Is it possible that American Idol heard all of our voices?  American Idol’s results show was actually entertaining tonight!  Of course any show that starts with Stevie Wonder singing can’t be half bad, can it?  Stevie also serenaded Steven Tyler.  He turns 63 on Saturday.  I also like that the Idol contestants sang, but didn’t dance around too much.  Their voices all blend really well and the group numbers on tour will be great.

James Durbin’s expression when Hulk Hogan came out was classic.  You could see his genuine shock and pleasure at seeing wrestlings #1 Idol.

After all was said and done, the bottom three were Casey Abrams, Thia Megia and Stefano Langone.  I was very proud of myself because that’s who I thought had the weakest performances last night.  Thia was the first to be sent back, leaving Stefano and Casey.  Yikes, you could hear American rumbling even with the doors and windows closed!

When it was announced that Casey Abrams was being eliminated all the contestants along with the audience and I assume America were in shock.  It only took a minute for the judges to interrupt his performance and declare him “saved”.  His reaction sure was fun to watch.

I’ve been checking around the web a little bit.  Some people think that the whole Casey eliminated thing was staged for the drama effect.  It sure was dramatic wasn’t it?  Others have been complaining about the length of time the phone rings when you dial certain numbers.  I don’t know if that’s true, since I don’t vote.  Still others think that the Casey fans were too confident and voted to try to save a different contestant instead of spending all their time voting for Casey.  We’ll never know exactly what happened.  The moral of the story is you have to vote for the contestant you want to remain on American Idol.

Everyone on the Internet was blaming Ryan Seacrest for saying that Jennifer Hudson was an Idol winner.  Idol fanatics know that Jennifer didn’t even make it to the finale.  I’m pretty sure Ryan was reading that, so he either read it wrong or somebody screwed up.  I don’t care, she’ll always be one of my American Idol’s.

I guess this summary wouldn’t be complete if I don’t mention Marc Anthony and Sugarland.  Marc helped the contestants with hearing and remaining on pitch on the stage. He must know what he’s doing because the contestants were way better this week.  Sugarland is always fun, but I thought they should have held them for another week.  Motown, Stevie Wonder, Jennifer Hudson and Sugarland…huh?  I thought we had a theme going here?

So next week two–yes TWO!!! American Idol contestants will be eliminated.  One good thing is that all eleven contestants will get to go on tour.  No matter what, next week is going to be a tough one!  Enjoy your weekend…Bloggergal

The American Idol contestants put their own unique spin on Motown hits tonight.  It was great to hear them sing and stick to their own personal styles. I’ve been waiting for Scotty to take a non-country song and turn it country and he did that.  He sure knows how to work his audience and I’m beginning to understand what all those “McCreerians” are tweeting about.

There wasn’t anyone who sang bad tonight, so it should be interesting to see who is in the bottom three.  If America votes on just this evening’s performances Thia Megia can be in trouble.  Her performance wasn’t one of the best.  I mentioned last week that Pia Toscano needs to take control of the stage and her audience and Jennifer and Randy told her that.  You have to do more than just sing like a diva–you have to act like a diva too.  The same thing goes for Stefano.  He’s hot and he needs to learn how to work that to his advantage.  If he can learn how to work the camera and flirt with the audience, I can’t even think about how hot he’ll be!

Last week’s bottom two put up quite a fight to stay tonight.  Haley sang her hear out and Naima’s vocals were great also.  I’m not sure how America is going to react to the dancing.  I wonder what Simon’s comment would have been?

Casey Abrams sang true to form, but am I the only one getting a little tired of his constant ferociousness?  Does Casey have a soft side and a smile hidden in there somewhere?

Killer Motown performances (IMO) were Jacob Lusk, James Durbin, Lauren Alaina and Paul McDonald.  They not only can sing, but somewhere along the line, they’ve learned how to take control of the audience and squeeze tight!

I hate to be repetitive, but I have to say once more that I think Jennifer Lopez is an excellent judge.  Her critiques are always very specific and helpful to the contestants.   The gal knows her stuff.

You’re not getting any guesses from me as to who is saying goodbye on the elimination show.  I think it will depend on if America votes for their favorites or votes for the best performances.  Usually favorites get the votes, but you never know on Idol, do you?

