Friday, February 26, 2010

IDOL DAY #3

American Idol 3 times a week!
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Today is the first of three weeks of where we'll get to watch American Idol 3 days in a row. We're now at the piano show rounds where we whittle the Top 24 down to your Top 12. Girls will sing every Wednesday night while the boys will sing Thursday nights. Each week, Friday's results show will see 2 girls and 2 boys going home until we hit the sweet number 12.

Top 24 Girls
The girls took to the stage on Wednesday night, kick-starting AI9's voting machine. It was dubbed the '2-Hour Live Event', imo, it was a non-event. For all the talent and unique tones many of the girls had, their piano round was simply boring.
Some of my favourites were Lilly Scott, Didi Benami, Janell Wheeler and Ashley Rodriguez, whose performances I was looking forward to watching. I wasn't a huge fan of Crystal Bowersox, and her adding her harmonica to the mix again, just didn't endear her to me. Like Simon, I had expected more from her. Same goes for Ashley. I had expected more from her, she was the first contestant I fell in love with from the early audition shows, and the fact that she wasn't featured much during Hollywood rounds made me look forward to her piano show debut even more. But alas, her "Happy" performance fell a little short.

The girl that opened the show was Paige whatshername. And therein lies the problem. I can't even remember her last name. She was hardly featured until now, so even with her great voice (which sounded like any other black diva vocal), she failed to leave an impression on me.

Haeley Vaughn annoyed me with her frozen smile and Katie Stevens annoyed me with her granny song, despite stellar vocals. I dunno, maybe its the Blair Waldorf headband or the prom dress, but imo she appeared a little cocky, hope she goes back to likeable in the next show (I'm sure she'll make it through - cute enough and good enough vocally to gain votes).

Michelle Delamor is another contestant you never really heard of. They suddenly turned the spotlight on her when they did the room-to-room results and I was like, Michelle who again? I actually liked her singing 'Fallin'', and from some angles she actually looked like Alicia Keys! Her sister who sat in the audience is GORGEOUS btw! But thats beside the point.

Lacey Brown, the comeback kid from Season 8 did ok. Not the best song choice for a first show, not very wow, but imo enough to make it through. Same goes for Didi 'my fave' Benami. She has a gorgeous tone and she's very likeable and genuine, so I'm sure she'll make it through to the next round. Likewise Katelyn Epperly seems like someone America would vote for despite her 'old-ish', cabaret-ish performance. I have to agree with Kara, I liked her better when she was au naturel cos this girl is gorgeous with that curly hair and sunkissed skin. She SO did not need that PVC tube dress (but its cool that it had pockets) and bright red lipstick. I woulda preferred if she sang like a Taylor Swift song.

Lilly Scott was pretty unique, and confident and comfortable onstage. She should be going through. Janell Wheeler was totally forgettable this time. Like Kara said, when she sang 'American Boy' at Hollywood Week, you could hear her unique tone, but the song she chose this time round just buried it.

The surprise of the night was Siobhan Magnus. Simon said she's a 'quirky little thing' and I think that totally works for her now. The song she chose was kinda dark, but again it worked for her. I just wanna say, girl, get rid of the nose ring, you look like a cow, how 'bout a stud instead? I mean, she's quite pretty right? I actually find her quite fascinating to watch - she seems unpredictable and its kinda like you never know when she's gonna freak out or have a breakdown.

So outta all the girls - who's in trouble?

Imo, Haeley, Paige and Janell could be goin' home. My gut wants me to type Ashley, but I'm willing it NOT to happen - I really hope America gives her another chance - she so preety la!

The rest should be relatively safe. I think between Haeley and Paige, most likely Haeley will go, despite having a story, because Paige has the stronger voice. As for Janell, well, this is an out-there theory, but she and Didi are really similar, and you just need one of them on the show, and based on likeability, exposure, story and performance, Didi trumps Janell this time.

Which two girls do you think will be going home tonight?

Top 24 Guys
Last night, it was the guys turn to take to the stage and maybe its because its the first live round and everyone has the nerves, but again it was SO NOT an 'event'. However, saying that, compared to the girls' show, it had a few more bright sparks.

