S14.E21: Top 10 Perform

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Joey was incredible!  Daniel was the worst I have ever heard on the show ever yet the judges said nothing in criticism, um ok.  

 

I FF'd Jax, most of Maddie, someone else who I forget.  Loved Clarke and his change up.  I liked Quentin too although his version was extreme to me.

 

Again JLO wears an outfit she can barely walk or talk in!  Was it a skirt, shorts?  She is so self conscious why does she put herself in that position and it is not flattering anyway.  Her legs are not the best legs in Hollywood.  It was nice to see her stationary in a dress that covered her to sing though.  Never heard the song before so no idea if it was good or bad.  

 

I wish JLO and Keith would step up their judging to the level of Harry especially Keith.  I think the voters do pay attention to what they say and vote accordingly. 

 

Saving Quassim....ok, at least we are done with the save vote so that is a bonus!

[LADreamr]

Speaking of which, I hope no one in the LA area is looking for over-bleached extensions, because I'm pretty sure Jax was wearing all of them.

Nah... sadly... we have more :(.

I'm glad posters here remember Adam doing Mad World, because the show seemed oblivious.

[Shades of Red]

I was initially optimistic that the show was going to stay on whoever was singing the entire time they were singing but alas it was not meant to be.  I keep hoping one of these days they won't cut away to the judges or other contestants when someone is trying their best.  It also irritates me that some contestants get little "extras" thrown their way from Ryan - ice cream etc and others don't.  How about keeping thing equal?

 

I laughed when Kenny Loggins asked Harry if "that was good enough".  How awkward would that have been and I'm sure Harry knew Kenny was performing so why would he say what he did?  Very strange.

 

I liked Jen's dress when she performed.  I thought the effects were cool and it nicely distracted from the song ... which I didn't mind unlike her "puppi" (I know that's not how it's spelled) song last year.   I cringed when she made her entrance at the start of the show though - pulling down and holding down your hem is never attractive.  When will it stop?  A couple of inches more of material will help the dress not hurt it.

 

I'm really not a fan of falsetto in any form and I don't care who sings it, I don't like it so really wasn't impressed with anyone who used it last night.  I thought that Tyanna's was off beat or something with her lyrics to the music.  They didn't seem to match for me but I can't quite pinpoint what the weirdness was.  I liked Quentin and Clark's performances.  I don't care if Quentin is "off key".  Guess what Harry?  All singers have their off days and as long as someone can move you or make you "feel" what they are singing it's good enough for me.  I enjoy many singers/bands who I'm sure don't sing in any kind of key but their own.  What's with the advice to "own your hotness"?  Shouldn't Nick be concerned about his talent first?

 

I have to admit I was a little disappointed when Quentin said he hadn't actually watched "Grease".  This actually tells me the show dictates song choices more that I originally thought.  There are so many movies out there with great songs I'm sure the contestants could have picked something they actually really enjoyed in a movie vs a song from a movie they've never laid eyes on.  I always hope song choices mean something to the people who choose them, but as time goes by I realize how naive I am in that belief.  It's possible a few have seen the movies they picked their song from, but overall I think the majority didn't.  YMMV.

[proserpina65]

I'm glad posters here remember Adam doing Mad World, because the show seemed oblivious

 

Since none of these judges were on the panel until a few years after that season, why would any of them mention it?  I could see if Simon were still on the panel, or Randy; then a comparison might make sense, but with 3 people who might not ever have seen that performance, I don't think it would.  I mean, maybe if Ryan or Rickey Minor had said something, but otherwise, no.

[howmanywords]

Since none of these judges were on the panel until a few years after that season, why would any of them mention it?  I could see if Simon were still on the panel, or Randy; then a comparison might make sense, but with 3 people who might not ever have seen that performance, I don't think it would.  I mean, maybe if Ryan or Rickey Minor had said something, but otherwise, no.

I'm so glad you said this.  It really bugs me when people say that a song should never be sung ever again because so and so now OWN it.  Sorry but IMO no song is so sacred that it should never be touched.  I've been watching Idol since season 2 and I can think of performances I found even better than the almighty Mad World and I would never say someone shouldnt touch it.  These kids should be given the chance to make the song their own, and its even more unfair when you consider they more than likely dont exactly have a huge list to choose from. Totally agree that the judges may not even realize how popular Adam's Mad World was. I actually liked it hearing a female on the song. 

[LADreamr]

I never said anything about her not singing it. She's my favorite there right now, and I thought she did great. I was commenting that it was interesting that no one would be aware of such a well known performance, especially when she did it almost note for note. It was just a thought, it wasn't any judgment on the performance or her prerogative to do it.

[howmanywords]

I was actually talking about the outcry I saw on Twitter last night where people were practically crucifying the poor girl for even choosing the song, I thought it kind of tied together with the idea that not everyone may actually know about Adams.

