S17.E12: Top 14

[MarkHB]

Quote

The top 14 contestants perform on the iconic Idol stage for the first time, in hope of winning over the hearts of viewers and being voted through to the next phase of the competition.

[LilaFowler]

Evelyn was atrocious, absolutely horrible. If she doesn't go home, I just don't know. I think that was the worst-sounding performance that I've heard on this show in a long time.

Edited April 15, 2019 by LilaFowler

[ECM1231]

1 minute ago, LilaFowler said:

Evelyn was atrocious, absolutely horrible. If she doesn't go home, I just don't know. I think that was the worst-sounding performance that I've heard on this show in a long time.

Agreed. It was painful to my ears. Idk why the judges continue to blow smoke up her arse.

[Gemma Violet]

Jeremiah's still got it.  Beautiful.

I agree about Evelyn.

[Ladyrain]

I'm old enough to be his grandmother, but Uche for the win.   I could watch him all night.  A real entertainer.   Fun!

[Prairie Fire]

The first half had some real duds, but then it got much better in the second half with Walker, Uche, Laci Kay Booth, Jeremiah, and Ashley.

I was wondering if tonight's show was live, but Katy Perry appears to be on stage at Coachella right now (with Zedd), so...I guess that would be a "no".

Edited April 15, 2019 by Prairie Fire

[Annber03]

Yeah, Evelyn's voice is the sort where I think there's only certain types of songs/genres that she could potentially pull off. She sounded out of breath singing that song.

On the plus side, I felt Laci could've enunciated a little more while singing "I Miss You", but I really liked the arrangement of that version and I think that style of music suits her. And Ashley's version of "Fix You" was nice as well-doesn't matter who does that song, apparently, I'm always going to get a little emotional hearing it. It's clear some of the lyrics struck Ashley quite deeply, too. 

Also liked Jeremiah and Alyssa. 

[Real4real]

I think we may be stuck with Evelyn for a while—even if America doesn’t vote for her, I think it’s likely that the judges will keep putting her through for a while.

I think a lot of the early singers must have been really nervous.  There just didn’t seem to be much life to them.  I like Laine, but the audience just seemed dead during his performance.  Several of them made me long for Simon’s honesty (Evelyn needs a dose of Simon.  Wade too—I thought that was a terrible song choice, couldn’t understand most of the words).  Or even Randy—there were so many pitch issues.

The energy didn’t seem to really pick up until Uche!  I also liked Madison (?Kelly 2.0), Walker, and Ashley.  Still not remembering everyone’s names!

Edited April 15, 2019 by Real4real

[DietCokeJunkie]

The four who could go are Eddie Island, Evelyn, Riley and ....

A few people I could easily put in the fourth elimination spot, but some of them have big followings and I don't want to set people off 😉

I think Jeremiah's got the strongest/purest voice, but I wish someone would help him with song choice.  And on that note, I must be the only person in the world who finds the lyrics to  "Fix You" ingratiating and insulting. 

Edited April 15, 2019 by DietCokeJunkie

[Ladyrain]

Uche may be this year's Adam Lambert.   Not the winner (but deserves to be) but goes on to have a fab career. I could live with that.   Adam's career has so eclipsed Kris Allen's, it's almost funny.  

Laine may have this in the bag.   WGWG, from a strong voting bloc, cute and all aw-shucks.   He doesn't have the strongest voice but he gives a good performance and, so far at least, has made good song choices.  For my money, song choice and performance are key.  Doesn't have to be the best vocalist.  There are plenty of stars who don't have the best voices but know how to either choose or write a great song and then give a commanding stage performance.   Such as Madonn or J-Lo. 

4 minutes ago, DietCokeJunkie said:

The four who could go are Eddie Island, Evelyn, Riley and ....

Walker?   That song choice was horrid, and too low for his range.   I don't care if he hit a glory note at the end.  99% of the song was forgettable.

[Real4real]

Forgot about the awfulness of Eddie!  And what the what Alejandro??  He is a talented musician but what was that he played?

