American Idol--The Final 11

I started watching American Idol a few seasons ago. I became a RABID fan the year David Archuleta competed. I mean RABID! I actually voted that season. Not once. Not twice. But easily a 100 or more times EVERY TIME he performed. Thank goodness, Emily supported me on this and she would take over the speed dial when my tender little fingers would get tired. Heather and Jennifer did not share our passion. They were David Cook fans.

I told them they were NOT allowed to use the family phone to vote for David A.'s arch-rival.

Yes, I had no life.

Alas, David A. came in second place and Heather and Jennifer's David won. But, at least my family did not support his victory with our votes. I have supported David Archuleta's career by purchasing all three of his CD's. But, I digress. It's now Season 10 and we're down to the Final 11. And unlike the season Archie competed, I haven't voted once. Not once. But, that doesn't mean I don't enjoy the show.

In fact, this post is dedicated to Jennifer hoping that she'll jump on the American Idol bandwagon this season and make it one of her reality shows to watch! I would LOVE to know who her favorites are so we can have some good old fashioned competition.

So, now for a recap.

Last night was Elton John night. He's got so many great songs that I was excited. Overall, the contestants did well.

Scotty McCreery – “Country Comfort” This was the one Elton John song I was NOT familiar with. I love Scotty. I'm not a big country fan, but he's adorable and his low voice always impresses me. I'm worried because he's in the first spot, but he has enough teenage girl fans that he should be OK.

Naima Adedapo – “I’m Still Standing” This was my least favorite performance of the evening. She tried to add a little Jamaican flavor and I don't think it worked. Overall, she's a very good performer and I hate to see her go, but I think she may be in the bottom three tonight.

Paul McDonald – “Rocket Man” I like Paul. I like his relaxed manner and his unique singing style. He broke out "the outfit" again last night. When Steven commented on how his outfit had grown even more flowers, Paul gave his toothpaste commercial grin and said, "How could I not wear it on Elton John night?" My big question is: How does he get his teeth so white?

Pia Toscano – “Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Me” Pia sang another ballad. Randy and the other judges have challenged her to do something different. She promises that if she goes through another week, she will do just that. Some people may feel Pia played it safe, but she has an incredible voice and stage presence. I predict she will be in the final four.

Stefano Langone – “Tiny Dancer” Two weeks ago, Stefano had the BEST performance of the night. Last week, he ended up in the bottom two. Last night he tried much harder to connect with the audience. He kept his eyes open more, looked into the camera and even sang to Jennifer. (Randy was hoping he would grab his hand and sing to him, too. One of the funnier moments of the show.) He has a good voice, but I'm not sure if this song and this performance will keep him safe. I predict he'll be in the bottom three tonight.

Lauren Alaina – “Candle in the Wind” Before the commercial break, Ryan announced that Lauren would be singing the all time number one song for Elton John. Ron and I had a contest to figure out what song that would be. I kept thinking--"It's the song about a dead person. It's a song about a dead person." Suddenly, I remembered the person was Marilyn Monroe. Since Emily was on the computer, I asked her to Google Elton John and Marilyn Monroe. I was thrilled when they announced this was THE song! My little bit of trivia brain had paid off.

OK, now to Lauren's performance. She is an incredible singer and mature beyond her years. I can't believe she's only 16 years old. She did incredible last night and I predict that she will be in the final four.

James Durbin – “Saturday Night’s All Right” James is NOT my favorite singer in the group because I don't really like the type of music he sings. He's a little too rocker for my taste. But, he is very talented and last night, I enjoyed watching him interact with the audience, jump off the piano, and have fire spout everywhere. His joke about worrying that his overly hair sprayed hair would catch on fire and he would have a "Pepsi moment" was the other funny part of the show since American Idol is sponsored by Coca Cola. Of course, us ancient ones KNOW he was referring to Michael Jackson's unfortunate incident filming a Pepsi commercial years ago.
I predict he will also be in the final four.

Thia Megia – “Daniel” I like Thia and I like "Daniel." When I was growing up, my brother Daniel told all his (gullible) friends that Elton John was singing about him. They believed him. His friends were not. too. bright. But, since I DO have a brother named Daniel, this song has a soft spot in my heart. Thia did an OK job with this song. She has an absolutely beautiful voice but tonight (sigh) she didn't wow me as much as other times. I'm very worried she will be in the bottom three.

Casey Abrams – “Your Song” First I must say that I'm very, very glad that Casey got his hair and beard trimmed. He was looking positively scary and even evil the past couple of weeks. It wasn't just his hair and beard either--it was in his eyes as he growled and shrieked. I could not bear watching him. Last night, he did much better. He looked saner. He sang with less growls and I don't think I heard any shrieks at all. The judges saved him last week. I think he's safe on his own tonight.

Jacob Lusk – “Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word” I like Jacob. I like the type of music he chooses and the emotion he brings to a song. He is trying harder the past two weeks to hold back a little and when he does, he's more successful. This performance was not the best one Jacob has ever had, but he did fine. He should be safe. I predict he'll be in the final four, too. Or it could be Scotty. Still trying to decide between these two.

Haley Reinhart – “Bennie and the Jets” This was my FAVORITE performance of the evening! I have not been a Haley fan in the past, but Ron and I could not stop smiling the whole time she sang. It was infectious. It was fun. We wanted to sing along. Haley had a couple of bottom three weeks, but tonight, she's SAFE!

Bottom Line: Bottom three: Naima, Stefano, and Thia. Who's going home? Hmmm... this is harder but I'll say Stefano.

Best performance of the evening: Haley, Pia, and Lauren.

So, I'll see tonight how I did.