The Golden Mile
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Or the long mile. Or the something - it's the LONG WALK forever changed by Taylor Hicks when he made it playing the harmonica. I knew he was a winner after his Vegas audition, and I knew he'd be THE winner after that walk. It should be interesting to see how the walk is performed tonight by the lucky 24 who make it - I have to think that Taylor's stand-out walk planted some ideas in the heads of tonight's Idol wannabes. Hm...
Woo hoo!! And it starts. There's Ryan - talking as the final 40 are going into the building. We see the lone chair at the end of the long walk in front of the judges. I'll try to keep up with people's names, so bear with me because I'm going to try to liveblog this and post updates when it goes to commercial.
We are, of couse, given just enough to hook us when we see shock and tears on people's faces as they see what OTHER people have not made it. We get interviews with a few of the Idol wannabes, commenting on how dire the day sis going to be - either make their dreams or pack it in.
Contestants and results after the click.
Sanjaya Malakar (YES) - we get to see his Hollywood audition - Some Kind of Wonderful - I think he's off key from what they showed, frankly, and I liked hi from the beginning. We get to see him making it when his sister didn't, which was actually a pretty touching moment last night. Paula asks about how it's been with his sister when he's in the room. They quickly tell him he's going through and he's shyly excited.
Anna Kearns (NO) - she's the really tall girl who sang Respect in Seattle. She sits in front of them and Simon apologizes for calling her a giraffe. Randy quickly delivers the news that she didn't make it and she is literally dumbstruck. She can't believe it. She argues - she says they've never had anyone like "this" (her) on the show, and she admits that she doesn't sing the best, but she's totally surprised. That was... uncomfortable.
Bernard Williams (NO) - Never saw the guy. Paula gives hi the bad news and now I never WILL see the guy. That was quick. THIS is the guy who caused the other people's faces to register Shock.
Erik Davis (NO) and Tammy Gosnell (NO) quickly don't make it. DAMNIT. I REALLY liked Tammy. Damn!
Melinda Doolittle (YES) - I remember liking her in the audition. We see a bit of her Hollywood week song - she sounds great. She was the perennial background singer if you recall. Simon starts by slamming her a bit, sayng that being a background singer means you're not as good as someone who's out front, and then says she's good enough to stand at the front of the stage and she's through to the finals. She's thrilled, as she should be.
Brandon Rogers - (YES) OOOH - had my eye on him since Los Angeles. They show a bit of his Hollywood week audition, Have you Ever Really Loved a Woman was his song. Sounded nice. Randy tells him he earned his spot as a lead singer, and that he made it. He's definitely in my top 2 to watch.
So the commercials were boring, and we're back. The ones who are left are waiting - the tension is PALPABLE!! WILL THEY MAKE IT?? Can they TAKE it???
Gena Glockson (YES) - She didn't make it to the 40 last year, so she's a step further along this year at any rate. We see her Hollywood song, Have You Ever Really... etc. Paula starts yakking. Gena looks nervous. She tells her she's through. "Shut UP" is Gena's response. She's freakin' thrilled. Even Simon looks happy for her. She cries all the way down on the elevator, and everyone's happy for her (or so they seem)
Jimmy McNeil (NO) and Eric Johnson (NO) are quickly cut. Remember Jimmy? The fun, cuddly Reuben? Bummer. Liked him, didn't love him - but then I didn't love Reiben all that much, either.
Haley Scarnarto (YES) - they show her Hollywood week audition, then Paula quickly puts her through. I liked her, but she's kind of another Kat.
Phil Stacy (YES) - I like this guy. His Hollywood audition was Have You Ever Really... etc. and he sounded GREAT. Really great. I hope he makes it - he's in front of the judges. This is the guy who missed the birth of his daughter to audition. Randy's gonna give him the truth - and the truth IS that he made it!! He's thrilled. I'm thrilled for him!!
All right. We're at commercial (again) and so far, with the exception of Tammy Gosnell, I'm liking their choices. Not that they asked, and not that any of you asked, but just sayin'. I have to say also - I'm more enamored of the breadth and depth of talent that the boys have thi sseason than the girls. This could change when we really get into the live competition, but the boys really seem to have a great deal of diversity. Rudy Cardenas, Blake Lewis, Chris Sligh, Sundance Head, Phil Stacy - all interesting and all fun to watch. I can only think of two or three girls that I could have said that about, and one of them just got cut!
