S16.E07: Hollywood Week (2)

[MarkHB]

Quote

Ellen DeGeneres returns to the show and gives Ryan a spanking, because he's been a very, very bad boy.

Spoiler

April Fool!  Actually, the only description I have is, "Hollywood Week Continues."

 

[RandomWatcher]

I'm a bit disappointed that a contestant didn't get shown other than a quick shot. Figured with her history of having a well known radio dj for a dad, she would have gotten more air time.

[PhD-Purgatory15]

Johnny Brens and Laine Hardy continue to be unicorns that the show is clearly adding to the Top 24. Both were all kinds of terrible in their solos and yet they still survived. SMH. Noah was also not anywhere near his best, and still is in it (he should go back to playing the piano...asap).

Surprised to see the dancing audition girl still there. I assumed she got cut in the Line's of 10 round. At least she brings something a little different to the competition. And roundoffs. Lot's of roundoffs.

The whole Brittany second chance thing just grates even more and more. She was so clearly better than every other no we heard all audition season...and she was so clearly better than the two other "no's" she went up against for the fan vote. If she just auditions and gets through like normal, she's one of the masses (who cares one way or the other whether she's Top 24 or not?) but the producers and judges have singled her out to the point where she pretty much has to be in the Top 24....otherwise what was the point of the whole fan vote bringback stunt?

I frantically was scanning the Group 2 room to try and see if I was massively disappointed that anyone was cut.....and honestly, I didn't see anyone that made me really angry or sad. Cesley was someone who we only heard in the group round (I liked her tone)....but being that largely invisible made me think she wasn't long for the show.

Cade Foehner is so ridiculously off in his own lane it's sort of funny.

Edited April 2, 2018 by PhD-Purgatory15

[dizzyd]

There weren't many in room 1 that I thought deserved to go through. Room 3 had most of the cream of the crop. Shouldn't be difficult to cut this bunch down to 24.

[snarkylady]

35 minutes ago, PhD-Purgatory15 said:

Cade Foehner is so ridiculously off in his own lane it's sort of funny.

Made me sit up and take notice.  Liked him very much.

[dizzyd]

Well I'm pissed. I accidentally spoiled myself on the finalists and that maybe the end of the season for me. If anyone else wants to know, I started a spoiler thread.

[niklj]

There are quite a few people I am super excited about, which is awesome. And there are some memorable contestants that I wish they had featured tonight, but I think they got most of them.

Standouts tonight for me were Maddie Pope, Caleb Lee Hutchinson, and Brittany Thompson (I actually clapped after her performance).

Was pretty obvious Group 2 was going home though. Switching that one guy between rooms was just a mindfreak I guess. I am so happy they didn't play with the Hollywood Week formula for this reboot.

[marketdoctor]

I think they showed more solo singing than in previous years, and I appreciate that.  Doing so gives the almost-made-its that much more chance at a Tori Kelly-style post-show career.

I could do without the mindfreaking, though at this point, contestants probably know it's coming.   Even so, why add anything to their stress?

[LennieBriscoe]

Scotty McCreary II will go far, I guess.

Too many short brunette Xtinas for me to differentiate.

Plain Jane Bespectacled Goofball would actually be stunning with a basic make-over. Love her voice and kookieness---and her original song!

Good thing some were pre-ordained (IMO), as more than a few were off their game tonight.

P.S. TeeVee loves unusual or unusually-spelled monikers. J/S.

[PamelaMaeSnap]

I only took a second shot on this show (and those who knew me on TWoP as Jazzie Cazzie will understand how big a deal that is) because my daughter (fka Cazzie Lite) is watching and said it was a fantastic season so it's nice to have stuff to debate with her once a week by phone ...

Hubby bailed about 15 minutes into this episode and I was close. EVERYONE was annoying me, not least of which Katy Perry.

I know Gabby Bleach Girl (is her dad dying? Not being snarky, I just missed her back story) has already got every last nerve of mine and then some ... I get it. She's pretty and has a great voice but a) that deep diving scuba outfit and b) the way she turns every. single. note. into Whitney Houston's Star-Spangled Banner had me reach for the mute button.

