S17.E11: All-Star Duets (2) (2019.04.09)

[MarkHB]

Quote

The remaining 10 of the Top 20 finalists perform duets with all-star celebrity partners. Following the performances, the contestants find out who has made the last 7 spots, rounding out the Top 14 during a final elimination that will leave audiences stunned.

[TvGeek]

I missed a big chunk of the episode what was the thing that would leave the audience stunned?

[DietCokeJunkie]

So many stunning performances tonight. Jeremiah and Cynthia were transcendent. I also loved Alejandro and Ben Harper and Demetrius and Lukas Graham. 

I would have kept Raquel and sent Eddie Island home. 

[ECM1231]

Just now, DietCokeJunkie said:

So many stunning performances tonight. Jeremiah and Cynthia were transcendent. I also loved Alejandro and Ben Harper and Demetrius and Lukas Graham. 

I would have kept Raquel and sent Eddie Island home. 

I would have kept Ryan and ditched Eddie. I loved Ryan singing "Hold On, I'm Coming", with Cynthia Erivo, who was amazing on both duets. Ryan did it justice for someone who has never heard that song and mostly grew up hearing/ singing Christian music.

So many good performances tonight.

[SnarkAttack]

Raquel was totally annoying, glad she went home.  Surprised Ryan didn't make it over even more annoying Eddie Island.  Alejandro is magic.  

[Annber03]

Lukas Graham seems like a really cool, nice guy. Loved his interactions with both Dimitrius and Eddie and how supportive and encouraging he was with them. Their duets were definitely some of the highlights of the night. 

Also liked Jeremiah, and Alejandro and Ben Harper together...absolutely lovely. 

Pretty good top 14 overall here. 

[TeeMo]

I was less thrilled with tonight's results than last night's. I knew they would keep Evelyn but I would have been happy to see her go. I would have sent Eddie and Raquel home with her. Or if we had to keep Eddie, send Wade home. I was underwhelmed with his performance tonight. I am bummed that Ryan got sent home over Eddie, Wade and Evelyn. I know he holds back a bit on stage but he has a great voice and I think he could be one of those contestants who really gains a lot from the process of the show and becomes a real performer by the time it is all over. 

Having said all that, I think it is a really talented top 14 overall and I look forward to seeing how it all shakes out. 
 

If you asked me to bet some money on who will be left standing at the end, I'd put it on Laci, Laine and either Alejandro or Walker as your final three but I think there is a ton of potential in this group. 

[mamadrama]

1 hour ago, SnarkAttack said:

Raquel was totally annoying, glad she went home.  Surprised Ryan didn't make it over even more annoying Eddie Island.  Alejandro is magic.  

I didn't really "get" her. She was perfectly fine, but up against some of the others, I found her forgettable. I loved the Cardigans and "Lovefool" (I actually loved the whole "Romeo + Juliet" soundtrack). However, I was underwhelmed by Raquel's version of it last week. It wasn't just that the original was a cute song, but Nina Persson's delivery of it, as well as the 90's synthesization, was what helped make it special. While I can appreciate Raquel trying to put a little funky style to it, and slowing it down to kind of make it her own, it just didn't work for me. Sometimes it's not so much the song as the delivery, and that's how I felt about the Cardigan's version of it. 

Eddie Island is another one I'm not really understanding. How did he manage to slip in here when so many good people have already left? And I swear I'd never heard Kate until last week. 

[mamadrama]

1 hour ago, TeeMo said:

 

If you asked me to bet some money on who will be left standing at the end, I'd put it on Laci, Laine and either Alejandro or Walker as your final three but I think there is a ton of potential in this group. 

I think so, too. I'm betting the F3 will be Laci, Laine, and Jeremiah with a Laci/Laine showdown at the end (Laine winning it all). I'm interested to see what the voters will do when we're able to start calling it in. We'll probably know within the first few eliminations what the endgame's going to be. 

[Blissfool]

I just Don't. Get. Evelyn. Throughout her performance, I was in awe of Chris Isaak and thought she sounded awful. Color me surprised when the judges gave her a tongue bath.