[4leafclover]

Color me strange but I've never thought Adam Lambert was all-that-and-a-bag-of-chips.  How do people remember who sang what from years passed?  I've watched every season and I probably can't even name all the winners, definitely not the songs that were performed.  BTW, if anyone here watched America's Got Talent when Emily West was a contestant, wasn't JLo's dress in her performance the same one Emily wore during one of her songs?  Only Emily's was red.  Well, at least I remember that--lol.   When Qaasim came on stage I was sure he was going to sing "Super Freak,"  but no, it was "angry man sings another silly Beatle's song."  The miming and the snarling were too much--can't believe the save was used on that performance because the judges sure weren't basing the save on his past performances.  I like Joey but I finally figured out what Keith meant when he mentioned her "artistry."  I think he actually meant us to hear "odd-istry."  And I agree with everyone who complained that it is difficult to hear the singers this year--it is also difficult because so few of them articulate well--Daniel leaves some words hanging without completing them, others just seem to make up words.  AI seems to be trying too hard this season--the green/red chairs, the too-loud band and the even louder back-up singers.  Sad, actually.

[SmallTownMom]

I was surprised that I actually liked Jax last night.  She is so fakey-fake but I thought that song was cute, and it was a good pick for her.

 

Disappointed for Tyanna.  Hope she stays.

 

What was up with Quentin's outfit during his practice?  Kind of like Jimi Hendrix/gladiator.  Weird.

 

Could not believe they used the save on Qaasim, or however you spell it.  I can't stand him.  His "look how angry I am" performance verged on scary for me.  I miss Simon.  I would have loved to hear him say "what a self-indulgent piece of crap!" or "What in the bloodly hell was that?"  When they saved him, I actually screamed "WTF" and woke my husband.  He was so bored by the whole thing that he fell asleep on the sofa. 

 

He's smarter than I am.

[Jillybean]

What's your favorite soundtrack? Really, When Harry Met Sally is a classic and one I listen to a lot. Loved Keith saying Moulin Rouge but was really surprised Jennifer didn't say Selena - didn't she sing on that?

I always thought that movie was where she got her start honing her lip-synching chops.  Pretty sure that was actually Selena's music.

How was it that JLo's lower register came through crystal clear?  Even against the chorus, her voice was plainly heard.  Either she was tracked, or it is prima facie evidence of the shenanigans involved in the presentations of the contestants.  Haaaated the song.  Looooooved the gorgeous dress and staging.  Truly magical.

I thought she was clearly lip-synching, as the song was heavily auto-tuned as is standard with her "music."

Edited March 20, 2015 by Jillybean

[Apple Clark]

Joey, Jax, Daniel, and Nick are my favorites for sure. I was SO PISSED when they used the save on Qaasim though! He's obnoxious and CANNOT sing, he's so screamy. Tyanna was okay in the beginning, but she's gradually gotten worse in my opinion. Everyone else is just so EH for me this year.

Jennifer's dresses and romper....things, are way too short. I don't care if she's modest, but she should keep it classy. That romper thing last night was far from classy. Her voice was surprisingly okay, but did anybody else think she might be lip synching?

Edited March 20, 2015 by Apple Clark

[RemoteControlFreak]

I can't wait to see what Qaasim does next week.  Running around, pulling props out of his pocket, not really singing, and making faces is just a start. I want to see him run into the 2nd balcony and swing down on the chandelier.

 

Thank you American Idol judges for saving him.  It is now clearly obvious that American Idol is no longer a singing competition. It is a competition to see who can give the most outrageous performance that might serve to give the show some much-needed attention.

 

If Daniel keeps getting voted on by "America," he'll complete puberty before the end of the season and we'll need a new excuse for his lack of talent.

 

Joey losing the hat was a step in the right direction.  Next lose the stupid dialect.

 

Clark deserves an award just for saying "Cheaper by the Dozen 2" with a straight face.

 

Rayvon and Tyanna went from first to worst very quickly, and for completely different reasons.

 

Maddie needs to go back to singing at rodeos or car dealership grand openings in Iowa.

 

JLo raising her arm in a sideways fist halfway through Qaasim's performance was the most affected piece of JLo camera-ready feigned emotion ever.

 

Did anyone else notice how much screen time the backup singers and musicians got this week?

Edited March 21, 2015 by remotecontrolfreak

[auntlada]

I'm fine with these "outdated" themes, it's just the choices these kids make!  So many movies and this is what we got?  Heck, James Bond songs alone have a wealth of wonderful songs, but not one in the bunch.

 

I wish they'd have to sing actual movie theme songs (ones that were written specifically for the movie), not just a song that was once in a movie. Or maybe Oscar-nominated movie songs.

[ari333]

I don't like Adanna and I don't know why.

 

Daniel >>>>>>>>>>>  chasm  <<<<<<<<<<<< pitch

[awaken]

Maddie- that was so embarrassing to watch.  I cringed for her the entire time.  That was so wooden and pageanty.  Every week I assume some stylist has gotten her to clip those awful red tips off her hair and am dismayed to see them still there.

 

I seriously don't even think of Nick as hot at all.  I had to do a double take when Jennifer said that.  I think Harry is hotter than Nick.  I don't know, just not my taste at all.  I loved how last week, the mentor said a few times that Nick is *very* attractive! 

 

Daniel is adorable and I'd love to know him in real life or have him as a babysitter, but he needs to be next to go from this competition!

 

I agree, I do not like Adanna and there is no real reason.  She bores me and I don't know what she's about, and I feel nothing when she sings.  Same with Rayvon.  Nothing.  That was the slowest, most plodding version of "staying alive" I"ve ever heard!

 

Yikes, my fave Tyanna did not sound good tonight at all!  That was totally out of tune and not the right style for her at all!  

