February 26, 2009 
Last night’s show was very strange. The performances were all over the place; however, I stand behind my personal picks of Adam Lambert, Megan Corkrey and Kris Allen. I felt that, based on their individual performances, these three performers demonstrated the greatest potential for success. The trio exhibited sublime style and substance during their vocal showcase.
However, Nick Mitchell is extremely entertaining and has a place in this business if given the right opportunity. He screams “Las Vegas”! His voice is solid and when meshed with his comedic skills, he could turn out to be a vocal version of legendary comedic pianist, Victor Borge.
The other singers need to work on various aspects of their performing and vocal skills and some clearly were not ready for this competition.
I have a feeling that Allison will emerge as the top female vote-getter. I am basing this on fan response throughout the various forums and not on personal opinion. Adam is a “shoo-in” for top male vote-getter.
I am already disliking this Top 12 lineup. This year’s format is a nightmare. Some really great singers are not advancing and this is truly a shame.
If we had been faced with this elimination format last season, do you honestly think that David Cook would have made the Top 12? I distinctly remember Simon’s bias against him and, until his “Hello” performance, nobody paid any attention to him. Hard to judge a singer by one performance and, quite frankly, it isn’t fair.
MCL NOTE: I will be on holidays until March 4th 2009. I will try to keep the MCL site “up to date” with Masterclass Discussion topics for all the groups. Your links and comments will be most appreciated, as it will help to maintain a current flow of information while I am “basking in the sun”. 🙂
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Adam is amazing and I can’t wait to hear what else he will sing. Performance wise no one can touch him!
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I was right about my choices except I had Adam as top male vote-getter. The teens have their cutie-pie contestant in Kris Allen, and I look forward to seeing him improve in the coming weeks.
Would Allison be a Latino contestant? I believe she is, but am not sure. I think we may she Megan in the Wild Card round.
I don’t know much about a few of the contestants and still dislike the TOP 36 format. It just doesn’t seem right, or am I a bit bored?
The best part of the show was seeing Brooke White! Did anyone feel she had a bit of a country twang going tonight? I liked her sweet song.
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Adam may have very well been the top male vote-getter. Ryan never announced whether he or Kris placed the highest.
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Actually, I was very pleased with tonight’s results. To be completely honest, the exact three contestants I wanted to go through were the ones who made it to the Top 12! I am very proud of America this season. They’ve been right on the money so far in my opinion! I think Adam, Kris, and Allison make excellent additions to the Top 12! Congratulations to all of them! Now, I’ll say a few words about those who (for whatever reason) just didn’t make the cut:
Matt Giraud: I have really been a fan of this guy’s since Hollywood, and I still think he can definitely sing. He made a not-so-smart song choice this week, which proved to be his Achilles’ Heel. However, I have a gut feeling the judges really like him, so he may still have a chance of being chosen as a Wild Card contender. I hope so. He needs one more chance!
Megan Corkrey: After seeing her performance played back tonight, I will definitely admit that she did better last night than I initially thought. I was still a fan of Allison, but she was my second favorite female. I see a wild card for sure in her.
Nick Mitchell: You know, when it’s all said and done, I really enjoyed him this season. He never stood a ghost of a chance of winning, but he brought something to the show that will certainly be missed. He’s the one who I hope gets to come back at the finale! He has an amazing talent and I pray God leads him in the right direction to a place where he can truly come into his own.
Jasmine Murray: I’ve always liked her, and a part of me hopes she may be picked in the Wild Card round. However, I like the advice the judges gave her. She needs to sit out a few years, practice, and grow as a singer. I think if she was a bit more more mature, she would sail through to the Top 12.
Matt Breitzke and Kai Kalama: I am lumping these two kind-hearted fellows into the same category for a reason–because they are both ever so likable! I admire how Matt is so hard-working and an excellent father and husband, and kudos to Kai for going to such extremes to care for his dear mother. These guys may not ever be American Idols, but they are worthy of being looked up to as outstanding human beings. God bless the both of them and their families.
To The Rest: MCL is absolutely correct! It is very difficult to accurately judge someone from hearing them sing one song on the big stage. There were undoubtedly many talented singers in this group who (for whatever reason) just failed to impress this week. As I said before, the closing of one door is often the opening of another, and I pray that there will be many open doors for all of them in the future.
Once again, I think America completely hit the nail on the head tonight. We now have half of the Top 12, and so far I could not be more pleased! While I had many reservations about this show’s new Top 36 format, I really think that those may have been somewhat unfounded. While I still prefer the Top 24 format, I can’t deny that this new format is definitely working. I felt the producers had ruined this show, but I think they’ve really done all right so far overall. It couldn’t have been easy on them when Nigel walked away after all. Though American Idol may go through many changes over the years (some good; some not so good), at the end of the day it always accomplishes what it set out to do!
Oh, and I absolutely LOVED Brooke White’s performance tonight! I can definitely see her having a hit with that song, which I will be downloading for sure off of iTunes! I am so happy for her! She was my favorite female last season, and I knew she would succeed! Anyway, I am so excited about next week! The last group of performers (including Scott MacIntyre yay) will perform, and we will finally get to see how this whole Wild Card Round works out! Good fun!
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Allison’s result show performance was MUCH better than her original performance on a technical level. Some of the notes were still iffy (I particularly dislike the way she “growls”; it makes her voice sound thinner), but in general, there was more technical foundation to her singing. She was still one-dimensional in terms of her dynamics in the chorus, but she was more in touch with diaphragmatic support there, so her timbre was meatier.