I'm glad Logan and Raquel are gone. Logan is, at best, mediocre. Raquel was cocky.

I'm sorry to see Ryan leave. I thought he was handsome, humble, and a great singer. I get that he was forgettable to the judges and most of the public, but I really liked him.

So how sick is Seacrest, really? This used to be the type of gig that you don't call in sick to. 

[thesupremediva1]

Ok so with all the talent they had the judges really got it wrong tonight. They should gave ditched Evelyn and kept Ryan. They must be deaf to have sent Ryan home. I'm quite angry about this stupidity.

And I have no use for Eddie Island. Would have kept Logan over him without a second thought.

I cannot believe I have to endure Evelyn again. She's a one-trick pony and they ordered her trick for this evening. That's shady as hell. Just ugh at her staying over Ryan and Logan. 

They stacked this group. Only a few weak links and they kept two of the three! I could trade in half of last night's group to get one more spot for Ryan.

[HaaCHOO]

56 minutes ago, Blissfool said:

I'm sorry to see Ryan leave. I thought he was handsome, humble, and a great singer. I get that he was forgettable to the judges and most of the public, but I really liked him.

I wish someone had styled Ryan before he even auditioned.  He needs more/longer hair to enhance his good looks and great smile.  Those passe` "bare knees" jeans are off-putting.  I hope AI didn't select his outfit.  He's SUCH a good singer; he deserved better treatment.

[SnarkAttack]

8 hours ago, Annber03 said:

Lukas Graham seems like a really cool, nice guy. Loved his interactions with both Dimitrius and Eddie and how supportive and encouraging he was with them. Their duets were definitely some of the highlights of the night. 

Also liked Jeremiah, and Alejandro and Ben Harper together...absolutely lovely. 

Pretty good top 14 overall here. 

Lukas was trying to get Eddie to be serious, but Eddie can't help himself and still didn't take it seriously enough.  So annoying.

[SnarkAttack]

7 hours ago, mamadrama said:

I think so, too. I'm betting the F3 will be Laci, Laine, and Jeremiah with a Laci/Laine showdown at the end (Laine winning it all). I'm interested to see what the voters will do when we're able to start calling it in. We'll probably know within the first few eliminations what the endgame's going to be. 

I don't get the big deal about Laine.

I think it'll be Laci, Jeremiah and Alejandro at the end.  

[WhineandCheez]

Quote

I missed a big chunk of the episode what was the thing that would leave the audience stunned?

Ryan Seacrest had to miss the show because of illness.  I guess the first time ever.

Evelyn was awful, and her accent (or affectation) is awful. Eddie Island, if he could stop being ADHD for a second, sounded great last week, not great this week. 

[cinsays]

Agreed that Ryan should have stayed or Island Boy, just not seeing what they are loving about him. 

Surprised they didn't keep Logan, though he did nothing for me.  Wasn't he the Bieber-wanna-be? I thought they would keep him to have all the the tweens voting for him.

Evelyn is not my favorite, but I think she has a pretty voice.

I thought every other performance was excellent and am looking forward to the season.

[TeeMo]

1 hour ago, SnarkAttack said:

I don't get the big deal about Laine.

I think it'll be Laci, Jeremiah and Alejandro at the end.  

I also don’t get the big deal about Laine but I think people are going to buy what the show is selling when it comes to him and it will get him to the finals. I think he is good and should be in the top 14 but he should not beat someone like Alejandro or Jeremiah. But I think it’s likely he finishes higher than both of them. You can tell that the show is invested in him in a way they are not with most of the others and will do what they can to keep him around. It could backfire but I think he has just enough talent and charm on his own to make it work. 

[JennMatMusic33]

At the risk of waking my baby, I actually yelled "what!?!" when they called Evelyn first. I just don't get it. She might have some marketing appeal, but her voice is like listening to someone trying to sing underwater.  When reading through comments over on Facebook, the majority of commenters seem to be chomping at the bit to vote her off. We'll see how she does with America's voting.

