American Idol 2007

[Ksyrup]

I think Melinda's a much better Fantasia, and Lakisha not quite as good. Maybe not quite on the gospel line that Fantasia seems to be on, but pretty similar. Whoever said Melinda should be in the Color Purple and not Fantasia was dead on.

[wade moore]

That's fair. I'm not sure I agree that that is the entire point of the show, but I can certainly see that viewpoint. I think the entire point of the show is to be entertaining in and of itself. I can see your point of view on that, though.

Personally, I'd buy an album of hers in a heartbeat because I love great musicians. I agree that the relevant music issue you bring up is a concern, but I feel it is being a little blown out of proportion in this thread. I don't think it is the ultimate goal of the show, and it is certainly not a goal of mine. I do see how it is important to people, though.

I think you're naive if you think this isn't a large part of the ultimate goal of AI. This show was created for the express purpose (as Simon stated in his 60 minutes interview) as a vehicle for generating artists and an audience for those artists for Sony/BMG. It has become a huge success in and of itself, yes - but the core purpose is still to create popular artists. I'm betting that Kelly Clarkson has made a huge chunk of change for Sony/BMG.

In addition, even in the context of the show, Melisha is just not entertaining to me and I imagine a large segment of the audience. If the final two was Melinda and LaKisha, I'm not sure that I'd even watch. Notice how KSyrup has pointed out the voting and viewership is done - I would have no problem speculating that the pushing of these two and their lack of entertainment value is a large part of that.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I won't add to the recent discussion other than clarify two obvious things. AI's goal as a show is:

(1) first and foremost to get the best ratings as possible to pull in the biggest ad revenue. This means the show must "entertain" the greatest demographic of people.

(2) to provide a marketing vehicle for the sale of future albums and concerts of its performers

Melinda I don't believe adds anything to goal #2. I do believe however that by having an eclectic collection of singers (of which she is one) she contributes to goal #1 -- but not anymore than probably at least 5 other contestants.

[MJ4H]

I think you're naive if you think this isn't a large part of the ultimate goal of AI. This show was created for the express purpose (as Simon stated in his 60 minutes interview) as a vehicle for generating artists and an audience for those artists for Sony/BMG. It has become a huge success in and of itself, yes - but the core purpose is still to create popular artists. I'm betting that Kelly Clarkson has made a huge chunk of change for Sony/BMG.



I did not say that the goal is not create popular artists. I said I did not believe the ultimate goal is to sell "as many albums as possible." This is not the same thing. The difference is quite substantial. In other words, day to day decisions during the show are not made with the goal of selling a few more records in the end. That is my belief. If you think I'm naive, so be it, but I think production values of the show come first quite often.

[MJ4H]

I won't add to the recent discussion other than clarify two obvious things. AI's goal as a show is:

(1) first and foremost to get the best ratings as possible to pull in the biggest ad revenue. This means the show must "entertain" the greatest demographic of people.

(2) to provide a marketing vehicle for the sale of future albums and concerts of its performers

Melinda I don't believe adds anything to goal #2. I do believe however that by having an eclectic collection of singers (of which she is one) she contributes to goal #1 -- but not anymore than probably at least 5 other contestants.

Agreed, though I think she will sell more albums than many here apparently expect. Not saying it will be like Kelly Clarkson, just that it won't be Fantasia level either.

[cuervo72]

Remember, it is good to have Haley in the "bottom" 3 (unless you are Easy Mac). I like to think that every time she is almost voted out, she decides to show a little more skin. I figure if she survives another two weeks, she'll be down to a bikini. This is a good thing (unless you are Easy Mac).

Reminds me of a Tane McClure movie.

(Lap Dancing)

[wade moore]

Agreed, though I think she will sell more albums than many here apparently expect. Not saying it will be like Kelly Clarkson, just that it won't be Fantasia level either.

Fantasia level would not shock me in the least, in fact, that's what I would expect. If she doesn't win (which I still think it's quite likely she doesn't win) I doubt it's that high.

[law90026]

In relation to the whole Melinda thing. There's a reason why some people are back-up singers and some people are stars.

I'm sure the back-up singers on AI have good voices too. I'm sure some of the back-up singers for some of the major stars have good voices too. There's a reason why they aren't stars though .. the lack of that special quality. Melinda doesn't have it, at least not in my eyes. She may sing well but she's not going to get people terribly interested in her music.

[Ksyrup]

I tihnk you're confusing/mixing her ability to sing/perform with what she's singing/performing. It's hard to separate, but I think she's actually quite talented. She just doesn't have wide-ranging appeal for any number of reasons - style, song selection, looks, you name it. She doesn't have anything that translates to "pop" appeal. But that doesn't mean she can't be a star in whatever genre she chooses. It's just that none of us will care enough to notice.

[wade moore]

I tihnk you're confusing/mixing her ability to sing/perform with what she's singing/performing. It's hard to separate, but I think she's actually quite talented. She just doesn't have wide-ranging appeal for any number of reasons - style, song selection, looks, you name it. She doesn't have anything that translates to "pop" appeal. But that doesn't mean she can't be a star in whatever genre she chooses. It's just that none of us will care enough to notice.Yes.

[lordscarlet]

Off the top of my head:

1. "Being old fashioned" (criticisms of Haley, Gina, Jordin, Lakisha and Stephanie so far).
2. "you're in this Chris Daughtry zone right now where you're doing your own thing and it’s a little bit boring. " (Blake).
3. "Not taking chances and pushing yourself" (Chris R, Gina, Lakisha).

Exactly.

That is hardly everything. I do agree that she could make herself a little more modern. I don't agree she doesn't "make songs her own" (AI cliches get on my nerves). What this means is not completely change the song to a new style. This means not copy-catting a previous performance of the song. Musicians call this "interpretation" rather than using an AI catch-phrase ("pitchy" anyone?). If a performer is just mimicking a previous performance, they are not interpreting the music at all. Just copying. One of the thing Melinda does best, in my opinion, is interpretation. She really does interpret the music and lyrics, and perform them her own way. Yes it is usually not in a modern style, but the style she is using isn't really relevant to the interpretation. If she were to change the style of the piece to hip-hop/R&B, then we can start talking about arrangements. Here is where Chris Sligh and Blake sometimes get taken to task for doing an arrangement of a song that is not really warranted. Arranging isn't necessarily in a new style by definition, but it sometimes is. What Blake and Chris Sligh have done in the past by taking an old standard and trying to modernize it is arranging the song in a different style. This is not what the judges mean by "make it your own" (which is a very confusing phrase and one of the reasons it gets on my nerves).

Yes, I agree that Melinda's style is not very modern and that other contestants have been criticized for this very thing. No, I don't agree Melinda does not make songs her own (she is actually by far the best on the show at unique musical interpretation--if anyone wants, I can elaborate on why I think this).

Whether it's valid, the cliches are what judges say. They criticize people for being too old fashioned, for being boring, etc. Can you argue that somewhow Melinda's song from British Invasion week was actually a British Invasion song? I find that hard to believe. It was actually just a song from the same era, I believe composed by someone who was British, but fit to her showtune style. It was in blatant disregard of the competition, it's rules, and the sort of things that are supposed to exist to take people out of their comfort zone. This is exactly why Gina was voted off this week, because she did have to go out of her comfort zone and failed. If, however, a genre comes up that is outside of Melinda's comfort zone they simply allow her to sing a song that is irrelevant to the theme of the week. In addition she is "old-fashioned", boring, etc -- all the things that others are criticized for.

[Ksyrup]

This brings out the serious lolz...


Constantine Maroulis will join the cast (http://www.etonline.com/tv/news/47576/) of “The Bold and the Beautiful” this summer. According to Executive Producer, Brad Bell, Constantine will play a fictional version of himself. He’ll be involved in the Phoebe/Rick storyline as a possible music producer for Phoebe. Whatever all that means… According to Constantine’s My Space (http://www.myspace.com/constantinemaroulis), his first episode will air May 14.

[MJ4H]

Exactly.



Whether it's valid, the cliches are what judges say. They criticize people for being too old fashioned, for being boring, etc. Can you argue that somewhow Melinda's song from British Invasion week was actually a British Invasion song? I find that hard to believe. It was actually just a song from the same era, I believe composed by someone who was British, but fit to her showtune style. It was in blatant disregard of the competition, it's rules, and the sort of things that are supposed to exist to take people out of their comfort zone. This is exactly why Gina was voted off this week, because she did have to go out of her comfort zone and failed. If, however, a genre comes up that is outside of Melinda's comfort zone they simply allow her to sing a song that is irrelevant to the theme of the week. In addition she is "old-fashioned", boring, etc -- all the things that others are criticized for.

I believe I stipulated that her song-choice and overall persona was old-fashioned. The cliches are what the judges say, yes, but the reason I am criticizing them is because they are vague and/or ambiguous and therefore not helpful. The bulk of my post was spent clarifying what the judges are actually trying to say.

[lordscarlet]

I believe I stipulated that her song-choice and overall persona was old-fashioned. The cliches are what the judges say, yes, but the reason I am criticizing them is because they are vague and/or ambiguous and therefore not helpful. The bulk of my post was spent clarifying what the judges are actually trying to say.

And my point is that they're not using this cliches on Melinda even though, in the context the judges use them, they would be as valid toward her as they are toward other contestants.

[adubroff]

And my point is that they're not using this cliches on Melinda even though, in the context the judges use them, they would be as valid toward her as they are toward other contestants.


I bet Phil Jackson didn't spend a lot of time criticizing Michael Jordan for carrying all the time either....

[MJ4H]

And my point is that they're not using this cliches on Melinda even though, in the context the judges use them, they would be as valid toward her as they are toward other contestants.

The "make it your own" cliche is not valid towards Melinda as I went through great pains to demonstrate above.

The "pitchy" cliche is not valid towards Melinda as she is only extremely rarely off-pitch (I can't remember a time, in fact).

Or were you referring to some other cliche? The make yourself younger line I don't really feel is as much of a cliche. It at least is not really confusing or misleading like the ones above.

[wade moore]

The "make it your own" cliche is not valid towards Melinda as I went through great pains to demonstrate above.

The "pitchy" cliche is not valid towards Melinda as she is only extremely rarely off-pitch (I can't remember a time, in fact).

Or were you referring to some other cliche? The make yourself younger line I don't really feel is as much of a cliche. It at least is not really confusing or misleading like the ones above.

He's talking about making yourself younger, hip, current whatever.. .the whole point we're all making is she doesn't get criticized for her a) song selection to the theme and b) feeling "old"... which many of the other contestants get criticized for.

[MJ4H]

As I said, I agree with that.

[lordscarlet]

The "make it your own" cliche is not valid towards Melinda as I went through great pains to demonstrate above.

The "pitchy" cliche is not valid towards Melinda as she is only extremely rarely off-pitch (I can't remember a time, in fact).

Or were you referring to some other cliche? The make yourself younger line I don't really feel is as much of a cliche. It at least is not really confusing or misleading like the ones above.

He's talking about making yourself younger, hip, current whatever.. .the whole point we're all making is she doesn't get criticized for her a) song selection to the theme and b) feeling "old"... which many of the other contestants get criticized for.



As Wade says, I haven't said she was pitchy.. I may have said she needed to "make it her own" once or twice. But the primary things are blatantly ignoring the theme and not being young and hip. The young and hip are things that others have been criticized for many, many times. And, as far as "making it her own", to a music guy like you there may be little nuances, but for the lay people like myself they sound just like the originals in style. Blake, Chris Sligh, Chris Daughtry... They "made it their own".

[MJ4H]

The main reason I was responding at all was the person that said *every single criticism* that is applied to other singers can be applied to Melinda validly. That is what I took issue with. I completely agree she needs to modernize her song choices.

Blake and Sligh rearranged their songs. This is not what the judges are referring to. They are referring to interpretation of an existing arrangement.

[lordscarlet]

The main reason I was responding at all was the person that said *every single criticism* that is applied to other singers can be applied to Melinda validly. That is what I took issue with. I completely agree she needs to modernize her song choices.

Blake and Sligh rearranged their songs. This is not what the judges are referring to. They are referring to interpretation of an existing arrangement.

I believe you're referring to me and what I said was: "And my point is that they're not using this cliches on Melinda even though, in the context the judges use them, they would be as valid toward her as they are toward other contestants."

That does not mean *every single criticism* it means the ones we discussed in regards to Melinda previously.

[MJ4H]

Actually it was you, but this is the line:

"Melinda does everything that the judges criticize others for outside of singing poorly."

[lordscarlet]

Actually it was you, but this is the line:

"Melinda does everything that the judges criticize others for outside of singing poorly."

Correct. So "pitchy" would qualify as "singing poorly." :)

[MJ4H]

But not making it your own. Which is the main issue I've been addressing. You alluded to the problem yourself when you said it means something different to a layman. This is exactly why I was criticizing the use of these cliches. They are ambiguous/misleading.

[lordscarlet]

But not making it your own. Which is the main issue I've been addressing. You alluded to the problem yourself when you said it means something different to a layman. This is exactly why I was criticizing the use of these cliches. They are ambiguous/misleading.

They are not, because they mean something to "us." Just because musically she does something different that "we" cannot understand, doesn't mean she's making it her own. "Making it your own" means recognizably switching up the style, not adding runs or inflections or mildly changing tempo. Making a true British Invasion song into her showtune style would have been interesting. Making a No Doubt song into something suited to her would have been interesting. What she's doing is not "making it her own" she is improving upon a previous version within the same framework in which it originally existed.

[MJ4H]

Yes, they are. The judges do not mean what you think they mean when they say it. That is why they are ambiguous/misleading. Making it your own does NOT mean recognizably switching up the style. That's exactly what I mean when I say it is an ambiguous/misleading phrase. It means adding your own personality to the song. Changing style means completely changing the arrangement. That is a different thing altogether.

