Tuesday night at 8 p.m., Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips square off for the Idol title.
Let’s take a look at how they got this far and what their odds are of being the contestant covered in confetti.
How it started:
Jessica Sanchez: She told Idol she’s had no formal training, but she’s been singing since age 5, appeared on America’s Got Talent in 2006, released a single (“Don’t Stop the Music”) in 2009 and was featured on another single (“Just You and Me” by Brandon Kane) in 2010. She also attended the Theatre of Arts in Hollywood. So she’s just 16, but has lots of on-stage, in-studio experience for someone so young.
Phillip Phillips: He said he caught the music bug when his sister would bring her fiance to their parents’ house. The fiance, now Phillips’ brother-in-law, sang and played guitar, and Phillip thought that was cool. So Phillip learned a couple of chords, then holed up in his room, playing guitar and listening to music, sometimes instead of hanging out with friends.
How it started on Idol:
Phillip Phillips: He had the pimp spot on the first audition episode of Season 11, from Savannah. He sang an over-the-top version of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition,” full of the Phillip Phillips’ facial contortions we’ve come to know and love. Then he picked up the guitar and performed some magic with Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” Jennifer Lopez called him “super special” and he was off to Hollywood.
Jessica Sanchez: Idol kept Jessica under wraps until — believe it or not — group night in Vegas, when she teamed up with Candice Glover and Deandre Brackensick for “It Doesn’t Matter Anymore” and gave us a first listen at the big voice that comes from her small frame. We didn’t hear from her again until the semifinals, after someone had obviously scolded the judges for being too easy on the guys the night before. By Idol standards, Randy, Jennifer and Steven were in hyper-critical mode. What happened? Jessica sang “Love You, I Do” and got a standing ovation.
Best quote:
Jessica Sanchez: “I literally can’t do anything but sing. That’s why I’m here.”
Phillip Phillips: Squatting in front of the stuffed turkey in his dad’s pawn shop, the same stuffed turkey he was shown carrying earlier in the season: “We’re gonna do this, man.”
Fashion sense:
Phillip Phillips: It’s casual on top of casual for Phillip. Forget snazzy accessories. Forget bright colors. Tommy Hilfiger tried to change him. It didn’t take. Not for an instant. “I’m not a guy about the image,” Phillip told Ryan Seacrest. “I want the music to be first. If people don’t like it, it’s cool. If people do like it, that’s cool, too.”
Jessica Sanchez: The contestant least in need of Tommy Hilfiger or anyone else has looked like a star since the first time she stepped on stage. And took some silly crap for a tight white dress a couple of weeks ago from Jimmy Iovine and Jennifer Lopez, who said it might be a little too much for middle America. Since then, Jessica’s dressed a tab more conservatively. What I love most — she’s wearing that white dress in her Twitter profile pic, still.
Social media:
Back when the final between, Phillip was the most followed contestant on Twitter (38,000); Jessica was fifth (17,000). Phillip was the third most liked contestant on Facebook (15,500); Jessica was fourth but more than 25 percent behind at 11,500. Colton Dixon and Heejun Han had more Facebook likes than either of them.
As of noon Sunday, Jessica had nearly 389,500 followers on Twitter to more than 312,000 for Phillip. Jessica also led in Facebook likes, nearly 233,500 to a little more than 191,000 for Phillip. That’s what a season on American Idol will do for your social media numbers.
Grades on Idol:
I grade each Idol performance. In a head-to-head grade comparison for the past 11 weeks, Jessica comes out on top 14 times out of 18. Twice, I gave them identical grades. Twice, I had Phillip winning the matchup. Curiously, both times were on the Top 3 show, even though I didn’t like his much-acclaimed performance of “We’ve Got Tonight.”
In terms of grade breakdowns, I awarded Jessica five A’s, three A-‘s and just one grade of C or lower. I awarded Phillip zero A’s, just one A-, and seven grades of C or lower.
Fan voting:
Jessica, of course, needed a save back on Top 7 week. It was her only visit to the bottom three. She’s attempting to become the first Idol contestant to be saved, then go on to win the show. The best previous finish: Michael Lynch, who finished fourth in Season 9. Phillip never visited the bottom three.
Odds:
Phillip would seem to have the edge because his ilk of performer won in Season 7 (David Cook), Season 8 (Kris Allen) and Season 9 (Lee DeWyze). And he’s the cute young guy on Idol, just like Scotty McCreery was in Season 10. And Kris and Lee won in spite of facing clearly superior opponents in the finale.
If Jessica prevails, two factors might be at play. 1. A re-emergence of girl power. Four gals made the final six for the first time since Season 4. And Hollie Cavanagh and Elise Testone hung on longer than recent voting trends would indicate they could. 2. She’s likely to pick up lots more votes from Joshua Ledet fans than Phillip will.
Who should win:
Jessica in a landslide. She’s been one of the top contestants since she stepped on the Idol stage. She’s performed power ballads and upbeat pop songs, and done both well. She’s got a big voice and anyone who questions her ability to connect with a song must not have watched her performance of “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Leaving.” In terms of range, she’s clearly the superior contestant. Phillip performs with passion, but has failed to turn songs on their head nearly as successfully as a David Cook or Kris Allen. And performances like “Time of the Season” have shown his lack of range.
Editor’s Note: You might also want to check out …
Video of all of Phillip’s Idol performances
Video of all of Jessica’s Idol performances
Fun facts about the two finalists
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5 Comments
Ok–last thing I am saying–I just read your blog about how they both got here & it just goes to prove my point. Jessica tells the producers that she has no formal training–then you go on to list all of her ‘training’. She says what she thinks people want to hear instead of what she feels–she tries to be whatever people want her to be and that in turn causes her to not seem genuine or the ability to connect. You know I remember back in the day Kelly Clarkson getting criticized because she wouldn’t change her look or she wasn’t skinny enough–she said ‘no’ this is who I am take me or leave me. I respect that and can identify with her–this is why I still follow her and enjoy her music–she was real. And, that is the same reason I follow and enjoy Phillip–he is who he is & yes he is trying to win a contest, but he is going to win it or lose it being himself–that in the end is why he connects with so many people and why many believe Jessica does not.
Keep in mind, many of Jessica’s “followers” and “fans”/”like”rs are from the Philippines. I believe this is shown in her Facebook data. Those folks can’t vote, right?
And having the most followers and fans don’t mean anything in terms of votes, otherwise Heejun and Colton as you noted would still be here… or at least would’ve been in the top 4.