I had no idea who Lukas Graham was until tonight. I had heard the 7 Years song on the radio but never matched it with a face. Include me in the camp that was pleasantly surprised by his interactions and advice for the contestants. However, if I was Lukas, observing how Eddie Island was prancing around the stage during the song, I would've popped him with a microphone. I think that song deserved a more serious rendition, and more serious contestant. 

I liked Ryan but I think he most benefitted from his duet partner. Cynthia Erivo is AMAZING! 

[WhineandCheez]

I forgot to mention--can someone explain to me why Alejandro is the next coming of ____ (whoever?) He has a pleasant voice and I've heard his guitar playing is great.

[peachmangosteen]

It seems a lot of you guys think Jeremiah will be in the Top 3. Meanwhile, I can't remember which one he is lol. Granted, I've only seen bits of the past 2 week's eps and then these 2 duets eps.

I started watching again because I caught Wade a couple times last week and I really liked him. I sadly didn't like him as much last night, but he was still OK.

Alejandro is someone who is completely up my alley and after I kept hearing about him lately I looked up some of his performances and I weirdly wasn't feeling it, but last night with Ben Harper was amazing.

My faves are probably Wade and Laci, but I also really like Madison, Dimitius, and Alejandro. And I don't hate anyone. Yet, at least.

[Babalooie]

10 hours ago, TeeMo said:

I'd put it on Laci, Laine and either Alejandro or Walker as your final three but I think there is a ton of potential in this group. 

I would add Jeremiah to the mix.  It could be any of these.

Regarding Seacrest, he is constantly traveling from the East to the West coast and is constantly working. It probably caught up with him.

Edited April 9, 2019 by Babalooie

[alalaxmom]

Normally, Demetrius is no better than nails on a chalkboard to me. His tone is kind of screechy and he oversings, IMO, However, his duet with Lukas Graham blew me away.  Their harmonies were so beautiful!  The restraint that he showed made such a difference, but I am betting it won't last.

Raquel could not get off my screen fast enough and Evelyn is right behind her.

[AnnieHeights]

Count me in on not understanding the Evelyn appeal........I love Chris Isaac and thought he was a very gracious duet partner.....I didn't feel like Evelyn 'got' the meaning of Wicked Games....I mean the video alone should clue one in......

I loved Ben Harper sang with Alejandro and I continue to be a big fan of his and his very sweet humbleness.  Let's face it, Ben Harper would be considered a bit too cool for Idol and the fact he came on to support Alejandro was pretty awesome. 

I was ok with who went home tonight although I really did think Logan was wonderful and held his own with Cynthia (who is incredible).

Wade is one of my favorites but I did not like his duet at all.

I am pretty sure the ones booted were predetermined before the performances. 

[twilightzone]

Idol really is no longer in the position of attracting the big name stars.   When you have to Google to find out their names, probably not a good sign that viewers knew who the majority of these people were.

[DietCokeJunkie]

31 minutes ago, twilightzone said:

Idol really is no longer in the position of attracting the big name stars.   When you have to Google to find out their names, probably not a good sign that viewers knew who the majority of these people were.

Well, I had never heard of Cynthia Erivo before last night, and now I am a huge fan. She’s a beautiful singer and presence. It’s not always the biggest names that are the best (exhibit A: the Kardashians). 

[thesupremediva1]

Popping back in to say that I really like Bobby Bones, but WOW what a marked difference in the show without Ryan. That man is the glue that holds Idol together. It could never survive without him. He brings a certain energy and gravitas that elevates the show. SEACREST OUT FOR LIFE, Y'ALL!

[paul4295]

1 hour ago, alalaxmom said:

Normally, Demetrius is no better than nails on a chalkboard to me. His tone is kind of screechy and he oversings, IMO, However, his duet with Lukas Graham blew me away.  Their harmonies were so beautiful!  The restraint that he showed made such a difference, but I am betting it won't last.

