American Idol season 10's top 8 - Fox
While some are still reeling over the shocking elimination of Pia Toscano last week, the remaining eight contestants carried on about the business of trying to become the next great pop star on last night’s episode of American Idol.
Songs from the movies was the theme of the night, and it found a couple singers, namely Casey Abrams and James Durbin, ditching song choices at the last minute or battling with the mentors to follow their hearts and perform what they wanted, no matter how unpopular the choice. The risk paid off handsomely for both guys in the form of great performances, though one may also find himself in trouble, as his performance more than likely went over the heads of many viewers.
Here’s our rundown of how the top 8 did:
Paul McDonald – Old Time Rock And Roll: Firstly, Paul’s rose-covered suit? Amazing. His performance? Not so much. It was beyond cheesy and the truest definition of drunken bar karaoke. The judges obviously love drunken bar karaoke. “I love your crazy, wild abandon and how it transcends to an audience…I liked it,” Steven praised. “You killed it,” Jennifer said. “America, you just witnessed the first number at the Paul McDonald concert,” Randy gushed.
Lauren Alaina – The Climb: A Miley Cyrus song for a girl with a voice as angelic as Lauren’s? Piece of cake, right? Wrong. She seemed intimidated by the song. It’s like she was treading lightly to make sure she didn’t slip up, but it’s that caution that made the performance weaker in the end. It didn’t help that Jimmy Iovine said two things that probably got into Lauren’s head: she shouldn’t leave not even one person thinking Miley sang the song better than she did, and she needs to pick up some of Pia’s votes. The judges were, not surprisingly, blown away. “You sang it so beautifully,” Jennifer said. “You don’t need to steal anyone’s votes. You’re getting plenty on your own.”
Stefano Langone – End Of The Road: Stefano obviously didn’t pay attention to the unspoken Idol rule, which states contestants should never choose a song that will be particularly poignant when he or she is voted off. “End Of The Road”? Really, Stefano? Besides that, the performance started out really rocky for Stefano. But halfway through, he picked it up and showed off some of the biggest, most glorious notes he’s hit on the show yet. Randy told Stefano Boyz II Men’s Wanya would say, “Your man Stefano just slayed the song!” “This is so not the end of the road for you. This is just the beginning,” Steven said. We’ll see about that.
Scotty McCreery -I Cross My Heart: At this point, Scotty can do no wrong. He’s a beast when it comes to choosing songs that work well for his voice and stay true to his country soul. Last night was no exception. Scotty’s performance was tender and pure. Another great, if not predictably safe, one in the bag. The song choice wasn’t Jennifer’s favorite but she still felt Scotty performed it “beautifully.” The other judges agreed.
Casey Abrams – Nature Boy: Casey went against the mentors and canned a popular Phil Collins tune in favor of a Nat King Cole, jazzy number. The performance did two things for Casey: 1. proved he’s an amazing musician who can show up and show out on just about any song, and 2. undoubtedly landed him back in the bottom 3. Not because he wasn’t great, because he was. But because this is totally not the typical “American Idol sound,” and most people won’t be interested in hearing the mellow lounge sound from Casey again. The judges, well, they loved it so much, they have him a standing O. Randy said it was a “Grammy kind of performance” that he could see Herbie Hancock joining Casey on. “I thought it was brilliant man. I thought it was absolutely genius,” he said.
Haley Reinhart – Call Me: The positive: Haley looked GORGEOUS last night. The negative: her performance was a hot, growly, screechy mess. Haley has no effin clue who she is as an artist, and less of a clue how to control her voice. It’s sad. She has one in there, but it’s always trapped under 90 pounds of growl. The judges grew backbones for the first time all night and slightly panned the performance. “It started very karaoke for me,” Randy said. “It just wasn’t a showcase for your voice for me.” Steven (well, kinda) and Jennifer agreed.
Jacob Lusk – Bridge Over Troubled Water: Jacob’s pre-performance package was kinda sad to watch. Jacob looked so defeated after landing in the bottom 3 last week, and Jimmy scolded him over his snide comment about America not being able to look at themselves in the mirror. Jimmy was right, but it was still kinda sad. With all of that, Jacob was out to prove he belonged in the competition. His performance last night just might do the trick. He kept his vocals tender and let it build perfectly. “It’s astounding to me how angelic you sing,” Steven said. “I didn’t wanna let you give me the chills, but you did,” swooned Jennifer. “It was like perfect, perfect, perfect harmony,” added Randy.
James Durbin – Heavy Metal: As if James was in any trouble after last week’s not-so-amazing performance, he still got back to what audiences know and love him for: rocking the hell out! He closed the show out with a real rip-roaring showstopper, complete with a solid vocals, plenty of money notes, and Zakk Wylde wailing on the guitar. “That felt really, really REAL,” Jennifer said. “This is unbelieable….Durbin rocks,” screamed Randy. Steven finished off the love fest. “Outstanding, Durbin!”
Predictions: After last week, anything could happen. But we’re gonna go with Casey, Stefano, and Haley for the bottom 3 with Stefano leaving.
The results show is tonight, with performances by Rihanna and the original Idol, Kelly Clarkson!
