RECAP: American Idol Top 14 Perform… Repeats?

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Well, it looks as though America still doesn’t have much control over who will make it to the next round on American Idol. At the top of the show, Ryan Seacrest reveals the judges get to choose four contestants who will automatically make it to the Top 10. After those four are revealed, the remainder will perform for our votes! Tomorrow, Ryan will reveal the six that will complete the Top 10.

Harry Connick Jr, Jennifer Lopez, and Keith Urban give fast passes to emo rocker Dalton Rapattoni, Olivia Rox, Trent Harmon, and soulful singer La’Porsha Ranae.

The remaining six contestants had to recreate a favorite moment from this season so far, which makes total sense considering each singer has maybe had one “moment.”

Any way, here’s our ranking, from worst to best:

Gianna Isabella is slowly figuring out how to perform, but she’s still not quite there yet. Her rendition of “I Put A Spell On You,” came off just slightly better than a karaoke performance. Her immaturity was so evident, especially during the “I love you, I love you, I love you.” Where was the pining? It’s okay to be 15, but pick songs that you can actually relate to. Or learn to act, I don’t know.

Thomas Stringfellow, whose girlfriend broke up with him just before the show in case you didn’t know, came back again with his hiccuping vocals for “Story of My Life.” I’m glad that Harry finally called him out on his bad habit, but it’s a little too late. I really like Thomas’ tone, and if the hiccups had been brought to his attention before, he could have fixed it. Such a shame.

Guys, Lee Jean did an Ed Sheeran song! Again. (I know, it’s not really his fault.) Unforunately for Lee, his second go at “Make It Rain,” was simply not as good as the first time. He failed to hit many notes and his performance was lackluster. Keith said it was “chill,” but clearly, to a fault. He looked more bored on stage than I was sitting at home listening to him.

Jeneve Rose Mitchell took a very liberal approach to “Ring of Fire,” without an instrument! Jeneve is not my cup of tea. She never has been, and she never will be. But, I do appreciate how different she is. She’s in a league of her own. Harry said what she does is “polarizing,” which is why she’s likely to be gone soon.

The first time Manny Torres sang “Master Blaster (Jammin’).” it was uninspiring. The second time Manny sang it, it was still uninspiring. It was energetic, yes. He sounded fine, yes. He has a confidence on stage that very few other contestants have. But there was nothing memorable about what he left on the stage. Nothing stood out enough to make people vote for him over anyone else.

The only reason Tristan McIntosh isn’t lower on the list (as in, did worse), is because she’s improving. She took on “What Hurts the Most,” which Keith and Jennifer gushed about. She showed some vulnerability, and was actually connecting with the song. She made some interesting choices with her vocals that were beautiful. But, throughout most of the song, Tristan seemed to be singing from the back of her throat which made her sound, well, not great.

Avalon Young took on Chris Brown’s “Yo (Excuse Me Miss)” once again. Avalon, who has been sporting the natural look, has curls in her hair and make up on! She looks great, not that she didn’t before, but surely her made up face will probably leave some people at home uncomfortable since she swore fame wouldn’t change her. One thing that Avalon has going for her, definitely, is lack of competition. She sounded great, especially if you’re into the whole nasally voice sound. As Jennifer pointed out, she’s getting more and more comfortable on stage as well, even starting with a “How y’all doing?”

Look, Jenn Blosil is a weirdo, and I love it. I already know that people voting will likely disagree with me, though. Her bedazzled eyebrows may have been too distracting for anyone to pay attention to her performance. Jenn’s squeaky voice is one that can easily go pitchy, and it unfortunately happened here. Her performance had more depth than any of the contestants that went on prior to her, though. I hope America keeps her around longer than a “better” vocalist. Looking at you Gianna.

Sonika Vaid proved that she’s one of the best vocalists in the competition right now with Celine Dion’s “I Surrender.” It’s not secret that this girl can SING. But again, she looked scared. There was no intent behind the lyrics for her. But she’s still amazing, so much so that J.Lo got “goose-ys” (goosies? gooseys?), on her cheek!

Mackenzie Bourg is going to make it until the end. He may not win, but at this point it doesn’t matter. He proved that with his original song, “Roses.” (I’m not saying this song is about me, but I mean my name is ROSEmary.) Mackenzie’s smartest move was playing that song; we got to see what he’d be like post-Idol. And it’s good. Not only is he a good songwriter, but his voice is so sweet and soothing. It also helps that he’s a cutie pie.

 

Tomorrow we will say goodbye to four contestants, and while clearly I have my ideas of who should go home, I see the end for Thomas, Manny, Lee Jean, and Jeneve.

 

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