturally, the producers have to play a video montage of all the woman with “California Girls” as the backdrop. This video moves into a clip of four anonymous women getting their golden tickets.

Julie Zorrilla enters the audition room and Jennifer just loves her glittery golden shoes. Julie is auditioning on her 20th birthday and tells us she grew up in Columbia where they had a wonderful life in the Andes until the guerilla fighters took over. Her family left without a word and she admires her parents for moving to a new country without a job and starting over. Julie goes with “Summertime” and while she has a good voice this song was over the top slow, she was practically pausing on each word and do not even get me started on all the ridiculous runs she threw into the song as well. The song has a beautiful melody but you would never know it from this rendition.

Steven tells her, “You are fabulous, great range and you just ooze star quality.” Jennifer says she felt her confidence, she was planted in the ground, I can see you are a performer and this excites me. Randy explains after Fantasia blew this song out of the ballpark in season three he never wanted to hear it again but he found her choices interesting. Julie is heading for Hollywood.

Dave Combs is next up with “Oh Darling” and he truly sucks as a singer. Steven tells him, “I was very disappointed. You were so off the melody, it was like you are on another planet.” Steven tells him no.

This leads to a video montage of Steven being in a bad mood as we see a series of horrible auditions. Steven asks Rick Deschamp if he hit his head on the way in. Steven tells David Johnston that he sounded like the Beatles but then states he is lying. Shirley Corbett auditions in a cop costume while murdering a song I do not recognize. Steven tells her, “You should be arrested for that voice” and then asks, “If she has handcuffs.”

Emily Anne Reed enters the audition room with her guitar and tattooed arms while Steven begs her to be good. I saw the arms and all I could think about was “caw-caw” Megan Joy and wanted to run from the room. We learn Emily is from Arlington, VA but she moved to California to become a star. We learn her house recently burned down and she is disappointed because it was the first home she was excited to live in. Emily wants to build a better life and for her it would be with a music career.

Emily sings “You’re getting to be a habit with me” and the performance did not wow me. She was on key, which is good, but there was something about the voice, which irritated me. Jennifer says, “You have the most interesting voice we have heard in eight cities and this is an important part of being a recording artist.” Steven does not think she is ready and votes no but Randy thinks she is unique and votes yes. This leaves Emily’s fate in Jennifer’s hands. Jennifer indicates she has a singer/songwriter vibe and gives her a second change by voting yes. Emily is heading to Hollywood.

Welcome back as we see it is almost sunset in San Francisco and the producers provide us with a series of contestants who will not be going to Hollywood.

Our final contestant of the day is James Durbin who has the sob story of all sob stories. First, we learn his father was a bass musician who was always away and dies of a drug overdose when he is nine years old which hurts because he never really got to know him. Second, he was diagnosed with Tourette and Asperger’s syndrome. Third, he was bullied, beat up, and made fun of throughout his life. He finally met an angel named Heidi who has been his rock, they were dating, and to their surprise found out, she was pregnant. How this could a surprise, I will never understand, apparently he never made it through Health class to learn about contraception. Fourth, he was laid off, they do not have much money and live in a place with the cheapest rent, and sometimes they do not even have money for diapers. Yet being a father has changed his life and he needs this to make a better life for his son.

James is nervous about his Tourette’s emerging while he is in front of the judges as he enters the audition room. Initially James sings “You Shook Me.” James has a good voice along with a high range but he was having trouble controlling the strength of those higher notes. James has some rough edges to smooth out but with the right help, he could be a good singer.

It was clear the judges were enjoying his performance. James asks Steven if he can sing one of his songs, “Dream On” and in this song James really blew it out of the ballpark. I think he reached a higher octave then even Steven gets to. I am concerned though because to reach those higher notes he had to yell which will ultimately hurt him in the end.

Jennifer explains that James kind of goes off into his own world when he sings causing James to tell them about his Tourette’s and when he is singing it all goes away. Jennifer tells him, “You sing from feeling, from hurt, from your soul, from the need to feel, and make others feel.” Randy loves his range, “He’s pure up there. It’s crazy.” Steven indicates he is so, so, good, “over the top.” James is heading to Hollywood.

Cue a quick recap of all the golden tickets given out in San Francisco even though Ryan does not reveal a total number.

Thursday begins Hollywood week so let the train wreck begin.

Until next time!

