American Idol 2011 Top 4 Performances & Phone Numbers

May 11, 2011 Matt Boyer American Idol, Season 10 782

I’ve got my top hat and monocle ready for tonight’s 50’s music! Wait, that might not be the right era. Well too late now because I’m not getting my deposit back on this tux after spilling all that salsa. Supposedly we’re going to hear some freedom in the secondary song selections tonight (read: modern), so lets hope that’s true.

Phew! Ryan just announced that round one of songs will be “inspirational” choices and the second set of songs will be the oldies from Leiber and Stoller.

See what other Idol fans are saying right now on our Idol Facebook page and then join us in the Idol Net Chat room while we review tonight’s live show.

American Idol 2011 Top 4 Performances – Inspirational Songs:

  • James Durbin – Don’t Stop Believin’ – 1-866-436-5701 & 5705
  • Haley Reinhart – Earth Song – 1-866-436-5702 & 5706
  • Scotty McCreery – Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning – 1-866-436-5703 & 5707
  • Lauren Alaina – Anyway – 1-866-436-5704 & 5708

American Idol 2011 Top 4 Performances – Leiber & Stoller:

  • Haley Reinhart – I Who Have Nothing – 1-866-436-5702 & 5706
  • Scotty McCreery – Young Blood – 1-866-436-5703 & 5707
  • Lauren Alaina – Trouble – 1-866-436-5704 & 5708
  • James Durbin – Love Potion No. 9 – 1-866-436-5701 & 5705

You can get these songs on iTunes or the originals for free from SuperPass.

Tomorrow night we’ll find out which singer earned the least votes and that singer will be eliminated so vote wisely and be sure to cast your unofficial vote in our Idol poll below (poll to be posted after the ET broadcast so no complaining about the votes!) and then share your opinion on tonight’s performances!

poll by twiigs.com

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782 Comments

  4. Don’t Stop Believin’, interesting to see what Randy says, since he’s played with Journey

  5. And James nailed it, awesome performance. I just wished he could have sang the whole thing.

  8. Good performance but Durbin has not been where he was after his mind blowing performances.

  9. It was well done. He didn’t change it up much, if at all. Probably a good idea… B+

  10. James did way better this week than he did last week, though I think the one who really needs to step it up is Lauren though, she’s starting to go downhill and I hope she can pull herself up tonight.

    • Not necessarily. It’s just that her unchained melody wasn’t as good as her first one.

      Although I do agree she must step it up.

  11. For a live performance this was very good! And the high notes were perfect!!! James is back!!!

  13. Haley is my favourite. She is so great, but [I] think that she is the one that COULD be sent home. We must vote. Please,please,please,please !!!! Lets hope she gives more stellar performances? xox

  15. For the first time i liked James’s performance, however HALEY WAS AMAZING!!! You can’t deny she should win. This years top 4 is all around great.

  17. Wow. That was a great performance from Haley. I’m not a super fan but she’s really starting to prove herself. She wants it and she is showing it.

    LOOK AT CASEY. HE IS SO HAPPY. AHAHAHA.

  18. For a live performance this was very good! And the high notes were perfect!!! James is back!!!

    Hayley, good vocals. Yet to me sounded way to burlesque.

  19. James was good, better than last week, but not great. Haley was a screechy mess.

    • What is with yo loving haley?
      Haley voters (almost) are another contestant fans and after eliminations goes to her.
      I hate her growling.
      do you really thinks her voice is amazing?
      lauren and scotty maybe sing country and boring but they have good voice. every one vote haley because they dont like oher votes are about her sexy appearance not her voice.

      • duh! I’ve been voting for Haley since top 24 and I’m not the only one! she has millions of fans out there!!! HALEY REINHART for the WIN!!!

  21. No matter how much I hate Haley she didn’t deserve the criticism she did well besides the growling parts the beginning and ending are flawless

    • The growling is what is so irritating. Perhaps the judges do not think she is as good as the voters.

      • You only hear the judges say the bad things? Did you not hear what they said about her second song? Lauren and Scotty can not touch what she did with I (Who Have Nothing) or House of the Rising Sun.

  22. Are the judges crazy?????????? they dont want Haley in the final!!! and those negative comments are horrible and put her down!! is NOT FAIR
    Steven is the only one with an EAR damn!!!

    • I hope you saw her attitude, how shell treat her fans, the “Whatever” or with whose the best? of first round she went “are you serious?” Just note that…

  24. haley sounds funny…she is not good..and steven needs to lay off the drugs.

  25. Dammit. Now I am seeing the judges (not Steven) not liking Haley. Haley was way better than James.

    Steven Tyler aced his comments. That was a great performance. I don’t know.

    I’m not even a big fan of Haley and I totally felt that performance. So that must say something.

    • What was better in Haley’s performance than James’? Sorry I am failing to hear it. I Know the song very well and it was definitely not the best choice for her. Did not do anything for me.

      • Well I guess that is for you. Haley showed so much in that song. Even J’Lo said, she felt it.

        James performance isn’t extraordinary. And I felt Haley’s more.

        Maybe because so many people have sang Don’t Stop Believin (not necessarily AI) compared to Earth Song that I felt Haley did a better job.

        Who knows? All my opinion.

    • Although I must agree in one of the criticisms. Haley has no style. She goes from jazz to pop and such and such.

      • Yeah which means, A producer wont pick her right up. She has to stay with one thing R&B or whatever..

  26. Wow, what drama. I give her credit for doing what she feels, Randy and J-Lo be damned. Still, not a smart song choice if she wants to win!

  27. Wow, with the fight among the judges. Haley just can’t catch a break it seems. But I agree that her song choice was not a well known hit, but that was pretty brutal.

  28. IM SOOO PISSED OFFFFFFFFF!!
    they allways CRITICIZE HALEYYY!!
    surbin sang wost than herrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    IM JUST HATING THE SHOWWWWWWWW

    • James was smart though. He did a Journey song (a band Randy played for), called it his most meaningful, and did a number of call-outs to Randy to feed his ego. SMART Haley did what was asked of her… picked a song that had meaning to HER and sang it beautifully, KNOWING she’s be called out by J-Lo and Randy.

      • That is ridiculous though. The choices were to pick a song that inspires you. Why was Haley slammed for picking a song that inspired her? Why would she pick a song that doesn’t inspire her?

        And seriously, picking a song that people don’t know? THE THEME FOR THIS WEEK IS DAMN 50’s or 60’s song. Would people on their teenage years know this? Maybe some but definitely not all.

      • I know, that ‘you have to pick songs that people know!’ thing was so hypocritical.

    • Why do you watch it if you get so upset? Everyone has an opinion. I do not care for her (Haley) style, my opinion.

      • i dont care if haleys good(which she is) but they never like her and the judges suck ass!!

  30. It will take a miracle after picking that turd of a song. She will only have herself to blame. Lord!

  31. There really seems to be a bias at the judge’s table! Haley was WAY BETTER than James…

    Not sure I understand them – GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

  32. i luv haley and she is so amazing and i feel so bad for her they were just tearing into her and i dont think that randy had to take it that far and im happy she stood up for herself and james did great also they both have my vote already

  34. just once i would like to scotty do something totally not country..i think he can..he might even surprise himself. but he is definitely going to make some money in country music.

  36. Scotty shoulod be voted off after lauren. James and Haley Finally, Scotty just sounds the same every week and Lauren is Boring I don’t like James but I have to Give him Props.

    • Haley over scotty and lauren? really?
      good job jimmy iovine fir this mess among voters

      • Yes, definitely over Lauren. If the judges even hint that she did something wrong she breaks down into a nervous wreck. She doesn’t belong there, she is not ready and needs to grow up a bit.

  37. They are so biased!! ok, Scotty did great yes! he has his style and he loves country BUT has not been even this close to Haley.
    I hate unfairness, really!

      • Now, here I agree 10000%!!!
        Scotty is back to very boring again. Love the lyrics, his singing puts him below average country singer.

    • And you think Haley does not sound the same every week….growls, and more growls.

  38. lets see how lauren does..so far its james then scotty for me..but i have never liked haley..she never sounds good to me…really wish i knew what all her fans are hearing that i am not…but her voice is either too growly or flat for me..she is much like casey was..all karaoke..ok attack me.

  39. I thought Scotty was great…..so far, all 3 performances tonight have sounded perfect to me. Let’s see if one of them takes it over the top and “has a moment” with the second round of songs tonight.

  40. Scotty did a fantastic job. One of my favorite performances by him for the season. He connected with it and it showed. He still needs some work on getting out some high notes but it was still great

    • Putting emphasis on “Jesus” and “God” isn’t feeling it….sorry 🙁

  41. Alan Jackson was amazing. That was very mediocre at best. Maybe Jlo should listen to the original

  42. I am thinking the judges bias against Haley is going to backfire big time. They just bought her a ticket home.

    • I’m not a huge fan of hers and found that song to be rather “meh” personally, but if you were the only one slammed by the judges week after week, you’d have some attitude too. I say good for her for fighting back and not just bursting into tears.

    • They’ve been slamming her for weeks. I’m glad she spoke up, and she did it respectfully, too.

    • haley should never have made it to hollywood…and they are just finally letting her know it. she is an average to poor singer that has made it on her looks. ouch

  48. hate the f* judges. they were biased at the beginning and they are still bias now. I guess not f* sucking up to them has consequences.

  49. What I can not figure out is why the judges don’t hesitate for a second to criticize Haley and draw on the negative, no matter what it is as opposed to praising the smallest positive aspects of others. Scotty’s performance was just fine, but the judges were at least respectful to him.

  51. Lauren is touching my heart! Very inspirational!

    She gets my vote for round one (even though I liked them all)

  53. Omg Lauren did the song she sang on YouTube it was so pure and flawless it was so good

  54. WOW I take back all previous coments That was an amazing performance by Lauren.

  56. I swear the judges just dont want Lauren to go home. It makes me ill! So pick on Haley! Its pathetic!

    • You don’t have to be so mean… if there is a contestant you don’t like just say so

    • no i agree with u jenny. there is a difference bewteen constructive criticism and ripping someone apart. worst year for the judges, talk about inconsistancy. it angers me

  57. James gets my vote for the first round…the rest weren’t all that great..just sounded like kids singing.

  58. i like lauren best when she lets it go…she seems to hold back..but i liked her tonight..she needs a good voice coach. remember she is a teenager…she will be successful.

  60. Lauren did great, top performance! J-Lo just slammed Haley AGAIN with her critique of Lauren. Wonder why she went there?

  61. Scotty has a singing career even if he doesn’t win . I see Scotty and James the last 2 standing . Not sure who’s going to win it.But I don’t think their is a loser between those 2 .of course that is my opinion.

    • I really don’t see a loser amongst the top 4 this year. They really are all exceptional. Way better than Lee Dewyze, Taylor Hicks, Bo who-ever………

  62. Wow…Lauren was my favorite tonight…I wanted to like Haley best but I gotta say Lauren stole that!

    • Takes a huge amount of character to rebound from that blasting. Please remember that when voting.

      • I agree…they had her in tears. I can’t believe how they humiliated her twice in one show. Scotty’s and Lauren’s 2nd performances were NOT good at all, yet they can’t say ONE critique to them ever. So typical. Why did they not mention that Lauren’s voice cracked and sounded awful at the end?

        Bring Simon back please.

    • They have been trashing Haley since week 1. Randy and Jlo are not fair judges and I think the public sees that. Haleys fan will stick by her…I know she has been my fav since I saw her audition and I will stick by her to the finale!

  68. The tension on the show is so thick tonight that I had to go get windex and a knife to scrape it off my tv to see the commercials.

  69. I’m not a conspiracy theory person but man it really seems like they are trying to get rid of Haley and I don’t get it.

    • This is based on nothing, but my own theories: Maybe TPTB are telling the judges to push contestants that Interscope/19E is more interested in working with. They may see Haley as less marketable.

  70. For me Round One goes like this:

    James
    Lauren
    Haley
    Scotty

    I am trying to be very fair and is how I see this first part.

  71. J-Lo and Randy really, really do not need to be invited back by the new owners of AI!!!

    They just stink!

  73. i think its going to be one of the girls going home not matter how they do on this round…but jo is right…that all are tied but haley was a little too brutal.

  78. What the hell is that thing contestants were just hugging????!!!! Gaga!
    guess I’m not a fan. 😉

  79. Lauren – Anyway
    James – Don’t Stop Believin’
    Scotty – Where were You
    Haley – Earth SOng “what’s with your attitude towards Randy?”

    ROUND 1 ranking

    • What’s with the attitude of Randy and Jlo since the beginning towards Haley. That is the first time Haley has ever stood up for herself and I for one am glad she did.

      I thought the song was very well sung, I enjoyed it. No, not one of her best but still enjoyable. A song that inspires was the theme and she got reamed for doing a song that inspires her and is told that it is the wrong song choice. My goodness, ripping what inspires her that is just low, judge her singing and presentation. I will be voting the full two hours for Haley only!!!

  83. I’d say that was Haleys best performance!!! Amazing and thats why she should win!!

  88. i think haley did better but some of her notes just sound wrong to me…when she sang You and and held the note..it was too sharp. she tends to sound like a yell.

    • Clean your ears, she gave me chills it was so amazing. I love that song and was excited when I found out she was singing it.

  89. That is another great performance from her. Wow. She is seriously proving herself now. I mean, she was in the brink of elimination few weeks back and now she’s getting better.

    • Well, if she’s still in it after tomorrow, I hope she LISTENS to the judges next time!

  90. FFs Randy stop saying jamesscottylaurenhaley or whatever is in it to win it! And Haley did good and…. Gaga just looked weird……..

  93. the f* reality is that the judges wants lauren in the top 3 (just cant understand why) and obviously want haley out. Lauren did a great performance, but the reality is that haley is the best in the show, by far the best singer

  96. Why is that only girls hate Haley..and i dont mean the rational or logical hate where someone says that one particular style of singing is not to their taste….but irrational and pure hate..hate which doesnt make any sense except the hate that they hate her on a personal level (jealousy?) I am not saying all women hate Haley…..Its just that on Twitter about 99.9999 percent of people who post hate twits about Haley are women..

