Top 7 Redux Results Show Wrap Up – Where do the Contestants Stand?

You got it right MJ. Adam could take a big dump on the stage and still win this thing. No one is even close to him. I do really hope that Kris keeps progressing as Danny regresses. Danny makes my skin crawl for some reason….

ADAM for the Win!

Actually, if he took a dump on stage, I think many would object. Because he’d be known for scatting and I’m totally not talking about singing. LOL

The girls picked by the judges/producers this year just weren’t as good as the guys. The judges picked women like Jasmine Murray and Megan Corkey when there were sooooooooo many more talented women. I don’t mind that the top 5 is mostly guys, because compared to the girls I mention above, they deserve to be there first (in my opinion). It seems they have different criteria for men and women. They choose women based on looks (packaged artist – Megan Corkey/Jasine Murray) versus whether or not they can sing on key. Luckily, America is finally getting smarter and not just voting for people they feel are cute.

Its the same thing with people of color. Where is Jamar Rogers and Ju’not??!! I wonder if the show is staying away from the R&B vibe do to the fact that previous winners of color (Fantasia, Ruben, Jordin) didn’t do as well as some of the others? I dunno.

Anyways, I agree with your prediction order. Unless something unforeseen happens, this week is all about Matt and Allison. They are definitely competing against each other. Both of them have been in the bottom 3/2 at least 3 times. This week is made for Matt and his vocal style so it’ll be interesting to see what he does with it. He’s been giving A LOT of life lines this season. Allison being the only girl left gives her an edge. I’m not sure if the show wants an all guy top 4. Either way, she needs to do something different. She’s really starting to sound the same with everything she sings. I think that is why she isn’t connecting with people to garner enough votes.

MJ, I’m glad you’re confident about Adam’s chances of winning because I’m sure not! LOL. If he seemed to actually be farther ahead in actual voting, I might be. But even with all its issues, DI has been fairly accurate, and he’s not giving off a consistently dominating showing there. So, unless he’s pulling in massive amounts of text votes, I’m not sure he’s doing quite so well in the voting to think he’s got this completely sewn up.

The thing that worries me most is that a lot of people like and want a final 3 of Kris, Allison, and Adam. Thus, I think Adam’s in danger of vote-splitting. Maybe not big, huge, massive danger, but I have seen a lot of “well Adam doesn’t need my votes, so I’m going to save so-and-so.” Now, if he keeps throwing down killer performances that bring in swing votes, it won’t be a problem. But if he has a week with just average performances, he could really be in trouble. And really, they don’t even have to be “average” because he’s set such a high bar for himself. If they’re not something that people remember and are moved to vote for, he could potentially be in danger. I really hope he’s got an iron-clad strategy in his song selection for the last few weeks.

If it’s him and Danny in the finale, Kris and Allison lasting this long could bode well for him because he might pick up some of their votes. I’m trying to think where Anoop’s and Lil’s votes might go this week. Yes, I know that some people stop voting all together, but not everyone is “my Idol or no other!” So, I think Anoop’s would probably mostly go to Matt because of their similar style, and Lil’s will probably be split between Allison (last female standing), Adam (those who like the “divas” ), and Matt (last real R&B singer left). Of course, no one really knows how many votes they were getting or how it will affect anything. But it’s always something to think about.

I’d love for there to be a “shock” Gokey boot this week, but I don’t see it happening yet. Matt really has an uphill climb, but if he can nail his performances, I don’t know what will happen. I honestly think he deserves to go – he may not be the weakest singer or performer left, but imo, he’s been the most inconsistent.

Lastly – I think it’s really interesting that 4 of the top 5 all came from semi’s group 2. Group 2 FTMFW!

Adam has so much momentum behind him, he could take a giant dump in the middle of the stage and still sail through to the next round.

ahahahahaha…tooo funny. now THAT would be a moment in Idol history. Id rather see him glamrock out the sappy winner’s single, tho.

Isn’t Matt Giraud bi-racial?

Isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t Matt Giraud bi-racial?

That’s a rumor, as far as I can tell.

Isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t Matt Giraud bi-racial?

Matt’s mom is half black. Next time they show his parents, which is almost every week you will see. Or better yet, go back to his video from when they sang songs from when they were born.

I really really really am frustrated with this whole Danny situation. Ok, fine, he has a lot of “faith-based” fans and they spend their time voting for him. Fine. Whatever floats your boat. However, what is up with Simon being a fan? Are they really looking for an artist whose main, if not only, audience is the Christian music scene? (Keep in mind that I am Christian, albeit Orthodox Christian, and I have nothing against the principles of Christianity; the problem is using religion to win American Idol.)

In my opinion, and in many others from what I’ve read, Danny has a mediocre voice, at best. The most “personality” he’s shown is his dead-wife pimping and his ridiculously bad dancing. Beyond his religious circle, how is this man anyone’s idol? There may be a logical or believable explanation to this question, but I have yet to hear it. Anyone want to try?

Even if I didn’t think he was talented, I would still want Adam to win just to shut this man down. Please please please shut him down.

I think Matt may be able to pull through if he really steps up his game. there is no doubt to me, based on his studio recordings, that he is one of the best vocalists left, he just needs to learn how to translate that into his live performances.

Matt Giraud is 1/4 black I think..

I honestly don’t think he’s picking up many Anoop fan’s votes. Most of them are pissed about the save. Seriously, it seems that as the competition went on they stopped vote splitting and instead a lot of Anoop fans hate Matt and vice versa. Of course, maybe that’s just the hard core fans.

I want a Kris, Allison, Matt final three. But that’ll never happen.

Mattà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s mom is half black. Next time they show his parents, which is almost every week you will see. Or better yet, go back to his video from when they sang songs from when they were born.

People are coming to that conclusion by just looking at her in a video? You can’t always tell someone’s race based on the way they look.

MJ, Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m glad youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re confident about Adamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s chances of winning because Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sure not!

I don’t think Adam is in any danger of leaving the competition this week…

Oh and I forgot to add – yes, yes, YES the best moment of the results show was the wonderfully cheesy group song. LOVED it!! It made me nostalgic for my old high school showchoir days. LOL.

ETA:

Seriously, it seems that as the competition went on they stopped vote splitting and instead a lot of Anoop fans hate Matt and vice versa. Of course, maybe thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s just the hard core voters.

Yeah, the hard core voters were what I was talking about in people that would just stop voting. But casual viewers/voters who were voting for Anoop based on liking his vocal style would probably swing to Matt, based on him being the only R&B singer left. But who knows… they might swing to someone else. Stranger things have happened.

mj, I agree with you re Anoop. He should have made the top 5 and Matt should have been eliminated. I do think Anoop will have the last laugh.

I also agree that Matt and Allison will be battling it out on Tuesday night. I’m certainly not a fan of Matts; but this theme fits him to a T. If he can just sing the damn song straight, without his horrific falsetto and vocal gymnastics, I do believe he will knock Allison out. Then he will depart the following week.

Id rather see him glamrock out the sappy winnerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s single, tho.

That would be unfair to every Final Two who weren’t given the option to screw up the Coronation Song. Blake wasn’t allowed to do it. Cook did but it was not the real song. So I hope Adam gets to suffer like every winner and get a handful of treacly lyrics and sing it for 3-4 months on every show on the planet and every tour stop. LOL

Because I like Matt, I’m more worried for him this week. It’s a theme that really suits and you know how it is when the theme actually fits the contestant. It usually doesn’t work out well.

It may go against the grain, but Adam’s best chances are to go against Danny b/c Danny can buffer his frontrunner status. Danny is not a threat and IMO has no chance of winning. His only hope is casual voters/viewers b/c the regular fans no likey him. Just take a look online to see who the real #2 is. I really hope Danny makes it to final 2 for Adam’s sake, but it’s going to be hard. If Danny leaves before top 2 Adam will be in danger b/c Danny fans will not likely vote for Adam and Adam will be left with all the frontrunner backlash to himself. If Adam is up there with Danny, I believe most of the frontrunner backlash will be directed at Danny b/c there’s a perception that he did not earn his place like Adam has. Kris & Alli’s fans on the other hand are most likely to vote Adam so them exiting b4 Danny is good news for Adam.

So for all u Adam fans who love Kris b/c u don’t think he’s a threat, think again. It’s not that I think he’s super-talented like Adam, but he is the boy next door who is pretty much inoffensive and therefore most likely to pick up Danny’s votes. It was like last season…oddsmakers predicted that the 2 Davids needed to go up against one another for the other to win. Had David A been booted b4 Jason Castro, Jason would have likely won. The gambling peeps explain it better than I can.

Do u all really think that Simon likes Danny more than Kris or Allison? He sees what we see peeps. He knows that Danny is there to buffer Adam.

How’s that for a theory?

People are coming to that conclusion by just looking at her in a video? You canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t always tell someoneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s race based on the way they look.

Oh I know you can’t tell by the way someone looks. I’m black myself, and my family comes in allllllll colors and features. lol I just don’t think its a rumor. I thought she was black from back during the auditions/hollywood week when we saw his family. Anyways, it doesn’t matter. I’m just glad that there aren’t a bunch of articles about the gender/race of the contestants this year. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same about sexuality, but its nice to see we are past at least some of it .

People are coming to that conclusion by just looking at her in a video? You canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t always tell someoneà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s race based on the way they look.

I’m not really sure where this point stands in the original discussion, but he is definitely a quarter African American (guess this would make him multi-racial instead of bi-racial though). Matt did an interview during top 13 week where he confirmed it. http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2009/03/staff-reporter.html

Thank you MJ for acknowledging the unfairness that caused Anoop’s exit. Anoop however has stayed true to himself and will always be a role model to kids all over the world. He has international fans, and my son included, wants to be as sweet, kind, handsome and talented as Anoop is when he grows up. Many children/youth want to emulate his behavior and many parents wish their kids could be as wise, gifted and humble as Anoop.

Anoop also records beautifully and I am sure he will hit the charts by the end of this year. His voice is so silken and can really grab a hold of you. There will always be Anoop haters – because no one expects an Indian man to sound so international. That said, the actual Anoop fans – who actually spent hours voting for him – will never transfer votes to any other contestant. I am sure that this week – the total number of votes will drop drastically – or they might just inflate them – cos anything is possible in the ‘Idol’ world.

I honestly donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s picking up many Anoop fanà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s votes. Most of them are pissed about the save. Seriously, it seems that as the competition went on they stopped vote splitting and instead a lot of Anoop fans hate Matt and vice versa. Of course, maybe thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s just the hard core voters.

You know what is interesting? Anoop and Lil seemed to be sharing the same fan base. I think its because they both had that R&B flare to their voices. I don’t know one Lil fan who wasn’t an Anoop fan and vice versa.

If you look at similar voice types, you would think they would turn to Matt, but I don’t see that happening, although that would help Matt out a lot this week. lol However, I can see a lot of those people going to Danny, only because the people I talk to who liked Lil/Anoop like Danny because of the Michael McDonald and gospel type feel to his voice. Who knows though? It’ll be interesting to watch and find out!

I think Rat Pack week provides another perfect setting for a Shocking Boot ™. It will be very interesting!

Is the Gospel Music Channel’s idol special available anywhere on the internet? I would love to see it. Chris, Melinda and Phil – and to a lesser extent Mandisa – are among my favorites.

I’m surprised the special only highlighted Gokey. To have not mentioned the other finalists, especially Kris, indicates that Mr. Gokey has the support of the Christian music industry. That is a powerful group to have in your corner. Hmmmmm.

An excellent recap, btw – thanks MJ!

Thank you for mentioning Anoop and giving the credit he deserves. I’m glad you (finally) did. I will never understand why Simon, the other judges, and TPTB were so cruel to him.
I miss him so much. Sigh.

You know what is interesting? Anoop and Lil seemed to be sharing the same fan base. I think its because they both had that R&B flare to their voices. I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know one Lil fan who wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t an Anoop fan and vice versa.

I love Anoop, and I hate Lil. There you go. (: Oh, and I love Matt and Anoop equally. They were originally my favorites until I realized how awesome Kris is. But they’re still my second faves.

MJ, I thought originally you said that you were glad they used the save on Matt. I still am glad. Maybe, it’s Anoop’s performance of Dim All the Lights that still bugs me.

I will laugh my butt off if Adam doesn’t win. If he does win I can’t wait to hear the watered down pile of dreck CD he will have to release as the winner. Oh and the coronation song should be a hoot as well. I wasn’t going to vote if and when Matt leaves but whoever is in the finale with Adam I will vote for them the whole 4 hours texting and calling in votes. Adam is the biggest poser ever to be on the Idol stage and I am shocked that no one else sees this. The guy is a complete and utter fake! And that screeching needs to stop. He will be the next fad and within 2 years you’ll have to find him on a Broadway stage.

Matt didn’t hit the bottom 3 last week because apparently America decided they wanted him there and loved what they heard. People get sent home all the time when they shouldn’t just like some contestants like Sanjaya stay too long. Who knows why they do? There are many reasons. The voting system is completely unfair and really doesn’t show who is the most popular or the most talented. It just shows whose fanbase can dial the fastest and the most.

Oh and by the way I loved Matt’s Have You Ever Really Loved a Women performance both times. And his Stayin Alive performance was fun, funky, sexy, and had spot on vocals.

I’m thinking all the people who go on and on about how unfair the save was and how untalented Matt is are just worried that he may just make it to the finale. You protest to much I think. Matt IMO has more talent in his little finger than Adam has in his whole body. For me Adam’s voice is extremely unpleasant and makes my ears bleed. Matt is the musician with real soul. Whereas Adam is actor who couldn’t really connect to a song if his life depended on it. He’s a sham people.

Also, while I don’t argue that Matt’s elimination would have been justified…I don’t agree that Anoop deserved the save more on HIS elimination night. While he may have been stronger vocally at times, if we’re going by how their performances were received he was just as inconsistent as Matt. Matt got really lucky on top 7 night, but I think Anoop (who didn’t exactly blow it out of the park, with the pimp spot no less) would have been just as lucky to receive the save.

Is this the first time we have a Top 5 that includes 3 people who have never been in the bottom 3? Adam, Kris and Danny sort of seem like shoe-ins for the top 3 assuming that all of the bottom 3s have really been the bottom 3.

I really hope Allison pulls through this week so I’m not subjected to any more of Matt’s rock songs. She has to have a better chance than he does since she’s never actually been voted off, right? I’ll be voting for her this week.

I also think the judges are probably done with Matt (well, maybe not Kara, rrrawr) but I was done with him in the Top 36. The Matt pimping mystifies me as much as the Danny pimping. (I am an Anoop fan, but I disliked Matt’s voice from his first audition. The save didn’t help matters though).

Now I’ll be disappointed if Adam doesn’t take an actual dump on the stage, lol. “Adam, you left your beautiful essence on the stage for all the world to see and I salute you”

I wish they had used the save on Alexis Grace.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not really sure where this point stands in the original discussion, but he is definitely a quarter African American (guess this would make him multi-racial instead of bi-racial though). Matt did an interview during top 13 week where he confirmed it. http://blogs.usatoday.com/idolchatter/2009/03/staff-reporter.html

Thanks. I just kept hearing that, with people pointing to the video as proof it was true.

Here’s a perfect example of how looks can be deceiving. I always assumed Paula Abdul was bi-racial. She’s not. (Bet some of you are learning this for the first time.) She’s Jewish. Her mom’s family is Eastern European and Dad is Middle Eastern.

I agree. Matt or Allison is gone this week. It might actually come down to who Anoop’s voters choose to go for. If they beeline for Matt, then he might beat Allison to the punch. However, if they go where I think they will (to Kris), I think Matt will finally make his exit after 2 too many saves on his behalf.

I think the finale will come down to….Kris Allen and Adam Lambert. Danny’s got steam, but I think Allen has the right combo of originality, prettiness, humbleness etc. that might actually start to eat away at Danny’s fan base, especially with him stepping up his game. American Idol viewers LOVE an underdog story and Kris Allen fits the bill. I know Lambert seems soooo far in front right now, but I don’t think he is unbeatable. Or maybe I’m not as enamored as everyone else seems to be with him.

The girls picked by the judges/producers this year just werenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t as good as the guys.

Totally true. They DID have girls who were just as good as the boys IMO (Felicia, Kristin McNamara), but they tossed them aside for the females who were visibly worse. It’s TPTB’s fault that this season has basically turned to shambles. I feel sorry for the contestants who have to deal with it.

MJ, I thought originally you said that you were glad they used the save on Matt.

The save was really good TV, and I admitted that. I wasn’t glad they used the save on Matt, because his performance wasn’t save-worthy.

Okay first I must commend Paula for that kick ass choreography. I have not ever enjoyed a group sing more. There were all awesome….well almost all. I am glad that Megan Joy left weeks ago, because that would never have been possible as she seemed to have two left feet. Watching Danny gyrate was bad enough, but the others more than made up for it. Pointy poses FTMFW!

Adam gotta win this damn thing. I mean I think Kirs is adorable and I hope if Allison doesn’t make the top two, that he does. I don’t think the others stand a chance. Danny’s base is formidable, but I don’t think that it will trump the talent the others have been laying down. I mean I know that he has people invested in him, but he hasn’t delivered. That should be the bottom line.

I hate, hate, hate the judges save. Especially used for Matt at the expense of Anoop Desai. Anoop was singing circles around this guy. Now Anoop goes out 6th, instead of making the top 5? It’s unfair, he earned that right. We voted him that right. The other thing that sucks about it is the sliding pay scale for the tour. I know idol isn’t fair, but this is more than unfairness. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Furthermore, the save was allegedly started so that if the silly-ass voters got it wrong, it would be rectified by the much smarter judges. So what did they do? They used it for someone who cannot win. Smart eh? The judges save wasn’t implemented for the reason they stated, but to create a moment. They can take it and shove it. It need not return next year.

I wouldn’t rely too much on DialIdol. They were wrong last week with Lil. I’m assuming here, so I could be wrong, that Lil actually finished 7th since she was eliminated first. DI had her placement between 1-6.

It has also had Kris placed near the bottom very often, and he has yet to be in the bottom three. Truth be told, we have no idea where any of the contestants are placing according to DI. Plus, I don’t think the sample size DI is using is this year is at all representational of the actual voting public.

I don’t think Adam fans have to worry so much about voting splitting as much as they should worry about how the people who aren’t Adam fan are going to vote.

If the finale DID end up Danny v Adam. It’s all going to rely on how the Anoop, and Allison, and Kris, and Matt fans vote.

