HunterGirl, Leah Marlene, Nicolina and Fritz Hager in Las Vegas with Noah Thompson in miniature. (ABC Photo)
In one round, the Top 5 will cover a Carrie Underwood song.
In a second round, they will cover a song of their own choosing.
The Top 5 were scheduled to travel to Las Vegas this week for a mentoring session with Carrie, who is enjoying a residency there.
Only four made the trip. Noah Thompson, still suffering from COVID, stayed behind.
No word on his performance status for tonight. Last week, he performed two songs from his hotel room and still advanced from the Top 7 to the Top 5.
Follow along tonight for song by song grades as the show progresses.
See also …
Check out original songs from the Top 5
Chart performances for those original songs
Ranking the Top 5
Song by song grades for the Top 7
Carrie Underwood songs
HunterGirl, 23, Winchester, Tenn., “Undo It” — Great start, powerful ending from HunterGirl who picked a sassy, upbeat song to start the night. The vocal wavered a bit when she returned to stage and sang to her guitarist. Katy Perry called it the best performance she ever did, which is a bit of an overstatement. But it was solid. Grade: B
Leah Marlene, 20, Normal, Ill., “I’ll Stand By You” — Carrie covered this song, so it’s apparently fair game. I typically love the way Leah changes up songs, but I’m not so sure about this one. That first verse was sort of jarring. And Leah’s strength isn’t standing behind a mic and belting, which she did a good bit of during that song. That said, I’m really rooting for Leah to make the finals. Grade: B–
Fritz Hager, 22, Tyler, Texas, “I Wanna Remember” — This isn’t a Carrie song either, but it’s a really cool and fitting song choice for Fritz. As for the lyrics, I don’t know about “forever,” but I’m pretty sure Fritz will be back singing on the Idol stage next week. And that performance is one more example of why he should be. Grade: A–
Noah Thompson, 19, Louisa, Ky., “So Small” — Noah also scores points during those pre-song clips. He did not score points with me with that vocal. He seemed pretty relaxes on stage. The song just wasn’t a good fit for his voice. Grade: C
Nicolina Bozzo, 18, Toronto, “Blown Away” — Nicolina’s vocal got 50 percent less precise when she cut loose at the end of the song. And her performance got 50 percent more moving because of the emotion she poured into the performance. And it’s amazing how often Idol has used Nicolina to close a round or show. Grade: B+
Contestant’s Choice
Leah Marlene, “Separate Worlds” — She’s going to put her own spin on the Journey classic, slowing it down to a ballad at the opening. I admire Leah’s ability to recreate songs, but I didn’t love her song choices or performances tonight. But like I said, I’m still hoping she makes it to the finale. Grade: B–
HunterGirl, “Girl Crush” — Okay, that was great in spots, seriously overbaked in others. Not sure what coaching she’s getting from the Idol staff, but it isn’t translating into fully rounded performances. The Idol judges, however, loved it. Grade: C+
Fritz Hager, “Youngblood” — When this started, I’m thinking, “Fritz, what are you doing? An emotional ballad would have been a more sure way of nailing down a spot in the finale.” But halfway through his rock star transformation, he walked out among the crowd, cut loose and turned that into a winning performance, even if the vocal wasn’t perfect. Grade: B
Nicolina, “All I Ask” — When you’re the best singer left on American Idol and you want to make a closing statement on why you belong in the final, what do you do? You sing Adele. Nicolina, not surprisingly, did it quite well. And once again delivered the song with her trademark passion. Grade: B+
Noah Thompson, “Working Man” — Noah gets to close the show. But with live voting, I’m not sure that’s the prized spot that it used to be. There just isn’t enough time for a show-closing performance to go viral. This was a fabulous song choice and a great performance by Noah. Perhaps the best match of singer and song tonight. Grade: A–
That said, I still want to see a final three of Fritz Hager, Nicolina and Leah Marlene.
Time for results. Making the Season 20 finale are …
* HunterGirl
* Noah Thompson
* Leah Marlene
That means Leah and Fritz Hager are going home.
Sorry, but voters got that wrong.
And Leah Marlene should be the winner of Season 20.
But probably won’t be.
Leave a reply