American Idol- Top 20
I never do things this way, but this is a post I may just keep adding on to to over a longer period of time. I may need to do that with the American Idol commentary for all the upcoming episodes this season. If I want to be able to cover this season, I may either need to do that or just wait until it all ends and watch recordings and enter the posts in the late spring and summer.
Long story short, I have been having and will continue to be having a lot going on, that just happens to correlate with many hours of Idol on Sundays and Mondays, at least for the next few weeks. I had a flood at my home and thus had to be elsewhere for a few days and have been trying to catch up with stuff at my job too. There is also a family Passover gathering on Monday that will be going on while an episode of Idol airs.
With all this stuff on my mind during the past crazed week, I did manage to watch Idol live last Sunday and Monday as an evacuee. I comprised rankings (which is extra difficult to do when there are 20 contestant performances each night) and as I usually do, also took a gander at predictions.
It is now Thursday night and I am going to begin watching Thursday's three hour episode again, so I can give some brief thoughts on each performance, pausing as I go, as if I were seeing them for the first time. Assuming I can find the papers I wrote them on though, I am going to stick to the rankings I made when I watched the show live and also my on the fly predictions.
Very possibly, my "second listen" could have me reaching some different opinions on the performances than I first thought but at the end of recapping all the songs, I am going to post how I initially ranked them and also my predictions, even though I now know which ones were wrong.
This all seems quite complicated but I have been doing this for years and do not want to quit just because of a little homeowner turmoil as I wait to see how much of a "good neighbor" my insurance will be. If I am going to do this though, it is going to be in chronological order, so after I finish the Top 20 which aired on Sunday, 4/14, which I may not be able to do in one sitting, I will then have to do the same for the next episode, whenever the chance presents itself, and so on and so on. The bottom line is that these posts may not appear until weeks after the episodes air.
I will say I am quite pleased that my DVR somehow managed to still record these episodes even though it and my television were both unplugged at the time. This means I can watch them at home and be able to fast-forward through commercials at least.
The episode featured 20 out of the 24 remaining contestants getting a chance to sing for the first time in the Idol studio. The bottom two from each of the previous week's Hawa'i episodes are out of luck. I posted those rankings and predictions at the time, so no need to copy them over here now. As it would turn out, the next night would reveal the "Top 14." However, four of those picks would be the judges' selections, so even though Seacrest kept referring to who did and did not "make the Top 14", I have to assume, that the Top 10 vote-getters were just that.
1. Jack Blocker- "You Don't Mess Around With Jim"
There is a joke to be had regarding the contestant's name and Speaker Mike Johnson's use of cell-phone technology but I will not go there.
This was a really out of left-field song choice for American Idol. Jack switched up the arrangement though and made it sound like a more modern type of jam session, That seems to be his vibe. I always think I am going to dislike his performances when they begin but I guess I did not hate it. Always a good reminder to not pull the mask of the ol' Lone Ranger. I am remembering that I briefly went to grade school with the grandson and namesake of one of the radio voices of the Lone Ranger.
2. Mia Matthews- "Wildflowers and Wild Horses"
This will be the first of a plethora of songs performed over the next two nights that I have simply just never heard before. My parents seem to really like what Mia is doing on Idol, but while I think she is talented, I did not find much star quality in this particular performance.
As I am watching Idol, there seem to be reports that Israel is conducting bombings in both Iraq and Iran. Sounds like a sequel to a 1980s movie or something.I will turn on the news later and see what is what. If I am going to commit to Idol blogging tonight, I should stick with this though.
3. Mackenzie Sol- "I'll Never Love Again"
We learn that Mackenzie has a ton of followers from the slapstick comedy videos he posts as the soon to be banned Communist Chinese Spy App but has really been focused on a music career, ever since he jokingly went before Sharon Osborne and company at an X-Factor UK audition at age 4.
Will all these TikTok followers constitute a new "Sol Patrol" and keep him around longer than he deserves? That was my first impression. This particular performance had some hits and misses I believe in terms of his vocals. He started off an the piano and then stood up. It sounded like some of the low notes were rough but he was able to barely pull off some falsetto ones.
4. Roman Collins- "Never Would Have Made It"
I had ranked him 10th out of 12, so while I cannot say I never thought he would have made it, I did predict he would be one to not advance, because of the presence of other Gospel singers. However, Roman made it to the Top 20 and America heard of how he overcame a near death experience as a young child.
