Monday, September 17, 2012

The Voice: Blind auditions Night 4

Night 4 of the blind auditions and the teams are starting to shape up!

First up was 17 year old Melanie Martinez. She has an interesting look, very cute. She performed an acoustic version of Britney Spears' "Toxic" while playing a tambourine between her feet. That was cool! She has a very cool modern voice and she made great note choices. I really like her. Blake, Adam and Cee Lo turned. Went with Adam.

Next was the creator of the Cupid shuffle, Cupid himself! He decided that he would sing his song because he felt that song that was his one hit had put him in a box. So then why do it? I still don't understand all the logic by this questionable song choice of his. If you want to prove you're more than the song, then show it by doing something else. It was also a weird song choice to do on a vocal competition show. No one turned. Cee Lo immediately knew who he was and questioned why he would do that song. He asked him to sing something else. He did and showed he could sing. Just a poor song choice. I had never heard his song before so if he went on there for some self promotion of his song, then good job!

Next was Brian Scartocci who sang Stevie Wonder's "Isn't she lovely". He's a single dad of 2 kids which I can relate to as I was a single Dad for 4 years. I always like to see fathers being fathers to their children. Although it sounds like that's what the norm should be, in this day and age unfortunately its not. Broken homes and lack of parental figures are the root of so many issues in society nowadays, it's sad. Anyway, he has a very nice voice. Blake, Adam, Cee Lo turned. Chose Adam.

Next up were Husband and wife duo Beat Frequency who sang Katy Perry's "ET". They have an interesting sound and good harmonies. Only Xtina turned.

Next was Tyler Lillestol who sang Usher's "U got it bad". It was only ok. No one turned.

Next was Liz Davis who sang Gretchen Wilson's "Here for the party". She has a good look and strong vocals. Adam, Xtina and Blake turned. Blake unashamedly used his ACM award to recruit her. Went with Blake.

Next up was Alaskan Youtube sensation Jr Aquino. He sang Bruno Mars' "Just the way you are". He was a little shaky with his notes from being nervous I think. Xtina, Adam and Cee Lo turned. Chose Cee Lo.

Next was Agina Alvarez who sang "Turn the beat around". She mentioned in her backstory profile that she had been signed twice before. She was looking for a third time? What happened with the other two? Most artists are lucky to ever be offered even once. Her voice was very dark and her vocal performance was way too over the top. As Xtina said, she started out at 10 and stayed there, there was no color to her vocal performance. No one turned.

Next was Nicholas David who sang "Stand by me". Very cool voice. Only Cee Lo turned.

Next was 17 year old LaGuardia Performing Arts High School student (local NY girl!) Alessandra Guercio who sang Miley Cyrus' "The Climb". She has pretty good vocals and a good look. Adam and Cee Lo turned. Chose Adam.

We were shown some other singers. Adam, Blake and Xtina each got one.

Last of the night was 16 year old Avery Wilson who sang David Guetta's "Without you". In his backstory profile we were shown how supportive his Dad has been in guiding him to pursue music because he believes in his talent. I could relate to that as I always push my daughters to pursue their dreams and develop their talents. He was very good! All turned. Chose Cee Lo.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

X factor: Auditions night 2

I really enjoyed the first night of X Factor and was looking forward to night 2.

First up was Johnny Maxwell. He sang an original "All these people". It was a pretty good song! His vocals were ok but his rap style was passionate. He got 4 yes.

Next was Lexa Berman. Similar to The Voice's Domo, this over-confident, over the top singer calls herself a triple threat. She sang "Too close". She had rather average vocals. The judges didn't like her over-confidence. Only Simon gave a yes. There's nothing wrong with strong confidence in this business, in fact you need it! BUT, when that confidence spills over into conceit and over the top self-promotion then that's going to work against you more often than not. Hopefully a lesson learned for her.

Next up was Jason Brock. He was very confident and had an over the top, funny personality. This was confidence done right. He sang Billy Joel's "NY state of mind". It was a cabaret type performance BUT it was a very good cabaret style. There's a difference! He had really good vocals. LA loved him and he got 4 yes.

Up last and in this case the best was left for last was 13 year old Carly Rose Sonenclar. She is cute and was very nervous backstage. She said she was going to sing "Feeling good". LA was like uh oh since that's a grown up song and you need serious vocals. Something told me she'd be good however for having the guts to pick that song. Holy crap. What a mature voice. I knew she'd be good but I wasn't expecting her to be GREAT!! A star was definitely born. She got a standing O from everyone including backstage. She obviously got 4 yes. Great way to end the show.

The X factor: Season 2 Night 1

I DVR'd and just finished watching the X Factor for the first time. I really liked it. I didn't watch the first season because those of you who have read through my blog know that I'm not a fan of Simon and his critiquing style but with the additions of Britney Spears and Demi Lovato I and my family had to watch. I'm glad we did watch it because I really love them as judges. Simon even seems to be a little softer... so far.

