American Idol 2012 Top 7 Performances Recap: Now and Then

American Idol 2012 Colton Dixon Bad Romance

Tonight’s American Idol 2012 surprised me and that’s a rare occurrence. I completely expected to hate all the “Now” performances and like all the “Then” performances, but it was the complete opposite.

I thought the American Idol Top 7 did a much better job with the Adele/Gaga/Alicia Keys theme. Wait, I mean the “Now” theme. As always, I’ll review each performance and assign the letter grade I think each one deserves.

Hollie Cavangah, “Rolling in the Deep.” I have to start off saying what I feel like I always say these days and that’s that I think all Adele songs should be banned from every singing competition show. OK, now that I got that out of my system, I’ll move on. Hollie has had a really rough past couple of weeks, but she started this one off with a bang. I thought her performance of “Rolling in the Deep” was the best version of that song (any Adele song, actually) that I’ve ever heard on a singing competition. And trust me, I’ve heard A LOT. And I mean  a lot. I thought she was spot on during the whole song. And so when Randy Jackson opened his big annoying mouth, I wanted to scream. I’m not even a Hollie fan and it made me mad that he said she wasn’t perfect and had pitch issues. I heard NOTHING. Shut up, Randy. A+

Colton Dixon, “Bad Romance.” I fully expected to hate this performance. I wanted to hate it. But I actually kind of liked it. Tonight it was like if Billy Idol and Lady Gaga had a baby it would be Colton singing this version of this song. I thought it was one of his best. I didn’t think emo band from 2002 this time, so that’s a good thing. A+

Elise Testone, “No One.” When Elise is on, she’s REALLY on. And tonight was one of those nights. I actually felt emotional with this performance. Maybe it was the fan on her. That always chokes me up. I’m kidding. I was getting to serious in this post so I had to say something. Back to it … I think I loved this performance.  She sings with such passion and soul. And JLo is right about her smile. It lights up the stage. A+

Phillip Phillips, “You Got It Bad.” When Ryan said Phillip was the one doing this song, I nearly spat out my Pepsi Next. Sorry, Idol, I was drinking the X Factor drink of choice tonight. Phillip did his Phillip thing. It was totally fine and Phillipified. I’d listen to it on the radio, yada yada. But It was just more of the same. I’ve been outed as a Phillip fan so I’m not expected to get bored with Phillip. But I kind of was. I kind of have been the past two weeks. I want him to do something crazy and shake things up. B

Jessica Sanchez, “Fallin.” Another song I wish someone would ban from singing competitions. Plus I just hate writing words as they’re incorrectly spoken like “fallin.” It irritates me. So Jessica and this song. It was good. She’s a great vocalist and while she has more of a connection the previous two weeks, I felt that connection lacking again. I just felt like she was bored and that made me bored. Sorry, rabid Jessica fans. That’s just how I feel. Please attack me in our lovely comments section below. B-

Skylar Laine, “Born This Way.” Well OK, you spunky little country diva. This one is going to have me buying cowboy boots by the end of the season if she makes it much further. I thought Skylar’s country version of this song was fantastic. I feel like Skylar is always on. Always. I think she might be rivaling Elise for most under appreciated contestant. A

Joshua Ledet, “I Believe.” Geez that’s a lame song. You can really tell it was an “American Idol” finale song. You know how you can tell? It mentions something about finding and/or chasing a rainbow. Joshua performed as well as he always does. It got a little screechy as usually, but overall it was a good vocal. Boring? Yes. But good. B+

Round 2

Hollie, “Son of a Preacher Man.” I really wanted this to be the song Elsie sang, but OK. Hollie delivered another powerful performance with her second song, but it still wasn’t as good as the first. B+

Colton, “September.” I’m all for making a song your own and changing things up, but this one was kind of a travesty. Colton’s version was completely unrecognizable. And he was back to emo 2002 band again. Ugh. B-

Elise, “Let’s Get it On.” This was an interesting song choice for Elise. I was starting to hate the performance actually, but then she growled or squealed or something and from then on it only got better. She’s got so much soul it’s crazy. I really hope she finds some extra votes this week because she doesn’t deserve to go home. A-

Phillip, “In The Midnight Hour.” Phillip dropped the guitar for this one, so that means he was instantly out of his comfort zone. So, good for him. With it came a new energy. He seemed to have some of the most fun he’s had on that stage. That was good to see from him. I thought it was much better than the first round. A-

Jessica, “Try a Little Tenderness.” This one, for me, was a mixed bag. There were parts of the song (her runs and phrasing) that I loved. Then there were parts that I hated (her nods to Beyonce). Overall, it was better than the first performance, but again she just didn’t seem to be having a good time. A-

Skylar, “Heard it Through the Grape Vine.” Skylar had a couple of annoying moments during this one. I almost felt like I was watching RaeLynn on “The Voice” with the way she sang some of the words. But then she brought out the power again and made me forget about all that. B+

Joshua, “A Change is Gonna Come.” Yay. We get this song every season now. Zzzzzz. Maybe 14 songs were just too many (OK, not maybe; 14 songs were too many) but I was terribly bored with this. I’m falling asleep typing this. B

Now it’s time for me to make my weekly predictions. I was way off last week when producers staged Jessica’s elimination Jessica got the least amount of votes, so let’s see if I can redeem myself. And as always, please understand that these are predictions. They are not what I think should happen. So if someone above got an A and I predict they’re in the bottom, it’s only because I think that’s how America’s votes MIGHT play out. So don’t call me stupid and go check yourself.

This is going to a tough week for predictions. Things could easily be shifting.

100 Percent Safe: Phillip Phillips, Jessica Sanchez

Most Likely Safe: Skylar Laine, Colton Dixon

Possibly the Bottom 3: Elise Testone, Joshua Ledet, Hollie Cavanagh

Possibly Going Home: Hollie

My thinking: I’ll almost always put the person who got the judges’ save at 100 percent safe because they always ride that wave for weeks after. So I think she’ll be fine. We’re getting to the point where Colton or Phillip will become a one or the other option. I’m not sure who it’ll be to start slipping in the votes first, but I’m thinking it might be Colton. Because Phillip appeals to the younger and older women voters (just ask JL0). Colton is likely only popular with younger girls.

As for Skylar, she’s been very strong the past couple weeks, so she should be OK for a bit longer. So it could be any of the above suggested Bottom 3 to go. I think it might be Hollie this week, but Elise’s time (sadly) could be up as well. It’s a very tough call. Anything could happen.

What do you think will happen? What did you think of the performances?

 

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492 Comments

  1.  because the judges used the save last week, i think two finalists will go home  tomorrow…

  2. Here are my predictions:
    100% safe- Jessica Sanchez, Phillip Phillips
    Most Likely safe- Joshua Ledet, Skylar Laine
    Bottom 3- Hollie Cavanagh :(, Colton Dixon, Elise Testone
    Going home- It’s a toss up, but I think I’m going with Elise.
    By the way Branden, I hated Randy more than ever tonight. He is purposely trying to throw Hollie under the bus. What a jerk.

  3. i dont think hollie is leaving after both her great performances. im not even sure she’s B3. but i definitely think elise is leaving 🙁

  4. No I think Elise might go home because she doesn’t have that big fanbase everyone has as American Idol is a singing competition, and she doesn’t lack in that… But it also is a popularity contest.

  5. i like the “producers staged Jessica’s elimination” ahahaha not a jess fan but i kinda felt the same way last week… but i would hate to see hollie go

    • I agree. Totally scripted and played out. And is it me or whenever a shocker is in the B3 do they always “have the least amount of votes,” like Chris Daughtry, Pia Toscano, Casey Abrams, Jennifer Hudson, and Jessica Sanchez? Hmmmmm…. LOL we all know they manipulate the votes sometimes.

      •  yeah, and the twin towers were a conspiracy…people are so gullable…there is no conspriacy…you want you person to win…vote…that is how it is done…done blame AI for lazy fan base

      • How sure are you even that Jessica Sanchez’ elimination was staged, it could be possible that her fans went on voting for someone else. It is not that I do not like Jessica it is just that the situation could be possible. We should not be making conclusions simply because our favorite got voted off or maybe because we notice that there is a pattern, I think it is best to still believe in the votes of America.:) 

      • Yes i turly believed it was all manipulated the staff will decide who wil go home not by the lowest votes

      • How do you know it was staged?  Don’t speak for me by claiming “we all know”.  Speak for yourself, not others.  I for one, do not believe it is staged.  I recall reading last week where one of the Jessica supporters blamed it on the tsumani.  According to that post, her fans in the Phillipines were busy dealing with that instead of voting.  Geesh,  why can’t you just accept that she got the least number of votes because the least amount were cast in her direction.  It doesn’t have to mean there’s a conspiracy theory!     

      • sorry but i think not. the only reason that you think that it was staged is because you’re basing it on her talent. yes she has one,if not the best voice in the competition but that doesn’t mean she gets a lot of votes. remeber lots of tweens are ruling the show, it just happens that maybe COLTON’s fans were too confident that he’ll be safe so they didn’t vote that much. Teens  vote for who they like and the sad fact is that jessica isn’t purely American, she doesn’t even look like one and that’s pulling her down and that’s why they call her “unrelatable” . Agree or disagree with me but we all know that this  r a cism sh it is still happening.

    • i kinda noticed that too! the front runner who’s never been in the bottom 3 will suddenly get the lowest vote. too obvious!

    •  it is insane to think the Jess thing was staged…she was lacking the dedicated voting fan base…that situation should be fixed going forward…this show is about dedicated fan base…so strange things can happen and usually do

  6. Well I have to disagree some what on what you wrote. First of all I though Hollie did do Fabulous and I think Adele would be proud. I think that Joshua and Jessica are over rated and just don’t have any Chemistry. As far as Elise she should have gone home already.  Colton and Phillip I love them both. But I am well over 40 and I love Colton. I think its because every song he sings has so much passion and heart in in. 

    • sorry but i think jessica’s not overrated, i think joshua is but not jessica. I always wonder how they say that jessica can’t connect to the audience when people are howling and cheering after her performances.  I actually think that the judges like jessica but NOT AS MUCH  as we think they do. notice how jlo always say “like everyone else” when she’s saying how good jessica’s voice is? She can’t even compliment jessica without comparing her to one/rest of the contestants. Her love for jessica is FAKE. Philips i think is also overrated, i like him but he sounds pretty much the same every week. Colton will not be going home anytime soon, just because of the fact that lots of teenage girls are voting for him.

      • i agree. Philips is talented but it seems like he’s singing the same song over and over again. I think it’s because of  his style. He should change things up a bit. i still love him though. i hope jessica joshua and philips are safe.

  7. I agree with your recap for the most part. If I make a going home prediction it will be Elise. I think Colton might be in danger of hitting the bottom 3 this week, and I think Joshua is  going to be in the bottom 3 again. I’d love for Joshua to be the one who gets the ax this week just to tick off the judges but I don’t think it will happen. I agree that Jessica will most likely be safe as she’s going to have the sympathy vote from the save, and I think Phil will be completely safe since he had a better night than what he had the past couple of weeks. Hollie she might be in the bottom, but I think she might have done enough to stay safe this week(though I could be wrong).

    • I agree for the most part but think Elise or Jessica will be in the bottom three. My guess I think Joshua or Colton will leave.

    •  he lit the fire under Hollie fan base…the judges are there to increase viewership and votes…surely, Randy accomplished that…dont like his comments, nor do I agree with them but if Hollie sticks around, he can thank Randy for causing the surge in her votes

      • i agree. i think everyone hates randy right now (and even JL for some) that’s why they’re voting for who the judges are trying to pull down. i say bring simon back and let’s get rid of randy. i love jessica sanchez and i think randy’s fake “LOVE” for her is pulling jessica down. 

  8. I think the bottom 3 are Joshua, Philips and Elise and might be Joshua or Philips will go home, but actually I like these guys after Colton

    • Colton and :P:P have never been in the bottom three, I am hoping it stays the same as last week but switch Elise for Hollie and with Joshua going home. 🙂

  9. my pics for tonight are as follows:
    100% safe Skylar, Colton, Phillip they knocked out both their songs to me and i gave them A++++
    most likely safe: Elise and Hollie – i gave them A on one song and B+ on the other song
    bottom 3 for me:  Josh, Jessica, and Hollie and it will be a toss up who will be going home for sure, I think it could be either Jessica or Hollie and too me Jessica was way to growly and screechy for me tonight and picked to safe ballads..and Josh he has that gospel singing routine in both songs which is getting boring to me..good voice but boring and again do not like the growls and screeching rather words song.  Hollie sang her heart out and i feel she should stay but that is my opinion too.  so here is to tomorrow’s result show to see how we do come out in our predictions and good review as usual from you tonight.

    • Uhhhhhhhh…. There is no what that’s the bottom 3. No way. Hollie might be in it, but not Joshua or Jessica. Jessica is going to ride the save for a while and Joshua has a large and growing fan base. If it is, we will all know the producers manipulate the votes.

      • we will see, but there is no way two people are going home tomorrow night either, as before the save was used one contestant was eliminated and so there is no way we will be loosing two people either, but i picked the bottom 3 right last week, and joshua was in there, so was jessica, and jessica was the one with the least votes, she is getting boring, sure she has a strong voice, but there is nothing there when she is singing to the audience, it is just like i sing and so what, she is acting like this is another teen modeling competition for like miss teen usa instead of a singing competiton. Joshua, sticks to ballads, those two get very boring…and he sings the same way each and every week..again boring. but as i said it is my opinion..and we shall see tomorrow if you are right or if i am right..Right! :))

      • My prediction for bottom 3 is Elise, Josh, and Colton. Why Josh? His first song was awful his second was just Ok. I think Hollie is safe because Randy was a jerk to her and she did have a good night. We all know Elise does not have a big fan base. Colton to me is just ok. I am thinking Elise may be done tonight, but I am hoping Josh. I love Phillip and Skylar and all Jess fans were probably voting for her like crazy last night.

    • you still can’t deny that fact that some of  the idol fans don’t or at least convince themselves that can’t connect with jessica because of her “race” if i may say.i know that some of you will say that she’s still american but you can’t blame me. Joshua is amazing and jessica is beyond amazing especially after knowing that she’s what? only 16!  in an ideal world JESSICA-JOSHUA would be the perfect finale but since we’re trying to be realistic here PHILIPS-COLTON would be the one. singing competition? more like popularity competition. 

  10. I also think two finalists will go home. My guess is Elise, even though I think her voice is awesome. The other person is probably Hollie.

    • It is a double elimination tomorrow night.  Remember when the gentle giant he was #13.  After the save 2 go home. 

      • On my on air program guide it said for the program description “One will be eliminated”  I have Direct TV, I don’t know what other sources say.

  11. It’s not fair for Elise! She is underrated!
    Unlike Haley – who was underrated at first and then praised, Elise is increasingly underrated to the end of the show.
    If there is a double-elimination tomorrow, Elise will go home for sure! If not, she’ll go home for 95%. Let’s hope for a miracle!

