I don't think I'm going to change much in my Power 8 this week considering everybody performed decently last week.
The theme this week is the 1980s, which is pretty open. Season 7 winner David Cook will be the mentor. That's really oldies nowadays, isn't it? Most of these contestants weren't even alive during the 1980s! The song spoilers are out and it's a bit disappointing. I won't reveal them. (You can read them here.)
1. Caleb Johnson. He is so good with the rock genre, judges want him to go power ballad. "Here I Go Again." "Love Bites." "Wanted Dead or Alive." "Every Rose Has Its Thorn." He's got plenty of choices but he doesn't pick any of those. It's not one I would have chosen. Let's see if he can show the proper emotion and make it work. (1)
2. Alex Preston. He is the only other male singer with a real shot at winning but he's got a major hurdle in Caleb. His pick could be quite mesmerizing. (2)
3. Jena Irene. She's still my top girl, consistently finding ways to make her performances interesting, if not always great. Her song pick tonight is all attitude and grrl power. Let's see if she can pull it off. (3)
4. Jessica Meuse. I moved her up. She is gaining more confidence. Hopefully, she'll be able to channel the artist she picked and make it more than a pleasant karaoke version. (4)
5. Malaya Watson. She is getting better and shouldn't be discouraged by being in the bottom three. She still has a shot at the top 5 though winning appears highly unlikely. Her song choice should work well with her voice. (5)
6. Dexter Roberts. I'm moving him ahead of Sam since he seems to have more support and had a better performance last week. He goes all cheeseball with a song I like to sing karaoke but I'm not sure it's going to go down well. (7)
7. Sam Woolf. The fact he was actually eliminated last week tells you how weak his fan base has been. He may be DOA with his song choice, a classic chosen by many past "Idol" singers. (6)
8. CJ Harris. It's just a matter of time. Interesting song pick that could be great or a disaster depending on how CJ goes with it. (8)
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Ratings continue to slip off in steady fashion.
On Wednesday night, "Survivor" again beat "Idol" in both total viewers (9.55 million to 8.77 million) and 18-49 viewers (2.2 vs. 2.1). Those are again series lows for a performance show.
The Thursday results show also landed another series low: 7.7 million viewers with a mere 1.7 18-49 rating. It came in third in the time frame behind "Two and a Half Men" and "Grey's Anatomy" during the 9 p.m. hour.
Writing this item is kind of sad. I used to post ratings numbers just to show how much "Idol" was beating up on everybody else. Now it has trouble holding its own against three other rather aged shows.
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The show that's helping kill off "Idol," "The Voice" is going on its first tour with past contestants. It will be at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre June 29. Tickets go on sale April 17 at www.aeglive.com or www.thevoice.com/tour.
From the press release:
Already confirmed on the tour is Jamaica native and Season 5 champ, Tessanne Chin. Also joining the tour from Season 5 is soul-pop teen artist, and runner up, Jacquie Lee and vocal powerhouse and family man, Will Champlin. Dia Frampton, a Team Blake favorite, from Season One will be hitting the road too, along with this season's Winner, Runner Up, and 3rd place. Another fan favorite is guaranteed to tour and will be determined in the month of May by America via social media.
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James Durbin from season 10 is expecting a second child.
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And here's Sleazak with Melinda Doolittle talking "Idol" and "The Voice"
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