Chikezie Eze goes home

So, Ryan asks Jason how he feels and he says that he knew it was coming, he felt weird all day, that he'd never been called out so late, so he knew something was up... He actually starts to babble a bit and at the end of it, Ryan tells him he's safe. Thanks goodness. I was starting to freak out.

So, it's down to Chikezie and Syesha. Please, oh please, let it be Chikezie.

Ryan asks Simon what Chikezie's biggest hurdle would be if he stays in the competition, and he says it's that there are better performers in the competition, but he tells Chikezie that he's in the bottom because he chose the wrong song last night and it wasn't original.

So, after the highest vote this season for a single show, America has decided that Syesha is safe and it's Chikezie going home tonight!!! The dream fulfilled - yes!!! Finally, no more Chikezie. that's what happens when you ruin my favorite Beatles song.

Jason last to join the bottom three

OK - back to the results. Ramiele Malubay is next and Ryan goes over her performance last night and asks her if it was difficult to perform wit her voice failing her. She says she was quiet most of the day and that she pushed out what she could for the performance. Ryan tells her it worked because she's safe.

The last two left are Jason Castro and Kristy Lee Cook and Ryan has them both come out... I'm getting nervous now - I cant lose my man - not yet. Ryan tells Kristy that Lee Greenwood called and said that he was very proud of her and that he loved what Simon had to say about her last night. So, never mind what I said earlier about how only David Cook has gotten feedback from the actual artists. Anyway, Ryan tells Kristy that she is safe and Jason is the lats to join the bottom three. This cannot be happening...

Kimberley Locke and Idol Gives Back

It's time to watch Kimberley Locke perform. I honestly have never heard her sing - I didn't start watching until Carrie Underwood's season, so I'm kind of looking forward to watching her perform. They show a clip, kind of catching up with her - she owns a steakhouse and has lost like 40 pounds. She sings a song called, "Fall," and it's a good song - I wish it hadn't been a ballad - they tend to bore me, but since this is the first time I'm hearing her, I'm not bored - yet. But what's up with her dress - the bust area looks really funky - like they pushed her up and squeezed her in. I don't know... it's OK - still better than Blake Lewis.

Ryan talks about Idol Gives Back again and says that stars like Snoop Dogg, Reese Witherspoon, Gloria Estefan, Miley Cyrus, Daughtry, Brad Pitt, Fergie, Forest Whitaker and John Legend will appear. So, again, we get to see how the money raised last year was utilized. Here in America, money went to the Boys and Girls Club, with more than 10,000 kid joining. Also, money was given to feed people across the country, and three new mobile medical units are treating kids and administering more than 4,000 life-saving immunizations. 25,000 books were donated to impoverished communities to improve their literary skills. Then during the wildfires in California and the tornadoes in Tennessee, emergency support and shelter were provided, thanks to viewers.

Questions galore

Michael Johns is next and Ryan asks him if he felt it was his best performance so far, like the judges did and he says it was overwhelming and he was just glad he got through it. And get through it, he did, because Ryan tells him he is safe.

So, now we're on to the questions segment of the show. First question is for Chikezie - some girl in Georgia wants to know if he's single. He says he is.

Next question is for David Archuleta - a girl from Ohio wants to know why he chose to sing that song last night? He says "You're the Voice" is one of his all-time favorite songs and he thinks John Farnham is amazing, so he thought it would great to sing it. Ryan mentions how Simon didn't believe he chose it and at that point David starts to fall apart a little, giggling nervously, claiming that he did indeed pick the song himself. I hate to be cynical, but I don't believe him. I totally think his dad made him do it.

Next question is for Simon - some girl wants to know what she has to do to take Ryan Seacrest's job. Simon says, "The good news is, you don't need a lot of talent. So there's a chance for everyone."

Next question is for Brooke - a boy wants to know if she could do a duet with anyone, who would it be? She says John Mayer.

Geez... could be done with this now?

One more, Ryan says... Last question is from Texas and she asks Simon if he considers himself the most attractive person on the show and if so, why? He says "It's nt what I say, it's what other people say."