Thanks MJ for your good words on Anoop. This got me teared up all over again . I too believe that Matt should have never been saved after he murdered that beloved song of Bryan Adams on stage TWICE. Seriously, what’s the point???

To someone above: I love Anoop and hate Lil and now Matt.

Thanks MJ, I cried a little reading your paragraph on Anoop. Thanks.

Love, love, love Anoop. CAN.NOT.STAND.LIL. I didn’t like her vocals or her attitude.

I think a lot of Adam fans realize that Kris is Adam’s biggest threat. I’m an Adam fan and I don’t even think it’s certain he’ll make it this week.

I am perturbed by so many claiming all the “culture war” stuff is crap, yet I see over and over again people make grand claims that a whole fangroup of a certain Idol will go to another. That’s stereotyping too and leads me to think there are deep seated culture wars that will play an impact and may prevent Adam from winning.

Visiting relatives this weekend, I got the sense from them (all Idol loving voting people) that Idol is almost like a Miss USA contest. Like picking someone to represent America. LOL. So many were Danny fans who voted for Cook last year. They love the sick relative story/ nice gentlemen who love their Mom. If Perez wasn’t actually asking the Idols questions, those questions went through my relative’s minds.

Fan complacency has got to be a big concern for Adam. Over 6 million google searches for Adam last month. The next Idol 550,000. I think a lot of those are international, yet I bet many think Adam is safe.

I’m torn. I think Adam far and away deserves to win, and I know he wants to win. But does it really matter? Do we really want to see Adam and Danny/Kris do all their interviews together? Last year it was all about Dadchuletta, this year it will be about Adam’s sexuality and how the contestants felt about it. And probably Miss California. ha. ha. The whole thing will be uncomfortable. I’m sure Cook was sick of Dadchuletta questions.

This week it will be a true singing contest. Backup singer twittered again and said how hard this genre was and it takes lots of practice and work. Danny and Adam should shine if they stick to the genre. Matt and Kris might falter, but Kris would survive. I think they all have to really show their voices. Probable Band on the stage means probably no piano or guitar.

I’m thinking all the people who go on and on about how unfair the save was and how untalented Matt is are just worried that he may just make it to the finale. You protest to much I think.

Matt won’t make it to the final. I’d bet my house on that. Simon said it–he’s Top 4–if he’s lucky.

I always assumed Paula Abdul was bi-racial. Sheà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not. (Bet some of you are learning this for the first time.) Sheà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Jewish. Her momà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s family is Eastern European and Dad is Middle Eastern.

I don’t know about you but isn’t having an Eastern European mom and a Middle Eastern dad bi-racial too? As for me, I never thought she was part-black, I thought she was Arabic.

I hate, hate, hate the judges save.

After every season that manages to go against the obvious TPTB script, the following season feels super forced and manipulated. This is one of those seasons. The deck was purposely stacked with dudes, introduction of the top 36 ‘sing off’, reshuffled the semi-final deck, brought back the wildcard and added the ‘judges save’. Plus, they tried to throw in an even more obvious ringer than last year (Joanne).

I also think the judges are probably done with Matt (well, maybe not Kara, rrrawr) but I was done with him in the Top 36. The Matt pimping mystifies me as much as the Danny pimping.

So much word.

I will never be able to forget the hack job he did to Coldplay. I don’t even freaking LIKE the band, but good god. That was one of the worst performances I’ve ever seen on the show. Period. Based on THAT, he didn’t even deserve a wildcard spot, much less a spot in the top 5.

I laid off the haterade for a week back when I actually FINALLY liked one of his performances. Now, I’m definitely completely done with him. (Sorry Ky! I still heart YOU though! )

I will laugh my butt off if Adam doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t win. If he does win I canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t wait to hear the watered down pile of dreck CD he will have to release as the winner. Oh and the coronation song should be a hoot as well. I wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t going to vote if and when Matt leaves but whoever is in the finale with Adam I will vote for them the whole 4 hours texting and calling in votes.

*high fives* this is me as well. Two of my daughters friends are huge Allison fans and they also plan to vote for whoever is up against Adam even if it’s not Allison. I’m trying to imagine the uproar if Adam were to lose. The entertainment value of it would be better than every shock boot that’s ever happened.

I’m honestly perfectly fine that Anoop was eliminated except for one thing. He has to share all his freaking exit interviews with Lil! Urghhhh. That’s why Lil and Gokey would have been perfect. They both could have annoyed the hell out of each other. Lol.

Sorry I’m bringing past seasons up, but remember when Chris and Phil were both eliminated? I loved that they could share the elimination together.

Still praying that Danny leaves this week…

mj: you got it all right with your assessment and rankings. If Adam does not win after his consistent performances and great success on iTunes, I will be okay with replacing all but TCO on idol w/the cast of saturday night live and spoof the whole show up. at least it will be a lot of fun!

thanks for the Anoop love, you are one of the few that is giving him a fair appreciation; even sleazy Michael Slezak could only come up with a tongue in cheek praise for him, will certainly miss his songs on iTunes in the coming weeks.

I think outside of totaly tanking her two performances, Allison makes it to Top 4. She’s due to go 4th this week with Matt 1st or 2nd. Of his seven finals performances, Matt has five in the second half of the line-up, including three next to last and one pimp spot. The two times he performed outside of the last half were a first slot(bottom 2) and a middle slot (elim/saved). The fact is Matt isn’t memorable unless he’s one of the last ones performing. So with his predicted performance slot, he’s one bad note or excessive run from getting a four judge beat-down, with Simon giving the pack your bags send off. Also, I think the show will stack the deck against Matt by having Adam go right after him. Any possible buzz from a good performance by Matt will disapate before before Adam hits his final note. Time constraints will also help, as going 4th Allison may be the last contestant to get full judge comments. Last year on Top 5 night, the one night Syesha went last, she didn’t even get judge comments on her final performance.

Sarah, I’m with you thinking about where the votes will fall. I agree that Adam will take a portion of Lil’s votes, but I don’t think Matt has the good will at this point to take much from Lil or Anoop. He’s had too many spotty performances, plus the perceived wonky save. I don’t think it’s bitterness so much as ability. I’m thinking Kris and Allison will be the big gainers in votes from both Lil and Anoop. Don’t underestimate the “I want to vote for a girl” vote when it comes to Allison. The fact that she’s the last one standing is probably enough to propel her into the top 4, at least.

As far as anecdotal evidence…I was hanging out with a few Anoop supporters last night, and the voters among them all intended to throw their support behind Kris. None of them felt Matt had done enough to make it this far in the competition. One person did admit to liking Danny though, so he could be taking a few votes.

I totally agree about that growing Adam/ Kris/ Allison top 3 feeling. I’m worried it will hurt them all, but Adam is in the least danger to me. I still think he’ll walk away with it this year. I’m thinking it’s a Kris/ Allison battle for second…I hope, anyway.

this is how i see it:

1.adam
2. danny
3. alison
4.kris
5. matt

i think being the last girl left might actually help alison….everyone i talk to can’t stand danny lol…they always say that he is boring and fat but i think he gets the grandmas……tbpb want an danny vs adam finale so that adam can win…lets face it…the only real superstar out of this group is adam….alison will get signed and so might kris, however i dont think anyone has the mojo to pull out two great songs per week and have the stamina of performing on the stage like adam does becuz hes been doing this forever…however, he will get booted if people get complacent and keep saying “o he wont need my votes”…the ai winner always hits the big notes and is a power singer, the only people left that have power singer voices are adam alison and danny…is kris gonna strum his way to the ai winners circle? no….sy smith(ai backup singer) always mentions adam in her twitter but funny how she doesn’t mention anyone else

this is from tonight:

@OhWhatAWorld14 Not talking about anyone in particular. Adam always seems to find his truth no matter the genre.
about 2 hours ago from web in reply to OhWhatAWorld14

So, did an email go out advising all you Anoop fans to come by and thank me? Or am I linked at one of Anoop’s fan forums?

No need to clog up the thread with thank you posts. It’s just an opinion. It doesn’t mean much. How easily ya’all would be ripping me a new one if I wasn’t supporting your favorite. .

The Matt pimping mystifies me as much as the Danny pimping.

Ditto that. Obviously, I must be hard of hearing. Or, I don’t have that special kind of ear where Danny’s samey, samey howling and Matt’s falshitto actually sound good.

I did like the good TV moment of the Save, but I totally understand the hatred of it. And, now that they’ve done it, I don’t think it needs to come back. While I think Anoop is a much, much, much better singer than Matt, he was a bottom dweller who for whatever reason, was not capturing a lion’s share of the vote. I think there’s every chance that without the save, Anoop just would have left the next week anyway (although, it is probably more likely it would have been Lil).

So, Anoop finished 7th, instead of 6th or 5th. For me, that doesn’t make a big enough difference in the grand scheme of things on this show. But, I totally understand the ire of the Anoop fans. It was kind of a dirty trick, and Anoop ended up on the wrong end of it.

I’m so used to my favorites going out earlier than I want them to lately, that I’m kind of immune to it. That said – if either Adam or Kris were to leave this week – I might still be able to summon up the energy to get boiling mad.

At least AI isn’t as bad for me as SYTYCD, where every year my favorite has ended up in 2nd place. Gets to the end every freaking time and loses. I’m sure that show is getting ready to break my heart again LOL.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m torn. I think Adam far and away deserves to win, and I know he wants to win. But does it really matter? Do we really want to see Adam and Danny/Kris do all their interviews together? Last year it was all about Dadchuletta, this year it will be about Adamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s sexuality and how the contestants felt about it. And probably Miss California. ha. ha. The whole thing will be uncomfortable.

Yes. Ms. California. Its funny but people know her answer to that gay marriage question moreso than who the actual winner is this year. lol But remember, Ms. California got the backlash/press because she went against gays and their rights to marry….. not because she was for them. Grant it, I don’t want to turn this into a religious/culture war on here. I just think that although there are culture divisions, which we all saw in last year elections, I really don’t think the majority of people are going to vote strictly on it. The same argument was made against fantasia because she was a single mom, never married and she still won, even though a lot said she wasn’t a good role model, blah blah blah. Maybe I’m wrong, but even though Adam’s sexuality is a factor, i don’t think its the main factor. I think most people are just trying to figure him out. lol

I agree with the complacency statement though. split voting is going to have to stop very soon, and Adam’s voters can’t just assume he’s safe. You’re also right about Danny. The internet really underestimates his fan base. Its a lot larger than some want to realize.

Our family are huge Adam fans and expect just so much success for him in the future. The one thing I wanted to speak about is the “diversity” issue. Actually in the top 5 this year we have Matt, who is bi-racial (African American Mom and Caucasian Dad), Allison, whom you spoke of being hispanic (her parents immigrated from El Salvador), and then you have Adam (who is Jewish, which is also a minority in our country). Then you have the most likely fact that Adam is also a gay man. That to me brings a whole lot of diversity and it makes me happy with our fellow American Idol brothers and sisters. When we first found Adam and fell in love with him, I told my husband and daughter (who is 20 and was worried that the “middle america voter” that we hear so much about would not feel comfortable embracing him) that yes they would because he would be personal to them and he would become theirs. A real person who is crazy talented, has charisma in spades and makes us “feel” and wonder what he will have the imagination and fortitude to do next. Not a statistic in an election that gets all sorts of political groups fired up. The media has been the culprit in wanting to get a story out of Adam and use him for their ratings game. First, we all know about O’Reilly, then ABC and NYT couldn’t help resist the temptation and followed suit. They actually did not get the ratings they wanted. The interesting thing is that middle america has, by all accounts gotten on board the Adam train and have barely yawned at the tired stories. Making headway in equality is a slow process and American Idol audience is not the entire country, but I think it is nice to see that yes, progress has been made.

MJ, your assessment sounds about right to me. I think Matt and Allison are in the most danger this week, based on past trips to the bottom 3. However, I’m hoping Allison gets a good spot in the line-up since she’s gotten shitty spots for two weeks in a row. Her position in the bottom three often corresponds to performance order.

Like Cheese, I wish they had used the save on Alexis Grace. I think it would have been a more interesting competition with her in it. With the weird semi-final format, I don’t think the voting public really got a chance to know her well enough.

While I enjoyed the save when it happened, it has left a bad taste in my mouth as well. I also don’t see Anoop fans voting for Matt. Most probably resent that Matt is there and Anoop is not. If they don’t care, then there’s the matter of Anoop’s smooth R&B vocals vs. Matt’s goaty R&B stylings.

Until Allison leaves, I’m going to follow my 80/20 rule. 80% of my votes for Allison and 20% for Adam.

I was damn glad to see Lil go. She was a legend in her own mind. Admittedly that was inflated by the early pimping. I’d trade Anoop for Danny any day of the week and I really think he should have stayed and Matt should have gone. Love Matt and have since his audition, but he needs some vocal lessons. He always sounds like he has run out of breath.

I think that Matt and Allison will be battling out to avoid being eliminated this week as well. I think that Adam, Kris and Danny will be safe.

I hope that Matt does beat out Allison this week and I think that he is capable of it. Hopefully he can pull out a performance along the caliber of “Georgia” and is able to advance over her. I think that this week could be a very good week for him, if he steps it up and really brings it.

And if he does outlast Allison this week, I hope that he does really well the following week and beats out Danny as well. He probably won’t make it beyond the top 3, but I would actually see him make top 3, because I like him and I think it would serve TPTB right if he advanced that far.

I miss Anoop. I love him and I think that he is a very special person. IMO, he was the best thing about the show this season and I will miss seeing him and the warmth he portrayed on the show. I saw the top 5 picture and it just didn’t look right to me without Anoop being there.

I detest the way that TPTB treated him this season, and how IMO, they did almost everything they could to yank him around, undermine him, and get him off the show. I have never seen them treat a contestant as badly as they treated him and I won’t forget that. Their treatment of him has tainted the show in some big ways in my eyes.

I do think that he should have made the top 5, but I don’t hold him not making the top 5 against Matt. I hold that against TPTB because I think that they didn’t use the save for the reason they said they were use it for at the beginning of this season. And because I feel like they used it on Matt, to help ensure that Anoop would be eliminated the following week.

I was under the impression the save was to help out a frontrunner/favored contestant who would overall be a consistant performer, but who after a bad night could find themselves on the brink of elimination.

I didn’t think it was meant to be used for someone who was already voted out by America once before. And to be used to save someone that they didn’t think had a chance of winning, just so they couldn’t use it on someone they hated, the following week. But that’s how TPTB used it IMHO.

And I think they would have used it on Lil as well, if it had been her and Matt in the bottom three and she had the lowest amount of votes. Even though it seemed like Simon kind of hinted that he wouldn’t save Lil if she was the lowest vote getter. I think that if she had indeed been the lowest vote getter, he still would have saved her and told her that she had no chance of winning like he told Matt.

Because even though IMO, Lil was defintely the worse singer out of the top 7, Simon would have saved her, just so he couldn’t save Anoop. Because I feel like he and TPTB hated Anoop that much and wanted Anoop gone that badly.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know about you but isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t having an Eastern European mom and a Middle Eastern dad bi-racial too?

Her mom is Jewish, her dad is Jewish. I’m not thinking bi-racial, but maybe technically it could be.

“Oh and by the way I loved Mattà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s Have You Ever Really Loved a Women performance both times. And his Stayin Alive performance was fun, funky, sexy, and had spot on vocals.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m thinking all the people who go on and on about how unfair the save was and how untalented Matt is are just worried that he may just make it to the finale. You protest to much I think. Matt IMO has more talent in his little finger than Adam has in his whole body. For me Adamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s voice is extremely unpleasant and makes my ears bleed. Matt is the musician with real soul. Whereas Adam is actor who couldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t really connect to a song if his life depended on it. Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a sham people.”

As a Kris fan…. I disagree. Adam Lambert is extremely talented and is imo the most deserving of the win. The only way he doesn’t get my vote in the finale is if he is against Kris. While there are the obvious stage presence wonders of Adam I personally like the “musicanship” of someone like Kris. Hence why he is my favorite. And I do not agree with the save no matter who they used it on. But it does irk me I will admit for them to have used it on a Wildcard. That is 2 extra shots at this competition that no one else got. He was not voted into the finals by America and they have voted him out once. Not being in the bottom 3 was probably sheer fan base panic that voted harder than usual. Shockingly I do really like Matt. Kris won me over though. But how many lives does he have? Not to mention Anoop basically had a fairly certain final 5 finish taken from him with that save and his unfair treatment byt he show. Like I said, Kris fan… but Anoop got robbed.

“However, Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m hoping Allison gets a good spot in the line-up since sheà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s gotten shitty spots for two weeks in a row. Her position in the bottom three often corresponds to performance order.”

I really don’t think performance order matters. Especially with only 5 contestants left singing 2 songs each. Kris has gone first, second, third, last, etc and has never been in the bottom 3……. Allison has to set herself apart from the other contestants other than being the only girl. She has to stop singing the same stuff, the same way, with the big glory note at the end.

TV Guide channel says the show is an hour. Are we certain they will get two songs each? I highly doubt it.

Our family are huge Adam fans and expect just so much success for him in the future. The one thing I wanted to speak about is the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“diversityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  issue. Actually in the top 5 this year we have Matt, who is bi-racial (African American Mom and Caucasian Dad), Allison, whom you spoke of being hispanic (her parents immigrated from El Salvador), and then you have Adam (who is Jewish, which is also a minority in our country). Then you have the most likely fact that Adam is also a gay man. That to me brings a whole lot of diversity and it makes me happy with our fellow American Idol brothers and sisters.

Very true!!! I forgot Adam is Jewish!! so, we have religion, ethnic, geographic location, and gender diversity!

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m torn. I think Adam far and away deserves to win, and I know he wants to win. But does it really matter?

I think it matters. Why would you knock yourself out week in and week out if it didn’t matter. The winner always gets more publicity and more of an effort out of the label than a runner-up or any other finalist who is signed would. And with the music industry in not the best of health that counts for a lot.

Actually I think it matters for the show too. It’s better for Idol to have a successful winner than have the winner shown up by someone else. It goes to credibility.

Can iTunes Buyers Predict the Next American Idol Winner | blog.ymarketing.com

Interesting article on Adam’s selling potential and how popular he seems to be… at the moment.

I think MJ is pretty spot on with her predictions. I would really love to see an Adam and Allison final, but I think 4th place is about as far as Allison will go. Unless something major happens I think a Danny and Adam final is set in stone.

Count me in with those who will be laughing if Adam doesn’t win. Well. I’m not exactly sure how I’ll feel if he beats Gokey, but whatever I just won’t care if those two are left.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know about you but isnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t having an Eastern European mom and a Middle Eastern dad bi-racial too? As for me, I never thought she was part-black, I thought she was Arabic.