We're back. 28 contestants are left. Everyone looks pensive. And then we abruptly cut to the guys getting a sneak preview of the Simpson's movie, presumably on the day the girls competed. They seem to love it. What guy doesn't? We then see them stopping at the Simpson's studio, where eerything is done on computers. It's cool.
Chris Sligh (YES) - "You guys are probably wondering why I called this meeting today" is what he opens with. We see his Hollywood week audition and it's STELLAR. He interprets Have You Ever Really... etc. in a totally unique way. Simon says he wasn't one of the etter singer (???) but then puts him through. Weird.
Blake Lewis (YES) - They show the group performance with him beat boxing, which was as great the second time around. Simon reaffirms that he knows it's a singing competition. He seems to know. They have a dramatic pause, and they put Blake through.
Thomas Lowe (NO) , another member of the group, is cut quickly.
Rudy Cardenas (YES) - the final member of the foursome. They show his a capella audition and he sounds GREAT. Simon didn't like his first audition, thoght Hollywood Round was Ok, then they cut to his family waiting outside the elevator. Rudy emerges, victorious. He's through. Another great one.
Ok - so that's 6 boys through with 6 spots open. 3 girls are through with 9 spots remaining open. Only half an hour left - interesting. The only boy I've been really watching that hasn't already gone through is Sundance Head, so we'll see where he stands. I'm interested to see which of the girls make it as I don't really remember that many of them, frankly.
And we're back. The girls are nervous. Really nervous. Some are already crying. Paul Kim (YES) (not a girl) is barefoot and swears he will be barefoot if he makes the show. He always wears the same underwear no matter what and hasn't been cut (ew?). We see his Hollywood audition. This guy's so through. He's nervous in front of the judges. It was a split decision, but they put him through. The spoilers are dead right so far. Wow.
Jordin Sparks (YES) - She was very good in Seattle. Randy thought Hollywood week wasn't good for her. They show her audition with Some Kind of Wonderful, and I thought she sounded great. They put her through. She's REALLY young - just 17.
Olibia Quiba-Hurts (NO), Tatiana MCconnico (NO), Monique Vieras (NO) - all cut. Interesting. Never saw them to begin with.
AJ Tabalo (YES) - FIFTH TIME auditioning. WOW. His audition sounded good in Hollywood, but a little boy-bandish. They put him through. I consider him a short-timer, but what do I know.
Stephanie Edwards (YES) - Hollywood Round audition sounded good. Simon cuts to the chase. "You haven't...failed". She makes it.
Leslie Hunt (YES) - apparently she finished strong. I hear her singing at Hollywood week - it didn't sound strong to me. But they put her through. I can't believe it - I really didn't care for her audition.
Nicholas Pedro (YES) - the "quitter" from last season. They show his Hollywood audition, Have You Ever Really... etc. It was ok. But not great. Yet they put him through.
So now we're at 9 boys through with 3 spots open and 6 girls through with 6 spots open. By the way, my local news is rehashing our horrible ice storm from today and letting us know that tomorrow won't be a picnic. Did I need to see that? NO - I can look outside and see that. Sheesh.
And we're back. Nicholas Pedro calls his little sister who FREAKS OUT excied for him, literally shrieking the way only a young girl can shriek.
Elena Alexander (YES) - every round she makes it through she cries. I vaguely remember her. She won't sit in front of the judges. She rethinks and sits. Randy wants to know how the nerves are. He wants to know what she thought of her Hollywood week - she felt like she gave everything she could give. They show her song. Sidebar - her dress is totally cute. He audition is just OK for me. Maybe a little less than OK. She's a very cute girl. They put her through - honestly, I can't believe it, but hey - I said the boys were better. She asks for advice and Simon tells her to blow her nose.
Chris Richardson (YES) - don't remember him at all - wait - is he the guy from Chesapeake VA?? He quickly makes it through.
Sabrina Sloan (YES) - they show her Hollywood audition and she sounds good. Not unique, but very good. Simon goes with "We have decided NOT.... to exclude you." He likes torturing them. It's a hoot for me, too.
Jerome Chism (NO) - He doesn't make it. Never saw him. His shoes are cool.
