Something hinky’s been going on with American Idol the last couple weeks — and not just Harry Connick Jr.’s unfortunate attempts at “comedy.”
On this week’s all new (low-budget) installment of Reality Check — be forewarned, our producer Jason Averett is off this week, so there’s no performance footage or fancy editing — my co-host Melinda Doolittle and I try to figure out what ill wind has been blowing through The House That Made Possible Adam Lambert’s Epic “Ghost Town.”
Did Quentin Alexander deserve the boot — or should he have won the Twitter Save over Rayvon Owen? Or should another finalist have been sent to the guillotine? Melinda and I debate these questions — and also consider whether Clark Beckham’s presumed coronation could be spoiled by Nick Fradiani or Jax.
We’re not skimping on The Voice, either. On the docket: Koryn Hawthorne and Kimberly Nichole’s dominance of Top 10 week; our problem with front-runner Sawyer Fredericks’ latest song choice; and the vocal meltdown of several early faves, including Joshua Davis.
Press PLAY above for the full (super-sized) episode, then hit the comments with your thoughts!
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What the what? 44 minutes of Reality Check? Loving this!
I will have to watch when I get home from work, but I already know I won’t agree with Melinda.
You can dis yourselves for taking this much time if you want to, but I (along with a lot of other people, apparently), LOVED IT! Do it again!
Ha, I love that they’re so sure we’ll hate this. Sorry, guys, you’re a blast. A lot of us listen to podcasts that are an hour or so and we’re used to it not necessarily being edited. I’m torn because I love a good Doctor Who clip, but why can’t we have our cake and eat it too? Doctor Who clips AND an hour long Reality Check. :)
It’s funny that haters call me a troll when I comment because I speak the truth! I usually make comments about singers I don’t like! People only comment when I put down people!
One of the few times I praised a perormance was the GREAT performance IGGY AND JENNIFER PUT ON! Of course NOBODY commented on my POSITIVE comments! One of the best guest performances ever on AI and only one other person even mentioned this performance out of many hundreds of comments! People would rather listen to JAX THE HOAX THE JOAX THE MOAX than IGGY and JEN! AMAZING!
98 percent of your comments are negative, so after a few most scroll right pass them. If you indeed post positive ones, there are probably overlooked. Maybe learn a way to get your opinion across without being nasty and name calling, then maybe you wouldn’t be called out as a troll. “truth” in you eyes like you said it really is an opinion.
I am so sad for a few here that are so cruel I cringe when I read their post. The stuff said on this blog in the comments about Jax is way OTT and totally unnecessary. If you don’t like her singing fine, everyone has different taste in music but no need to make fun of her. You are really cyber bully’s. I read something that Jax tweeted that broke my heart. I know she reads Michael’s blog. Remember she is a person and the things that are said about her by some of you are just so cruel I can’t imagine what she must feel reading them.
“.It’s so important to remember that we’re all human behind our phones and computers. Once you publicize something, real hearts could break.” (Tweeted by Jax 8 hrs ago)
.Mary, thank you for speaking up. I’ve been biting my tongue because it does no good. The people doing these post have absolutely no soul and do not even know what is right or wrong. I think we lost quite a few regulars because of the nastiness of a few posters here. I know I am ready to stop reading this blog.
MARY,
WRONG! I see you read them! Most people if not all people read them! Deep down they love them! 99% of what I predict comes true, plenty of times against the odds! I have a DOCUMENTED impecabble record of picking winners on these shows! One only needs to go back on older blogs! Nobody wants to admit I know my stuff! Well, one person out here does!
These are blogs, not life and death situations! Get over it! People “cringe” over my comments??????That is utter nonsense! These same singers who you defend wouldn’t buy you a cup of coffee! That is life! I’m not commenting about any of you out here, only the singers! SO, WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM?????? You are all so sensitive! How would you act in an important situation? I suppose, not very good!
I am not going to get into a sparring match regarding how you post. It is obvious you see nothing wrong with name calling and negativity. I try to think before I post and word it without attacking the contestants. I am not overly sensitive, but I am mature enough to choose my words. There is a word in the dictionary called tactfulness – look it up – might be useful in future post. Have a good day.
Just so you know, not all of us were wild about that rapping performance. I found it very boring. I would and do buy Jax’s music and would never buy that.
MEG,
WELL, YOU BUY JAX OFFS MUSIC! That rapp performance was golden! You don’t know talent! JAX THE HOX, THE JOAX, THE MOAX, THE JOX STRAP IS TERRIBLE!
MEG,
MEANT THEHOAX!
Thank you for introducing me to that wonderful Adam Lambert jam.
It is a pretty song, but I feel it is kind of repetitive. I am sure I will like other songs on the album when it comes out.
repetitive? Nonsense have you listened to it more than once?
Wouldn’t that make it even MORE repetitive? It’s repetitive enough in its current single status!
Adam Lambert fans are the WORST. Wait, that’s not true. Taylor Swift’s are the WORST. Adam Lambert’s are the SECOND-WORST.
Hey, be nice !! Lol We are pretty nice.
