Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Ruben Studdard. Fantasia, Scotty McCreery, Lauren Alaina, Caleb Johnson and Nick Fradiani return to the American Idol stage tonight.

Who will they be singing with? You can simply check out the photos below to find out.

By the end of the night, 12 of those contestants will have been eliminated from Season 15 of American Idol.

I’ve already predicted the end of the road for Jordan Sasser, James VIII, Stephany Negrete and Jenna Renae.

And I’m wondering whether the judges will be able to justify saving Emily Brooke, an early Season 15 front-runner, after last night’s vocal mess.

If I was doing the eliminating, I wouldn’t be able to. In fact, my choices for elimination would be Jordan, James, Emily, Gianna Isabella and Thomas Stringfellow. I thought both Stephany and Jenna brought enough energy and vocal prowess to the stage to deserve another week.

Anyway, beginning at 8 p.m., I’ll be live blogging and providing song by song grades for the much awaited celebrity duets. And reporting on the eliminations, of course.

Oh, and just to be clear, the grades are for the contestants, not the former Idols.

Emily Brooke, 16, Wellington, Fla., and Lauren Alaina (Season 10 runner-up)

They’ll sing “Flat on the Floor” by Carrie Underwood, which means another singing show star song for Emily. She needs to redeem herself big time after last night’s performance. Lauren starts the song, which is a little surprising. Well, that was definitely a better performance from Emily, but I’m not sure it was enough to make the judges forget Wednesday. Harry says Emily hung “pretty well” with Lauren. Jennifer says Emily has the potential to grow into another Lauren. But both Harry and Keith Urban questioned whether Emily is at her best on big, belty songs like that. Grade: C+

Thomas Stringfellow, 17, Bentonville, Ark., and Nick Fradiani (Season 14 winner)

Oh, gee, they’re singing the way-too-often done “Man in the Mirror.” Again, the celebrity Idol starts off. And the song nearly disappears when Thomas steps in on the second voice. That’s the first real sign of nerves I’ve seen from the Seaosn 15 cast. Fortunately for Thomas, he finds his groove when he’s able to join Nick on the chorus. They sing most of the rest of the song together, so it’s tough to judge how well Thomas sounded. Keith says Thomas seemed to struggle some with it. Harry compliments Thomas again on last night’s performance of “Creep,” which I think was vastly overrated. Grade: C–

Stephany Negrete, 21, San Diego, Calif., and Ruben Studdard (Season 2 winner)

They’ll sing “Superstar” by the Carpenters. The crowd goes wild when Ruben opens. Perhaps that’s how it’s going to work tonight — the celebrity Idols will get to start each performance. That was a nice, tender performance, but Stephany got a chance to show off some of her vocal chops. I fear for her tonight, but I think she’s done enough to merit a spot in the Top 14. She’s getting generally good feedback from the judges, especially about the way their voices blended. Harry liked the emotion in the performance, too. Grade: B

Sonika Vaid, 20, Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., and Caleb Johnson (Season 13 winner)

Ryan says what I was thinking: This pairing is a little odd. Sonika’s reaction to the pairing; “He’s so rock.” But apparently he won her over. OK, this time Sonika gets to start off. Really like her voice. They’re singing “Skyfall.” Not sure that was well suited to Caleb’s voice, but Sonika seemed to do quite nicely. Harry says Sonika held her own and sees a lot of potential in her. Keith liked Sonika’s vocal. Jennifer says Sonika needs to loosen up because with a voice like her “the sky is the limit.” Grade: B+

Jenna Renae, 23, Williamson, N.Y., and Scotty McCreery (Season 10 winner)

They’ll going to sing a Scotty song, “See You Tonight.” Jenna joins in after the first voice and they sing the chorus together. Jenna got to sing the second verse and sounded pretty strong. Not sure I like the two of them singing together. Nice ending though. Wish the Idol hopefuls have a few more solo lines. My feelings about Jenna are the same as Stephany. I think she’s done enough to make the Top 14, but fear the judges won’t agree. Grade: B–.