Joelle James (NO) - is quickly cut.
Cowboy Matthew Buckstein (NO) is cut, followed by Princess Johnston (NO).
Lakesha Jones (YES) - loved her in auditions, and she sounded good in ollywood rounds. This is the single mom if you recall. SImon wants to know if she thinks she's done well, and she thinks so. She's humble. If she doesn't make it she says she'll have no regrets. She makes it through! Good for her.
Nicole Tranquillo (YES) - we see her Hollywood audition. She's good, but not great. She makes it through.
Jarrod Cotter (YES) - We see his Hollywood audition. I think it's a little sloppy but he can obviously sing. They put him through - why haven't I seen these people before??
Amy Kratz (YES) - thought the last day was the high point for her -we see her at her high pint, the lst Hollywood audition. She sounds good, and she's a cute girl. They put her through.
Not many people left - two girls and two guys. So we're to the two-chair portion of the show.
The two girls go together - Marissa Rhodes (NO) and Antonella Barba (YES) - I have a feeling Antonella will go through. Marissa's first Hollywood audition was really good. They show Antonella forgetting her words on the final day. Uh oh. Both the girls are seated. Randy is "keeping it real" and bringing down the truth. Antonella is through and Marissa is DONE. Marissa almost looks like she's going to puke, frankly. She's upset. She's looks pretty crestfallen, and Antonella looks shocked first and then pretty amazed. In the elevator Marissa squats and kneels and cries, they bleed her asking "how did this &*%& happen?" She is totally bewildered. She obviously thinks she's great and can't see why they don't think she's great. Pride goeth before a fall, eh?
Sundance Head (YES) and Tommy McDaniel (NO) are up next. McDaniel jumps in the elevator for the camera. I remember Tommy - loved him. But I liked Sundance more. This is a tough one, frankly. The spoilers say that Sundance gets it, and they go back over his Hollywood misadventure. Simon gives the news: Sundance makes it and Tommy doesn't. What a shame - I would take Tommy over an AJ or a few of the other kind of nameless dudes who made it through.
All right. So here are your boys, in order of their admission on the show tonight:
Sanjaya Malakar
Brandon Rogers
Phil Stacy
Chris Sligh
Blake Lewis
Rudy Cardenas
Paul Kim
AJ Tabalo
Nicholas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jarrod Cotter
Sundance Head
And here are the girls, in the order they were taken on the show:Melinda Doolittle
Gena Glockson
Haley Scarnarto
Jordin Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Elena Alexander
Sabrina Sloan
Lakesha Jones
Nicole Tranquillo
Amy Kratz
Antonella Barba
Now. I'm gonna separate the BEST boys and the BEST girls. Anyone excluded falls into the category of "the rest".BEST (Boys)
1. Brandon Rogers
2. Chris Sligh
3. Rudy Cardenas
4. Sundance Head
5. Phil Stacy
6. Blake Lewis
7. Paul Kim
And yes, those are roughly in order of how I see them based on what we've seen so far.
BEST (Girls)
1. Lakesha Jones
2. Melinda Doolittle
3. Jordin Sparks
4. Stephanie Edwards
See the difference between numbers of best boys and best girls? And while I think all four of the girls I listed are incredibly good, they all seem similar to me in style and interpretation. NONE of the boys seem that way.
So stick THAT in your pipe and smoke it, huh?? ;-) I'll update the blog as I get little tidbits here and there and will definitely see everyone for the first live round next week! Woo hoo!!
Oh and - not for nothing, the spoilers posted on Idol Forus were absolutely bang on. Didn't miss a single one.
Labels: American Idol, Final 24, Hollywood Round
What will I say next? Click and find out.
posted by RenaRF @ 8:56 PM,
,
Hollywood Week Ep. 1!!
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
We start with the girls. They are deluded, happy, as they head to the theater. "We're all winners!!" They get to the theater and reality sets in - LOTS of girls and only 12 spots.
Jory Steinberg is up first. We see her original auditiona nd she's strangely dressed like Paula Abdul. Weird. Out of Love is her song, and she gets through it.
Geri Guyer - we didn't see her, and we didn't really see her this time. We're running at breakneck speed through snippets of the girls. I can't possibly keep up with all the names. Can't. Do. It. A few were good, a few not so much so.