I’m looking forward to Jennifer Hudson’s performance on tomorrow’s show.  She is such an inspiration.  I’m amazed at how she’s handled a really tough life situation with amazing determination.  Her weight loss is also inspiring.  She’s always been one of my American Idol favorites.  When we hear performances on American Idol, I always ask “would you buy that album?”  In Jennifer Hudson’s case, “Yep, I already did!”

G’nite…I have to go vote for my favorite American Idol contestant!  Bloggergal

Here are some random American Idol happenings:

As I mentioned in a comment, Jennifer Hudson will be performing on Idol Thursday night. Her new CD was released today “I Remember Me”. I haven’t had a chance to listen yet.  You can catch Jennifer on The View today.

There was a slight buzz on Twitter when Stefano Langone tweeted some still to be explained quotes: “Guys its been a super insane crazy day. And I’m moving”  “Everything is cool you guys. Just some crazy complications ill tell you all about it when I can, much love! Don’t worry ”  I’ll update in comments if I find out anything more.

Ryan Seacrest surprised Karen Rodriguez with a visit from Nick Jonas yesterday. You can watch the video here Nick is Karen’s sister’s Idol and Karen spoke about this on American Idol before she was eliminated. It’s great she was able to fulfill her sister’s dream.

That’s it for now.  The Idol’s haven’t starting tweeting today.  Must be still sleeping.  Have a super Tuesday.  Bloggergal

This is a bit off topic, but I’m very excited about the Reality Rally coming to Temecula California.  This huge fundraiser is the brainchild of Survivor contestant GillianLarson.  Here’s an explanation of Reality Rally in Gillian’s own words:

“My name is Gillian Larson and Reality Rally in Temecula Valley was a seed planted in my heart after I was booted from my game of “Survivor” in Gabon. During my 5-hour walks in the jungle and on the beaches I came to realize that my game was not over simply because my torch was snuffed. My game would continue through all the good I would now have to opportunity to do using my “Survivor Status” as a platform.  I had a passion and drive to get on Survivor for 8 years because I wanted to do it and I did. I will now put the same passion and determination into  “Reality Rally“ because I need to and will.  I heard Edmund Burke and it will only be “my little” but “my little” combined with yours will amount to a huge, generous donation of time, energy and funds. Join us in a fight against cancer and support those fighting that battle.”

There will be a load of reality TV stars in Temecula for this weekend-long event.  Included in the schedule to appear are Big Brother’s Evel Dick, Matt Hoffman and Ragan Fox.  Since Gillian was on Survivor the list of those attending from that show is huge.  You can see a complete list by clicking here.  All the events planned will have the reality stars interacting with their fans.

The event takes place April 15th to April 17th.  Good fun for an excellent cause!  Bloggergal

There were no surprises last night on the American Idol elimination show.  The bottom three were Naima Adedapo, Haley Reinhart and Karen Rodriguez.  It was Karen’s turn to go home, but Naima and Haley won’t be far behind.  That means we have two more weeks before the show gets really interesting.

I did enjoy the interview blurbs.  It showed the contestants’ personalities.  Lauren Alaina is fun to watch and listen to.

So what did you think of Lee Dewyze?  Did you like that song and will you buy it?  I like Lee, but I wouldn’t spend money on that song and I don’t think I’d pay to see his concert.  Speaking of concerts, have you seen the price of a concert ticket lately?  You have to be very, very talented to get me to shell out big bucks to hear you sing.

I have seen the Black Eyed Peas in person.  I was in the audience when American Idol did its Give Back show last year.  They are great in person and give 100+ percent in their performances.  Their music loses something on TV.

I’m still waiting for that one amazing performance that separates an American Idol contestant from the pack.  Will it be next week?  Stay tuned to find out!  Bloggergal

Not much going on with our American Idol contestants.  Yesterday, they chose their songs for next week.  They have to choose a song from the year of their birth.  Casey has been tweeting so he seems to be in good health.  The most active on Twitter are Karen Rodriguez and Stefano Langone.  The fan pages of Scotty McCreery and Paul McDonald still seem to be the most popular.

Jovany Barreto is the one American Idol contestant that didn’t make the cut who is keeping his popularity up.  He has appeared on his local TV channel and he is now heading to Miami to appear on TV.  He quit his shipyard job and is trying to get his career off the ground.  He has a huge fan base on Twitter, so perhaps he can.

