And please pardon my disregard for chronological order tonight. I clearly was not concentrating as much as I should have.
The night began with the Stereo Hoggz. You know how I feel about them. Things have not changed. They are still one singer with four backup dancers. Granted, the singer can sing--but what is a group if only one of them has the spotlight? Oh yeah.
Next up was either LeRoy Bell or Chris Rene. Either way, I thought they were forgettable. Chris was preppied up and sang better than last week but I don't think he is a real contender for the big prize. LeRoy has an okay voice but has never been amazing to me. Does Nicole Scherzinger hear something I don't hear?
Then Rachel Crow sang new lyrics to "Walking on Sunshine". It sounded almost like her performance last week in its upbeatedness. I know she has a lot of supporters and I think she's great for a girl at 13. I also think she will have a recording contract at the end of this competition. But I don't think she will be in the top 4.
Which leads us to Lakoda Rayne: four young ladies thrust together by the judges at the end of Hollywood week. I love the Dixie Chicks' "Landslide" and thought the girls did a good enough job, but I agreed with Simon that their each representing a season (Paula's idea) was lame...as were their brightly coloured dresses. These girls still are lacking something--is it connection to the audience or each other? Or have they just not found a good song yet?
At this point I had finished washing the dishes and had resolved to make a soy chai latte, which rendered me unable to fully hear/appreciate Josh Krajcik's rendition of "Jar of Hearts". I wasn't blown away, and if Josh had sung and I was still feeling neutral, it meant that I shouldn't have looked as forward to tonight's show as I did. In fact, The X Factor is my weekly TV highlight now, surpassing all my comedies (The Big Bang Theory, Modern Family, The Office). So WTML was happening?!
InTENsity performed a mashup of "Kids in America" and LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem". I liked the second part more than the first and can see their appeal to kids/tweens if the Glee/High School Musical thing is what they're into. I think they're a bunch of talented kids with Ilona perhaps being my favourite (aka "The Girl with the Red Jacket"). They'll be safe next week. (And why do they always hide the littlest girl?)
Melanie Amaro also sang while I was busy with the coffee machine (if you are wondering why I use it to make soy chai lattes, it is because the milk frother makes them amazing!). I could hear her but I still was not convinced by her performance. She sings so well but lacks heart, and I understand how hard it is to be "awake" during a performance--to really think about the lyrics and the story behind a song. I know what absence of this presence looks like since I have almost always seen it in myself. And it really is all in the eyes. Next time you watch her perform--that is, if she hasn't fixed this by then yet--look at her eyes while she sings and tell me if she's being in the moment. Because for me she is still missing that connection--which is a pity since with a voice like hers, it should really be a runaway win. I truly hope Simon works on this with her because she seems like a very sweet and talented girl who deserves to go far with her voice.
And yes, all that was gathered by the little I saw of her while making my hot beverages.
Astro turned it up with his own lyrics to "Hip Hip Hooray" and "Get Your Freak On". I don't know how a 14 year-old kid can have that much confidence and swagger. He always brings energy to his performances and acts like he's been on the stage his whole life. I really liked the ASTRO-frosted glass that they had made for him too. He has a stagename and logo already!
Which leads us to the last three performers of the night who ended up being my favourites (though they were already to begin with). I had temporarily lost hope in the competition and they reminded me why I loved it.
Drew, within the first few seconds, had already captivated me. She turned Nelly's "Just a Dream" into her own song, as she has with all the other songs she has performed, and what I love is that she makes her own arrangements and decisions. This is true artistry and cannot be taught. In fact, during the judges' comments, Simon, her mentor, said that he felt that she was mentoring him. You don't normally hear such modest words from Simon. What completes her is that she's humble and unique. At only 14! I tweeted while watching and had the following conversation with a random guy on Twitter:
- Random Guy: "The girl is bad!"
- Me: "Let's agree to disagree...cuz I think she's a true artist. Only needs to work on stage presence but that'll come with time!"
- Random Guy: "Noooo...she's my favorite. lol And I totally agree...needs help with the stage work."
- Me: "haha sorry! To me 'bad' still means 'bad'. Is this the new 'sick'?"
- Random Guy: "Yeahhhhh! Lol"
I'm glad we cleared that up because I did not want a situation on my hands. But when did words start meaning their opposites?
Next was Marcus Canty and boy does he make it look easy. He sang "Every Little Step", a song L.A. Reid wrote for Bobby Brown. L.A. Reid is Marcus' mentor. It's a big deal. And he pulled it off. He's my favourite guy in the competition. (Him and Josh Krajcik, that is...)
The night ended with Stacy Francis heeding Simon's advice about singing more "church songs". She was her incredible self...what else can I say?
My Final Thoughts
Weakest: LeRoy Bell
Best: Drew
Bottom three: LeRoy Bell, Chris Rene, Lakoda Rayne
Who will actually go home? America's vote starts tonight so we will find out at the results show tomorrow! What are your thoughts? Who did you love? Did anyone disappoint you?
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