Entertainment Blog

Ah, Baton Rouge. Idol heads even further south tonight, and I'm crossing my fingers for at least one high powered accordion act. If wishes were horses then beggars would ride though, so we'll see. If I'm super lucky, we'll get at least one act that includes an alligator. We only have an hour tonight because of some silly show called "Glee," so let's jump right into it.

Megan Miller, 22, Ethel, LA, was up first, coming out to sing right before surgery she was having on her leg. She sang "Something's Got a Hold on Me," and she didn't need a vocal crutch (and gets extra points for probably not being in top shape), but certainly wasn't showing any vocal weakness or disparity. If she can sing like this hurt, her in top form should be interesting. The judges were completely in support, and Megan will be off to surgery with that golden ticket in her hand.

Next up was Charlie Askew, who was kind of the opposite of a social butterfly (a social caterpillar?), and used music to connect with people. He sang "Breakthrough" by Queen, but really wasn't really connecting with me. Nicki asked him to move to a second song, which still really wasn't doing it for me. I don't this kid is ready for prime time, and I was surprised that the judges were falling head over heels for him. I don't think he's going to make it that long, but the judges gave him four votes to keep continuing on.

Oh man, it's time for another SUPER SECRET SURPRISE Idol contestant. Her surprise video had a tuba in it though (she was nominated by her Grandmother), so I'm going to be a little biased. Maddie Assel, 17, sang "Oh Darling" by The Beatles, and really dug into the song. I thought her overall sound and performance was average, but she ended up saving herself with those few powerful moments she really fell into. Four yeses, and Maddie will go to Hollywood.

We got another montage of the bottom of the barrel singers, cut in between fun little clips of Louisiana wildlife. It looks like this is going to be a constant shift to giving less TV time to the super unprepared singers, and I'm really curious what people think of this. Do you watch the show for good singing or the comedy acts? (Comment away at the bottom!).

Paul Jolley, 22, came out next, singing Rascal Flatts "I Won't Let Go." I thought his voice was a little overly raspy and dry, so I'm going to have to disagree with the judges again on this one. His four yes votes moved him to Hollywood, but his charm and smile aren't going to win this for him, that's for sure. Curious to see how he approaches other songs, and there is time for him to work on his tone.

Christopher Barthel, who claimed he had an alternate performing ego, (Nicki named that persona Mushroom) was next up and sang Adam Lambert's "If I Had You." So, Mushroom performed, and oh boy. It was bad. Almost words can't describe it bad, and it wasn't really singing, and poor Mushroom had no control over almost anything note wise. He did have passion, at least, but Keith put it best: "I like the keys that song was in." He got across the board no votes, and deserved them.

Did someone call for a doctor? Dr. Calvin Peters came out and sang Maxwell's "Whenever Wherever Whatever." He spent a bit of time in the higher register, and was able to move his voice around quite a bit, but still wasn't super impressed. He did have control over being able to shift registers and make jumps, but the mid-range just felt warbly. He'll have time to prove himself (and get his degree in musicology) in Hollywood.

We got our second head-band-wearing contestant with Michelle Montazeri,19, Florida, but we only got a brief glimpse of her, but what we did hear was pretty good. She was followed by two other decent female singers, who they again sped through (There seems to be one fast run of bad and good contestants each night now), and I'm guessing they are all off to Hollywood where we'll probably see more of them. There isn't TV time for everybody, I suppose.

Oh man. Look out female voters, but there's a firefighter in the mix this year! Climbing a ladder into America's hearts, Dustin Watts sang Garth Brooks' "She's Every Woman." He had a very solid voice, but all in all I thought it was a little too familiar sounding. That's not necessarily a bad thing, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but it seemed like he was doing more mimicking than he was his own twist on things, which he is going to need in the later stages of the show. I'll be curious to see him perform other material, and he'll have his chance, getting the four votes needed to continue on.

And now we're already down to our last contestant. These hour shows do go by fast, and was it just me, but was this a little less exciting than the past few episodes have been? Carrying the last contestant torch of the day was Burnell Taylor, 19, New Orleans, who sang "I'm Here" by The Color Purple. He did have a good voice, but, and I know I'm sounding like a broken record, was he really worth a standing ovation? I wouldn't say so, but he's going on to Hollywood. The judges seem to be easily to impress this season, to say the least.

