Tonight the 8 remaining boys will get one last chance to select any song they want to perform to try and make it to the TOP 12. Tonight's song has to be the one that allows them to look and sound their best. Here's what they decided to do...
Blake Lewis is simply a natural. Without even mentioning his easy going and effortless good looks, he is completely comfortable on stage. He is a gifted vocalist in so many ways - a smooth tenor singing voice and so much rhythm that he just can't keep it inside. On top of all that, he selects to sing songs that sound fresh, hip and young. Tonight it was a hip hop reggae jam by 311. Blake set the bar very high tonight with this impressive showing.
Sanjaya Malakar is the polar opposite. His performance of John Mayer's Waiting On The World To Change, which is a current hit in the top 20 this week, was bland and boring. Everything about him so far has been awkward and unnatural. He's got that crazy long hair that he wore in a pony-tail last week and tonight he straightened it out so it looked just like his sister's. A very weak showing.
Sundance Head is another contestant whose middle name could be "awkward". He doesn't have the looks or the moves to make anything special of Pearl Jam's breakout hit from 1992, Jeremy. This type of song doesn't allow him to show off any vocal range at all. It was just an amateur trying to scream his way through. A poor showing.
Chris Richardson took a risk tonight and tried to show that he has the broad enough range to sing anything. In the past he has shined by coming off as current and on the cutting edge. But tonight he chose a Keith Urban country ballad that took the spotlight off his moves and relied solely on his rather plain vocals. They were good, but it was still a rather shaky showing.
Stevie Wonder had a top 10 hit in 1971 with his If You Really Love Me. This song allowed Jared Cotter to show more of his range. Part of the song is a tender ballad where he can belt out some big notes while the other part is a fun uptempo toe tapper. This gave him a chance to seem more carefree and fun than he has in the past. A good showing.
1971 is also the year that Rare Earth made a top 10 hit out of I Just Want To Celebrate. Brandon Rogers did his best to impress with this energetic anthem. The truth, though, is that the song choice was not the problem. Brandon unfortunately, did not bring any special standout vocals to his performance. What could have been a showstopper was a lackluster showing.
Phil Stacey made a huge mistake tonight by selecting to sing the Leann Rimes song that just missed the top 10 in 2000, I Need You. The song peaked at #11 and Phil seems to have peaked last week and is on his way out. Leann, who won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1997, has a big voice with an extremely broad range. Phil doesn't. His limited abilities made this into a regrettable showing.
Chris Sligh just wants to be loved. Don't we all? He gave us another bluesy / rock song that wasn't very catchy or very well known. It's the kind of choice that could be fatal for his chances except for the fact that there are other guys who are on even more unstable ground than he is. Chris' vocals are merely good so it was therefore, a merely good showing.
I am filled with a lack of enthusiasm for these 8 boys. Blake is the only consistant high performer. Based on these performances tonight, any of the other 7 could be going home. The four most lackluster were Sanjaya, Sundance, Phil and Brandon. Two of these guys will barely squeak into the TOP 12, while I predict that Sanjaya and Phil will be going home.
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