What Melinda is doing IS making it her own, to use the judge's words. She is personally interpreting the lyrics and music and affecting the song in that way. Making a new arrangement in a new style is NOT what the judges are referring to.

This is precisely why I despise this phrase. I have to deal daily with people that think pitchy has something to do with the quality of the person's voice, too. The cliches are overused and people tend to formulate their own opinions on what they mean, and they are often wrong. Pitchy is being used by the judges to mean some notes are out of tune, either with the other notes in the vocal part or with the band. And make it your own has nothing to do with writing a new arrangement in a new style. Im sorry, but it just doesnt. Musical interpretation is an entirely separate issue.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I agree that Melinda makes each song her own -- her own shitty version of boring and outdated songs.

[Mustang]

*snicker*

Simon about Haley - "Can't sing so, wear as little clothes as possible". And Sanjaya wasn't the shittiest of the night. Amazing...

[adubroff]

My one man's rankings, may God have mercy on my soul for who I'm about to put second:

1) Blake
2) Svenjaya
3) Melinda
4) Lakeesha
5) Phil
6) Jordin
7) Haley
8) Chris

I thought overall a down week and you could shift the bottom 6 anyway you want, almost.

[sabotai]

That was one very boring hour.

[MJ4H]

Jordin gets better almost every week. She could win this.

[FBPro]

Jordin gets better almost every week. She could win this.

I think that out of the "BIG 3" she is the most marketable.

[MJ4H]

"BIG 3"


haha


she is the most marketable.

for sure.

[Solecismic]

It was Latin week on American Idol, and, according to the closed captioning, Sanjaya was singing in Latin. That's quite impressive, because according to my high school Latin teacher, it's a dead language in that no one in this world uses it for communication any more.

So, it was a week to bring back the dead. By and large, that's what it sounded like, as most everyone seemed outside their comfort zones. Latin songs require considerable practice (not to mention the dead language thing), and I'm not sure why the women made life particularly tough on themselves by going with the difficult pacing of the Miami Sound Machine.

On to the rankings:

1. Blake Lewis. He kept it simple, but he also put together a cohesive performance that showed off the singing talent he has. I was pleasantly surprised. While the women were busy hurting their chances, he was perhaps the only person in the competition to show off something new. Score of 90.

2. Melinda Doolittle. It was a dull song, hardly out of her usual repetoire. She looked aged, maybe even a little tired. Certainly not sexy. I thought it was her worst performance of the season, yet every note was in tune and there was a lot of subtlety to her voice. How do you penalize someone for sounding good? I could knock her down considerably for not branching out, not being an "Idol," whatever that is. I'll refrain from that, just a lower score for trying to sound sexy and missing the point. Score of 85.

3. Sanjaya Malakar. This guy gets the voting like no one else before him. If you don't think the teen girls were dialing their fingers raw before, just wait until this week. He has mastered the look of the non-threatening bad boy. He didn't sound too bad this week, either, picking a song that showed off what he can do with a limited range. Score of 79.

4. Chris Richardson. Credit for a very difficult song, which he messed up just a little. He didn't sound like he was braying as much as in past weeks. This may be a good genre for him, with practice. Score of 77.

5. Jordin Sparks. She suffered from Stephanieitis this week. Trying to do too much with a song, but not doing anything all that well. She had a few pitch problems, and it really wasn't a performance you could record in any way. I thought it was, for the second straight week, her worst of the season. She is losing momentum and could quickly find herself in some danger. Score of 70.

6. LaKisha Jones. Just a bad idea on her part. A dance song in a dress that showed back cleavage. A dance song that had her out of breath after only a few bars. She gets credit for leaving her comfort zone, but, aside from a few riffs near the end, it was a dreadful performance. Score of 67.

7. Phil Stacey. He looked and sounded like someone trying to perform an opera for a comedy troupe. I'm just not getting him at all. Score of 53.

8. Haley Scarnato. There were a couple of runs near the beginning that were quite nice. About halfway through, she completely quit on the song, was off pace, off key and visibly suffering. I have no idea what she was thinking, choosing to go in that direction. This was far and away her worst showing this season. And her makeup and outfit were all wrong as well, which might be more harmful to her chances than her poor singing. Score of 41.

Expected Bottom 3: Haley, Phil, Jordin.
Who should go: Phil.
Who will go: Haley.

[Danny]

I'm a big fan of Blake and Jordan, and am hopeful they are the final 2

[Ksyrup]

Yep, after last night it solidified that Jordin and Blake should be in the finals. Blake was the only one I actually liked. And Jim, you nailed Lakisha's performance exactly - before she even performed, my wife commented on the way her dress fit her and what it was showing on her back, and then about 30 seconds into it, I mentioned that she probably should have just stood still to sing that song, because the combination of moving and quick-paced lyrics had her half singing, half breathing the words. That was awful. And once again, the difference between her on-key-but-lifeless performance and Melinda's was made all too obvious by the show putting them back-to-back. They aren't doing Lakisha any favors with the sequencing.

I'd rant and rave about Melinda, but it was another been there, done that performance. Although Simon was somewhat critical of her, he waited until one or two people later to finally criticize her (indirectly, and not by name) for being old-fashioned. It's about freaking time! The attempt to make her come off as sexy...I don't care how many times they say it, that doesn't make it true.

Sanjaya finally performed the way I expected him to when we first saw him. That was good, except some of the low notes he was off on. He's still not idol material, of course, but he does have one element of the "idol" repetoire that I don't think many of the others have - screaming pre-teen girl fans. If he can come up with some respectable performances from here on out (ha!), I bet they could live with him placing pretty high and raking in the dough from his album sales. I think he'll easily out-sell anyone in this competition. The 14-year old mustache was a touch of genius - we're not giving him enough credit for outsmarting everyone else, if not out-performing them.

Haley was...legs...Nair commercial...what was I talking about? The makeup was terrible and she has an annoying habit of stalking the stage from mark to mark that makes her look like a beauty pageant contestant during the talent portion of the competition, but damn, we need more chicks like this in the competition in the coming years. Ideally, we can combine AI and Pants Off Dance Off on a limited scale (restricted to only certain performers, of course!). Someone needs to make this happen.

Phil and Chris...terrible. Really, I don't get Chris R. at all, I'll just chalk it up to the generation gap, because he seems to represent the worst of what singing has become these days and people apparently are eating it up. I can't stand to even listen to him, even when he's on key. Phil is irrelevant to the show and should be cut just to keep the show chugging along. I'm hoping one of these two goes home tonight.

[RedKingGold]

Phil should go home tonight. He cracked not once, but twice during that song. I'm surprised more people aren't hammering his performance b/c he was, far and away, the worst tonight.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, he had the double whammy of singing poorly and being deadly boring. Uninspired with good vocals is one thing, but he sucked in every way imaginable.

[Arles]

Back with the abridged version after the "sultry" latin week. Ugh, being sexy for most of this crew is akin to Pac Man Jones trying to earn the "Philanthropist of the Year" award - it's just not in character.

1. Blake Lewis. Should be the winner based on talent, performance, adjusting to themes and the fact that he seems relevant from a pop standpoint. Smart contestant that did another very good job.

2. Jordin Sparks. She is really the only other contestant that displays a pulse when performing. Has energy, sings well and has also adjusted well each week to the theme. If record sales and relevance after AI are factors, these two should be the final pair.

3. Melinda Doolittle. She was once again technically sound, but completely forgettable. She is reminding more of why she is a background singer. Has very little emotion, zero sex appeal and is like a robot performing. I have to believe that each female singing background in the band could give similar "on key yet bland" performances. She will be the biggest bust since Ruben if she wins.

4. Chris Richardson. From here on down it's the "dead man walking" crew. None really should be the American Idol and Chris just happened to be the best of the worst this week. Well done!

5. Sanjaya Malakar. Another extremely safe song with little vocal range - and he did fairly well. If someone was going to do a record encompassing songs like "Twinkle Twinkle little star" and "Itsy bitsy spider", he would be my top choice from the AI contestants. No one can nail these juvenille softball songs with little range like Sanjaya.

6. LaKisha Jones. What do you get when you take the biggest contestant and make her run the mile while performing? A mess - and I don't see the difficulty in anticipating this result.

7. Phil Stacey. Not very good technically and that's his only normal saving grace. Thankfully, Haley tried a song way over her head.

8. Haley Scarnato. Over her head and even over her 10-mile long legs. I agree with Jim in that she is a beauty pageant contestant and should understand/milk it. Mix up some cheesy ballads with the occassional mild up tempo song. But, whatever you do, don't try anything risky.

Haley goes with the bottom three being Lakisha, Phil and lady long legs.

[Eaglesfan27]

My take on the night:

Blake - Unless he starts messing up, he has shown that he should be in the final 2. I thought he had the best performance by far last night and he has been the contestant that has most consistently entertained me.

Melinda - Not all sexy and she didn't have her usual great passion and interpertation of the song. However, as usual, she was technically proficient.

Jordin - She did continue to improve ever week, until this week. I agree with Jim that this was a bad performance for her. However, I think overall she was still the 3rd best performer last night and she has shown the most growth and has a good chance of reaching the final 2.

Sanjaya - Paula or someone nailed it. He is playing it very smart with working the portion of the audience that votes the most - preteen and teen girls. His vocals didn't suck last night, but they weren't good either.

Chris Richardson - I can't stand him for some reason. But, his performance was the best of the rest.

Lakisha - My wife commented on it immediately.. terrible outfit for her. Like others said, she seemed completely out of breath very early in the song and her vocals certainly suffered as a result.

Phil - I think he may want to go home so he can spend more time with his new baby. Poor vocal and even poorer performance.


Haley - I disagree with Jim on the outfit as her body was as tantalizing as ever. However, the face makeup was badly done and even her great body couldn't distract me from a terrible vocal and poor performance overall.


Bottom 3: Haley, Phil, and in a shocker Lakisha.

Who goes: Phil.

Edited: I loved Simon's comment about Haley's strategy.

[path12]

I kind of hope Haley stays around because at this rate she should be in a thong next week.

[sabotai]

Actually, I would not be surprised if Sanjaya goes home tonight. Now that he's put together 2 or 3 "not the worst thing ever" performances, people might have started to forget about him.

[Ksyrup]

Actually, I would not be surprised if Sanjaya goes home tonight. Now that he's put together 2 or 3 "not the worst thing ever" performances, people might have started to forget about him.

That would require a sizeable portion of his voters to be people trying to keep him on because he sucks, and I think it's wrong to think those people wouldn't still vote for him because (a) he still sucks, just not as much, and (b) I think his audience/voters are largely tweens who will love him even more after last night, not the anti-AI crowd.

But who knows...maybe he's provided all the entertainment we can stand and the people running AI are ready for him to hit the road.

[lordscarlet]

That would require a sizeable portion of his voters to be people trying to keep him on because he sucks, and I think it's wrong to think those people wouldn't still vote for him because (a) he still sucks, just not as much, and (b) I think his audience/voters are largely tweens who will love him even more after last night, not the anti-AI crowd.

But who knows...maybe he's provided all the entertainment we can stand and the people running AI are ready for him to hit the road.

I think the Stern and Vote for the Worst factor is way overhyped.

[sabotai]

That would require a sizeable portion of his voters to be people trying to keep him on because he sucks, and I think it's wrong to think those people wouldn't still vote for him because (a) he still sucks, just not as much, and (b) I think his audience/voters are largely tweens who will love him even more after last night, not the anti-AI crowd.

That's the thing, he doesn't suck as much anymore, and a lot of those people who were "Haha, I'm voting for Sanjaya" might not do it anymore. Even if he still sucked as badly, those votes trail off as the season goes on as they all go find something better to do or the trendy factor for doing it fades away. FWIW, and I don't listen to it all day, but I have not heard any of the "shock jocks" I listen to push for the Sanjaya thing as much lately (if at all).

I'm sure that his fans are more rabid then ever, but another thing is that each week, the people who have been voting for the person who just got kickd off, part of them will start voting for another contestant. Some of them might go for the "vote for the worst" trend now that their horse is gone, but now that Sanjaya hasn't really been "OMFG terrible" the past few weeks, he might not be gaining those votes.

So it's not only losing votes, but it's also gaining votes as the weeks go on. Now that he's not all over the place for being terrible anymore, he might not gain enough votes to keep pace the the real singers.

I'm not predicting it will happen, I doubt it will this week. We probably still have a few weeks of kicking off the rest of the people who have no chance in hell of winning, I'm just saying his "spotlight" has kind of faded the last two weeks with two "so-so, just not horrible" performances and I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people have forgotten about him and he didn't gain any of Gina's or Chris Sligh's votes, especially since I wouldn't guess either of them were getting votes from the demographic that Sanjaya is apparently tapping.

[Ksyrup]

I'm with lordscarlet in thinking that the anti-AI vote Sanjaya is getting is overblown, so I don't see how performing better would hurt his chances of getting votes. Eventually, it will simply get to the point where people who vote every week will have their favorite voted off, and those votes will go to the others and Sanjaya will be voted off. That is, if everything holds to form as it has in years past.

I guess it's always possible that his voters end up out-voting everyone else, but I don't see it. They can't stay up past their bedtimes to vote enough!

[sabotai]

I'm with lordscarlet in thinking that the anti-AI vote Sanjaya is getting is overblown

Overblown, yes, but not non-existant. Since AI doesn't release vote totals, and there's specualtion on if the "last 3" are really the "bottom 3 in votes", we have no idea how close Sanjaya is each week to getting kicked off. If Sanjaya is getting just 2% more than the last place person, and if 2% of his votes are "vote for the worst" and they forget about him, that's enough to do it.

[FBPro]

I kind of hope Haley stays around because at this rate she should be in a thong next week.

Not a bad thing by any means. I mentioned to my wife last night that the numbers are now getting down to the point where maybe "S-" may finally get what's coming to him.