I did and I still found it repetitive. It is okay if I don’t care for one of his songs, I am sure there will be ones on the album that I will like. Not everybody likes the same things thank you very much.
2 Reality Checks in one week?!?!?! “HEAVEN ISNT TOO FAR AWAY”
Yikes! 45 minutes of jibberish I mostly skipped over. Sorry – you guys should not be doing this. You don’t come across as knowing anything about what you’re talking about. Especially Melinda. You both rattle on and are not making much sense. Please don’t do this again!
Melinda doesn’t know what she is talking about?? Are you joking, she an incredibly knowledgeable musician, and she’s had first hand experience on the show. I think she is credible.
Pay no mind to the troll. (TVline can you keep an eye on this noob okthxbai!)
Everybody’a a troll because you don’t agee with those people! Everybody is entitled to their opinions! They are not trolls!
Everyone has an opinion, which is fine, it is the way one expresses that opinion that is the problem. Choose your words properly and nobody would care. Every heard of the word diplomacy. Use it when voicing that opinion.
Agree, Scott. Melinda gave very insightful comments about Joshua Davis’s lack of coaching sessions from Adam.
MARY,
The person above was called a troll because the other person didn’t agree with the person on a singer! The person said nothing out of line…..NOTHING! Myself, If I think something’s bad I say it stinks! I say singers stink or are terrible! These words are in the dictionary and I’m sorry you are such a miss perfect! Some people make hard biting comments while others are pussycats, afraid to say what they really want to say!
This is why I liked as judges SIMON and MINAJ! They weren’t afraid to speak the truth and say a performance or singer was terrible! On THE VOICE and AI, EVERYBODY NORMALLY GETS GOOD PRAISE, EVEN WHEN THEY STINK! WHY GIVE SINGERS FALSE HOPE! DO YOU THINK THAT HELPS THEM?????
Name calling these singers is not the way to give your opinion.
Boooooo
That’s hysterical, CactusRose! What on Earth are you here for, if you don’t think both the hosts know anything?! I swear, how odd is that?
I completely disagree and if you weren’t really watching it as s whole than of course it wouldn’t make sense cause you skipped through it. And please don’t single out Melinda Doolittle who truly exemplifys what it’s like going through the reality singing experience and as a constant period. She’s given great feedback and insight from what I’ve wTched not only here but In previous episodes. How does not seem understanding as to what they’re saying????
what a jerk you are. I love them and what they have to say. Why are you so selfish Cactusrose? Pricklepuss should be your name.
Michael and Melinda are giving their opinions, so of course they know what they’re talking about. Everyone is an expert on their own opinions. Melinda has musical knowledge so she gives some of this along with her opinions. If you have no respect for their opinions or don’t agree with them, that’s fine, just don’t listen. The rest of us will enjoy to our heart’s content.
I did not think it was bad at all.
LOL at Melinda doesn’t know what she’s talking about. She competed on the show for criminy sake! Came in third but should have won. I think there’s an example on this page of someone not knowing what she is talking about, but it ain’t Melinda Doolittle.
What I learned from this Reality Check is that Jason Averett deserves a raise!
Haha!!!! Love Michael & Melinda but editing works WONDERS!!!!
Yes, a week without Jason was NOT the week to go low-tech, or super-size.
They went low tech and unedited BECAUSE Jason is away. Jason is the one who dies the editing etc
THIS
Yes, although I did enjoy this unplugged version as a change of pace.
So funny. :)
I’m gonna go out on a limb and say I enjoyed this format more. Some of the clips are funny, but what I enjoy are listening to two people whom I typically agree with and who typically have fun or useful insight on songs and/or performances hash it out. I don’t need the bells and whistles.
This is true. :D
Clark is going to rival Lee Dewyze as the least inspiring winner in Idol history.
Throw Kris Allen in there with them. For Stooges there really should be three
I’m not even going to dignify that with a response.
Kris Allen should never have won. NEVER. Adam Lambert was so obviously the winner. If Nick Fradiani wins it will be another Kris Allen. Mediocre, generic to say the least. Clark Beckham has a voice and talent and looks( which is more than I can say about Phillip Philips–who always made me feel that he was constipated when he sang). Handled properly he should become a star…My favorite Quentin is gone and I am sad that he didn’t go on the road with the group..
I’m so sorry that you’re still bitter, Jan, Ann, whatever. Adam seems to be ok with it. Let it go.
Jan was right – Allen was less interesting than off-white paint drying. Lambert was easily the real winner.
I’m sad Quetin got the the boot too. But, the mentoring guy seems to really like Quentin so I really think he’s going to have a future in the music business. I loved what he said about how the next big thing always come from the edges of music and that Quentin is an edgy artist. I’m more excited to see what he’s going to do (despite the vocals) than Clark or Jax.
His vocals on the recordings were great. lol despite anti autotune Harry. Can’t wait to see what Quentin does!
I love Quentin too. I look forward to seeing whatever he does in the future.
ITA Jan.
Oh no, not this BS again.
I agree with everything you said! I’ve always told friends that Phil Phillips sounds constipated when he sings! Haha!