There is an Internet-based talent show that you may find interesting.  It’s titled Cambio “On the Spot” and is run by music manager Johnny Wright.  Johnny is most famous for the bands New Kids on the Block and The Backstreet Boys.  There were originally 20 contestants.  Every week Johnny provides them with a challenge.  Then, Johnny and his experts decide who didn’t meet that challenge and they are out of the running.  Contestants are from all over the world.  Check it out here.

An update on the American Idol/Twitter war.  Casey Abrams and Scotty McCreery  have over 25,000 followers each.  Following them is Paul McDonald with 21, 464 followers.  Lauren Alaina has 17,899, Thia Megia has 17,415 and Pia Toscano has 16,219.  James Durbin is close behind the three gals with 15,960.  Stefano Langone has 14,117 followers.  Contestants that have below 10,000 followers are Jacob Lusk with 9,904, Karen Rodriguez with 8,947, Haley Reinhart with 8,687 and Naima Adedapo with 8,060.  Ashthon Jones has 6,132 followers.  I’m not sure if her number went down after being eliminated from Idol.  This isn’t scientific, but it does give you an idea who is currently the most popular–at least among Twitter fans.  I think it’s surprising that Jacob Lusk is so far behind the leaders, but I do feel the type of music that he performs is older than the average Twitter fan.  Just some food for thought!

I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend.  All our prayers and positive energy are going towards Japan today!  Stay tuned…Bloggergal

If you’ve read my past blogs, you know that I am NOT a fan of the American Idol elimination shows. I hate, absolutely hate, the group numbers. They always make the Idol contestants look like a bunch of idiots. You can’t make thirteen (or twelve without Casey) different performers all sing and dance together and have it mesh. It just comes out lookin’ really, really sad. Tonight was no exception.

As I’m sure you know by now, Casey Abrams was not at the show tonight. According to what I read online, he has a problem with bleeding, perhaps due to stress/anxiety. The source I read said most likely a bleeding ulcer, but don’t quote me! He did tweet a few minutes ago that he’s had a blood transfusion and that he feels good now.

Another reason I’m not a fan of the elimination show is the long, drawn-out process of telling the contestants and America who is going home. The way they make Ryan tell the contestants is cruel (to quote Just-A-Guy–see comments). They do make you do that, don’t they Ryan? So after all was said and done the bottom three were Karen Rodriguez, Ashthon Jones and Haley Reinhart. Karen was the first to return to the couch. Ashthon Jones is the first of the thirteen contestants to be eliminated. She was not saved by the judges–after all, they did save her once already.

I guess this blog wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t comment on my favorite American Idol Adam Lambert. He did a stripped down, acoustic version of “Aftermath”. As Randy says, he could sing the phone book and I’d be happy. Ditty Dirty Money wasn’t really my thing, but for more information, once again check out Just-A-Guy’s comment on my prior blog. Thanks for the help!

Have a great weekend. I’ll keep my eye on Twitter and keep you up-to-date on all your AI contestants. So stay tuned…Bloggergal

Since the talent on American Idol this season is amazing perhaps we were expecting a little too much out of the contestants’ first true live performances?  I have to admit I wanted more from a number of the contestants and it just wasn’t there tonight.  Every single one of those contestants has talent.  They can sing.  They look good.  Now, what will separate them from the crowd is how they perform and interact with their audience.

The performances by Haley Reinhart and Karen Rodriguez were in one ear and out the other.  Haley needs to find her own voice and stick to it.  I know she was trying to change it up, but it didn’t work for her.  Karen Rodriguez is beautiful and has a voice to match, but she has to connect with her audience and she didn’t do that tonight.

I thought stand-outs tonight were James Durbin, Casey Abrams and Pia Toscano.  I like to listen to James sing when he’s not pushing his voice to that screaming level.  I was surprised at how beautiful he can perform when he reins it all in.  Casey Abrams still is in a league of his own.  He epitomizes American Idol–someone with amazing talent that might not get noticed if it wasn’t for this show.  Taking on a Celine Dion song was diva in the making Pia Toscano.  She’s right in their with the likes of Celine and Whitney.  My only question is can just her voice win over the fans?  She doesn’t seem to include the audience when she sings.

If Simon was on the show, I’m sure he would have told Thia Megia that she chose a song that was too old for her.  I can hear him say that she looked like she was playing dress up and singing an “adult” song.  Thia needs to choose songs that fit her age and highlight her personality. The other young gal, Lauren Alaina sang a Shania song.  She started the show and maybe was a little nervous, but she did stay true to her roots and her personality.