Syesha Mercado joins Chikezie in the bottom three

They couldn't have picked a better song for the Ford commercial this week - it's set to "I Want You to Want Me," one of my favorites and the commercial is actually really cute - very cool how they made the contestants come alive on posters and shirts and stuff. This is the first commercial I've really, truly enjoyed.

OK, back to the results. David Archuleta is next and Ryan asks him what he thinks of Ryan's comment last night about his performance being like a theme park show. David says he was having a lot of fun up there and maybe he got carried away. And Ryan quickly tells him he is safe and we're on to David Cook...

Ryan mentions again that he sang Chris Cornell's version of "Billie Jean" and says that he heard from Chris Cornell today and he loved David's performance. This is second time David has gotten feedback from the actual singers... I wonder why they haven't done that for the other contestants. Anyway, he, too, is safe, of course.

Syesha Mercado is next and Ryan goes over what she sang and what the judges said and tells her that America disagreed with the judges and she is in the bottom three tonight.

Chikezie is in the bottom three

So, after a recap of last night's performances, Ryan moves on to the results. He asks Chikezie to come to the stage first and after going over what he sang and what the judges said, Ryan tells him he's in the bottom three. YES!!!!!! Could it be? Could my dream really be coming true???

Anyway, Brooke White is next, and as expected, she is safe.

Carly Smithson is next and did any of you catch how she was standing, covering her stomach?? But, it turns out it's nothing after all, or so she claims. They actually do address the rumors and sh says she is not pregnant and that she actually wore a girdle last night to appear thinner than she is. I applaud them for addressing it, but I still wonder if it's true. Anyway, we'll get to watch her grow, or not, because she is safe.

Slight correction

Before I get to the show tonight, I just have to mention that I replayed last night's show and many of you commented that Ryan did tell us that David Cook would be singing Chris Cornell's version of "Billie Jean." You were all right. I replayed it and he does in fact say that, so apologies to those who took offense to my friend's assumption that David stole the arrangement.

Moving on to the show, Ryan says more than 30 million people voted this week and talks about last year's songwriting contest. He says the contest is running again this year and those of you who want to enter can do so at americandiol.com. You have until March 31 and you must be older than 18.

The group song tonight is "Right Back Where We Started From" by Maxine Nightingale and it's OK. I honestly was focused on Jason Castro and how cute he looked trying to dance However, I did notice that Carly is wearing yet another baggy shirt. I'm dying to know if they're going to address the pregnancy rumors.

They then show us a clip of the contestants recording the full versions of the songs they sing each week for iTunes. It's a nice plug, trying to get us all to go and download their stuff. To be honest, i didn't realize you could download the contestants singing the full versions. I may have to download a few of them.

David Cook takes on "Billie Jean" and comes out a winner

Kristy Lee Cook was born January 18, 1984 in Seattle, Wash. She says her parents didn't ell her much about when she was born except for the fact that she came out smiling. She says when she was little, she was really loud, singing all the time. They show her parents and her dad is super cute. He says Kristy started singing when she was about 2 or 3. Kristy says she does remember singing this song called "Kristy" and that she loved that song because her dad used to sing it and It was her name, so that was her father/daughter song. Her dad says they used to travel a lot when she was young and she would sing in the car and wouldn't stop. He said the kids would tell her to shut up but he'd tell them to let her sing because one day, she may be something.

She sing "God Bless the USA," by Lee Greenwood and all I can say is she is one smart cookie. She picked a great song to appeal to most of the country - a nice patriotic, good old American song. I think just her song choice will keep her in this competition another week, and truth be told, I think this week, she deserves the spot. She sounds pretty terrific tonight - it's a good song for her voice. There are a couple of spots where she's a bit out of tune, just a tiny bit flat. But for the most part, it's really good. I'm a little surprised.

Huh... a thought just came to me. What if Carly Smithson really is pregnant? Wouldn't this be a great week to get rid of her without anyone making a big fuss? Kristy was actually good and Carly was already in the bottom three last week, so it wouldn't seem so far-fetched. I'm curious to see how it all pans out tomorrow.

