Jessica Sanchez is eliminated and sings for her life! Jlo rushes the stage to interrupt her. OF COURSE THE JUDGES SAVE HER
The American Idol 11 Top 7 results are tonight! Nigel, Ryan, TMZ are all reporting tonight’s eliminated contestant will be a SHOCKER!
But will it matter? The judges have a save in their back pocket that they HAVE to use either this week or next. There was a double elimination at Top 12 when Shannon Magrane was eliminated and Jermaine Jones DQ’d. Without a non-elimination week, Idol will have to shave a week off the schedule, and we know that can’t happen.
And, will the producers use The Huff tonight?
It’s a double Idol night, as Jennifer Hudson takes the stage with Ne-Yo to sing “Think Like a Man” from the movie of the same name and Season 10 alum, James Durbin sings his new single, “Higher than Heaven.”
Watch this space for results.
Download Studio Performances From Tonight’s American Idol
I knew the judges would be using their save tonight, but I figured it would be on Skylar Laine, or Phil Phillips. I’m a little embarrassed to admit it, but I had Jessica at #1 on my power list. Oops.
Maybe Jessica hasn’t been a top vote getter, despite fantastic performances and praise from the judges. I think the “OMG Save Hollie” movement may have hurt her. I was NOT surprised that Hollie was completely safe. That pity vote can be a powerful thing. I did get Elise’s appearance in the bottom correct. Sadly, she’s running on fumes now. I think she’s got a week or two tops before she’s eliminated.
And dang those boys, Colton and Phil, NEVER hitting the bottom 3! Even after Phil’s lackluster performance, he was still completely safe. I really tried to be optimistic around the notion that a girl could win this year. After tonight, I’ve lost all hope. With Jessica nearly being eliminated, I don’t think she’s got the support to carry her to a win. Elise hasn’t connected to the audience and is nearly out of here. Hollie is just a cypher. Now that America has rescued her, they’ll probably forget about her. I can’t see Skyler winning either, because her support seems shaky too. Although, at this point, I’m thinking she’s got the best chance.
Nope. I think we’re in for a Colton and Phillip final two. Not sure who will come out victorious, and I don’t really care. Neither will sell platinum records either. They’ll sell some albums and maybe chart a single or two in adult contemporary. Jessica will get signed and probably outsell them. So will Skylar. Blargh.
A couple of thoughts on the grassy knoll. I wholeheartedly believe that Idol is NOT rigged. Tonight’s show was carefully scripted. Steven kinda gave it away that the gang had been plotting and planning when he let it slip that the panel WOULD be using their save before any one was actually eliminated. But, Jessica had no clue what was going on–that was clear.
With all the obvious fodder gone, really anybody leaving–outside of Hollie–would have been sort of shocking. The judges HAD to use the save to make up for the double elimination back when Jermaine Jones was disqualified, so they were going to use it tonight regardless. If they had saved it for the last week they could use it–next week–it would have seemed like even more of a foregone conclusion.
Another season, another SHOCKING result. what would Idol be without them? As far as judges saves go, this one was so predictable, and felt so scripted it does not rank up there with the best of them–Matt Giraud’s joyous rescue in Season 8 and Casey Abrams’ freak out in Season 10. Now that was some good TV.
Eight years ago, George Huff was asked to pick a group. Fantasia, Jennifer Hudson and Latoya London were all in the same group. Shockingly, they were the bottom 3. Future Oscar winner, Jennifer Hudson was sent home. How fitting that Jennifer would be a guest performer tonight, returning triumphantly after creating an award-filled career for herself. Jessica probably won’t win, but she need not worry.
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The Top 7 perform “Raise Your Glass by P!nk – HOORAY THE CHEESE IS BACK OMG. That was a hot mess and I loved it! Unfortunately, I will never get the image of Colton Dixon’s head in Phil Phillip’s lap while the latter stroked his hair out of my head. BRAIN BLEACH STAT.
Top 7 Perform live on American Idol 2012 Results by HumanSlinky
Glee star, Jane Lynch is in the audience!
Ford Video: “Great Escape – If you were wondering why tonight’s Ford commercial looked so weird and cheap? With the cut out heads pasted on to school notebook doodles? It’s because the Top 7 had Sunday–the day they usually shoot the commercials–off for Easter. So cut the kids some slack. Heh.
There’s tie to kill! First up, tweets of support from the artists the Idols covered. Check them out:
Aw. But we aren’t done with the fluff. Next, it’s a fan mail segment! Colton Dixon and Hollie Cavanagh get prom invitations from hot fans. The perks of instant fame! The woman who makes feather extension pieces for Elise Testone sent a piece along for Steven Tyler, who totally loves his feathers.