    Coondog

    Be vedy vedy careful…..

    • Hello Sneak G. Still following, just less ‘preaching’ now, though I probably have another sermon left in me a little later down the line (Subject: Producer tricks to manipulate the Voting outcome).

      At least I’ve cooled down enough from the cruel Hating that Randy and JLo pulled again on Haley, to imagine the joy it gave you to know that I had to see multiple shots of the smiling Casey cheering on Haley. At least we were both on the same team tonight!

  97. Ok so can sum1 update me on what the judges said about Haleys 2nd performance?

    • Why Scotty does not get any critiques??? BIASED judges yuck! the song was dull, the gestures were horrible and still he is going to be a finalist.
      Ok he is a good singer but would be FAIR to get critique too!

  100. Scotty… That was funny as hell and he looked like a gayboy at one part lmao but it’s not a top 4 contestant’s song

    • Rave reviews. Standing ovation and all. It was amazing, possibly her best performance so far. Definitely the best of the night for me.

      • CJ, the question didn’t ask about the 1st song so your comment is irrelevant. Scotty and Lauren both had bad songs in the 2nd half and the judges didn’t say anything. Anything negative they say about Haley is invalid since it is neither constructive nor is it unbiased.

    • Joni it does not matter she did bad on the first song and ok on the second song. I voted for James anyway so really it does not matter either way. Haley should really stop acting like a 3 year old when the judges get onto her. The other also had some bad times at one point or another but they never got mean and a bad attitude. We don’t need some mean girl for Idol 2011. She really needs to calm down.

  102. Well, I’m glad Scotty did well on the first song, because the second one was not that good. For them saying it was fun I just didn’t see it.

    • It was fun and true to himself…which I totally give him credit for. To me…that is what an American Idol is…he sang both songs well…I would take my grandkids to his concert and not worry about inappropriate songs, words, and actions…Great Job Scotty

      • I would take my kid also but it still does not mean it was good. Not a top 3 performance in my opinion.

    • Scotty’s first song was so awesome he could have won on it alone but his second song could have cost him the whole show because it was so awful it actually was the worst he ever did. Once again, James took the show by being consistantly good on his first song and doing the best thing the show had in his second. Hailey did recover herself on her second song but it may not have saved her.

  104. Please tell me how Scotty did any better than goofing to a goofy song. No artistic, voice value for me in this one!

      • I totally agree. This is ridiculous, let the singer stand on their own and not consistently shove on of them down our throats.

      • It woundn’t matter where they put James in order on the show. He is the best singer hands down period. How can you see anything otherwise? He will win this year. Scotty will probably be second but after that terrible second song he did tonight he could be going home tomorrow. James couldn’t sing poorly if he cut his throat. He could sing the phone book with larangitis and win. He’s just that good.

      • Yes, going last is the pimp spot, BUT going first is a HUGE HUGE disadvantage! Worst, most forgettable spot to sing

      • I didn’t say the James sucks, he is a fantastic singer and personal one of my top two. I’m just tired of the obvious favoritism towards him, he’s good enough without it to be remembered. In most competitions the ideal places to go is either first or last. Most people remember the first performance and the last and then any train wrecks or mind-blowing moments in between. When you go first you get to set the bar and if you set it high everyone will be compared to it like Haley was in tonight’s show.

    • OHHHH…I didn’t think of that…I don’t see why they make it so obvious.

    • Ohh please! It was fair for him to go first and then in the middle last week?! You people will look for anything as to point out his advantage!!! Grow up!!

    • I can’t agree with that.
      Lauren did her best job ever. I like the way she said what the heck & finally let loose.

    • god the judges r deaf. laurens second pefrormance was so awkward and the vocals were the farthest thing from up to par…losing faith in the judges

    • Lauren was way better than Haley!! James was better than all!!! Gotta love James Durbin!!!

      • Lauren’s 2nd performance was lack luster and belonged in Hollywood week. Her first song, while sung well was a snoozer and no, I can’t get over the dress.

  107. Did anyone else feel like the judges were working really hard to make Scotty look good after that performance? It was alright, but it wasn’t great. Why can’t they ever crit him honestly, good AND bad?

      • Even if he is the best, even if he was the best to ever grace the idol stage (which he is far from) he still is not perfect and it says a lot about their character that they absolutely refuse to say anything negative about him, James, or Lauren.

  108. Scotty all the way. The others are great and whom ever wins will deserve it. My vote goes to Scotty though.

  109. James is way beyond his age. Natural stage presence, and the voice….Lauren killed it. Haley home?

  111. I’m baffled that Lauren would pick a song that has the lyric “I’m evil” about four thousand times and then would balk at calling herself evil. Did she not pay ANY attention to the lyrics before she picked it? If it had been a lyric in one verse, I could see it. But…um…did she throw a dart at a board to pick that song or something?

    Baffled.

  113. What’s missing this year is good, constructive, helpful advice and comments from the judges. For weeks now the “favorites” of the judges have been obvious in the things they say before and after each performance. Tonight is a perfect example – tearing down a contestant and offering helpful critique are two totally different things. Thank goodness it’s the FANS that vote and not JLo and Randy!

  114. …..Lauren u are evil I get it…. But it was awesome for Lauren to adopt a new personality temporarily. Still better than scotty

  116. WELL, LAUREN WILL BE THE BEST AGAIN! I love “Trouble” and she really made me love it more!

      • oh… yeah, let’s see James’ performance… he did really good on “Don’t Stop Believin'” by the way, but I loved Lauren’s “Anyway” much better

      • oh… yeah, let’s see James’ performance… he did really good on “Don’t Stop Believin'” by the way, but I loved Lauren’s “Anyway” much better…

    • Uncool…She ruined the first song completely but I did like her second song.

      • My vote will always go to James because he is the best hands down, but Lauren did alot better than Haley.

  119. Wow laurens first song was amazing…but she killed it on her second song and not in a good way there was almost hope for her making it through but that last performance was not good at all. And scottys while fun, was sung horribly i hope he goes home. As always Haley was the best

    • So far I think that round 1 best performances best to worst is Lauren, Scotty, James, and Haley

      • I agree with u there exept put scotty at the bottom. Lauren was great round one and james slayed that song haleys was great but behind the other 2 and scotty as usuall brought nothing new to the stage hes been the same from week 1

      • Wow, I think that about Haley, nothing new since 1st week….all she does is growl….

  120. Scotty too corny of a 2nd song. Lauren’s 2nd song hmm, Haley rocked it, what will Jsmes do?!

  121. I haven’t read through this yet, so someone may have mentioned it. What is with them changing the order so that James opens and closes the show? He went first in round one, so why does he go last in round two. This is so being manipulated.

    • you go home! you’re bad! I wish Haley will go home or your favorite so you will get your karma!

      • Go home Lauren and stop singing completely. There’s enough of that warn out generic country crap that she and Scotty regurgitate each week. Both of them can go home,….. and take Mr sensitive James with them, there’s no crying in Metal. Haley is the only one with a honest and unique sound. Stop letting no talent hacks like J-LO and Randy Dog Jackson critique music, they haven’t any qualifications to be judges.

  123. I disagree with the lyrics of the song, but Lauren’s voice fits in it… she’s not EVIL at all… however, I did suggest this song to her…

  125. Best performance of the night…James Durbin. I can not be persuaded otherwise from that.

  126. Round1 best to worst: Lauren, Scotty, James, and Haley Round 2 best to worst: James, Haley, Lauren, and Scotty

      • Me too! I hope for Haley to leave, then Lauren, Leaving Scotty and James, but James for the winner.

    • Scotty go home, not a chance. Haley go home, very good chance. There have been very few weeks she has not been in the bottom three.

      • You are so full of BS Allison. 4/11 weeks she’s been in the bottom 3. Lauren has been in the bottom 2 almost as many times as Haley has.

  129. Only standing O from the Judges tonight, Haley. she’s my pick all the way. Love her voice.

  130. So Haley had the best performance of the night so they put it in the middle because they would rather her go home

  135. Lauren was AWESOME! I hope it’s not too late for her. What took her so long??! And James’ love potion 9 was beyond great!

  136. James 1 – B
    Laurens 1 – A-
    Scottys 1 – C+
    Haleys 1 – B

    Haleys 2 – A+++
    Scottys 2 – C-
    Laurens 2 – B-
    James 2 – A-

    James B+
    Scotty C
    Lauren B
    Haley A

    Overall Awesome top 4 but haley was best again despite the favoritist judges and i think Scotty should definatly go home Lauren earned her spot tonight

  137. My prediction is that one of the girls will be going home tonight. I am leaning more towards Lauren going home than I am Haley. I think it’s going to be a James/Scotty finale.

  139. This week’s performance I would rank Lauren and James tied at first, Haley and Scotty tied for third – with not much difference between them all. ill be interesting to see how the voting goes. Will people remember Haley’s first performance and she’s out or will they remember her second and she remains in. My guess, this was Haley’s last performance.

  140. i think its very important that haley win american idol, not for her but for the new direction of women voice in america, i think we have enough of good plastic voices imitating other. its important the originality, thats the difference between haley and lauren. i wish Haley wins.

    • totally disagree….that it is important for Hayley to win for the new direction of women voice in America…the fact remains that voices such as Hayley’s have won before, Fantasia, the first winner Kelly Clarkson. I would have to say that the women from AI have done, on the whole far better than the males who have won. So for this year, I would like to see a non-pop/country singer win, that is a rocker. Someone who can bring something new to the music world, James Durbin. A rocker has never won AI…about time this changed!

      • Thank you for replaying Debbie, i think Fantasia Kelly and Haley´s voices are totally different, you cant compare them.

      • ummm,just curious.. In what way does Fantasia is the same as Haley…? And, in what way do u think that Haley vocal is pop….? Im confused…

      • Kelly, Fantasia and Haley have 3 totally different voices. I like listening to Kelly, love listening to Haley and Fantasia honestly made my ears hurt.

  141. James, Scotty, Lauren won tonight. Haley slipped. I do not think her song selection did her any favors. Micheal Jackson’s song was just not good for her. Maybe the second song will be better

  142. Scotty sang “I’m not sure I can tell you the difference in Iraq and Iran”? Really, that is what our country needs right now? Talk about the dumbing down of America!

    • That’s the lerics of the song written right after 9-11 by the great Allen Jackson–which won a Grammy the next year….

    • My thoughts exactly. I know it’s a cover song, but that doesn’t make it any better. :/

    • good point….I agree…America doesn’t need any more lamenting over 911….they need closure….

  143. Haley sucks! I’m so tired of her anoyyying attitude and that stupid growl. She sounds horrible. Should’ve been gone weeks ago!!

    • Her attitude? She was FIGHTING TEARS. Have a heart MARIE. You are so lame.

      • She was HURT! They attacked her, and she didn’t even do a bad job. Again they ignored the other singers technical issues all together…

      • The judges are so hard on Haley for what amounts to personal preference — “It’s all about song choice, blah blah”. I have a hard time believing that the judges could honestly say Scotty and Lauren’s second songs were good song choices. But they said nothing on the matter at all.

  144. I’m so past caring about this as a competition. I wasn’t crazy about Haley’s first song, I thought Lauren did a lot better with her first. To be honest, I want the two girls in the finale now.

    But Haley singing “I Who Have Nothing” made me cry. No song has made me cry for over 6 years. I just turned my head and prayed to god my mom wouldn’t notice, because it’s embarrassing to cry over a song! She is my American Idol, and that’s all that matters to me now. I don’t compare her with the others anymore, I compare her with my favorite artists in the music industry. She took my breath away, I was so awe-struck and just dumbfounded…this surpassed all her other songs to me. I’ve never heard anyone sing so beautifully. Gotta go vote like mad. 🙂 Good job, top 4! I love you all!

    • It was amazing i think her best, id even say one of the best ever on idol! i can’t think of one that was better exept forher other preformance”House of the Rising Sun”

    • agreed devin lee, it was so beautiful. both songs had so much feeling she should win just because of that. i feel sorry that she entered this competition with such heartless judges, tonight she was completely mistreated, kudos to her for holding it together. a true artist

      • yea Randys comment after all the 1st performances was way to much i can understand not liking her performance (even though it was great) But to say “Lauren James and Scotty all did amazing” really dude

  145. I totally agree that they want James to win. And he might. But he will never make it like Scotty will. The rock and screaming sells for awhile but country sells forever.

    • Really…rock and screaming sells for a while…tell Steven Tyler that, or Jared Leto from 30 Seconds to Mars, or Bon Jovi…Country is big in one place only, the USA not everywhere else and it is those performers just mentioned to can sell out a tour around the world, not your country singers….Rock on!

      • Try checking out the attendance numbers of Taylor Swift–around the world and who also has the most Down-Loads around the world….

  146. Did you hear Ryan ask everyone to vote for your FAVORITE tonight because this is the round that Daughtry was voted off? James went first and last because they want to ensure he is in the Top Three.

  147. I am thinking a james/scotty finale too. Haley or Lauren will go home tomorrow. My son says Lauren will go.

  149. IMO Haley had the best performance again this week! I would like to see Haley & James the finale 2 !!!!!! Scotty is boring for me and Lauren just can not handle it!

  151. I believe the botto two this week will be Hailey and James, with James the one to leave. Reason: He messed up real bad in the middle of the first song. The second song was probablly the worst performance he has made. My 6 year old grandson has better moves the James. The judges problems are they have so much profesiionalism they don’t see what the average person sees.

      • No way James is going home…he is much better then Haley any day….Haley sucks and she was a bi!ch tonight after her first song…she is starting to have this attitude that she doesn’t need help from the Judges any more…she’s to cocky for me!!

      • tarak u could not be more wrong, props to haley for finally standing up for herself. no one deserves wut she went thru tonight

      • That’s total bulls***! There was nothing in what the judges said that was constructive at all. It was so off base and there was no way she could glean anything helpful out of it at all. She put so much emotion and so much of herself into that performance and they couldn’t say anything good about it and she’s supposed to sit there and smile like she has for the last 3 months? I’ll say it again, if it was Lauren there (because she’s definitely not chosen the right song several times) she would have been so broken up in tears she probably would have left the competition. Haley is still young, she’s only 20 years old and has taken the criticism the judges give her every week and grown more than any other contestant this year.

