Idol Chatter & Voice Views

The semifinals have a whole new look in Season 15 on American Idol.

No longer are the contestants being split into males and females.

Tonight, 12 singers will perform. Tomorrow night, they’ll sing duets with former Idol standouts.

Then the judges — not voting viewers — will eliminate five singers.

The process will be repeated with the second set of 12 singers next week, leaving Season 15 with a final 14 vying for 10 spots in the finals.

Who will we hear from tonight?

This episode is lady heavy with Stephany Negrete, Sonika Vaid, La’Porsha Renae, Jenna Renae, Jeneve Rose (Mitchell), Gianna Isabelle, Emily Brooke and Avalon Young taking the stage. Guy performers will include James (Gray Dawson) VIII, MacKenzie Bourg, Jordan Sasser and Thomas Stringfellow.

What celebrity Idols will return for tonight’s episode?

They’ll include former winners Nick Fradiani, Caleb Johnson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia, Scotty McCreery and former runner-up Lauren Alaina.

Tonight’s episode will feature solos by the 12 artists. Follow along beginning at 8 p.m. I’ll be live blogging and grading each performance as it occurs.

See also:
Idol delivers a slap in the face to faithful viewers
Which singers in the Top 24 have the most support on Twitter

Stephany Negrete, 21, San Diego, Calif.

She sings “Mamma Knows Best” by Jessie J. Stephany takes the stage looking like a star. And you certainly have to appreciate the fact that she shows absolutely no sign of nerves as she struts around the stage performing like it’s precisely where she belongs. She’s delivering a solid vocal, too. And she gets decent grades from the judges. Jennifer says she’s the full package of a pop star with her voice, looks and stage presence. But Jennifer and Harry Connick Jr. also question her connection to the song. Grade: B

MacKenzie Bourg, 23, Lafayette, La.

The former contestant from The Voice has to be considered a frontrunner after a strong week in Hollywood. He’ll sing “Say Something.” One thing you have to like about MacKenzie. He always delivers his covers with a little wrinkle and he’s doing it again. His confidence shows as well. No stage fright in sight. I have a feeling that performance — coming on top of what he did in Hollywood — will earn him a spot in the Top 14. He earns positive feedback from the judges, all of whom liked the song choice. And Keith Urban says MacKenzie was clearly connected to the song, as though it were his own. Grade: B+

Jeneve Rose (Mitchell), 15, Crawford, Calif.

Like the fact that Jeneve (off-the-grid) has toned down her dress, at least in terms of getting rid of some of the cowgirl duds. She’s also playing the harp for this rendition of “In the Arms of an Angel.” Like MacKenzie, she delivers her covers with a touch of originality. This performance is no exception. Hey, this is much better than I expected from Jeneve. Harry doesn’t like the fact that Jeneve played the harp while singing. Not sure what he means by that. I mean, that might have been an Idol first. Keith thought playing the harp was impressive. Jennifer was impressed too. She called the performance “beautiful” and says it gave her the goosies all over. Grade: A–

Jenna Renae, 23, Williamson, N.Y.

Interesting that this show features three ladies who sing country. Jenna figures to be the long shot based on the amount of exposure Idol has given her so far. She’s taking us to church with this performance of “My Church.” Again, she showing no signs of the pressure of the situation. And she’s got a big voice, though she’s getting a little shouty at times during this performance. Keith Urban liked the song choice. Harry dittoed what I just wrote: that there’s a fine line between belting a song and shouting and Jenna came close to shouting part of that. Grade: B–

James (Gray Dawson) VIII, 23, Orinda, Calif.

James, the guy who didn’t trust his voice, decides to cover Kanye West’s “Love Lockdown.” Interesting choice. He’s turning in a decent performance, but this is probably my least favorite of the night so far. Not sure about the song choice. He’s getting similar feedback from the judges. Harry tells him not to be too self-indulgent or cool with his song selections. Keith says he has to pick killer songs every time out; there’s no guarantee he’ll get another chance. I’d say after that feedback, it’s like James VIII won’t get another chance. Grade: C+

Sonika Vaid, 20, Martha’s Vineyard, Mass.

