This season also had a new judge, Ellen DeGeneres.  A woman who undoubtedly loves music, and dances to a new song each and every weekday on her show.  I thought she did alright for her first season.  I noticed the first 24 she seemed to mimic Randy’s criticism a lot, almost to the word.  I never really saw her disagree with Randy, except for one time with Tim.  Was she the most qualified?  Let’s see, Simon and Randy are two huge entities in the music recording field. Randy played bass with Journey, and Simon has produced some of the world’s top artists.  Kara was a Grammy winning song writer and vocalist.  Ellen?  She loves music.  Odd in many ways, but she did better than most thought.

The final episode of Season 9 didn’t have any gaudy lip-syncing, bikini flashes, or unnecessary hype.  Instead it was filled with great performances by Janet Jackson, Cristina Aguilera, Joe Cocker, Alanis Morissette, Chicago, Michael McDonald, and amazingly enough, the very lucky Bret Michaels.  It’s really what the show needed after last year’s debacle.

Season 9′s finalists were both chosen in Chicago.  You had Lee DeWyze, and Crystal Bowersox.  Each are completely different in sound and personality, but each knows exactly what recording artist they are.  Both Crystal and Lee were good choices for this year’s finale, and I still say both were a MUCH better choice than last year.  Over the past nine seasons, Idol has only given the world really four successful Idols, and five duds.  Sure, they may have had a little success, but the runners-up in that year have surely out performed them.  Reuben had some success, more than some, with most of it being in the gospel genre.  Fantasia and Taylor Hicks were complete flops.  It’s still a little too early yet, but I only heard Adam Lambert on the radio and nothing from Kris Allen.  Would this year be different?

If I had to compare these finalists to anyone, I would say Lee was a good example of David Cook, and Danny Gokey from Season 8, whom he has a striking resemblance to.  Crystal Bowersox would match well with the great Janis Joplin and sounded phenomenal in her duet with Alanis tonight.  Sure, each one has their strengths and weaknesses, but either way, I would enjoy this year’s winner over last year’s.

In the end, Lee DeWyze won Season 9 despite a weak performance in the final contest, and not being consistent all season.  He found his rhythm in the last few weeks which really was his saving grace.  Crystal never was in the bottom three.  She continued to blow the judges away week after week, and was the sure winner of this year, again another major upset.  I don’t know if people voted for Lee because of his good looks, or just because he was the underdog.  We’ll see if America picked them right, because on voting lately, America has let us all down majorly.  I don’t want to see a sixth flop and Crystal outdoing Lee in the long run.  I mean, the winner is supposed to be the best, the one that America is dying to see in the stores and will rush out to get their new release when the time comes.  Somehow that never seems to happen unless your Carrie Underwood or Kelly Clarkson.  Jordin Sparks has done well for herself, but not nearly as popular as those two.

Only time will tell, but I have a good feeling Idol will never be the same, and many will stop watching it next year.  I have seen LOTS of disgust over the winner; they like him, but they know Crystal is the better of the two.  There won’t be harsh criticism in there either unless Gordon Ramsay comes to judge Idol.  I think the show is in the books.  It will go down as one of the most popular reality shows in history, but like most, I won’t be watching next year unless they get one hell of a judge to replace Simon.

Congrats to Lee and Crystal.  We wish you all the best on your future endeavors.

The Rolling Stones are classic. I don’t know anyone that hasn’t heard at least one of their tunes, and probably those that have know at least one song by heart.  They have been performing since the 60s, giving them more than 40 years of songs to choose from.  The problem with songs from this band isn’t the fact they are hard, but that the Stones are so famous that changing the song could be suicide.  And for those that do the song the way the Stones did, they will be compared to them almost like karaoke.

Each performer brought their A-game to the stage, in hopes it would show.  For three performers their performances were far from perfect.  In the bottom three was Paige Miles who happened to be suffering from laryngitis but managed to belt out some pretty intense notes. In fact, many didn’t even know she was sick.  The others joining her were Lacy Brown singing “Ruby Tuesday” and Tim Urban singing “Under My Thumb.”

For me, I could see Tim being in the bottom three; I didn’t like his performance at all.  The vocals were all over the place, and he gave the song a Jamaican type sound which I usually applaud but this was a train wreck in my opinion. Knowing that Paige was sick, and couldn’t practice till she hit the stage, I figured she would be in the bottom three but felt she would be safe based on past performances.  Lacy, I was really surprised for, as she has had trouble finding herself in the competition, however, I really enjoyed her unique voice.  She was far better than Tim was that night and better than Paige, but for some reason America didn’t think so and voted her off.  This surprised Tim when he was the safe one in the bottom three leaving Paige and Lacy facing elimination.  I think he really expected to be going home as did I.

The judges decided not to use the save on Lacy, and sent her packing.  I knew they wouldn’t this soon in the competition.

As for the guest performances, I enjoyed the return performance of David Cook.  His vocals were hot, and he took the stage like we never have seen him do before on American Idol with his rendition of “Jumping Jack Flash.”  On the other side we had two female guest performers including Orianthi singing her hit “According To You,” which was another great performance.  She once played guitar for Carrie Underwood, American Idol Season 6 winner.  Then we heard Ke$ha sing her hit “Blah Blah Blah.”  For me, she looked ridiculous out there, and the song was horrible.  I don’t know how this song ever got on the radio, and how it boosted her to this kind of level in the music industry.  Shame on American Idol for this performance.  I was glad when it was over.