    • wow… I honestly don’t even know how to respond to this utter garbage post.

      What precisely did James mess up during Don’t Stop Believing?

      Try listening to the “Journey” version of the song instead of the Glee version, compare it to that, and tell me where he messed up, because I thought it was spot on.

      Some may say it was a bit kareoke in that he didn’t really do much to make it his own, but considering that that is one of the most difficult rock songs to sing period, I’d say he nailed it.

      And the second song was the definition of taking a song and making it relevant and making it yours. Not Since Lamberts Ring of Fire has somebody on Idol taken a song and twisted it to their will like that (the difference being LP#9 was great while ROF was… not) And he showed such an advanced understanding of showmanship and how to pull an audience along with him during that delayed ending. He had the pimp spot, he knew he was closing the show, and he ended the song in classic fashion with fans breathless in antici… pation. (a gold star for anybody that got the anticipation reference)

  152. Scotty Dress Up Country next week Nail it please, Get out and get excited with the best country songs out there and current ones not old ones!!!You got my Vote!

  153. Second round – Haley ROCKED IT!!! Way to go Haley, she made me cry for the first time. I felt it, she is turning to be a great artist. I was not fan of her AT ALL, but I am now. You go girl!
    Lauren has such a great voice, but a little awkward and shy, not mature enough to me.
    Scotty is a great voice, but monotonous at times – sorry Scotty. James – great performer, but my heart and my vote goes for HALEY!!!

    • Agreed. Haley’s second song was mindblowing. Just WOW! Voting for James and Haley!

      • I was so proud of Steven Tyler for standing up for Haley on the first song…Haley did amazing tonight!!

      • I am glad that S. Tyler stood up for Haley, too. She looked so pitiful standing up there, getting slammed by Randy and JLO. The judges really p***ed off tonight!

    • It made me cry, too! And I never cry. I’m not a girly-girl at all, I’m not overly emotional. It was just so beautiful it overwhelmed me…her emotion, her range, it was PERFECTION on that stage tonight. Wow, just wow.

      • Haley is such an ill child with her pouts when she doesnt get praise. She is a spoiled little child she acts like Very unprofessional tonight
        I aaaalmost want to say she acted like a bitch

      • It gave me chill bumps. Haley sang beautifully, best of the night. All my votes are going to her

      • Haley will definately be the one leaving tomorrow nite-It was boring and cracked voice— so off tune
        Her attitude showed tonight I agree She pouts!!!!

      • Haley’s second song was GREAT! She has a superb voice and showed it on that song.
        Lauren’s voice is outstanding too. She will have a great career.

      • Insideout- Did you ever think that Haley might be upset because week after week the judges TEAR her DOWN while kissing everyone’s butts, even when they have a bad performance?
        Think about it. They are trying to destroy her confidence and for her to come out for the 2nd time and rock it again is truly a real performer and class act. Lauren would have been bawling on the stage no doubt.

      • oh no she did not. that was anger for something she did not deserve. the judges always do that to her but never James or Lauren or Jacob or even Scotty. They were wrong. she sang that song great. Steven was right. Every week she improves and they know it but they want James to win so they put her down. its crap and they know it.

      • Jess: I agree! Haley sucked it up and stood there like an adultand took there crap. I felt so sorry for her. I was in shock when all four contestants were standing there and Ryan asked the judges which ones should stay or go, something like that. OMG, Haley didn’t know what to do. She did great on second song.

      • If they had said anything like that to Lauren she would have died right there on the spot.

  155. I am amazed that anyone thinks Scotty is a singer. He is a nice karaoke singer at best!!! He will probably sing achy breaky heart next week!!!

      • I’m not sure whats happening with the phone lines tonight, but I was voting for (Haley) NO.2, and pushed redial several times, ‘hearing thanks for voting for No.2. After about 3 times when it said,’thanks for voting for No.3. This has happened twice. Just wondering if anyone else had this problem..Thought this was weird since I had only put in one number, 866-436-5702.

    • Sadly, I think one of the girls will be eliminated. However, I don’t believe that either should be. I think Scotty is ok. I don’t think he is better than the other 3 remaining, and here is why…the other 3 can still surprise you…from day one Scotty has always been nothing more than Scotty (don’t get me wrong being true to yourself in this spotlight is amazing, but at some point I think he needs to shake it loose and blow the doors off). I don’t see that ever happening. If Lady Gaga can’t make it happen it’s never gonna.
      He should go, but he won’t. And that is a huge bummer. I think it will be Lauren or Haley. I think Lauren has some growing to do…but I think she will be the total package. For those who are not country fans…to take on Martina McBride takes some serious chops. And for that alone, Scotty should go. I love country music. New and old, but to me Scotty doesn’t even fit there. He is like a parrot mimicking his idols, but he can’t make it his own. And I have to say, he butchered Alan Jackson. Incredible song that he should have blown away. He didn’t. James, I love the way he constantly changes it up without veering too far off his course. Haley, risks are a good thing when you have the pipes (like her or not, she does). Lauren, sweetness and honesty that is soul deep with an amazing voice…shaky at times (which is probably confidence more than anything) but she continues to improve week to week. Scotty, singing exactly the same as he did in the first auditions. And thank god they don’t let him sing “baby slam the door and turn the lights down low” cause he’d still be doing it if he did. We get it, we know, we heard it the first 45 times. Next round blow the doors off and do something totally shocking or everyone will keep saying the same thing. I really hope America votes for the girls, I don’t think they should go over Scotty and I really don’t think based on anything thus far that Scotty should win. He deserves to be where he is now, but I don’t think he should go further. Which will happen anyway. Can he carry a tune, yes. Does he make me want to abuse the tivo?? YES! Bored to tears, must fast forward. Not a good sign in my book.

      • I think u are friggin crazy Scottys the best they got this year and he should win this but to each his own opinion I guess, thats why I cant stand to hear Haley or James different strokes for different folks I guess

      • The way I see it…they were to choose songs that either touched them or they liked. Soctty does that every week. That is who he is. It is not boring. It is good ole’ country and some of us love it….Also, I give him so much credit because he did not let Lady Gaga…a freak show…change him or intimidate him. He stayed true to himself and sang the way his heart tells him. I wouldn’t be afraid to take my nieces or nephews or grandson to his concerts…nothing inappropriate with him. That’s why he should be the next Amnerican (Role) Idol. I just wish Lauren wouldn’t have taken so much of Gaga’s advice.

      • To Carol-why does Scotty get away with staying true to himself and someone like Pia couldn’t. He’s such a snooze…

      • Where do you get off calling Gaga a freak show? So it’s wonderful for Scotty to stay true to himself but other people can’t be true to themselves? You can only be true to yourself if you are like Scotty? Only Scotty fans deserve to go to heaven, is that what you are saying? Well I think Scotty’s creepy mccreeperson 2nd song was a freak show. Am I going to hell now because Scotty kissed his cross at me?

      • Lady Gaga is … really…a freak show…doesn’t look like a “normal” person to me…she is a gimmick and a sorry example of music…certainly my opinion. Really…if you say her walking down the street…people would stop and stare. As for Pia…really like her…stayed true to herself…but unfortunately…there is a market for that … on Idol. Many like her have not done well.THERE…but that is not going to stop her. From the beginning, I didn’t think she would go farther than top 5, if that. As for Scotty…I really do like him…love Lauren…think James and Heley are okay…and we will see what happens. At first I thought it would be great for Scotty to make the top 5…now I am hoping for the top 3…and then…. He is true to his genre…and this is his advantage because there is a market for country. Enjoy!

      • Hey…let me fix a couple of words…In a hurry to go to work and shouldn’t be on here now…it’s addicting…

      • Darn…too much of a rush…as I was saying…IF YOU SAW HER (not say) and and for Pia (THERE ISN’T A STRONG IDOL BASE) for her…excuse the hurried typos in my post…
        As for kissing the cross…honestly…couldn’t you see that LG was just too much for him…his expressions gave it away. It’s just his upbringing…not anything else.

    • Well guess I have to say he is the best darn karaoke singer I ever heard Got this in the bag

      • Scotty Mcrappy will most likely WIn!

        But looks to me he’s to conservative …he belongs on the christian country side!! or else he better get use-to singing about infidelities & beer!!

    • just wait until the CMA awards and you will see how many people think he is a singer. don’t be a hater. or the millions of votes each week might be a clue.

      • he’s not going to make it there-no originality, sounds like any other country singer with a deep voice…

      • I do too sometimes… but those times require me to drink more alcohol than is safe for human consumption.

      • They said her first sonq was TERRIBLE (Steven Tyler disagreed) && Haley even spoke up for herself.
        They then qave her a standinq ovation for her second sonq.!

      • They loved both of Lauren’s songs.. you can find them and the comments on youtube if you type thehumanslinky then click on American idol… you can watch the whole show that week every time…

      • Oh, nothinq new there -the same thinq they say about her every week. They weren’t blown away but they liked it

  157. I have dialed 1-866-436-5702 at least 8 times for Haley. It keeps saying it ‘s not a working number. Anyone else having trouble?!

      • Yall grow up Nothing is rigged here You Haley Fans will say anything cause u know shes leavin find any excuse u can
        Shes a spoiled immature pouty baby you see her lips pouched out when they didnt kiss her as tonight Poor baby girl

      • i don’t vote haley, but i like her and i’m really tired of the unfair remarks the judges make each week regarding her. they do not do that with the others. and some of them have totally sucked. she did not pout. she was angry and frustrated. you would have been to if you had just sang your heart out. they were wrong. if your going to stack the deck so their fav james can win, at least spread it evenly.

    • I do, too. The message goes: the number is temporarily unavailable – just like it was with Pia.
      Anyone has another number to vote for Haley????

      • I can’t stand putting in all the letters in each time I vote online. Plus,I keep getting the same letters over and over,for every vote I make. Don’t they ever change after you hit the vote button?

      • It doesn’t seem like they have very many security things. There’s only like 10 and it randomly chooses, so 10% chance to get the same one.

    • Try using a different phone. I can NEVER get thru using my landline, but my Verizon cell phone works and goes right thru.

    • I have, only after several times of redialing for No.2, the voice said, thanks for voting for No. 3..I’m not sure whats going on tonight..

  158. Haley is so inconsistent as a performer, her only real strength is her growl. Lauren has the strongest voice by far!

      • Yeh Thats why I dont like her voice Dan Go to bed little boy U have school early

      • Only reason guys are voting for her is cause they think wrong the whole time in there little fantasy land wishing they could get with her.. No one is jelous i know im not, I dont like growling it shows no talent to me. American Idol is about singing not how hot they are, She cant sing growling isnt singing 🙂

      • Her 2nd song didn’t have any growl in it and was a better vocal than anything Lauren has done all season.

    • Lauren is generic. There are THOUSANDS of girls who can sing like her. Haley is unique and truly one of a kind voice and charisma. She is a great performer…captivating!!

    • Totally agree about Haley she is not that good at all-Very off key tonight and couple other performances I have seen Lauren is by far alot better and I will be the first to get on tomorrow nite and say TOLD YA SO

  159. YOU PPL are messed up so what if James opened & closed the show they where obviously saving the BEST for last!! and they wanted the audience to get a good impression based on the first and best performance BY JAMES!!!
    ps. maybe all of u who like scotty should think about what he has (alot) and think about what James has (for those of u who are comparing the two) james has a NEW BORN baby and NEEDS this, not just to show off to all the girls… ya i said it

    • Scotty is alot better than James. I do not care if James has ten kids because Scotty is still better and Haley….

    • Give me a break, perhaps he should have thought about providing for that baby before it was born….this is a talent competition, not a feel sorry for the contestant competition.

    • My first turn off for James is he couldn’t hold a job but he can compete in this competition. It still bugs me, but objectively you can’t say he’s terrible. His performances are exciting and fun. After watching Scotty’s 2nd performance I think he should be the one to go. Country is a great big beautiful thing. Nothing Scotty does has really wow’d me, he doesn’t add anything new to the Country genre.

      • If Lauren gets eliminated tomorrow which I feel may happen; then all of her votes will probably go to Scotty. I am afraid that James and Haley may get lost in the shuffle…so sad…I would like to see a James/Haley finale.. 🙂

      • It probably won’t happen, but James + Haley is way bigger than Scotty + Lauren. James/Scotty finale with James winning by a long shot.

    • Chloe: James has a baby and he deserves it. You are kidding. This is a singing contest. Not who is the neediest.

  160. People are doing it again!! They are Only judging Haley for only her second song ugh can’t stand it

  161. James 1 – B
    Laurens 1 – A
    Scottys 1 – C+
    Haleys 1 – B

    Haleys 2 – B-
    Scottys 2 – C-
    Laurens 2 – A
    James 2 – B

    James B+
    Scotty C
    Lauren A
    Haley B

    Good Job Lauren!! One day i don’t like you .. now i keep voting on you!!! LAUREN should win!! Come on world!! Keeping Vote Lauren NOW!

      • Lauren is much better then Haley any day….Haley sucks A@@…and she was a bi!ch tonight after her first song…she is starting to have this attitude that she doesn’t need help from the Judges any more…she’s to cocky for me!!

    • Totally disagree with you about Lauren’s grade. She nailed it on the first song (an A), nailed it on the first 1/3 of the second song but then her energy and vocals plummetted (B-). She is just not ready to yet…give her a couple more years to mature and gain experience and confidence and she’ll be one helluva performer.

      • Somehow I don’t think it’s fair to talk about people other than the contestant and while not everyone “plans” to have kids at his age it happens. Can’t crucify the guy for trying to make a better life and last time I checked no one threw out the sob story for him but others here. I know you are not in a position to be judged as you sit and type anonymously…but judge them for the music alone. Not who is cute, who needs it personally (I am sure they all have personal goals tied to this competition), not who is skinnier or any other reason than that you think they can sing. How about this, shut up and vote people.

