Disclaimer: All these opinions are clearly subjective and I am in no way affiliated with American Idol or any other corporation.
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| Once again, "your" top six, America. Not mine. |
That was...something? It's funny, the people who did well did really well and the people who didn't...just didn't. There were a few surprises in there (Tristan? What? You can sing?) and some very big disappointments but that's Idol 15 for you! I really wish that FOX would just let Idol go out with a full season. It's been a consistent performer for fourteen years, at least let it go out with the respect it deserves. I get the ratings aren't as amazing as they used to be, but rushing this final season just isn't working. C'mon, FOX, it's the LAST season of the biggest show to ever be on television.
Enough rants, on to the performances!
DUETS:
Surprisingly, these were pretty well paired and were very impressive! Save for the last one.
LA'PORSHA & TRENT
"See You Again"
La'Porsha and Trent? I know this is "unscripted" (and I use that term loosely when it comes to Fox and it's reality shows) but is Idol doing a little bit of foreshadowing? I have to say I wouldn't be mad if this was our top two and probably you neither. This was literally a match made in heaven. Their voices are so different but they contrast each other perfectly. Their harmonies were tight and they actually looked like they were having a fun time on stage together! I was honestly hoping it would turn into a battle of the runs but I'm still full after that (9/10).
AVALON & SONIKA
"Rise Up"
Was anyone a little confused when they heard this pairing? After Avalon hit that first note, all my worries went away. Their voices blending very well together despite having absolutely different styles. There was actually a really nice balance between the two. Sonika can come off as a bit polished, whereas Avalon's chill vibe gave the performance the step up it needed. J-Lo hit it on the nail when she said that the song is very inspirational because I didn't get the emotional aspect of the performance (although as usual, Sonika was trying hard and dramatically as hell to make me think I felt it). It sounded beautiful though (8/10).
MACKENZIE & DALTON
"I Want It That Way"
"I enjoy boy band music." Really? I wouldn't have guessed it, Dalton. I say every week that my reviews are extremely subjective and catered to my personal view so I'm not going to speak much on this. To sum everything up, I didn't want it that way. I don't know but I just wasn't feeling the performance, it was a bit of a hot mess to me? It was nice to see a softer side to Dalton and MacKenzie was literally just the same. It was alright, I don't think it was anything special, though (7/10). HAHAHA DID YOU SEE DALTON ALMOST FALL OVER AT THE END?!
TRISTAN & LEE
"Don't Miss A Thing"
I would have preferred Lee to wear the heels. This was a hot mess waiting to happen. Thanks for the heads up, Scott, that Lee was sick. He didn't sound sick but he sounded just as pitchy so at least he has an excuse this week. So...pitch? Did we leave that backstage? Lee came out sounding pitchy and Tristan came out with her powerful pitchiness. It turned into a screaming match (well, Tristan did enough screaming for the both of them) and I wanted to miss this (5.5/10).
SOLOS:
LA'PORSHA RENAE"Come Together"
"L..........a'porsha!" Ryan. Why did you have to play with Lee's life like that? So, let's forget about her vocals for a hot second (which is hard, I know). La'Porsha has a great singing voice, but her ability to work a stage like that with as much personality and power like that is something completely different. She delivers every performance with ease (vocally) but she also comes out week after week with those fierce looks and....okay, screw it. THAT FALSETTO?! When she started playing with Harry and hit that head voice right quick it was cute, but at the end of the song where she just so effortlessly transitioned from chest to head voice I tapped out and tore my wig off for her (8/10). GIRL, YOU CAN MOVE.
MACKENZIE BOURG
"You Are So Beautiful"
When MacKenzie sang "you are so beautiful" and stared into the camera I said thank you. This song is everything I hoped for and everything I needed out of MacKenzie. It was simple, he wasn't straining for those notes which is usually my pet peeve of his. This song couldn't have come at a more perfect time after Harry got on his case about the duet (because he had absolutely no idea what he was singing about) and not being able to connect and then coming out here and interpereting the lyrics as strongly as he did. AND he did it without a guitar! MacKenzie came out and made a 50+ year old song sound like he just wrote it (9/10). "Great job young man."
