American Idol: Shame on Jermaine

As many of you know by now, baritone Jermaine Jones, the 13th contestant, was kicked to the curb by American Idol for lying about a previous arrest record and concealing that he has four outstanding warrants. Here are more details on this dramatic story. Jermaine is pictured above. I find these photos interesting in that they show him looking tough and just a bit thugish, contradicting his clean living country boy image on the show.

In other drama, Phillip Phillips had surgery for kidney stones during the week, Colton Dixon had dinner with Chris Daughtry, and Joshua Ledet ate a mess of crayfish.

The performances this week slipped in general, through there were some outstanding contributions most notably by Joshua Ledet. Here is my personal power list for this week. This reflects a combination of my opinion and how I think the voting will fall.

11   Sharon Magrane: her costume styling was way too old for her, she sounded whiny and weak, and she has no singing style. I can't stand her.

10   Elise Testone: overly mannered performance with a forced vibrato; she pushed too hard. I wouldn't be surprised if she goes home.

9    Heejun Han: his schtick is getting old, his performance was meh.

8    Jessica Sanchez was disappointing this week. She sounded a little shouty and, as Randy and others pointed out, her rhythm was off. However, I don't think she or Deandre are in danger.

7    Deandre Brackensick: I loved his performance, but the judges didn't seem to. He is comfortable on stage and very cute. I think he'll get some girl votes this week.

6    Hollie Cavanaugh: This girl is immensely talented, but I don't like her. She sings with confidence, but somehow she reminds me of a scared mouse. I don't like the irrelevant Celine Dion style of singing either. She also lacks charm.

5    Skylar Laine is one of my favorites, but her performance this week was not that entertaining for me. The judges however, loved her.

4    Erika Van Pelt: I love her. I'd put her at number one, but she'll likely be in the bottom three. The judges suggested that she oversang this week, but last time they criticized her for undersinging. I think she always gets it just right. And she looked fantastic.

3   Colton Dixon: What can I say. I always love the rockers.

2    Phillip Phillips: Not bad for kidney stones.

1    Joshua Ledet killed.

Here is a link to the LA Times recap.

Niles Songwriters

The next meeting of the Niles Songwriters is Thursday, March 15th 7:30-9pm. We will meet in the library’s youth service program room which has great acoustics, but can be warm. Songwriters are invited to bring an original song to share. Last month those who played guitar, ukulele, or recorder brought them along, those that didn't play, sang acapella. It was great fun! If you’re a songwriter and would like to join us, stop by the Niles Public Library at 6960 Oakton St. Niles, IL

For more information contact Cyndi Rademacher at crademac@nileslibrary.org or call 847-663-6614.

American Idol: Toward the First Elimination

OMG! That was some show! Just when I thought I was through with American Idol, it pulled me back in. There is a new twist in the show too. For this elimination the boy and girl with the least votes will sing off and the judges will decide who goes home. But it's hard to decide who were the weakest performers.

Actually it's not. Shannon Magrane was pretty bad, and I don't think her pageant-y presentation will help her either. Elise Testone, an early favorite was also weak, but Shannon was worse. Elise reminded me of Haley Reinhardt in her jerky phrasing and tense moves, but Haley rallied and so will Elise.

Weakest boy? That's harder to say. Jeremy Rosado? Jermaine Jones?

But there were so many strong performances, the foremost being teeny tiny Jessica Sanchez who gave me GOOSIES over the TV. Can you imagine that anyone would pull off "I Will Always Love You" on Whitney Houston night, let alone kill? My girl Skylar killed as well, as did Colton Dixon and Phillip Phillips. Other standouts were Erika Van Pelt and Deandre Brackensick who was so entertaining. Hollie Cavanaugh is also an outstanding singer, but she creeps me out a little.

On its 400th show, American Idol is off to a strong start.

American Idol: YOUR Final Thirteen

Erika Van Pelt, Wild Card

In Thursday's semi-final results show, I think America got it right. And so did the judges in their wild card picks. I was slightly disappointed that Jen Hirsh didn't get through, but actually her later performances weren't as strong as her earlier ones.

