The much hyped American Idol Gives Back started tonight. Tomorrow night will be the big show with all the money-raising and the guest performances. Tonight we were stuck with just the Top 6 contestants, along with the talents of Ryan Secrest and the judges. Actually tonight's show was rather good, so being "stuck" was okay with me.
First up was news that News Corp would be giving 10 cents for each call up to 50 million calls to the charity. That means that if they get 50 million calls, they donate 5 million dollars. Ryan said that the votes tonight would save your favorite contestant, and save lives. Then we got a clip of Ryan and Simon Cowell's trip to Africa. They visited clinics in the region, where they are treating malaria. Malaria is the number one killer in Africa. Simon was visibily upset over the conditions. It was odd to see even Simon getting a little emotional.
Chris Richardson was the first to perform. He chose to sing "Change the World" by Eric Clapton. He liked that the song is about how one person has the will to change someone else's life. As usual Chris was pitchy and completely sucked. Also as usual the judges fawned all over him. Randy Jackson thought it was the first time Chris was in it to win it. Paula Abdul said it was a great song choice and done very well. Simon thought it was a good vocal, and had more soul than when he had performed before.
The next promotional footage featured clips of where the judges and Ryan had been in the US. They felt it was important to spread the money not just to the world, but to hungry people in the US too. Randy went to Louisiana. They also traveled to rural Kentucky, off to Navajo country in Arizona, and to Atlanta.
Melinda Doolittle was up next, with her performance of the Faith Hill song "There Will Come A Day." Melinda likes that the song speaks about the problems in the world today but also about hope for tomorrow. She said that is what tonight is all about. Her performance was great as usual. She keeps gaining confidence every week and that's showing as well. Randy said she's got it all together, and he doesn't know what to say to her anymore. Paula said it must feel great to get the love, praise and support every week. Simon told her it wasn't a copycat vocal, instead she made him believe he had recorded the original. He added that it was a vocal masterclass.
Blake Lewis was asked what the biggest sacrifice he had made since joining Idols. He said the worst was missing his family and friend. He chose to sing "Imagine" by John Lennon, as it is all about coming together in an ideal world. I thought it was his best performance yet. Naturally the judges didn't like it. Randy thought it was a great choice, but on the performance side it was just alright. He wanted Blake to do more with the song. Paula said she thought that at the beginning, but then was reminded of how beautiful and sensitive the song is. She thought it was the first beautiful performance from him. Simon said that because Blake chose one of the biggest songs of all time, there will always be a comparison. He felt that Paula was right in that he was sincere. But he also thought that it didn't go anywhere. Simon added that it was most important that he was sincere.
Another promotional clip took them back to Africa again, this time to a feeding center. They found it amazing that despite their hunger, each child waited until everyone was served before taking their first bite.
Lakisha Jones chose to sing "I Believe" by Fantasia. Honestly as much as I disliked Fantasia - her version was better. It was pitchy and just not good at all. Randy thought it was pitchy and difficult to sing after someone like Fantasia did it. Paula said that Fantasia is so unigue, you have a hard time singing something like she does. Simon translated Paula's comments as she liked Fantasia's version better. He had an issue with the shouting too.
Phil Stacey was asked what he missed most about home. He too the opportunity to pimp his children again, who are with their grandparents and not their with him and his wife. He chose to sing "The Change" by Garth Brooks, which was released after the Oklahoma City bombings. There were a couple of pitchy notes at the beginning, but beyond that it was awesome. He had the right emotion to the song and everything. Randy was happy since he came back with another strong performance. Paula felt like he found his comfort zone. Simon really likes Phil. He likes that he has a spring in his step again. He would like Phil to connect the confidence with the country sound he had in his voice last week though.
The last promotional clip had Simon going to a food shelter just 20 minutes from where he lives. He had no idea that places like that existed in this country. He joked around with some of the people there that he's never met nice people before.
Last up was Jordin Sparks, who sang "You'll Never Walk Alone." She wanted to convey a message of hope that would be comforting to people. She had a couple of bad notes at the beginning, but after that it was a wonderful performance. Randy said it was one of the best vocals by any contestant in six seasons. Paula said it was an amazing song to close the night. Simon thought it was fantastic. Even though the song was 60 years old, she'd have a hit if she recorded it.
My ranking in order from best to worst:
1. Melinda / Jordin
2. Phil / Blake
3. Lakisha
4. Chris
Random Thoughts:
1. I still feel like the loser kid in school who wants to be in the cool crowd and just isn't. I want to be cool like Randy, Paula, and Simon. I want to get Chris Richardson. I want to be in, hip and cool - like him. Why can't I?