[MJ4H]

That whole Ikea (or Acorn or whatever) guy performance was just weird. And 'pitchy!'

[sabotai]

No more almost naked Haley. :(

[FBPro]

No more almost naked Haley. :(

Sadly we still get to hear the shreks of Suckjayha.

[adubroff]

No more almost naked Haley. :(

Just set your DVR for Cinemax, April 12, 2009, 2:30AM.

[Ksyrup]

Akon was terrible. No reason for him to have been on this show twice already. I don't get what people like about him AT ALL.

J-Lo's performance was fun. I felt like I was watching Sabado Gigante. It was fun interpreting her passionate rendering of words I didn't understand into a completely different context. Even my wife was laughing, which doesn't usually happen (she just hits me and tells me to shut up).

[Easy Mac]

So since Pumpy ruined my pic request, does anyone else think Sanjaya looks strikingly similar to a certain Tudor?

http://media.americanidol.com.edgesuite.net/photos/top8performance/21947.jpg
http://media.americanidol.com.edgesuite.net/photos/top8performance/21949.jpg

[JeeberD]

Personally, I think Sanjaya has a Seth Bullock kind of thing going on. The way he looks up through the top of his eyes, and his new mustache and goatee. It's kinda freaky...

[wade moore]

Can't complain too much about the results. Sanjaya has his niche and I figure I won't be surprised to see him make it longer than Phil, maybe Chris R., and possibly even LaKisha... So that would mean top 4.. .but I can't seem him lasting past Melinda, Blake, or Jordin - who knows though...

For Phil - it seems like either what someone mentioned that he wants to go home to his baby (since he knows he won't win), or what I thought is he just personally doesn't know how he's still there.. he seems to be a bit cavalier each week assuming that he's the one going home.. as he keeps staying, it just gets weirder and weirder seeing him act like he knows he shouldn't be there.

[rkmsuf]

what like you sing in Spanish, no one knows what the fuck you are saying therefore it's good?

oh and nice tablecloth you were wearing j-blow.

what a night, acorn too.

[Ksyrup]

*Weekly Conspiracy Report*

Just wanted to point out that, once again, there was no specific tying reference made to the number of votes and who placed in the bottom 3 of the votes. In fact, it was even more vague last night than I recall from previous shows, because he just picked up from a commercial break by going through each contestant and telling them they were or were not in the bottom 3, and then at the end made some mention of 35 million votes.

[rkmsuf]

what better simon man boob talk or acorn

[Ksyrup]

You know, I remember reading something about this a couple of weeks ago, but forgot. Turns out Akon's performance wasn't live, it was tape-delayed...by 3 weeks.

"Akon performs first, except not really. This was taped the night of the Top 10 results show."

[Easy Mac]

well its not quite a haley sex tape (thank god), but ....

Olivia Mojica (season 2) extremely explicit sex tape.

edit:

It seems there is a trailer on the website I hxxp'd which has some explicit aspects, so you just has to placate your fanTastic Ego somehow else.

[dfisher]

*Weekly Conspiracy Report*

Just wanted to point out that, once again, there was no specific tying reference made to the number of votes and who placed in the bottom 3 of the votes. In fact, it was even more vague last night than I recall from previous shows, because he just picked up from a commercial break by going through each contestant and telling them they were or were not in the bottom 3, and then at the end made some mention of 35 million votes.

Except he said that he will ask the three people with the lowest amount of votes to go to the center of the stage.

[Ksyrup]

well its not quite a haley sex tape (thank god), but ....

Olivia Mojica (season 2) extremely explicit sex tape.

edit:

It seems there is a trailer on the website I hxxp'd which has some explicit aspects, so you just has to placate your fanTastic Ego somehow else.

Never heard of her, but I didn't watch the show back then.

[Ksyrup]

Bitter much?


And, oddly, Paris Bennett has joined Vote for the Worst (http://www.tmz.com/2007/04/13/former-idol-reject-is-trying-to-screw-the-show/) in their quest to make Sanjaya Malakar the new American Idol. Paris says, she “and a few other contestants” are using the Web site to “screw with the results.” “We want to see him [Sanjaya] win because it’ll kind of prove that ‘American Idol’ is kind of losing its taste….it kinda isn’t going for talent anymore and more for popularity.”

[Ksyrup]

Tonight's rumored song list from MJ's Blog:


Somebody named “Scrappy” at the Vote for the Worst (http://www.votefortheworst.com/) message boards who claims to be part of the Martina McBride camp, claims to know the song choices for tonight’s performance show:

1. Phil Stacey - “Ain’t Goin’ Down Till The Sun Goes Up” by Garth Brooks
2. Jordin Sparks - “You’re Still The One” by Shania Twain
3. Sanjaya Malakar - “Boot Scootin Boogie” by Brooks & Dunn
4. Lakisha Jones - “Concrete Angel” by Martina McBride
5. Chris Richardson - “Over And Over” by Nelly and Tim McGraw
6. Melinda Doolittle - “Why Haven’t I Heard From You” by Reba McEntire
7. Blake Lewis - “Come A Little Closer” by Dierks Bentley

Scrappy also says “Blake impressed Martina and producers and will definitely be going last. He will be performing an acoustic, funky version of the song.” AND, “Jordin originally chose “I Will Always Love You”, got it cleared, and was expected to go last and Blake was expected to go last next week for Idol Gives Back. Jordin really impressed in early rehearsals and it was suggested to her that she save it for her inspirational song next week and perform it acappella, which she agreed to.”

These are rumors, people rumors, so don’t kill me if they don’t come true. I’ll update with new information as it arrives.

Martina McBride is this week’s guest mentor. She’ll perform (http://www.etonline.com/tv/spotlight/47808/) ”Anyway,”– the first single from her just-released “Waking Up Laughing“ CD–on tomorrow night’s results show.

[Logan]

Why am I not surprised that the eyebrow-raising head-bopper would select that shit song?

[wade moore]

I haven't looked at the spoilers yet (I'm assuming it's country which is good for country fans like me), but i love this.

At the end of PTI TK says - "Time to see if Melinda can turn a country song into a showtune"

Awesome.

[Mustang]

Sanjaya may sing that?

Good god...

[Solecismic]

That list has been making the rounds. I got burned the last time I used a new source for a list, so I'm not going to write a preview based on that one.

All I can say about Sanjaya's choice is that he's showing more than a little hubris if he goes in that direction. He may be cementing some of his fan base by trying to be cute, but he'll be losing the momentum he gained by sounding half-decent the last couple of weeks.

Nice job by the eternally mediocre Paris Bennett. With her first album just out, I have to wonder where she took PR lessons.

[adubroff]

All I can say about Sanjaya's choice is that he's showing more than a little hubris if he goes in that direction. He may be cementing some of his fan base by trying to be cute, but he'll be losing the momentum he gained by sounding half-decent the last couple of weeks.



I think Sanjaya should have done "Friends in Low Places" if he was really looking for irony.

I'm suprised that there wasn't a fist fight for Jordin's song.

[Logan]

I think Sanjaya should have done "Friends in Low Places" if he was really looking for irony.

I'm suprised that there wasn't a fist fight for Jordin's song.

Speaking of, how do they decide who gets which song? Is there a picking order?

[Solecismic]

Speaking of, how do they decide who gets which song? Is there a picking order?

Little known Idol fact: fist fights.

How else did Scott Savol make the final five?

[Logan]

I'll probably be in the minority, but I didn't like Jordin's performance there (the song posted above was obviously wrong), and I'm a fan of hers.

And yep, Simon said that she has now shown she could win.

[Easy Mac]

Finally, Simon has decided to just say Sanjaya was horrible, which he was.

[Logan]

Finally, Simon has decided to just say Sanjaya was horrible, which he was.

People will undoubtedly say that he was too mean, but come on...it's been a farce for a while and when you keep trotting him out there, you should expect it to get ugly.

And by the way, maybe he could have done a halfway decent job with that if he wasn't cozying up to the backup singers and running around the entire time.

[Easy Mac]

Chris is singing like he has a rat in his throat.

[Logan]

Liked: Phil (wow), Melinda

Disliked: Jordin, Lakisha, Sanjaya, Blake

Continue to fucking despise: Chris

[sabotai]

Good to see Sanjaya being Sanjaya again.

[Drake]

No one should sing "When Stars Go Blue" except Bono & the Corrs (but I'll give Ryan Adams a pass since he wrote it and all). And yes, I'm looking at you, Tim McGraw.

[adubroff]

My ranking:
1. Blake - liked him better than the judges
2. Melinda - stretched genre a bit, thought she was good
3. Jordin - rebound performance by me
4. Lakisha - better than the judges thought
5. Phil - worse than the judges thought
6. Chris - he stinks
7. Svenjaya - he really stinks

I predict Chris goes home.

[Flasch186]

some producer deserves a raise because after Simon rolled his eyes at Chris' VT comment it was a quick save for him. Im sure someone piped in with some pertinent info regarding Simon's callous behavior.

[Easy Mac]

That was an atrocious night.

[Lathum]

2. Melinda - stretched genre a bit, thought she was good





is this a surprise?

[adubroff]

is this a surprise?

I should have expounded. I thought Melinda stretched and sung something outside her genre, something which she is frequently criticized for not doing. I generally don't have that big a problem with her not doing so, so I probably am not the best one to praise her for pulling it off.

[MJ4H]

I was gonna say if people are complaining that that wasn't country enough, there is no pleasing you guys.

[Easy Mac]

some producer deserves a raise because after Simon rolled his eyes at Chris' VT comment it was a quick save for him. Im sure someone piped in with some pertinent info regarding Simon's callous behavior.

I did the same thing. Chris may have meant it deeply, but it just came across as pandering.

[Solecismic]

Country night, like many other broad-based themes, is a tradition on American Idol. Unlike most years, none of the 24 semi-finalists were native country singers. Yet, as always, the theme went fairly well. Country music is pleasant enough and accessible.

I am thankful that none of the seven reamaining contestants pandered to the audience by wearing a cowboy hat. That could have something to do with the recent Don Imus controversy, though hair straighteners and extensions are more the rule for the African American ladies currently dominating the competition - not really a nappy thing going on there.

Overall, it was a hit or miss night. Three hits, four misses. I was expecting better, though overall it was a light, mildly enjoyable show.

On to the ratings:

1. Melinda Doolittle. Already her seventh top score in the ratings, tying the record set by Katharine McPhee last season (I'm sure if I did these back in the days of Kelly Clarkson, the record would be much higher). Again, I find myself going back to old commentaries and wondering how to critique a professional singer in an amateur competition. She showed off her lower register with a very controlled and nuanced performance. Score of 93.

2. Jordin Sparks. After two down weeks - her first of the year - she picked a singer's song and interpreted it neatly and cleanly, letting the strength of her voice and purity of her notes stand on their own. Jordin never knocks me out or overly wows me, but she clearly has enormous talent and belongs among the elite in this competition. Score of 87.

3. Phil Stacey. What the hell happened? Fester can sing country. I had no idea. He honestly should switch genres immediately and never question that decision again. Score of 86.

4. Blake Lewis. A huge drop down to number 4. I found his choice of songs very indulgent. He missed far too many notes, his falsetto needs practice. I was bored, didn't enjoy that rendition at all. And it didn't even sound country - I may have been more likely to excuse him had he kept with the theme. This was his worst showing of the season. Score of 64.

5. LaKisha Jones. We criticize people for not leaving their comfort zones, and LaKisha deserved a lot of criticism in the early weeks for that reason. Well, she heard the criticism, and the last three weeks has left her comfort zone. It didn't work tonight. She had more trouble with pitch, and never understood the pacing of the song. Local girl may be in some trouble now. Score of 57.

6. Chris Richardson. Please forgive me, but we all feel horribly about what happened at Virginia Tech. Spending a few years on the other side of a big state does not give you any special insight into what's truly a global tragedy. Reminding us where you live just sounded like you were pandering for votes, and did a great disservice to your fellow contestants. I thought it was entirely appropriate that the show opened with a reminder. No more needed to be said. Ranting aside, this was an excruciatingly disjoint, uninteresting performance. And telling America that you're intentionally producing a nasal sound reminiscent of a dehydrated goat does not help your chances. Score of 52.

7. Sanjaya Malakar. After a couple of decent weeks, the bottom fell out again. It really defied criticism - at one point I thought he was trying to use the song to badly parody a gay man coming out of the closet, but that really wouldn't make sense as he seems to prefer the cuddly bad boy personna. I think he just mailed it in this week, maybe the pressure of being hated is getting to him. Score of 25.

Expected bottom three: LaKisha, Chris and Sanjaya.
Who should go: Sanjaya.
Who will go: LaKisha.

[wade moore]

On Melinda - I give her tons of credit this week. She went out of her comfort zone and completely nailed it. I'm still not a huge fan of hers, but I can't deny how good she was last night.

On Chris R. - This is more to what Jim said. A TON TON TON of kids from the Hampton Roads area go to Virginia Tech. Chris R. is a pretty young guy who is a manager at a Hooters in VA Beach. I have no doubt that he personally knows a lot of students that go there and could very well know someone directly impacted. While Ic an see how it's perceived as pandering, I have little doubt that he meant it and is more impacted than other contestants. Yes, it's a global tragedy, but sorry - those of us in VA are impacted more just like those living in and near NYC were more impacted by 9/11.

[wade moore]

Dola:

For someone who has been a Chris fan through most of the show, I thought he was TERRIBLE last night.

[lordscarlet]

I'll probably be in the minority, but I didn't like Jordin's performance there (the song posted above was obviously wrong), and I'm a fan of hers.

And yep, Simon said that she has now shown she could win.

I was amazed they didn't mention any of her bad notes.

I should have expounded. I thought Melinda stretched and sung something outside her genre, something which she is frequently criticized for not doing. I generally don't have that big a problem with her not doing so, so I probably am not the best one to praise her for pulling it off.

