Subscribe
Previous Post
Ouch. Tonight was not good. I’m super bummed because I love Barry Gibb but tonight’s American Idol performances were really, really bad.
Melinda Doolittle sang “Love You Inside Out” and “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart.” Yowsa. Both performances were pretty lackluster and I was even bored. She did, however, add a nice, difficult ending to “Broken Heart” so hopefully that will redeem her enough to move on to the next round. Melinda, you need to let loose. She’s like an ultra-talented female version of Sanjaya - she needs to abandon the wallflower act and start performing like she really wants this. Otherwise, I doubt very highly that she will win.
Oh sweet little Blake Lewis – I fear your time may be up and it is too bad. In a season devoid of risk-takers and actual creativity, Blake is a bright star but tonight’s performances were terrible. He sang “You Should Be Dancing” first and I cannot for the life of me understand why he would choose this song. There is virtually no singing in it. He then picked the relatively unknown “This is Where I Came In” and, while it had a nice, updated reggae feel to it, it was probably his worst performance ever. With songs like “Night Fever” at his disposal, why did he pick these songs?!?!?!? I’m sad.
Lakisha Jones sang “Staying Alive” and “Run to Me” and I was not terribly impressed with either. Lakisha has a habit of completely ignoring the advice of the guest coaches and tonight, Barry Gibb told her that she should keep the melody of “Staying Alive” the way it originally is but she didn’t listen and I hated it. With that being the Bee Gees most recognizable track, I consider it almost unforgiveable. She did better on that second song but it was not such a major improvement that I can forget about the problems. Her clothing was unusually yucky tonight but her hair was hot.
Good gracious. I don’t get it. Jordin Sparks has got to be one of the most gifted people on this show because, somehow, she manages to end a song in a way that makes them forget how bad the first part was. “To Love Somebody” is a prime example of this. If you watch Randy’s comments again, he almost talks himself into complimenting her even though he starts his commentary in a negative way. Why? She also sang “Woman In Love” which was originally sung by the incomparable Barbra Streisand and I was horrified. Be absolutely sure of your ability before you sing the songs of legends like Barbra, Celine, Aretha, Whitney and even young “legends” like Christina Aguilera or Alicia Keys. Not good but, of course, she will be forgiven again.
This Week’s Breakdown:
I normally list the most surprising, shocking and improved performances but there is no point since it was so terrible tonight.
Prediction: It’s a tough one but, even though Jordin sang that last song almost entirely out of tune, I believe Blake is the most at risk.
Melinda reserved? Did you watch Bonjovi night? She’s the ONLY one that rocked the house. In fact I think her stage presence is the BEST of the remaining finalists, and this is coming from a Lakisha fan.
A’kyra, you are a very faithful reader of my site and I really appreciate your honesty. I’m not sure you got the meaning of my post (you may have seen Melinda and Sanjaya in the same sentence and freaked, with good reason!). Here’s what I wrote – “She’s like an ultra-talented female version of Sanjaya – she needs to abandon the wallflower act and start performing like she really wants this. ”
I stand by that opinion. I said that she is “ultra-talented,” which she is. Sanjaya, on the other hand, at least in terms of vocal ability, is very, very mediocre.
HOWEVER
Melinda and Sanjaya share some similarities in terms of personality. Melinda is more seasoned and experienced, and it shows, but she (like Sanjaya) is a little too reserved and I feel that if she were to allow herself to open up, she would be unstoppable. As for Sanjaya, I think that if he learned to project and loosen up, he might have earned his voyage to the top 10.
Does that make sense? It’s making sense in my head but I’m having a hard time translating it. Maybe it’s because I am wrong or crazy, lol. Both are possible. Again, thanks for the challenge. It lets me know people are actually reading my ramblings.
I usually enjoy reading your comments and reviews of the show but how can you compare Melinda to Sanjaya??? No offense but I think you have that wrong. Melinda can sing and sings ten times better than Sanajaya and I think it is an insult to her and her talent to say she is equal to Sanjaya. I understand you may favor Sanjaya a little but let’s be for real here. You can’t honestly say that Melinda is the female version of Sanjaya.
I do agree that they were all kind of weak in their performances last night but I still think they all deserve to be where they are right now and it is obvious that they are way better than Sanjaya. I don’t hate him at all I just don’t think he is as strong as the others but he can definitely have a decent career with a little more help from voice lessons.