Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Kudos to American Idol for putting on an entertaining final season premiere.

Okay, I could have done without Kanye West. With so many singers to meet, that’s how we end the first episode of Season 15?

And two-hour audition episodes always strike me as too, too long, whether it’s American Idol or The Voice.

But Idol managed to remind us of its glory days while keeping the focus on the new crop of talent.

Every past winner got a mention in Wednesday’s episode. So did lots of non-winners, including Jennifer Hudson, Chris Daughtry, Adam Lambert, Scott MacIntyre, James Durbin, Kellie Pickler and even Lazaro Arbos.

To quote Jennifer Lopez: “This is going to be our best season ever, and we’re going to end on a high note.”

With that in mind, here are my four favorite auditions from Wednesday’s show.

Oh, and I plan to add video of the performances later.

Michelle Marie, 15, Daytona Beach, Fla.: Could there have been a more appropriate contestant to open Season 15? She named checked every past Idol winner, though she mangled Nick Fradiani’s last name, pronouncing it “Ferandi.” She’s been watching the show since she was four or five. She cried when Scott MacIntyre was eliminated in Season 9. “American Idol is what my life is based on,” she declared. Then she turned in a Hollywood worthy performance of “Blue by LeAnn Rimes. Hey, did anyone else notice how many really, really young contestants were featured in the season premiere?

Jeneve Rose Mitchell, 15, Crawford, Colorado: Speaking of which, here’s another barely-old-enough-to-audition young lady whose back-story seemed perfect for the Season 15 opener. Her family lives on remote Saddle Mountain in Colorado where they have no electricity. So they used generators for power. “We turned on the generator two times a week to watch American Idol,” she says. “Idol is pretty much the only thing we turn the generator on for.” Talk about a living commercial. Cowgirl Jeneve Rose also showed up in the audition room with a cello, performing “Chainsaw” by The Band Perry. It wasn’t a perfect audition, but it was intriguing enough that the judges sent her to Hollywood on a unanimous vote. “You’re a work in progress,” Harry Connick Jr. siad. “But there’s a lot to work with.”

Sonika Vaid, 20, Weston, Mass.: This young lady delivered my absolute favorite vocal of the season premiere. She sang “Look at Me” by Carrie Underwood and did so splendidly. We didn’t really find out why a young lady from Massachusetts wound up auditioning in Denver, but it mattered little t the judges, who unanimously agreed she belongs in Hollywood. Harry complimented her on a “perfect performance” and a “pure, God-given voice.” Keith Urban hit the nail on the head when he said she delivered a wonderful, emotional vocal without dressing it up with the frills so many auditioners get carried away with.

Joshua Wicker, 25, Jacksonville, Fla.: The best male singer from the Season 15 premiere? For me, that was an easy choice. The vocal was provided by Joshua, the worship leader at a church, whose wife was pregnant when he auditioned in from of the judges in Atlanta, Ga. “I’m more nervous about being a dad than the audition,” he told Idol. Then he performed “Stay” by Rihanna in a singer-songwriter style that made the song all his own and drew rave reviews from the judges. Jennifer called it “an interesting voice, with lots of different pretty colors in there.” Harry called his performance “compelling” and Keith said “you sang (the song) like you wrote it.” He, too, made it to Hollywood via a unanimous vote. Oh, and we also got to meet his new daughter at the end of the audition clip. Nice touch, Idol.