The Bluegrass State of Kentucky - 1/21/09

Finally we are sort of back on track as on tonight's episode we get to see some real talent instead of the dismal events of the last two shows. So let's get started. First we see lots of action of the Kentucky Derby, tons of people who have turned out for the auditions (over 11,000) and of course up-coming previews of what is to come. Ryan Seacrest is standing in a beautiful setting as he says his famous line "This is American Idol". We then go through a series of how to correctly pronounce the word Louisville before we see our judges arrive to the grand elegance of trumpets at Churchill Downs. Before we get to the contestants let me say that along the way we will be seeing some of the beauty of this state and also plenty of scenes of the horse-racing the state is well-known for. Now for our first contestant, here goes:

Tiffany Shedd arrives with her parents who seem odd to me in many ways, almost brain dead with the way they talk. On the other hand, Tiffany is upbeat and has decided no matter how her audition goes she will remain positive and go to college instead should she not get her pass to Hollywood. After entering the room she slaughters a Mariah Carey song. It is a no from the judges and instead of being positive, she rants all the way until the final curtain of her moment on the show. Enjoy college, sweetie!

Our next contestant is a very pretty and sweet girl in the form of Joanna Pacitti. She tried her hand at a singing career when she was 16 years old and knows how tough it can be. Upon entering the room, Kara recognizes her from a spot on AM Records. Joanna then sings Pat Benatar's "We Belong". The judges like her and she gets her ticket. I actually think she is pretty but was not totally blown away by her voice.

Next is Mark Mudd who leaves the judges a little uneasy when he is turned down for a ticket. Before this he attempts to sing George Strait's "White Lightening". He has the voice of someone I could easily picture sitting on an old porch with a corncob pipe and guitar as he warbles away. His parting words "Be Careful" sound like a threat to the judges and they gladly move on to the next contestant.

Be still my heart as the next guy known as Brent Keith Smith enters the room. For a split second I thought it was Nick Lachey from 98 Degrees fame. Oh, those dimples! He sings some Bad Company and sounds pretty good. All the judges are pleasantly surprised except for Simon who thinks the song was a bit "butkerish" (whatever the hell that means). However trying to get some face time Kara makes a big deal out of this and pulls Paula into her antics of getting under the table. Side note here: I do not like Kara! However Brent does get his ticket and I am glad.

We hear that Louisville is also the home of the Louisville Slugger next. Now aren't you glad you know that.

Some filler time with rejects of the show follow. Irene Angueloba warbles a bad rendition of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow". Obianuju Omwurah (whoa that is a mouthful) screeches something I am not sure of. Wil Heuser gives us some odd looks as he attempts singing. Ryan Benningfield comes dressed as a "Kiss" wannabe and Patrick Warner throws his weight around and I mean that literally as he attempts to sing "Billie Jean". Okay, enough already. Next?

A dueling piano player steps up to the plate to audition. His name is Matt Giraud and he sings a Gavin DeGraw song. His voice is not bad and the judges think he sounds unique. I would not go that far but Simon's comment make me wonder as he compares him to Elliott Yamin. No way, Jose. Anyhoo, he is off to Hollywood.

The nerve of some people. In comes Ross Plavsic who studies Chinese characters and lets us know he is more of an academic. No kidding, I could not tell with the suit you are wearing. Paula wants to hear about the Chinese characters which leads to Simon trying to hurrying up the audition. In a very slow-motion deep voice, Ross sings "Cara Mia" by Jay and The Americans. This does not impress the judges and he tells them his throat is dry so Paula asks him if he wants a drink of water. With no qualms whatsoever he goes to the judges table and drinks out of Paula's cup. This stuns her. He then screws up the song "Love Me Tender" and it is a definite no to this one.

Ten make it to Hollywood on that first day and we see short snippets of their faces. Some look pretty interesting overall.

More filler time as day 2 dawns before our next contestant in the form of Alexis Grace comes in for her audition. This mother of young Ryan is engaged to the father who is currently in Pensacola, Florida but does hope for the chance to become the next idol. She yells the song "Dr. Feelgood" by Aretha Franklin and amazingly enough impresses the judges. I honestly do not think she is all that great but after lots of chatter, she gets her ticket.