I COULD NOT STAND CATIE when I saw her in the first audition episode (which is what turned me off to the show) and she irks me more and more every time I see her ... and I suspect that will be a lot this season.

So, yeah, I see those two going really far and me throwing my remote at the TV a lot. Toss up which one I detest more. Gabby is like bad Jax. 

I didn't see Maddie Poppe's solo audition but if she's the girl who did the acoustic guitar rendition of "Rainbow Connection" I like her quite a bit, but probably not enough to get passionate about (sentimental reasons, because when Cazzie Lite was doing the singer-songwriter scene in LA, she did all originals BUT would always do one cover and when I came out on my birthday, as a surprise for me, she covered "Rainbow Connection" because she knows how much I love it and if I do say so myself her version was better than Maddie's, MAINLY because she actually knew the chord changes LOL but also because ... kleenex). But I think Maddie's my favorite girl if I have to have one.

I DID spoil myself on T14 strictly because there were only TWO PEOPLE I saw last night that I could totally get behind rooting for and figured if neither one made it through to that stage why waste my precious unemployed time when I could be bingewatching Grey's for the umpteenth time.

As it turns out the ONE person I totally fell in love with (and I believe is a sleeper) DOES make it to T14 so just for that I'm in ... for now ... and for as long as that person sticks around. But I'm not optimistic. And obviously I will not say who it is or spoil it. And once they're auf'ed (early, I bet) I can return to my previously scheduled reruns of MAFS/LAFF/90DF and other Lifetime acronym-friendly crap.

A few Qs if you'll bear with me a little ... who is the twin with the stage mother? Who are the others that everyone here already hates? I want to be in on the snark!!!

[proserpina65]

Cade is the real deal, and I really like Maddy Poppe a lot as well.  The camera work during the room drama was stellar, because it was obvious that they were going through to the next round, and every shot of all three rooms studiously avoided showing either one.

They're my favorites so far, but I also like the last guy, whose name I can't remember, who sang the song from Cabaret.  He did something that so many of these singers don't: he let the song build to the climax rather than starting at a high point with nowhere to go.

Speaking of which: dude who did Kelly Clarkson's Piece by Piece, no, just no.  If you can't infuse it with any emotion, you have no business singing it.

Also, making a song your own is good, twisting it out of all recognizable shape is terrible.  The girl who did that jazzed-up version of Feel It Still was awful.

Catie Turner is clearly very talented, but I just can't with her personality.  I know I shouldn't judge her like that, but this is a tv show after all.  I have very similar feelings about Thaddeus Johnson, who wasn't nearly as talented.

[WhineandCheez]

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The whole Brittany second chance thing just grates even more and more

An absolute golden moment in last night's show was the extended sitting on the bathroom floor crying scene with Brittany caterwauling and Gabbi just sitting there with an "I Could Give LEss Than Two Shits" looks on her face.

 

Why do they keep putting thru that mediocre guy with the brown Beatle-boy type haircut?  He was mediocre last night, and even worse in the Groups. Same with the very meh guy that Katie P fights with his GF over.  Feh. Do they need more tween eye candy?

[marketdoctor]

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Speaking of which: dude who did Kelly Clarkson's Piece by Piece, no, just no.

If I may offer a second opinion:  Piece by Piece should never be covered by anyone.  It should never have a parody version.  It should just be.  (I wonder how many people are getting cut for dismal song choice?)

I felt for the young woman who forgot the words to her own song; I've heard of that, because creation and memory are two different parts of the brain--but it looks odd.  It's easier to cover for in an original song, because maybe the way you cover it is better.

Quote

Who are the others that everyone here already hates?

So far, I've fast-forwarded through the backstories, and surprisingly I haven't hated any of the actual singing I've seen.  Even Piece by Piece guy was more of a "wrong choice" than "why did they bring them to Hollywood" for me.  YMMV.