I totally enjoyed performances from Joe Munoz, Casey James and Michael Lynche. As usual, Big Mike's bubbly larger-than-life personality gave the grumpy panel a much needed perk-me-up midway through the show. And hey guess what, I wasn't the only one who thought Mike's guitar looked like a ukelele next to him! Thank you Ryan Seacrest for the validation! LOL!

Joe Munoz got next to no backstory previously, and 'meeting' him for the first time last night, I thought he was genuine, sincere and a sweetheart. I liked how he looked straight into cam and it felt like he was looking right at you. Nice. Hope he gets through. Although, when he kinda played the 'race/nationality' card by giving a special shoutout to 'mexico' (or somewhere), I got a bit worried. Hope that doesn't have any adverse effects. Remember the flak Sylvia got for acknowledging her Filipino heritage? tsk. Hello, mass appeal, mass appeal, don't pigeon hole yourself so early on k! You'll alienate voters!

Lets all be...*shiny happy people holding hands*

Producers totally milked the Kara/Cougar angle for Casey James. Aiyo, so over it liao, lets move on. I thought he did well. Totally agree with judges that it was the perfect song choice for him. Good job - definitely going through to next week. No way in h*ck will he be out.

Likewise, fellow country crooner Aaron Kelly is also a shoo-in to carry on. I thought he did a good job on the vocals and I followed the performance despite not being too interested in the song - I was just enjoying his voice.

I was also looking forward to seeing how Lee Dewyze would do. I actually really like his voice. Its so manly! Woot! But when I heard he was singing 'Chasing Cars', my first thought was Jonathan Leong, followed by 'omg what a boring song'! I would've liked to hear him sing something else from The Fray or like Hoobastank or even Daughtry. Or like Randy suggested, Kings Of Leon. But he had presence, and he's so likeable. I was on the fence about him before, but when Ryan asked how he was feeling and he replied, "I don't wanna lose this feeling, ever" - he totally won me over. Surprisingly Simon liked him a lot and thought he did great.

I was majorly disappointed with three favourites - Todrick Hall, Jermaine Sellers and Andrew Garcia. Todrick cos he totally butchered Kelly Clarkson's 'Since U Been Gone'. It wasn't that I loved the song (cos I do), it was just that it was so overdone, it might as well have been a new song with the same title. Totally lost its essence. But I do give him props for trying to be different.

Likewise Jermaine Sellers. He totally oversang his song. Agree with Randy, the melody is so beautiful, he shoulda just sung it straight with sincerity - woulda worked.

I lost interest half way through Andrew Garcia's song. I had been looking forward to his performance all night and he closed the show with a song that not many could connect with. I love his voice, but I have to agree with Simon, it came across a little indulgent.

I hope these three will continue on next week.

Alex Lambert seemed awkward onstage and for some reason reminded me of Judd Nelson/Andrew McCarthy. He has a real 80s vibe about him. But I do love his tone which we never really got to hear in earlier rounds. Hopefully he can up his game next week otherwise its bye bye.

Tim Urban was totally 'buried' (Kara's words) by the music. A last minute replacement for dropped Top 24-er Chris Golightly (check out the screenshot from Hollywood week's announcement of Top24, Chris had made it!), Tim was probably the weakest performer last night, but I have a feeling he'll last another week or two because he's cute. The judges said so themselves, and in saying so, I think have spurred on even more little girls to vote for him mindlessly. I don't mind - eye candy for me too. His performance was like that of an actor who is asked to sing for those Charity shows eg like Tay Ping Hui being asked to sing for President's Star Charity, except it wasn't pre-recorded - maybe it shoulda been :P. But I like him, so I don't mind seeing him again next week, hopefully with a new gameplan.

Tyler Grady. Aiyo. Ouch. Did not work lor. Nice boy. But that song/performance just did not work. I think he could be going home.

John Park. Lagi Aiyo. I get the song meant a lot to him, but it sure didn't seem that way when he sang. He was deadpan most of the way. I thought he had a great voice, but imo that song was totally self-indulgent. I could hardly hear the lyrics in the opening verse, I could not make out what he was singing til we got to the chorus. I only recognised one word 'Jesus' somewhere in there.

Imo, the ones in trouble tonight are Tyler and John, and possibly Jermaine? But we'll see.

Which two guys do you think will be out?