Mini Biography
Her father (Harry Abdul) is of Sephardic Jewish background from Syria. Her mother is also Jewish and was born in Canada.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000716/bio

TV Guide channel says the show is an hour. Are we certain they will get two songs each? I highly doubt it.

No, we aren’t. They could barely manage it last year with 3 judges (Paula Abdul debacle with Jason Castro happened at Top 5 when the judges tried to critique right before the break instead of after the performances)

I wouldn’t be surprised if they decided to have the kids sing only one song in order to bring back the video packages.

I also think the judges are probably done with Matt (well, maybe not Kara, rrrawr)

Nope Kara’s not DONE with him, she wants to DO him.

You know something, I love all of the hypothesizing, and wondering and pontificating on how the votes will fall once someone leaves. Guess what? There are plenty of Danny fans that will vote for Adam if Danny leaves first. There are Matt fans that will vote for Kris, there are Kris fans who will vote for Allison. There is no formula for this, no matter how you crunch the numbers.

Getting bored with the whole he’s a poser, and he shouldn’t win because he is too theatrical and will wind up in the gutter I mean on Broadway, ewww, icky poo. I would start an entire spiel about how Broadway isn’t an expletive deleted, or akin to singing gospel (you know the place where the bad cast off singers of color go, cause we know it doesn’t take any real singing talent, and fill in the blank for the Danny’s of the world, perfect for CCM. )

Also the OMG how can he sing that coronation song? Well everyone else did it. Ruben did it, and Fantasia did it, and Cook did it. Adam does have vocal cords doesn’t he? He will sing the shit out of it. Believe it.

When Kris is gone, I’m gone. And I’m taking my voting power with me.

If you go to the American Idol homepage and hover your mouse pointer over the “rat pack standards” button, it says that each contestant will be singing twice.

How they’re going to manage that.. I don’t think anyone knows.

TV Guide channel says the show is an hour. Are we certain they will get two song each?

It say’s on the official AI site that they’ll be singing two songs .. but it does seem like it will be a tight squeeze if they’re keeping the four judges commenting.

Perhaps they’ll skip all the pre performance VT’s and chat’s with Ryan and hope the judges keep it brief.

Or worse still they may do what they did last year .. wasn’t that when they all sang their first song, with no judges comments, and then they all had to troup out and line up while each judge went along the line with a brief comment … and Paula’s comment to Jason was about his second song, which he hadn’t performed yet ….lol

Yeah as much as I like MAtt as a person I’m still bitter over the save that took Anoop out of his deserved top 5. Someone mentioned above that Anoop and Matt had the same number of inconsistent performances. Actually I think Matt had more. HIs Fray take,movies week, stayin alive, and in my mind so was part time lover. Anoop had 2 “beat it” and “caught up” which by the way was vocally on spot it was just the dancing. Listen to the studio.

That being said most of the Anoop fans will vote for no one especially not Matt. If there is anyone that they will vote for it will be for Kris or Adam.

I really want Adam to take it all because he does deserve it and he is a really nice humble person. Anoop said one good things in his interview. He said it really didn’t matter where you placed 2-7, its only number one that counts.

Oh they’ll manage singing twice, but I don’t think they’ll be doing the intermission recap like last season. Paula might end up judging songs that were not yet sung.

Interesting. I don’t know why they don’t expand the show to allow for two songs, though. They had no problem torturing us with 2 hour audition shows.

Or worse still they may do what they did last year .. wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t that when they all sang their first song, with no judges comments, and then they all had to troup out and line up while each judge went along the line with a brief comment à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦ and Paulaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s comment to Jason was about his second song, which he hadnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t performed yet à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦.lol

The one good thing about the judges not giving their critiques right after each performance is that the their opinions might not mean as much. People would be able to make up their own mind based on what they see/hear. Maybe? Possibly?? lol

Right on, MJ!

Personally, I think having the JUDGE’S SAVE was one of the worse decisions in AI history.

And to be used to save someone that they didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think had a chance of winning, just so they couldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t use it on someone they hated, the following week. But thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s how TPTB used it IMHO.

ITA. Unfortunately, Anoop was the victim of this crazy a$$ move. You know, it would have been easier to take if Simon had been fair and said, “This wasn’t your best song.” And left it at that. But to humiliate him after the other judges gave favorable reviews is totally assine. I lost a lot of respect for Simon.

I am truly missing Anoop. One day, someone inside of AI will admit that this was a horrid mistake. It just wasn’t fair to negate votes so Matt could return. Well, I am done voting.

Worst. Season. Ever.

Maybe they will do it Season 3 style.

The contestants will sing 2 songs back to back and the judges give their comments after that.

Also cut out that intro packages.

“Also the OMG how can he sing that coronation song? Well everyone else did it. Ruben did it, and Fantasia did it, and Cook did it. Adam does have vocal cords doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t he? He will sing the shit out of it. Believe it.”

You tell em!! lol

MJ I agree with your assessment on Anoop:) He deserved to be in the Top 5.

I think the show will be a hot mess with everyone singing twice and all four judges blathering on about it.

In season 3, I think they had each contestant perform both of their songs back to back on Top 5 night to save some time, and I sort of liked that. I guess Adam needs time to completely change his look and Kris needs time to change from his gray shirt to his white shirt, etc., but would be interesting to see how they do with transitioning between songs and moods.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m thinking all the people who go on and on about how unfair the save was and how untalented Matt is are just worried that he may just make it to the finale. You protest to much I think. Matt IMO has more talent in his little finger than Adam has in his whole body. For me Adamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s voice is extremely unpleasant and makes my ears bleed. Matt is the musician with real soul. Whereas Adam is actor who couldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t really connect to a song if his life depended on it. Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a sham people.

Eh, I’m an Adam fan and I don’t really care if people don’t like him, what matters is that I do… but believe me when I say that I am not even a little bit scared that Matt might make it into the finale and pull and upset against Adam. That hasn’t even crossed my mind. I am only upset that Matt has made it into the top 5 over Anoop who I also like, who deserves that top 5 spot fair and square.

In season 3, I think they had each contestant perform both of their songs back to back on Top 5 night to save some time, and I sort of liked that. I guess Adam needs time to completely change his look and Kris needs time to change from his gray shirt to his white shirt, etc., but would be interesting to see how they do with transitioning between songs and moods.

lol .. Also Danny would need time to take his glasses off and put his contacts in

I like Anoop better than Matt too, and I wish he’d made it through. I’m afraid Allison may go soon, given how many times she’s been in the bottom 3. Even though she’s not may favorite, I’ll admit she has an amazing voice for her age. Maybe she’ll get the “guys” vote now that Lil is gone?

Man, I don’t know how to quote on this thing. But anyway, MJ trust me, we’re not completely thrilled that you’ve said a few good words about Anoop. Notice how I said “finally” in my last post? It’s great that you’re “finally” giving him some credit. You’ve been very wishy-washy with your comments about him throughout the season.

Agree that Anoop deserved to stick around even though I kinda got a kick out of Matt’s song choice last week. In any case, I’m not like up in arms about it. Do think Matt is on borrowed time, and unless one of the other singers crashes and burns this week, which can always happen, the buck stops here for the Matt in the Hat. Buh bye.

I just saw the Gospel Channel special on Christian Idols that featured Chris Sligh, Melinda Doolittle, Mandisa and Phil Stacey. Danny got an entire segment to himself.

Ohhhh reeeally? Reinforces my theory that TPTB have been planning to market a contemporary Christian artist from this season all along. So yeah, Danny can runner up and the niche Christian market will welcome him with open arms. Kris is plan B, but I think he might go out as a shock boot at fourth, aka the Jason Castro From Fodder to Unexpected Contender Memorial Slot. If that’s the case, I think Danny picks up enough of the Kris vote to ensure he moves past Allison to the finale. Despite B3 appearances, I think Allison as the lone girl has some staying power to outlast at least one of the guys and I think goes out at 3. When she’s gone, Allison’s votes swing mostly to Adam as they are two “edgier” contestants.

Adam making it to the finale is pretty much a done dilio at this point. I also don’t think Adam has been as polarizing as I feared he might be after seeing his tubey vids before the season started, and he’s been my pick to win since Michael Jackson week. That theme drove home for me the idea that this season was mostly geared to find an OTT male pop star with big stage show potential. Haven’t seen much to make me think otherwise, so Adam it is.

Hope Kris enjoys singing songs about penguins! Heh.

This made me smile mj. This is my second year watching the full season and since my favorite won last yr. I didn’t realize how much the show was manipulated. However, I did watch Syesha get thrown under the bus in top three, but thought it was for the best.

At this point I will vote for Kris (a lot) as long as he is there, but really all I want for him is to put out a really great album to get his foot in the door in the music industry. I honestly believe he knows who he is as an artist and is a great storyteller (I forget where I read this) with his songs. To me his phrasing is amazing. As my husband said, “He may sound the same or similar week to week, but if you like this this type of thing you’ll buy the album…and I just might.”

The Christian Idol thing you watched, mj, makes me a little sad. For me, I see Danny as a Christian who has a good voice and can sing. I see Kris as a true musician/artist, who happens to be a Christian.

That said, I believe Adam has this in the bag (unless something unforeseen happens) and thoroughly believe it’s well deserved.

Well…
I totally disagree regarding Matt.

He totally deserved the save, since the finals started he had many great performances and showed how diverse he could be.
He can do soulful ballads on the piano amazingly ( So Small, Human Nature) and he can also do upbeat numbers like ( Part Time Lover, Let’s Get It On, Stayin Alive) extremely well.

He is much more talented than Anoop. Sorry but just being honest. Anoop can only do boring ballads and has no potential whatsoever to become a recording artist. So the right people left last week.

Matt has potential to succeed in the music industry, he is marketable, has an amazing voice and is current. He’s got the looks also, at least IMO.
AI audience is so fickle they tend to forget so fast. Simon called him a frontrunner several times and when he hit bottom two unfairly, I might say, after his “Let’s Get It On” performance he just dumped him like that.

I hope Matt pulls through this week and has another “Georgia” moment up on the big stage. He’s got nothing to lose now. I find his journey so endearing.
Roller coaster ride for sure.

He is such a nice guy and soo talented. His problems at times just seem to be nerves. But when he is relaxed, he is amazing.

If he does indeed leave this week, I hope he leaves with a bang. I also hope he surprises people with an incredible performance.

I believe so much in him. I am with Kara. Heh.
No, but really I hope he can make a career after this, he has so much to offer.
Sorry for the long post.

It might speed things up if they sang both songs, one right behind the other and then the judges give their critiques after both performances. That would cut down one set of critiques.

Thank you mj for saying what everyone has been thinking for the past five days; however, if you did take the opposing view, I wouldn’t post any hatred towards you. After all, you are entitled to your opinion and this is a free country last I checked.

Don’t expect me to transfer my votes to anyone the rest of the season, not that my vote means anything. Anoop was the only one I truly cared about. I didn’t expect him to win, but I truly thought he was screwed out of a fifth place finish all for raging hormones of a judge. I really don’t care who wins anymore. In fact even if Adam doesn’t sing for the rest of the year, he’ll still win. Danny sucks, Allison cannot gain any fans, and Kris? Come on guys!

There! I’ve said my peace!

I agree.They should do away with that save concept.I think they should have done away with the wild card round as well.Although Anoop got in through the wildcard round, I’m pretty confident he would have made it had there not been a wildcard round(and the usual top 24 for 3 weeks elimination done-without the bias for gender).

I think these “concepts” are hurting AI and it won’t do them any good in the long run because this show is slowly being exposed for the manipulative, shallow program that it is.

Matt seems like a really nice guy but Anoop has been improving and Matt has just been the way he always has been—trying to sound like JT.

Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s great that youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“finallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  giving him some credit. Youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve been very wishy-washy with your comments about him throughout the season.

Where is it written in stone that all bloggers (or people, period) must love Anoop? I think MJ’s entitled to her own opinion. Whether that changes from week to week based on his performances is not an issue, IMO.

I pretty much agree with MJ. I started out as a huge Matt fan but I think Anoop got the shaft. Kris has overtaken Matt for me. I still think Matt has a great recording voice. I think Danny is going to be constantly looking over his shoulder because Kris is definitely gaining on him if he hasn’t over taken him in votes already.

Off topic for a sec… Some of my best blog friends know that I took up tap dancing recently. Well I’m in a dance recital with my daughters on Mother’s Day weekend… just praying I don’t do something horribly uncoordinated that ends up on youtube!

weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re not completely thrilled that youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve said a few good words about Anoop.

Who is the collective “we”? I’m an Anoop fan and I don’t give two shits if MJ likes him or says nice things about him (love ya’ MJ). He wasn’t exactly leading the pack. I just wanted him to get his damn 5th place finish that he earned based on actual votes.

I can see Danny ending up as a Christian Contempory artist (which, thank Gokey, because I would NEVER have any chance of hearing him), but I don’t know why they would push him so hard. Does Sony/BMG have a CCM label? Plenty of Idols seem to make it there on their own, so I don’t see the point in wanting him to go far to ensure his success in that genre. I don’t think they would want a runner-up to occupy such a niche market.

OK – now that I’ve read some of the other comments, I’ll respond to the “Adam is a sham”, and the “Adam is a really nice humble person”. For those who know Adam, you’ll know he is first and foremost an actor. He IS a very nice person. He is NOT humble. He knows exactly how good he is, and he can make it look as humble as he wants on stage. And he is VERY different in person than he is on stage (still nice, but just really different, if you know what I mean). For someone who says “I’m not ashamed of who I am and I’m not going to be someone different”, I’m just sort of surprised he puts on that manly “straight” accent when on camera…
And he has amazing vocals and will probably win the whole thing (there’s just occasionally too much screeching for me).

Anoop had 2 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“beat ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“caught upà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  which by the way was vocally on spot it was just the dancing. Listen to the studio.

I don’t think that Anoop was very inconsistant either. I think that 1 poor vocal “Beat It” and My Pregorative was kind of wobbly vocally. But I thought everything else was either spot on or mostly spot on. IMO, “Caught Up” was a decent vocal, even though the performance and dancing was awkward. So I think that he didn’t have decent vocals on only 2 out of 9 songs.

That’s no more than most of the other contestants this year including Allison and Danny, who have both been consistant, but have had some issues with ther vocals in some of their performances. Including issues with enunciation or getting kind of screechy, and/or flat, all things which the judges never called them out for.

I think that one of Anoop’s biggest problems (besides TPTB constantly chasing him around with pitchforks) is that he didn’t have that many performances that a lot of folks thought were “wow” performances.

I think that he really only had one performance that was considered “wow” and/or a moment or as close to that as possible by most of the viewers and I think that was “Always On My Mind”.

After that performance he mostly sang well,but he mostly stuck with the ballads, which I think didn’t appeal to a lot of people. Even though vocally he sounded good. But I don’t think that he was wildly inconsistant.

From what I have seen most Anoop’s fans aren’t going to vote for anyone else this season. But I know that a few of them are Kris fans and will be throwing some votes his way. And an even smaller number are Adam, and Allison fans, so those might get a few votes thrown their way from a few Anoop fans.

I like Anoop, but I’m not seeing how Matt’s save was so unfair to him. If Matt went home the week he was “saved”, Anoop probably would have gone home the following week anyway. At best, Matt’s elimination would have bought Anoop an extra week if Lil went home during what would have been Top 6 week instead of him. At any rate, Anoop’s days were numbered regardless of how well he performed. If people are so certain that Matt won’t win Idol (and I tend to agree), well, Anoop had no shot at winning either, even if the “save” were used on him instead of Matt.

but believe me when I say that I am not even a little bit scared that Matt might make it into the finale and pull and upset against Adam. That hasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t even crossed my mind.

This thought has never occurred to me either. I’d be surprised to see Matt last past this week. I’ve never even considered the fact that he could falshitto his way to the finale.

And, depending on which performance he does first (i.e. the “pelvic thrusting, hey groupies, check me out” performance or the “here’s my inspirational song for my dead wife, remember, I’m a widower” performance), he’ll also need to go back to the dressing room to either put away or retrieve his wedding room.

But anyway, MJ trust me, weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re not completely thrilled that youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve said a few good words about Anoop. Notice how I said à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“finallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  in my last post? Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s great that youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“finallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  giving him some credit. Youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve been very wishy-washy with your comments about him throughout the season.

I’m curious who the collective “we” referrs to in this post? Also, I’m thinking maybe people could have the impression that MJ was wishy washy on Anoop because he was so damn inconsistent from week to week.

ETA: lol – Cheese asked the exact same question. I obviously do not post fast enough for you guys.

Why does it sadden me when fans of my favorite contestants say how bad my other favorite contestants are? Yet, I don’t care when Danny Gokey or Adam Lambert fans say anything bad about Kris, Matt, or Anoop. Hmm..

I’m really sad Anoop never got to truly show his amazing soulful R&B side on the show. We saw hints of it with True Colors, (which IMO was his best performance) but he never really had a moment. And I guess that’s why I’m fine with Anoop leaving at 6th.

Oh “We” is the second cousin twice removed of “They.” Blacksheep of the family, We gets drunk at all the family weddings

MJ, your blog post was linked at IDF..lol..

Anyway, just got to going online after a week being off and the thing that made me sad about last week’s elimination is that I won’t get to hear Anoop’s smooth vocals again on the show and get his studio MP3s..

I’m hoping that TPTB gives Anoop a performance on the Top 2 Results Show., but I’m not hopeful..afterall TPTB never seemed to like Anoop, IMO.

Oh and I think (generalising here..I apologise), Anoop fans would be voting for Kris if he’s any danger of leaving the show..although a lot seem to like Allison as well..

Sometimes I wonder if AI viewers have a mind of their own rather than just repeating what the judges say.

Matt has never claimed to want to be like JT. For Pete’s sakes he has said several times that he is more than just a R&B/soul singer and that he wants to put out a piano rock CD. It’s the judges who keep putting him in that box. Frankly the JT/Timberlake comments are completely ridiculous IMO. He is nothing like JT. Thank god because JT puts out crappy ass music. If I was Matt I’d take offense to being compared to JT.

I’m not too crazy about having Matt on the top 5 either. Simon has already said that the guy would never win (and I agree), yet they decide to save him not only once, but TWICE! Oh, some things I just would never understand.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m hoping that TPTB gives Anoop a performance on the Top 2 Results Show., but Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not hopeful..afterall TPTB never seemed to like Anoop, IMO.

