Latin Night
Master Class with J-Lo

Melinda Doolittle
“Sway”
Didn’t her hair look cute? When swept up and “poofed out”, it adds more height and lengthens her look (if you know what I mean). Every week I say the same thing – technically sound performance I somewhat agree with Simon that it was lacking a little bit of “wow”, but it was still a good performance for me.

LaKisha Jones
“Conga”
My favorite performance from LaKisha this far (I’m not a big LaKisha fan). I think she engaged the audience and had fun. Her annunciation of the fast, moving parts of the chorus sounded clear and on beat. Even though she was moving around the stage, she didn’t lose her breath or fall behind the rhythm. For me, it was a better performance from her this week.

Chris Richardson
“Smooth”
Chris sounded “smooth” tonight. I like that his tone wasn’t so nasal sounding. Each week, he manages to take a song from the genre and turn it uniquely into his own while still keeping the best of the original version. To me, that takes talent and I think Chris pulls it off well.

Haley Scarnato
“Turn the Beat Around”
Randy called her a “dude”? Must have been a pretty bad performance for him or he wasn’t falling for the short shorts and stilettos routine. Simon voiced what everyone else is thinking.

Sweet Haley, dressed like that while prancing and jiggling around the stage, you look like you are in the wrong competition. I have a difficult time taking you seriously. However, I realize that being taken seriously isn’t what sells CDs…

Phil Stacey
“Maria, Maria”
I still don’t think he is THE American Idol, but I do think that he has improved since the beginning. This week’s vocal sounded warm from start to finish unlike previous weeks when he started kind of rough. I like the tone of Phil’s voice when he is at his best, but he lacks the “Yo” factor needed to win this competition.

Jordin Sparks
“Rhythm is gonna get you”
Fun and sassy song choice for Jordin. I like that she stays true to her youth and enjoys each performance to the fullest. Jordin is a true performer and a true idol contender. I imagine we’ll continue to see a lot of Jordin in the next few weeks and beyond.

Blake Lewis
“Need to Know”
I thought this was his best vocal performance this week – really showing off fullness and richness in his singing tones. I’ve liked Blake from the beginning, but began to get bored when we were down to the top 10-12. The last few weeks have been redeeming to hear Blake move into different genres and show off his style and talent.

Sanjaya Malakar
“???”
Please, don’t fall for his sexy-eyes attempt. Probably his best vocals thus far. (Not saying much over past performances, but still scary!) Simon’s comments cracked me up, especially the one that he couldn’t understand him.

Best of the night: Blake, Jordin, Chris

Bottom Three: Haley, Phil, Sanjaya (wishful thinking – hope it works!)

So, what did you think of tonight’s performances? Did you agree with the judges? Who were your favorites?

Thanks to BooMama and Beth, the Laundress for the graphics!

Technorati tags: American Idol, Blake, Haley, Jordin, LaKisha, Sanjaya

By TVJunkie Jenn