The Top 11 sing their beginnings

Tonight the top 11 finalists will sing a song from the year they were born. That's right, I said 11 and not 12. Jermaine Jones has been disqualified from the competition because he failed to disclose FOUR criminal warrants out for his arrest! it doesn't really matter because he had no chance at getting very far anyway.

1990 is the year the Phillip Phillips was born and also the year that The Black Crowes had a hit with Hard To Handle. Phillip sounded like he was trying to pass a kidney stone while he was screaming out the lyrics to this song.

1995 is the year that Jessica Sanchez was born and also the year that Gloria Estefan had a hit with Turn The Beat Around. Jessica has already proven that her amazing voice sounds pitch perfect on a dramatic ballad, but tonight she wanted to show she can do a disco dance jam as well. While this may not be her ideal style, she was still fantastic. And she looked absolutely fabulous in is sparkly silver pants!

1989 is the year that Heejun Han was born and also the year that Richard Marx spent three weeks at #1 with Right Here Waiting. This performance was completely dreary and boring.

1983 is the year that Elise Testone was born and also the year that Tina Turner started her big comeback with Let's Stay Together. This was a wonderful song choice to showcase her unique voice and really highlight her talents at their best.

1994 is the year that Deandre Brackensick was born and also the year that Mariah Carey and Luther Vandross hit #2 with Endless Love. Deandre's vocal skills can easily handle the multiple layers in this duet all by himself. His range is outstanding and he sounds awesome.

1995 is the year that Shannon Magrane was born and also the year that Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men spent 16 weeks at #1 with One Sweet Day. Shannon is completely out of her league in this competition and with this song. She was totally unable to handle the complex vocal demands of this song because of her limited breath control.

1991 is the year that Colton Dixon was born and also the year that White Lion released Broken Heart. Colton completely made this song his own with his passionate vocals and captivating stage presence.

1985 is the year that Erika Van Pelt was born and also the year that Bryan Adams spent one week at #1 with Heaven. Erika was able to make the power ballad even bigger with her big voice and a big dramatic arrangement.

1994 is the year that Skylar Laine was born and also the year that Bonnie Raitt had a hit with Love Sneaking Up On You. While Skylar has been able to really shine on other songs, tonight she was pretty "by the book", but for her that's still very good.

1992 is the year that Joshua Ledet was born and also the year that Michael Bolton hit #1 for one week with When a Man Loves A Woman. Joshua put out all the stops with his soulful and over the top performance of this R&B classic. He worked the stage and brought the house down.

1993 is the year the Hollie Cavanagh was born and also the year that Celine Dion spent four weeks at #1 with The Power of Love. Hollie was up there in her red carpet ready long gown and made it look easy to sing notes with crystal clear perfection. She was completely lovely on stage as the best was obviously saved for last.

My prediction for the bottom three this week is Phillip, Heejun and Shannon. If any of them went home this week they wouldn't be missed at all, but I think that it's going to be Shannon.

The Top 4 sing Movie Music

Tonight, Jamie Foxx, the Oscar winning star of Ray and DreamGirls (in which he co-starred with Season Three Miss American Idol finalist and also an Oscar winner, Jennifer Hudson) is here to work with the Top 4 as they attempt to interpret songs from the silver screen.

Seal won the 1996 Grammy for Record of the Year with his smash that hit #1 on the Billboard HOT 100 for one week in 1995, Kiss From A Rose. It was featured in the movie Batman Forever and Lee DeWyze sounded completely off-key and flat during this dreary performance. He is still completely lacking any personality so this was just sleep inducing instead of energizing.

Michael Jackson took Will You Be There up to #7 on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1993. This inspirational gospel choir ballad is from the film Free Willy, but it didn't really give Michael Lynche a chance to truly shine. His voice is very good, but with the songs arrangement having so many layers the voice ended up getting a little buried within it all.