Look for him in the back corner of the stage with Jorge and Jasmine during the Top 13 group number, while Matt gets to do a duet with a Ray Charles hologram or something.

Oy vey, if they are really doing two songs, they’re so going to go over. On the other hand, a rushed Paula is an amusing Paula. Magical predictions and all.

I agree on two points brought up: 1) The save so should have been used on Alexis (girl doesn’t even get to go on tour!), and 2) Anoop should have been in the Top 5 (although he probably wasn’t ever getting any further than that)

I’m considering abandoning Kris in an effort save Allison, but it pains me ’cause Kris gives me the artistry I need in this show, and I would be devestated if he went out before Top 3. (Sorry, Adam doesn’t cut it for me. Not to say that he isn’t artistic or mad talented. Boy’s just too extreme for me, and I cannot stand his voice.). I know there’s itsy bitsy chance of Allison making the finals, while Kris actually stands a chance of mowing over Danny. Gaaaah … so hard … Why oh why did you have to win me over Kris? If it weren’t for “Sunshine”, I would be free to vote for Allison as much as I please.

Hope Kris enjoys singing songs about penguins!

Ha. Pish. Kris could take any lameness the producers throw at him ala Archie’s trump over his finale Elton John death trap. Yeah, he didn’t win, but at least he gave them a run for their money, and Kris ain’t no Syesha. He could turn a song about penguins into a song about swans … although considering Simon hates birds perhaps transitioning penguins into … er … polar bears would be more appropriate.

ETA:

he is as an artist and is a great storyteller (I forget where I read this)

I believe that would be from Slezak’s recap over at EW in response to his performance of “She Works Hard for the Money” this week .

One common trend I am seeing here is that there are people who want to vote against Adam “just because”. Adam has consistantly proven that he has the talent and charisma to win AI. His performances are noteworthy and engaging. His vocal prowess is commendable, and can go from subdued and subtle to over the top….all the makings of a star.

As for the others, they are all talented in their own right, but in all honestly, they have paled in comparison by far. It shows a very ugly side of our own personalities when we say that we will vote against someone just because. If your fave is eliminated, why not vote for the one that is most talented? Why ruin someone elses dream because the one you were initially rooting for happened to be voted out?

Some may claim that the praise that Adam has received has been OTT, however, of all the contestants, I think his praise has been deserved based upon his performance and in comparison to the other contestants. Allison and Kris have also delivered very good performance and IMO have been underpraised. There have been many others this season and seasons past who were UNFAIRLY praised more than there performances warrented (or at least came across on air. Since I’ve never been in the audience, I can not say how the performances come off live). However, I think it is shortsighted and a sad state that people would vote against someone, rather than either A. vote for the most talented and consistant of whomever is remaining or B. due to lack of a favorite or choice, not vote against someone simply for the sake of voting against. ***I am not telling people on here or anywhere how to vote, it is just my ideal vision of how a “fair” voting system would work.

IMO, if we are judging soley on the consistancy of the performances, the final 5 should shake out like this:
1-Adam (typically his performance are spot on)
2-Allison (a few mis-steps, but consistant)
3-Kris (his best performances have out ranked Allisons, but his lesser performances rank him slightly below her)
4-Danny (no real “bad performances”, to me they have been equally “meh” at best)
5-Matt (his poor performance far outweigh his good ones, and sadly the save was wasted on him since even Simon said, he has no chance of winning. If so, why bother using he save?)

Yeah, I hate Justin Timberlake. But I love Matt Giraud.

Actually, yeah mj, your blog posts are often referred to on various fansites so that’s how all the crazy fans get here.

*edited because it no longer makes any sense without the other edited comments*

Look for him in the back corner of the stage with Jorge and Jasmine during the Top 13 group number, while Matt gets to do a duet with a Ray Charles hologram or something.

:lol_tb:

So sad, but (hopefully not) true.. :wallbash_tb:

I just know on the AI boards one time in the Matt forum one thread went like this.
“Guys! Mj gave Matt a bad critique and thinks he is leaving tomorrow night! We all have to sign up and post comments saying how good Matt is and how he deserves to stay in the competition!!”
And yes, I saw a lot more Matt fans here after that one thread.

Based on consistency only this is how I’d rank everyone
1. Adam
2. Kris
3. Allison
4. Matt
5. Danny

OK – now that Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve read some of the other comments, Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll respond to the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Adam is a shamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , and the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Adam is a really nice humble personà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ . For those who know Adam, youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll know he is first and foremost an actor. He IS a very nice person. He is NOT humble. He knows exactly how good he is, and he can make it look as humble as he wants on stage. And he is VERY different in person than he is on stage (still nice, but just really different, if you know what I mean). For someone who says à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not ashamed of who I am and Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not going to be someone differentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m just sort of surprised he puts on that manly à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“straightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  accent when on cameraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦

I’ve never met the guy, so I can’t comment on if he is putting an act on, but I’m sure all of the contestants put on a bit of an act, especially with some of the comments they receive and some of the stuff they are asked to do. So I think that is a given. Just like we all put on an act at work sometimes because it is part of the game.

As far as the way he speaks, who is to say he just doesn’t have different sides of his personality. I use alot more slang etc., when I’m with people I’ve known a long time and tend to speak at a higher level when at work. I know as a woman, dealing with men in any type of negotiations, I have discovered I speak in a lower voice in order to be taken more seriously. Then I’m with my girlfriends and I’m alot more animated. Maybe Adam is just using his business voice? Like I said, I don’t know the guy but I do think we all have different sides to our personality and these different sides come out when needed.

Matt has never claimed to want to be like JT.

How can one not think that when he comes out dressed like JT, hat and all and his hair is cropped the same and he moves/dances the same way.

If Matt survives long enough, we may get a performance of “Dick in the Box.”

Man, I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know how to quote on this thing. But anyway, MJ trust me, weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re not completely thrilled that youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve said a few good words about Anoop. Notice how I said à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“finallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  in my last post? Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s great that youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“finallyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  giving him some credit. Youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve been very wishy-washy with your comments about him throughout the season.

Yes, it’s that collective “we” that bugs me.

I know how many of you Anoop fans were operating during his entire run on Idol–targeting bloggers and purposely dissing rival performers to make your boy look good. Personally, some of that behavior threatened to influence my feelings about Anoop. So, at this point, you can spare me your “thanks”

This is VERY important to consider as you move forward as a fan group. Your behavior DOES reflect back on your favorite. If you behave obnoxiously and rudely as a group, others won’t bother to take it out on you, they’ll take it out on the Idol you support.

Just ask the claymates about that.

ITA. Unfortunately, Anoop was the victim of this crazy a$$ move. You know, it would have been easier to take if Simon had been fair and said, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“This wasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t your best song.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  And left it at that. But to humiliate him after the other judges gave favorable reviews is totally assine. I lost a lot of respect for Simon

Simon seemed to really dislike Anoop and I thought he along with TPTB in general were too hard on him. I thinkt that It’s one thing if Simon didn’t particulary care for as singer, or not to like his performance but I always felt like Simon was over the top in his criticism/treatement of Anoop.

I do not think that Anoop deserved to be in the bottom three the week that Simon said that he did and I do not think that “Dim All the Lights” was his worst performance either, and as bad as Simon claimed it was.

I don’t think it was his best but I don’t think it was his worst. I think that Simon really didn’t like Anoop for whatever reasons and that it went beyond him not like Anoop’s performances.

At times throughtout the competiton he would look at Anoop and just grimace, not to mention how he talked about him in that interview. I thought he had a lot of undeserved disdain for Anoop, along with the rest of TPTB.

I hope Matt pulls through this week and has another à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Georgiaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  moment up on the big stage. Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s got nothing to lose now.

I don’t think that Matt is more talented than Anoop but I hope that he does pull out another “Georgia” type of performance and beats out Allison next week. I think that he’s capable of doing that. And then I hope that he does really well the following week, and beats out Danny. I actually don’t thnk it’s impossible for him to get to the top 3.

I don’t see him making it to the finals, even though honestly, I wish he would beat out Kris as well, but I think he could possibly make top 3. I have wanted him in the top 3 since the start of the finals along, with Anoop and Adam. I think that this season would be less predictable, and better if he made the top 3, along with Adam.

.

pj Apr 26th, 2009 at 11:26 pm

TV Guide channel says the show is an hour. Are we certain they will get two songs each? I highly doubt it.

Yeah, something’s gotta give after Pauler’s “Exorcist” head turning act on top 5 last yr. Have they always done two songs on top 5?

MJ, yes, we’re having a contest to see how many Anoop fans can squeeze onto your board! The one who leaves the most “thank-you’s” wins all of Anoop’s sweater cardigans. LMAO! JK. Sorry for the influx, it wasn’t planned, cross our hearts! We’re not that organized…yet!

Like I said, I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t know the guy but I do think we all have different sides to our personality and these different sides come out when needed.

So true. People are not one dimensional. We don’t all have to be one thing all the time. As humans, we actually adapt to our environments quite well. Mom Spens, is quite different from hanging with her girlfriends Spens, who is much different than all business Spens.

But mostly I think, what the fuck does it matter? I know almost nothing about the “real lives” or “true personalities” of most the artists from whom I buy music. I don’t care if a performance is “all an act”. I only care if I like it. These people could all be douchebags for all I care. Just sing me a damn song, and make it good.

Yeah, somethingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s gotta give after Paulerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Exorcistà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  head turning act on top 5 last yr. Have they always done two songs on top 5?

Maybe they could score it like the Olympic ice skating and just hold up cards with numbers?

he is as an artist and is a great storyteller (I forget where I read this)

I believe that would be from Slezakà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s recap over at EW in response to his performance of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“She Works Hard for the Moneyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  this week .

Thanks annabelina, I read/watch all things Slezak, re: AI, so I’ll bet you’re right!

So, Anoop finished 7th, instead of 6th or 5th.

He finished 6th actually. (Lil was 7th.) He would’ve been in the Top 5 in any other year, or maybe even further because I think he would’ve done really well with Rat Pack Week and he said he was really looking forward to that as well. Oh well. I really do hope they let him duet at the Finale, perhaps with Lil since they’re both R&B (like how they allowed Carly and Michael to duet at the Finale, neither of which were Top 5 contestants).

If your fave is eliminated, why not vote for the one that is most talented? Why ruin someone elses dream because the one you were initially rooting for happened to be voted out?

Maybe because I don’t think he is the most talented. You know not everyone is in love with Adam or thinks he is the second coming of Elvis.

How can one not think that when he comes out dressed like JT, hat and all and his hair is cropped the same and he moves/dances the same way.

Maybe that is just his style. I’m sure a million people wear hats, have similar haircuts, and dance like JT? Is JT the god of style and dance? LOL same haircut? Matt’s haircut is like a million other guys out there. My son is bi-racial and his hair is cut the exact same way and he hates JT. It’s just a normal everyday haircut.

I don’t wish Adam ill will. I hope he goes on to be very successful but I would never pick up a phone to vote for him. I don’t think he will need the win to be successful. If his recording career fails he will have an amazing career as a Broadway Star. I just think there are some other contestants that are more likely to have a better recording career than Adam would if they won. That includes Matt.

he is as an artist and is a great storyteller (I forget where I read this)

I believe that would be from Slezakà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s recap over at EW in response to his performance of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“She Works Hard for the Moneyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  this week .

At first I read the he as a she and I thought you were talking about Allison’s “Hot Stuff” performance. :laugh_tb: I guess you could say she was telling a story too?

Anoop got that bad side of simon because he forgot his words.Anoop knew it.
MJ you are so right the biggest thing that hurt anoop was the way he come off.Very cocky just like alot of his fans.Anopp was changing that at the end and i respect him for that.I love allison i think she will out sell all idol’s ever but time will only tell.I never say nothing bad about adam he has skills.I think his heart is on broadway.I dont like his screeming(it is in tune)If he wins im ok with it.The core base of danny’s voters will not vote for adam(sad for the wrong reason)but they wont.If kris or allison gets to the finals they could steal it for that reason alone.

He finished 6th actually. (Lil was 7th.)

Oh, okay, I was just thinking of the two of them as tied for 7th (with no 6th). I didn’t realize that they differentiated between which of the 2 people booted that night had more votes. Or, I guess we’re to assume that Lil was 7th and Anoop 6th because she was booted a half hour earlier.

I just wasn’t really framing it that way in my head. But, I’ll stand corrected.

He finished 6th actually. (Lil was 7th.) He wouldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve been in the Top 5 in any other year, or maybe even further because I think he wouldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve done really well with Rat Pack Week and he said he was really looking forward to that as well. Oh well. I really do hope they let him duet at the Finale, perhaps with Lil since theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re both R&B (like how they allowed Carly and Michael to duet at the Finale, neither of which were Top 5 contestants).

Oh god, please don’t make him duet with Lil…

I still think the top 13 should do one big a cappella group performance for the finale. Anoop had the Clef Hangers. Matt and Kris were part of the White Chocolate group in Hollywood. Danny’s group also sang a cappella. He’s good with harmonizing. Matt could beatbox. I’m sure the others would do well too.

If Matt survives long enough, we may get a performance of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Dick in the Box.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

LOL hahahaha. And there’s this video when they were asked about who they want to play them in the movie and Matt said he wanted Matt Dillon to play him but he’s sure that most people are probably thinking he’d say Justin Timberlake, or something to that effect. He’s eating up the comparison, trying to downplay it in the process as if he doesn’t want it, but he’s the one who keeps bringing it up. I think he knows he looks and sounds like (a fifth-rate) Justin Timberlake.

I can’t stand this poseur anymore, send him home!

MJ you are so right the biggest thing that hurt anoop was the way he come off.Very cocky just like alot of his fans.

I never called Anoop, or his fans cocky.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m just sort of surprised he puts on that manly à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“straightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  accent when on cameraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦

I’ve learned so much on this blog. Last week it was straight clothes, now it a straight accent? Jeez, louise.

I don’t know Adam, but he is manly, as he is a man. He has the equipment and the chromosomes that make him so. He’s gay, a gay MALE!

Anyway. I really like what he is portraying. I know he probably knows exactly how good he is, but is smart enough not to be an ass about it the way so many before him have been. He doesn’t behave as though he is entitled. He is also smart, and has played this game about as well as I’ve ever seen it played. I am over the moon about his talent, all the other crap is really just static or white noise to me. Some random person can come on and tell me he is the anti-christ, but MJ’s article pretty much dispelled all that nonsense. As his real life friends and co-workers think he a sweet, kind, talented man.

Lol, I’m an Anoop fan and I certainly didn’t receive any email telling me to come here. I do that on my own. I’m a pretty frequent poster at the AI forums and I’ve never seen or been sent anything telling me how/where to post. I wouldn’t take very kindly to that anyway. I’m also not aware of anyone there telling us to go bash people either. Most of the posters I communicate with there try to stay away from that junk. I hate that some fans are giving us a bad name. I’m glad someone agrees that Anoop pretty much got screwed with the save debacle, but it wouldn’t turn my world upside down if no one agreed. Just wanted to clear some air about all that.

Anyway, I mostly agree with your assessment of the contestants. I’ve really lost most interest in the season now since it’s becoming more obvious how it will play out. I’m now pulling for Kris because he reminds me of a few artists I like, but I just really can’t seem to muster up any enthusiasm.

OK i guess u put it a little better then me.My piont was anoop was changing for the good.Was hoping it would rub off on his fans.

Maybe that is just his style. Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sure a million people wear hats, have similar haircuts, and dance like JT? Is JT the god of style and dance? LOL same haircut? Mattà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s haircut is like a million other guys out there. My son is bi-racial and his hair is cut the exact same way and he hates JT. Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s just a normal everyday haircut.

The problem with Matt is that he has a weak sense of musical identity. Maybe his hats weren’t to copy JT, but to cover the pimple? The problem is that people will define contestants when they fail to define themselves. Matt actually does nothing for me vocally. I haven’t heard his recording voice, because his performances haven’t inspired me to spend 99 cents on them. He could be the best thing since sliced bread with pro-tools, but I don’t care.

Re: “Come to MJ’s and thank her” email and campaign to talk Anoop up on AI-related blogs

I happen to be a big Anoop fan and I’ve come to this board often since last season (though I was supporting Archie then, and y’all bugged me big time haha). For you information there is no campaign of that kind as I know of, at least troopers on AI forum didn’t do that. If some of you come to that board, you will see that troopers don’t talk badly about other contestants there .

This is the second time you mention the “campaign”. I hope you didn’t make that up but I do hope that this “campaign” doesn’t really exist . If yes, that is so sad

About the thank you note. I think some of us are hopeless bunch of ppl lol who’re craving for some good reviews about Anoop since he was ill-treated by TPTB. I am grateful that you said nice things about him. And yes, you’re right, it’s just an opinion .

Sorry about my grammar though . I’m not a native speaker!

Lol, I’m an Anoop fan and I certainly didn’t receive any email telling me to come here. I do that on my own.

I can generally tell the ones who come here on their own, and the ones that don’t .

ETA:

This is the second time you mention the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“campaignà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ . I hope you didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t make that up but I do hope that this à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“campaignà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t really exist . If yes, that is so sad

I didn’t make that up.

Sorry, I always get a little freaked out when a bunch of people land here saying the exact same thing. If you all are a bunch of un-organized IDFers, then nevermind. .

edit: As if the All-caps weren’t obnoxious enough. If you can’t handle criticism of your favorite, don’t read it.

Oh well. I really do hope they let him duet at the Finale, perhaps with Lil since theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re both R&B (like how they allowed Carly and Michael to duet at the Finale, neither of which were Top 5 contestants).

I think that Anoop dueting with Lil is probably the best scenario that he will get as far as getting decent airtime/performance time in the finale. That is unless like a few others have mentioned they don’t put him off in a corner in the background with the non tour people like Jorge and Jasmine. While they let Scott and Megan duet together just to rub it in.

I’m no fan of Lil, I do not like her singing, but a duet with her might be the only chance of Anoop getting decent performance time, in the finale. Maybe, just maybe TPTB might let those two duet together, like they let Michael Johns and Carly do last year.

Both Anoop and Lil sing in the same genre of music, and they were both eliminated at the same time, and have to do press together, so maybe TPTB might pair them together during the finale and let them sing a duet together. I don’t like Lil as a singer but I would rather see this happen, then see Anoop pushed in the background for most of the night, and given only a couple of lines here and there in the group performances.

I can generally tell the ones who come here on their own, and the ones that donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t .

Good to know! I’m glad my reputation isn’t getting tarnished, lol.

ETA: Also, definitely not an idf’er. Wouldn’t touch that forum with ten-foot pole. It gives me a headache.

