Week Five recaps (Hollywood Week)
American Idol 6, February 13: Cuts Like a Knife by Betsy Wasser -- 02/14/2007 It’s Hollywood week! Idol hopefuls have to impress the judges in a hurry, including with the dreaded group sing. With more girls than boys in this round, the ladies face an especially tough week. What will become of repeat contender Gina Glocksen? Welcome to Hollywood week! I absolutely love this part of American Idol. The audition shows feature too many uncomfortably bad performers, and the top 24 feels like it’s killing time until the main event. But in Hollywood, we start to see who the real stars are. People who seemed good in the auditions are less impressive than we remembered. And there’s always drama when it comes to the group performances, and I’ve got to say, I just eat that up. Let’s get right to it! It’s Day 1, and the contestants – all 172 of them—are having breakfast and checking each other out. The girls are performing first, and there are nearly twice as many of them than there are boys. The boys, apparently, have been feeling pretty good about those odds. Gina Glocksen and another girl talk about the fact that they are not, in fact, all winners, and that most of them are going home. Gina, of course, knows just how true that is. The contestants arrive at the theater, and the women realize that a lot of them are going to get cut. The judges arrive and Simon wishes them luck. Ryan explains that they’ll be put into groups of six, and they’ll each perform individually for about 30 seconds. Some of them will be cut right away. Jori Steinberg says she wants to dress like Paula every day – her outfit and Paula’s are awfully similar. She sings a song by Anastasia, and she sounds good. When it’s over, she’s all smiles. We see more quick clips of other women, with mixed results. The six women line up to learn their fates. Simon tells them that all of them are going home. They weren’t good enough, and there was no originality. Ryan says the first round is going to be brutal. The girls are shocked, and Simon tells the others that this should be a warning to them. Jori shrugs and says she thought she was good. The other women in the auditorium look very nervous. Perla, who we saw in Minneapolis, says she’s ready to go and will stay calm. She feels like a superstar and mugs for people she walks past in the airport. She and Ryan chat, and he tells her that she needs to really stand out from the group. She tells the group that she’s a sexy Columbian woman. She sings Shakira’s “Hips Don’t Lie” and turns on the charm. Cute Rachel Jenkins, the Army reservist, sings “Unbreak My Heart,” and has her husband’s picture around her neck again. I liked Rachel in the auditions, but she doesn’t sound good tonight. Perla (and another girl we didn’t meet) are through, but Rachel is out. “This is hardcore,” Paula says. Simon tells Perla that she is personality over talent right now. She needs to be more than just Columbian, because they’ve seen that already. Out in the hallway, Rachel cries and says she wanted to get as far as she could. She clutches her husband’s picture and tries to stay positive. Perla says that she is naturally bubbly, and she can’t help but be herself. Baylie Brown, the country girl who wants to be a city girl we met in Houston sings again and sounds good. Simon is pleased, which should come as no surprise given his love of Carrie Underwood and Kellie Pickler. Baylie makes it to the next round. But, Ryan tells us, most of the girls don’t make it, including Ashley, the woman who made the weird faces in San Antonio. Porcelana, the one who worked out like a fiend, is called “just below average.” Sarah, who lied to her dad about her audition, is cut. She says she made her parents proud, so “I already won.” Nicole Turner is the last singer of the day, and she’s worried about choosing the wrong song. Her mother and aunt want her to sing “Aint No Way,” and she resists. But when she’s on stage, that’s the song she picks. She sounds very Aretha Franklin. She confesses that she didn’t want to sing that song, but she thought it would make her family happy. In the end, she doesn’t make it. She looks absolutely heartbroken. She tells her mom that she couldn’t put her heart into a song she wasn’t feeling. Way to blame your mom, honey. Nicole’s mom talks to the judges and tells them that she sang the song to please her. Nicole says that she picked a bad song. Simon says it wasn’t the song. Nicole says it her personality was lacking because she didn’t connect with the song. “It wasn’t the darned song!” Simon says. Nicole protests that he shouldn’t shout at her. Paula calls Simon obnoxious and tells Nicole to “punch him eight million times.” Whatever, Paula, because you’ll notice that she doesn’t disagree with Simon or offer anything more helpful than Simon as a punching bag. Background singer Melinda makes it through, as do Gina, Jamie-Lynn-Kellie-Pickler and a host of others we only see a glimpse of. It’s day two, and time for the guys. Sundance Head likes his odds since there aren’t as many guys to cut. Brian Miller, who has been to Hollywood before, tells Ryan that it’s an emotional roller coaster, but