This week on American Idol we get to hear all the contestants perform twice- one solo and one duet! Idol is getting so close to its FINAL finale, and yet for some reason, producers have decided it’s a good idea to recycle songs that have been done over and over again in prior seasons. I guess if it worked once, it’ll work again? For some contestants taking on songs from the “American Idol Song Book” it did…

BUT before we get to any solo critiques and reveal who the two unlucky souls from the Top 8 that must pack their bags are, here’s a quick recap of the duets:

La’Porsha Renae and Trent Harmon collaborated on Charlie Puth’s “See You Again.” This is going to be our final two contestants, and this duet solidified that prediction. Their voices blended together beautifully, but were different just enough to allow each other to shine.

Avalon Young and Sonika Vaid took on “Rise Up,” by Andra Day. To be honest, I thought Sonika would destroy Avalon in this duet with her strong vocals. But to my surprise, I don’t think neither singer “won” the duet, but neither “lost.” Both had strong moments, and both also fell flat in their performance.

The teeny in me freaked out when I realized MacKenzie Bourg and Dalton Rapattoni would be singing Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way.” I was quickly disappointed by the delivery though. While the two didn’t sound bad by any means, neither seemed excited to be singing this gem of a song. Judge Harry Connick Jr thought it was a poor song choice, and asked them what the song was about. Nobody knows Harry, that’s why it’s beloved! But I do agree. The heart throbs of the competition did manage to support each other vocally though, which was nice I guess.

Poor Tristan McIntosh and Lee Jean had the unfortunate task of singing “I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing.” Tristan sounded amazing at the beginning, but the song went downhill from there for both of them. It was two kids taking on this huge song, on an emotion level and vocally. If last week’s performances didn’t make me think they were already going home, this performance would have.

As almost predicted, the bottom three consisted of Avalon, Lee, and Sonika. I’m not even going to begin to question Sonika’s place in the bottom three over some others. Avalon gave a very ambivalent performance with “P.Y.T.” Perhaps she had given up already. Her nasally voice was in full bloom tonight, and I wasn’t a fan. Poor Lee Jean went for “Let It Be,” and was only able to showcase his nerves. Lee has so much potential. He just needs to come out of his shell and get some more experience. Sonika gave a nearly perfect rendition of Whitney Houston’s “I Have Nothing.” Harry, Keith Urban, and Jennifer Lopez decided to (very rightfully so) save Sonika.

So after saying goodbye to Avalon and Lee, here’s our top 6 ranked from worst to best:

Tristan had a great performance last week, which is why she somehow is still in the competition. This week though, she took on the heavy “A Broken Wing,” by Martina McBride. Tristan sounded amazing throughout most of the song. But when she didn’t, it was terrible (that last note anyone?). The real problem with Tristan is she keeps taking on these heavy songs, but her performances show a little girl pretending to be an adult. This is so incredibly event when Harry asks what happens at the end of the song, lyrics wise. Tristan admitted that she wasn’t sure; she thought the girl just leaves. No, girl, she kills herself. HEAVY STUFF.

The old Dalton came back this week a little with “Eleanor Rigby.” He mostly stuck to the original, adding a touch more “punk” (read: pop punk), to it. The song grows and grows until it finally reaches the climax, which is sort of how Dalton’s entire performance was. The beginning half (or slight more) fell flat, with some weird cut off words thrown around here and there. But as soon as Dalton got up from his chair, he started picking up a bit. The drama was back, and he did a nice big, strong, kinda rough (in a good way?) ending note to try to secure a spot in the Top 5 next week.

Sonika proved once again that she has incredible pipes with “I Have Nothing.” Her performance was vocally flawless, but still Sonika needs to continue to let loose and grow. Yes she can sing, but where was “Bring Me To Life” Sonika? Did she connect with the lyrics at all?

Oh MacKenzie, how I love you so. He took on Joe Crocker’s “You Are So Beautiful,” and man did I swoon. MacKenzie’s song choice was smart- he needed something to win over the girls that are slowly getting over Dalton. The straight forward, tender arrangement without his guitar felt vulnerable, kinda. Yes, he still could have dug a little deeper, but I was perfectly content just listening to his beautiful tone. And okay, I definitely was imagining it was me he was singing to.