First up was nursing student Paige Thomas. She is very pretty and it's a shame that she was putting her dream aside and just working instead. I understand it but so many talented people let their dreams fade instead of pursuing them. I'm glad she auditioned. She has a great image and voice. She sang "I'm going down". She got all 4 judges to say yes.

Next was 50 year old baggage handler Shawn Armenta. Said he was a singer/dancer and sang his own song "Candy girl". Got a no from all 4 judges and then got nasty with the judges. It seems he needs to handle his own baggage! Lol.

We got to see clips of Britney and how she's a no nonsense judge. I like it!

Next was 13 year old Reed Deming. Although he didn't seem to like being compared to Justin Bieber, he sure was trying to be compared to him. BTW, being compared to a super successful singer is never a bad thing. Just saying. Anyway, he sang Bruno Mars' "It will rain". Simon asked for the song to be stopped, asked for him to do a new song. He sang "Grenade". Decent voice but seems to imitating too much. He got all 4 judges to give him a yes.

Next up was Kaci Newton. She was very insecure which is already going to hurt her performance. Her makeup was way overdone. Too pageant-ish. Sang Katy Perry's "Firework" with her own unique flair and style. It was not good. Simon gave his critique and she began to sing again! Why do contestants do this? She got a no from all 4 judges.

Next up was flamboyant Quatrele Da'an Smith who showed up in a bridal veil and heels. I didn't expect him to be good. He sang Lady Gaga's "Born this way". He was good!! It all worked together once he began singing. He got a yes from all except LA Reid who didn't seem to get him and said no.

Next was former boy band member Vincent Thomas. He sang Elton John's "Sorry seems to be the hardest word". Bad song choice. All the judges told him no.

Next up was the male trio Emblem 3 who sang their original song "Sunset Blvd". Very good! They got 4 yes.

Next was Don Philip who sang 10 years ago with Britney who remembered him. He was saying this was his last chance at trying to make it. When asked what he was doing the past 10 years, he broke down. It was sad to see. I really felt for him. He sang "Halo". Not a good song choice at all. Britney looked very uncomfortable and sad listening to him and knowing she would have to give him a no. He got a no from all the judges. It was just heartbreaking to see. He was totally distraught backstage at having "hurt" Britney. I felt so bad for him. I hope he can deal with this somehow and move on with his life. I also hope he never ever stops working at his dream and music. He may not make it as a singer but maybe he can apply his passion to producing or making music for others. I wish him luck.

Next up was Jennel Garcia. She's a sweet girl with a nice look. She sang Grace Potter's "Oh la la". She has a very good voice and when the music began that sweet girl turned into a different person! Very good performer. She got 4 yes.

Last up was Jillian Jensen. She had a rough upbringing with being bullied in schools to the point that she's still traumatized and unable to let go the pain she felt. She sang Jessie J's "Who you are". She let all that pain out in the lyrics and in her voice. She was crying, the judges were crying (well Demi sure was!), the audience was crying. She got a standing ovation from the audience, judges and everyone backstage. Demi went up to the stage and gave her a hug and pep talk. Demi let her know she's been there and that she'll be ok. I've always liked Demi but seeing her do that really made me like her more. That was a nice tender moment, there was nothing contrived or fake about it. Kudos to Demi. Jillian was vindicated in front of all those bullies that put her and her music down as she got a yes from all 4 judges. What an emotional way to end the show!

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

The Voice: Blind auditions Night 3

To compete with and try to take ratings away from The X Factor debut tonight, there was a 3rd night of The Voice. A bit of overkill. It's already too quick of a turnaround between Season 2 and Season 3, now they're over-saturating things on the first week. Time will tell if this ploy will work in the ratings. Anyway...

First up was Samuel Mouton who sang "Redemption Song". He has a cool reggae voice and sounds very authentic but I wonder if can he bring that to other styles of music? All turned but Blake. Picked Adam.

Next was Former Dreamstreet member Chris Trousdale who sang "I'm glad you came". Not the right song to show off his vocals. No one turned.

Next was Nigerian refugee Nelly's Echo (cool meaning behind the name!) who sang "Ain't no sunshine". Very nice guy. Very good singer, he made excellent note choices. Adam and Xtina turned. Went with Xtina who turned first for him.

Next were mother & daughter duo Allison and Crystal Steele who go by 2 Steel Girls. They sang Carrie Underwood's "Before he cheats". They were good but I feel they need to stay away from low notes. Blake and Cee Lo turned. Picked the obvious choice Blake.

We were shown how Cee Lo kept losing out on contestants. Xtina beat him for 2 others and Adam beat him for another.

Next up was the overconfident and over the top contestant Domo. In the intro to her, she called herself the Lady Gaga of China? Lol. This was the first and only time I've ever seen the Voice mock a contestant as they made a little montage of her touting her talents(?). She finally stopped talking about herself and got on stage. She sang The Pussycat Doll's "Don'cha". Way over the top performance. Only Cee Lo turned. The other coaches were laughing at him and telling him he's got a handful with her. It should be good TV to see her in the battle rounds and at rehearsals.

