The “American Idol” Top 12 girls took the stage tonight and I think I have to say the guys win this week for me. A lot of the girls were off when it came to song choice. This is an important week. We’re just getting to know them and hearing some of them sing for the first time. Song choice is crucial and some missed the mark.
On to the recap. Like last night, I’ll give my review for each singer followed by the letter grade I see fit. (And please remember this is my opinion. Feel free to agree or let me have it in our comments section).
In order of performance
*Ta-Tynisa Wilson, “Only Girl.” Her performance was a bit weak. She was flat and lost some notes. Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez were much kinder than Randy Jackson and me. JLo is probably going to annoy me this season because she’s not a perfect performer so she’s going to judge people more kindly than they deserve. C-
*Naima Adedapo, “Summertime.” I’m going to call Naima “The Janitor” until they stop bringing it up. So The Janitor sounded really good but I found it a bit boring. At this point I was certain I’d fall asleep by the fifth performer. I just think that was a bad song to pick so early in the game. There are only five spots and that song probably didn’t do her any favors. B-
*Kendra Chantelle, “Impossible.” I started waking up a bit when I heard Kendra’s effortless sounds. But then I decided it still wasn’t the right song choice for her. She still sounds good, I just don’t think she did enough to stand out. B+
*Rachel Zevita, “Criminal.” From her drag queen opening to her pouty attitude to the judges, Rachel didn’t do herself any favors tonight either. I was really confused by her performance. It took half way through the song before I even realized that it was Fiona Apple’s “Criminal.” What a terrible arrangement. Rachel still has a good voice, she just freaked me out a little bit tonight. C-
*Karen Rodriguez, “Hero.” Eh. I’m still not sure about this one. I thought the switch from English to Spanish was a little gimmicky. And the performance was slightly show choir-y. But finally, at the end, she showed strength and power. But goosebumps? Really Jennifer? I don’t think so. B-
*Lauren Turner, “Seven Day Fool.” Let me just say I didn’t take any notes during her song because I was busy enjoying her fantastic performance. She’s got soul. She’s got power. Loving it. A+
*Ashton Jones, “Love Over Me.” She just needs to skip this little singing competition show and cut an album. That is all. A
*Julie Zorrilla, “Break Away.” Flat. Pitchy. Off tempo. Terrible. Sorry. F
*Haley Reinhart, “Fallin'” I’m pretty tired of hearing this song, but the performance wasn’t bad. She put a sexy spin on it and her voice is pretty unique to this competition. I hope she sticks around so we can hear more. B+
*Thia Megia, “Out Here On My Own.” Does that song have a chorus? I couldn’t tell. Much like Jacob Lusk, Thia is a great technical singer. Her tone is flawless. But her stage presence isn’t there yet. And her performance was borderline depressing. She’s also coming off a lot older than 15. I don’t think that’s a good thing. A
*Lauren Alaina, “Turn on The Radio.” Lauren is a natural. I tried not to like her because of all the pimping, but I did. I found myself getting lost in her performance. Just one thing… I’d never stoop as low to question a 16-year-old’s intelligence, but let me just say that I hope there’s a tutor on the “Idol” set. A+
*Pia Toscano, “I’ll Stand By You.” Wow. Just wow. Take that Lauren, Lauren, Thia and Ashton! What a performance. When I heard she had the pimp spot, I was like really? And with “I’ll Stand By You”? I love the song, but I never imagined it could be performed that perfectly. And in the pimp spot nonetheless. People were even crying. No one can say that wasn’t the best performance of the night. I don’t care who your favorite is. A++