    • LAUREN ALAINA FOREVER ! GO LAUREN! WIN WIN WIN LAUREN ALAINA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  162. Lauren and James had two solid amazing performances. Therefore, the bottom two should be Haley and Scotty.

    • I agree with you Mike. I thought the best were:
      1) Lauren
      2) James
      3) Scotty
      4) Haley

      Scotty’s 2nd song was terrible. Based on that song he should be eliminated, and I wish someone could give him some constructive criticism so that he stops doing weird, boring songs. However, he’s solid and likeable, so I’d say that Haley has to go.

    • they just felt crappy about the dis on the first song! i don’t think they were sincere.

      • It was so great they couldn’t find anything wrong with it to bash, same thing happened last week. Between House of the Rising Sun and I (Who Have Nothing) Haley should be in the finale. People are too stuck on themselves to see that.

    • third judges standing O for Haley..
      great job Haley…
      hope you win this competition

  165. Hayley will have a great career with out the judges. Sometimes it’s best not to win. Jennifer Hudson. A girl will go home.
    James has my vote along with Scotty.

  166. Well we got rid of a fat black woman last week (Jacob) now it is time to get rid of a fat white one (lauren)

  167. Again, I’m asking is anyone having trouble dialing. The message I get when dialing for Haley is ‘ it is not a working number’.

    • I’m getting through but not many times…. mostly voting at Americanidol.com online because I can’t get through enough on the phone for her. She’s AWESOME and these judges (minus Steven Tyler are just nuts!) That EARTH SONG brought me to tears as much as it did when MJ performed it so passionately!

      Haley has been versitile every week and they endlessly pick on her ….while Scotty performs the same country music and same style and same genre each week. Granted, he’s good in his field but he doesn’t branch out -Haley does and gets raked over the coals for it.

      At any rate… try to vote online at americanidol.com if you can’t get through on the phone lines. I’ve tried both numbers and getting through more on her 866-436-5702 than the 5706. Good luck and keep voting for that girl —

      It’s time for a girl to win AI ….vote one of the girls!!! James has fallen down the past few weeks (although, I am a fan) and Scotty does the sameOsameO each week (which may be great singing but not coming out of his comfort zone).

      • Also, ones need to watch the video of MJ performing that EARTH SONG ….amazing performance and he stomps, screams, growls, etc… passioinately in that song! It’s shocking to hear him out of his element but so powerful and amazing on such a heartfelt song. Haley did him justice and I think he would have been proud of her.

      • I don’t get it…Scotty is country, Haley is blues/jazz and growly. She sounds the same every week…and has the same attitude…very arrogant.

      • “Haley has been versitile every week and they endlessly pick on her ….while Scotty performs the same country music and same style and same genre each week”

        AGREE!

      • Why why why are you always saying Haley is arrogant? It’s fine if you don’t mesh with her personality, but you don’t have to be a broken record about it. Constantly tearing down a girl YOU DON’T KNOW is unbelievably tacky. If you really don’t want her to win, start pimping who you DO want to win. Lay off the personal attacks.

      • I how do you know she is arrogant? Have you met her? All she does is stand there. She takes the criticisms from the judges like an adult.

      • Haley Reinhart songs/genre

        The House of Rising Sun / Traditional/Folk)
        You and I /Lady GaGa (Hardly blues)
        Rolling in the Deep (Blues/Rock)
        Benny and Jets (Glam Rock)
        Oh, Darling (Swamp Pop)
        Breathless (JAZZ)
        Baby, it’s you! (Rock)
        God Bless the Child (Jazz)
        Carry on wayward son (Rock)
        I’m Your Baby Tonight (Pop/R&B)
        Piece of my Heart (Janice Joplin)
        Long and Winding Road (Rock)
        You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me (Soul)
        I feel the Earth Move (Pop, Rock)
        CALL ME (New Wave Rock)
        Beautiful (Folk/Pop)
        I Who have Nothing (Melodic/Pop)
        You and I (Pop)
        Blue (Country)
        Oh, Darling (RockNRoll)
        Fallin (R&B/Soul)
        Earth Song (Gospel/Operatic)

        Scotty McCreery Song/genres

        Put Some Drive in your Country (Country)
        (sang twice -once auditioned and sang again following week) Your Man (Country)
        Get Ready (R&B but performed in COUNTRY genre)
        I hope you can dance (Country Pop)
        Hello, Goodbye (Pop -but again done with country genre spin)
        Long Black Train (Country)
        Letters From Home (Country)
        The River (Country Pop)
        Can I trust you with my heart (Country)
        For Once in my Life (Soul, but again, done with COUNTRY SPIN not in any other genre)
        Country Comfort (Country Rock)
        That’s Alright (Rockabilly but again done Country spin)
        I Cross My Heart (Country)
        Pure Country (Country)
        Swingin (HOT COUNTRY)
        You Got a Friend (Pop, but again he sang it in the country genre)
        Up on the Roof (Pop, done in country)
        Gone (Country)
        Always on my Mind (American Country)
        Where were you… (Country Ballad)
        Young Blood (Lyrical, again genre of country)

        See a pattern with Scotty? He’s good –I don’t deny that, he really is and I do like country! That said, they are suppose to widen out and do other genres and he has not done that ONE TIME during this competition. He’s had songs that should have brought that to the table but he turned them in to country songs each and every time. I think he would do great as a country artist and Nashville will definitely have a spot for him. This is American Idol and this means -be versatile and Haley has been raked over the coals each for not widening her genre …if the judges would replay her songs and see her song list and listen to her -she has completely gone from one end to the spectrum to the other. I mean honestly, a bluesy jazz singer singing LADY GA GA and BLONDIE??? Really? And keeping true to the genre they were written in. Each of those songs she was beat up for -yet she did them in the genre they were suppose to be performed in. Had she spun it in to blues or jazz or even put a hint of it in it she would have been eaten alive for it. Yet, week after week, Scotty performs country. No matter what he is singing it is country! …that’s what he spins in to it… quite creatively at times, I admit. But that is what Haley is beat up weekly on and everyone says she has a bad attitude. Really?? She smiled week after week, taken their advice (each time she did they would tell her it sucked or she didn’t hit it or wrong song choice -at their coaxing….) Amazing! She took crits well until tonight and she finally had enough -GOOD FOR HER!!

        The EARTH SONG she performed was as Michael Jackson performed it -powerful, yelling, screaming, stomping the feet, adamantly singing this message!!! That’s what she did and they said she was yelling. Go watch that video of MJ performing this wonderful song and his amazing performance of it ….I didn’t think she could nail it like he did and she did!! I was nervous when I saw her song choice appear and thought OH MY GOSH she is insane… but she nailed it perfectly! Powerful and you could tell she meant those words and felt them as MJ did.

        The judges were crazy hard on her -quite unprofessional because they didn’t even offer advise just pooh-pooh’d on it. Well, tell her why it didn’t work. Oh, it’s out of her element? Yes, of course it is… that’s why it took guts to take it on. Something they keep telling her to do… she does it and they get pissy with it.

  168. I hate when people say Lauren needs to mature because why do u think American idol lowered the age limit to 15? They want a young new singer such as Lauren, Scotty, and Haley though I doubt Haley will win

  170. Singing about God, this is what Scotty believes in. And he did care about the Bin Laden news.

    He stays true to himself with the first song. Good vocal. He sings like he believes it. It’s not wrong with James singing 2 rocks song but with Scotty sticking to his country songs? So biased.

    I don’t love the second song, though.

    But still, I feel that Scotty has really tried to show who he is. Many of his songs are simple but meaningful. Showing people who you are truly is and loved by people who love you for who you are, it’s not easy. Lots of people don’t like Scotty. But who like him will stick with him until the end, for he is truly himself.

    What’s the point of winning something when you can’t be yourself?

    • My issue with Scotty hasn’t been the fact that he has consistantly stayed country, but rather before his performance of “Gone” last week it has been country ballad after country ballad.

      Last week he gave us variety with “Gone” and it was awesome. That is what he needs to do more of, he can branch out and grow and still stay country. Country isn’t quite as varied a genre as Rock is, but it has plenty of room for Scotty to spread his wings, take on different styles and still stay country. Last week was the first step he took towards that, now he needs to continue it.

  171. So here’s what I think. James is amazing. He rocked it tonight. He is by far the best performer on the show and he is an incredible singer. If people listen to his slow songs, they will see his amazing voice. I would be upset if he didn’t win, but he’ll get screwed like everyone since the second season of american idol. When was the last time the best singer and performer won the show?

    Haley is amazing. So unique. She’s the best vocalist left on the show. Her second performance of the night was jaw-dropping. I hope she goes to the finale.

    Scotty-he may be a great country singer, but almost every song this season, its been boring and slow. He’ll occasionally slip in an upbeat song, but tonight showed nothing new about him.

    Lauren-She’s improving. She’s a little too innocent and the second song sounded horrible with her voice. It needed a little Haley growl. I’m still waiting for her to perform.

    Knowing America, Haley will go home tomorrow. All the teenagers love Scotty and Lauren, which I am personally tired of.

    • Scotty HAS A TRUE COUNTRY VOICE. HE CAN SING LOTS OF DIFFERENT SONGS. ALOT OF COUNTRY SINGERS ARE GETTING OLDER AND SCOTTY CAN REPLACE THEM WELL………

      Haley has a voice that is unusal and she will be around next week…..

      • I am not a teenager and I love Scotty. I also like James. The girls, Lauren is better than Haley but either can go home this week, hopefully Haley.

      • Scotty is such a sweet kid, I doubt very much he’d even want votes from you. Obviously, you’re not a very good person.

      • Is there something wrong with being a saint? This is a singing contest, not who is a saint or not.

      • Susan ~ Well, plenty of people are voting for him based upon his supposed clean cut saintlike image… I guess it’s only fair for MELC to not vote for him for the same reason. ~shrugs~

    • Holly, my feelings to a tee.

      In terms of performances week by week, Scotty bores me to tears….my family actually fast forwarded his second performance. I do appreciate his vocal talents and believe he’ll go far in the country world. But his performances….yaaaaawwwwnnnnner.

      Lauren has been slowly slipping thru the weeks. I can’t think of one “wow” moment with her (she redeemed herself w/the first song but went backward again on the second).

      I love Haley and wish she would go to the finals with James. My beef with her is her inconsistency. When she nails a song, she is absolutely phenomenal but she can’t expect the judges to peeve her off every week to come out fighting.

      James is by far the best performer….maybe not the greatest voice of the bunch but has the best overall package in terms of stage presence and vocals.

      Sadly, I just don’t think James can overcome the Scotty-crush votes to win.

    • You hit the nail on the head !! Yes, gone were the days when the best singer and performer won the show. Ever Since kelly clarkson, carrie underwood….then season after season the good ones get voted off too early. So too this season. In short, this is becoming a popularity contest and no longer a singing contest. Look at how the young girls scream for Scotty…these are the signs. If America truly voted for a good singer, Pia would not have been voted out so easily. There are comments now and then about her being “plastic” and “wooden” but I feel such comments are so cruel. In my opinion, if you do not like a singing you do not hurl uncalled for remarks. Just comment on the singing…that’s it. Anyway, I have said my piece. Once again, it just saddens me to see this show turning into a popularity show. To sum up, if you ask me whose CD I would buy, I would say, Pia’s.

    • Well said Holly and I couldnt agree more. Haley is the best vocalist the show has and it will be a real shame if she goes home. She’s exciting! The others (except for James) VERY predictable…

      • I think everyone who knows their singer or the one they want to win isnt going to win cause you know deep down someone else is better then you start looking excuses. Stop watching the damn show or stop getting on chat Grow up

    • I loved Haley until she was so blatantly rude and disrespectful tonight! I can’t believe the way she acted! Also I love Scotty and Lauren and I am a 34-year-old married mother of 3 kids.

      • it’s the judges who were rude. I’m amazed she held her composure as much as she did. Week after week the judges single her out and hold her to a different standard. There is a point for everyone where they just break. I was breaking at home for her. how about Lauren bawling last week. She didn’t cry for Jacob, only herself being in the bottom two. Haley is the only one of the final four who has been tested by the judges.

        Where were the judges on Scotty, Lauren and James with their second song choices. NONE of them were that great.Following their standard with Haley Scotty’s was silly, Lauren couldn’t carry it and Jame’s was a corny song, that he admittedly pulled off. I’d like to see how Lauren would carry herself if treated by the judges equally.

      • Couldnt agreee more hollymarie She was so immature about the remarks the judges had They werent even being ugly to her She is just a xxxxxx acting young lady and someone who must get her way or cry I guess

      • So, I am twice your age and have raised five children and I have six grandchildren. Big deal. The judges slammed her again. She stood there and took it as an adult. I think the judges are far from being partial.

      • Didnt like her attitude at all either I think this may have hurt alot of her votes. I have in the past a couple times voted for her-Not any more Very unprofessional and wouldnt want to even buy a CD of hers now which I dought anyone will want to sign her on now She was awful and thats not the first time Ive seen this in her Very pouty if things dont go her way Wonder what she’ll do when she gets voted off. Stomp down the stage and throw her mic

  172. Well I think that the sequence of themes is finishing off Lauren and or Scotty….Strategically I think most of Stephano’s and Jacob’s voters will be migrating Haley’s way as they already have. Scotty has not improved one iota from day one and really becoming boring….It would not surprise me to see Scotty and Lauren in the bottom two tomorrow with Lauren sent home…..Sending Lauren home would be good for Scotty as her votes will go towards Scotty……I did notice that all three were rather good in the first round with Haley sweeping up on the second round…..Even with that, her first performance was actually really good…..but unfortunately with Lauren leaving tomorrow, Haley will be gone soon after…..Scotty was terrible in the second round tonight and may be leaving tomorrow in a surprise. I was extremely surprised at Haley’s performance tonight and so far she has improved the most of anyone on this season. However I would never second guess America or the producers…..who really want a female to win this year…..because I don’t think the votes are really considered all that much.