Now the judging of the first 6. They are ALL going home. Simon: "None of you were any good, it's an absolutely terrible start to the day." And they're DONE. Buh-bye. "This is a warning to everyone else out there." They want MORE - MORE I tell you!! It was funny when one of the girls heard what she wanted hear and got all excited after being told she was going home. Heh. Lots of crying. Lots of scared faces among the girls left to go. Presumably we're getting down to the 40 who will walk the "long mile" during tomorrow's final Hollywood round.
More follows the click.
Commercial!! Love that Coke commercial that celebrates Black History Month. We see the trailer for Ghost Rider, which looks weird. Then a boring Home Depot ad. Then some more boring ads. Ads ads ads. What is this - a business??
And we're back. The girls are freaking out. Except a few of them. Perla's not worried. She craves the camera. Her bag is furry and weird. She's prancing around and some guy asks "who are you?", giving lie to her idea that everyone's there to see her and not there to catch a plane. She's singing that awful Shakira song that I hate. And she sounds a little like a chipmunk and a girl merged. Not good.
Rachel Jenkins - Army Reservist. She sings Unbreak My Heart - I don't like it, even though I like her.
Here's the line of 6. Rachel's out, Perla's through with another girl. Ugh. He tells Perla she's "personality over talent" at the moment. Poor Rachel is crying. I liked her better than Perla, but I frankly didn't like either of them. Perla takes Simon's warning seriously, and she should - too much attitude and not enough talent to back it up.
Bailey Brown - Commercial with a "C" if you recall. She's singing some country song I don't know. She sounds ok - little shaky in spots. I'm over Bailey - sorry Bailey fans. Judges like her. She's one of 3 in her 6 to move forward.
Now we have the cut of bad girls, girls who are cut quickly. Ashlyn is among them. Remember her? Porcelana is also let go - thank goodness. And Sarah Burgess, the gal who called her father all worried during the auditions, is going home as well. And then THE QUESTION:
Did they cut too many on the first day??! Nah. The girls aren't that good this time out.
Nicole Turner and her mom are arguing about song choice. She changes her tune and song on stage. I can't recognize what she's singing, but she sounds interesting and good. Nicole chooses unwisely - she's going home. Now she blames her mother more or less as she cries as her dream is utterly crushed underfoot. Mom is a good mom and admits that they pressed her. She insists on talking to the judges. She gets on stage and tells them that she did that song to please her. Nicole thinks she picked a bad song, and Simon says it "wasn't the song". They basically bitch-slap her around and she's still cut. And Day 1 is over.
56 of the 114 girls are cut.
Now the BOYS - Hoo aah!! They're confident on the buses. We see Sundance Head talking about how there are fewer boys than girls, and how he thinks that will work out generally. Some young ugy is wearing a tie - I can't remember his name - oh there it is - Brian Miller - his delivery this audition is softer and I like it better than his original one, but it's still boy band. And he's done.
Randy: "Boys are starting way ahead of the girls".
Jarrod Fowler - he won Reagan Idol - and he's on stage. I don't know the song - oh - You Raise Me Up. Yawn. Didn't like it. Matt Sato is the really young kid with the unfortunate pimple during his audition. We rehash his parents not being supportive, but now suddenly he "feels loved" because he made it to Hollywood. Sad. He's singing - again - very boy band. Lots of the boys are that way. He was ok. So who goes forward?
Matt's going through and Jarrod's going home. Matt freaks out. Chris Sligh was in that group, too, so you knew the front line was going through. Matt continues to freak out. Jarrod takes it like a man. Matt's mom freaks out. Matt cries. His mother loves him. Matt puts his face in his hands and tells us she never says she loves him. Sad.
And that's IT for the boys?? From Day 1??? UGH - too short!!! Jesus dude is through (Sean Michel) - Sundance Head is through, too. We get from the teaser that the next half hour will be "group" and we see a little foreshadowing of the arguing that's going to take place that night.
Ok. 92 contestants survived the first round. We see the infamous "group round". Oooh - Twist!! They can team up boys and girls to a group!! They have to find their own group and one girl is, inevitably, left out. Matt the crier is locked out, too. No group for Matt. Oh hey - we see Matt from last year's group with Garrett the singing cowboy!!