[Ladyrain]

7 minutes ago, Real4real said:

Evelyn needs a dose of Simon.  Wade too

I said the same thing to Mr. Rain!   I don't know about who, exactly, but I said something to the effect that the judges need to stop blowing smoke up everyone's butts and how badly Simon is needed to make it real.   Not everyone was fabulous and amazing, and no-one is a "star" yet.   The whole point of the show is to find the next big star.  If everybody is supposedly one already, let's just cancel the whole thing now and save ABC a boatload of money.

[stcroix]

57 minutes ago, Ladyrain said:

I'm old enough to be his grandmother, but Uche for the win.   I could watch him all night.  A real entertainer.   Fun!

I'm old enough to be his grandmother, too, probably!  lol  But he's my favorite for the same reason as you said-- he's a real entertainer. 

The rest of the group bored me to tears tonight.  Eddie Island and Evelyn were way out of their leagues and should never have been picked to be on this show.  The last guy singing Climb Every Mountain was soooo high school spring musical 1968.  I love the guy but he's no American Idol. Lane was just an Elvis wanna be.  

The judges gave everyone a tongue bath, I guess trying to convince us they were star material and we should be blown away.  We're not dumb, judges. I need Simon on the show to jerk the contestants all back to reality! ENTERTAIN US! Convince us that you can be AND ARE star material!

Edited April 15, 2019 by stcroix

[Ms Blue Jay]

25 minutes ago, Ladyrain said:

Laine may have this in the bag.   WGWG, from a strong voting bloc, cute and all aw-shucks.   He doesn't have the strongest voice but he gives a good performance and, so far at least, has made good song choices.  For my money, song choice and performance are key.  Doesn't have to be the best vocalist.  There are plenty of stars who don't have the best voices but know how to either choose or write a great song and then give a commanding stage performance.   Such as Madonn or J-Lo. 

I think we should mention Laine is half Asian, actually.  To me this is important.

Edited April 15, 2019 by Ms Blue Jay

[MarkHB]

I'm sure that Walker Burroughs is perfectly nice, but to me when I see him I keep thinking of this guy...

And if you aren't sure who that character is, I invite you to click the image (work-safe although I'm sure it has nothing to do with your job 🙂 ).

[twilightzone]

1 hour ago, Ladyrain said:

Uche may be this year's Adam Lambert.   Not the winner (but deserves to be) but goes on to have a fab career. I could live with that.   Adam's career has so eclipsed Kris Allen's, it's almost funny.  

Laine may have this in the bag.   WGWG, from a strong voting bloc, cute and all aw-shucks.   He doesn't have the strongest voice but he gives a good performance and, so far at least, has made good song choices.  For my money, song choice and performance are key.  Doesn't have to be the best vocalist.  There are plenty of stars who don't have the best voices but know how to either choose or write a great song and then give a commanding stage performance.   Such as Madonn or J-Lo. 

Lambert was on the show 10 years ago.  The industry has changed a lot since then.  The Idol brand is no longer relevant.  The last time Idol produced a successful alum was when Phillip Phillips won.  That was back in 2012.  The show has been cancelled once and is now struggling in the ratings.  The best contestants now coming off the show can hope for is to be a working musician. 

[silverspoons]

The judges each get a save? If the do, Evelyn will get saved by Katy.  

I agree about Laine. They had to have brought him back for a reason. He did not fly to Idaho to support a friend, I;m sure the show fly him in. Then he gets the first spot which is not as good the pimp spot but he was not stuck in the middle. Overall I think the show wants a man to win this year. 

I can't guess who is going home besides Eddie. I do think the judges 3 saves will be used on Evelyn , Alejandro, and Wade (or Riley). 

[Vermicious Knid]

Good job, whoever got Ryan to stand between the two tallest guys. Always an amusing visual.

I said this last week but it remains the same: Walker is the aural equivalent of white bread, plain and nonthreatening. Demetrious, what happened to you? That was so flat. Alejandro went electronic which would be fine except the song he chose did nothing to showcase his voice. Eddie gets an A  for effort, but no Katie. That was not good. Jeremiah was, but Freddie Mercury had a nearly 4 octave range, so he wasn't reaching notes Freddie couldn't. The rest all blur together except...Uche. Uche, Uche, Uche. He won't win but he's hands down the most dynamic performer. He needs a mentor who knows showmanship and stagecraft. Beyonce, are you watching?

