The FIRST live shows!!

“American Idol” kicked off the live shows tonight with the Top 12 guys taking the stage for America’s votes for the first time!!

Idol had set up shop in Detroit, and host with the most Ryan Seacrest announced that the girls would be hitting the stage tomorrow night. Next week, we would find out the Idol Top 16.

That means 8 people will be going home!!

Let’s get this going:

1. Adam Ezegelian – “I Wanna Rock” by Twisted Sister

The resident rocker took the stage by storm with his Twisted Sister cover, and while his energy was infectious, his voice was not something yours truly was enjoying. That however, doesn’t matter because all Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr and Keith Urban all LOVED it! Would he make it through with America’s votes?

Time will tell!!

2. Michael Simeon – “How Am I Supposed To Live Without You” by Michael Bolton

That……is an awkward song choice.

Now, allow me to finish….

He sounded AMAZING up until the last falsetto note which seemed totally out of place. Michael has a ton of talent and potential though, and should go quite far in the competition.

3. Savion Wright – “Hey Soul Sister” by Train

The comeback kid (who didn’t make it past Hollywood last year) brought his level of suave and butter voice to the Detroit stage. Savion was giving yours truly a Jason Mraz vibe with his reggae tinged performance which is a great thing. His charisma and lovable behavior was shining through and I really believe he’s safe into the Top 16.

4. Mark Andrew – “The Weight” by The Band

WHAT. A. PERFECT. SONG!!!

The classic Band song fit Mark’s voice absolutely perfectly and the performance was so far my favorite of the night. Mark hit the groove of the track effortlessly and it showed. No way is he in danger of going home. NO WAY AT ALL.

5. Trevor Douglas – “Best I Ever Had” by Gavin DeGraw

Oh.

Trevor was always the one to root for with his quirky personality, unfortunately the bigger stage got the best of him during the first live show. Trevor’s vocals were all over the place during his Gavin performance and he never really found the groove.

At least he looked like he had fun?

Yeah. let’s stick with that.

6. Clark Beckham – “When a Man Loves A Woman” by Percy Sledge

Performance of the night (so far)!!!

Sorry Mark Andrew…..

Clark stormed the stage with an absolute killer performance of the Percy Sledge classic. His voice delivered every single raspy note to utter perfection and if he keeps this up, he’ll be in the competition for a VERY long time. This also resulted in the first standing ovation of the night, courtesy of Keith Urban. Jennifer Lopez also admitted that she had “goosies” from start to finish.

7. Rayvon Owen – “Jealous” by Nick Jonas

Rayvon taking on a Jonas brother!!

While I was not admittedly a huge fan of his falsetto (that seems to be a recurring theme tonight) the performance as a whole was pretty good. Rayvon delivers this old school R&B flavor, and Harry got it completely right with comparing him to the Motown greats.

8. Daniel Seavey – “I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz

The youngest Idol competitor took the stage and let’s focus on the good:

He’s adorable…… the mandolin was a great touch……and there were some good vocal spots…..

However, something was lacking for yours truly, and I’m now aware that herds of teenage girls are going to be hounding me for my opinion.

9. Riley Bria – “Homeboy” by Eric Church

Our resident country boy channeled his personal Idol Keith Urban for his Eric Church cover, and his vocals were decent. The problem with the performance is that it was completely lacking in energy which brought it all down. Jennifer was right though, that he just needs the right song to bring it to a higher level.

10. Quentin Alexander – “I Put A Spell On You” by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins

Lemme just start by saying I would raid this guys wardrobe.

Next up, the performance.

YES!!!!!

Quentin brought a completely, recognized performance to the stage and his vocals were out of this world. Quentin is already on his way to create an album. He brought the drama, the sound (with a PERFECT falsetto) Keith hit the nail on the head by calling it a “Grammy performance” .

Brilliant!!!!

11. Nick Fradiani – “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran

Another stellar performance by Nick!!

Taking a song that is currently very popular could have been risky, but Nick pulled off it off. He gave the Sheeran track his own glorious touch and his vocals have never been better. Jennifer was accurate when she called it one of the best of the night.

Loved everything about it!

12. Qaasim Middleton – “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars

If Qassim picked this, he gets a pass right away because THIS IS MY JAM!

And allow me to sum this up with:

Qassim reminds me of a mix between James Brown and Prince.

Yes. Yes. Yes. What a way to close the show!!

That’s a wrap for the guys this week, and if yours truly had to pick the best of the night, it was hands down Quentin followed closely by Clark and Qassim.

What did you guys think?

Tune in tomorrow night for the Top 12 girls!!