I was coming here to say pretty much the same thing.  My picks to cut before the show would have been Raquel, Logan, and Dimitrius, but Dimitrius changed my mind with that performance.  I still would have kept Ryan over Eddie or Wade, however.

Also, one of the best things about these duets shows was that they actually got to sing the entire song (or pretty much the entire song), instead of the 1:45 condensed versions that we usually get, where they sometimes have to chop up the lyrics so that the song doesn't make any sense.

[sempervivum]

3 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

It seems a lot of you guys think Jeremiah will be in the Top 3. Meanwhile, I can't remember which one he is lol.

Tall ginger who was 'born a poor gay child' (h/t to The Jerk). His performances are always accompanied by 'his evangelical pastor dad rejected him when he came out of the closet and thus he was forced to work as a janitor in the family church' back story. I find his voice annoyingly Broadway, but he's undeniably a very good singer.

1 hour ago, twilightzone said:

Idol really is no longer in the position of attracting the big name stars.

I thought it was (maybe?) telling that Idol got Chris Isaak and Ben Harper to appear. They aren't household names, but pretty big deals in artistic circles. Although I do know that Chris was a judge on the Australian X Factor a few years ago, so he's not a snob about reality shows- maybe that's why he wasn't put off by Evelyn!

[HaaCHOO]

25 minutes ago, sempervivum said:

Although I do know that Chris was a judge on the Australian X Factor a few years ago, so he's not a snob about reality shows- maybe that's why he wasn't put off by Evelyn!

Well...he has a great sense of humor--maybe that's it.  I still miss his TV series on for (maybe) three years.

[HaaCHOO]

1 hour ago, DietCokeJunkie said:

Well, I had never heard of Cynthia Erivo before last night, and now I am a huge fan. She’s a beautiful singer and presence

D I T T O ! ! !     She won a Tony for lead actress for "The Color Purple," and an Emmy and Grammy for the same production.  We need more of her.  

[HaaCHOO]

11 hours ago, thesupremediva1 said:

I cannot believe I have to endure Evelyn again. She's a one-trick pony and they ordered her trick for this evening. That's shady as hell.

I can't even be objective about Evelyn because I watched her "star" on "90-Day Fiance".  She was obviously the little princess of the family band and was an entitled snot. SHE knew better than everyone else; needed no advice from anyone. Guess she was right. She and the 90-Day guy got married and are still (after One Whole Year!) married--and somehow she ended up on American Idol.  Suppose she has a good agent?

[viajero]

A lot of really good performances in this episode.  My favorites from among the contestants were Alejandro, Wade, and Dimitrius, in roughly that order.  I also really liked what Evelyn brought to her duo with Chris Isaak, so I'm glad she got through.  My only gripe is that Eddie was chosen over Ryan among the guys.

1 hour ago, DietCokeJunkie said:

Well, I had never heard of Cynthia Erivo before last night, and now I am a huge fan. She’s a beautiful singer and presence. It’s not always the biggest names that are the best (exhibit A: the Kardashians). 

I was familiar with all the pros (both nights) except for Cynthia.  I guess I just don't follow Broadway.  But she sure can sing.  I was glad to see that Lukas Graham came across just as nice as I imagined he would be.

[TeeMo]

51 minutes ago, sempervivum said:

I thought it was (maybe?) telling that Idol got Chris Isaak and Ben Harper to appear. They aren't household names, but pretty big deals in artistic circles. Although I do know that Chris was a judge on the Australian X Factor a few years ago, so he's not a snob about reality shows- maybe that's why he wasn't put off by Evelyn!

I got the impression that Ben Harper agreed to come on only to do a duet with Alejandro because of their connection as local guys and so they were left with one contestant with no partner. Ben tried to make it pretty clear that he generally has no use for Idol. 😂  Since Evelyn’s  audition was perhaps her most memorable performance reaching out to Chris Issak probably made the most sense to fill in the partner gap. 