Gospel music is not something I know much about, but I have to say I just prefer the voices of Odell and Quintavious. There is no doubt that Roman is filled with the Spirit but his voice just sounds gruff a lot of the time and portions of the song he is just speaking rather than singing. This sort of thing might definitely be a moving experience inside of a church but I just am not feeling Roman as a singer on television.
There is no way I am going to be able to watch and blog this entire show tonight if I am going to be up to work tomorrow.
5. Kennedy Reid- "Love Can Build A Bridge"
At first I forgot if this was the night I thought she was good or the night I thought she was really bad. It turns out to have been the latter. However, there is some unfortunate irony about a Kennedy singing a song about a bridge.
For this performance on Sunday, Kennedy, who we are assured is really just 23 years old, performed sans wig. I do not expect to ever see a politician show up for a big debate without their toupee. Her video package featured her narrative of having her feelings hurt by online haters. That seems to be a little manipulative on behalf of the Idol producers but perhaps the ever so influential Melania Trump "Best Best" campaign against cyber bullies is paying attention.
Anyways, I think Kennedy performed this country ballad in a very solid and dignified way. There was not much exciting about it but she sounded good.
6. Ajii- "Like A Stone"
Upon looking it up, I see that this song was from 2002, but everything about it seemed '90s grunge,and Ajii was dressed the part in flannel. This was never my favorite style of music and Idol viewers may either be too old or too young to get it also.
This contestant can definitely sing but I think Ajii would better showcase himself doing soul and R&B or perhaps some well know ballads. He did seem a bit "angry" and while it is not fair of course, a lot of voters may not react so kindly to an angry Muslim dude singing a song.
7. Jennifer Jeffries- "Grave Digger"
During the auditions, she seemed like someone who could grow in the competition and go far. As this song started out, I was impressed by Jennifer's unique tone and delivery. Then, somewhere around the first chorus, if this song even has a true chorus,things went off the rails. It just started to sound really bad and young Jennifer clearly lost some confidence. The bottom line is that this was just not an appealing song to win votes and she should have chosen something different, and of course, sang it better.
8. Emmy Russell- "Want You"
Emmy is dressed up a bit more than she has been at times during this season (and more than she would be the next night) and for some reason, it makes her seem younger, which is probably a good thing for her.
She is the first contestant on the evening to perform an original song and I also believe this is the first time we have seen her without a piano or a guitar. The song may not have been exciting, but I appreciated her tone and the soft quality of her voice. It is very much a coffee shop type vibe though. Even if she is not great on television, she probably has one of the most studio- ready voices of the season.
9. Triston Harper- "H-O-P-E"
There was no surprise that Triston made it to the next round The 15 year old performed a song he wrote about how would should Hold On because Pain Ends. At least it was not about a small town in Arkansas that produces unprincipled politicians from both parties.
I think I have found Triston's other performances to be better, but there is no doubt he has a great voice for country music and whether his personality away from the actual performances is genuine or playing up to the cameras, I think he is succeeding very well at the Idol game. His mother Hattie Mae should probably be careful though to not sing along too emphatically on camera.
Three singers in this Jelly Roll Group remain. I remember thinking how much of a travesty it would be if the last one to advance was not Odell, but I was not too worried.
Who should have been eliminated from Group B: Elleigh Marie and KBlocks
Who I predicted would be eliminated from Group B: Elleigh Marie and Roman Collins
Who was eliminated from Group B: Elleigh Marie and Kblock
Rare current day political W for America.
Go Israel. Beat Iran
Go Ukraine. Beat Russia
10. Odell Bunton Jr. "The Door"
How could anyone not want to vote for him after the on camera endorsement from his five kids? However, I notice that Odell seems to be wearing thousands of dollars worth of jewelry. Did the show lend it to him? If he really owns all that bling himself, one would have to ask if that is really the best decision while his family has been struggling financially. Did the kind of religious people he is trying to get votes from have those kinds of thoughts?
Anyways, this was not a gospel song, but Odell can sure make anything sound like one. I really enjoy his voice and his performance style. My thought was that he definitely deserved to stick around this competition for several more weeks. The original artist of this song, Teddy Swims, who had previously performed as a guest, was strategically placed in the gallery with the contestants and seemed to be enjoying it as well.