TRENT HARMON
"Stand By Me"
Trent did something breathtaking tonight. He made a song that could come across as very cheesy and cabaret and he sold the heck out of it. I knew we were in for something special when he started a capella at the beginning. I wasn't a fan of him at the beginning of the season but he's slowly but surely turned me into a fan. His voice was an acquired taste for me, but once I acquired it, I tasted the hell out of it (?). Trent's ad-libs are absolute perfection, that pose at the end was perfect. Trent, when are you going to start doing wrong? Never? Kk (8.5/10). I love when Trent starts screaming at me as well.
Trent did something breathtaking tonight. He made a song that could come across as very cheesy and cabaret and he sold the heck out of it. I knew we were in for something special when he started a capella at the beginning. I wasn't a fan of him at the beginning of the season but he's slowly but surely turned me into a fan. His voice was an acquired taste for me, but once I acquired it, I tasted the hell out of it (?). Trent's ad-libs are absolute perfection, that pose at the end was perfect. Trent, when are you going to start doing wrong? Never? Kk (8.5/10). I love when Trent starts screaming at me as well.
So, anyways. Yeah. What an adorable clip package of "Ain't No Sunshine"...but are we just going to act like Christina Christian didn't sing the living daylights out of that song in season one? Aaron Kelly and not Christina Christian in that clip package. Okay. Nice, I see you Idol! (:
TRISTAN McINTIRE
"Broken Wing"
Awesome. I feel like crap for coming for her every week because that story about her pa pa just made me all mushy inside. I remember watching her run around the stage like she lost her mom in the grocery store those first few weeks but she really, really found her niche with these country power ballads. My only problem is that her voice has no sense of control. You can tell there is so much potential in there and she has a genuinely strong voice but she always goes for this belting that strains her voice and makes it sound like she's shouting. I hope last week wasn't a fluke because it showed her potential to have a really impressive growth arc (7/10).
DALTON RAPATTONI
"Eleanor Rigby"
Damn, Dalton! Back at it again with the fake shock! Wait, first off, who else sang "Eleanor Rigby"? No shade, I just thought this was going to be popular Idol performances and I've never heard anyone do that before. Honestly, I muted the TV when the judges started praising this performance with such a high level of honor. Yeah, it's cool that he does different stuff with...sdgsdgjsdgjkdklfasofjsaklf, sorry, I just had a spasm when I realized that we're not getting both Sonika and Avalon next week and I lost the ability to give a crap (6/10). Tbh, I muted when Jennifer started talking because all I would have heard was choking because she sucks this little white boy so hard. I rounded off his performance at a 6 because it wasn't awful, but I just thought there wasn't any sense of pitch at the beginning but it was an interesting performance to actually watch.
SING OFF:
AVALON YOUNG
"P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)"
"I'm so confused." It's absolute trash that Avalon has ended up back in the bottom three again. She delivered a compelling performance, beautiful vocals, she is cool, she is smooth, she is everything you could ever hope for in an American Idol contestant. This season of Idol is trying to rectify a lot of it's previous mistakes, but the one thing that hasn't changed is valuing mediocrity over much more compelling and talented contestants. This was far from her best performance, but it was still amazing. (7.5/10). "How y'all doin'?" came back!!!!! I'm going to absolutely miss Avalon. Her voice, her swagger, she had the whole package but America didn't know how to pick it up outside of their front porch. Do we want to have ourselves a little rant? Let's do it. America needs to wake the hell up and stop running over good talent because they don't conform to YOUR fuck ass standards. I fully believe that her elimination was based on her appearance and her genre of music. When have you ever seen a white girl have more soul than a ghost? Not only that, but Avalon was just fine doing her with no makeup and baggy clothes because that was what made her comfortable but that was ALL people could focus on when she was singing her ass off every performance and PERFORMING her ass off, every single performance. Then when she gives in to the pressure to put make up on, she's called fake and is dragged again. Why don't all of you who talked negatively about this girl suck on a batch of overcooked cock and go find some business to be in? This girl is PERFECT the way she is and she doesn't need this show to convince me or anyone else with realistic standards of what beauty and confidence is that she needs to change herself. Do you, baby, I wish you nothing but the best.