I’m going to ignore all the goofy faces and grins that Trent made while singing “Stand By Me,” because he sounded completely amazing. MacKenzie should take some notes on how he’s changing the song, vocally. While some artists transform the song by messing with the melody and arrangement, Trent added his thang with runs, dips, falsettos and whatever other vocal things singers do (I’m not one, so I don’t know, a pocket maybe?). His only downfall is lack of connection to the lyrics. While he sounded incredible, I wasn’t emotional (or imagining I was being serenaded by him).

La’Porsha proved once again that she is going to win this thing with “Come Together.” She took a class rock song and made it her own, “full diva” as Jenny From The Block said. From the beginning to her growly “one thing I can tell you,” all the way to the ending high note, La’Porsha delivered fire. La’Porsha knew that we had seen ballad after ballad from her, so she showed us she can groove. A+, babe… Well, minus the outfit.

Next week only one contestant will go home to make our Top 5. Who will it be? Tristan.

This week on American Idol contestants will be singing Grammy hits. We will also say goodbye to two contestants. Because Idol is now on only once a week, eliminations and performances will take place on the same night. Host Ryan Seacrest will call out contestants that were voted through last week by America to perform one at a time- meaning they’re safe. Yes, the bottom three will have to sit through the entire show to think about their performance and how to wow the judges. Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr, and Keith Urban will then decide to save just one. No pressure. America then gets to do it all over again and vote for their favorite.

Because this format is ridiculous and the bottom three should perform first, that’s how I’m writing this recap. The bottom three this week consisted of Gianna Isabella, Olivia Rox, and Avalon Young. I’m amazed that we will have to say goodbye to one of these ladies, but Lee Jean and Tristan McIntosh are still somehow in the competition.

Avalon Young did an okay rendition of The Weeknd’s “Earned It.” I’ve never been a huge fan of Avalon’s voice, but the judges apparently loved it. Olivia Rox made an incredible attempt to continue her journey on Idol with Pink’s “Trouble.” She sounded amazing, but as the story goes with many contestants, she needed to perfect her performance ability. Gianna Isabella was really ambitious with “If I Ain’t Got You.” She was pitchy and bland throughout, and the judges noticed. The trio decided to save Avalon.

With that out of the way, here’s our ranking of the Top 8 performance, from worst to best:

Lee Jean switched things up and sang “Use Somebody” by Kings of Leon instead of an Ed Sheeran track. He sounded pleasant enough, but there was an umph missing. He needed to dig into his voice a bit, or as J.Lo put it, he needed “more voice” in him. He needs to begin pushing his voice to its limits to see where he can take it.

Avalon performed “Earned It,” and knew she was singing for her life. As I’ve been saying, Avalon is very much a singer that you either hate or love. I’m not a fan of her nasally tone, but in terms of performance, this was probably one of her best. She sounded great, but did I enjoy it? Not really.

Last week, Dalton Rapattoni underwhelmed with “Hey There Delilah.” This week he continued that downward spiral with “Radioactive” by Imagine Dragons. Dalton normally has an energy and confidence on stage that no other contestant really has. But tonight, that vanished in every way. His vocals, movements, facials, everything was so bland. Was it just me or were the background singers louder than him throughout the song? Harry finally said what everyone has been thinking and compared Dalton to Billie Joe Armstrong. J.Lo warned him not to get in his head, which is exactly what happened. Snap out of it, Dalton! But I’m sure his fan army will vote him through.

Tristan McIntosh had a good night with “Go Rest High On That Mountain.” She stripped the song down and finally had an amazing vocal. Tristan’s problem is still connection. While she sounded beautiful and seemed to be showing some sort of emotion, it didn’t seem quite enough. It could be that she’s only 15, but still, pick songs you can relate to.

Sonika Vaid is slowly creeping up on my list of favorites. This week she continued her “I’m breaking out of my shell” storyline and showed some more growth in her stage presence with Kelly Clarkson’s “Since You’ve Been Gone.” Her voice is incredible, there’s no doubt about it, but she needs to keep pushing in her performance ability. She’s showing growth, but she needs to starting wowing if she wants to win. I’m hoping the judges were harsher on Sonika than other contestants (looking at you Lee) because they know she can push herself more.