Falling Slowly won the 2008 Oscar for Best Original Song from the movie Once and tonight Lee DeWyze and Crystal Bowersox joined forces to introduce it to the American Idol audience. They both faced each other as they played their guitars, but where her vocals were pristine and flawless, his were mumbled and unintelligible. Crystal did a wonderful job saving this duet from being a total disaster.

Simon and Garfunkle spent three weeks at #1 on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1968 with Mrs. Robinson from the movie The Graduate. Casey James sat on the edge of the stage with a ukulele and proceeded to tragically drain the life out of this fantastic song. His vocals were bland and laid back and the energy was totally lacking.

Kenny Loggins hit #7 in 1980 with I'm Alright, the theme from Caddyshack. Crystal Bowersox put on her own Lilith Fair music festival with this rousing acoustic rendition that was highlighted by her exceptional vocal range and talent. It had a fun and high energy vibe that was completely entertaining and infectious.

Bryan Adams spent five weeks at #1 on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1995 with Have You Ever really Loved A Woman? from the film Don Juan DeMarco. It was a dreary song back then and it was even more dreary with Casey James and Michael Lynche trying to make something of it. They also stood there with their guitars, but the song didn't allow them to really show off their voices. Casey just fumbled and once again the material let Michael down.

This is it - the night of my big and bold prediction! I see Casey and Lee being in the bottom two and the shock of the season will be that Lee is going home.

The Top 12 boys take their first shot...

After the lackluster performances from the girls last night, the boys have hopefully learned their lesson and are ready to blow us away tonight...

Todrick Hall is 24 and he decided to sing Since U Been Gone that the Season One Miss American Idol winner took to #2 in 2005. You have to applaud Todrick's effort to mix it up and take this pop rock anthem and turn it into a hip hop jam, but his weak vocals took all the excitement away.

Aaron Kelly is 16 and he decided to sing the 2009 Rascal Flatt's hit Here Comes Goodbye. Aaron took a risk by singing a song with the word "goodbye" in it as he could be predicting what he'll be doing tomorrow night. The vocals were pretty good, but the performance was plain boring.

Jermaine Sellers is 27 and he decided to sing Get Here that went to #5 for Oleta Adams in 1991. Jermaine did his best to over sing this jazzy old person favorite and make it more exciting than it actually was.

Tim Urban is 20 and he decided to sing the 2007 hit Apologize that hit #2 by One Republic. Tim owes many people including One Republic and the entire listening audience an apology for taking up 5 minutes of our lives with this bland offering. Next time it is suggested that everyone turn the volume down and just look at his cuteness without listening.

Joe Munoz is 20 and he decided to sing the non-hit You and I by Jason Mraz. It wasn't a hit for Jason and this forgettable rendition will not be a hit for Joe either. His nice vocals did very little to leave much of a mark.

Tyler Grady is 20 and he decided to sing the classic rock anthem that hit #1 in 1970 from the Guess Who, American Woman. Tyler has the image to be an entertainer in the spotlight, but his vocals simply aren't that good.

Lee Dewyze is 23 and he decided to sing Chasing Cars that was a hit in 2006 by Snow Patrol. Lee is the raspy singer that the rock fans are going to love, but he kinda made the song almost unrecognizable with his screaming.

John Park is 21 and he decided to sing the jazz standard made famous by Billie Holiday, God Bless The Child. This song was clearly very special to John, but even his impressive vocals weren't enough to make it sound current and fresh for a new audience.

Michael Lynche is 26 and he decided to sing the 2004 top 5 hit by Maroon 5, This Love. It's most noticeable that Michael is a really big guy taking up space on the stage, but he actually has some talent in there as well.

Alex Lambert is 19 and he decided to sing a complete hot mess disaster called Wonderful World. This poor young guy was such a nervous wreck on stage that it was a huge relief when it was finally over.

Casey James is 27 and he decided to sing the lovely ballad that Bryan Adams took to #1 in 1985, Heaven. Casey has a very easy going manner and vocal style that worked well with this familiar old favorite.