LEE JEAN
"Let It Be"
Look, I love Lee Jean. I've been a fan of his ever since I saw him shushing the crowd, that was my personal favorite on stage moment of the season so far. This performance was by far his best in a few weeks, and you could feel the judges preparing to send him home as they spoke. I can't say I disagree with their decision, but he had a lot of potential. Had we been able to get a full length season of Idol, we might have been able to see him grow a little more as a singer because he has a beautiful voice. The songs he has been chosing have been out of his range and come off as sub-par. This was a very average performance, but a good note for Lee to go out on (7/10).
SONIKA VAID
"I Have Nothing"
Wait, so are we surprised? Like, at all? Last week Sonika was in a tough spot. Her voice was in top form as usual, but her lack of stage presence took away from the overall impact of the performance. The minute I read up that she was going to be doing, not just Whitney THE VOICE Houston, but I Have Nothing? That's what I had to say about my scalp when she was done snatching my edges. I said in Survivor that she needed to go after La'Porsha every week if we wanted to pull the fighter out of her and I thought being in the bottom three would have the same effect. She sounded very good, but I'm not sure if her voice was powerful enough? I don't know, I think there were some nerves in her voice but...it was pretty good (7.5/10). WHO CARES, SHE'S SONIKA SHE'S STILL AMAZING EVEN IF THIS WASN'T PERFECT.
RESULTS:
Sonika was saved, Lee & Avalon were eliminated. In all honesty, it's getting pretty hard to guess who's going home when everyone starts cranking out good performances like this (I don't count Dalton because his little white girl fans and J-Lo has him covered). With Tristan picking up some steam it's going to be next to impossible to guess who's going home next week.
RANKINGS:
Duets:
04. Lee & Tristan (5.5/10)
03. Dalton & MacKenzie (7/10)
02. Avalon & Sonika (8/10)
01. La'Porsha & Trent (9/10)
Solos:
Duets:
04. Lee & Tristan (5.5/10)
03. Dalton & MacKenzie (7/10)
02. Avalon & Sonika (8/10)
01. La'Porsha & Trent (9/10)
Solos:
08. Dalton Rapattoni (5/10) (Last week's position: #7//-1)
07. Lee Jean (7/10) (Last week's position: #9+2)
06. Tristan McIntosh (7/10) (Last week's position: #8//+2)
05. Sonika Vaid (7.5/10) (Last week's position: #4//-1)
04. Avalon Young (7.5/10) (Last week's position: #2//-2)
03. La'Porsha Renae (8/10) (Last week's position: #1//-3)
02. Trent Harmon (8.5/10) (Last week's position: #3//+1)
01. MacKenzie Bourg (9/10) (Last week's position: #6//+5)
06. Tristan McIntosh (7/10) (Last week's position: #8//+2)
05. Sonika Vaid (7.5/10) (Last week's position: #4//-1)
03. La'Porsha Renae (8/10) (Last week's position: #1//-3)
02. Trent Harmon (8.5/10) (Last week's position: #3//+1)
01. MacKenzie Bourg (9/10) (Last week's position: #6//+5)
I'm not really surprised by a lot on this list, I initially ranked Tristan in my top three...then I re-listened to her performance and, well, she's #6 now so I guess you can see where that went. I'm surprised to have Sonika so low, and I didn't think I'd get so sick of Dalton this early in the competition but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.
Who I Send Home:
Dalton or Tristan
Dalton or Tristan
Who America Sends Home:
...Sonika? (I SINCERELY hope not, but based on voting trends...) or Tristan
...Sonika? (I SINCERELY hope not, but based on voting trends...) or Tristan
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