that at 19, it’s a great opportunity. He sings “A Change Is Gonna Come” again, and he sounds good. He also has teen idol appeal, so I think we’ll probably see more of Brian. Randy says the guys started better than the girls. Navy guy and “Reagan Idol” winner Jarrod Fowler dedicates his performance to his shipmates. He sings “You Raise Me Up” and doesn’t sound as good as I remembered. Next we see Matt Sato, whose parents stopped supporting his singing career. But, he says, when he got home from the auditions, his mom was waiting to give him a hug, something she doesn’t do very often. “I felt loved,” he says. He sounds good, but he doesn’t really have a powerhouse voice. It could go either way with him. Matt makes it, as does Chris Sligh. Jarrod, Simon says, wasn’t as good as the first time around. He’s going home. Matt celebrates and gives Jarrod a hug. Jarrod says his nerves caught up with him, and he’s proud to have gotten as far as he did. Matt calls his mom again, and it’s pretty much a replay of the last time we saw the guy. Matt emotionally tells us that she never says I love you. Are we going to get the weepy phone call to his mom at every stage of this? 34 guys make it through, including Blake, the beat box guy from Seattle, Nick who dropped out last year, Phil Stacy with the new baby, and Sean the Castro looking guy. I also see Sundance Head celebrating. Now it’s time for the group rounds. Contestants will take the stage in groups, and can team up with anyone they want. They can pick a song from a list of nine. A cute girl with braids can’t find a group. Matt can’t find anybody either. Braids girl finds somebody, but Matt is still looking. We meet Matthew Buckstein, one of last year’s singing cowboys, again. He and his group try to harmonize, and let’s just say they need work! Chris Sligh’s group works on some cheesy choreography and crack each other up. They slide across the floor like they’re figure skating and trying to give each other high fives. The guys seem to be having a great time together. Baylie, who is working with BFF Amanda and Antonella, is having less luck with her group. Amanda and Antonella start to fight over their song choice, and Bailie is stuck in the middle. As the two bicker and one threatens to give back her half of their “BEST FRIENDS” necklace, Baylie stares off longingly at another, happier group. At midnight, everyone goes back to the hotel. Gina, Jessica, Marissa, and Perla all practice. Gina is frustrated and says that Perla isn’t as good in harmonies as the others. The other girls are losing patience with Perla. They decide to stay up late practicing. Baylie and the BFFs have a song, but they don’t know the lyrics. They apparently are focusing on choreography and singing into empty glasses. Baylie tells the camera that they’ll be good the next day. Amanda is afraid they’re not going to make it, but Antonella is more confident. Amanda then wanders off in a tiny pair of shorts to watch some boys. The other two decide to go to bed. Amanda flirts with a group of boys, saying she’s sick of practicing. That ought to come back to bite her later. At 3:30, the Perla Situation is no better. Gina says they’re not going to be friends after tomorrow. The next morning, last minute rehearsals. Some are doing well, but Baylie, Antonella, and Amanda are still forgetting their words. Uh-oh, because Simon reminds them not to forget the lyrics. Sure enough, somebody gets cut right at the beginning for losing their words. Matt forgets the lyrics to “Be My Baby” and is sent home. We see yet another tearful phone call in which he tells his mom the news. This time, we do not hear her telling him that she’s proud of him or that she loves him. The moral of the story, kids, is that unless you are successful, your mother will not love you. Gina’s group continues to practice. They say that if Perla falls apart the rest will just stay together. Perla says her job is to prove them wrong. Gina says it may sound harsh, but the truth is, she doesn’t care about anybody but herself. They finally take the stage. Perla improvises the lyrics and does not sound good. Simon breaks the news that Perla is out. The rest are through. Blake, Rudy, Tom, and Chris sound fantastic, both individually and as group singing “How Deep Is Your Love.” They completely rock it out. Blake does the beatbox, and amazingly, it really works with the rest of the harmony. You can tell the audience loves what they’re doing, and when it’s over, Paula gives them a standing ovation. It’s so good I rewind my Tivo to watch it again. All of them make it to the next round. Sundance, we see, didn’t have a great first day. Simon tells him he sang through his nose and looked boiled, he went so red. He says he hopefully learned his lesson. The girls he’s grouped with are pretty unimpressive, and he sounds better. Strategy? Either way, the judges agree—he’s through, the others are cut. Simon tells her Paula was being generous letting him through. Sundance knows it wasn’t his best effort. He says that being a good singer doesn’t help if you don’t know the lyrics. He says he’s got to get something right or they will send him