    • Those who votes a LOT seem to like the younger singers. At 28, Elise is practically a “Grandma” compared to the other 6. Most past winners have been in their early 20’s.  At 19, Jordin Sparks was the youngest winner.

    • i agree. IMO elise’s voice is way better than hollie’s and skylar’s (evethough i like her) she’s really underrated. i think hollie need to go first.

  12. I have a feeling Jessica’s sick of the show already, esp. the phony pip-squeak that goes by the name of Hollie. She’s like “alright alright, let them win. pffft” 
     

    •   “the phony pip-squeak that goes by the name of Hollie” is the way a 6 year old describes Hollie and their view of her…Now let’s take the mature way to say it and compare them:
      “I don’t enjoy Hollie’s singing as much as I do Jessica’s. I think Jessica is more genuine and I am rooting for her.”
      See the maturity difference?

      • i don’t see any hint of maturity from that but someone who’s trying to be. If you were mature enough you would have never brought up the “6-year old” reference. Mature people don’t do that.  

      • Point taken, nero, but they also don’t call people phony pip squeaks. If you don’t call people that then you will get less messages like this, because most people on here are mature enough to realize you like Jessica and everyone has the right to like their favorite. Also, do you think bashing Hollie will get us to change our minds? Honestly?

      • Was I trying to sway you? I don’t think so. That’s so paranoiac. Even i concede that Jessica might go home tomorrow night. 
        And oh, Hollie is a SMALL bundle of JOY! 😛 

      • Whats with the maturity issue you guys? This all boils down to whom you are rooting for. You wouldn’t even have this conversation if your not offended by what nero said. If your any mature as what you said “mature people” you wont even bother to argue with nero. You said:  “because most people on here are mature enough to realize you like Jessica and everyone has the right to like their favorite. Also, do you think bashing Hollie will get us to change our minds? Honestly?”

        what if i tell you this? because most people on here are mature enough to realize you like HOLLIE (which is effin obvious) and everyone has the right to like their favorite. Also, do you think bashing JESSICA will get us to change our minds? Honestly? HONESTLY? 

        think before you get too judgmental. And im not saying im not judgmental. Just vote and well see tomorrow. BTW, i do agree that Jessica gettin is sick of the show. Why shouldn’t she? Shes too good for them. She’s even too good for the judges’ comments. And I am not even rooting for her. In the end, whomever AI wants to win, will win. Shamelessly regardless of the voting community. Keep your hopes up guys 🙂

      • @06678549cc85ddafc1291306dbe4173b:disqus  I really couldn’t care less who he likes. But really? He has to call other singers “phony pip squeaks” to make him feel better about Jessica? Like who you like and vote for them, don’t demean the other artists. I mean, are you a better singer than them nero. I hate Colton’s singing and I still accept that he deserves to be on there.

  13. Bye Bye Jessica……..you over sang once again!! Poor song choices, you are sixteen I don’t buy you know or feel anything about love lost. Joshua was also BORING!!! Those two should be in the bottom and both go home.

      • Let us like who we like. Let us not like who we don’t like. Just because your favorite isn’t EVERYONE else’s favorite doesn’t mean you have to throw a temper tantrum.

      • Nope I like ALL of the other singers. Jessica is being built up by the judges and doesn’t have the feeling behind the songs. she over sings which makes it boring. Joshua is not in Church he was good, but is now getting to whinny.

      •  Hi Nero,
        A lot of people think that Jessica is a bit overrated; that she does “showy” runs of notes and BIG notes but struggles a bit on everything else.  She is being pimped by the judges for some reason and they want to see her in the finals.  The judges favoritism is ticking off a lot of people, including me.  Standing ovations for Joshua?  C’mon, I mean he is a great choir singer for church and that is great but this is American Idol.

      • Doug, 
        I’m not a fan of Joshua either. The judges are pimping her? Yes i see that. And I don’t mind. How come the producers and the judges see her talent while the voters think otherwise? They have this “she can’t connect w/ the audience” theory but seriously? That “connection” thing is too abstract and chronically subjective. It doesn’t even have a solid definition in any textbook. As for the “likability” that most people think she massively undermines, I mean, how many singers out there are likable? Lady Gaga, Kanye West, etc? Are they likable? They’re not. 

    • kinda agree with you..
      but go home for joshua, another second chances for jesssica

    • They all did a great job. Elise tried too much. Jessica was great. Hollie still hollow for me, philipps was great and colton was ok… Sklyar is ok too… Joshua was the same…

      • I would say that Phillip and Skylar had the most fun. They may have been the only ones who conveyed to the audience that they were having fun. Even thought this is hard work and stressful, it should also be fun. This is no job for the faint-hearted.  “Idol” is only the starting point; if these kids want to be in this industry they will have to work their tails off – forever!

      • hollie was great. as well as jessica and joshua. they desrve to stay. all of them was great but its a matter of who appreciated their performance and voted for them. ..

        safe:
        1. Philip
        2. Hollie
        3. Skylar
        4. jessica
        5. Colton
        6.Joshua

        in danger:
        7. elise.

    • lol Racist b i t c h ! WHAT?! YOU MAD NOW? we all know that’s true. you yourself know that

    • lol Racist b i t c h ! WHAT?! YOU MAD NOW? we all know that’s true. you yourself know that

  14. Phillip will be the winner Elise, Hollie and joshua will make and awesome final group behind him. Jessica’s songs are all starting to sound the same and sometimes you can’t discern her voice from the back up except for her first and final notes. Hard to know if she is or is not pitchy. Colton sounds like he is always singing the same song. Skylar  may do well with the Country vote but sometimes she is too twangy. She would be better to sing less country.

    • Why? You want jessica to sing like Elise or Hollie? That’s baloney!!

      Jessica is way, way better and  far superior than elise or hollie>

      hope you get that.

      • You just wish she was. jessica has no artistry in comparison to Elise. She just a beyonce copycat.
        Oh, and technically, Elise is on a league of herself, she is technically superior to both hollie and jessica. the thing is she doesn’t have a voice which is as clear as jessica’s  and hollie’s. 

        hope you get that.

    •  duh?!?!? starting to sound the same?? jessica?? isnt it PHILLIP who makes his performance sound the same EACH WEEK. you deaf!

    • Country is where she wants to be, and she makes no apology for that. I think she will get a recording deal no matter where she ends up in the competition.  I don’t think she will win since a country singer won last year.  In a way, that takes some of the pressure off her; she just needs to stay in as long as possible to get all the exposure she can.

  15. I thought that Hollie and Skylar knocked the cover off the balls tonight.  For the non-baseball fans that means they did a heckuva great job.  Elise was also very, very good.  BTW, WTH was with JLo lecturing on and on and on to Elise?
    She even interrupted Tyler to lecture some more and then had to lecture again as Elise was talking to Ryan!!  Good gracious!  She has to go.  In fact all three judges need to go.  Anyways, on with my favs for best singer TONIGHT:
    #1  Skylar
    #2  Hollie
    #3  Jessica
    #4  Elise
    MY BOTTOM THREE For Tonight:
    #5  Colton–well, someone has to be in the bottom.
    #6  Joshua–He always chooses songs he can sing like “choir songs”.
    #7  Phillip–don’t like his voice and tonight he seemed like a total fake.

  16.  I STRONGLY DISAGREE with your predictions..why the heck would Hollie be going home if she wasn’t even in the bottom 3 last week & did BETTER this week!  No way, she is 100 percent safe!  According to me Hollie & Colton are the only 2 100 percent no chance of being in the bottom 3.  I think any of the remaining 5 could be in the bottom 3..I predict the bottom 3 will be Jessica, Joshua & Skylar..however I could see philip or elise being in to..I know Hollie & Colton will be safe…Jessica will go home I predict.  Your prediction is DEAD WRONG & illogical!

    •  I hope you are right.  Be sure to vote, there is still time and vote all you can to make your prediction come true.  I am voting big time for Hollie for she surely deserved it tonight.

    • That’s a tad unrealistic… But I hope Hollie isn’t going home. I hope Elise does.

    • hollie is not in the bottom 3 last week and you’re right but what about the previous weeks???  the reason why jessica is in the bottom 3 last week because some of her fans is trying to save your beloved Hollie but  tomorrow night will be different because all the fans of Jessica will vote for her and your Hollie is in danger

  17. Top 7 Again: Now and
    Then Week

     

    Now

    Hollie Cavanagh – Rolling In The Deep – After hearing her
    sing this, I guess I can’t complain about her doing an Adele song, because she
    is one of the few who I have heard sing Adele who actually did the song
    justice. This is the best performance that she has had in a while if not her
    best performance. (B+)

    Colton Dixon – Bad Romance – This wasn’t his best
    performance, but it was still good. I agree that it was too low in some spots,
    but the high notes were pretty good. Overall he done a good job. (B-)

    Elise Testone – No One – When she started out this song I
    was like heck yes! I think she sounded fantastic and nailed all of those
    beautiful runs. For me she could have picked a better song and had more of a
    moment, but she still did a really good job on this song. (B+)

    Phillip Phillips – You Got It Bad – When I saw the spoilers,
    I guessed he would be singing this song, and he pretty much changed it the way
    that I figured he would, and I thought he did a really good job with the song.
    I was impressed, and I think he finally had a moment similar to the one he had
    back at his top 24 performance with In The Air Tonight. However, I have to
    disagree with Randy about the true artist statement. Phillip does have his own
    style, and I would consider him an artist… but it’s not like he is the only
    one. Although this wasn’t perfect, it was still really really good. (A-)

    Jessica Sanchez – Fallen – Again, I would have preferred her
    to pick something other than Alicia. She could have had a bigger moment with a
    Beyonce song or a Jessie J song. But, she did her thang with this song. I loved
    some of the runs she did, although I felt like parts of the song were rushed.
    (B+)

    Skylar Laine – Born This Way – Perfect song choice for her.
    I thought this was fantastic! She nailed those vocals, a couple of very mild
    pitch issues on the low notes.. other than that.. just great! (A)

    Joshua Ledet – I Believe – He did a really good job on this
    song. It was pretty much everything that I expected. Not much more to say,
    except he did a really great job. Although I’m getting tired of the judges
    standing ovations for him. (A-)

    Then

    Hollie Cavanagh – Son Of A Preacher’s Man – Besides the
    ending being fantastic, I thought the rest of the song was kinda flat. It was
    pretty good but, it wasn’t the best thing. Something about it was just kind of
    forgettable for me. I think Elise would have done much better at singing this.
    (C+)

    Colton Dixon – September – This just isn’t a song that you
    pick to do on idol. Although he did change it up, and I did enjoy the changes
    that he made to the song, it still wasn’t a blow me away type of performance.
    He sounded a little shaky on the versus. I enjoyed the power that he put into
    the chorus. Again, this was somewhat of a forgettable performance. (C+)

    Elise Testone – Let’s Get It On – I thought Elise did a
    pretty good job with this, and I think for the first time the judges did their
    job by providing some real constructive criticism for a contestant. Everybody
    knows and agrees that Elise is very talented vocally, but she lacks
    vulnerability. I’m actually happy the judges said what they said to her, and I
    hope she gets a chance next week to improve on that and can have some real
    moments. Overall this performance, I agree it wasn’t the right song choice but
    she did have some really nice moments in there. ( B-)

    Phillip Phillips- In The Midnight Hour – Surprisingly, I’ve
    enjoyed both of Phillip’s performances tonight, and think they are among the
    best that he has bad. Although, I agree he was a bit shouty in some parts, I
    just really enjoyed the fact that he was smiling and feeling the music and just
    having a really good time, and he delivered. (A-)

    Jessica Sanchez – Try A Little Tenderness – Okay, she NAILED
    this. Like literally blew my mind. I was in awe, and the for the judges not
    standing up for that it was just insane to me, because if it had been Joshua,
    all three judges would have stood up. It makes me angry honestly. But, this was
    one of my favorite performances, and it gave me chills. Her voice is dope. I do
    appreciate what the judges were saying about her needing to connect more, but I
    totally felt that. I’m sure not everybody will, but I totally felt that. (A+)

    Skylar Laine – Heard It Through The Grapevine – Skylar did
    her thang with this song as well. I thought it was a good powerhouse vocal, and
    it was a total Skylar Performance. (A-)

    Joshua Ledet – A Change Is Gonna Come – Really??? They stand
    up for that. I mean it was pretty good, but it didn’t blow me away at all.
    Syesha Mercado did a much better job than he did with that song. They favor him
    soooooo much and it’s annoying. But, he did do a good job with the song. (B)

     

  18. I’m praying for Elise tonight, she did fantastically and i absolutely fell for her let’s get it on performance, loved the squeal, and i think the judges did not help at all with their criticism; people who don’t like her very much will be manipulated into agreeing that she is cold, and doesn’t put emotion on the song, which is completely untrue, i get goosebumps every single time she gets on that stage, and i think she did an awesome awesome job tonight.
     She doesn’t deserve to go home. As far as i’m concerned, Phillip should go as he’s getting boring to hear. I know there’s no way he could be bottom three, but he should, so he can learn to mix things up a bit. I really liked him when the show started, and now i just….meh…i think he gave all that he had to give in this competition. Meanwhile, my prediction’s are ColtonElise Hollie (not taking the fact that she did a fantastic job tonight….i just think it’s a little too late for her) in the bottom three, with either Hollie or Elise leaving. I’m hoping Hollie. 

    • She deserved to go home because America said so…..I thought the fans made the decision.

      • well, i’m entitled to my opinion, am i not? I’m entitled to think about what i consider is fair or not. The fans make the decision, it doesn’t mean i have to agree with it. 

      • What dream world are YOU living in????  The producers decide who goes home.  If they don’t like the viewers’ choice, they just change things.

  19. All of them sang all the song choices pretty well as other expected,but for me  Jessica is the best for winning the crown.Nobody can sing a hard piece that she picked strong vocal prowess needed to belt this way.
    Go FTW Jessica……………………………………..go,go,go Sanchez.

  20. another good commentary to Jessica.  but she will be going home next. SORRY BEBE CHEZ FANS.

  21. keep hating joshua and jessica because of their race, but i think they will become successful after this show:)

    • what’s up with you and race? i love Jessica enough that I prefer her not winning. The race thing is uber dumb. 

      • Dylanjrvs 0 minutes ago in reply to nero
        He’s just a Filipino fan just Ignor him/her—————–there goes racism.

      • Dylanjrvs… You started the thing… It wil go back to you man! You are a racist… Feel.sorry very disappointed about this…

    •  Here we go with the race thing again. Race has nothing to do with people not voting for Jessica. I have voted for her in the past, but not recently and no race has nothing to do with it. And there have been minority winners in the past ie Fantasia.

    •  So, if you are a minority can we say that you are a racist if you don’t vote for a white person?  I mean, if you only vote for Joshua and Jessica maybe you are a racist?  Hmmmm?

    • I’m a Filipino too. But come on. Race issue again? What if Jessica wins the contest? Whom would you give it credit to?

