American Idol: Top 12 Girls

Tonight is the first live broadcast of American Idol season 9 and the top 12 girls are starting it off! I'm still torn up about Tori and Angela not making it through but I'm excited to see the talent level of the 12 girls that did make it! Can't wait to hear what they sing!!

The theme for tonight's episode is "Billboard Top 10's from 1972 to 2010", can't wait! Should be amazing with song choices that range in every genre, so no one has an excuse to perform badly.

1. Paige Miles - "It's All Right Now": Who is this girl?!?! She has not been showcased at all this season, and for good reason. She's isn't that great, she's just ok. That song choice was horrible, it didn't showcase her voice at all and half the time I couldn't understand what she was saying. She really did not do well, the performance was so lacking, she had no star quality at all. What voice are these judges hearing?!? I don't get anything from her voice at all, its so bland and typical, maybe she sounds a lot different live in person; we can hope right...?
2. Ashley Rodriguez - "Happy": I'm a huge fan of this girl and a HUGE fan of this song! This was a very solid effort from Ashley, the parts of the song she chose made it seem VERY short, but vocally she performed pretty well! Performance wise it was a lot better than Paige, she actually seemed to be enjoying herself and engaging the audience. Her arrangement was also very strange, espec during the performance. I agree that whenev people sing those big voice songs they always get compared to them and never rly do compare. I have faith this girl will get through to the top 12, no doubt!
3. Janell Wheeler - "What About Love": I've never really been a big fan of this girl, I didn't think her voice was that strong; she is gorgeous tho. Bad song choice, it showed how weak her voice is, she does not have a strong voice compared to the other girls and this just pointed that out more. She should stay far away from big notes, and yet she attempted like 5 in that song... I have my doubts about this girl going through, she just seems so bland. She did seem rather comfortable on stage, she had awkward parts, but overall an ok performance.
4. Lilly Scott - "Fixing a Hole": I'm a fan of this girl, her voice and style are very different; but I've never heard of this song before. I really liked this performance! It was very different and her vocals were mostly on! The second half she definitely hit her stride and got a lot better, very strange performance but I'm very intrigued to hear more from her! I'm glad the judges praised her and didn't crack on her for the bad notes, she did very well! She was very comfortable on stage which will help her in this competition a lot!
5. Katelyn Epperly - "Oh Darling": This girl has got a lot of attention already, people see a lot of promise in her; I'm not fully convinced yet. She sang this insanely well and looked great! After this performance I am now a lot more convinced that she is meant to be here, btw I LOVE her hair! I think it was a good choice of song because its not very well known so she can definitely make it her own with a lot less trouble than the other girls.
6. Haeley Vaugn - "I Wanna Hold Your Hand": Tori should be here instead of her, but since that won't happen I should actually talk about Haeley. She is cute and has a powerful voice, but I find her too cutesy, its obnoxious. Simon has said repeatedly that he wants to find someone like Taylor Swift and I think, he thinks, he has found this girl in Haeley; I do not think that at all. Haeley is similair to Taylor, but not anywhere as talented as Taylor. UGH TORI SHOULD BE HERE INSTEAD OF HAELEY!!!
7. Lacey Brown - "Landslide": She is ADORABLE and I LOVE this song, don't screw this up Lacey! OMG.......... This is absolutely horrible! Her vocals are so random and they don't make sense at all with the song, it sounds like the band screwed up. Her last note was good at least. She may be going home Thursday, like legitimately, that was utterly horrible! She knows she did badly, which makes it worse cause she's dissapointed in herself and the judges aren't being easy on her; what a shame! Poor girl :(
8. Michelle Delamor - "Fallin": Ummmmm, who are you? She is awkward and I'm not really a fan! Bring Tori back!!! Plus side is she's cute, hopefully she can sing. She is actually pretty good, but she is so typical; she would not really have a very definite fanbase. There is only one Alicia and she doesn't have the chops to be anything like Beyonce. Pretty good for some random girl not shown at all during the show so far, but nothing too special; she seems soooo lacking, but I'm not sure of what exactly she's lacking...
9. Didi Benami - "The Way I Am": LOVE THIS GIRL AND THIS SONG!! I think this is a great song choice for her! I love this performance, very simple and yet impressive. I definitely think this girl can make it far in this competition because her voice has a lot more power than she showcased in this performance. I thought she did a great job with making the song different, there isn't much you can do a simple song like that and she tried to make it as much of her own as she could. I do agree with Simon though, the performance itself was a bit boring, but in Didi's defense she couldn't do a very exciting performance because of the song. Also Ellen made a very good comment about if this song was 1 song in a longer performance great, but it was a bit lacking for her only song of the night.
10. Siobhan Magnus - "Wicked Game": Can't stand her! She is so strange and always sounds like she's shouting. She has a very powerful for sure and tonight she used it A LOT smarter than she was during Hollywood week. this performance was easily one of the best of the night for sure, she had immense control over her voice!!! She is such an ODDBALL, I would like to hear her sing but not hear her talk!
11. Crystal Bowersox - "Hand In My Pocket": This girl is not the typical idol contestant, but she has INSANE talent! PERFECT song choice for her, this is exactly what she needs to be singing! I love that she plays the harmonica on this show, she is such a breathe of fresh air this season! Can't wait to see how far she goes!! AMAZING JOB CRYSTAL! I agree, she could sing anything at all and I'd be a fan!
12. Katie Stevens - "Feeling Good": This girl is way too good for her age, like its not fair! She's adorable, has charisma, and insane vocal ability! OMG I LOVE THIS SONG!!! She has so much charisma for a 17 year old, and she is so comfortable on stage (probably because she's been doing pageants since she was a child). Her voice is so great and has such amazing tone! She is going to go very far in this competition! Can't wait to see her grow!!! I see the judges points, but I don't fully agree with them.

All in all, dissapointing night for sure! There were very low moments *cough* Lacey *cough* and insanely strong moments! The talent of the girl's this season is so much, but they did not showcase that this week, which is such a shame. I still think that a girl is gonna win this season!
I am LOVING Kara this season! She is nicer than Simon but she is saying everything right! She isn't afraid to be honest, so go Kara, ur a lot better than last season!!

Update on some earlier favorites:
Tori Kelly - She is continueing to write and produce her own songs while also taking part in a youth version of 'We Are The World' with some other little known youth stars (Lil Mama and Montana Tucker are included in the list of artists). She also says there are big things coming, can't wait to hear exactly what they are. Personally I think she'd be GREAT as the new girl on Glee to oppose Rachel for Finn's affection.
Angela Martin - She was on Ellen and chatted a bit and then got to perform! She performed insanely well, her voice is actually very very good! After the performance Ellen surprised her with some very exciting news! Kara is going to write a song specifically for Angela and work with her in the studio. Kara and Ellen are going to help Angela get a record deal, which is amazing because she definitely deserves it!!
Shelby Dressel - Shelby also appeared on Ellen and chatted and peformed. Shelby also performed insanely well and her voice is so much better than what we saw on the show! She said she may end up trying out next year, but she's not sure yet. I hope she does because she is very relatable and talented. Hopefully the extra exposure from the show will get her signed, I think she would make a very successful CCM artist!