[Ilovepie]

Wow. Where is Simon when you need him??? There were several horrid song choices, I cannot believe nobody got called on it. Maybe they should change their job title from judge to cheerleader because they are completely useless in terms of offering constructive feedback. I have no idea what those sounds are coming out of Evelyn’s mouth but it sounds awful. Just no. Still pissed they cut Ryan Hammond and we have to listen to that atrocious “singing”.

Some performances are so memorable to me from this show - Hailey Reinhart doing Benny and the Jets is one. Even if he had sounded ok (which he so did not), Eddie would have suffered by comparison. I had to fast forward. Ditto Riley- when I’m nostalgic for Kellie Pickler, I think you’re in trouble. I haven’t seen this many short shorts on Idol since Haley Scarnato.......

I think Demetrius, Ashley, Walker, and Alejandro picked the wrong songs. None of them sounded their best. Well, Walker sounded good if he was trying to win Miss America- what the hell was that song choice??!?

 I wish they would stop comparing Madison to KC - she sounds NOTHING like her, nor does she have her range or fun personality. She did sound good tonight though, probably her best performance to me, anyway.

I love the Sara Barellis (sp?) song Alyssa sang, and she sounded pretty good, but she doesn’t have the maturity for it. That song is from the musical Waitress, and I just saw the traveling show in January, and when the actress in the musical sang it I almost cried. There was not enough heartbreak in Alyssa’s performance because she’s only 17. I almost wish Ashley had sang that song instead - I think she could have killed it.

Although they sounded good, I thought Laine, Wade and Jeremiah’s songs were forgettable, which leaves.....

Uche. For now, I love him. It might get annoying, but he’s charismatic and fun. And Laci. Her voice is unique and her song choices interesting. My two favorites of the night.

[Ladyrain]

5 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I think we should mention Laine is half Asian, actually.  To me this is important.

I don't think I was even aware of that.   Usually I DVR the show and ff through all the backstory stuff.   Thanks for the info.

[Jillybean]

The first 15 minutes of the show didn't air here due to coverage of tornado watches, so we missed Evelyn and Laine. Sounds like we shouldn't bother looking for those online. Wade, Evelyn, and Eddie are my bottom three. There were so many problems with performances last night. Last season I swore off watching the show again because the judges don't judge, choosing instead to fangirl over even the most average performances. Yet here I am watching them do it again. I'm getting tired of saying "sit down, Lionel" to my TV. 

We are very weary of Alejandro's falsetto.

I love Uche but he doesn't have Adam Lambert's talent or sheer stage presence. Adam L was the most exciting performer in Idol's history. I enjoy Uche and hope he stays around a while because he's one of the few whose performances we don't FF thru.

Ashley is the best vocalist in the Top 14 and I'd put Madison second. I don't see either of them winning.

I expect the judge's saves to keep some of the weakest talent.

Edited April 15, 2019 by Jillybean

[cinsays]

Eddie was just horrible.  Screeching, out of breath, off-key, just awful. I don't know how the judges could have anything good to say about that performance. My thought is that he intentionally did his worst because he recognized he didn't have the talent the others have and wanted to do the noble thing and be done with it all.

Loved Madison, Wade, Alejandro and, though not at his best, Demitrius.   I have not thought too highly of Laci in prior performances, but this one was really good.

[MarkHB]

52 minutes ago, Jillybean said:

The first 15 minutes of the show didn't air here due to coverage of tornado watches, so we missed Evelyn and Laine. Sounds like we shouldn't bother looking for those online. Wade, Evelyn, and Eddie are my bottom three. There were so many problems with performances last night. Last season I swore off watching the show again because the judges don't judge, choosing instead to fangirl over even the most average performances. Yet here I am watching them do it again. I'm getting tired of saying "sit down, Lionel" to my TV. 