YES Kris should of won because he received the most votes end of story, even if you don’t agree with it. Really 6 years later and it continues – move on. Beckham has the voice but he certainly doesn’t have the stage personality. Before casting others in negative light maybe you should re watch your Clark. If watching someone sing with their eyes close and showing no emotion whatsoever is your thing fine. Different strokes for different folks.
Lol, Kris Allen deserves a lot more credit than you are giving him. It’s clear Adam has done tremendously better post-show, but you cannot deny Kris’ significance and really awesome Idol trajectory. Kris was one of the pioneers on American Idol of adventurous song choices and arrangements. Plus, if you’d ever had the privilege of seeing him live, you’d know how damn good he is.
Kris had a sweeter tone and a lot more appeal than either of those two.
Emily-those facts seem to go right over the heads of some people here.
How is appeal a “fact?” For that matter, how is “sweeter tone” a fact? Opinions differ.I don’t think Kris Allen was a bad contestant by any means, but I do think Adam was better in all facets. Obviously, that’s not a unanimous opinion, and none of what I think amounts to fact either.
Just go with Allen in the first place, I love what DeWyze did before and after Idol. He’s just not a pop guy. Allen makes ketamine look thrilling.
Thank you! I so agree. For all their expressed desire to find “artists” this season, most of them have been eliminated and won’t be on the tour. There is some serious bland going on with most of those left.
Completely agree! I actually deleted the future recordings of idol. I think I might finally be done after all these years! They did try to find artists with an edge – but the viewers like their plain boys and so I give up!
Clark sings like kinda a Joe Cocker type of voice, better to just listen, does the blues-rock stuff really powerful — but can see why some call him a “bot” for expression.
Good job. Did not mind extended version. Few notes. Brendon Thomas and The Vibes did an amazing Make it Rain 2 weeks ago on X Factor New Zealand. Yes Koryn killed it but maybe the song allows for great performances more readily. Melinda hit the nail on the head, Nick is what you see is what you get. He has no star quality. He can not give more. I think he is trying to take risks with songs, but that is what he is capable of. If he wins Idol, they should end the shows run immediately. He is very average. I thought Clark did very well with both of his songs. His take on both were interesting. Making Bieber both edgy and relevant is genius. Yesterday is one of the more boring Beatles tunes. His version again gave it some life. I do hope he wins. I tend to listen to people sing, not stare at their eyes. What comes out of his mouth, is both original and emotional. He does have star quality. Thanks for the 45 minutes. My day is better for it.
Yesterday one of the more boring Beatles tunes? Please tell me you’re joking.
It’s subjective. It’s an introspective, getting drunk alone kind of song [certainly not an anthem]. But if you were depressed when Clark started singing it, you could be suicidal by the time he finished.
He was singing it in memory of a friend he lost through suicide so I could understand why he was having some difficulties with it. It’s hard to sing when you are trying not to be emotional. Easier when the eyes are closed.
Or, if that was a factor, pick a different song.
back then, all my troubles seemed so far away
@Allen, there is a very “edgy” version of Boyfriend on youtube. You should go take a listen-it’s by the band Issues. Your ears will never be the same lol
@Alan-if you want to hear an even “edgier” version of Boyfriend go look up the band Issues version. Your ears will never be the same lol
Oops what the heck :)
Alan, you nailed it with you comments.
Low budget or high, Michael & Melinda rule!!
I understood you until you got to Nick’s hair, at which point I decided your judgment was impaired: some of us will never vote for Nick until he loses his top locks: they make him look…well… dumb. Although this week they were hedged trimmed, this is not a white guy hair cut. Even Adam Levine looks lousy and his is styled daily.
Idol was godawful this week, especially after a night of The Voice. Voice performers are farther along in their development and the viewers who watch both understand a comparison is apples and grapes: green grapes. But Idol was a disaster: whoever was passable was passable because s/he hit the notes. Jax did the best, and I say that grudgingly, because I haven’t been a particular fan: Joey does it better. Clark still has an edge, primarily because over the long term, he has been very, very consistent and he hasn’t shown up in a Halloween costume. Idol the past two years has had been wildly erratic: just when you figure someone has a big career they can’t hit a note. Lots of notes were missed this week on Idol. Lots.
I tend to think it is the contestants’ guidance that is the major problem, because obviously there is a major problem. I suspect they aren’t getting any guidance, possibly because the help had other things to do. I can’t imagine what, but something. When it doesn’t work, they still need assistance, and they need more work. Much more work.
I feel like Adam mentally checked out this season when he did such a bad job winning contestants during the Blinds. Like he threw a fit and gave up. He didn’t save Tonya over Brian. He let Josh a song that was completely wrong for him. He spent every week telling us over and over that Deanna had no confidence (so why would anyone vote for her?) and basically sabotaging his whole team. I think he should take next season off ala Christina and come back refreshed and hopefully with a new bag of tricks.
agree, Adam almost asked for Deanna to get eliminated in a way.
Michael, I loved that Reality Check. You and Melissa really went into depth with both The Voice and Idol. We need more of this.
