News / Entertainment
Who’s Going Home on ‘American Idol’?
With the competition getting closer and closer and closer to the end it becoming all the more difficult to predict who will be the next contestant voted off of ‘American Idol.’ While they all have their strong points, there are definitely some glaring issued that could cost each ‘Idol’ hopeful their end goal.
Melinda Doolittle has been nothing short of perfect in her vocals throughout the competition. While she may have stumbled a bit during the Rock Night with Jon Bon Jovi she has proven that she is the best singer in the competition. Simon Cowell even commented last night that if the competition was about consistency Doolittle would have a spot in the finals.
That’s a big “if” because “if” the competition was about singing Sanjaya Malakar never would have made it as far as he did. The one thing lacking from Doolittle’s complete dominance could be her downfall. Her incredible voice can’t seem to cover up the fact that she seems so bland. Neither Blake Lewis nor Jordin Sparks can touch the range of Doolittle but Melinda falls well behind her counterparts when it comes to winning over a crowd or really owning the stage.
As for Blake Lewis his positives can just as easily be seen as his negative. There hasn’t been an ‘Idol’ yet that has done their own thing as well as Lewis. He has consistently taken risks when it comes to song selections and arrangements and for the most part it has paid off. Lewis has earned a huge following for bringing a new kind of air to the ‘American Idol’ stage which typically favored large vocals and little else. With Blake there is a personality behind the voice that voters either identify with or admire.
The fact that Lewis is so different and willing to take the risks is in large part because he can’t compare to Doolittle or Sparks when it comes to the vocals. He has to step outside the box and implement his own signature on his performances. The problem is how much beat boxing can a fan handle? Does anybody really want to hear an hour of “You Give Love a Bad Name.” No doubt about it, Lewis has influence the show more than any other remaining contestant but his limitations are obvious and because of that it may have serious consequences come tonight’s vote.
‘American Idol’ was made for contestants like Jordin Sparks. The 17-year-old is what the producers dream about when thinking of the perfect ‘Idol’ performer. Sparks fits the mold of an attractive young singer who could definitely be standing at a podium accepting Grammy Awards. Jordin has proven that pressure is no big thing to her as she has routinely stepped it up when the competition got tight. There isn’t an ‘Idol’ remaining that is on the roll that Sparks enjoys and because of that she has landed as the favorite to win the competition.
While she doesn’t have the same talent as a Doolittle or the ability to make a song her own like Lewis, Sparks could fall in between the cracks of her two competitors. The vote tonight could easily be separated by those who want the best singer and those who want the best personality. If fans vote along those lines it could be Sparks that watches the ‘American Idol’ finals from the couch. That being said if she makes it through tonight Jordin will likely become the next ‘American Idol.’
The results show airs tonight at 9:00 p.m. EST on Fox.