Last was Nicole Nelson who sang another of my all-time favorite songs "Hallelujah". I love her look and vocal style. Her performance was WOW. Love her. They all turned. She picked Adam. Great way to end the night.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

The Voice: Blind auditions Night 2

Onto Night 2 of the Voice blind auditions!

First up we were shown Adriana Louise who sang Jessie J's "Domino". She is pretty and has a good voice. All turned. Xtina really liked her, she picked Xtina.

Next was Casey Muessigmann who sang "Sweet Home Alabama". Blake & Cee Lo turned. Went with Blake.

Next up was Aquile who sang one of my favorite songs of all-time, Elton John's "Your song". He has a very cool look and smooth voice. One of my favorites so far. All but Blake turned. Picked Xtina.

Next was Leann Rimes tour production coordinator Ryan Fogarty who sang "Tomorrow". He has a good voice. I was just as surprised to see that no one turned as I was to wonder why Leann hasn't helped him herself.

Next was Mackenzie Bourg who sang "Pumped up kicks". He has a cool vibe to his voice. I really like his voice. Cee Lo turned so he was on Team Cee Lo.

Last of the night was Julio Cesar Castillo who sang "La Bamba", the first contestant to do his audition entirely in Spanish which was very cool. Blake and Cee Lo turned. Went with Blake.

After 2 nights, Adam has 2 contestants. Blake has 4, Cee Lo has3 and Xtina has 4.

Monday, September 10, 2012

The Voice is back! Blind auditions night 1

The Voice is back! Season 3 and all 4 coaches are back. Christina, Adam, Cee Lo & Blake. I feel the turnaround for Season 3 from Season 2 was too fast but I guess NBC is trying to milk all they can out of the show and while they still have these coaches. It must be hard on the coaches who are in the middle of projects and have to work around them to honor their commitments to the Voice. Anyway, Season 3 has begun and I'm watching...

Once we got past the usual Coach introductions, we got to Night 1 of the blind auditions. I always look forward to this part not only because it's our first glimpse at the contestants but also because I love to see the coaches trying to woo the contestants to be on their teams.

The first contestant we saw was Terry McDermott who sang The Who's "Baba O'Reilly". He was very good. Adam, Cee Lo & Blake all turned at the last second. He went with Blake.

Next was De'borah who sang Train's "Hey soul sister". She had a real androgynous look which was interesting visually. Her voice also had an androgynous tone to it. She had a really cool vibe and good vocals. She was a really good performer. Xtina and Cee Lo turned. She picked Xtina, quoting trusting her "voice within" which I immediately knew meant that the song and Xtina meant a lot to her. She confirmed as much backstage. That must be cool to have a song mean so much to you and then get to work with that artist. I'm happy for her.

Next was Gracia Harrison who sang "I want to be a cowboy's sweetheart". All except Xtina turned. Very good singer. Great yodeler. She went with Blake.

Next was Garrett Gardner. He's 16 year old and dedicated his performance and career to his late dad which I found touching. He sang "Have you ever seen the rain?". Very good voice. I was surprised and disappointed for him when no one turned.

Next was Devyn Deleora who sang Xtina's "Ain't no other man" which was daring. I thought she had a good voice but felt it needs some work. Xtina, Adam, Blake turned. She went with the obvious choice Xtina.

Next was Bryan Keith who sang Bruno Mars' "It will rain". I really liked the cool tone to his raspy voice. All turned. Picked Adam.

Next was returning contestant Daniel Rosa. He sang his own interesting version of Gotye's "Somebody that I used to know". This time, Cee Lo and Blake turned. He was shocked that they remembered him. Went with Cee Lo.

Next was Anita Antoinette who sang "No woman, no cry" by Bob Marley. She had a very cool vibe to her voice. I was surprised that no one turned. Adam and Cee Lo told her this song has to be felt, not sung. She asked if she could sing it acapella and then rocked it. Got a standing ovation from everyone, so she had her moment but unfortunately it didn't change her fate. She was so upset afterwards.

Next was Joe Kirkland who sang The All American Rejects' "Gives you hell". He has an interesting rock voice. Adam & Blake turned. Picked Adam.

Next was Jessica Sharpe who sang "Son of a preacher man". She showed a good solid voice. No one turned.

Last contestant of the night was Trevin Hunte who sang "Listen". In his backstory, we heard him tell us that he was denied getting into a performing arts school because he needed 4 teacher referrals and one of his teachers refused to give him a referral and even had told him he'd never make it. IMO, that's vile. A teacher should encourage dreams and show the student towards whatever potential they have, not the opposite. He has an amazing voice. All turned except Adam. Cee Lo won him to his team.

It was a good first night for the Voice.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

The American Idol season 11 winner is...

Here we go, American Idol season 11 finale time! The top 12 opened the show with Bruno Mars "Runaway Baby". Very good but I kept expecting Bruno to come out to join them!

Phillip performed with John Fogerty of CCR, they did "Have you ever seen the rain" and "Black moon rising". Pretty cool.

Joshua sang "Take me to the pilot" by Elton John. Fantasia joined him on stage.