FWIW, the folks in my house really liked Evelyn. Laine went rockabilly Elvis if that guides your decision one way or the other.

[marketdoctor]

Quote

I expect the judge's saves to keep some of the weakest talent.

ITA; it was different in the very early seasons, where the top two of a batch of eight would go through.  In this format, someone comes in no better than eighth.  It's possible someone was pushed into a bad song choice--but the fix isn't to ignore the votes, but rather to stop pushing songs so hard in the first place.  (Also to open the wild card to the entire top 20 or so, since if voting doesn't matter or you're giving out second chances, give at least one or two to people who didn't get a first chance.)

[Suzysite]

8 hours ago, DietCokeJunkie said:

The four who could go are Eddie Island, Evelyn, Riley and ....

Those are the three I thought of, too.    I found myself loudly singing Bennie and the Jets along with The Mayor in order to drown him out.   That was just horrible. 

[TeeMo]

The first half of last night’s show was pretty disappointing to me. While some of these folks are not my cup of tea, I’ve been agreeing that this bunch in general has a lot of talent. Then Evelyn, Eddie, Riley and Wade came out last night and I wondered if I had misjudged everything because I found them all to be awful. Evelyn and Eddie especially were brutal like two drunks at a karaoke bar. I thought it was interesting that both Wade and Evelyn addressed people questioning whether their voices are affectations and then when they performed I thought both of them sounded even more fake/affected than usual. 

I am a little bummed because I had been excited for this episode but I was mostly underwhelmed. I’d like to see Evelyn, Eddie, Wade and Riley go home but I expect that in the end it will be Dimitrius, Alyssa, Riley and Eddie who actually end up leaving. 

[Jillybean]

I'd forgotten about Riley. She is a decent performer, but her vocals last night were incredibly weak. 

[SnarkAttack]

As usual, the band drowns out the vocals.  Why oh why does the audience have to yell all of the time?  Both things are so distracting.

My TV said the performance was live, but apparently there is some doubt about that?  False advertising then.

Evelyn, Eddie, Walker and Riley need to go.  Evelyn and Eddie were BAD.

How tall are Uche and Wade?  I know Ryan is short, but they tower over everyone else too.  

Laci needs some color in her lips! All of that hair can't be hers, can it?  

I agree that Jeremiah needs better song choices, but can he sing!  He knows how to showcase his vocals. 

I'm worried for Alejandro because some people only watch when the show goes live and they may not have seen him before.  Was not a good choice he made. 

I like Ashley too.

[peachmangosteen]

Kind of a rough show imo. I think the only performances I really loved were Laci and Alyssa. I liked a few others OK too, but it was mostly meh all around.

I really like Demetrius and Wade but they both were not great last night. I feel like I'm already tired of Wade lol. 

Alejandro is adorable, but that sucked. Such a terrible choice.

I didn't remember Ashley at all but her voice was lovely on that song. Forgettable, but lovely. For me that describes a lot of the Top 14. So many of them are just so generic. 

[JennMatMusic33]

This show was alot to unpack.

I found the first few quite underwhelming and am still scratching my head over Evelyn going through. Wrong song choice, and I can't understand a word she is saying. At least she supposedly knows she sounds "odd". You can own your oddness all you want, but she doesn't hold a candle to some of the other vocalists in this competition, male or female. Good bye Evelyn! (said like Ken Todd). 

 I feel life Alyssa is playing a part.  She has this smugness about her, where she thinks she deserves this; not an attractive quality in a 17-year-old. The song was absolutely too mature for her,  and I feel like she was going for a crowning glory moment, where we all realize that she is a Disney pageant princess come to life (ahem, outfit choice), and should just be bestowed the American Idol sash regardless of other more talented people in the competition. She just doesn't blow me away. Can you tell? :) 

I thought Madison, Jeremiah, and (holy shit) Uche did great. I would like to hear Uche take on some Prince if he hasn't already. He is different, but is an entertainer. Maybe his vocals aren't the greatest, but he is a showman. 