I was gonna say if people are complaining that that wasn't country enough, there is no pleasing you guys.

Yes, she finally went out of her comfort zone. However, I'm very disappointed that in a genre that is so incredibly popular she managed to pick a song no one has ever heard of. I think this has at least a little bit to do with people not feeling uncomfortable hearing an unfamiliar version of a familiar song.


and, I totally agree on what Wade said. Chris R. had to say something about Va Tech. Just as the Washington Nationals donned VT hats. Just as the vigils popping up all over Northern Virginia. New Yorkers have laid claim to 9/11 despite the fact that Virginia was hit by a plane as well. This is a huge tragedy for us and people be damned if they don't like Chris saying something on the show.

[wade moore]

I was amazed they didn't mention any of her bad notes.

I'm admittedly often accused of being tone def, but I only heard one bad note (a longer note unfortunately)... I thought all and all for the level of difficulty it was an outstanding performance and Jim gave a fair ranking imo..

[Ksyrup]

Obviously, my spoiler list was all wrong. Well, it wasn't my list at least. But I do think one thing was correct in there - the whole Blake/Jordin switcheroo for next week. Apparently, Jordin was supposed to close last night's show with a different song, but in the end decided to save that song for next week and close next week's show, so she switched with Blake for this week. Given how good Jordin was and how blah Blake was, I'm fairly confident that he wasn't initially intended to close the show. I'm floored that they didn't criticize his weak vocal. Way too many missed notes, not to mention that he basically has given the same style of performance for at least 3-4 weeks in a row (hey, if we're going to get on Melinda, he deserves it too). Finding your comfort zone and not simply copying yourself from one genre to the next is a fine line, but his performances are starting to feel a bit too much like a trademark at this point. It's like he's on auto-pilot, and it doesn't matter what genre they're doing, the performance is the same. It's been like that since the Who's Your Daddy song.

I thought Melinda was very good last night. I'm glad she did something different. I was expecting something from Oklahoma.

Jordin was fantastic, and I think she's #1 in my mind right now. Again, not something I'd ever want to listen to, but at her age, and with an obvious pop sensability that can cover several genres competently, she not only deserves to win, she'll probably be the most successful of the remaining bunch, too.

Phil could be the Josh Gracin of this competition, although he didn't really come into this saying (or knowing) he was a country singer. But if he wants a career, it's his only choice.

Sanjaya...I almost wish he had done Boot Scootin Boogie. Or maybe a medley. That was simply atrocious.

And don't even get me going on the "nasal is a vocal style" comment from Chris R. I almost came out of my seat and put a fist through the TV when he said that. You know, I guess chipmunk and cookie monster are vocal styles, too, but not ones most people enjoy listening to. And I don't agree that he had to say something about the VT thing, because I think it is wrong for one contestant to do it, and not the others. I don't see why they couldn't have done something very quick at the beginning, either after Ryan's intro or with him, and just let it go. The way it came off, though, was even worse, because he took some criticism and then blurted that out, and it came off looking like "I'm in deep trouble up here, let me deflect the criticism by bringing up VT." I'm sure he was going to do that regardless of the reaction to his performance (and again, I don't agree with it), but unfortunately for him, it came off even worse than the idea itself. Not that I wouldn't mind to see him gone, regardless of the reason.

[wade moore]

On Chris R. - I'm not saying he had to do it, but I think to call it disingenuous is unfair baed on how closely he is likely tied to the situation..



I agree on Blake - he's been my favorite and I didn't like this week. FWIW, his rendition of "When the Stars Go Blue" was actually pretty copy-cat of Tim McGraw in my opinion... I have commented for a couple of weeks that he needs to beat-box again.. he's gotten away from fun-creative Blake to this singing style that he seems to like and is trying to "show off his voice" which, let's face it, is not what got him here...

He needs to go back to being the fun guy that beat-boxes and dances rather than mr. echo-driven crooner or whatever you want to call it.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, the brooding, mysterious Blake character works well in small doses, but that shouldn't be the shtick he brings every week.

And I don't think Chris R. was being disengenious, but it came off that way given where he inserted the comments, and like I said, I have an issue with 1 contestant bringing it up when the others were silent about it. I think Ryan's comment at the beginning should have been it for the night, and I wonder if that was the intent of the show or if Chris R. even told them that he needed to say something. And I think Simon's comment at the end might have been a reaction to his rolling eyes thing at Chris' comment, and not necessarily planned either.

Who knows...either way, I'm hoping Chris R. goes home tonight. The "nasal is a vocal style" comment is one of the most ridiculous comments I've ever heard a singer make in my life.

[wade moore]

Who knows...either way, I'm hoping Chris R. goes home tonight. The "nasal is a vocal style" comment is one of the most ridiculous comments I've ever heard a singer make in my life.

Well, and we know how well lashing back at the judges has worked in the past (read: often it bites you in the ass)...

As much as I liked Chris R. early on, I haven't liked him lately and think he will likely go and is the most deserving person to go not named Sanjaya... Although I could see Jim being right and LaKisha going, I think she has been "exposed" recently...

Something no one has mentioned about LaKisha... throughout the show she has done an ok job of hiding her lisp in her songs... but when she sings a song where she says the word "Jesus" over and over it was just so glaring to me... And really detracts from the song... I'm not trying to insult her as I'm sure she can't help it, but let's face it, hearing a lisp in singing (this was a mild problem with Chris S. also) is just not appealing...

[Flasch186]

Whether or not Chris was being sincere wasnt my point. I was just pointing out that Simon getting caught rolling his eyes on camera was dangerous territory and whatever producer got in his ear about it did a good, perhaps even great thing, business wise.

[wade moore]

Whether or not Chris was being sincere wasnt my point. I was just pointing out that Simon getting caught rolling his eyes on camera was dangerous territory and whatever producer got in his ear about it did a good, perhaps even great thing, business wise.

I was more responding to what Jim said.

[Ksyrup]

I pretty much don't care one way or the other about Lakisha. She's got a good voice, but isn't that great of a performer, and her style is nothing I care about. I don't necessarily want her to go, and I don't care if she stays. She's clearly fighting a losing battle with Melinda and Jordin, though, and it's usually around 5-6 contestants left that we see the similar-style people start getting picked off. The only thing that could save her this season is the weak batch of contestants. I don't see how Phil, Chris R., and Sanjaya are not the next 3 to go home (in which order, who knows). Lakisha is teetering on joining that group.

I'll be shocked if Jordin, Blake, and Melinda are not the top 3. Well, maybe not shocked, but for the show to have any credibility, Lakisha is the only one of the other 4 who could be in the top 3 and not make the show look bad.

[Eaglesfan27]

Jordin was fantastic, and I think she's #1 in my mind right now. Again, not something I'd ever want to listen to, but at her age, and with an obvious pop sensability that can cover several genres competently, she not only deserves to win, she'll probably be the most successful of the remaining bunch, too.

Phil could be the Josh Gracin of this competition, although he didn't really come into this saying (or knowing) he was a country singer. But if he wants a career, it's his only choice.



Completely agree re: both of these comments. Jordin was my early favorite, and I think she has the best shot of winning this whole thing and being successful afterwards.

Phil was a shock as a country singer. I thought he was going to be bad, but that was his best performance by far.


I would rank everyone the same as Jim did, but I would give Blake about 10 more points. I enjoyed his performance for the most part. This is the first week, where I think it will be very ugly if Sanjaya doesn't go.

[Lathum]

I think Blake may be tonning it down on purpose.

He is definantly much more entertaining when he is beatboxing and "freestyling" more but if he had been doing it all along he would be criticized for that.

I think he knows he hasn't been in much danger to this point and he is just waiting untill they get to the final 4-5 before he goes back to being the old Blake, at which time everyone will praise him and he will gain more suppot because of it.

[Toddzilla]

I think Simon needs to say next week after Sandgina sings:

"I want to be very serious for a moment. Sanjaya, you are without a doubt the worst singer we have ever had at this stage of the competition. It was a colossal mistake on our part yo put you through, and it is destroying the credibility of this show every week you are on. You're a terrible singer and you need to go home. Now."

He'd go home for sure.

[Ksyrup]

I think Simon needs to say next week after Sandgina sings:

"I want to be very serious for a moment. Sanjaya, you are without a doubt the worst singer we have ever had at this stage of the competition. It was a colossal mistake on our part yo put you through, and it is destroying the credibility of this show every week you are on. You're a terrible singer and you need to go home. Now."

He'd go home for sure.

I think that would spur on Sanjaya fans and AI haters even more.

Personally, I think they need to come up with some way to trick him into getting into a pissing match with Simon. We need some sort of "YOUR DAMN RIGHT I ORDERED THE CODE RED!" moment. Not gonna happen, I know, but I think the show coming out and admitting a mistake would backfire on them terribly.

[Thomkal]

Well I thought this might be the first chance we've had in a while of getting Sanjaya off the show, but sadly I don't think that will happen. I think Chris will be going, not because of his VT comments, but because of his bickering with Simon over his nasal singing. It's almost never a good thing when you get into a disagreement with Simon. I didn't mind his VT comments really given his connection to the area. I don't think he did it to make himself look good after the judges panned his performance, they just have a short time to comment after the judges critique and felt the need to add his support regardless of his performance.

Phil was certainly the surprise of the night, kept his voice under control and didn't try to shout like he does most songs. I couldn't understand what he said while Simon was commenting about his performance, but it sounded like country was where he wanted to go with his career.

Thought the divas would struggle, was right about two in my opinion. Let this be a warning to future Idol contestants, never ever sing a song from a past Idol contestant. It never sounds as good as the original. Lakisha made a very bad choice that might land her in the Bottom 3 for the first time. But I don't think she's in danger of being eliminated. I thought Jordin really struggled at the beginning of the song. Looked uncomfortable and nervous and sounded "off". She picked it up towards the end of the song, but I would put that as one of her worst nights. Give her credit though for singing a song in front of the person who made it a hit.

Melinda was the surprise because I thought it was going to be a disaster for her when she picked a song not even Martina McBride had heard of. Anyone know where that song came from? She gave it a surprisingly good country performance I thought, but I was distracted by the green tent she was wearing.

Also did not like Blake's performance-he looked completely uncomfortable and I thought he really struggled with the song. It goes without saying I didn't like Sanjaya's performance nor his snotty attitude afterward. Hope that begins to turn the tide against him.

[Ksyrup]

Melinda was the surprise because I thought it was going to be a disaster for her when she picked a song not even Martina McBride had heard of. Anyone know where that song came from? She gave it a surprisingly good country performance I thought, but I was distracted by the green tent she was wearing.

I have no idea where that song came from, but then again, until last night I had never seen Martina McBride nor heard one of her songs.

[wade moore]

I have no idea where that song came from, but then again, until last night I had never seen Martina McBride nor heard one of her songs.

Even as out of touch with mainstream as you are, if you've heard any country in the last 15 years i'd be surprised if you haven't heard a Martina song...

But, as a country fan, I didn't know the song either - I think it's a very obscure song.. no idea if that was intentional.

[Ksyrup]

Well, the only song I can positively link to her is the one performed last night, but you're right, I've likely heard her songs before, I just didn't know it. Still, as little country as I hear (technically, I don't listen to any of it :p ), it's also possible I've never heard her before. I didn't recognize her song last night, for instance.

[path12]

Who knows...either way, I'm hoping Chris R. goes home tonight. The "nasal is a vocal style" comment is one of the most ridiculous comments I've ever heard a singer make in my life.

Word. I thought that was one of the most arrogant and snotty comebacks I've ever heard on this show. I haven't really liked him anyway so I might be somewhat biased, but after that I hope to hell he's gone soon.

[Toddzilla]

Who knows...either way, I'm hoping Chris R. goes home tonight. The "nasal is a vocal style" comment is one of the most ridiculous comments I've ever heard a singer make in my life.

Word. I thought that was one of the most arrogant and snotty comebacks I've ever heard on this show. I haven't really liked him anyway so I might be somewhat biased, but after that I hope to hell he's gone soon.What an idiot....

"I sounded like shit? Well....I was trying to sound like shit. Shitty is a singing style. Didn't you know that? Um....er....peace to Virginia Tech!"

[Ksyrup]

Are you agreeing with my comment about Martina McBride, or calling me an idiot? :D

[Ksyrup]

It seemed obvious to me, but apparently enough people, spurred on, no doubt, by the Don Imus thing, are complaining about Simon's eye-roll that he had to release a statement clarifying what was the only common-sense interpretation of what happened:


Simon Cowell has spoken out about the incident on last night's episode of 'American Idol' when Chris Richardson interrupted the judge to offer his condolences to the victims of the Virginia tragedy.

Mr Cowell appeared to roll his eyes at Chris as he extended his "prayers" to those involved in the shooting.

But Cowell told TMZ: "I couldn't hear what Chris had said. I was talking to Paula. My reaction (rolling my eyes) was to what he had said previously, that singing nasally is a form of singing."

Many viewers thought that Simon rolled his eyes because he thought Chris' comments were insincere, coming as they did in between a barrage of heavy criticism.
But the famously rude panellist appears to disagree.

"When I watched the show back, I was horrified" he added.

[Mustang]

Thank...

God...

[RedKingGold]

Sanjaya will be washing my car tonight. Welcome to Hollywood.

[Lathum]

About time.

He is cryng like a little bitch

[Buccaneer]

So all of a sudden he got less votes this week. Uh huh.

[MJ4H]

I can see why that would be hard to believe????????

[Young Drachma]

So he lost, eh? I didn't know or care, but I kept reading about it. Whatever, if William Hung could sell a few albums and go on tour, Sanjaya will surely be infesting someone's airwaves before long.

[Danny]

Not hard to believe, I'm sure Haley's voters didn't put their vote into Sanjaya, plus he was even worse than normal.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I would point out to the conspiracy theorists, that Seacrest specifically said he was dividing the groups by those who "received the most votes" and those that "received the least votes," or words pretty much to that effect.

