It was an overall awesome show at the Sprint Center in KC! I’ll try do a rundown by performer in the order they performed:
Michael – I have to say I was really impressed with Michael. Like Chikeze last year in the 10th spot, Michael was also a wonderful opener for the show. Lots of energy, great showmanship, and his voice was surprisingly stronger than I remember from the show. He’s grown A LOT! I could actually see him doing well in country music, but he also sang an Usher song quite well too. He’s got kind of an R&B Country crossover sound.
Megan – She did much better live too. I loved her performance of Put Your Records On. One of my favorites from her. I didn’t know the Amy Winehouse song she sang next, but she sounded pretty good. I think her voice has grown a lot and I love her sound when she’s sings songs suited to her voice. Her hair and dress were hideous though! Too bad, cause she really is a pretty girl.
Scott – I wasn’t sure if I would like him live or not, but surprisingly again, his voice was spot on live. Much, much improved since Idol and quite strong actually. And his piano playing was really, really good as always. My favorite song from him was Vanessa Carlton’s A Thousand Miles, though I am still partial to David Archuleta’s cover of that song :)
Anoop – Sadly, I had almost forgotten that Anoop was even in the Top 10. He came out guns blazin though and proved why he was in the Top 10. His version of Always On My Mind was really good. And My Prerogative was tons of fun. When he got done, it almost sounded like there was booing going on, but no one had been booed up to that point, so I was surprised and saddened cause no one deserves that. But then I realized that they were saying ANOOOOP! I hope Anoop knew that. I would hate for him to think he was being booed. He looked a bit confused at one point, so I wasn’t sure. He did a very nice job.
Lil – Well Lil is probably the one I liked least overall. She SOUNDED very good, but for some reason, I just can’t get past her trying too hard to be like a Beyonce knock-off or something like that. I just don’t think she has anything unique enough about her to make it in the music business. I liked her Alicia Keys version of No One, but I still prefer Felicia Barton’s version from the Top 36. Lil just doesn’t pop as a performer for me. There’s something very lacking there.
MATT! – Notice how I wrote his name :) Yeah Matt’s set is when I can honestly say the show really came to life. Up to that point, he got the loudest crowd response and for good reason. This was like almost a whole different performer from Idol! He was confident, vocally strong, and just an absolute crowd pleaser. He started with Hard To Handle and NAILED it! He also played the last part of the song piano really fast while he sang and my mouth just about dropped open at how amazing it was! He then sang Georgia On My Mind from his Hollywood Week audition (when I first took notice of him) and holy cow, it was AWESOME! He then sang You Found Me by The Fray, which I know the judges didn’t care for on Idol, but on tour, it’s really, really good! His voice is so much stronger now that his nerves from the show are gone. Even his falsettos were spot on. I was blown away! I screamed like a crazy freak for him! LOL! Then he and Scott did a dueling piano performance to Billy Joel’s Tell Her About It. Holy cow, that rocked! Those guys can PLAY!!! And they both sounded great vocally too. LOVED IT! If Matt does not get signed, I will throw a hissy fit because he is so incredibly talented!
Before intermission, the bottom 6 who’d just performed did group number medley. It was pretty good, but the crowd was getting restless. Then there was a 20-minute intermission.
Allison – I still can’t get past the fact that Allison is only 17. She really took the stage by storm! She started with Pink’s So What and she was playing electric guitar too, which was cool to see. She had a little trouble with her ear piece at the beginning and kept messing with it, so her voice was kind of harder to hear in the first verse, clearly she wasn’t able to hear herself very well; but once she got her ear piece situated, all was good and her voice suddenly kicked into high gear. I think it was a good choice of song for her and a lot of fun. Then she did my absolute favorite from her, which is Janis Joplin’s Cry Baby. LOVED IT! Man, that girl can sing…she can wail in a good way! It was like watching someone twice her age. She ended with Barracuda. Not a song I care for, but she sounded fantastic on it. Very rocker girl indeed! I’m so glad she has an album deal. She’s definitely got a career ahead of her.
Danny – Awesome Danny! Wow! I knew the guy was going to sound awesome, but man, it’s a whole different experience hearing him live! He started with PYT and really got the crowd going. They loved him and ate up everything he did. We were screaming our heads off for him! Then he sang some kind of Latin pop song called Maria Maria. Not a fan of this song, but I enjoyed his Latin flair..he did very well with it. Then he sang two Rascal Flatts songs, What Hurts The Most and My Wish. Absolutely awesome! I could totally see him doing something in the vein of modern country with a bluesy twist. I got absolute CHILLS during My Wish and they’re coming back now just by writing about it! His voice is just flat out awesome. I think I even may have underestimated him some during his run on the show.