 

Eh, I"m glad they saved Quassim!  He's unique, and puts on a good performance, anyway.  

 

Surprisingly I loved the JLo performance (AKA, ad for that movie)!  I recall the laughingstock that was "I luh ya papi" last year, and this was so much better!  The dress was really cool!  There is no way she actually sang that, but whatever.  

 

 

[auntlada]

Maddie reminded me a lot of Kimberly Caldwell from season 2. I think it's the stomping around.

[lyric]

I always thought that movie was where she got her start honing her lip-synching chops.  Pretty sure that was actually Selena's music.

I thought she was clearly lip-synching, as the song was heavily auto-tuned as is standard with her "music."

...moved  comments to another thread since off topic...

Edited March 21, 2015 by lyric

[BogoGog24]

Results are announced in no particular order, so for all we know Daniel or Rayvon or somebody had the second lowest votes and not JAX.

 

My top 3 favorite performances in chronological order from last night were: JAX, Joey, and Clark. I was never big on Adam Lambert and think, while talented, is quite overrated and treated like some untouchable god by the Idoloonie nation, so I couldn't care less that Joey did "his" song (eye roll). I too get pretty peeved when fans act like a certain contestant "owns" certain songs and that other people shouldn't cover them. Come on. Now, if Joey had tried to imitate his version to the T, that'd have been dumb. But from what I could tell she was not, so I didn't see an issue with her doing that song. 

 

JAX's performance seems like it got mixed reviews, but I personally loved it. Breathy for days, yeah, but it played to her quirky strengths, IMO. It was cute and had a certain innocence to it. 

 

Clark's rendition reminded me a lot of when a contestant named Dana Williams did a similar jazzy version of that song on Rising Star this past summer. Her version is far better IMO though. I'm not sure Clark's upper register is entirely pleasant.

 

Getting sick of Rayvon relying so damn much on his falsetto, which isn't even that good. Last night he really sounded terrible. I give credit to anyone who attempts to rearrange songs, but this was not good. 

 

Speaking of arrangements, I could NOT stand it when Harry felt the need to explain to the audience what an "arrangement" was. Even those who are not musicians know what an arrangement is. God, he's so freaking arrogant sometimes, it's flat out irritating. 

 

If JLo were a contestant on the show, her critique would have started with "You look beautiful tonight" because that's about all there was to say about her performance. And the special effects were cool, but the song was boring as hell and she was only singing the verses I think. 

 

I don't like Adanna either. I think she is just not that interesting. Last night was one of her better performances though.

 

Tyanna is one of my faves but she uncharacteristically bad last night. She was overshooting the pitch several times and shouting all over the place. I think maybe she thought the song was supposed to be loud, so she thought shouting would accomplish that. But all it did was throw off her pitch. I hope she won't be Sarina 2.0 and get axed because of one bad performance.

 

I don't get the fuss over Quentin. He's had about 1 performance I've really liked. His performance last night was pretty pitchy, from what I heard. Don't get it.

 

I'll give Maddie a pass this week because she probably didn't get much time to rehearse due to her illness. Please stick to country songs, Maddie. You would think as being the only country singer in the whole competition that producers would encourage her to stick to country songs. She could have at least done The Climb from the Hannah Montana Movie, even though I'm sick to death of it, at least she'd probably have done much better. 

 

I feel like I am obligated to root for Nick because he is from my home state, but he's so bland. He's a duller version of Chris Daughtry that isn't quite as good a singer. And I don't get the hotness thing either. Attractive, sure, but not my idea of "hot." Every time I see him, I keep wondering where his girlfriend is, the one who did "Cups" and didn't advance past auditions.

 

Daniel can go anytime now. Seriously, that performance may have been his worst yet, and that's saying something. There was about one note he actually hit well in the whole song. His falsetto was bad. I feel sorry for him because he's getting so much backlash the longer he stays in, but man. Just put the kid out of his misery already. The people voting for him aren't doing him any favors.

 

I don't hate Qassim as much as some people do and even I was shocked the judges/producers used (wasted) the save on him. I've normally not minded his manic performances so much, but last night was the first time he truly scared me. First off, pulling a joker card out of his pocket was so cheesy. The one-armed jacket was weird. The scary faces he was making were frightening, I thought he was gonna go punch someone or something. I heard Scott Borchetta say he makes those faces when he's excited, I'd hate to see how he looks when he's mad… I can't fathom any logical reason why they decided to waste the save on him, except for a few possibilities:

 

- They don't want yet another racism allegation with 2 black contestants leaving in a row

- They like him for the entertainment factor

- If there's a tour this year, they need him for the entertainment factor because most of these others are dull as dirt

- They want to get rid of this whole "save" thing because it just makes the contestants even more nervous. The pimp slot is wasted on a "save me" performance

- Using the save on him created buzz (even if negative)

- Now that the save is out of play, they may be able to finally knock off Daniel

 

The bright side of using the save is that now at least when Daniel is eliminated, he cannot be saved.