[wade moore]

I would point out to the conspiracy theorists, that Seacrest specifically said he was dividing the groups by those who "received the most votes" and those that "received the least votes," or words pretty much to that effect.

You beat me to the punch, I was going to come say it too.

And I'm sorry, but it is VERY logical that Sanjaya would get less votes now.

[Ksyrup]

I would point out to the conspiracy theorists, that Seacrest specifically said he was dividing the groups by those who "received the most votes" and those that "received the least votes," or words pretty much to that effect.

Actually, what he said was he was dividing them into the "groups that had the most and least total votes." I was waiting to see how he phrased it, and the minute he said that, I saw the loophole. If the top 2 and bottom 2 had so many and so few votes that you could switch out people in the middle and still say that the top 3 and bottom 3 groups had the most and least total votes...there you go.

Say the voting went like this (the names are really interchangeable, all that matters is that 2-4 of them would have a pretty close number of votes in the middle):

Melinda 12

Jordin 8
Phil 5
Chris R. 5

Blake 5
Lakisha 2
Sanjaya 1

If they broke the 2 sets of 3 into least and most total votes among them, it seems to me that, in this example, Blake, Phil, and Chris R. are interchangeable. They could switch out that third person and still correctly claim that each group had the least and most total votes, collectively. That's what he said.

Too often we've seen the third person in the group be someone no one expected to be in the bottom 3. A couple of weeks ago, it was Chris R.. And each week, that person is immediately saved and then the bottom 2 are left. I still see the possiblity that Blake was put into the bottom 3 for no other reason than to create a bit of discussion (or Chris R. put into the top 4 for the same reason, given the nasally comment and VT thing).

Sorry, I was all over that last night, and it just convinced me even more that something is probably up. Nothing that changes the outcome - Sanjaya is gone! - but something to stir up the audience a bit, to "give them something to talk about," particularly since Sanjaya is gone.

[Ksyrup]

Oh, and I have to say...Fergie is awful. Ugly as hell and can't sing. Is this her attempt at getting into Avril Lavigne territory or something, bringing in an actual "rock" band (oooh I'm cool look at my acoustic guitar with the Dio sticker on it!)? My wife had never seen or heard of her before, and exclaimed, "Oh my God?! Is that Kirstie Alley?!"

[Eaglesfan27]

Oh, and I have to say...Fergie is awful. Ugly as hell and can't sing. Is this her attempt at getting into Avril Lavigne territory or something, bringing in an actual "rock" band (oooh I'm cool like at my acoustic guitar with the Dio sticker on it!)? My wife had never seen or heard of her before, and exclaimed, "Oh my God?! Is that Kirstie Alley?!"

ROFL! My wife said the same thing about Fergie.


I also don't think it is hard to believe that Sanjaya was legitimately beat. The vote total has gone up the last few weeks, and it's not hard to believe that it is not Sanjaya picking up most of the "new" votes as well as the votes that went to Haley and other beaten contestants. I'd imagine the vast majority of Haley voters went to one of the other girls.

[Ksyrup]

I don't think they fix the vote at all - I've said all along Sanjaya was bound to go by at worst, the week where there were only 5 left. That said, I still think there is reason to believe they screw with who they say is in the top and bottom 3. They're just too vague, and there have been enough strange, 1-time inclusions in each category over th years for me not to believe that theory has some legs.

Plus, it gives me something to do/think about during the vote-off episode, which is usually terrible until the final 10 minutes, anyway.

[Ksyrup]

ROFL! My wife said the same thing about Fergie.

After that happened, I said, "That's Fergie, she's in the Black Eyed Peas. They did that song My Humps." I acted like I knew what the hell I was talking about. She goes, "Your WHAT?" I said, "Exactly!"

Yes, we're in our mid-30s and getting older every day.

[rkmsuf]

that fergie is a no talent hag

[MJ4H]

It's not as if there aren't people that monitor fairness in the voting process. And that disclaimer at the end is only in case there was some manipulation of the voting going on through what is termed "power voting." Does that term have some leeway? Maybe, but I'm certain they would have to defend the process to the Standards and Practices committee.

[rkmsuf]

What is the actual prize for winning this thing outside of being "The American Idol"?

Is there like a new car or money or something?

[Danny]

You get to sleep with the judge of your choice. Simon Cowell was very relieved when Clay did not win season two.

[Eaglesfan27]

What is the actual prize for winning this thing outside of being "The American Idol"?

Is there like a new car or money or something?


I think it is a guarantee of a million dollar signing bonus on the record deal.

[wade moore]

Sorry, I was all over that last night, and it just convinced me even more that something is probably up. Nothing that changes the outcome - Sanjaya is gone! - but something to stir up the audience a bit, to "give them something to talk about," particularly since Sanjaya is gone.:rolleyes:

[rkmsuf]

:rolleyes:

it would be far more interesting had he still been in

I wonder if they top the vote totals again next week.

[Buccaneer]

I think the voting totals are actually closer than that and with the loophole, they can mix and match however the producers feel that will generate the audience coming back week after week. You knew something had to be up when the media and others started to ramp up the "AI integrity" thing this week. They will do anything to not kill the golden goose. (that and welcome to hollywood, where they made it an art form in doing stuff like this).

[wade moore]

I think the voting totals are actually closer than that and with the loophole, they can mix and match however the producers feel that will generate the audience coming back week after week. You knew something had to be up when the media and others started to ramp up the "AI integrity" thing this week. They will do anything to not kill the golden goose. (that and welcome to hollywood, where they made it an art form in doing stuff like this).:rolleyes:

[wade moore]

FWIW, I encourage the conspiracy theorists to look at DialIdol and see the bottom 3 - they were spot on.

[Critch]

FWIW, I encourage the conspiracy theorists to look at DialIdol and see the bottom 3 - they were spot on.

Well then they are obviously part of the conspiracy :)

[Arles]

Let me just say that Martina McBride did easily the best "guest live performance" in the history of Idol. Comparing her performance to each of Fergie, Gwen Stefani, J-Lo, Michael Buble (whom I am a big fan of), Akon and Tony Bennett was akin to comparing Kelly Clarkson to Sanjaya.

Let this be a reminder to the American Idol staff to focus a little more on getting in good singers to guest perform in what they like to call a "singing competition".

[Klinglerware]

FWIW, I encourage the conspiracy theorists to look at DialIdol and see the bottom 3 - they were spot on.

Though they are not spot on every week...

[wade moore]

Let me just say that Martina McBride did easily the best "guest live performance" in the history of Idol. Comparing her performance to each of Fergie, Gwen Stefani, J-Lo, Michael Buble (whom I am a big fan of), Akon and Tony Bennett was akin to comparing Kelly Clarkson to Sanjaya.

Let this be a reminder to the American Idol staff to focus a little more on getting in good singers to guest perform in what they like to call a "singing competition".

Totally agreed on Martina and I made the comment last night to my fiance. Now, I've only watched the last two seasons so my sample size is smaller - but she really smacked down all of thsoe lip-synching popstars.

Country rules! ;)

[Ksyrup]

I don't see what's so :rolleyes: about them possibly fixing something that has no bearing on the ultimate outcome of that week's vote. I've said it before, but I'll say it again...I'm not saying they sent Sanjaya home when he didn't have the lowest vote count. I believe he did. I also believe Lakisha was in the bottom 3 based on her votes. I have doubts as to whether Blake really was. His inclusion there serves 2 purposes - it provides additional "water cooler" talk to sustain the show through 6 AI-free days, and it potentially energizes the fan base of someone who, by all accounts, most people and the judges think is top 3 material. And the vague way they do their results doesn't give me any comfort that something like that might not - might not - be going on.

That's all I'm saying.

Oh, and Arles, with that Michael Buble comment...you are dead to me. ;)

[Ksyrup]

I think it is a guarantee of a million dollar signing bonus on the record deal.

Don't they usually give the top 2 a Ford as well?

[Eaglesfan27]

Let me just say that Martina McBride did easily the best "guest live performance" in the history of Idol.


I completely agree and I'm not a fan of country in general. Simon appeared to be giving an enthusiastic standing ovation which I rarely see.

[Eaglesfan27]

Don't they usually give the top 2 a Ford as well?


Yeah, that rings a bell as well.

[Toddzilla]

Don't they usually give the top 2 a Ford as well?Seems more fitting for the bottom two.

"Hey, sorry you lost. Here's the keys to your new Festiva. Now beat it."

[wade moore]

I don't see what's so :rolleyes: about them possibly fixing something that has no bearing on the ultimate outcome of that week's vote. I've said it before, but I'll say it again...I'm not saying they sent Sanjaya home when he didn't have the lowest vote count. I believe he did. I also believe Lakisha was in the bottom 3 based on her votes. I have doubts as to whether Blake really was. His inclusion there serves 2 purposes - it provides additional "water cooler" talk to sustain the show through 6 AI-free days, and it potentially energizes the fan base of someone who, by all accounts, most people and the judges think is top 3 material. And the vague way they do their results doesn't give me any comfort that something like that might not - might not - be going on.

That's all I'm saying.

Oh, and Arles, with that Michael Buble comment...you are dead to me. ;)

I just find the grassy knoll talk to be a bit silly. When he addresses it specifically, you find some loophole. What do you need him to say - Blake, you had the 3rd least votes, LaKisha, you have the 2nd least, Sanjaya you have the least? It's just too cumbersone. I just feel you're looking for somethin gout of nothing here. For weeks you've said he says nothing about the bottom 3 being the lowest vote getters. He does, and you find some other loophole. I'd get annoyed if he had to spell that out every week.

[Ksyrup]

I found a loophole because I think the way he phrased it was purposeful.

Look, I'm an attorney, and I make my living by reviewing things just like this, to make sure my clients aren't leaving themselves open to unnecessary risk because someone says something in a particular way that can have alternate meanings, yet still say they addressed whatever the issue is. I also do a fair bit of the same kind of "wordsmithing" for my clients. I know how the game is played. And when you have a company that intentionally changes the facts for the "entertainment value of the show" the way this one does (cut-and-paste auditions to appear like they were in front of the judges, or the auditions alleged to have been in Austin that weren't, for instance), then I'm not giving them the benefit of the doubt - I'll read into what he says precisely what he isn't saying.

[wade moore]

I found a loophole because I think the way he phrased it was purposeful.

Look, I'm an attorney, and I make my living by reviewing things just like this, to make sure my clients aren't leaving themselves open to unnecessary risk because someone says something in a particular way that can have alternate meanings, yet still say they addressed whatever the issue is. I also do a fair bit of the same kind of "wordsmithing" for my clients. I know how the game is played. And when you have a company that intentionally changes the facts for the "entertainment value of the show" the way this one does (cut-and-paste auditions to appear like they were in front of the judges, or the auditions alleged to have been in Austin that weren't, for instance), then I'm not giving them the benefit of the doubt - I'll read into what he says precisely what he isn't saying.

So, like i said, you're saying he would have to look at each individual person and say "you were the X placed # of votes"?

[Ksyrup]

No, I think there are a variety of ways he could say it without vaguely saying stuff like - "Here's your bottom 3" at 9:40pm, and then 15 minutes later saying, "After 38 million votes, Sanjaya you're leaving us tonight." Or, as he did last night, referencing the total group vote for the bottom and top 3.

Basically, for as long as I've been paying specific attention to this, he has yet to specifically link the votes to the individuals in the bottom 3. But he doesn't need to specifically announce each person's vote or tell them which number they were to satisfy me. Instead of the usual boasting about the number of votes and segue into the "bottom 3," why not say something like, "Thanks to you, we received an AMAZING 32 million votes last night. And right now, we're going to find out who the bottom 3 vote-getters were, based on YOUR votes."

Last night was as close as he's come to linking the voting process to the bottom or top 3, but as I pointed out, he did it by saying they were the lowest vote-getters as a group. That leaves all sorts of wiggle room, IMO.

[wade moore]

*sigh*...

[Mustang]

"Thanks to you, we received an AMAZING 32 million votes last night. And right now, we're going to find out who the bottom 3 vote-getters were, based on YOUR votes."


Don't forget to add in that it was for all the voters both male and female across all timezones in the United States for the full time period that voting was open.

The way you phrase it, it still leaves the potential open that they would only be counting 8:00-8:15 PM CST.

:p :D

[Ksyrup]

*sigh*...

Hey, you asked! :)

[wade moore]

Hey, you asked! :):D

[Draft Dodger]

my wife made a great observation about McBride - everytime she's about to mention God, her arm goes up in the air. predicted it perfectly during her performance. had me LOLing.

[Ksyrup]

That suck was teh suck, but she has a great voice.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I found a loophole because I think the way he phrased it was purposeful.

Look, I'm an attorney, and I make my living by reviewing things just like this, to make sure my clients aren't leaving themselves open to unnecessary risk because someone says something in a particular way that can have alternate meanings, yet still say they addressed whatever the issue is. I also do a fair bit of the same kind of "wordsmithing" for my clients. I know how the game is played. And when you have a company that intentionally changes the facts for the "entertainment value of the show" the way this one does (cut-and-paste auditions to appear like they were in front of the judges, or the auditions alleged to have been in Austin that weren't, for instance), then I'm not giving them the benefit of the doubt - I'll read into what he says precisely what he isn't saying.

Because this show is a contest (in which contestants will receive monetary value), you would agree though that the FCC would prevent Idol from actually manipulating the results? So, I would agree that proper wordsmithing would allow them to do what you say (although it's up in the air if they are in fact doing that), but it would not allow them to kick off a contestant who did not in fact have the lowest votes.

The initial point about what Seacrest said this week was more about trying to show that Sanjaya was in fact legitimately voted off, not that AI was picking and choosing themselves who to vote off.