I guess all along I’ve been calling Ashthon Jones “Ashton”–oops!  Not surprisingly Ashthon chose a Diana Ross song, but unfortunately I didn’t think she did it justice.  Maybe she needs to move away from Diana before she just looks like a Diana Ross impersonator?

Naima Adedapo put her own spin on the hit song “Umbrella”.  To be honest, I couldn’t decide about this one.  It’s not my type of music, but I think she performed it well.  The judges told her that she needs to learn to control her singing if she plans to dance around and perform while on stage.

Stefano Langone impressed the judges with his rendition of “Lately”.  He was one of the contestants that the judges saved.  He’s a cutie with stage presence and a good voice–marketable, don’t you think?

That leaves us with Paul McDonald, Jacob Lusk and Scotty McCreery.  All three of these guys stayed true to themselves and sang songs that showed their personalities and talent.  Paul McDonald sang “Come Pick Me Up” by Ryan Adams.  I have to admit, I was a little disappointed.  The whole thing just seemed a little off to me.  Jacob Lusk stuck to what he does best with “I Believe I Can Fly”.  Now is the time for Jacob to realize that he’s a contestant to be reckoned with and accept his praise with confidence.  Scotty McCreery sang one of my favorite Garth songs “The River”.  I love Garth Brooks and Scotty did a good job with this song.  I’d like to hear Scotty take a song and “convert” it to country.  Do you think that’s possible?

American Idol has come a long way from the beginning when it comes to contestant wardrobes, haven’t they?  I can remember contestants showing up on the stage wearing clothes they picked out with no help and the judges being distracted by that.  Doesn’t happen any more, does it?  Everyone looked stage-ready and appropriate for their song.

Okay now let’s talk about our American Idol judges.  I know they are trying to do their best.  They all look great.  I loved Steven Tyler’s lace shirt.  Did you notice that Jennifer’s lipstick and nail polish were exactly the same color?  What I’m doing here is what they are doing there.  I’m dancing around and not saying the “tough stuff”.

So who will America not vote for?  My guess is Haley Reinhart, but as usual, there is just no way to know what America is going to do.  Since Ashthon Jones and Naima Adedapo didn’t make it on America’s votes the first time it could be one of those two going home tonight.

Stay tuned…Bloggergal

This is my first time following the American Idol contestants through Twitter. Some are true twitter fanatics. Paul McDonald already had a good following on Twitter prior to making it to the top 13. Scott McCreery didn’t know how to use Twitter, but picked it up quickly and he and Lauren Alaina have a ton of little “Twitters” buzzing about them, constantly. When I say constantly, I mean CONSTANTLY. I’m debating removing them from my account because they’re giving me a headache! My point? If these kids are on Twitter constantly talking about these two, they will also spend hours voting.

Also active on Twitter is Ashton Jones. She takes a minute here and there to let us know what’s going on during the contestants’ day. James Durbin was tweeting a lot in the beginning, but he’s mostly silent now. Jacob Lusk, Casey Abrams, Naima Adedapo, Karen Rodriguez pop up every now and then. Very silent are Thia Megia, Stefano Langone, Pia Toscano and Haley Reinhart. I’m curious as to how influential something like Twitter can be. Does talking to your fans get you more votes? Perhaps spending time on Twitter takes time away from concentrating on your performances. That can’t be good! I’m surprised that Thia Megia is not tweeting since she’s so young. The youth seem to embrace these new social media outlets easier than “us” oldies! Thoughts?

We lost some really talented American Idol contestants last week. They shouldn’t be too upset as evidenced by these former loser contestants. We have Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum fame. She tried out for American Idol, not once, but twice! Colbie Callait is another Idol two-time loser. She even sang her hit song “Bubbly” during an audition. Now American Idol hopefuls, sing that same song! Another stand-out that didn’t standout on American Idol is Glee’s Amber Riley. American Idol passed on her and luckily for us, Glee found her. Moral of this story is you shouldn’t always take “no” for an answer.

Today the contestants are filming the Ford music video (commercial). They are on the go from early morning to early evening every day so far. I don’t think we realize how much they do between shows, besides actually preparing a new song for the next week!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend! Stay tuned…Bloggergal