Thursday, January 8, 2015

Audition Part 2: Nashville and Kansas City

Welcome back. After seeing the Top 24 in a silhouette music video I really hope we don't learn anything more about the current Top 24 before they are officially revealed. Without even trying you already could maybe tell which contestants from last night may or may not be in the Top 24. Like we mentioned yesterday we will not actively try to figure out which contestants made the Top 24, but it'll probably become a lot clearer as we enter the Hollywood rounds and whittle down the numbers. We will continue to be a "no spoiler zone".

Anyways, tonight is the second night of American Idol Season 14. According to a number of websites, last night's ratings were a little over 11 million with a 3.3 (18-49) rating. So it's down about 20% and 35% respectivley from last season's premiere episode, but up a little from last season's finale. So we'll see how it goes. Tonight the contestants finish up auditioning in Nashville and we also see some auditions from Kansas City. So enjoy and let's get going:



Nashville Auditions Part 2

Andrew Annello (22)- He came in kind of like a bozo, then his first note was crazy high and weird, but then he settled a little. Still not very good, but it was better than I thought. But that's saying I thought it was gonna be an "F' and instead it's a D+. Harry let's Andrew try a second time to try not to be so silly. Probably should not go to Hollywood even though his second performance was better. 
Notable Comments: Keith-Thought it was kinda like a caricature. Harry-Silly. Is better the second time around.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges Said Yes.

Loren Lott (21)-With Michael Orland accompaniment. I like her personality and her mom was fun too, but her voice was a little thin. It was funny she asked the judge's to sing with her at one point. It was a cute performance but the singing just didn't hold up enough for me. Harry asks her to be more natural and try another performance. That seems to have helped a little. Probably should go to Hollywood but not sure how far she'll go.
Notable Comments: Harry-Sounds like an actress trying to be a singer. Does have star quality. Keith-Voice is pretty and great personality.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. Jennifer and Keith agree to send her.

Trevor Douglas (16)- A kid who likes science and is a little goofy is a heck of a guitar player. His voice doesn't do too much for me until he hits the falsetto part of the song "Sing". That did the trick for me. He should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer- Has a little quirkiness, geeky quality in the best sense. Did a really nice job. Loves the falsetto. Harry-Loves his confidence.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges Said Yes.

Piper Jones (24)- No back story or montage just a pure singer and so damn good. She does crazy good runs and has a fun personality while she sings, which sometimes is hard to do. We only see about 30 seconds of Piper but it was really good. Definitely should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer- "PIPER!!!!!".
Going To Hollywood: Yep. (We don't see the judges say yes, but I assume she is through to Hollywood). 

Kelley Kime (23)-Going into the audition with her 3-year old daughter definitely makes it tougher to say "No". Her daughter then sings a little "Let it Go" when Michael Orland unprompted starts to play. Pretty much every child between the ages of 2 to 10 and a ton of adults know every word to "Let it Go". It's amazing. Anyways, back to Kelley. After that whole thing with her daughter singing then sitting on Jennifer's lap you had to hope that Kelley could sing and she does. Not the most outstanding singer in the world but definitely does enough to get to Hollywood. Her kid is pretty cute, I have to admit that.
Notable Comments: Harry-Really really hoping she could sing.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges Said Yes.

Cammie Lester (15)- Her first line goes wonky and she has to restart. Then she restarts and it ends up worse. Should not go to Hollywood. She's only 15, she could work on it.
Notable Comments: No comments.
Going To Hollywood: Nope.

Garrett Miles (25)- Garrett walks in led by his father because he is unfortunately blind since a very young age. He says that because he can't see the crowds he doesn't get nervous or anything like that. He plays guitar since he was a young guy. Despite his story or anything Garrett has a really great voice. It's not the most outstanding voice, but very pleasant to the ear. He tells Jennifer Lopez he loved her in the movie "Selena" and proceeds to sing a song from the movie, and then Jennifer joins in. Very cool. I love his personality. He should definitely go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Keith-Likes his style, likes the way he sings, can hear him sing any song and be him. Harry-Has a gift.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges Said Yes.

Clark Beckham (22)- We learn he is a street singer/performer. He plays his guitar and has a really strong voice, you could tell after only a couple notes. He has a lot of soul and movement in his voice. He did a lot with his voice in a short amount of time but it wasn't overdone. He should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Harry-Sounds like a singer, has a good ear, but not quite ready. Jennifer-Nice bluesy tune with a sweetness. Had a little trouble at the top, maybe lost some breath. Keith-Didn't get enough intensity.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. Jennifer and Keith send him through.

Gina Venier (24)- She plays drums, guitar and sings, so she's pretty talented.  She comes in with her box of instruments and before she sings one notes and just kicks this box thing you can tell she's gonna be good. Then she actually starts to sing and it has a little rasp to it. I think her musical talent over-matches her singing a little, but the whole package just works. She should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Keith-Who needs a band?
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 judges send her.

Alex Shier (19)- He can sing. I am not blown away but he has some talent. Not sure he should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer-Remembers him from last season and came back and defined himself, it's different and better. Harry-Doesn't know if he can bring something different.
Going To Hollywood:  Yep. Jennifer and Keith send him though.

