Top 7: A second look and J's predicitons

Might I say before we get into the rankings that La Carey completely surprised me . . .much like La Lopez did last season. I assumed from all that I have read that Mimi was a diva . . . and she might be . . . but girlfriend worked it OUT as an Idol mentor. Not only did she come off as genuine, but she gave them substantive tips that could help them with their performances . . . excellent job!

1. The Cuteness – “I Don’t Wanna Cry” – I was really, really worried about The Cuteness this week. . . .particularly after I saw his choice of song. However, sweet goodness, the boy did a good job. For the first time, The Cuteness stretched his vocal range and kind of, sort of . . . ish . . . esque . . . embraced his romantical troubadour side. WHICH HE SO NEEDED TO DO! Certainly not the best vocal of the night, but this performance puts the #7 bookend just above the #1 bookend for me. Great Job on a night that wasn’t for you.

2. Lil David – “When You Believe” – David A. was the one contestant I wasn’t worried about . . . the boy can indeed “sing” anything. Eleventy times over, the boy has one of the best “voices” to ever grace the idol stage. He still lacks the stage presence, but he has far and away the best voice in the competition.

3. Brooke White – “Hero” – The first half of this song was a big ball of awesome. However, I don’t agree with Randy that the “bridge was bad” . . . I thought she hit all of her notes well, but something happened in the middle of the song. On a second listen, I didn’t hear a problem . . . my guess is that for someone who plays the piano and sings, something happened in her head (missed a pedal push, thought she missed a note, lost her fingers on the piano, etc.) . . . and, the result was, the last half lost something. I think she did what she had to do . . . . she should be safe. . . .but, could be in danger.

4. The Comeback Kid – KLC did a very nice job. She is still the most clever competitor of all seven AI seasons. It is hard for a girl to when Paula over . . . Paula so did not heart her in the first two weeks, and now she loves her. . . Not quite as good as last week, but she was the reverse of Brooke. The first half of the song was not great . . . she was clearly waiting for the middle bridge so she could kick it up a notch . . . but, when the notch was kicked, she was frackin brilliant! I put her third because Brooke’s first half was great with piano . . . but KLC’s vocals ruled, again. Just great.

5. Carly Smithson – “Without You” – I was SO looking forward to this performance. I HEART this song, and it takes me back to Kelly Clarkson in Season One. I LOVED the first half of the performance. She was restrained and new her limits. However, as I listened to it back on youtube, I think that she sounded great in the second half and was relaxed, but I don’t think she let loose like she could have. The second half of that song so needs to be overflowing with emotion like Mt. St. Helens . . . but, on second listen, she hit the notes, but didn’t have the confidence . . . Still a better performance than last week.

6. David Cook – Again, thank buddah for Youtube . . . . a second listen gave me a wee different perspective than the first run through. Don’t get me wrong, I still didn’t love this remix. I appreciate that I think he did this one himself . . . unless we here differently later . . . but, my problem with this remake still is that all he did was slow down the vocals. The arrangement was GORGEOUS! But, the band overshadowed his vocals and his vocal version made me think of the original . . . which made me wonder why it was slowed down and why there was no beat. Translation . . . didn’t quite work for me. I still HEART Rocker David . . . and he is SO safe (particularly with his position in the line up) . . . . just not my cup ‘o tea remix . . .

7. Syesha Mercado - "Vanishing" - Ok, so, I HEART youtube., second listens are good. I kept wondering during the performance what was missing . . . she was vocally almost pitch perfect. . . . for doing a Mimi clone performance. However, on second listen, technically she was GREAT . . . but, there was no feeling behind it. Almost seems like she concentrated so hard on hitting the notes and the vibrato that she forgot to infuse this song with the emotion it needs. The song is about a love who is “vanishing”, going away, leaving you . . . and it just kind of left me cold.

My Bottom Three will NOT be America’s Bottom Three.

My predictions for America’s Bottom 3: Syesha, Carly, Brooke
Going Home: Syesha


Andrew Lloyd Webber on deck . . . .