American Idol- Top 14

There is still something weird going on with Blogger, so I am going to type all this up elsewhere and hope I can cut and paste it later.  The font may look different.

My plan for today is that I am watching last Monday's broadcast and will blog about the performances, while still utilizing my original rankings and predictions. I will post about the "White House Race" on Sunday. Then, I will try sometime next week to post about two nights of Idol, maybe even into the weekend again. I will be able to watch tomorrow night's show live but not Monday's.

Last Monday, all 20 contestants were called and told whether or not they were "voted into the Top 14", which actually means if they were voted into the Top 10 or not. Idol producers/judges would then pick four more to round out the Top 14.

I am going to recap and rank all the performances, as I usually do on this night, even though half the contestants are already "safe." Viewers and voters are watching and their impressions will likely carry over for the next week.

1. Quintavious- "Make It Happen"

(Top 20 ranking: 9)

While I had him ranked in the Top 10, I was not surprised that Quintavious did not automatically get voted in. On Monday, he sang a Mariah Carey song, ran all around the stage area, and attempted her signature whistle note. All in all, not a bad effort, but it felt a bit manic in parts.

2. McKenna Faith Breinholt-  "Tumbleweed"

(Top 20 ranking:  1, predicted to have been voted in Top 10)

No surprise, McKenna is in, deservedly so. For this performance, without playing an instrument, she sang the song she auditioned with. It is the one that was released by her late birth mother. Once again, McKenna's voice is very alluring, even if the song seems a bit boring.

3. Jordan Anthony- "Attention"

(Top 20 ranking: 20)

American agreed with me and Jordan is "singing for his life." I have to say though that I thought he was a lot better with this more uptempo performance than the semi-dreadful piano ballad he did the night before. I still figured this would be the last we would hear from him this season.

4. Jack Blocker- "Feeling Whitney"

(Top 20 ranking: 12)

Jack has made it in. He obviously has people. I thought he might be "blocked" if you will by KAYKO. He is given a guitar for this performance and sings well, but it is a boring song that I have never heard before. I thought he was at least more interesting in previous performances. However, there is less visible saliva in his mouth for this one.

5. Kennedy Reid- "Somethin' Bad"

(Top 20 ranking: 8)

While I figured correctly she would not get enough votes, I was impressed when Kennedy sang "Fancy" and I was pleasantly surprised by how well she did on the schmaltzy Judds ballad the night before. Whatever the heck this was indeed was "somethin' bad." It was hard to make out any of the lyrics and this sort of bad-girl country just did not suit her at all.

6. Jennifer Jeffries- "All I Want"

(Top 20 ranking: 17)

After a rough performance the night before, Jennifer was going to need some help. This was a song more people know and I thought she was a good deal better on Monday. It seems to me like her storytelling ability is more effective on verses of songs than it is on the choruses. At just 18 years old, she probably would have benefitted from waiting a couple more years before trying Idol.

7. Ajii- "Call Out My Name"

(Top 20 ranking: 14)

It does not seem like Ajii even attempted a smile during his time on stage here, at least until the judge comments. That might be part of the problem why he did not get enough votes.  Vocally, I thought this was pretty solid. He has the kind of voice that can really soar on big notes. I just do not think he was picking the right songs for himself.

8. Mia Matthews- "Burning House"

(Top 20 ranking:  11)

America agreed more with my parents on this one, voting Mia in as part of the Top 10. She sang a song about having dreams about a burning house. I am worried I will be having nightmares about a flooding condo. I think with this performance, Mia's skills as a young country singer are starting to grow on me a bit. She seemed more confident and sounded good.

9. KAYKO- "What If?"

(Top 20 ranking: 13, predicted to have been voted into Top 10)

KAYKO is very happy and energetic, but he is diminutive and sort of resembles a young Woody Allen. After making it through, as I predicted, he reprised an original song about self-doubt that would seem to go along with that comparison. I thought the first voice was horrible vocally but then one cannot help but get pulled into his awkward hipster performance vibe. It is an odd situation where his songwriting will win him a lot of praise, as will his performance skills. I just am finding the vocals lacking.