Odell is in major tears as he gets praised after the performance. Knowing now that he did not get enough votes to advance, even understanding that the Gospel vote was split three ways, is still hard to comprehend.
11. KAYKO- "Over You"
Idol now moves on to Group A, having finished with Group B. Why not just go in order?
There is no surprise to me that KAYKO has advanced. He is singing the 485th song he ever wrote, along with an electric guitar interlude. While he is billed as hailing from South Florida, he speaks about living in Boston, which possibly means having attended Berklee College of Music and then also working in Nashville. . I liked the first 20 seconds or so I suppose. He certainly sounded "current." Then, it got a little weird. There was so much jumping around and vigorous yelling of the lyrics, that his voice suffered. It probably came across better in person. I think KAYKO is probably going to go pretty far this season. He seems like he would have belonged on "Glee."
Approaching Midnight now. I am going to "Save" this post and add to it until I can get through this episode.
I remember now that Group A was better than Group B overall in Hawai'i. That is probably why they went in the second half of this episode and indeed, things did get better at the end.
12. Jordan Anthony- "when the party's over"
Oh great. It is another one of those boring lowercase Billie Eilish songs.
Jordan seems like a nice bloke, but I just think he was really out of his depth on this evening. He has to be compared somewhat with Mackenzie, as they are both young, tall singers who were born as subjects under the British Crown. Unlike, Mackenzie, Jordan stayed seated at the piano the entire time, and had a slight microphone deflation.
Vocally, I did not think it was good at all. There were a lot of missed notes. At least Mackenzie was able to pull off a few good notes. At another time, I will ask what in the world the judges/producers were thinking on Monday night, but I will save that for the appropriate time.
13. Quintavious- "Hollow"
After making it to the Top 20, Quintavious sings the Tori Kelly song he almost sang in Hawai'i. Among Idol viewers, for now at least, he is not Q Anonymous.
I take it that this song has religious undertones (perhaps not even subtle ones) ant thus right up the alley for the worship leader. He sang it very well and as usual, did a lot of bouncing around on stage. In some ways, Quintavious, Odell, and Roman are different kinds of black church singers, yet were obviously competing for the same slice of the vote. I expected only one of them would make it to the "Finals" this season. I still think that O and Q are better singers than R.
14. Kaibrienne- "girl i am now"
Well, she seems to have settled on a new stage name, which I sort of saw coming, and for this performance, did an original song at the piano,with apparently is in all lowers.
I thought she would advance to the Top 20 but did not think she deserved to out of her group. We saw in Hawai'i, how she seemed really on edge and dealing with nerve issues. Believe me, I can relate to the stresses of life these days, but it seems like she had a major meltdown during this performance, stopping and pausing at least twice. It sort of reminded me of Brooke White at the piano over a decade and a half ago.
KB or Kaibrienne, or whatever she is calling the girl she is now does indeed have the makings of an interesting voice, but to me it sounds like she is misfiring far more often than not. Was she messing up on this performance or were the contents of the lyrics she wrote just so emotional to perform without breaking down? I think one of the songs she sang in Hollywood week was even more personal and raw and she got through that better. In any event, there was a chance she would gain a lot of sympathy votes for being vulnerable.
15. Nya- "Georgia On My Mind"
My father seems to like Nya and watched this performance a bunch of times. The week before I had her ranked 9 out of 12 but had predicted she would be eliminated. That was not the case.
I am surprised that someone is now singing a song I actually sort of know. The guest performance of "Little Boo Thing" by some singer I have never heard of that I kept dozing off during on my replay is messing with my brain also. I think Nya is a good singer but I find it hard to envision her as an American Idol finalist. This performance just seemed a little too showy for me as she tried to do runs and whatnot. I think Nya is more in line with being a very good lounge singer than someone who could compete with Beyonce on the charts or even being anywhere near as good as say We Ani from last season. I am at a loss for how Katy Perry compared her to Jennifer Hudson. Nya sounds absolutely nothing like J-Hud.
16. Janya Elise- "My All"
When Jayna's name is called, she is congratulated by fellow contestant Julia who is dropping multiple f-bombs that the pre-recorded show bleeps out. Looking far less happy is young Hailey Mia, who is probably looking at who is left on the couch and has done the math in her head.
A very ambitious choice for Jayna to do a Mariah Carey ballad. I think she pretty much pulled it off. Towards the end, some notes may have not been completely in tune, but I think she is a heck of a singer and a performer. With so many of the contestants having direct competition in their various musical "lanes", I cannot help but compare Jayna to Nya, and think that Jayna is a lot better for Idol.
17. Abi Carter- "Welcome to the Black Parade"
I do not know this song by My Chemical Romance, but I assume it is not about the Bud Billiken Parade in Chicago.
This is a very emotional performance by Abi, who dedicates it to her recently deceased grandmother. Katy Perry is in tears from the start. Abi has very strong vocal and talent and she brought a lot of dynamics to this performance, from starting off softly to hitting some big notes near the end. I take it that Abi will play the piano a lot during her time on the show. With that in mind, while she probably does not sound a ton like her, she sort of looks like and reminds of Sara Bareilles.
I notice that there is a Kennedy and a Carter competing for the vote as if it were 1980. It is just too bad we do not have a Reagan or a Bush.
Next will be a guest performance by Lauren Spencer-Smith. I sort of remember that back in 2020 I thought she should not have been eliminated as soon as she was during the pandemic "sing from home": season. I recall that her family seemed to have a huge house in Canada. Maybe she was eliminated because she was the first American Idol contestant to actually perform from foreign soil. She seems to have made it in the music industry now though. Nobody else that season has. Unfortunately, that season's winner Just Sam, is more likely to be singing again in the subway to be invited to the Idol stage.
18. Will Moseley- "Makin' Me Look Good Again"
On balance, the ladies seem stronger than the guys this season, but a male usually wins, and I have to peg Will as the early frontrunner
The recent (ok something freaky happened with Blogger and I am just glad I did not lose this entire post) biology degree grad said he would give himself a year to make it in the music business and it seems likely he can extend that effort. Will is a very good singer and seems incredibly chill and unaffected by this whole television thing. While he is a country artist, his voice also has influences from Southern Rock, which should make "Big Mo" appealing to non-C&W fans.
"Big Mo",. along with Kennedy and Carter, is also something that comes from the 1980 Presidential primary season.
Two spots left for four singers. It seemed pretty obvious which two deserved it and it just so happens that both were adopted.
19. McKenna Faith Breinholt- "Both Sides Now"
The final segments of this episode were going to be pretty good. McKenna seems older than she is (which is not meant to imply she looks old or anything) but she just seems like she should already be famous in the music world.
I am not really a Joni Mitchell fan, but I very much enjoyed what McKenna did with this song. Her playing at the piano will probably earn her some comparisons to Abi, but it is hard to see what more McKenna could have done. Her lower register is just superb when she sings. Her speaking voice however seems strained.
As I have said before various times over the years, I cannot stand when contestants perform barefoot. If I had the ability to subtract points for that I would (call it the Paul Kim Rule.)
Who should have been eliminated from Group A: Blake Proehl and Kaibrienne
Who I predicted would be eliminated from Group A: Blake Prohel and Nya
Who was eliminated from Group A: Blake Prohel and Hailey Mia
Blake has been cut from teams before so he seems to take it in stride. The disappointment is very evident though for Hailey
My internet is being weird and I am trying to take steps to make sure I do not lose anything I have typed on this post.
20. Julia Gagnon- "I Believe"
I take it that Julia likes to sing Diva covers. Taking on Fantasia's winner's song from a literal generation ago is pretty bold. Other Idol contestants in the years since have probably regretted doing so.
Rankings:
20. Jordan Anthony
19. Roman Collins
18. Kaibrienne
17. Jennifer Jeffries
16. Mackenzie Sol (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
15. Nya
14. Ajii
13. KAYKO (predicted Top 10 vote finish
12. Jack Blocker
11. Mia Matthews
10. Emmy Russell (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
9. Quintavious
8. Kennedy Reid
7. Abi Carter (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
6. Jayna Elise (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
5. Triston Harper (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
4. Will Moseley (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
3. Odell Bunton Jr (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
2. Julia Gagnon (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
1.. McKenna Faith Breinholt (predicted Top 10 vote finish)
posted by Corey @ Thursday, April 18, 2024
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