Sonika has displayed one of the best voices among the ladies so far. She’s singing “Safe and Sound.” Love the pure tone of Sonika’s voice. She’s also showing off nice range.. Harry likes the emotion in the performance. Keith loves her voice. Jennifer calls it “so beautiful.” She wants Sonika to pick songs that “make her heart sing.” All I have to say, is the Idol judges have their work cut out for them whittling down this dozen. Everyone is doing very well so far. Grade: B+

Gianna Isabella, 15, Jackson, N.J..

Honestly, I was surprised she advanced given her not very strong cover of her mom’s big hit in the showcase round. Tonight, she’s tackling “I Put a Spell on You.” Like the song choice for Gianna’s big voice. She’s also verging on being too shouty at times. And she didn’t exactly nail that vocal. But she delivers a big, big ending, showing she knows a thing or two about singing show performances. Keith accurately calls it a little inconsistent. Jennifer and Harry both say they see lots of potential in Gianna’s voice. Grade: C+

Emily Brooke, 16, Wellington, Fla.

She’s singing Cassadee Pope’s “I am Invincible.” I think every single song Emily has performed has been by a former singing show star. This is the second time she’s covered Cassadee. Wow, is something wrong with Emily’s voice? This whole thing sounds off key. Not a very good vocal for Emily. That surprises me. Jennifer says the song choice wasn’t a good one. Harry says he’s never heard her struggle with pitch so much. Keith likes the fact that she’s “exploring” with her song selections. Honestly, that was the weakest vocal of the night and it came from one of the show’s favorites. Grade: D+

Avalon Young, 21, San Diego, Calif.

Avalon is going to cover “Love Yourself” by Justin Bieber. Not crazy about the song choice. It seems a little lightweight for the occasion. Avalon, however, is delivering a very good vocal. I would have liked just a little more fire from that performance. Harry compliments Avalon on her vocal and for knowing who she is as a performer. Keith and Jennifer liked that Avalon picked a song that’s popular and on the radio right now. It sounds like they wanted a little more in terms of dramatics as well. Just a little too laid-back for the occasion. Grade: B–

Jordan Sasser, 27, Raleigh, N.C.

Jordan is going to sing “All By Myself” by Celine Dion. Huh? Okay, well, here we go. No bad, until he hit the chorus where Celine’s voice soars. Not sure Jordan’s voice soared on those first two lines. It might have crashed instead. Though he then settles in and delivers a huge glory note. Hmm, there were lots of glory notes in the end of that performance. Keith thought it was too theatrical. Harry says the performance was way too show-offy. Personally, I didn’t care for it. Grade: C–

Thomas Stringfellow, 17, Bentonville, Ark.

Thomas will cover “Creep,” not exactly the most original of song choices. I’m not a fan of his style of singing or those yips at the end of several lines, though he’s doing that a lot less tonight. I can see where young girls would love him, but I didn’t care for that version of the song. I’ve heard “Creep” done much better — several times, in fact — on singing shows. Harry thought it was “tremendous.” Jennifer likes the connection Thomas makes with the audience. Keith called it a “compelling” performance. The first time I really disagreed with the judges tonight. Just didn’t like that. Grade: C–

La’Porsha Renae, 22, McComb, Mississippi

Okay, this song choice is about as predictable as they come. La’Porsha is going to sing “Proud Mary.” But La’Porsha will do a fine job with it. The first part of that was actually more restrained that I expected. Now the song kicks in. So does La’Porsha. No way this young woman isn’t going to make the finals. She’s a great singer and performer. And she has an adorable daughter, who gets more screen time. That was as predictable as the song choice. Harry says La’Porsha will make the other performers get better or want to quit. Jennifer say it’s a “joy” to listen to her sing. Grade: A–.