Andrew Garcia is 24 and he decided to sing the 2005 top 10 hit Sugar We're Going Down by Fall Out Boy. Andrew did his best to reinvent this fun rock song and make it into a boring acoustic ballad. It showed some originality, but it went in the wrong direction.

I wouldn't have believed it could be true, but the boys actually did worse than the girls! None of them really took advantage of the opportunity to make an exciting first impression. Casey James and Michael Lynche should be safely coming back next week, but the rest of these guys better hope their moms are calling in many votes to save them. I predict that Tim Urban and Alex Lambert will not be so lucky when the votes are counted....

The Top 7 sing Movie Music

Quentin Terentino, the director of movie hits Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill, is a HUGE American Idol fan and he worked with each of the finalists as they prepared to perform music from the movies.

Alison Iraheta chose to sing the song I Don't Want To Miss A Thing from Armageddon that Aerosmith took to #1 for four weeks on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1998. It started out kinda slow, but as it went on she proved she has one of the strongest voices in the competition. I would have liked to hear her sing a different more interesting song, but she really made the best of the material.

Anoop Desai chose to sing the song Everything I Do, I Do It For You from Robin Hood that Bryan Adams took to #1 for seven weeks on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1991. As we have heard in the past, Anoop has a pleasant vocal quality, but the fact is that he has no stage presence whatsoever. While it sounded nice, there was nothing special about it.

Adam Lambert chose to sing the song Born To Be Wild from Easy Rider that Steppenwolf took to #2 for three weeks on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1968. Week after week Adam has stepped apart from the crowd with his dynamic and energetic style. Whether it's a ballad or a rock anthem, like it was tonight, he has complete command of the stage and totally entertains.

Matt Giraud chose to sing the song Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman from Don Juan DeMarco that Bryan Adams took to #1 for five weeks on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1995. Matt sat at the piano and brought his strained and weak vocals to this song that isn't very catchy to start with. The combination of his boring song choice with his drippy vocals made for a very forgettable effort.

Danny Gokey chose to sing the song Endless Love from the movie of the same name that Lionel Richie and Diana Ross took to #1 for nine weeks on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1981. It's such a huge hit and popular favorite that Luther Vandross and Mariah Carey brought it back to the charts in 1994 taking it all the way up to #2. Danny is so far from being in the same league as these accomplished artists there was no where to go but down with his version. It was boring, flat and uninteresting. He brought nothing except bad vocals and dreary stage presence to this wonderful love song.

Kris Allen chose to sing the song Falling Slowly from Once that won the Oscar for best Original Song in 2008. He has the same things working for him every week. He looks great and he brings a warm sensitivity to everything he does. This song is very low key, so it didn't give him much to work with. His limited vocal range ended up becoming a more prominent factor as a result, but he can still out shine much of the competition.

Lil Rounds chose to sing the song The Rose from the movie of the same name that Bette Midler took to #3 on the Billboard HOT 100 in 1980. Just like I never want to hear Lil do another song by Celine Dion again, I never thought I'd hear her do Bette Midler. The fact is that Lil can do these songs very well, but you don't necessarily imagine them being on her first album. With this adult contemporary ballad, she added some more gospel and R&B style than Bette Midler ever could. It worked out pretty well, but her chances to really steal the competition are running out.

My favorites are continuing to impress me while the others are sinking deeper and falling flatter. While they should be stepping up and offering some surprises we are getting more bland efforts. The biggest culprits who seem to be the laziest are my prediction for the bottom three this week. They just seem to be coasting at this point: Matt Giraud, Anoop Desai and Danny Gokey. None of these three have done anything exceptional so far and all should be afraid that this week could be their last. I predict that Anoop will be the one sent packing

And the Season 7 American Idol is....

Here we are: Two hours of fun and entertainment until the crowning of the Season 7 Miss American Idol. It all started out with a preview of this year's American Idol tour as the top 12 finalists were reunited in a high energy performance of the top 5 smash from 1970 by Rare Earth, Get Ready. Then those other 10 finalists were dismissed so the fans could see the Davids come together for a great duet. You wouldn't think that their distinct styles would blend well together, but it turned out to be quite harmonious.

