Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Crystal Alicea, Lee Vasi, Britney Holmes and Gabbi Jones of Don’t Touch perform on American Idol. (ABC Photo)

Just when I was about to applaud American Idol for cutting all the drama from Hollywood Week and focusing on the music, the drama returned.

We had a group that couldn’t agree on a song. We had a group plagued by a stage mom. We had a group that stopped working together at one point.

We had tears. We had exhausted singers. Did I mention there were lots of tears.

And when there wasn’t enough drama, Idol introduced its own. Like after the final group, “Don’t Touch,” performed.

Three of the members — Britney Holmes, Gabbi Jones and Lee Vasi — had to rally around a fourth — Crystal Alicea — because she was struggling with her confidence. Primarily a karaoke singer before earning her golden ticket, Crystal felt in a bit over her head.

But the young ladies pulled off a very nice performance of “Me and My Broken Heart” and were clearly pleased with the way it had come together.

(Have they thought of forming a group post-show? Just a thought. It worked for Fifth Harmony.)

Then Katy Perry announced that there was only room for three singers to advance. She asked for a volunteer — one girl who was willing to go home so the others could advance.

Crystal agreed to go home.

Then Katy announced that it was just a joke — one that seemed almost cruel — and that they were all advancing.

Everyone celebrated. And the former karaoke singer ended the show as the night’s biggest hero.

But not the only one. At the opening of Hollywood Week, Luke Bryan announced the show was looking for superstars. They might have found a couple. For example:

Alyssa Raghu: She’s just 15, and every time she performs on stage I’m amazed by the power and clarity of her vocals.

Catie Turner: This gal isn’t afraid to be different. She’s also talented. And quirky. And might wind up going deep into the show thanks to that unique combination.

Caleb Lee Hutchinson: He couldn’t have sounded this good when he auditioned for The Voice and failed to turn a chair. Otherwise, The Voice miss out big time. As a country singer, this guy’s the real deal.

Jonny Brenns: Much was made of the fact that his father didn’t go to L.A. to watch Jonny perform. His father might have missed the best performance of opening day as Jonny covered “Somebody Else.”

Idol Season 16 — sorry, ABC, but until you change the format much, much, much, much more significantly, you don’t get to call it Season 1 — did bid farewell to some singers we met in the audition round included Rissa Watson, Samuel Swanson, David Francisco, Zach D’Onofrio, Julio Sposato, Kristyn Harris and Kenedee Rittenhouse.

But most of the truly featured contestants, including Maddie Zahm — the young lady who teaches music to disable youngsters — advanced.

As for the drama, I guess we should just keep it mind that it could have been worse.

No one collapsed and fell off the stage. No one threw up in a trash can.

And Idol didn’t serve up an entire episode without music.

Yep, that happened once.