AMERICAN IDOL: The Final 3: L-R: Phillip Phillips, Jessica Sanchez and Josh Ledet. CR: Michael Becker / FOX.
From left, Jennifer Lopez, Phillip Phillips, Jessica Sanchez, Steven Tyler and Randy Jackson on "American Idol."
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Fox
(CBS News) If you waft around the Web long enough, you will encounter all sorts of conspiracy theories about "American Idol." One that has reverberated strongly has been that, this year, the producers were desperate for a female winner - and that their selection was Jessica Sanchez.
So anyone watching Thursday's results show will have been enjoyed their version of agendas and intrigues.
But let's assume for a moment that the voters really do decide. It's clear that the majority of them are, as I may have mentioned once or twice, little girls in their pink pajamas. There is no other way of explaining that a female hasn't won since 2007 (Jordin Sparks). There is no other way of explaining Lee DeWyze, Kris Allen and a host of other pretty white boys with guitars who have been successive winners (and not stars).
The little girls vote for the boy they find most attractive. And then, perhaps, they vote for the girl who most reminds them of themselves. So if you believe that their votes were all that mattered, it was likely that Joshua Ledet might be in trouble. He might be the best singer and the best performer, but he isn't a white boy with a guitar.
And so it proved. But not before we had a lovely group number and a Ford ad.
Ledet was first to be invited to the light-dimmed podium. Uncle Jimmy Iovine's comments then poured forth. He hadn't been impressed with Ledet's version of Etta James "I Would Rather Go Blind."
"Would I have given it a standing ovation?" he asked, before answering, "No."
Iovine declared Ledet "the most exciting showman that we have in the competition right now." Which isn't hard, given that he's up against a very uncertain, big-voiced, immature Mariah Carey wannabe and Phillip Phillips, who makes as if he doesn't wannabe here at all.
Iovine hadn't liked Ledet's "Imagine" at all. He likened it to a Ferrari in first gear. He wasn't even happy with the song that he'd given Ledet himself - Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama."
"It didn't have enough melody," said Iovine. He still felt, though, that Ledet should be in the finale.
Naturally, Ryan Seacrest didn't tell Ledet whether he was in the finale or not. Instead, a movie was plugged, as was Lisa Marie Presley, who is yet to sing as well as her father.
Jessica Sanchez was the next to receive her Iovinesque appraisal.
Iovine didn't feel her first Mariah Carey song had come together. Her version of "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" wasn't up to much either, as far as Jimmy was concerned. Her third - a Jackson Five song also (surprise!) recorded by Carey - was something of a disappointment for Iovine, too. Having chosen the song for her, he'd forgotten that Jermaine Jackson had sung the verse and Michael Jackson the chorus.
"If she gets into the finale," Iovine said. "It's all about the songs."
As if to remind us of singers that had deserved to win and didn't, Adam Lambert performed.
Finally Phillips stepped forward to hear the Jimmy verdict. He'd liked his version of "Beggin.'" He again insisted that he's sounding less and less like Dave Matthews and more and more like Phillip Phillips. His second song, Matchbox 20's "Disease" was, Jimmy thought, "a total snoozefest."
"Phillip won the night with Bob Seger's 'We've Got Tonight,'" was Iovine's conclusion. Oddly, Iovine called it "flawless," which it most certainly hadn't been.
So if you tried to interpret Iovine's judgment, Phillips had done very well, Ledet well and Sanchez not very well at all.
And so we were surely at the moment of decision. But first we had to hear some words from the judges. Were they meaningful words? Not terribly. Jennifer Lopez, for example, felt this was a "big moment."
Then Seacrest revealed there had been 90 million votes. No one will know, however, how many voters that truly represented. No one will know for sure how they skewed demographically. But one might infer from the results.
The first to be told she would be singing next week was Sanchez. She tried to look surprised. Then, finally, Phillips and Ledet put their arms around each other. This they had been reluctant to do in previous weeks after a duet. Here, though, they stood, both heads bowed.
When Seacrest announced it would be the pretty white boy with the guitar who would compete against Sanchez, they hugged each other.
Ledet's exit still meant that he had gone further in this competition than any black male singer since Ruben Studdard won in 2003. He, in truth, looked stunned. He tried to hold himself together, but he tightened his lips with some vigor. During his wonderful encore performance of "It's a Man's World," he brought his mother up on stage.