We’re done with fun. Now it’s time for eliminations!
Ryan calls Hollie Cavanagh and Jessica Sanchez to center stage. You know what’s next…a video recap, including a critique from mentor, Jimmy Iovine.
- Jimmy on Hollie and Jessica: “Hollie and Jessica. This is a classic case of two very good technical singers. One learned habits that she should continue with, and one learned habits that she should not continue with. Hollie has learned a lot of habits that are making her feel stiff and calculated, whereas Jessica must have been watching soul singers and it just comes effortless. They both have very good voices. Jessica of course, won the night. She sang that song like she wasn’t even thinking about it. Hollie sounded contrived, stiff and just…not in the right place.”
WOW. Not sure what the point of pitting contestants against each other like this is. Kudos to Hollie for keeping her composure after that. The audience winced audibly.
Ryan doesn’t ask for a reaction from Hollie. Instead, he turns to Jessica and asks her how she deals with the pressure of the show at such a young age. “This is what I always wanted to do, and I never expected it to be easy,” says Jessica, “I’ve been working hard all my life.” She giggles nervously.
Dim the lights….here we go! Oh boy. Ryan asks Hollie Cavanagh to take a spot on the right side of the stage. He asks Jessica Sanchez to head in to the opposite side. THE HUFF BEGINS! Ya’ll know what that means. Two groups, with some unlucky contestant asked to pick the group they think they belong in. Yuck.
1 of 7 Voted Off (p1) ~ American Idol 2012 by HumanSlinky
After the break, Season 10 Idol, James Durbin, and his brand new hair takes the stage to perform his new single, “Higher Than Heaven”. A shot of the finalists clapping after James finished–Colton was not smiling. After, James talks about his New Years Eve wedding and upcoming tour.
James Durbin live on American Idol 2012 Results by HumanSlinky
Ryan asks Phil Phillips and Elise Testone to take center stage. Lets run the deets.
- Jimmy on Phil and Elise: “What we have here are two singer/songwriters. What singer/songwriters are, are usually character singers. They’re not technical singers. They have character in their voice. The don’t have gigantic range. They don’t have fireworks. But they have soul. And the lyrics are the other part of what they do. Singer-Songwriter. So if we’re missing the original songs, what you have here, is we have Philip, who is influenced by Dave Matthews, but what you end up with is Dave Matthews singing a Maroon 5 song. I believe he’s in the bottom 3 tonight. Elise did a very good job on “You and I” last night. It was very technically correct. And she brought some of herself to it as well. I don’t think she did enough to pull herself out of the bottom 3.”
There is booing in the crowd. Ryan asks Phil if he thinks Jimmy and the judges are being fair. “They’re here to help us out, they’re not here to down us. They want us to win. Dave is a big influence to me, but it is weird doing a Maroon 5 song, but you got to adapt to stuff. I had a blast up here last night.” Jimmy sits smiling in the audience.
Did Elise do enough to redeem herself to stay out of the bottom 3? “I’m not sure,” says Elise, “I really don’t know what’s going to happen right now. I gave it my all, and that’s all I can do.”
Kieran! Dim the lights. Ryan sends Philip Phillips to join Hollie on the right side of the stage. Elise Testone joins Jessica on the left. A flicker of relief flashes on Elise’s face.
1 of 7 Voted Off (p2) ~ American Idol 2012 by HumanSlinky
After the break, Jennifer Hudson and Ne-Yo perform “Think Like a Man”. Jennifer looks gorgeous and sounds fantastic. ROCK IT GIRL. Ha, I never realized how tiny Ne-Yo is. Jennifer towers over him. Jennifer says that it’s always great to collaborate with the talented Ne-Yo.
Jennifer Hudson and Ne-Yo live on American Idol… by HumanSlinky
Time for more results! Ryan asks Colton Dixon and Joshua Ledet to take center stage. Holy crap! That means Skylar Laine is The Huff! I did not see that coming. You know the drill. Deets. Jimmy.
- Jimmy on Colton and Joshua: “I think Joshua and Colton both did well last night. Joshua, I believe nailed a really contemporary record by Bruno Mars–could have wrote that song for Joshua. His performance was natural, flawless, that fit him like a glove. Colton had a smaller song. But he needed a poignant moment because he’s again, a singer/songwriter without his songs. So he grabbed a Skylar Gray song and he interpreted it. And when he looked at that camera and sang, I believed every word of it. So I’m in. I’m in on Colton and I’m in on Joshua last night.”