home. Baylie, Antonella, and Amanda get ready. Baylie wants to go over her part. Amanda says that if she helps Baylie, it messes her up. Baylie’s mom watches and hopes for the best. Amanda says that they’ll all be friends no matter what. Uh-huh. Baylie completely chokes on the lyrics until Amanda prompts her. Amanda doesn’t do much better. Randy says “To say that was rough would be an understatement.” Paula says they all seem disappointed. One will go home… and it is Baylie. Baylie cries, but says it’s okay. Antonella admits she’s never been so nervous. Amanda says that she and Antonella made it instead of Baylie because “God likes good people.” Yes, I clearly see the hand of God in this one, reaching down and smiting Baylie. Baylie confronts the others, and they blow her off. Amanda says that “this is a job interview. This isn’t about fun.” Cut to Amanda flirting with the boys last night. She says she and Antonella can have “as many boys as we want at home.” 36 people get cut, including Sean the Castro Guy. 56 people remain. It’s day 4, and only 40 will make it to the next round. The contestants try to impress the judges, then have to wait until the end of the day for the results. Simon, Randy, and Paula sort through a stack of Polaroids. We see clips of singers, but I kind of doubt they’re related to the conversation the judges are having. Finally, they’ve made the cuts. The contestants go into three rooms. Two rooms will make it, the other will not. Ryan says that the contestants undoubtedly look at the other people in the room to see what’s going to happen. Antonella and Amanda are split. Senjai and his sister are apart also. Room one contains Chris, Matthew, Blake, the Asian guy determined to live down William Hung, and Gina. Looks good to me. Sure enough, Paula gives them the good news. They’ve made it, and much celebrating ensues. Room two, containing Antonella, sundance, and Sanjai, are also in. Sundance must have really worked hard to do better in his final chance. Room three heard two sets of cheers already, so they know the drill. The two winning rooms are combined, and Antonella quickly sees that Amanda is not there. She’s happy, but wishes her friend were there. Sanjai is so sad that his sister didn’t make it that he can’t bring himself to celebrate with the others. He finds his sister and they share a teary hug. Amanda tells Antonella she’s proud of her and she’s her best friend. Amanda doesn’t say anything about why God might have made this particular thing happen. Hmm, interesting. But it’s not over yet! Tomorrow, the judges will whittle these 40 into our top 24.
American Idol 6, February 13: Cuts Like a Knife by Betsy Wasser -- 02/14/2007 It’s Hollywood week! Idol hopefuls have to impress the judges in a hurry, including with the dreaded group sing. With more girls than boys in this round, the ladies face an especially tough week. What will become of repeat contender Gina Glocksen? Welcome to Hollywood week! I absolutely love this part of American Idol. The audition shows feature too many uncomfortably bad performers, and the top 24 feels like it’s killing time until the main event. But in Hollywood, we start to see who the real stars are. People who seemed good in the auditions are less impressive than we remembered. And there’s always drama when it comes to the group performances, and I’ve got to say, I just eat that up. Let’s get right to it! It’s Day 1, and the contestants – all 172 of them—are having breakfast and checking each other out. The girls are performing first, and there are nearly twice as many of them than there are boys. The boys, apparently, have been feeling pretty good about those odds. Gina Glocksen and another girl talk about the fact that they are not, in fact, all winners, and that most of them are going home. Gina, of course, knows just how true that is. The contestants arrive at the theater, and the women realize that a lot of them are going to get cut. The judges arrive and Simon wishes them luck. Ryan explains that they’ll be put into groups of six, and they’ll each perform individually for about 30 seconds. Some of them will be cut right away. Jori Steinberg says she wants to dress like Paula every day – her outfit and Paula’s are awfully similar. She sings a song by Anastasia, and she sounds good. When it’s over, she’s all smiles. We see more quick clips of other women, with mixed results. The six women line up to learn their fates. Simon tells them that all of them are going home. They weren’t good enough, and there was no originality. Ryan says the first round is going to be brutal. The girls are shocked, and Simon tells the others that this should be a warning to them. Jori shrugs and says she thought she was good. The other women in the auditorium look very nervous. Perla, who we saw in Minneapolis, says she’s ready to go and will stay calm. She feels like a superstar and mugs for people she walks past in the airport. She and Ryan chat, and he tells her that she needs to really stand out from the group. She tells the group that she’s a sexy Columbian woman. She sings Shakira’s “Hips Don’t Lie” and turns on the charm. Cute Rachel Jenkins, the Army reservist, sings “Unbreak My Heart,” and has her husband’s picture around her neck again. I liked Rachel in the auditions, but she doesn’t sound good tonight. Perla (and another girl we didn’t meet) are through, but Rachel is out. “This is hardcore,” Paula says. Simon tells Perla that she is personality over talent right now. She needs to be more than just Columbian, because they’ve seen that already. Out in the hallway, Rachel cries and says she wanted to get as far as she could. She clutches her husband’s picture and tries to stay positive. Perla says that she is naturally bubbly, and she can’t help but be herself. Baylie Brown, the country girl who wants to be a city girl we met in Houston sings again and sounds good. Simon is pleased, which should come as no surprise given his love of Carrie Underwood and Kellie Pickler. Baylie makes it to the next round. But, Ryan tells us, most of the girls don’t make it, including Ashley, the woman who made the weird faces in San Antonio. Porcelana, the one who worked out like a fiend, is called “just below average.” Sarah, who lied to her dad about her audition, is cut. She says she made her parents proud, so “I already won.” Nicole Turner is the last singer of the day, and she’s worried about choosing the wrong song. Her mother and aunt want her to sing “Aint No Way,” and she resists. But when she’s on stage, that’s the song she picks. She sounds very Aretha Franklin. She confesses that she didn’t want to sing that song, but she thought it would make her family happy. In the end, she doesn’t make it. She looks absolutely heartbroken. She tells her mom that she couldn’t put her heart into a song she wasn’t feeling. Way to blame your mom, honey. Nicole’s mom talks to the judges and tells them that she sang the song to please her. Nicole says that she picked a bad song. Simon says it wasn’t the song. Nicole says it her personality was lacking because she didn’t connect with the song. “It wasn’t the darned song!” Simon says. Nicole protests that he shouldn’t shout at her. Paula calls Simon obnoxious and tells Nicole to “punch him eight million times.” Whatever, Paula, because you’ll notice that she doesn’t disagree with Simon or offer anything more helpful than Simon as a punching bag. Background singer Melinda makes it through, as do Gina, Jamie-Lynn-Kellie-Pickler and a host of others we only see a glimpse of. It’s day two, and time for the guys. Sundance Head likes his odds since there aren’t as many guys to cut. Brian Miller, who has been to Hollywood before, tells Ryan that it’s an emotional roller coaster, but that at 19, it’s a great opportunity. He sings “A Change Is Gonna Come” again, and he sounds good. He also has teen idol appeal, so I think we’ll probably see more of Brian. Randy says the guys started better than the girls. Navy guy and “Reagan Idol” winner Jarrod Fowler dedicates his performance to his shipmates. He sings “You Raise Me Up” and doesn’t sound as good as I remembered. Next we see Matt Sato, whose parents stopped supporting his singing career. But, he says, when he got home from the auditions, his mom was waiting to give him a hug, something she doesn’t do very often. “I felt loved,” he says. He sounds good, but he doesn’t really have a powerhouse voice. It could go either way with him. Matt makes it, as does Chris Sligh. Jarrod, Simon says, wasn’t as good as the first time around. He’s going home. Matt celebrates and gives Jarrod a hug. Jarrod says his nerves caught up with him, and he’s proud to have gotten as far as he did. Matt calls his mom again, and it’s pretty much a replay of the last time we saw the guy. Matt emotionally tells us that she never says I love you. Are we going to get the weepy phone call to his mom at every stage of this? 34 guys make it through, including Blake, the beat box guy from Seattle, Nick who dropped out last year, Phil Stacy with the new baby, and Sean the Castro looking guy. I also see Sundance Head celebrating. Now it’s time for the group rounds. Contestants will take the stage in groups, and can team up with anyone they want. They can pick a song from a list of nine. A cute girl with braids can’t find a group. Matt can’t find anybody either. Braids girl finds somebody, but Matt is still looking. We meet Matthew Buckstein, one of last year’s singing cowboys, again. He and his group try to harmonize, and let’s just say they need work! Chris Sligh’s group works on some cheesy choreography and crack each other up. They slide across the floor like they’re figure skating and trying to give each other high fives. The guys seem to be having a great time together. Baylie, who is working with BFF Amanda and Antonella, is having less luck with her group. Amanda and Antonella start to fight over their song choice, and Bailie is stuck in the middle. As the two bicker and one threatens to give back her half of their “BEST FRIENDS” necklace, Baylie stares off longingly at another, happier group. At midnight, everyone goes back to the hotel. Gina, Jessica, Marissa, and Perla all practice. Gina is frustrated and says that Perla isn’t as good in harmonies as the others. The other girls are losing patience with Perla. They decide