Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The Top 14 celebrate after the judges’ wild card picks Monday night on American Idol. (ABC Photo)

American Idol’s Top 14 singers return to the stage Sunday night for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame night.

And the 12 survivors will return Monday night when the theme will be Iconic Idol Moments with former champ Fantasia as mentor.

I suppose that means someone will be asked to top her Season 3 performance of “Summertime,” which certainly qualifies as one of Idol’s iconic moments.

Watch closely for voting hours for those shows. At some point, Idol will go to voting during the show only, with eliminations at the end of the night. And you won’t want to miss a chance to support your favorites.

I’ll be live blogging Sunday with song by song grades. I’ll be posting grades Monday too, but those will come after the show.

Here’s how I’m ranking the Top 14.

1. Canaan James Hill, 17, Dallas, Tx.: After a bit of a stumble during Hollywood Week when allergies brought his vocals down to a human level, Canaan was back at the top of his game on the Sunday and Monday shows. And at the top of his game, he’s the most powerful singer on the show.

2. Thunderstorm Artis, 29, Nashville, Tenn.: Look, this guy is a pure pro who’s already made the finals on The Voice and could very well do the same on Idol. He also performs with a joy that’s downright inspiring. My only disappointment is that the upcoming themes will probably rob us of an opportunity to hear more of his original music.

3. Jamal Roberts, 26, Meridian, Miss.: I don’t know if anyone among the Top 14 brings more passion to the stage more consistently than Jamal. His Sunday and Monday performances were both outstanding. By the way, do you know that the last Black male to win Idol was Ruben Studdard, all the way back in Season 2.

4. Breanna Nix, 25, Denton, Texas: Upon learning she made the Top 14, Breanna said American Idol started off as “kind of a joke to me. I didn’t expect it to go anywhere.” She might very well be the last female standing this season. And the way she’s performed so far, she deserves that to happen.

5. Slater Nalley, 17, Atlanta, Ga.: In addition to his consistently strong vocals and a voice that cuts through, what impresses me most about Slater is the confidence he shows on stage. He’s wrapped up in a pressure cooker of a competition, and it doesn’t seem to phase him.

6. Gabby Samone, 22, Baltimore, Md.: This young woman has been the most pleasant surprise of Season 23. Her confidence seems to be growing with each Idol performance and Monday’s was her best yet. Look out above if that trend continues.

7. John Foster, 18, Addis, La.: Wow, loved that performance of “Tell That Angel I Love Her” from Sunday’s show. And streams of that already released original have more than doubled on Spotify since his performance. I can’t see John leaving the show anytime soon.

8. Mattie Pruitt, 16, Engleville, Tenn.: I had her ranked higher than this coming out of Hollywood Week, but her age is showing just a bit. And while I love her tone, this Top 14 is stacked with superlative vocalists. Hopefully, she’ll pick songs to set herself apart, not try to outbelt them.

9. Filo, 23, Dublin, Calif.: Here’s my problem with Filo. He’s got a fabulous voice, as we heard early in his performance of “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Then he tends to build to frill upon frill upon frill. Build to emotion instead, and he might move up on this list.

10. Amanda Barise, 26, Manhatten, N.Y.: Looks like the underdog is an underdog again because of the odds against wild card singers making it deep into the competition. But her performance of “Ain’t No Way” to end Monday’s show was within question one of the night’s best.

11. Desmond Roberts, 25, Corona, Calif.: A dilema for Desmond. You can tell he loves to go crazy on stage and even beat box a bit. But the judges loved Monday’s performance, when he stayed behind a piano for a cover of “Titanium” that might have been his best vocal ont he show.

12. Che Chestermam, 28, Essex, England: One of Monday’s baffling wild card choices because I don’t understand what he adds to a cast filled with singers who can belt and supply vocal acrobatics. That said, Sunday’s performance of “Jealous Guy” was impressive.

13. Kolbi Jordan, 26, Tulsa, Okla.: She got the pimp spot on the Top 20 show. She got a great song. And she promptly put so much sauce on it that it’s probably the first version of “Amazing Grace” I’ve heard that I did not enjoy and would not want to hear repeated.

14. Josh King, 24, Charlotte, N.C.: I enjoyed his performance of “You Are So Beautiful” on Sunday’s Top 20 show. And his ability to whip out the harmonica, play it for a few seconds, then transition back to singing is impressive. I’ve been less impressed by his recent upbeat performance.