[BogoGog24]

I don't know where else to post this, but about the tour. I'm wondering if the reason it hasn't been mentioned yet is maybe they are not sure yet if they are doing one. Last year's tour was pretty bad. They couldn't even afford a freaking live band, the poor contestants had to sing to karaoke tracks! Of course, that didn't help sales when people found out about that. I suspect unless they were able to get a bigger budget this year, that the contestants would have to sing to tracks again this year and who would pay money to see some D-list reality show singers sing karaoke? It would majorly suck for them though if this is the first year they skip the tour. I've seen suggestions around the web that maybe they'll do a 2 week stint in Vegas or something instead. IMO limiting the amount of shows maybe would help drive up sales a little more and would be a lot less embarrassing for the contestants when they have to cancel shows because of bad sales.

[Pogojoco]

100% correct - that lovely voice in Selena was Selena.  Rumor was (cannot point to independent verification, so take this with however much weight you choose) that after JLo signed-on she lobbied hard to sing Selena's songs on film, but the producers said, "Thanks, but no thanks.  We'll use Selena's vocals".

I seem to recall it was always going to be Selena's voice in the movie because her family wanted it that way. I don't put it past her, but JLo's ability to lobby in 1997 as the Fly Girl/ hot chick from Money Train would be seriously limited.

 

And when I pointed out earlier about Joey singing "Mad World" and it being Adam Lambert's thing, it's not necessarily because I think the song is untouchable or sacred or something. But those so-called "Idol moments" often come when the kid sings a song you aren't expecting and kills with it. Thinking strategically, why would you sing a song another Idol sang and is sort of known for, leaving a certain portion of the voters/viewing audience thinking about what the previous Idol did when you could sing one of the other 11 billion songs that have appeared in a movie, kill with it and have it be known as a Joey song?

Edited March 21, 2015 by Pogojoco

[MarkHB]

It turns out that I was misinformed about the iTunes thing... they haven't been on at all this season so far, but apparently they're going to start uploading them next week.

 

As far as the tour goes, it would suck for them to not have it; the summer of living like a rock star is one of the few perks most of these kids will ever get from the show.  Yes, the lack of a live band hurt it last year, but still.  (And unsettlingly, americanidol.com/tour is throwing a 404 error :( ).

[Lonesome Rhodes]

I had long forgotten that Selena's voice was dubbed into the movie.  That explains why JLo wouldn't name that soundtrack as her favorite.

 

Thanks for the confirmation that the B2 was not named.

[Guest]

I'm a fan of Adam but I think his Mad World being iconic is an idea unique to a handful of people here, which seems like a lot because this is a small pond, but I don't think we're representative of the real tv viewing world.  

 

I didn't hate Joey on that, but I didn't love her, either.  

 

Wow, some really bad performances in that two hours.  

 

I hope Douchetta is a one-season thing, like Ellen.  They could hire some random man off the street and his input would be more interesting than that guy's.  He'd probably have better style, too.

 

Cheaper By The Dozen 2... Clark wins the Diggin Deep award.  

[raspberry7]

My interpretation of HCJ's whole "arrangement" bit for Clark was that (A) he considers Clark to be a musician, which is saying something, and (B) he was pointing out that Clark did that arrangement himself, in contrast to multiple other performers from the night who performed cool arrangements that were not their own.

 

I agree with the poster above who felt that the ability to do a neat arrangement within these time constraints shouldn't necessarily be a criteria for AI. However, I appreciate giving credit where credit is due. And I also appreciate the judges' efforts to point out who has actually done the arranging, which IMHO has been a huge flaw in years past (e.g. Keith mentioning that Quentin's arrangement came from a commercial).

[raspberry7]

The

 

And also some neat slowed-down versions from a few years before:

Edited March 21, 2015 by raspberry7

[Kromm]

Adanna - Ugh.  She's still not very good.  Adanna, the difference between you and J. Hud is that Jennifer has contol of her voice.  You don't.  But of course, the audience cheered and the judges mostly gushed.  J. Lo actually being a little bit bitchy was actually a relief to me.
 

Infant - In my heart I knew he'd be back.  Because Ameriker MUST be treating this as a protest vote/joke.   And man, you're voice has to be SO annoyingly high if you're too high for an Adam Levine song.  Like he somehow was.  Now someone hand Daniel a lollipop, pat him on the head, and send him on his way.  Or not.  Again, if this is the protest vote, we might as well ride this sucker all the way. And I laughed when the judges talked about his falsetto.  'Cause that just seemed to be his normal singing voice (and it was STILL to high, as I said).
 

RayVon - That could have been MUCH worse.  Then again, he had backup singers. And Ricky Minor. I actually thought it was a hair better than the judges did, but not so much I care.
 

Boring Nick - Still boring.  Kenny Loggins?  Fuck you, Nick.  Decent voice, but Daughtry has the same voice and isn't boring.
 

Joey Yellow Teeth (slightly whitened now) - Well done Joey.  I'm sure that was someone else's arrangment (hmm... apparently Adam Lambert), but so what? She's good at it. I even liked her outfit.  And yes, J. Lo, we all know who Sia is.  She's not your special discovery, Jenny.
 

Tyanna - Ugh.  She should have been steered away from that song. Bad idea.  If this was all anyone had ever heard of her, she'd be gone.  But of course it got Clapbot Audience Response.
 

J. Lo - I wonder how long she worked on this.  To give her a lot of credit, this clearly wasn't lipsynched and she did a very good job.  Then again, she had some nice echo effects and for the most part its not that vocally dynamic of a song.  But she was on tune/in pitch for 100% of it.  Nothing about her performance, but it IS a very trite song, lyrics-wise.  It was also kinda shitty however that it was CLEARLY pre-recorded (the impossible wardrobe change told us that).  Which also opens up the possibility there could have been multiple takes.
 