How did Ellen do on her first live show?
Again its pretty obvious that producers are trying to get the viewers acquainted with Ellen. She's getting double the airtime that the other 3 judges are getting, because most times, Ryan will throw her an extra question after 'judging' is done.

Imo, Ellen fits in quite nicely on the panel. She seems to know her music well. She mentioned in interviews before that she wanted to be honest but also be nice. I think she really is doing her best to personify this. However in doing so, it comes across like Chandler's inability to break it off with a bad date. There's this episode of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. where Chandler goes on a date with Rachel's boss and totally hates it but doesn't know how NOT to let her down gently. He ends the horrible date by saying he'll call (but he doesn't intend to). Its the same with Ellen. She says, "I like you but you sounded terrible, that was the wrong song for you, didn't quite get it there, don't think you had presence etc, but, you know, I like you." Its like she's cushioning the blow. I geddit, its a typical human thing to do to not hurt people. It was ok the first few times, but after 12 rounds, it got a bit old and insincere and honestly, a little befuddling - so did you think he was good or not?

Simon, Kara and Randy I thought were in top form.
As the years have gone by, the quality of contestants joining Idol has improved and its gotten so much more technical than in previous seasons. Especially with Kara on board, she and Randy are so technical, its nice to see. And even Simon now talks about creativity and making a song your own etc. In earlier seasons, you would always hear him say, 'that sounded like bad kareeokee' - it was truly just a singing competition. But now, its about finding someone who can be a successful artiste. Thank you David Cook for changing things up and Adam Lambert for amping it even further!

Just 3 hours to go before we get to watch the 1-hour Results show. NO SPOILERS PLEASE :) Kris Allen and Allison Iraheta are on. Woot!

xoxo, s.

ps. Survivor 20 on in 2 and half hours!

pps. The only drawback of having 2-hour Idol episodes is America's Next Top Model being taken off the schedule for a while :( I need my Tyra fix!

American Idol Season 9 airs in Singapore on Wednesdays/Thursdays/Fridays at 6pm (repeats at 8pm and 12am) on Starworld and on Channel 5 at 10.30pm.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Find Your AI Top 24 on Twitter/Facebook/Myspace!

Singapore Idol did it first! :) Woot!
Hrm, could it be that our American counterparts learned something from us?
If you're an SI fan (like moi) say wooot! This is the first ever season American Idol contestants have been allowed to go online via Twitter/Facebook/Myspace. For the record, I'd just like to say WE DID IT FIRST! Our very own Singapore Idol 2009 Top 24 were all totally on Twitter and Facebook last season (SI 2009) with tons of followers on their accounts :)! Our 3rd Singapore Idol Sezairi Sezali has over 25,000 fans on facebook! So lets give ourselves a pat on the back for another Idol first (the other first being the song-writing element at Theatre Auditions)! :)

Here's my homemade collage of your Top24 girls, photos from zap2it.com's Idol gallery, click to enlarge.
Just realised, those that I've 'hearted' are my favourites and they're all blonde!















Oh well, whatever it is, the AI Top 24 have been unleashed into cyberspace, but looking at the nicks, these accounts are probably seriously monitored by their PR nannies and gurus. You have to hand it to the Americans, they are super media savvy, and when they do it, they do it right 1000%. I am so following them all just to get in on the goss (if any).

Here are your Top24 guys, photos from zap2it.com's Idol gallery. Click to enlarge.















Here are the links to the Top 24 (thank you zap2it.com!). Oh and because MySpace.com is big in the US, each of the Top 24 also have a special MySpace page up. Get ready to get 'personal' with them (then again, maybe they've employed 24 interns to 'ghost' -tweet, -fb and -myspace for the kids...

Wat-evah!....go follow....