  174. wew,how tough can Haley get week after week judges splatting nonsense to her….? 1 critics to Lauren n then she burst into tears… If i in Haley shoes i probably will say as Haley said to the “Dawg”. She’s a 1 tough woman if i may say so. Well done Haley,well done!!!

  175. Scotty will have a career reguardless. I would love to hear him sing “Its Only Make Believe”. He is such a humble person. I would love to see him win. Haley is such a sore loser. She is so stuck on herself. I hope she goes this week. Janes is amazing. Lauren is so sweet.

  177. I have to wait for a about less than 24 hours to see who gets eliminated.But I am leaning against Haley and hate to say it but, more on Lauren to go :'( , I hope not but the Scotty McCreery Fan Club filled with shreaking girls saying Scotty your so hot, will vote like crazy and James is really good.

    Not saying Scotty is bad he’s good but he stumbled in round 2 , BTW,I AINT INSULTING EVERY SINGLE SCOTTY FAN, JUST THE ONES WHO ARE REALLY LIKE THAT, SUCH AS OUR MAID(COUGH,COUGH) MY SISTER AND COUSINS.XD

    Lauren :<, I love your voice and talent !!! go Lauren!!!!!!

  178. Scotty should win, he has a great voice. Scotty is a star already. His voice would melt any girls heart,and with his looks, he will be in many a girls dream. Go Scotty!!!!

  179. Sad but Scotty, who I think should go home based on performances alone, will not go home this week due to his fanbase. Nonetheless, all of em did great. Haley and Lauren tied first for me with Lauren 1st and Haley’s 2nd being the top 2 (tied for 1st) performances.

    James just edges out Scotty.

  180. I totally aqree. This is not a sympathy or popularity contest. Judginq by VOICE Scotty && Haley have it HANDS DOWN. James screamed the whole middle part of the first sonq. My one year old started cryinq -I had to mute him.

  181. i was a huge Haley fan until tonight! When the judges were critiquing her ( like they have everyone else at some point) she was a total BITCH. after the way she was rude tonight there is no way i can enjoy her like i used to… GO SCOTTY and LAUREN!

    • you should position urself if ure in Haley shoes. Week after week the judges always splatting nonsense to her. 1 or 2 times nonsense u probably can endure it,but 3 or 4 times… 1 critics to Lauren then she burst into tears. So u think its better to burst into tears? If i were in Haley shoes i will probably do the same thing as Haley said to the “dawg” nonsense…

    • I think because she was raised not to show her emotions on her sleeve, after the judges ripped into her yet again, she had to get angry to keep from crying. There were tears in her eyes, I can’t believe you don’t see through her act. She was just trying to be strong…she is strong.

    • WOW, after all these weeks she has taken all the blasting with a smile on her face. I am glad she stuck up for herself. she is an awesome talent and should be in the finale.

      • But it’s the blasting that got her where she is. If they had just praised her blindly in the beginning, she wouldn’t have upped her game and she’d probably be gone. There is a reason she was in the bottom 3 a few times.

    • I totally agree with you. She was really pissed that they gave her some advice since we are so close to the end. She was mad and it was obvious.

  182. Haley is the best vocalist this season. The judges criticism is soo off this season. I applaud her for sticking up for herself, even steven agreed with her. And for randy to say everyone was good but her was sooo rude. Shes in serious trouble tonight for the wrong reasons. Lauren is good too, but she doesnt have a chance of beating out james or scotty for the finale, Lauren is great, but shes got to mature a bit more.

    • I think Lauren will be great in a few years time as this competition has been a great springboard to kick-start her career and for producers to hear her and know what her potential will be, but she needs to grow a bit….get more confidence, which is why she won’t win.

      Scotty is so predictable, but he will have an amazing career win or loose, I am just not a huge fan.

      Hayley I think is that her attitude is letting her down which she needs to realise that in the music industry you will more criticism than compliments, she just needs to know how to handle them without pissing people off.

      James, is really a breath of fresh air that this comp needs. Sure he comes as awkward at times and people complain of his screech, but in the end, I think he should win because every week he puts his heart and soul on the stage. His stage presenece is far better than the others.

      So final 2, Scotty and James, then James for the win.

    • Haley has had attitude since day 1. That is why she has been in the bottom 3 so many times.

  183. oh my god – scotty was UN-LISTENABLE tonight. i’m sorry, i thought his first performance was pedantic and his second was downright laughable. i think if he performed that in the top 24 he would have been booted off the show. it would be cruel injustice if anyone went home except for scotty.

    top 3 = james, lauren, haley

    • I agree, I don’t get what people see in him, he’s just a boring kid with a deep voice :S

      • I think you are both jealous or something about it is strange Very strange Hes the best in the competition and has the greatest stage performance of anyone there

  186. Scotty is a one trick pony and that trick isnt even good. Your a horny cunt and i hope you and scotty suffer slow and painful deaths.

    • is that supposed to be a put down? because it kind of sounds like a compliment! btw, i agree, i think scotty needs to go.

  187. Lauren only has a future doing singing Jenny Craig and slimfast ads. Vote her off tonight so she can get started on her diet and career.

  188. wew,how though can Haley handle with the judges always sayin nonsense week after weeks… 1 critics n Lauren burst into tears… fiuh,i will probably do what Haley said to the “dawg” if im in her shoes. Haley is 1 tough woman if i must say. Well done Haley,well done!!

  190. So disappointed in the phone lines tonight, I voted like crazy for Haley and three of those times just pushing redial and the recording said I voted for contestant 3 so what is going on? How many votes is she being robbed tonight!!!!!!

  191. What’s wrong with Randy and JLO? Haley’s first performance clearly wasn’t the worst out of the four and yet she received such harsh comments while all the other three contestants were praised so much.

    And then after the first round, Randy had to make another remark about Haley being the worst. Oh gosh, do they seriously hate her that much?

    • It’s a joke at this point. The judges are so not impartial…I can’t take anything they say seriously. They make it so obvious who they want to be top 3/win…James. Then Scotty, then Lauren. Bottom-Haley. Always.

    • we see things the same Joe… it’s been like that from day one… Steven Tyler wanted Haley in the top picks, and JLo and Randy had someone else in mind…they have never given that girl a fair shake… personally i think Haley can out sing JLo any day. Jlo can’t sing unless she usees machines to distort her voice…I think she is jealous!!

    • I agree. I felt so sorry for her. I think she wanted to cry but, had great control. I do not get it. Why does Randy and JLO hate her so?

  192. Oh Kernan, Big Al, IloveHaley, I’m weirdandsarcastic…..where are you???? Did your girl, Haley, disappoint? Alot of big talk the last week about how she was going to blow the doors off of everyone (esp. Lauren) tonight! Alot of talk about how she was going to take the lead over James this week. It’s hard to eat crow now…

    • Well, considering her second song was probably the best of the show tonight (and one of the best of the season), I think they are too busy celebrating being right to come back here and rub it in somebodies nose.

      • She also showed her true colors once again to the judges and in front of America. Disrespectful, rude, conceited, self-indulgent….all the things that many of us have been saying for months. She at least used to be more subtle before last night. That is the side that she probably shows the cameramen, other contestants, and anyone else in her way. P.S. I know you meant to write “somebody’s”, as in possessive, not plural.

      • When the judges started ripping into Haley my mother had to leave the room she got so upset. James is her favorite. Her and I both agree that it’s better that Haley finally stood up for herself, and her music…how can you respect someone who let’s people walk all over them? Yeah…that’d make for a really great idol.

  193. I know people will hate me but its my opinion so here it goes…..The judges are trying to manipulate the voters so James and scotty get the two guys finale. For me, now James is getting a bit annoying with his Axel Rose wannabe screams…I like him, he is a good performer and have a great personality but in my opinion he’s not the best singer of the bunch. And even though i’m rooting for Haley, her attitude tonight was very inappropriate. I didnt agree with Randy but, she have to maintain her grace and class specially with millions of people watching her facial expressions. But still, I loved her performances. I think is that the second song that Haley did was my fav of all season and of all the contestants. In the beggining I wasnt a fan of hers but now she’s getting pretty good. Its just the attitude I dislike.

    • agree with u on all except for her attitude. i feel she has held it together through all of their unfair criticism. finally she stands up for herself and i think it may save her this week. with the position she was in she had no choice but to be strong. my opinion.

      • I know, its hard… they have been hard on her since day one. But you know there’s millions of teenagers voting for the guys, and because she’s talented and pretty she’s not getting the votes she deserve so she have to be very approachable and nice so she can have the votes she needs. I voted for her, she did GREAT. Loved her second song.

      • The criticism was waaaaaaaaaaaaay to unfair to Haley. The 1st performance was not best, but still think was beautiful. The 2nd performance, OH MY GOD!!! Tears came off my eyes unexpectedly… what can I say? YOU GO GIRL! GO HALEY.. HI JANIS!!!

  194. completely furious with jlo and randy. even more unprofessional than when they lost their minds when Pia was sent home. does american get to vote the judges off? because i for one would vote only steven tyler to return. all 13 contestants are more talented than randy or jlo to begin. their judging skills are awful and i think what they did to haley tonight was completely absurd. that was horrible how they treated her. randy should be ashamed for centring her out. they call it constructive criticism but truly they were just trying to break her down. she is amazing for continuing after such behaviour. sorry for the long post but i feel strongly about tonights episode anyone who can push through and perform after such an attack deserves fame.

    • I agre… Randy specially…He was very hard on her and I think that she is the best SINGER of the competition right now. I know James is the best performer but I cant hear him sing… Haley for me is the true singer here. She was mad, and she let everyone see that, thats not graceful but still I was mad here thinking that they are just trying to manipulate us.

    • i try to put myself in her position and i think myself and anyone else would have completely broke down…like lauren not that i dislike her i like lauren but she isnt ready for the big machine of fame. haley showed tonight that shes ready for the world an what they will throw at her an she will stay strong. lauren should watch carefully

  197. are you kidding me?? when he said “number nineee…!!” at the end, it was SO.. GREAATTT!!!
    I SURELY BUY HIS CD !!! POWERFULLLL! NAILED IT!

  199. Maybe it’s me, but I was very disappointed in tonight’s show. Start to finish, it was off kilter. James didn’t come close to any version of “Don’t Stop” I’ve ever heard. And the judges fell all over themselves praising it. Haley screeched her way through “Earth Song”. It wasn’t good, but she didn’t deserve the crucifixion they gave her. It reminded me of the way Kara and Simon savaged Siobhan. Scotty totally played the patriot card [not to his credit] and the judges over praised him. Lauren did a fair job, and the judges wet themselves. Ludicrous. Then they change up the rotation. Only Haley picked a good 2nd song. This entire show was a farce. Apologies for the long rant.

    • Templar, your still my boy… but I couldn’t disagree with you more on this post (except for your call on Haley’s 2 songs, and the implied slam on Scotties second song)

    • James is good but I wish he didn’t try to touch Perry and Journey. As a girl who grew up in the 70’s, I have listened to that song millions of times and love, love, love, it. No voice like Perry’s ever….perfect pitch, perfect range, perfect clarity, perfect volume. I wish he didn’t try that….

    • I have never been a big Haley fan.There is something about her that is not likable. but the last few weeks she has come in to her own vocally. I don’t blame her for getting upset tonight. Scotty could sing the phone book James could sing off key and pitchy and the judges would love it. the judges are making obvious who they want in final three

      • The attacks on Hayley from JLo and especially Jackson over the past few weeks have been disgusting and tonight was as bad as it gets. Thank you Steven Tyler for putting them down!

        The last 2 weeks, she has come back and slayed them with her 2nd song and what do they do? – Give her a standing ovation – and suck up to her! I don’t blame her at all for being upset after round 1 because she had to stand there for nearly 5 minutes listening to Jackson (in particular) sound off. Even JLo tried to shut him up. He was a disgrace and an embarrassment.

        In the meantime tonight, James gave what could be best described as a Karaoke version of Journey’s song and for Jackson to compare him to Steve Perry was an insult to Perry and an indication of how little Jackson really knows about singing.

        How did James get to open and close the show? In every other Idol I have watched – all but season 3 – they go in the same order 2nd time around as they did on the 1st round and all the others did apart from James. His 2nd song was a good version of a mediocre song.

        Round 1, in fairness, went to Lauren and there was no 3-way dead heat as Jackson claimed.

        Round 2 went to Hayley.

        Overall, the girls were #1 and #2, James was marginally #3 and Scotty was #4. His songs were predictable, not exciting and very safe.

        Obviously we know that is not the way the busy fingers will vote and if this ends up with Scotty winning then you can officially stop calling this a talent contest and simply a glorified Karaoke popularity contest.

      • I think haley and james done pretty great
        but i think james is better specialy his performance.
        Vote for james!!

      • David, obviously you are biased. Anyway, who cares about what the judges say. It’s a popularity contest really not even a talent show. Whoever has the largest number of fans win. That happens to be Scottie. Oh yes, Scottie is the best of them, I almost forgot to say.

      • I think the judges know more about Haley than we do. After all, they get to see her interactions during rehearsals, etc. It is my opinion that they have seen the personality that I have been describing all along with Haley…conceited, rude, self-serving, and uncaring toward others. After all, she showed it to us last night.

      • @ marc You say I am biased and then agree with me about the popularity contest. This is what I said at the end:

        “you can officially stop calling this a talent contest and simply a glorified Karaoke popularity contest.”

      • i agree with dave, haley is by far the best, that is not a bias opinion cause i used to hate her. and she is not at all “snotty”. randy singled her out. i would be pissed too. i wouldn’t have talked back… i would have round house kicked his face in.

  202. My take on the first half:

    James – This was pretty darn good. James is awesome. He missed a few key notes in the middle (of course the judges give him a free pass).

    Haley – Beautiful song, great message. Screw the judges! She did yell a bit, but really they had nothing good to say about it? I agree with Steven for the first time ever.

    Scotty – Best Scotty performance of the season. It was real, great vocals. Pretty much amazing, and I’m not even a Scotty fan.