Randy tells her it was a great song choice and other than a few pitch problems in the middle, he thinks it was a great performance from her. Paula says it was good choice, that she's seen better performances from her, but her voice is sounding much stronger, that she's growing. Simon says it was her best performance by a mile, and he says that it was the most clever song choice he's heard in years and he thinks this performance will keep her in the competition.


David Cook is last tonight, so I'm hoping that means they saved the best for last. He was born December 20, 1982. He says most of his family think he was a cute kid, but he think he had a massive skull, that it was unreal, like one of those super villains from Marvel comics or something. I would agree with him - the skull is pretty massive. He says his family was really into photos and really anything that would look funny in a photo, they'd put it on him and take a photo. He got his first guitar when he was two. His moms says he got it for Christmas and he would stand in the middle of his bed with his sunglasses and his tube socks and short shorts and strum his guitar because he was a rock star. David says music was always available to him, but not forced on him, and he just knew early on that it was something he wanted to do.

He's singing Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean," and I think we can all agree that this song is a classic and I'm always afraid of people messing with classics - some songs should just be left alone. But again, in my opinion, David Cook is on fire - there's nothing he can't do. I don't have too much to say about it , really. He took on Michael Jackson and held his own, completely changed the song and it was amazing. It was just another fantastic performance - it's like he's the only one who's really thinking outside the box this season. If you missed it, you've just got to see it.



Having said that, I got an e-mail from Genetta, my friend from work, not too long after "Idol" was over, which said, "Dude stole that arrangement from Chris Cornell." She also felt like the judges praising him for being original wasn't fair since the arrangement was not his own. So, I think it's only fair that we compare the two, don't you think?



So, what's the verdict? Is he original? Or a copycat? I have to say, they do sound rather similar. I wish it somehow made me think less of David Cook, I really do, but it just doesn't - I still think he's awesome. Even if he's not coming up with the arrangements himself, he's still entertaining and creative enough to use the alternative versions of the songs, instead of singing the same old tune, like the others do.

Randy tells him he's the most original, most bold contestant they've ever had and based on his performance tonight, he might be the one to win the whole competition. Paula says she's blown away and can't sit down (yes, she's standing). She says he's smart and brave and willing to stretch the boundaries. Simon says "David, that was brave. I mean, it could have either been insane or amazing, and I have to tell you, it was amazing."


So, I've lost track on how well I've done with the guessing so far. I think I might be 7 for 14 right now - not entirely sure. But for tomorrow, I think it can go a few ways. It could be Carly Smithson, since she wasn't great and the whole pregnancy rumor. It could be Chikezie, because I'm sick of him and maybe other people are too, or it could be Ramiele Malubay, because she's been consistently not great for a few weeks now. So, I'm going to put my cynicism aside and go with Ramiele because I think she's the fair choice. (But part of me really does think it could be Carly.) We'll see soon enough.

David Archuleta: "You're the Voice" that's quickly fading

Carly Smithson was born September 12, 1983 in Dublin, Ireland. She says she got her name from the radio. her mom then tells the story of how she still had no name for Carly when she went into labor and on the way to the hospital, a Carly Simon song came on the radio and she wrote the name on her hand and when she was born, she showed her husband her hand and said, "There's the name." Carly says she always wanted to be a pop star and her mom says that she always knew she'd be an entertainer.

She sings "Total Eclipse of the Heart," by Bonnie Tyler and how interesting that she's wearing a black dress with vertical stripes. Could they be trying to hide her baby bump? Anyway, for yet another week, I'm just not impressed with Carly. I feel like her voice sounds very strained a lot of the time - like you can tell that her voice is right on the edge of cracking - and of course, she yells through all her songs, too. Her performance was fine and she was in tune and generally, it was very nice. But, the song didn't work for her, I don't think - she would have been better off singing a simpler song or perhaps singing this song with not so much band behind her - something soft, just to give her voice a break, she's going to yell her way into laryngitis one of these weeks.