10. Nya- "Water"

(Top 20 ranking: 15)

I was not surprised she did not receive enough votes. For this performance, Nya did a song I had never heard before, but it was definitely a more current vibe than she had put out there for the voting rounds thus far.  As usual, I find her vocals to be decent but not anything spectacular.

11. Will Moseley- "Gone For Good"

(Top 20 ranking: 4 predicted to have been voted into Top 10)

Obviously Will found a way to get the votes and for this performance, he sang an original song which has already fared very well on the country charts. That is a sign he is a major contender to take the crown this season. I thought the performance started off a little slow but then picked up in intensity. He can definitely sing country music and people will definitely appreciate the songwriting skills also.

After the break, the kids put on their fake shocked faces as if they are learning for the first time that the mentors this upcoming week will be Gene Simmons and Meghan Trainor.

12. Abi Carter- "My Mind"

(Top 20 ranking: 7, predicted to have been voted into the Top 10)

Abi is indeed in. Parts of this ballad I thought were superb. She has immense talent. At other portions, I think she may have overshot a couple of notes, but I am far from a musical expert. All things considered, it was really strong.

Before the next performance, by a Gospel inspired artist,  I need to take a moment and note sad and surprising passing of Idol alum Mandisa. In 2006, she was a Finalist on a very interesting season, and I liked many of her performances, especially when she did "Never" by Heart. That summer, I saw her perform live at the Idol Tour Sponsored by Pop Tarts. In the years to come, she was well known in the Christian music world and won a Grammy. It is always sad to hear about these former reality show contestants who pass away before their time.

13, Odell Bunton Jr. - "Wait On You"

(Top 20 ranking: 3, predicted to be voted into the Top 10)

I was quite surprised Odell did not make it here. I thought he was well deserving. That three-way vote split between the three African-American male Gospel singers must have been more cannibalized than Joe Biden's uncle in World War II.

What can I say? I really enjoy Odell's voice. I am not somebody who listens to this kind of music, but I find his skill and passion somewhat fascinating. I think he is very good at what he does, but America, at least those who are not steeped in the Black Church, are apparently just not into it. Maybe we can leave it up to Reverend Sharpton to comment on. It is becoming very obvious at this point of the show that only white kids are getting voted in as part of America's Top 10. I was fairly certain while watching at this point on Monday night that the judges would "save" Odell.

14. Kaibrienne- "Zombie"

(Top 20 ranking: 18)

Here is when I really started to feel disillusioned after it was revealed she was one of the Top 10 vote getters. On the basis of the previous performance, she definitely did not deserve it, and much of it had to do with sympathy for the fact that she seemed to be having a mini nervous breakdown that evening.  All that being said, and a surprising song choice aside, this was a much better vocal for her. If she keeps this up or can improve even more, she will have redeemed herself.

15. Mackenzie Sol- "False Alarms"

(Top 20 ranking: 16, predicted to be voted into the Top 10)

He did not deserve to make it and did not, although I thought he probably would. I guess that is a good thing. I cannot help but keep comparing him to Jordan. The night before, I thought Mackenzie was better (not that such a thing says much) but on Monday, I thought Jordan outsang Mackenzie. This performance was just amateurish and I think Mackenzie is actually better than this vocal. I was glad when it was over.

16. Emmy Russell- "skinny"

(Top 20 ranking: 10, predicted to be voted into the Top 10)

The last of the Caucasian contestants was Emmy, and as I expected, she made it in. She is barefoot and wearing a t-shirt and ripped jeans. I think this was an unfortuante fashion choice, although I suppose women are held to a higher standard on idol than the guys. Emmy reprises an original song which seems to be about her having had an eating disorder or at least self-image issues. I really like the quality of her voice. She has shown that she can sing country but this song is very non-country and I thik an even better vibe for her. However, towards the end, she starts visibly shaking and continues doing so after the performance ends. Something is going on. Is she sure she is ready for this whole Idol thing?

17. Julia Gagnon- "Need A Favor"

(Top 20 ranking: 2, predicted to be voted into the Top 10)

South American born Julie, who was adopted by a white family in Maine, is the first racial minority who got voted into the Top 10. She definitely deserves it. I think she is easily the most vocally versatile of this season's contestants and could probably do well in any genre. She is styled much better for this episode as well.  Much of this "celebration" performance was excellent. Towards the end, it seemed like it maybe got a bit off kilter. Perhaps there is just not a lot of time to practice these songs.