  22. Jessica will probably go home. AI stage is not for her. [It’s too small] 
    Hollie will NOT go home coz she sang her songs  better than the FLASHDANCE song she did a couple of weeks back! *snickers* Oh Gosh I still can’t move on! I had a nightmare with that performance. 

  23. First off, a huge thank you to American Idol’s Top 7.

    I needed something to help me get past this week’s dreadful episodes of The Voice.  And tonight’s show did just that.

    But Nigel, Nigel, Nigel … please, let the cast sing current music from this point on.  Each and every week.

    Everytime you give them a current theme, they respond with brilliant performances.  I mean, the first half of tonight’s show was on fire.

    The second half … well, it wasn’t bad.  But it was a bit of a letdown.

    On to the recap:

    Best of the Night:    The single best vocal of the night was Jessica Sanchez’s version of Alicia Keys’ “Fallin’.”   I mean, if you wanted a 2-minute reminder of why there’s no way in the world she should have needed a save last week, Jessica provided it with that performance.  It wasn’t the flashiest of the night.  But it was vocally fabulous, from beginning to end.  After that performance — and last week’s scare — I don’t think there’s any way Jessica’s fans will let her wind up on the bottom again.

    Runner-up:   I don’t know if the grades I gave her were the second best of the night, but Skylar Laine was downright impressive Wednesday.  First, she went country with Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way.”  And it worked.  Then she took on soul, which isn’t exactly her specialty, and made “Heard It Through the Grapevine” a country song.   It wasn’t vocally flawless, but what a performance.  I mean, talk about sassy.  Skylar has found her groove.  And might be a better performer than either of last year’s finalists.

    Worst of the night:   Well, this won’t win me any fans, but on a night of solid performances across the board, I was not at all impressed by Colton Dixon.  He changed up “Bad Romance,” and it didn’t work as well as Skylar’s change on “Born This Way.”   He sat behind his piano and performed “September” in the show’s second half, and it came off as flat.  To be fair, the theme put him at a disadvantage.  But Skylar managed to prevail.  Colton didn’t.

    Please keep her:   I really enjoyed Elise Testone’s version of “No One” during the show’s first half.  I mean, the things she can do with her voice … well, only Jessica sings better among the girls.  But Elise might have tried to do too much with “Let’s Get it On” during the show’s second half.  Yep, I found myself agreeing with Randy.  Imagine that.  In the segment before she sang, Jimmy Iovine noted that Elise doesn’t have the huge fan base of some of the other contestants and that she has to be perfect to stick around.  If that’s true … well, please keep her, voters.

    Baffled by the judges:  Is it just me, or does it seem like the judges start the night with a script, then revert to that script throughout the evening, regardless of what happens on stage.  Last night’s script — Phillip Phillips is great;  Joshua Ledet’s show-closing song will be an Idol moment.  Phillip was far short of great — at least to my ears — on “Midnight Hour.”  Joshua’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” ended with a flourish, but fell well short of a moment.  It wasn’t anywhere near his best performance of the competition.

    What should happen Thursday night:   The bottom three should consist of Colton Dixon, Elise Testone and Hollie Cavanagh.  And Hollie should go home.  Look, she bounced back strong on Wednesday, turning in two of her best performances in weeks.  But she doesn’t match up to Jessica or Elise vocally and she doesn’t have the flair for performance that Skylar demonstrates.

    What will happen Thursday night:   Colton Dixon will not be in the bottom three.  Hollie and Elise will.   And, to Idol’s dismay, they might be joined by Joshua.  And if the Holliepops rally around the gal from Texas by way of Liverpool the way I think they might, Elise could be in big trouble.  She was good, but short of perfect, on Wednesday.

    For tonight’s song by song blog, go here.

    Coming tomorrow: A photo gallery from tonight’s show and live blogging during the Thursday night results show.

    The grades:

    Current songs …

    Jessica Sanchez: “Fallin’” — A
    Elise Testone: “No One” — B+
    Skylar Laine: “Born This Way” — B
    Joshua Ledet: “I Believe” — B
    Phillip Phillips: “U Got It Bad” — B
    Hollie Cavanagh: “Rolling in the Deep” — B-
    Colton Dixon: “Bad Romance” — B-

    Soul songs ….

    Jessica Sanchez: “Try a Little Tenderness” — B
    Joshua Ledet: “A Change Is Gonna Come” — B
    Hollie Cavanagh: “Son of a Preacher Man” — B-
    Skylar Laine: “Heard It Through the Grapvine” — B-
    Elise Testone: “Let’s Get It On” — C+
    Phillip Phillips: “Midnight Hour” — C
    Colton Dixon: “September” — C-

    •  “…..Hollie doesn’t match up with Jessica or Elise….”.  Hey man, she doesn’t have to match up with them if she is better than the others.  If she is better than all but 1 of the others she stays.  Actually if she gets more votes than 1 of the others she stays, right?  She sure as heck can sing better than Phillip, Colton or Joshua IMHO.   And I actually like her voice better than Jessica’s.

    • You should kill your self because your first opinions were already bs and I skipped the rest.

    • You had your thoughts even before the show. Overly bias statement. Like Randy, already pick the winner.

    • The only one I have problems with is Jessica.  She has a great voice, but her actions and mannerisms don’t match up with the voice.  If you just listen and don’t watch, she’s fabulous. If you watch, she isn’t so fabulous.  Let’s remember that someone didn’t think she was so fabulous when she was on “America’s Got Talent.”

      •   dont say she doesn’t
        connect, you are just disconnected to a person if you don’t like them
        either not interested!

  24. Goodbye Elise or Hollie.

    Goodbye Elise or Hollie.

    Goodbye Elise or Hollie.

    Goodbye Elise or Hollie.

    Goodbye Elise or Hollie.

     

  25. BTW, I thought the show really sucked tonight and each show reinforces my dislike of the judges pimping…Judge don’t pimp! They stick with the same ole favs and rip on their unfavs regardless of the performance.  

  26. I don’t know why ANYONE likes Elise! Her personality is terrible! She can’t take criticism, she’s rude and all over the worst singer there. BOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

    • No, I think she has the most unique and most soothing voice in the competition. You are just an avid BEBE CHEZ that is why you bash others.

    •  Criticism??  You call what Lopez did to her tonight “criticism”?  There were THREE separate “lectures” by JLo to Elise that went on for what seemed like 15 minutes.  Totally uncalled for!  I’m just trying to be fair and the judges get so disrespectful sometimes.  I am impressed that Elise didn’t jump down there and punch her.  Wish she had.

    • no, what she has is experience and the maturity to take criticism and not stay only to the childish “okaay”. If you watch closely to every single video that preceeds her performance, you’ll notice she’s actually very funny and inteligent. And we like Elise because she has the most original voice iv’e hear in the last 10 years. Seriously, i’ve never been so excited about someone’s voice before, that girl kicks some serious **** ! She has much more potencial than a jessica or a hollie, who despite their great voices, lack the artistry and the hard work Elise has. She’s one of the very few who i actually think DESERVES to be in this competition.  

      • I really like elise and jessica,in some ways I like hollie too. but I think it is not fair to compare jessica and hollie’s artistry to elise. Her maturity comes with her age, the other two are still very young and showing maturity past their age. Imagine if elise is still in her teen years, maybe her performance would not be that great. but dont get me wrong i really like elise and i hope she and jessica will be the last two standing. that would be a very interesting finale, two very different artist.

      • I like Elise’s voice but she seems to struggle to find her style.  Her performances always seem like she had to struggle to get the end result.  The others make performances seem easy, I don’t get that feeling from Elise.  Elise even questioned the judges, “How do I do that?”  If she doesn’t know how to put the oomph into her songs in the 1.5 minutes she’s got, then she’s not going to make it to the end.  The others are finding a way to do it and she needs to too, unless it’s already too late.

    • She was RUDE???? And when would that have been?  I think she’s not as self-assured as people think. I believe she’s more shy than folks realize.  She does seem to put emotion into her songs but talks very quietly when speaking to Ryan or the judges.  I saw her fight emotion tonight when talking about her sick dog at home.  Anyone who is an animal lover will know that she is upset about her dog and the fact that she can’t be there for the dog right now.  Of course, if she gets eliminated Thursday, she could go home for a while to see how the dog is doing.

  27. i think jessica is too stupid at her song choices….
    after the ‘i will always love you’ week performance, i never jumping up and down again when i see her performance…
    it’s totally getting boring…
    seriously jessica?? fallin?? it’s that the only good song of this decade that you had in your head…
    i expected more than that cheesy performance from you,
    seriously american idol??? don’t you give anyone to direct her to be better in song choices..
    i tottaly give up on her, for her stupid song choices …now, i’m rooting for elise and colton for the winner, i give up on you jessica… i think you are still too young for something this big…
    sorry to say… goodbye jessica…

  28. I think no matter who goes home the viewers got it right.  A case could be made for any of em to be 1-7.   They were all pretty good IMO & trying to choose the difference is like splitting hairs.

    I enjoyed the devil out of both songs by Hollie, Phillip, Colton (despite what the judges said), Skylar, & Joshua.   I enjoyed Jessica & Elise’s first song & thought their second was also pretty good.  So no one did bad.   

    I’m not saying I’m right.  It’s really close to call.  I just hope that whoever goes home, while their fans can rightfully be disappointed, I hope that they don’t bash the other singers.  

    btw/ I now think this is the best season of American Idol.  It may not have the greatest Idols of all time, but 1-7 it’s the deepest.  This is now the 3rd week I’ve liked every performance.  This week, last week, and top nine week.  I also liked 10 of the 12 female performances in top 24 week.  So what seemed like a slow year awhile ago is picking up steam. 

    •  Very good post.  I like it.  Intelligent and unbiased.  We don’t see a lot of that in this forum.  Thanks.

      • This is for nero, as I can not find the Reply button for his post. I went over Danny’s post, and all he did was write that he enjoyed both of Hollie’s songs.  It’s a matter of personal preference, which you have no right to question.

        The rest of the post went on to say that everyone of the remaining 7 did good.  So how is that “all praise for Hollie”? 

  29. JESSICA SANCHEZ  HAS a NICE VOICE BUT SHE IS SO BORING. I FEEL LIKE I’M LISTENING TO A WOMAN IN HE 50’S IN SOME LAS VEGAS SMOKIE LOUNGE. SHE NEEDS TO SING SOME GOOD ROCK & ROLL SONGS AND PICK UP THE PACE ABOUT 10 NOTCHES.

    • you dont have to shout. what if i were to put it across to you like this “TYLER REEVES HAS PLACED HIS COMMENTS WHICH IS TOTALLY WRONG”. Come on, comparing her to a lounge singer. If you refuse to buy her CDs that’s yr choice. But millions of us cannot wait for her CD. So, pls do not overexaggerate

  30. Elise or Hollie will most likely be going home this week
    Colton and Phillip have never been in the bottom 3 and probably have the biggest fan base – the teenie-bopper girls, who do a lot of voting.
    I hope Joshua stays – he is consistently the best, week after week.

    • No, Hollie won’t go home this week. She performed amazingly today !!!!!!!!!!

  31. I think Jessica should go home next I’m sick of all her praise. She is unoriginal, boring, pitchy and has no emotion and a fabricated personality she makes me sick. Beyonce jr is what she is. I wish the save was never used on someone so undeserving. Actually I wish there wasn’t a save period. Josh may be boring but at least he brings emotion and soul and personality to his performances.

    • pitchy? Beyonce Jr.? and you’re sick? that makes sense. 
      Yes she will go home. And Josh will screech up to the finish line. 
      Our cat sings like him. It’s funny.  

      • just stop it all you jess haters. enough is enough. Yes, you give yr comments, but pls keep it civil. We get it. You guys hate Jessica. To each his own then but can we stop with those hurtful remarks? Just vote yr favourites but dont crush others. pls

      • Vy, all they said was that she seams to mimic certain singers. While she may be a good vocalist she has yet to stand out… The world doesn’t need another Whitney, Celine, or Beyonce… She needs to become someone who stands out.
        Before you start preaching about the hate directed at Jessica, how about Jessica fans stop calling Hollie a “diva B*tch”, Elise an “ugly witch”, and Skylar a “Fat A**”. 
        This is a singing competition, let’s criticize them on their voice and performance, not on their looks.

    • Excuse me. If Jessica is so lowsy then why is it when she sang Whitney Houston’s “I will always love you” the world stood still? Pls pls judge the vocals. If she is pitchy the rest are in big big trouble. She is the best vocalist by far. Did not she have so much emotion with Whitney’s song. You mean u wish her to cry?

      • “The world stood still?”  That is quite a bold and all-inclusive declaration.  I mean no disdain or disrespect in opining here because Jessica, undoubtedly, is a gifted vocalist who commands the attention of many; but to suggest that the entire world was riveted by her rendition of the song is simply unfounded.  I, for one, either switch channels or walk away when Jessica sings.

  32. JOSHUA KILLED IT..hands down. ITs not screechy its called singing. I have not heard such a GREAT, unique voice in a long time. He’s a superstar no matter what happens on idol. The judges can’t even sit down when he performs.

    •  The judges are showing extreme favoritism and are pushing for him to continue on, that is why they cannot sit down.  Most AI fans think of the judges as complete, bumbling idiots and pay little attention to their untimely standing ovations.  Joshua always sings a song like it is a choir song.

      • yes we r here to comment. but pls i mean to call them bumbling idiots. It’s a bit too far dont you think? everyone is entitlted to his or her opinion but let’s keep it in coridal manner. And, as for joshua, he is a great singer. Why did anyone not say that of Reuben Studdard. To me , Joshua is a 2nd Reuben

  33. For me

    The Top 3: Colton, Hollie, Jessica
    Middle: Philip
    The Bottom 3: Elise, Joshua, Skylar

    Then Elise will be booted for she has the weakest fan base.
    But I hope the screamer disappears.

  34. Well I just voted for 2 hours straight for Skylar! Hope she is safe; I know she deserves to make it to the finals!

  35. Just turned on American idol! Whoaaaaa!!! Who is this Jessica Sanchez??? She’s got my VOTE!!! For real! She’s unbelievable!!! – Jesse McCartney

  36. please do vote for elise! she doesnt deserve to leave!!!!!! she was the best for me tonight… :|:((( pls vote vote vote!!!!

    • I am a big Elise fan but she made a fatal flaw tonight by arguing with JLO about her critic.  Had she not done that she would have pulled the sympathy vote that Hollie received last week after being bashed by the judges.  I think she is going home. 