[Koalagirl]

Jeremiah's amazing talent makes me so angry that his parents can't look past his lifestyle and accept him for who he is.  Contrast that with Ryan Hammond's parents who were rockin' it out and enjoying every minute of their son's performance.  Ryan grew up in a conservative home and only listened to Christian music. 

[Ed McCauley]

1 hour ago, thesupremediva1 said:

Popping back in to say that I really like Bobby Bones, but WOW what a marked difference in the show without Ryan. That man is the glue that holds Idol together. It could never survive without him. He brings a certain energy and gravitas that elevates the show. SEACREST OUT FOR LIFE, Y'ALL!

I thought the same thing. Bobby seemed to get a little better as the show went on, but he's definitely the Brian Dunkleman to Ryan Seacrest.

Katy Perry's closing comments to the contestants sent home were REALLY ungracious and catty.

[llewis823]

1 hour ago, sempervivum said:

Tall ginger who was 'born a poor gay child' (h/t to The Jerk). His performances are always accompanied by 'his evangelical pastor dad rejected him when he came out of the closet and thus he was forced to work as a janitor in the family church' back story. I find his voice annoyingly Broadway, but he's undeniably a very good singer.

SO MUCH THIS! I just can't stand his back story. Not because I'm homophobic or anything - I just get tired of the "poor me" or "poor Jeremiah" story EVERY time he appears on screen. He has a pleasant enough voice, but I just don't care for the slower, pop type genre.

[BensBritches]

Donning my tinfoil hat regrading Ryan's ouster... Both he and Jeremiah are gay men- but Jeremiah/the producers made this his full background story while Ryan did not. The show wants to milk the "sob story" behind Jeremiah's sexuality making him an outcast within his family, which does not seem to be the case for Ryan. To the show, this made Ryan kind of superfluous. It's like the producers think Americans can only handle one gay guy at a time. Win for Jeremiah, loss for Ryan.

Ryan's "thing" was that he was overweight and "didn't know how long he'd live". He took the drastic step of getting bypass surgery and looks great. But, the producers also love Wade, with his abused background story and who just may be the heaviest contestant ever. So, with Ryan always talking about his weight loss, it jarred with Wade's presentation. Producers like Wade better, win for Wade, loss to Ryan.

I'm probably totally off here, but I clearly bought a one-way ticket down conspiracy alley! I kept thinking "will this show actually feature 2 gay men?" I was excited at the prospect but never believed they would. And sure enough...

Otherwise, I am, for the first time in a long time, totally fine with the folks who were let go. Hoping to see Riley, Eddie and Evelyn as some of the first ones out.

[sempervivum]

40 minutes ago, Koalagirl said:

Jeremiah's amazing talent makes me so angry that his parents can't look past his lifestyle and accept him for who he is

The 'story' used on the show is apparently not very accurate:

https://www.out.com/television/2019/4/04/american-idols-jeremiah-lloyd-harmon-says-his-family-accepts-him

[thesupremediva1]

9 minutes ago, BensBritches said:

Hoping to see Riley, Eddie and Evelyn as some of the first ones out.

They are the weakest of the bunch by a country mile. I have 4 people who I actually want to win this thing (Alejandro, Jeremiah, Dimitrius, and Wade) and several who I think are great and want to see lots more of (Madison, Alysa, Laine). There is no room for error here - the low-hanging fruit need to go ASAP.

[LilaFowler]

I don't think contestants should be allowed to repeat songs, even from the audition process.

[twilightzone]

2 hours ago, Koalagirl said:

Jeremiah's amazing talent makes me so angry that his parents can't look past his lifestyle and accept him for who he is.  Contrast that with Ryan Hammond's parents who were rockin' it out and enjoying every minute of their son's performance.  Ryan grew up in a conservative home and only listened to Christian music. 

That's his sob story on the show.  The truth is that Jeremiah, at 26, just moved out recently.  Up until then, his family was still supporting him and he took a menial job so he can pursue his music.  He never finished college. 

Unlike how his editing has implied (his family has disowned him because of his sexuality) they probably just can't take a lot of time away from work now and will be saving the trip for the lives shows. 

