Tommy Hilfiger also made a guest performance as the show's new Image Specialist. I love that they brought him onboard and agree that when you look great, you feel great and sound great. Here is what I thought of this week's American Idol Top 10 performances:
1- DeAndre Brackensick sings "Only the Good Die Young" - This performance seemed like a glorified karaoke number. Although the arrangement was somewhat boring, I appreciated the improvements in his stage presence. He appeared a lot less nervous and more laid back. At times his vibrato was slightly overbearing. Overall, I find him to be one of the weakest singers in the competition.
2- Erika Van Pelt sings "New York State of Mind" - Best makeover of the night! Erika has one of my favorite voices. She has soul, depth and delivers beautiful phrasing. She really knows how to hold back and build up when it is appropriate. Her mic technique is that of a true professional. Unfortunately, her polished performance can come across to others as playing it safe. It's going to be difficult for her to compete with the other teen belters in the show if she does not figure out a way to impress the lamen.
3- Joshua Ledet sings "She's Got A Way" - His intro was a little shakey in pitch, but it was nice to hear him sing with dynamics. Before this week, mp-mf were non-existant in his performances.. it was a whole lot of ff and fff going on. I loved the song because it showed great range and control. However, I agreed with J.Lo about him needing to connect more to the lyrics.
4- Skylar Laine sings "Shameless" - There is no doubt that this girl has a great country sound. Sadly, she had a couple of bum notes. In the beginning, it took way too long to build up into her sweet spot. When she opened up, she began to sound better but then came across a little too screamy. I agree with Randy: it was pretty good, but not the best.
5- Elise Testone sings "Vienna" - What a solid intro! She gave us wonderful storytelling, excellent melodic variation and showcased really cool vocal flips in and out of head voice, while teasing us with her growls. She killed that run at the end! Her ending was harmonically difficult and demonstrated serious musical chops. Elise and Erika are the most sophisticated vocalists in this competition. Finally, maybe someone who is actually seasoned and educated can win this whole thing?
6- Phillip Phillips sings "Movin' Out" - I can really appreciate this dude's authenticity. His artistry is as if Dave Matthews and Adam Duritz had a child. He has a killer time feel and sweet melodic interpretation. Vocally, I would have liked to see him grow, but maybe he doesn't need to. Maybe he can with this whole thing with his cool vocal style and musical arrangements.
7- Hollie Cavanagh sings "Honesty" - This week, Hollie did much better with the dynamic contrast. Sadly, she was consistently sharp on many of her power notes- perhaps due to pushing. She resembles a young Celine Dion, even the diction is very "er." The ending completely lacked the proper breath support in order to execute those runs in her head voice. I usually love her performances, but this week was a miss for me.
8- Heejun Han sings "My Life" - Heejun totally copied Billy Joel's diction during the verses. He fell flat on almost all of his sustained notes. His facial expressions were strange and his stage presence was hokey and uncomfortable. He may think he is funny, but not in a good way. His performance was like a skit off of SNL. Humor will not mask mediocrity. It was simply horrifying.
9- Jessica Sanchez sings "Everybody Has A Dream" - Her voice reminds me of Jennifer Hudson, it has the darkness in her low register and the wide, powerful vibrato during sustained notes. This week she held back in her performance very well, and did not oversing. She showcased excellent range and wrapped us around her little finger yet again. SO good!
10- Colton Dixon sings "Piano Man" - Perfect song choice, excellent vocal delivery. Beautiful yodel and a wonderful buildup into an effective key change. I respect his voice and musicality. My favorite performance of him yet!
Now that American Idol has narrowed it down to their Top 10 favorite singers, its going to get harder and harder for America to vote. For the girls, it's a battle of Teen Belters vs Seasoned Performers. For the boys, its the Rockers vs the Balladeers. In my opinion, Heejun and DeAndre need to go. However, America may not appreciate the sophistication of Erika and Elise and the teen female demographic might prolong the boys' livelihood in this competition.
Who do you think is in trouble this week???
Thank you for the insightful recap! I didn't get to watch due to rehearsal, so I appreciate the chance to catch up :)
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Any time, Katie! Thanks for reading! =)
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