    Lauren – What the crap is that dress? Really pretty song, I almost fell asleep.

    • Strongly biased review really a comment on a dress? Lauren had the best song of the night for the first round the second one sucked but u complement Haley and u admit that she yelled a bit? Scotty was pretty average on the second and awesome on the first. And James was solid as well

      • You are the epitome of objectivity, one day I hope to see the world through such a clear glass.

    • This site is so biased toward haley and james…..especially haley., every other comment is I how they hate the judges for bashing haley but fail to realize she had two standing ovations AND a best performance of the season…..Haley did not do well on her first song but does well on her 2nd…..lauren also had one better song and gave a lot of energy…..she along with haley has fought too especially after last week when everybody swore she would not hold up due to emotions….to me it seemed like she stuck her hand up in all the haters faces and said watch this…..on BOTH performances yet still manages to show up at 14%

      • vb, listen randy jackson singled her out. “the first round is a tie between lauren, james, and scotty.” he didnt need to do that even if she was the worst of the first round, ryan asked for ONE person, not to single someone out. and not to mention she has taken criticizen every week when she doesnt deserve it. when other contestents sound like grap sometimes and still get praised, and its not like randy has anything constructive to say, he just went on and on for like 5 min about how she was sharp. and by the way, i found this quote from lauren online….

        “I wasn’t a happy camper about that. That made me a little ill because Haley, I’m sorry guys, Haley has the best voice on this show and she gets the most criticism and its just that I deserve a lot more criticism than she does, I’m Haley’s number one fan. I listen to her songs on iTunes over and over.” – lauren alaina

        which by the way made me like lauren more. lol.

    • 1st round to Lauren
      2nd round to Hayley

      Overall, they were #1 and #2 on the night but we know that is not the way it will go with all the busy fingers texting and speed dialing.

    • If Jams missed a key, he shouldn’t even be this far. You all forget, you will be LISTENING to one of these performers. James can’t sing. without watching him, you would NOT like his voice alone from your Ipod or the radio. Not good. Sorry. It’s a competition, not a personality/life/who do I love thing. It’s a voice competition. Scotty has the ONLY natural voice that needs little training. Haley too.

      • Jan
        Do you buy the studio versions of the songs on iTunes? I do, and I listen to them all day the next day at work. James CAN sing, and his studio versions of the songs he has sung on the show are, if anything, better than the performances.

    • Joni I agree with you entirely. Cali is a full blown window licking blithering idiot.

  203. Scotty is terrible…I don’t understand what people see in him. And the judges….well they have their favs and will never say anything negative about them…it’s sickening to watch.

      • THE JUDGES THINK YOU SUCK TOO! I MUCH PREFER SINGING FROM SCOTTY, & LAUREN, THAN SCREAMING, & YELLING FROM JAMES, & HALEY! LET THE Dom public decide! whewwwwwwwwwwwwwww. I’m so sick of yalls b_ _ _ _ _ _ every daggone week!

      • i agree scotty is great.
        and haley just scream
        james & scotty fo final wooooooo.(^o^)/

      • Sweetietone Most people like you with an IQ under 60 do like Country music opposed to anything that requires actual talent.

    • you are a terrible judge of any thing Scotty is a great performer, Lauren i snext to go.

      • HALEY REALLY BAHAHAHA! All she does is growl and scream…LAUREN IS THE BEST GIRL!

    • I’m not crazy about Scotty,and would probably nver go out of my way to watch him, but he does have a beautiful clear voice for country music and there will always be a fan base for him. He could have used some “judging” last night. Strange song choice for #2. I thought his vocals were near perfect in #1 song and that he snag it very controlled.

    • scotty was great for me…and what the judges said about him was true and am not even a fan of him….so go go go for scotty.

  204. American idol this year seemed to be putting in the most boring, snoozers, weak vocal peple in the top and so there for our winner is that’s righhhhtt.. SCOTTY! YIP YIP HORAY FOR NORTH CAROLINA!!!!!!! YOU DID IT!!! YOUR STUPID VOTING TRICKS WORKED WHERE WHEN I BUY A PRODUCT AT THE STORE YOU HAVE ‘VOTE FOR SCOTTY’ IN THE BOTTOM! YAY! WE DID IT! 😀 WE MANAGED TO KICK ALL THE GOOD TALENT OUT SICNE THE TOP 24 AND WILL PUT IN A KID WHO NEEDS THE MOST AMOUNT OF WORK! YAY FOR US! CAN’T WAIT TILL HE WINS!

    • Scotty don’t have time to wipe his butt! you give him way to much credit. you’re just jealous because james, & haley’s fan club didn’t think of it first! ahahahahaha
      To bad, to sad, but I’m glad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

      • I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE SCOTTY, & LAUREN LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK!
        TA TA!

  205. 1st round hands down its Lauren (the best). Although it kinda ruined the feeling that i felt from the beginning of the song until she say “thank you” before the song finished…it makes the feeling go away in that second she say that.. why oh why Lauren did u do that? it makes the warmth go away,u should give the audience more time to be swept away.. u would probably get a standin O if u didnt do that… but she still the best of 1st round.

    Haley not great bot good. The beginning her voice struggle to overcome of being a soft allurin sweet voice of the king of pop but at the end she pulled it off.

    James…i hate to say this is the 2nd worst of his performance with last week Without You. Theres a pitchy moment all over the song. He’s out of breath sometimes n weak swallowed by the background music… If only he displayed his voice as strong as Judas Priest song in the Top 12 men,it will be epic…

    Scotty… too much of a twang makes it a little sour and his twang sometimes not hittin the right note makes it pitchy. His voice were overwhelmed by the background music sometimes i cant hear what he was sayin… if he just sing like Babyface said in the top 6 to make it a little bit smooth in between without the twang,it will be great…

    • are you kidding, what show were you watching,either lauren or haley will be the next to go.

    • YEP, THEY TOLD DON WILLIAMS, ALAN JACKSON, GARTH BROOKS, JOSH TURNER, RANDY TRAVIS, VERN GOSDIN, GEORGE JONES, MERYL HAGGARD, & SO ON, & SO FORTH THE SAME THING, AND BABY, JUST LOOK AT THEM NOW? 🙂

  206. Scotty is the best, then James, after Lauren
    Go home Haley tomorrow, enough is enough for us .

    • I ALMOST AGREE;
      MY PICKS IN THIS ORDER;
      SCOTTY
      LAUREN
      HALEY
      JAMES

      SCOTTY WILL BE THE NEXT AMERICAN IDOL!!!!!!

    • yeah i agree with you there definitely SCOTTY he’s awesome. All of you scotty haters just back of will you his great and thats that.(^o^)/

  207. At first, Scotty seemed cute to me, and while he has a beautiful voice for country music, he is both dull as the day is long and entirely unwilling to change. Lady Gaga picked up on that immediately and, frankly, whether you like her or not, you must admit that she’s essentially the biggest name in music right now. It was arrogant on Scotty’s part to be so blasé about her comments. That said, I don’t dislike Scotty. Actually, I think that for someone his age, his vocals are really impressive. In spite of that, I simply don’t feel he’s an American Idol, especially considering his three competitors.

    Lauren, while not always sure of herself, has an absolutely mind-blowing voice. When she stops being so worried about how she’s coming across, it shows, and if that happened more often, she’d definitely be blowing the others out of the water. I feel like she’s been chickening out with her performances, possibly because she’s feeling a lot of stress to impress; I wish she’d show more of what we saw the very first time she appeared on the show because that was phenomenal.

    Then there’s Haley, and she…she is just incredible. I wasn’t sold on her at first, but then I realized that from week to week, there were very few performers I looked forward to seeing next. There was James, there was Lauren, there was Paul, and then there was Haley. She’s an incredible vocalist, even beyond the crowls, she’s emotive and she’s got wonderful stage presence. She could make it even without this show.

    And finally, there’s James, who I’ve been fond of since he first appeared on the show. James is just great. I do feel his first performance of the night was a bit sloppy, much like his second performance was last week. I’m not sure if that’s because of nerves, or if it’s something else, but based on all his performances throughout the competition, it’s clear that his voice is out of this world. That look on Stevie’s face sometimes ? He is in awe. I don’t doubt that if James loses, Steven Tyler is going to take that boy under his wing so fast and he’s going to make a star of him.

    • Sara, You are absolutely right. Haley is incredible. The two judges that criticized her haven’t recently listened to Michael Jackson sing that song. He screams throughout the song as well as Haley did. I just wish she could define herself better. I don’t yet know what kind of artist she will bring to the stage. Like Scotty, will bring country. James is just another pop singer. I’m afraid he is going to drop after next week. The two remaining at the end I believe will be Scotty and Haley.

      • I LIKE the fact that you can’t peg Haley so tightly into one genre. She can sing country (Her “Blue” was the best COUNTRY song of the season, even with Scotty and Lauren still in the competition) and blues and rock and jazz, and she can scat, and her vocal control in all of them is fantastic. And whaddaya know: She sings on key!

        But she gets trashed for being VERSATILE instead of definable, and the others stay in their little comfort zones.

        I just don’t get it. Send Randy home.

    • Are u serious? Lauren was sooooooo much sure of herself tonight. It seems like you twist things to make it more favorable to your favorite. Haleys first performance was not incredible.

      • The judge comment on Haley’s first song and praise her the 2nd song you can listen the first song her voice is harsh one not that suitable for that song cannot go high for that song it sound forcing her voice on there like cannot go high and Michael voice is sharp for that song it doesnot sound screaming and can go high. You all go listen carefully really got one part it seem like Haley cannot go any higher for the first song. And second song Haley got no problem of that but first song yes.

    • the competition will be between Scotty and James,great country singer vs a great rock singer, the females in this competition haven’t decided who or what they are.

    • I THINK FOR THESE FOUR TO BE SO YOUNG, THEY ALL SHOW WEAKNESSES, & STRENGTHS! GIVE THEM ALL A BREAK! COULD YOU STAND IN FRONT OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE, LIVE, & NOT MAKE ONE MISTAKE? EVEN THE RECORDING ARTIST WITH CONTRACTS HAVE TO SING TAKE AFTER TAKE BEFORE THEY SETTLE ON A TRACT GOOD ENOUGH TO GO ON THEIR CD FOR SELL! THINK ABOUT IT?????

      • Yes, sweetieone, you are very right.Nobody is 100% perfect in this world. Even robot cannot be 100% perfect. Some people like this some people like that ,not everyone like the same thing.

  209. i want james to win with everything in me. i only voted for him tonight. 215 times to be exact.
    i think lauren did the best she ever did. loved her!
    scotty was my least favorite tonight.
    when jlo and randy bashed haley, i lost it. i left the room for the first time watching idol. i threw my cup at the kitchen sink.i loved what she did with the micheal jackson song. the second song was amazing too.
    i am really sick of how the judges (not steven tyler) keep treating her.
    if i was haleys mom and in the audience, i would be going to jail, ask devin lee she will tell you. lol

      • Well said secondchance , i agree with everthing you said. randy is a mean person, i think he was out of line with his comments. Haley for the win, if not on Idol , then in life.

  210. Dear America,
    Please do not waste your vote on James. The last three Idols have been male rockers and name ONE song that any of them have on any of their albums. Go ahead… Name one. That’s right, you can’t. Male rockers do not do well after Idol. Please vote for someone that will actually be successful after Idol.

  211. My take on the second half:

    Haley – Suckah what? There was nothing wrong with that, absolutely amazing. She showed everyone she can sing w/out a growl or even the gravel/rasp.

    Scotty – Super creepy facial expressions, I think it was kind of corny.

    Lauren – I don’t think this is necessarily her fault because the sound team has sucked all season, but she got lost in the background music quite a bit.

    James – That was pretty dang sweet, very few pitch issues (which he’s had a problem with), and he played the crowd very well.

    Overall I’d rank it:

    James
    Haley
    Scotty
    Lauren

    Honestly these performances by Lauren should have happened a long time ago in order for her to really deserve to be in the finale.

    • Tough night to rank! Best performance of the night was Haley. By that criteria she was number one. If you average performances though, it’s a four-way tie tonight, maybe Scotty being last.

      • Bet you can’t hold a tune! Haley is going home…with her growling and screaming self! Lauren, Scotty, James and BYE BYE HALEY!

      • I don’t think so Haley is safe,I think James is going.Week after week all that he does is scream time to go home.He’s a want to be ROCKER he won’t cut it with the real rockers.So I hope he’s gone bye bye.

  212. so very over haley growling every song. she has a good voice but covers it up with all those animal noises a lot of the time. Her second song was much better but the attitude she gave the judges was rude and disrespectful..they were just trying to help her out because that first song was horrible!
    James was pitchy in the first song but the second one was pretty wicked.
    I don’t see what people see in scotty.
    Lauren is a sweetie pie but still has a lot of growing to do…

    • Did you hear the judges say ONE bad thing about any performance except Hayley’s first one?

      Yet you have criticized the other three. Now do you understand why Hayley got upset?

      That rant of Randy Jackson’s went on for over 4 minutes and even when JLo and Steven tried to shut him up (and Ryan at one stage) he went on and on.

      That song meant as much to Hayley as the other songs did to the other three and no-one except Lauren could be proud of their performances in round 1.

      I was surprised that Hayley was so graceful after the worst rant I have heard from a so called judge in 10 seasons of Idol.

      Then she came out and slayed them with her 2nd song. She will be a star, whether she wins this or not.

      The loser tonight was Randy Jackson who was a disgrace and has been with Hayley for the past 3-weeks.

      • I toatally agree wt u.I’m tired of d judges hittin on haley.even last wk wen she sang lady gaga’s song,she did rily gud but trust d judges 2 find a fault in it all bcos d̶̲̥̅̊ε̲̣̣̣̥γ̲̣̣̥ haven’t heard it b4.Randy is just a biased judge dt doesn’t tell d truth wen it comes 2 haley.I’m rily rily pissed at him n so disappointed too.