2. What exactly did Randy want Blake to do with "Imagine"? Was Blake supposed to start off all soft and sweet, then sudden: "Boombaboomshaboom Imagine all the people chicachicaboom Living life in ppppeace brotha!" Was he supposed to add beatboxing to the song? It's the type of song you sit and sing and just let the words and emotion do the "boomboomboom" for you.
3. Totally over Lakisha. She's past her prime. She'll be the shocker leaving tomorrow.
Thank GAWD there is someone out there who finds BLAKE to be extremely average with a capital A.
BTW , has anyone tried to sing like like Blake. How do you sing without showing your teeth ??!!??!!!??
When Ryan was first shown , it looked like he had blood on his tie ................. only in the end , when he gave his tie ( of all things ) to Jordin to wipe those " Vote for me America , I'm showing sentiment tears ...... otherwise u'll get the irritating bubbly me 10000000000000 watt smile ! " tears !!
Also did some research and found out that none of the blogs have put Chris as the person going this week !!! HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE !!!
So basically we'll be saying bye-bye baby to Lakisha !!!
AI IS STILL A WEIRD SHOW , EVEN WITH SANJAYA GONE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
With the heels that Melinda wears , do u think she'll ever fall flat on her face , like " whoops !! sorry fellas !! I need the extra 6 inches for the camera to focus on my body ! Otherwise u'll be seeing my head ! " ( hahahaha )
Question to all ......................
" WHO FINDS JORDIN TOOOOOOOOOOOO BUBBLY AND IRRITATING ? "
dusty said: [...]I'd like to mention that **I** never heard from a foodbank until I came to the USA. We just have nothing like it in Europe.
So how does Europe deal with the disabled/lower income individuals/those who cannot work and need assistance? Just curious, no affront intended. I'm familiar with some of the socialized medical systems, but I've never heard about how basic care like housing and food are handled. Toad mentioned last week that Europe has a different perspective on accepting and adapting to people within one's community, but that doesn't necessarily translate into providing housing, food, and say, wheelchairs for disabled individuals.
Simon has been in the US for the majority of the past six years. I realize that he's been a "pampered snob" this entire time, but you can't even go to Neiman's at Christmas without seeing collection boxes for the local food banks. I am aware of the "oblivious" factor, but geez!
curlio said: [...]
DialIdol always gets worse when we get two numbers to vote on.
Considering that they have only accurately predicted two of the last six contestants that have been voted off, I don't know that they have room to get worse this season. As you pointed out, if you consider the full statistical deviation, even Jordin could be voted off.
the real fun of the show is lost after sanjaya left as we all know the final result. atleast we had fun seeing him sing and his hair do. i think melinda and jordin will be in the final
So how does Europe deal with the disabled/lower income individuals/those who cannot work and need assistance? Just curious, no affront intended. I'm familiar with some of the socialized medical systems, but I've never heard about how basic care like housing and food are handled. Toad mentioned last week that Europe has a different perspective on accepting and adapting to people within one's community, but that doesn't necessarily translate into providing housing, food, and say, wheelchairs for disabled individuals.
Simon has been in the US for the majority of the past six years. I realize that he's been a "pampered snob" this entire time, but you can't even go to Neiman's at Christmas without seeing collection boxes for the local food banks. I am aware of the "oblivious" factor, but geez!
Do you think that Simon knows that there are those that are need and has seen the boxes, but he didn't realize it was everywhere. Even Hollywood. Lots of times people don't think that happens in their own back yard. Just a thought!
If you can't be a good example, then be a horrible warning!
Will said: My curiosity is focused today on how they will handle the tacky send off at the end of the show? They normally torture the singers and try to be cute with their mis-direction and showmanship, but will they do it tonite? I guess torturing starving children wouldn't be politically correct so how will they handle the transition or will they attempt to be humane, inquiring minds want to know? Will
The VFTW sight has Melinda just above Chris near the bottom. Man, I hope their inbuilt statistical sampling flaws are really off this time, I definitely think Melinda should be in the finals. Will
I am not a big variety show fan, I would rather hear all the finalists sing three songs each chosen by the judges or the audience, to show off their skills. They could have had and Idol special on a different night or something like that. Blending starving people with a singing contest is just a bit strange.
I mean, you know, what if the cast of lost came over to the screen at the end of a show in character and said, he you know how all this is just fake and what we really want is for you to send five bucks each to save the seals. It would be a good thing to save the seals but it kind of takes away from the play "Lost" and the magic it wields in our need for such facing a world like the one we live in. I would love your thoughts on this, peeps??
Me!!
You know, I have felt all along that this whole thing borders on being tacky. It is a singing contest. Someone will be sent home. Let's raise money for the hungry! I think raising money is a great idea. And they have a great audience to draw from, but something just doesn't sit right with me.