[AnnieHeights]

Maddie Pope is my favorite of the girls by far.....no drama, no annoying personality, just seems like a straight up singer.  Ha!  WhineandCheez......totally noticed the look Gabbi was giving to Brittany!  Catie continues to grate, the other bleached blonde Gabby does as well.....I am rooting more for her sweet father than her.  I am also amazed the dancing girl was and IS still there...I just do not see it.  I still like the blonde country fella and Cade........he is probably my favorite guy!   I enjoy watching Luke Bryan seemed genuinely delighted, he cannot contain his joy when he really likes a performance, I know I would feel like a proud parent by the time Hollywood week rolls around watching some of these kids.  I kind of feel bad for Trevor......with all the 'crushing' going on, it has to be a little harder for him to get up there and not be a little self conscience of it, it was funny the first couple of times but has gotten old..  His girlfriend gets on my nerves .......I don't care about her.                  

[PamelaMaeSnap]

54 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

They're my favorites so far, but I also like the last guy, whose name I can't remember, who sang the song from Cabaret.  He did something that so many of these singers don't: he let the song build to the climax rather than starting at a high point with nowhere to go.

That is super-adorable bowling alley ball cleaner/shoe sprayer/pizza cutter Michael Woodard. Best rendition of that "please oversing me every female singer ever" song that I have ever heard, and as a musical theatre major I've heard a lot of them. 

Edited April 2, 2018 by PamelaMaeSnap
There may be such thing as a "show sprayer" but he actually sprays shoes

[proserpina65]

25 minutes ago, marketdoctor said:

If I may offer a second opinion:  Piece by Piece should never be covered by anyone.  It should never have a parody version.  It should just be.  (I wonder how many people are getting cut for dismal song choice?)

Absolutely.  Her performance of that song on the last FOX season was so emotionally wrenching, I'm not sure I could even make it through HER singing it again.

[lampwick]

My fav right now is Harper Grace.  She is so ready.  She has a great voice, and she is a very talented songwriter.  I just want to buy that Yard Sale song asap.  I watched her audition over and over, and then started singing that song doing housework!  

[proserpina65]

5 minutes ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

That is super-adorable bowling alley ball cleaner/show sprayer/pizza cutter Michael Woodard. Best rendition of that "please oversing me every female singer ever" song that I have ever heard, and as a musical theatre major I've heard a lot of them. 

He was adorable, and had personality without being cloying.  He probably won't go far, but I hope he does because I think I'd enjoy watching him.

[MarkHB]

9 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

Absolutely.  Her performance of that song on the last FOX season was so emotionally wrenching, I'm not sure I could even make it through HER singing it again.

I am no singer, but I get the impression that it's an absolutely brutal song to deliver properly, particularly with the forceful to soft to forceful mood changes.  I also agree that it's one of the few hit songs that are so personal that they shouldn't be covered, much the same way that not even Crystal Gayle covers "Coal Miner's Daughter." 

[Wings]

2 hours ago, LennieBriscoe said:

Scotty McCreary II will go far, I guess.

Too many short brunette Xtinas for me to differentiate.

Plain Jane Bespectacled Goofball would actually be stunning with a basic make-over. Love her voice and kookieness---and her original song!

Good thing some were pre-ordained (IMO), as more than a few were off their game tonight.

P.S. TeeVee loves unusual or unusually-spelled monikers. J/S.

Yes, that is Catie and she desperately needs bangs.  

[snarkylady]

1 hour ago, AnnieHeights said:

I kind of feel bad for Trevor......with all the 'crushing' going on, it has to be a little harder for him to get up there and not be a little self conscience of it, it was funny the first couple of times but has gotten old..         

Unfair!  If Trevor makes the live voting rounds -- NOT A SPOILER, I don't know -- voting for him would be a problem.  I have no idea if he can sing, Katy's actions have completely overridden his performances.  This is hard enough for the idol contestants without the judges making it about themselves. 

[incandescent]

I can't believe they keep letting Tall Greyhound Dude through. He couldn't deliver on the Bublé cover during the audition even with Luke coaxing him along while he sang. He couldn't deliver on the OneRepublic cover this episode. I just don't understand what they see in this guy.

I really liked the guy who covered Maybe This Time and a good handful of the original songs. Still not committed enough to learn anyone's name though.

[WhineandCheez]

Quote

If I may offer a second opinion:  Piece by Piece should never be covered by anyone.  It should never have a parody version.  It should just be

Likewise, I have no need whatsoever to know that any guy "Feels Like A Natural Man." Does.Not.Work.

