American Idol Revisited

With only one or two exceptions, I am quite pleased with the selection of the top 12 finalists on American Idol. I am very surprised but very happy that Danny Noriega is gone. I thought for sure the "tweens" would keep him in the game (remember Sanjaya?). Luke had an annoying falsetto voice. I was never crazy about him. Kady Malloy was just a Barbie. I know that the goodbye song is always emotionally charged but she was totally off-key and unprofessional. Good reason to say "Buh-bye." Too bad about Asia'h, though. She proved herself to be a strong, determined and talented performer.

All in all, my original picks from 2/26 were pretty close. I lost Robbie Carrico, Danny and Asia'h.

Here are my updated predictions:

The first set to go (not in any particular order):

Chikezi: I do like this guy. When he goes all soulful and mellow, he's great. Problem is, you have to select from whatever the week's theme is and he isn't always making the right choices. If he can get it together, he may surprise me and move further up the ladder. He has been in the bottom before so that's usually a sign of things to come.

Amanda Overmyer: She's great at doing the harder-edge rock stuff. I don't think she's going to bring anything new to her performances. Her lack of popularity has put her in the bottom before and I think she may be one of the first to go.

Kristy Lee Cook: I don't know how she got here in the first place. I think the country fans voted her in. I believe her lack of maturity and experience will do her in.

Next set to go (again, no particular order):

Jason Castro: He's very different with his dreads and soft, dreamy eyes but I don't think he has much in his bag of tricks. He's not terribly powerful and doesn't always make good song choices.

David Hernandez: While I do like him and believe he could be a strong contender, I'm not sure he has enough of a unique style to make him memorable. He can always go back to stripping, I suppose.

Ramiele Malubay: Not American Idol material. It's not just about the talent, which is really too bad because this girl is a powerful singer. She has a terrible sense of style, dressing like a bag lady last week. Her performances don't always shine.

Syesha Mercado: I loved her in the auditions. When she sang through laryngitis, I was blown away. However, she sings old, over-done songs in an old, over-done way. She has the skills but not the understanding of what makes a great performance.

Brooke White: Great talent, lovely personality but she comes off just too "hippy" for this day and age. She's a throw-back and won't get the younger votes.

My top picks:

Carly Smithson: Understands how to perform, understands how to pick the right songs to showcase her strengths.

Michael Johns: The best thing that could happen to him is to NOT win. If he has to conform to what the producers of American Idol choose for him, he may end up like Taylor Hicks or Rueben Studdard (who?). Instead, may he go the way of Chris Daughtry and have lots of hits.

David Cook: First of all, let me make it clear: I hate his hair! That said, he has become stronger every week and I think he has a shot at the top 4.

David Archuleta: AND THE WINNER IS.... This kid won as soon as he stepped onto the stage. He has it all: great maturity, sensitivity, humility, a winning smile and Talent with a capitol T. Everyone I know says he's the one. He won me over with "Imagine". It would just be a feel-good moment to see him win.

So, let's see what happens...