Welcome back. I hope you all enjoyed last night's premiere and we are glad that you came back here to read our recap on the show. I guess the first episode was the lowest premiere ever at 15.2 million. But, it is still FOX's biggest audience of the season of any show and in my opinion it was one of the better Idol premiere episodes in years. We will see if the great publicity of Harry Connick Jr, and the great talent coming out will help the ratings adjust up.
Anyways, like last night we are going to post our reactions to the contestants. We will be going in depth on some of our more favorite or notable contestants and give some brief comments on the other contestants that either moved on to Hollywood or were sent home. Hope you enjoy!
So, let's get to it:
AUSTIN AUDITIONS:
Jesse Roach(27). She looks like the rock version of Katy Perry. She looks like the kinda person that would probably kick you in the shin if you said she reminds you of Katy Perry, but that's what I like about her. She sings "Do Ya" by K.T Olsin. I have never heard the song before, but Jesse sounds great on it. She has rasp and soul and makes it all sound really good. The judges agree and send her to Hollywood.
Notable Comment-KEITH "She has a lot of soul and has a story older than who you [she is]"
Moving On To Hollywood
Steven Curd (18)
Anna Melvin(22)
Ryan Clark(22)
Jamiah Malik(15) and Quiandra Boston-Pearsall(17). They are school friends that go in separately and they each have a decent audition. They both have some strengths, like their personality and their voice is on tone, but they both have some weaknesses in the power of their voice and pitch. I think he is a bit more dynamic and interesting and she has a nice voice but nothing really groundbreaking. We are told before the commercial break that only one of them gets to go to Hollywood. The one going to Hollywood is Quiandra. I disagree with this one. Not saying he should have went to Hollywood but I'm not sure that she should either.
Notable Comment-N/A(We aren't told which comment goes to which person).
Spencer Lloyd(19). I started loving this audition because as soon as he walked in you can see Jennifer Lopez swoon a little over Spencer's looks, while Keith and more notably Harry get hysterically jealous. He is definitely a good looking guy. Might be one of the more good looking contestants Idol has had in awhile.This guy actually has a really sweet voice. I don't really remember what he sang but I think he can get better, because there were a couple of pitch problems. Harry just thinks he is an okay singer. Jennifer thinks he can sing. Keith thinks his whole package keeps his attention. The 3 judges send him to Hollywood.
Notable Comment: HARRY(All said sarcastically due to Spencer's looks)"I don't like being upstaged by the eyes...Your name is cool, you look like that, even if you suck you are carrying a guitar...What's to like? I'm unhappy...This is torture for me".
T.K Hash(28). Harry Connick Jr tells T.K that he looks like Barack Obama and so T.K just busts out a solid enough impersonation of our President that he grabbed my attention right away. T. K then sings "My Songs Know What You Did In The Dark" . I liked that he took a really powerful rock song and made it kind of into an R&B version with a little rock in there. Really cool. His voice isn't quite there yet but it has a lot of potential. All 3 judges send him to Hollywood.
Notable Comment: JENNIFER-He changed the energy of the room and made us perk up and made us wonder who this person is.
HOLLYWOOD OR HOME Contestant
I vote...well I don't really vote because I don't want to tweet for a silly feature in the show....but I would have voted that she(a person we don't even know the name to) does not go to Hollywood and goes Home instead. The American public voted and 69% said she was going to Hollywood...and they were right she goes to Hollywood. I was wrong, so that means absolutely nothing.
Tristen Langley(15). Whoa...he is Nikki McKibbin's son. I am getting so old. Wow, she is the mom of a 15 year old that is now performing on Idol. If people don't remember her she was in the Top 3 of the very first season of American Idol, she was there with eventual winner Kelly Clarkson and runner-up Justin Guarini. I recognized her right away, she still has her pink hair and tattoos. Her son Tristen sings "Santaria" and I like his voice a lot. It's cool that she is his mom, but even if he wasn't I think he has a solid voice and he is a good looking guy. Jennifer thinks he has a good voice, Harry doesn't think he has it without the story, but Keith sends him to Hollywood.
Notable Comment: JENNIFER-This is 2nd generation American Idol. This is history.
John Fox(20). The show started with John but then rewound and went back and now we are back to him. He sings "To Make You Feel My Love". I think his voice is different, it has that gravel-ly, soulful kind of sound to it. It also carries a ton of emotion and the judges are grooving with him and hand him a golden ticket. I would have too, he has an amazing voice.
Notable Comment: HARRY-"Didn't expect that voice to come out of you...not sure what I expected"
Also Moving On To Hollywood
Megan Miller(23)-Solid country voice.
Eric Wood(28)-Really great voice.
Austin Alvarez (27)-Didn't really get a chance to hear it.
Marlon Lindsey(27)-Really powerful soul voice.
Taylor Stearns(21)-Very Taylor Swift without the big voice.
Also Going Home
Grace Fields (27) -Piano player with no voice. Good for Piano Idol, not so much for American Idol.