Randy says it was an interesting song choice and that he liked it but he didn't love it, he says he didn't like the note at the end, that it went a little sharp. He says it was just OK. Paula says Carly can take a song she doesn't like and make her want to go out and buy it and she says she can do no wrong tonight. Simon says something didn't quite work and he think it's because she was so tense and almost uptight during the performance. He says he didn't enjoy it as much as he thought he was going to. He says she sang parts of the song very well but he's with Randy, that something didn't quite work and that she has to lighten up a bit.


David Archuleta may have put his foot in his mouth al ittle bit. Ryan asks him about missing school and he says he's missed a couple of dances and he might miss prom. Ryan asks who he would take and David says he doesn't know if he should say and then Ryan asks if it's someone in the studio, perhaps sitting by his father> And then they get a shot of a pretty young girl, who looks so terribly embarrassed to be put on the spot like that. Hope he's not in too much trouble...

Anyway, he was born December 28, 1990 in Miami, Fla. He says he has a brother and three sisters. They show his parents and they're the first to appear really phony to me. His mom talks about how great David is and how he has a great relationship with all his siblings and how everybody loves David because he's so great. I mean, that's wonderful that they love him and think so highly of him, but they didn't really tell us anything about what he was like growing up - David told us more than they did. David says he was really close to his older sister growing up and that his mom used to make them dance together - and then they show a clip of him and his sister in traditional costumes from Honduras, I guess (that's where he's from, right?) - he in all white with a neck scarf and straw hat, she in a long white dress, and they were likely dancing traditional folklore dances. It was absolutely adorable.

He sings "You're the Voice" by John Farnham, a song I've never heard by a man I've never heard of and it's just OK. Again, it's all about song choice - this song is really, really cheesy and even his great voice can't save this number. I feel like he peaked with "Imagine" and it's just been kind of downhill since then. I don't think he's in any danger of going home - he's still a fan favorite - but I don't really understand why he chose this completely obscure song when he had a choice of so many. It was really disappointing - again.

Oh how cute... I'm totally speculating here, but right as Randy starts talking, they show David on stage and he says to someone, "Sorry." I wonder if he was apologizing to that girl, his girlfriend?, for telling the world that they were going to prom together. Anyway, in my mind, that's what he was doing and I think it's sweet.

So, Randy tells him it was a strange song choice, but that it just proves that if you can sing, you can sing whatever, that he's got mad skills and that it was still very nice. He says he didn't know the song, but it was still nice. Paula also says that they were all trying to figure out who the song was by and Simon is the one who knew it. She adds that he could sing the phone book and they'd fall in love with him. Simon says he sang it well in parts but he didn't like the performance at all, that it was actually reminiscent of a theme park performance. He says it's reminds him of one of those ghastly numbers where you've got animate creatures with you and everyone joins in together, and he doesn't think that's David at all. Wow - he goes on to say that he'd be amazed if he chose the song himself because it's not him. I wonder if he's alluding to the rumors that David's father is crazy controlling.

If that rumor is true, about how he got kicked off the "Star Search" set and whatever, then I feel really bad for David. It can't be easy to feel so much pressure from your parents about something so silly. I mean, this is not real life - winning "American Idol" should not be the measure of who he is. There are far more important things in life, like education, being a good person and things of that nature. Anyway, that's just my opinion.

"If only for one night," can I pretend Chikezie's gone home?

I've wanted to see Chikezie go ever since the first week when he copped an attitude with Simon. I came around a little bit a couple of weeks ago when he sang "She's a Woman" and it was such an incredible performance, I just couldn't help but root for him. But after he slaughtered my absolute favorite Beatles song last week, I feel like I'm done with Chikezie - he can no longer redeem himself in my eyes and I just want him to go home.

Well Ryan is talking to him before his performance and Chikezie says that he had been afraid to sing a ballad after the judges didn't like one of his performances, but that he decided to follow his heart this week and he picked a song that resonates really deeply within him. Whatever... I wonder what he'll sing - perhaps that Luther Vandross song he's already sung twice this season - once in auditions and again a few weeks back.