Adam – Okay, well I’m no fan of Adam. As expected, he came out with big bang of an entrance and the crowd went ballistic. And to be honest, I just could not get into his set most of the way through. Seemed to be the case for the entire row behind me as well. But yes, we were in the minority that was sitting most of his set. He started out with Whole Lotta Love. Good I guess, but he does way too many vocal gymnastics on it…it actually hurt my ears when he started the screeching thing he does. So I used that time to go the bathroom. He then did Starlight by Muse, which was okay, but surprisingly rather boring. I was checking my mobile web during that one. Then he sang Mad World, which I did actually like. I had liked it on the show too. It was really good. I much prefer his subdued side to his wild side. I kind of wished I had let myself enjoy that song more actually because I was making fun of the little teenyboppers that kept yelling “Adam I love you!” – LOL! There was definitely a lot of high-pitched pre-teen sounding squeals going on for him. THEN, thankfully, Allison came out and they did their awesome duet Slow Ride, which was all kinds of awesome! That’s when I and the row behind me finally got on our feet. Adam ended his set with Bowie Medley. It was okay, but I wasn’t really paying attention. I was anxiously waiting for Kris by then! :) I will give Adam credit. He’s a great performer and a fab vocalist, but most of what he sings and his style is just not what I like personally.
KRIS! – I was hoping that his reception would be great since we seemed to be in a very pro-Adam arena, but I was pleasantly surprised. Kris’s entrance generated quite a booming reception of cheers. Kris began with Heartless and sounded AMAZING! He played guitar and sang with ease and confidence. Again, hearing him live is definitely a new experience. Of course he was great on the show, but anyone who says Kris’s vocals are lacking hasn’t heard him sing live. In no way shape or form were Kris’s vocals lacking anything. He was very strong and hit the notes with no problem at all. I was amazed at how rich his voice sounded in the arena. He could do a big venue solo tour with no problem at all. He then sang a song by the Killers on electric guitar. I cannot for the life of me remember the name of it, but it rocked! He is quite the guitar player that guy! He was like a rock star during that song! Then he moved to the piano and sang Bright Lights by Rob Thomas. LOVED THIS! He is just effortless when he’s playing an instrument and singing at the same time. It’s a paradox kind of because he makes it look so effortless, but yet, he gets so intensely and passionately into each song too and sang with every ounce of his being. You can tell he just loves every minute of it. Near the end of Bright Lights, he gets up from the piano and picks up the electric guitar and plays along with the guitarist in the band. It was such cool moment seeing that. Almost like he’d arrived and was already a huge star! I felt like I was watching someone who’d been doing this for years already. He’s most definitely worthy of the American Idol title. He then got back to the piano and sang Ain’t No Sunshine (my FAVORITE of his!). The cheers during the little pauses on the song were loud! He definitely appeared to have the crowd in the palm of his hand :) I think Ain’t No Sunshine really showed off just how good his voice is since it’s more of a stripped down performance. And then he ended his set with Hey Jude by The Beatles on acoustic guitar. This was lots of fun and the whole place was singing along waving their lighted cell phones back and forth. At the end, the rest of the Top 10 joined in on the Na, Na, Na part. And Kris ended with a sweet glory note that people went crazy for. This boy has it ALL! He’s a singer, a musician, and all-around artist. Absolutely an amazing talent way too often underestimated by some of the judges on the show. Kris may have been overshadowed on Idol by Adam, but Kris really knows how connect emotionally to every song and bring the crowd in with him, and I have no doubt he will have a wonderful career ahead of him. I can’t even say that he is exactly like anyone out there on the radio now, but yet he is very current and relevant to what is popular and probably will be for a long time.
Then the whole Top 10 did a group number to Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing. Scott and Matt started out on the dueling piano thing again, which was cool. It was good way to end the show. Everyone seemed to be having a blast. So that’s the recap. Sorry I don’t have any pictures. We didn’t go early enough or stay after for autographs this time, but that’s okay because it was a mad house afterwards. I wished I had gone early I guess, but it’s all good. The show was excellent! I still would say nothing will ever Top Season 7 for me, but I really enjoyed this year’s show a lot. I can say without a doubt that Matt, Danny, and Kris would be the ones I would pay to see an entire solo show of right now. They were so entertaining and could easily headline a show. Probably Allison too, but I think I’d like to see her get a couple more years’ experience and tour with like Kelly Clarkson or something first; mostly because I think a tour with those two would rock! :)
