Idol Chatter & Voice Views

American Idol judges Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood and Lionel Richie during Hollywood Week. (ABC Photo)

So, I asked American Idol fans on Facebook what they thought of the job the American Idol judges are doing this season.

And, boy, did they let me know, with hundreds of comments. Thanks for all the feedback, folks!

Two themes emerged. The majority of commenters seem to like Carrie Underwood as an Idol judge.

And lots of folks wish the judges would actually do some judging.

I share the latter sentiment. In fact, the Top 24 shows were what prompted me to ask the question. One mediocre performance followed another and followed another. And the judges praised everyone.

The most jaw-dropping moment for me — other than the lack of critique for Baylee Littrell and Josh King — came after Canaan James Hill performed. Thanks to allergies, he was unable to put his normal gusto in the vocal.

Carrie called his bout of allergies “a bit of a blessing.” Because she could focus on the lyrics. Oh, my.

Here’s what Idol fans told me.

Melinda Tucker: “Judges?? What judges? They are all just cheerleaders. Telling everyone they did great even though it was clearly a lie.. they are masters of stretching the truth!”

Rita Kaye Vetsch: “The judging is too nice, like they are walking on eggshells. Just be honest.”

Dana Naff Wimmer: “Judges??? Not!!! They don’t tell the contestants on how to improve, we need Simon Cowl and Randy Jackson back!! Not a fan of Luke Bryan.”

Michael Gothreaux: “Pathetic. Not an ounce of critique. No doubt they (the singers) all think they’ve arrived from judges comments.”

Jack Cochren: “At least Simon, no matter how negative he could be at times, was very honest with people to me. It is wrong to sugarcoat everything every time every artist get up there; you learn nothing from this.”

Rod Hutchinson: “Bring honest judges back! This ‘everyone is the best’ is not entertaining. Also, they are not picking future stars anymore, they are looking for characters to play a part. To answer your question, terrible!”

Nancy Melancon: “I love the judges but they really don’t ‘judge.’ They just tell each one of them how great they are! They all are good, but some are better!

Lydia Waldemar Pruett: “They aren’t judges at this point, they give the same positive, generic feedback to all the contestants. I don’t know why they go to the judges for their comments after each performance as they all recycle the same praise. I miss the actual critiques that AI used to do.”

Angel Gonzalez: “They don’t really judge — according to them. all the singers are great! Really? Some them aren’t good and the judges need to judge and critique period. Do your job.”

Jen Snyder: “They shouldn’t be called ‘judges,’ more like ‘supporters’ because they don’t give any negative feedback. Out of the 24 singers, only about half did well.”

Unfortunately, after what we witnessed Sunday and Monday, I don’t see the judges becoming more critical of the contestants’ performances. If you want help figuring out who did well and who didn’t, a good tip-off is listening to the helpful advice the singers get from Jelly Roll and seeing if they’re able to execute.

On the issue of Carrie, here’s what Idol fans have to say. Remember, the question I asked was: How do you think the judges are doing on American Idol?

Cindy Holmes: “I think this group of judges are the best they’ve had in a long time, Carrie is a great addition. I disliked the way the top 24 were selected, but I suspect that was not the judges’ choosing. At this point of the competition, the judges always become cheerleaders since they don’t want to sway America’s vote.”

Phinehas Mathius: “They (the judges) are amazing and Carrie is a brilliant addition.”

Cindy Bernardoni Wilson: “Awesome. They are fabulous and funny and love the show! Love Carrie she is a great addition and so fun to be around and kind!”

Chantelle Jablonski: “They are perfect. I love watching all the judges. Carrie is so composed and graceful and beautiful she just makes me smile. Lionel is so expressive and I love when he tells of famous singers he knows from back in the day. And Luke has that easy charm that just makes you want to do anything to see him smile. All 4 of them click and work well together. Plus the added bonus of Jelly with them, perfect!”

Karen Riley Holloway: I love watching Idol this year. The judges are funny and are promoting a lot of positivity (which we ALL need right now). There is nothing wrong with constructive criticism and being polite about it. Kudos to all of the judges!! BTW, Carrie is extremely pleasant about voicing her opinion and she adds a lot of good advice to the contestants. She is a wonderful addition to the Lionel and Luke team!!”

Becky Sharpe: “I stopped watching because Katy made the show a joke. I started back this year and love the combination of Lionel, Carrie and Luke. My only complaint- is that they tell everyone how great they are even if their performance is mediocre at best. Be honest with them. Everyone’s performance isn’t amazing.”

Which get us back to our starting point.

One other message came through loud and clear through those hundreds of comments. Lots of fans were unhappy with the judges choices for the Top 24.

I’ve already written that I think the head-to-head duet show — new this year — was a massive misfire. And the logic the judges gave for some of their decisions — downright baffling.

The fans who commented seem most angry about the elimination of Crews Wright, who brought deep country vocals and engaging personality to the Idol stage. For those fans, I’d offer these notes of encouragement.

First, Crews has announced that he’ll be releasing a new single called “Big Idea” sometime soon. Want to show your support for Crews? Want to prove Idol was wrong?

Check it out when it lands. Send those streaming numbers through the roof.

Second, remember Laine Hardy, a talented country singer who auditioned for Idol Season 16 at age 17 and was cut at the Top 50, much to some fans dismay.

He returned the next year and won the show.

Carrie Underwood provides feedback during the Top 24 show on American Idol. (ABC Photo)