Well, that's a wrap folks. 34 contestants will head to Hollywood, but overall Louisiana was a little (OK, a lot) disappointing. Idol will be back next week, and Eric will be taking the helm again. But enough from me, what did you all think of tonight's episode? The season so far? Sound off in the comments below.

Idol routed to Charlotte, North Carolina tonight, hitting the race way, and bringing with it several cringe worthy racing puns. I'm going to avoid those, mostly because the only thing I know about cars is that they have wheels and take me places.

This is also the famed episode where production got shut down due to the lovely feud between Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey. But, of course, this is television, so while the show teased it at the start, we didn't get to see it quite yet. We'll get there though folks, don't worry!

First up was Naomi Morris, who sang Aretha Franklin’s “Respect." She was, well, popping out in certain places, and her notes were falling all over the place as well. She got sent home, but got more screen time than she really deserved, probably for the, well, as Nicki said, the popping factor.

Next we got treated to Joel Neyomore, 20, who was a giant bundle of nerves. His big claim to fame was...lying on the ground while singing. And yup, while lying down, he sang "Feeling Good" by Michael Buble. He did manage to pull off a deeper and more bass heavy voice than I thought he would, but it came off more like a monk chant. And it really wasn't that good. Randy said never, and got no's from the rest of the group.

Brian Rittenberry, 27, Jasper, GA came out next. He sang The Beatles' "Let it Be" (a popular song this year, apparently). He gave a fairly commanding showing, showing great control as well as a very adept interpretation of the song. Keith called it "husky,” and Brian got four yeses to move on (And his wife got to meet Keith, so everyone in the family is happy!).

Jimmy Smith, 25, Tennessee, came out, very much looking and feeling the part. He sang “Bless the Broken Road,” by Rascal Flatts. He was a mixed bag: He had some really good stuff in here, but took some risks with parts of it that I didn't think really worked. Nicki (her word of the night) thought he was popping, Keith was in love with it too, and Mariah and Randy all approved, pushing Jimmy to Hollywood.

Next up was the flash pan sizzle reel, flashing through contestants really quick. I don't know why they are doing this, as they seem to speed through the really good talent here. Perhaps they just weren't TV friendly backgrounds or something. Whoever the girl was who was up last hit notes that I think only dogs can hear was quite impressive, and it looked like her and a few of the others in the frying pan were off to Hollywood. Hopefully we'll see some more of them there.

Oh boy! Cowboy hat! Matthew Muse, 23, Florence, South Carolina, and his faithful hat (I'm going to name the hat Phillip) were up next. Both Matthew and Phillip were looking forward to meeting Keith, and the pair sang "When I get Where I'm Going" by Brad Paisley. When he first started I thought he might really have it, and he had various pieces of the country star vocal puzzle there, but they just didn't fit together. I'm going to miss Matthew (and especially Phillip. Phillip!), and he was sent home with no votes from all of the judges.

Isabel Gonzalez was up next, and she was another one of those nominated-by-other-people Idol contestants. I'm still not sure how those work-do they people nominating them sneakily tape them singing songs? Anyway, Isabel sang "Nothing Could Ever Change This Love" by Sam Cooke. I don't know why I wasn't feeling her at first, but I'll give it to her, she could sing, and I didn't except that voice to come out of that body. She showed some really, really, strong control over phrasing and certain shifts between vocal singing and quiet almost whisper/talking little sweet vocal bombs hidden in the performance. The judges fell in love with her, and she got four yeses to Hollywood.

Taisha Bethea, 21, North Carolina, was from a rock band, and I was curious to see a female rocker on Idol. She sang Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues." I don't know why Randy thought Johnny Cash wasn't rocking (How is Cash not rocking Randy?), but Taisha's take on it wasn't very rock heavy (And there have been rock versions of that song). Randy asked her to move to her second song by Alanis Morissette. I thought she did a pretty decent job on both songs, but neither of them were really rock songs. Why didn't she pick rock songs? Nicki was all about it, but the other judges seemed torn. Nicki gave a yes, Mariah gave a no, Keith gave a yes, so now with a split panel it came to Randy, who also went no. Apparently with a split vote it came down to Keith to break it (I'm not sure why, because they were in the south?), so he voted yes for her to move on. I hope to see her do some actual rock tunes next time, I have the feeling if she lets loose she could pull off some good stuff (Full disclosure: I have a rock bias).