[Mu Shu]

This Catie is an interesting singer, but her personality isn’t going to cut it.  I’m sorry but she’s annoying as hell.  Calm down, you’re an adult.  I’m not sure how much is schtick and how much is real, but I don’t really care.  

I like the girl with the Mohawk.  There’s your quirky, with some maturity. 

[LizBug]

1 hour ago, Mu Shu said:

This Catie is an interesting singer, but her personality isn’t going to cut it.  I’m sorry but she’s annoying as hell.  Calm down, you’re an adult.  I’m not sure how much is schtick and how much is real, but I don’t really care.  

 

Agree.  She was OK the first couple of times she was featured, but now I'm over her.

[twilightzone]

At least Catie can sing.

But why is someone Jonny Brenns still there???   His singing is mediocre.  He doesn't have lot of stage charisma.  And his sob story of his father not supporting his singing ambition - came off whinny compared to the life challenges that other contestants had.

Edited April 3, 2018 by twilightzone

[PhD-Purgatory15]

Word to why is Johnny Brenns still there? At best he's a derivative Shawn Mendes clone, at worst he's straight up terrible.

Catie's one of those people who thinks everyone else is playing a role or a bit part in her "story". In her first audition, she was barely tolerable...now she's anything but. When she inevitably makes Top 24, I'll have a built in FF block moving forward.

Edited April 2, 2018 by PhD-Purgatory15

[SnarkyTart]

Ima have a hard time hanging with this show as long as we're subjected to Catie Turner.  I wouldn't even care if she's the world's greatest undiscovered singer, she's making the show nearly intolerable for me.  Even when I try to FF through everything related to her, she manages to pop up everywhere unexpectedly, like the worst photo bomb addict ever.  My guess is she turns into this season's Sanjaya, becoming impossible to be rid of until she outlasts a few fan favorites. 

[PamelaMaeSnap]

14 hours ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

and when I came out on my birthday, as a surprise for me, she covered "Rainbow Connection" because she knows how much I love it

I realize that may have been taken the wrong way LOL ... I meant that I came out to LA ... not that there's anything wrong with the first context. 

 

5 hours ago, SnarkyTart said:

Even when I try to FF through everything related to her, she manages to pop up everywhere unexpectedly, like the worst photo bomb addict ever.  My guess is she turns into this season's Sanjaya, becoming impossible to be rid of until she outlasts a few fan favorites.

YES!!!! (Hope PTV can connect this to my other post because I am technologically challenged). And knowing we're going to be subjected to people like Catie and Gabby for longer than we should because they've shoved them down our throats make me wish we could have the option of both voting FOR people and voting people off. I'd take that extra time to do it if I could. 

[Annber03]

10 hours ago, marketdoctor said:

I could do without the mindfreaking, though at this point, contestants probably know it's coming.   Even so, why add anything to their stress?

Agreed. When Lionel was telling the group waiting in one of the rooms about how he got rejected back in the day only to later get an award from the same people who rejected him, I was sitting here imagining the contestants thinking, "...yeah, so that's a nice story, but can you just get on with telling us the news already?" 

And the people hearing the cheering from one of the other rooms while they're waiting to see if they made it through. They should soundproof those rooms, that's just cruel. 

I missed the first hour of last night's show (couldn't DVR it, either, 'cause my DVR is on the fritz), but I liked what I saw in the second hour. Still trying to learn the names of some of the kids, but luckily we're getting to the whittling down phase, so it'll get easier with time. 

[susannot]

I love Michael almost as much as  Adam Lambert so far.  OMG, I had not previously seen his performance of You Oughta Know and have never seen a GUY singing it!!  It was absolutely killer and the audience agreed.  No one else but Adam got screams like that so early in the season.

Edited April 3, 2018 by susannot

[Mu Shu]

I like Caties singing.  I like her style.  She’s just way too much.

what I really don’t get is the shorts wearing girl.  She’s like a bad variety show contestant on Telemundo.  

[Guest]

Catie really annoys me and I think her voice isn’t as strong as many of the others we saw. But I think they’re keeping her because she’s quirky. Sigh.