I like Ashley but I would like to her to change it up a bit. She has a technically beautiful voice and gorgeous control, but in the field where people are playing multiple instruments, being their own damn personal DJ, or dancing with seemingly impossibly flexible limbs, maybe she needs to jump out a bit more? I don't know. 

There's more, but I am still trying to decipher what Lacy was singing last night through her hair. It was super voluminous. 

Edited April 15, 2019 by JennMatMusic33

[worleybird]

Was Ryan getting a bonus for each time he said "This is the greatest group of 14 we have ever had" last night. No matter how many times you tell us this, we not falling for it!

[WhineandCheez]

Quote

Evelyn was atrocious, absolutely horrible. If she doesn't go home, I just don't know. I think that was the worst-sounding performance that I've heard on this show in a long time.

Agreed. It was painful to my ears. Idk why the judges continue to blow smoke up her arse.

I looked up at the end of her song to see the judges standing.  I thought there was a fire in the hall and they were going to leave, because most certainly they couldn't have given THAT a standing 0? What language was she singing--Urdu??

Eddie Ocean stank--good bye.  So did Walker--we sang that in 7th grade chorus in 1970. Ashley is really good but, I don't know, she looks old or seems too low key--I don't know what it is.  Riley-- I see the hot pants were trotted back out after one or 2 weeks try at a more serious look for Lil Miss Suds in the Bucket.

Edited April 15, 2019 by WhineandCheez

[sempervivum]

It seems like every year (that it's been on), there's a pre-Top 10 performance week where everyone sounds just great, and I recommend Idol to non-watcher friends. Then the next show is (mostly) terrible, like last night, and I'm embarrassed!

I can't stand Eddie's non-stop smirking, goofing and hamming it up. I actually think he's ambivalent about being on Idol and can't commit to really trying to win. Thus his ridiculous performance of Bennie (a song I detest anyway) done karaoke/Elton cosplay style.

Interesting that Jeremiah also chose an Elton song (one I actually like). Again, well done but Broadway, imo.

I give credit (and votes) to Alexandro, Laci, Demetrius and Walker for taking risks, even though they weren't 100% successful. Uche should go in the other direction and do something ballady or angsty that showcases whatever voice he has, with minimal costume/dancing.

[Jillybean]

3 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I didn't remember Ashley at all but her voice was lovely on that song. Forgettable, but lovely. For me that describes a lot of the Top 14. So many of them are just so generic. 

Ashley is my favorite vocalist of the Top 14 but she missed an opportunity to really nail "Fix You." There needed to be a guitarist on stage to rock the guitar solo in the song, and during that time Ashley should have gotten up from the piano and sung the remainder of the song with more power and movement. The latter part of the song is not as quiet as the beginning, and Ashley really needs to step away from the piano at this point in the competition.

Someone mentioned upthread thinking that "Fix You" is a condescending song. IIRC, Chris Martin wrote the song for Gwyneth Paltrow when her father died. I personally love the song and I was excited Ashley performed it, but think her performance could have been better planned/executed.  

Edited April 15, 2019 by Jillybean

[llewis823]

57 minutes ago, WhineandCheez said:

Riley-- I see the hot pants were trotted back out after one or 2 weeks try at a more serious look for Lil Miss Suds in the Bucket.

I like her but she is just not ready for this competition. She was off key, fading in and out - just not good tonight at all.

Alejandro - I don't know what that was. Not impressed.

Jeremiah - just boring to me. He has a nice voice - there was just no chorus to that song.

Uche may not have the best voice, but he is the most interesting to watch and his voice is pretty good too.

I love Laine, but his performance was a little boring last night.

Dimetrius - I tuned out. Again, boring to me. As was Alyssa. And Ashley. 

Can you tell I'm not a big ballad fan anyway? They're all just kind of unforgettable. 

