Welcome all. This being Thanksgiving week our remaining contestants are singing songs to give thanks to special people in their lives. This was especially a tearful show as so many had things to be thankful for although no one totally blew me away.
Steve Jones welcomes us and let's us know that this week's elimination is going to be somewhat different. First the lowest vote-getter will automatically be eliminated. Then the next bottom two will have to sing for survival so in reality two acts are leaving the competition. Again I truly hate this format.
After the intro to the judges, L.A. Reid answers Steve's question about the tough elimination of last week. Evidently both Simon and L.A. had a major talk with Astro Bradley who behaved so badly last week. Now everything was hopefully back to normal. One last thing each contestant will be commenting on who they are most thankful for. Several family members and friends also give comments. Now for the performances:
Rachel Crow is up first and sings the song "I Believe" from the movie "Honey". The original singer of the song was Yolanda Adams. Rachel who is most thankful for her parents who adopted her gives a rousing version to the song and looks adorable. I thought it was good but again not totally blown away. L.A. thinks she did it again. Nicole says she made her a believer. Paula calls her an angel and Simon adds great vocal and performance. My grade: B+
Marcus Canty is thankful for his mom which prompts his to sing the song "Mama" which was written by BabyFace and recorded by Boys II Men. This was indeed a passionate performance however I heard alot of sharp notes throughout the song. Why is it these judges never seem to mention this I ask? Nicole likes his honest performance. Paula as well as Simon felt the connection and L.A. calls him a great singer. This performance was just okay in my book as I think Marcus has done better. My grade: B
Melanie Amaro wants to thank God for all her blessings even though she basically grew up with her grandparents since her real parents could not afford to take care of her when she was young. Doing the song "I'm The World's Greatest" which is a gospel song with a full choir backing her up I thought this was pretty good. L.A agrees before Melanie gives a lengthy speech of how happy she is with her family and this opportunity. She was quite hyper and emotional. Nicole gives her a hug and thinks she is courageous. Paula likes how vulnerable she was during the song. Simon of course is very proud of her. My grade: B+
Chris Rene is thanking his counselor Tim Fry for basically saving his life since Chris is now seven months clean from his addictions. What brought Chris to his senses was he had a bad car crash and almost died. He starts off his performance with the song "Let It Be" by The Beatles and then adds his own original midway. What I like the most about Chris is how he connects to the audience as his stage presence was quite good even though the vocal was just okay in my book. Nicole applauds his powerful music. Paula calls him amazing. Simon liked the second half better and feels Chris is helping thousands of people. L.A. of course believes in him. My grade: B
Lakoda Rayne are thankful for the people who shaped how they are today. They sing the Taylor Swift song "You Belong To Me". Again it was good but I did hear some pitchy notes. L.A. feels they drummed up some excitement this time around. Nicole says they look and sound amazing. Simon calls this their best performance to date and Paula adds they have proven that the sky is the limit. I would not say that but okay. My grade: B
I felt sad when Leroy Bell talked about his mom's passing which was almost two years ago. His song of course is for his mom. He sings "Angel" by Sarah Maclaclan. I thought it was good but sadly I could barely understand his words in places. L.A. says it was good but not his best. Paula disagrees and calls the performance passionate. Simon felt like he connected with Leroy. Nicole admires how he did not hold back. My grade: B
Astro (the brat) is humble this week and wants to thank his supporters. It is a rap song he wrote I think but my problem is it all sounded like it was just one note even though he had a very flashy background on the stage. Before the judges give their comments he sort of apologizes for his attitude last week. Nicole reminds him to always be grateful. Paula wants to become an "Astronaut". Simon admires him but does not feel this was the perfect song. L.A. thinks he did a great job. My grade: C
What can I say but Drew is just boring week after week. Her thanks goes to her best friend and she sings the song "Skyscraper" by Demi Lovato. She does manage to show some oomph in the second half but overall just another bland ballad in my opinion. L.A. did not like the song for her. Nicole thinks she rocked it (huh?). Paula loved when the tempo picked up. Simon on the other hand gets very angry with L.A. about picking on this girl so much. They really start to get into an argument before Steve Jones puts a halt to it. My grade: C
Josh Krajcik is dedicating his song to his daughter Rowan. Evidently he and the mother split up which affected Josh alot but his daughter as she grew up gave him the support to get back into music. He is singing the song "Wild Horses" by The Rolling Stones who originally wrote it. I loved how he played the piano during this number. Again it was very good vocally but not totally blown away. L.A. however thinks Josh is so great he could win this competition. Paula calls him larger than life. Simon says great song, great voice. Nicole feels so excited and emotional for him. My grade: B+
Several were good tonight so I think it will be a rough elimination. On the results show we will have performances by Kelly Clarkson and Bruno Mars as well as our contestants doing the song viewers Pepsi Choice commercial. I know I voted for my faves and hope you did as well.
Until later when I re-cap the results show, I hope you have a great day! Toodles for now!
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Subject: Giving Thanks - Top 9 - 11/22/11 
Wed Nov 23, 2011 7:30 am