La’Porsha Renae, 22, McComb, Mississippi, and Fantasia (Season 3 winner)

This is sure a pairing of vocal powerhouses. They’ll sing “Summertime,” the song Fantasia created one of Idol’s all-time best “moments” with back in Season 3. No doubt, La’Porsha can sing rings around some of the other contestants. But I would have liked a bit more emotion, a few fewer frills during La’Porsha’s portion of that performance. No doubt about this though: She’s making the Top 14. Jennifer says she did a “fantastic” job. Harry likes the “battle of runs.” Keith labels it fantastic as well. And, once again, the Idol cameras find La’Porsha’s daughter. Grade: B

MacKenzie Bourg, 23, Lafayette, La., and Lauren Alaina

They’ll sing “I Hope You Dance,” another song too often done on singing shows. MacKenzie is a bit worried because it’s a country song, and he’s not a country singer. The worries prove well founded. His voice sounds small singing next to Lauren’s and this is clearly outside his comfort zone. The performance was somewhat touching however. Harry called that performance “sweet,” but said he’ll focus on MacKenzie’s cover of “Say Something” from last night. Jennifer said it felt mismatched, but somehow still worked. Grade: C.

Gianna Isabella, 15, Jackson, N.J., and Nick Fradiani

They’ll perform “Beautiful Life,” Nick’s single from last year. Nick says he’s never performed the song as a duet. Gianna has a big voice, but I just feel like I’m watching a kid’s talent show when I see her on stage. She also developed some pitch issues over the last half of that performance. Jennifer liked the song choice. Harry says Gianna has an incredible voice. Well, I’d say she’s going to advance, though I think she’s far from ready. Grade: C+

Avalon Young, 21, San Diego, Calif., and Ruben Studdard

They’ll perform “Flying Without Wings.” Not sure this is a good fit for Avalon. She isn’t exactly a velvet teddy bear. This would be one of those cases when the contestant pales a bit alongside a former Idol, but I’m blaming the song choice as much as anything, because Avalon has proven she’s a pretty talented singer. Avalon did get stronger as the song went on. Jennifer loved the performance. Harry calls Avalon as “incredibly likeable.” He thought it was a really strong duet. Keith also liked the duet. Grade: B–

James (Gray Dawson) VIII, 23, Orinda, Calif., and Caleb Johnson

Two rockers pair up in a much more natural duet than Caleb’s first of the night. They’ll sing “Gimme Shelter” by The Rolling Stones. James VIII is determined to show off some of his guitar skills on this performance. This is a nice, fun performance. But most of the really special vocal moments are coming from Caleb. Hey, and I’m pretty sure I just spotted Allison Iraheta in the middle of three background singers. Harry thought James VIII did a pretty good job hanging with Caleb. Keith liked the way James VIII performed. Grade: C+

Jeneve Rose (Mitchell), 15, Crawford, Calif., and Scotty McCreery

Oh, boy, Jeneve’s cowgirl duds are back with a vengeance. They’ll perform “Gone.” They couldn’t look like an odder couple, Scotty in his leather jacket, Jeneve in her orange fringed vest. That aside, this is one of the most fun duets of the night. Jeneve is having lots of fun on stage and looking not the least bit nervous in spite of her young age. Keith calls it “bizarre.” He says he’s going to forget it and focus on what happened last night. Clearly, the judges didn’t enjoy it as much as I did. Grade: B–

Jordan Sasser, 27, Raleigh, N.C., and Fantasia

The duets will conclude with them singing “I Believe,” Fantasia’s victory song from Season 2. She begins, and sounds fabulous. Jordan gets an early solo and sounds much better than he did last year. But they launch into the chorus and his voice basically disappears, overpowered by Fantasia. All in all, I’d say Jordan did much better than on last night’s Celine cover. Jennifer says Jordan “held his own.” Keith thought Jordan oversang again. Clearly, judging from the critiques he’s received, I think his time on Idol is over. Not sure he deserved some of the criticism he got tonight. Grade: B–

Advancing on Idol:

1. La’Porsha Renae: No surprise there. She’s the favorite at this point.
2. Sonika Vaid: Excellent choice. She’s my favorite voice not named La’Porsha.
3. Avalon Young: You had a feeling that was coming based on the feedback she got tonight.
4. Gianna Isabella: Not so sure about that one. Potential is great, but the contestants face a shortened Season 15.
5. Thomas Stringfellow: Another choice I would not have made. But the judges love them young.
6. MacKenzie Bourg: Wise choice by the judges. Tonight wasn’t great, but he’s been one of the best guys so far.
7. Jeneve Rose Mitchell: Another teen advances. But in this case, I think it was very warranted.

That means Jordan Sasser, James VIII, Emily Brooke, Stephany Negrete and Jenna Renae go home. Well, that was pretty predictable. Emily is the biggest surprise among those not advancing.