AI 10 2-3-11 Los Angeles

The show begins with a video of contestants receiving their golden tickets as we hear Ryan say Los Angles is the entertainment capital of the world as we see him on a roof top – Say Hello to LA – THIS IS American Idol!

LA is home of super-stardom. We see some friends from MySpace.com where for the first time Idol allows people to audition online. Out of 16,000 entries, those chosen are in LA to get a real chance at stardom. This fades to video of the judges arriving and Steven is smoking a cigar while Randy is wearing the ugliest golden shoes ever seen.

Day One

Victoria Garrett is a telemarketer who tells us God brought an idol to LA for a single purpose. She knows where she will be on the finale, getting the title of American Idol. I have no idea what Victoria was singing I was just thrilled when it was over. Steven votes and says Victoria is going to Siberia and admits it was not “baaaaad” while imitating a goat. Randy says it sounds like shooting an animal. Victoria leaves without a golden ticket.

Tim Halperin admits to being a big fan of J Lo. Tim goes with “She will be loved” and while he has a good voice, the whole performance was boring. Tim asks Jennifer how old she is which was too funny. Steven wants Tim to work on his voice and step it up but votes yes. Randy does not think he is ready yet so it is a no. Jennifer also thinks Tim must work on this strength, but he has a nice tone. Tim is going to Hollywood.

We have a clip of Justin Carter who Jennifer tells lacks power and goes home empty handed and we then have some time wasting with all these people carrying food into the audition room with Ryan asking who ordered all of it. This was just LAME!

Cue video clip of two friends Daniel and Isaac. These friends will support each other knowing only one-person can ever win. Daniel believes Isaac will be better. Isaac even dropped out of college to come here, even though his parents do not know. These best friend auditions never end up well.

Daniel Gomez who is eighteen is confident he has a superstar voice and chooses “I’ll Be”. Gracious heavens Daniel is horrible and his voice is flatter than any pancake. Steven tells him he was so far from the melody. Randy says you are tone deaf and singing is not for you. The judges unanimously say no.

Isaac Rodriguez also eighteen chooses “Build Me up Buttercup”. What an idiot for choosing this song. Isaac fumbles the lyrics just as much as he was fumbling with the melody. Jennifer tells him he has a nice smile. Steven says he set the song on fire, but in the wrong way. Isaac admits to messing up the words but Randy says he messed up everything. Randy tells him he should never sing again. Isaac leaves without a golden ticket.

Both of the friends promise to keep singing because they believe in themselves. Ronald says let us move on.

Day 2

Cue the video introduction where some weird old guy is dancing out in the line.

Karen Rodriguez is one of the MySpace contestants. She chooses “You Give Good Love” and is seriously good. I mean she has a beautiful voice. Steven states you have confidence and a sparkle in your voice. Jennifer praises her beautiful control. Karen states she was hoping for that since she sang to Jennifer on TRL (what when she is 10?). Karen wins over the judging panel that unanimously sends her to Hollywood.

Tynisha Roches (Is this name for real?) is so confident she brought her own microphone because she IS the next Idol. Tynisha is always winking and making weird noises to the camera. I can hear the garbage truck eating her alive already. Tynisha begins with “My Way” which is just simply freaking horrible. I am so nervous. The judges are just laughing and can barely get in a word. Randy decides to leave as Tynisha is singing “And I am Telling You”. She actually chases him out and they wrestle for the microphone. PLEASE this is just a waste of time. Tynisha will not stop singing until finally security arrives to haul her out.

Cue video montage as we learn it is 3:00 p.m. and there has been a lack of golden tickets. Will our next belly-dancing contestant bring a change?

Heidi Khzam who auditions with “Superwoman” which is just okay yet the judges send her on to Hollywood. It was amusing to watch her dance while Steven was scatting.

Next, we hear from Matt “Big Stats” Frankel who is CEO of MSFP or in other words “Matthew Scott Frankel Productions. He claims to have a compilation album with Chaka Khan. “Big Stats” is his hip-hop alter ego. Ronald realizes he will be wasting more time listening to this. First, he raps his introduction for the judges and then stumbles through a rap version of “Love Don’t Cost a Thing”. Randy just says no. “Big Stats” then tries to sing a J Lo song which he murders and then quips “I just need to lubricate up a bit”. The man will not stop singing. What is up with tonight’s crazies.