Aw, I know that Lana’s post is going to be deleted or edited, so I won’t quote it. But, I just want to say in general, that many people on here will criticize or even make fun of an AI contestant (snark is fun y’all!). That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re doing it to put that person down in order to build their favorite up. Some people are just easy to make fun of.

For instance, even if I didn’t have any favorites in this competition, I would still make fun of Gokey. I just enjoy doing it.

Some things just invite the snark. Like all cap posts

EVERY POST ON HERE à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“BASHINGà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  MATT GIRAUD IS JUST A PITIFULLY DESPARATE PLOY TO PUSH A CONTESTANT INTO THE FIRE (AND DIVERT THAT NEGATIVE ENERGY FROM THEIR FAVORITE)

Nah, some people just don’t like his singing. Simple as that.

I don’t think it will go down this way, but if I had my wish the whole thing would end up like this:

1. Adam (he deserves it SO far)
2. Allison (great runner up prospects b/c I can see her marketability)
3. Kris (I would love to see him get a deal like Jason, although I’m not sure he’s as distinctive or has as much charisma).
4. Matt
5. Gokey (gotta love the shock boot).

I would be okay with switching 4 and 5.

ETA: You’re a better person that I am Spense.

For instance, even if I didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have any favorites in this competition, I would still make fun of Gokey. I just enjoy doing it.

:clap_tb:
Hahaha, you win!

I agree with the assessment on Anoop as well. To me, it all seemed a ploy to boost ratings, but to be honest, it has turned me off to AI. Originally, they said that the Judges’ Save would be used if they thought America got it wrong. But when I think of Matt’s performance that week, I just shake my head. There is no way America got that wrong. The people voted for Anoop to stay, and this past week, Anoop wasn’t the lowest vote getter either, and technically, he has never been the lowest vote getter. Consequently, I thought both Anoop’s and Matt’s performances this week were okay, but Matt had the benefit of getting the save the last week, so I would think that his fans would have rallied this week. America picked Matt to go that week and the judges overrode us. Yuck.

Someone mentioned Anoop’s smooth R&B vocals vs. Matt’s goaty R&B vocals. That does describe how I feel about their singing. Matt does have a nice voice when he can control it but has shown more than not that he can be all over the place (“Viva La Vida”) and it’s not pleasant. Also, he has very little “stage presence” without his piano. Anoop, on the other hand, has excellent vocals every week, but maybe needs to work on “stage presence” as well. But let’s be real, how much stage presence do you care about when you’re listening to your ipod? Also, has anyone really ever seen Brian McKnight or Boyz II Men jumping all around the stage?

If it isn’t obvious, I’d much rather watch Anoop next week than Matt. He isn’t going to get my vote, no matter what he does. If Anoop had gone before Matt without any save, it would be a different story.

But, I just want to say in general, that many people on here will criticize or even make fun of AI contestant (snark is fun yà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢all!). That doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t necessarily mean theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re doing it to put that person down in order to build their favorite up. Some people are just easy to make fun of.

I agree…and I mean, seriously, I don’t think the singing goat is a threat to anyone at this point like the all-caps post above seem to imply. He’ll be out before the finale I’m pretty sure, I just wish sooner rather than later.

I don’t see anyone beating Adam, unless Kris is in the finale and he picks up the majority of the votes from fans of booted idols.

Personally I think Adam is the second coming of the singer from the band The Darkness, his screaming is about as shrill and gimmicky, plus they pretty much have the same musical influences. I guess if this is your kinda stuff then you might like his CD when it’s released.

edit: One more outburst like this, and you are banned.

Kris saved this season from being a total loss for me and if he goes my votes go nowhere. I’ll probably keep watching though. If it’s the Danny/Adam finale *like we’ve been thinking since practically Top 13, sigh*, I won’t really care who wins. Adam would be ok cause I guess he’d deserve it, Danny would be ok too just cause the meltdown on the boards and blogs would be epic and bring the lulz. Whoever wins, I wish them luck wringing a decent debut CD out of 19/Sony.

The new/old semis, the 4th judge, the wildcards, the OTT and obvious pimping, the save…why did they bother with all this new crap? Did they really consider S7 some sort of catastrophic failure? Cause I really loved S7 and didn’t think anything needed “fixing”. In any case they didn’t “fix” anything, the show just got worse.

Anyway. I liked Anoop at the beginning but can’t get too worked up about him leaving. Him and Lil just never figured out how to pull off a successful performance/song choice. As for Matt, i’m in awe of his piano skills but he psychs himself out of a good vocal almost every week and like Brooke last year around this time I’m always expecting something to go wrong. He’s not gonna be around much longer and I think goes this week barring any surprises. However I guess he’s inspired some sort of fanbase to keep him around this long so that speaks to some sort of It-factor going for him.

Allison is like everyone’s little sister and gets votes when there are votes to spare, but when there are not like this wk w/double elimination she gets forgotten. As it gets tighter and people focus their votes on their faves I think she’ll lose out. She may stay if Adam fans get comfortable and throw her votes.

Danny is pandering to the Christian community and to me that’s just as icky as that stunt KLC pulled last year w/God Bless The USA. Sadly I think that will send him straight to finale.

I suspect that works just fine Lana, as I assume most of these nasty bashing people are not concerned with the opinions of those who come here to do nothing but scold them.

This is what happens when people offer themselves up to the reality tv gods. Some of them have to get sacrificed. It’s just the way it is. I didn’t make the rules.

I am however, extremely happy for you and your mature and sensible little finger.

I think the all the changes on American Idol did not help the show at all.

This season is a total fail compared to last season in my opinion. During season 7′s idol, I had so many favorites. If one got eliminated, I’d look forward to seeing another one.

I wished Anoop could’ve gone further. Such a sweet guy, with a sweet voice. I don’t know why, but to me, all the other contestants this year aren’t as likeable as Anoop.

Ok Spencer that made me giggle and that is no small feat as I have a killer headache. I *like* Matt. I just think he is not ready for this. I really think he needs vocal lessons for some breath control.

Anoop got that bad side of simon because he forgot his words.Anoop knew it.

When did Anoop forget his words last week? I think that face he made when he ended the song was not because he blew off the lyrics but because he blew off the last note– it was a bum note and he knew it. But Simon is not usually the judge who cares about pitch anyway. Anoop was a goner as soon as Simon said Anoop will probably be in the B3 in an interview the week prior to his last performance. Simon’s critique just seemed preplanned in a ploy to get Anoop out, hence why it was the final critique of the night, so that people would remember it. I call it sabotage, or maybe desperation.

Danny would be ok too just cause the meltdown on the boards and blogs would be epic and bring the lulz.

If this happens, I promise to give you lots of lunacy and ‘f” word filled rants. You’ll be lol-ing for hours – I promise

Danny is pandering to the Christian community and to me thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s just as icky as that stunt KLC pulled last year w/God Bless The USA. Sadly I think that will send him straight to finale.

Creepy pandering. My least favorite tactic on these shows. But, like you, I believe it will pay off for him.

ETA: Apologies to Starrlight for exacerbating the headache situation.

If this happens, I promise to give you lots of lunacy and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹fà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  word filled rants. Youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll be lol-ing for hours – I promise

Thanks Spenser! I hope it doesn’t come to that, but it’s comforting to know someone will be ON it

If this happens, I promise to give you lots of lunacy and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹fà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  word filled rants. Youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll be lol-ing for hours – I promise

I hope Danny goes next, but if he wins I’ll be joining her. The upside is that he’ll be such an epic fail that the media will leave Taylor Hicks alone.

Starrlight, speaking of breath control, Gokey is worse than Matt in that realm, IMO.

That is an upside PJ. However, although I do like Taylor, I do NOT like him enough to wish for a Gokey win. Sorry Taylor.

PJ so right

Gee, If I didn’t know better I would think that there were 6 contestants still left in the competition. And I am sure there wouldn’t be enough time for 12 songs in an hour!

Since I am not a music mogul I have no idea how the contestants will do after the season ends and whose voice will translate best into top selling albums. All I know is that I’m voting for the person who has done IMHO the most consistent job and who has thrilled me week after week. I am voting for the person who has handled themselves with the most grace on stage, whether it be during the judges critiques, the interviews with Ryan, the group sing, or the elimination couch. I am voting for the person who I would like to see and hear of more after Idol is done and gone. Whether everything he has done is just an act, I really don’t care. To me it seems heartfelt and real. The person I am voting for has a passion for his art, he lives it, breathes it, and demonstrates it.

Good luck, Adam. I’ve been behind you since your audition. I thought you were good then, I think your better now, and I hope that you have a chance to prove how good you may become.

Ranking: Adam, Allison, Kris, Matt, Danny.

lol. I just got done reading most of the comments. I just have to say, I come to this site almost everyday, and I never get any notification to comment about Anoop here. He’s just my favorite contestant this season and I’m proud of it.

Starrlight, speaking of breath control, Gokey is worse than Matt in that realm, IMO.

I’m sleepy, so I read that as “birth control” at first and it took on a whole new meaning.

LOL thanks SpenserJ I believe I was beginning to take this whole thing too seriously. I need sleep (and to study, all this “dreck” is starting to make me feel stupid) it is a good thing that this is my first season watching, I don’t think I could have survived very long if I had gone through all of this before.

Adam is the best vocalist and performer this season; but I still believe Danny will beat him. I don’t think Adam is getting the votes everyone thinks he is (especially on upbeat songs.) And, I think Danny is getting a lot more votes than most are willing to give him credit for. It will all come down to America’s taste. They will begin to sing 2 songs and Adam will sing a ballad and an upbeat. This will go on for a few weeks. I think his ballads will garner him many votes; but his upbeat songs will lose him votes and thus cancel out his ballad. Just the way I see it; but then, I wear trifocals.

It’s all good Lana. It’s okay to go round the bend, as long you come back

This blog is a good place for keeping us sane. Where we remind each other it’s just a tv singing competition.

Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sleepy, so I read that as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“birth controlà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  at first and it took on a whole new meaning.

LOL. BUT… ewww. Trust me. The idea of Gokey and anything to do with birth control is totally disgusting. Matt less so, but still ewww.

Ewww.

The idea of Gokey and anything to do with birth control is totally disgusting. Matt less so, but still ewww.

Trust me, that’s how I felt.

I really think he needs vocal lessons for some breath control.

Right after he has the nipple removed from his forehead.

Lana since it’s your first season where you get emotionally invested, I’d advise you not to visit votefortheworst.com

You’ll get used to it after say another season of watching.

lovecert, lol. You know when you say that she will go there out of curiosity.

Lana, it’s all good. Take a deep breath and you’ll be fine.

Speaking for VFTW, this is what I get when I go there: 403 Forbidden

Wonder what that means.

Not that I know anything about anything but…..we keep talking about the internet world and how “far” ahead Adam is based on everything that is on-line including google searches, I tune sales, You tube visits, on line and off line betting, media articles, online voting polls, etc. And, naturally, the rebuttal always is that “internet” users are only a fraction of the voting public.

I think this thought process may need to be revisited. Everyone I know (and yes that may only be 2 or 3 people) has or has access to a computer. Every organization I belong to communicates by email, my family communicates by email and most of the younger ones have a URL site or are on facebook or myspace. TV programs are now played online because of the fan demand, many shows are re shown in their entirety directly after the TV program is finished, print media is going down the tubes since many people get their news online every day with their morning coffee. A stupid snip-it or video gets more than a million hits in a few hours. Sports scores are streamed live to sports enthusiasts.

I think that online numbers for AI favorites are more realistic than people think. This doesn’t mean people should become complaisant when their favorite is in the lead, but it does show where the contestants do stand in the voters eyes.

Oh LOL!! been there done that (votefortheworst) don’t want to be reminded of that “dark” time……..

@NOLA

votefortheworst’s server has been down the whole day.

thx xdahlia

“Yes, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s that collective à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  that bugs me.

I know how many of you Anoop fans were operating during his entire run on Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’targeting bloggers and purposely dissing rival performers to make your boy look good. Personally, some of that behavior threatened to influence my feelings about Anoop. So, at this point, you can spare me your à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“thanksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

This is VERY important to consider as you move forward as a fan group. Your behavior DOES reflect back on your favorite. If you behave obnoxiously and rudely as a group, others wonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t bother to take it out on you, theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll take it out on the Idol you support.

Just ask the claymates about that.”

Thanks your honest feedback.
I’ve been a fan of Anoop since the semis. I’m part of the fan group on the AI & IDF forum, and within the last 2 weeks, fb.

First,speaking just from what I experienced, during my time with these 3 groups, I haven’t yet seen a mass encouragement to target a blogger or make another contestant look bad…that is just from my personal experience.

Second, I think one point to be made about Anoop’s fanbase is that a large majority is online, and so as these networks progressively become tighter , the availability of news feeds/ articles/blogs can be accessed almost instantaneously now. Imo, that is the reason why you see so many more Anoop fans commenting on articles/blogs etc…site creators and fans naturally have become more proficient at finding and sharing them…I think that’s fine and appropriate.

To me, the problem arises when individuals take it on themselves to defend their favorites in a disrespectful/threatening manner, especially if said contestant is an underdog, or loosing.. I think a lot of times in those situations, you’ll see a fan lash out , out of fear/frustration.

Recently though, I think a lot of Anoop fans could have handled their words & interactions with writers, bloggers, and other fans, Much Better. Imo, though, for the last few weeks, the atmosphere of stress and tension with the new twists, was like a breeding ground for bad fan behavior, especially for groups with struggling contestants. I know it was scary worrying if Anoop would leave every week, especially with the rumors about his mistreatment, and it made it harder to handle when there was negativity in the press or other places. That said, to me, there is no excuse for poor/disrespectful behavior.

I still see a lot of frustration about Anoop’s treatment and consequent departure from the show, but I’m hoping that in the weeks ahead, even in interacting with opposing opinions, Anoop fans can go back to their original standard of being classy and respectful in every situation, even with all that’s happened (the good and bad on our part/ & with the good and bad that’s occurred on the show as well).

OMG, Idol is JUST a singing competition! Damn, I watch it for the artistry!

We should put the Go in Gokey
His act defines the word hokey

I am not saying Gokey is a flake
I am proclaiming Gokey is a fake!

(Sing to the tune of GO GO GOPHERS)
Go go Gokey won’t you go go go,
Go go Gokey won’t you GO GO GO!

SpenserJ: Well said. I have reverted back to the reality that AI is the scripted show we have all heard about, just for ratings and money. They don’t give a damn who is the best singer or performer, just give us a good show for our money! Now, after weeks of dissing Gokey, Simon is now super-pimping him? The ever-constant smug (winner) smile that Danny always has makes me think he and the Brit know something that we don’t know yet! Sad, JMO.

In my mind, Anoop made it to the Top 5, and would have gone even farther, if the save wasn’t used capriciously on Matt to create drama. Simon said he didn’t think Matt deserved to be saved, but he went along with it and saved him anyway, even though the rule said the save was supposed to be a unanymous decision by all of the judges. Anoop made it through Top 7 when Matt had the least votes, Anoop made it through Top 6 when Lil had the least votes, so Anoop made it to Top 5. I also wonder how far Anoop would have gone after that, if he had gotten the praise and encouragement he deserved throughout the competition. It must be a real confidence booster for TCOs when they get up on stage in front of millions of viewers, knowing they will most likely get glowing critiques by the judges and no insulting personal remarks from Ryan. I know it’s reality TV and these mind games are done purposely to create more drama, but reality bites.

That group sing was so fun. I want to shake mah body down to the ground just thinking about it!

Matt was definitely riding the wave of good feelings from The Save. Plus I think many probably considered “Stayin’ Alive” a good humored statement & remembered it as such with his next-to-last singing placement.

Matt’s still around due to his *potential*, or what the Idol Powers That Be have seen behind-the-scenes. I think he was a favored stealth-TCO possibility, considered a true “package artist.” He has a smooth, marketable voice, great piano skills, some natural dance ability (very nicely featured this week), and even some basic acting skills (that whole iphone ringtone bit – which seemed impromptu when I first saw it). Plus he’s obviously a well-humored, well-liked guy. He has not delivered up to expectations in live performance, the most important part of the show, but he’s still being featured in things like the group sings — Top 7.1 Maniac, where he sang the chorus & was placed centrally and this past week where he had TWO solo parts (to Gokey & Lil’s zero) & held his own dancing next to Adam.

Matt was in a vocal jazz group at Western Michigan University. In theory, he should be comfortable & do well this week, especially if he goes traditional & manages not to go off the rails with overembellishment & falsetto (that he does not need – STOP IT MATT!)

Anoop was starting to recover from his cranky-face preppy boy balladeer box. Vocally, he’s been very much on. It was sad to see him go. I don’t get how his departure is Matt’s “fault”.

I worry for Allison. These last two weeks have not been her best, imho. I agree with those that would love her to go a little retro/traditional this week to show a different side from the Hot Stuff/pleather rocker chick.

I really, really want Gokey to go-go-go away. Gokey FTAL! (That’s Gokey For The Awesome Loss – pronounced “fatale”). I don’t think it will happen this week, but I hope next week’s theme is really hair-metal, and we have some chokey gokey action.

Everyone I know (and yes that may only be 2 or 3 people) has or has access to a computer. Every organization I belong to communicates by email, my family communicates by email and most of the younger ones have a URL site or are on facebook or myspace.

The Digital Divide has been diminishing, but it’s still there. About 75% of people in the US are said to use the internet, but the numbers are skewed by education, income, race & age. ( http://www.pewinternet.org has lots of info & stats )

I work in a public library, and I can assure you that there are many people who do not have a computer at home and that there are a surprising number who have barely touched a PC or who have never gone online (and then come to the library because they have to file for unemployment electronically, apply for a job online, or some similar ).
Haven’t polled them on Idol (yet) though….

It’s sad because I pay more attention to Simon’s review than the actual singing

Allison is suffering in voting power because of lack of early airtime and being told she’s not likeable by Simon. This sweet energetic silly kid isn’t *likeable?*

Where have I heard that before? Oh, yeah, Jessica Sierra was told the very same thing and was immediately voted off the show. I guess Idol didn’t want another blonde on the show with Carrie (and I liked and still like Carrie)

I wonder how Allison lasted this long, even with all her talent and her effusive personality and now FINALLY, the very *carefully* worded compliments.

“You’re the girl’s last hope.” (yes, let’s spit on Lil some more and also make Lil’s fans hate you, too) “In spite of all that, it was a brilliant performance.” In spite of all what? Brilliant is either brilliant or not brilliant.

