American Idol 2010 Top 10 Finalists

It's another week of tough battle for American Idol finalists. For this week's episode, the song choices were from R&B Soul genre and was mentored by the sensational R&B singer Usher who popularized the song "Yeah".Each of the finalists had a share of Usher's piece of advice.

On Tuesday March 31, 2010, the contestants showcased their chosen songs and hoped the idol judges and the world would love their performances.

Enumerated below are the song interpretations of each contestant.

 "Who sang What".

Siobhan Magnus sang “Through The Fire” by Chaka Khan. She revealed she has been a fan of Usher since she was 6 years old. When it was time for the judges to give their opinions, Siobhan felt a little sad because the critics were not very nice.

• Randy Jackson thought her voice was a little bit all over the place though he acknowledged the courageousness and the conviction and the "boots" outfit of course but over all, he thought it was not the best performance for her.

• Ellen Degeneres agreed with Randy. She thought Siobhan was a little bit lost in her performance like she was hiking and missed the trail.She said she loves her but it was not her best performance.

• Kara tried to boost her self-esteem by telling her she delivered pretty much each week and that every performance has an off night and Siobhan is entitled to one. She added “ you’ve been here, you’ve come through every week and I have to say at the end of the day, you’re still a great singer.

• Last but not least Simon Said it sounded to him like she ran in a marathon and she was singing while running. It was so all over the place.

Michael Lynche, “Big Mike as Ryan Seacrest calls him, from the famous character of the Oscar winning movie The Blind Side starred by Sandra Bullock” sang "Ready for Love" by India Arie.

• Randy was glad Big Mike was back with his guitar. It wasn’t as exciting for him but he is loving every performance of Big Mike.

• Ellen thought it was beautiful and she loved that performance.

• Kara hated to admit that she never heard that song until that night. She thought Michael did an incredible job with the song. For her it was tasteful, it was lovely and one of her favorite performances.
• Simon said to Michael “this is probably the first time since you entered the live shows where I can actually take you seriously now as an artist. Simon believed it was a terrific performance.

Casey James (Kara Dioguardi's apple of the eyes) sang " Hold On I'm Coming" by Sam & Dave.

• Randy made his comment short and sweet. He thought, that was another hot  night for Cassey. He showed a lot of vocal ranges. It was a  perfect selection and song choice for him. Nice job!

• Ellen acknowledged his consistency, he is always good, have a great voice and great tone but she felt it was a little generic. She felt he was playing safe with that song.

• Kara seemed to be not satisfied with her favorite contestant’s performance this time. She was looking forward to see more of what Cassey can do with his vocal range. She thought he can do more than that performance. She wanted him to show everything he got.

• Simon said he was completely in disagreement with the rest of the judges because in his opinion, this week is so far his strongest week.

Didi Benami sang " What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted" by Jimmy Ruffin.

• Randy felt the whole performances was kinda flatline for him. It was not a good performance for him.

• Ellen thought it was way dramatically. Not her best performance.

• Kara thought it was over done. Didi lost her identity as an artist. On the first part of this season, she was portraying a singer songwriter side of her but this week, she kinda lost that identity. Didi left Kara puzzled.

• Simon described that performance like swimming in Jelly, so over the top, so old fashion and so off melody. That song should have a great climax at the end but she never did it. In other words, she did not interpret that song as it should be. For him, Didi completely and utterly lost her way.

Tim Urban (Teen Star Material)  sang "Sweet Love" by Anita Baker.

• Randy said he went flat again and felt like he was a  singing waiter singing in a restaurant, felt so pedestrian and not like singing in an American idol stage. He didn’t feel any vibe on it. Didn’t feel any connection somewhere.

• Ellen wondered why Tim picked that song. He felt like singing and  walking and sneaking into a bedroom. Ellen could only say “Oh boy, why?”

• Kara thought it was like broadway. He took the soul out of the song. He made himself so uncommercial.

• After Kara voiced her opinion, Tim laughed. She asked him why he laughed. Simon said he thinks he was laughing because he doesn’t think it makes any difference whatsoever what they say. It was a completely inappropriate song for Simon. He was like a mouse fighting with the elephant meaning impossible for him to win but then because he’s gonna smile, the audience will vote for him so Simon believes he’s gonna stay.  

Andrew Garcia sang "Forever" by Chris Brown.

• Randy Jackson felt Andrew Garcia is back to the mainstream. He was lost in the limelight for a little while and he was brought back by his performance this week. Randy thought it was Andrew’s best performance in a long time.

• Ellen thought it was really an amazing performance. She loves when he smiles.

• Kara said that performance was one giant leap in the right direction.

• Simon said it was miles, miles better from what they heard from him over the last couple of weeks. The only issue that Simon was seeing from him at this moment is his personality. He’s not showing any personality and that’s what Simon wants him to work on as well.

Katie Stevens sang " Chain of Fools" by Aretha Franklin.

• Randy thought Katie is the younger  version of Christina Aguilera. He likes her vocals.

• Ellen thought she has a great vocals but she wished Katie was a little bit current with her song choice because that song chain of fools made her sound a little mature. Ellen is looking forward to hearing her sing a younger song.

• Kara thought Katie found where she belongs which is R&B pop. This is one of her best performances but she has to go back to make it younger and more commercial.

• Simon found it crazy for Randy to compare Katie to Christina Aguilera. He found her performance as robotic. He addressed Kara’s advice for her was wrong. Simon didn’t like the song choice.

Lee DeWyze sang “Treat Her Like A Lady” by Cornelius Brothers & Sister Rose.

• Randy was ecstatic! He thought that performance was unbelievable.

• Ellen agreed with Randy. Unbelievable performance she said. She thought it was the best performance of the night.

• Kara thought it was amazing.

• Simon said he always believed in Lee’s performances.

Crystal Bowersox – “Midnight Train To Georgia” by Gladys Knight & the Pips.

• Randy loved the whole outfit, the whole ensembles and the whole stilettos. He loves to see her play the piano. He thought it was another great performance of her.

• Ellen commented Crystal’s  never  not good and that she’s always great. She added Crystal’s really competing now. “She’s In it to Win It.”

• Kara was so glad Crystal took the risk. There’s so many things in her that Kara loves. She can’t wait to see what she’s gonna do nextweek.

• Simon thought her choice of song was sensational. The backing vocals shouldn’t be in it because it made the whole performance old fashioned.  

Aaron Kelly sang “Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers.

Randy felt that Aaron’s performance was kinda alright for him.

Ellen thought it was a good song choice and he did a good job in his performance.

Kara liked it thought she wasn’t in love with it. She thought Aaron could’ve done something more than that. A little more high energy is much better.

Simon was not jumping out of his chair with that performance. He thought Aaron was not as confident as he was last week.

Well, having heard those critics, evaluations and comments, all I can say is “ To Each His Own”.

No matter what the contestants do, the judges has always something to say. That’s what they’re paid for anyway. Honestly, they are confusing most of the times. Just do your best and take the risk. It’s the people that will vote for you anyway and not the judges.