Top 11: Grand Ole Opry

I know I wasn’t overly thrilled with the announcement of Grand Ole Opry night – and with good reason – but, I have to say that not everyone was as horrible as I would have predicted. Maybe it was just because I was watching live with my favorite Idol crew and their new addition, in Arizona, but I was actually satisified with the show’s outcome.

The Idol favorites, you know who they are, weren’t the ones leaving the judges and America saying, “Yee Haw” this week. Instead it was the underdogs who came out victorious. Kris Allen, Anoop Desai, and Matt Giraud were easily my top picks this week, leading me to predict that this year will crown a male Idol..again. I’ve been toying with the idea, but this week really capped it off for me. Kris Allen’s smooth vocal performance left girls to swoon and showed that he actually could make a play for the title in this competition. Anoop recovered from his unfortuante Jackson performance, that almost sent him packing last week, with a smart song choice that showcased the R&B voice that got him into the finals – Anoop Dogg is back, y’all. And Matt Giraud’s rendition of Carrie Underwood’s untouchable “So Small” left a big impact on the judges and yours truly. Usually I can’t stand when the Idols choose to take on Underwood, but he did it well. He didn’t try a copy-cat performance (see Danny Gokey), he tried his own take on it and I think he might have the talent and chops to compete with the Lambert-Gokey league. Speaking of Adam, I know that some of you will turn on me for saying this, but I didn’t think his take on Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire” was horrific. It was unfortuante to see such a classic get that kind of treatment, but ultimately we can’t blame Lambert soley. Lambert must have taken notes from previous Idol winner, David Cook’s, book, “Winning America’s Hearts for Rockstars”, and pulled the version from a less well known band. I actually give kudos for trying to take country week and turn it into a positive. His stage presence and performace ability still is above the rest, so it’s forgiveable…this week.

But with the good, there was a lot of bad. Lil Rounds chose to “just keep it real” and sing the country song, “Independence Day”, but failed in pulling of a southern twang, which is confusing because isn’t she from Memphis? And Danny Gokey’s horrible rendition of Underwood’s “Jesus, Take The Wheel” is why I usually hate when Idols take on the Season 4 winner’s songs. Unless your voice is as big and pure as Carrie’s, don’t try to hit the same notes – it just ends up sounding a lot like screaming. All the girls left me feeling uninspired and bored, none giving memorable performances. And I hate to admit it, but of all the girls, Megan Joy did the best – mostly due to her smart song choice and “sudden illness” that left her barely speaking.

Alexis Grace was sent packing on Wednesday, which didn’t really surprise me. It was obvious she wouldn’t win, but it was unfortunate that we had to watch the shock and awe strike her face when they announced the news. She always thought she was much better than she actually was, much like Danny, so we hate to see her so angered by America’s choice. Oh, and to top it all off, the judges teased her by saying she was a possible choice for the newly implemented “veto” rule, but than gave her worst performance to date in the “sing for your survival” segment. It was ultimately the right choice to let her go, so she could burn up the airwaves with her explanations of how American forgot to vote.

One thing you shouldn’t forget, America, is that Idol is on Wednesday and Thursday this week due to the President’s Address Tuesday night. Since this week’s theme is Motown, I’m guessing a lot of the contestants are feeling right at home, not really needing the extra day of practice. But, either way I’m excited to watch to find out if Megan Joy is still suffering from the bird flu she caught during Michael Jackson week (“Caw Caw”), or what song Scott MacIntyre chooses to butcher. And keep tuning in to Idol Insider for your latest music and Idol news.

Ciao!