TWITTER: (just type http://twitter.com/(nick below))
Andrew Garcia: @AGarciaAI9
Katie Stevens: @KStevensAI9
Michael Lynche: @MLyncheAI9
Didi Benami: @DBenamiAI9
Haeley Vaughn: @HVaughnAI9
Tim Urban: @TUrbanAI9
Katelyn Epperly: @KEpperlyAI9
Aaron Kelly: @AKellyAI9
Lee Dewyze: @LDewyzeAI9
Todrick Hall: @THallAI9
Janell Wheeler: @JWheelerAI9
Tyler Grady: @TGradyAI9
Lacey Brown: @LBrownAI9
Ashley Rodriguez: @ARodriguezAI9
Alex Lambert: @ALambertAI9
Joe Munoz: @JMunozAI9
Crystal Bowersox: @CBowersoxAI9
Lilly Scott: @LScottAI9
Paige Miles: @PMilesAI9
Siobhan Magnus: @SMagnusAI9
Michelle Delamor: @MDelamorAI9
Jermaine Sellers: @JSellersAI9
John Park: @JParkAI9
Casey James: @CJamesAI9

FACEBOOK: (just type http://facebook.com/(nick below))
Andrew Garcia: AGarciaAI9

Katie Stevens: KStevensAI9
Michael Lynche: MLyncheAI9
Didi Benami: DBenamiAI9
Haeley Vaughn: HVaughnAI9
Tim Urban: TUrbanAI9
Katelyn Epperly: KEpperlyAI9
Aaron Kelly: AKellyAI9
Lee Dewyze: LDewyzeAI9
Todrick Hall: THallAI9
Janell Wheeler: JWheelerAI9
Tyler Grady: TGradyAI9
Lacey Brown: LBrownAI9
Ashley Rodriguez: ARodriguezAI9
Alex Lambert: ALambertAI9
Joe Munoz: JMunozAI9
Crystal Bowersox: CBowersoxAI9
Lilly Scott: LScottAI9
Paige Miles: PMilesAI9
Siobhan Magnus: SMagnusAI9
Michelle Delamor: MDelamorAI9
Jermaine Sellers: JSellersAI9
John Park: JParkAI9
Casey James: CJamesAI9


MYSPACE: (just type http://myspace.com/(nick below))
Andrew Garcia: AGarciaAI9
Katie Stevens: KStevensAI9
Michael Lynche: MLyncheAI9
Didi Benami: DBenamiAI9
Haeley Vaughn: HVaughnAI9
Tim Urban: TUrbanAI9
Katelyn Epperly: KEpperlyAI9
Aaron Kelly: AKellyAI9
Lee Dewyze: LDewyzeAI9
Todrick Hall: THallAI9
Janell Wheeler: JWheelerAI9
Tyler Grady: TGradyAI9
Lacey Brown: LBrownAI9
Ashley Rodriguez: ARodriguezAI9
Alex Lambert: ALambertAI9
Joe Munoz: JMunozAI9
Crystal Bowersox: CBowersoxAI9
Lilly Scott: LScottAI9
Paige Miles: PMilesAI9
Siobhan Magnus: SMagnusAI9
Michelle Delamor: MDelamorAI9
Jermaine Sellers: JSellersAI9
John Park: JParkAI9
Casey James: CJamesAI9


Chris Golightly Its a shame he didn't make it through. Early spoilers indicated that he did, and following that thread it was later reported he was disqualified for not disclosing that he had an existing contract with someone. His spot was taken away from him, and later on, when the actual contract was produced, it had apparently expired! Wahlaoeh! Can die right? The guy was like totally robbed of his Idol chance. I say, put him back on the show!

Oh and as for that goss I posted earlier about someone getting disqualified - turns out it was just an exaggerated rumour - yeesh - and that person is here to stay in the Top 24. I still don't see this person going very far though, lets see if I'm right.

xoxo, s.

ps. I'm on twitter too, come follow me - twitter.com/summerr77

pps. Btw, does Siobhan remind anyone of Rachel on Glee.....she seems so...uptight or wound too tightly and stressed...but then again we haven't seen much of her, whatever we've seen is from the drama of group day.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

IDOL DAY AGAIN! Hollywood Week 71-24

From 71 to America's Top 24.
Last night, producers revealed 7 lucky people who made it to the Top 24. 5 guys and 2 girls and they are :
  1. Michael 'Big Mike' Lynche (his newborn is named Layla Rose - so cool right!)
  2. Didi Benami (my fave!!!)
  3. Katelyn Epperly (love her curls!)
  4. Aaron Kelly
  5. Casey James (taking your shirt off gets you noticed!)*
  6. Lee Dewyze
  7. Todrick Hall
*(did y'all see Kara's leg flip up when he hugged her?! LOL!)