Cue our next video where Ryan laments about the lack of talent in LA and we see a series of contestants clearly not heading to Hollywood. William Roberts, Jeannette Manning, Daniel Hall, Anthony Granger, and finally Arista Pemberton who does the splits and literally rips her pants.

Our next contestants are brothers Mark and Aaron Gutierrez. We learn Mark is a substitute math teacher and Aaron is a salesman who lives life by his own rules. These brothers seem too good to be true, which means we must be set for, yet another horrible audition. The brothers surprise me with their beautiful duet of “Lean on Me”. They have excellent voices, can enunciate, and exert great control. This was a great audition. Randy indicates they are great, Jennifer loved it and Steven simply says “Godlike”. The brothers are heading to Hollywood.

The evening ends with the most ridiculous waste of time ever on American Idol. Mr. Cooper Robinson or should we say “Human Tornado” trying to capture his “15 minutes” of fame. The “Human Tornado” comes blazing on the screen in a horrible outfit, very incoherent, clearly too old, and continues to mumble something and even after being told no continues to sing and scream as he leaves. Why was this included at all?

This episode was boring and the worst of the audition shows from any season. We only see five real auditions and they do not even bother to tell us how many golden tickets were awarded from LA.

Next Wednesday is the final audition city, which was San Francisco. This was the first audition and it took place in August prior to the hiring of Ms. Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler. I am wondering how the producers will work their editing magic to make us think they were there. I had a friend try out and the producers said he had a great voice but he was not what they were looking for. In my mind, the next American Idol should have a great voice.
Until next week…

AI 10 2-2-11 Austin

Black screen and white letters, which states that American Idol would like to apologize for Steven Tyler’s behavior from last week. We promise it will never happen again. The screen then flows to a video of a contestant whose last name is Muck and Steven asks him if he knows what it rhymes with. We then fade to the new introduction.

This is American Idol and the introductions are just getting down right bizarre.

Cue the video montage of Austin with 7,500 hopefuls ready to audition. This is the third time American Idol has come calling in a place that is a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll. It appears Ryan is late and Jennifer’s husband Marc Anthony is there as well. Weird is all I have to say about it.

Day One

Corey Levoy and his sister Brooke did not meet until they were teenagers even though they spent their whole lives 15 minutes away from each other. They clicked immediately and are best friends. Brooke encourages Corey to sing and audition for American Idol. As Corey enters the audition room Jennifer asks him what Brooke would say if she were on the panel and Corey responds that she would be the harshest critic. The judges ask Corey to bring in his sister who gets a chair at the judges table next to Steven. Ronald is just shaking his head in amusement.

Corey chooses “I Can’t Make You Love Me” and while I think he added a few too many runs I liked how he made it a little bit country and found his voice to be quite good. He has great control over his voice. Randy states you have a good voice, your speaking voice is very high and I was unsure how it would come through on your singing. Corey admits to being teased about his voice and Steven responds, “Something tells me you’re not going to get teased anymore.” Jennifer indicates his runs were perfect, nice voice. Brooke indicates he was amazing, gave me chills. Steven asks her to vote and she responds, “heck yeah” and the other judges say yes. Corey is heading to Hollywood. He celebrates by shaking his booty telling the judges, “My whole life I’ve been told I’ve got J Lo booty.” Really?

Holly Cavanaugh who is only seventeen goes with “At Last”. This was a torturous audition as the key was constantly changing and she was not on the melody at all ever. Steven indicates the lyrics were clear but she was all over the melody. Randy states you were all over the place and does not feel she is ready. Jennifer indicates she needs to be more comfortable on stage. When the judges call for a vote, Holly breaks down in tears. Excuse if you cannot handle this then how will you be able to handle this competition.

Jennifer asks her to sing another song and she breaks down even more but finally composes herself and chooses “The Climb”. Of all the songs, she goes for this one. I think the performance was worse than the first but apparently the judges hear something I did not because Randy changes his mind and Holly is going to Hollywood. This poor girl will crack under the pressure of Hollywood week.

Cue the next video as we see four unnamed contestants being rejected which leads to Rodolfo Ochoa as he butchers “The Circle of Life” and Jennifer indicates you have vibrato but could not find the melody. We then get additional video of four more unnamed contestants who go home without their golden ticket. Well I guess it is true that cowboys cannot sing the blues.