Edited April 15, 2019 by llewis823

[AnnieHeights]

I was very disappointed in Alejandro's 'song' choice last night.......It did absolutely nothing for me and I adore him.  Laci, my favorite female didn't do it for me either.  I did like Uche!  Super fun and he is a wonderful entertainer.  Walker.....he is from my area and of course I want to see him advance (also he seems like a really sweet kid) but it was boring.  Madison put on a better performance last night and she can sing but something about her leaves me cold, same with Alyssa....she checks all the boxes but something is missing....add Riley to that list as well.  I do not hate Eddie like a lot of folks but last night was just really bad.  Jeremiah was lovely.  Evelyn was horrible.  Wade......I like his voice but he needs to cut down on the mama's boy thing.....too much at this point.  Laine.......so pretty but he is not screaming STAR to me.  Ashley.....my second favorite female but forgettable last night.  I love Dimitrius but I think it might be more of the fact that I like him so much as a person (from what Idol shows us obviously).  Last night overall was my least favorite of the performances in general. Uche was the most memorable and everyone else was eh.                    

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Laci does need lip color but has to be careful not to do that orange color she sported a couple of weeks back!  

The judges are N.O.T earning their money!  They praise the contestants and it is becoming a contest of which judge can outperform the other with praise!  Katy and her dramatics, falling on the desk, throwing her chair.  And Katy steps on the other judges too when it is their turn.  STFU and sit down!  

There is very little if any negative feedback going back to these contestants.  

[Ilovepie]

1 hour ago, Jillybean said:

Ashley is my favorite vocalist of the Top 14 but she missed an opportunity to really nail "Fix You."

I don't think there is an opportunity to nail this song in this format because in order for that song to work like the original, you need the gradual build up from small and intimate to the big chorus at the end. Since they only sing part of the song because of time constraints, it just ends up being jarring when they sing one verse slow and quiet and then just kick right in to the big ending. I personally hate that song for this show. It just doesn't work. And another problem, it just didn't compliment her voice either, so there's that as well........

I also feel if Alejandro wanted to do a Drake song he should have picked "Hold On We're Going Home" instead. I think that would have worked better for him and his vibe.......

[ChristmasJones]

I wish I could make a gif out of Evelyn doing that big kick with her leg.   That was so awkward and hilarious!! The bell-bottoms made it even worse for some reason.  I am extremely biased against her though since I thought she was a major bitch on 90 Day Fiance.

I think Uche has a lot of talent, but I feel like he needs to learn how to control his energy. I was getting a Bobby Brown vibe from some of his dance moves. 

[SnarkAttack]

1 hour ago, ChristmasJones said:

I wish I could make a gif out of Evelyn doing that big kick with her leg.   That was so awkward and hilarious!! The bell-bottoms made it even worse for some reason.  I am extremely biased against her though since I thought she was a major bitch on 90 Day Fiance.

I think Uche has a lot of talent, but I feel like he needs to learn how to control his energy. I was getting a Bobby Brown vibe from some of his dance moves. 

So, she's just trying to get on TV by whatever means.

[cinsays]

Did the judges like Jeremiah's performance last night?  That part of the show was pre-empted here due to the threat of tornados so the local weather team was on forever.  

I just watched it online but did not see the critique.  I love him but did not really go for his take on this song.  

I sure hope he gets enough votes to continue.

[mamadrama]

Walker: I ff through it. I've been tired of that song since 1987. I never cared for it within the context of the movie, either. I've always thought it was boring and had no desire to listen to it again. 

Evelyn: I've literally seen people do a better job on karaoke night. 

Jeremiah: He seems like a beautiful soul.

Dimitrius: I wanted to like him. Parts of it were okay, and parts were cringy. 

Ashley: It's a pretty song and she has a pretty voice, but it wasn't anything new. 

Madison: Enjoyed this more than I thought I would. 

Riley: She's pretty and a cute singer, but I could go to Dollywood (and Opryland when it was still there) and find 20 more just like her. I don't mean that as an insult, because I was a Dollywood performer too, but IMO she has one of those voices that can technically sing any country song that's thrown at her, but every one of them sounds the same without any emotion. 

Alyssa: I'm not a fan but I liked it more than others. It made me want to listen to the original.

Laine: I love Elvis. That was boring. 

Wade: It was so low and so quiet in spots that I couldn't hear some of it. 

