Most recently eliminated American Idol finalists, Anoop Desai and Lil Rounds, were on Live! With Regis and Kelly this morning where they talked about life after leaving the show and performed.
Anoop sang “You Were Always On My Mind” and it really reminded me of what a good singer he is.  He had a little more facial hair but I’m not sure that I like the look for him.  Regardless, I thought it was a good appearance (he could work on handling the microphone a little better but I digress).  Watch Anoop sing and their short chat with him and Lil …read more

American Idol’s most recently eliminated contestants, Lil Rounds and Anoop Desai, have been talking a lot about what their life is like now that their journey on the show is over. 
“It’s easier to go through it with someone else,” Desai said of the double elimination. “We can joke to each other. Neither of us is really wallowing all that much.”
Both Anoop and Lil talked about the harsh criticism they faced from the judges, particularly Simon Cowell.
“I didn’t think it was my worst performance,” said Anoop. “But you know, that’s the Simon Cowell that America expects. He’s very superlative driven. …read more

The results show from Disco Week on American Idol got underway with a group number choreographed by judge, Paula Abdul.  It felt like something from a dance show because they showed Paula training the contestants.  When the performance was over, Paula was presented with a bouquet of flowers.  It felt a little… strange (?) to me.  What did you think of that?
Lil Rounds was the first to be sent home tonight in a very quick elimination.  Ryan asked her to go over to the other side of the stage and as soon as she got there, he told her that …read more

Lil Rounds chose to sing “I’m Every Woman” for Disco Week and I think it was a smart choice but I didn’t love the delivery.  I don’t know what to think of Lil.  She’s got the voice, the look and everything she needs to be a star but she continues to make weird decisions.  I did not love the vocal arrangement.

Randy said she got the party started but that the performance sounded wild and still failed to show the kind of artist she could be.  Kara agreed with Lil and said that she’s been every woman but herself.  Paula said …read more

Lil Rounds sang “The Rose” and I really was surprised that she picked the song.  She began the performance with an arrangement that is similar to the original but then she finished the song with more of a gospel feel to it.

Paula said something that I really didn’t understand.  Simon said that the song was too soft, too middle of the road and that there were nice moments but she is not the artist that they met weeks ago.
image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Michael Becker / FOX

Lil Rounds was born in 1984 and she chose to sing Tina Turner’s song “What’s Love Got to Do With It?”  I think it was a good song choice for her voice but I would have liked it better if she sang something that was a little more challenging although she did try to power through the middle and end of it.
Paula said that Lil looks really hot tonight but said that she didn’t make the song her own.  Simon said that it was too much of a copycat performance and that it feels like they’ve lost her.  Randy said …read more

It was Motown Week on American Idol and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be.  Honestly, in the past there have been some real disasters in the past with this genre but it was pretty good.

Matt Giraud kicked off the night with his rendition of “Let’s Get it On” and, I thought it was pretty good, but I did think there were some flaws.  Still, I love Matt’s voice but I just don’t find him all that exciting.  The judges really liked his performance, though.
Kris Allen followed with a quirky, adorable version of “How Sweet …read more

Lil Rounds chose to sing “Heatwave” and I have to give her some real props for going all out with her old-school Motown-inspired dress and hairstyle. While I love Lil’s voice and think this was a decent song choice for her, I felt like she oversang it at times.  The last few bars of that song were sung at full tilt and I am not sure it was a great thing.

Randy said that the beginning of the song wasn’t great and it wasn’t the right kind of song for her.  He said uptempo songs may not be best suited to …read more

The Top 10 contestants from the eighth season of American Idol have been named.  Now we know who you’ll be seeing if you go to see one of the shows when they go on tour!

Here’s the Top 10 (listed alphabetically):

Adam Lambert
Allison Iraheta
Anoop Desai
Danny Gokey
Kris Allen
Lil Rounds
Matt Giraud
Megan Joy
Michael Sarver
Scott MacIntyre

What do you think?  Do you agree with this list?
image © 2009 FOX BROADCASTING CR: Ray Mickshaw / FOX

Lil Rounds chose to sing Martina McBride’s big hit “Independence Day” and, while I absolutely love Lil, I wasn’t a huge fan of this performance.  The crowd seemed to enjoy it but I wouldn’t have picked that song for her.

Randy said it was an interesting and ambitious song choice but it didn’t seem like she was comfortable.  Kara gave her props for standing her ground in terms of song choice even though it wasn’t the best performance.  Paula said that Lil looked and sounded amazing but that she shouldn’t have done two verses.  Simon started by calling her “Little” and …read more