Tonight there are 17 spots left to fill, just 7 for boys and 10 for the girls. Who will make it through? My bets are on (and this is without looking at the cheat sheet of leaked names)....

Boys I can only think of 6 off the top of my head...
Andrew Garcia (my fave this season - MUST GO THRU!)
Jermaine Sellers (first awesome guy contestant)
Tyler Grady (broken hands guy)
Tim Urban (broken hands guy)
Chris Golightly (orphan guy who went thru like 20+ foster homes - blonde afro)
John Park (I'm guessing this one is in cos they keep featuring him here and there without really telling us his backstory or showing us his audition. Plus he's Asian, so he stands out, so I'm thinking he MUST be in!!!)

GirlsI can only think of 6 off the top of my head...
Janell Wheeler
Haeley Vaughn (I'm not a huge fan, but she's gotten a lot of positive screen time and 'refreshing feedback' - so I think shoo-in)
Lilly Scott (sure wan la - they like cool chicks with their own unique style - remember Megan Joy from last season?)
Ashley Rodriguez (total package)
Crystal Bowersox (tattooed hippie mom with a story that can sing - sure in)
Katie Stevens (prim, proper, innocent-looking 16yr-old with a grown up voice - plus grandma story - in!)

What about you? Whom do YOU want to go through?

Latest goss, even before we can get to the piano shows, one of the Top 24 have been cut from the show due to breach of contract - tsk so fast. This person has been replaced already la of course. And imo, not a big loss. Doubt they woulda won anyways.

Powers out! Did you guys watch last night's show? I found the whole 'room-by-room results' and 'rehash each contestant's journey backwards' not very exciting. The only thing that made my day was seeing Mary Powers NOT make it through. Ok, thats just mean, but then again, its really nothing personal, I just don't think she would have gotten very far in a competition where popularity is just as important as singing chops. Her know-it-all, over-domineering, alpha-female persona (whether true or due to a lot of clever editing) was featured so heavily at Hollywood week, it woulda been hard for her to downplay at voting rounds to win viewers over, especially when there are so many other very likeable girls in the competition.

In previous seasons, producers would always break up Room Results in one episode and 'The Final Judgment' (the long walk to face judges solo with sing-offs) in another. So the second hour of last night's show was quite a refreshing change - did not have to wait another day for some Top 24 names - a first in Idol history!

What did you guys think of Jessice Furnley's and Shelby Dressel's dismissals? I agreed with the former but disagreed with the latter. I thought Shelby shoulda gotten through, just cos I think vocally she's solid like the rest, but her story gives her an edge and it would have been interesting to see how that woulda played out. Seemed like Simon thought as much because I swear I heard him mumble 'wrong decision' as she walked off.

Tonight, as usual Ryan promises MORE drama, MORE emotions and the MOST dramatic season of American Idol yet tonight (all reality shows say this season after season - 'in our most dramatic season yet!'). I wonder if there will be any sing-offs this season. From the preview clips, doesn't look like any.

Wheeeee less than half an hour to tonight's one hour episode of Idol! Lets all go watch (pray for no rain - rain = no ASTRO here!)

xoxo, s.
ps. Full top 24 deets are already available on americanidol.com :)

Friday, February 12, 2010

Survivor 20 : Return. Revenge. Redemption.

Isn't that tagline just awesome?
Forget about Outwit. Outplay. Outlast. These guys (and gals) have been there and done that. Now its time for Round #2 (or #3 for quite a few of them) and another $1 million is up for grabs.
















10 years ago, Mark Burnett introduced us to his brainchild Survivor, and lo and behold, a new genre for television was born. Survivor is arguably the first real reality tv series that has successfully captivated a wide audience. Now 10 years later, with 19 seasons under its belt, the franchise celebrates its 10th anniversary with a cast that is sure to make this season of Survivor the best we've ever seen.

This season sees Heroes vs Villains from previous seasons. I certainly hope they won't stick to their 'roles' and change it up in a bid to throw each other off. Everyone has played the game and played the game well. Some have played it twice before.
