Ryan asks Colton, “You were working hard to get a standing ovation from the judges. I know you’ve been thinking about that each week. What do you think it’s going to take to get them on their feet?” Colton says he honestly doesn’t know yet. Jennifer says they do it when they feel it, and she really didn’t remember whether she ever stood for Colton or not. Geez, does Colton sit around thinking about that stuff? The judges will probably make a point of standing for him now so he doesn’t feel bad.
Ryan sends Joshua Ledet to join Jessica and Elise. Colton Dixon heads over to stand with Hollie and Phillip.
What does this mean? Which group is safe? Ryan saunters over to the couches to sit with a bewildered Skylar Laine. She probably knows what’s coming now. But first highlights and deets for Skylar.
- Jimmy on Skylar: “Skylar is someone that I’m afraid could get left behind in this competition. She is just a pro. She walks up there, sings with great character. She’s a singer/songwriter and a technical singer. She’s both. What she did with that song last night floored me. I hope she doesn’t get left behind, because she’s subtle in a lot of what she does. I thought it was a mistake playing the guitar, cause I thought she could have moved forward. But she played it, it came off great–she should not be in the bottom 3. In my opinion from last night’s performances only the bottom 3 is Phillip, Elise and Hollie.“
Skylar is the Huff. She is safe. She heads over to the couches, hugging Phil, Hollie and Colton on the way. Ryan says he has one more thing he’d like her to do–pick the group she thinks she belongs with. She refuses. “No no no!” she cries as she heads stubbornly for the couch.. Ryan says that’s fair. He leads her to the group where she belongs, and that’s with Phil Phillips, Hollie Cavanagh and Colton Dixon. The trio look stunned to learn they are the group that’s safe. Because that means 3 of the best singers left in the competition are in danger of going home! And that would be Jessica Sanchez, Elise Testone and Joshua Ledet who are the Bottom 3!
Jimmy stands by what he said last night, despite his powers of prediction failing him. Randy says in the 11 seasons of the show, he’s never seen this happen. Oh c’mon dude–don’t you remember the 3 divas of Season 3 who were all shockingly in the bottom 3? One of them, Jennifer Hudson was just standing in front of your face! And she was eliminated that night without benefit of a save. And then you lectured America about their sh*tty voting. How quickly we forget! “This is a ridiculous bottom3 America!” says Randy.
Ryan asks Steven Tyler what happened with the vote, and warns that one of the trio would be going home if the judges don’t use their save. “We’re going to use our card tonight,” Steven stupidly says. Well. Might as well shut those TV sets off now! Way to kill the suspense there, buddy. Nigel must be pissed.
1 of 7 Voted Off (p3) ~ American Idol 2012 by HumanSlinky
We’re back from break. It’s time to find out who will sing for their life. Elise is giggling. She says she laughs when she gets nervous. DIM THE LIGHTS. Randy declares Joshua Ledet SAFE.
Jessica and Elise are the bottom two. The person at risk of leaving us tonight after the nationwide vote is Jessica Sanchez. Holy crap! The judges are stunned. The crowd is shouting.
Ryan hands Jessica the mic and tells her the judges will vote after she sings. She begins “Nobody’s Supposed to Be Here” by Deborah Cox. She barely gets a couple of bars in when Jlo rushes the stage to stop her. “Gimme that mic. THIS IS CRAZY” she screams, “Yes, we’re using the save!” Jennifer sounds like a crazy lady at this point. I can imagine her screaming at kids to get off of her lawn. This little display is so scripted.
Randy and Steven are right behind her. Jessica looks absolutely stunned. This is the part that does not look staged. “Go sit down..go sit down,” yells crazy lady Jlo. Randy says, “We are saving Jessica without any doubt…this girl is one of the best singers in America! Ever! Are you kidding me! Please everybody, please vote for the best! It’s about finding the best! C’mon.”
Jessica is called back to center stage. She still looks shocked. She tells Ryan that she wasn’t surprised to be standing there. “Whatever happens happens, ” She says, “I’ve been working hard my whole life.” Jessica thanks the judges for saving her. And then she sings out to the credits. The rest of the finalists and her family join her on stage.
1 of 7 Voted Off (4) ~ American Idol 2012 by HumanSlinky
Groups
Safe
- Phil Phillips
- Hollie Cavanagh
- Colton Dixon
- Skylar Laine (The Huff)
Bottom 3
- Jessica Sanchez
Elise TestoneJoshua Ledet