      • She wasn’t arguing with Jlo, JLO is a poor excuse for a judge,she needs to get over herself. She needs to stop telling people to vote for her favorites. Elsie is amazing but gets very little respect from judges,the best thing that could happen to Idol is to get new judges

  37. Jessica Sanchez better sing. Jeeeeeez. That first run was nuts.#futurepopmegastar – Adam Lambert

  38. OK this what I think:
    100 precent safe: 
    Jessica (her fans will freak out from last week and vote like crazy) and Phillip (America LOVES him-by America I mean teenage girls)

    most likely safe:
    Skylar (last week was a tought one to be safe on and she was…also she is a country singer so..well you know…)
    Joshua (just the same reason as Jess-his fans will not fall a sleep!)

    so after saying that…the bottom 3 probably will be:
    Hollie (other contestant are just better then she is…)
    Elise (even last week with a great performance she wasnt safe…)
    Colton (I think it will be either him or Joshua)

    if it’s 2 going home it’s easy: NOT Colton therefor Elise and Hollie
    if it’s 1 I think probably Elise.

    • Do you really think America will send home someone who made Adel proud will be sent home! Get a life.

      • Apparently, she appeals to Adam Lambert, Jesse McCartney, Jennifer Holliday, among others. Would you say they understand what singing is about? 

  39. 1st Round:
    Hollie – (A-)
    Colton – (A-)
    Elise – (B)
    Phillip – (A+)
    Jessica – (A-)
    Skylar – (B+)
    Joshua – (B)

    2nd Round:
    Hollie – (B-)
    Colton – (B)
    Elise – (B-)
    Philip -( A)
    Jessica – (A)
    Skylar – (B)
    Joshua – (B-)

    Bottom 3: Hollie, Elise, Skylar/Joshua
    Going Home: Hollie/Elise

    LOL

    • How do you put Hollie in the bottom three….by your own ratings, only Elsie, Skylar & Joshua should be there….did you throw Hollie in to hopefully get rid of the competition. It won’t work!

  40. Branden, your ratings are turning into a joke, plain and simple. Elise was terrible, she screeched more than anybody tonight. She absolutely butchered my favorite song of all time, ‘let’s get it on’. Phillip was stale and boring as usual, Colton doesn’t know who he wants to be as an artist, Skylar did the mad country woman thing again tonight, jessica’s 2nd song was screechy and yellish.

    Hollie did good and Joshua NAILED both songs, AGAIN. I posted that no matter what Josh did he wouldn’t get the credit, and you just proved my point!!!! He was far and away the best toni
    ght, with Hollie right behind him.

    Most people on this site will not give Josh the credit and praise he deserves cause he represents a different style and genre than the pop and country most people here listen to, and it’s a shame people can’t expand their musical appreciation to include an ultra talented gospel based, black singer!
    And I’m white so don’t give me the black person pulling the ‘race card’ CRAP!

    • I understand what you are saying and I get your frustration but here’s my problem with Joshua.  I get he’s a gospel singer- God bless him for it- he’s a good one at that.  BUT ALL Gospel singers gotta prove they can bring the church down with an uptempo number or two.  I’m not asking him to sing Party Rock Anthem or something- but couldn’t he have done Try a Little Tenderness or Lean On Me or heck even People Get Ready? What about Forget You, I Smile, or maybe Rumor Has It?  They fit his style well.  All he’s doing is ballads- the judges heap praise upon him and never ever point out his eternal balladry. He needs to speed things up- especially when they get to sing two songs a night.  I really think that’s part of why everyone is hating on Josh…

      • you’re right there’s no doubt that Joshua is a good singer but he’s always playing safe and he keeps on singing ballads which is sometimes boring and his shouting ugh can he sing a song without shouting too much and if Joshua wants to win he needs to take risk and i like Joshua but i’m a Jessica fan because i think Jessica is the only one in the competition who knows h0w to take risk even if it’ll put her in danger

    • Ummm, no, Joshua has a tremendous voice but he doesn’t understand how to bring a song to a boil.  He just hits boiling.  I don’t want him to be voted off but the over-the-top praise (no pun intended) tonight was irritating.

  41. Elise will be going home, mark my words. She was Horibble tonight. She screeched and yelled more than anyone tonight. Bye bye Elise

  42. I would say throw Randy under the bus and let Jessica go. That was the people’s choice last week. Let’s stick to it. 

  43. Trying to be Honest. I will rank the top 7 base on their PERFORMANCES LAST NIGHT! R+This is my own preference so respect eheheeheh
    1. Hollie deserved to be the #1 I am not a fan of her but she really did a good job last night. I hope that it was enough for her to be save.
    2. Skylar did good too.
    3. Joshua is still on he run not as good as Skylar though it was promising.
    4. Colton just placed another taste of his performance which makes him exciting and grab more fans.
    5. Jessica did a really nice job but others was just better last night.
    6. Philips is becoming predictable and boring and last night was not enough to put him in the top spot.
    7. Lastly Elise would be on the bottom. I am a fan of Elise but I was really diappointed of her performances last night. Theres is soemthing lacking and I am wondering what it is.

    100% safe:
    Colton
    Probably safe:
    Jesica and Skylar

    In Danger:
    Hollie Elise Joshua and Philips

    Bottom and might be eliminated :
    Elise

    Dark horse:
    Philips might be eliminated tonight lol…
    thinking about the possibilities but he is good he just needs to put something better from his sleeves

    • Most of what you said sounded level header, and non bias…..but how do you rate Hollie as deserving to be #1 but place her in danger. That statement just devaluated everything you said.

      •  They can be the best performer and still not get the votes. And by the way, it’s devalued, not devaluated – no such word.

      • Easy: Joel thinks she did very well but won’t necessarily get enough votes to stay out of trouble.

    • Whoever the producers feel is marketable will stay.  If they aren’t enamored of a couple of the singers, they will let them go if the viewers don’t vote highly enough for them.  The producers don’t want any more black eyes like Taylor Hicks. 

  44. Yo! (sorry)  Jessica fans, if she is in the bottom 3 again tomorrow, it’s because between 10:15 and 11 central, her line was NOT that busy…. I was on the phone for the solid 2 hours voting for her, and it got less and less busy.  I hope I’m wrong.  She still needs to get into her performances more! I’ve watched things she’s done on you Tube, and many are way more animated than she was tonight.  I’m a horn player and was really glad that she had the horns behind her in the 2nd song, and she did get more into it.  She always sings beautifully,  she just has to push her self on stage presence!!  Hoping for the best!!!!

  45. we have different opinions and let’s respect the point of view of each other. I love all of the AI contestants but i think that the AUDIENCE as a HUGE contribution for them. 

  46. I feel asleep through Jessicas last peformance witch was saddning cause I ended up missing Skylars last peformance and woke up in time to see Joshuas last peformance I will just have to youtube it but OMG I am sooooo excited to see LMFAO peform tommorow they are amazing live I went and saw them live in feb when they came to Calgary even though it was just RedFoo peforming that night witch Brandon or Matt do you know if SkyBlue will be peforming tommorow night with RedFoo

  47. Jessica’s performance of Try a Little Tenderness was one of the absolute worse I’ve ever heard.  She has no idea what the heart and soul of a song is about and that was the best example. 

    I love Philip but he’s getting boring to me now.  Elise over-sang her second song but even at that, the woman has an amazing voice.  I fear she’s on her way out which is a shame because she’s the most unique talent on the entire show.

    • absolute worse you’ve ever heard? i know you have the right to say what’s on your mind but please your comment is really irritating

      • Only one question regarding Elise or the other 6: is the performing talent something that will enhance the AI image and bring in money?  Sorry, folks, but that’s all that matters to the producers.

    • clean your ears @c9776b47a8dc8ce7cc2900bf317190aa:disqus !!!!  the worst you’ve ever heard???? are you kidding me???? maybe you’re tone deaf!!!

      • Lightness is right.  Try a Little Tenderness is a sincere, intense brooding song and she turned it into a second Turn the Beat Around.  It’s a soul song, not Miami Sound Machine.  She has zero understanding of emotion or nuance in music.

    • Best I have heard regarding any Adele song on all singing competitions, shes was amazing.  Big voice for such a little girl.  And she is certainly much easier to look at than Jessica, or Elise for that matter.

      P2 is so boring, he reminds me of Taylor Hicks with his quirky mannorisms.  He sounds the same every week.   He seems like a super nice guy but soooooooooooooo boring.

  48. Holly sang her heart out tonight. She was wonderful. Randy is not a very smart judge. Why does he keep putting down Holly? I have yet to see a standing ovation for Holly, by the judges. I have seen Jessica get standing ovations, even when she doesn’t do her best. The judges have their pets and Jessica is one of them. Holly doesn’t deserve to go home tomorrow.  I hope everyone voted tonight for the best voice and not for a pretty face or cute guy! Good luck to all. May the best stay in the competition.

    • jessica is a pet? you’re so mean and it’s not jessica’s fault if the judges saved her and haters like you should not post on this site anymore if you have nothing good to say and if you like hollie then vote for her and please stop hating jessica because she’s not doing anything on you be fair ok

  49. I love Jessica Sanchez’ performances. She performed very well. I like Phillip and Hollie too this week.

    No wonder Hollywood Celebrities are praising her too!

    Jesse McCartney and Adam Lambert just tweeted.

    • yeah i read it too and i’m reading some good reviews on the performance of jessica and all of them agreed that Jessica nailed every song

  50. My usual favorite up tell now has been Elise. But, I am the not the sort of guy who blindly votes for one performer EVERY week. I vote on how each performer sang on that given week. Strange concept for some, I understand. With that in mind, I think Elise will be leaving us this week. And deservedly so. Anyhow, here is my performance evaluation for the night (in sequential order).

    Holly – For the first time in a LONG TIME, Holly impressed me tonight. The first (now) song was the best I ever heard from her. I give that song an A-. Her second (then) song bored me a bit at first. But, that extended not at the end was fantastic. I give that song a B-.

    Colton- I should have loved his first performance, as I am a long time Rock and Roller. The judges loved it, I did not. I give his first song a generous C. His second song he changed the arrangement a LOT. And at first, I hated it. But, it started to grow on me a bit toward the end. I give his second song a B.

    Elise- Elise has ALWAYS had a way of touching my soul and making me feel a emotional connection with a song. She needed a breakout performance tonight and she did not come close. Her first song was good, but not great. For that I will give her a B. Her second song was average, at best. I will give her a generous C on that.

    Phillip- Is a good performer. But, he does tend to sound a lot alike in most of his performances. And shock of the night tonight, he actually performed without his guitar. And he did it well. I will give a B+ on both performances tonight.

    Jessica- I have always said that Jessica has a great voice, but she lacks as a performer. I never feel a connection with her performance. Well, that has changed. Tonight, I am wondering if she took some sort of passion pill. As she rocked tonight. She out emoted Elise, by a mile. I give her a A on her first song and a A+ on her second song. The best score I have ever given Jessica.

    Skylar- In the past, Skylar has not been that consistently good for me. That changed tonight. I am starting to see her as a dark horse contender. I do not think see will win. As she is not as good as Jessica. And she has no chance on getting votes from the pre-teenies. But, country voters have some strong numbers. Skylar was borderline B+/A- for me on both songs.

    Joshua- Joshua has a great voice. Only a fool would say he dos not. In the past, I always had a problem connecting with his over the top church choir sort of performance. But, on the first song he pulled back enough for me to feel a connection with the emotion of the song. Something he bas not done in the past I give him a A on the first song and a B+ on the second.

    My top 3 this week is:
    1- Jessica
    2- Joshua
    3- Holly/Phillip (tie)

    My bottom 3 is:
    1- Elise. Sorry Elise, you were the worst perfumer tonight. But, you still entertained me a lot this season. I will miss you.
    2- Colton – I am not a fan of Colton. Yet, I suspect he will make it to the finale … and win. Due to the pre-teenier voters.
    3- Sorry, there is no one else that I can say belongs here in the bottom 3. With the exception of these two, they all did very well.

     

  51. This is American idol! I love all these kids, but Come on, who is most likely to sell more records and actually be more popular (idol) than Kelly clarkson and Carrie underwood combined? BB Chez!

    We have heard a lot of songs from her in the past couple of months . I think america is taking her GOD given talent for granted. Seriously when have you heard a 16 y/o sing with that much Soul and grit.

    Just an opinion from a longtime idol fan.

    • She needs a lot more self-confidence than she has now.  Both Kelly and Carrie were already more secure in who they were. Now, age may have something to do with that. If so, then perhaps the show should go back to having the youngest age eligible at tryout time be 16, not 15.

  52. Tonight was awesome, but I couldn’t help feeling that different song choices could have made it even better. 

    Last week the theme was 2010 – 2012. This week, I was really hoping to hear something interesting from this millennium before 2010. Instead we had a run of Alicia Keys and Lady Gaga and Adele. Sure, these are all great singers, and we do want to hear songs we know so we can judge the quality of the performance, but come on, idols, coaches! Let’s shake it up a little; dig a little deeper into the charts. I’ve been Adele’ed and Gaga’ed to death enough times to extinguish all 9 of a cats’ lives, nevermind my own.

    I decided tonight I would like to hear Elise sing “What’s Going On,” by 4 Non Blondes.  All of a sudden I just could hear her singing it in my mind’s ear, lol. Maybe next week will be 90’s week.

    While I was almost wowed by Hollies’ singing, she still lacks something in my opinion. It doesn’t have to do with her voice. She  also deserves the spot of most improved in the clothing department over the last two weeks. Still, if she sticks around, she needs to find some personality. Maybe she’s just too innocent to have a lot of oomph as a performer. Please don’t get me wrong either. Hollie is good. I just think other contestants are better.

    I normally like Colton, and his first performance was entertaining, but the second was, well, bad. He didn’t sing terribly, I just didn’t care for what he did with the song.  I like that song, and it’s meant to be a party song. – If DeAndre was still around, it would have been a better song for him. – Colton is usually spot-on when he strips a song down, (especially his rendition of Piano Man, which I loved) but this time it struck a sour note for me. At the same time I do feel for him, because soul is quite a departure from his comfort zone.

    Elise. I just love her. She has so much personality, but unfortunately it’s being confused with attitude. I think she is a very emotional person, and when you are naturally intense, you have to find ways to keep it caged.  When you are a thinker, you have to find ways not to let it all show on your face. I felt so bad for her when I could see she was having trouble holding it in. She’s one of those people who has a floodgate and prefers not to let it open. I thought both her performances were great. I really enjoyed her version of “Let’s Get it On,”  even though taking on Marvin Gaye is a challenge at best. I was happy the judges took the time to give her some constructive advice, I just hope it helped her chances rather than hurting them.

    Phillip, I thought, was pretty good this time. I enjoyed him more than usual on both performances, and thought “The Midnight Hour” was one of his best.  I’m curious what kind of songs he might write, because I think he’s more of an artist than a straight up singer. His voice never really changes. I’m so glad Jimmy brought up the point last week that, to be fair, Phillip and Elise are character singers. Without their original songs, we are only seeing half of what they can do.

    Jessica is one of the best singers I’ve ever heard. She’s not my favourite in this competition, and she’s not the one I’d buy records from, but wow, can that girl belt it out. Blew me away on “Try a Little Tenderness.” It was nice to hear her growl a little and I suddenly got this very incongruous vision of her screaming to a heavy metal song. I don’t know what the heck happened last week, but I’m glad to have gotten the chance to hear her again. I thought she looked great, too, both the outfits and her hair.

