Hey there, how is everyone? Well, I have been coming on this site for the last week or so and see no one is here with the exception of a brief visit from Mae. Not sure anyone will be reading this but you know me, gotta have my say on what I thought of this new season. I totally miss Paula Abdul but have to say the new judges in the form of Britney Spears and Demi Lovato was a pleasant surprise.
Each displayed a side of themselves that I think will be pretty good at judging although Brit did throw out some real zingers to some contestants that appeared mean even though she said her comments sort of nicely. My real complaint with this show is too much backstage drama which sort of seemed like a documentary plus tons and tons of commercials. I would have so loved to see more acts perform instead of so many comments being given by the judges and the contestants backstage. Oh well, let's get to the acts we did see:
Up first in the audition city of Austin, Texas is 21 year old Paige Thomas who is a mom of a 3 year old. She dressed like a popstar I thought and gives a pretty good performance to the Mary J Bligh song "I'm Going Down". The judges were totally impressed and send her on to the next round. I liked her also.
50 year old Shawn Armenta is next with an original song called "Candy Girl". It was so bad that when he finished singing not one person in the audience applauded. Naturally the judges are a no across the board which leads to Shawn being pretty sarcastic to them. His leaving the stage brings on several who are turned down with comments from Britney while her song "Toxic" plays in the background. Jeesh Brit, you are a meanie! Actually she was right on with her comments.
A look-alike Justin Bieber takes the stage next. His actual real name is Reed Deming and he is 13 years old. He has a spunky personality and does not want to be compared to Justin. His first song choice is "It Will Rain" by Bruno Mars which has Simon stopping the audition and asking for a different song. This sort of throws young Reed but he complies and sings instead "Grenade" by Bruno. I think this kid has kind of an interesting voice and really could be molded into a teen idol. So do the judges who all send him through.
Throughout the first half hour or so we are seeing 22 year old Kaci Newton who has several not so good comments about the other contestants who are making it through. She feels she is much better and finally makes it to the stage to slaughter Katy Perry's "Firework". Simon thought she sounded like she was dying so she attempts to redeem herself with the song "Mercy" which is even worse. She was so off-key which brings four no votes from the judges.
Now we are in San Francisco, California for the next set of auditions. Sadly we see eleven pretty bad singers (yep, I counted them because I could not get the names fast enough).
Finally a full audition is shown with a guy who is dressed up in drag as a bride. Quatrele Da'an Smith designs cakes by day. His performance of "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga was not totally a mess as he can sort of sing. L.A. Reid is a definite no. However Britney and Demi find him entertaining and give a yes vote. Simon compares Quatrele to a child that is a combination of Madonna, Bobby Brown and Dracula however he sort of likes it and decides to put him through to the next round. This stuns L.A. big time.
I found the judges attitude to the next young man kind of harsh. His name is Vincent Thomas and he has been part of a boy band in Europe. He tries to be friendly to the group who will follow him but they make some nasty comments about him behind his back. I will get to them next. Vince is singing "Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word" and I personally thought he was fairly good. However Simon is really rough and tells him he can not sing. The other judges pipe in with their no votes as well. I was sorry for this kid.
Now comes the snotty three boys who call themselves Emblem3. They are doing an original song called "Sunset Boulevard". It was mostly a rap number although one of the boys does seem able to sing some. The audience loved them as well as the judges as they are sent through. Personally I can honestly live without them for sure.
The next performer is Don Philip who did a duet with Britney Spears 10 years ago. Britney does recognize him and all seems well until he tries to sing "Halo" by Beyonce. Sadly it was not very good. All the judges give a no although Britney does it as kindly as possible. We see Don backstage crying his heart out thinking he has hurt Britney which is why she gives a no vote. The judges were spot on as Don really can not sing now.
Now we find ourselves in the next audition town which is Provendice, Rhode Island. Our first girl is 18 year old Jenell Garcia who looks so sweet and innocent. Showing lots of personality she gives a sexy performance of the song "Paris" by Grace Potter. The judges find her to be a hot number and it is yeses across the board. I also think this girl is pretty good.
After a quick no to a Spanish guy whose name I did not get we see our last contestant of the night in the form of Jillian Jensen. Seems Jillian has been bullied thoughout her school years and is really here to prove that she is not the loser so many think she is. Her idol is Demi Lovato and she even has the same tattoo Demi has. Her story is definitely a tear-jerker and so is her performance of the song "Who You Are" by Jessie J. Pain was just oozing out of every note that Jillian sang. Not only is the audience emotional but so are the judges who are all practically crying including hard-nose Simon. After Jillian sings, Demi goes on-stage to hug the crying girl and let's her know she is really special. I think this girl has real potential and I was glad all the judges voted her through.
Final Thoughts: In spite of not seeing enough acts I do think there are some real winners here and I personally can not wait to see how they fare. Tomorrow night we get to more auditions as we see some previews. I will be back with more thoughts then. Until next time, take care all!
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Subject: First Auditions plus Debut of Britney & Demi 
Thu Sep 13, 2012 12:11 am