[theschnauzers]

4 hours ago, Koalagirl said:

Jeremiah's amazing talent makes me so angry that his parents can't look past his lifestyle and accept him for who he is.  Contrast that with Ryan Hammond's parents who were rockin' it out and enjoying every minute of their son's performance.  Ryan grew up in a conservative home and only listened to Christian music. 

To be fair, Jeremiah and his family began pushing back against the Idol edit a couple of weeks ago and was explored in an Out.com interview released two weeks ago, and the ABC local affiliate in Baltimore interviewed both Jeremiah and his pastor dad that same week as well. Idol is now trying to translate that angle into something a lot closer to the reality. All of those are posted online.

And no, Jeremiah is definitely not “Broadway,” a label I find ironic, given it was used by Simon Cowell against Clay Aiken 15 seasons ago. And we know how that turned out. The judges have already compared Jeremiah to Billy Joel, James Taylor, and Jeff Buckley.

Jeremiah was working two jobs at two different churches while he was still living at home, and he changed from the janitor job and got a different position with another church, where he would be accepted. He’s actually a music director at one church, and “administrative support” at the other. So he’s still working two jobs.

Jeremiah was beginning his senior year of college as a vocal performance major at Towson State when the opportunity for Idol came along, and he deferred his last year. (The closest analogy for him is Clay Aiken, who also deferred his final year and returned to finish his degree while recording his first album, post-Idol.)

Edited April 9, 2019 by theschnauzers

[peachmangosteen]

4 hours ago, Ed McCauley said:

Katy Perry's closing comments to the contestants sent home were REALLY ungracious and catty.

What did she say? I fast forward through all the judges' comments lol.

2 hours ago, LilaFowler said:

I don't think contestants should be allowed to repeat songs, even from the audition process.

+1

[Blissfool]

So far we've had two family members brought onstage. Not liking it. 

[mamadrama]

Ever since someone said that Evelyn sounds like Dory trying to speak "whale" I haven't been able to unhear it. 

I didn't really have feelings about Raquel one way or the other until last night and now I'm glad she's gone. Strike one was that she'd never heard of "Tiny Dancer." Girlfriend, if you're going to be a singer, then it helps to have a good understanding of present and past musical influencers. So she'd heard of "Lovefool", a 90's era Swedish band song that is rarely heard anymore but not a culturally significant hit that STILL gets played on movie soundtracks? Strike two was when she didn't understand the lyrics of "Tiny Dancer." Maybe she's been living under a rock, I can accept that, but if she was trying to be cute in saying that the guy was singing about himself, she failed. Strike three was when she thought it was a great time to let all those runs go wild. No. Just no. 

I didn't mind Eddie's voice last night. I felt secondhand embarrassment, though, at the way in which he treated the song. It's okay to be serious sometimes, dude. 

Alessandro and Ben Harper were beautiful together. 

Chris Issak was the only celebrity singer I was familiar with. It was interesting, though, how most of the famous singers had two songs, yet Issaks and Harper only had one. 

[peachmangosteen]

28 minutes ago, mamadrama said:

Strike three was when she thought it was a great time to let all those runs go wild. No. Just no. 

Didn't whoever she was singling with (the lovelytheband guy maybe?) tell her to do that? But I agree with you on being glad she's gone lol.

[jackjill89]

Evelyn ruined "Wicked Game." I felt embarrassed for Issaks to be singing with her... but then he said he liked it? She warbles. It's horrid. 

[SnarkAttack]

22 hours ago, TvGeek said:

I missed a big chunk of the episode what was the thing that would leave the audience stunned?

No clue!

[SnarkAttack]

Ben Harper looks like The Rock.  I couldn't stop seeing The Rock.

[mamadrama]

1 hour ago, peachmangosteen said:

Didn't whoever she was singling with (the lovelytheband guy maybe?) tell her to do that? But I agree with you on being glad she's gone lol.

Yeah, her celebrity duet-er encouraged her to let that pony run. The pony should've stayed inside the fence.