My apologies to all for my "disappearance" these last few days; I think I needed the mini hiatus to clear some things up in my mind...
One of the issues which I had to resolve was my disappointment over Jennifer Hudson's untimely elimination from American Idol. She was my ultimate favorite for this season's AI and honestly speaking, the competition will not be the same without her. Perhaps it was her "underdog" quality which appealed to me most (not only is she an Afro-American, she's unapologetically chubby & not so good-looking :p) or maybe it was just her vocal theatrics; whatever the case, it is surely a tragic travesty for talent competitions everywhere when someone who only sings in tune (less than) half of the time (i.e. John Stevens) is preferred by voters over someone like Jennifer. She probably had never hit a wrong note in her entire life~! Ohgod.. I've once again succumbed to John Stevens bashing! sheeeeesh! Well anyhow, at least now I don't feel like muttering an expletive evrytime I see his freckled face on TV. LOL
It's Salsa night this week and the guest judge was Gloria Estefan, who unabashedly admitted that she wasnt there to judge but merely to "root and smile"... It's abit embarrasing but I gotta confess that I used to own Gloria's Greatest Hits compilation VOl.1 on cassette. I practically grew up listening to such infectious gems as Conga, 1-2-3 and Rhythm's Gonna Getcha but I knew that Gloria's uptempo and rapid-fire songs would be difficult to carry convincingly by anyone else save herself. Hence, i watched this week's episode with more than a little trepidation...
Fantasia Barrino started the ball rolling with Get On Your Feet and in an impressive show of spunk, managed to interject her song in some parts with words of support for the ousted Jennifer. I think she's the only contestant who exhibited her displeasure over Jennifer's elimination so explicitly.. I'm not sure if it's all a devious strategy on her part to win over more fans for herself but I'd rather give her the benefit of a doubt. More importantly though, despite giving such a rousing performance, I think the overall result was only slightly above average. George Huff didnt do so well either with Live For Loving You; it was a good attempt but he didnt really sound very credible somehow. However, LaToya London's Rhythm's Gonna Get You was much better executed and her dance moves were convincing, although abit on the cheesy side. Frankly speaking, I think it was LaToya's vocal versatility which gave her a lead over her Afro-American counterparts; Fantasia & Georgie are strong singers but they dont seem to be able to keep up with the trademark salsa rhythms which are an integral part of Gloria's uptempo songs.
John Stevens simply butchered Music Of My Heart. Enuff said...
I never heard the song Here We Are before but Jasmine Trias's version was pretty alrite actually. At some parts though, her voice didnt seem very right (perhaps she went offkey abit)... At any rate, I just lurrrvvvee her new, matured look (sans flower)! Beautiful and Babelicious!!! unfortunately, i cant say the same for Diana Degarmo's fashion sense; The dress (if that's what u call it) she was wearing seemed to be at least two sizes too small for her... Thankfully, Diana didnt let THAT perturb her and overall, her interpretation of Turn The Beat Around was easily the best performance for the night. It was energetic without seeming to be contrived and her vocals were spot-on. Finally, Miss Degarmo has raised herself from the ranks of mediocrity (or for this week at least)!
This is certainly one of the lousiest weeks so far in AI3 but I wasnt expecting a good show anyway. My only complaint is that nobody sang my all-time Gloria favorites; Heaven's What I feel, Coming Out of The Dark and the Olympic theme, Reach.
My ranking of performances (from best to worst) --> Diana, Latoya, Fantasia, Jasmine, George & John.
PS: I don't think there is a point anymore in predicting who will be in the bottom three...