MacKenzie Bourg transformed Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” into a lovely mid tempo singer-songwriter jam. I don’t know how any times I have to reiterate how much I love MacKenzie’s tone, and that’s never changing. But Jennifer is completely right when she says that MacKenzie needs to dig deeper in his voice. The judges mostly loved it, and Harry was one hundred percent correct when he said that he should have committed to his choices more fully. Regardless, he knows how to melt everyone’s heart with that voice of his.

Trent Harmon is making a come back y’all. Trent took on “When A Man Loves A Woman,” and absolutely killed it. Apparently Scott Borchetta also noticed the face pulling and made Trent work on fixing it. Keith made a point that it seemed like ht was thinking too much about fixing this, and it took away a bit from the performance, but it still didn’t compromise the voice. Trent is improving ten fold, and Jennifer was so right in predicting a La’Porsha and Trent finale.

La’Porsha Renae performed Beyonce’s “Halo,” and it was amazing. But, it just didn’t compare to “Diamonds,” last week. She still blows the competition out of the water, but she made some poor melodic choices this week. Jennifer said she’s the one to beat, and that is so accurate. La’Porsha just needs to keep up with herself at this point to make sure her fans don’t leave her for say, Trenton.

So who will be going home next week? I see the bottom three being Lee, Avalon and Tristan, with Lee and Avalon being the ones we say goodbye to.

Last night, Harry Connick Jr, Jennifer Lopez, and Keith Urban gave La’Porsha Ranae, Dalton Rapattoni, Olivia Rox, and Trent Harmon fast passes to the Top 10. The remaining six were voted on by us, and unfortunately we say goodbye to Jeneve Rose Mitchell, Thomas Stringfellow, Manny Torres, and Jenn Blosil. While I’m not entirely surprised, I’m disappointed that Jenn didn’t make it further. I’m going to miss her squeaky voice and quirkiness.

On a happier note, a very pregnant Kelly Clarkson lent her voice as a fourth judge this week. She also sang her heart wrenching new song “Piece By Piece,” which had everyone in tears. In case you missed it, do yourself a favor and watch it:

Poor Tristan McIntosh. She tried to tackle “Nothin’ Like You,” by Dan + Shay. Tristan was trying to keep up with the lyrics and catch her breath throughout the entire song. She never nailed the bit notes, and just got overshadowed by the band. The judges tell her to pick songs that are more suited for her fifteen year old self, which I think was a nice way of saying don’t pick such ambitious songs.

On a very similar note… How did Gianna Isabella make it this far? How is she performing over Jenn Blosil? She gave Beyonce’s “Listen,” a show, and failed miserably. There were problems everywhere with her intonation. I’m not sure she hit a single note all the way. There wasn’t a single original, creative moment in the song or performance. All bad. Nothing good. That’s it.

Avalon Young seemed to rush through “Stitches.” She seemed nervous throughout the song, and even let out a sigh of relief when she finished. I’ve never really been a fan of her voice, and it seemed that the nasal quality was amped up to the extreme tonight.

Lee Jean brought out his guitar for Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love.” He sped up the song and made it a bit more folky, which was a nice approach. He tried hitting a falsetto towards the end which didn’t quite work. Kelly said it best when she noted he was competing against some strong vocalists. In harsher terms, he just doesn’t have what it takes to make it much further. He’s good a what he does, his voice is easy to listen to, but is he the American Idol? I don’t think so.

Olivia Rox started off with a beautiful toned done rendition of Katy Perry’s “Unconditionally,” and she should have stayed there. It was soft and pretty, and again, showcased a different side of Olivia’s voice. But as soon as the song picked up speed, she lost it. She hit the notes, sure, but her on stage presence doesn’t have any power. Keith advised her to keep loosening up.

Trent Harmon started out the competition as a front runner, and while he’s still better than a good majority of the contestants, I really hope he doesn’t start crashing and burning. His choice of Sam Smith’s “Like I Can,” showed the flaws in his voice more than that unique quality about it. His vibrato was lacking, and his falsetto wasn’t as strong as normal. Can someone please tell him to stop pulling faces, too?