Let’s at least hope that the ridiculous, worthless saving of Matt is over and he leaves this week, so we can keep Allison another week. I don’t think she has a chance against the overpimped Danny, the oncoming Kris or the ubertalented Adam.

I just want to see that little spitfire on as long as possible and wish she would sing: Bang, Bang, He Shot Me Down, recorded by both Frank and Nancy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5Xl0Qry-hA

As much as I wanted Anoop to be in the Top 5 badly, I have come to accept the fact that he ended at #6, and nothing is ever going to change that. Just like most of Anoopà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s fans, I grieved, and somehow felt very down knowing that I wonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t be able to see him on Tuesday night or download his studio recordings (and yes, at some point I was really upset with the save). But Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve learned to think of the bright side à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ for Anoop to be able to make it this far (out of thousands and thousands of people), is an achievement that one can only dream of. Now, I will only look forward to his new albums.

Oh, and best of luck to all the remaining contestants (though Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m done with AI this season).

It makes perfect sense that the Matt fans felt the save was fair.

What makes no sense is that the *people* who saved him felt that he shouldn’t be saved (Simon’s comments proved that) and went ahead and saved him anyway.

Wasn’t the *save* supposed to be unanimous?

Yes, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s that collective à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  that bugs me.

I know how many of you Anoop fans were operating during his entire run on Idolà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’targeting bloggers and purposely dissing rival performers to make your boy look good. Personally, some of that behavior threatened to influence my feelings about Anoop. So, at this point, you can spare me your à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“thanksà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

This is VERY important to consider as you move forward as a fan group. Your behavior DOES reflect back on your favorite. If you behave obnoxiously and rudely as a group, others wonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t bother to take it out on you, theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll take it out on the Idol you support.

Just ask the claymates about that.

Through the magic of technology I can GOOGLE Anoop Desai and it will show me pages and pages of blogs/articles/interviews etc. of him. That is how I found this blog. (I think you had asked if there was a link somewhere for Anoop’s fans to come here and comment – just explaining myself). I have to be completely honest with you, I have no idea what you are talking about with this comment. I have gone through countless articles and blogs and I haven’t seen many Anoop fans bashing anyone. I have however seen many of the other contestant’s fans getting down right nasty with sexually, religiously, and racially charged comments directed at various contestants. These have not been coming from Anoop’s fans as these people will admit who they are a fan of within their comments. However, I HAVE noticed that when someone has stated that Anoop “sucks” (or worse), can’t sing, ugly; etc. his fans WILL come to his defense. But, I also see other fan groups doing the same thing for their fave. So, again, not really understanding the singular shout out to Anoop’s fans. I have visited your blog many times and have never thought that what you have had to say should be attacked, maybe I’m missing something. I also have never felt like I had to try to make Anoop look “good” compared to the others. He has always come across in a good light to me. I also feel that if someone wants to make a comment about their fave being better than Anoop then I have every right to state why I don’t believe (IMO) that to be true. Isn’t this the reason for blogs? You obviously feel that what you have to say will interest “the people” and you want to start a conversation. We each have our own opinions, if someone disagrees with yours it doesn’t necessarily mean they are “targeting” you. I guess I need to take a look back at all of your blogs on Anoop and read the comments to try and figure out where you are coming from.

P.S. – To whomever stated that Anoop’s fans also favored Lil, Matt and Danny (????) because of similar genres/voices and would probably vote for Matt or Danny. From this Anoop fan, no. I did not like Lil’s voice (although she came across as a really sweet person minus the constantly feeling as if she had to explain herself). I love Matt’s personality but, I do not believe he has anything more than a mediocre voice (talented yes, with the ivory keys). Danny has never impressed me with his vocals, personality, or stage presence. I believe Anoop should have lasted way longer than these three, IMO. My votes are gone along with Anoop but, I wish the rest good luck .

Mattà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s still around due to his *potential*, or what the Idol Powers That Be have seen behind-the-scenes. I think he was a favored stealth-TCO possibility, considered a true à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“package artist.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ 

ITA, wonderings; I am increasingly suspecting that Matt is a plant of a sort — maybe not someone they found in advance and put into Idol, but still someone TPTB decided early on was worth signing, and since that decision they’ve worked overtime to maximize his promotion on the show. I think they’ve given up hope of his winning, but I bet they really wanted to get him to Top 5 at least, and they’ve now done it.

God… I hope Danny leaves and Allison takes his spot in the finals…

I don’t think Simon or TPTB disliked Anoop in the beginning, he got very good reviews after his Angel of Mine and was almost an automatic WC (he was more number 10 than 13). His problem was that his lows (Beat it and Caught up) were much more of a down moment than other contestants.
I think that Simon and TPTB definetly turned on him after Usher.

Matt is very much like Anoop IMO, a lot of talent, I see the potential recording artist, I just think that his lows on the show have been massive momentum bursters, he was one of the top 3 favorites to win it all before VLV. He is the only one in the top 5 who is not clearly defined as an artist, he said numerous times that he wants to be a rock type of artist but his rock performances have not been well received by the judges or the public.

I still think Danny is going 4th or 5th, his story arc is very much like Lil IMO but with more pimpage and slightly better overall performances.
I remember reading the same things about Lil before top 8, how she had massive support from some unknown fanbase, that she will get to top 5 easily based on her “uniqueness” and so on. Bottom line is that her bad performances caught up on her, Simon turned on her and she was done two weeks after that.
For people pointing to that Simon article where he said he sees an Adam-Danny finale, I red the exact same type of article after I think top 9 or top 8 night, the only difference was that he had Lil rounding out top 3.

I do think that Kris has done way better than expected and everyone loves an underdog, however I still expect the judges turning massively against him in the next two weeks. I don’t think the AI machine has any clue how to manage a singer/songwriter type and the 2 songs per week is going to make it tougher for him to arrange and give original performances (which is his trademark right now). Look at how Brooke and Jason self combust last year.

The biggest disagreement I have with you MJ is Allison (for the last 3 weeks or so actually), are you pessimistic since she is (still?) you’re favorite contestant?
I can’t see her going this week for several reasons good and bad. She has now received the total backing of Simon, her main asset is her voice which is a good think going into multiple songs night and she has the whole only female left thing.
It’s very easy to see why she went in the B3 on both top 9 and this week and it had nothing to do with her actual vocal performance (if that was the case she would have been there after IDWTMT) but with OTT outfits and song choice (I love her for that but it has certainly shocked a lot of casual AI viewers), that’s why Jazz night is such a good thing for her, she will tone it down this week and give a heartfelt performance with great praise from the judges and a ticket to top 4 where rock night give her a great chance at top 3.

I thought Adam was going to win since the semifinals, he is the only contestant who is getting mainstream coverage, I think he deserves to win and there is really not much more to be said (except that I want BSC Adam back lol).

Well that’s my analysis YMMV.

That Disco group number was the absolute best thing to be seen on the Idol stage this season. Floved it.

Eh. My horse is out of the race, so my enthusiasm for the rest of this season is just about nil. I’m no longer voting, so whatever.

As for the save, it was always going to be used on Matt. Kara and Paula absolutely gushed about him even before the semis.

His live performances have been incredibly uneven, and yet they’ve propped him up. Ken Warwick has a total hard on for him, and stated publicly in an article (USA Today, maybe?), that Matt would make a great Album and he’d buy it. So there you have it, TPTB’s agenda.

No matter what place Matt finishes, I’d bet my car that he’ll get signed by 19. They wanted him around as long as possible for the exposure. They have been trying to make Matt happen all season, and even when they called him out on poor performances, still said he deserved to stay and people should vote for him.

Anoop was always going to be the loser in this scenario, no matter how much growth he showed or how well he sang. That’s the show, and TPTB get what TPTB want. I just hate that he didn’t get any respect on the show at all, and now has to share his post-boot media tour with Lil (who will not shut up and is starting to look the fool going on about being an artist).

My whole problem is that the manipulation has been so freaking transparent this year. They don’t even pretend it isn’t going on.

I’ve got nothing against Matt at all, I just hate the ridiculous OTT machinations of the show.

IMO, Kris is miles more marketable than Danny. If Danny wins, what the hell are they going to do with him? I don’t get their Danny love in any way, shape or form. At all. But a Danny/Adam, Saint/Sinner finale may be more appealing to TPTB.

Kris doesn’t have the same polarizing effect as Danny, so there would be less TV drama in a Kris/Adam finale.

Alison, well, I hope she lasts until the Top 4 at least.

To be honest, at this stage I can’t decide if I’d rather have an enjoyable Kris/Alison finale, or a wacky Adam/Danny finale (where Danny wins, then tanks worse in sales than Taylor).

Wow, this show makes me a little crazy. I love to hate you, Idol.

Dayum, I was just starting to recover from my Anoop grief, but coming here got me all riled up again. I never read/post anywhere else so I don’t get all the fan conspiracy stuff; my alleigence to Anoop was purely free form in nature and born of the naive belief that the point of AI was to take raw, undiscovered talent and turn it into something viable and marketable. Anoop was definitely not ready for prime time, but that was part of his charm. I’m not sure at what juncture Simon (and by extension TPTB since Simon is their mouthpiece) turned on him. He seemed to start out kind of liking him, and even remarked during his sub-par semi-final performance that he had a huge likeability factor going for him. Simon even forgave him his “Beat It” gaffe by praising his next country week performance. He seemed to turn on him forever though after the Usher song, when Anoop gave off the stank attitude at judgment time. I definitely caught a faint whiff of entitlement off him, though it personally didn’t bother me since I like my men with a little ‘tude. Still, I think many found it off-putting, including Simon and Co. The fact that he got stuffed in the ballad box from which he delivered spot on vocals but with precious little stage dynamism or verve did him no favors either.

That alone shouldn’t have warranted the egregious throwing under the bus he suffered, but it the end it was just a perfect storm of competent but less-than-wow performances, Simon hate, and the need for the producers to play with their new toy, that dumb-ass judges’ save — that ultimately did him in. I guess nice guys really do finish last and that’s the part that’s so irksome.

So, yes it’s unfair to blame Matt for the judges’ tomfoolery, but tough shit. Out of pure spite I hope he goes this week (no I’m not proud), even though Gokey gets on my last nerve, my first nerve, and every nerve in between. My voting days are over, and so mostly is my enthusiasm for this season. Okay, back to the healing process….

Whoever it was who made the comment about Adam knowing how good he is, you’re right he most definitely does.

This is the first year I’ve followed AI online, as I’ve only recently moved from the US to the UK, and am only doing so as Adam is my brother’s friend and I’ve seen him perform at Upright so I’m interested in how he gets on. Usually I’d just watch on the TV or Tivo so all the uber-fandom online is something I’ve not come across before! It’s certainly an eye-opener! I told T (my brother) some of the things I’ve read in various places about Adam being “shy”, “underconfident”, “quiet”, “super-chilled out”, “knocked around by life” etc and he just guffawed with laughter. The first few in particular are not exactly adjectives that those who know him would use to describe him (he is, as has been said elsewhere, a really nice, self-confident, intelligent guy)! Yes he’s playing down bits of his character but I’m sure several of them are and they do every year. Last year I think Cook did so very effectively as I’m pretty certain he’s no saint (nobody is, for goodness sake, even Danny!) as have many others in the past, I’m sure. Can’t blame him for playing down his more effeminate side either – I’m sure he knows he needs to if he wants to win over certain parts of the audience. He is also graced with a lot of charm which helps. I think some people who get obsessed with Idol like to project attributes onto the contestants every year, whether they possess them or not. Most of us casual viewers couldn’t really care less what every little bit of their personalities are like behind the scenes as long as they sing and perform well, seem nice enough and don’t come across on Tuesday nights as cocky little sh***. Or maybe that’s just me?

Humble? Well it can be looked at two ways I guess. He’s perfectly aware his talent is immense. However I’m pretty sure he’ll be grateful that he’s still there, as there was every chance that America would take one look at him and run a mile, and that there’s an outside possibility they might still yet do so. He’s not the first person to just do the quiet, respectful thing on stage either. Kris, Matt & Danny (for the most part) are doing it too. Again, it’s kind of necessary if they want to win. David Cook figured it out last year, Michael Johns didn’t. Part of the reason for MJ’s early exit I think and Daughtry’s before him.

I would put money on Adam not being the only one this year playing up certain sides of his character and playing down others. I’m pretty sure Kris, Danny, Matt & Allison are all perfectly aware that they’re talented and how they come across on screen is not the entire person they are in real life either (well, maybe Allison as she seems young and unfiltered but even that could just be projection). It’s just harder to tell if you don’t know someone that’s all. The whole show is a game and so much depends on how they all play it.

So, again, not really understanding the singular shout out to Anoop’s fans.

Because one of Anoop’s fangroups WAS sending out emails to it’s members suggesting they target popular blogs AND purposely discredit the contestants who were Anoop’s biggest rivals. And believe me, I could tell. So could some of the other posters. When I criticized Anoop, there would be an unusual flood of posts from Anoop fans, a few were pretty nasty. I suspected something was up even before I was tipped off about this fan group’s “tactic”.

Of course, not all of Anoop’s fans were part of the organized plan. And in fact, I think many of them left after I called them out. And now that Anoop is out of the race, it really doesn’t matter anymore. But just as an FYI, there goes my warning.

And that warning is one that every single fan group needs to heed, btw. And that is the end of this discussion. Back to discussing the topic.

My predictions:

If Final is: Adam/Danny, winner will be Adam.
If final is Adam/Kris, winner will be Kris
If final is Adam/Allison (which would be awesome), winner will be Adam
If final is Adam/Matt, then headlines will be about hell freezing over.

My thinking:

People have been voting for Adam, Kris, and (probably) Allison primarily for the quality of their performances. (Some people may start voting for Allison primarily to keep a girl in the mix.) People have been voting for Danny for his performances but also for other reasons: his backstory and his religious affiliation/activity. When/if Danny is eliminated, people who had been voting for him primarily for his religious affiliation, if they continue to vote, will switch to Kris because he is also active with his church. But people who have been voting for Adam, Kris, and Allison, if their favorite is eliminated, will vote for their next favorite based on performance skill, which will benefit, probably, Adam.

If the final is Adam/Kris, I think it could be like a Ruben/Clay final. Nigel Lythgoe said that Clay had been way ahead of everyone every week until the final, and theorized that more people who had been voting for Kimberley Locke voted for Ruben and made the difference. Here, more people voting for Danny could switch to Kris and be enough to tip the scales on Adam.

My predictions:

Adam: 1 or 2
Kris: 1 or 3
Danny: 2 or 3
Allison: 4 (although I’d love to see Danny out at 4.)
Matt: 5

About Matt and the “save”. For the first time since they have come out with the “Save” rule the audience chanted a name. They did not do this with the others that were on the chopping block.
He may not win this season but Matt and the others now standing (Top 5) are the best of the best this season.

About Matt and the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“saveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ . For the first time since they have come out with the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Saveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  rule the audience chanted a name. They did not do this with the others that were on the chopping block.

I think this had more to do with the ‘moment’ than with mad Matt love. The audience was screaming for a Scott save just the previous week, so YMMV and all that.

I wonder if the crowd would have been worked into such a frenzy if the other contestants themselves hadn’t started up with the “SAVE” chant in the first place.

No matter, it’s done now and it made for a good TV moment, as much as I loathe the eventual results of said TV moment.

For the first time since they have come out with the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Saveà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  rule the audience chanted a name.

i thought the idols started the save chant and the audience just followed?
but oh well, either way…the audience in the venue does not equate to america who obviously wanted matt out that week.

Eh, Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m an Adam fan and I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t really care if people donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t like him, what matters is that I doà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦ but believe me when I say that I am not even a little bit scared that Matt might make it into the finale and pull and upset against Adam. That hasnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t even crossed my mind.

Word.

… this season was mostly geared to find an OTT male pop star with big stage show potential. Havenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t seen much to make me think otherwise, so Adam it is.

WoRD.

Also the OMG how can he sing that coronation song? Well everyone else did it. Ruben did it, and Fantasia did it, and Cook did it. Adam does have vocal cords doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t he? He will sing the shit out of it. Believe it.

WORD.

Sometimes I wonder if AI viewers have a mind of their own rather than just repeating what the judges say.

No words. Just a big ol’ eyeroll.

Matt’s fans and yes, he does have many, are happy with the top 5.
The fact of the matter is Matt is very talented – I agree with wonderings’ post –
Matt didn’t asked to be saved, the contestants all knew the ramifications of the save and to me whatever the outcome of this show (which I believe the Adam is untouchable) the night of the save was the best idol show ever. In all the episodes I have watched except for the finales – which I watch not just to find out who wins but because of all the duets and guests, this episode will go down in Idol History as the best feel-good show ever. Wednesday night is full of heartache for some fangroup and the tension and pressure that built inside the studio to the climax of the save was great TV.

You might disagree with me, but I think Simon made his comments to get a reaction not because he meant them. He went on record saying maybe the girls were right but he didn’t think so, which leaves the door open. On Ryan’s show, Ryan asked Paula about Simon’s comments and would that hurt Matt. She said it could go either way. It riled up his fan base and Matt is back in the competition.

Today, the only spot locked up is Adam’s, the rest will be based on the performances here on out.

Don’t count Matt out yet. I believe he has the backing of the producers and agree he will be signed, even if he goes home this week.

The top 5 is strong – to me much stronger than the last 2 years.

Nigel Lythgoe said that Clay had been way ahead of everyone every week until the final, and theorized that more people who had been voting for Kimberley Locke voted for Ruben and made the difference

That can’t be true, on top three night they said it was basically a three way tie. So I guess Clay lost a lot of support from top four on. I definitely remember that they portrayed top three as each of them had about 33% of the vote. That Ruben won was no shock to me.

I don’t think there is a lock. I would have thought Danny was a lock about 5 weeks ago. I never thought Lil had a shot, even if she sang better, I don’t believe an R&B singer will ever win this show again, unless she sounds like Melinda, looks like Syesha, smiles like Ruben, and has the stage presence of Fantasia.

I think that Adam is the most obvious winner because IMHO he has it all. He has those qualities mentioned in the above paragraph. Thevoice, the looks, the winning smile, and stage presence. I don’t think anyone can beat him toe to toe as the talent it just to broad.

and am only doing so as Adam is my brotherà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s friend and Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve seen him perform at Upright so Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m interested in how he gets on.

I don’t care what ‘insiders’ say. I don’t have to know Adam personally to know that he is talented, smart, and handsome. I don’t care if he keeps his feminine side in check (if you say so). He’s not stupid, he wants to win this thing and some people will not vote for him simply because he’s gay. He knows this, and it’s not a lesson he’s learned in the last 4 months, ya know? I think he just wants to compete on his merits. If this show is about talent, even remotely, it won’t mean shit it he thinks he’s pretty good. He’d be in the wrong business if he didn’t think he had something of value to offer. So thanks for your input, but it is really unwanted.

