American Idol Top 7: Country Week

Last night on American Idol, the top 7 contestants took on some country music. The judges didn't seem to like it very much but I really enjoyed it. I think their biases and personal wishes for this season are starting to become very noticeable, and I don't really enjoy that.

I really though that most of the contestants did pretty good last night, and this was the first night that I have really really disagreed with the judges on a performer...

Phil Stacey- "Where the Black Top Ends" This was probably his best performance this season. He chose an excellent song, and I guess he finally found his style of music. I didn't think it was as good as the judges thought, he lacked energy in his voice or something. Something was off, and it made it a little boring but overall he did a nice job.

Jordin Sparks- "A Broken Wing" wow. I really don't know what else to say. I absolutely love Jordin...she is probably my favorite contestant on this show since season 1. Her voice is so amazing, and she somehow manages to keep me interested when every other contestant would have bored me to death. She commands your attention and she did a great job with the subtleties of the song, and proved that you don't have to go for all the big notes and have a big musical buildup...you can just sing. This was actually one of my favorite performances this year. She really did "tell a story," like the judges commented on. and her hair was adorable! =)

Sanjaya Malakar- "Something To Talk About" It was an interesting choice of song. It was very karaoke but he does a good job entertaining. It is getting really old now...the joke is up and he needs to leave soon.

LaKisha Jones- "Jesus Take The Wheel" I would not have recomended singing this song, because Carrie is kind of Idols "golden child" right now....I would say that Kelly is more successful but she isn't under that Idol umbrella anymore, and Carrie is always very careful about seeming grateful and doing anything Idol tells her to...so basically she was going to get bashed no matter what. I really really enjoyed LaKisha's performance, for the first time in quite a while. Basically, both Carrie and LaKisha are very vocally capable...you can't deny that. The real difference between this performance and Carrie's version of the song is that LaKisha can make you feel. Carrie never instills any emotion into her performances and comes off as cold and stiff. When LaKisha sang the song, you could hear the desperation in her voice and tell she really meant it. I fear this performance might send her home, and will most likly give her a trip to the bottom three, but for one of the first times since she reached the top 12, I really feel like she doesn't deserve it. I wouldn't be surprised if she left, but I might get a little angry.

Chris Richardson- "Mayberry" He is a good country singer, but the nasally tone of his voice really bothers me. It was okay, but a little boring. It didn't make me feel anything, which made it very forgettable.

Melinda Doolittle- "Trouble is a Woman" I really liked the way she started this song. It was a great song choice and it was another great performance from Melinda! She did a lot better than I expected her too...for some reason I couldn't really picture her singing country, but I am now convinced that she could probably sing anything. Melinda did an excellent job, and she looked amazing with the hair extensions!

Blake Lewis- "When The Stars Go Blue" Once again, Blake did amazing. He stayed semi-true to the theme this week and really showed off his voice. He was another person I didn't think would do well this week, but he surpassed my expectations again, like he does pretty much every week. It was a great song choice and I loved his performance.

Overall, I thought it was a great night. This is the first time all year where I am really excited to hear the studio recorded tracks. Maybe it was just because I actually knew some of the songs this week, but I really did think that they all did much better than the judges gave them credit for.

Watch American Idol tonight to see which contestants make it to the top 6 (Halfway there...woohoo!)