If you watch her talk show weekdays at 4:00 PM, you will see she enters in gallant fashion, a long dance to some new pop song that is rocking the charts.  It’s fun, and that is how DeGeneres is.  I wouldn’t expect anything less from a comedian.  However, on her show I have seen her sing over and over again, and she herself admits she can’t but tries, and I so agree.

So, where is the magic for her on American Idol?  If this was So You Think You Can Dance or Dance Your Ass Off, you know she would be a better fit.  DeGeneres will be the first to say music is her life, but is it the beat she likes or the careful ear to ensure it’s sung well.  I have a feeling it’s more the beat, but what do I know.

DeGeneres, I think, was brought to the show to ease some tensions a bit on the judges panel for the contestants.  You have the very truthful and downright nasty Simon Cowell.  There’s Randy Jackson, who is more smooth with his criticism but recently has been just as hard.  You also have Kara Dioguardi who can be sweet and encouraging one minute, but then turns into a raging bull the next minute almost to the point of being bi-polar.  And of course there was Paula Abdul.  It seemed that no matter how bad you were, she made you feel good about the performance in some way and gave helpful advice.  It balanced out the panel for contestants that just got their heart destroyed by the other three, so at least there was some solace in one.  DeGeneres has that same personality so I feel she will either ease the singers or unintentionally embarass them, as that is what comedians do.

Personally, I think this is showing how desperate and vulnerable American Idol is becoming.  They needed Kara Dioguardi to be in a two piece bikini with a contestant last year.  They lost their rock in Paula Abdul which really angered Americans everywhere. And then there are the accusations from past contestants and observations from the audience that the show is rigged.  If they don’t pull something great out of their dark abyss, American Idol may be in the history books after May of 2010.  At least you know Ryan Seacrest won’t be jobless.

I have no problem with DeGeneres; I think she is a wonderful person and humanitarian, however, the equation for this concoction just doesn’t compute.

Ju’Not said outright, without hesitation, American Idol is rigged.  He goes on to say that he feels he was not brought back for the wild card round because of his constant questioning.  To elaborate, the show hires one of their lawyers on your behalf to negotiate with their lawyer on your contract. Ju’Not stipulated in his interview, how fair is that?  Is that lawyer really looking out for your best interest?  He said that during that process the lawyers were like “just sign the contract,” but Ju’Not continued to ask questions.  He didn’t want to sign anything that would jeopardize him or his family’s future, and who would blame him.

Ju’Not doesn’t believe he was unfairly voted off but he does know they had the power to choose who got the second chance in the wild card round, and the way he fought them and questioned them in the contract phase, he feels had a huge impact on their decision.

During the interview he also stated that American Idol does pick who gets eliminated, because of ratings.  He feels Kris Allen is talented and deserved to win, but it was all Adam, Adam, Adam.  Then, out of the blue, here comes Kris to beat out this superstar.  Kris was almost eliminated five times and was one of the most boring contestants ever, at least that’s all I ever read on the blogs and Facebook comments from viewers.  Nonetheless, that is still someone’s opinion, so how did he win and why?

Right at the time when American Idol contestant Adam Lambert started to lose support, was around the time the picture of him kissing another guy surfaced.  How would it look if, heaven forbid, a gay man win the contest.  The ratings would be through the floor, Idol’s image would be in the trash, and that is something they wouldn’t want to deal with, right?  So here comes a good down home Southern guy to beat out the fierce and flamboyant Adam, kind of like Hulk Hogan vs. Andre The Giant.  We can’t say that any of this is true; we are just setting up a scenario.

The same thing happened with Clay and Reuben.  Many people believe Clay was robbed, so much so that on New Years Eve,  it ranked the top two story of tragedies on the TV for 2002.  Despite that, it made for a good story and kept the people on their feet.  It could be worth giving a contestant, who they know won’t make it far, the chance to win because it will get a swamp load of viewers next season. Case in point, Taylor Hicks.

Personally, I do believe Ju’Not saying this show is rigged.  Kris facing elimination week after week, comes back to defeat the two best contestants this show has seen in a while, is stunning.  It caused American Idol to remain in the headlines, it infuriated many viewers, and now sets up for a great Season 9 next year.  I’ve seen this happen year after year, like with Sanjaya.  Clearly, he was out of his league but made it to the top six, beating out many talented people that should have eliminated him.  It kept viewers coming back to see when he would finally say goodbye. 

To make it more believable, Ju’Not and other former executives have commented on this, supporting the notion that American Idol is rigged.  Ju’Not also says, “The show has writers, we are actors, it’s all on ratings.”  He couldn’t be more right.  Seriously, who would tune in next year if there wasn’t a controversy this year with Kris and Adam?  People are angered and will watch to make sure that doesn’t happen again… and who knows, we may see Kara in a bikini again!  Still, it’s up to you on what you want to believe.  Is Ju’Not just disgruntled and talking out of anger to ruin the show like it ruined him, is it a publicity stunt with his new CD set to release tomorrow, or is it the truth?  The world may never know.

It doesn’t surprise us here at The Expressionist, we knew Kara Dioguardi was eventually going to rule out Abdul and take her spot.  That’s what Abdul thought too beginning last season, but dismissed the notion before the start of the season saying “the fourth judge will help American Idol.”  She is probably wishing she never said those words.