Just by the amount of screams as soon as Ryan Seacrest said Dalton Rapattoni‘s name, it’s easy to assume he’s safe for a while. With that being said, this was my least favorite performance by Dalton. He sped up and punk-ified “Hey There Deliah,” and it didn’t work. I give him credit for changing up the song, but the intention behind the song was completely lost. He was just a confident rocker dude running around on stage. But, he was on pitch, so that’s a plus. The judges all loved it, though, and the screams from the crowd indicate they did, too.

Who took over Sonika Vaid‘s body and brought out this confident woman on stage? Perhaps since she went on after La’Porsha she kicked up a few gears, but her rendition of Evanescence’s “Bring Me to Life” was powerful. It was dramatic, it was fiery, and she sounded as amazing as she always does. Sure, she probably could have still brought it up a bit, but just as Jennifer noted, if she wakes up in this competition, it’s going to be a COMPETITION.

So La’Porsha Ranae is winning this competition right? I mean, even Kelly said it tonight. La’Porsha completely transformed Rihanna’s “Diamond,” with her effortless voice and runs. She looked and sounded like a star on that stage. I’m not even sure what else to add. She was perfect and controlled. She got a dramatically long, very well deserved, standing ovation.

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.

On Monday, Fox confirmed season 15 of American Idol would be its last. Ryan Seacrest, Jennifer Lopez, Hary Connick Jr, and Keith Urban will all return to crown the final winner. But, last night rock singer Nick Fradiani won the penultimate Idol title.

Runner up Clark Beckham

Fradiani was the dark horse of the competition. He was the oldest contestant at 29, during a season that centered around youth. Just take a look at sixteen year old Daniel Seavy who made it all the way through to the Top 9, despite less than stellar performances. Fradiani struggled to find a way to take the lead as a solo performer due to this band past. But, in the weeks leading up to the competition, Fradiani began to “own his hotness,” as Jennifer Lopez advised. This change in confidence led him to beat soulful singer Clark Beckham, 22, for the big prize, a recording contract with season mentor Scott Borchetta’s label, Big Machine.

Fradiani tried to perform his single “Beautiful Life” after Seacrest announced his win, but emotions took over midway through. Watch below.

I wasn’t going to continue my American Idol recaps after seeing just how boring these contestants are. With few exceptions, the Idol hopefuls have nothing going for them other than a nice voice. I complained about how terrible the X Factor contestants were, but at least they were entertaining. Idol on the other hand is the most entertaining when judges Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban, and Harry Connick Jr. get into arguments. With all that being said, without the ENTERTAINMENT factor, the audience, so far, has been spot on with eliminations. So, I decided to restart me recaps. So, here we go.

First up was MK Nobilette singing Pink’s “Perfect.” I was really impressed with MK last week with her rendition of “To Make You Feel My Love,” but this week was a flop. I’m sure she wants to be on Idol as much as the next contestant, but she has zero stage presence. Last week, her inward energy worked for the song. But this week, not so much. It didn’t help that she retreated even more after she messed up going into the second chorus. Also, is Idol taking notes from X Factor’s backup singers? Because they were heard, sometimes more than MK… The judges gave her some harsh criticisms, especially Harry and Jennifer. But that’s what makes this season bearable!

Dexter Roberts showed a tinge (but not really, at all) of creativity with Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise.” Week after week, I never seem to remember this kid’s performance by Thursday, and I always forget his name by Wednesday. Not exactly a good sign, but has 100% to do with his lack of originality in his performances. He slowed down the beginning of “Cruise,” which was the one and only time he changed things up. And it didn’t really quite work. I still can’t understand anything he says. Harry was brutally honest and told him it wasn’t a good performance and that “unless you’re going to be bigger than the song, you’re going to become generic.” Well put.

