Blah, Blah, Blah! The Top 12 Boys...

Wow, what not a good way to start off Season 9.  There is no way they can keep calling this the "Best Talent We've Seen Yet" after the past two nights.  None of these people come close to the talent we saw last year.  Are any of them viable recording artists? Or are we in a season like 6 where only the winner comes out on top?

Todrick Hall "Since U Been Gone"
(The boys videos aren't working, so...)
Todrick took a hugely popular song and rearranged it to a song that nobody could recognize.  (Not to mention it was recorded by the most popular and successful Idol...) His vocals were a little all over the place, but he had great stage presence.  I'm interested to see what else he will do this season.


Aaron Kelly "Here Comes Goodbye"
I'm not sure what the judges were talking about here.  His vocals were consistently underpitch.  It's a shame he's on now, and I know I've said this before, but the poor kid's voice hasn't finished changing.  It's going to sound completely different in 5 years.  I felt like I could hear this performance at any karaoke competition at any Midwestern fair.


Jermaine Sellers "Get Here"
I think Jermaine may have a chance, along with Todrick, to be the first viable African-American male artist (since Ruben) to come out of American Idol.  He was a little overblown, but if he follows the judges advice and picks some neo-soul songs, he could have some amazing performances with that voice.


Tim Urban "Apologize"
I didn't know it was legal to let Zac Efron compete...that's really all I have to say about Tim.


Joe Munoz "You and I"
I really like this guy!  His voice is well-controlled and OMG! he stayed on pitch through the whole song!  (It saddens me that when watching a SINGING COMPETITION the singers cannot consistently sing on the correct pitches...and pitchy is NOT a musical term :( ) Anyways, he was good. And I disagree that this wasn't a good song choice.  I think it showed off his voice well.  I liked the little Latin vibe he gave to it, too.  It would be cool to hear him sing in Spanish. He could be this seasons' Kris Allen...(I spied a guitar in his clip package AND he sang Man In The Mirror...)


Tyler Grady "American Woman"
I just am not feeling this guy.  I didn't really get a sense of his voice with that performance.  Can he sing? I don't know.  And where would he fit on modern radio?


Lee Dewyze "Chasing Cars"
Is it too soon since David Cook's season to have a clone?  I like Lee's voice and his Midwestern boyish charm.  But that song didn't showcase him enough.  And he's too much like David Cook.  Let's hope they give him a Cookified makeover too...


John Park "God Bless The Child"
Um, John...you are basically on a TV show, setting you up to be a viable recording artist, and you pick this song?!  Where would you hear this on the radio?  You have a beautiful voice.  Pick something that's going to let you be the R&B artist lurking inside. Even Michael Buble is cooler than that...


Michael Lynche "This Love"
Wow, more about the baby?  We haven't heard enough?  Anyway, this was ok...he's a boring singer.


Alex Lambert "What A Wonderful World"
Alex is awkwardly adorable.  He's soooo young!  But he can sing!  He picked a great song to show that off.  It's going to be an uncomfortable ride watching him, but if he grows and gets more confident, what a story that will be!


Casey James "Heaven"
I just don't get it with this guy.  Yes, he's disarmingly charming.  He's cute, but not as !!!!!!!ELEVENTY!!!111 Hot as Kara makes him out to be.  He has a decent voice.  I have to give him props for making it through that performance...the judges were so unfair in their behavior with him.  I can't imagine them being allowed to treat a female contestant the same way.


Andrew Garcia "Sugar, We're Goin Down"
This was an interesting arrangement.  But no doubt, Andrew can sing.  He and Todrick are going to make this season interesting, at least...I'm still reserving judgement until I hear what kind of an artist he really would be...


Underwhelming, all of it....sad, so sad...

Here We Go!! Top 12 Girls...

What an unimpressive night...why do the girls always disappoint on this show? (Not looking at you Kelly Clarkson or Allison Iraheta :) )  Nerves and anxiety totally got the better of all 12 of these girls.  Alright, here we go...

Paige Miles "All Right Now"
It's hard to do a song justice that's already been done on the show.  This song was David Cook's second week song, the one that established him as the resident rocker.  Paige did a'ight as Randy would say.  I like her tone.  We've barely gotten to hear her sing up until this point, so I think she did herself justice, given she was nervous as hell. She got a little shouty, but showed off her big voice.  I think she's safe.


Ashley Rodriguez "Happy"
Ugh I do not like this song.  There are much better Leona Lewis songs if she wants to be labeled a wannabe...I don't get anything original off of her.  She hit some really bunky notes.  If she sticks around she definitely needs to follow the judges advice and figure out a way to stand out.


Janell Wheeler "What About Love"
This song was way too big for her.  All of these skinny blondes look and sound alike. I don't see how they won't cancel each other out, unless they have a stand apart performance.  This was not that, at all.


Lilly Scott "Fixing A Hole"
I was a little worried when she picked a Beatles song, but this was a good choice.  It's not a crazy famous Beatles song, so she could make it her own...and she did.  I like her voice. I think she stands out from the other blondes with guitars.  She needs to watch her lower range.  She doesn't feel comfortable down there.


Katelyn Epperly "Oh, Darling"
Holy too much make-up, Batman!  She looks terrible!  Is she going for the rock n roll flapper look?  I don't get it?  I liked the song.  I like her voice.  We haven't gotten to hear much from her, so I think this was a good first effort on the big stage.  I wish she could've pulled out her A Fine Frenzy cover and play the piano...


Haeley Vaughn "I Wanna Hold Your Hand"
Oh, Haeley...you're so cute....and you can't sing...poor thing...Simon says they want to find a Taylor Swift this season? Well, I think they found her.  And I think she's not gonna make it past this week.  That was a mess.  An off-pitch, shrill, breathy mess.



Lacey Brown "Landslide"
Oh, my! Another hot mess!  And I liked Lacey in Hollywood.  Her voice is so unique.  She needed a jazzy song to stand out, not Stevie Nicks. I see how they made her have a sing-off with Megan Joy last year.  They are very similar. I have a feeling it's bye, bye Lacey...



Michelle Delamor "Fallen"
Girl totally showed up Ashely Rodriguez tonight.  She has a much better tone and control.  I thought she did the song justice.  I mean, no one can sing Alicia Keys like Alicia Keys, so....but, how skinny is this girl.  Eat a sandwich, please!



Didi Benami "The Way I Am"
Seriously a copycat performance.  If I closed my eyes, I wouldn't know this wasn't Ingrid Michaelson.  Or Janell Wheeler (other than the fact that Didi can stay in key much better than Janell).  Boring.



Siobhan Magnus "Wicked Game"
What the hell was that?!  So they obviously did have the rights to this for Adam, and he never used them, so instead we get this?  She has find to herself, or she's gone.  Seriously a strange little girl.  She has a good voice, and a big voice, of which they are lacking this season. Her range is giant.  And to the stylists, this was the best you could do?



Crystal Bowersox "Hand In My Pocket"
Not a most original choice, but she handled it well.  Simon's right with the coffee house analogy...she needs to project bigger.  And thank God for teeth whiteners!  She's just a cool chick. She really sounds like the love child of Janis Joplin and Melissa Etheridge.



Katie Stevens, "Feeling Good"
I love Adam Lambert's cover of this.  I jam out to it all the time.  It's so theatrical, and has a driving beat...I know it's a cover of the Muse version, which I also love, so it's different from what Katie did.  But what's most different is that he sang it well.  Katie, did not.  She was sharp, and pageanty. It started out very throaty.  Nope, didn't like it.  She's blown her frontrunner status, now hasn't she?


Ok, boys, you better bring it tonight, or this season is just, well...sigh

American Idol Season 9 Top 24

Although this blog is supposed to be about my journey through the life of a struggling musician/actor, I've been tossing around writing my own recaps for AI Season 9.  So, as I come up on some fairly big auditions (for me anyway), I thought I toss in some recaps.

Last night, the Season 9 Top 24 was named.  Here are my thoughts...

Girls:

Ashley Rodriguez, 22
Audition Song: "If I Ain't Got You" Alicia Keys
I can't quite put my finger on why I don't like this girl.  She's just a little too polished, maybe.  She also is very generic.

Ashley and her Berklee band, Blaque Lyte (that spelling is annoying)


She also looks too much like Jordin Sparks.


Crystal Bowersox, 24
Audition Song: "Piece Of My Heart" by Janis Joplin
This girl has talent.  Why she chose American Idol, I have no idea, but I'm sure she will make this season interesting.  I know they will clean her up a little, hopefully give her a teeth whitening treatment, cuz man, are those brown front teeth distracting!  She's different from the little jazzy, emotionally fragile girls they chose.

If she performs like this on the show, she'll go far! (and I love her boots)


Didi Benami, 23
Audition Song: "Hey Jude" by The Beatles
The love child of Megan Joy and Brooke White.  Emotionally fragile, jazzy, beautiful, and blonde.  She's been getting a lot of producer pimping...we'll see how she handles this...A little controversy that she has ties to a frequent Kara co-writer...a few peeps are calling her a plant...

This is the only pre-Idol video I could find, so not sure how she sings outside the pressure of Idol...




Haeley Vaughn, 16
Audition song: "Last Name" by Carrie Underwood

She's cute, she wants to be a black country superstar...she knows who she is, which is unusual for someone that young, and we all know how well that worked out for Allison Iraheta (buy her album, Just Like You).  The problem with Haeley, she sings more like Taylor Swift...that's not gonna work on AI.

Here's her 1st Hollywood song.  Not surprising she doesn't have many vids up...


Janell Wheeler, 24
Audition Song: "House of the Rising Sun" by the Animals
I don't like her.  I don't like her voice, I don't like her image, I don't like her boyfriend, Tim Tebow.

This could be on Gokey's album...inspirational shlock...


Katelyn Epperly, 19
Audition Song: "Syrup and Honey" by Duffy
She couldn't come up with a better backstory than "My parent's are getting divorced"?  Her voice is unremarkable.



Katie Stevens, 17
Audition Song: "At Last" by Etta James
Another one who has everyone's backstory...I have a sick grandma...Being touted as a wonderkind...She has a big voice...I won't write her off until I actually see her perform.

She could be Diana DeGarmo 2.0.


Lacey Brown, 24
Audition Song: "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" by Judy Garland
LOVE HER!!!! I can't believe they picked Megan Joy over her last year!  Her voice is so unique.  She has very unusual phrasing.  I can't wait to see what she does on the show.

Skip to 1:40 to hear her sing.


Lilly Scott, 20
Audition Song: not aired
I love this girl too!  Her voice is outstanding.  Not much else to say.



Michelle Delamor, 22
Audition Song: not aired
Not sure what to think of this girl, since we haven't heard her sing a note...cannon fodder?

I assume this is her...she can sing...sounds a lot like Ashely Rodriguez...


Paige Miles, 24
Audition Song: not aired
Another one that they have barely shown...seems to have a strong alto...



Siobhan Magnus, 19
Audition Song: not aired
This girl needs a stylist bad!  She's cute and has a strong rock belt.

Hopefully her voice has grown since she played Belle...


Guys:

Aaron Kelly, 16
Audition Song: "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus
Oh, Aaron Kelly...If only they'd told you to come back in two years once your voice finished changing.  As of  right now, you have absolutely no chance of winning this...you are not Archuleta 2.0, as much as they want you to be...



Alex Lambert, 19
Audition Song: not aired
Oh, you of the glittery last name, you are cannon fodder...with your ukelele.  Sorry, that's already been done by Mr. Castro...



Andrew Garcia, 24
Audition Song: "Sunday Morning" by Maroon 5
Already controversial, a bit Gokey-like, but he seems more genuine, in his reactions and in his musician-ship...but at this point in the season last year, Gokey was still tolerable to me...so we'll see...His youtube vids are fun.

I love this girl he's singing with too...




Casey James, 27
Audition Song: "Slow Dancing in a Burning Room" by John Mayer
Um, he stripped in his audition, has numerous drunk driving convictions, and is total frau-bait.  He is talented, but looks like a mash-up of Bo Bice and Bucky Covington...I'm sure he'll make the tour...



Jermaine Sellers, 26
Audition Song: "One of Us" by Joan Osbourne
He was on BET's Sunday's Best, has a tendency to oversing, but this could be his chance to make it big in the gospel world...hey, it worked for Mandisa...



Joe Munoz, 20
Audition Song: not aired
This season's Who?  They've shown nothing of him...didn't even know he existed til they named him to the top 24...cannon fodder? Or Kris Allen?

If this is him, why were they keeping him a secret?  A lot of melisma, but in there is a good voice...if this is him...


John Park, 21
Audition Song: "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know" by Donny Hathaway
LOVE HIM!!! A true, pure baritone.  He's cute.  Already, call me a ParkBench already...I hope he's not Anoop 2.0 and burns out...



Lee DeWyze, 23
Audition Song: "Ain't No Sunshine" by Bill Withers
Could be David Cook, could be gone next week...He seems like a good ol' Midwestern boy.  That's a easy way to charm the audience.  Worked well for Cookie and Kris Allen...



Micheal Lynche, 26
Audition Song: "Unchained Melody" by The Everly Brothers
I could go either way...he seems like a nice guy, kinda boring...His wife had a baby while he was in Hollywood, which guys in Iraq and Afganistan do all the time, except they are in a war, not trying to get on a reality tv show...



Tim Urban, 20
Audition Song:  not aired
Didn't originally make the Top 24, but because Chris Golightly made a big mistake, he gets to be on the show...I didn't like his David Cook cover, his vocals seem weak, but I can see the teen girls loving him...



Todrick Hall, 24
Audition Song: Original song by Todrick
Oh Todrick, of your child-scamming, back-flipping, and Oprah pic ways.  You self-professed non-trained dancer...we'll see, sir, we'll see...



I guess this is from the musical he wrote...


From his other musical "CinderellaROCK".


Tyler Grady, 20
Audition Song: "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye
He's got a 70's vibe that fits in well with what Adam Lambert started last season.  He already has a frau fan group, The Grady Bunch, gross.  Poor, poor Tyler...



When it comes down to it, I vote for who's album I would buy.  It's gonna be a season, that's for sure...

Rejection

Ok, that sounds very, emo, but that's what I got today...rejected. And I'm not too sad about it.

I alluded to a somewhat important audition I had before Christmas, and I finally found out the results today...I didn't get it.

I auditioned to be the lead singer of a rock/blues band in Grand Rapids that is very up and coming, and could be releasing an independent album very soon. They just needed a new vocalist since they parted ways with theirs. They ended up going with someone else. I'm ok with that. It became kind of a barricade to my vision of what I was going to do with my life. Now I know, I'm going to NYC. ASAP.

And can I even tell you how excited I am that American Idiot is going to Broadway?!!! I'm sure I will see it more than once this summer. And audition for it as soon as that is possible. :)

Best of 2009

So everyone seems to be doing some sort of top 10 list. Music is so important to me, it seems fitting I should do one too. I don't have favorite 10 albums of the year, but top singles doesn't seem to encompass enough. So, here is my top 10 music (album, single, perfomance) list of 2009.

10. Jason Mraz and busker in Paris (via www.blogoteque.net)

My brother introduced me to this French music blog. I can't read it because it is completely in French, but they make videos with musicians. Many of them are sublime and I encourage people to visit it. This video of Jason Mraz creating music with a Parisian busker is one of the most beautiful musical moments I've witnessed on the Internet.

Split Series - Jason Mraz - It's a lovely day
Uploaded by lablogotheque. - Explore more music videos.

9. Lady Gaga on the MTV Video Awards

This year I've grown to greatly appreciate the art of Lady Gaga. She takes catchy pop tunes and creates performance art to go along with them.

This is not the only spot she's on this list, but her performance on the MTV Video Awards in September was mind-blowing.

Add to it my favorite SYTYCDer ever, Mark Kanemura, as one of her back-up dancers, and it's perfection.

Lady Gaga - New Music - More Music Videos

8. David Cook, Declaration Tour

I'm not afraid to admit, I love David Cook. He's been a big inspiration to the whole quitting my teaching job and tackling that whole

following my dreams thing. I was lucky enough to get to see him live, not once, but twice in 4 months. The second time I was quite close

to the stage and got a few good videos and pics. He's amazing. :)

I did not get to witness this performance of "Lie", but it shows off David's beautiful voice. Skip to 1:30 for the song to begin.

7. Matt Giraud's performance of "Let's Get It On" AI

I love American Idol. My obsession with it has consumed a large portion of 2009. Matt was the boy from Kalamazoo I was interested in following

cuz he was from the same town as me and thought I should support him. Then he sang this...and my friends and I became fans.

Now who's gonna sign him? (I couldn't find the actual performance, Fox took down the videos from Season 8, but here he is on Ellen. It's precious.)

6. Andrew Bird/ St. Vincent live at the Kalamazoo State Theater

This evening of music with my brother was nothing but sublime. Watching these artists create music the way they do was engaging, magical, and

just plain beautiful. Andrew Bird is someone you must see live to appreciate.

5. Allison Iraheta

Two words describe this little girl: Rock Star. People need to start listening to her music right now. A mix of pop/punk/rock, her album is just plain fun.

"Beat Me Up" may be one of the best pop/rock songs no one will hear.

4. Kris Allen's performance of "Heartless" on AI

I'm a big fan of Kris Allen. His debut album is good guitar pop. His performance of "Heartless" still stands out as his best moment of 2009.

There was no way he could have beat Adam Lambert if he had not performed this. Way to be selfless Glambert.

(Once again, thanks Fox for no video, but his new mashup with Gangsta's Paradise is pretty awesome, too.)

3. Lady Gaga Bad Romance

I've had this song in my head all Fall. And the video is pure art.

2. Allison Iraheta and Adam Lambert's performance of "Slow Ride" on AI

After Gokey's scream heard round the world and this duet, I thought we were gonna have a dream top 3. Plus this performance introduced us

to the Striped-Pants...seeing them perform this in Grand Rapids just made me love this duet even more.

Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta — Slow Ride — Video MP3 - Watch more Videos at Vodpod.

1. Adam Lambert

Did anyone think I would put anything or anyone else in my #1 position for 2009. He is the best discovery of 2009. It's amazing that a year ago

no one outside of the LA theatre circle knew of him. I've never loved a pop artist more. I could gush for hours about this man's voice. It's just amazing.

His debut album is pop perfection and will not leave rotation in my iPod for a long, long time. My favorite performance of his is actually

pre-Idol (from 2008). It's campy, a little raunchy, and just plain fun.

Adam's performance on the Jay Leno Show a couple of weeks ago of his newest single was probably his best post-Idol, post-AMA scandal performance of

his new single.

Auditioning...

I know auditioning is the only way to get gigs as a performer, but I must say, the waiting after the audition until you hear, might be the worst time ever....

JCS auditions went well. I was called back for Mary Magdalene, but couldn't make the callback. Damn work...:P Obviously didn't get the part. But it's all for the best. Do I really need to be doing a community theatre production of Jesus Christ Superstar? Probably not. Focusing on getting paid is more of a priority.

Which leads me to my second audition of the week...which I will write about after I find out the results...I don't want to jinx something that I really, really want.

SO, once I hear yeah or nay, new blog post...

Until then, I'm gonna leave you with my cousin playing Madison Square Garden...yep, Madison Square Garden...<*sigh*>

And of course my fave...singing a song I sang for my 2nd audition, in the town I had the audition...

I'm tired of this creative drought.

So, since I'm not making anymoney at work anyway, I decided to attend an audition in Kzoo for the first time since I left 4 1/2 years ago. I mean it's Jesus Christ Superstar peeps!

It's been hard not singing these past 9 months. It's like saying I'm gonna run a marathon, then not train for it. I need to keep my voice in tip top condition if I think performing is the career for me. Even if it is just for a community theatre production of JCS...

Here's my fave rendition of a song from JCS. Someone, somewhere needs to cast him as Judas ASAP...

And just cuz I luv him...:)