Only eight of the American Idol Top 24 guys will make it through tonight’s performance round while all twelve will perform one last time as a whole for your votes. American Idol judges Harry Connick Jr., Keith Urban, and Jennifer Lopez are on hand to give their critiques, but the decision is now up to you, viewers.
Tonight’s American Idol performances were recorded last week in front of a live audience at the Filmore Theater in Detroit, but with voting taking place tonight there are no spoilers yet for what will happen next. We’ve finally reached new and surprising territory.
For those who need a reminder of the American Idol 2015 Top 24 guys up for voting tonight, here’s the list:
Adam Ezegelian, Clark Beckham, Daniel Seavey, Mark Andrew, Michael Simeon, Nick Fradiani, Qaasim Middleton, Quentin Alexander, Rayvon Owen, Riley Bria, Savion Wright, and Trevor Douglas.
Who will be the guys who got eliminated on American Idol tonight? Who will survive for a spot in the Top 16? Join us for our live American Idol recap below!
The show opens in Michigan. I can’t help but find this very, very odd. Ryan Seacrest tells us that we’ll be watching Idol from Michigan for the next two weeks. And he reminds us that the votes from tonight will help us get to the Top 16 next week.
Let’s get to the performances! Up first is Adam Ezegelian with “I Wanna Rock” by Twisted Sister. And that’s a great way to open the show. I think I can say I don’t remember ever hearing Twisted Sister on American Idol. But if I’m wrong, please remind me. Adam has done a great job getting the crowd and judges warmed up.
Adam Ezegelian Sings “I Wanna Rock” by Twisted Sister
How to vote for Adam:
- Text: 1 to 21523
- Call: 866-IDOLS-01
Michael Simeon slows things down with “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You” by Michael Bolton. I have to admit I’ve really grown to like Michael, but I don’t think this song was a very good idea. It’s a very outdated song and was never even a great song to begin with. But at least he seemed pretty connected to the song. I mean there was a bit of emotion, at least, so that counts for something.
Michael Simeon Sings “How Am I Supposed To Live Without You” by Michael Bolton
How to vote for Michael:
- Text: 2 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-02
Savion Wright follows Michael with “Hey Soul Sister” by Train. And again, I’m not loving this song choice. It’s not exactly an old song, but it’s not as current as he could have gone. The vocals aren’t bad, either, but he’s definitely done better. I just feel like this could have been a lot better considering that four of them are going to be cut after the Top 24 performs. I still think he’s a great guy with a lot of talent, though, and hope American votes for him despite this lackluster performance.
Savion Wright sings “Hey Soul Sister” by Train
How to vote for Savion:
- Text: 3 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-03
Now this is a song choice. Mark Andrew went with “The Weight” by The Band. This is a good song choice because he can relate to the older crowd but also make the younger crowd think they just discovered a great song. Of course it could also backfire since it’s an old song. But the vocals were very solid and the performance was believable. This seems to be the kind of music that Mark is suited for. I liked it a lot.
Mark Andrew sings “The Weight” By The Band
How to vote for Mark:
- Text: 4 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-04
One of the younger guys is up next. Trevor Douglas decided to go with Gavin McGraw’s “The Best I Ever Had.” And it’s so not good. He came running out and got really winded and then started singing off key and took him most of the performance to recover from it. Actually, I’m not sure he really did recover. But I’m trying to be nice since it’s so early in the season. Ha. But this was bad.
Trevor Douglas sings “The Best I Ever Had” by Gavin DeGraw
How to vote for Trevor:
- Text: 5 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-O5
Clark Beckham hopes to steal the spotlight and some votes from Trevor’s not-great performance. He comes out with Percy Sledge’s “When A Man Loves a Woman.” And while I think this song is quite cliche now on performance shows, Clark still owned it for the most part. There were some shouty moments and that flat high-note that could hurt him, but he might be able to make it through the vote. But I’m not sure.
Clark Beckham sings “When A Mand Loves A Woman” by Percy Sledge
How to vote for Clark
- Text: 6 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-06
Rayvon Owen is called to the stage next and he’s going with “Jealous” by Nick Jonas. This is a smart song as far as appealing to the younger and female audience. And it gave him a great chance to work his falsetto. He also knows how to really work the stage, the crowd and a camera. This guy has so much star power. If he doesn’t make it through to the Top 16, then I will give up on American voters. This was the best performance so far.
Rayvon Owen sings “Jealous” by Nick Jonas
How to vote for Rayvon
- Text: 7 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-07
It’s time for the youngest contestant, Daniel Seavey, to see if he can earn his spot in the Top 16. He pulls out the mandolin with his version of “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz. And while I enjoyed this performance more than most of his others, seeing him on that stage and dressed for the stage was sort of jarring. For the first time he just seemed really, really young. I’m still not so sure about his voice either. I mean he can do some fun things with it, but it’s still pretty “I’m a teenager and my voice is changing.”