Mike Myers has officially crossed the line into being totally weird as his shameless promotion for the Love Guru was just plain creepy. Thankfully it was followed a very cool performance with Seal and this year's second runner up, Syesha Mercado of his hit Waiting For You. As we have come to expect, Syesha looked and sounded great. Then, on the other side of the coin, we were forced to endure Jason Castro mumble his way through Hallelujah again. Honestly, once was enough.

The top 6 girls: Kristy Lee Cook, Amanda Overmyer, Ramiele Malubay, Carly Smithson, Brooke White and Syesha Mercado joined together to bring to life an exciting Donna Summer medley including She Works Hard For The Money and the #1 smash, Hot Stuff. It was fun to see the Queen of Disco herself take the stage and sing her latest release before launching into the Oscar winning Best Original Song, Last Dance.

At the beginning of this season when we first saw the top 24, it is quite likely that many fans selected Carly Smithson and Michael Johns as front-runners to make it here to the finals. It was quite a surprise when they both got sent home way too early. For a a nice little consolation prize these two very talented singers had the chance to sing a duet in front of this huge audience. They gave a bouncy big band arrangement of a song by the Box Tops that spent four weeks at #1 in 1967, The Letter. Just a taste of what could have been....

The top 6 guys: David Hernandez, Chikezie, Michael Johns, Jason Castro and our top finalists, David Cook and David Archuleta joined forces to give us a Bryan Adams medley consisting of Summer of '69 and his #1 hit Heaven. This Canadian rocker came out to sing his latest jam and then wrapped things up with his hit Somebody.

This may come as a surprise to you, but one of the most recognized hits from ZZ Top, Sharp Dressed Man, was never released as a single and therefore, it never hit the Billboard HOT 100. Even so, it was still a nice sizzling opportunity for David Cook to rock out with the bearded guitar heroes. Much less sizzling was Brooke White sitting barefoot and strumming her guitar with Graham Nash. While the Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young top 20 hit from 1970, Teach Your Children is a classic song, this duet was just as drab as everything else Brooke gave us all season. The show needed a huge injection of youthful exuberance after this and no one does it better than THE JONAHS BROTHERS!!!!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!! They were right there singing their hit SOS!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

One Republic recently peaked at #2 earlier this year with their smooth synth pop song, Apologize. It was the perfect contemporary hit to match with David Archuleta's pure, sweet, sincere and earnest voice. The show is more than half over and there have been no appearances by any former American Idols! How can that be? Just when we thought Ruben's (Season 2 Miss American Idol) song last night was all we were going to get, the reigning queen, Season 6 Miss American Jordin Sparks came out on stage in glittering high heels and a spangled gold dress to sing her newest single, One Step At A Time. Her first single, Tattoo peaked at #8 and her latest, No Air is still in the the top 5 after peaking at #3. Who says the Idols aren't as successful as they used to be!

As if Jordin wasn't enough, the Idol alumni doesn't get any better than the Supreme Miss American Idol from Season Four, Carrie Underwood. She looked absolutely stunning as she belted out her new single, Last Name. Her stylist deserves an award. I mean seriously, her hair, that dress, her legs, her shoes - FLAWLESS! Carrie is just plain HOT! And the song is the catchiest thing ever. It started out, "hey cutie where are you from?" then in turned into - Oh NO what have I done!

The top 12 gave us one last medley of George Michael hits including, Faith, Father Figure and Freedom 90 before George graced the stage to sing his #1 smash that Carrie Underwood did so well on Idol Gives Back, Praying For Time.

Two hours of great entertainment flew by and it was finally time to give the Season 7 Miss American Idol crown to one of the Davids. The envelope was opened and David Archuleta had to step aside and give congratulations to this years winner - DAVID COOK! The rocker was brought to tears as he thanked his brother for encouraging him to give this a shot. He made it all the way to this night of having the glitter fall around him as he sang The Time Of My Life.