to stay up late practicing. Baylie and the BFFs have a song, but they don’t know the lyrics. They apparently are focusing on choreography and singing into empty glasses. Baylie tells the camera that they’ll be good the next day. Amanda is afraid they’re not going to make it, but Antonella is more confident. Amanda then wanders off in a tiny pair of shorts to watch some boys. The other two decide to go to bed. Amanda flirts with a group of boys, saying she’s sick of practicing. That ought to come back to bite her later. At 3:30, the Perla Situation is no better. Gina says they’re not going to be friends after tomorrow. The next morning, last minute rehearsals. Some are doing well, but Baylie, Antonella, and Amanda are still forgetting their words. Uh-oh, because Simon reminds them not to forget the lyrics. Sure enough, somebody gets cut right at the beginning for losing their words. Matt forgets the lyrics to “Be My Baby” and is sent home. We see yet another tearful phone call in which he tells his mom the news. This time, we do not hear her telling him that she’s proud of him or that she loves him. The moral of the story, kids, is that unless you are successful, your mother will not love you. Gina’s group continues to practice. They say that if Perla falls apart the rest will just stay together. Perla says her job is to prove them wrong. Gina says it may sound harsh, but the truth is, she doesn’t care about anybody but herself. They finally take the stage. Perla improvises the lyrics and does not sound good. Simon breaks the news that Perla is out. The rest are through. Blake, Rudy, Tom, and Chris sound fantastic, both individually and as group singing “How Deep Is Your Love.” They completely rock it out. Blake does the beatbox, and amazingly, it really works with the rest of the harmony. You can tell the audience loves what they’re doing, and when it’s over, Paula gives them a standing ovation. It’s so good I rewind my Tivo to watch it again. All of them make it to the next round. Sundance, we see, didn’t have a great first day. Simon tells him he sang through his nose and looked boiled, he went so red. He says he hopefully learned his lesson. The girls he’s grouped with are pretty unimpressive, and he sounds better. Strategy? Either way, the judges agree—he’s through, the others are cut. Simon tells her Paula was being generous letting him through. Sundance knows it wasn’t his best effort. He says that being a good singer doesn’t help if you don’t know the lyrics. He says he’s got to get something right or they will send him home. Baylie, Antonella, and Amanda get ready. Baylie wants to go over her part. Amanda says that if she helps Baylie, it messes her up. Baylie’s mom watches and hopes for the best. Amanda says that they’ll all be friends no matter what. Uh-huh. Baylie completely chokes on the lyrics until Amanda prompts her. Amanda doesn’t do much better. Randy says “To say that was rough would be an understatement.” Paula says they all seem disappointed. One will go home… and it is Baylie. Baylie cries, but says it’s okay. Antonella admits she’s never been so nervous. Amanda says that she and Antonella made it instead of Baylie because “God likes good people.” Yes, I clearly see the hand of God in this one, reaching down and smiting Baylie. Baylie confronts the others, and they blow her off. Amanda says that “this is a job interview. This isn’t about fun.” Cut to Amanda flirting with the boys last night. She says she and Antonella can have “as many boys as we want at home.” 36 people get cut, including Sean the Castro Guy. 56 people remain. It’s day 4, and only 40 will make it to the next round. The contestants try to impress the judges, then have to wait until the end of the day for the results. Simon, Randy, and Paula sort through a stack of Polaroids. We see clips of singers, but I kind of doubt they’re related to the conversation the judges are having. Finally, they’ve made the cuts. The contestants go into three rooms. Two rooms will make it, the other will not. Ryan says that the contestants undoubtedly look at the other people in the room to see what’s going to happen. Antonella and Amanda are split. Senjai and his sister are apart also. Room one contains Chris, Matthew, Blake, the Asian guy determined to live down William Hung, and Gina. Looks good to me. Sure enough, Paula gives them the good news. They’ve made it, and much celebrating ensues. Room two, containing Antonella, sundance, and Sanjai, are also in. Sundance must have really worked hard to do better in his final chance. Room three heard two sets of cheers already, so they know the drill. The two winning rooms are combined, and Antonella quickly sees that Amanda is not there. She’s happy, but wishes her friend were there. Sanjai is so sad that his sister didn’t make it that he can’t bring himself to celebrate with the others. He finds his sister and they share a teary hug. Amanda tells Antonella she’s proud of her and she’s her best friend. Amanda doesn’t say anything about why God might have made this particular thing happen. Hmm, interesting. But it’s not over yet! Tomorrow, the judges will whittle these 40 into our top 24.