Tonight’s American Idol was very confusing. Did the Top 4 really need to sing four songs? (Check out our recap HERE) And after making such a big deal out of the winners singles, why did the contestants only sing a short snippet of the song? It appears producers made a last minute decision to have the contestants follow what turned out to be only a preview of the originals with songs sung earlier in the season. Typically, finalists sing reprises on the finale. They typically sing winners songs on the finale too, which has me wondering what WILL the Top 3 sing in next week’s 3 hour final?
I wonder if the singers were having trouble learning brand new songs. Which isn’t a thing that hampered contestants in the past. Indeed, all four singers shined on the reprises, which was maybe the point of adding them to the round. One thing about The Voice–the artists perform FULL SONGS in every round. And at this stage, American Idol contestants should be singing longer versions of songs vs. snippets. It makes it hard for performances to go viral or have a lasting effect on a viewer.
Speaking of performances. It’s kind of weird to invite a former winner to the stage and not have him sing. The ABC version of American Idol seems to have an aversion to promoting their past winners. Considering that season 17 champ Laine Hardy is signed to 19 Recordings and Hollywood Records, wouldn’t it behoove the show to do everything possible to promote his latest single “Memorize You”? Weirdly, Michael J. Woodard got more time on stage to promote his single coming out on Katy Perry’s record label next week.
Lastly, goodbye Casey Bishop. I believed her versatile style and big voice and seeming momentum would get her to the finale. But like I said, this year is a tough race to call. Anything could have happened tonight as far as who went home and who stayed in the competition. In the end, Grace Kinstler and Willie Spence both delivered bigger show stopping performances. Their FINNEAS duet was MAGNIFICENT. And while Chayce Beckham isn’t a big voiced singer, he knows how to connect to his base. The searing honesty of his single “23” and confident reprise of a Chris Stapleton song kept him on the path. Casey had a solid night, however, with the heartfelt “wish you were gay” being the highlight. Someone in comments noted that singing “Over the Rainbow” for her reprise instead of the Megadeath song would have had more of an impact.
Random thought: Musically, FINNEAS and Billie Eilish are like a modern day Carpenters. FIGHT ME.
Now. Vote for your favorites below! AND VOTE FOR THE WINNER!
American Idol 2021 POLLS: Top 4 Semi-final Top 3 Reveal: VOTE VOTE VOTE
Who WILL Win American Idol 2021?
Who SHOULD Win American Idol 2021?
Favorite Top 4 Performer
Was Casey Bishop Robbed?
FINNEAS Yay or Nay?
American Idol 2021 Grade the Episode
