Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The American Idol Top 5 of Emmy Russell, Will Moseley, Triston Harper, Jack Blocker and Abi Carter. (ABC Photo)

The American Idol Top 5 take the stage Sunday night to perform songs from Disney movies.

The stakes couldn’t be higher. Three singers will advance to the Season 22 finale. Two will head home.

Each singer will perform twice. And thanks to TV Line, we know what they’ll be singing. You can check out the list believe.

My favorite song choice from the list is Fleetwood Mac’s “The Chain” by Abi Carter. Will she flash her newfound rock vibe or sit behind her piano and do it as a ballad? My guess is that song and Abi’s vocals will work either way.

My least favorite song choice from the list is “The Climb” for Emmy Russell. Talk about a trite song choice. Could we please get through a singing show season without someone singing this annoying tune? Then again, maybe Emmy will put a fresh spin on the song. Here’s hoping.

There are also a couple of truly intriguing song choices. David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” chosen by Jack Blocker, wouldn’t seem a natural fit for a singing show setting.

And Triston Harper is going to take on the jazzy “Almost There.” But check out the lyrics, and they’re very fitting for his Idol journey. If he puts a country spin on the song … well, it could be something special.

Song by song grades will be posted here as soon as possible after Sunday’s show ends.

See also …
Ranking the Top 5
Most popular performances from last week

ROUND ONE

Abi Carter, 21, Indio, Calif., “Part of Your World” from The Little Mermaid: Marvelous vocal from Abi, who just gave us a glimpse at her versatility. She’s easily the best singer left on the show, and it’s going to be a crime is she doesn’t make the finale. Oh, and did you notice how a piece of confetti fell into her mouth as the song opened. She plucked it off without missing a beat. Luke liked the way she embodied the character and called it one of her best performances. Lionel said her voice is tailored to the Disney songbook and called it fantastic. Grade: A–

Triston Harper, 15, McIntosh, Alabama, “Almost There” from The Princess and the Frog: I wasn’t sure about the match of Triston and this jazzy number. But he made it work and seemed to have a lot of fun doing it. Really nice vocal too. And I loved the way Triston focused on the vocal, then threw in a couple of hip shakes at the very end. Lionel calls him Mr. Entertainment and loves how comfortable he seems on stage. Katy says he’s more than “almost there.” Luke calls him a charmer and compares him to Frank Sinatra. Grade: A–

Emmy Russell, 24, Nashville, Tenn., “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus from Hannah Montana: The Movie: Yuck, hate this song. I was hoping Emmy would be able to perform some magic and turn it into a stripped down ballad like she did with her grandma’s “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” Instead, she pretty much stuck to the original arrangement and seemed to be straining when the song went big. Not the performance to judge Emmy on. Katy called the song so true for her, referring to her struggle with nerves and confidence. Luke said there are notes in the song she wouldn’t have attempted back in the auditions. Lionel complimented her on being a stylist. Grade: C

Jack Blocker, 25, Dallas, Texas, “Nobody’s Fool” by Brad Paisley from Cars 2: During his audition, the judges questioned Jack’s facial contortions as he sings. Here, performing without the guitar, he seems to be leaning into his trademark manner of performing rather than shying away from it. Wearing country duds all the while. It wasn’t my favorite Jack Blocker performance, but I thinks folks have underestimated his vocal ability during his Idol run. Luke likes his newfound swagger. Lionel says his new stage name should be Jack Swagger. Katy suggests Jack Attack. Katy suggested a real Cinderella story for Jack. Grade: B+

Will Moseley, 23, of Hazelhurst, Ga., “Ballad of the Lonesome Cowboy” by Chris Stapleton from Toy Story 4: So, when Big Mo as they call him signed up for Idol, do you think he envisioned singing a dance song, Adele and Disney on consecutive Idol performances? He did fine with this, but the song choice was a little sleepy. At least until the end, when he put a little extra kick in his vocal. As for the stumble or “fumble” as Katy called it, the moment was pretty obvious, but Will recovered pretty quickly. Lionel loved the cracking in his voice. Katy said in spite of the fumble, Will delivered the big soul moment after that. Luke called it a great song choice. Grade: B

ROUND TWO

Emmy Russell, “Carried Me With You” by Brandi Carlile from Onward: Emmy took to the stage minus guitar or piano for this one and ever interacted with the crowd a bit. More importantly, this song seemed to be a much better match for her voice than “The Climb.” Meaning she provided a verry nice vocal. I’m a bit baffled, though. Emmy’s at her best when she’s delivering heartfelt emotion. Neither song choice allowed her to do that tonight when a spot in the finale was on the line. Katy loved the way the chorus opened up Emmy’s voice and the way she looked performing away from her piano. Luke complimented her on taking center stage as well. Lionel encouraged her to keep building her confidence. Grade: B

Triston Harper, “Life is a Highway” by Rascal Flatts from Cars: Again, Triston shows off just phenomenal onstage presence for his age. And the song is a great choice for doing that. He did seem to cut some of those big notes short. But all in all, that’s going to be a crowd-pleasing performance. I don’t agree with Katy’s assessment that it was his best vocal. Luke said life is a highway and predicted Triston will be on a tour bus some time soon. Katy called it one of his best vocal performances and liked his conviction. Grade: B

Abi Carter, “The Chain” by Fleetwood Mac from Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2: I wasn’t sure whether Abi was going with this performance on the opening verse. I should have trusteed her newfound rock vibe. She sounded angelic the first time she sang the chorus, then kicked the vocals into high gear. How long did she hold that glory note. I mean, dang, Abi. Great performance. Lionel called it a great job. Katy said Abi is on her way. Luke loved her confidence and her transformation from a singer-songwriter sitting behind her piano. Grade: A

Jack Blocker, “Space Oddity” by David Bowie from Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny: I was interested to see Jack do this song, because it’s more of a vibe than a natural fit for a singing show. Jack added some nice dynamics to the second half of the performance to pull it off. I still think there were probably better Disney songs for the occasion. Katy called the performance a trip and loved the surprises along the way. Luke called it an interesting song choice and a great choice for him. Lionel predicts his career will blossom. Grade: B

Will Moseley, “Born to be Wild” by Steppenwolf from D3: The Mighty Ducks: A great match of singer and song to close the night. Will started the song standing behind the judges and worked the stage more than he normally does. His deep rasp fit the song perfectly. I just wish he had gone even a bit more wild with his on-stage performance. Luke called it a great song choice and said he brought great energy. He also called the performance great. Lionel loved the way he played the stage and called it incredible. Katy called it the best he’s ever sounded. Grade: A–

Kane Brown with Jack Blocker during a mentoring session for American Idol. (ABC Photo)

Kane Brown with Triston Harper during a mentoring session for American Idol. (ABC Photo)

Kane Brown with Emmy Russell during a mentoring session on American Idol. (ABC Photo)

Kane Brown with Abi Carter during a mentoring session on American Idol. (ABC Photo)

Kane Brown and Will Moseley during a mentoring session for American Idol. (ABC Photo)