Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Hailey Mia with Ryan Seacrest after performing on Top 24 night on American Idol. (ABC Photo)

Half of the Top 24 perform tonight on American Idol with fan voting determining which two singers go home.

That said, we won’t get results until the start of the Top 20 show next Sunday night.

You can vote for your favorites from the time the show starts until 6 a.m. eastern time tomorrow.

And you can vote up to 10 times per contestants via each of the three voting methods — americanidol.com, the Idol app or by texting votes using the contestant numbers provided during the show.

Here are tonight’s singers and their rumored song choices.

Hailey Mia, 16, Clifton, N.J., “She’s All I Wanna Be” by Tate McRae: We haven’t seen as much of Hailey as some of the other Idol hopeful. But, folks, she has an amazing voice. And she’s working the stage prety well. Her voice isn’t standing out on the chorus as much as it could. The backing music sorta swallowed it up. But she closes strong in a solid performance. Lionel is looking for more attitude. Luke is looking for more energy, but called the vocal performance great. Grade: B

Jordan Anthony, 18, Perth Australia, “Titanium” by David Guetta & Sia: He’s one of the Idol imports, having competed on singing shows back in Australia. A bit of nerves are showing on this opening. The song swells, and the vocal stays a bit flat. He also made some changes to the song’s arrangement which really didn’t work. If anything, they detracted from the song’s energy. Lionel calls it fantastic. I disagree. Luke liked the risky song choice. Huh? That’s an oft-done singing show song. Grade: C+

Jayna Elise, 22, Washington, D.C., “Confident” by Demi Lovato: Nice stage presence and energy from the opening note. She showing off exactly the attitude the song calls for. All the moving around might be affecting the vocal a bit, though. Hey, there was a heck of a glory note. And she delivers a big ending too. That was the most self-assured and best performance we’ve seen so far. Tori says she looks like a rock star. Lionel loved the performance. Luke loved the way she got the crowd going. Grade: B+

Julia Gagnon, 21, Cumberland, Maine, “Rumour Has It” by Adele: Not only is Julia engaged to Nate, they’ve released music together. An EP as Chocolate Milk. Julia has a interesting tone. And a voice that cuts through. That softer part in the middle of the song was expertly done. Then she came back with a big ending. Very well done by Julia. Katy makes a good point. The low tone might have been used a bit too much. Tori wants even more emotion, but says she nailed it vocally. Grade: B

Kayko, 23, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., “How To Live Without You” (original song): This is a song Kayko wrote for his mom, who passed away a couple of years ago. He says it was therapy for him when she died. Great opening verse. Kayko oversings that chorus a bit, but he’s channeling lots of emotion here. I honestly wished he’d performed this with a lot less energy. I think it would have made much more of an emotional impact. This song and all the others Kayko have performed on the show are part of his new EP. Katy says Kayko deserves to advance. Grade: B–

Nya, 27, Manhattan, N.Y., “(Simply) The Best” by Bonnie Tyler/Tina Turner: When it comes to on-stage charisma, I think Nya is one of Idol’s best. Lots of stage experience in musical theater has served her well. Not sure this was a great song choice. Nya sounded really good on the opening, but the chorus got a little shouty. She nailed a nice big ending though. I’d like to see Nya ditch the classics and sing something more current. Luke called it one of the best performances they’ve seen. Tori Kelly called it “stunning.” Grade: B

Blake Proehl, 24, Charlotte, N.C., “Anyone” by Justin Bieber: He sounds nice on the opening. But his vocals waver a bit as the song swells. And while he leaves the mic stand as Tori recommended, he doesn’t seem completely confident on stage. Katy says he has all the makings, but might be holding himself back. Luke likes his boy next door charm. Honestly, that’s the weakest vocal we’ve heard so far tonight. Grade: C–

Abi Carter, 21, Indio, Calif., “Oceans” by Hillsong United: She was sick and admittedly not at her best during Hollywood Week. In fact, she thought she might be eliminated. So she’s feeling a bit of pressure for this performance. She’s delivering an emotional opening. And a really pretty vocal. This is much more like that magical audition. She gets a standing ovation from the judges. I would have loved to have heard that ending minus the background singers. Luke calls her a front-runner. Tori said she created moments during the performance. Katy calls Abi her favorite. Grade: A–

Quintavious, 21, Franklin, Tenn., “Something In The Water” by Carrie Underwood: He’s torn between singing the Carrie Underwood song and Tori’s “Hollow.” He decided on Carrie. The opening wasn’t special. But here comes the chorus. Quintavious does much better on it. He’s giving us lots of theatrics during a rather frenetic performance. The crowd seems to love it. Lionel loved the way he took charge of the stage. He called the vocals amazing and the performance great. Luke liked his energy. Grade: B

KB (Kaibrienne) Richins, 20, Henefer, Utah, “Heaven” by Bryan Adams: She’s dedicating the performance to her father, who inspired her to sing. Remember, videos of KB singing in her dad’s car went viral on YouTube, drawing attention to her vocal ability. He apparently also encouraged her to audition for Idol. Not crazy about this song choice. It’s a little sleepy. But I’m absolutely crazy about KB’s voice. It’s one of the most distinctive among the Top 24. That’s what sets her and Will Moseley apart. And she always delivers emotion. Tori Kelly said she killed it. Lionel praises the cry in her voice. Luke says she gives him star vibes. Grade: A–

Will Moseley, 23, of Hazelhurst, Ga., “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay” by Otis Redding: Isn’t that interesting? Will only started singing to help his guitar playing. And he’s only been doing both for about four years. Like KB, his unique tone is his magic. And the guy performs like he’s been doing it forever. I wasn’t excited about the oft-done song choice, but Will made it work with one of the night’s best vocals. He has the judges on their feet. This guy is a front-runner. Tori called it amazing. Grade: A

McKenna Breinholt, 25, of Gilbert, Ariz., “The Story” by Brandi Carlile: McKenna closed the season premiere of Idol Season 22. Now she’s closing the first voting show. She’s dedicating this to the mother who adopted her. She’ll deliver a very good singer-songwriter vibe. Hey, I’d forgotten, she’s got a very distinctive tone too. A bit lower than usual, but very appealing. Really nice performance to close the night. Katy says she has a “star voice.” Luke calls her a serious contender. Tori says she can hear her on a record. Grade: B+

See also
Song by song grades for the Top 24, Group 2