Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Rae and Jesse Findling were the bottom two on American Idol Monday night. (ABC Photo)

The American Idol Top 12 will sing 1990s hits picked by the judges tonight.

But first, Idol will need to finish last week’s business by narrowing the Top 14 to a Top 12.

With live votes pouring in from five sources — including TikTok, Instagram and Facebook for the first time ever — Idol didn’t feel confident enough in the numbers to announce a Top 12 at the end of last week’s show.

Be assured, two singers will be eliminated at the beginning of tonight’s show. Then it’s on to the Judges Song Contest.

If you’ve watched Idol before, you know how this works. Each judge recommends one song for each contestant to sing. The contestant picks one of the three possible songs, without knowing which judge recommended it.

At the end of the night, one more singer is scheduled to go home. If Idol can get results in time. I still think the show should switch back to overnight voting and announce results the following week.

Anyway, I’ll be provided song by song grades throughout, so check back frequently during the show to see how your favorite is doing.

See also …
Ranking the Top 14
Last week’s most popular performances
Song by song grades for the Top 14

And it’s time to eliminate two singers. Ryan Seacrest says the vote was incredibly close. Eliminated are Jake Thistle and Julian Kalel.

Hannah Harper, 25, Willow Springs, Missouri, “Head Carolina, Tails Carolina by Jo Dee Messina: The song choice will force Hannah to go a bit upbeat for the first time in the competition I believe. She’s got a really sweet voice. And she’s turning in a solid performance. But I think it’s clear she’s more confident plucking heartstrings. Carrie Underwood picked the song and said the result was magic. Lionel says she “did great.” Grade: B

Jordan McCullough, 27, Murfreesboro, Tenn., “You’ll Always Be My Baby” by Mariah Carey: Jordan had a range of choices from Mariah Carey to Vince Gill. He’s goes for the challenge, signing Mariah. Well, Jordan can sing anything. He does a fine job with a song — though it’s not his best vocal. He did deliver a superb ending and an incredible high note. Lionel picked the song, saying he wanted a “left of center” song choice for Jordan. He called Jordan’s performance masterful and praised the way he made the song his own. Grade: B+

Daniel Stallworth, 27, Moss Point, Mississippi, “It Ain’t Over Til It’s Over” by Lenny Kravitz: Daniel is sitting behind the keys for the first time. Midway through the song he predictably leaves the keys and the vocal hits another gear. He goes falsetto for an impressive ending to an impressive performance. Probably the night’s best vocal from beginning to end so far tonight. Luke picked the song and loved the way Daniel selected the song he didn’t know. Lionel praised his vibe. Grade: A–

Lucas Leon, 17, Gallatin, Tenn, “It’s Your Love” by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill: Lucas opts to go with the ballad, those he was originally leaning toward “Should’ve Been a Cowboy.” Lucas shows off a nice little rasp on the opening of this. He turns in a solid, impassioned performance. I continue to be impressed by Lucas’s composure on stage at such a young age. My only gripe: I’m not sure that song was ever going to create a truly memorable moment for Lucas. Lionel loved his believability on that song. Grade: B

Chris Tungseth, 27, Fergus Falls, Minn., “I’ll Be” by Edwin McCain: Chris has surprisingly nice soft vocals. This is the only one of the three suggested songs he knew. Sorry, but this vocal just isn’t working. He found the groove on the chorus now and then and he certainly got the closeup treatment from Idol. But that vocal was very uneven. Carrie made the song choice. Luke called it a great job. Lionel said he has an identifiable choice but needs to avoid playing it safe. Grade: C

Philmon Lee, 25, LeGrange, Ga., ” “Hard to Handle” by The Black Crowes: Philmon has really stepped up his stage presence in the last couple of weeks. He certainly came out of his shell on that one. And delivered one heck of a rousing ending. All three judges wound up on their feet. Nice performance by Philmon. Luke picked the song. Carrie called it the standout performance he needed. Grade: B+

Kyndal Inskeep, 29, Fishers, Indiana, “Iris” by Goo Goo Dolls: Kyndal’s unique tone should stand out on this. Unfortunately, I could barely hear her over the band at the start of the performance. There are only four females left on Idol, and they should all be around for a while. Kyndal turns in another solid performance. Her impassioned performance of everything she sings helps her stand apart. Grade: B

Brooks Rosser, 22, Bel Air, Md., “Linger” by The Cranberries: Brooks looks really, really nervous. And sounds that way as well. He says he thinks the judges were trying to yank him out of his comfort zone. I think they succeeded. With as little performance experience as he has, I’m not sure that was a good thing. That was his weakest performance. Lionel picked the song. Carrie loved the beginning but also sense his discomfort. Grade: C–

Rae Boyd, 24, Frederick, Md., “Love Will Lead You Back” by Taylor Dane: Rae just looks so comfortable every time she takes the stage. Not sure this is a song that will create a moment for her. In fact, for the first time, her vocals sounded a little shouty here and there. But she has such a big voice. And is fearless on stage. There’s that special Rae on the ending. Carrie picked the song and applauded Rae for doing the song so well. Rae didn’t know any of the songs, and Lionel praised her ability to pull it off. Grade: B

Braden Rumfelt, 22, Murphy, N.C., “All By Myself” by Celine Dion: This was a very good song choice for Braden. He sounded great on the opening. The song got a little sleepy in the middle. But once the chorus joined in, allowing him to ab lib a bit, he nailed it again, then delivered a really nice ending. That was one of the night’s bravest vocals. Lionel picked the song and didn’t believe Braden would pick it, but applauded Braden’s job on it. Grade: B

Jesse Findling, 19, Long Island, N.Y., “Wonderwall” by Oasis: Hold it, Jesse has the option to sing “Hallelujah” by Jeff Buckley and picked something else? What? Jesse needed to learn this song from fresh. He turned in a pretty solid vocal, but he should have picked “Hallelujah.” Lionel picked that song too, and he’s cleaning up in this judges song contest. Lionel loved the way Jesse made the song work. Luke said it was one of his favorite Jesse performances. Grade: B–

Keyla Richardson, 29, Pensacola, Fla., “Zombie” by The Cranberries: Keyla is another singer who never heard these songs before. Yes, Idol, we know Keyla has a son. This started out slow. It didn’t end up that way. Keyla did a wonderful job once the songs hit the chorus. Far better use of the pimp spot than Chris Tungseth made last week. Perfect time for a song about needless violence and its impact on the innocent. Lionel picked this song too and wound up the overwhelming winner of the judges’ song contest. Grade: A–

Contestants advancing include: Chris, Kyndal, Daniel, Hannah, Jordan, Braden, Philmon, Keyla, Brooks, Lucas.

That leaves Rae and Jesse in the bottom two. Lionel as the winner of the judges song contest decides to save Rae.

That means Jesse is eliminated from American Idol.

Have no idea what fans were thinking. Rae is one of the best singers and performers on the show. And there were a couple of clunker performances tonight.