Quentin - Okay, that happened.  Looked like a chicken and did a weird-ass rearrangement of a Grease song.  And... I didn't mind it at all.  It was clever, and dramatic and unexpected.  But good on Keith to let us know Quentin didn't exactly come up with the arrangement.  Was it as out of tune as the judges said?  I actually didn't think so.
 

Boy George as the next guest mentor? - Awesome.
 

Maddie - Yawn.  If Infant is the protest vote, what is Maddie still doing there?  Is it a sympathy vote for her medical issues?  SO flat a performance. So boring.  So lifeless.  So... bleh.
 

More Kenny Loggins (this time his actual boring self) - STILL BORING.  And man, he's gotten so old.  Cut loose at his age appears to be combing his beard out or something.  The one high point in the original song is the big scream he does in the middle of the song. Guess what?  Old Kenny don't do no scream.  And as a result, there's a big hole in the middle of the song.
 

Clark - Who?  No, I'm serious.  Every week when he shows up on screen I find myself having trouble remembering who the hell he even is.  Even for WGWG he's vanilla.  Those high notes didn't impress me either, however much the Clapbots in the crowd screamed.  And Harry?  Most of us know what an arrangement is.
 

Jax - I've never been on her hater train, and I do think she had something interesting tonight.  We all know these affectations are an act.  But that's true of many successful performers--its all in how you sell it. Although for once a mentor REALLY helped with advice (Nile Rodgers was dead on with his advice and she might have missed it otherwise).
 

Quassim and his million miles per hour singing was the right one to go home. So... why didn't he?  I'm so sick of it.  Harry's "don't rush" advice to Jax seemed doubly interesting given that it took WEEKS for them to even say anything to Quassim about ALWAYS freaking singing in a blur.  This "save" attempt was even one of his slower singing attempts, and he STILL couldn't stay in that pocket for long.  He got the chorus and just got manic all over again.  But the judges ate it up, I guess.

[rab01]

Tyanna and Maddie are 16 so why does Daniel being 15 excuse his sucking that hard?

A double elimination week is a good opportunity to chop Daniel. If he survives again, we might lose Tyanna this week, which would be unfortunate but she really gave the worst performance last night (other than Daniel).

This may be heresy but Joey's performance was better than Adam Lambert's ...... His second performance of Mad World that is. The first time was awesome; the second time was just really good. For the contestants who generally sing in tune, what matters to me is usually how well they connect to the material. I thought Joey had that connection so I enjoyed it.

I agreed with Harry that Qaasim gave the performance of the night so I think they were right to save him. I think the time to use the save is when you are appalled before they sing that they were in the bottom (Sanchez) or like this week when they absolutely kill their performance.

[Shannon L.]

 

I agree with the poster above who felt that the ability to do a neat arrangement within these time constraints shouldn't necessarily be a criteria for AI. However, I appreciate giving credit where credit is due. And I also appreciate the judges' efforts to point out who has actually done the arranging, which IMHO has been a huge flaw in years past (e.g. Keith mentioning that Quentin's arrangement came from a commercial).

That was me and I absolutely agree with giving credit where credit is due.  I'm always impressed with the kids who can manage a fresh, new arrangement for a song inside one very busy week.  I just feel bad for those who can't.  They either get a "horrible arrangement" critique or a "karaoke" critique. 

 

Here's another thing that bugs me:  Why is it so important to choose a song that has deep lyrics that they can really get into? What's wrong with a light, fun song?  Tons of light, fun songs have hit number one over the decades.  Besides, the flip side of that is that many of these contestants are so young, that if they choose a song that's deep, they get criticized for not conveying the meaning of it well enough and that's mostly due to the fact that they aren't old enough to have had the life experience necessary to understand the feelings behind the lyrics.

Edited March 21, 2015 by Shannon L.

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Here's another thing that bugs me:  Why is it so important to choose a song that has deep lyrics that they can really get into? What's wrong with a light, fun song?  Millions of light, fun songs have hit number one over the decades.  Besides, the flip side of that is that many of these contestants are so young, that if they choose a song that's deep, they get criticized for not conveying the meaning of it well enough and that's mostly due to the fact that they aren't old enough to have had the life experience necessary to understand the feelings behind the lyrics.

 

I Luh Ya Papi comes to mind JLO!

[ari333]

When I watched the performances on this eppy I wondered who the wildcards were... Quentin and who? (I forgot already) Was there no mention of the tour or did I miss it? Not that I've ever gone to the tour show once ever since.....ever. But I thought it was a big deal since they what may be big money for them if they make the tour. I liked Joey. She is growing on me. Hate the pronunciation thing, but at least she did not scream the song at me. I normally love Tyanna (Janet Jackson 2.0) but on this show it was cringe and scream worthy to me, as was Adanna. (imo) So Harry wants a person to talk with a twang if they sing with a twang. Wonder how Keith feels about that *snerk* Hate falsetto. And in my head when Quentin sang that Grease song I said, "That sounds like that commercial of the same song slowed down." It's not just me, but when all the sing-testants ran onto the stage after the save, I was thinking, "yeah right . they're so happy bc now two will be chopped in one shot" In their minds they have to know that this is not good for them. Also the save is gone. SO there's that. Get off my lawn.

