Fan Fare

It’s a boys’ club on “Idol” as finale looms

With Allison Iraheta getting the boot on Wednesday night, three white men will duke it out for the “American Idol” crown for the first time in the show’s history.

Iraheta’s offing couldn’t have come as a huge surprise to the show’s viewers, who saw her land among the show’s lowest vote-getters three previous times this season. In that sense, she was no Chris Daughtry, whose shocking fourth place finish three years ago was replayed on Wednesday night’s show before his band performed its new single, the appropriately titled “No Surprise.” 

The 17 year-old Iraheta’s distinctive rock voice has been compared to that of “Idol” winner and pop superstar Kelly Clarkson, which is saying a lot because Clarkson has been on a tear ever since she graduated from the show in 2002, and in March she netted her second No. 1 album.

“Allison Iraheta, who has so much to be proud of, who is a role model to a lot of girls out there,” host Ryan Seacrest said immediately following the Los Angeles-born singer’s final performance.

Yet, if Iraheta was an inspiration to the young girls who make up such a large portion of “Idol” viewers, why didn’t she have the staying power of say, Clarkson, or other female “Idol” winners Carrie Underwood, Jordin Sparks and Fantasia Barrino?

And, what is it about this season’s final three contestants — Adam Lambert, Danny Gokey and Kris Allen, that led to the formation of the first ever “Idol” boys’ club?

“Idol” judges throw stones on Rock Week

In contrast to last week on “American Idol” when it seemed the contestants could do no wrong, the judges found plenty of stones to throw at the Top 4 on Rock Week. Except for Adam Lambert, who as usual thrilled the panelists.

Lambert, coming off his shocking first trip to the Bottom Three last week, sang British supergroup Led Zeppelin’s hit “Whole Lotta Love” and struck all the high notes, jerking his head to the side in rhythm with the band and glowering with an expression Elvis Presley might have worn if he was fused with John Travolta. The judges loved it. 

“You are a rock god,” said judge Kara DioGuardi, who was wearing a studded leather jacket that looked a lot like Lambert’s own outfit.

Even alpha judge Simon Cowell was impressed. “No one can top that now,” Cowell told the contestant nicknamed “Glambert,” who on Tuesday night sported his usual eyeliner.

But after Lambert wowed everyone, the rest of the contestants all ran into some criticism. Former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash was the night’s guest mentor, and told the camera that 17-year-old contestant Allison Iraheta had a natural rock style, but had to get past her “fear.” 

Iraheta went on to earn mixed reviews from all the judges, except the easily swayed Paula Abdul, with her version of “Cry Baby” from the late Janis Joplin. Cowell and a couple other panelists faulted her for poor song choice, which prompted an interesting exchange when Iraheta explained why she picked the song and was interrupted by Cowell. “Allison, at this point just beg,” he said. “Beg.”

“I’m not,” Iraheta said. “And you always say that I don’t talk enough, so maybe I should just talk a lot.”

“Idol” goes topsy-turvy as Adam hits a speed bump

“American Idol” golden boy Adam Lambert hit a big speed bump on Wednesday night after he landed among the show’s Bottom Three vote-getters for the first time this season.

And, just when it seemed lone woman contestant Allison Iraheta was standing on thin ice, she skated handily into the next round.

Host Ryan Seacrest played up the surprise results for all it was worth, taking Lambert by the arm to join fellow low vote-getters Matt Giraud and Kris Allen, leaving Iraheta and Danny Gokey to stare at each other slack-jawed.

For Gokey, the surprised reaction might not have been completely warranted, since alpha judge Simon Cowell had nice things to say about him the night before. But Cowell had told 17-year-old Iraheta that her performance left him feeling she “could be in trouble.”

None of the judges has ever said anything that ominous to Lambert, whose ride to the Top 5 was among the smoothest of any contestant this season. After Lambert ended up in the Bottom Three, panelists Paula Abdul and Kara DioGuardi both expressed shock.

“It’s crazy,” Abdul said.

It was an unusual week, with the contestants trying their best at standards from crooner Frank Sinatra and the rest of the Rat Pack, in a theme that Los Angeles Times writer Ann Powers said seemed a strange fit.

On “Idol,” it’s a man’s world this season

On “American Idol,” it appears to be a man’s world after all.

It’s no secret that male contestants like Adam Lambert and Danny Gokey have trounced their female counterparts in the singing competition since early this season. And, with just one woman in the show’s Top 5, viewers on Tuesday night were left wondering if the final four contestants would all be men for the first time in “Idol” history.

It’s been a long time since two women — Fantasia Barrino and Diana DeGarmo — competed for the “Idol” title in the finale of the show’s third season in 2004. 