      • I agree it seems noone else gets any from the judges and Haley has grown the most both songs were AMAZING from her.James give me a break again scream scream scream so done with him time for him to go.I’m a rocker and he does nothing for me and I wouldn’t buy his music I would listen to scotty before him.
        GO HALEY GO 🙂

      • Right on David, randy is an ass wipe and a disgrace.He should be kicked off the show. Haley is the real thing.

    • scotty’s voice. You knucklehead. you don’t watch these people after this dumb show is over. you listen. james has no voice. It’s poor quality overall. you don’t hear scotty’s tone? he holds a note. that’s what is heard from scotty cause that’s what will matter. not this show.

  213. I’m done voting and I’m so po’ed at two of the judges that every one of the calls went to Haley. Usually I would split votes, but the girl did not deserve the raking she got on the first song. Yeah it’s not as well known as “Don’t Stop Believin”, (James is good but not in Steve Perry’s league, by far!)but it’s not all that obscure and she really sang it quite well. Then there was the second one, “I Who Have Nothing” and she was terrific on that. Jordin Sparks sang the daylights out of that song a few years back, but Haley’s version competes with hers. Really,seriously good. Scotty is charming and has a voice well suited for country, but I’m not seeing any progression or stretch from him. Same story for Lauren, who has a pleasing voice and personality as well. James does mostly rock and he does it pretty well, though tonight he was off key several times. Haley has shown somevariety…jazz, rock, country, pop…and she’s about the only one who has taken CHANCES. A capella, lesser known songs that have meaning to her. I didn’t start out liking her all that much, but she has grown on me. And it’s now like Randy and JLo save all their critiques for her, passing on legitimate opportunities to critique the other contestants. Well, I’m with Steven on this one; Haley shouldn’t listen to them and neither should the voting public.

    • I agree with you,my vote went to Haley. J Lo and Randy shame on you didn’t you hear James on the first song,Randy you played with Journey shame on you OUT OF TUNE HE SUCK ON BOTH SONGS.Hope he goes HOME bye bye all he does is SCREAMS & BOREING

      • Randy gives the impression that he was part of Journey. He was a session bass player with them for about a year in the mid-80’s and played bass on one of their albums.

        That does not make him a member of Journey and to compare James to Steve Perry was idiotic.

        James did nothing with the song and basically did a Karaoke version of it. I have heard it sung as well if not better in Karaoke bars.

        As for Scotty, I will use a Simon Cowell saying. “What’s the point in critiquing you because you don’t listen, come out and do the same basic stuff and are going to get the votes anyway.”

        He would have called James out for his poor performances but would have praised him for his good ones – as he did with Adam Lambert.

        His style may not have suited everyone but we have really missed a judge who can critique with equal fairness ALL of the contestants and, let’s face it, ALL of them needed critiquing.

        We simply have not had a judge who has been prepared to do that this year and Jackson’s angry rant last night was disgusting and it was angry!!

        In all previous seasons, the contestants have had their back and forth with the judges when criticized and it was part of the show, especially when it got to this stage.

        Hayley stood up for herself last night and, given the nature of the rant from Randy, I don’t blame her.

        The others don’t need to say anything because they have never had to endure anything like that even though performances have merited critiquing.

        As for the alleged back stage attitude of Hayley toward the others, go to AI.com and see how close these people are and that Hayley and Lauren get on just fine with Hayley being big sis (age wise).

    • OMG!! do this judges lost thier mind? Haleys can not be the maericna idol…she can not be idol if she can not take any criticicsm. She should take it not and act like she is the best among the contestant. She is nothing but a slut stubbing bitch. Her whole family is hacking the system for her to stay in the idol. All she is a piece of rotten tomato. Also I didn’t think that Paula is still in idol but inside Steven Tyler’s body….It’s time for X factor.. please send Haley home…

      Cali..you and me the same..

      • She’s been taking criticism all freaking season! And tonight, when it is obviously biased and unhelpful she finally breaks.

      • Well Said Joni!!! Phephot, you are what you think Haley is… if you don’t like the show DO NOT watch it.. go on to X factor and start bashing the stars there.. 🙁

      • What a classless “comment.”

        People who live in glass houses …. etc., and you obviously live in one.

      • Phephot,U̶̲̥̅̊ r a world-class idiot n a fool 4 sayin dt.hav U̶̲̥̅̊ been soo blind n deaf that U̶̲̥̅̊ haven’t seen dt gal stand on stage week after week n listen 2 d judges criticize her unjustly n intentionally.U̶̲̥̅̊ r very very stupid n U̶̲̥̅̊ d bitch(i don’t care wat ur gender is),a pig n U̶̲̥̅̊ hav d brain of a cockroach too.stupid stupid idiot.dt gal is one of d most talented person in d show n yet U̶̲̥̅̊ also lie abt her.even wen d odas sing rubbish(wch we all kno),d judges still pat dem on d head. You kon,I’m tinkn d judges r doin d whole haley bad talk  purpose prob bcos d̶̲̥̅̊ε̲̣̣̣̥γ̲̣̣̥ kno she is soo gud n d̶̲̥̅̊ε̲̣̣̣̥γ̲̣̣̥ don’t want her 2 win. DUMP YOU,dump Randy.all very foolish pple gettin  my nerves

      • Hey phephot, you are a asshole. You must be a friend of that other asshole randy. HALEY FOR THE WIN.

      • Haha, I agree that you and Cali are the same. Birds of a feather, and all that. 😉

  215. I believe that JLo and Randy think that Haley is the best performer and has the greatest potential of the four. They criticize her because she is the one who has grown most and still has more potential to show. The other three have peaked and are who they are – that is, no surprises left from them. Just a thought…

    • If that is the case then why does Jackson say that all the others are in it to win it????

    • I don’t know if they think shes the best, but I truly believe this is all crap on their part to try to keep the ratings up. If they cause a stir picking on someone, it stirs us all up. I said all this before. I personally think they’ve gone a little over the top with Haley. I agree with second chance, I was using some pretty strong language last night for an old lady. So there you go they stirred us up. I believe its all a ploy.

  216. I have a feeling that Haley will go home tomorrow, she loses some votes JUST BECAUSE of her attitude in the first song. But really, they were ganging up on her… All the time. If I were haley. My reaction would be a lot worse.
    This is a singing competition so people should vote based on talent, but I see that it won’t happen.

    So Haley will probably go home tomorrow in spite of her AWESOME performance of I who have nothing (I personally think the earth song is great but whatever).

    I wish her the best of luck. I’m sure she will do great in the music industry and then she can tell all her haters who the real winner is.

    IN YOUR FACE haters!!
    Let’s see what happen after Idol!

    Anyway, after Haley’s elimination, I’m done with this year’s Idol. Nothing will excite me anymore. I’ll just come back next year and wait for another awesome talent goes home as it happens a lot in American Idol.

    • Laura,I was SO upset at the Haley smashing. I am with you, when Haley is gone, I am done. This was my first ever AI experience and it has been incredibly frustrating to watch. I am in the minority even in my own home, my boys love James, they are 12, 14, & 15, so I’m okay with that. They all love Haley as well, and get pretty upset with all of the snarkey remarks the judges fling her way. I just don’t see how you can make a wrong choice when you are asked what inspires you? Really???? I mean that’s like saying your favorite color is wrong! What’s the number to vote Jennifer and Randy off???? P.S. I loved Casey too.

      • Haley will be safe 🙂 and yes J Lo & Randy WTF is up with them clean your ears.Oh I know the ears are sore from all the freakin screaming James is doing done with James time for him to GO BYE BYE.He’s being to smug thinks he’s all that and trust me he’s no Steven Tyler or Brett Micheal’s not even close to be even Axel from guns”n roses.

    • I wouldn’t count Haley out just yet. Lauren’s performance tonight was good, but not better than Haleys overall. Lauren was in the bottom 2 last week, and she needed to have a better night than she did to overcome Haley. However, the 2 minute beating Haley took from Jlo and Randy might have hurt her, but I am hoping the opposite is true, and that America can see how truly talented she is and how ridiculous the judges sounded.

    • Laura, well said. I totally agree. I have been for Haley since day one. The judges, not Tyler, acted like they knew better than Haley what song SHE thought was inspirational to her. Ridiculous! I won’t any more this season, if she goes home.

    • Haley will not go home because of her attitude after the first song. She will go home because of her attitude for the past few months.

      The judges used to like Haley. Everyone is asking why they changed. Has it occurred to anyone that maybe they know something more than we do. We have seen her come off as conceited, unfriendly to the other contestants, and basically unlikeable.

      Maybe the judges know what really goes on behind closed televisions. They see her during rehearsals and know what happens in the house/hotel/wherever they are staying. Like Tyra Banks on Top Model, she heard who was a witch and who was sweet to cameramen, contestants, etc.

      Haley showed her true colors last night with the judges. This is what I, along with many others, have been saying for months. She is not a nice person and the judges don’t want someone like that to get a million dollar contract.

      • Wow are you watching the same show ????? She’s so much better then the screamer James.Let me tell you something she has alot of Casey’s voters and jacob voters and I think you’ll be shock tonight with the person going home. BYE BYE James

  217. haley was the best of the night as always… i think she is in the top 3 (go to dialidol, guess who`s leading the topp???) but who knows, maybe scotty goes tomorrow… haley is the one who deserve to be in the finale, she is strong! and i think she said the TRUE in a very respectful to the judges!! GO HALEY YOU ARE AMAAAZINNN not scotty, not lauren, not even james can do what you do!! YOU ARE THE BEST

  218. You know what the votes always turn out the other way. As what most people hated the most it is Haley and James cause they hated the screaming and growling and that is why I find these people are tone deaf. The one people like the most are Lauren and Scotty cause of likeable and a lot of fans favourite. Sad to say although I like Hailey’s voice but the people like Lauren more then her so Hailey might be going home.

  219. I honestly think the judges are only trying to be honest with the contestants to help them grow- I have to say their first songs were expessing their feelings. I am still loving American Idol and looking forward to the summer tour. I am a big Scotty fan because I truly believe he is very sincere and I love his voice. I wish all the contestants well in their careers.

  220. 2nd song/round :

    Lauren… wow,how courageous of her to sing a country jazz. The beginning of the song like Casey “Hi De Ho”… well, lyrics aside,i gotta be honest it was a splendid performance by Lauren. She play the notes fitting for a Country Jazz. Great surprise from Lauren. And she’s not backing off in the high notes section of the song. Her breaking voice is beautiful if i must say so. Great performance,great performance. Overall an A from me.

    Scotty…waks,im SURPRISED!! His growl with the twang flavor and his richness of notes n how he skillfully play a high n low notes…i cant believe it!! I cant believe he had it in him. Scotty can pull-off a Country Jazz!!Thats really3x awesome!!! Love it. This is the best of Scotty performance in AI season so far IMO. And the ending of the song… its like Casey “Hi De Ho” again!! Great touch by Scotty. Amazing!!! I dont know the fact that Casey there in the audience have anything to do with the arrangement of Lauren & Scotty song,nevertheless Scotty amazing!! Overall is an B+ from me.

    James…GAHHHH Why cant u do this in the 1st song!!! James “Love Potion No. 9” was splendid. Thats how u should do it james in the 1st song!!! The way he took his times in the end of the song,awesome!!! It have a jazz tunes at the end. I have to say, the notes at the end of the song if it played together,guess what… its the same as Casey “Hi De Ho” n Scotty “Young Blood”. Overall a B from me.

    The best in the 2nd round will be… Haley,no doubt from me. The arrangement with the violin & how she start the song..beautiful vocal. The passion n the vocal in the way she sing,just awesome,awesome… Gaga advice holding breath near the end of the song,kudos to Gaga n Haley to pull it off. Awesome. Overall an A from me.

  221. I think that randy want lauren to stay so he critisize haley so much.
    James for the win!!

  222. There’s a lot Haley fans out there , Haley’s style is aggressive and I think he lost votes because of his attitude before the judges. I think if the judges were mistaken in their appreciation should have stayed silent, then, we voters determine if she stays or not. Haley is the big loser tonight.

    • your not very sure about that guille, for haleys second song….i dont think she will be sent home tomorrow.

  223. There’s a lot Haley fans out there , Haley’s style is aggressive and I think he lost votes because of his attitude before the judges. I think if the judges were mistaken in their appreciation should have stayed silent, then, we voters determine if she stays or not. Haley is the big loser tonight….

  224. Round 1

    James gave a great performance. He didn’t do anything spectacular with it, but that song is such a beast, so incredibly difficult to sing well that the fact that James made it through in entertaining fashion without any real slip-ups made it an “A” performance.

    Haley ~ It started off so well. But at the end she struggled. Not a bad performance, but at this point in the competition she needs to bring it to another level. “B”

    Scotty ~ Classic Scotty. Simple as that. Which means that it was excellent. In this case you add in the kind of emotion that that song brings, and that he brought to the song as well. “A”

    Lauren ~ Now this is more like it. She always sings like a bird, but this time she brought the kind of power she needed to show. She seems to have an easier time doing that with contemporary songs like this one. “A”

    Round 2

    Haley ~ WOW! What else can I say? I wonder if she plans to make a habit of doing meh, ok, in the first song and then absolutely murdering (in a great way) the second song. I had goosebumps. “A+”

    Scotty ~ I’m really divided about this. It was a fun song, and I hate to discourage Scotty from doing something different. It had me smiling, but I wasn’t impressed… “B”

    Lauren ~ My only complaint from this song is that her breathing issues popped it’s head back up at the end of the song. Lauren came out with strut and attitude that left me flatfooted. “A-”

    James ~ HOLY ***ING ****! They say take the song and make it yours. James just defined what that phrase means with this performance. He was more careful with that upper register. He really took his showmanship to a whole ‘nother level. Pure awesome. “A+”

  225. My personal opinion…for the first time ever this season, I think Lauren did the best. Which puts me in a quandary ‘cuz overall, I think she’s done the worst. (she’s never been bad, but never been good, up until this point).

    Hmmmmmmmm…how to vote. no clue…

  226. Just finished Idol on the West Coast, Haley should have been thrown off the stage for her disrespect. What an attitude, nothing new, she has had it since day 1. And people think Lauren is insecue. WOW.