Daniel Seavey sings “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz
How to vote for Daniel:
- Text: 8 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-08
Riley Bria follows up Daniel’s performance with his version of “Homeboy” by Eric Church. This guy has a good look for the stage and a pretty decent voice, but his energy is low and his overall stage presence is lacking. I think he’s just a little fresh and could make look to his idol Keith Urban on how to command a stage a little better.
Riley Bria sings “Homeboy” by Eric Church
How to vote for Riley:
- Text: 9 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-09
Quentin Alexander is definitely dressed the part. And he’s got the theatrics down as well. And even the vocals to his version of “I Put a Spell On You” were pretty great. He showed us that he’s got a big voice and that he knows how to control it. This is definitely the most inventive and unique performance of the night. Great job.
Quentin Alexander sings “I Put a Spell on You” by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
How to vote for Quentin:
- Text: 10 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-10
Nick Fradiani, to no one’s surprise, brought us a little Ed Sheeran (expect more of Ed this season because people love singing his songs). His version of “Thinking Out Loud” was good though. Like really good. Nick is a great-looking guy and has the voice to back it up. If he doesn’t get voted into the Top 16, I’ll be shocked.
Nick Fradiani sings “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran
How to vote for Nick:
- Text: 11 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-11
Qaasim Middleton is a performer and his version of “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson featuring. Bruno Mars definitely reminded us of this. And his white suit and dance moves definitely helped drive that home. This is the exact kind of music he should be doing. He had so much fun on the stage and it showed. And the vocals were tight as well. He’s such a showman it would be horrible for him to not make it beyond this week. That was a great way to close the show.
Qaasim Middleton sings “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
How to vote for Qaasim
- Text: 12 to 21523
- Call: 1-866-IDOLS-12
That’s it for the guys. The Top 12 girls take the stage Thursday night. What did you think of the 12 guys? Who were the standouts and who should make it into the Top 16?
Show felt way too rushed. Best of the night for me was Nick. Worst was Trevor. Savion & I are friends so naturally I am in his camp. Rayvon needed to be more “in the pocket” with Jealous. It felt a bit off. Daniel needs to support his voice better with his diaphragm but I like his tone a lot & he has great charisma. I thought Riley did the best of the 3 young guys. I think Trevor, Michael, Daniel & Mark are in trouble.
The way things will go is somewhat clear in my mind. Daniel isn’t cute enough to appeal to young girls. So figure him gone by the middle of this run. Adam is too heavy and his do does him no favors, so his days are numbered. Mark is a Zac Brown knock off and a niche singer, so no. Clark has a chance to come in 2nd or 3rd because the southern vote won’t allow a gay guy to win. Michael is too insecure and needy to own the stage. That’s as far as I’ve gotten so far.
Clark triggers the gaydar? Really?
He triggers my gaydar as well. Clay and Adam did right from the get go and so does Clark. To this day Clay and Adam are my two favorite guy contestants.
While I thought the performances were a little bit better than last
year, the pacing of the show was too rushed. Acoustics didn’t sound all
that great either.
The show was way to rushed and I think it showed on some of the performances – the guys just seemed rushed to get on stage – sing and get off and on to the next. I guess it will be the same tonight for the gals – too bad – the timing ruined the show – by the end – I felt rushed.
The show has a new top mentor (not Randy Jackson) and I thought it was
reflected in the performances. There is a disconnect between the talent
of the individuals and the presentation they made last night. The
acoustics in the Detroit theater seemed poor relative to the more
intimate and acoustic friendly settings AI used previously at this stage
in the season, and detracted from the performances. For the shows at
this point in the season that does a real disservice to all the
performers because sound quality is so critical to the performance.
Overall I thought the show deserved a C+/B- when it had potential to be
an A-. I’ve spoken to several long time fans and they said they turned
it off after the third or fourth performance. I’ve always said it is
virtually impossible to capture the essence of a song in 90 seconds.
The great performances on AI have always run 1:45/2:00 or longer.
Someone like Daniel Seavey is literally incapable of connecting with
people through a song because he simply doesn’t have the life experience
and/or the voice required to make the kind of connection the idol
winners usually make, let alone try to do it in 90 seconds. His
performance struck me as eighth grade talent show, something one would
see on an obscure cable channel. Put that together with an assembly line
production and it is a recipe for disaster. Like or dislike The Voice,
there is a lot to be said for its consistency. People know what to
expect, production quality remains high. Idol is taking the opposite
approach.