As for the little disclaimer at the end, with the way it is worded about "power voting." I would say two things. First, any legitimate reading of that by a court/jury would be that AI is going to have to prove a fraud on the voting system was attempted in order to invoke the clause. Second, if AI lawyers think they have sufficiently protected their clients from purposely manipulating the results at their whim by inclusion of the short clause at the very end of the show, they are bad lawyers.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I found a loophole because I think the way he phrased it was purposeful.

Look, I'm an attorney, and I make my living by reviewing things just like this, to make sure my clients aren't leaving themselves open to unnecessary risk because someone says something in a particular way that can have alternate meanings, yet still say they addressed whatever the issue is. I also do a fair bit of the same kind of "wordsmithing" for my clients. I know how the game is played. And when you have a company that intentionally changes the facts for the "entertainment value of the show" the way this one does (cut-and-paste auditions to appear like they were in front of the judges, or the auditions alleged to have been in Austin that weren't, for instance), then I'm not giving them the benefit of the doubt - I'll read into what he says precisely what he isn't saying.

Because this show is a contest (in which contestants will receive monetary value), and in which voters are charged for voting, you would agree though that the FCC and general fraud laws would prevent Idol from actually manipulating the results? So, I would agree that proper wordsmithing would allow them to do what you say (although it's up in the air if they are in fact doing that), but it would not allow them to kick off a contestant who did not in fact have the lowest votes.

The initial point from me was about what Seacrest said this week was more about trying to show that Sanjaya was in fact legitimately voted off and that that AI was not picking and choosing itself who to vote off.

As for the little disclaimer at the end, with the way it is worded about "power voting." I would say two things. First, any legitimate reading of that by a court/jury would be that AI is going to have to prove outside fraud on the voting system was attempted in order to invoke the clause. Second, if AI lawyers think they have sufficiently protected their clients from purposely manipulating the results at their whim by inclusion of the short written clause at the very end of the show, they are bad lawyers. And by results, I mean the person voted off, not the top 3/bottom 3 thing you are suggesting.

[Ksyrup]

Because this show is a contest (in which contestants will receive monetary value), and in which voters are charged for voting, you would agree though that the FCC and general fraud laws would prevent Idol from actually manipulating the results? So, I would agree that proper wordsmithing would allow them to do what you say (although it's up in the air if they are in fact doing that), but it would not allow them to kick off a contestant who did not in fact have the lowest votes.

The initial point from me was about what Seacrest said this week was more about trying to show that Sanjaya was in fact legitimately voted off and that that AI was not picking and choosing itself who to vote off.

I think I made it abundantly clear that in no way am I suggesting that AI is picking who gets voted off, but rather playing with who is really in "the bottom 3" to throw a little excitement into the show. Blake was not going home last night whether or not he did, in fact, have one of the 3 lowest vote totals from Tuesday night. If he didn't, and it was, say, Phil or Chris R., maybe they thought that was just a bit too "by the book" and wanted to get people thinking that Blake might be in real danger. That kind of voter manipulation is no different than the way the producers focused on certain contestants during the auditions. But it wouldn't have any direct effect on the legitimacy of the voting results in any week.

Thankfully, Sanjaya got the fewest votes. Although if he didn't, I'm not going to complain about it, either. :)

[dfisher]

Last week, Ryan specifically said before he read the results that he would ask the three contestants that received the fewest amouont of votes to go to the center of the stage. I don't think you can state it much more clearly than that.

[Pumpy Tudors]

who cry more, sanjaya or little girl who love sanjaya

[Toddzilla]

I cry, for we won't see her anymore...
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/3481/2400sm9oi7.jpg

[Crim]

I cry, for we won't see her anymore...
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/3481/2400sm9oi7.jpg

Aaaaargggghh!!! My eyes!!! Damn you, Toddzilla! DAMN YOU!!!

:mad: :mad: :mad:












:D

[Ksyrup]

BTW, I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not, but Fergie's performance this week was not live. It was taped, just like Akorn's. I wonder if they were concerned she would wet herself on stage.

[MJ4H]

You could play touch football on that forehead but I dont care.

[Pumpy Tudors]

BTW, I'm not sure if I mentioned it or not, but Fergie's performance this week was not live. It was taped, just like Akorn's. I wonder if they were concerned she would wet herself on stage.
Strangely, both of these thoughts crossed my mind. One, I wondered if it was taped. Two, I wondered if they thought she might wet herself.

[Draft Dodger]

yes, when Sanjaya was voted off my wife was like "aw, no more jiggling boob shots for you". First Haley and now Sanjaya's sister - I have no reason to watch the show any more.

[Mustang]

yes, when Sanjaya was voted off my wife was like "aw, no more jiggling boob shots for you". First Haley and now Sanjaya's sister - I have no reason to watch the show any more.

LaKisha is still on.. you could get some general jiggling.

[Crim]

Gold.

[Easy Mac]

yes, when Sanjaya was voted off my wife was like "aw, no more jiggling boob shots for you". First Haley and now Sanjaya's sister - I have no reason to watch the show any more.

Those girls were blessed with the Fergie syndrome:

Big boobs, no talent and a busted face

[Ksyrup]

Today's spoiler list is guaranteed to be correct - or at least moreso than last week - since the show was taped yesterday.


Here are the song choices and performance order:

Chris Richardson “If I Could Change The World” by Eric Clapton - He wore a tie and jacket.
Melinda Doolittle “There Will Come A Day” by Faith Hill - She wore a gray dress.
Blake Lewis “Imagine” by John Lennon - He wore a purple shirt and jacket.
LaKisha Jones “I Believe” Season 3 coronation song - She wore a black strapless dress.
Phil Stacey “The Change” by Garth Brooks - He wore a blue shirt and jacket.
Jordin Sparks “You’ll Never Walk Alone” from the musical “Carousel” - She wore a beige dress.

There's basically a recap of the entire show - judge's comments, everything - at mjsbigblog.com.

[sabotai]

Today's spoiler list is guaranteed to be correct - or at least moreso than last week - since the show was taped yesterday.

With that list, what could tonight's theme be?

[Ksyrup]

Inspirational songs, for the America Gives Back thing they're doing on Wednesday.

[Eaglesfan27]

I thought all Tuesday shows were live? I wonder if they advertise that tonight's show is taped?

[sabotai]

Inspirational songs, for the America Gives Back thing they're doing on Wednesday.

Ugh, Geez...who picks these themes? They should be fired.

[Ksyrup]

I thought all Tuesday shows were live? I wonder if they advertise that tonight's show is taped?

I assume it's solely because they're getting ready for the big "event" on Wednesday.

[Logan]

Is it wrong for me to wish for Chris to have a horrific accident so he can never move his neck again?

[Easy Mac]

I'm not trying to be too rude, but Blake reminded me of Chris Reeves in a wheelchair, he had just this straightforward stare and wouldn't move his head.

[Easy Mac]

wait, so do they have something special happening tomorrow night?

[Thomkal]

I would have thought someone would have cautioned Lakisha from doing another Idol's song after she ended up in the Bottom 3 last week. I think she'll be in the Bottom 3, probably with Chris and Blake.

[Ksyrup]

Is it wrong for me to wish for Chris to have a horrific accident so he can never move his neck again?

If we wish in tandem, will that double the chances?

Honestly, I wish Sanjaya was still in the competition and this kid gone. He's starting to approach Mikaylah annoyance status for me.

I thought Jordin was an incredible letdown tonight. Maybe they built her performance and the song up too much, but I thought the first half of the song she was pitchy, and then she tried to make up for it with a huge ending, and I didn't like that, either (she sang it fine, I just didn't like the way it went from 0 to 60 in a blink). And the song itself was terrible - that was probably why I didn't enjoy it at all.

Blake was meh, Melinda was great as usual, Phil was actually decent, and Lakisha was bad.

BOttom 3 - Lakisha, Phil, and Blake. If they want to mix it up a bit, Jordin.

[Solecismic]

Now that Sanjaya and his versatile hair are gone, it's time to get back to business on American Idol. Perhaps that's what this week's theme, "Idol Gives Back," really means. You guys finally got rid of Sanjaya for us, now we'll give back something in return.

I suspect that I'd have to be living in a cave the last two months not to know what's really happening. The truth of the matter is we have Tivo, and whenever that banner goes up on the screen and we see Simon wandering around talking to children, that fast-forward button comes in mighty handy. So, apparently Idol convinced some companies to donate some money in return for exposure on the biggest television show in the country. Okay, that's pretty cool. And we got through an hour-long show in just under 25 minutes. Yeah, Tivo!

There was no celebrity coach this week, which was sad, because we found out what songs inspired the kids, and it would have been nice for them to have had some help singing along. I find myself wistfully thinking of Haley Scarnato, and how she could inspire me personally. By now, had she survived, she'd be singing a cappella in a bikini made from guitar picks and dental floss.

With that in mind, on to the ratings...

1. Melinda Doolittle. Who else? Score of 92.

2. Jordin Sparks. I was reminded a lot of Katharine McPhee belting out Somewhere Over the Rainbow. I liked it. Some really quality work, especially toward the end. Score of 88.

3. Phil Stacey. So, it wasn't a great night. He is improving, and this wasn't a whole lot worse than his season-best last week. He might be a one-trick pony with the country-like ballads, though. Score of 74.

4. Blake Lewis. It was dull, and a very poor choice of songs. What happened to the old Blake, the guy who hid his lack of power with contemporary styling and a host of gimmicks? If this guy thinks he can win by trying to outsing the singers, he's smoking Sanjaya's hair extensions. Score of 69.

5. LaKisha Jones. She's tired. She's rushing through songs, stepping all over the tone, especially early on. Local girl is nothing more than a powerful voice right now. I hope she can get her head back in the game in time, but it may be too late. Score of 67.

6. Chris Richardson. I refuse to be inspired by a goat. Score of 65.

Expected Bottom 3: Phil, LaKisha, Chris.
Who Should Go: Chris.
Who Will Go: Chris.

[Logan]

If we wish in tandem, will that double the chances?

I'm in. Repercussions be damned!

[Ksyrup]

The celebrity coach was Bono, but apparently they saved the footage for tomorrow night.

[JeeberD]

Yeah, I was wondering where their amazing mentor was...

[Eaglesfan27]

Expected Bottom 3: Phil, LaKisha, Chris.
Who Should Go: Chris.
Who Will Go: Chris.

Spot on with my predictions.

Also, if I hadn't read it here I never would have known it was taped tonight. Only because of the comment here, I slowed down the DVR at the end to see the quick small message about it being a taped show.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, I thought the beginning, with Seacrest in the control room, was intended to make us believe it was live. And you guys don't think they'd screw with the bottom 3 to suit their purposes!

[Fouts]

My kids were watching some Nick or Disney show today and who was the guest? Sanjaya, of course.

Blake needs to reach into his bag of tricks and come up with something.. soon.

[Lathum]

I thought this was the worst Idol episode I have seen in years.

of the 6 songs I recognized 2 of them and hated them both. Blake was terrible. Lakisha is gone I think. The only one of the 6 I almost enjoyed was phil.

I understand where the show was going but every performance was really boring.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I actually fast forwarded halfway through Melinda's song. I grant you her singing is good, and she is now trying a few different things. But she does absolutely nothing for me. She's just frickin' boring. I'm warming up to Phil, and think Jordin is pouring it on to maybe win this thing. Chris is terrible and has to go; with Lakisha following shortly thereafter.

[wade moore]

4. Blake Lewis. It was dull, and a very poor choice of songs. What happened to the old Blake, the guy who hid his lack of power with contemporary styling and a host of gimmicks? If this guy thinks he can win by trying to outsing the singers, he's smoking Sanjaya's hair extensions. Score of 69.

Yes, yes, 1,000 times yes... I said it last week, we need the fun Blake back.

[JeeberD]

I really think that AI wants Jordin to win because she's the most marketable contestant left. I really like her, but her performance wasn't anywhere near as good as the judges made it sound...

I hope that Chris or Lakisha goes, and not Blake.

[Ksyrup]

Like I said above, I wasn't all that impressed with Jordin last night. And I like her, normally. That song sucked, the first half of the song was slow to develop and she was pitchy on the lower notes, and then everybody was quick to give her high marks because she blew out the ending. Big freaking deal.

[lordscarlet]

I said to my fiance's mom the other night that I might be done with Blake if he does another slow, passionate song this week. He gets a pass for singing one of the greatest love songs of all time, though. ;) So, Blake, if you haven't shot yourself in the foot and gotten yourself voted off this week (my money is on Lakisha), listen to FOFC and give us the old Blake back!

I wanted to make a comment on Phil as well. Last week he told us how he is country and has always been country. So he comes out for the Idol Cares week and rips every shred of country out of a Garth Brooks song. Not that it was an incredibly country song to begin with, but he removed any bit of it that was there.

[MJ4H]

I really think that AI wants Jordin to win because she's the most marketable contestant left. I really like her, but her performance wasn't anywhere near as good as the judges made it sound

I got this feeling as well last night.

[mtolson]

I really think that AI wants Jordin to win because she's the most marketable contestant left. I really like her, but her performance wasn't anywhere near as good as the judges made it sound...

I hope that Chris or Lakisha goes, and not Blake.

I with you regarding Jordan. Her voice is nice, but she misses notes, strains and its begging to sound like yoddle girl from a couple years ago. It's very clear that they want her to win. While Melinda has the best voice, her market is most likely the 30 and up R&B or Gospel crowd which will not sell nearly as wells a Jordan and the 10 to 25 year old Pop crowd. Just being real. And Lakisha, just plain-old stupid moves. Singing two hits songs from previous idol winners not nearly as good as them two weeks in a row was a disaster, even though she has a good voice.

[Ksyrup]

This promises to be the worst episode of AI since last year's finale. I'm going to work out tonight...maybe I'll make it a double session so I completely miss the entire show.


