AI7 Semifinals - Top 10 Women (2/27/08)

Carly is up first with Heart's "Crazy On You." Oh, her video 'surprise' is that she works at "a (sic) Irish bar" and is the homey type (likes to cook & clean). Her song is actually a great choice & I think it fits her very well; much better than what she sang last week. She was a bit yelly, but I almost liked her. Randy called it pitchy; Paula loved it; Simon said she's the girl to beat but hasn't found the perfect song yet. Carly added that this is one of her very favorite songs in evah.

Syesha has acted in commercials and can do a freakily accurate impression of a baby crying. She sand "Me and Mrs Jones" except she changed the "Mrs" to "Mr" and all other gender-appropriate terms. It was technically good but uninteresting, until the last note. Randy said poor song choice & pitchy; Paula liked her "interpretation" (musically &/or lyrically?); Simon didn't like the lyric change.

Brooke tells us she's a beauty school dropout; hee! She made one of the most perfect song choices evah and sang "You're So Vain." She played guitar (though she dropped out during the 2nd verse & just sang; nice variety!) and sat on the Stool of Seriousness, which really wasn't this time because, you know, it was Brooke. Randy & Paula liked it, and Simon loved it.

Ramiele thinks we'd be surprised to learn that she does Polynesian dance; ok? Not really. She sang "Don't Leave Me This Way" and I thought it was great, but then I'm not very familiar w/the song. It was fun & showed off her vocals. The judges were disappointed w/her choice and Simon explained that he's heard the song done a lot (by wedding bands & such) and she didn't bring anything new or different. As I said, the whole thing was new to me & since I wasn't comparing it to anyone else's version, I enjoyed it.

Kristy Lee tells us she's a tomboy and loves the outdoors. Hmm, she raises horses & loves sports, so not necessarily a surprise there either. She sang "You're No Good" and did tons better than last week, but I'm not sure that was enough. It was a good song choice for her though. I thought her silvery top was... interesting; made me wonder what type of fabric it was. I don't think that's what it made most guys wonder though. Randy & Paula loved it (the song, not the top), saying "You're back!", and Simon agreed but said he was confused as to who she is (read, what genre/box she should be in) and suggested she sing country. She said she'll do that next week.

Poor, poor Amanda. Love the girl's personality - turns out the girl rocker is smart, too! Talked in her vid about being a bookworm. However, I don't think she's long for the show. She tackled "Carry On My Wayward Son," and it won. The low parts were just terrible, much of the song was off-key, and it was just a very, very bad song choice for her. Cringeworthy. And she also looked terrible; she had her hair styled away from her face but standing out like a lion's mane (except striped), and the outfit didn't help. Randy & Paula agreed it was a poor song choice & Randy said she should stick to "bluesy rock". Simon said it felt contrived (as opposed to how natural she comes across in her clips).

Oh good, Alaina (my favorite girl) is up next! And Ryan said she's singing "Hopelessly Devoted", which is one of my all-time favorite songs, really. I try not to have expectations too high.... And her video clip slays me! She doesn't like her food to touch (nor do I, though I was much pickier about it when I was younger), and specifically mentions how green bean juice likes to run across the plate into other things... yes! Yuck! *LOVE* So, the song? Pretty good. Struggled w/some of the high notes, but it was still very enjoyable. Randy said (is this a recording?) poor song choice & pitchy, but Paula liked it & said she could tell that Alaina loves this song. Simon said both the song style & her look were too old-fashioned and pageanty, but he still thinks she could be a dark horse. She takes all the comments very well, as usual. I want a pocket version of her too, please.

Alexandrea was a poster child for the Atlanta fire department which led to her singing at Ground Zero. I'm sure that was a perspective-broadening experience for a teenager! She sang Chicago's "If You Leave Me Now." It didn't showcase her vocals nor was it incredibly interesting, though she didn't sing off-key or do anything obviously wrong. Randy & Simon called it boring and Simon said it wasn't "her" & that her performance was inconsistent. Paula liked her arrangement & said she'd never heard it done by a female.

Kady sings opera; who knew?! However, she apparently doesn't sing Heart (not well, anyway). "Magic Man" was not a good choice for her in several ways. Randy said he could tell she likes the song but it was off-key; Paula said she needs definition as an artist; and Simon (who's never heard the song before - !) said he sees her charm on tape but she needs to find a song that shows that on stage.

Asia'h finishes the night and again has a non-surprise: she was a cheerleader! Though if you think about it, it does help explain how she stayed so upbeat in performing soon after her father's death (she even talked about how you have to 'put on' the happy performance face whether you feel like it or not). She sang "All By Myself," and it was almost a show-stopper. The first couple high notes/phrases she sang in falsetto, though later she belted parts that were even higher. So it sounded bad, and was confusing, though she finished very well. I think I heard one of the judges say she'd been sick, so maybe she was trying to save as much of her voice as possible for the big ending. Simon gave her the "the song is bigger than you" treatment.

I think Amanda will go, and probably Kady, but the 2nd could really be any of Alexandrea, Syesha, Kristy Lee, or even Alaina.