The rest of the Top 24 were revealed on “American Idol.” There were a few surprises and some that came as no surprise at all.
1) Picking up the cliffhanger from the previous night, an emotional Adam Brock learned that he made it into the Top 24 (was their ever any doubt). Tearfully, he revealed the news to his wife and asked her to kiss their baby for him. It’s going to be hard on him to be away from them for longer. Hopefully, they’ll be allowed to visit.
2) Jeremy Rosado has made good friends amongst other contestants, especially with David Leathers Jr., Eben Franckewitz and Ariel Sprague, with whom he formed a solid group during the first Group round. The judges liked his solo performances in Hollywood, too. For his final performance, he delivered a soaring rendition of Carrie Underwood’s “I Know You Won’t.” Jennifer Lopez told him that they’d noticed how he’d been cheering on the other contestants whenever they did well, and she called his singing transcendental. She said, “There’s no way we wouldn’t want you in the Top 24 this year.”
3) Shannon Magrane, the tall, athletic blonde, sang the Kelly Clarkson “The Trouble with Love Is” for her final performance, making up for having forgotten lyrics during one of the group rounds. We were also reminded of the fact that Steven Tyler had made a very inappropriate comment in front of her father when she initially auditioned. She made it to the Top 24.
4) Scott Dangerfield made it to Hollywood last year but had to pull out of the competition. For his final performance, he did a blues-rock version of the Johnny Cash song “Folsom Prison Blues” but hammed it up too much. When he came to hear his results, he was wearing a Cosby sweater in earth tones. Jennifer told him that she’s a fan but that she didn’t feel the same thing that she did last year. “Unfortunately, you didn’t make it this year, but we hope to see you again.”
5) Skylar Laine, having heard that another country singer, Chelsea Sorrell, had already gone through, worried about her own chances. Her final performance, though it wasn’t up to her own standards, reminded me of a young Melissa Etheridge. Randy Jackson compared her to a young Reba McEntire and told her she’s been very consistent throughout. Steven told her he’d like to see her put a little rock ‘n’ roll into the country, and Randy told her she’s in the Top 24. The battle between the country queens is on!
A montage showed Hallie Day, country crooner Chase Likens and return contestant Aaron Marcellus going through to the Top 24, as well
6) Deandre Brackensick was in Hollywood for his second time and had impressed the judges with his group performance in Vegas. He used his “signature falsetto” when singing his final solo, “This Woman’s Work.” This time, he made it through and was delighted.
7) Jermaine Jones had his mother with him as he awaited his results. For his final solo, the Whitney Houston song “I Believe in You and Me,” he showed off his extremely deep voice, which often lacks control. The wait was really hard on him, and he broke into tears in the waiting room as he saw other singers come and go. When he finally sat in the chair of judgment, Randy acknowledged it had been a long, nerve-wracking day. He told Jermaine that he’d had “a lot of up and down performances,” which Jermaine agreed to. Randy told him that he has a talent that needs a little bit more work, so this year he didn’t make the Top 24. Jennifer told him he should be proud, but he was clearly crestfallen.
8) Finally, the last three girls — Hollie Cavanaugh, Shelby Tweteen and Ariel Sprague — would find out their fates together. We saw brief highlights of all three of them, and the one that really stood out was Hollie’s final performance, where she was both emotional and controlled. Randy told them they should be proud. Steven told them that Hollie was going through. The other two girls immediately began crying; for them, it’s over.
9) The last two guys were friends David Leathers Jr. and Eben Franckewitz. For his final performance, David sang a Jackson 5 tune, “ABC, 123,” while Eben chose Joe Cocker’s “You Are So Beautiful,” a more mature, but safe, choice that showed off his vocals. The friends walked the green mile with their arms around each other. Randy called them “our two mad younguns” and noted that they’ve bonded. David thanked them for the experience, and Eben told them it’s been fun. Jennifer told David that his first audition was amazing but since then it’s been rocky. Steven said that David has a problem with over-confidence, while Eben has one with under confidence. Jennifer delivered the news: Eben was going through. Randy told David to work on it and come back. While David admitted he was “devastated,” he told the camera he’s not going to give up and will come back next year.
The boys will perform on Tuesday, then the girls on Wednesday, with results live on Thursday. And surprise, surprise! Another guy will be reinstated, one of the following four: Johnny Keyser, Jermaine Jones, Richie Law or David Leathers Jr., making it a Top 25. Of those four, I hope it’s either David, who’s extremely talented, or Johnny, who showed a lot of early promise. If cocky cowboy Richie makes it in, I predict a lot of angry viewers.