We both win! Agreed. I love this format. I’m guessing we won’t get more of this, but I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.
It wasn’t intentional but I found that with Joey Cook gone, I completely lost interest and did not watch Idol last night. Hearing about the Quentin bussing, it makes we even happier than I skipped it. These last five are totally bland, although I guess I’m rooting for Jax.
It was bad enough that Joey was voted off last week. But with Quentin gone I can honestly say that “Idol” has lost two of its most original and talented contestants EVER. I would have gladly traded Tyanna and Nick for Joey and Quentin. What makes it worse is that HALF THE COUNTRY gets no say in this “Idol” Twitter save. At this point I am rooting for Jax.
I completely agree with you, although I do feel that Clark has huge potential and a great voice (and looks). Quentin was my favorite and both he and Joey were unique artists…Nick is so generic and forgettable vocally.
Yes! Finally someone else voices their opinion that this idolsave that allows the part of 1/2 of the country that is in front of their TV & computer to over-ride America’s week long voting process every damn week is whacked!
Jaqui — if it is so whacked, then you can just stop watching! To say something like that about this show that spends all this time and money to entertain you…I just find that HIGHLY disrespectful. ;)
Haha!!
Agreed.
Oh my gosh. Can they just always keep reality check 44 minutes. Please
The Voice alums produce some good music too Ashley DuBose album is fire!
Tyanna is 16. Does it surprise anyone that she doesn’t have it all figured out yet? It shouldn’t!
Tyanna , IMO, has represented herself and the show very, very well. Her performances have sometimes been fun and sometimes just well done for her age and experience. May she always have good luck, good friends and goodwill — she doesn’t need to win to have been a good contestant for the show.
This Michael Slezak is not a good writer at all.
Why does the Twitter save still exist at this point of the season?
at least the save is over now.
Shaun, that was the last twitter save! But its too late! All of the interesting contestants are gone! Get ready for another Lee Dywze or Chris Allen type of winner!…….Cricket sound
DeWyze not Dywze, and Kris not Chris.
Nan I would not know the spelling of their names because I am not a fan of either of them! They are insignificant and so is the spelling of their names!
I do know the spelling of Adam Lambert because I am a fan of his and he should have won!
At least you have heard of them and so has many outside of Idol. Can’t say the same for your winner last year. Guess he shouldn’t have won.
Mary Thought you should know, so sorry to tell you, that if you look at the new Top 25 performances ever done on idol, CALEB JOHNSON is the ONLY one that has TWO performances on that list! Maybe Im amazed and Dream On! So obviously someone likes him! Oops your bad!
Read my statement again. I said outside of idol. What one does on idol doesn’t mean squat in the real world. Oops try again.
Mary Ok Outside of idol, You could think he should not have won because of terrible record sales! ALL THE CONTESTANTS LATELY have failed at selling huge amounts of records, especially in the last 4 or 5 years. So that does not make Caleb stand out as the only “dud” winner! Lots of them should not have won, and now this year it will be the same because none of the top 5 are going to sell squat! LOL By the way if you were rooting for Jena or Alex, they too, havent done squat!
BECCA,
Miss your comments on new AI blogs! Check out the last blog! I challenged that big mouth ANGIE OVERRATED who thinks she knows it all, to a SINGOFF! I told her I’d put up any amount of money she chooses! She chose to blast me instead of accepting my offer! I called her a coward and personally, I’m tired of her 25 comments every blog, saying she sings opera!
Hope you start watching rest of Idol! I like your comments! You make sense, unlike that bag of hot air ANGIE OVERRATED ( GREAT LAST NAME SHE PICKED…..OVERRATED! SHE SHOULD MAKE THAT HER REAL LAST NAME!)!
Comment back to me on latest Idol Blog where I challenged her! I’d love to hear from you!
Oh, I forgot, I wanted to singoff with her in Portland Oregon, so you could watch me dismantle this fake!
THANKS!
It bugs the crap out of me too Slezak that Quentin won’t be on the tour. What a snoozer that’s turned out to be.
Everyone has their own taste in music and singers but if the purpose of a reality show is to find the most talented singer than these shows are failing. There is more to a winner than just being the best singer like charisma, looks, stage presence and connection. AI will never find another Adam Lambert nor will any talent show find some one with his vocals. He’s the whole package. I’ve lost interest in these shows in past 6 yrs. Too much about the judges. I hope the finalists for AI are Jax and Nick both are what America is looking for.
yes, I miss the days when there were GREAT singers who could really put on a performance. Like Melinda, Chris Daughtry, Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia, Adam Lambert, Kris Allen, David Cook, Elliot Yamin, Katherine McPhee, Allison Ireheta, or Haley Reinhart, Joshua Ladet, etc. People who made us go WOW! and talk about them the next day, download their performances, etc. I haven’t downloaded a performance since Casey James did Jealous Guy. Seems like the last few seasons have just turned into a gigantic Karaoke contest and I haven’t been amazed by anyone, especially this season. Yes, they’re all good, they’re fine, but nothing that blows my hair back or makes me care if they win or not.
