Air Date: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 [8-9:30pm]
Theme: Songs that Inspire / Leiber & Stoller
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| Source: mjsbigblog.com |
Click on each of the below links to open up those studio performances in iTunes. You will not be charged for clicking on these links, only if you click 'buy' in the iTunes Store.
The first round's theme will be Songs that Inspire:
1. James Durbin - Journey's "Don't Stop Believing"
When E! Online broke the news that James would be singing "Don't Stop Believing," I couldn't wait. But I thought they said he would be giving a mindblowing version; the arrangement sounded just like the original, though. But no matter, he did great on it. There were a couple moments where I was worried his pitch would be all over the place like last week, but overall he kept it in check.
2. Haley Reinhart - Michael Jackson's "Earth Song"
While the song fits the theme, it wasn't right for Haley and didn't completely fit her vocal range. There were some pitch issues in the middle. And while I normally love her growl, she went really overboard this time. And I'm not sure voters will like her talking back to the judges in the way she did after Randy and Jennifer critiqued her.
3. Scotty McCreery - Alan Jackson's "Where Were You When the World Topped Turning"
I'm a fan of many of Alan Jackson's songs, including this one. Strategically, it's the perfect song to get votes. And to sing a sing about September 11 not even two weeks after the death of Osama bin Laden - powerful, indeed. The judges focused on the song, but not on his vocals. He started out great, but went down a notch or two at the chorus, then was great again at the end.
4. Lauren Alaina - Martin McBride's "Anyway"
"Anyway" is such a great song, and Lauren went all in with it. Her voice was beautiful, and she's making up for last week's "Unchained Melody." Bringing up the tornados will get her votes. Round 1 might just go to Lauren, if not a tie with James. Based on Round 1, Haley's going home.
The Top 2 will take on the Leiber & Stoller Songbook for Round 2, with Lady Gaga joining Jimmy Iovine as mentor. She was a great mentor, really getting them to connect with the songs and put on a show. Also, they decided to change the performance order, different than Round 1. Wouldn't that make it a little confusing for some voters?
1. Haley Reinhart - "I Who Have Nothing"
This song gave Jordin Sparks one of her best performances back in season 6. After a stumble with "Earth Song" in Round 1, Haley came back for revenge with the judges. And Gaga helped her to put her emotion and attitude into the song and really go for it, and it paid off. There was a moment where I was worried the growl would hurt her, but it didn't.
2. Scotty McCreery - "Young Blood"
This was all about showing off his personality rather the vocals. He had fun working the cameras and audience, and I had fun watching him. But we're heading into the home stretch, and at this stage in the competition, we need a higher caliber performance from a potential winner.
3. Lauren Alaina - Elvis Presley's "Trouble"
Lauren gave us a range tonight - first a ballad, now an upbeat fun song. But she fell victim to what Scotty just went through, in that the upbeat songs showcase the personality rather than the vocals. Her voice was all over the place, especially during the last part.
4. James Durbin - "Love Potion No. 9"
James bookended the night, providing both a brilliant opening (on a Journey song) and now with the closing. His vocals were flawless. And I loved the ending where he kept stopping and teasing us on the final notes. Loved it! I can't wait to see him on tour!
Compilation Album: Top 4 Season 10: Click on this link to see the compilation album in iTunes of all of the above songs.
At the end of the show as the phone lines opened, Ryan reminded us that Daughtry was voted out during this Top 4 round back in season 5, so vote vote vote!
Favorite Performances: James Durbin (both songs) / Lauren Alaina ("Anyway") / Haley Reinhart ("I Who Have Nothing")
My Votes: James Durbin - 100 votes
Bottom 2 Predictions: Haley Reinhart / Lauren Alaina
I'm not sure if they will have a Bottom 2, or if they will just keep announcing who's safe until we have our eliminated contestant. If they will, then I have my predictions just in case. To make a strong case for Lauren, the producers might do away with the Bottom 2 so we don't know who's in the top or near the bottom.
Elimination Prediction: Haley Reinhart
Below is the latest Idol social media stats (the combination of Twitter, Facebook and MySpace). These stats were compiled on 5/10/11 at 11:25pm.
1. Scotty McCreery - 217,008
2. James Durbin - 158,122
3. Lauren Alaina - 138,923
4. Haley Reinhart - 109,945
Again, no changes from last week. And I expect this to be the order everyone ends up being in once all is said and done.
It seems like a given that Haley will be going home tonight. As much as I want her to stay around, I just think the other three have stronger fan bases than her. But again, Haley has grown so much throughout the course of the season and has gained a following along the way, so there is a chance she'll be safe. If she stays, then Lauren will be gone. We all know Scotty and James aren't going anywhere, so Lauren is the only other option. If I personally were to make the call, I would go with Lauren to go home instead of Haley, but I have to look at it more analytically. This is a really hard decision, because all four of them are extremely talented and it's going to be hard to see any of them go. Usually at this stage, there's at least one person who we're ready to see go, but it's different this time.
The Top 4 round has been a strange week on Idol. Most of the huge, shocking eliminations have occurred during this week: Tamyra Gray in season 1, La Toya London in season 3, and what went down as THE most shocking elimination in the history of American Idol, Chris Daughtry in season 5. Last night, I voted the most times I have done this year, for James. I will do whatever I can to make sure he's at the finale. We the fans and voters can't take things for granted and assume our favorites will be here next week, because history has shown us that won't always be the case. But regardless of what I just said, I don't believe Scotty or James will be gone; it'll be one of the girls.
Tonight's a jam-packed results show (8-9pm) with performances by Jordin Sparks, Enrique Iglesias, Lady Gaga, and the premiere of Steve Tyler's new music video. Oh, and one more contestant will be eliminated. With how many guest performers they have booked, I'm thinking there won't be a Bottom 2. See ya then...
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