Carrie Underwood will perform “I’ll Stand By You” from Africa on tomorrow night’s special. A group of celebrities will sing “Stayin Alive” including Teri Hatcher, Gwyneth Paltrow and Hugh Grant.

[Ksyrup]

The guy from EW.com nails LaKisha perfectly:

"I'd call out LaKisha's hubris in tackling 'Tasia and Carrie Underwood two weeks running, but I don't think her song choices sprang so much from pride as they did from a total lack of musical imagination — and therein lies her problem. There's a difference between being a woman with a big voice and being an actual musical artist, and after 10 weeks of live performances, LaKisha Jones has not yet crossed into the latter category."

[Ksyrup]

The dialidol.com results are pretty surprising. There's also a thought out there that between the spirit of tonight's show and Ryan's comment about some sort of surprise end to the show, that no one is actually going to be voted off tonight. The thinking is that with the charity thing going on, it would dampen the mood to axe someone in the end.

If they did that, I guess they could either have a double elimination one week, or have 3 finalists.

[Ksyrup]

BTW, looking back at dialidol.com's ranking and results for the past several weeks, they've been pretty well spot-on. The only ones they missed were people who were bunched at the bottom, so I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt on the ones that were so close.

[Logan]

The dialidol.com results are pretty surprising. There's also a thought out there that between the spirit of tonight's show and Ryan's comment about some sort of surprise end to the show, that no one is actually going to be voted off tonight. The thinking is that with the charity thing going on, it would dampen the mood to axe someone in the end.

If they did that, I guess they could either have a double elimination one week, or have 3 finalists.

So you mean they may have made a ton of money through text message votes that don't count?

What will they think of next.

[Ksyrup]

No, I think what they would do is add them to next week's votes. I believe they've done that before.

[Solecismic]

This concert is indulgent enough. If they rig the competition by not having an eviction, they risk seriously alienating their audience.

I've heard many people say The Amazing Race is the most entertaining reality show concept out there right now. But the way CBS produces it, with non-elimination rounds and constant equalizers, makes people feel that the results are essentially random.

If you take the competition out of the reality show, you are left with ordinary people in a semi-scripted environment. Essentially home movies made with better equipment.

I think Idol knows how delicate its perch is atop the ratings heap. The "Idol Gives Back" snoozefest is indulgent, but I think they know not to mess with the cash cow itself. I can't remember a prior non-elimination round, just the revote when they showed Mikalah Gordon's phone number incorrectly during her performance - which was probably on the advice of the lawyers. Maybe I'm wrong, as I did not see season one, and only a bit of season two.

[Ksyrup]

Maybe that's what I'm thinking of. Or maybe I'm confusing AI with Dancing with the Stars - I know they've done carry-over votes before.

It does seem a bit strange, though, to do it all in one show. Maybe that's the only way they can ensure this doesn't fall flat on its face - tie it to the vote-off to make sure people watch.

[Solecismic]

I can see one reason they'd do it on the fly, though. If you believe DialIdol, Melinda is in some danger tonight (a close 5th). Now DialIdol is clearly not as accurate as in past seasons because some changes have been made to the way the phone lines work, but if Melinda were to go this early, it would call the integrity of the entire concept into public question.

Which better: seriously piss off the audience temporarily or lose the best singer in the round of 6?

[Ksyrup]

I think Dialidol's been pretty accurate the past few weeks. A couple of them they didn't predict were very close to others bunched at the bottom. Haley was the only real misstep, and even those numbers are pretty close.

But you're right, that was the surprise I was referring to earlier. If you believe their numbers, she's been trending lower for 2 weeks. Last week they had her at #4.

[Ksyrup]

It's been a few weeks...we need a new scandal. It's from perezhilton, so take it with a grain of salt:


Sangina's Shocking Drug Scandal!!!! (http://perezhilton.com/topics/sangina/sanginas_shocking_drug_scandal_20070425.php)
Filed Under: Drugs (http://perezhilton.com/topics/drugs/)> Gay Gay Gay (http://perezhilton.com/topics/gay_gay_gay/)> Legal Matters (http://perezhilton.com/topics/legal_matters/)> Sangina (http://perezhilton.com/topics/sangina/)
http://perezhilton.com/upload/2007/04/how_do_we_say_this_del_31/sanjaya2.jpg
No wonder he's always sooooo chill. He's probably a stoner!

The National Enquirer (http://www.nationalenquirer.com/) has unearthed legal records that show that Sangina Malakar is hiding a deep and dark family secret. And it's not in the closet! Wink wink.

Sangina's mother was sent to jail for running an indoor pot-growing operation out of her garage!

HOTNESS!!!

Malakar's American-born mother, Jillian Blyth, was busted in Pierce County, Wash., in February 2005 after neighbors reported smelling marijuana and noticed a large vent on the garage roof, according to court records obtained exclusively by The
Enquirer.

Cops discovered 310 marijuana plants, growing lights -- and Sanjaya's then 17-year-old sister Shyamali!

Shyamali told officers that her mom was at another location in nearby Federal Way, Washington, and when the cops got there, they found a second marijuana-growing operation!

That bitch is hardcore!

Sangina's mom pleaded guilty to one felony count of unlawful manufacturing
of a controlled substance. She faced up to five years behind bars, but
was sentenced to just 30 days.

"She's very lucky," said a local law enforcement source. "The judge
obviously went easy on her because of her kids and the fact that she had
no prior record."

While his mom - seen rooting for her son in the "Idol" audience in a low-cut T-shirt emblazoned "Momjaya" - was in jail, Sanjaya lived with
an aunt.

"In interviews, Sanjaya has said that he went to live with his aunt because his mom moved to Federal Way and he wanted to stay near his school friends," said a source. "But that's only half the story. Sanjaya had no choice but to live with his aunt because his mom was behind bars. His mom's arrest was heartbreaking enough, but having her go to jail was devastating. Sanjaya has covered up his anguish ever since. Despite everything, he still loves his mom dearly and trusts her."

Posted by on April 25, 2007 1:54 PM | Permalink (http://perezhilton.com/topics/sangina/sanginas_shocking_drug_scandal_20070425.php)

[Vinatieri for Prez]

if Melinda were to go this early, it would call the integrity of the entire concept into public question.

I doubt it, since based on the vote, the majority of people would agree that she should go. Y'all have to remember -- this not an entertainment contest (which she loses), it is not a singing contest (which she wins), it is simply a popularity contest (which she loses). I'm not sure you can ever lose integrity for a popularity contest.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, but then Peter Noone will have pwned Simon Cowell.

[Solecismic]

It's a popularity contest skewed by the fact that individuals can vote up to 400 times.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

I agree, and if the 400-voters like Blake (or Chris for that matter) instead of Melinda, then it's see you later Melinda. I think we can all agree that Taylor Hicks was the perfect example of this.

[RedKingGold]

The dialidol.com results are pretty surprising. There's also a thought out there that between the spirit of tonight's show and Ryan's comment about some sort of surprise end to the show, that no one is actually going to be voted off tonight. The thinking is that with the charity thing going on, it would dampen the mood to axe someone in the end.

If they did that, I guess they could either have a double elimination one week, or have 3 finalists.

You called it.

[RedKingGold]

I can see one reason they'd do it on the fly, though. If you believe DialIdol, Melinda is in some danger tonight (a close 5th). Now DialIdol is clearly not as accurate as in past seasons because some changes have been made to the way the phone lines work, but if Melinda were to go this early, it would call the integrity of the entire concept into public question.

Which better: seriously piss off the audience temporarily or lose the best singer in the round of 6?

And I bet this is the reason why.

[Ksyrup]

When did Kelly Clarkson turn into Valerie Bertanelli?

[RedKingGold]

When did Kelly Clarkson turn into Valerie Bertanelli?

Conversation with my girlfriend during the Kelly Clarkson performance

Her: "God, Kelly Clarkson got fat."
Me: "Yeah, but I'd still do her."
Her: "You're such a freaking pig. Of course you'd say something like that."
Me: "Oh come on, you'd still do her too and you know it."
Her: "Yeah, you're right."

:D :D :D :D :D

[Ksyrup]

Sorting through some ROIOs on my favorite site, and I came across this. Too bad this predated the Sanjaya phenomenon - if he had joined them on stage, the world would have ended and we would have been spared Idol Gives Back:

Starship Featuring Mickey Thomas w Ace Young (American Idol) 12/05/06 Las Vegas DAT Master

[Ksyrup]

Conversation with my girlfriend during the Kelly Clarkson performance

Her: "God, Kelly Clarkson got fat."
Me: "Yeah, but I'd still do her."
Her: "You're such a freaking pig. Of course you'd say something like that."
Me: "Oh come on, you'd still do her too and you know it."
Her: "Yeah, you're right."

:D :D :D :D :D

Seriously, is she pregnant? My wife said that her dress made her fat, but then I pointed out how thick her arms were. And with the parted hair, she gave off a mid-80s Bertanelli vibe that helped to erase the picture of the blimp version of Valerie I saw on the cover of some mag last week at the grocery store. That was definitely the highlight of the night, by far.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

And I bet this is the reason why.

I refuse to believe that conspiracy theory for even a nanosecond. It would make sense though because of the "charity" nature of tonight's show. I have no idea why you guys think the show's producers would be gunning for a Melinda win or even second, if she can't even get past the final 6. She is simply not that marketable. I'm guessing they are way more interested in some of the others, like Blake, winning the thing.

[Thomkal]

Pretty disgusted to sit through all that and find out no one was being eliminated. If the show really was all about charity like they said, they should have told them they were all safe at or near the beginning and let everyone enjoy the music. Or they should have told the contestants before the show and let them enjoy it, and then do the "we're not eliminating anyone bit" at the end so people would watch the whole show and make donations.

[JeeberD]

Did it looks like Jordin was worried when she was the last one left? I'm almost certain the contestants knew beforehand that none of them were getting cut...

[Ksyrup]

There's no way they didn't know they weren't going home. They have dress rehearsals for these shows. Do you really think they were going to eliminate one contestant, then have that person still sing that last song with the remaining 5? That would have been beyond awkward. No, this was planned out.

As far as the conspiracy re Melinda, there are competing interests here - having a marketable winner and giving the public a competition between the "best contestants." Even if Melinda makes the finals but doesn't win, they can always bury her like Bo Bice - he didn't win, and he's just an after-thought these days. If Melinda leaves too early, though, it calls into question whether the basic premise of the show works. Yes, it's up to the public to decide who wins, but if the public votes off the unquestioned best vocalist this early, then AI starts to look like the all-star game voting process - a complete joke. So even though AI has the standard "you did this, America" response to her getting voted off, it's not like she's one of 4 or 5 qualified contestants - aside from Jordin, she's about the only one who is worthy of winning (I'm starting to sour on Blake). It would cause damage to the show if she left this early.

That's not to say I think they saved her from going home tonight, but it would hurt them if she did (or if she goes next week), from a competition standpoint.

[Pumpy Tudors]

My clue about the contestants knowing the "surprise ending" was Jordin's family. When Ryan said that Chris was safe, they showed Jordin's family, and there were no signs of sadness or worry. They just sat there emotionless, as if they even knew that Jordin wasn't going anywhere.

I do think it's terrible that they jerked the viewers around on this one. I'm with Thomkal. If they're not eliminating anybody, just say so the night before. Of course, then maybe not so many people watch the entire show, I guess. I guarantee you that I wouldn't have watched if I'd known that nobody was being eliminated. I understand that the show was trying to raise money for important causes, but they fooled me into thinking that last night's episode had something to do with the competition, and it turned out to be a two-hour telethon.

Also (and maybe this isn't a cool thing to say), I wonder how much money it cost to do that shit with Elvis Presley. Somebody somewhere made some money off of that, and perhaps that money would have been put to better use as a donation. The special effects were really unnecessary.

Soooo, have any of you guys rushed to iTunes to download that "piece of television history" yet?

[Ksyrup]

Also (and maybe this isn't a cool thing to say), I wonder how much money it cost to do that shit with Elvis Presley. Somebody somewhere made some money off of that, and perhaps that money would have been put to better use as a donation. The special effects were really unnecessary.


Along those lines - and this isn't just directed to AI but any of these telethon-type situations - when they were showing the dying boy with malaria and the camera crew was there, but sadly, they couldn't get him to the place to get treated, and then they kept holding up these packs of tablets that supposedly cure malaria and talking about how we could save 20 kids with $10, I was trying to understand why the freaking camera crew couldn't just give the damn mother the medicine she needed to keep her kid from dying. Are they supposed to just sit there as neutral observers so they can obtain footage to guilt us into giving money, or can they step in to help when possible? That whole sequence stuck out for me last night and is still somewhat bothersome.

The Elvis thing would have been cool had they not needed a stand-in on the stage. I want to see a 100% teleported Elvis, or no Elvis at all!

[Eaglesfan27]

Along those lines - and this isn't just directed to AI but any of these telethon-type situations - when they were showing the dying boy with malaria and the camera crew was there, but sadly, they couldn't get him to the place to get treated, and then they kept holding up these packs of tablets that supposedly cure malaria and talking about how we could save 20 kids with $10, I was trying to understand why the freaking camera crew couldn't just give the damn mother the medicine she needed to keep her kid from dying. Are they supposed to just sit there as neutral observers so they can obtain footage to guilt us into giving money, or can they step in to help when possible? That whole sequence stuck out for me last night and is still somewhat bothersome.

The Elvis thing would have been cool had they not needed a stand-in on the stage. I want to see a 100% teleported Elvis, or no Elvis at all!

Agreed re: the kid with malaria. I kept asking myself all night long, why they didn't have supplies with them to treat the problems they were seeing. They couldn't have saved the people dying from AIDS, but I imagine there was a decent chance they could have saved the kid with Malaria. It angered me.