In fact, the only person who seems to have a slight disadvantage would be last season's (Samoa) ultimate villain Russell Hantz. His season of Survivor and Season 20 were filmed back to back before the results were announced, so he played Season 20 without knowing whether he'd won at Samoa or not (it was down to him and Natalie, and tapings happen months before the live finale reveal back at CBS studios). If he'd known going into Season 20 that he'd lost it to Natalie, he may have played the game a little differently.

But then again, Russell is smart and unpredictable, and he knows he's goin' up against Survivor's best, he may change his gameplan.

Oh but wait, I just realised he also has an advantage, because Survivor 20 would have started filming BEFORE Survivor Samoa aired, so the other 19 heroes and villains wouldn't have a clue what Russell would bring to the table...a-hah...am so excited lor. Just 3 hours from now, 5.30pm is the premiere on Channel 5.


Here are the tribe members :
Heroes :
Colby Donaldson (Australian Outback)
Rupert Boneham (Pearl Islands & All-Stars)
Jessica 'Sugar' Kiper (Gabon)
Cirie Fields (Panama & Micronesia)
Amanda Kimmel (China & Micronesia)
Stephenie LaGrossa (Palau & Guatemala)
James "J.T." Thomas, Jr (Tocantins)
Tom Westman (Palau)
Candace Woodcock (Cook Islands)
James Clement (China & Micronesia)

Villains :
Jerri Manthey (Australian Outback & All-Stars)
Russell Hantz (Samoa)
Tyson Apostal (Tocantins)
Randy Bailey (Gabon)
Rob Mariano (Marquesas & All-Stars)
Parvati Shallow (Cook Islands & Micronesia)
Benjamin "Coach" Wade (Tocantins)
Courtney Yates (China)
Sandra Diaz-Twine (Pearl Islands)
Danielle DiLorenzo (Panama)

Check out these vids to see their faces and 'remember' what you loved/hate about them! Arrgh so exciting!

There are so many I'm looking forward to seeing again. I want to see if Stephenie can up her game (she made it to Top 2 at Palau), and likewise so did Colby. I totally love the sweethearts that are J.T. and Tom, and of course Rupert!

And for entertainment I'm lookin' forward to hating Coach, Tyson (the guy loves himself too much and his V-neck tees...maaaan!), Jerri, Rob(I love his Boston accent!) and Russell. I wonder if Russ will all the hidden immunity idols again - hope producers hid it where he couldn't reach it ahhaha.

Ok, now check out Jeff Probst's take on the castaways selected for this season ;) - gotta love Jeff (he's not just host you know, he's also a producer on the show!)


Tons more vids of the individual castaways
here.

Excited! Ey-ey oh-ey oh-ey oh-ey a-a ey ey oh ey oh...
xoxo, s.

Drama or Nada?

'We're just trying to rehearse without any drama!'
Yea'riiite.















85 Idol dreams were dashed the day before, and 96 carried on to Group Day.
Groups ranged from 3 - 5 people and apart from having to agree on a song and come up with choreography..














But where was the drama that comes part and parcel of every Group Day of Hollywood Week?
Apart from the 'stealing of moves and ideas' (Neopolitan vs Destiny's Wild <-- wahsey so creative lor) and like one power struggle (Mary Powers wants her 'Power', she even kena from the music director - Mary : "I'm not tryin' to be pushy..." Music Director : "But you are..." ooh burrrrn!), oh and Big Mike's group following his baby's birth via video on his iPhone, there wasn't much drama really.
















Compared to last season's huge blow out between Kristin McNamara and Nancy Wilson Nathaniel Marshall's diva breakdown (think Mariah hands and tears but with short hair and a stringy headband), Bikini girl's no-show-turned-late-show and Tatiana's group ostracising her, last night's drama ranked mild.

In fact, it seemed like everyone kinda got along. Most of them even looked like they slept early.














Looks like after 8 seasons, contestants are getting a clue on how to stay calm.