The judges are wearing out at this point so in pops a very energetic young man known as Aaron Williamson. He yells out his first line of the song "Have You Ever Seen The Rain" by Creedence Clearwater Revival which totally wakes up the sleepy judges. In fact it startles Paula and Kara. All the judges except Simon join in this yell-fest which brings Ryan running into the room to find out what all the racket is about. While Aaron is a fun person he does not attain his gold.

Learn to zip your mouth Kara. In next is Rebecca Garcia who appeared briefly on the local news for a try-out. She appears to be a nice girl who attempts to sing Carrie Underwood's "Before He Cheats". It is not very good. Meanie Kara mentions that Rebecca was voted the most humorous in high school which prompts Simon to ask if this is a joke. Kara thinks it is. Poor Rebecca realizes they are making fun of her and the hurt on her face says it all. Kara regrets her comments as Rebecca leaves the room in tears. I feel like slugging Kara.

Some pleasant moments of a few who do make it to Hollywood follow. We see Kris Allen (very good I think), Felicia Barton who has a fair voice, Ryan Johnson who has the David Cook hairdo but sounds good and finally Shera Lawrence who is just okay in my book.

:( Another sad story as we hear the plight of 18 year old Leneshe Young. She has basically grown up in shelters with a mother who has several children. Why do the poor have so many kids I wonder. Anyway, she is hoping to have a career to help her mom and siblings. In spite of her hard luck story (I am getting rather tired of these) she comes out decked in a cute outfit and has lots of confidence. She does an original song she wrote called "Natty". It sounds like a good song and she does it well which totally impresses the judges. She becomes the 19th ticket holder on this two day jaunt to Louisville.


This hour has come to an end and along the way I see several potentials. Our next stop is Jacksonville, Florida and once again we see lots of previews (I wish they would stop these) however I now have to say good night and welcome any comments you would like to add.

Okay, yes, I did know that it was the Home of the Slugger. Here's one YOU may not know or recall. Carrie Underwood was presented with her very own unique Slugger by the company for singing about it in "Before He Cheats."
And this is going to sound rather heartless, and try to believe I am not trying to, but I believe the poor have so many offspring because a) they need all the help they can get and b) without a lot of money, there's little in the way of entertainment. What else are you supposed to do?
~tyg

Have you noticed there seems to be alot of "pull at the heart-strings" stories this season? We have Scott MacIntyre (the blind singer), Danny Gokey (lost his wife 4 weeks before AI auditions), Kai Kalama (putting his life on hold to take care of mom) and LeNeshe Young (rising from proverty). As touching as these stories are (and I honestly cried over Danny's story).....PLEASE! Let's get to the heart of the matter. Getting the gold ticket for Hollywood.

Out of all the contestants I watched in San Francisco and Louisville, the ones that stood out for me where Brent Keith Smith, Kris Allen and LeNeshe Young. I really like LeNeshe. I think she has the talent to take this competion all the way to the finale. And I was impressed by Adam Lambert too. I gotta admit...it's going to be interesting this season. (Still keeping my eye on Danny Gokey) Alexis Grace is another one I'm keeping my eye on.

Needless to say, because of past experience with voting, I'm staying pretty reserved until the top 12.

Great review as always CC since I missed the last half of the show. I was able to catch Leneshe and I think she was great!!

All these sad stories...they need to make time to show us more auditions..good ones.

And Danny Gokey is my fave so far. I honestly can't wait for Hollywood week.

Thanks for responding everyone.

Tyg, your comment gave me a real giggle. To add to that as well as sort of answering others posts on this. Yeppers, I am getting tired of the hard luck stories. For crying out loud I am sure each of us have had tough times in our life and some of these stories are overkill I think. I know that sounds heartless in a way and if I have offended anyone, I apologize. The only one who really broke my heart was Danny GoKey and he is definitely one of my faves at this point.

I see several potentials in this group from Louisville and like Angie can hardly wait to get to Hollywood. One I really would have liked to hear more from on this night was Ryan Johnson (we only saw him in a snippet). I do think Leneshe Young may have a real chance of getting past Hollywood.

Anyhow, be back next week with my report on Jacksonville.