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 Eight
Tuesday,
March 8, 2005
(Girls):
Amanda Avila: Amanda Avila's version of "River Deep Mountain
High" wasn't bad, but wasn't spectacular, either. Amanda has a decent voice
and great presence at times, but sometimes it seems like her years as a
performer in a Las Vegas show with other performers has left its mark by
giving her delivery an anonymity that makes us want to say, "Bring out more
of your personality!" We don't dislike her, we just wish what we saw in the
early auditions would come out more. Tips
for success: If Amanda were to build up her vocal confidence and connect
with a signature song, the star quality she already has would increase
ten-fold.
Janay Castine: Janay Castine's nerve-wracked post-audition
performances, including last night's "Dreaming of You" have unfortunately
left none of the impression we had during the early rounds, when we named
her as an "also interesting" contestant. She had a great look last night,
and glimmers of star quality personality combined with the voice we heard in
early rounds make us want her to continue to work hard and rejoin the
industry in a year or two. Tips for success: Lots of live performance
experience in a less high-profile setting is what Janay really needs to
combat those nerves. Since we know there's a voice in there from seeing the
early rounds, we wholeheartedly encourage her to get as much live experience
as possible, away from the pressure of the national spotlight. Then she
could come back in fighting form.
Carrie Underwood: Carrie Underwood has everything the American Idol
should have...except a signature song that can really put her on the map.
Last night's "Because You Love Me", although soulful in places, didn't
highlight her best qualities and tended to be pitchy at times. Tips for success:
We're in agreement with Simon in that Carrie needs to connect with the right
song. Keep searching, Carrie. You've got it, now work it.
Vonzell Solomon: Vonzell Solomon's performance of "Respect" is a
great example of success being more than a good voice and good looks. She's
a good performer and has a beautiful face that lights up when she sings, but
somehow doesn't leave a memorable impression once she leaves the stage. As
for tonight's wardrobe, we have to agree with Simon in that the cowboy hat
and boots didn't go with the image or song. Tips
for success: Vonzell has a lot of great qualities, but for some reason
they don't add up to a star performance. Perhaps she needs a signature song
with strong lyrics that are deeply personal to her in order to connect with
us? As for the wardrobe, she was doing great until last night. She could
probably get away with the boots with another outfit, but put together with
the hat, it looked too costume-y and didn't work for the song.
Nadia Turner: "Try a Little Tenderness" was a great song for Nadia
Turner's voice, and it gave her an opportunity to use the power and growly
quality we've been wanting to hear from her. Her performance was riveting,
and it was a perfect marriage of song and voice. Excellently done! Tips
for success: Nadia should continue to choose material that brings out
her power. The star quality and confidence are there; all Nadia Turner needs
is to keep choosing material that gives her vocal confidence and power that
matches her powerful presence.
Lindsey Cardinale: Lindsey Cardinale's version of "I Don't Want
to Miss a Thing" was her best performance yet, and was a good reminder of
what we liked about her voice in early rounds. Still, it wasn't as good as
some of the other contestants, and her stage presence needs some work.
Image-wise, her wardrobe has been better in previous weeks.
Tips for success: Lots of performance experience away from the
national spotlight in order to gain some consistency in her performances
would probably serve Lindsey well. We love the smoky quality of her voice
and she has good power, but it's tough to bring out your best qualities when
you're nervous. More experience will help, as will a song she can really
connect with.
Mikalah Gordon: Mikalah Gordon is a good example of a performer
desperately trying to find herself. We liked her voice and look in early
rounds, but tonight's performance of "Somewhere" seemed like a very bland
version of last week's artistic statement. The vocal quality wasn't there,
the look was too "rehearsal hall," and it just didn't work. What happened to
the girl we said, in early rounds, reminded us of a cooler Norah Jones with
an edge? Tips for success: Mikalah has star-quality. We've seen it.
Some deep introspection to figure out who she is as a person and as an
artist will help her figure out how to channel it to her best advantage.
Then finding material she's passionate about that works for her voice will
help put it all together. When she figures it out, she'll be amazing, and we
can't wait.
Jessica Sierra: Jessica Sierra's "The Boys Are Back in Town" was
excellent in terms of song choice, vocal, and performance, and she sang it
like a pro. Nice vocalizing, and strong presence, too. It will be
interesting to watch Jessica in upcoming weeks, because that particular song
was one of her audition songs, and one she's clearly comfortable with. If
Jessica has similar success with song choice and performance in upcoming
weeks, she can win. Tips for success: Continuing to find songs that
work for her will be key. We know she can deliver them. The wardrobe needed
a little tweaking, but utilizing the advice of the American Idol stylists
will work that out.
We voted for: This was close. We liked them almost equally and even
flip-flopped our choice at one point while writing this. Nadia Turner
got our vote for vocal performance combined with overall impression. 2nd choice:
Jessica Sierra, coming in a very close second for her vocal quality
and song choice.
Ryan Seacrest Smart Quip of the Night: None, but we felt true joy
when Seacrest threw water on Simon Cowell after Cowell's put-down of
Seacrest's talents as host. We've been listening to Seacrest on the radio
for nearly ten years, and we think he's swell. We do have a complaint,
though: "Goodnight, Everybody" instead of "Seacrest Out"??? In the immortal
words of our Webmaster, "It's not over until Seacrest says 'out'!"
American Idol without Seacrest's signature sign-off is like having a hot
fudge sundae without the cherry on top.
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.
|