BETSY,
Fantasia with her screeching baby voice and David Cook with his ripoff win over the OTHER DAVID, Who completely blew away Cook with his final 3 songs! Fantasia should never have been close to top 30! Big hype job! Terrible tone and looks, YUK! How people can stand those 2 Is a mystery for the ages! Especially the big baby….Cook is tolerable but ug mug Fantasia ( she’s so special…Her name is Fantasia! ) is annoying! Karaoke, maybe!
David Archuletta was pretty bad, and the children of the corn brainwash thing is just plain creepy. Sorry, no.
TEMP,
Well, he sure out sang Cook on final 3 songs! Simon also agrees until he SLIGHTLY renegged on it cause he knew who won! Go rewind to the 3 song final sing off
Cook sounds terrible to this day!
LOL children of the corn.
You mean “HE WHO WALKS BEHIND THE ROWS”? Remember thats how they referred to their god, or whatever it was! Children of the Corn!
You mean “HE WHO WALKS BEHIND THE ROWS”? Remember thats how they referred to their god, or whatever it was! Maliki ! LOL
Woops again. God at least every other day my comments have a twin comment. What the heck? Sorry about that!
It has become apparent that if your special snowflake doesn’t win, the others have something wrong with them in your little brain. HAVE you ever consider expressing your opinion without name calling and negativity. I know this is wasted breath and I usually ignore you and scroll right on by, but you must be one unhappy human being.
David Cook’s The World I Know is one of the best performances in AI history. It is arguably one of his best performances along with Billie Jean and Always Be My Baby, or Hello, or Music of the Night, or All I Really Need is You.
Betsy you are right on the money. Those past contestants made my heart leap and gave me the chills. This bunch are so unmemorable. Quentin might have been a bit pitchy here and there but then he probably has never had a vocal lesson. At least he was unique and powerful. The rest are very weak…although Clark has huge potential.
Betsy! You’ve hit the nail on the head with that comment. Best performers ever….
SHERRY,
ADAM LAMBERT COMPLETE PACKAGE! STOP DREAMING PLEASE!
This
She’s not dreaming. I happen to agree with her as do many other people. Queen thought enough of him to take him on tour with them but I suppose you think you know better than them.
and for those who wish Quentin and/or Joey had gone further — they had 7 to 8 live performances this season—-on national TV — exposed to other artists and producers in the business —– so if they are the “real deal” and have great appeal, they would or will have many labels looking to sign and promote them. … if not, they will fade into reality talent show history — so time will tell.
The purpose of a reality show is to sell advertising.
Thanks for the Reality Check, always love it. But what I really want to know is where did Melinda get the white sweater she wore last time and the blue shirt she’s wearing this time? I want them!!!!
I agree with everything but: MD’s praise of RAYVON and both their praises of terrible Joax! I haver never thought ITUNE sales matters if a singer is good or not! Kudos to MD for not watching ITUNE ratings! I’ve been saying it doesn’t matter for years! Everything else….SPOT ON!
I agree with everything but: MD’s praise of RAYVON and both their praises of terrible Joax! I haver never thought ITUNE sales matter if a singer is good or not! Kudos to MD for not watching ITUNE ratings! I’ve been saying it doesn’t matter for years! Everything else…SPOT ON!
Sorry for same type comments! Didn’t think initial one went through! Thank you!
You were spot on with all your reviews. RE: Nick on AI – he DEFINITELY needs a moment. So far, he sounds like any (really good, very enjoyable) singer I could go down to the local music club and hear on any given night. Sure, he’s really good, but he’s not blowing anyone away. He needs to blow us away.
True, we have some very good bands doing the City events and fairs in my area, and some are real similar to Nick and his pre-Idol Beach Avenue band.
They should have made the last theme “ARETHA Anthems” not Arena Anthems. I would have enjoyed that a lot more. (Possibly even more if it was done on The Voice, with Adam’s team sitting it out.)
Melinda looks gorgeous!
I wish they would discuss Idol & the voice separately. Don’t watch the voice, so I had to wait a long time for the idol stuff
You can skip ahead
I loved the “low budget” version. Big fan of reality check for years…but i have to say this was a refreshing treat. You guys are great!
As far as Jax goes, she always comes across as fake to me, a little girl playing dress up pretend rock star. She mimics what she’s seen others do, and nothing feels authentic or genuine. That whole “stop playing piano mid-song and raise my hands like I’m SO emotional that I might need to grab my head to keep it from exploding” routine is incredibly annoying.
for a while, Joey was always grabbing her head or hair or something too. What is it with that?
Sierra, Is that what she did? Maybe I should watch for a good laugh! I have been fast-forwarding through Jax’s performances!
Sierra, you nailed it with Jax. Her voice is so annoying, she ruins every song she sings, trying to make each song her “own”. She needs to go home.
ET GO HOME!