Kudos though to producers for trying to er, flesh out and hype up the drama as much as possible with the intense-action-movie-music accompany. Ryan adds to the 'drama' by declaring that "This group is mentally drained and physically exhausted' because its Group Day..." (cue dramatic music).
I've heard from our own Idol producers that Group Day really is just a mechanism to challenge the contestants physically and mentally. Its a test of their mettle and their ability to cope under pressure and still perform despite it all. At this point, if you've made it to Hollywood Week (or Theatre Auditions), you're pretty much good singers. Now its time to figure out who can survive the entertainment industry. If you can remember your lyrics (they're only given 12 hours to learn a song, do it in a group and add choreography), and sing it well, you'll get through. If you can pull your group together, and show the judges that there was tons of effort, the whole group goes through.














I'm happy to see Michael Lynche and Tim Urban go through to the final round of Hollywood. I'm super happy that Katie Stevens got through (so cute, her group was called 3 Men And A Baby, 16 yr-old Katie bein' the baby, and it included my fave guy singer this season Andrew Garcia).














"I'm not power hungry" - Mary Powers
I'm sure she's not. She just wants to win, and I respect that. But you know what, I'm not liking her too much right now. And if she makes it through to the voting rounds, she'd better start endearing herself to viewers/voters, else she'll be one of the first to go.

Next week, can't wait to watch the final round of Hollywood Week. Only 71 are left after group day, and its time for them to take the stage solo with music. Who will be the 12 guys and 12 girls to make it to the Top 24? Eeee, so exciting!

xoxo, s.

ps. I found out the name of the girl with glasses and purple beanie: Erin Hunley

pps. Today's Friday peeps! Survivor XX : Heroes vs Villains today at 530pm on Channel 5 (encore at 12.30am!) Don't miss it! *tsk* still can't believe I missed last night's Survivor Special - Channel 5 rerun pleeeeeeeeeease!

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Ellen Old Blue Eyes

Ellen's eyes damn blue lor..
After all the anticipation and the 'woot'-ing and 'yay'-ing and daily countdowns (I'm sure I'm not the only one who set a countdown alarm on my phone...she has crazy mad fans in the US), I thought the minute she walked on set I would laugh. But nope, the first thing I saw was how darn blue her eyes are. Even more so paired with that denim jacket. Now THAT is what I call blue man. Even The Husband's first comment was "Wah her eyes damn blue man!"

And after all that fuss about her and Simon feuding...they got along like best friends throughout the show. She'd make jokes, he'd smile or laugh. The closest to a catfight we saw was hardly even a meow - Ellen played step back step forth with the final four contestants of the day only to put all of them through and Simon remarked, 'You're a sadist'. Feud? Where gottt? PR Spin laaa, told you I could smell it.

Ellen to Simon :
"So this is it huh,.... I come on.... you leave."

It was pretty apparent in our first Hollywood week episode that the producers were clearly giving Ellen the judging lead (or at least it seemed that way in on the final edit). In my previous post, I carried quotes from various articles online speculating that producers were figuring out how to 'phase' Simon out. Imo, certainly looks like they are grooming Ellen to be head judge from Day 1.

I guess with Ellen as the anchor judge from here on in, Simon's exit won't seem to leave such a gaping hole on the panel. I'm so gonna miss Simon when he DOES leave. Say what you want, but I've always felt the guy is genuine and he calls it like he sees it (and 90% of the time I agree with him). Oh and I love how he totally supports those that he thinks have talent.

Back to Ellen's first day, I think she started the day on the right note when she came onstage and addressed the 'big question on everyone's minds' - "What does she know about music?" And her answer was perfect :
"What I do know is what its like to stand on stage and try to please an entire room full of people. Thats a hard thing to do."

Ok so how did Round 1 of Hollywood Week go?
Everyone gets a chance to sing either acapella or accompanied by an instrument. Many took to the opportunity to bring their guitars and keyboards. Lots of aspiring singer/songwriters here.

What I liked about this episode, especially remembering last season, was that it had plenty of surprise goodbyes. Last season, producers pretty much gave away who were going through to the Top 24, because every single story they highlighted (ie followed back to hometowns for backstories) made it through.

You'd assume the same this year, but nope. A large number of those with backstories didn't make it through. Bye bye to SkiiBoSki, country girl Vanessa Wolfe (the one who'd never been on a plane before), Cornelius the guy who split his pants doin' a split, Maegan Wright who's lil brother was a big supporter, the New Jersey sisters, Barney girl Erica and beatboxer Jay Stone who failed to impress - Ellen said something was wrong with his mic (wahlaueh epic fail lor).