    Every time Skylar gets on stage I have to smile. She fills the stage, takes over it and makes it her own. While I’m not the biggest fan of country music, I must admit I’d almost convert just to hear her sing and see her perform. In the end, I think what’s more important than being the best singer is that you bring something unique to the table, and Skylar does just that. She is unforgettable, and I hope people take that into consideration.

    Joshua’s voice is always tip-top. Love the way he sings, how he seems go get carried away with himself. There is nothing quite like watching him roll the notes around and the body language he uses. Once again, he is a character, and if the whole world had just a bit of his energy, I just know that wonderful things would happen. 

    Well, I think last week showed us anything can happen with the votes. Should be interesting. 

  53. This season is such a very competitive batch of finalists. This could be anybody’s game.
    Every finalist has his/her own style, personality and genre. But I hope, America will vote for someone who really needs to be the REAL IDOL!. Not just the singer who has the VOICE or someone who has the EX-FACTOR.

    For me, s/he should be someone who is capable of making AMERICA happy and proud once s/he wins the title. PEACE!

  54. I think  most of them deserve to win at this point. Unfortunately the show is manipulated. Sure Hollie and Elise didn’t deserve to go home. Skylar is boring (trying to be Miranda Lambert – who is gorgeous and very talented). Fans will have to choose Colton or Phillip, because two of them it’s not fair in the top 5 ( a girl deserves to win this year). So I would like Elise, Hollie, Jessica and Phillip in the top 4, because they’re the most talented and carismact singers. Miss Deandre and Hee Jun so much. 🙁

    • Look at the bright side. You will see Deandre & Heejun when the Tour kicks off

  55. I think Elise and Joshua could be the next 2 eliminations – in any order – but after that, I’m stumped.  Holly sang flat for 2 notes in her first song; the second song was fine.

    •  She was not flat and that is my opinion …She sounded excellent one of her best performances…

  56. I don’t think there’re anybody at this competition really better than Hollie. She’s been underestimated, that’s all. It’s so sad. She has a lovely voice and she’s trying so hard. She deserves much more!

    • everybody’s trying so hard and giving all their best to win the competition so don’t say that it’s just hollie ok be fair to the other idols

      • Ok, I agree there’re all good and giving their best. But judges underesmate only her. This is not fair. 

    • Judges will continue to underestimate her among the rest if she does not level up to everyone. Sad, but true.  In their positions now, everyone is just great and if you dont level to the others amount of improvement, regardless of how much you exert effort, you will get cut. They all good, which means a tighter competition. 

  57. My top 4 favorites after tonights performances are..
    Hollie A+
    SkylerA+
    ColtonA+
    EliseA+

  58. I agree Jess should be safe this week but I think this week will come down to fan base…I think Hollie did enough to impress her fan base…will Skylor continue to hold the fort in the southern fan base, dont know but if I were a betting man, I would be she slipped some this week and enters the bottom 3…Elise has the talent but does she have the fan base? I put her in the bottom 3…Joshua should not be in bottom three on talent but will be on fan base…that said, you have 4 girls dividing the womens votes, so one of them most likely to go home…Elise is my prediction

  59. my bottom 3 

    Colton Dixon
    Joshua Ledet
    Skylar Laine
     
    HOPEFULLY Skylar goes! She was horrible tonight andd she sounds like a chipmunk!

  60. It’s all about song choice, they are all great singers this year, but my opinion is Jessica sang not as well as the others – not that she will go home

  61. I hope Branden is right, your 100% safe is my top 2… so i hope PP and Jessica is safe on way to the finals… have high hopes for the 2….

  62. Hollie should go, whenever she sings it seems like shes making her voice sound big which doesnt work out and it comes out like shes eatin her words. It makes me laugh big time that she’s not even in the bottom last week. Better for the show to keep Elise for few weeks than her. 

  63. come on america!! follow your “HAERT” dont just hear and see from Judges side….are you sure Hollie is the Worst ?!!!??

  64. last week is Steven and this week is Randy…so are they trying to team up send hollie home and let all the hollie fanbase vote for jessica ?!….nice try…..shame to see such unfair judges….

  65. They indicated one goes hm but will change back to 2 if Jessica is safe.
    You are spot on regarding Hollie AAA+ C+ She does not have bad or off pitch tone issues at all.  She has wrong song choice issues… stage issues are getting far better.
    Your scores are kind but way over the top on Colton c- b- i.e based on last few weeks. Jessica D+ c- she had pitch issues and slight lost it scream issues and Els not good C D- Josh c + c+ A for heart. PP A A Skyler I just cannot relate or score but she is good but loud.

  66. Once, again, the judges are telling us who to vote for. They are supposed to be impartial judges, not the enforcers. Don’t they realize that when they say, “Don’t let this person go home,” they are challenging us to vote the way they say. Sorry. I don’t like that tactic. As soon as they do that, they have lost my votes for that contestant. And a double SO for Joshua–come on!  They must think he is in danger of going home this week, and they can’t rush up on the stage and save him. If other viewers think the way I do about the judges’ actions, Joshua may be in danger of going home. Also, Elise should get a special award for dramatics on her not feeling good and sick pet comments. I sympathize with anyone having health issues, but somehow it came across as “playing the sympathy card.”

    • Judges and Ryan, say the most inappropriate comments, like when Ryan was talking to Joshua after his song. Joshua just looked at him like “You ass”

  67. IS COLTON AND JOSHUA ALREADY ELIMINATED.. SAW IT IN WIKIPEDIA AWHILE AGO, BUT THEY ALREADY ERASED IT..

  68. I used to root for Hollie, until she possibly did drugs and stopped being great. And also kept on thinking while she performs, i think i can hear her insecure thoughts as she sings. Sorry.

  69. Hollie-
    Now – As I listened to her sing I thought of tomorrow’s results show. Will Adele have a message for Hollie telling her that was the best performance of that song ever sung by anyone? It was perfect! I think Randy was reading his notes for the wrong song. Lol He (Randy) sure does talk a bit (too) much here lately. A+
    Then – It was just ok for me. I thought her runs were pitchy. The ending was good. (Maybe it was MY notes Randy was reading. Lol) C

    Colton
    Now – The song choice surprised me. I didn’t think this performance matched HIS personality. (Does that make sense?) B
    Then – I prefer him at the piano but not this performance. Just ok C

    Elise
    Now – She’s got IT, but what she must not have is as big a fan base as the other contestants. I loved performance, dress, wind blowing, smile, emotion…….A+
    Then – Another great performance! I liked the jazziness, raspy tone, low run at the end…..WHAT-EV-ER, judges! (Sometimes I wonder!) A+

    Phillip
    Now – He is a true artist! And because of that, you’ll probably never hear me say anything other than GOOD about him. I have never heard that song and I liked it. Why? Because Phillip Philips did his thing! HIS thing…..which some say isn’t enough.Well I give him an A++
    Then – OMG! Look at here…..no guitar, danced a little (call it what you want) – awesome! So….remaining true to himself, we got a little more from Phillip. I can’t wait to buy his music. A+

    Jessica
    Now – It was alright. I thought some of her runs were off, and did I hear grunts? Unlike the judges, I did not think this was one of her best performances. C+
    Then – I liked the first song a little better. This song was a bit too much…and was this the week to screech and grunt? Avoiding to J Lo she was showing America she is frustrated! If you ask me, I’d say they praised her because they surely couldn’t say she was bad after saving her…know what I mean? C-

    Skylar
    Now – Whoa….. that was an awesome country version. I wasn’t aware there was one. Perfect song choice. It was another fun, energetic, confident performance by
    our (only) country contestant…right? I think that will help her. A+
    Then – I loved the arrangement! Again, she did her thing, thang, twang and is so comfortable on that stage! A+

    Joshua (LOUISIANA!!!)
    Now – You know, he keeps reminding us he is a Fantasia fan. Thank God he doesn’t scream as much as she does. I Believe is a beautiful song. It was a soft, slow beginning then he belted it! A+
    Then – Another slow beginning leading to his climb of big notes and great ending! A+

    Results are just about unpredictable!!!!

    Most likely safe – Phillip & Skylar

    Possibly safe – Joshua, Elise

    Bottom – Colton, Hollie, Jessica

    Although I’d like for Jessica to go first of the remaining, I think her fans are going to vote like crazy after her having to be saved last week. Hole must have huge fan base (they do say everything is bigger in Texas). So, it might be another shocker this week……Colton.

  70. No not Hollie. she has a huge fanbase even though she escaped being booted before… I think she will stay and someone will suffer and get the boot… elise?!

  71. i totally disagree with the judges comment about colton dixon september performance. I hope the judges watch it on television. A+ FOR COLTON..

  72. I love to hear Jessica sing. And I hear that people are not wanting to vote for her because she is so young and will have another chance. Or will already be signed by a record producer. And because she gets such high prices from the Judges. Wrong reasons not to vote for her. I think she has amazing talent. And has been pretty consistent from the beginning. I would love to see Idol go to Judges vote only 10.
    My biggest problem with Idol is Randy. Heads to go. He is so repetitive. Every sentence starts with “yo” and he call the ladies “dudes.” Nothing has changed with him since this show started. Seriously ready for himto move on.

  73. Like your opinion,

     ”
    Now it’s time for me to make my weekly predictions. I was way off last week whenproducers staged Jessica’s elimination Jessica got the least amount of votes, so let’s see if I can redeem myself. And as always, please understand that these are predictions. They are not what I think should happen. So if someone above got an A and I predict they’re in the bottom, it’s only because I think that’s how America’s votes MIGHT play out. So don’t call me stupid and go check yourself.”

  74. YEAH! T’was real. Saw it too. after I tweeted that on @americanidol, wikipedia changed it back.

  75. YEAH! T’was real! Saw it too on wikipedia. After i tweeted it on @AmericanIdol, wiki changed it back.

  76. safe: Colton, Jessica, Philipp, Skylar
    bottom three: Joshua, Hollie and Elise

    ELISE and HOLLIE should go home…=(

  77. YEAH! T’was real! Saw it too on wikipedia. After i tweeted it on @AmericanIdol, wiki changed it back.

  78. Hollie is the weakest link. Regardless of her performance, the judges, the fan base. Her voice is nowhere near the others. She can belt a song, but she can’t make it her own. Not with the range she has. Big ballad voices there are Joshua, Jessica and Hollie which is in all the same category. Now ranking them on how they master their voice, Joshua and Jessica, I’ve heard them play with their voice, making it sound more their own at the same time display the various ranges they can sing. Now Hollie, i think her idol journey ended after her performance of the power of love. She lacks skill with her big voice and that is what Josh and Jessica has. Hollie just belts big songs with no art or affection.  She keeps on thinking as she performs onstage and the audience can see that even the judges. I can hear her thoughts with her nervous eyes. God, its so awful yet true. Sorry, but attack me now rabid holliepops. 

    • I am not a Holliepop but I you are definitely wrong. She did good as always. I bet you are Randy hiding in a nickname JE.

      • Okay. But specifically, what am i wrong about and what performances did she sang good after the power of love? 

      • and! FYI, there are lots of people who agrees that Hollie isn’t as good as what you said she is “always” and Randy isnt the only one. Can you even say Hollie can sing what Joshua and Jessica sings? Coz i think not. She IS the weakest among their category, but we can all say we appreciate her effort to improve. 

      • Everyone has a time of “crisis”. So does Hollie. Maybe Honesty and What a feeling didn’t make an impression on everybody. But she’ve showed us her wonderful performance with Rolling in the deep. I love her voice and her song choice. Hollie is talented. I hope that she will be American idol this year

  79. I tried posting a link earlier for reference but it was subjected for approval. Anyway, I can see Hollie’s efforts and appreciate them only I must say that she lacks singing skills that the other Idol’s have. In singing there’s such a thing as hitting the notes but not quite. That’s what Hollie needs to work on. Her first note “we” was not perfect, some parts in the beginning and then towards the end she’s hitting the notes but not quite. She has learn how to support her voice with her diaphragm to hit the notes right exactly where they are.

  80. I don’t usually criticize Jessica but I’m starting to think she’s way too overrated. I mean yes she can sing, she has an incredibly powerful voice for such a little lady but I don’t see much difference between her and say, Melanie Amaro from X Factor. In terms of her version of “I Will Always Love You” it was good but I think Leona Lewis’ version was better and had more feeling. Technically she’s better than last season’s Pia Toscano but it’s still difficult to see what kind of record she’d be making. We already have Adele for the big voice singer type and Charice a little down the line. I’m just not sure if there’s a spot for Jessica in the long run. Not to mention she will be constantly compared with Hollie (and vice versa) for the rest of their career.

    • Huh? Jessica will be constantly compared with Hollie?  You did say that Jessica can sing and that she has an incredibly powerful voice right? So why will she be compared with Hollie?

      • Agreed, Hollie takes on Adel and nails it….let’s see Jessica singa song like that. 

      • well obviously Hollie has a powerful voice too. They are both are too similar and right now you just can’t tell which one’s going to end up better in a few years.

      • oh hi there @chaos86 and @JJ. im happy how you’re totally supportive of your Idol but i couldn’t agree Hollie has that same powerful voice as Jess (no offense) i’m speaking based from what i hear first and then second from what i see. your responses below show there’s no convincing you otherwise, so let me put it this way. some people have less than the ideal taste buds that no matter what food are served to them they wouldn’t be able to appreciate an excellent meal. is that their fault? no it’s not. how do you deal with them? you understand them and that is what i intend to do now.    

    •  I’m watching Idol Down Under right now. My opinion is that Hollie can
      sing and you can hear her words and she belts out a tune quite well. To
      me, Jessica just whines and wails and there’s no way you can hear what
      the words are, and she sings from the back of her throat. Maybe she
      needs to open her mouth and sing the words. I’m sure she’s a lovely girl. I’m not attacking her personally. It’s just that if I heard Hollie on the radio I’d listen to her, but Jess just sounds like every other current female popular artist that seems to, I don’t know, sound whiney. BTW, Josh doesn’t do much for me either – my opinion. Now Phillip – he has a real masculine singing voice.

      • My opinion is you just love the songs that Hollie sings and you’re not much of RnB and the Blues fan that’s why you can’t appreciate Jess and Josh. I’m sure Hollie’s a lovely girl too but if you’ll listen to her closely during Idol’s live performances, a lot of times she’s not hitting the notes quite right; of course this is corrected during studio recordings  and I suppose that’s what you hear over the radio. BTW I’m not a Hollie hater. I appreciate the girl’s every effort to win Idol but in my opinion she needs to hone her skills more and then we’ll see.

      •  Expert’s_advise : I think you have worked me out to a tee. Thank you for your kind, constructive response, without any negative or belittling comments. Take note AI followers as this is the respectful way to respond to those  that you don’t agree with.