The top 12 girls sang "Ain't nobody", "Through the fire" and "I'm every woman" (which she joined them on) by Chaka Khan who looked and sounded great. She was the first in what was definitely a Diva night of performances.

Jessica and Phillip introduced their mentors and gave them cars! That must've been such a great feeling to be able to do that for someone who supported and influenced them so much. Then Ryan gave Jessica and Phillip keys for their own cars! Very cool.

Rihanna performed her new single "Where have you been?". She sounded and looked great as usual.

Skylar sang "Turn on the radio" with the one and only Reba. That was very cool and must've been an incredible moment for Skylar.

Jessica sang "I will always love you". Excellent.

The top 12 guys sang "Coming to America", "I'm a believer", "Sweet Caroline" (which he joined them on) by Neil Diamond.

The top 12 sang the phone book in response to a cliche Randy uses way too often as was evidenced by video clips from the season. Funny stuff!

JLo performed. Lil Jon was her DJ. Flo-Rida came out to rap, then Wisin y Yandel joined her to perform. Pretty cool.

Ryan brought former Idol contestants and current couple Ace Young and Diana DeGarmo on stage where Ace proposed to her. She said yes. That was very cool and sweet.

Hollie sang "You'll never walk alone". Jordin Sparks joined her on stage. They sounded amazing together.

The top 12 guys sang Bee Gees songs as a tribute to the recently departed Robin Gibb. Very nice, I like that they were able to put something together so nice on such short notice.

Jessica sang "And I am telling you" with Jennifer Holliday. OMG, what a powerhouse performance!! They brought the house down. Jessica was able to not only hang with the incredible Ms. Holliday but she looked impressed with the young Jessica. The sky is the limit for Jessica with the right songs.

Aerosmith finally performed.

Jessica and Phillip sang "Up where we belong". They sounded very good together. Very appropriate lyrics for the moment.

Winner announcement time! I am a Jessica fan and wanted her to win since the first show with the top 12 but I knew Phillip's single was much stronger and that a girl hadn't won since Jordin. Both thanked the fans. The winner is Phillip.

As much as a fan I am of Jessica's and can't wait what she does on her debut album, I must say that I admire all Phillip was able to do considering his health issues and all the pain he was enduring all season. He tried to sing his single but when the confetti started coming down, it all seemed to hit him and hit him hard. It was so touching to see him just leave the stage and go to his parents in what was a proud and touching moment for both he and his family. Congrats Phillip! Can't wait to see what you do and what music you'll bring us but first, go and get well Mr. American Idol!! :)

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

American Idol - the Final 2 sing

The show begins and we see how big the place is and how nice the stage is. It certainly has that big time, big moment feel.

Once again we'll have 3 rounds of singing for Jessica and Phillip. The first round is a song that Idol Producer Simon Fuller picks:
We are told that Phillip won the coin toss and has opted to go second. Smart move since this guarantees that he closes the show and leaves that very important last impression.

Simon Fuller had Jessica sing "I have nothing" by Whitney. Excellent start for Jessica. Simon had Phillip sing "Stand by me". Not really a powerhouse song for Phillip to show his style but it is something different for Phillip to show. It was very nice although a little bland. The judges felt Jessica won round 1. I agree

Jason Derulo performed. Good to see him performing and without his neck brace.

Round two was up next and it was the contestants favorite song of the season. Jessica sang "The Prayer" by Celine Dion. Excellent as usual. Phillip sang "Moving out" by Billy Joel. Not the best song choice at this point but it's probably the one he felt he got the best critique for. Steven felt that Jessica won this round. JLo felt Phillip won this round and Randy felt it was a tie. That was rather typical of the judges to try to make things seem more even. I felt Jessica won this round as well.

The last round was the contestants singing what will be their first single. Jessica sang her single "Change Nothing". It was not what I expected, it was not the best song or the best song to show off her tremendous vocals. I think she was let down by whoever picked this song for her at this important moment. Hopefully her management and record label will do a better job of getting her songs for her debut album. It started slow but I think people will be able to relate to the lyrics. The judges didn't like the song either but felt she made something out if it.

Phillip sang his single "Home". Very different from what I expected but very good. Much better song choice for his voice. Judges gave him a standing ovation, loved it. Not only do I think Phillip won this final round but I think his single may have just won him the show. We'll find out tomorrow!

Thursday, May 17, 2012

American Idol - The top 2 are revealed

Well, tonight we found out who the Final 2 are!

Joshua was called up first.
Iovine liked the first song, gave it a 8. Felt he did too much with Imagine. Oversang it. Felt he didn't have enough melody with the last song. Felt he never had a moment last night.

Lisa Marie Presley performed.

Jessica was called up next.
Iovine didn't think the first song was big enough to be a moment for her. Felt the Aerosmith song still wasn't big enough for her. He took blame and felt he made a mistake giving her the right parts to sing with the Jackson 5 song. She reminds him of MJ and he can see her singing at the Grammys but she needs better songs.

Adam Lambert performed.