The thought that I am vocal about no thinking Matt is was worthy of the save has nothing to do with being threatened by his awesome talent. Hell, if I were a real nutzoid fan I would be batting for Matt as I think he’d be the easiest to beat in tne final. He doesn’t stand a chance.

Donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t count Matt out yet. I believe he has the backing of the producers and agree he will be signed, even if he goes home this week.

Yeah and if his album flops, the judges and producers themselves will buy a million copies of his album to bail him out coz they just can’t afford to let this guy fail. Seriously… America does not like Matt, they’ve made it clear twice and they will make it clear for a third time. Why is TPTB’s head so far up this guy’s butt? Crazy.

mj says:

Because one of Anoopà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s fangroups WAS sending out emails to ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s members suggesting they target popular blogs AND purposely discredit the contestants who were Anoopà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s biggest rivals. And believe me, I could tell. So could some of the other posters. When I criticized Anoop, there would be an unusual flood of posts from Anoop fans, a few were pretty nasty. I suspected something was up even before I was tipped off about this fan groupà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“tacticà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ .

I have been very active in both AI and fb communities, and I did not receive such email nor heard about anybody sending such email. So it must have been done within a small group of fans.

It is disappointing that mj, THE mainstream AI blogger, had to give a neagive shout out to a small group of Anoop fans. Both AI and fb groups were 120 % focused on the GOTV campaigns, emailing and pm’ing voting tips that were personalized to individual’s circumstances (west coast vs. east coast, money to spare vs. poor student, etc.) and writing to Chapel Hill media asking them to encourage and educate local voters. As far as I could see, there was no time for an unproductive negative campaign.

Now that the voting phase is over, many of us are moving onto the next phase in our relationship with Anoop. He did not fit comfprtably into the show’s mold but we see that as his strength. Our new objective is to help him obtain the recording contract that he wants and deserves.

Yoko

Wow, abbysee. Way to take my comments out of context. Calm down, I was actually trying to stick up for him not criticise him – I was replying to the previous person who had made statements about him not being humble and not showing his true self. They ALL show themselves the way they want to be shown on TV and I’m sure they ALL know that they are talented, not just Adam, as I said before. Just because they know how good they are or choose to project themselves a certain way, it doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with that. I’m pretty sure every decent performer alive knows how good they are.

Believe me, it is funny to see some of the attributes that people online project onto the contestants when you’re not someone who’s spent much time on blogs or boards. I personally don’t feel the need to analyse the personalities of the celebs I like as I don’t know them, but each to their own.

I’ve no idea why you’re getting your knickers in such a twist. But to be honest I can’t be bothered to stick around and argue with you. I was just tryng to add a bit of insight as the way you all talk, you certainly seem to crave it. However as you see fit to be so rude, I won’t bother again. I’ll go back to following Idol as I was and leave you to obsess online over their every move. Enjoy.

ETA: And I don’t believe I ever said he didn’t deserve to win. IMO he does by a landslide. Some people agree, some don’t. Big deal.

My predictions:
Adam
Kris
Danny
Allison
Matt

Adam is engaging (and interesting) vocally and visually. I know there have been some questions as to whether or not he could be commercially successful, but I would put my money (and I have) on the fact that he is entertaining to watch and listen to which translates into concert tickets, CD/singles sales, and DVDs. The fact that he crosses a number of demographics should serve him well. Adam is a singer’s singer.

Kris is talented. I just cannot imagine listening to his entire CD without falling asleep and there is not a whole lot about his performing persona that engages me.

Danny. Not quite seeing the appeal of him because he is a rather average singer and performer. However, I did come to the AI table late in the game (country week) so that might be part of the problem. That and the fact I saw Adam’s Ring of Fire (LOVED IT) and was irrevocably smitten. What I have heard, however, from Danny, has simply been ah’ight.

Allison. Good singer. As a singer, I worry about her voice because her low register is not that strong. I just find her boring because all she does is either sing a rock song or add a “rock” feel to a song. In another year, with another crop of contestants, she would be more of a standout. Unfortunately, she is in a competition with Kris and Adam.

Matt. The weak one of the bunch. All of his performances just reek of desperation. I actually believe he could get better but there are not enough weeks left and his past work has been hit or miss. Even his “hits” were a little shaky.

Why is it such a shock that the guy who brought disco back on disco week was safe from bottom 3 (or 4,5,6, who knows how far high America’s votes took him)??! Matt made “Stayin’ Alive” current and hip while keeping it upbeat and infectiously danceable. His vocals were top-notch. Even the judges who have always been critical of him confirmed that.

Anoop and Matt are my ONLY favorites this season. I think it’s a SHAME to blame one for the elimination of the other. America’s votes a week later have validated the judges save on Matt. That is a fact already. Accept it.

Anoop has a widely international appeal and can have a strong career outside of Idol. I’m very excited for him! Good things will come out of this for him. Just watch out!

I wish Matt all the BEST and am rooting for him to go further than the lesser talents. He is the most talented, unique and versatile musician and singer left in the competition. Matt FTW!!!

Donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t count Matt out yet. I believe he has the backing of the producers and agree he will be signed, even if he goes home this week.

Of course he has the backing of the producers, I never saw someone have to be saved not once but TWICE. You would think they would get the hint that America is not seeing what they see.

I’m not convinced though they’ll sign him because if they didn’t sign Michael Johns, who was THE most pimped non-winner/non-runner-up I’m not so sure they’ll sign Matt.

That canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t be true, on top three night they said it was basically a three way tie. So I guess Clay lost a lot of support from top four on. I definitely remember that they portrayed top three as each of them had about 33% of the vote. That Ruben won was no shock to me.

I thought the almost 3 way tie was in season 5 between Kat, Taylor and Elliott?

Do we still have the “coronation song” thingy this year? If so, I think it would be interesting to see how Kris or Matt would arrange it to be less cheeze and more cool.

It would be really nice if they can arrange it for the actual single recorded for iTunes. Last year, David Cook’s recorded version was full of UGH but the version he did live a few times with an acoustic guitar was not too bad.

From the iTunes popularity thing leaked a few days ago, though, it seems like Adam will have the most votes. And yes, he will sing the heck out of what ever the cheeze thrown at him and it will be great. But I would be very interested in hearing a jasonmraz-y coronation song (which would be a true oxymoron but could be a full of win for Kris) or bluesy, soul-infused coronation song (which I can’t even imagine—surprise me, Matt!)

I don’t think Matt necessarily brought back disco during disco week. It was just that his jazzy Timberfake version of a disco classic was a better sell than Anoop’s r&b Ne-Yo version of a disco classic. Hard as it is for me to admit, just as Matt had to prove he had earned the save, Anoop had to prove why America had been right to send Matt packing the previous week, and he just couldn’t pull it off. I thought both Matt and Anoop were equally mediocre last week, but Anoop should have had the edge because he had finally gotten the pimp spot. I was initially very excited when his song choice was spoiled, as I thought the lilting melody could really allow him to soar, but the arrangement was plodding and dreary and ended abruptly before it really got cooking. Plus the fact that he biffed some lyrics really threw him off his game and caused him to look stiff and awkward for the rest of the performance. So in short, no, Matt should never have been there competing for the 5th spot in the first place based on his abysmal movie week performance and its even worse reprise; but he was, and it was Anoop’s job to knock him back off, which he couldn’t quite manage *sniff*.

Trina says:

Of course he has the backing of the producers, I never saw someone have to be saved not once but TWICE. You would think they would get the hint that America is not seeing what they see.

I agree that “America” is not seeing what TPTB sees in Matt. However, the majority of “America” (i.e., AI watchers/voters) are not really habitual record buyers. They may be excited about the Idol winners when they win, but then they move onto the next season if Idols. And that may be the reason why many number of the AI winners/runnerups do not sell their second and third albums so well.

On the other hand, I see Matt. Anoop, and Kris (whether he wins or not) can sustain the fans that they gained during their AI stints and build on them. I am not sure about Kris (because I have not been keeping up with his stuff) but as far as Matt and Anoop, the large fractions of their fans are record-buying music fans and not necessarily AI fans.

So it is very possible that Matt may get signed by TPTB.

This top five reminds me a lot of Season 3. Yes, there’s the 4:1 gender ratio, but the cast of characters seem familiar, too.

Adam = Fantasia, the personable, polarizing frontrunner
Allison = Diana, the teenage belter
Danny = Jasmine, the puzzle with the big voting bloc
Kris = LaToya, the talent with a more subdued personality
Matt = George, the nice guy who’s never going to win

Maybe I’m not understanding the Save properly, but it doesn’t seem to me that Matt’s being saved directly correlated to Anoop’s having been eliminated. All 7 were given the chance to perform again, with Lil and Anoop being eliminated. So why doesn’t anyone think Lil was robbed? Matt didn’t take Anoop’s place (he just took A place in the Top 7 again).

Let’s say, for example, that Matt had not been saved. And let’s say that a large majority of Matt’s fans decided they loved Lil the next week, thereby placing her ahead of Anoop. And Anoop was eliminated. Under that scenario, Anoop still wouldn’t have made the Top 5, and it wouldn’t have been because of Matt. I fail to see the one-to-one correlation here … it wasn’t a “I’ll trade Matt for Anoop” scenario at all. I much, much prefer Anoop to Matt, but I don’t think it’s Matt’s “fault” that Anoop was eliminated. The two events are unrelated imo.

Matt is so much better than Danny in every way. I am happy he is still in it and hope he can pull off a great performance this week to put Gokey out at 5.
1. Adam–and deservedly so
2.Allison–I think idol will sign her anywhere she goes out so they might try to push her to Number 2 so they don’t have to sign three contracts this season.
3. Kris–I hope I’m wrong and they don’t throw you under the bus here and you go out at 2 instead so that you do get a contract. The indie route is tough and getting tougher every day.
4. Matt—desperately want you to pass up Gokey. I suspect you are going to become amazing on tour. The part of you that so much enjoys being in front of the piano rather than behind it is going to be appreciated in a concert setting and a contract will ensue. (I hope).

I think I see what jj82 is trying to say. These guys are “performing” whenever they are on camera, which is pretty much all the time now. This is true for Adam, and the others too. I have no problem with this. Plus, they and everyone else knows how much image is a part of being an artist, and this is their chance to get that out there. The people who do best ON THE SHOW, do this well (some not my personal favorites, but I’m thinking of Carrie, Taylor, both Davids). I think that is where Lil started to run into a huge issue (compounded by bad singing).

I think this season, Allison is not able to do this as effectively as the others, and that is part of her problem. She’s very unpolished. Once out in the real world, this is not that big a deal, and I personally think she will be successful. Like someone said, give me a good song, and I will buy it.

Also, I can’t tell of any of this year’s group will get to that moment that seemed to hit Brooke White and Castro last year, where they kind of gave up. Maybe Matt, if he makes it past this week?

So, here’s my list:
Should be
1. Adam
2. Kris
3. Allison
4. Danny
5. Matt

Will be:
1. Adam
2. Danny
3. Kris
4. Allison
5. Matt

I’d like to see Allison squeeze into the top 3, but unless Danny and Kris are really vote-splitting, I can’t see that happening. I think Adam is having a Carrie Underwood season, where the whole AI system knew he was the one from about top 10, but they have to get him to the finish line. Luckily, he’s doing just fine!

On the other hand, I see Matt. Anoop, and Kris (whether he wins or not) can sustain the fans that they gained during their AI stints and build on them. I am not sure about Kris (because I have not been keeping up with his stuff) but as far as Matt and Anoop, the large fractions of their fans are record-buying music fans and not necessarily AI fans.

How do you come to the conclusion that Matt and Anoop fans are record buying music fans as opposed to the fans of other contestants which are not? I am excited to buy Adam’s first album post-AI, and those to follow… so what category does that put me in? Sorry I do not get this argument.

I just think if you cannot build a fanbase when on a show that boasts 20 million viewers per week, there’s very little chance that you can build a bigger one without that kind of exposure. Some people have it, some just don’t. I don’t think Matt has it.

i think that Adam deserves to win this year hes the only one who’s had close to a “moment” with tracks of my tears, and mad world, and hes the leader with itunes, and is the only one who could really dance and who has alot of stage presence. I also think that Allison and Kris should round out the top three because they truly deserve it , even though they weren’t really getting pimped in the beginning they earned those spots because they really did shine with their performances and vocals. This is all coming from an Anoop fan, and even though i’m sad to see him go i also thought that anoop was improving, but i dont think he could’ve made it pass top 5. I don’t hate Matt but i don’t think the save should have been used because his last 2 performances haven’t been save worthy. When Matt is on he is on especially when hes able to control his vocals, but when it starts to get messy it starts sounding like when woman start complaining and their voices get really high…uhhh it makes me cringe. Danny is nothing special, i don’t feel like he offers anything new or current and he rarely, scratch that NEVER, has good studio recordings, that just my opinion, seriously he needs to fade quicker.

I also think that since its jazz week everyone expects Matt to be on his game and that might spell trouble for Allison for some reason. I hope that’s not the case though..

I get the sneaky suspicion (from nowhere, except perhaps my heart) that Allison is going to truly shine this week. Song choice (assignment) will make or break her though. I also hope Adam hits it out of the park at record distance.

The rest? Kris and Matt will do well, stepping up their respective games. Danny will be Danny, but will still not be eliminated for reasons that elude me.

All these comments about Adam winning make we want to pull my hair out. His performances are laughable. Like, when he comes on stage with that clown makeup, screeching into the mike, grabbing his crotch or whatevia, I start to laugh. And not in a good way. I think I get it… but I don’t like it.

The good news is that now that Lil is gone, I’m not dying to see anyone go. I wouldn’t be upset if Matt or Adam were to go, but I’m not like wishing and hoping or anything. This season is better in a way, because at least things aren’t set in stone. Kris could upset Danny and score a spot in the finals. Danny could end up in 4th place. Allison could make top 3. It’s nice that there’s at least some sort of mystery to it.

But Matt is going home next week. His time is UP.

OK – now that Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve read some of the other comments, Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll respond to the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Adam is a shamà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , and the à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Adam is a really nice humble personà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ . For those who know Adam, youà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll know he is first and foremost an actor. He IS a very nice person. He is NOT humble. He knows exactly how good he is, and he can make it look as humble as he wants on stage. And he is VERY different in person than he is on stage (still nice, but just really different, if you know what I mean). For someone who says à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not ashamed of who I am and Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m not going to be someone differentà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ , Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m just sort of surprised he puts on that manly à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“straightà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  accent when on cameraà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦
And he has amazing vocals and will probably win the whole thing (thereà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s just occasionally too much screeching for me).

I guess after all these years on messageboards and such I shouldn’t be surprised by anything but it does honestly surprise me when people who claim to know someone actually does them the disservice of posting about them. You do them no favours.

That being said, if he doesn’t normally speak in a ‘manly’ tone, do you honestly think that the Christian voters who are anti-gay in the least, would vote for a gay man with feminine attributes? No they wouldn’t. Adam has done what he feels he needs to do to win this and IF he has made some adjustments along the way it’s his business because he no doubt wants to win this thing. That being said, I do believe he’s going to win and sadly I think Gokey is going to slip in there at 2nd. It’s what TPTB want and that’s what they’ll get. Kris should be 3rd. Allison and Matt are a toss up for me at this point.

These guys are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“performingà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  whenever they are on camera, which is pretty much all the time now … people who do best ON THE SHOW, do this well.

Last year, Larry King interviewed the top 10 before they left on their summer tour. Someone (maybe Chikeze) very sagely commented that their weekly performance was not merely the 90 measly seconds they got to sing their song, but rather, any instance in which they got any camera time whatsoever, i.e., the pre-performance “personality reel,” the Ryan stool chat, and whatever back and forth they may have with the judgery post-performance. IMO any contestant that doesn’t take advantage of this opportunity does so at his/her own peril. Adam, as the consummate performer, is this season’s best example of this reality. The one and only time he received a poor review (from Simon after Ring of Fire) he merely laughed it off good-naturedly and uttered nary a word. I don’t think it’s an automatic death sentence to mouth off at the judges, but you have to tread very carefully and make your points cogently and respectfully, or risk coming off as a sassy mouth (Lil) or an arrogant snot bag (Anoop). The remaining contestants have all received unenthusiastic reviews at one time or another, but they managed to hold their respective tongues.

The one small quibble I would make with cwg’s great observations is the assertion that Carrie showed a winning personality during her season — I thought she was dull as dishwater but prevailed nontheless due to her undeniable talent.

I wouldnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t rely too much on DialIdol. They were wrong last week with Lil. Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m assuming here, so I could be wrong, that Lil actually finished 7th since she was eliminated first. DI had her placement between 1-6.

It has also had Kris placed near the bottom very often, and he has yet to be in the bottom three. Truth be told, we have no idea where any of the contestants are placing according to DI. Plus, I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think the sample size DI is using is this year is at all representational of the actual voting public.

I think maybe the person was talking about the DialIdol raw numbers, which seem to correspond more to the actual results.

hi MJ

This is my 3rd (or is it fourth time?) posting here. I have been following you blog since ROF caught my attention. I was not into AI before this.

I would like to say that I enjoy very much reading your blog especially the comments as it is moderated to prevent extremes comments while at the same time allowing the posters still give their two cents worth of opinion.

Just want to send my appreciation for all the hard work in trying to maintain some sanity on the comments boards. I am slowly reducing my time at the AI board since some of the posters a bit too extreme for my taste.

I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t care what à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹insidersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ say. I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have to know Adam personally to know that he is talented, smart, and handsome. I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t care if he keeps his feminine side in check (if you say so). Heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not stupid

I’ll just throw my two cents into the mix. I think at this point, the “insiders” are just as much in the dark as us “outsiders” in regards to what is going on with Adam. None of us really knows what it is like to be on AI and what kind of toll it takes on a person emotionally. I think all of the contestants have to have somewhat of a healthy ego in order to get on that stage each week and perform. I don’t know anything about Adam’s personality, feminine vs. masculine, but I do believe we all have both feminine and masculine traits, and both sides come out a various times. So who’s to say Adam is faking anything? Maybe he is maybe he isn’t. But no one really knows but Adam.

I think all of contestants who have gone this deep into the competition, are going to be forever changed by this AI experience. We see that every year with the AI contestants that go far. How can you experience something so intensely and not have it change you in some way?