    • The thing about Jessica is she’s already a brilliant singer at 16. Imagine the potential. I’m thinking this is what the three judges find fascinating with Jessica. She got to where she is right now on her own steam.

      In the next few years she will definitely be getting exposure in the industry because of this American Idol thing. Talent feeds on experience, and she is going to be getting the best experience possible. 

      What will she be like in two years?

      • Pretty much the same in two years because if you don’t emotionally connect to the music or the audience, you can’t learn that.  

  81. I don’t understsand why some of you keep saying the judges are pulling for Jessica …isn’t it Joshua that they keep giving the standing ovation to?  Yes, they say she has the “pipes” and I don’t see how anyone can’t say that is true…her voiceis beautiful.  But every week they tell her she isn’t connecting with the audience…in other words…get ready because you aren’t liked so mucjh.  I don’t know what else the girl can do to make the audience like her.  She isn’t Sklyar…who is so spunky and fun to watch…but come on…pulling for her.  Then, it is the kiss of death.  I don’t see it.

    • You’re right about Joshua and the judges, I don’t get it, he sucks. Jess is boring is what the problem is…she just doesn’t connect, they are right, she would be a great concert diva singer.

      •  dont say she doesn’t connect, you are just disconnected to a person if you don’t like them either not interested!

    • Judges have already proclaimed Jessica the winned, they are pulling Joshua as second best, then Skylar as third.  Every week it the same thing, no mater how good a song choice was or how good it was sang.  We need to vote the Judges off for a fair competition.

  82. Dial Idol rankings Joshua, Jessica, Phillip are safe (Green)

    (Yellow) in order: Hollie, Elise, Skylar, Colton (lowest). I don’t know if this will happen tomorrow but I think Elise will be going home… 

  83. Listeners  innocent in music are  known to be teennie boppers, they are voters after for good & cute only,but they can make you win even with your poor quality voice at all.After this AI11 you’re nothing anymore you’ll be isolated with fanbase only,how can you sell your music globaly if you are not qualified for the crown.

    • Learn proper English. Let me guess, you think Jess is the only qualified? It’s  about votes and commercial appeal. Ask the Bieber, teenies buy music and can put you on the top. Get over you sour grapes attitude.

  84. What’s with all the Hollie bashing?  To take on a current Grammy winning singer
    and nail the song, in both style and vocals, should be applauded by all.  Anybody who cannot recognize her achievements
    and talent clearly is just afraid of the competition.

    •  Excuse me, she didn’t own the song. Too karaoke, not far from the original version so, what’s the amazing part of it? Great vocals but lacking in style. THAT”S THE NAKED TRUTH!!!!

      • Melbourne, you are the prime example of a basher.  A lot of words without substance or
        truth.  Get a life.

  85. may be Joshua will be out and may be Jessica girl – she is good and since it begun – not for me, can’t enjoy her singing at all – or may be Hollie, I pity this girl, really – she is not bad, but to my ears – not my cup of tea, I like Elise’s voice for what is worth.  That is for me – whatever people say or write about Phillip – I still love his style and voice. I have enough of Joshua shouting while singing, yeah! be angry with me, but really guys – he is shouting

  86. and I have enough of the judges too, for the sake of entertainment let it be the last year for the 3 jokers – sickening

  87. I’m surprised you forgot to mention that Elise got SHOVED under the bus tonight by JLo and company.  I mean, how blatent do you want it to be folks?  She did the same to Haley last year, so no suprise.  And she’s got a bad crush on Mantasia…er, Joshua….that’s very obvious as well.  Makes me wish the producers would just stop letting the people vote and make their own decisions.

  88. The only reason that people don’t like JSan is because of her fans. Yeah, she almost get voted off. So? It’s not that much of a shocker. It’s been 6 days since it happened, so quit fussing over it.

  89. As usual  Branden you are spot on, the judges always have to bring Elsie down no matter how well she does. Don’t understand what is wrong with American idol fans,this girl can sing. They want her to show more emotion,she wants to win on her talent, not for crying on stag. We all know  who will win. The judges golden child that can do no wrong. How about that staged bull of Jessica lying on couch dapping at her eyes !   

    • Elise is different. I loved her rendition of Whole Lotta Love. Perfect performance – in my opinion – and a hard act to top.

      • Elise’s version of “whole lotta Love” was great. and she was even better last week with “You and I”. This week, she somehow slide to the worst perfomace of the night for me. And no one is more unhappy about that, than me. I I have been a fan of hers for a long time. I would love to see Colton leave tonight. But, I know that will not happen until parents with pre-teens lock up their phone on Wednesday nights.  And Elise’s  fellow basement dweller Hollie, had a incredible night last night. So, I see Elise, deservedly going home tonight, based on last night’s performance.

    •  Agree, I’ve voted for Elise from the beginning, I don’t understand why she doesn’t have a fan base, she’s a breath of fresh air and never boring like the diva’s Hol & Jes.

  90. Haha, this site is my favorite and I love reading all your comments.
    Agree Jessica is over-singing and that’s becoming boring, but she’s still the best vocalist.
    I’m getting bored with Joshua’s over-singing too.
    Hollie is good and I agree with you about Randy’s beat-up on her, not fair, altho occasionally she is pitchy (I do agree with that).
    Colton has grown on me – I wasn’t a fan, but when he performed the first duet with Skylar I was sold – so sincere and genuine and passionate, loved it.
    My pick for the final 3 would be Jessica, Colton and either Hollie or Phillip.  Time to go for Elise this week I think, she’s had some great moments, but not consistent.  Thanks for keeping this site going, it’s the highlight of my week :))  BJVEE

    •  If you agree Hollie is pitchy, you can’t complain about Randy, that’s what he says. I don’t think Hollie is all that pitchy.

  91. Well, Jessica may be the best performer but I find her studio recordings so irritating. I don’t know why. Elise and Hollie both are very good studio recorders.

    • Jessica is a terrible performer. She’s a good vocalist. She’s got no personality on stage.

  92. P2 is overrated. Never quite guessed how he keeps on singing the same songs every week yet he never had a seat on the bottom 3. Crazy. 

    • be careful about what you say about p2-people are gonna jump all over you!!  but you’re 100% right

    • just kind of wondering, how have any of the contestants “changed it up”?  i’m not an idol expert, but to me every single one of them sings something similar week after week.  seems like people complain about phillip because he isn’t singing ballads or whatever.  i’d like to see one of the other contestants pick up a guitar and sing a remixed acoustic version of an R&B song.  any takers?

    • He’s hot…he is not over-rated. They ALL stick to their genre. All artists do that. Well, except for Kid Rock..he’s all over the place. lol

  93.  This week Hollie and Phillip are the game changer. They were candidates for bottom 3 last week and now candidates for top 3. I don’t think either of them will be in bottom 3 tomorrow. Along with Jessica. She almost went home last week, so her fans will go crazy-voting this time.

    As for bottom 3:
    1. Elise
    She’s always in bottom 3 no matter how good she performs. If last week she had a spotlight with “You and I” song and still ended up in bottom 3, this week will no be surprise she’ll end up the same spot.
    2. Colton
    Never thought Colton would end up in bottom 3 before final 5 but his version of Gaga isn’t great and The Earth, wind and Fire song isn’t stand out enough. Kind of forgettable.
    3. That leaves Joshua and Skylar
    Probably Skylar because collectively Joshua has better performance and he was in bottom 3 last week so the fans, like Jessica’s case, will vote for him more.

    PS:
    Anyone else find it JLo’s dress is ugly as hell? It makes her boobies looks like a watermelon put in some kind of metal basket..

  94. People don’t see Elise’s artistry. If she, Jess, and Hollie are gone, this ain’t interesting anymore.

  95. I hope that Elise won’t go home tomorrow. She got an awesome performance. and I love Phillip!! haha. 

  96. my top from the best to good. all of them was good but it is matter of greatness:

    1. Philips
    2. Hollie
    3. Joshua
    4. Skylar
    5. Jessica
    6. Colton
    7. Elise

  97. This is what I previously posted when I thought 2 were going home:

    “My prediction is that Elise, Colton and Hollie will be in the bottom three and Elise and Hollie are going to go home tomorrow. Colton might “eke” (sp?) by based on the teeny bopper votes. I think Hollie was awesome tonight but I think she may not have the fan base. Elise was good “Now” but not so much “Then”. I know that a lot of folks may be predicting a Phillip/Jessica/Joshua top 3 but don’t rule Skylar out just yet. She just may be the dark horse. This is based upon how I think America will vote.”

    If it is only one then I agree that it just might be Hollie. Again based on how America will vote.

  98. guys did you noticed that people here and the judges
    are expecting a lot for a 16 & 18 years old girl (hollie,jessica)
    what we don’t realize is that they are just kids 
    how can you expect them to be so emotionally connected 
    to other people.

    • That’s why they should have raised the age limit instead of lowering it. It should be 18. When you take, normal childhood away, you get Michael Jackson bad side, so very wrong and it’s child exploitation in my book.

    • Jordin Sparks and Allison Iraheta were plenty mature.  They were 16 when they were on idol.

  99. Nobody else seems to notice this, but I don’t think Joshua has much of a fan base and therefor at risk to leave the most. When I voted, the votes that took the longest were Colton & Hollie, like forever, so I’m assuming it was vote swamping. Joshua, Elise, & Skylar were the fast. Phillip was faster, and Jess was extremely fast.

    • Really? I could barely get through to Phillip, and I tried til like 11:45. (Yes I’m a loser :)) I’m not sure if that really means anything though.

  100. I, too, prefer the NOW songs versus the SOUL songs. A+ to Hollie and Colton during round one. Love how Hollie sang it and loved the arrangement of Colton. Round two would go to Philip, Jessica, Skylar, and Joshua, but nothing spectacular. I seems like Skylar is on the rise while Jessica has peaked too soon early in the season. Hollie just might be understanding what the judges have been saying these past weeks. Good for her. Jessica might be safe, as you’ve said, due to the save carrying her perhaps for two more weeks. I do agree though, she has to start connecting more with the voters. Her vocal prowess, though laudable, seems to alienate some. I love her and she still remains in my top three but i think it will be an uphill climb for her. With the on-again-off-again Elise, it could be her turn to go. Final five might be two guys and three gals.

  101. Based on last nights performance, I very much agree with this bottom 3. But, I think Colton’s fan base of pre-teens and Bible Belt bitties is way too strong to allow him in the bottom three. And I suspect Skylar’s fan base is growning.  To the point were I see her as the dark horse who may work herself into the top 3. But sadly, I am almost certain it will be Elise going home tonight.

  102. Now:

    Hollie Cavangah, “Rolling in the Deep.” I agree Branden. Isn’t that surprising. Nothing wrong with this performance. Randy Jackson’s usefulness on this show has expired. Time to replace him IMO. She definitely earned an A+.

    Colton Dixon, “Bad Romance.” I fully expected to hate this performance and my expectations were met. He is getting back to some of the enunciation issues that I really don’t like. I know he just does that to try and hit a certain tone and pitch in his voice but a truly great singer can speak clearly and still hit the notes IMO. However, some people around here disagreed with me so I guess it could go either way. He earns a B from me.

    Elise Testone, “No One.” She did the best she could with this. It wasn’t my favorite performance of hers. The best part about the whole thing was the last note and that is because it was the last note. I never like the wind machines. I was kind of feeling it until the wind kicked in and that’s where she lost me. She earns a B from me.

    Phillip Phillips, “You Got It Bad.” This was definitely not the same old Phillip. There was actually melody in his voice. I heard a little vocal range in this and that is what I have been complaining about with him. The difficulty on this and his ability to flip it to his own style earns extra points from me. An absolute artisan performance. And the funny thing is he didn’t seem to be pushing as hard as he does when he is not singing with a whole lot of melody. He was in the groove of the song and just nailed it in my opinion. He earns an A+ for this performance.

    Jessica Sanchez, “Fallin.” I don’t know what it was about this performance but I was not impressed. Maybe it was the lack of creativity. It just seemed very safe to me. For such a simple song she actually fell flat on a few of the big notes and just wasn’t in the zone tonight. She earns a B- from me.

    Skylar Laine, “Born This Way.” I am listening to these a second time while I am writing just to see if it changes my mind. I will tell you exactly what blew this performance for me. When she sang the line “Cause He made you perfect babe”. It was just ugly is the only way I can describe it. Also a little too much growling in my opinion. There were good moments but still only good enough for a B in my opinion.

    Joshua Ledet, “I Believe.” This was an absolutely amazing vocal. It’s the only time I can say that the standing ovation was deserved this whole season. When Joshua sings a song in his sweet spot it is absolutely incredible. Leave out the screaming and screeching and he can totally make you believe (forgive the punn) every word he is singing. I still am always afraid he is going to burst into tears any second but that is a good thing I think. He earns an A+ from me.

    Then:

    Hollie, “Son of a Preacher Man.” I am in with Steven Tyler on this. If you don’t watch it totally works. It was a great vocal but she should have just let go and really rocked this and put on a show.  The vocal was flawless except for the one time she skipped and came in on the “man” part. I don’t think that was planned. I think she just had to take a breath there and slipped up a bit. For that and that only she earns a B from me.

    Colton, “September.” I don’t think he was as successful as Phillip in making this his own. It just seemed all over the place to me. The verses and the chorus just didn’t blend well and there were high notes that just seemed to come out of nowhere. I didn’t like this performance at all. He earns a C from me on this one. 

    Elise, “Let’s Get it On.” I was liking this at the start. Her tone and pitch were spot on. When she started the squealing and growling she lost me. It didn’t seem genuine and the last “Let’s get it on” or just the way she said “on” just didn’t do it for me. There were things throughout this performance that I didn’t like so I have to be honest and say she earns a C from me on this one. 

    Phillip, “In The Midnight Hour.” Now we are back to the same old Phillip. I had high hopes after his first performance and then he let me down. He should keep the guitar because he is awkward as hell with out it. And I disagree with Steven Tyler that is was beautifully awkward. It was actually painfully awkward in my opinion. This was another performance where he was pushing really hard and the results didn’t show it at all. It seems like when he pushes that hard he doesn’t really hit the notes. He just screams the same note louder or softer depending on how hard he strains. He earns a C from me for this performance. 

    Jessica, “Try a Little Tenderness.” This just didn’t work for me at all. Way over the top in a bad way. It seemed rushed and she seemed to pushing really hard to try and have a moment and it slipped away from her. What’s was with all the growling last night? I don’t get it. Instead of soul, I think evil spirits were emerging from all of them. She definitely earns a C from me on this performance.

    Skylar, “Heard it Through the Grape Vine.” More growling. Some of the phrasing and enunciation was just bad. Also too much screaming and not enough singing. I really didn’t like this at all and this is my girl. I would have to say maybe this is her worst performance of the season. She earns a C from me on this. Wow, look at all the C’s!

    Joshua, “A Change is Gonna Come.” I think he was going for an Adam Lambert moment in the opening of this. It didn’t quite get there for me. But for a couple of parts, like the beginning, the middle and the end…LOL I liked this. He can definitely sing but I would like for him just to sing a whole song in his “chest” voice without trying to have a “moment”. I think the whole performance would be his moment if he did that. He earns a B from me on this performance. 