Cody Fry (24)- He blasts a big note right out the gate on "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" then kinda settles and brings a super sweet and tenderness to his voice. I love when he goes for the falsetto, although he might've held onto it a little too long, but most of it was so good. His voice is really pretty and distinctive. Should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer-Gives a folky, throw back vibe. Harry-Might not have had potential 10 years ago, but does now. Felt great.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges send him.

Hector Montenegro (24) - He is a master cosmetologist and tells Jennifer that her skin is beautiful. I like the power behind Hector's voice. It doesn't blow me away, but it's a solid audition. Should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Harry-Nice voice, only concern is presentation. There's a piece missing. Jennifer-Innate coolness and swagger. Keith-Naturally a great singer.
Going to Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges send him.

Sarina-Joi Crowe (19)- 4 time repeat Idol contestant. I remember her pretty well from last season, not sure about the other couple times, but she is pretty good from what I recall. During this audition she starts off very strong and continues at that high level throughout. She is really good and I hope she goes further than she has in the past. Should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Harry-Good enough to go right to the voting without comments.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges send her.

We see a montage of some quick "Yes" to Hollywood contestants. Alison Peratikos (19), Jake Black (19), Steffi Leddbetter (20)

Savion Wright (22) - I liked Savion so much last season. I don't know what happened to him last year, I really thought he was gonna make live rounds, but came up a little short. He thinks he benefited from being cut last season and he looks great, really different from year to year. Savion decides to play one of my favorite songs "Change The World". He is just so cool and has a lot of style and swagger to his voice and personality. Should definitely go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer-Seems more confident in his own sting. Keith-No way I'm not gonna say Yes.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges send her.


Kansas City Auditions

Zack Kaltenback (22)- Starts off a little rocky, but gets it back really quick. He sounds cool but I wasn't jumping up and down for this audition. I've seen better. Don't think he should go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Harry-Felt like it was a flat audition. Needs to feel like he was getting pushed. Jennifer-Star quality. Keith-Good presence, but voice needs work.
Going To Hollywood: Keith and Jennifer send him to through.

Naomi Tatsuoka (24)- She is gonna pretend that it's "Tequila Tuesdays" and sings the song on her knees. Not sure I get it, but we'll go with it. Surprisingly Naomi sounds really good and she sings Adele's "Someone Like You". I thought she was gonna be really goofy but she has a lot of strength and power in her voice and hits some crazy runs.Should Go To Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer-Has a really great voice in that it could go so many ways, which is good and bad. Sometimes doing too much isn't great. Keith-Great gift of a voice and can tap in, but sometimes it went too dramatic.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 send her through.

Jhameel (24) -Makes origami and puts paint on his face in a certain symmetrical way because he has severe OCD. He turns "Buy U A Drank" into an acoustic performance. I wasn't bowled over but it was solid enough to go to Hollywood. We'll see how it goes for him when he is there.
Notable Comments: Keith-Voice wasn't enough but everything else that came with it did.
Going to Hollywood: Yep. All 3 send him through.

Jasmin Pinela (24)- I think Beyonce's "Listen" is one of the most difficult songs to sing because it has so many different tones and directions it could go. Jasmin loses her way at a few points during the time. She loses her breath and goes flat in so many places and is off the tune and key. She should not go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Jennifer-"What happened". Keith-Wasn't just that voice gave out but it was in a whole other key at most parts.
Going To Hollywood: Nope.

Lovey James (16)- Lovey is her stage name, her real name is Kiersten. Lovey is full pop and kinda fits the mold of some of the younger talent out there now, which is good, but it doesn't really distinguish her as well as one might want. It's a nice voice, but not that fantastic. I'm not that into so I wouldn't send her to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Harry-sings like pop singers on the radio sing now, adds her own thing to it too. Keith-A lot of originality.
Going To Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges send her through.

Jess Lamb (28) - Waited for American Idol until she was completely ready.  Has played all over for 10 years and feels completely seasoned. They bring in a piano for Jess. Her voice in the first line was a breath of fresh air. She knows her voice, she knows what to do with a song that is overdone a lot like "Ain't No Sunshine". So good and interesting. I really loved it. Should definitely go to Hollywood.
Notable Comments: Harry-Definition of creativity. Jennifer-Has her own point of view. Keith-Would stop what he was doing just to listen to her.
Going to Hollywood: Yep. All 3 Judges send her through.


Best of the Night
Garrett Miles and Savion Wright, both from Nashville. Jess Lamb from Kansas City. All 3 brought different personalities and distinctive voices. I was really happy to see Savion back and glad that Jess was able to bring something different to Kansas City.

Final Thoughts

*It was another good night for Idol. 21 contestants are going to Hollywood just from this episode alone. I think out of the 21 at least 15 of them were really really good. A few probably should've stayed in their hometowns instead of Hollywood, but those contestants will get whittled down in later rounds.

*I was nervous that Kansas City was gonna be a bust until Jess Lamb walked in. Nashville had the majority of the really great contestants, but because of her audition it leveled things out a little more.

*I am happy with seeing so much talent. Maybe seeing 25 auditions in a 2-hour span is a lot, but I'd rather see that then montages of people's backstories and sob-stories and nonsense. The one-hour audition episodes are the best, but it is what it is at this point. No point in getting upset about a format that's been around for 14 years.

That's it. Please come back here next Wednesday after another episode of American Idol. We hope you enjoyed our recap and will tell others about it and just keep reading and coming back. We really appreciate it. So have a great week and until next time, see ya!

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