Randy Jackson finished his contract deal right after the end of Season 8, and is locked down till 2011 (so that’s good news for Idol fans; the show is scheduled till 2011 at least.)  Ryan Seacrest signed a 45.6 million dollar deal making him the highest paid reality TV host in history.  Kara Dioguardi signed up last year for four seasons, bringing her to the 2011 season.  Simon Cowell is in contract negotiations, but there is a lot of talk in the tabloids, E! TV and other sources saying that he will not return, and he’s not putting that fire out either.

This season could prove to be completely new on the judges table, if Abdul isn’t there to lift the spirits of those with a bad performance, they are subject to the wrath of Cowell (if he returns), a more harsh Randy Jackson, and the claws of the fierce Dioguardi.  If Cowell and Abdul for some reason don’t return, I would say we can kiss this show goodbye, because many people tune in to watch Cowell despite how arrogant he is, he is usually right.

Idol has gone through some major drama over the last few years, some including Abdul who was accused of sleeping with one of Season 2′s contestants.  The people are still outraged over Clay Aiken, Chris Daughtry and now Adam Lambert’s losses saying they were fixed.  Maybe it is time for the show to be in the archives, or maybe they just need to get it right.

If Abdul isn’t back, the show won’t be on much longer.  I personally think they wanted someone to tear the kids apart, and they wanted someone younger with more sex appeal, hence the bikini stunt on the finale last year.

This year, however, they allowed a judge save.  That meant if a contestant got voted off, more than likely people did not vote for them because they felt they were safe. Therefore, the judges, if they felt the contestants were ousted before their time could save them.  The question remains… does this really help?

Season 8 of American Idol had probably one of the worst upsets in the show’s history; it really was the strongest that survived, but lost the match to the person he just knocked out.  The entire nation was in shock and felt angry, but somehow the lesser of the two talents won by American votes.  That’s what really makes me wonder how “honest” this show is.  Do they actually get that many votes, or do they eliminate contestants to cause a riot for publicity purposes?  Let’s take a stroll down through the seasons and take a contrasting look at the winners, then we’ll decide what’s going on.

Season 1 – Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini

In the season finale, Texan Kelly Clarkson won the first American Idol contest.  She battled fun-loving Justin Guarini who was equally as talented.  Since the show’s completion, Clarkson has produced three Grammy award-winning platinum albums, and has become a household name.  They even made a movie with Clarkson and Guarini called “To Kelly From Justin.”  The movie was a bust and it forever branded Guarini as just the runner-up, living in Clarkson’s shadow.  We haven’t heard from Guarini again.  Our vote: AMERICA PICKED RIGHT.

Season 2 – Reuben Studdard and Clay Aiken

This season was the season that gave American Idol a lot of controversy.  Jennifer Hudson was the third runner-up, leaving the masterful voice of Clay Aiken to the soulful voice of Ruben Studdard.  Many said it should have been Aiken and Hudson up in the finale.  Aiken gave a perfect performance through his three songs, while Studdard got mixed reviews on two of the songs.  In the end, Studdard won the American Idol crown, blowing the country away.  Don’t get me wrong, Studdard was good, but he was no Clay Aiken.  Aiken tended to fit more with a variety of genres and ages than did Studdard.  Since the show, Studdard has produced two CDs; his first one sold better than his second, and he solidified himself into the Gospel genre.  His songs were short lived on the radio and now we hardly hear anything about him.  Aiken has out sold just about every Idol except maybe Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.  His album went platinum, and he had Clarkson open for him on their tour in 2003.  Aiken produced a smash hit Christmas album, and did some cover songs for his third album.    You still hear from him, and his songs have ranked on the Billboard charts. He has completely blanketed Studdard’s career.  It was voted as the year’s biggest tragedy, and caused a lot of controversy for the American Idol show.  Even Jennifer Hudson produced a CD and won a Grammy for it. She also won an Oscar and has performed on Broadway.  Our opinion: AMERICA WAS WRONG.

Season 3 -  Fantasia Barrino and Deanna Degarmo

This season was a joke. Fantasia Barrino, who was almost voted off three times, comes back and ousts some very prominent Idols who now have a bigger career than she does, to battle Deanna Degarmo for the Season 3 crown.  Barrino screams more than Tina Turner and has actually turned me off to her singing.  We all knew Degarmo was by far the better singer, but popularity wise Barrino had that street.  In the end, Barrino blew away Degarmo, and dropped from grace.  Her first and only album tanked and she is now playing in The Color Purple on Broadway.  Degarmo decided singing wasn’t for her, but she does show up once in a while.  Her CD outsold Barrino’s, but she never cut another.  Actually, both contestants were flops which brought this season to almost a complete loss.  I heard Barrino only once on the radio and it was a duet with Macy Gray for a Christmas song.  After the song aired, the DJ came on and apologized, as he said he got more requests NEVER to play that again than he did to play it.  Our opinion:  AMERICA WAS WRONG

Season 4 – Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice

This season started a controversy because an outside group claimed to help the third place contestant who had no talent, make it to where he did.  They said they did this by spamming the lines.  They also claimed this resulted in Fantasia Barrino’s win the year before.  Nevertheless, Bo Bice, the heavy classic rocker, was set to square off against the hot country singer from Oklahoma. In the end, Underwood won the season and made one hell of a career for herself.  You will find her on just about every modern, country, and contemporary station out there.  She has gone triple platinum, won a few Grammys, CMA Awards, Kids Choice Awards and in 2008, was named the youngest member ever into the Grand Ole Opry.  Bice went on to record a few songs before a vicious illness took him out of commission.  After a few years he came back and released an album that has been played on the radio much like Underwood.   This season totally redeemed itself, and it was the first time many Americans agreed that both contestants were so talented and so well liked, it didn’t matter who won.  We agree: AMERICA WAS RIGHT

Season 5 – Taylor Hicks and Katherine McPhee

Just when we come off a great season, we get another Fantasia Barrino/Deanna Degarmo situation.  Katherine McPhee could out sing Taylor Hicks; she had far more talent.  Hicks, until the last four weeks, couldn’t sing a song without forgetting the lyrics.  It was a train wreck.  In the end, Hicks won the American Idol crown.  McPhee disappeared into the night, and so did Hicks.  He didn’t cut his first record until 2009 because he had to get formal training and rediscover himself.  He has been the WORST Idol to date.  What was worse was in this season the second biggest controversy came to life as Chris Daughtry was eliminated in the top five, losing to Hicks.  Since then he has out shined his season’s winner and is all over the radio. Daughtry’s first album went platinum and has sold over one million copies.  He should have been the American Idol.  It was this reason the judges added the save.  Our vote: AMERICA WAS DEAD WRONG

Season 6 – Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis

Irregardless of how this season turned out, it would redeem itself for last season.  This was a great season, and in the top three were some of the most talented singers to date: Jordin Sparks, Blake Lewis and Idol favorite, Melinda Doolittle.  When the top two were announced, it shocked everyone that Doolittle was eliminated, for she was the strongest up there and the one the judges fared would be in the finale.  That set the stage for Sparks, the lovable and innocent Pop/R&B singer vs. Blake Lewis, the incredible beat boxer.  America voted and Sparks would go on to win.  She has since produced an album, her songs are everywhere on the radio and she is set for success.  Lewis decided to produce and write music and is quite a success as well, from what I hear.  Melinda Doolittle is said to have fallen victim to the overachiever haters of America.  The judges basically said she could do no wrong, and America put an end to that.  In the end, American Idol crowned a very talented singer.  We agree:  AMERICA WAS RIGHT

Season 7 – David Archuleta and David Cook

This season was a split.  Both were talented beyond their measures and both had unique styles.  David Archuleta could sing anything from Barry Manilow to Justin Timberlake, while David Cook was a grunge rocker with a breathy voice.  In the end, Cook won, shocking everyone a bit because Archuleta had the better and cleaner voice.  Many say that Cook was the redemption of rocker Bo Bice, who was eliminated in Season 4.  Since the show ended, both have produced a great CD, and both are getting TV and radio time.  I’d say this was a win-win situation.  Our opinion: AMERICA WAS RIGHT

Season 8 – Kris Allen and Adam Lambert

This season has rocked America and is causing some major uprising.  It seemed that all the contestants could sing except maybe Megan Joy.  Kris Allen, however,  thought of quitting the show because he ended up in the bottom three at least five times and the bottom two, twice.  He got bad reviews from the judges even up to reaching the top three, which he squared off against the two everyone said would be in the finale, Adam Lambert (Punk/Shock Rocker) and Danny Gokey (Rocker from the Midwest).  Not too shocking that Lambert made it, but it was odd that Allen beat out Gokey to compete in the final two.  All the judges basically said for Allen to “pack his bags” on the top three performance.  Gokey was five times more talented than Allen who had no charisma on stage, but was a decent singer.

In the finale, Lambert out shined Allen.  He nailed two of three songs, while Allen only nailed one.  Lambert was told he would be “iconic and legendary” in a few years.  We thought it was in the bag.  At the results show, Allen was in the center spotlight, and got to duet with Keith Urban.  It was good, but lacked a lot of feeling.  Lambert got out on stage and did a dynamic performance with both Kiss and Queen complete with pyrotechnics, crazy costumes and guitar smashing.  It totally made you forget that Allen even performed that night with a celebrity. Lambert knocked Allen out onto the mat both nights.  When it came to the results, 100 million votes came in crowning Kris Allen the American Idol.  People were speechless, and the look on the judges’ faces said it all.  Lambert clearly won, but Allen took home the victory and the title.

Since the show, Allen confessed he doesn’t know why he won.  He says he didn’t deserve it and that he considered quitting.  At the top five, Lambert faced a rumor that he was gay, thus denying it. It still took him off his pedestal despite the rave reviews from Simon Cowell who gave him a standing ovation, the only one done on American Idol today.  Many people say that this news, true or not, convinced many conservative Americans in a time where there has been a war on gays, to not vote for him.  I truly believe it.  Lambert was almost eliminated that night, and was in the bottom two in the top three.

There are also rumors going around that there weren’t one million votes. It was just a way to revive the thirst for American Idol who had to do a lot of shaking up things to keep going another year.  The problem is it was at Lambert’s expense.  They knew he would be a major success beyond Idol so they probably figured if this was the case, that he would be okay.  I don’t think they would have done it had it been anyone else.

With the one million votes, if they were legit, there is speculation that a country superstar had his claws in it, pursuading the vote so he could sign the American Idol.  Is that true?  Don’t know.  This brings up the spammers again- did they pick Allen and sail him to victory? That theory is very plausible, especially on a night when most Americans felt Lambert had it in the bag.  It was an easy spam if they did it.  

In the end, this has caused a major uproar.  Since the show, Lambert has been asked by Kiss and a few other major legendary bands to tour with them, and he has been offered a contract.  No surprise there.  I think we will have another dud Idol, who will fade away and forever be in the shadows of Lambert.  Our opinion:  AMERICA WAS DEAD WRONG

So with those comparisons, we had more controversy and more runners-up outshining the Idol winners, which shouldn’t happen if they are picked right.  I think American Idol should do as follows:

1. Allow computer votes, but you will need an account to log into.  It will allow you only one vote per account, such as with the hit show, “Dancing With The Stars.”
2. Allow only one text vote, any other votes will be disqualified.
3. Allow only one phone vote, again with an account.  

This would successfully kill the spammers and put that myth to rest.  It will allow a true count, not a spammed count by some love-struck teenager voting on looks and not on voices.  It would give an accurate count that can be justified if something like Season 8 arises again.  American Idol is in a lot of hot water from what I can see- the judges are fighting, Simon Cowell said he may not be back, and Idol threw in Kara Dioguardi as an extra judge because of Paula Abdul’s antics. This season, Idol had Abdul sing and bikini-clad Dioguardi flashed American in the finale.  If they need to do this, you know the show’s in trouble, especially since the Idols have been for the most part, duds.

Let’s face it though, Allen is a good singer but he’s not great. He will be probably end up being one of those Idols you will hear on the radio a few times, then they drop off the face of the earth.  He will never be in the same class as Carrie Underwood or Kelly Clarkson, yet he will far surpass Taylor Hicks and Fantasia. Allen may even sell close to, but not as many, albums as Jordin Sparks. In the end, he will be a semi-forgotten Idol.  I’m afraid to say Adam Lambert will outshine and outsell him hands down.

It’s strange that in the final competition, Lambert was quoted by judges Kara and Paula as “soon to be legendary, and iconic” yet somehow lost to a man who is good, but will never see comparable fame.  Lambert out performed any Idol on stage this year, he out sang anyone with his wide range of vocals and he is probably one of the most talented contestants this show has ever seen.  I think people may have just thought Allen needed it more than Lambert, which he did. If Allen didn’t win this competition, we would never see him again with the exception of the American Idol tour.  This victory may have proven this is not a singing competition. Or, perhaps, it may be a competition more about looks and popularity, because Allen is a better looking man than Lambert.

I thought it was a tragedy that Danny Gokey wasn’t in the finals with Adam Lambert, and now I am speechless.  However, Kris Allen is a good singer and we must congratulate him on his win.  We must not take that away from him, and his fans should be elated.  My anger is with the flaws this show brings and why so many better singers and performers wind up losing to people we never hear from again.  Aren’t you sick of the fact that three Idols are doing well out of eight, while the people they defeated are doing five times better than they are?  That isn’t supposed to happen.

This proves to me that the outside groups that flood the lines for the under dogs are working well.  If you don’t believe it, believe it, because of what I saw tonight. Lambert out shined Allen with his performance featuring Kiss, and proved to me that this group exists.  Do you even remember Allen’s solo with Keith Urban?  Lambert got up there with Kiss and looked much like the legend he was there with; it was like night and day with these two contestants.

So now we wait for Season 9, and let’s see who does better in the aftermath of this win, Adam Lambert or Kris Allen.  My bets are with Lambert.

Danny got his pick from Paula while back home in Milwaukee.  She chose for him “Dance Little Sister.”  On his choice he chose “You Are So Beautiful.”  His performance on Paula’s pick was good but didn’t win him many accolades from the judges.  His performance of “You Are So Beautiful” totally redeemed him in the judges’ eyes, as they were blown away by the vocals.

While in Little Rock, Kris got his song choice from Randy and Kara who chose “Apologize.” On his choice he chose the song “Heartless.”  For the judges pick, he performed it well, but it lacked some luster that Randy and Kara pointed out.  They wanted him to try something different and to rearrange the song a bit and make it his own.  His rendition of “Heartless” was amazing, and I agree with Randy; it was better than the original artist.  Simon had him written off with his first performance of the night, which had all the judges arguing, but he said that “Heartless” may have kept him in the competition.

Adam was in San Diego when he got the text from Simon, who chose “One” for him.  Adam’s choice was “Cryin’” by Aerosmith.  Adam, as usual, completely blew the judges away and showed the people that he is in a leauge by himself.  He had a flawless vocal night and an amazing stage presence.

Tonight, 88 million votes came in to decide the finale.  The people chose Kris and Adam to compete for this year’s coveted American Idol title.  Danny somehow lost to Kris and will take third place.  I have no idea how that happened, since Kris has scraped through this competition by the skin of his teeth.  Everyone thought it was going to be Danny and Adam, but that isn’t going to happen!  I think Kris was hoping Danny would win, than to take on the powerful and charismatic Adam, but it will be a great fight!

Next week Tuesday, they go head to head, starting at 8pm.  On Wednesday we crown the new American Idol in a two hour special.

Slash said it best: “To do rock, you must feel it.  If you don’t feel it, the sound is fake.”  That’s exactly what happened to Danny who was a bit out of his league this week.  He made a blood curdling scream at the end of his performance trying to nail a powerful conclusion which the judges cringed at. Needless to say, after the show he would also see how ridiculous he sounded. Kris got poor reviews from the judges as he generally does each week, but his sound was good. The only thing he had trouble with was feeling the music to make us believe in it.  Adam and Allison were in their element; their powerful rock voices and flamboyant dress made this week their own.

The top four also got another treat this week; they got to do a duet with another Idol contestant.  Danny and Kris teamed up, and Adam and Allison combined their forces.  It was no surprise that Adam and Allison killed the competition with their rendition of “Slow Ride.”  The judges were in awe and Adam actually made Allison a better performer in that duet; she fed off his experience on stage.

On the results night we had a star studded line up with Slash performing along with the top four contestants. Paula Abdul took the stage for the first time in eight seasons on the verge of her debut album. Chris Daughtry came back for the first time on the Idol stage since his surprise elimination, debuting his new single. We also had the great reunion of Los Angeles’s very own, No Doubt.  However, once the smoke cleared from the amazing performances we would send one Idol home, while the other three would get to go home for a celebration.

Ironically, Kris was the first safe Idol but like Seacrest said, it’s not in any specific order.  He then sent Adam to the top three leaving Danny and Allison.  This was the closest that Danny has ever been to elimination.  America voted with 65 million cast votes and sent Allison home.  Personally, I felt that Kris deserved to go home more than Allison, but that’s American Idol for you.

Next week Adam, Kris, and Danny go home to a celebration then return to the stage to perform a judge’s choice and a personal choice song.  The top two go on to the Season 8 Final, which will take place at the famed Kodak Theatre.  My prediction is that Kris will be eliminated leaving the two power houses, Adam and Danny, to battle it out in another nail bitting final.

The contestants really did a good job this week. There were two that seemed to have some weaknesses, which involved Kris who Randy said was pitchy, and Matt who took a ballad by Bryan Adams and made it a little more his own. The judges liked the vocals but said he over did the song a bit. Anoop had a great night, and Adam got raves on his performance but Simon said it was reminiscent of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Adam liked the comment and said he didn’t think it was an insult.

Idol’s stage had some great acts perform live for the audience. One show was the now “Miley Cyrus” who has decided to put Hannah Montana to rest. She sang her song “The Climb” for our listening pleasure. The song was great, and it’s nice to see that Miley has evolved from Hannah and is growing up. If she was unable to step out of her alter ego, childhood persona she was doomed to be a washed up singer or out of work child star. She showed amazing growth as an artist. However, I did see that her on stage performance was a bit boring. Maybe it’s because the song is a ballad, but her style needs to still evolve with her as well. 

Another great act was Jennifer Hudson, who in the last few years had seen some great moments like winning an Oscar and Grammy for her first ever album, and movie role. On the bad side, there was a huge family tragedy in her life that shocked the whole world and her loving fans. Jennifer went out with some serious poise tonight, coming back for the first time on the stage she was eliminated from. She is one of the idols who actually did something for herself and out shined her season’s victor, Fantasia. Jennifer looked beautiful, her voice was stunning and I can see why people said she was robbed of the American Idol victory.

In the end, America voted and three contestants had to face elimination. This week, Lil Rounds, Anoop Dasi, and Matt Giraud got the call to the cold metal seats. Anoop had a great performance and really shouldn’t have been there, but when you look at the talent on the chairs across from them, their best performance looks mediocre at best to the rest. Kris, though, I felt should have taken the seat and not Anoop. For Anoop, it was a good feeling to know he was not the bottom two and got to sit down and wait to see who was going home.

America voted and sent Matt home over Lil Rounds. Matt got his chance to impress the judges and spare his time on stage for one more week, and believe it or not, they allowed him. Matt was saved by the judges. Is this a good thing? Next week is disco, the one week that kills the idols unless you can act the genre, and two idols will be sent home.  Matt will be kind of the “lame duck” of the show. It will be interesting to see how far he can go now.

This is the week that could kill Adam or Danny. They better hope they perform one heck of a show and have enough support to get them through to the next week, which it seems like they do but you never know.

We also saw something this week we never saw before and some of us didn’t see at all, unless you were in the audience.  The reason is that American Idol ran over an hour, which meant some DVRs did not record the ending.  So, for those of you who didn’t get to see it, here’s what happened.  Simon Cowell gave Adam Lambert a standing ovation, and in the last seven years, has never done such a gesture for anyone.

Some of the contestants that had a good performance but were lacking some life were Anoop Desai, Scott MacIntyre, Lil Rounds, and Kris Allen.  The bottom three for this week were Anoop, Scott and Lil.  Anoop is no stranger to the bottom three, however, it was Scott and Lil’s first time to feel the heat.  I was shocked because Kris’s performance was horrible and he surely deserved to be in the bottom tier this week, but it shows that he has the crowd’s support.

After America’s 35 million votes, they decided to send Scott MacIntyre home.  The judges truly like this contestant, but they said his showmanship is listless.  Scott is blind and can’t move around like the others so his performances will be a little dry, but his voice is stellar.  The judges were deadlocked about keeping him; two wanted him stay and two wanted him sent home.  The one judge that wanted Scott to stay was Simon, but Kara and Randy wanted to send him packing.  Simon made a decision based on the divided panel and ended up making it the end of the road for Scott; a decision he said was very tough for him.

Paula said a last word to Scott, praising him for his courage and determination. She said he is an inspiration to us all and his voice will take him far beyond Idol.

Scott was not going to win this competition, but he did leave too early.  I feel Anoop, Lil Rounds or Kris Allen were far weaker than Scott was, and they should have used the save for Scott.  I think they are saving the save for two more weeks in case Danny or Adam find themselves eliminated.

Smokey Robinson gave advice this week, which should help the contestants. Smokey was in the original Temptations and has made a career for himself as an individual act with songs like “Tears Of A Clown, and “Ooh Baby, Baby.”  His falsetto tone made him a legendary performer and got him into the Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame.

The contestants got on stage and tried their best; however, some were just not that great. Simon predicted that Megan Joy would be going home. Personally, I don’t know why she’s still there; maybe it’s just me, but I do not like her voice at all. Other good, but not great performances were Michael Sarver and Matt Giraud.

Some of the ones that shined were Adam Lambert, Danny Gokey, Lil Rounds, Kris and Allison. The one that got rave reviews from the judges, but I thought was one of the worst performances of the night, was Anoop. I felt that version was painful to listen to quite honestly, and was shocked the judges gave him such a great review.

Tonight we got the results. We heard Smokey Robinson and Reuben Studdard perform on stage, as well as the legendary Motown recording artist, Stevie Wonder. After those performances we found the bottom two were Matt Giraud and Michael Sarver. Michael was in the bottom two last week also, so I didn’t think that was good for him being there again.

I was right, Michael was sent home by the audience but would the judges save him? His performance was powerful and heart filled, but the judges were unsure of whether or not to send him home. Running out of time, Simon stepped in and made the decision for the group. Michael’s stand on American Idol was a good one, and now he can go home to his wife and baby and be proud of his trip to the top 9. In addition, Michael will be on tour this summer and he is stoked about that.

Randy Travis was on giving some advice to the contestants.  On Wednesday he admitted he was honored to be a part of the show, but as far as giving advice, ” I was nervous because I am not technical in that sort of way,”  Travis said jokingly.  He did say that all the contestants surprised him with their talent and felt they are some of the best to date.

As each week flies by, we see some stars that shined the week before crash and burn, and some unexpected ones shine.  Luckily for this group, many of them came from the south, and that deems a great knowledge of the genre.

Last week Adam Lambert shocked everyone with his powerful rendition of “Black and White.”  He was totally in his element; however this week with country, he was out of his comfort zone.  This grunge rocker, with painted fingernails and dark colored hair with highlights didn’t do badly; his vocals were great, but his look made it an awkward performance.  Simon hated it, while the rest of the judges loved him.  It’s weeks like this that a great singer can be voted off just because they didn’t fit that bill.

Anoop, who was tore apart by the judges last week, took on a song that would be hard to pull off, Willie Nelson’s “You Were Always On My Mind.”  The judges expected a train wreck; however he pulled it off and wowed the judges.  Simon said it was his favorite performance of the night, and regretted the comment he made about Anoop coming back into the contest.  He was pleased he took the lashing the judges gave him and turned it into something positive with no excuses.

But how would America vote?  As we know, they don’t always vote with the judges.  This week they sent Michael, Alexis, and Allison to the bottom three.  I felt America messed up because Megan deserved to be there and not Alexis.  In the end, Allison was quickly sent back to the top 10, and Michael and Alexis awaited their fate; but not before the legendary Randy Travis and American Idol season 5 winner Carrie Underwood performed a duet on stage.  Carrie has won multiple awards and was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry, in addition to winning American Idol; to date the only country singer to win this contest.

After amazing vocals by these two stars, Seacrest announced that Alexis would be going home.  The judges discussed it and said that Alexis would be a candidate to save if she performed well on the goodbye song.  When the dust settled, Alexis’ nerves and desperation overcame her awesome talent and she threw grunge into the song and over killed the performance.  Although it was a good performance, the judges felt she blew it and did not save her.

So the new Top 10 that will be on tour this year are:  Scott MacIntyre, Adam Lambert, Allison Iraheta, Anoop Desai, Danny Gokey, Kris Allen, Lil Rounds, Matt Giraud, Megan Joy and Michael Sarver.

The night was filled with songs from the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, who is starting to tour again after many years of seclusion. The first round of the top 12 was not going to be easy at all, because Michael’s songs are always attributed to him and hard to see anyone else sing; not to mention the ranges are not easy to reproduce. The contestants had to make it their own and sell the judges on their rendition of a famous catalog of songs.

Lil Rounds started the evening with the song “The Way You Make Me Feel.” She nailed it and the judged wooed her. Some other great performances that made us remember what we saw in them was Michael Sarver and his rendition of “Your Not Alone,” Alexis Grace with her verison of “Dirty Diana” and Allison Iraheta with “Give It To Me.”

We also saw some get in their comfort zones with their instruments like Scotty MacIntyre and his song “Keep The Faith,” Matt Giraud with “Human Nature” and Kris Allen with “Remember The Time.” I felt these three and the ones mentioned above did a good job and would be safe for the next week.

Some were alright, but not great as there are every week or nobody would get eliminated. Those contestants that I felt to be a perfect fit for this category were Jorge Nunez – Never Say Goodbye, Megan Joy -Rockin Robin, Jasmine Murray – I’ll Be There, Anoop Desai- Beat It. These were the ones that could easily be voted off; and were the ones that probably didn’t sleep well that night.

But two idols stood out above the rest, and probably slept the best out of everyone. Those were Danny Gokey singing PYT. He came out with energy and rocked the stage, and had fantastic vocals and control. The best one of the night that people are still talking about was Adam Lambert who sang Black and White, a popular song of Michaels in the early 90s. Adam went out and sang the song with such emotion, hit notes I didn’t know were notes, and made the stage his own; you’d almost forget the stage was there. He blew Paula away who said we will see him all the way in the finals, and took a standing ovation by the blown away crowd.

