Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Idol Stalker - Watching American Idol

Idol Stalker - Watching American Idol

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 Performances – Group 3

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 09:06 PM PST

Tonight, Group 3 from the Top 36 on the eighth season of American Idol took to the stage in hopes of making it to the Top 12. Who were favorites?

I loved Lil Rounds, Jorge Nunez and I liked Felicia Barton and Von Smith. Still, the only one I was truly enthusiastic about was Lil because she picked a song that was appropriate for her voice and her stage presence made me believe that she is an artist instead of a contestant on a reality television show.

Check out the performances from this week:

I'd love to hear what you guys think? Who do you want to see make it to the next round?

image © 2008 FOX BROADCASTING CR: FOX

Tags: alex wagner, arianna afsar, Felicia Barton, jorge nunez, junot joyner, Kendall Beard, Kristen McNamara, lil rounds, Nathanial Marshall, performances, scott macintyre, Taylor Vaifanua, von smith

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Lil Rounds

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 08:11 PM PST

Lil Rounds caught my attention early on in the competition and I couldn't wait to see what she was going to do if she made it to the voting stage of American Idol.

She chose to sing "Be Without You" which is current and totally appropriate for her voice. I thought it was a solid performance and I REALLY hope to see her around next week!

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Be Without You, lil rounds

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Jorge Nunez

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 07:43 PM PST

Jorge Nunez sang "Don't Let The Sun Go Down on Me" which, if I remember correctly, is one of Simon Cowell's favorite songs. It always reminds me of Clay Aiken who I think did a phenomenal job during the second season of American Idol.

Jorge also did a good job but, again, this is an older song than what I would have chosen for him. Either way, I hope he did enough to stay another week because he is a really good singer.

Audio only (sorry!)

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Don't Let The Sun Go Down on Me, jorge nunez

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 - Kendall Beard

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 07:28 PM PST

Kendall Beard sang one of my husband's least favorite songs, "This One's For the Girls." I tried to listen to Kendall's performance while he sat there making up alternate lyrics to Martina McBride's hit.

There were some real pitch issues but I think Kendall is bubbly and sweet. I doubt she'll make it to the Top 12 but you never know, right?

Audio only:

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Kendall Beard, this one's for the girls

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Scott MacIntyre

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 07:24 PM PST

Scott MacIntyre, the first blind person to make it into the finals on American Idol, chose to sing "Mandolin Rain" which is a song that I'm not that familiar with.

I am totally inspired by Scott's courage and talent but I can't lie. I thought it was pretty good but not great. Am I the only one who feels that way? I feel like the judges are trying to push the viewers to vote for Scott because of his story rather than his vocals.

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Mandolin Rain, scott macintyre

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Felicia Barton

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 07:18 PM PST

Felicia Barton sang "No One" which was the second Alicia Keys song of the night. I won't lie, I had basically forgotten about this poor girl until just now. Except for one bum note, I thought she was absolutely terrific.

My daughter and I were sitting here talking about how people shouldn't sing Alicia Key songs and then Felicia got up there and proved us wrong. I thought she was great!

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Felicia Barton, No One

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 - Nathanial Marshall

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 07:12 PM PST

Nathanial Marshall chose to sing "I Would Do Anything for Love" which, yet again, was an odd song choice. I like Nathaniel's energy and I like how unique he is but I really wasn't feeling this performance.

For a guy with such a distinct look, I thought this was just too ordinary. Know what I mean?

Audio only:

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: I Would Do Anything for Love, Nathanial Marshall

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Kristen McNamara

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 07:03 PM PST

Kristen McNamara picked "Give Me One Reason" which I think is unfortunate because, even though I like that song, it's not one that allows you to show off vocally.

I tend to forget about this girl even though she does have a good voice but, tonight, she was just not great. What did you think?

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Give Me One Reason, Kristen McNamara

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Ju’Not Joyner

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 06:58 PM PST

Ju'Not Joyner chose to sing "Hey There, Delilah" which we've already seen him sing during the Hollywood round. I hate when people do that but I do admit that I like his arrangement of the song.

I feel like he connects to the lyrics and it changes the feel from the original. I do feel like he could have given it a little more but he is clearly talented.

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Hey There Delilah, Ju'Not Joyner, junot joyner

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Arianna Afsar

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 06:55 PM PST

Arianna Afsar chose to sing "The Winner Takes it All" which might have been a good choice given how popular the Mamma Mia! movie has been lately.

She has a really, really great voice but I found the performance a little boring and I felt like she pushed her voice a little too far (it cracked a few times, at least). She's got a great look and she's young and fresh so I really expected something different from her.

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: arianna afsar, the winner takes it all

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 - Alex Wagner-Trugman

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 06:49 PM PST

Alex Wagner-Trugman was one of my favorites during the auditions. He said that he had been on the internet looking to find out what people thought about him and, after learning that people thought he was dorky, he started going to the gym to try to bulk up. Awwww!

He chose to sing "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues" and it was awkward at times which is too bad because he clearly has a really good voice. Reading all those comments about him on the internet was probably a bad thing because he seemed to be trying to overcompensate for it. I think he's adorable so I'd love to see more of him.

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: Alex Wagner-Trugman, i guess that's why they call it the blues

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 - Taylor Vaifanua

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 06:44 PM PST

Taylor Vaifanua chose to sing "If I Ain't Got You" which I consider a risky song choice because if you don't do an excellent job, you will likely pale in comparison with the original sung by the fabulous Alicia Keys.

Taylor did a good job but I don't know if it was enough… The judges didn't seem overly impressed. Listen to her performance:

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: if I ain't got you, Taylor Vaifanua

American Idol Season 8 Top 36 – Von Smith

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 05:55 PM PST

I have liked Von Smith since I first saw him in the auditions. There's something sweet about him. He chose to sing "You're All I Need to Get By" and I was disappointed that he didn't pick something more contemporary since I think he is so modern.

That said, he did a really good job and hopefully it will be enough to overcome the questionable song choice. Did you like Von's performance!

image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Tags: von smith, you're all I need

David Archuleta Promotes Disaster Relief With DoSomething.org

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 08:48 AM PST

American Idol season 7 cutie pie, David Archuleta, has again teamed up with DoSomething.org to help those in need. Dunkin Brands' Community Foundation is working with the organization to provide a $500 grant every week to teens who are taking action around disaster relief. That's amazing!

For more information, visit DoSomething.org/Disaster and think about what you can do to help! If you're looking for suggestions, consider organizing a canned food drive at your school, church or in your community. Volunteer to help rebuild homes in New Orleans. You can make a difference!

Tags: disaster relief, do something

Simon Cowell Gets Harrassed, Talks About American Idol

Posted: 03 Mar 2009 08:40 AM PST

Watching this video, I was thinking that, if this happened in the real world, we'd call the police and someone would be in trouble. American Idol judge, Simon Cowell, was in his car driving along, minding his own business, when this guy from Splash pulled up beside him and just started asking all sorts of questions. He even pulled behind Simon at one point, only to regain his spot next to him to ask more questions. THEN, when Simon reaches his destination and gets out of his car, the Splash guy is waiting for him. I'm sorry but I would NEVER want that life for myself.

Anyway, Simon said that Adam Lambert is his favorite from this season and that he likes Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood most from the past Idol winners.

Tags: adam lambert, paparazzi