Not that the show’s surviving female contestant performed badly on Tuesday night. Allison Iraheta, who turned 17 this week, won major praise from judges Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi and Paula Abdul for her performance of “Someone to Watch Over Me.” DioGuardi even said she could see the Los Angeles teen in the finals.

“Bad cop” judge Simon Cowell, however, said he thought Iraheta still lacked the belief that she could win the competition, and was at risk of being voted off this week.

“I have a horrible feeling you could be in trouble tonight,” Cowell said, as his fellow judges vehemently disagreed.

Having been among the show’s Bottom Three vote-getters on three occasions so far this season, it’s questionable whether Allison has the fan base to catapult her to the top two.

Who is bound for the “Idol” finale?

Lil Rounds and Anoop Desai sang their swan songs Wednesday night on “American Idol,” meaning the singing competition lost its two most uniquely named contestants in one fell swoop.

Nostalgia for “Little” and “Anoop Dogg” aside, their joint offing was hardly unexpected. Lil, a 23-year-old mother of three from Memphis, struggled to gain the judges’ respect through most of her time in the show’s Top 13. Desai, a 21-year-old from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, meanwhile, was among the show’s Bottom Three vote-getters for four straight weeks.

Now, the show is down to five singers, and the big question is which two will make it to the season finale. Adam Lambert has emerged as the frontrunner, but who could challenge him?

Allison Iraheta‘s chances appear slim, after having thrice landed in the Bottom Three, including this week. She is also by far the show’s youngest contestant, at just 16. But could Allison benefit from being the only woman left standing?

Matt Giraud also seems unlikely to make it, having been eliminated from the show twice already by viewers (and each time saved by the judges) — once in the Top 36, and once last week. The fact that he is still around, however, means he must have something going for him. He could prove to have nine lives, after all.

Kris Allen, the show’s “pretty boy” contestant, is a big hit with women viewers. The guitar-strumming Arkansan’s performances, however, have also won huge praise from the judges nearly every week. To use an “Idol” word, he could be among the most “commercial” of the remaining contestants.

Danny Gokey, like Lambert, has been a frontrunner since his first “Idol” audition in Kansas City. The widower and church choir director, whose personal story has pulled at viewers’ heartstrings, is also considered among the best vocalists left in the competition.

Adam Lambert keeps “Idol” judges entranced

Before he went on stage, the camera swooped down on “American Idol” contestant Adam Lambert as he stood beaming in the crowd. But as usual, Lambert was more than just a face in the crowd on Tuesday night, as he again wowed the judges and solidified his frontrunner status.

It was Disco Week on “Idol,” and true to the theme Lambert sang the Bee Gees hit “If I Can’t Have You,” effortlessly hitting the high notes and inspiring judge Paula Abdul to gush that his performance made her feel his “pain.” Abdul was not alone. All the judges said they loved the performance, with alpha judge Simon Cowell commending Lambert for surprising him by picking a Bee Gees song.

“I would have put $10,000 you were going to do Donna Summer, but that’s what’s so good about you, you did something we weren’t expecting,” Cowell said.

Speaking of betting, it seems the smart money is on Lambert. Online betting firm BookMaker.com, which usually confines itself to sports gambling, said on Tuesday that the “Idol” title appears to be Lambert’s to lose, if he does not slip up.

At the other end of the spectrum, embattled singer Lil Rounds continued to leave the judges unimpressed. She sang the Chaka Khan hit “I’m Every Woman,” and although her performance was energetic and confident, judge Randy Jackson faulted her for a lack of vocal control. Lil said that she had a good time with the song, which only gave Cowell an opening to tear her down.

“I’m glad you had fun, because I think this is going to be the last week we’re ever going to see you,” Cowell said.

Cowell had a similarly biting critique for Anoop Desai‘s version of the Donna Summer song “Dim All the Lights.”

Can “Idol’s” Adam Lambert be stopped?

Seven singers are still vying for this year’s “American Idol” crown following Wednesday’s offing of Scott MacIntyre, but already there is no longer a pack of frontrunners. Rather, there is one.

Adam Lambert has outshone many of his rivals on this season of “Idol,” winning over fans with his unique showmanship and mindblowing vocal range. Since he entered the show’s Top 12, only one performance has received so-so reviews from the judges, and that was during the notoriously difficult Country Week. Remember Lambert’s “Ring of Fire”?

This week, Lambert’s special shine all but transformed into utter domination of his competitors. Not only did his Tuesday night rendition of the Gary Jules version of Tears for Fears’ “Mad World” receive a shocking standing ovation from persnickety judge Simon Cowell, but Jules himself praised Lambert publicly on Wednesday, calling the performance “fantastic.”