    • The judges should have been thrown off the stage. It’s one thing to offer criticism – but it’s another thing entirely when it goes on….and on…and on…..and on the way it did with Haley last night. They praised James to the skies last week when he couldn’t stay on pitch to save his life (that’s just one of countless times they praised crappy performances). After awhile- how much can somebody take? Haley has taken it all season. I think her rebuttal was out of pure exhaustion. Also, if you sift through it, she was actually sticking up for MJ saying she thought the way he sang it should not be changed so she didn’t. That’s why the end was a little “screamy” She was tipping her hat to MJ. Funny that Randy wouldn’t/didn’t last night.

  228. Quote from Lauren Alaina about the judges treatment of Haley after the show:

    “I wasn’t a happy camper about that,” she said. “That made me a little ill. I’m sorry, but Haley has the best voice on this show and she gets the most criticism. I deserve a lot more criticism than she does. I’m Haley’s No. 1 fan. I listen to her iTunes songs over and over and over.”

  229. Haley won’t go home, the only reason she gave “attitude” is because she knew that she DID NOT deserve anything she was hearing. She has the voice of an angel and my votes every week<3

  230. I just want to ask the judges, why did they say they think Haley was screaming and it is bad? What about James huh!?

      • Why you all didnot hear for the first song Haley did sound trying very hard to go high note her voice is harsh voice not like Michael Jackson sharp voice it is different voice both of them and it sound screaming at one part of the song i hear it not just the two judge hear it. go and listen carefully.

      • grace ~ I’m guessing english is not your native language, so please dont take offense when I ask this, but… Huh?

  231. Lauren did really well tonight, she also did great last week, I feel it’s really unfair that she was in the bottom 2 last week, and might be going home tomorrow… I predict that Scotty and James are 100% safe, and lauren or haley will be sent home.

    I actually like all 4 contestants remaining. They can all definitely sing, so when I vote I simply vote for the ones who did really well that week, the ones who deserves to stay. Although I like all of them, I have to say, the voting is not very fair at all. Scotty is extremely likable, yes, but is he really that good at singing, or are people just voting for him because he’s so likable? Based on tonight’s performance, I have to say that Scotty’s was the worst. His second song really creeped me out, and I blame lady gaga for this. He’s good, but does he really deserve the highest vote, even with that awkward second song? I would say Lauren definitely outdid Scotty this week, but of course, the votes most likely won’t reflect that.

    I don’t want any one of them to go home at this point, but when I really think about it, the votes really do come down to a popularity contest, but I guess that’s always the case for American Idol.

    • huh??? what’s unfair about being i the bottom two? It was her first time all season. Someone has to be there. There aren’t enough contestants left.
      Oh right… she’s just “Laaaauren….”

  232. All 4 were very good tonight… They are all awesome in their own right.

    Randy and JLo have been on Haley’s case for so long she finally fought back tonight!! Good for her. It was almost disrespectful of Randy and JLo the way they handled “judging” tonight. Felt sorry for her but knew the Haley haters would use it against her to prove she has an “attitude.” Sad the haters do not hear how amazing her voice is. She has never been “pitchy” as the judges like to say.. Song choice… it was on inspiration and the judges find fault with that? WTF??

    Round one was awesome on all 4
    Round two was won by Haley.. Standing O by judges AGAIN.. 🙂

    at this point none of them deserve to go home but one will. Just from what I a have read, it could be Haley but think it will be Lauren.. even though Scotty would be my choice at this point..

    Good luck to all and let see who goes home on Thursday.. 🙂

    Loving Idol this year, best in a LONG Time.. great talent !!!!

  236. adam lambert via twitter..

    Bottom line- in my opinion, Haley would make the edgiest, most original album out of the three

    TheEllenShow via twitter…

    Disagree with Idol judges! Haley was amazing and gets my vote tonight. Hope she gets yours.

    TheDavidCook via twitter…

    Catching up on tonight’s idol. These judges are getting somewhat infuriating.

    • Well Adam didn’t win Idol but should have . But if James wins Idol i guess there would be some bad blood. All i can say is whatever. That’s a joke ! James is great and they can’t take that from him!

  237. I think they all had a least one song last night that showcased them…but I really like Scotty for the win. Unfortuantely Lauren and Haley listened to LG…so unfortunate…she is a freak show and I can’t understand where she is coming from with them, especially for Lauren. I give Scotty credit for sticking to who he is. I almost felt sorry for him but he handled it well. I think LG was so out of place with her comments to him. Scotty has talent in his genre and that is what it is about. You either like it or you don’t…same with Haley and James. I don’t the loud screaming sounds that come from them…not pleasant to my ears.

  238. Scotty is the only true voice in this. Haley has a good voice too. But, James cannot sing. It’s a disgrace if someone even remotely gets this far without being able to sing. He’s a performer, but they all perform. And why does AI give all the props and stage show to him? When it comes to singing professionally, you don’t watch them….you listen. You turn your radio on, you plug in your headphones and you LISTEN. James can’t hold a tune. Scotty sure as heck can, no coaching there, and Haley too. I am not a country music listener, but a good voice is a good voice. Period. That’s what you will be listening to. You will never watch the winner….you’ll listen. And scotty doesn’t need this dumb show. He’ll have contracts lined up when done. He will be a classic.

    • I agree,soy del PERU voy escibir en español, he visto los videos sinceramente la primera cancion de Haley no estuvo bien las criticas estaban bien, que son injustas porque los otros no reciben alguna, eso es otra historia,pero lo canto gritando, la segunda canción de ella no estuvo mal pero no supera la de la semana pasada. Veo muchos comentarios negativos, pero les diré que el ganador debe tener el paquete completo eso es : cantar, interpretar y carisma. Haley adolece de carisma pero su encanto con los varones especialmente es notorio los comentario de que es sexi se observa, lo mismo para Scotty que si las adolescentes votan por miles no creen que es lógico el chico funciona y vende una imagen bastante sana e inocente, el ídolo debe vender y ese es Scotty, mi temor es que es muy joven y esta industria musical lo pierda en canciones ligeras y olvidables, ojala sepan asesorarlo bien me gustaría verlo de ganador. Mi final es James y Scotty.
      Les diré que somos un grupo de amigos que nos hemos enganchado con American Idol este año, no así con las temporadas anteriores ser por la variedad de estilos y les diré que Scotty logro que nos interesada en la música Country que no es muy difundida, si desea saber en ingles lo que dije use el traductor(google translate), es así, como logro leer sus comentarios. Saludos, y que ganeel mejor!!!

  239. No second chances keep Haley on the show or you’ll be sorry, she needs more votes to be safe! As ridiculous as it sounds!

  240. James delivered still a solid performance (the whole package); at this time, you need the whole package less than that is not enough….Haley’s first song was terrible (too much screaming, that was not necessary – it was kind of an acting performance…I don’t know but I did not like this at all); she sang her second song much much better but there is something about her that is missing on stage and I think she is not all “true”. Scotty and Lauren were fine, just fine, beautiful voices/vocals but nothing extra, nothing ordinary happened with them last night….James is the best since day first so James, you got my vote for what you are and what you do every week to keep that “Extra” on stage and again, you are so true to yourself….Way to go James, you are really an inspiration and continue to believe, only you can make it happen.

  241. i don’t like haley’S voice in the first song she just scream but in the second performance she WOW!me.I am not a haley fan at all. What i think is just she’s great but what i like is SCOTTY HE’S awesome thats all thank you. (‘o’)/

  242. If Scotty or Haley wins, it will be the biggest upset next to to gray haired guy who won a couple seasons ago.

    Haley should go and make songs with Casey since they both like to grunt.

    There are a lot of people down south who sing like Scotty so he is nothing special.

    James or Lauren should win. Hands down.

    James is the definition of American idol. He has overcome his turrets and he sings amazingly every week.

    Lauren sings like an angel. She sings so effortlessly and you can clearly tell as an audience.

    James or Lauren to WIN!

  243. Scotty and James are very predictable I am not impressed with their performances Lauren was good she deserves credit for the first song but the second song was meh. Haley kicked both songs asses all over the floor. Once again Scotty was boring and It was another deep voice, low pitch country song and I was bored. James was good but once again Don’t stop believing was a predictable performance but his second song was good but not a showstopper it would have been better if Haley ended it again IMHO. The Judges were trying to set Haley up to go home wtf is with that? When they Judge Scotty’s second goofy performance, Randy was trying to find good things about it but their wasn’t much lol. My prediction is Randy is voted off tonight. Lauren or possibly Scotty are in danger tonight.

  244. Who do you want to see in the final 2 is it Lauren and Scotty or Scotty and James or Lauren and James? Give your answer?

  245. Now my two favorite is James and Lauren. I think they are gonna be in the top two. For Scotty, he is really good and could make it in the top two. Now for Haley i think she is gone. I hope so because she is nothing but a spoiled rich kid. For all of you who keep saying James cant sing then you need to STFU because he is the best singer on there and Lauren did really awesome. She is nice and has a great voice. So stop dissing them!

    • I agree but I think it will be Scotty and Lauren in the top two. I like James but he’s not my favorite. For Haley she needs to go home becuase when she sings she sings through her nose and not her diafram like she’s suppose to. But like I said Lauren or Scotty need to win becuase we need more southern in the music business.

    • The South has practically dominated music. Country, rock and roll, jazz, R%B all originated from the south. Not that I am complaining…I love the South…not a more hospitable place on earth have I found.

  246. for my opinion, Haley and Scotty will compete for the final 2, and will end up Scotty as the American Idol! However, for Lauren and James, they’ll both be famous in the music industry…

  247. I am confused — didn’t this site say that they were going to perform songs from the 50’s? I could not watch the show live last night, so I went straight to this site to get the news – then I saw – Inspiration songs and some songs from some dudes (I might know their songs, but do not recognize their names…)… Then Branden´s summary that all contestants were boring in their first performances. Well, duh! Inspirational songs are ALL very, very boring… I did not think Haley was that bad, and either that her second song was the best of all times. For me, that performance with Adele’s song was the best of the best so far in the show. It was fun to watch – again – the judges picking on Haley for no particular reason, just to put her down, I guess… I keep saying that this will benefit Haley in the end as she is getting the audience to root for her. Anyways, great performances in general – I wonder who is going home tonight — it will be really a matter of voting speed or polling than talent…

  248. Scotty is my favorite .He is the best the most normal singer.He does not put on an act or prtend to be some one else and he sings what he feels good singing.He is a natural talented person and I donot blame hhim for what he did with Madonna .I would have taken a bath after being near her.In fact she would not have touched me.

  249. Last week we got rid of a fat black woman (jacob) This week we will get rid of a fat white woman(Lauren)

  250. I think if someone has to go tonight it has to be RANDY he has been trying to be a Simon all season and he can’t do it. I seriously doubt Jennifer or Tyler will be back next year if Randy sticks it out for another year. Hes the reason a female hasn’t won in years based on the competition there was no reason for him to continuously downgrade Haley she may have the best vocals in the competition. Had enough of “Hay Dog” & “Dude”.

  251. i have to say : after Steven Tyler´s commentary defending Haley, i love him even more. he is so sensitive, he knows what he says, he is respectable, i admire him as a person and as a musician. American Idol is different now cause he is in it.

  252. Pulling for James…he has been my favorite since day 1 od the competition. A James/Haley finale…would be awesome. 🙂

  253. me encanta lauren ,espero que ella sea la ganadora ojala es linda y me encanta como canta

  254. I was very dissapointed that James went home last night. I dont think that I will be watching American Idol any more this season….Certainly not voting.

    Was James the best singer? I am not sure. Haley has been impressing me when she does not scream the entire song. But James was very entertaining and brought something exciting to the show. Unfortunately, I find that the top 3 are just more of the same. All three are extremely talented. But they are also a bit boring.

    I am not a country fan. But I will admit that Scotty has a great old style country voice. It is fabulous. Lauren is adorable and at times is awesome. But none of them are as great as James. Sorry….He was different, and I like different.

    I would definitely go to see James, Casey and Paul. They would have been my top three. All three are unique artists. Not necessarily the “singers” They are just not ” just more of the same”. And I am afraid that the top three are just that…. “More of the same”.

    • I totally agree with you. James was the best performer in this competition and he deserved to win, he really did. He has a breathtaking voice. I am also not a country fan so Im now hoping Haley wins. Scotty has an old style country voice and Lauren has a great voice too but yes, they are too boring to watch. Im gonna miss James but at least we know this wasnt the last time we’ll see him. He’s definitely gonna have a big career in the music industry so we should all be looking forward to hearing more music by James Durbin =)

    • Haley is the best, most talented, and by far most entertaining. If were going to talk about screaimng lets talk about James. It was his time to go, his pitch problem and all

  255. JAMES IS THE BEST. The votes were as wrong sending him home as it was voting Taylor Hicks as an idol (what a joke). James keep up the good work your career is just starting.

  256. Otra vez algo RARO es cuestion de observar a los jueces, mi pregunta es : en que tanto influyen los jueces? como en el caso d Estephano con Jennifer López.Si es asi ya no tiene caso votar si ya hay un ganador PREDETERMINADO. saludos de México
    —-que desepcion—a otro tonto con lo del voto popular–

    • Pienso exactamente lo mismo, increible que James y Haley hayan perdido, para mi esto esta arreglado

  257. all I thought James Durbin will be the next American Idol,I’m a very frustrated and disappointed,, If I can only vote here in our country I will vote for him…

  258. I know this batch of AI has the most talented contestant but those talented has been eliminated particularly PIA, JAMES and JACOB… 🙁

  259. It’stime for Haley to go home . She’s very pretty , its not about pretty its about singing , Scotty

  260. It’s time for Haley to go home . It’s a singing competition not a pretty models competition. Which she would make a great model.

  262. Haley Reinhart have demostrated that she is the Best!, bless you, and i know we will see you soon, IM WAITING FOR YOUR FIRST CD!, so do it!!!!

  264. Congratulations to the people ho produce American Idol, it was spectacular the show yerterday, congratulations, best american idol ever…

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