Idol-Talk: Season 10 - Top 24 Chosen

American Idol 10: Top 24 Chosen
Air Date: Thursday, February 24, 2011 [8-10pm]

Source: mjsbigblog.com

This past Wednesday, the judges began winnowing the field down to the Top 24 semifinalists that will compete for our votes next week. Thursday's episode concluded this process with a two(!) hour show. Did anyone else feel like that was way too long? To Idol's credit, they did make sure to feature every single semifinalist equally instead of brushing over some of the singers who weren't featured as much in previous rounds, but couldn't they still have done that in a shorter period of time? I was getting restless after a while. Oh well...

Wednesday's show ended on a "dramatic" cliffhanger: Jennifer Lopez broke down crying after eliminating Chris Medina. And to bring on the drama even more, Thursday's show began with Ryan Seacrest (on voice over) saying, "Will Jennifer find the strength to go on?" We saw shots of what looked like producers (including EP Nigel Lythgoe) surrounding her. After taking a short break, she was ready to continue on.

Five of the Top 24 (announced Wednesday):

• Naima Adedapo
• Clint Jun Gamboa
• Hayley Reinhart
• Paul McDonald
• Ashthon Jones

The Rest of the Top 24 (announced Thursday):

• Karen Rodriguez
• Robbie Rosen - "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"
• Tatynisa Wilson: If that final performance is anything to go by, she won't be around much longer.
• Tim Halperin
• Julie Zorrilla: As she leaves, Lady Gaga's new song, "Born This Way," plays over the shot. I have had that song stuck in my head ever since I first heard it on the Friday before the Grammy's; every time it's out of my head, the next thing I know I'm hearing it play on TV again and again. At least it's a song that I like, right?
• Scotty McCreery: He definitely improved with that final song, but I really haven't heard anything new that we haven't heard from him before. What I mean is, the range of his voice isn't that different from song to song. I don't think he is Top 24 material.
• Jovany Barreto
• Lauren Turner
• Rachael Zevita - Lady Gaga's "Speechless": I could barely recognize that it was that song at first. She says to the judges something along the lines of, "I don't know what you want me to do." That isn't the smartest thing to say. She's basically saying, "Tell me what I should sing and sound like, because I don't know what my music style is." If she doesn't know that already (or if she doesn't figure it out pretty soon), she may be doomed.
• Kendra Chantelle: She sings her audition song, which she shouldn't have done. I have already criticized others during Hollywood Week for relying on their first song, because it doesn't let us or the judges know the range that they have. She's basically trying to take the easy way into the Top 24.
• Jordan Dorsey
• Lauren Alaina - "Unchained Melody": I saw an improvement with this final song. I hope, though, she is able to really head back to the top in upcoming rounds, or else she might go the way of last year's Katie Stevens, who started out as one of the favorites from the auditions then fizzled out.
• Stefano Langone
• Jacob Lusk - "A Song For You": There were some off moments during the song.
• Pia Toscano
• James Durbin - "A Change is Gonna Come": The high notes were certainly an improvement upon Hollywood Week. However, since he already has comparisons to Adam Lambert, why sing a song that Adam did back in season 8 on the show?
• Casey Abrams: I got a very jazz and bluesy vibe from this performance. I'm trying to look forward in the competition and see what could take him to the end, and I don't think the kind of style he featured here will do that for him. But no matter, he did a great job nonetheless.
• Thia Megia - Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up": I found this to be a very refreshing rendition of such an overdone song, because I'm so used to people singing it who have similar voices to Groban.
• Thia and Jessica Cunningham were the final two girls and went into the hangar together to face the judges verdict. Only one would make it in, and Thia rightly got that spot.
• Brett Loewenstern: Jacee Badeaux, Brett and Colton Dixon were not only the final three guys, but the very final contestants to find out their fate. Only one out of the three would make it in. Brett must have miscounted, because he thought there were two spots; fortunately, it went in his favor.
• While I wouldn't have been surprised if the judges went soft and let Jacee in as well, they did the right thing, because he wasn't ready yet; Jacee could very well have been swallowed up in the competition in the live rounds.
• For his final performance, Colton chose a song by Daughtry. Isn't this the second time that he has taken on a Daughtry song?

Why Did You Sing a Kelly Clarkson Song?:

• Jackie Wilson - Kelly Clarkson's "Because of You": I've said this many times before, but if you're going to take on a song by a former Idol alum, you better really bring it. Jackie's version nowhere near matched up to KC's. By the way, she was cut.

Best of the Night (from clips of "Sing for your Life" Round):

• Robbie Rosen
• Casey Abrams

And now, after a little more than a month, we are down to our Top 24! The semifinals are next, and the power shifts from the judges to us: Next Tuesday, the Top 12 guys will perform for our vote (8-9:30pm). Wednesday will be the Top 12 girls (8-9:30pm). And Thursday will be the first live results show of the season (8-10pm - two hours? Really!?). See ya then...