John Wayne Shultz explains how he loves his family and working on their ranch which has been in their family since the 1850s. John’s mother is a breast cancer survivor. John is here to audition because of a promise he made to his mother. John auditions with “Believe” and color me surprised John is good. I thought with this was a lead up to a horrible audition but he has a rich deep voice made for country music.
The judges sing his praises with Jennifer indicating she was touched by the performance; he made her “believe” and “I can feel the strength”. Steven indicates it was beautiful I liked it. Randy states it was good and Randy asks John to bring in his parents so they can meet them. As they enter Randy states, “Hi, parents of John Wayne!” The judges explain John is going to Hollywood and his mother cries saying America will not be disappointed in John.

Day 2

Our day opens up with clips of the contestants who got their golden ticket from Day one, most of whom we do not know. The boys (Randy and Steven) are in a good mood as demonstrated through their hard-hitting interview while Jennifer is all glammed up and they are ready to be wowed.

Courtney Penry another seventeen year old finds Ryan the sexiest man alive and vows to marry him. This causes Ronald to laugh extremely loud. Courtney tells the judges they are all hot, explains she can imitate a chicken, and proceeds to do so. Steven’s response, “Oh, wait, we’re acting like chickens now? I’m down.” Oh, this cannot be ending up well.

Courtney sings, “Stay” and another contestant surprises me because she has a good voice after all. Jennifer indicates there are strengths and weaknesses in her voice but I love you but there are some things for you to work on. Steven states you have star quality and I like you. Randy says you have a nice voice but does not feel she is ready for Hollywood and votes no. Steven and Jennifer disagree with Randy, which means Courtney gets her golden ticket.

Cue our next video montage which demonstrates Texas pride is alive as well as there is a series of contestants who are heading to Hollywood including Shauntel Campos, Alex Carr and Caleb Johnson. The clips are so short I really cannot judge their singing. This flows into another video montage where Ryan tells us the momentum of day two continues, as seven additional contestants who remain unidentified receive their golden tickets. The funniest things about this clip are comments by Steven Tyler. The first was “Where is your pitch fork you little devil!”The second came after one of the contestants gave his occupation as “clinical trials for pharmaceutical companies,” and Tyler screams, “We have something in common, then, that is pretty much the whole 70s for me.”

Jacqueline Dunford and Nick Fink are lovebirds who met in their community college choir while singing a duet. How cute – NOT! The producers make them do all sorts of sweet things as they edit the video in an over the top manner. Jacqueline explains that Nick is her but as a boy and asks, “Does this mean I love myself?” Ronald was getting creeped out over the whole thing and can see this relationship will not last.

The couple auditions together but do not sing a duet only solo numbers. Jacqueline is up first with “Mercy” and I really liked everything she did with the song. Nick sings “Sunday Morning” and I found it just a little strange. I am not sure why. He does have a good voice.

Jennifer indicates that both were performing songs they hear repeatedly but both of you had different takes on them. Steven loves the couple. Randy says Jacqueline was a breath of fresh air and is sending both to Hollywood.

I can see Jacqueline making it through Hollywood week but there is no way Nick will be standing in the top 12.

Janelle Arthur indicates her family has been pushing her to audition for about five years. She performs a country song first which I did not recognize and she is very good. The judges want to hear something else and she goes with “No One Needs to know” which Randy cuts off with a call for a vote. All three say yes and Janelle receives her golden ticket.

Cue our next video, which includes someone coming in wearing an armadillo suit. I just heard Trudy in “Steel Magnolias” asking an armadillo. There is a series of 20 deluded contestants butchering various songs. These same contestants get upset when there is no golden ticket.

Casey Abrams is the last contestant of the day even though it is only 11:45 a.m. The producers need to pay better attention when editing those video introductions. Casey is auditioning with his “melodica”. I had to Google to figure out how to spell that since I had never heard the term before. Casey tells us his melodica keeps him from becoming bored. Casey also explains people think he looks like Seth Rogen, which is definitely not true.
Casey sings, “I don’t need no doctor”. This was a great audition. Casey has a great voice, demonstrates passion and incredible control. He was also scatting. I think this was my favorite audition so far. The judges all vote yes without any discussion and as Casey plays his melodica in celebration, the judges take the time to dance with him.

The Austin auditions end and we learn there are 50 golden tickets to Hollywood given out.

Overall, this was a pretty boring and routine episode of American Idol.

Tomorrow we are off to LA!

Until then…