So it all comes down to this… the final two contestants remain… Phillip Squared vs. Robo-yonce… and finally, the performance show is only one hour… less filler… three songs each – Simon Fuller’s choice, contestant pick (bet Jessica picks Beyonce), and potential lead single… off we go…

One and Lonely by Superchic[k]

Jessica Sanchez starts off with I Have Nothing from the Whitney catalog… right in her wheelhouse… no low notes and lots of moments to belt out a loud drawn-out showstopper… she kind of had an attitude the whole time through it, but it was exactly as expected… no judges comments just yet…

Phillip Phillips is dealt Stand By Me for his first performance… interesting choice, but more interesting is the arrangement… very subtle, low-key performance… you wouldn’t have guessed it based on the original version of the song, but this ended up giving him some time to shine…

[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

And now we’re down to the wire… the final three… three songs a piece… three rounds… and, if we know anything about the judges, they’ll give one round to each contestant… typically, this week goes off with one song that the producers pick (edit: Jimmy’s picks), one song the judges pick, and one song the contestants pick (if i remember correctly)… should be fun… off we go…

The Heat Is On by Glen Frey

Joshua Ledet… first round songs are picked by the judges and they’ve chosen I’d Rather Be Blind by Etta James… there’s plenty of room for him to lace his new breed of R&B classic into the mix and he takes full advantage… Steven says out of 70,000 there’s only 1 American Idol and he sang like that one tonight… J-Lo says he brought down the house again… Randy says it fit him like a glove…

[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

So I didn’t watch last night because I went to take in The Avengers instead. So, now it’s the day after, but I’m still bringing some comments and predictions for last night’s performances. First, to California… off we go…

Hotel California by The Eagles

Phillip Phillips leads off the show with CCR’s Have You Ever Seen the Rain?… what I want to know, is if Phillip understands what he’s singing… the tone of his performance is a total mismatch to the themes covered in the song, which I think someone else did earlier this year, too… Steven says the road to success is under construction… J-Lo says his Joe Cocker vibe was a perfect fit for the song… and Randy says it started off slow, but ended up great…

[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

so, due to some ridiculous technical difficulties last night (I’m looking at you Comcast DVR), I wasn’t able to watch American Idol on my normal schedule and thus, couldn’t provide the in-depth commentary that I normally like to offer here on the blog.

Be that as it may, the DVR that wouldn’t play last night DID record the show and I watched earlier today and do, therefore, have some picks for tonight’s results show. Everybody had at least one good performance last night, but the bottom three will be the three who didn’t have a second solid performance: Jessica, Skylar, and Phillip.

Shocker of all shockers, Phillip (who was outed by Ryan for having a girlfriend, not liking blondes, and generally not being available to the scores of little girls voting for him) will on stage at the very end when Skylar gets sent home.

peace… love… bdg…

Share on Facebook

six contestants left, and it looks like they’ll be singing Queen songs… it’s apparently a huge honor… oh, this is weird… they’re performing a medley with Queen members… maybe they won’t sing Queen songs when they compete… or maybe they will… this is an odd opening to the show… anyway… off we go…

Kings and Queens by 30 Seconds to Mars

Jessica Sanchez starts things off in black and white singing Bohemian Rhapsody… the stage show is weird and the arrangement is… interesting… she disappeared entirely during the rock middle, but she was good on the slow parts… Steven says rock isn’t her thing, but she sounded beautiful… J-Lo says the vocal was beautiful, but she needed to rock out a little more… Randy loved it because she didn’t sing any runs…

[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

And we’ll wrap things up with some of the Song Categories. I must be quick as time is escaping. As a reminder, if you have Spotify installed and want to follow along, here’s the playlist for most of the nominees. Off we go.

Rap/Hip Hop Song of the Year

NOMINEES: Hallelujah (Lecrae),Intoxicated (JayEss),Please Don’t Let Me Go (Group 1 Crew),Riot (Tedashii),Overdose (Lecrae)

THOUGHTS: More proof that Lecrae should be Artist of the Year, right? 2 of the top 5 Rap songs of the year?

