Jordin Sparks looked exactly as I pictured her in the moment of her Idol victory. Her win was certainly no surprise after Tuesday’s show, where Blake proved to be no match for Jordin’s prowess for power-emoting treacly lyrics. Personally? I think it’s as it should be. Jordin is the perfect winner. Too bad the show ran so long we could not get some extended moments of Jordin revelling in her triumph with her fellow Idols. The confetti machine appeared to be on the fritz, too. Damn.
Biggest complaint about last night’s mostly entertaining finale? More Idols, please. Really, did we need to hear Gwen Stefani pimp lip sync sing her new single from an undisclosed location? I would have rather had another medley from the kids. Last year’s finale was so good, because it was filled with appearances from the performers who make Idol what it is–the KIDS. In fact, Prince was the only guest last year to appear WITHOUT also performing with the Top 12. This year, there were five solo performances from guest stars.
Having said that, I enjoyed performances from Tony Bennett and Green Day anyway. The aforementioned Gwen, and Bette Midler–not so much. Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and Joe Perry of Aerosmith were not only entertaining, but they all played nicely with the kids.
“It’s the night we’ve all been waiting for. Who will take the title? The beatboxer from Seattle, or the sweetheart from Arizona. The world is watching…This is American Idol! For the last time this year…sniff. Continue reading ‘Finale Recap’
Related Posts
Melinda Doolittle eliminated tonight.
I, on the other hand, truly felt the contest could be anybody’s game. Particularly after Tuesday night’s episode. Melinda and Blake Lewis both outsang and outperformed Jordin Sparks. For the first time in a few weeks, she appeared vulnerable. Of course, if Jordin were vulnerable, they all were. But still, I found myself thinking that a Melinda/Blake final was in the realm of possibility.
Eep. It’s tough for me to wrap my mind around recaping the Final 3, because while the show was broadcast here on the East coast, I was actually in a club watching Elvis Costello and the Imposters put on a kick ass show. I’m on a giddy Elvis high right now, but I’ll do my best to concentrate. Here we go. 
If ousted contestant Lakisha Jones had made the Final 3, she would have had a huge celebration in Flint, MI this weekend. Flint officials say that 
No Top 4 surprise boot this year, kids. LaKisha Jones, who has been teetering on the edge for awhile now, is sent home. She’s a talented singer, but without any training or musical exposure she had a tough time navigating the theme nights. Any song outside of the big-voiced R&B box tripped her up. And her penchant for picking songs by beloved Idol winners didn’t help her much either.
Barry Gibb is this week’s guest mentor. He and his brothers, The Bee Gees, came out of the British Invasion of the mid-sixties and have been through a few metamorphoses over the years. During the 70’s , they became a dance band, helping to mainstream disco. And, as a staunch member of the “Disco Sux” contingency back in the day, I’m not a big fan of the music from that period. My favs all come from their early work, in the 60s, of which I was hoping to get a good dose of tonight. Alas, it was only Jordin who brought the Beatlesque Bee Gees, singing the beautiful “To Love Somebody.”
Check out 
Goodbye Phil Stacey and Chris Richardson 
Well, I was a little shocked. Phil Stacey, left the competition this week after 3 very strong performances in a row. And despite TPTB’s attempts to throw him under the bus–hell because of their attempts, ’cause by now I figure America really isn’t listening to them anymore–he’d sail through to the next round. LaKisha Jones, on the other hand, made a comeback only this week after several lackluster performances in a row, and a drubbing by the judges last week.
Can I just whine for a bit? I know the charity special last week raised a lot of money for people who need it. And that perhaps it would have been some bad karma to kick an Idol to the curb at the end of last week’s Kumbaya-fest. But DAMN. I missed my boot. My week is not complete until I witness someone’s dream being crushed. And no flipping Top 5? At all? BLEAH. Ya know, if it were Top 5, the remaining contestants would be singing two songs each this week. I’m just sayin’
Sorry the recap is so late peeps. I felt like I needed to watch the special over again, and I just could not bring myself to do that right away. It’s just as well, there’s a lot of information I’d like to include in the recap that wasn’t available last night.
As of Thursday night, Idol Gives Back 
Cold opening - Ryan is standing in the control room looking very serious. “Tonight,” he says, “We are presenting a very special show. We’ve got the same 3 judges, the same 6 finalists (Each face is displayed on a monitor, the camera pans them). But one huge difference–the calls that you make will not only save your favorite contestant, (Ryan pauses dramatically and turns around) they will also save lives. THIS is Idol Gives Back.
Just for you…a round up of interviews with eliminated contestant Sanjaya Malakar. He was on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno Thursday night, where he did a skit with Donny Osmond and even got some couch time with Jay. You can watch his interview at 
Martina McBride performs ”Anyway,” from her newly-released album, “Waking Up Laughing“ 
UPDATE: 
Latest Comments