Phillip was called up last.
Iovine felt that he showed his style with the first song but didn't have a moment. Felt that the second song was boring. Felt that the last song was his best performance on Idol and last night's best performance.

Time for the the results!! Ryan told Jessica that she would be in the finale first, then he told Phillip he was in. Joshua was out. The AI finale will be between Jessica and Phillip!

I hope Joshua gets a good producer that reins him in a bit and gets some good songs that lets him really let his vocals shine. I am looking forward to seeing what Joshua does musically.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

American Idol - the Top 3 sing

Tonight's show was 3 songs for teh Top 3 to sing. The songs tonight would be a Judges pick, Contestants pick and Iovine would pick a song for them to sing.

Randy gave Joshua his pick. Sang Etta James "I'd rather go blind". He started off good but I didn't like it once he left his lower register tones. He just does too much sometimes for my taste.

JLo gave Jessica her pick. Sang Mariah Carey's "My all". She did some crazy notes that she hit in a very subdued manner. Very pretty.

Steven gave Phillip his pick. Gave him something to force him to sing with melody. Sang "Beggin'" by Madcon. Pretty good.

Jessica took round 1.

We saw Joshua go back home to Louisiana.

Round 2 with the contestants pick was up. Joshua picked to sing "Imagine" by John Lennon. Very nice.

We saw Jessica go back home to Chula Vista, CA.

Jessica picked to sing "I don't want to miss a thing" by Aerosmith. Fearless to sing that in front of Steven Tyler. Very nice arrangement. Very pretty.

We saw Phillip go back home to Murfreesboro, GA.

Phillip picked to sing "Disease" by Matchbox 20. Very cool groove to the arrangement and melody. I really liked it.

I gave round 2 to Phillip.

Time for round 3 with Iovine's picks. Iovine picked "No more drama" by Mary J Blige for Joshua to sing. Interesting song choice. Good performance.

Iovine picked "I'll be there" by the Jackson Five for Jessica to sing. Really good, loved the strength in her voice and the tone of her voice.

Iovine picked "We've got tonight" by Bob Seger for Phillip to sing. He sang it a little on the high side but I liked the vulnerability of it. Very very different for Phillip.

I gave round 3 barely to Jessica over Phillip.

The Top 3 are probably the best top 3 that Idol has ever had so there really are no losers with this group but if I had to pick who goes home tomorrow I would think Phillip over Joshua but I think Phillip has more fans and it will be Joshua who goes home tomorrow.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

American Idol - The top 3 revealed

The show opened with the top 4 singing "California Dreaming".

Phillip
was called up first
Iovine felt that the first song showed Phillip as the artist he expects him to be. Felt he delivered completely with the second song.

Hollie was called up next.
Iovine felt the Journey song worked for her because of its over the topness. He felt she didn't understand the second song. I agree with him regarding the second song but not the first.

David Cook performed his new single.

Joshua
was called up next.
Iovine felt that the first song didn't work for him. He felt it was too over the top. He would steer him away from doing songs like this on his album. He felt that the second song was amazing. I totally agree with Iovine.

Jessica was called up.
Iovine felt the first song was a little too much of the same with the growling? Really? But this isn't said to Joshua who screams and growls in practically every song? Felt she did everything in the second song flawlessly.

JLo performed.

The top 4 were brought up. Jessica was told she was safe, then Joshua was told he was safe, as was Phillip. As I expected, Hollie was eliminated. I really like Hollie and I think she has a lot of potential. With more experience on stage and life experience that she can draw from and put into the emotions of the songs she sings, I think she'll do just great with her career. I'll be following her career and hope to hear a lot from her in the future.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

American Idol - the Top 4 sing

Tonight was an interesting theme night. Songs about California (rather strange theme) and then a second song of songs they wish they wrote (which is kind of like the songs of their idols theme). With this theme night, it would seem that we would get an interesting night of singing and that's what we got.

Phil sang "Have you ever seen the rain" by CCR. Pretty good rendition.

Hollie sang "Faithfully" by Journey. Solid but didn't soar like this song needs to.

Joshua sang "You raise me up" by Josh Groban. That song is an amazing song and sung in a soul touching way by Josh Groban. The song was just too big for him although the ending was really cool.

Jessica sang "Steal away" by Etta James. Very good.

For this first round, Jessica easily was the best.

Phil and Joshua sang "This love" by Maroon 5. Very good!

Jessica and Hollie sang "Eternal Flame" by the Bangles. I love the original song but for a duet between two powerhouse voices it was a rather strange song choice. Interesting harmony choices. Randy found it strange, I agree with his critique.

The top 4 sang "Waiting for a girl like you" by Foreigner.

Next theme was the Idols singing songs they wish they wrote

Phil sang "Volcano" by Damien Rice. Very nice.

Hollie sang "I can't make you love me" by Bonnie Raitt. Good but didn't soar again. Just not enough emotion for what this song needs.

Joshua sang "This is a man's world" by James Brown. Best performance of the season for him.

Jessica sang "And I am telling you" by Jennifer Holliday. Amazing performance.