Here are the Final Thirteen:

Boys
Phil Phillips: unique
Joshua Ledet: incredible R&B chops
Heejun Han: adorable, great voice, questionable delivery
Colton Diixon: an indie delight
Jermain Jones: deep baritone voice, but belongs on Broadway
Girls
Jessica Sanchez: beyond great
Hollie Cavanaugh: tiny girl, huge voice; she makes me nervous
Shannon Magrane: strong singer, but, so far, too pagent-y princess
Skylar Laine: adorable ball of pep
Elise Testone: country piano girl

Wild Cards
Erika Van Pelt: powerhouse (Randy's pick)
Jeremy Rosado: sweet and sincere (Jennifer's pick)
Deandre Brackensick: great falsetto, a little different (Stephen's pick)

American Idol: A Star is Born

Here are some girl face slices because last night (Wednesday) 12 women competed for five places in the American Idol Season 11 finals.

Normally I become a fan of a  cute and quirky boy singer like LeeDeWyze or Kris Allen, or a great rocker like Daughtry or James Durbin. But after seeing this group of girls  perform, I think I'm in love. And by star I'm referring to tiny 16 year old Jessica Sanchez who had me sitting with a dropped jaw. I even insisted on replaying her performance for my husband who was equally impressed. Both young Jessica and 18 year old Skylar Laine, my other girl crush, understand that a performer has to entertain, which with some exceptions has never been a hallmark of American Idol performances. That's why I love The Voice so much; it's so entertaining.

Maybe the AI performers are trying to be entertaining , but they don't know how. Last night the AI girls paraded some good voices accompanied by lackluster performances. I'm looking at you three interchangeable blond beauties - Hallie, Baylie, and Haley. I hope they all get voted off, though I might tolerate Hallie, the best of them.

Jessica Sanchez

Skylar Laine

I also like Jen Hirsh. Anyway, if Jessica Sanchez can take the pressure, I don't see how she can't win the whole thing. Here is a link to Carla Patton of Buddy TV recapping the performances live. She also thought Jessica killed.

Jen Hirsh

American Idol: Boys Night Out

After a punishing round of auditions and an interesting contest in Las Vegas, American Idol Season 11, 2012, has finally started the live shows. That means that the audience at home gets to vote for their favorites, eliminating one singer each week until the American Idol emerges. Last night was a semi-final round with 13 men singing to remain in the competition. There are their face slices above (one doesn't belong). Tonight it's the women's turn. On Thursday the eight lowest-scoring men and the seven lowest-scoring women will be sent home all at once. Each judge will bring back one of the eliminated in a wild card pick., bringing the total number of finalists to 13. That's when the show really begins to heat up as favorites fall and over-the-top divas keep going.

It's good to review the rules, because every year American Idol tweaks them a bit. We haven't had wild card picks for several years, for example. Besides the rules, I noticed a significant change in the show's production vales. I attribute this to direct competition with The Voice, my new favorite show. This was particularly noticeable in the second round of group performances. The contestants were all styled up and voice-coached to the nines, resulting in slick and entertaining performances. And check out the new Idol stage.

As far as last night's semi-final performances, it's too early to get excited. Half of these performers will be gone by the end of the week. USA Today rated the 13 men. Their favorites did not totally coincide with mine. I loved Aaron Marcellus and thought his performance classic rather than "old fashioned". The judges did give him a standing O after all. But I agreed that Joshua Ledet was incredible. My favorite is Phil Phillips, but I was disappointed in his performance. And why did the judges start talking about going home directly after Creighton Fraker's credible version of True Colors? Unfair!

Aaron Marcellus

Creighton Fraker

Phil Phillips

GRAMMYS!

Surprise, Surprise! The beautiful and strong-voiced Adele Adkins walked away with it. Here is a quick run down of the main Grammy winners, starting with.........Adele.

Record of the Year: Adele, Rolling in the Deep 
Album of the Year: Adele, 21
Song of the Year: Adele, Rolling in the Deep
Best Pop Solo Performance: Adele, Someone like You

Best Pop Vocal Album: Adele, 21 


Seriously?

Here, for variety, are some other winners:

Best New Artist: Bon Iver
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: Tony Bennett, Duets II
Best Rock Song: Foo Fighters, Walk (from Wasting Light)
Best Rock Album: Foo Fighters, Wasting Light 
Best Alternative Rock: Bon Iver, Bon Iver
Best R&B Performance: Corinne Bailey Rae, Is This Love? (from The Love EP)
Best R&B Song: Cee Lo Green, Fool For You
Best R&B Album: Chris Brown, F.A.M.E. 
Best Rap Album: Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy