Top 4 Results/Top 3 Preview - Moving On Edition

So, a proper amount of time has passed for me to get over the injustice of last week’s vote. Who was with me in being frustrated when Allison absolutely crushed “Cry Baby” after being eliminated? If she had been that fired up on performance night, she probably would not have been sent home.

Quick Result Show Hits:

* Please, no more group songs EVER again.

* Paula, no more performing EVER again (but thank you for extending your lip-synching streak to 21 years).

* No Doubt: love ya, Gwen, but a tour being used TO WRITE a new album? I’m not sure when they actually moved to Bizarro World, but I hope her kids like it there.

With the three remaining contestants, I honestly have no guess on how this could go. I think any of them could win. The format tonight (one song picked by the performer, one song picked by the judges/producers) will be very telling (especially the judges’ pick where they could really set one or two of them up for a finale run). Here is my review and preview of the remaining guys. As you can see, I could not have been wronger about America’s support for these folks two months ago:

Kris Allen (Original Ranking: 10th out of 11) – “My wife thinks he’s cute. I don’t care. I have nothing else to say. He has no chance…”. These were my comments about Kris in my 8th Season Premiere Edition of “RAD on AI”. Wow. What did I miss? Well, a fact I certainly overlooked was that he was (and still is) the most musically talented of this year’s contestants. He plays acoustic guitar, electric guitar, keyboards, and who knows what else. And, he clearly understands music. I know that sounds simple, but it is actually complex. Why do the judges constantly carp that so-n-so “picked the wrong song” for them? Because, it is not easy. Rarely did they say that about Kris (I recall twice: “All You Want to Do Is Dance” and last week’s “Come Together”. However, I still think Kris had very few good options for him last week). Most importantly, Kris understands his limitations and sticks to his strengths: sing soft, look cute. He’s still boring to me, but he picks the right song, sings it well enough to stay in the middle of the pack, and, when he doesn’t, he has the fan base to bail him out. After last week’s disappointing ouster of my favorite and the unfortunate manner in which it went down, I now throw my full support to this underdog. With the female support that it is obvious that he has now, I think he has a little bit of a chance. It is beyond embarrassing to write that after what I wrote on March 13th. I will never ever buy your album, but go Kris!

Danny Gokey (Original Ranking: 7th) – “He’s easy to root for, but there are better, sellable folks here…” (March 13th comment). Never underestimate the power of a tragic backstory. Props to Danny though for milking it minimally and only in indirect ways. (Brief pause for a pet peeve statement: Danny, Dude, you’re 28 and should not be calling yourself “Danny”. C’mon, Ricky (Rick) Schroeder and Danny (Dan) Bonaduche led the way on this one.) And, maybe nice guys don’t finish last. I think Daniel had a fine sense of humor about his awful performance last week. If you saw his face last week after Allison’s farewell video played, you could see genuine remorse about what had transpired. (Then, give up your spot back to her if you want to set things right! Okay, RAD let it go already…). No matter what, you know Daniel is always going to lay it out there on the stage. And, America loves him even when he stinks. All I ask for now is one week where he is not yelling or singing a “remember my wife” ballad. If they set him up with that this week, and he delivers, all (well, most) will be forgiven.

Adam Lambert (Original Ranking: 6th) – “…you either have to love or hate this guy…I’ll just say that he has some characteristics that we will have to see if “Middle America” can deal with in their American Idol…” (March 13th). I’ll easily stand by my first statement. I’m not so sure anymore on the second. Without question, he is the one expected to win now. He is the only one with breakout national press and the judges and producers crave the publicity that his theatrics have brought the show. But, would it be the best of all worlds for the American Idol team if Adam makes the finals, pulls in a great TV rating, and then loses? Then, they would not have to put up with the headache of trying to repackage and market this guy to a wider audience. I frankly think that they have no idea what to do or how to write and produce for him if he wins. We’ll see if the judges’ tones change at all towards him this week or next. It could be fascinating seeing what song they choose for him to sing tonight.

I would love to see your comments about last week’s results and/or any anticipatory preview you might have. See you tomorrow.