Tonight on American Idol, the Top 6 will take the stage and one contestant will be eliminated mid-episode. Thaaaank you. I'm all for having Round 1 and Round 2, but getting through twelve performances can sometimes be rough on this show. Oh and tonight's theme? America chooses for the contestants. Yup. This has the potential to be an awesome night or two hour hot mess.
On the bright side, Idol welcomes home Season 8 runner up, Adam Lambert, this evening and he opens the show with his "Mad World" cover, which is just as haunting and amazing now as it was back when he was a contestant. The bar has been set, kids. Good luck.
ROUND 1
Contestant: Trent Harmon
Song: "Counting Stars" by OneRepulic
As nice as it is to see Trent try to cut loose with this up tempo song, the "song" part is where he struggles. The first verse is almost inaudible and there are a series of questionable notes from the first chorus through the end of the performance. Not a good start, but at least he still has another performance ahead of him tonight.
Judges Say: Keith found himself watching Trent but not being pulled in by the performance. He doesn't think it came together. JLo acknowledges that America chose this song for Trent and it's not a tune he would have chosen for himself. She says he did the best he could with it. I don't know about that. Harry agrees, saying Trent is a lot better than that.
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Contestant: Dalton Rappatoni
Song: "Numb" by Linkin Park
Much like Trent before him, this song choice does Dalton no favors. I can't tell if the look on his face is the normal "young angsty musician" look he tends to have, or if he's pleading for the performance to just be over. Here's hoping song number 2 is a home run.
Judges Say: JLo thinks Dalton took the "umph" out of the song and did not like the arrangement. Harry thinks Dalton poured his guts into the lyrics but says Dalton was ahead of the beat with his guitar. Keith wishes Dalton had stripped the song down more and "Dalton-ized" it.
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Contestant: La'Porsha Renae
Song: "Ready For Love" by India.Aire
Whew. Thankfully America got it right in choosing this song for La'Porsha. She is very subdued in this performance but her approach fits the song perfectly. The fog, the violins, and the neat video candles in the background create this small venue setting where La'Porsha can be a seated story teller. Loved it.
Judges Say: Harry says the performance was pleading and mournful and "everything the lyrics called for." He calls the performance phenomenal. Keith did not feel like a judge during the performance - he felt like he was more of an audience member captivated. JLo looooooves India.Aire and says La'Porsha has the same type of spirit she has. JLo thinks La'Porsha gave a "complete" performance.
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Contestant: MacKenzie Bourg
Song: "Wild World" by Cat Stevens
GREAT song. I'm sure there are many young viewers out there who never heard this song before tonight. MacKenzie picks up the tempo and sings with a huge smile on his face....even though "Wild World" is a sad tune about a break up. I'm going to let that slide for now. There's no vocal showcase for MacKenzie here but at least he did not get saddled with a song that makes us (and him) long for Round 2.
Judges Say: Keith compares MacKenzie to cake batter: "even when it's not cooked it's still really good." JLo says MacKenzie has so much likability and she always feels like he's singing directly to her. Harry thinks MacKenzie could record the song and release it as a hit (iTunes will keep us posted on that).
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Contestant: Tristan McIntosh
Song: "Independence Day" by Martina McBride
So Tristan and Sonika are in the bottom 2 tonight and the judges will still have the chance to "save" one of them even though that's a little ludicrous at this point in the competition. Can't the person with the lowest votes just be eliminated? Anyway, Tristan's rendition of "Independence Day" is heartfelt and lovely, and she has never sounded better than she has in these last few minutes. Did she do anything to stand out tonight though? No. not really. She's still just a sweet kid who can sure sing some good country music.
Judges Say: JLo feels that Tristan needs to try different things because we are seeing the same performance over and over again. Harry thinks these types of songs are Tristan's sweet spot but he says time is going to be her best friend going forward. Keith agrees, saying the 15 year old is going to grow a lot in her career. All of these critiques sound like a send off.
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Contestant: Sonika Vaid
Song: "Let It Go" by Adele Dazeem Idina Menzel but Demi Lovato's version
Knowing that Tristan gave a fairly solid performance just now, Sonika lays all of her cards on the table in this song. I mean, given the song's title and content, she kinda has to. She has some pitch issues here and there ("Let It Go" is a beast for any singer), but unlike Tristan, Sonika is showing the judges she still has a lot of fight in her.