At the same time, some of Lambert’s top rivals appear to be struggling. Diva Lil Rounds ended up in the Bottom Three on Wednesday after several weeks of negative comments from the judges, and reviews have been mixed for performances by Matt Giraud, Allison Iraheta, Kris Allen and Anoop Desai.

To be fair, Danny Gokey is still a formidable opponent to Lambert. It’s up for debate, however, as to whether Gokey can stand out as much as the offbeat Lambert in voters’ minds.

So can the Adam Lambert train be stopped at this point? And if so, who will run him off the rails?

Simon Cowell becomes a stand-up guy

It’s an unusual night on “American Idol” when the normally sharp-tongued judge Simon Cowell offers a contestant a standing ovation, which is exactly what he did at the end of Tuesday’s show in reaction to Adam Lambert’s performance. Granted that Cowell had to offer succinct praise because the show was out of time, but he was definitely acting out of character when he stood up and gushed over Lambert’s singing.

Lambert chose the 1982 hit “Mad World” by Tears for Fears, a selection much less well known than the songs other contestants performed. This week, the Idols had to pick a song from the year they were born. The judges were tough on a couple of them over their song choice, with Lil Rounds getting the worst of it.

The judges slammed her for a lack of originality on her version of the 1984 Tina Turner hit “What’s Love Got To Do With It.” Randy Jackson said: “You can do a lot of stuff but Tina is not you. And that year, there’s an amazing bunch of songs you could have sung that would have been really you.”

Kris Allen also got slammed by the judges for his version of the Don Henley song “All She Wants To Do Is Dance.” Cowell was not his usual creative self in criticizing Allen, falling back on his standby disses of “indulgent,” “boring” and “forgettable.” That prompted host Ryan Seacrest to joke, “Simon, your critique was indulgent and predictable.” Cowell responded the way he often does when Seacrest jibes him, saying “Ryan, Ryan, Ryan,” as if he can keep Seacrest in line. It’s clear that Cowell has the most power on the judging panel, but often his exchanges with Seacrest seem a bit like verbal footsie.

As usual, contestants Danny Gokey and Allison Iraheta pleased the judges with their singing, and this week they avoided the daring outfit choices that the judges criticized them for in past weeks. Gokey sang “Stand By Me” and Iraheta performed “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” with her version of the Bonnie Raitt hit prompting Jackson to compare the 16-year-old to Season 1 “American Idol” champion Kelly Clarkson.

Matt Giraud impressed the judges with his take on the Stevie Wonder classic “Part-Time Lover,” as did Anoop Desai with his rendition of 1980s hitmaker Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors.”

At the other end of the spectrum, aside from Lil Rounds the judges also condemned the performance of Scott MacIntyre, who sang “The Search is Over” by Survivor. Will either Lil, Kris or Scott be voted out on Wednesday? And depending on who loses, will the judges use their new save power, or save the save for another week?

Who would the “Idol” judges save?

Top 9 contestant Megan Joy danced off the “American Idol” stage on Wednesday night after she said midway through the show that she did not care that judge Simon Cowell disliked her performance on Tuesday night. Cowell responded later on by telling her: “Megan with the greatest respect, when you said you don’t care, nor do we.” So with no chance that the judges would save her, when Megan sang Bob Marley’s “Turn Your Lights Down Low” one more time, it was all about the pathos.

When will the judges step up and use their save? Although there was some lively discussion on the panel last week when oil worker Michael Sarver sang his last song, few were surprised when the judges declined to save him.

Megan acted goofy all night, waving her arms and crowing like a bird as she was sent to the Bottom Three stools, where she was soon joined by Allison Iraheta and Anoop Desai. When host Ryan Seacrest asked Cowell how many singers in the Bottom Three were worth saving, the alpha judge said one, but did not specify who.

A single mother of one, Megan made a style out of quirkiness, singing with her hips and arms swaying in what a Washington Post writer called a Wash Cycle Dance. When Cowell said they would save one of Wednesday night’s Bottom Three, did he mean Allison or Anoop? And with the judges not ready to save Megan, who would they pull out of “Idol” banishment?

“Idol” Top 9: Cowell zingers and a turnaround for Scott

“American Idol” is already down to nine singers, and as the contestants have honed their performances, judge Simon Cowell has refined his famous one-liners. This week he was in top form, sparing only a select few from his special brand of humiliation.

Here were his top proclamations of the night for each contestant:

Anoop Desai, who performed Usher’s “Caught Up”

Simon: “It was a little bit like a college boy wanting to be a pop star and failing. It actually gave me a headache.”

Megan Joy, who sang Bob Marley’s “Turn Your Lights Down Low.”

Simon: “All of the things we liked about you are disappearing.”

(In fairness, Randy Jackson had the most devastating line for Megan: “It was like watching paint dry”)