And here we go! Summer Cunningham, 20, from Georgia, sang "Lean on Me." She had a powerful and resonating voice, but there were some mishaps here and there. Nicki liked her, but Keith seemed offended that when he asked Summer said she had "done the country thing," but I thought it was weird that Mariah asked her what kind of music she listened to. Keith picked her apart even more, asking her why she liked country music, which I thought was a little unnecessary. Keith gave her a yes though, Randy did as well, Mariah gave a yes, and then Nicki jumped on her soapbox, and, it pains me to say, she was right on the money: Why are the judges picking poor Summer apart? Nicki got on the defensive, and HERE COMES THE FIGHT. I hate to say that Nicki was right, but she really was, everyone was jumping on poor Summer for no reason. Nicki did give her a yes, her beef wasn't with Summer. Mariah and Randy kept poking at the country comment though as Summer left the stage, which led to the now famous threat from Nicki saying she should just put a gun in Mariah's mouth. I can't believe that Fox censored out gun (Well, OK, maybe I can), and then Nicki stormed off camera. Drama time!

Idol then played up the whole thing, showing a reel next of all the news footage of the event. Somehow the show got all the judges back in their seats, and day two started, with Keith again between Nicki and Mariah, and Nicki back with another hat (I won't name this one). The show didn’t really address the issue at all, which I found odd, but the show must go on.

The first contestant to break the waters of the judges was Brandy Hamilton, from North Carolina, got in trouble while in the Navy for singing too much. It paid off though, she came out and sang “All I Could Do Was Cry” by Etta James, and had great vibrato and tremolo. She is off to Hollywood.

Then we got treated to Ashley Smith, 22, North Carolina who was a ball full of energy, that's for sure. Nicki named her Blondie, and she sang Carry Underwood's "Cowboy Casonova." Phew. More than any other contestant tonight, wow. Given how silly she was being, I didn't think she would bring it, but she brought it and put it on the table. Boy, oh boy. Judges loved her, I thought she did really well, and she's off to Hollywood.

Janelle Arthur, Tennessee, came out and sang "Where the Black Top End," by a certain Idol judge. She killed it as well, and Keith could barely restrain his excitement. She was one of the strongest of the night, if not of all that we've seen so far, and everyone was all for it. The black top won't be ending anytime soon for her, she's off to Hollywood.

The Voice of Charlotte was up next, who was a street singer full of bravado. Rodney Barber, 27, proved he had it where it counted though, singing "I’ll Be." His outdoors singing experience really paid off, as he had a powerful voice and was able to really project. From homeless on the streets to Idol, now Rodney (and his purple hat, which I'm going to name Charley), got the votes to head off to Hollywood.

Candice Glover, 22, South Carolina, was back from being cut last season in Las Vegas. Oh boy, she had some great control of her voice, but I think that previous Idol experience has something to do with it. Time will tell how far she can make it this year (Nicki said she wanted to skin her and wear her, well, OK), but as of now she's off to Hollywood.

We got our lovely helping of southern hospitality with Ja'Bria, who shared with us some lovely frog gigging story. Can't say she's going to convince me to eat frog legs (no way it tastes like chicken). She sang Bonnie Raitt's version of "Pride and Joy." She was another very strong female vocalist. Very strong. She had the judges snapping and bobbing along, and while she may kill Frogger, she's heading on to Hollywood regardless.

Ugh. Next up was headbutter (and I'm not sure if he was a full box of crayons, if you know what I'm saying) Brad Harris, 28, North Carolina, who used to also be a rapper. He sang "A Whole New World" from Aladdin, and aside from almost forgetting the lyrics, wasn't just really all there. I didn't think he was as awful as the judges thought he was, but at least he had his bacon fueled moment in the sun. He asked to shake their hands and they even turned him down for that, which was a little mean. Poor Brad.