Edited March 21, 2015 by ari333

[WhineandCheez]

Just got to watch it, although I knew the result prior to watching:

 

Adanna:  Loved her outfit and esp. the shoes!! She is so pretty.  Its like she's not overly versatile, though.

 

Rayvon--LOOKED BEAUTIFUL.  Loved having all the backups and such on stage.  Sang terribly.  Awful.  He will probably go next week

 

Daniel--why should i comment since he will get sent forward even if he stands there with a pacifier and diaper.  Oh, okay, horrrible horrible job.  And smiling like God's special little one the entire time

 

Joey--I am a visual person so I comment more on styling over singing.  I think the stylists took her in hand and forced her to abandon her horrifying makeup and clothes.  She looked fabulous, her looks get better and better each week.  But i dont think she can win because of her horribly affected pronounciation.  That can be trained out of her, whether it's habit or a regional accent, but I think she would rather go down dying than change it. Its like when Madonna would sound British--it takes you out of what the singer is doing. I don't think mainstream USA would buy and album listening to that affectation on each and every song.  Anyone?

 

Maddy-- oh god what a mess of an outfit and a wan listless vocal and stage performance.  why does she look 30 when she's 16?

 

Tyanna- I can't comment on my favorite girl, her awful performance of a trite song.  BUT PUTTING HER IN A KOHLS BLACK DRESS AND JACKET IS THE EVEN BIGGER TRAGEDY.

 

Nick-- can't he lose the Guido hair?  He looks soooo cute in his knit cap.

 

Clark--hair was roughed up a bit, helped mitigate his pink, gold, and blue white-bread-ness.  He would look so good in hair somewhat like Keith, shoulder length.  A hipp-er look for him would be nice.

 

Quenton--nice try but a fail.  I love when someone "Cooks" a song, but this was like adding substance to whipped cream.  Its like he only sang 3 lines.  No Likey

 

Jax--dressed like 80s night one week earlier.  Can't she mix it up with the face X?  Take it off sometime?  Its like when a contestant decides that bare feet is their trademark (like Alexis and some Asian dude  about 6 years ago).  So stupid.

 

Quassim--judges locked it when they said the best performance of the night.  They did NOT say best SINGING of the night.  His literalness was killing me.  I was expecting him to mimic a chiropractor when he sang " Spinal cracker she got.." However he gets some sort of trophy for BEST STANKFACE OF 2015.

 

Kenny Loggins i would never have recognized.  He looked great though, did not go under the knife and his voice was fine.  I love seeing these 60s/70s icons still making music. I hope they let BoyGeorge sing.  By the way Nile Rogers has a portrait of himself locked in the attic, aging slowly.

 

J Lo, I was about to say her song was so trite, then i remembered

1.  Its a kids movie song

2.  I Luv ya Papi (last year)

3.  Giant shoe song (2 years ago)

 INSERT QUASSIM STANKFACE HERE AND DROP MIC

Edited March 21, 2015 by WhineandCheez

[bluepiano]

So Qassim basically gives a big Screw You to the judges who have been telling him to focus on singing instead of treating this like an aerobics contest, and he gets the save? What? Instead of focusing on the singing he amps up the theatrics, with the ridiculous outfit, props, stomping and clomping etc.  And Harry, who's been the main one telling him to "sing, damnit" calls it the best performance of the night? Huh?? ("Performance being the key word, because if Qassim is anything he's a "performance artist.")

 

Loved someone's early comparison of Qassim's posturing to Richard Sherman, but RS is an all-pro football player, and Qassim is a high school kid play acting. When he was play acting at being James Brown it was kind of amusing, but trying to come off as bad ass dude made him look ridiculous. Especially after he was introduced as the sweet kid who's still a virgin. What I believe is that his parents, who seem very savvy about launching him into a show biz career (he was already on Nickelodeon) told him, hey, you're not a good enough singer to go much further, so put on a show and make a name for yourself. (What do you want to bet that they have their sights on a family reality show?)

 

On top of that, as a lifelong Beatles fan I've always hated "Come Together." So many great Beatles song, and that's the one that gets performed most often on these shows. Probably because of the gimmicky lyrics and the catchy, sing songy beat. But since it really has no melody it's more about conveying an attitude than singing. Which made it a perfect choice for Qassim, who is all attitude and can't sing a lick.

 

On another note, we've been saying all season that Daniel is more appropriate for a high school (or middle school) talent show, but this entire night had that feeling. Maddie suddenly seemed to be about 13 (that Little Mermaid "movie" segment didn't help), and even Tyana, who does have talent, suddenly seemed so in over her head. That's what you get with such young performers. Some nights they are just going to be overcome by nerves. It's making Clark, who's a few years older and has some actual professional performing experience, really stand out. (I guess you could say the same for Nick, but to he's still really boring.)

Edited March 21, 2015 by bluepiano

[BogoGog24]

I forgot to mention this. Did anyone else notice that JAX's microphone was the only one all decorated while the others were plain? I wonder if she paid to have that done, otherwise it doesn't really seem fair that one contestant has a "special" mic while the others are plain looking.