Anyway, he was born September 11, 1985 in Los Angeles. He says he doesn't remember when he started singing, but they show his parents and his mom says when he was 3, he would hum songs even before he knew the words. Chikezie says his parents always played Nigerian cultural music in the house, and they were always focused on faith and education.

He sings "If Only for One Night," which in 1985, was recorded by Patti LaBelle and wouldn't you know it? Luther Vandross. It's a shame the song has me longing for my bed and a good night's sleep because his voice is pretty good tonight...

Wait... is he actually touching the audience and serenading them as if he really is somebody? Oh no, no, no. That's a bad move right there... way too cocky, way too premature. See? That's my problem with Chikezie - just when I'm about to say something nice about him, just when I start thinking that perhaps I've judged him too harshly, he does something stupid that just reaffirms for me how full of himself he is and how much I want him to go home. I'm just over him... let's move on...

Randy says he didn't love it, that it was too old-school, that it wasn't hip and cool like the Chikezie he loves with all that energy, that it was just kind of boring for him. Paula disagrees and says that it was a good throwback and he did a great job with the textures of his vocals. Yeah, that's what she said, I promise. I can't tell you what she means, but it's what she said. Simon says he thinks he sang it well, but that the performance was very cheesy, putting his hand into the audience, that it's all very... and then Chikezie interrupts Simon and says, "That's who I'm singing for, I'm sorry." Idiot - just shut up and take the criticism - the judges don't even get a vote. Let America decide if they agree or not, but the second he starts arguing, he makes himself look bad. Simon quickly tells him he's not singing it for them, that he's singing it for himself along with everybody else. He then goes on to say that he has to show originality and he didn't see anything original except for someone trying to copy the original and he doesn't think that's what Chikezie should be doing. He says he misses Chikezie's personality.


Brooke White was born June 2, 1983, and she's the oldest of four children. She remembers the day the got a piano - it was their great grandmother's. Then they show her parents and her mom says that not long after they got the piano, she could hear someone playing a song and she went in and asked Brook where she learned the song and Brook told her it was a song she had heard on TV. Brooke says she taught herself to play by ear and that to this day, that's how she plays. She says she likes seeing her family in the audience that it's comforting and she misses them a lot.

She sings "Every Breath You Take" by The Police, and oh no... she just screwed up. She starts off, sings a line kind of off key, stops and just starts over. It's a tiny little blip and I hope no one makes a big deal out of it. Her voice has such a beautiful tone - it's so perfect for this kind of display... just a voice and a slight accompaniment, perhaps a guitar or a piano. She makes these performances so beautiful in a way that I doubt anyone else could. Oh, I'm actually a bit disappointed that she incorporated the band in the middle of the song. It would have been so much better had she left it just her and the piano. But still, it's a great performance, a gazillion times better than last week's mess.

Randy says it's an interesting song choice, great song, that the front part of it was good. He actually liked that she started, realized it wasn't right and started over. But he didn't like the arrangement with the band after the bridge - he actually says he would have liked it if she had stayed without the band, that it would have been more interesting on her own, but that it was all right. Paula says it was better than last week and that her voice is recognizable and that she's consistent. Simon says he agrees with Randy, that if she had just stayed with her and the piano, it would have been much cooler, the minute the band joined in, it made it old-fashioned.


Michael Johns was born October 20, 1978 in Perth, Australia. His moms says that when he was a child, he was competitive, competitive, competitive. He always had to be best, she says. Michael says he was really competitive with his sister at card games, tat he would sometimes throw the table if he thought she was cheating. He says he thought he would be a tennis player until he was 15 and discovered music.

He sings a medley of Queen's "We Will Rock You" and "We Are the Champions" and finally, finally, Michael Johns has made us notice him. I don't know if it was the lights that added to the excitement of his performance, but I feel like this is his absolute best so far. Great choice of song(s), and his voice sounds great - perfectly suited to his choice tonight. I am wondering a few things, though. First, why did he get to sing two songs in one and no one else? Were they all given the choice? Also, everyone criticized Amanda for having that one sound, for relying on her Janis Joplin-like sound. But so far, Michael Johns has only impressed us with Queen songs - seems a bit unfair to applaud him when we've just voted her out for basically using the same crutch. Having said all that, I think he's fantastic tonight and absolutely safe tomorrow night.