Yes I felt the same way when Jax started to grab her head, did you notice that she appeared to want to cry towards the end of the song once again copying from another contestant. The difference is Tyanna truly felt that emotion Jax did to gain more votes. For someone who took vocal Lessons from the same guy GaGa did you would expect her to be able to sing. To me she is screechy when she sings at the piano and her uptempo songs like beat it are a complete mess with flat vocals. They are pushing her just like Fantasia who sang in a baby voice, and where is she now???
I actually would rather have Randy Jackson back cause the song choices were WAY BETTER last year! The songs make the show and also ,if it is in their wheelhouse make the singer better too! The only performance that stands out in my mind of this whole season is Quentins, “Feel it in the Air Tonight”, nothing else is memorable! Randy was way better and I never thought I would say that!
+1 IN SPADES…BECCA! SCOTT IS THE WORST EVER! He gets contestants eliminated! What can you expect? He discovered a no talent Swift.t, who wins awards with a terrible voice! Scott thinks JOAX is great!
RANDY JACKSON WAS SUPERIOR TO THIS DUNCE!
Jill I really enjoyed the songs last year! They let Caleb do songs that were never done before on a competition like Family Tree, Sting Me, Dazed and Confused. The other contestants did good songs too! Jess did Call Me by Blondie. I thought at the time it was a terrible season of AI, but NOW I take that back! Very good music and interesting contestants! Like you called it a circus last year Yes but that kept me interested. So many different kids. Yes I would take back Randy Jackson over this crap. Borchetta is ruining the show! Oh Yah and Caleb did Skyfall beautifully! Almost every song , by everybody was a good song! And it was memorable because I do remember! If you ask me right now what songs they have been doing this year, I have already forgotten because they are terrible song choices. The voice is great. Pharrel is letting Sawyer and Koryn pick their own. The only he has picked was HOw Great Thou Art for Koryn that one week! On the other hand Adam insists on picking their songs and as usual that is getting them all kicked off! Blake is even letting them pick because that Hannah picked Shout by Tears for Fears! You are going to think Im nuts, But I liked that performance! LOL
Tyanna – anyone else notice her total lack of enthusiasm while she sits in the lounge?
Koryn was amazing and she is very different. She is captivating I feel she has a very good of winning
For me, the ‘spirit’ has left IDOL now … and ‘tho Clark will most likely win.., both he and Rayvon and even Nick to a degree, are just automatons and I don’t ever feel anything from them when they sing. I may as well just close my eyes and just listen, cause I know nothing is happening on stage.
I think Borchetta and the Judges predictable schtick—- also add to the dimming of the spirit of the show at this point. …
The themes they use and limited songs they can use because of band approval, also keep the show held-down…. Seems like the band(s) on The Voice can do about anything they set their minds to, without an 18 song approved theme list
The song list isn’t as limited as people say. If a contestant asks, a song can be asked to be cleared. There are no more imaginative contestants.
Oh wow, second episode this week. <3
anyone but JAX
You are so right jake, Jax needs to go home. She is so fake.
Haters going to hate
Always have loved Melinda, but the fact she knew that “Make It Rain” was a Foy Vance song and publicized that fact make me respect her even more. Vance is, perhaps, the least recognized genius performer/writer going today. Thanks for the shout out!
Quentin was a terrible singer. He was off-key on every song, and Harry Connick Jr was the only one to continuously point it out. He never got any better and was never going to, during this show. All he had was showmanship. He is/was a terrible singer. Good singers sing on-key, and he never could, for a whole song. The other two “judges” don’t judge, they just sit there as “fans” and praise every performance. They have never changed, either. American Idol’s days are numbered. There is not one of these final five that is going to have any kind of successful career, except maybe Tyanna, ala Jennifer Hudson, because I don’t think she’s going to win, either.
And neither you or Harry was at all correct. He modulated badly at times, changed keys, and hit some bum notes here and there, but it’s essentially meaningless in the business. Britney couldn’t have made a buck without autotune, and Katy Perry and Rihanna were (originally) literally painful to listen to. I called Rihanna the Tone-Deaf Goat for ages. Then they worked on it an got MUCH better. Quentin had IT, and I think Jax does too. The rest? Not so much.
For the record, Katy Perry and Rihanna are still TERRIBLE singers. TERRIBLE is a gross understatement. I think we’d need to create new adjectives to fully capture the wrongitude of basically everything they do when they begin to phonate.
But to your point, being able to sing often doesn’t matter.
I hope this will be American Idol’s final season. The contestants this year are ALL crap and the only judge I can stand is Keith. Half-naked J-Lo is totally inappropriate for a family show. Everyone should be watching The Voice. It’s a thousand times better than Idol.
The routine of American Idol’s judges arrogance is just a bit more than can be tolerated;but the Quentin authentic remark last week was strangely absorbed in what looked like a staged outcome. No one looked that surprised and it’s all pretty much in the can. This show has gone to the dogs-ooops, I have a dog-I didn’t mean to insult dogs. This show is degraded to false everything: won’t list all that is fake. What wasn’t was the 5 min of Quentin last week. Could have brought life to this pitiful has been done too many years and there’s no life left in the show. The kids who get in it are naturally true believers, some with great talent-but the show shellacks it all down to meaningless crap. Great performers like Jennifer Houston, Adam Lambert, Carrie Underwood I think and more. That’s what the young people is a potential for something real rather than a paper shadow of mechanical and over practiced imitations of themselves.