18.  Jayna Elise- "All I Wanted"

(Top 20 ranking: 6, predicted to be voted into the Top 10)

Unfortunately, Jayna did not have enough votes but I figured she would be a strong contender for a wildcard slot. To continue the fashion commentary, she is wearing what looks like some sort of sequined black hijab. Not every note of this vocal performance was perfect, but she is still very good. I like the way she leaves it all out on stage, to use a cliche. If the choice is between her and Nya, i think Jayna is the better option.

There is one spot left for either Triston or Roman and there is no way it was not going to be Triston. However, I was realizing when watching the first time, that it was troubling that they were saving Roman to sing last instead of Odell or even Quintavious.

19. Triston Harper- "Til You Can't"

(Top 20 ranking: 5, predicted to be voted into Top 10)

Triston will be the only minor in the Finals, but one of one of a handful of country or country adjacent singers. The only other male who shares that classification is Will and it will be interesting to see if they can both get enough votes week by week or if there is a surprise outcome. I liked how Triston sounded on this song. I seem to have forgotten a lot about this performance since Monday, so perhaps I liked it more the second time around.

20. Roman Collins- "It's  A Man's Man's Man's World"

(Top 20 ranking: 19)

Roman seems like a really good dude but I dislike the fact that he was being set up here to get one of the four wildcard spots. As soon as they said James Brown, I knew it would be this song. It is definitely a more secular tune than the other stuff that he and the two other competitors had been doing. Roman has amazing stage skills but I just am not that into his voice. This song has been done better by other contestants on Idol and I did not like the arrangement he did not did I understand the instances when he laughed "ha ha" during the song.

So, with America's Top 10 set, I can look back and see that six out of my personal Top 10 made it. I was thinking it would be eight. Prediction wise, I correctly called 7 out of 10. 

Among America's Top 10, there are six females, which seems higher than past seasons. Eight out of the 10 are white, and besides country-boy Triston, whom I believe is part African-American, none of them would be considered "black singers." So, clearly, there is going to be some diversity added.

Here were my overall rankings for the evening. Looking back, I might have constructed them a bit differently several days later, but this is what I wrote down on Monday.

20. Kennedy Reid

19. KAYKO (already safe)

18. Mackenzie Sol

17. Roman Collins

16. Nya

15. Quintavious

14. Jordan Anthony

13. Kaibrienne (already safe)

12. Jennifer Jeffries

11. Ajii

10. Triston Harper (already safe)

9.  Jack Blocker (already safe)

8.  Emmy Russell (already safe)

7.  Mia Matthews (already safe)

6.  Abi Carter (already safe)

5.  Jayna Elise

4.  McKenna Faith Breinholt (already safe)

3.  Will Moseley (already safe)

2.  Julia Gagnon (already safe)

1.  Odell Bunton Jr. 

Who should have been picked: Odell Bunton Jr., Jayna Elise, Ajii, Jennifer Jeffries

As I think every year, my wildcards make more sense, both on merit and in terms of diversity. This would have allowed the show to add two African-Americans, and a Pakastani-American, leaving a nine to five (what a way to make a livin') racial minority split. The gender makeup would have been eight ladies and six gentlemen, which would seem quite fair also.

Who I thought the judges would pick during the commercial break:  Janya Elise, Ajii, Jennifer Jeffries, Roman Collins

So, basically I thought they would unfairly swap in Roman for Odell. 

Who was picked: Janya Elise, Jordan Anthony, Nya, Roman Collins

I was resigned to it being Roman, but I cannot say I understand the logic behind Jordan and Nya. Perhaps, picking three African-Americans was necessary for diversity purposes. Jordan the Aussie took a job an American could have done however. Good luck to them all. None of these four will probably last very long.

The most awkward part of the end of the show was Mackenzie, who was standing between Odell and Roman, being confused over which one was which, and congratulating the wrong one. Maybe he can make that go viral on TikTok before it is banned in America.