Although many bit the dust, there were so many standouts too - totally blowin' me away were :
Andrew Garcia - wth blew me totally to the next town man!
His accoustic rendition of Straight Up was SLAMMIN!! He took that song and totally made it his own! Agree with Kara 100% - "RIDICULOUS!" (in a good way)
Paula Abdul must be kicking herself for ending her contract right? (While simultaneously snapping her fingers, screaming and clapping and rooting for him in her living room)



Janell Wheeler
Her accoustic version of American Boy was awesome!! I really like the tone of her voice!


Haeley Vaughn
I actually kinda enjoyed her version of 'Hallelujah'. She's very likeable, although it still confuses me cos I can't peg her to a genre eventhough she says country pop - seems weird.


Lilly Scott
Wow, this one was an OMG moment! Love her voice!! Totally took me by surprise cos her speakng voice is lower, and then she sings this Ella Fitzgerald classic in such a cool way. 'Everything about you is refreshing' - totally on da money Kara!
btw, the Sam guy that made it through with her, looks cool, pity we didn't get to see his audition :(

Mike "Big Mike" Lynche
He's really huge (as in, the-guitar-looked-seriously-like-a-ukelele-huge) personal trainer who missed the birth of his first child for this. I totally didn't even remember his first audition. He also surprised me. His take of 'Waitin' On The World To Change' was infectious! I loved it, loved his personality and his lil ukelele...oops I mean guitar :)


Casey James
Woot! He was kinda dull and not much of a personality at his original audition and probably got through cos he took off his shirt. But with the guitar added, he came out of his shell. Casey became a croonin' coyote! (<--- ok don't know where that came from)
Loved it, eventhough I'm not really a country fan. (Then again, I'm actually likin' Carrie Underwood and Kellie Pickler and oh gawd Taylor Swift too! how? might need to git me a cowboy hat soon)


Crystal Bowersox (no not Powersocks)
All dreadlocked and tattooed, she totally powered through 'You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman'. She looks too young to be a mom, I mean, she looked 16 (she's actually 24). She certainly got the crowd going and she's kinda got a hippiechick feel - reminds me a little of Rose Flack from last season. Rose was prettier, but Crystal has a much better voice and musicality.


And last but not least people...my favourite of the night was.....

Didi Benami
I love love LOVED it. I'm actually a Kara Dioguardi fan and I was so excited when she said she was singing 'Terrified' cos I have loved this song since I found Kara singing it on a video on Youtube early last year.

Imo, she did it better than Katharine McPhee (this is one of Katharine McPhee's singles from her new album 'Unbroken'). Didi made it very current. Kat McPhee's version sounds like it could be from the 90s or even 80s (no disrespect to her, I was actually rooting for her all throughout Season 5) Click here to listen to Katharine McPhee's version, but I suggest you watch Kara sing it below :) (one of my fave vids, the singing only starts at 1:49)

Kara btw looked awesome on Idol...and this is so random and unrelated but I have the same coloured scarf! Yay, me and Kara have something in common (except that maybe hers cost a few hundred bucks, mine was $10 from Cotton On, Anchorpoint).

Others that were pretty good were Katie Stevens (16 year old whose grandma has Alzheimer's), Tim Urban (floppy haired, and I just love his name) and Mary Powers, the rocker mama who brought along her 8 year old daughter to meet Simon and he said 'Are you sure this isn't my daughter' because she was such a cynic.

Maddy Curtis (the girl with Downs Syndrome brothers) didn't make it through. Apparently the judges felt she wasn't ready for this. But imo, I thought she deserved to go at least one more day.

46 made it thru to Group Day. Historically Group Day is Super Drama day. Its bound to yield lots of emo scenes because its a super stressed environment and you're forcing strangers to work together within 24 hours on a performance that will either make/break their Idol dreams. Drama with a capital 'D' comin' your way, tonight! EXCITINGGGGG!

See you on the flipside of tonight's episode folks!
What did you think of Ellen's first day as judge? Can she helm the panel once Simon's gone? Why didn't they groom Kara? Comment comment comment :)

xoxo, s.

ps. I liked the girl with the purple woolly hat and glasses but I have no idea what her name is. We didn't even see her audition.