Jena Irene gave the very first EDM performance on idol with Zed’s “Clarity.” While I was a little uncomfortable with how much Jena was running around all over the stage, I have to give her props for being able to run around and still sounds great. Her voice is so unique, and I love that she make subtle changes to the melody. The judges loved the performance, but Jennifer gave solid advice and told her she needs to learn how to hold the middle more. Keith also said her performance was the best of the night, which I’m sure was not hard, considering the first two…

Alex Preston delivered one of the best renditions of One Direction’s “Story of My Life.” He made the song a bit more folky, which allowed him to showcase his personal style. Those high notes in the chorus were perfect, and his small changes in the phrasing made the song all the more beautiful. Alex is one of the few people on the show who just knows what type of artist they are, and owns it… much like another idol, Phillip Phillips. (Who is one of the only recent Idol winners who’s killing it right now…) Anyway, I’m sure many people will complain that he never puts his guitar down, but WHO CARES. He’s great at what he does, let him do it.

Malaya Watson sang Bruno Mars’ “When I Was Your Man.” Malaya has a powerhouse voice, and has showcased it to the extreme the past few weeks. This week, she held back, and provided a nice rendition of the Bruno Mars hit. However, she’s still boring to me. She’s predictable. And maybe it’s her over-the-top personality, but she annoys me. Maybe that’s her age though, and she’ll learn to hold back on her outrageous-ness as well.

Caleb Johnson was up next with Lady Gaga’s “Edge of Glory.” I wrote down, “Boring. Boring. Boring.” And I couldn’t tell you much else about his performance. Keith said, “I didn’t dig the half time feel of it. Energy wise- it felt an unbalance.”

CJ Harris needs some vocal coaching ASAP, although there’s a chance he won’t be staying for another week to make use of the coaching Idol provides. CJ was off pitch for the entire performance of Hunter Hayes’ “Invisible.” While last week, the judges said it’s okay to sometimes be off pitch if you have a passionate performance, this week it just kind of hurt everyone’s ears. Harry gave a quick vocal lesson and tried to explain what being off pitch means, and hopefully CJ decides to use the lesson if he stays next week…

Jessica Meuse sang Foster the People’s “Pumped Up Kicks,” and as I have not been sing the beginning, I was not impressed. This is 100% a preference thing, but I just can’t stand Jessica’s voice. The nasally tendency, with a vibrato that never seems to go away (very goat-like) is just not my thing. While this performance was hands down one of her best, I’m still not a fan. Harry said her performance was “one dimensional,” which got all the judges arguing over whether or not the smile on Jessica’s face throughout the performance was appropriate. I loved that. More arguing from the judges please.

Majesty Rose took Avicii’s “Wake Me Up” and made it pure folk. The song was soft and subtle, and allowed the beautiful tone of her voice to come out. While I enjoyed the performance, this girl needs to be more consistent. Last week she bombed with “Let it Go” from Frozen, which was an odd song choice to begin with. Harry enjoyed it, while Keith didn’t like the arrangement. Jennifer told her, “Tonight I saw something in you that i’ve never seen, and that was fear,” followed by words of wisdom that confidence is key, regardless of anything that’s happened.

And the last performance of the night was Sam Woolf with Fun.’s “We are Young.” I want to shake some sense into this kid. He has an incredible voice. His pitch is perfect, and I could listen to a record of his all day. But, his performance skills are awful. He’s a shy kid, which is obvious with his discomfort in answering Ryan Seacrest’s question after the performance, “Where would you rank this performance for you?” His answer, a super awkward “Second.” Regardless, if Sam wants to be a performer, he needs to get over the stage fright and come out of his shell, just like Harry advised.

So my prediction: Bottom three will be MK, CJ, and Dexter, with MK going home.

What do you think?

Boy bands really do seem to be making a comeback lately: One Direction, The Wanted, 98 degrees recently got back together, and so have the Jonas Brothers. The brothers announced this morning to Ryan Seacrest that they would be reuniting on October 11 for a concert at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall.

This show marks their first together in three years. The boys tweeted “Thanks to our amazing fans for your support this am! The @RadioCity show is just the beginning. So much more to come so stay tuned!” While this is the only show the Jonas Brothers have together this year, this could mean a new album and tour in the distant future, perhaps after Joe has finished with his new show, The Next and Kevin with his reality show Married to Jonas? And if Nick ends up getting a spot on the judging panel for American Idol… Regardless, we’ll be seeing a lot more of the Jonas Brothers.