A little background info: I’m a HUGE Idol fan, and have attended the show the past three years (multiple shows for Seasons 6 and 7). I wasn’t as into this season as I have past, so I wasn’t planning on spending money on tickets (plus, I’m currently doing a year of volunteer service, so I am BROKE). But, I won tickets, and since my mom is a huge Casey fan, I decided to take her with me. I was there primarily for Crystal and Big Mike, but everyone was GREAT. They really surprised me! Also, you should know that nothing epic happened regarding meeting the Idols, because I didn’t meet them. I wish I could have, but things just didn’t work out in my favor.
So, Thursday morning I was debating whether or not to go to the venue and stand by the buses. My decision was made quickly when I got a phone call that one of my roommates was in the emergency room for kidney stones. After work (work for me is at a high school in downtown Detroit), I headed to the hospital to see him. There were a few complications, and a very scary few seconds when he stopped breathing because of a medication he was allergic too and the hospital staff went all Grey’s Anatomy on us to save his life. I left around 4 to go pick up my mom and head to the show, but almost turned around and went back to the hospital. I was really worried about him and decided the show wasn’t worth it. However, by then he was doing fine and my other roommates encouraged me to go enjoy myself. I told them to call or text if anything happened and I would leave.
I got to my mom’s house and we went to dinner and then headed to the venue just as doors were opened. I have to say, I was VERY worried for a bit. There was pretty much no one there until about 7-7:15. The merch line had like 10 people in it, and the floor was pretty much empty. We were seated on the floor, second row to the right of the stage. That ended up being PERECT because I was able to stand in the aisle close to the stairs and see perfectly. There was an opening from the stage to my spot, so I’m positive the Idols saw me making a fool of myself, surrounded by people sitting down, I’m standing up in the aisle jumping around, dancing, and screaming. Cmon people, IT’S A CONCERT. Anyways, we sat there and talked and people watched (spotted Crystal’s dad!). The show started about 15 minutes late…don’t know what was going on with that. onto the show!
Didi was up first. I really, really wish they would have started with a group number instead. Nothing against Didi at all, but in the past years both Chikezie and Michael Sarver were able to get the crowd movin and screaming, but Didi just did not have that affect. I think if they had started with the whole group, she would have had a better response. Anyways, her set included “Lay It On Me” and “Terrified”. I was really happy that she chose “Terrified”, but disappointed in the crowd. They just sat there and stared at her. I was trying my best to cheer but it was hard to be into it! She is adorable, btw.
Andrew came out next and of course sang “Straight Up”, and also did “Sunday Morning” by Maroon 5, which I loved. He was good, just…Andrew, ha. A little boring, but he did have the crowd singing along.
Katie was next and I was totally prepared to dislike her set, but she was AWESOME! She really surprised me. Homegirl has grown so much since the show ended, as far as stage presence…and her vocals were very strong. She sang a Demi Lovato song, “Here We Go Again”, and absolutely ROCKED “Fighter” by Christina Aguilera. Katie had awesome energy and was the first to really get the crowd up and moving. Plus, she gave the whole “live your dreams” spiel and as someone who loves mushy stuff like that, I give her extra points.
Tim came out and the first thing I said to my mom was “HIS HAIR IS BETTER THAN MINE!”. Seriously. It was so pretty! He sang “Better Days” by the Goo Goo Dolls and “Viva La Vida” by Coldplay. I really can’t say much for Tim’s vocals…I just don’t get anything from him (Sorry, Tim fans). It was really fun to watch the screaming girls in the front, though. They went crazy!
After Tim came the incredible, epic rock show that was Siobhan Magnus. Siobhan completely blew me away. I got goose bumps the entire time she was up there! Siobhan and Adam should seriously do a duet together like…yesterday. She started off with “Paint It Black” and ended it with this scream that I’m sure was heard around the world. Then she sang “Spiderwebs” by No Doubt and was just running around the stage the entire time, jumping up and down and head banging. She closed her set with “Stockholm Syndrome” by Muse and seriously, I forgot I was at an American Idol concert. She was AWESOME. Definitely stole the show for the first half. Now I’m upset I didn’t vote for her more, haha. I really hope Siobhan sticks to this genre because she was unbelievable.