I have mixed feelings about this format because I believe the previous format was also flawed, and I like the return of the wildcard show. I agree, though, that the lineup so far is not the most inspired. The contestants are bundles of nerves this year, and that’s not helping their chances! I don’t know what it is, but singing in tune seems rare in itself! I’ve read that it’s very difficult for the contestants to hear themselves on this stage with the way the monitors are set up, though, so hopefully, as the contestants become more accustomed to the sound system and acoustics or whatnot, their performances will improve.
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I liked Adam’s performance in the results better than his original. He seemed so much more relaxed and happy. It was more natural.
I love Adam, but I’m terrified for him, and I’m unsure how far he will progress. America has its biases, musical and otherwise.
Question for you, MCL: When Adam sticks his tongue out, is he doing that to help him reach notes, or is he just doing that? I remember having to do various things with my tongue when I took lessons way back in the day, but nothing carried over to my performances…..however, I wasn’t aiming for anything near the range that Adam has!
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Kelsey – I think Adam was pulling a “Mick Jagger” with that tongue. It is true that the tongue has to remain relaxed and lowered when one sings, but I think Adam was just having fun in this case.
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In fairness to Allison. I didn’t arrive home in time to hear her Results Show performance. However, she just seems a little rough around the edges for my taste so we shall see what happens as time goes on. I think Megan is a better fit for the Top 12 and I have absoluteyl no doubt that she will be there.
Next week’s show is going to be brutal. Tons of competition. TONS!
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Thanks Galen. Alwyas love your insightful commentary. Much appreciated
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Just like J, I have mixed feelings about the format at this point. Maybe the nerves are showing because the contestants realize that they may only have one shot at this? You really have to go for it!
I wasn’t surprised to see Allison make the top 12. Pleasantly surprised about Kris. Megan should make it to the Wild Card show. How is that going to work, anyway? (I know I should know.) If another 2 guys make it through next week, then does that mean that only the girls have a legitimate shot for a wild card spot? AI loves to have the balanced gender going.
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Ok, I just found out the answer to my question- the JUDGES will pick the final 3 for the top 12. I don’t think I like that. Based on the article I read, it won’t necessarily be balanced gender-wise, but I’ll believe that when I see it.
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I was just curious because I’ve seen him with his tongue out in some youtube videos as well, and I thought I had seen it mostly when he’s going for higher notes. I’m not sure though, because I wasn’t watching anything really in depth. But I know I’ve seen him sing with his tongue out before.
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Yeah, I agree with a lot of posts on here that the contests do seem like a more nervous bunch this season. Still, I think as hard as it may be, we need to try and overlook those nerves for the time being. Remember, the last two weeks’ performances were the FIRST time these people had ever sang on live TV in front of millions of people. Were I in their shows, I would be a basket case! As time goes by, I suspect the Top 12 will become more comfortable on the stage and those nerves will slowly but surely dissipate.
As for balancing out the Top 12 gender-wise, I don’t think it is really that necessary to have an even number of guys and girls. What is most vital to me is that the right people make the Top 12 on talent alone, not necessarily just because the producers feel they need another guy or girl for balance. Next week is going to be very excited. Since I didn’t start watching Idol until Season 4, I never really got to experience a Wild Card Round, so obviously I look forward to that.
After a lot of thinking about the formats this show has had, I think the best format it could ever have would be a sort of mix between the Top 36 and Top 24 formats. I think there should be 24 format, but the ever-creative (sarcasm) producers should find a way to incorporate the Wild Card factor into that format. Anyway, I don’t know how that would work, but it would be cool.
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A Top 24 format with a Wild Card added into the mix would be my dream semi-final format as well. The best of both worlds.
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I already wrote out my thoughts on the results show last night on my blog; so I’m not going to repeat myself. Much. 🙂 Just say that I do think these three (Kris, Allison, and Adam) will be great in the top twelve. Only halfway through that process, we already have quite a nicely diversified group. So, while I still don’t care for Adam’s performance the other night (loved him in Hollywood and his audition, though), I think he is needed in the competition.
Have enjoyed reading all the comments here–even though I watched last night on playback, I feel as if I could have been watching it live time with all of you! Thanks for that experience! 🙂
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Oh, I definitely agree with you about her voice being a little rough around the edges. I’m a firm believer that there’s a technically efficient way of producing any style or sound, and there are ways to sound gritty and edgy while still achieving balance and release in one’s voice. And on that front, her singing is too forced, as you said. I love edgy, powerhouse vocals, so I’m not opposed to her style, just her technical approach to it. I did want to give her credit for last night’s performance, though, because it was more promising than her first performance.
I found a link to watch the performance here: http://s79.photobucket.com/albums/j141/mjsbigblog/Semis-wk2-Results/?action=view¤t=allison_semis-wk2-results.flv
I was pretty much on the same page as you with Tuesday’s critiques. I also think Mishavonna’s performance was quite underrated. Hopefully, the judges make good picks! They seem to like Megan (and Jesse as well).
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There are 3 good interviews with Allison, Adam, and Kris on http://www.mjsbigblog.com. In the phone interview with Ryan Seacrest, Ryan asks Adam if he thinks there is a risk of doing to much and peaking too early. Adam said he decided to “make his mark” and give a 120% performance, but then will probably tone it down. He didn’t want to be considered boring or forgettable. Well, he certainly was memorable! He said he will take Randy’s comment about it too heart, so I suspect we will see more of the Dust in the Wind Adam in coming weeks.
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