[Starla]

I finally figured out who Daniel reminds me of: 1990s-era Elijah Wood, right down to the gap between his teeth. 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

I finally figured out who Daniel reminds me of: 1990s-era Elijah Wood, right down to the gap between his teeth. 

OMG, amazing resemblance!

[MrsMoltisanti]

Jax did change up her little x by putting a teeny diamond in the center of it. I still am on the fence with her. I think she is very contrived with the dress and the walk down the stage stairs to sing to her parents and so many other things to date which I am way too tired to list at the moment. I want to like her but every move she makes seems so forced and planned out and it seems phoney. Okay I guess I am neighbours with Ari333. Kids get off my lawn.

[Waldo13]

I forgot to mention this. Did anyone else notice that JAX's microphone was the only one all decorated while the others were plain? I wonder if she paid to have that done, otherwise it doesn't really seem fair that one contestant has a "special" mic while the others are plain looking.

I'm pretty sure that they allow contestants to use their own mics if they have one. I believe this may have started with Crystal Bowersox when they allowed her to use her own mic.

By not having a tour, the contests would loose a good chunk of change for a few months of work.

I was watching closely to see if JLo was lip sinking. It looked like she wasn't but it doesn't mean that her performance was not prerecorded. I forgot about checking for the disclaimer and erased it from my DVR. But the sound quality was much better, for her performance, than the rest of the show.

It doesn't bother me when contestants choose songs that were previously done no matter how great the performance. If the contestant is brave enough to sing it than they should be brave enough to take the comparison. I forget which season it was but it was during the Simon era when the same song was sang on the same night. They were brave enough and confident enough to sing the song and to possibly suffer Simon's comments. the only thing I wonder about is how the so called mentors allow contestants to make bad song choices or songs not suited to them inless they are set up to fail.

[Padma]

My interpretation of HCJ's whole "arrangement" bit for Clark was that (A) he considers Clark to be a musician, which is saying something, and (B) he was pointing out that Clark did that arrangement himself, in contrast to multiple other performers from the night who performed cool arrangements that were not their own.

 

I agree with the poster above who felt that the ability to do a neat arrangement within these time constraints shouldn't necessarily be a criteria for AI. However, I appreciate giving credit where credit is due. And I also appreciate the judges' efforts to point out who has actually done the arranging, which IMHO has been a huge flaw in years past (e.g. Keith mentioning that Quentin's arrangement came from a commercial).

They usually don't know though, do they? I remember last week they were lavishly praising Joey's "originality" for the arrangement -- and then Ryan asked her more and we found out it was copying someone else's.

 

Nothing wrong with that, but if you are going to single out one or two for praise (1) you should know if they are -really- being original and (2) it isn't a requirement so -not- doing it shouldn't be implied to be an inferior contestant.

 

But what was annoying about Harry was that incredibly condescending explanation about what an arrangement is for the benefit of viewers at home. What did he think we feel is being "arranged" differently for a performance if not the music? Someone's hair?

[Kromm]

I was watching closely to see if JLo was lip sinking. It looked like she wasn't but it doesn't mean that her performance was not prerecorded. I forgot about checking for the disclaimer and erased it from my DVR. But the sound quality was much better, for her performance, than the rest of the show.

To me it was almost certain she wasn't lip-syncing, but also DEAD certain that was prerecorded (because she went from one outfit before the performance, then to another very elaborate outfit during it, then BACK to her initial outfit after the performance--with FAR too short a break between them for her to have changed). Which of course means she could have theoretically had as many takes as she'd needed, although since it WAS in front of an audience, for arguments' sake it would have been impractical for it to have been more than 2 or 3).

Edited March 22, 2015 by Kromm

[designing1]

I can't find the link to the article, but I read somewhere that JLo's number was recorded in front of an audience the night before live performance night. 

 

I forget which season it was but it was during the Simon era when the same song was sang on the same night. They were brave enough and confident enough to sing the song and to possibly suffer Simon's comments.

 

During season two Clay Aiken and Josh Gracin both sang "To Love Somebody" on Bee Gees night.

Edited March 22, 2015 by designing1

[BogoGog24]

2 things: At the end of the day, it is up to the contestant what they sing and how they sing it, provided what they have chosen is cleared. The mentors, coaches, and producers make suggestions all the time but the contestants are not obligated to listen. Yes sometimes they make bad choices and probably should listen sometimes but they also need to listen to their gut and do what they feel is right for them. That doesn't mean somebody didn't tell them "Hey this is a bad choice for you." Sometimes they do it anyway because it's what feels right for them.

JLo's performance was pre-taped the night before. I'm pretty sure she usually tapes her performances ahead of time. They made sure to at least keep her eye makeup the same both nights. Perhaps by pre recording it that ensures they won't go over the 2 hour show.

Edited March 22, 2015 by BogoGog24

[Waldo13]

I can't find the link to the article, but I read somewhere that JLo's number was recorded in front of an audience the night before live performance night.

During season two Clay Aiken and Josh Gracin both sang "To Love Somebody" on Bee Gees night.

I'm sure they could have used auto-tune at the time her performance was prerecorded. The sound in the theater and the sound on the TV has to be different because a lot of times the judges don't hear what we hear.