Laci: I wasn't a fan of the song choice when I heard the title, but I enjoyed listening to her sing it. 

Eddie: He's really trying too hard at this point. I'm not amused. 

Uche: Unlike Eddie, Uche is naturally entertaining and I AM amused while watching him. 

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

1 hour ago, ChristmasJones said:

I wish I could make a gif out of Evelyn doing that big kick with her leg

All I keep thinking of was Sally O'Malley from SNL (played by Molly Shannon yelling "Ahmmm FIFTY!!" 

Am I the only one that's totally put to sleep by Laci Mae and her tan?

[sempervivum]

1 hour ago, cinsays said:

Did the judges like Jeremiah's performance last night?  That part of the show was pre-empted here due to the threat of tornados so the local weather team was on forever.  

Well, they 'loved' everyone last night, but they really, really loved JLH. Compared him to Freddie Mercury, pffft.

[observer]

16 hours ago, silverspoons said:

I agree about Laine. They had to have brought him back for a reason. He did not fly to Idaho to support a friend, I;m sure the show fly him in. Then he gets the first spot which is not as good the pimp spot but he was not stuck in the middle. Overall I think the show wants a man to win this year. 

I agree.  I have felt all along that there was more to this story of the down home Louisiana boy.  I would not be at all surprised to find out you are exactly on the right wavelength, SILVERSPOONS.  I also am definitely in the minority, maybe a minority of one, who finds him to be smarmy.  I enjoy a duet when the singers play off each other.  IMO, he barely acknowledged the presence of his duet partner.  To my mind, I viewed it as attention love.

And while I am apparently in a bashing moment, Wade, to me, is unappealing, both in voice and manner/personality.  And I think his relationship with his mother is a little odd.  There, I said it.

Riley is Carrie Underwood redux, imo.  Hits all the right buttons for a stereotypical successful female country singer.

Also agree with those who mis Simon's critiques.  I think this face would have showed up last night.

[stcroix]

17 minutes ago, sempervivum said:

Well, they 'loved' everyone last night, but they really, really loved JLH. Compared him to Freddie Mercury, pffft.

I agree--- pffffft!

1 hour ago, ItsHelloPattiagain said:

All I keep thinking of was Sally O'Malley from SNL (played by Molly Shannon yelling "Ahmmm FIFTY!!" 

Am I the only one that's totally put to sleep by Laci Mae and her tan?

LOL!!  I thought the same thing! That leg kick....  sooo  Sally O'Malley!

[DancingD]

I found my Uche love in Hawaii. Last week wasn't as good, but he was back on form last night. Have we ever seen a dance break on Idol?

For singing, my favorite last night was probably Laci. She's looking a little more human, too, hope the stylists keep at her.

[Annber03]

7 hours ago, worleybird said:

Was Ryan getting a bonus for each time he said "This is the greatest group of 14 we have ever had" last night. No matter how many times you tell us this, we not falling for it!

I was amused by how often they kept having to stress how everyone was "just killing it" throughout. I was like, "Gee, I hope none of the contestants from prior seasons are hearing this....". 

I fully agree we need some actual critiquing going on here. Even if it's not Simon-level, there's gotta be something. 

On a non-music related note for a moment...

1 hour ago, cinsays said:

Did the judges like Jeremiah's performance last night?  That part of the show was pre-empted here due to the threat of tornados so the local weather team was on forever.  

I've been hearing about the storms on the Weather Channel. So many people and places affected :(. I hope your area was spared and the people there are all right. 

[observer]

I am over Katy Perry and her histrionic dramatics.  Get off your back, get off the desk and quite trying to overshadow and outdo the contestants.  Your obvious love of and need for being the center of attraction are tiring.  For me, anyway.

Edited April 15, 2019 by observer

[ChristmasJones]

1 hour ago, observer said:

I am over Katy Perry and her histrionic dramatics.  Get off your back, get off the desk and quite trying to overshadow and outdo the contestants.  Your obvious love of and need for being the center of attraction are tiring.  For me, anyway.

This is the main reason I am not a fan of AI anymore.  I also think she isn't very funny.