American Idol Surprises

On Thursday night's Idol show, several hopeful singers were sent home, but still gained the exposure of being amongst the competition. About 31 million votes decided who to get rid of. For the females it was Alexandrea Lushington and Alaina Whitaker who were eliminated from the competition. Both girls were emotional, but Alaina really broke down in tears and didn't think she'd be able to sing. With the help of the rest of the females, she made it through just fine and put all of her emotion into the song. Alexandrea belted out a great song once again and proved she definitely has vocal talent. For the fellows, it was Robbie, who I thought sounded like a Nickleback/Daughtry potential. He had that rocker look and sound, and most likely will get signed despite an early departure. I still don't get Simon's comment to him about "authenticity", because that's tough to judge. The other male sent home was Jason Yeager who I wasn't as impressed by, but he may have a future somewhere as well. Simon told him that he just doesn't "stand out". Harsh words from a tough critic, but the truth hurts. It's a shame they have to leave, but that's how America voted. And again, being on the show in itself gives these people plenty of exposure they didn't have before. There's all sorts of TV/movie roles, theater and possible recording contracts lurking out there somewhere. The two stars I'd like to see sent home are Danny Noriega and the female with the raspy voice. While I realize unique talent will stand out, they are a bit quirky at times. Ryan Seacrest also made a huge announcement; On March 11th Idol will feature the final 12 contestants. There's good news for that episode, because after 6 years, Sony records has finally released the Lennon/McCartney songbook for the contestants to sing Beatles songs from. On April 9th will be "Idol Gives back" a special benefit concert featuring the likes of Reese Witherspoon, Miley Cyrus, Carrie Underwood and Snoop Dogg all for a great cause.