Judges Say: Harry thinks the performance was strong but warns Sonika not to get lost when there's a strong underscore accompanying her. Keith says Sonika is coming out of her shell and JLo compliments Sonika on her growth throughout the season. In the end, the judges save Sonkia and we say goodbye to young Tristan.
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ROUND 2
Contestant: Dalton Rappatoni
Song: "Sound of Silence" by Simon & Garfunkel
This is much, much better than his first performance. Dalton makes this song more of an angry rock tune rather than the campfire ballad we're used to, and he seems far more comfortable selling the lyrics than he was earlier. I realllllly wish he hadn't plopped down on the stage with criss-cross applesauce legs and a sad face at the end though. He had built the performance up to something very cool right until that point.
Judges Say: Keith feels like Dalton really brought the audience in during the performance and JLo says the performance was powerful. Harry compares Dalton to a graffiti artist the way he "paints" the stage when he delivers lyrics.
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Contestant: MacKenzie Bourg
Song: "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson
Oh my. I'm taken back to David Cook's version of this song when MacKenzie begins his performance, but he does do something different (and kind of awesome) here. His whole singer/songwriter vibe really helped him "flip" this song, and this performance is a standout for him for sure. MacKenzie sounds great, he's freaking adorable, and he tells us the story. I totally believe the kid is not his. Totally.
Judges Say: JLo says this performance reminds us why MacKenzie is in the Top 5. She was riveted the whole time. Harry can tell that MacKenzie spends a lot of time thinking about arrangements and lyrics and really puts a lot into his performances. Keith talks a little bit about the Disney film Bolt, and then makes sure MacKenzie knows what a big fan he is.
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Contestant: Trent Harmon
Song: "Simple Man" by Lynard Skynyrd
Trent brings us back to his questionable hat days (that I actually much preferred) as he takes on this classic Skynyrd song, and seriously, this might be his best performance ever. Trent's southern roots and killer vocals gives him a boost in this song and he sure takes advantage of it. This should be enough to wipe that OneRepublic performance clean off his slate for tonight. Well done.
Judges Say: Harry wants to hear a duet between Trent and Adam Lambert and he really enjoyed the performance. Keith loved the song to begin with and loved how Trent interpreted it. JLo is emotional and says one of her favorite things about Idol is her front seat to witnessing the perfect song meeting the perfect singer. Trent starts to cry as well and he says "Thank you, Ms. Jennifer." Awwww.
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Contestant: Sonika Vaid
Song: "Clarity" by Zedd
So...no. It's a good thing she went with "Let It Go" when she was looking for the judges' save because this performance would have given Tristan an edge. I get it - Sonika is trying to be versatile. She's trying to open up and show her personality. But she's jumping up and down on the stage and losing her breath for a song that isn't a great choice for her to begin with.
Judges Say: Keith wants Sonika to keep letting go and JLo agrees to an extent. She did not love the song choice and says Sonika needs to find a way to be grounded to the song while still having fun...or something. Harry really seems to like Sonika as a person, so she's got that going for her.
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Contestant: La'Porsha Renae
Song: "No More Drama" by Mary J. Blige
La'Porsha's pre-performance video package includes her story of escaping an abusive relationship. She cries while talking into the camera about not feeling like a woman during that time and also feeling dead. And she's going to sing "No More Drama?" Lord let me pause the TiVo and grab the tissue box. This performance is amazing. I'm just going to post the video and go collect myself.
Judges Say: Keith and JLo and standing and fist pumping and yelling things. La'Porsha is sobbing. JLo is still standing and now crying as she starts her "critique." She says La'Porsha is an inspiration and thanks her for that moment. We're out of time and don't get to hear from Harry and Keith but I'm sure their sentiments would have been similar.
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Adam Lambert did join us one more time this episode to perform his single "Welcome to the Show," which I had not heard before tonight. Very catchy indeed. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Mr. Entertainment take the American Idol stage again one last time. I would have also loved an Adam/Allison Iraheta duet tonight (remember "Slow Ride?") but I'll take what I can get.
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| My eyes adore you. |
Next week the judges' save is out the window (finally) and the eliminations are now solely up to America. Did Sonika win some voters with "Let If Go" only to lose them again with "Clarity?" Did MacKenzie and Trent just slingshot themselves into the outskirts of La'Porsha's atmosphere with their second performances? Can La'Porsha really be stopped at this point? And my biggest question/I want this to happen: can JLo and Dalton swap eye makeup next week? Please? Okay...probably not, but I would certainly be even more drawn into his performances if they did. Regardless, we'll see what happens with these last five contestants when they face off again in a week. Til then!
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