American Idol 6, May 15: I’m Going Home

There are only three American Idol finalists left – Melinda, Jordin, and Blake. Usually before the show starts, I have a pretty good idea of who will be going home, regardless of how they perform. But this time, I’m not so sure. I think Melinda is a lock for the finals, but Blake and Jordin will both have to sing their hearts out to make it. Plus, with only three contestants left, it’s time for the Idols to make some whirlwind hometown visits. Remember that last year? The entire town of Richmond pretty much shut down to honor Elliot Yamin. Birmingham, having already done this for Ruben and Bo, was all set to give a fabulous welcome to Taylor. And Los Angeles barely looked up from its coffee to say, “Oh, hey, Katharine.” Let’s hope this year’s finalists all get a little more love than Katharine did!

Ryan explains that each judge has chosen a song for the contestants, the executive producers have chosen a song, and each contestant will also select one of his or her own. Got it? Good, because it’s time for Jordin Sparks.

Jordin heads home to Glendale, Arizona. She learns from the mayor that Simon has picked her song. The crowd boos at hearing his name. She will sing “Wishing on a Star” by Rose Royce. Jordin looks very happy about that.

Jordin looks great in a cute little dress. She’s got a real R&B vibe with the song and seems to be having a good time. It’s fine, but we have seen much, much better from her.

Randy: Like last week, Randy wonders who’s in it to win it. He thought she did well, and compares her to Beyonce.

Paula: Simon chose a good song for her. It was a great way to start the show.

Simon: She sang it well, but he didn’t like the jazz arrangement. Although he picked the song, it wasn’t one of her better performances.

Ryan teases Simon about not liking his own choice. Simon clarifies that he didn’t like the arrangement, and Ryan pretends to not understand. Jordin says she’d never heard the song before, but she liked it. She thanks Simon for choosing it. “Pleasure,” coos Simon.

Now we head to Bothell, Washington for Blake’s rally. The mayor receives a message from Paula. His song will be “Roxanne” by The Police. Cool choice, Paula.

Well, there’s no beat-boxing this week, so Randy can’t complain about that. Blake sings the song pretty much straight, and he does it well. It is not, however, the hottest version of this song I’ve ever heard. That honor belongs to the rendition of it that’s in the movie Moulin Rogue. Still, very well done.

Randy: Great performance. He loved Blake’s moves and thought the vocal was “pretty good.”

Paula: “You did me proud, Blake.” She liked the new phrasing. Blake thanks her for the song.

Simon: It wasn’t earth-shattering, probably because it’s hard to sing the song without impersonating Sting. It wasn’t as good as the original. He and Paula argue about whether or not it was fantastic.

Ryan says that they have one of the best crowds of the season. The crowd, predictably, goes wild for itself.

In Nashville, Melinda learns her song, chosen by Randy. The governor reads the song, peppered with many the “check it outs” that typify correspondence from Randy. She’s going to sing Whitney Houston’s “I Believe in You and Me.” She better bring it, or Randy himself will be all over her for not doing Whitney well enough.

Is it just me, or does Melinda look a little nervous? She has no reason to be, because she’s doing very well with this song. If you want to be conspiracy theorist about it, the judges picked the best song for Melinda. It’s one you can really, really knock out of the park, as opposed to Jordin and Blake’s songs, which just don’t have the potential wow factor. That’s not to diminish Melinda, because she kills this one. Kills it and leaves it dead in the street.

It’s possible that another of my metaphors has gotten away from me.

But anyway, what’s cool about this performance is that she sings and well, but doesn’t feel the need to full-on diva shriek it.

Randy: He picked the song because he knew it’d be a challenge. She did great.

Paula: “You were fantastic.” It was one of her best performances of the season.

Simon: It was a difficult song to sing, and her best in the last four weeks. Round 1 goes to Melinda. I agree with Simon.

Melinda thanks Randy for having the faith in her to sing Whitney. Ryan says he hopes that Randy soon is moved to get out of his seat. Simon wonders aloud if Ryan is drunk. He doesn’t seem to be sipping any of Paula’s special juice, and Ryan assures us that he is totally sober.

Ryan has a viewer question from Jordin – what is her favorite song of all time? Jordin says that “Mmm Bop” by Hanson always puts a smile on her face. She defends herself by saying that she’s only 17. Ryan claims to have it in his car. The producers have chosen “She Works Hard for the Money” for her.

Is it appropriate for a 17 year old kid to sing a song about a hooker? Because isn’t that what this is about? Anyway, Jordin is not working hard for the money with this song. There’s no passion, and none of the usual Jordin Sparks fly. It’s really pretty meh, the kind of thing you might expect from a Haley. I know, harsh, right? But we’ve seen how well Jordin can sing, and this is not it.

Randy: No matter what song she does, she turns in a hot performance.

Paula: “You worked hard for the money tonight.”

Simon: It was very good, but a bit old-fashioned. He loved the money note at the end.

Blake has a viewer question, too. If they were to make a movie of his life, what would the title be, and who would play him? Blake says he’d be played by Jim Carrey and called “Organized Chaos.” If they made a movie of my life, I’d play myself, but my husband would be played by Ewan McGreggor. Not that my husband looks like him, but that it would give me a great excuse to kiss him. The movie would be entitled, “You’re Dreaming, Betsy.” Oh, and Blake? He’s going to sing “This Love” by Maroon 5. Cool choice.

Blake struts onto the stage and starts dancing. He throws in some beat boxing and vocalizations, and it absolutely works. The song is a solid, fun pop song, and that’s exactly what Blake delivers. So far, this round belongs to Blake by a mile. He injected all of the fun into his song that Jordin just didn’t.

Randy: When he makes a record, this is the kind of music he should make. Nicely done.

Paula: He was totally in his element, and it’s a good night for him.

Simon: Simon liked this better than the first one. He sounded very comfortable, and it wasn’t a copycat performance.