And we’re in the home stretch on our way to American Idol season 9’s Top 12 contestants. Tonight, the remaining 8 girls perform live, starting at 8 PM.
Join me here tonight; I’ll be blogging live!
As the show opens, Ellen is sitting on Simon’s lap, having a snuggle session. Oh boy. Simon says that tonight’s the worst night to go home, because you’re so close to making the Top 12.
We’re very tight on time tonight, so things will move quickly to get everyone in in just an hour.

First up is Katie Stevens, singing Kelly Clarkson’s “Break Away.” Not a great start; she doesn’t sound very good tonight. Pitchy and a little nasally. Bummer. Randy says that the song was too big for her and it seemed like karaoke. Ellen says she likes that Katie took their advice and picked a newer song. But she didn’t feel like Katie felt the lyrics. Kara says Katie has a great radio voice, but her problem is that she just doesn’t know who she is as an artist yet. Simon says he thinks this has been very confusing for Katie, and to be fair she’s taken their advice, but she has to work out what kind of artist she wants to be. He gives her a 10 out of 10 for taking their advice and trying.
Siobhan Mangus is up next, singing “House of the Rising Sun,” by The Animals. She’s singing the song for her dad, who she grew up listening to. How sweet. She looks lovely and she comes out strong, singing a cappella. Each week, she gets better and better; either that or we’re finally getting to see her. She is SO good. Randy says he’s already a fan, and he likes that she comes out every week taking a risk. Ellen says Siobhan is why she loves music, that it’s supposed to move you. She was captivated, and calls Siobhan spectacular. Kara loved the a cappella vibe at the front, calling it brilliant. She says she loves how unique and different she is. Simon wasn’t a fan, calling it all a bit weird and was underimpressed. He says she didn’t have a “moment” and says it was dark.

Lacey Brown is up next, singing “The Story,” by Brandy Carlyle. She’s starting off much better. She seems less nervous. She’s sitting on the steps and it’s a low key performance, and she’s hitting every note. Lacey has such a unique voice; song choice is so key for her. This week was much, much better. Randy says the song was boring, but it was her best performance in a long time. And he says it was very cool. Ellen agrees with Randy, that is sounded like it was written for her, and called it “really good.” Kara says performances like this are why Lacey is here, and called it a “brilliant choice.” Simon didn’t love, love the song, but he thought she sang it really well. And he said where she’s good is that she’s knows where the cameras are, etc. But he still hasn’t heard the right song connection yet. That performance will hopefully keep Lacey here; I was a bit worried after last week.
After the break, Katelyn Epperly sings Carole King’s “I Feel The Earth Move.” Katelyn is playing the keyboards; I think she should have just come out and sing. She seems like she’s distracted singing and playing; in fact, it doesn’t even look like she’s playing. Not a great performance but not bad either. I bet Simon calls it karaoke. Randy starts with the positive; likes her “Carole King” hair but doesn’t feel any connection and says it felt put on. Ellen says this may not have been the song that will make people pick up the phone to vote. Kara says she didn’t feel like she was competing, but just going through the motions. Kara says it felt like she wasn’t even playing. Simon says he likes her hair; on the downside it was like request night on a Friday in a restaurant. He thinks it might have been a mistake for her. Katelyn says this week she was trying to not worry about the cameras or be corny, so it may have looked like she didn’t care, but she does.
Didi Benami is back, singing Fleetwood Mac’s “Rhiannon”. It’s just Didi and a guitar; she has such a good voice with a unique sound, but song choice has been a problem for her. This is a really good choice; she’s stripped it down with just guitar and some piano. A nice way to show she’s in it to win. Randy says it was “definitely a whole lot better than last week, that’s for sure.” He says there wasn’t a wow moment but it was definitely a lot better. Ellen says she loves that Didi was torn apart last week and she’s back singing and smiling, and she likes what she did with the song. Kara says it was one of her favorite moments of the show this season. Kara said when she saw Didi was singing that song she thought she was out of her mind, but she loved it. Simon agrees with Kara. He thought iwa head and shoulders above anything else they’ve heard tonight, and tonight she’s proved she’s an artist, and her “wow momentt” was the whole performance.
Paige Miles is singng “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin. She has a bit of a “deer in the headlights” looks, like she may break out in tears. Not a great performance; is she OK? She looks and sounds like she’s holdling back a flood of tears. Randy says it’s one of his favorite songs of all time but it didn’t work at all. Ellen says the song is supposed to be inspiring, but it was sad and heavy, and we didn’t get to see her great personality. Kara agrees; it was all wrong and tonight was not the night to do that. Paige says it’s emotional, and she says it’s hard for her to sing this song. She’s almost in tears. Simon says it was a horrible choice of song and the arrangment was awful; he calls them “peanut performances” because people are eating peanuts at the bar while someone sings. Simon adds that it’s a shame because she has a great voice. Ryan asks her why the song is emotional; Paige says she was a huge Michael Jackson fan, and he recorded it, and she felt while singing she might be able to hold the emotion back.
Crystal Bowersox is up singing Tracy Chapman’s “Gimme One Reason”, complete with electric guitar. Man, can this girl sing, or what? That was awesome. Randy says “This is what this show is about, for me.” He loved it all. Ellen says she needs new adjectives to say how amazing Crystal is. Kara says this is what they mean when they talk about knowing who they are. Simon says she is one million billion percent going to be in the Top 12. And right now he says she’s the one to beat and it’s hers to lose.
Lilly Scott closes out the show singing Patsy Cline’s “I Fall To Pieces.” What the heck is this? I suppose she’s trying to put a cool twist on it, but it’s coming off more like karaoke. Of course, Lilly can really sing, but I don’t love this. Not at all. Randy says he loves the mandolin, the song, and says she’s in the zone. Ellen loves it all, too. Kara says she kind of made Patsy Cline feel current. Simon says she’s brave choosing that song on a night like this, but it didn’t have the “wow factor”. It was cute and quirky but it was a risky thing to do, especially since she sang last. I agree.
So here’s the recap:
Siobhan and Crystal knocked it out of the park.
Lacey and Didi stepped up their game this week.
Katie and Lilly didn’t wow anyone, but they’ll be OK.
Kately and Paige faltered and are probably going home.
But what do you think? Who’s going home on Thursday?
See you here tomorrow at 9 PM when the guys perform!
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