No more for me.
What struck me about that Quentin thing last week was, its the Job of the HOST to steer conversations to safe and cheerful wording. Ryan is a PRO yet he chose to let the confrontation go nearly the worst way possible.
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I have to think that Ryan made it go raw on purpose, and yeah, he’s so professional it’s almost like he could have smelt it coming and wanted to ask it a way to get the worst initial response ? Premeditated? yeah there was something fishy about it.
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How it should have gone. Ryan sees that Quentin is angry; A host doesn’t ask someone angry what they’re thinking right now but maybe – more like, “its rough isn’t it?” Even if the “it’s whack” came out, Ryan should have steered it like, “It is really hard to see friends go home each week isn’t it, it is a competition though and you’re really all winners for getting where you got” , not “what do you mean by whack ?”
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I think they were brewing up controversy and it came off lame and unsettling and decidedly un-fun. and got worse and worse from there.
Agreed. The show was done with Quentin and threw him under the bus. But I’m used to it with AI.
Tom22 Yes I think it was planned. Also look at the end again! After commercial break the twitter save numbers count down 3,2,1 and then Ryan is asking Rayvon questions.There is nothing in Ryans hands yet. Then he reaches in his pocket, keeps talking and then out of the blue says”I have the results right here!” with envelope in hand. So if the clock was still counting down, why did Ryan ALREADY have the results in his pocket? I happened to notice that when I watched the third time from my DVR. I also noticed Ryan was extremely friendly to Rayvon, hugging and everything, but not all to Quentin! No hugging there! I think IM really losing respect for Seacrest!
It looked like he was holding an iPad or something. The results were probably delivered to it. It’s not like they print out a card in the last few minutes of the show…
Yes, it was absolutely clear that Seacrest set him up.
Jennifer Houston?
What I learned is that the two (possibly 3) best singers this season on reality singing competition shows are Kimberly, Koryn and Sawyer.
2 teenagers, and one over 30 female.
Clark has been the favorite all season (Southern white male with a guitar), but an upset by Nick would be delicious.
Because what’s really wrong with Idol is their penchant for choosing underripe teenagers as competitors. What makes The Voice a better show is that an older seasoned contestant can win.
So a victory by 29 year old Nick means Idol will have to rethink the way the choices they make when selecting contestants.
You maybe right. I noticed on The Voice they pick better songs to sing. That might be because they have more experience so they know what songs they need to sing. American Idol is my favorite show. I hope they don’t cancel it. I am a Quentin fan and he is gone now. Maybe I will vote for Nick.
This was fun!!! You two crack me up. I agreed with everything you said about The Voice. I’ve been listening to Koryn sing Make It Rain on repeat since Monday. And now I want to hear Meghan Trainor sing Your Gums Are Flappin’
I am watching this from now on. Listening to you both talk about AI and The Voice has been the kind of smart conversation that I have been longing to be a part of for YEARS!! Next week, I’m gonna just go get my coffee, plant myself right here, listen & laugh, and it’ll the best coffee date that I’ve had in years! And Melinda Doolittle, still a fan here! Cheers to you both!
I woke up way too early this spring Morning to the happy chattering of birds outside my window, tried to fall back asleep, but couldn’t, so I reached for the iPad and came across this unplugged version of Mike and Melinda, and T HANK GOD they threw caution to the wind and took a risk flying in tandem without Jason, as I loved every second of these two lovely birds twitting away with humor, funny love and respect for the each other and spot-on comments about both shows. Great start to my day, so thanks! I think once a contestant is booted from one sow, he or she should show up on the other show for the Twitter save or steal or whatever one would call it. For example, get Lexi Davila on the weekly Twitter save with Rayvon and throw Quentin onto TheVoice. Better yet, have Melinda’s mom join mike and Melinda next week in a cameo where she comes in and tells Melinda to sing something, and Melinda bursts into some Jusin Bieber. I doo love hearing Ms. Doo sing! 🎤🎤😄😄😍😍
I hate google hangouts (love you two though)
Michael please record in the bedroom next time
I’m concerned that after Quentin’s meltdown that future contestants will feel if they answer just one question too honestly they will get voted off the show. This will make for really bad TV.
So, I would have liked the producers to work with Quentin on this event that made an example of him, and come up with a series of pointers about how to work with difficult or negative feelings when they come up on stage….something useful for all these newbies wanting to play in the big time.
It would be interesting to see it as part of the show….esp. since it would help to take some of the bad taste out of the viewers mouths now that we’ve had to witness this thing.