On Wednesday, after a night of amazing performances we found out the two going home. This year, Seacrest announced, the judges have the right to over-ride the peoples vote and keep them if they were voted off. This is because people sometimes don’t vote for a contestant thinking they are safe, or just picked a bad song but are overall better than those that remain. We saw similar instances with Daughtry who lost to Taylor Hicks, Jennifer Hudson, and many others. The only restrictions with this new rule: all the judges must agree, and they can only use it one time in the season; they are only allowed to save one contestant up to the top 5, after which they will no longer get the chance to over-ride anything. They said this doesn’t over take the peoples choice, it just gives the contestant another chance.

The night was filled with mixed emotions because 11 contestants were safe, and was filled with some great performances; including American Idol’s first winner Kelly Clarkson. On the other hand, two were going home. Those contestants were Jasmine Murray and Jorge Nunez. Each one had a chance to be saved by the judges but none of them were allowed to come back.

It was a night of firsts in many ways, and should be a great week 2 of the top 12 next week.

Simon, Randy, Paula and  Kara went through and carefully talked to each contestant telling them a yes or no and why.  In the end, they chose Megan, Jasmine, Matt and with a huge surprise, Anoop.  Making this years American Idol a Top 13!  

That makes this years Top 13:

Adam Lambert
Alexis Grace
Allison Iraheta
Danny Gokey
Kris Allen
Michael Sarver
Lil Rounds
Scott MacIntyre
Jorge Nunez
Anoop Desai
Jasmine Murray
Matt Giraud
Megan Corkrey

Felicia Barton, Jorge Nunez, Kristen McNamara, Lil Rounds, Von Smith, and Scott MacIntyre.  All of them performed very well, however the judges were a bit mixed with Kristen over her identity.  I noticed they were more concerned about her clothing choices than her tremendous vocals.

In the end, America chose Jorge Nunez, Scott MacIntryre and Lil Rounds from the last group of 12, which leaves the top 12 with 9 filled seats.  Your Top 9 so far are:  Adam Lambert, Alexis Grace, Allison Iraheta, Danny Gokey, Kris Allen, Michael Sarver, Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre, and Jorge Nunez.

Tonight, in an encore performance, the last three seats will be filled in the “wild card” round.  The contestants were hand picked by the judges who showed the most potential and really still had a chance to go forward.  

In Season 3 to Season 7, American Idol got away from this round.  Although, Jennifer Hudson, and Clay Aiken were both not chosen in the original top 9, but both were in the top 3 of season 2.  Could we have a repeat of that feat?  Tell it to the wild card round contestants.

 Von Smith, Anoop Desai, Tatiana Del Toro, Jasmine Murray, Jesse Langseth, Ricky Braddy, Matt Giraud, Megan Corkrey

Wednesday night in the first two hour episode, the first round of 12 contestants of the 36 took the stage, trying to be in the top 24.  Those contestants were:

Alexis Grace

Ann Marie Boskovich

Anoop Desai

Brent Keith

Casey Carlson

Danny Gokey

Jackie Tohn

Michael Sarver

Ricky Braddy

Stephen Fowler

Stevie Wright

Tatiana Nicole Del Toro

Over all, I felt none of the contestants really stood out.  Some of them had horrific performances like Casey Carlson.  She’s got the look, she’s got the talent but she completely bombed Wednesday night with her version of “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic.”  She looked awkward, robotic and over dramatized the performance.  This was one for sure, I felt would be going home.  The night was filled with flops, Ricky Fowler was another, doing a rendition of Michael Jackson’s hit “All Night.”  The song rendition wasn’t bad, but he completely chose a song that no matter how well you perform it, its only going to compare you to Michael.  

Danny Gokey was the only one that got raves from the judges last night, with his version of Mariah Carey’s “Hero.”  This is a real risk, we all saw the disaster the men had on Mariah Carey night a few years ago, her octaves are so high and so low its hard for a man to do her song.  Danny chose a risky song, something the judges like to see, he got on stage and performed it beautifully, despite how awkward the song is for a male to sing.

In the end, 9 had to go, America voted and Danny Gokey, Alexis Grace and Michael Sarver were the ones with the chance to perform again.  With the ones sent home I agree with Stephen full heartily, but Tatiana I felt should still be there, she wasn’t bad enough to go home; but she wouldn’t make the top 10.  Anoop, SHOCKED… I felt he had the talent to go at least to the top 8, but sadly his dream of becoming American Idol is gone.  

Next week, American Idol continues with the second round of 12 in the Top 36 elimination round.  Who will join these 9 in the next round?

This year, we have a treat because the American Idol producers added a fourth judge, Kara DioGuardi, who comes from New York. She boasts a career of being the music industry’s most sought after songwriter and producer. There is talk that she will soon be the replacement for Paula Abdul, who in the past has been a kinder, gentler judge. We all know that’s not what we want to see, rather we want the fierce tenacity of Simon Cowell in all the judges. DioGuardi seems to have that. It could also be that she will replace Abdul because she is younger and more attractive.  That is yet to be seen.

The fourth judge may prove to be more intimidating for the contestants. Speaking of judges, will Cowell be more kind to the contestants or will he be his usual self that we all know and love? You know, how he tears into the contestants and tells them brutally what he thinks of their performance.

The 8th season starts January 13th and 14^th for a back to back night special on Fox. Typically, the first few weeks are recaps from auditions across the United States.  We see some of the best and some of the worst singers, and some of them come in ridiculous costumes hoping that gets them through to the next round.  From the previews, it actually works as a young tone deaf bombshell comes in for her audition with nothing but a skimpy bikini on, and Simon lets her through.  That decision sends the entire panel into a heated argument,  so you won’t want to miss it.