Does anyone remember Jacob Lusk, season 10, singing a far inferior version of Clay Akins' "Bridge Over Troubled Water"? He made the efford and I commend him for that. Also, Jordin Sparks, season 6 winner, was brave enough to take on "A Broken Wing" we're season 3's runner up, Diana DeGarmo, held the longest final note, an AI record, 17 seconds on that song. Artists cover songs all the time. Some better some worse than the original. So why not AI contestants?

[Guest]

But what was annoying about Harry was that incredibly condescending explanation about what an arrangement is for the benefit of viewers at home. What did he think we feel is being "arranged" differently for a performance if not the music? Someone's hair?

Well, arrangement IS three syllables, like intonation is four.  Surely we wouldn't understand words that big out here in moron tv land.  Though I think they probably tell Harry to go ahead and get slightly technical but define his terms as if we don't know anything at all about singing.  Which I think was the genesis of the word 'pitchy', too.  At least Harry isn't making up words.  But defining arrangement was offensive and silly.  

 

They made sure to at least keep her eye makeup the same both nights. Perhaps by pre recording it that ensures they won't go over the 2 hour show.

 

I noticed her eye makeup was similar but her face was missing about 98% of the glitter she wore in the performance, and I think her hair was different too.  

 

She did sound good for a change.  I figured she was either lip synching or it was cleaned up in post production.  

 

I'm pretty sure that they allow contestants to use their own mics if they have one. I believe this may have started with Crystal Bowersox when they allowed her to use her own mic.

 

I think Crystal used her own mic stand, wasn't it?  I'd be surprised if the blingy mic Jax used was anyone's other than the show's.  We've seen them use blingy mics before.  

[BogoGog24]

I've heard that microphones can have built-in auto tune. Would not surprise me if she was using one.

[Waldo13]

I've heard that microphones can have built-in auto tune. Would not surprise me if she was using one.

It's not really in the mic but in a pre-amp that is attached to the speaker amp. But it can be used with a wired mic or a wireless mic.

Heard the Top 11 sing "The National Anthem" at the NASCAR race today. They actually did s great job. They should become a choir instead of individual performers.

[Raven1707]

When I watched the performances on this eppy I wondered who the wildcards were... Quentin and who? (I forgot already)

 

Quentin and Adanna were the wild cards.

[Kromm]

I'm sure they could have used auto-tune at the time her performance was prerecorded. The sound in the theater and the sound on the TV has to be different because a lot of times the judges don't hear what we hear.

There's a detectable sound to autotune though, unless they've vastly improved it in the recent past.  "On the fly" pitch repairs aren't better (yet) than our ability to detect when the (aural) corners of something have been cut off or artificially shifted up or down.

 

Not that what we head couldn't have been tweaked, but if so it had to have been done in the day since, on a mixing board and not simply with on-the-fly autotuning, and then sewn back into the playback.

 

The important thing is that she seemingly wasn't lipsyncing, and that's at least something.  Not unless she's a FAR better actress than anyone's even given her credit for and got mouth mimicking dead perfect for a several minute long performance.

[Kromm]

Speaking of arrangements, I could NOT stand it when Harry felt the need to explain to the audience what an "arrangement" was. Even those who are not musicians know what an arrangement is. God, he's so freaking arrogant sometimes, it's flat out irritating.

I'm occasionally on Harry's side, but I wanted to drop kick him when he said that.  

Almost as bad... when J. Lo acted like Sia was some unique special discovery only SHE knew about and felt she had to explain to the audience that she was a singer. That was laughable too.  Yes, there probably was a tiny portion of the audience who had no idea who Sia was, but come on.  "Chandelier" was one of the top songs of 2014, including getting four Grammy nominations, and getting play and mention in every venue possible during 2014. 

 

Fame really is it's own shield from everyday reality, isn't it?

[OakGoblinFly]

I seem to recall it was always going to be Selena's voice in the movie because her family wanted it that way. I don't put it past her, but JLo's ability to lobby in 1997 as the Fly Girl/ hot chick from Money Train would be seriously limited.

 

And when I pointed out earlier about Joey singing "Mad World" and it being Adam Lambert's thing, it's not necessarily because I think the song is untouchable or sacred or something. But those so-called "Idol moments" often come when the kid sings a song you aren't expecting and kills with it. Thinking strategically, why would you sing a song another Idol sang and is sort of known for, leaving a certain portion of the voters/viewing audience thinking about what the previous Idol did when you could sing one of the other 11 billion songs that have appeared in a movie, kill with it and have it be known as a Joey song?

 

 

Maybe because of the songs on the rather limited list, Joey felt she could connect most strongly with Mad World and show us her emotional connection to a song (something Harry feels quite strongly about).  And even though Adam Lambert did well with that song, I thought there was enough difference between the two versions (at least emotionally).

[OakGoblinFly]

Here's another thing that bugs me:  Why is it so important to choose a song that has deep lyrics that they can really get into? What's wrong with a light, fun song?  Tons of light, fun songs have hit number one over the decades.  Besides, the flip side of that is that many of these contestants are so young, that if they choose a song that's deep, they get criticized for not conveying the meaning of it well enough and that's mostly due to the fact that they aren't old enough to have had the life experience necessary to understand the feelings behind the lyrics.

 

 

Nothing - but at some point I am going to want to hear something with a little weight from these contestants (and conversely, if all you're doing is meaty songs, I'd like to hear a light, flirty song).  It should be about balance (which is what some of the better Idol contestants have done in the past - they knew how to play the game).