‘American Idol’ recap: Twelve show off their solos
With 12 solo performances to pack into an hour-long show, “American Idol” didn’t have time to waste on Wednesday night. It did, however, allow itself a quick moment at the outset for Ryan Seacrest to establish the stakes.
“This is the only show that truly takes someone undiscovered and turns them into a superstar,” the host told the Top 24 in a run-up to the evening’s performances, half of whom would perform this week and the other half next. “And today is the first step to make that dream a true reality. … One of you standing in this room is about to be the winner of Season 15.”
Then after strolling onto the stage of the Vibiana, a Los Angeles event space and former Catholic cathedral, Seacrest explained that the two-week “Idol Duets Round,” would consist of each singer performing a solo song of his or her own choosing and then return the following night to perform a duet with a former contestant. The leather-jacketed host rattled off a list that included Fantasia, Ruben Studdard, Nick Fradiani, Caleb Johnson, Lauren Alaina and Scotty McCreery. Five out of the 12 singers who performed Wednesday will be sent home on Thursday night’s show. And the whole routine will repeat itself next week.
The key to moving forward? “It’s the right song, the right performance, and for me, making the connection,” Keith Urban said.
Here’s how the performances went down:
Stephany Negrete strode through Jessie J’s “Mama Knows Best” in terrifyingly high heels and impressed the judges overall, although they felt she could have connected a bit more strongly with the lyrics. Jennifer Lopez called her “the full package,” a singer with the “voice,” “looks” and “performance quality” to be a pop star. But warned her not to “forget about the song in the show of it all.”
MacKenzie Bourg’s take on A Great Big World’s “Say Something” was deemed more authentic and “natural.” Harry Connick Jr. said he’d felt as if the lyrics meant something to Bourg and admired the way he altered the melody a bit but “still kept the integrity of the song.”
Jeneve Rose Mitchell earned a split opinion from the judges with her performance of Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel,” on which she accompanied herself on harp. Connick thought she’d done herself “a disservice” by playing the harp, but Urban was impressed by that very thing, calling Mitchell “the real deal,” “extraordinary” and an admirable risk taker. Lopez seemed, frankly, stunned by the performance, sharing that, while she had initially been unsure about Mitchell, she had just been made a convert. “When I just saw you do that song, I had goosies everywhere,” she said. “It was beautiful … very, very beautiful.”
Jenna Renae got Urban very excited by choosing to sing Maren Morris’ “My Church,” but then earned tepid reviews for her performance. Urban said he was “curious to hear other sides” to the singer, “yin and yang … because there’s a lot of yin and yin going on right now.” Lopez credited Renae with showing more “joy” than usual, but Connick felt she’d crossed the line between “enthusiasm” and “shouting,” and had lost her grip on pitch as a result.
James VIII showed just how chill he could be with Kanye West’s “Love Lockdown,” playing guitar and looking cool, but this was not a time for chill. The judges thought his song choice had been a copout. Lopez said it had stayed too even and didn’t grab her. Connick wondered how far in the competition a simple approach like James VIII’s would take him. And Urban warned, “You’ve got to be really, really careful between being chill and being indulgent because the indulgent thing can happen really fast.” He said the song had not been “compelling enough” to hold his attention. “You can’t assume that you’re going to be here long enough to do another song,” Urban said. “So come out and kill it every time.”
Sonika Vaid showed off her alluring tone but looked a little pageanty as she sang Taylor Swift’s “Safe & Sound.” The judges complimented her on her vocals, as they always do, but said they craved more emotionality, as they also always do. Lopez advised Vaid to “choose stuff that makes you feel something instead of just stuff that suits your voice, stuff that makes your heart sing.”
Gianna Isabella cast a spell over the judges with her performance of Annie Lennox’s “Put a Spell on You.” Lopez, a long-ago friend of Isabella’s ‘80s pop-star mom, Brenda K. Starr, told the teen singer she had “the most privileged voice maybe in the competition.” Urban found the performance “inconsistent” but promising. Connick urged Isabella to challenge herself “to find as much meat” in a song as she could.
Emily Brooke gave what was one of the most – if not the most – disappointing performances of the night, fumbling her way through “I Am Invincible” by “The Voice” Season 3 winner Cassadee Pope (while former “Voice” contestant Bryana Salaz, Brooke’s friend, cheered her on from the audience). She started too low, landed off pitch, and earned mostly pity from the audience. “I’ve never heard you struggle with pitch as much as you just did,” Connick told her. “Maybe this was an off night because your talent is unquestionable.”
Avalon Young took the stage to sing Justin Bieber’s “Love Yourself” sans makeup and wearing a schlumpy hoody and leggings, as is her wont. “This is where I find my confidence,” she explained of her look. She won over both the audience and the judges. “You seem to be the most in tune with who you are in the moment,” Connick said. “I think you’re terrific and that was really strong.”
Jordan Sasser, whose wife and baby were in the audience, performed a song by his favorite, Celine Dion, “All By Myself,” and was rightly criticized by the judges for making the performance overly theatrical. “That was real show-offy … I don’t like that,” Connick said. “Just sing the song.” On the bright side, Sasser cut his hair.
Thomas Stringfellow may not be the best singer in the competition (he has a strange little squeak, for one thing), but he is certainly among the most appealing. The judges thought he did a great job with Radiohead’s “Creep.” Connick called the performance “really strong.” Urban commended Stringfellow on his “natural way of performing,” which he said was “to lean into abandonment,” calling it “really compelling.”
La’Porsha Renae capped the evening by hitting TIna Turner’s “Proud Mary” right out of the park. She sang the heck out of the song, while moving confidently across the stage and shaking the fringes on her dress like a pro. Connick told Renae she was “so captivating and so smart” and said she was apt to make “one of two things” happen: “You’re either going to make other competitors get better or you’re gong to make them want to quit.” Lopez said Renae had the sort of voice she dreamed about.
On Thursday, the dream will turn into a nightmare for some of these singers: Five will go home.
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