If you can't be a good example, then be a horrible warning!
Who cares about Africa! Watch "Black Hawk Down" or talk to some of our soldiers who fought there. As far as I'm concerned, they can all starve to death and leave the entire continent to the wildlife.
At first Ithought AI would come down to a battle between Melinda and Lakisha with Jordin coming in third. During the past few weeks however, I have seen Lakisha's attitude take a nose dive. My favorites now are Melinda and Jordin with Blake a long shot for third.
Guest said: Who cares about Africa! Watch "Black Hawk Down" or talk to some of our soldiers who fought there. As far as I'm concerned, they can all starve to death and leave the entire continent to the wildlife.
That's Somalia. Saying that we should let all of Africa starve because there are some evil nations is like saying that the Taliban should bomb the US because we have some redneck prejudice @$$es that discriminate against anyone who isn't a conservative WASP.
Look at this another way, even those who only care about the wildlife of Africa support helping feed/empower/train the people. That way, the people can support themselves and quit killing endangered species for food!
The much hyped American Idol Gives Back started tonight. Tomorrow night will be the big show with all the money-raising and the guest performances. Tonight we were stuck with just the Top 6 contestants, along with the talents of Ryan Secrest and the judges. Actually tonight's show was rather good, so being "stuck" was okay with me.
First up was news that News Corp would be giving 10 cents for each call up to 50 million calls to the charity. That means that if they get 50 million calls, they donate 5 million dollars. Ryan said that the votes tonight would save your favorite contestant, and save lives. Then we got a clip of Ryan and Simon Cowell's trip to Africa. They visited clinics in the region, where they are treating malaria. Malaria is the number one killer in Africa. Simon was visibily upset over the conditions. It was odd to see even Simon getting a little emotional.
Chris Richardson was the first to perform. He chose to sing "Change the World" by Eric Clapton. He liked that the song is about how one person has the will to change someone else's life. As usual Chris was pitchy and completely sucked. Also as usual the judges fawned all over him. Randy Jackson thought it was the first time Chris was in it to win it. Paula Abdul said it was a great song choice and done very well. Simon thought it was a good vocal, and had more soul than when he had performed before.
Melinda Doolittle was up next, with her performance of the Faith Hill song "There Will Come A Day." Melinda likes that the song speaks about the problems in the world today but also about hope for tomorrow. She said that is what tonight is all about. Her performance was great as usual. She keeps gaining confidence every week and that's showing as well. Randy said she's got it all together, and he doesn't know what to say to her anymore. Paula said it must feel great to get the love, praise and support every week. Simon told her it wasn't a copycat vocal, instead she made him believe he had recorded the original. He added that it was a vocal masterclass.
Blake Lewis was asked what the biggest sacrifice he had made since joining Idols. He said the worst was missing his family and friend. He chose to sing "Imagine" by John Lennon, as it is all about coming together in an ideal world. I thought it was his best performance yet. Naturally the judges didn't like it. Randy thought it was a great choice, but on the performance side it was just alright. He wanted Blake to do more with the song. Paula said she thought that at the beginning, but then was reminded of how beautiful and sensitive the song is. She thought it was the first beautiful performance from him. Simon said that because Blake chose one of the biggest songs of all time, there will always be a comparison. He felt that Paula was right in that he was sincere. But he also thought that it didn't go anywhere. Simon added that it was most important that he was sincere.
Lakisha Jones chose to sing "I Believe" by Fantasia. Honestly as much as I disliked Fantasia - her version was better. It was pitchy and just not good at all. Randy thought it was pitchy and difficult to sing after someone like Fantasia did it. Paula said that Fantasia is so unigue, you have a hard time singing something like she does. Simon translated Paula's comments as she liked Fantasia's version better. He had an issue with the shouting too.
Phil Stacey was asked what he missed most about home. He too the opportunity to pimp his children again, who are with their grandparents and not their with him and his wife. He chose to sing "The Change" by Garth Brooks, which was released after the Oklahoma City bombings. There were a couple of pitchy notes at the beginning, but beyond that it was awesome. He had the right emotion to the song and everything. Randy was happy since he came back with another strong performance. Paula felt like he found his comfort zone. Simon really likes Phil. He likes that he has a spring in his step again. He would like Phil to connect the confidence with the country sound he had in his voice last week though.
Last up was Jordin Sparks, who sang "You'll Never Walk Alone." She wanted to convey a message of hope that would be comforting to people. She had a couple of bad notes at the beginning, but after that it was a wonderful performance. Randy said it was one of the best vocals by any contestant in six seasons. Paula said it was an amazing song to close the night. Simon thought it was fantastic. Even though the song was 60 years old, she'd have a hit if she recorded it.
My ranking in order from best to worst:
