We are getting down to the homestretch on the 24th season of American Idol. Monday night saw the Top 7 perform two songs and then there would be only five remaining. For some reason, comedian Nikki Glaser, who has some sort of special on Hulu to promote, was the guest judge and she showed up in a tiny and sparkly dress. Who was not present at the judges' table was Taylor Swift, the subject of Round 1, or California Governor Gavin Newsom, whose state's music was the focus of Round 2. That might have made for a more interesting panel. Next week though, we are told that Randy Jackson and Paul Abdul will be returning. That might be "a hot one, dog."
As for this week, the King and Queen of England were in America and they have been on Idol before, but did not show up at the Hollywood studio. Also their friend, Lionel Richie was apparently not invited to the State Dinner.
1. Jordan McCullough- "Tim McGraw"
For this first round, Jordan reached back to the early reaches of T Swift's songbook, back when she was actually considered a country artist. I have to say, it was a bit disappointing that not many of the future Mrs. Kelce's songs that I actually know were chosen.
What else can be said about Jordan at this point though? He is very good vocally at whatever he attempts and always seems quite at ease on stage. He is not likely to ever make it to the Grand Ole Opry, but he did a credible job here.
2. Chris Tungseth- "exile"
Apparently, Taylor has also gone the Billie Ellish route and also has boring songs stylized in lowercase letters.
A couple of nights later, I do not remember much about this performance. Chris is not a horrible singer by any means, but just has seemed very bland for weeks and his ballads always sound the same. In my view, his voice is just not at the same level as most of the others.
3. Hannah Harper- "Mean"
I sort of know this song. It is another pretty old one all things considered. For a while now, Hannah perhaps reminds long-time Idol fans of Season 7's Brooke White in some ways. Tonight, she played a banjo which possibly could be an Idol first.
The beginning of this performance seemed very strong from what I recall. Hannah has quite a clear and pure voice and this kind of country vibe is right up her alley. As I think she has done before though, towards the end of a performance, she sort of lost any sense of competitive intensity and it a felt a bit like she was just coasting to the finish of the song.
4. Brooks- "Love Story"
I definitely know this Taylor Swift song. I guess it is kind of a guilty pleasure. Brooks did not change the pronouns or the phrasing around which had him proclaiming himself a Princess a few times.
This could have been good considering that Brooks sounds like a less than perfect live female singer, much like Taylor herself. At some points, I thought it was decent but then at others, he seemed to mess up a bit on the lyrics or the entrance and it just did not feel like a smooth performance.
5. Daniel Stallworth- "Fearless"
This is a song I do not know. Perhaps that is a reason I cannot recall a lot of the musical details of it. I wish I would have been able to "live blog" this season where I write on here immediately after listening to a performance, but that just is not possible on Mondays.
What I do remember though is that Daniel was once again impressive vocally and performance wise. He is quite good at putting his own R&B meets Gospel spin on just about everything. From the beginning of the night though, I knew the math of survival would not be in his favor.
6. Keyla Richardson- "Lover"
Sort of the same thing is at play here. I do not know the song. That makes it harder to recall the cover performance. Her young son was there being as supportive as always, but does not seem to be singing along with the lyrics. That might have been a good thing here.
What I recall is that Keyla sang it very well. There is no doubting the talent and effectiveness of her voice. It just so happens though that (much like the "Thee Divas" Idol Season 3), the three best voices this year may all be African-American. Keyla is the only female amongst them though which may or may not work to her benefit, but there was never going to be anyway they became the Top 3.
7. Braden Rumfeld- "cardigan"
Braden was really good at the taped Hawai'i show, but on the big Idol stage, he has had some missed opportunities and seemed ill at ease.
I have to say though, that Braden really impressed me this week. While I am not too familiar with the song, he gave what seemed like a genuine interpretation and fit it a lot of interesting vocal techniques, He also seemed leagues more confident than he has in the past, despite wearing a goofy sweater. I have to call it like I see it, and I thought that he really surpassed expectations.
Round 1 rankings:
7. Brooks
6. Chris Tungseth
5. Hannah Harper
4. Daniel Stallworth
3. Keyla Richardson
2. Jordan McCullough
1. Braden Rumfeld
Next, the Idol hopefuls all appeared in a propaganda ad by the official California tourism folks. The kids were shown having a ball and enjoying the sights of the Golden State. Nobody commented on the Gubernatorial election (which I will be doing on here this summer when "Race of the Day" returns)
In this ode to California, there was no visuals or mentions of smog, homelessness, sky high prices, ICE raids, or Kardashians.
8. Brooks- "She Will Be Loved"
If nothing else, Brooks got to sing some decent pop songs. I suppose he thought he could do the Adam Levine falsetto thing. Afterwards, I wonder if maybe "God Only Knows" by The Beach Boys would have been a better California selection for his particular voice, but he did go with a second song with "love" in the title in order to hype up his showmance with the erstwhile Idol Finalist Rae, while remaining seated on a stool once again throughout.
Vocally, I thought there were some decent moments. At other times, I questioned the melodic choices. Brooks does sort of seem to be just going through the motions with this whole Idol thing, but perhaps he feels he has already "won" in another way. As I have mentioned before, my parents really do not care for Brooks. I told my father I would include his line, "Brooks should be Done" on the blog. Get it? Only in America.
9. Jordan McCullough- "I Can't Make You Love Me"
This is a song that my mother always says she finds boring whenever anybody does it on Idol. I happen to think that a lot of contestants have sang this Bonnie Raitt number quite well over the years. (Is she from California?)
All things considered, this may have been the best vocal performance of the season. Jordan is just so skilled both in terms of his voice and his ability to communicate and emote. Right from the start on this one, I remarked that he sounded a lot like the late Luther Vandross. That might be the kind of career he would wish to have. I have been re-watching the episode over the weekend after I write my blog, so I will look forward to catching this performance again.
10. Daniel Stallworth- "Best Part"
Her is a newer song I do not know at all. Daniel did very well on it though and had a very strong night overall.
It began on piano and then he got up and sang it in a modern R&B style. It reminded me a lot of John Legend, for people who like that sort of stuff. That kind of music is not really my favorite, but Daniel has a ton of talent and has improved over the few weeks he has been singing on live television. If he was going down on Monday night, as I think he suspected, he would at least go down swinging.
11. Braden Rumfeld- "This Love"
Maroon 5 and their lead singer, mostly associated with rival franchise "The Voice" gets their second entry into the California sweepstakes. There are also a lot of songs with "love" in the title in both rounds.
I thought Braden had perhaps a bit more vocal gravitas in the first round, but this was still a good upbeat performance. His newly discovered confidence was apparent again and this sounded to use a cliche "fun" I guess. With the elimination of so many young white guys (or those that sing white guy music) this season, there is definitely a voting market still left for Braden.
12. Chris Tungseth- "What Was I Made For"
It occurred to me watching this how much Chris looks like the '80s wrestler, the later Big John Studd. Maybe that is why he is staying in the competition. I obtained an autograph photo of him somehow when I was a child.
Perhaps Chris should consider becomiing a professional wrestler whose shtick is "sensitive light rock singer" because his Idol performances are just not doing it for me. He never seems to have a Idol disaster like several contestants over the years have, but this plaintive.Barbie ballad was just boring. Then again, anything by Billie Elish is boring, including many of her political statements.
13. Hannah Harper- "That's The Way Love Goes"
No, this was not the sultry Janet Jackson song from the early '90s. One can hardly imagine Hannah trying that This was an old Merle Haggard country song that I did not know.
For this performance, Hannah stood there and sang it without a guitar or banjo. Going old school country is definitely in her interest in trying to corner a certain market. She is the only one left who can really be considered country and someone from that genre is pretty much guaranteed a spot in the Finale. This was a nice performance although a little boring to me personally.
14, Keyla Richardson- "I'd Rather Go Blind"
This particular song has been done on Idol a few times before (though notably not by Scott MacIntyre). I guess there was some sort of loophole that let Etta James be considered fair game for the California theme.
To nobody's surprise Keyla brought it, especially at the end, as she is known to do. This may have been her strongest performance. I immediately started debating in my head if this would be ranked first or second for the round. I was just hoping there was not going to be a shock situation where either Keyla or Jordan were eliminated.
Round 2 rankings (unlike the California Jungle primary elections, two would eventually leave, not advance to the next round)
7. Chris Tungseth
6. Brooks
5. Hannah Harper
4. Braden Rumfeld
3. Daniel Stallworth
2. Jordan McCullough
1. Keyla Richardson
So looking back at the ranking list I jotted down in a notebook on Monday night, I did put Keyla narrowly first in that round. I am not sure if I will agree upon re-watch. Her performance was perhaps just more dramatic for television and she got to go last.
Now, in terms of the cumulative rankings, I had two-way ties that would need to be broken for both last and first.
7. Chris Tungseth
6. Brooks
5. Hannah Harper
4. Daniel Stallworth
3. Braden Rumfelt
2. Keyla Richardson
1. Jordan Stallworth
Who should have been eliminated: Chris Tungseth and Brooks
Who I predicted would be eliminated: Chris Tungseth and Daniel Stallworth
Who was eliminated: Daniel Stallworth and Brooks
In my view, my top 5 are all a good deal better than the two I had at the bottom, but I knew I would not get my wish.
Unfortunately, it was the end of the line for Jordan, as I expected. A bit of a bigger surprise was that Brooks got the boot. A whole lot of Idol fans (such as my parents) must be relieved at that. Perhaps his "being in love" left some of the estrogen army to abandon him after all.
Chris continues to survive though and I still have questions as to why. Would I be correct in saying that a large portion of American women, who might be on the more portly side just think he is hot? While he is somewhat boring when he sings, at least he has a good deal more personality in general than Brooks has exhibited in front of the cameras. That must count for something.
However, he is doing it, but Chris has gone a lot further than many expected. The next person to worry in regards to next week should probably be Braden, but it is also possible we are headed to a shock elimination of either Keyla or Jordan.
My hunch right now is that Hannah might finish as the runner-up to the one of them that survives the longest. Then again, an all-female Final 2? It has been well over a decade since that happened and back then, it was not without a good deal of producer manipulation.
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