Randy tells him that finally he believes in himself and used his big old voice and that it was his best performance since he's been on the show. Paula says this was his shining moment, blah blah blah... Simon says this is the first time he's seen star potential with him because he just got it right tonight. He says it's the only memorable performance of the night so far.

Jason Castro improves, but judges think his status is "Fragile"

OK, so I just got home from work and before I start with tonight's show, I have to address something I saw on the news before I left the office. Now, I know no one out there will believe me, but I noticed this a few weeks ago and decided against writing about it, because I felt it was inappropriate - I didn't want to be the Perez Hilton of Newsday, spreading rumors without having them confirmed... But did any of you hear on the news tonight that Carly Smithson may be pregnant? I started to wonder two weeks ago when she wore this really ugly blue satiny dress and it was just really baggy on her... then last week she wore that mumu-like red top and I really started to question it. I spoke to some friends at work about it and I wasn't the only one to notice... but like I said, I didn't want to be spreading rumors, so I didn't mention it here, but now that it's on the news, what do you all think? I wonder how it will affect the tour. And did you notice how they put her in a rather snug dress tonight, perhaps to counter the speculation? Anyway, I just wanted to get that off my chest because I was so excited when I heard it - I was like, "I knew it!!!" It may still be just a rumor, but at least now I'm just repeating the rumor - I'm not actually creating it.

Another quick aside before we get to the singing... what is going on with Paula Abdul tonight? Fingerless gloves? Really? C'mon...

OK let's get to the singing... First up is Ramiele and tonight, we get to hear about the contestants' birthdays and a little bit about their childhoods. So Ramiele was born September 6, 1987 in Saudi Arabia. She says that when she was a little kid, she got into a lot of trouble. Then they show her parents and her mom says that she used to bite people when she was little, but after she turned three, she stopped and instead picked up a microphone. Ramiele says she used to take the microphone from her family when they did karaoke and would start singing. She ends the interview by saying that she has to step it up this week because she's lucky to be in the top 10 and she needs to prove that she deserves to be there.

She sings "Alone" by Heart and I immediately know it's not a good idea, for a couple of reasons. Reason No. 1... Carly already sang this song this season - I forget when - but you never want to find yourself compared directly to another competitor. Reason No. 2... Carrie Underwood sang this song a few seasons back and just killed it - I mean, it was probably the most memorable performance of that whole season. and Reason No. 3... this song kind of invites bad clothing, being an 80s song and all, and Ramiele has already proven that she cannot dress herself. Tonight is no different - she comes out wearing these high-waisted shorts (yes, I said shorts), an off-the shoulder top tucked into the shorts, and a pair of knee-length boots. It's like three different bad 80s fads thrown together - just awful.

The singing starts off bad, gets better in the chorus and then goes back to bad. The beginning is out of tune, then the first line of the chorus sounds promising, but she quickly begins to scream and doesn't quit until the end of the song, where she goes out of tune all over again. It's tough - she was my favorite girl the first week out - I thought her voice was huge, that she had so much potential, but every week, she sinks a little deeper into a hole I'm not sure she can dig out of anymore. I think she may be in danger this week.

Randy starts off by saying that he heard she was a little under the weather, but that it wasn't the right song choice for her, that it's too big of a song for her. He actually remembers and mentions that Carly did it before and that it was a rock thing, not really Ramiele's thing and that it was a little pitchy all over the place. I'd love to tell you what Paula said but she started like 5 sentences and only ended one, so the basic idea is that she wants her to stay because she thinks Ramiele can sing... Simon says it wasn't as bad as Randy said. He said the first part was OK, that the middle got a bit shrieky but the truth is that after last week, which he thought was atrocious and she survived, he think she'll get through on this performance.


