Danny Gokey

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Idol Field Trimmed to Three

Published May 7th, 2009 by Wendy
American Idol Experience
Creative Commons License photo credit: kwalk628

The teen rocker will not rock on.

Allison Iraheta, the 17 year-old high school student from Los Angeles, was cut from American Idol the night after her less than impressive performance of Janis Joplin’s “Cry Baby,” according to an Associated Press report.

Iraheta had lashed out at judge Simon Cowell after his pointed criticisms of her performance of the Joplin classic on Tuesday night, but it was Cowell who had the last laugh last night, when Iraheta was ousted.

The finalists left in the contest are Adam Lambert, a 27-year-old theater actor from San Diego; Danny Gokey, a 29-year-old church music director from Milwaukee; and Kris Allen, a 23-year-old college student from Conway, Arkansas.

This week, the three singers will travel to their hometowns before performing two songs next week: one of their choosing, another from the show’s judges. A new Idol champ will be crowned on May 20.

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  Y-guy
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American Idol Recap: Country Music Night Worse than Michael Jackson Night?

Published March 18th, 2009 by Karen

 


Creative Commons License photo credit: Autumn Welles

In case you didn’t bother to Tivo last night’s episode of American Idol, we’ve got the highlights/lowlights from the show.

The theme of the night was country music, and the guest mentor was Randy Travis. (Remember him? He was popular in the ’80s…for some reason. “Forever and Ever, Amen“? No. Ok.) Why Travis was this week’s mentor is beyond us. With his nasal singing voice, Travis has one of the most limited singing ranges in country music.

However, since it was Grand Ol’ Opry night, the show was probably trying to gain a little credibility by bringing in an older, hopefully wiser, singer like Travis rather than a youngster like Taylor Swift.

We’re willing to bet that NONE of the contestants had any idea who this cowboy was.

The show featured a wide variety of country cover songs, some good, some bad, but most really, really bad. Of course, it was still better than the horror of last week’s Michael Jackson night.

The best part of 16-year-old Allison Iraheta’s performance was her hair, as always. Meanwhile, fellow rocker Adam Lambert dished out an oddly Arabian version of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire.” The judges all went crazy over how weird and original Lambert’s interpretation was, but we can’t help thinking that it sounded  remarkably similar to the version of the song performed by Dilana on RockStar: Supernova. (Yeah, we’re busting out the Supernova on you, deal with it.) Continue reading »

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American Idol Michael Jackson Night? No Thanks.

Published March 11th, 2009 by Karen
Jeff's Work
Creative Commons License photo credit: kwalk628

Tuesday night on American Idol, the judges thought it would be a good idea to have the remaining top 13 contestants perform songs by Michael Jackson.

Why Jackson’s popularity endures is beyond us. He is creepy, his vocal range is limited at best, and his dance moves are getting pretty tired.

At any rate, Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell , Randy Jackson and the other judge (Kara Who-cares) set the kids up for an excruciating night of music by the King of Pop. We’re not sure why American Idol keeps inflicting this type of cruelty on its loyal audience.

Two contestants will be eliminated during tonight’s post-Jackson episode, although, honestly, we could name at least half a dozen singers that should go home now (if their parents still want them back, that is).

Seriously, Megan Joy Corkery performed “Rockin’ Robin.” MJ recorded that song when he was like 7 years old, seeing a grown woman sing it is just weird–kinda like those beauty pageants for toddlers. Just weird.

Also during the show, blind pianist/judge fave Scott MacIntyre performed an obscure Michael Jackson number called, “Keep the Faith.” He said he picked the song because he wanted to do something artistic, which caused Simon to bluntly point out that, “It’s fine being artistic, just not on this show.”

Good point, Simon. This is glorified karaoke, not art.

Check out Tuesday’s American Idol Playlist to find out which Michael Jackson song each of the contestants performed on the show.

"I can't wait to watch the rerun of Michael jackson night. I think it will expose all the idols to new viewers and bring in some new fans. It will also..."
  Linda
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American Idol Playlist: Michael Jackson Night

Published March 11th, 2009 by Karen
Flickr photo by thatgrumguy

Flickr photo by thatgrumguy

In case you missed the horror of Michael Jackson Night on Tuesday’s American Idol, we’ve got the complete list of songs performed by the Top 13 contestants. It doesn’t seem nearly as scary (or boring) on paper as it was during the performances though.

Tune in tonight to see two contestants get eliminated (we’re hoping it’s Danny Gokey and Megan Joy Corkery, but it looks like Corkery might stick around for a while—she’s the new favorite at vote for the worst).

American Idol playlist for Michael Jackson Night
Kris Allen—Remember the Time
Megan Joy Corkery—Rockin’ Robin
Anoop Desai—Beat It
Matt Giraud—Human Nature
Danny Gokey—PYT
Alexis Grace—Dirty Diana
Allison Iraheta—Give in to Me
Adam Lambert—Black or White
Scott MacIntyre—Keep the Faith
Jasmine Murray—I’ll Be There
Jorge Nunez—Never Can Say Goodbye
Lil Rounds—The Way You Make Me Feel
Michael Sarver—You are not Alone