Shane Avery
Staff Writer
Singing about what reminds them of home? They’re all just hoping they don’t go back! Well, we had to get through tonight’s performances first, and I must say I’m THRILLED with how things turned out. The top 12 really brought their all this week, and I’m hoping my predictions for the bottom are accurate.
Time to go!!
1. Jena Irene – “Suddenly I See” by KT Tunstall. Kicking off the night with the song that reminds her of home may work for Jena, but for yours truly it fell rather flat. I didn’t really get excited over the vocal, and I think she may need to stick to ballads. I still love the tone of her voice though. Keith and Jennifer enjoyed the performance, but didn’t love it, while Harry felt she needed to show some more energy. (WATCH HERE!)
2. Alex Preston – “I Don’t Wanna Be” by Gavin DeGraw. Last week, Alex was one of my favorite performers, so would he duplicate tonight? Hell yeah he did!!! I am convinced that Alex is ready to make his album, because his performance tonight was incredible. He made the song his own, and I loved every second of it. It appears I was the only one though. Jennifer called out the arrangement, saying it affected his vocal. Harry complimented his effort on picking the arrangement but didn’t love it. And Keith said the “song was around him” and he couldn’t grasp it. What did you guys think?? (WATCH HERE!)
3. Jessica Meuse -“White Flag” by Dido. I need to confess to being very worried about her song choice when she announced it, but the vocal was decent. I don’t think it was as sharp as the judges said, but it definitely wasn’t her best. Harry got right to the point when he called out the high note she (attempted) to hit and the fact that the crowd didn’t applaud was very telling. Again, I liked it but didn’t love it. Plus, Jessica really needs to work on her “listening to criticism” face. Half the time, she looks really pissed off. (WATCH HERE!)
4. Dexter Roberts – “Lucky Man” by Montgomery Gentry. Dexter started off by dedicating the song to “a friend back home who isn’t with us anymore”. This was, by far, the best vocal of the night (so far) and I can’t rave about it enough. The emotion, the phrasing, the passion, everything about Dexter’s performance won me over. He needs to keep this up, because right now, he has me completely sold. Absolutely brilliant. (WATCH HERE!)
5. Emily Piriz – “Let’s Get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez. Performing a song from a judge? RISKY!! I’m not really sure it paid off though. While I think it was a decent performance, the vocal just didn’t deliver. I agree with Harry 100% because she just didn’t match the energy of the track. Of course Jennifer was going to love it (and the hair flip was hilarious) as did Keith. Thankfully, Harry kept it real and I’m not sure Keith is right though with his promise she would be there next week. (WATCH HERE!)
6. Caleb Johnson – “Working Man” by Rush. This guy is ready to headline an arena!! NOW THAT IS ENERGY!! Caleb exploded on that stage with the Canadian classic and I couldn’t have loved it more. He is a bona fide rock star and his vocal run during the performance was crazy good. Caleb completely ate up the stage and took everyone on the ride with him. So amazing and this guy is going to go very far. No doubt in my mind!! (WATCH HERE!)
7. MK Nobilette – “Drops of Jupiter” by Train. This is tough. I’ve been a fan of MK since day one, but I found her performance very safe. She appeared to be somewhat uncomfortable during the performance and I have to echo what Harry said. She needs to take risks and work on what she struggles with if she’s going to give a breakthrough performance. I truly hope she can do it, because she is extremely talented. (WATCH HERE!)
8. CJ Harris – “Waiting On The World To Change” by John Mayer. Perfect song choice!! CJ found his groove this week and I couldn’t be happier. This fit CJ’s voice and the delivery came off extremely well. I really felt the emotion of what he was singing, and the smiling throughout the performance was a great added touch. CJ just comes across real to me, and I’ve always loved that about him. No shield, no wall…..Just himself. (WATCH HERE!)
9. Sam Woolf – “Just One” by Blind Pilot. Always a bold move to perform an unknown song on live television, but Sam definitely pulled it off. I will agree with the judges though, and that’s as good as his vocal is (like “butter” as Keith said) he needs to remove himself from his comfort zone and push himself. He’s been singing the same type of song for the past few weeks, and we need something different. All of that aside, THIS vocal and performance was still amazing. I’ve enjoyed Sam from day one, and hope he can continue on. (WATCH HERE!)
10. Malaya Watson – “Take Me to the King” by Tamela Mann. Talk about a makeover!! Malaya looked INCREDIBLE onstage as she really showed off her voice with this performance. There was ONE tiny note where I thought she was in trouble, but DAMN!!! The ending was completely out of this world and I loved it so much. The words, and the story behind the song was so touching and I really hope this keeps her out of the bottom. Crazy good. (WATCH HERE!)
11. Ben Briley – “Turning Home” by David Nail. No guitar? Okay then!! Jennifer mentioned right off the bat what I was thinking, and that it felt very off in the beginning. Maybe the intro was a tad off, I’m not sure. Keith also picked up on something else I felt, and that was it felt like Ben was focusing so much on the runs and trying to hit the big notes, he lost the emotion of the song. (WATCH HERE!)
12. Majesty Rose – “Fix You” by Coldplay.
BIG song!! I have to admit, that when she started, in her lower register and kept it very quiet, it was so good. When she reached the end of the performance however, she pushed the vocal and completely lost it. I was really disappointed because it started off perfectly. I really wish she would have kept it minimal. (WATCH HERE!)
What was YOUR favorite performance tonight? Mine was definitely Dexter!!
Bottom 3 prediction:
Emily Piriz
MK Nobilette
Jessica Meuse
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