We see Chris Sligh's group, which contains Blake Lewis. By 11pm the groups are in sync except for Bailey Brown's group - she has teamed up with Amanda and Antonella, the bikini-wearing best friends. Bailey's looking around for a new group. Oops.
At midnight they all head back. At 1am they are still rehearsing. Gena is not happy with Perla's harmonization. The other girl, who I don't recognize, is getting less patient. None of the girls want to go to bed.
We're back to Bailey, Amanda and Antonella. None of them know the lyrics to their song. The song, BTW, is This Old Heart. Amanda says they're "not going to make it through". That's positive for you. Amanda wanders off - Bailey and Antonella call it quits. Amanda's now flirting with a group of boys. She's being a s**t!!
We're back to Perla - the girls are mad because Perla's getting mad every time they tell her she's off key, despite the fact that she asked them to tell her when she's off key. We see a teaser about the "drama playing out on stage", and we're at commercial.
And we're back!! It's 8am. Everyone's still rehearsing. They all hold faux-microphones. Bailey/Antonella/Amanda are still not getting along. The forget the words. The judges warn that they NOT forget the words. Matt forgets his words and they let him go. His call to his mother is not as joyous. He calls mom, but we don't hear the end of the conversation.
Gena Glockson's group is up next, and they still haven't gotten along. Perla wants to prove them wrong. They're getting ready to go on. She sounds good (Gena) - Perla not so much - she really sounds BAD. I think that's it for Perla, and I'm not even remotely upset. I never got her in the first place. To the judging - ONLY Perla doesn't make it through to the final day. Even better.
We see Chris Sligh's group, they sound great. REALLY great - totally unique. They obviously worked their asses off. Blake Lewis beat boxes. It REALLY works. I absolutely LOVED that, and they ALL go through. Sundance Head is up next - apparently Day 1 was difficult for him an dhe wasn't Sundance-great. Now his group is up, starting with a girl who sings through her nose. Oh and THERE'S Robyn Troup. Now Sundance is up - it's strong, but I'm not as impressed as I was during the audition rounds. BOTH the girls are nixed, and Sundance is through to the next round.
And finally - Bailey, Amanda and Antonella still don't have things right. they semi-pray before their group. Antonella's up first. She's got to hit her high notes. Then Bailey, and she totally forgets her words. Mom looks scared - Bailey's gonna be gone. Amanda doesn't forget her words, but she sounds weird, and then she forgets her words. I'd only take Antonella from that group. It's Bailey who they cut, and rightfully so, because she didn't sing the majority of her audition. I would have cut Amanda loose as well. Bailey throught she worked the hardest of the three of them, but the fact remains - she FORGOT HER WORDS. She's mad that Amanda was flirting with boys, but Amanda's lyric loss was very momentary where Bailey's was almost the whole of her solo.
Now we see crying people getting cut. Only 56 people are left, and we come back to the final performances and the final cuts.
Day 4!! Only 56 Remain!! Only 40 will remain at the end of the day!! We don't actually SEE them singing. That's annoying. We see the judges deliberating. They're talking about who they'd lose and then show pictures of singing Idol wannabes on the cut screen. They divide them into three rooms (again). Presumably two rooms go through and one room goes home. The crying has already started. I suspect the earlier spoilers were right by how they've been split up, frankly.
Room one: Paula speaks. Chris Sligh's in this room. They're totally safe. She congratulates them. I think I also see Gena in that room, as well as Blake. Good call.
Room two: Antonella's in this one, as well as the pedi-cab girl. Randy talks - Sundance is in the room. They're totally SAFE. So far the spoilers are spot-on.
Room three: They've heard the celebrating and are already crying. Simon quickly tells then it's the end of the road.
Antonella waits for Amanda and sees that she's been cut. She is appropriately subdued. Sanjaya is the same after seeing his sister got cut. He's a good brother and nice person. He leaves the celebration immediately, finds his sister, and hugs her and they both cry. He's a really nice kid.
Amanda is good to Antonella, says she's proud of her without tears.
We see the "long mile", which I will NEVER EVER see without thinking of Taylor walking it while playing the harmonica. Tomorrow we'll know, which 12 boys and which 12 girls will go through. So far the spoilers are SPOT on, but I like watching anyway. :-D
Labels: American Idol, Hollywood Round
What will I say next? Click and find out.
posted by RenaRF @ 8:01 PM,
,