So after the most intense set of the show comes high school student, Aaron Kelley. Remember how shy and quiet Aaron is? Well, not on stage. He was movin his hips like yeah and shaking his tailfeather…all while singing country songs. He sang “Somebody like you” by Keith Urban, “Walking in Memphis”, and “Fast Cars and Freedom” by Rascal Flatts. He was really adorable and reached out to the girls in the front. He reminded me of Archie in that he seemed surprised by how much the crowd loved him.
Those six came back together on stage to sing “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus and as much as I hate that song, they did a solid job. Tim, Andrew and Didi were on guitar and once again Siobhan stole it with her solo part.
During intermission I started prepping myself for Big Mike. I love that guy. Right before the lights went down, the band took the stage and Denise, the backup singer, finally noticed my sign for her. She started laughing and then showed the rest of the band. I tried to get closer to the stage to talk to her, but security stopped me because the lights were coming down. So I went back to my spot. Big Mike came out and I lost my marbles. I started screaming and jumping around. He was looking sharp in a suit and sang “Woman’s Work”, “Ready For Love”, and then sped things up with “My Love” by Justin Timberlake. He rapped the TI part, which was epically awesome. I loved his set because it was so HIM. Beautiful vocals, lots of soul. He was amazing! Exactly what I wanted from him. I’m really glad I was able to see him perform live.
Casey came out next which meant it was time for my mom to go into fangirl mode…along with half of the arena. Seriously, everyone loved Casey. He is a phenomenal guitar player, and added a lot of that into his set. He sang “I Got Mine”, “Don’t”, and “It’s All Over Now”. He ALSO did a FABULOUS duet with Mike. My mom and I seriously flipped out when they were singing “Have You Ever Really Loved a Woman”. I mean like, to the point where I was in my little aisle spot and Mike looked at me, and either whispered or mouthed ‘I see you!’ OH, OKAY! HI THEN! That duet was one of the best spots of the night.
After Casey comes Crystal, who had a very good response from the crowd. The really nice lady in front of me could tell I was a huge Crystal fan so she offered me to take her spot to take pictures. So sweet of her! Unfortunately I didn’t get any of Crystal because the lighting was so bad for her set. But, it doesn’t matter, because she was AMAZING. Crystal has that kind of voice that just hits you right in your gut, you know? That SOUL she puts into it is just amazing. She reminds me so much of my other favorite Idol, Melinda Doolittle. They both have this beautiful way of interpreting the songs and making you feel them in your bones. Crystal was a goddess. That’s all I can say…I really can’t explain just how good she is until you see her live. She sang “What’s Up”, “Come To My Window”, A VERY BEAUTIFUL VERSION of “Up to The Mountain”, and a rocking “Piece of My Heart”. The crowd loved her and you could see on her face what a great time she was having.
Crystal got the crowd ready for Lee, and when he came out, I’m pretty sure my eardrums busted. Seriously, audience, where you were you for the first hour of the show? Asleep? Anyways. I’m very indifferent on Lee. I think he’s adorable, and really loved a few of his performances on the show, but never thought he was as amazing as everyone said he was. So I wasn’t particularly ecstatic to see him last night, but he was REALLY good. I’m not a fan of his “Beautiful Day” cover, but I did enjoy the rest of his set… “Rocket Man”, “Hallelujah” , “Treat Her Like A Lady”, and “Use Somebody”. In fact, “Use Somebody” was one of my favorite performances of the night. He was SO into it, and at one point he and I were screaming the words at each other. I’m pretty sure we became best friends. Seriously, though, his stage presence has improved about 394093% since the show. Plus, he kept thanking the crowd, and, like Aaron, seemed just so happy and surprised that they loved him.
The finale consisted of the boys singing a little bit of “It’s My Life”, the girls starting “My Life Would Suck Without You”, and all 10 of them joining together to finish that song. It was very high energy and I was boppin around, especially because I’m a huge Kelly fan. They thanked the audience about a billion times and then left the stage.
Overall, the show was great, and MUCH better than I expected. If you are debating going, I encourage you to go. It is worth the money, I promise! They all put on a very good, entertaining show.
As we were walking out, I noticed Crystal’s dad so asked for a picture. I made some small talk with him, said that she was AWESOME up there and he looked so proud and said “thank you! She seemed to be really happy, which is all I ask for”. AWWWW. He was a sweetheart.
The end!
Snip of Lee Dewyze singing “Treat Her Like a Lady”