Jessica won round 2 as well with Joshua a close second.

I don't know if there'll be a bottom 2 but with the contestants that are left and after tonight's performances and critiques, I expect Hollie to go home tomorrow. :(

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

The Voice Season 2 winner is...

The show opened with Jermaine Paul, James Massone, Pip and Jamar Rogers singing "I want you back". They sounded really good. Almost boy band like. Almost. Lol.

Juliet Simms performed with Flo Rida.

Chris Mann, Lindsey Pavao and Katrina Parker sang "Bittersweet Symphony". The mix of their voices was interesting.

Hall and Oates performed "Rich girl". Jermaine, Tony and Chris sang backup.

Cheesa, Kim Yarbrough, Naia Kete and Sera Hill sang "Superstitious". Sounded really good.

Juliet, Erin Willet, Jamar Rogers and RaeLynn sang "I get by with a little help from my friends".

Lady Antebellum performed their song "Wanted you more".

Tony and Jordis sang "Go your own way". Sounded very good together.

Justin Bieber performed.

The Final 4 spoke on what it all means to them which was cool to hear and see.

Results time!! Who would win? Chris Mann was announced in 4th place?! I found that shocking but not surprising since I had thought that Xtina's attitude towards contestant Tony Lucca might affect votes towards Chris. Unfortunately it seems that's what happened because Chris, although not as mainstream as the others, should not have been 4th. Tony Lucca was announced in 3rd place. So it was between Jermaine Paul and Juliet Simms. You could see how much it meant to both of them. Then Juliet Simms was announced in 2nd place, Jermaine Paul is The Voice Season 2 winner!! Congrats to Jermaine! He fulfilled his dream of no longer being a backup singer. It was a wonderful moment to see. I'll be looking forward to hearing more from this humble winner.

Monday, May 7, 2012

The Voice finale - the Final 4 sing!

This is it, the Voice finale. The contestants last chance to sing for America's votes so they had to let it all go tonight and they did.

Jermaine Paul was up first and sang "I believe I can fly" by R. Kelly. I love that he let's his passion show. I can totally relate to him through his passion. Great song choice. Wonderful performance. He felt it and it showed.

Carson told us that we would see tributes from the artists to their coaches throughout the night which I felt was a really cool touch. Juliet sang "Crazy" for Cee Lo. Sounded great and confident, looked great.

Chris Mann dueted with Xtina to sing "The Prayer" by Andrea Bocelli & Celine Dion. Amazing performance!!

Tony Lucca sang "99 problems" by Jay Z. Interesting song choice. Pretty cool performance. Xtina seemed offended by the song choice and felt it was inappropriate for the show. I agree with her but her cattiness towards him throughout the season probably didn't make anyone see her point. Her interactions with Tony have been an un-necessary distraction all season and it could wind up hurting her artist.

Chris Mann sang Xtina's "The Voice Within" as his tribute to her. I loved his letter of thanks written to her in the background video wall as he sang. I think that was very sweet and open.

Juliet and Cee Lo sang "Born to be wild" by Steppenwolf. Pretty cool performance.

Adam and Tony dueted by singing "Yesterday" by the Beatles. I really liked it.

As a tribute to his coach Blake, Jermaine sang Blake's "God gave me you". Very nice performance.

Chris Mann sang "You raise me up" by Josh Groban. Perfect song for him! Loved the choir. Xtina was so proud that she was moved to tears.

Blake and Jermaine dueted with "Soul Man" by the Blues Brothers. Pretty cool performance, they had fun.

Tony Lucca sang "Harder to breathe" as tribute to Adam. Sounded good.

Juliet sang "Freebird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd to end the show. Nerves may have gotten to her. It wasn't her best performance but it was still good.

I think this is between Juliet and Chris but who knows how much impact the Xtina/Tony Lucca drama will have on votes for Chris? Should be an interesting Finale results show!!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

American Idol gets down to the Top 4

Results night, time to find out who the Top 4 are!

Joshua was called up first.
Iovine felt the first song was very good but the second song was amazing.
Joshua is safe.

Coldplay performed.

Hollie and Phillip were called up next.
Iovine felt Hollie did really good with the first song and thought her second song was competent, even though if she released it now it could be a hit. So why was it just competent?!? Felt Phillip was bland yesterday and has been coasting. Although he does say that as sick as he's been he's impressed with how strong he's been when most would quit. I knew it had to do with his health, his earlier performances had been better than last night.
Hollie was in the bottom 2, Phillip was safe

Carrie Underwood performed "Blown away" from her new album.

Skylar and Jessica were called up last.
Iovine felt Skylar did really good with her first song but the second song wasn't great. He felt she needs to have another moment. Felt Jessica's second song was perfect but that the first song was too racy for her age. Felt the stylists are letting her down.

Coldplay performed again.

The bottom 2 were Skylar and Hollie. Hollie made it through again. Skylar was eliminated.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Skylar will do in the future. I think she's got a really nice career ahead of her.