[Buccaneer]

Some of you still believe that this show is a democracy?? It is so heavily over-produced and over-edited that you really do have no definite idea of what, where or when anything take place. There is so much ad revenues at stake here that many, many hours go into the production (and post-production) of each show to make sure they get the product they want on the screen. Public voting does play a role but with many millions of votes cast for each contestant, whether for good or bad, they all come within a margin of error. With plently of back-room negotiations going on (e.g., Chris Dougherty), even the contestants and their representatives play a role in the decisions in keeping the show peaking.

[rkmsuf]

yeah this thing is turning into kind of a farce

I liked the one they had on a few years ago with the people that thought they were good but were really bad and the judges kept telling them they were good. The contestants thought the best one would win but in fact the worst one would win.

[Ksyrup]

Couple other quick thoughts on last night:

-Chris Richardson wearing a hoodie underneath his white suit. Not even Belichick would have gone there.

-Teri Hatcher looked eerily like Michael Jackson. Really, REALLY bad makeup and tussled hair. i couldn't tell if she or Rob Schneider were fresh from a rehab stint.

-Did anyone see what they rigged to make Paula's chest as noticeable as it was?

-Who showed more chest - Paula or Simon?

-Quincy Jones' song - half We Are the World, half Circle of Life, All Suck (Sorry, I don't do shmaltz very well)

-Madonna continues to piss me off with her British-by-way-of-fucking-DETROIT!- accent

All in all, I'm glad I watched. Actually, I'm glad I DVR'd it, because I think my 7-year old needs to see what poverty looks like. Particularly since they highlighted poverty about 150-200 miles from our house.

[rkmsuf]

I turned it on when they were doing this touching piece on the kids and at the end it jumps to Seacrest and Paula's tits on stage. Please give, I'll flash my tits. Jerry Lewis could learn something from this approach.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I had forgotten about Teri Hatcher thinking she was in a Michael Jackson lookalike contest. I couldn't stop laughing whenever they showed her.

The "Staying Alive" thing was painful. I mean, what are we supposed to get out of that? Really, the only people in that whole bit who entertained me were Hugh Laurie and Hugh Grant. Maybe it has to do with them being British, or maybe it's because they're named Hugh. I don't know. Maybe they should have gotten Hugh Downs there, too, so I wouldn't be haunted by this question. :(

[Eaglesfan27]

I also thought the "Staying alive" was terrible. Some people (Lisa Kudrow comes to mind) weren't trying to lip sync or be funny. They were just standing there - annoying. Really, the whole thing was annoying and Hugh Laurie was the only funny bit in it.

As an aside, I thought this week's House was one of the best this season.

[Pumpy Tudors]

I think American Idol should've gotten Conraid Bain to join in on "Staying Alive." He's at least as relevant as David Schwimmer these days.

[Ksyrup]

Maybe they should have gotten Hugh Downs there, too, so I wouldn't be haunted by this question. :(

This is completely off-track, but I was flipping around channels the other day and saw him hosting what appeared to be a weight-loss infomercial in a 20/20-like studio setting. That's the equivalent of Wilford Brimley shilling for pop-tarts or something. I couldn't believe it.

[Pumpy Tudors]

This is completely off-track, but I was flipping around channels the other day and saw him hosting what appeared to be a weight-loss infomercial in a 20/20-like studio setting. That's the equivalent of Wilford Brimley shilling for pop-tarts or something. I couldn't believe it.
:eek:

You have got to be kidding. That's terrible.

[Pumpy Tudors]

Oh, and since Ksyrup brought up Wilford Brimley's name, the word for the day is...

DIABETUS

[Ksyrup]

Oh, and since Ksyrup brought up Wilford Brimley's name, the word for the day is...

DIABETUS

Exactly. DIABETus is the new "it's the right thing to do!"

[Ksyrup]

:eek:

You have got to be kidding. That's terrible.

I found it:

hxxp://www.infomercialblog.com/?p=100

[Arles]

If Melinda leaves too early, though, it calls into question whether the basic premise of the show works. Yes, it's up to the public to decide who wins, but if the public votes off the unquestioned best vocalist this early, then AI starts to look like the all-star game voting process - a complete joke.
I disagree with this. In season 1, Tamyra Gray was easily the best singer in the first 7-10 weeks of the show. Yet, she didn't make the final 3 (Kelly, Justin, Nikki). In fact, Kelly and Tamyra match Jordin and Melinda almost to a tee so far. In the first 7-8 "vote offs", the judges were falling over themselves to compliment Tamyra. Then, Kelly got on a bit of a roll and Tamyra got voted off with 3-4 weeks left and the judges were all stunned.

I would say any of these 6 could win if they do well and I don't think it would be a joke. Once Sanjaya left, the chance for that pretty much went out the window. I don't think anyone left is on a Kelly/Daughtry/Carrie level, but there's a chance a few could get there (prim Jordin and Blake). That said, if Chris or Phil got hot in the last 4-5 weeks and ended up winning, I don't see either of them being any worse than Taylor.

[Arles]

Dola, and if any of you with DVR capabilities don't use it on AI - you are wasting a good 30 min to 1.5 hours of two nights a week. I DVR both shows and it takes about 20 min to watch the hour and 10 min to watch the "vote off" each week. For some reason, I don't really feel like I miss anything when I fast forward through 30-40 minutes of commercials or other pandering to sponsers that make up most of AI.

[Ksyrup]

I think Taylor's a competent singer in his style, and that style definitely doesn't translate to AI. So far, Chris has not proven that he's actually a good singer and appears to be kept afloat by the same group of voters that kept Constantine and Ace Young in the competition long after they should have left. And Phil seems to be trying to reinvent himself as a country singer, but so far has only done 2 country songs, only one of them really in a country style. So the jury is still out on him. They both have too many detractors and negative qualities to win. Even people who may not have liked Taylor were probably won over by his personality and enthusiasm.

As far as the Season 1 comparison, I don't think that's fair because the show was brand-new and no one was expecting anything to come out of it at that point. They were lucky the public chose Kelly over the rest, or we may not have this glorious thread right now!

Just my opinion, but if anyone other than Melinda, Blake, or Jordin wins (I'm going to guess 1 - and possibly 2 - of them doesn't make the final 3), that person will make Taylor look like Bono by comparison. LaKisha is a poor woman's Fantasia, and in a competitive season, Chris and Phil are already gone.

[Ksyrup]

Dola, and if any of you with DVR capabilities don't use it on AI - you are wasting a good 30 min to 1.5 hours of two nights a week. I DVR both shows and it takes about 20 min to watch the hour and 10 min to watch the "vote off" each week. For some reason, I don't really feel like I miss anything when I fast forward through 30-40 minutes of commercials or other pandering to sponsers that make up most of AI.

Yeah, AI has convinced me that DVR is a nice thing to have. We don't use it for much, but now that we have it, we use it on AI and don't even bother watching AI even when we're not busy - we just fast forward through the crap. It was particularly nice last night to fast forward through Rascal Flatts. I had to watch Josh Groban to believe what I was seeing. I wish they had done a Groban/Buble duet.

[Arles]

Just my opinion, but if anyone other than Melinda, Blake, or Jordin wins (I'm going to guess 1 - and possibly 2 - of them doesn't make the final 3), that person will make Taylor look like Bono by comparison. LaKisha is a poor woman's Fantasia, and in a competitive season, Chris and Phil are already gone.
IMO, you could have said the same thing at the final 6 last season like this:

"If anyone other than Chris, Elliot or Paris wins, this contest is a joke. Pickler has been skating by for weeks and is getting by on good looks, Taylor is just doing this same Michael McDonald-schtik that is tiring and McPhee hasn't really had a great performance yet."

Yet, McPhee and Taylor were in the final two and it went on just as popular this season.

[Ksyrup]

I guess where I disagree is that in no way would I compare any of the remaining people outside of Jordin as being as marketable as Chris D., and only Melinda is as good a singer as Kat, Paris, or Elliot (just pure vocal ability). I think the depth of the competitors is where the difference between this season and last is.

What I think you're confusing is talent level and pop accessibility. I tihnk the talent level of last year's top 6 far exceeds this year's. But, I also recognize that pretty much all of them had limited audiences, so we haven't seen that translate to popularity or sales. I'd say Melinda is this year's Elliot - undeniably gifted singer who has a limited and defined audience, and is held back by looks.

[Ksyrup]

Yet, McPhee and Taylor were in the final two and it went on just as popular this season.

BTW, I didn't say the show would suffer, I said the winner would make Taylor as the AI winner look good.

[Ksyrup]

Kelly Clarkson on stage with Metal Skool, drunk off her ass.

Extremely NSFW - language, no nudity!


<OBJECT height=350 width=425>

<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/h4sJMcgeDe0" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></OBJECT> (http://<object width=)</P>

[Arles]

I was more talking about talent/appeal in relationship to the other competitors, not talent between seasons. If you look at the relationships (not the talent), there is a bit of a parallel to last season:

There's a top three that's been fairly consistent favorites in the judges eye (Chris/Elliot/Paris vs Melinda/Blake/Jordin). So you were left with a bottom three dynamic of Taylor/Cat/Kelly vs Chris R/Lakisha/Phil. IMO, the bottom three in this season has a much lower appeal, but I could see someone like Phil getting a broad spectrum of voters to stay until the finals. Also, if Blake were to get voted off, I think Chris R could get a bump because they are splitting the "hip young guy" vote (kind of like the Cat-Kelly attractive girl vote).

[Ajaxab]

Agreed re: the kid with malaria. I kept asking myself all night long, why they didn't have supplies with them to treat the problems they were seeing. They couldn't have saved the people dying from AIDS, but I imagine there was a decent chance they could have saved the kid with Malaria. It angered me.

The entire night seemed something of a contradiction. Admittedly, I was flipping around between Idol, hockey and basketball, but it struck me that many of the performers were in some way affiliated with the Idol money-making machine whether they be former idols, groups that Simon Cowell has a direct hand in profiting from or the corporate donors who buy some cheap advertising time.

Additionally, to see these kids with malaria, AIDS, no parents, etc. staring death in the face and then cut to a commercial where the frizziness of one's hair or the length of one's lashes is a serious problem needing a product to fix it cheapened the entire production. There's a reason why telethons do not have commercials.

Ideally, I would have liked to see a commercial-free one hour show with performances from non-Idol affiliated musicians. Of course, then one could make the case that it wouldn't be Idol anymore. But I guess that would be precisely the point. I side with Bucc on this one. Even an "Idol Gives Back" turns into an "Idol Stuffs its Pockets" show. It simply can't help but be anything else.

Another thing that saddens me is that we seem to be more angered about the fact that no one got voted off than the fact that these kids are dying. I am no different and the reaction to the show forces me to look in the mirror.

[Vinatieri for Prez]

Two things. First, I refuse to watch Idol (performance or results show) without the DVR. It's painful without it. I mean, I could not care less about Chris's answers to viewer questions or the billion commercials. Second, I was on the fence before with Kelly (if you know what I mean), but after that youtube video, I'm ready to go now.

[Ksyrup]

I'd love to catch a Metal Skool show. They're a "real" 80s hair band spoof - they do originals as well as covers, but their originals are hilarious (if not a bit sophomoric) and are dead ringers for the typical hair band sound. They were Danger Kitty in those credit card commercials a few years back. They've become so big in LA that they always seem to have someone famous show up and join them on stage. I bet it would be a great show to see.

[EagleFan]

Am I the only one who thought the best part of that show was the Simpsons? Not that I saw a lot of the show but I loved the parody they did on Paula. She's either one hell of a good sport about it or too looped out of her mind to know she was being slammed.

[Ksyrup]

A few bits and pieces of info for tonight's show and in general, gathered from MJ's Big Blog:

Jon Bon Jovi (http://theedge.bostonherald.com/tvNews/view.bg?articleid=197344) is mentoring the kids this week for Top 6 Part Deux. Idol arranger, Michael Orland spills the beans (http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20007164_20008533_20037172,00.html) in Entertainment Weekly. He says the kids will select their songs from a pool of Bon Jovi tunes. Michael thinks the theme will be easier for the guys than the girls. But, of Jordin Sparks, he says, ”…the second it was announced we were doing a Bon Jovi week, she requested her song early. She knew exactly what she was going to sing. ”


He [SIMON] admitted that he does not pay attention during contestant’s performances because he’s already heard the performance in dress rehearsal, where there are no distractions. In other words, his mind is pretty much made up after dress, allowing him to spend time during the televised performance chatting with Randy Jackson and torturing Paula Abdul. Ellen ran a clip from country night had Simon pulling on Paula’s nose while Phil Stacey sang his number.


According to Slate Magazine (http://www.slate.com/id/2164832/), Shrek the Third producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, who was in the audience with Shrek star Antonio Banderas, was supposed to deliver Justin Timberlake, who plays a young prince in the movie, to Idol as a mentor. The official reason Justin’s appearance fell through, was that his touring schedule changed. But it turns out, Justin was in Scotland with his family last week.


This interview (http://www.movieweb.com/tv/news/38/19238.php) with Ken Warwick is stale, but it does offer up a few interesting tidbits worth noting. For instance, the producers tried to get Beatles producer George Martin as a mentor for a Beatles week, but Martin could not fit an Idol appearance into his schedule. Plus, there’s quite the lengthy discussion of how the mics are set up in the studio vis a vis “eyeroll gate”. The interview is a very complete transcription of Ken’s teleconference interview with reporters last week.

[Mike1409]

I guess that Idol fame only lasts so long!!!


http://www.sptimes.com/2007/05/01/Tampabay/A_case_of_mistaken_id.shtml

[Ksyrup]

The name's familiar, but I swear I don't recognize her at all. She's the mayor's niece, btw. Some guy was arrested in Nashville for stalking her, too. Strange goings on.

[Ksyrup]

I haven't seen a comprehensive spoiler list for tonight, but if Chris R. is singing what he's rumored to be singing, I think he's guaranteed to go home tomorrow.