    Based on performance it should be Elise, Jessica and Skylar in the bottom 3 tonight. Who knows how America is going to vote so I really can’t predict that. I just hope that Hollie doesn’t go home this week. I have a sneaky suspicion it’s going to be Elise.  

  103. i’m with you on most of your recap so i’ll go to my prediction right away.
    i dont know.. but i have a feeling that jessica will be in the bottom again (i could be wrong for sure).
    anyway for me bottom 3 are: elise, joshoua and jessica
    going home: elise 

  104. Hollie did a great job this week. It almost feels like this week was her redemption week from all those crap judges gave her. 

    I gotta say that I’m also impressed by Jessica’s performance especially her “then” song. It’s like listening to a completely new singer. But I’m afraid that it’s her time to go tonight.

    •  Hoping Jessica does  not go home.    We need young talents  on American Idol.  

  105. Branden, I think you were pretty spot on except…Phillip’s take on U got it bad was HOT. I think every female in the country was shedding clothes. Sorry..but it’s true. I also think you are right on Elise going home. It’s too bad, really…but they’re all so good at this point. Joshua could go also. Is it me, or did he look defeated and done?

  106. every reality TV shows has the so called “creative staff” they manipulate whatever there is to manipulate in order to make the show exciting..

  107. All of them are great and Awesome!!! They make viewers satisfied…..The result will be tomorrow whos gonna go home….

  108. After Jessica was almost going home last week. I feel she has lost her edge I don’t think she was bored.  I think the bottom 3 will be Joshau, Elise and Hollie. Hollie will be save I loved her first song ….Randy needs to shut up. I didn’t hear any pitchy places. JLo shook her head when he was saying this. I feel it will either Josh or Elise going home.

    • I have to agree. Jessica seems to have lost her confidence. I think that is another reason that Idol shouldn’t have lowered the age to 16.  If you can’t handle the criticism, you’re too young. 

  109. Joshua or Jessica could go home and that wont hurt my feelings a bit!!! Both are a bit cheesy and boring. Week after week they sound the same and show NO new energy on stage zzzzzzzz… Hollie did very well this week so she needs to stay…Elise is unique and deserves to be in! Colton and Phillip are both good. Skylar…well uhhh really doesnt matter! I dont really think she’ll win this season anyway. Just my opinion!

    • Are you listening or watching the show?   Joshua and Jessica do not sound the same every week.     It is Phillip Phillip who sounds the same every week and it is only last night that it was a little bit different. 

      •  Joshua has done something different only once for as far back as I can even remember.  Jessica goes back and forth between fast and slow songs, but they’re all essentially the same – One volume: LOUD.  They’re just as much the same  every week as everyone else.  

  110. As far as talent goes Jessica is unrivaled.  The fact that she is 16 is one of the reasons she doesn’t come across as well as some other contestants. She may not last in the competition, but she doesn’t need to worry, with her talent she will go a long way. If this was based on talent alone and everyone voted that way this competition would have been over before it started. Kudos to all the competition and may the best overall competitior win.

  111. I dont think that Joshua should get a standing ovation every time he performs! R U kidding me?  Hollie should have got one last night!

  112. Jessica is going to go home. She’s prepared anyway. Notice that she sang a new song for her “Save Song” unlike other contestants who got eliminated. 

    •  I think you are wrong her line was so busy last night that we cannot even get in.    She deserves to stay.  

  113. There was nothing pitchy about Hollie’s first performance!  Randy really has no idea what he was talking about.  In fact, Hollie’s first performance was definitely the best of the whole night!!  I really hope she is safe.

    Really??…Two standing ovations for Joshua??  His first song was alright, but I actually preferred Diana’s version from the finale.  I am such a huge fan of “A change is gonna come”, and Joshua did NOT do it justice.  He oversang the song, and although he has a great soul voice, he did not bring the honest emotion that Syesha brought to the song. 

    I loved Skylar’s first song, but the second song was just okay. 

    I really like Philip, but for some reason, I am really growing bored with him.

    I am also a huge Elise fan, and I really like both of the songs she did tonight.

    Colton, for me, was the worst of the night.  Now let me point out that I am not a huge Colton fan from the beginning, but I do give him props when he does a good job.  This week was not a good job on either song.  I’m sure he will not be going anywhere because of his huge backing of young girls.

    Now on to Jessica, who I’m sure is safe because of last week’s scare.  She sang both songs pretty well, but it was definitely not her best vocal.  My issue with her is she has a soul voice, but without the believable soul.  She is an amazing talent and will have an amazing career, but she just needs time; she will get better and more believable with age.

    My gut is telling me Hollie will at least be in the bottom 3, but I am praying she does not go home. 

  114. Based on Americas vote Elise is def in the bottom and most likely going home although I feel she is very underrated. I love her but I think she will go. Hollie did an amazing rendition of adele and Randy should shut up her voice was not at all pitchy and I’m not even a Hollie fan.  I hated Coltons Lady Gaga song bit loved his second song. I dont like colton as a rocker sorry lol. Philip is anoying and what was he thinking doing Usher lol? Phillip is only there thnx to the teeny boopers vote cause he cannot sing at all! Jessica did good it wasn’t her best but she is still the one to beat in my mind. Joshua is getting annoying and I cannot get pass his church gospel voice. To me he is a choir singer and nothing more lol. Not a country fan, not a Skylar fan enough said lol. I douby Hollie would be in the bottom she nailed it last night, I think she did enough to keep herself safe from elimination tonight. Unfortunately I think Elise is the one going home :(.

    • Stop. It is not teeny boppers voting for Phillip. Why do you people insist on saying that. The median age watcher for Idol is 48.  Every female in my office loves Phillip and we’re all in our 40s.

      • Yeah I definitely agree. I’m in my 20’s and I absolutely love Phil. So does my 30 year old husband and my 60 year old mother in law. Not sure why people say he gets the teeny bopper votes? I’d think Colton would more so than anyone.

      • my wife is mid 20’s and has a crush on phillip, mostly for his peronality, but also loves his music.  i’m in my late 20’s and love his music, but my wife accuses me of having a “man crush”.  either way, he’s the only one i could see myself buying a cd. 

    • Come on. I am pretty certain the ONLY one getting the pre-teen vote at this point is Colton. As he has the pretty boy look that pre-teen girls go gaga over. Phillip is just a average looking guy with a quiet personality. Hardy qualities a pre-teen girl find endearing. Older girls perhaps, but not the pre-teeners.

  115. I really try not to like Philip so much, but I’m finding it kind of impossible. I love his smooth style and raspy voice. I think of all the contestants he’s the only one who really knows what type of musician he is, which is why he is pretty consistent with his performances. I really can’t wait to buy his album. Aaaaaaannnnd pretty sure he turned some straight guys gay with that Usher song, quite sexy.
    Hollie’s performances were SO sick! I really hope she’s not in the bottom 3 tonight or goes home…I want to see more of her. I was really impressed with her Adele song, because as Brandon is always saying, covering Adele is usually a bad choice. But she nailed it.
    I didn’t enjoy Elise’s first song too much, but I loved the second one. She was totally sexy during that song…I felt a little flustered myself and I’m a lady! Hope she sticks around too, but I kinda doubt it.
    Those were my favorites of the night. I do fear the bottom 3 will be Elise, Hollie, Joshua/Colton with Elise or Hollie, most likely Elise, going home 🙁

  116. Why does everyone seem to think Hollie did a great job last night?  I agree she picked it up a bit but she needs to shout everything in order to sound good.   Her tone and phrasing is terrible when she’s not going for the big notes.  Jessica is a far superior singer and I think the judges are unfairly attacking how she doesn’t “connect” with the song and audience – she’s 16 people!  She has incredible potential…I actually think the only other contestant with singing career potential is Colton.  Everyone else bores me…Joshua and Phillip sound the same every week (although Josh’s duet with Jessica was awesome), and Elise lacks personality (she’s 28! Now she should be able to “connect” better!).  Skylar’s ok but too twangy (if that’s even a word).  I miss a judge like Simon telling the contestants how it really is, Jimmy just doesn’t cut it in that respect.

    • Okay..so Phillip sounds the same every week but Jessica doesn’t? Puh-lease. I would so buy Phillip’s CD in a heartbeat. She doesn’t connect because she’s not old enough. They shouldn’t have lowered the age.

    •  Jessica’s young age is no excuse for not being able to connect with an audience.  No excuse.  Did you never watch David Archuleta sing a few years back?  He was just as young, and he connected.  So did Lauren and Scotty last year.  Jessica sounds good to me some of the time, but she is lacking spark ALL the time, and most of the other contestants sing great and have that spark, so therefore I believe they are better.

    • Jessica has been receiving coaching since she was 11. She was on the first season of AGT at that age and also won a full scholarship training   at the Theater of Arts in Hollywood and is home schooled to allow her to focus on her singing career. 

      When she was 10, she sang “Respect” by Aretha Franklin song at the Apollo and received a SO and called back for an encore by Whoopi Goldberg. 

      When she was 12, she sang the National Anthem at a Chargers game and again the next year when she was 13. 

      She recorded a Rihanna song “Don’t Stop the Music” for iTunes, again when she was 13 and 6-months later recorded “I’d Rather Go Blind” for Spin Move Records.

      She was one of the singers on a 2010 “We Are the World 25 for Haiti when she was 14. 

      This young girl is no novice and has been groomed since a very early age to be a star. 

      From a personal perspective, she may have a well trained voice but her performances have gone into reverse and she is forcing it too much when she has no need to be pushing it so much.   

  117. Branden….I really look forward to your recap on Thursday mornings (since I’m on Pacific time).  I agree with most of the grades  except Colton D.  I did not like his first song at all.  People keep saying that Phillip sounds the same with every song and I totally disagree.  I thought the first song sounded completely different for Phillip and I liked his second song better because that is his sound and I really like it.

    Bottom 3 could be Elise (I think it might be her time), Joshua (who I just don’t enjoy his singing) and Skylar (if another country artist wins this I’m done)/ or Hollie (she will probably get the sympathy votes again and she deserves them).

    • I don’t think Skylar will be in the bottom 3. I think it will be Elise, Colton, and Joshua.

  118. Did Stephen really say to Philip “With you we never know what we’re going to get”? YOU GET THE SAME THING EVERY WEEK! It’s always good and it’s always the same.

  119. Colton Dixon fell short in the judges eyes and when we talked with him after the show, he didn’t understand what they weren’t hearing.
    “The judges were a little rough,” he said. “Honestly I don’t get it. I
    did the song the way I wanted to do it, I thought I did it well and
    that was that. I’m not the guy to really show off vocally. I’m the guy
    that changes up a song and makes it my own. So I’m a little confused,
    but I’ll take what they said and run with it, and if I’m still here next
    week, I’ll choose another song that’s a little more impressive
    vocally.”

    Colton was also irked by another of Jimmy Iovine’s comments about having a brick wall of female voters behind him. 

    “It’s always weird talking about voters and I hated when he compared
    Phillip and I, but I’m not trying to do anything any other contestant
    isn’t,” Colton told us. “I’m just being me onstage. Everyone gives me
    car about ‘the stare’ or look I give into the camera. I swear it’s not
    planned. I see a camera and I’m trying to find the lens and that’s
    all…intently trying to find the lens.”

    • Hey James. 

      Colton is a musician and I’m seeing that he has great talent in re-arranging a song to be Colton_esque. The Gaga song was exceptionally good.

      The way he arranged Gaga’s song and September was nothing short of brilliant ! But I have to say this … his vocal ability fell short of the demands of the arrangements. 

      Imagine Colton’s arrangements being sung by a more powerful singer. If you can do that then you might be able to understand what the judges meant by choosing the right song for him to sing. 

      What they are saying is that he’s got to choose songs that he can ‘slay’. In the case of September, the song slew him.

  120. I love you Elise….poor girl, JLO is a bully

    Elise explained the point she was trying to get across after the show. 
    “I don’t feel I was being rude,” she said. “I really want to be
    natural and speak the way I want to speak. I think what compelled me to
    do it was [Jennifer Lopez]
    said I wasn’t connecting and being emotional with my song and I didn’t
    want to just stand there and smile and not connect their conversation
    with me. I wanted to engage and I don’t discredit anything they said, I
    just felt I needed to explain that I am always approaching my song from
    an emotional standpoint. It’s hard to do that in a minute and a half and
    make it work.”

    It’s also hard dealing with much younger competition and more than rumored favoritism with the judges. 

    “I guess it always does hurt me a little bit when I feel like all
    these comments are going out to all the young contestants when I’m more
    deserving in a way because I have worked so hard and gone through so
    many things to get here, but at the same time I really respect and
    admire how well they are doing. So it’s a bitter sweet thing. I try not
    to dwell on it because there’s no point.”

    • AMEN.  ALL the judges are too harsh on Elise, but especially JLO.  Jimmy said he doesn’t understand why she doesn’t have a large fan base, and I do.  There are two reasons.  First is we live in the same city, and I NEVER hear anyone even mention her.  I have seen not one sign or anything like most contestants have back home.  The support of where a contestant comes from plays a large factor in how many votes contestants get, and she’s just not getting much from here.  The second reason is the judges.  They’re always too critical of her, and that definitely influences votes, or lack thereof.  I’m praying that Elise is safe tonight, she definitely deserves to be there.

      • Are you from NJ or Charleston. There are signs for her all over the Charleston area! Big fan base here, although we’re not a big market.

      • @Dhdavidson, I’m from charleston.  I don’t go toward Mt.P much, but I haven’t seen ANYTHING in my part of town.  SO glad to know there are actually supportive people here!  Made my day and I gladly stand corrected.

      • Have you ever watched Elise when she is criticized? She gets a mean, pouty look on her face. Compared to the others, she does not take any criticism well, and she can’t hide it. When she is praised, there is another “contestant” on stage. This “contestant” is all smiley and gracious. As a performer, she will have to learn to accept criticism, whether deserved or undeserved, because that’s part of the profession. And, the better a person is, the more criticism is involved.

      •  @1e6c7bd9b183cb588624b692358d5f8f:disqus , I watched her last night and she smiled and nodded her head just like everyone else does when they’re criticized.  So what if she spoke her mind?  Jlo was out of line, what she said to Elise was far too harsh and she had every right to say what she felt.  I’ve seen many other people do the exact same.  Anybody would be mad if they were getting wrongfully and unfairly criticized.  Never did I even ONCE see this pouty look you speak of.  She lets the judges speak, smiles,  and always says thank you.

      • Okay, maybe those “mean looks” are from looking into lights or the fact that she’s nearsighted, but I know what I saw and it wasn’t the first night I saw it. I don’t mind that she defends herself, but in the past it has not helped other contestants. This I say sincerely: I hope you are not disappointed tonight.