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

American Idol takes on the 60s & BritPop

Tonight's theme on AI was the Idols taking on the 60s and also BritPop songs. which is kind of strange since I don't think we'll see the Idols doing these styles with their careers. Anyhow, Lil Steven was this week's mentor

Hollie sang "River deep, mountain high" by Ike n Tina Turner. She sounded great.

Phillip sang "The Letter" by The Box Tops. I didn't like the arrangement he came up with for such a classic song.

Skylar sang "Fortunate Son" by CCC. She rocked it! Love her energy.

Joshua and Phillip sang "You've lost that loving feeling" by The Righteous Brothers. Joshua totally blew away Phillip in vocals and performance. I wonder if Phillip's health issues are really starting to show in his performances?

Jessica sang "Proud Mary" by Ike n Tina Turner. Great performance! Randy didn't like it in comparison to Tina but JLo was correct in saying that this is about her journey.

Joshua sang "Ain't too proud to beg" by The Temptations. Was good but I found him screaming too much.

After the 60s round, I give round 1 as a draw between Skylar and Jessica.

Time for the BritPop! Hollie started if off and sang "Bleeding love" by Leona Lewis. Sounded great. She's really picking it up when she needs to.

Phillip sang "Time of the season" by the Zombies. Except for his faces, he was really laid back and good in this song.

Jessica, Hollie and Skylar sang "Your love keeps lifting me higher" by Jackie Wilson.

Skylar sang "You don't have to say you love me" by Dusty Springfield. Really good!

Jessica sang "You are so beautiful" by Joe Cocker. Cheesy setting but very nice vocals.

Joshua sang "To love somebody" by the Bee Gees. Really good especially the beginning.

I give the BritPop round 2 as a draw between Joshua and Hollie.

Everyone was really good tonight except for Phillip who was solid but not at his best which I suspect is because of his health. If I had to pick a bottom 2 based on tonight though it would be Phillip and Joshua with Phillip going home BUT I think Hollie is being poised to go next. I don't see the judges showing her the support that the others are getting so we'll see how it goes tomorrow.

The results are in! The Voice Final 4 are set!

The show opened with last season's contestant Dia Frampton performing her single.

Xtina's artists Chris Mann and Lindsey Pavao were up first. Xtina split her 100 points to give her artists down the middle with a score of 50/50.
Along with America's share of votes, Chris won by a 104-96 vote. Chris will represent Team Xtina in the finals.

Vicci Martinez and Cee Lo performed her new single.

Adam's artists Tony Lucca and Katrina Parker were up next. Adam split his vote 60/40 in Tony's favor. Tony won by a 108-92 vote to represent Team Adam in the finals.

Beverly McClellan & Cyndi Lauper performed.

The Voice season 1 winner Javier Colon performed his single.

Blake's artists Erin Willet and Jermaine Paul were up next. Blake split his vote 50/50. Jermaine won by a 123-77 vote to represent Team Blake in the finals.

Cee Lo's artists Jamar Rogers and Juliet Simms were up last. Cee Lo split his vote 60/40 in Juliet's favor. Juliet won by 121-79 vote to represent Team Cee Lo in the finals.

Very full show. It had performances, strategy and lots of drama! It's a good Final 4. Can't wait to see the performances and to see who wins!

Monday, April 30, 2012

The Voice Semi Finals

Competition time, all the remaining team members would be singing tonight for America's votes.

Got right to it. For Team Adam- Tony Lucca sang "How do you like me now?" Very good. Didn't expect it to be so good.

For Team Blake- Erin Willet sang "Without you" by David Guetta. Interesting song choice. Very pitchy. Sounded like she couldn't hear herself.

For Team Xtina- Chris Mann sang "Ave Maria". Amazing song choice, as soon as I heard he was going to sing this song I was dying to hear it. It was as excellent as I thought it would be. I found it really cool to see opera represented on a vocal talent show.

For Team Cee Lo- Jamar Rogers sang "If you don't know me by now". Was good, very hip. Just seems over-confident which is a turn off to me.

Team Adam and Team Cee Lo performed.

For Team Blake- Jermaine Paul sang "Open Arms" by Journey. Very good.

For Team Adam- Katrina Parker sang "Killing me softly" by The Fugees. Pretty good.

Blake performed.

For Team Xtina- Lindsey Pavao sang "Skinny love" by Bon Iver. Really good. Her best performance yet! This is the performance of hers that totally won me over.

Team Xtina and Team Blake sang "Edge of glory" by Lady Gaga.

For Team Cee Lo- Juliet Simms sang "This is a man's world" by James Brown. Interesting song choice. She totally rocked it!She ended the show on a very strong note and as a lasting impression going into the voting period.

Can't wait to see the results fo America's votes tomorrow!

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Results night - the American Idol Top 5 is set

The Queen extravaganza opened the show. They were really good. Queen joined them.

Jessica & Elise were called up first.
Iovine felt that Jessica doing Queen was a mistake but felt her second song was heartfelt. Felt that Elise picked the wrong Queen song and that the Hendrix song was a double bad song night. I totally agree with Iovine on all points.
Elise was in the bottom 3.

