Season 6 favorite Melinda Doolittle is one of the experts in HitFix’s Fantasy American Idol game and throughout the competition, she’ll be providing analysis on this season’s contenders.
Elton John week! I love his songs, so I was definitely looking forward to this week and the contestants did not disappoint. It”s a tough week because two are going home. Who do you think it will be? These are my thoughts in order of performance.
Scotty McCreery “Country Comfort”
Loved hearing him play the guitar. He”s definitely an artist that knows exactly who he is. The critic in me wishes he would have hit that last low note squarely in the middle of the pitch, but the fan in me says, “Who cares?” He did a good job! I read a comment about Scotty saying that he”s the only Idol that sounds like he”s putting together a set list for his future concerts. Embarrassingly enough, I have never been to a country concert, so I”m relying on your expertise. Does every song sound the same?
Naima Adedapo “I”m Still Standing”
I was really nervous when I heard what she was doing with this song, but I love this girl! I know that die-hard Elton John fans probably hated this version and I hate that for her because I think it was pretty cool. I”m looking at other”s comments as I watch, and the reviews are kinda mixed. I hope this doesn”t hurt her.
Paul McDonald “Rocket Man”
I love his voice. I”m with Steven…I like the character in his voice. This was one of my favorite performances from him, but I think it may have come across as a little sleepy. This may be a rough week for him.
Pia Toscano “Don”t Let the Sun Go Down On Me”
Help me out here. How is this any different from any other week for Pia? She sang it beautifully. We all know she can sing the daylights out of these songs. However, I”m not going to buy a record or go to a concert of only ballads. I hear that she”ll be doing “River Deep, Mountain High” next week…hope that really happens.
Stefano Langone “Tiny Dancer”
This boy”s voice just makes me happy. He worked on connecting more and I think the live audience loved it. However, I think the voting audience may not have felt the same connection and that makes me sad. I”m really hoping that people hear his beautiful voice and vote anyway.
Lauren Alaina “Candle In the Wind”
I really liked this. She has such a beautiful voice and I think we finally got to hear it tonight. She”s a cutie and I don”t think she”s in any danger of going anywhere.
James Durbin “Saturday Night”s Alright”
Fun song! He totally made me nervous coming down those stairs, but after he made it to the stage, I calmed down. I thought he did a good job! Yes, the burning piano was a bit much, but that wasn”t his fault. The ending screams almost got away from him, but I was so distracted by the piano, I don”t know if he regained control of them or not.
Thia Megia “Daniel”
This girl”s voice is gorgeous. I wish she would do more because I really think she can. I honestly believe there is so much more to her voice. Maybe she”s too young to know how to show it to us, but I think in a few years she”s going to be a force to be reckoned with.
Casey Abrams “Your Song”
Ummm…AMAZING! Forget the fact that he”s my favorite…he just owned that entire performance! Going to iTunes to buy the recording immediately! That should say it all.
Jacob Lusk “Sorry Seems To Be the Hardest Word”
This boy can sing! I don”t know what happens to him on key changes, though. His pitch seems to lose its center. Minus the key change, he has power for days and I think that”s amazing! I disagree with Randy…I liked his restraint and I think he gave us plenty in this performance. My favorite thing about Jacob? He means every single word. Love that!
Haley Reinhart “Bennie and the Jets”
I. Love. This. Song. It has the funkiest groove and I love how Haley sat right down in the middle of that groove and delivered a solid performance. She is stylistically so interesting to me. I love how she thinks outside of the box with her approach to each song. I really hope she sticks around. She has definitely won me over.