It's time for Jason Castro!!! I'm so hoping he improves on last week because if he doesn't get it together, I may not be able to look at him for much longer... Have I mentioned how adorably delicious he is???

Anyway, he was born March 25, 1987... Happy birthday... in Dallas, Texas. He says when he was younger, he looked the same as now, except smaller and pudgier and cuter. He says he does remember people always telling him how cute his eyes were - he says he would get that every day. I'm sure he still gets that every day - his eyes are beautiful. He says he and his brother got some instruments when he was like 3 or 4. He got an electric guitar that had buttons and his brother got a key-tar. (keyboard with a strap like a guitar) Then they show his parents and his mom says that they were blessed with this annoying shrieking electronic-sounding guitar.

I love how they're showing the parents - it's nice to see who the contestants look like and getting to hear what they were like when they were little. The home videos and baby pictures are really cute, too.

Anyway, Jason sings Sting's "Fragile" and I'm glad to see that he's brought the guitar back out. I feel like he's more confident when he has the guitar with him and this week is no different - he appears more sure of himself, stronger in his vocals. I love that he sings in Spanish - very hot!!! His voice actually sounds a bit like Enrique Iglesias to me, at least on this song. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not, but I find it difficult to find fault with Jason, so I think he's great this week, way better than last week. He's still not the best singer in the competition, but he's better a good number of them, I think, and I hope he's safe for another week. I hope you're all voting for him... I'm at work during voting hours, so someone's going to have to cast some votes for me. They just showed him close up and my God, could he be any hotter???

Randy says it's one of his favorite songs and he says it's a good choice for Jason, but he's not really sure Jason did anything different with it vocally. He says he liked the Spanish touch, that it was all right. He says he's still waiting for that jump-out vocal performance, but that it was nice. Paula say he's staying true to who he is and agrees that he didn't do anything to make them go "wow," that he's playing it a little safe. Simon says he thinks he's had two bad weeks and he thinks it's time that he start taking this a little more seriously because he says the performance was the equivalent of someone performing outside of a subway station. He says the way he played the guitar was clumsy, everything about it was too laid back, too much in his own world and he says that he is somebody, as proven when he sang "Hallelujah," who is potentially, even maybe a winner, but he's not going to win if he keeps doing this week after week. Ouch... I'm not sure why he chose this performance to unleash like that. Last week would have seemed a better time when he sang "Michelle" and kind of made it a bit of a joke. Jason does acknowledge that he could spend more time practicing, but that he is taking the competition seriously. I don't know - I hope it's not too late for him to come back and wow us next week.


Syesha Mercado was born in Bridgeport, Conn., on January 2, 1987. Syesha's mom says that when she was like 4 years old, she would throw herself on the floor and scream and holler and kick... Syesha says she was a cry-baby and that's probably where she got her baby cry from and then does her impersonation again. She says she was on a dance team and they used to have to wear sequined outfits and had pom-poms and she got a lot of gold medals, that they used to work very hard. She says she's still a kid, that she has her mental side, her adult, professional side, but most of the time, she's just goofy.

I sure wish she'd be more goofy with her song choices. She has a way of picking the most boring songs ever. This week she sings, "If I Were Your Woman," which was recorded by Stephanie Mills in 1987, the year of Syesha's birth. I have to admit, she sounds great tonight - she's perfectly in tune and it's the first time since Hollywood week where I've felt kind of blown away by the tone of her voice, but I have to be honest... it's still boring to me. It's all about song choice - I have nothing bad to say about her singing this week - it really was flawless, amazing. But the song was so slow and dull, it's like I couldn't wait for it to be over, despite the fact that she sounded so wonderful - does that make any sense? Regardless, I think it's enough to keep her safe another week, and maybe next week she'll do a song with some life in it.

Randy says it's a good moment for Syesha because it's the best he's heard her sing, including when she auditioned. He says it was stellar, unbelievable. Paula says this is going to be what people remember as the moment where Syesha flipped it and became the dark horse in the competition, that she was fantastic. Simon says he doesn't think the end part was as good as Randy thought and that he thinks there is a limit on her vocals and that this performance kind of stretched it.