I like Adam/Allison/Kris. I’ve wanted Matt to do well since he’s from my state, but he’s been just average. Same w/ Anoop. I don’t think the save was used well (should have been for Alexis or for Allison if she goes tomorrow). However, I do not think it took anything away from Anoop since Anoop was brought in as wildcard #13 to begin with.

That canà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t be true, on top three night they said it was basically a three way tie. So I guess Clay lost a lot of support from top four on. I definitely remember that they portrayed top three as each of them had about 33% of the vote. That Ruben won was no shock to me.

Abbysee–go to interview with Nigel Lythgoe here

http://www.realitynewsonline.com/cgi-bin/ae.pl?mode=1&article=article9455.art&page=6

and scroll down to “Nigel, will American Idol ever reveal the weekly vote totals.” Nigel explains that Clay was ahead the whole time and that the swing in votes when Kimberly Locke was eliminated probably made the difference for Ruben. My point is just that the same kind of dynamic could occur this year too since Adam seems untouchable.

@hardkandy I didn’t say whether other contestants had big record-buying fans or not. I’m certain many of Adam fans ARE record-buying fans, as the iTunes ranking showed.

I like Adam/Allison/Kris. Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve wanted Matt to do well since heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s from my state, but heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s been just average. Same w/ Anoop. I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t think the save was used well (should have been for Alexis or for Allison if she goes tomorrow). However, I do not think it took anything away from Anoop since Anoop was brought in as wildcard #13 to begin with.

I’m sorry here is the correction that I must make. Because of how AI decided to organize the show this year NONE of us really know where these contestants stood in their perspective groups. Anoop could have had the third highest votes in group 1 (higher than Alexis Grace) but they had to go with a girl b/c that was the format. Likewise, the Top four vote getters in Group 1 could have all had higher votes than the top vote getters in Group 2 and 3. We really don’t know how the votes went when comparing ALL three groups. This is where the producers of the show have misled many into thinking that Anoop or Matt wouldn’t have made the top 12 on their own. Furthermore, the judges have insinuated that the 3 remaining WildCard spots would have included Anoop. But, Jasmine, they felt also should have been included due to her performance. This is all for not at this point but, I hate that people soon forget the format and how the votes actually came in to try and prove a point, incorrectly. My other point is that whether people blame Matt ( I do NOT blame Matt as I understand the need for drama on this show) or not, the simple fact is the save did hurt Anoop. What bothers me about the save is: Matt’s performance on movie night was off key and a bad mess (although the studio version was cleaned up), also Simon readily admitted he didn’t think Matt had a chance to win. So, if someone is not worthy to win, why use the save? The explanation for the judges save was b/c the judges wanted to stop a frontrunner from leaving too soon. How was Matt’s performance of Brian Adams front runner worthy? If Matt would have left when America voted him off Anoop MAY possibly still be here. Matt would have left during movie week and Lil (considering the votes on disco week) would have left (as she was the 7th place finisher). Some can speculate that if Matt would have left his votes may have gone to Lil but I think, more or less, people would have divided their votes between the contestants, if they even voted at all.

I just saw the Gospel Channel special on Christian Idols that featured Chris Sligh, Melinda Doolittle, Mandisa and Phil Stacey. Danny got an entire segment to himself. His sister and brother-in-law were featured speaking about Dannyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s faith and the tragic passing of his wife. There was also footage of Danny performing at his Milwaukee church. This yearà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s other worship leaders, Kris Allen and Michael Sarver, got a passing mentionà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’not even by name.

So, I was wondering where the Danny lovers were at considering he never is in the bottom 3 even with lackluster performances (IMO). Now I know. Interesting how many blogs have mentioned that Danny has met and contacted some current gospel singers. I have never heard of contestants doing this until this year. Some have said he is just making his connections. But, I find that very presumptious considering he hasn’t even been coronated the AI winner yet. Maybe I’m wrong and contestants from previous seasons have felt they are worthy to start making connections before the end of the season. If I am I would be interested to know who the contestants were that have done this.

I agree that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Americaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  is not seeing what TPTB sees in Matt. However, the majority of à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“Americaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  (i.e., AI watchers/voters) are not really habitual record buyers. They may be excited about the Idol winners when they win, but then they move onto the next season if Idols. And that may be the reason why many number of the AI winners/runnerups do not sell their second and third albums so well.

Just wanted to point out that it’s also possible that a lot of the AI watchers/voters are habitual record buyers, but that they just like to buy good music. Some might think that 90% of the post-AI cd’s are crap, and they’d rather buy something better from a non AI artist.

AI is the TV show I love to watch the most. But, I don’t necessarily look at it as the place to find the next great cd I want to buy.

^^^@SpenserJ—You are right. I probably oversimplified the situation from my personaly experience. I talk about Idol with my coworkers in a same sentence we talk about the biggest loser (yes we are a bunch of middle aged women) and Dancing with the stars. They have their faves and some even votes a few times. But none of them buys CD’s except for their kids for Christmas or B-day.

Also my daughter’s friends—they all seem to watch the show and they have their fave (which is 100 % Allison, BTW). However, the only CD’s I see any of them (or their parents) bought in the past year is either Twilight soundtrack or HSM3 soundtrack.

OTOH, I am the only person who watches AI (although I think I quit watching after last Wednesday) among the people I discuss music with or go to concerts with except for the group of friends who’m I met through David Cook boards.

So I see that the 20 million viewers do not translate into 20 million record buyers. Conversely, many of the record buyers are AI virgins.

I dont think I would use the word humble for Adam. He knows just how good he is, he knows that as far as pure, raw talent goes he’s the bees knees and so no, he’s not humble and he shouldnt be either and yes he is an actor and thats really what Idol has turned into. You cannot win by just having a great voice, you need the magic stuff and Adam has it.

I laughed out loud about the remark regarding the “manly” tone Adam uses for the camera. He’s not stupid, he understands how this shit works. He cant be himself while on idol so he becomes what he knows they want him to be and it doesnt matter because either way he has these effing crazy good pipes that rarely miss a note.

He’s a stah.

>>Nigel explains that Clay was ahead the whole time and that the swing in votes when Kimberly Locke was eliminated probably made the difference for Ruben. >>

Pffffftttt.

what piffly poppycock that shit is. he’s a liar. aint NO way Ruben beat Clay season 2. NO way.

Id say that was the last year Idol tampered with the numbers that blatantly because it got a lot of attention. no one believed Ruben beat Clay.

OK, very few believed it.

I like Clay a lot though Im no Claymate, just a gambler and I know a winner when I see one. Ruben had the whole velvet teddy bear thing going on and he was very good but there was nothing that could have stopped that Clay train that year and certainly not Ruben.

There, I feel better now.

The Gokey Birth Control and Forehead Nipple comments made my lunch hour =)

Had to post for the first time, agreeing with jj82. Any smart contestant will try to play up the facets of their character most likely to appeal to the viewing public. 90% of my enormous respect for Cook came from seeing how quickly he mastered the not-coming-off-as-a-douche aspect of AI. Ditto with Adam this year. Smart as hell, that dude.

Just wanted to point out that ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s also possible that a lot of the AI watchers/voters are habitual record buyers, but that they just like to buy good music. Some might think that 90% of the post-AI cdà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s are crap, and theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢d rather buy something better from a non AI artist.

AI is the TV show I love to watch the most. But, I donà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t necessarily look at it as the place to find the next great cd I want to buy.

That is how I am. I am an avid music-buyer of all genres, but when it comes to post-AI music the only purchase I have made was a download of Jordin’s No Air (What? It’s catchy.). There are the few contestants I am open to buying post-AI albums of, but it’s not a guarantee.

SpenserJà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’ You are right. I probably oversimplified the situation from my personaly experience. I talk about Idol with my coworkers in a same sentence we talk about the biggest loser (yes we are a bunch of middle aged women) and Dancing with the stars. They have their faves and some even votes a few times. But none of them buys CDà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s except for their kids for Christmas or B-day.

I do totally get your point by the way. I’m also one who watches the Biggest Loser and DWTS. AI is jut another of my many reaility tv fixes. Although, I think the ability to buy some of their music afterward or go to the tour are both really fun byproducts of the show.

Obviously, viewers and votes do not translate to sales, since even the most popular, multi-platinum alums have yet to sell a number equal to more than 1/5 of the viewership. For instances, I think Kelly sold a ton of that Breakaway cd, and picked up a lot of non-viewing, younger fans because there were a lot of catchy tunes on that cd and it fit in really well on radio at the time. Her constant radio exposure garnered her a lot of non-viewer sales. In addition, I think Carrie gets a lot of sales from country music fans who may also never watch the show.

I think the nature of the “strike while the iron is hot” game of post-AI cd’s is a big part of the problem. It’s hard to put out a ton of quality when the record company needs you to be done with the cd from start to finish in what seems like 90 days (or 3 days if you’re Kristy Lee).

Also, I think that if AI was actually good at turning viewers into buyers, then when these kids come back to perform their singles, they’d sell two million downloads instead of just fifty or a hundred thousand.

Maybe 1,000,000 (give or take) sales come from the viewers (ignoring the phenomena of uber-fans bulk buying or silly troop cd drives). My guess is, if you want to hit the 3 or 4 million mark, you’ve got to pick up the non-viewers. Therefore, you’ve got to put out music the public likes.

I could of course be totally and completely wrong

A lot of the audience just isn’t interested in buying. I’m not necessarily sure why that is,

As an Anoopee, I was heartbroken last Wednesday. Given Simon’s comments from earlier in the week, I knew that Anoop was going home, Yet, I dialed his 07 number for the allotted two hours. I wasn’t going to let TPTB and Simon tell me WHO was destined for the F2. Someone spoke earlier about fan bases and if they couldn’t keep their favorite alive, then why would we buy his/her music and perhaps, if I understood correctly, if you haven’t built up a fan base while on Idol the chances of building up one Post Idol is slim. JHud and Daughtry come to mind for me. I do hope Anoop puts an album out, and I will buy it. BTW all my votes will go for Kris, although I like Adam, I want Hokey out of there! No talent and HE was the choice of TPTB over my Anoop, whom they treated so badly from the start. So, all you other Anoopees let’s get Hokey outa’ there and unite behind Kris!

Just don’t get the Adam and his two voices comments. If you watch his early Youtube videos when he is speaking I don’t hear ANY difference between then and now….maybe I just don’t know what a man’s feminine side sounds like.

And yes, I think Adam and Cook have been 2 of the “smartest” contestants on idol. Neither one has/had made a misstep in their competition. Always the gentlemen on camera, always gracious, always “acted” like they were loving what they were doing. Kudos for both of them for CARING so much about keeping their dignity intact. Too many people in this day and age just let it all hang out and don’t seem to give a damn that to be respected you need to show respect.

Late to the convo re: Clay and Reuben.

The reason Clay lost was that the phone lines were so jammed, you couldn’t get a vote in for him.

I believe they hadn’t gone to the “multiple lines per person” for the finale that year, and also I don’t believe the voting lasted longer than 2 hours max.

Just ask me – I voted for Clay the whole night, and only got in 10 votes.

For the guys, if after 7 seasons they haven’t yet figured out the part about being a gentleman, look enthusiastic, be polite, look like a team player etc, they deserve to be kicked off the show (that’s you Gokey).

For the girls, it is a little more complicated, but it is still basic “smarts” to know not to talk back, act immature, or be ungrateful in any way (Lil and Megan).

I read where when the contestants were all together that Danny suggested that they try to get “the save” used that night by chanting whoever was in the bottoms name. So if it had been Anoop or Alison, it would have been the same. He didn’t single out just saving Matt. Now maybe a producer suggested that, or it never happen but it seems rather strange that the contestants all started chanting at the same time and encouraged the audience to do so. TPTB don’t always get their way. Simon ridiculed Taylor just about the whole season, but he still won. On dial Idol he was a head all year, except one week early on and then he was second. In season 2, I like Grayhound, couldn’t get many votes thru. I power vote and for the first time had one dropped call after another. We even had letters to editor in our paper about what happened that people couldn’t get votes thru for Clay. I don’t think TPTB did this I just think it was a technical problem and maybe only regional, but it did happen. Don’t give TPTB too much credit, the show still gives Power To The People if they just use it. If you think Adam is the best, vote for him, I do and I am

I think I’ll stick to the people who have grown up with Adam and are still his best friends. They say he’s the most humble and genuine person they know. And, to all these experts on how every gay guy must talk, there are many clips of him speaking the exact same way. I think when he gets going and talking fast, he might sound “gay”, but like most people he doesn’t speak in a monotone.

Just like that horrible Whitney girl from EW. I’d call it racist. How the heck does she or anyone know that the real Adam would not be able to contain himself during the disco guest stars’ performance. I’ve never seen such narrow minded people regarding gay people than I have since Adam started this. It does reveal a form of discrimination and great stereotypes that people still have. Adam is such a victim of it. It’s sickening that even the gay Slezak relishes in participating in it. Another form of sick joy that comes from belittling others. Danny’s a victim too. Point and laugh. I hope to see Danny in his deserving second place.

Okay so I don’t get all the Matt hate and I def. don’t get why he is being blamed for Anoop’s departure. I am a huge Matt and Anoop fan. Sure I’m disappointed that Anoop didn’t make top 5 but I don’t blame Matt for it. The judges chose to save Matt and Matt’s fans stepped up and saved him from the bottom 3. I hope Anoop gets signed because his vocals are great and I agree that 19 will sign Matt.

Of course Simon said that Matt couldn’t win…thats because he has already predicted a winner. Nothing against Adam, because I do think he will win, but Simon’s comments were to create more drama and I see from these comments and others that it suceeded. I don’t think Matt has a chance in hell of winning but I don’t think anyone other than Adam does.

Also, I hate it when people talk about Matt being rejected by america twice and therfore the save was useless and it should have been used on Anoop. Really? Anoop had to be saved by the judges too for the wildcard. I blame this all on the “new” top 36 format. Had they left the top 24 then both Matt and Anoop would have made top12 without a problem, even with the Viva La Vida trainwreck.

Ugh..So I’ve managed to ramble on and I’m not sure I’ve even got my point across. Oh well! I’m just glad matt is here for the top 5 because he deserves it. I’m sad anoop isn’t in the top 5…he should be in Gokey’s place. Here’s hoping Gokey goes home this week! Time for a shock boot…In the words of Michael Slezak “Shock boot…anybody but Allison, Adam, Kris, and Matt!!”

BTW Grayhound I agree w/ you via clay/ruben. I voted for two hours and barely got in five votes. Plus, and forgive me if this has already stated I only read the first three pages, but I remeber Nigel saying that Clay had the most votes from the wildcard until the finale and that they believed that they just didn’t have the ability to handle all the votes that were coming through. I’m still shocked clay didn’t win.

It does reveal a form of discrimination and great stereotypes that people still have. Adam is such a victim of it. Ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s sickening that even the gay Slezak relishes in participating in it. Another form of sick joy that comes from belittling others. Dannyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s a victim too. Point and laugh. I hope to see Danny in his deserving second place.

Your mileage may vary, but I’m not seeing any discrimination practiced by any of those journalists.

Adam is no victim. He knows exactly what he’s doing–he’s playing the game brilliantly.

And I think the original poster had some reasonable insights. By all accounts, Adam is a nice guy, but he’s no Melinda Doolittle. He knows just how talented he is and isn’t ashamed to flaunt it. A little swagger never hurt nobody.

Like I’ve said before, humility is way overrated.

Like Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ve said before, humility is way overrated.

I don’t think so. It has won Adam a LOT of fans.

Given an arrogant SOB who thinks it’s all about him and never thanks or acknowledges anyone for helping him or someone like Adam who is appreciating those around him and sharing the wealth so to speak, I’ll take Adam. Yes, he knows his strengths, but he also knows he’s not alone in all this.

I think Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll stick to the people who have grown up with Adam and are still his best friends. They say heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the most humble and genuine person they know.

Me too.

All the so-called Matt hate is really misplaced rage against the judges; since disgruntled fans can’t vote out the judges for their flagrant misuse of the save, Matt becomes the next best target. As many have pointed out, including mj, the originally stated purpose of the save was to reverse a gross miscarriage of voter justice along the lines of the Chris Daughtry boot. Sorry but Matt is nowhere near that caliber, as his performances have been notoriously spotty. If, say Adam had had an horrifically off night and had found himself in jeopardy, he would be worthy of the save because of his otherwise spotless record, general awesomeness and obvious star power. What’s more, if memory serves, I thought the save decision was supposed to be unanimous. Apparently, only the two women wanted to save Matt because they were succumbing to the mood in the room and voting with their hearts and not their heads. (Okay, Kara was voting with some other part but I’ll spare everyone the visual). It’s enough to make me ashamed of my gender. To hear tell, the guys were not on board with the decision, but Simon picked then to behave like a gentleman and defer to the ladies’ wishes. I also don’t think Anoop’s fans realistically thought he’d ever get the save, nor advance past 5th place, as his momentum was obviously dwindling. They’re just upset that he fell victim to TPTBs’ nefarious interference.

I think Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll stick to the people who have grown up with Adam and are still his best friends. They say heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the most humble and genuine person they know.

ITA. I also agree with the person who said that on a show like this with the constant pressure, omnipresent cameras, etc. a person’s true nature eventually bleeds through. And, I keep going back to that interview with the F7 after Matt’s save when Jillian asked them who was the person they went to if they had a problem or were down. All of them (except Gokey) immediately turned and pointed to Adam. No hesitation. Whatsoever.

Humble? I’m sure he knows how talented he his. That’s called confidence. What he’s been unsure of and humbled by is the adoration shown by so many who watch the show and vote their appreciation for him and his gifts.

Humble? Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢m sure he knows how talented he his. Thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s called confidence. What heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s been unsure of and humbled by is the adoration shown by so many who watch the show and vote their appreciation for him and his gifts.

LaurelG, I agree with this. I think what might have surprised Adam, and maybe it humbles him, is who his fans are. From what I have read on various boards, Adam’s fans seem to come from all races, genders, religions, ages and orientations. He put himself out there for the masses, and I suspect that was a bit scarey, and the masses have responded for the most part, in a very positive way. This is a feel good story, if there ever was one, for all of us. :smile_wp:

So, all you other Anoopees letà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s get Hokey outaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ there and unite behind Kris!

Nope, I like Danny better than Kris although it’s Allison I’m voting for. I’d take them and Matt before I’d vote for Kris. I don’t hold the save against Matt but wish it hadn’t been there at all this season because I think it cost Anoop the top 5. I don’t believe for a minute he was the #13th idol however it doesn’t matter at this point.