MBADC American Idol
Armchair Quarterback 2005
American Idol from
the perspective of someone who's booked artists at the national-level: who we like in the
competition, what works, what doesn't work, what contestants can do to improve
their chances of success, and advice you can apply to your own performances.
Week Six (Girls):
Tuesday, February
22, 2005: 1st Public Vote, Girls Performances
Vonzell Solomon: Vonzell Solomon was pitchy on her
version of "Heatwave" but
performed well in terms of stage presence. Although an up-tempo song was a
good choice, perhaps not that particular song, because it didn't give us a
good sense of who Vonzell Solomon is as an artist. Tips for success:
Vonzell should work on the nerves and listening to herself in live
performance; since Vonzell was strong in previous performances, we think a
little more focus will do the trick.
Amanda Avila: Amanda Avila is loaded with star quality, but it didn't
shine tonight, perhaps due to nerves and a boring song selection ("How Am I
Supposed to Live Without You" by Michael Bolton). As our webmaster put it,
"If you can't sing that song like your heart is breaking, don't bother." We
just didn't feel it. Tips for success: Amanda should work with a
vocal coach to get rid of the pitchiness in her voice in order to develop
the vocal consistency that will bring her confidence. Better song selection
for her voice and performing material she's passionate about will also help
her shine.
Janay Castine: Janay Castine is a contestant we've been watching to
see how she handles the competition. We know the voice is in there, but
nerves seemed to hold it back. The song she selected tonight ("I Wanna
Love You Forever" by Jessica Simpson) didn't work for her voice and isn't
one we'd recommend for a competition because the melody leaves no room for
vocal error. Tips for success: Better song selection for her range
and style will help Janay shine.
Carrie Underwood: Carrie Underwood's song choice tonight ("Could've
Been" by Tiffany) was perfect for the range and power of her voice, and the
country-styled song interpretation was an excellent example of how to handle
a cover tune in a competition. Excellent vocal control, too. Tips for success:
Carrie did everything right tonight and just needs to keep it up. We'd
sign her in a heartbeat.
Sarah Mather: Sarah Mather's song selection tonight ("Get Ready" by
the Temptations) didn't show off her voice and style, and made her seem
lackluster compared to her previous song selections. It may have been
nerves, but Sarah didn't make us feel the lyrics. Tips for success:
If you don't feel the lyric yourself, and if the song doesn't work for your
voice, you can't make the listener feel it. If Sarah chooses songs that fit
her style, with lyrics that she personally feels, it will translate. Being
comfortable with the song also helps get rid of nerves.
Melinda Lira: Melinda Lira may have had a great voice in earlier
phases of the competition...but tonight she committed the kiss of death in a
singing competition: she chose a Celine Dion song. (99% of the time, singing
Celine Dion is a no-win situation; unless the singer is ten times better
than Celine--nearly impossible, since Celine's notes are so technically
perfect--the judges will constantly be thinking how much better Celine hits
each note.) Unfortunately for Melinda, of all Celine's songs, "The power of
Love" requires the most vocal control...so choosing it added insult to
injury. The arm movements were also distracting. Tips for success: If
you have a vocal coach who encourages you to sing Celine Dion in any public
setting, fire him or her, because that coach knows nothing about the music
business. Selecting songs that fit your own voice and style are key.
Nadia Turner: Nadia Turner probably has the most natural star quality
of anyone in the competition, but is an interesting case: We love her
personal style and applaud her performing ability, but the vocals and song
selection don't always live up to the power of it. That said, she has the
potential to put it all together. Tips for success: We'd like to see
Nadia work with a new vocal coach--perhaps a rock vocal coach--who can bring
out a more powerful, aggressive side to Nadia's voice that would be a better
match to her personal style. Nadia seems like a girl who needs to growl, and
the right coach can make it work.
Elizabeth Sabine would be our first choice.
Celina Rae: Good voice, poor song choice (Lara Fabian's "I Will Love
Again"). A lackluster performance of a powerful song. We know Celina Rae has
the power to do better. Tips for success: Song selection that better
fits Celina's voice and style will help. That particular song started off
too slow for the format of the competition, and the verse seemed a tad too
low for Celina's range.
Mikalah Gordon: Mikalah Gordon impressed us in earlier rounds, but
her song choice tonight (Candi Staton's "Young Hearts Run Free") didn't
highlight the power in her voice and left us feeling like something was
missing: what happened to the cool edge we loved so much in auditions?
Mikalah is so much better than that performance. Tips for success:
1. Better song choice. 2. Drop the mid-song shtick and sing. 3. Wardrobe
that brings out Mikalah's fun, cool, quirky self.
Lindsey Cardinale: Another case of good singer, poor song choice.
Lindsey Cardinale's vocal was fine, but the song was boring. Tips for
success: Selecting a song with a stronger melody and excellent lyrics
will make Lindsey Cardinale shine. It's risky, but if she has the range to
hit the notes, she may able to pull off "Unchained Melody." We encourage her
to work with the show's vocal coach to find out. She also might do well
with Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse of the Heart," provided she likes the
song and she feels it's a good fit for her personal style. If not, she
should find something else, because being passionate about what you're
singing is key.
Jessica Sierra: Regardless of how she ends up finishing on
American Idol, we like Jessica Sierra's potential. It was
a good country version of Phil Collins' "Take a Look at Me Now" but a little
subdued in performance. We liked the variation on the chorus, though: tough
to pull off, and she nailed it. Tips for success: We'd like to hear
Jessica bring out more of her power. If she's let loose with good song
selection and a vocal coach who can help her bring out her vocal power while
maintaining her excellent control, Jessica can shine.
Aloha Mischeaux: Good vocals, but a little too Beyonce at times. (We
have a Beyonce in the music industry already, but we don't have an Aloha
Mischeaux.) Excellent performance and stage presence, although we weren't
crazy about the song itself (Beyonce's "Work it Out"). Tips for success:
Aloha should choose songs that bring out her own special self: no more
Beyonce songs. If she feels passionate about the song, she could probably
pull off a good version of Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools."
We voted for: Carrie Underwood, because we'd sign her in a second. 2nd Choice:
Nadia Turner.
Ryan Seacrest Smart Quip of the Night: There
was an attempt at levity with a comment about something disappearing "faster
than a strudel in Randy Jackson's dressing room" but given Randy's battle
with weight loss, it came off as a little too mean. We like Seacrest, but
meanness isn't becoming to his usually charming style.
American Idol
Armchair Quarterback
The MBADC American Idol Armchair Quarterback is intended as commentary and
is not affiliated with Fox Television, American Idol, or its producers or
judges in any way. Tips should be taken as a suggestion only and are not
intended as a substitute for qualified vocal coaching or artist management.
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