WINNER: Lecrae, probably for Hallelujah.
[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

Okay, poor planning on my part. But I’m burning the bottom of the candle, and diving into the Dove nominations for album categories. As a reminder, if you have Spotify installed and want to follow along, here’s the playlist for most of the nominees. Off we go.

Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year

NOMINEES: Backlight (Tedashi),Captured (FLAME),Culture Shock (Jai),Rehab: The Overdose (Lecrae),The Whole Truth (Da TRUTH)

THOUGHTS: This is really indicative of the style of hip hop that is selling these days – the thicker beats and harder tones – and perhaps the lack of a really strong label presence for the likes of Braille, Playdough, and such.

WINNER: Lecrae, especially since he’s such a longshot for Artist of the Year.
[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

so… we’re back and all seven from last week are back… and the little intro thingie there was totally a nod to the new Thousand Foot Krutch album that released yesterday, The End Is Where We Begin… anyway, a nice mention of Dick Clark’s passing… and we get to hear two songs each? really?… a song from the 2000s and a soul classic if I heard that right… off we go…

Let The Sparks Fly by Thousand Foot Krutch

Hollie Cavanagh picks Rollin’ in the Deep because it’s never been done before (sarcasm)… she’s struggling to control her breathing and the arrangement was not to my liking… Steven says it was perfect and beautiful and what we were waiting for… J-Lo agrees that she let loose and didn’t think at all… Randy says it wasn’t perfect, but it was the first time she had emotion…

Colton Dixon goes Gaga with Bad Romance, hoping to recapture that rock element… i like the arrangement – particularly the half-time for the bridge – and he kept it pretty tight the whole way through… Randy says it was a Colton concert, job well done… J-Lo says his pitch was a little low in some spots, but it was really good… Steven says in order to get to the other shore you need to lose sight of the first one and Colton is doing that really well…
[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

One of my traditions here at theTRu is that of predicting (and griping about) winners for the Dove Awards. Since this year’s awards show is right around the corner, I’d better get on the ball before it’s all over. So, I’ll dive right in – only touching on the major categories and maybe a few extras that pique my interest. If you have Spotify installed and want to follow along, here’s the playlist for most of the nominees. Off we go.

Song of the Year

NOMINEES: Alive (Natalie Grant), Blessings (Laura Story), Celebrate Me Home (The Perrys), Glorious Day (Casting Crowns), Hold Me (Jamie Grace), I Smile (Kirk Franklin), I’ve Been Here Before (Ernie Haase & The Signature Sound), Please Forgive Me (Gaither Vocal Band), Who Am I (Jason Crabb), Your Great Name (Natalie Grant)

THOUGHTS: Well, there’s a lot of Southern Gospel represented here, some old and new standbys, and one fresh face. Speaking of, I can’t listen to Hold Me without singing Neil Sedaka’s Calendar Girl in my head. There, I said it. I’m not sure I would’ve picked any of these songs to be perfectly honest, but I’m at a loss for replacements.

WINNER: Blessings should win. Glorious Day is likely to take it home, though.
[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook

seven more left off we go… of course they didn’t use the save on DeAndre last week… they’re waiting until Phillips gets voted off too early… I already told you that… the real question is, how will they stretch THIS episode into two hours?… oh, I see, they’re just going to let the audience scream longer between each section… and more style advice… tonight is music released from 2010 until now…

Forget You by Cee Lo Green

Skylar Laine makes Akon curse by singing under her trucker hat… probably not really a challenge… she chose Kellie Pickler’s Didn’t You Know How Much I Love You and it’s right in the heart of her wheelhouse… probably better than Kellie, but I’ve never heard the song before… Randy says the song is in her wheelhouse (copycat) and it was crazy hot and crazy good… J-Lo says from what she could hear here, it was perfect pitch and she nailed it… Steven says she sang a complete sentence and the crows may crow, but the hens deliver the goods… that’s the type of remark we love from Steven Tyler…
[continue reading this post...]

Share on Facebook