Hopefully, he will still do very well. He provided more excitement, more power and surely moved more people than any of the other finalists. He'd had 16 standing ovations. Yes, 16.
It's just that the little girls who vote didn't find him cute enough. Such is the world we live in.
Chris Matyszczyk is an award-winning creative director who advises major corporations on content creation and marketing. He brings an irreverent, sarcastic, and sometimes ironic voice to the tech world.
EVERYONE vote for Phillip. Jessica can sing but noone would buy her music. She doesn't even know who she is. On the otherhand, people would buy Phillip's music. He knows who he is and is much more mature.
Ok, there is one sure fire way to determine who will win each week. When you go to iTunes and select a song, it does not show you the number of people who have purchased that song, but it does show you the number of people who have "rated" that song.
As you might expect, people don't go to iTunes for a song they don't like, they only go there to purchase and give positive feedback. So far this season, the person with the least number of positive "ratings" from their prior night's song choice has ALWAYS been the person eliminated...WITHOUT EXCEPTION!
So next thursday, the day after both Philip and Jessica sing, go to itunes, click on their song from the night before, and see who received the most # of positive votes. That person will be the winner later that night.
I believe Josh has a fantastic voice who definitely feels the songs but sometimes I felt like he wanted to yell so much of the lyrics that all the songs sounded alike and gave me a headache. Phillip reminded me of Joe Cocker off his meds with a undercurrent of Bob Dylan. Could not understand a word he sang and after a while he was another Taylor Swift with all his songs sounding alike. Josh would only be marketable in his own style and like Phillip,if a song was not his cup of tea most would turn it off. I truly believe the tiny Phillipino beauty Jessica will be the most marketable for all song trends. She has a old soul, fantastic figure, angel-like face that will tear your heart out in a second and seems more than willing to take cues to learn. She is a star halfway ready to finish the mold. Just saying !!!!
If you're judging AI as a singing competition devoid of music business context, Joshua would probably win. But here's the real question: WHO'S GOING TO BUY HIS RECORDS? HIs wheelhouse is a sound that went out 40 years ago. Of course, he was competing against Jessica who's sound went out 20 years ago, and Phillips, who's sound departed about 10 years ago. So maybe that doesn't matter as much. As I looked at who in the top ten was ready for a career in the real CURRENT pop or country business with minimum changes, I though Skylar and Colton were ready to go.
I have watched American Idol on and off, but never voted until the week when Jessica was saved by the judges. The judges made the right decision, saving Jessica.
She is the most talented contestant and I am am confident that she will win.
I want Jessica to win but the fact that Philip hasn't been in the bottom all season tells me that he has a strong following. However, I think that her near-exit in the middle of the competition has won her a lot of supportive fans. I am tired of people saying that Jessica is too young. If that is the case, they need to bump up the minimum age to compete on the show. She has shown more maturity than most people her age. She is a true performer and a class act.
I agree with you 100 percent. I was disappointed with the judges. They were not objective at all. It was very obvious that they wanted Joshua to be in the finals. I was hoping for Jessica and Joshua and in the finals, they are the best two singers. Phillip sings the same kind of songs. It became monotonous.
Perhaps it is to Jessica's advantage that Joshua was eliminated. I predict Jessica to win.
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As you might expect, people don't go to iTunes for a song they don't like, they only go there to purchase and give positive feedback. So far this season, the person with the least number of positive "ratings" from their prior night's song choice has ALWAYS been the person eliminated...WITHOUT EXCEPTION!
So next thursday, the day after both Philip and Jessica sing, go to itunes, click on their song from the night before, and see who received the most # of positive votes. That person will be the winner later that night.
She is the most talented contestant and I am am confident that she will win.
http://www.picsofcelebrities.net/blog/2012/05/18/top-3-elimination-recap-ai-s11/
Plus: Are Jessica's BluJays confusing the Index? And who is SMI's early fave to win it all next week?
I was disappointed with the judges. They were not objective at all. It was very obvious that they wanted Joshua to be in the finals. I was hoping for Jessica and Joshua and in the finals, they are the best two singers.
Phillip sings the same kind of songs. It became monotonous.
Perhaps it is to Jessica's advantage that Joshua was eliminated. I predict Jessica to win.