Closing off the night was Saripa Gwen, from North Carolina. Saripa brought her adorable little daughter with her, who was a huge Nicki fan. And oh wow, she decided to sing the “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” theme song. She pulled it off too, even though I really didn't think she could. She had this great ability to switch between loud and quieter dynamics at the drop of a hat, and I mean, she had her adorable daughter with her? How could they say no? They couldn't (Nicki almost broke out in tears), and Saripa was off to Hollywood. I didn't notice until right now that Keith had been missing again, I'm guessing more concert conflicts?

Anyways, the night closed on Charlotte, with 37 people being given the ticket to Hollywood. Tomorrow the show heads to Baton Rouge (I really want some zydeco performers!), and then next week Eric will return to guide you through the rest of the season. Carry on.

Back pinch hitting the good old "American Idol" blog for Eric, who was only pulled away from the line of duty because he had to fight cave trolls to move apartments or something silly like that. I watched the first episode with the master of Idol ceremonies himself, but tonight, the show headed to Chicago, the windy city, for the judges to be blown away(Oh come on Idol, that's the best you can do?). Nicki Minaj must have decided that she couldn't leave home without her cheetah print police hat (and who can these days?), and Keith Urban continued to be the buffer (Or as he said, the scratching post, burn!) between her and Mariah Carey. Meow ladies, meow.

First up was Mackenzie Wasner, 17, from Tennessee, who the judges completely bent over for. She was good, and probably worthy of passing to the next round (which she did), but I didn't find her quite as worthy of all the praise. The judges acted like she was the second coming or something. Was she solid? Yup. Super-duper-mind-melting-unbelievable? Not by my watch.

Austin Earles, 19, came in next rocking the Mohawk, but ended up setting off the ticking atomic time bomb that was Nicki and Mariah. Mariah cut Austin off, but apparently Nicki wanted to hear more of what he had to offer. Keith tried to pop in there that he liked Austin's vibrato, but he still has to break that "sky kid in the back of the class who only talks when called on" persona, and not let the ladies bicker over him. Austin got sent packing, at any rate.

Kiara Lanier, 21, Chicago, sang "Prayer" by Celene Dion, and brought a light and wispy vocal tenderness to what we've seen so far, and again floored the judges, rightfully placing herself next round. She'll probably be one of the ones to watch as the season continues, so keep an eye on her.

Stephanie Schimel, Milwakukie, 21, came out next and sang "Dream a Little Dream for Me." Keith was in love with it, and I must say I was a little impressed, as he seems to have a pop culture or vocalist comparison for every vocal style. I didn't expect him to bring the musicality (and musical knowledge to the table, but he at least showed he seems to know what he's talking about a bit. Stephanie got three yeses, with Nicki voting no, probably just because they both were wearing the same color eye shadow (yeah, yeah, yeah, Nicki actually said that, before erupting into a...battle of words with Mariah. Not for the first time I'm sure, but poor Keith, poor poor Keith.

The shiny pink suit that happened to have a girl inside of it (Melissa Bush, Grandville, MI, 27) sang "Downtown," and got sent home, which was probably a good call. There were a few moments of vocal clarity, but it wasn't stellar or nearly as bright as her outfit. Shame.

New to this year is some Idol small city bus tour thingamabob, and that gave us Gabe Brown from Iowa, who brought the judges cookies (I got none). Gabe sang "Give me Shelter" by the Rolling Stones and holy shit. Straight up rock and roll is few and far between on Idol, but with a powerful and comanding voice that I was not expecting to come from his body, Gabe was awesome. His vocal roar and volume were simply outstanding. Mariah made him sing a softer song (I don't know why this was necessary, just let the guy through already!), which wasn't really that much softer, but his performance was spine tingling and awesome. Four yeses got him on to the next round, but I doubt he'll stop there.

Kevin Nabity from Iowa, who we got introduced to by some silly ninja dancing montage, sang "One Week" by the Barenaked Ladies. It's not that great of a song to audition on, given how fast the lyrics go, and even though the closed captioning tried to make it a joke, I'm pretty sure Kevin was just making stuff up as he went along. Nicki stood up for him and convinced him to do another song. He, again a poor decision, chose Styx's "I'm Sailing Away," which sounded more like Cartman's version from "South Park" than anything else. That might be a bit harsh, but he was sent sailing home with four no votes from the judges.