The Top 10 Boys take their first shot

The Top 10 Boys can sing any song of their choice to try and win your votes:

Elijah Liu started the night out with a performance of Rihanna's hit Stay that is currently in the Top 10 this week. He is young and cute and this song presented himself as a pop star who is ready to be loved by the masses.

Cortez Shaw also took on a song that is presently dominating radio airplay. The recent #1 smash from Bruno Mars, Locked Out Of Heaven, allowed him to have fun and show off his dance moves as well as sing. He is very handsome, but his voice isn't the most impressive instrument of the group.

Charlie Askew is clearly on a search to find himself with this American Idol experience. He started out as a quiet awkward kid and now he is a loud and obnoxious awkward kid. He performed Mama by Genesis and he went out there playing dress up and looking kinda silly and foolish. And then there was the completely messed up vocals. Hopefully it was therapeutic for him, but it was unpleasant for us. 

Nick Boddington sat at the piano and performed a sincere and vulnerable rendition of Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls. He is a very nice guy who is clearly passionate about music and that comes through when he performs. 

Burnell Taylor tried to recreate the magic of the showstopper I'm Here from the musical The Color Purple. Season 3 Miss American Idol winner, Fantasia, does this song and totally hits it out of the park, but Burnell just sounded like he was going through the motions. It lacked spirit, energy and left us without delivering a big powerful ending. 

Paul Jolley is a tall, handsome and talented singer with a great smile. The song choice  wasn't as strong as it should have been, but his personality and voice helped to compensate. He needs to lighten his style so he doesn't come off as so serious.  

Lazaro Arbos has already won my heart in the past few weeks and he solidified it even more with his stellar performance of Feeling Good. The Season 3 Miss American Idol finalist and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson has made this song her own and now we have witnessed another Idol take it for himself. Lazaro is charming, sweet, easy on the eyes and his voice will just make you melt. 

Curtis Finch Jr. hoped that his gospel infused rendition of R. Kelly's I Believe I Can Fly would make us all believers. While he has the passion and the heart every time he hits the stage, the problem is that his vocals aren't that impressive. 

Devin Velez delivered the pop standard It's Impossible with effortless vocal ease. He has a smooth voice with a great range that he can sing in both Spanish and English. American Idol may have found their first international superstar. 

Vincent Powell attempted to tackle the huge #1 hit from 1993 End of the Road by Boyz II Men. Unfortunately the song proved to be too big for him. His vocals got lost in there, even though we know he's good. He just didn't show it tonight. 

The boys were supposed to bring their A Game tonight, but many of them didn't seem to get the memo. Here's my prediction for who I think should make the Top 5: Lazaro Arbos, Paul Jolley, Devin Velez, Elijah Liu and Nick Boddington. 

The Top 7 sing Inspiration

It's Idol Gives Back week and the theme is Songs of Inspiration. The Top 7 Finalists had the honor of working with Grammy winning number one hit maker Alicia Keys.

Casey James selected the Fleetwood Mac jam that hit #3 in 1977, Don't Stop. While this is a very optimistic pop song, he completely failed to connect with the lyrics and convey any emotion. His vocals were very mundane and forgettable.

Simon and Garfunkle hit #7 in 1969 with The Boxer. It's a truly lovely song, but you couldn't tell with the wretched and strained screams coming out of Lee Dewyze. It was thoroughly painful to listen to and it lacked any human connection at all.

Tim Urban chose to sing Better Days by the Goo Goo Dolls. He once again is working the smile and the trendy hair style while strumming his guitar and singing. He seemed to really understand the lyrics and was able to convey the meaning well, despite the few clunky notes he hit here and there.

I Believe I Can Fly by R Kelly peaked at #2 in 1996 and it was a big inspirational ballad that little Aaron Kelly tried to make his own. Once again, he is too small all around to take on this kind of choice.

Mariah Carey hit #15 with her theme song from The Prince of Egypt, When You Believe. Siobhan Magnus was able to do a wonderful vocal justice to this difficult song. She clearly has an exceptional vocal range and a skillful ability to interpret powerful lyrics. And on top of that, she can successfully get away with butterfly accessories on her dresses.

Michael Lynche is making the best of his repeated opportunities to come back with a winning interpretation of Hero from the Spiderman soundtrack. He is a very good singer, but his only flaw is that he continues to select songs that don't pack a big enough punch to really show off his skills.

People Get Ready has been covered many times since the Impressions hit #14 with it in 1965. Crystal Bowersox brought more emotional depth to this vocal performance than any of the other contestants combined. She looked lovely in a long black gown and sounded flawless. It was hard to hold back the tears after hearing this wonderful rendition.

Too bad only one finalist will be going home this week, because more than three are deserving of being in the bottom. My prediction for the bottom three this week is Casey James, Aaron Kelly and Lee DeWyze. All of these boys made our ears hurt this week, but the biggest culprit is little Aaron who should be sent packing.