      •  I watch her like a hawk every time.  Never anything but a smile with a dissappointed gleam in her eye and I DO know what I see.

      • Elise is better off singing in a bar lounge, I mean American Idol???Elise??? Really??? She 
        always look  angry and pissed-off and she makes it sooooo obvious to everyone! 

    • I think JLo parroted on longer than Elise actually sang. She reminds me of Christina on The Voice who  loves to give long, “me, me, me” speeches when asked for her opinion.

      If JLo was a great singer, I might be more inclined to take her seriously but she is not a great singer.  

  121. I thought everyone did better with their first songs than their second ones. Hated Jessica’s “Tenderness”–the arrangement was too fast & overbearing. Didn’t like Hollie’s or Joshua’s either. I think Hollie or Elise is in real jeopardy tonight.

  122. Vote Fair Results
    First-most popular

    Jessica Sanchez

    Second-most popular

    Phillip Phillips

    Third-most popular

    Colton Dixon

    Fourth-most popular

    Skylar Laine

    Fifth-most popular

    Joshua Ledet

    Sixth-most popular

    Elise Testone

    Seventh-most popular

    Hollie Cavanagh 

  123. something interesting i haven’t heard anyone else mention… is it just me or is phillip the only one that even acknowledges the fact that there are other band members on stage supporting the performance?  for me it’s just another thing that adds to his personality, i like that he is humble and it’s cool to see him give thanks and tribute to everyone else who helped with the performance after it’s over.  those other band members and support singers probably rehearse and practice just as much, if not more, than the contestants do.

    • I have noticed that Phillip is more aware of the people around him. He probably has very little ego issues. Very likeable.

    • Skylar does the same and they were the only two who did it last night. Elise has done it in the past but last night we commented on how both Skylar and Phillip connected with their bands and played with them.

      • just goes to show who is actually having fun out there, you could see it on all the band members faces as soon as phillip was done playing that they all had a blast with that song last night. 

        i think it’s also indicative of what he’s said in the past that he doesn’t just want to be famous, he wants to make good music.  it’s not all about “me” with him. 

        i haven’t noticed skylar, i’ll have to keep my eyes on that next week. they do both seem very comfortable when playing and genuinely enjoying it when out there. 

  124. Here is my take on this weeks Top 7 in the order of performance, but first let me preface  that we can all agree to disagree, if ever. Here goes:

    Hollie – Now – She belted out Rolling on the Deep without her usual self-consciousness ; pitch spot on this time , liked that she’s loosening up , could see  she was enjoying herself; looking lovely:  A- for the transformation
                   Then – Son of Preacher Man – same style belting all the way and getting more confident; good vocals but I wish she would learn to pull back then could appreciate more when she gives her voice a go: B+

    Colton – Now – He surprised me indeed but in a Bad Romance kind of way;very tentative, even weak  unlike his past performances; the red pants and red bangs rock didn’t me …okaaay.. but am not tween anymore, LoL : B
                     Then –  Not a golden September , the soul went out in a monotone at the start; always loved  this song so I miss the original arrangement; will Colton the piano man please come back; so, so perf: B-

    Elise – Now –  she performed No One really well; she was  in her element and  smiled more, more intense, kind of liked her raspy voice, a bit screechy but  in the right places : A
                 Then –  she’s got it on, but am missing something…can’t  get a handle on it hope I get before she goes; B

    Phillip – Now – am getting a little tired of Phillip’s way of  singing; rowley-growly but oh, Jennifer seems to have Got It bad; will buy his CD but won’t play it in one go  might not be able to identify one song from another: B-
                   Then – he got flirty in the Midnight Hour! He was pumped in his 2nd song without the guitar ; am guessing (correctly) a lot of girls at home were swooning, love it this time; great romp..: A+

    Jessica – Now –  I thought my darling girl is Fallin’g   in my estimation because she is trying too hard to please (the judges?) but I loved it when she now was more into the emotion with the song more connection especially at the end… Almost perfect delivery  as per usual except she almost shouted her start:  A ,  for a great Alicia Keys cover.
                      Then – for me, a lot of the tenderness was lost… I thought she would give this old favorite   a mellower soulful rendition with her controlled vocal play; instead I got a dose of mixed almost screaming, but still she did not seem to evoke much feeling while I was watching her (over)sing the over rearranged  melody to be almost unrecognizable. B

    Skylar – Now – her countrified version of Born This way was so much fun to listen to coupled with energetic performance.  Often her twang turns me off but this time I didn’t notice it. Great job Skylar! A+.
                    Then – Heard it and was very good; liked her sexy look unlike her outfits before making her look like wearing uneven curtains…B++.

    Joshua – Now – I turned off the video and put the sound into my audio amp to better assess this Fantasia anthem in Joshua’s style, pleased that it came out very well, a bit of the scream but it is his. B+
                      Then – I loved it when he mellowed  A Change is Gonna Come for the fisrst few verses then gradually upped it. He sounded kind of angry? But angry good..A-
    At this point, all of them are deserving to be AI champs, although for this week, Colton to me was last performance-wise. Whoever goes home from this point on is still a winner..but  I chose one, guess?  

    • I kinda wished that Jessica did ‘Tenderness’ as well as she did ‘Falling’. I agree with you on that. 

      But did you notice that the second song of most of the singers fell in quality compared to their first songs? With the possible exception of maybe Joshua.

      It’s either they didn’t have time to polish their second songs or …. they had a hard time understanding ‘soul’ songs of the decades past.

      • Soul singing comes from an inner rhythm and it does takes some kind of angst and blues to make it “believable” and most of these singers are very young to carry sit through .

        The kids can only simulate it at this stage…maturity and experience is still the best teacher…so cliched but still true. 

  125. There is no such thing as 100% safe anymore. If you’re out, then you’re out. That’s it.

  126. Skylar Laine sounds like a chipmunk! Born this way was better then her 2nd song however i still didnt like it cuz i dont like her voice! Her 2nd song was horrible! Hollie was better then her last night! I hope Skylar gets sent home!

  127. jessica, joshua, are the two I would like to see gone I get so tired of there Big Voices its like thats all they know how to do just gets to be to much Maybe if they could change it up and quit yelling and preaching to everyone I might change my mind..

  128. Most memorable for me are Skylar and Philip.  Philip with the band surrounding him was a perfect arrangement for his type of singing.  Also the fiddler following Skylar gave the song more of  a  country feel. I find it interesting that people say Oh! Philip is always the same, but  in my thinking, the rest are too e.g. Joshua, Jessica, Elise.  Holly’s first song was very good, the second not so much. I didn’t find Colton’s songs memorable.

    •  Elise always the same?  Seriously?  Both her songs were unusual for her and out of her comfort zone.  And do you not remember her kicking butt with Zeppelin?  She is not always the same.  Not even close.  However I do agree for Joshua and Jessica.  Skylar always makes everything country so I’d venture to say she’s always the same as well.

      • i think every single one of them sings something similar to their style every week.  i don’t understand why phillip is the only one that gets pegged on this.  the only one, in my opinion, who tries different things is elise; she usually get criticized for “not picking something that suits her voice”.  it’s really a no win situation if you have any talent and aren’t just a “cover” artist like most of the idol contestants.  sure, they can sing well, but we already have enough jessica simpsons, britney spears, and jLos of the world.  i’d like to see someone who can write their own material win.

  129. I hope it is not Hollie who goes home. I do not care for Jessica, she is boring, although a great singer…I do not care for Joshua either…again, great singer, but not my cup of tea music…I love Skylar, Hollie and Phillip Phillips.

  130. Much has been said about Jessica’s supposed inability to connect to the audience on an emotional level. Frankly, I have been baffled by this ‘supposed’ problem for a while now. I go over her performances and have tried to find out exactly what people are talking about. 

    I might have an answer.

    Nobody complained when she aced Whitneys ‘I will always love you’. Nobody complained when she made the judges stand up with JHud’s ‘Love you I Do’. Nobody complained when she did Beyonce’s ‘Sweet Dreams’. Nobody complained when she sang Billy Joel’s obscure ‘ Everybody has a dream’ in remarkable fashion.

    All these performances were GRADE A. Brilliant! EMOTIONAL. They were strung very closely together to have created a benchmark for all other songs to come. AND THAT I BELIEVE, is the problem.

    If a performance by Jessica falls a little short of the benchmark she managed to create in the audience’s mind, they have this vague feeling of disappointment or of being let down. THEN, they disconnect.

    She is my favorite. But I do feel let down on occasion when one of her performances does not reach a certain level of brilliance. The bar she has set is very high. Its more of a problem with expectations, rather than emotionally connecting with people.

    I believe that people aren’t able to articulate this feeling properly so they just call it …. a ‘disconnect’.
     

    • Nope. That’s not it. She’s a techincal singer…and a boring one at that. It’s like listening to a robot. She hits all the notes but it’s cold.

    • “If a performance by Jessica falls a little short of the benchmark she
      managed to create in the audience’s mind, they have this vague feeling
      of disappointment or of being let down. THEN, they disconnect.

      She is my favorite. But I do feel let down on occasion when one of
      her performances does not reach a certain level of brilliance. The bar
      she has set is very high. Its more of a problem with expectations,
      rather than emotionally connecting with people.

      I believe that people aren’t able to articulate this feeling properly so they just call it …. a ‘disconnect’.”

      Perfect explanation… People are just too used to see Jessica as the best, that when she ain’t as perfect as she previously was, they think she’s disconnected. It’s just that the songs aren’t that good – which may not be her fault, since there’s a list they gotta choose from.

      • That is her REAL weakness. Song selection. Others have that too, only the issue is magnified because people expect or want more from her.

  131. What I find very weird is the judges this year. Last year they always told everyone to sing songs that aren’t “too old” for them. Then when Jessica or Hollie come out singing a song that is WAY to ballad-y and all for a 16 year old – no one says anything! Its ridiculous! Anyways – I thought Colton and Phillip did AMAZING this week AGAIN, so COLTON AND PHILLIP FTW! 

  132. Jessica-Hollie and Colton-Phillips cancel each other out. These days I only get excited watching Skylar, Elise, and Joshua (depend on his song choice though but it’s mostly good). At least those three are in their own genre and uniqueness.

    • Colton and Phillip sing completely different. The only thing they have in common is that they are guys.

    • Colton and Philip have totally different singing styles and Hollie has sung more non-diva songs than Jessica. If anyone is like Jessica in singing style, it is Joshua. 

  133. Who knows how the public will vote? Jessica is still open to the southern bias vote but may get the sympathy vote after last week.

    Hollie was excellent with her first song and good with her second and did more than enough to survive to the final 6.

    The weakest singing performance was Colton’s second song and he may find himself in trouble because Phillip has the young and old vote locked up. I have been critical of Phillip and still don’t like the Joe Cocker style twitching and facial expressions but he did a great job last night with both songs.

    Skylar uses the stage well and relates to her musicians very well, as dis Phillip last night, but I think her bubbly personality hid flaws in her performances.

    Jessica did nothing to inspire me last night and Joshua was good on one song and awful on the other. By the way, Joshua, while I think JLo sucks as a judge, she has a great bod and all you could comment on was her abs – really??

    Tyler was generally full of his usual comments that had no meaning or relevance and Jackson was biased and awful. Hollie’s performance of Rolling in the Deep was flawless and even Steve Tyler was complimentary. Pitchy she was not and Jackson has become a caricature of himself.

    JLo’s speech to Elise was awful, especially as she is not exactly the best singer in the world. What does she want? For Elise to break down in tears when she is singing?

    Once again, the judges showed their biases, especially Jackson and it has become predictable and, frankly, embarrassing. JLo talked to Elise last night longer than Elise sang. 

    All the fuss about Jessica’s age has become old. She may be 16 but, as I pointed out in other posts, she has been groomed for stardom since she was 11, has appeared on AGT, awarded a full scholarship the Theater of Arts in Hollywood.

    She sang at the Apollo when she was 10, got a SO and brought back for an encore by Whoopi Goldberg, has sung the national anthem at Chargers games twice when she was 12 and again at 13 and has had two singles released when she was 13.

    Hollie is 18 and her experience started last year when she auditioned for  Season 1o. Skylar is also only 18.

    The guys are 20 (Joshua and Colton) and 21 (Philip) and Elise is 28. The two primary impacts on voting in most years have been the southern vote and the age factor.

    If that holds true, Elise and Jessica are statistically in danger this week but, as I think Jessica will get the “saved ones” vote, I suspect Elise will leave tonight. If there is to be a surprise, Colton may be in danger.
                    

      

        

    • Southern bias vote?  Who do you think you are to say that?  For your information, I live in the south and there are TONS of Jessica fans down here.  I live in the same city as Elise and Jessica gets just as much radio talk and fans here as Elise.  Get your facts straight.

      • In the top 13 this year, there were 6 singers from southern states. In the top 7 last week, there were still 6 and Jessica who is from California finished last. 

        In the 10 previous seasons, if you award 3 pts for the winner, 2 for runner up and 1 for 3rd place, the score is Southern States 46-Non-Southern States 14.

        AT&T and AI have said that the largest voting block is from the southern states. I have all the stats and facts to back this up so have my facts 100% straight.
             

  134. TMZ reporting there is a voting fraud problem that occurred during last night’s AI voting. No indication what producers intend to do.

    • Elise is BORING as hell. yes she has a good voice but she is lacking charisma. I even hate her atittude after the judges critiques for her. i think she’s trying too much i even get the feeling that she’s copying last season’s haley reinhart but that girl is very likable.

  135. I think they send the wrong people home on this show, there is someone that has been in the bottom 3 for a long time that should of been sent home. I do not think our voting counts at all. Colton should of not got sent home, stupid.. 

  136. I like Jessica’s cover of FALLIN’ but she didn’t wow me with the second song maybe bcuz I don’t like the song and I don’t know the song.

    I did not expect Skylar’s song choices but she did good on both, making more hip and country.
    Same goes to Phillips (alternative blues) and Colton (emo rock) with their style and kind of music.

    Joshua inspite of his vocals I was disappointed at his first song choice but compensated on the second one.   You can help but compare it to the original you know.
    Same goes to Hollie.

    Overall, Elise I found last and trying so hard to compete with the others.

    BUT, this is only on my opinion as I saw it in the NET.

    When they voted Colton…that’s life…the audience didn’t see something or like for that matter the performances or the song choices.
     

  137. ADMIT IT. the only reason why some of you say that you don’t like jessica is because she doesn’t have that all-American look. I bet if she’s white and all adorable like hollie and with a pure american blood you wouldn’t be afraid to admit that she sings crazy good. We all know that that’s true.

  138. Jessica given two songs. Falling and Tenderness, … what   can I say. Both songs were presented, perfectly … beyond what people expected, past present and future. Perfect … period.

    Phillips, Skylar, Elise … extremely beautiful talents, BUT lacking in the song, presented … perfection … presentation, beautiful … but sadly lacking. What is it … we need … want.

    Jessica … perfection.

    Coming soon …. the greatest.

    WINS !!!!

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