Michael is right though, about this year on idol! Something is wrong! Even as bad as we thought last year was, they were charting in the top 20 by this time. Jena’s Creep and Calebs Unfaithfully were at the top of the chart at this time last year! Not to mention Alex and Sam were also charting pretty high! This year I dont think they have charted at all in the top 200. I just went and looked at an article from last year> It was April 17 and Jena’s Creep and Caleb’s family tree were high on the charts top ten area and Sam And Alex were in top 200 somewhere! Either the songs are super bad so they are not charting, or the performances are underwhelming this season! AND WE ALL THOUGHT LAST YEAR WAS BAD? I think it is the song choices! Also if Tyanna goes home, then we dont get to see Duets because with only one female left, that wont work. I just really loved Caleb and Jena’s “Gimmie Shelter” duet. They just killed it!
Im going to go watch the Jena Caleb duet performance of Gimmie Shelter right now on u tube. Havent seen it in almost a year and Im going to compare with my ears what I hear from last year and what I am not hearing this year! Im going to feel my ears with a damn good performance for once from this dumb show!
BECCA,
Good name Save-on Rayvon (hope I have it right)! I’ve re-named JOAX to JOX STRAP!
BECCA,
I personally think this year may be better than last year(at top 12 was definately better)! I heard Michael mention that high pitched BILLY GOAT MOOSE! I thought she had a nice last name, thinking it was pronounced MEUUUUUUUUUUUUUSSSSE! But it was pronounced MEUSE, a one quick snappy word! What a disposition on that moose!
Jill Yah but the music and song choice is a big part of the show and that part was better last year!
Jill I was on Sawyers facebook page and people were posting about Corey getting through! They were warning Sawyer that Corey has hundreds of people set up with hundreds of e mail and voting accounts so that he gets through! They were telling Sawyer to reach out to his fans and let them know to get more accounts set up! Ughh! I cant stand Corey. Anyone else I would be ok with winning! I wondered how Corey got through cause usually the chart votes in top 10 get 10xs the vote and Corey has not been charting while other contestants that went home were charting. I know some people think it doesnt matter about the charts, but when you can get 10xs votes for every i tune sold, thats pretty good! Im concerned for all the contestants when it comes to “the Corey voting people” because he may keep getting through when everyone else gets sent home! Ok I liked Daniel Seavey better than Corey and I like country, voted for CWB! But Corey is just awful and off-key. Looks like Obey Taylor from Andy Griffith if his hair was red! LOL Lets call him Obey!
Wait, or Does he have kind of red hair like Obey Tayler?
BECCA,
Yeah, OPIE TAYLOR…..A CUTE LITTLE GUY, but now, when he’s older, oh God! What a change! Great director though! When Opie was 6 and older, he was so smart, the producers took suggestions from him….AT 6 YEARS OLD!
Opie Taylor for Corey….GOTCHA…ok!
Oh I mentioned my other name for JAX…JOX STRAP! I HAVE ANOTHER ONE…..JAX A$$!
Jill There is a video on u tube of sawyer at 12 doin Hey Jude! So good. He should do that on the voice!
In terms of itunes sales and Billboard Charts — “The Voice” is so far ahead of Idol this season, that there is no competition between the shows anymore. …..
The Voice has dominated so completely, with more diverse song selections and a top 20 that had an interesting range of performance and singing styles.
Idol can surge again, but only if they clean the table of the Judges, Borchetta and a few other brokers behind the scenes — that put this underwhelming season together…
Billboard Charts? How is The Voice ahead in Billboard Charts?
Sound is awful on Google Hangout–hurts my ears!! Go back to podcasting or whatever, please!
After this reality check, I can imagine Kimberly getting eliminated next week. Its the curse! lol
Yay! Two things I’ve been waiting for:
1) more The Voice coverage, and
2) Koryn finally getting her shout out for consistently and ridiculously amazing performances week after week after week.
Thanks so much, guys. Very much appreciated that we got more TV discussion.
Michael, I know your sound/editing guy was off this week but that was absolutely brutal. What Harry says on American Idol isn’t exactly must-know-now breaking news. I’d rather wait until your guy gets back and can put together something that’s edited down and entertaining. Honestly, don’t do that again.
Couldn’t disagree with you more. This was a fun edition of RC; please do it again. And BTW, Michael, you didn’t look older without the high tech; I thought you looked younger, actually.
I’m on team JoMarch on this one.
@JoMarch Thanks for your critique of my opinion. My opinion still remains my opinion, however.
Who are these other people trying to boss Michael around? Reality check was just fine even without editing! Actually seemed more real and great conversation between Melinda and Michael.
This was probably the worst Reality Check I’ve seen. Really miss Jason Averett!!! Maybe he can give you some hair next week Michael :) Luv you guys!
I loved this! It was nice to hear you guys for longer. I also think the contestants need to watch you guys b/c you’re saying what the judges and Scott should be saying. I don’t care how much they want to win or what they plan on doing when they don’t do it. So right about no one being 2 for 2. At this point I do think the only one taking risks, changing things up is Jax. Although voters seeming to vote for the boring good looking guys is wearing on me. Honestly out of everyone on this season the person I want to go far is Quentin. Even if it’s becoming a fashion designer, he needs to make it b/c he has *it* to be successful. Sad more of these guys couldn’t be on tour to at least help them out financially. JLo needed to take a paycut. Anyway thanks again Michael and Melinda :)