Syesha Mercado, "I believe" you may be leaving us this week

So because this week is "Idol Gives Back," there is no mentor - instead, they're singing inspirational songs.

Michael Johns is up first and he says that he came to this country with a dream and he's psyched that he's living it right now. He says he thinks it's a positive message - that if you dream it and you're willing to work, then you can achieve it.

He sings "Dream On" by Aerosmith and it's pretty good - a little pitchy, as Randy would say, but he gets it together by the chorus. It's definitely not like last week or the week before, but it's still enjoyable. I'm not crazy about his little scarf thing, though. Oh and he just went up an octave - not great. I wonder if the judges will say something about that.

Randy says this is one of the important weeks, that this is where they start to see who the contestants really are and he's looking to see who can really win. He says he thinks it was a pretty good song choice but it had some pitch problems. He says it was all right. And then actually kind of questions his song choice - says that out of all the songs, he chose this one - Michael responds by saying that he's living his dream, but the Randy interjects that the show is about finding the best singer, not about living dreams. Paula, completely busting out of her dress, says she couldn't disagree more. She says it was the perfect song for him to pick and that he sounds as good as he looks. Simon says it was a very good performance, but that he's slightly with Randy because he doesn't like it when Michael does an impersonation of a rock star - he prefers the blues R&B thing. He says he thought it was a little wannabe-ish.


Syesha Mercado is singing "I Believe" by Fantasia and I think that's a terrible idea. She's totally setting herself up to be compared to a past winner. Not smart at all, I don't think. But anyway, she says what the song says to her is that if you believe in yourself, anything is possible, but it first starts with you. She says the song inspires her to give back in her own way - and for her, that's music.

I've never heard this song - not a fan of Fantasia at all or her voice, so this is the first time I've listened to it. I'm not surprised that it's a ballad - Syesha seems only able to sing slow songs. I am surprised to say that the song is quite beautiful and Syesha actually sings it well. There are definitely some moments where she is off pitch and I definitely don't love the Mariah Carey super high note singing. But I guess she was trying to show her range, so I can't fault her for that. And really, Syesha has a beautiful voice - I just think her song choices have been dull. But tonight, the song was interesting and catchy, so I think it was one of her better weeks.

Randy gives her credit for taking on another tiger, he think Fantasia is one of the best singers to ever grace that stage (I think she sounds like Macy Gray...yuck), but she has that special connection that he didn't find with Syesha, but that it was OK. Paula says she flipped the song a little and made it her own and that this was one of her shining nights. Simon says, to be fair, of course there's going to be a comparison - Fantasia sang that song when she won the competition, so technically, he thought she sang it very well, but what it lacked was that big, big wave of emotion. He says last week she sang Whitney Houston, this week Fantasia - he wants to find out what she is all about, but she sang it very well.