Rick Rowling(28)-He came in without his shirt, and he can't sing and knows he can't just came in to be funny. It didn't work.
LJ Hernandez(23)-He pulled out props and didn't work with his bad voice.
SAN FRANCISCO AUDITIONS:
Emmanuel Zidor(24). Started singing before he came in the room, should have stayed there. I don't think he is the worst singer in the world, but I have heard several better singers that were far better than him be sent home. He gets 3 "Yes's". I don't agree with this one. He is adorable and he starts to cry and all that, but nah, I don't like this decision by the judges.
Notable Comment: JENNIFER-"I believe every word you sing".
Caitlin Johnson(15). She really doesn't seem 15 at all, she looks older than some of my mom's friends. Jeez. Her voice is okay. It's not stellar. Harry doesn't think she is ready and thinks she needs time to work on who she is. Keith likes her voice a lot. Jennifer doesn't think she is ready, but agrees she should go to Hollywood with Keith. I think Jennifer should have said "No" like she first wanted to. I think if Keith had said "No" and the pressure of having to send this girl home was off of her then Jennifer would have said "No", but because she doesn't want to look mean she decided to just go along with Keith and let Caitlin move on. Not a great job by Jennifer.
Notable Comment-HARRY(Sarcastically shocked about how she looks older than she looks)"You are 32 years old from New York City and your name is Beth Goodwin".
Selena and Sierra Moreno(22). They come in together because they are twins, but they sing separately. Selena sings first, she does a few too many runs, and doesn't seem completely natural, but has a lot of energy. Sierra sings next and has a much softer tone, but not a ton of energy. It's interesting, they are identical twins but their singing voices and performance energies are distinctly different.Before the break we are told that one of them is going to Hollywood and one isn't. The judges believe that Selena has a better voice and is going to Hollywood while her sister Sierra is going home.
Notable Comment-HARRY-"One of you is clearly the better singer".
Briana Oakley(17). I remember her from last season. She was pretty good then. She got through a couple rounds in Hollywood week. She sings "Stay" by Sara Barielles. I don't like the song choice completely for Briana, but her voice is so good. Her runs, her tone, everything is just crystal clear. Really well done by her. Gets 3 "Yes's" by the judges.
Notable Comment-JENNIFER-Reminds her of Jordin Sparks "So young and so powerful".
Adam Roth(28). This guy is more zen and at peace than any contestant that I have seen up there. He is a self-proclaimed "sound healer", which I'm assuming heals people with sound. When he starts singing it's almost creepy especially when he gets into a moment, but luckily he stays on the right side of the line, and proves he has a real good voice.The judges didn't know if he was faking it, or if he was being himself. Harry says "No", Jennifer says "Yes" and Keith brings him to Hollywood
Notable Comment-KEITH-Strange performance...has an interesting voice, but his usage of it was so schizophrenic.
Also Moving On To Hollywood
Rachel Rolleri(17)-She had a few problems here and there, but there is a lot to like, she could be one to watch for later.
Athena Wilford(20)-Not too bad. But didn't bowl me over yet.
Remi Wolf(17)-Her voice didn't seem entirely all there.
MK Nobilette(20)-Didn't do much for me. Very forgettable.
David Luning(26)-A haunting, intense voice. A moody voice, but a happy guy.
Rico Perkins(24) and Aranesa Turner(20)-They both sang songs from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. And both sang them well.
Also Going Home
Samuel Ramsey(24)- Fails 'jazzy' miserably.
Ronald Reed(23)-Pleasant enough guitar player, but really terrible voice.
Gaddy Basil Foster(26)-A weight lifter dude, that should probably stick to that.
HOLLYWOOD TOTALS
19 from San Francisco and 14 from Austin=33 From Tonight
79 Golden Tickets So Far
Favorite of the Night
John Fox. I just think his voice was the most pure and most emotionally impactful. After listening to dozens of contestants I can distinctly remember his voice and his sound.So that's gotta be a good thing.
Final Thoughts
*I like the chemistry of the 3 judges. I like that Harry is honest, and Keith is real, but Jennifer has yet to say the word "No" when Keith and Harry split. She has yet to be the deciding voice on if someone goes home. I don't know if it's because she doesn't wanna be seen as the bad guy, or she honestly thinks some of these people that she sends to Hollywood has potential, but it doesn't look great on her part. I get her wanting to give people a chance, but she contradicts herself when she says "they are all over the place" or "they might not be ready" but then sends them to Hollywood anyway. C'mon Jennifer, put your neck out there a little bit.
*I really like that we see so many good contestants and so little crazy, ridiculous performances. It's a much more tolerable show and enjoyable to watch. Sure back in Season 1 or 2 it was funny when someone came in as chicken or sang bad and Simon made fun of them, but at this point I just really enjoy good singing. Plus if the judges are good, and they are so far, then that will be funny enough to get by.
That's it. The first week of American Idol is done. A lot of really good singers and a really good show. I hope you have enjoyed Idol Be The Judge and you decide to come back here after each episode. We will be back next Wednesday after the next new episode. So until then...see ya!
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