[susannot]

I also had not previously seen Cade!  Rock on rocker dude.  Yeah!!  Love Cade and Michael.  AFA girls, will have to wait and decide.

[MarkHB]

4 hours ago, PamelaMaeSnap said:

(Hope PTV can connect this to my other post because I am technologically challenged

Your wish is my command :) .

[marykat71702]

On 4/1/2018 at 9:04 PM, RandomWatcher said:

I'm a bit disappointed that a contestant didn't get shown other than a quick shot. Figured with her history of having a well known radio dj for a dad, she would have gotten more air time.

Which one was that?

[Blissfool]

50 minutes ago, marykat71702 said:

Which one was that?

Caroline Kraddick, daughter of the late Kidd Kraddick, a Dallas radio dj. She hardly got any airtime. She's the one that said (during Hollywood wk) "I didn't make it on The Bachelor, so this is my last shot," or something like that.

[BogoGog24]

Gabby Barrett - She is better when she sings R&B. But still think she tries too hard and doesn't match the level of the some of the others.

Marcio - Not bad, not amazing.

Effie - A tough song to sing and she nailed it overall. Probably could have picked something else though.

Amelia - Wasn't feeling that.

Cade - I see many people list him as a favorite. I don't really get him at all. I like rock music and he's very solid and comes off like a pro, but his style isn't my cup of tea I guess. 

Harper Grace - I really loved that original song, more than her audition one. She's a pretty decent writer, like a Kelsea Ballerini type, decent voice with good writing abilities.

Noah - Not his best.

Catie - Another good original song. The problem with her writing is that the melodies are always all over the place and the rhythms are fast-paced, so they aren't very easy for an audience to sing along with. You also have to listen very carefully to the lyrics. That might be a problem going forward if she hopes to have her songs on radio.

Dennis vs Brandon Elder - Dennis could have chosen something better for his voice but he made the song work for him and his version was easily superior to Brandon's. Brandon was off key a lot of the time and was trying too hard.

Maddie Poppe - Another good original song. Out of the originals I liked Harper's the best though.

Michelle - This is probably the first time we really got to hear her sing. Considering her voice was shot, it wasn't bad at all. She shouldn't have tried to hit that high note, but overall pretty good.

Ron - I don't remember anything about this performance.

Jonny - Not his best, clearly.

Crystal - Pitchy dawg. Not surprised she got sent home. She was in way over her head from her audition.

Deonte - Arrogant as hell, but the actual performance was pretty good. He deserved to get eliminated just for the cocky attitude alone.

Jurnee - Maybe could have chosen something better but Jurnee always slays everything she sings. Her vocals are perfection every time.

Trevor Holmes - Ugh. Glad they got rid of him. He stayed way past his welcome. He's just such a bland WGWG.

Maddie Z - I liked this.

Shannon - I don't get her at all. I think her voice is weak, especially her head voice. And she isn't interesting to me at all.

Genevieve - Yuck. Wrong song, a little bit outside her range. Deservedly sent home.

Garrett - Well he gets points for picking something a bit unexpected and not something that has been done to death. His high notes were surprisingly solid. 

Brittany Holmes - She's so good, I don't understand why she never got a golden ticket at her first audition. Does anyone else think she looks a bit like Jordin Sparks too?

Gabbi Jones - Awful. Glad she was sent packing.

Thaddeus - Fantastic! I think he may have had the best solo performance this round.

Kay Kay - I don't remember it at all.

Laine - He's another favorite I just don't get the love for. His voice is VERY rough, like sandpaper. I just find it more irritating than anything. His performances always feel lacking to me.

Caleb - Ballsy move to sing the Scotty song. His voice has always sounded familiar to me and I just realized last night that his voice sounds exactly like Randy Travis. He has a very smooth, buttery tone.

Michael J Woodard - I don't know if it was as good as the judges made it seem like, but it was another unexpected song choice and he did overall pretty well with it. It's no match up against a real Broadway performer though.

I thought it was stupid how they put Thaddeus in another room just to mess with him. So stupid. As far as the "rooms" go, they overall made the right choices. I do appreciate Lionel giving some useful advice to the room 2 contestants.