Celebrities
American Idol Final Four: Voters Get it Right, Bee Gees Favors Blake
By Shirley Kennedy
May 8, 2007

Imagine my surprise at the four left standing last Wednesday. LaKisha, Melinda, Jordin, and Blake all belong exactly where they are, and the competition should be very interesting from here on out. America, you did a good job. I said early on that I felt these three ladies should be left standing, with two of them fighting for the title; I also said that Blake might just throw a proverbial monkey wrench into that plan.

American Idol Final Four: Voters Get it Right, Bee Gees Favors Blake

I stand by those statements. I think Blake has a real chance of being in the finale with one of the ladies. As the managing editor here at The National Ledger pointed out, Blake is this year’s “Katharine McPhee” by virtue of being the last male standing with three females, which certainly might work in his favor. Before we get too far into the mechanics of how all this might play out, bear with me as I go through a recap of last week.

Good-bye and Good luck to Phil Stacey

Phil, as his song implied, went out in a Blaze Of Glory. For the past three weeks, Phil markedly improved on his performances. His vocals were great, and his performance was very enjoyable. Just when I thought Phil had “arrived,” he was eliminated. Unfortunately, Phil waited too late in the game to improve upon his performances, which failed to give him time to attract the fan base necessary to keep him in the running. Hopefully, Phil can continue to hone his skills and realize his dream of a singing career.

Jordin - Ugh
 
Jordin sang “Livin’ On A Prayer,” and it was not pretty. I did find her believable as a “rocker chick” based on the look she took on, but this was just not a good song choice for her. The low notes were off-key, and I have to agree with Simon that the high notes came across as shrieking. One important note about Jordin, however: She is extremely mature and took the judges’ criticism better than I’ve ever seen a contestant accept criticism. She agreed with their assessments and pointed out that on the first note, she knew she would never do the song justice. This is the mark of a real performer—and she’s only 17. Like Randy, I hate to keep saying that, but her age is part of what makes Jordin such a fantastic competitor on this show. She is mature way beyond her years, and she is otherwise a very talented vocalist. One less than stellar performance should not have eliminated her, and I’m glad to see that America agreed.

The return of Lakisha

Kiki is back. She sang “This Ain’t A Love Song,” which Jon Bon Jovi promised us was the perfect choice for her. He was so right. LaKisha belted this one out and showed great stage presence. She’s still covering the girls (thanks, Kiki) while managing to show her sexy side. LaKisha has apparently learned that less is more, and a woman can indeed be sexy by leaving something to the imagination. Displaying her own level of maturity, LaKisha knew she had to bring it this week, and she did. The only complaint I can make about LaKisha’s performance is that it sounded more soul than rock, but I don’t know whether staying true to the rock genre was necessarily a requirement, as evidenced by Blake’s performance.

Beat Box Blake Needs to Go Back to Blonde

Blake sang “You Give Love A Bad Name.” First, let me say to Blake that he should go back to being blonde. I didn’t like the dark hair at all on him, as it takes away from his youthful appearance. The other complaint I have about Blake is the beat-boxing. As Simon pointed out, half the audience would love it and half would hate it. While I didn’t hate it, I wasn’t thrilled either. It was an entertaining performance but not necessarily a good vocal performance. As I said last week, Blake is most comfortable when he can use the beat-box, which makes for a fairly one-dimensional performer. I don’t know how being known as a beat-boxer rather than a singer will serve Blake over the long haul in a singing career.

Good-night Chris

Chris decided that since he’d already attempted to sing several of Elliott Yamin’s performance songs this year, he’d move on to Chris Daugtry’s performances by singing “Dead Or Alive.” All I could do during his performance was compare it to Chris Daughtry’s performance, which made Chris Richardson’s choice a bad idea. While Simon referred to Jordin’s performance as “screechy,” she certainly was no more screechy than Chris, who seemed to literally scream the lyrics. In addition, every time Randy Jackson mentions Chris’s “R&B vibe,” I scratch my head and wonder what the heck he’s talking about. There is absolutely nothing R&B about Chris Richardson. Just because the folks on American Idol continue to compare Chris to Justin Timberlake does not make it so. Besides, Justin is more hip-hop than he is R&B. In fact, if I were Justin, I would be more than a little insulted at the comparison.

Melinda in a whole other leauge

Finishing out the show last week, Melinda showed us that, once again, she can do anything. Jon Bon Jovi was obviously impressed with her in rehearsals by declaring, “You’re in the band!” Rock on, Melinda. She performed “Have A Nice Day” and gave a decent rocker chick vibe. Her little back-to-back dance with the guitarist was very performance oriented, and her vocals are always good. Simon told Melinda that she is “in a different league,” and that is the best way to describe her performances. Week after week, Melinda wows the crowd with her pure vocals, humble personality, and improving performance skills. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, Melinda deserves to take the crown this year.

Jon Bon Jovi is officially one of my favorite mentors this season. He seemed genuinely interested in the contestants’ choices and performances. Jon was pretty transparent in his comments about the contestants, making him come across as extremely sincere. Considering that he is still married to his high school sweetheart, still lives in his home town in New Jersey, and seems so sincere, I would say that fame has not gone to Jon’s head, and that suits him well. I never knew a lot about Bon Jovi’s music, but because of him, I will likely be going to find out more about Jon and the band. I find it extremely refreshing when celebrities seem to remember where they came from and behave like “everymen.”

Bee Gees Favors Blake

This week, the contestants take on music of the Bee Gees and will be coached by Barry Gibb, which style of music lends itself to Blake’s beat-boxing. None of the ladies have a gimmick and must simply sing as if it is their last time; it may well be for one of them. In a competition based purely on vocal prowess, one would expect Blake to be the next elimination, but as we all know, other aspects of the performers appeal to voters on American Idol. While the three females have stronger vocal skills, Blake has the entertainment thing down pat. In addition, Blake being the only male left in the competition should serve him well with the predominantly female voting audience on American Idol. The next two weeks should be interesting as we wind our way down to the finale.

Shirley has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Political Science with an emphasis on Creative Writing and a Master’s in Public Policy. She is currently working as a freelance writer and freelance publicist for several bands and musicians.