Stefano performed his new single. I liked it along with the choreography of it all. Pretty cool.

Hollie & Joshua were called up next.
Iovine felt that Hollie did ok with the Queen song but felt she did great with the Miley song. Felt Joshua did good with the Queen song and could crossover well. Felt the second song was a great song choice.
Hollie wound up in the bottom 3.

Katy Perry performed "Part of me".

Skylar and Phillip were called up last.
Iovine felt Skylar did a good job on the Queen song but felt that the second song was self-indulgent. Felt Phillip's health is starting to affect his performances, felt that doing Dave Mathews was not a good move. I find myself agreeing with Iovine's comments here as well.
Skylar wound up in the bottom 3.

Ryan let Skylar know that she was safe.
Elise and Hollie in bottom 2.
Elise was eliminated. I like Elise. I hope she finds songwriters and producers that can show off her voice in its best light. I will be looking forward to hearing more from her.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

American Idol takes on Queen

The show began with a Queen retrospective. As you all know or should know by now, I'm a huge Queen/Freddie Mercury fan so the Idols better be good tonight! Lol. We got to see that the Idols met with Brian May and Roger Taylor. They then did a medley of Fat bottomed girls, Another one bites the dust, We will rock you and We are the Champions.

Jessica opened the show by singing the iconic "Bohemian Rhapsody". I didn't think anyone would try that song. I found that the lyrics were too old for her. She was good but her credibility on this song was problematic IMO.

Skylar sang "The show must go on". I've always found this song so courageous and tragic considering the circumstances behind it. I didn't think that she would be able to feel the emotion of the song but she sounded great though.

Joshua sang "Crazy little thing called love". I found that he was just screaming through the song as if he thought that is what you should do with a rock song. I didn't like it.

Elise sang "I want it all". Sounded good on the verses and got stronger as it went on.

Phillip sang "Fat bottomed girls". Performance-wise I just didn't get it with his facial expressions. Just more of the same to me.

Hollie sang "Save me". Looked great. Sounded really good.

With that, round 1 of Queen songs was over. I think Skylar won round 1. Round 2 was up next with the Idols doing songs that meant something to them.

Jessica sang "Dance with my father" by Luther Vandross as a touching tribute to her Dad who is a soldier and is leaving on assignment in a few days. Wonderful. She felt every word.

Skylar sang "Tattoos on this town" by Jason Aldean. Not crazy about the arrangement. Was only ok.

Joshua sang "Ready for love"(?). Sounded good.

Elise sang a song by Jimi Hendrix. Sounded good but the obscure song probably didn't help her.

Phillip sang a song by Dave Mathews. Good but obscure as well.

Hollie sang "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus. Really good.

I would give the second round to Jessica with Hollie a close second.

It was a mixed bag of performances tonight so tomorrow's results show can go a lot of different ways but if I had to pick a bottom 3, I would say Elise, Phillip and Joshua with Elise going home.

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

The Voice results

Florence and the Machine performed to open the show.

We got right to America's vote, for Team Adam Tony Lucca was saved by America's vote. Katrina Parker & Mathai would have to sing for Adam's save tonight.

For Team Cee Lo, Jamar Rogers was saved by America's vote. Cheesa & Juliet Simms would have to sing for Cee Lo's save tonight. This was probably the worst possibility for Team Cee Lo because both Juliet and Cheesa both deserved to get farther in the competition.

Mathai sang "Cowboy Casanova" by Carrie Underwood?! Strange song choice for her voice. Predictably, it was only ok.

Katrina Parker sang "Perfect" by Pink. Sounded good.

Decision time for Adam but it seemed to be a pretty simple decision after teh performances tonight. Adam eliminated Mathai and saved Katrina Parker. I hope to hear more from Mathai, she has a ton of potential and charisma.

Cheesa sang "Already gone" by Kelly Clarkson. Sounded dark but really good. Did her emotions get the best of her though?

Juliet Simms sang "Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia. Weird song choice but she worked it out.

Decision time for Cee Lo and he eliminated Cheesa. Saved Juliet Simms. Either choice Cee Lo made was going to suck but that's how The Voice is structured. I will be looking forward to hearing lots more from Cheesa.

2 of my favorite singers went home tonight. I wish them a ton of success in the future!

Monday, April 23, 2012

The Voice quarter finals night 2

Went over last week's controversial eliminations again.

Tonight was members of Team CeeLo and Team Adam singing for America's vote save and to not be eliminated tonight as well!

For Team Cee Lo- Jamar Rogers sang "It's my life" by Bon Jovi. Solid performance.

For Team Adam- Katrina Parker sang "Jar of Hearts" by Christina Perri. Sounded really good.

Team Cee Lo sang "Dancing in the streets".

For Team Adam- Mathai sang "I'm like a bird" by Nellie Furtado. Great song choice for her but I don't think she reached the emotion of the song. I was disappointed that she didn't do better with this song than I thought she should have.

For Team Cee Lo- James Massone sang "Just the way you are" by Billy Joel. He was not very good for this type of song. I thought he would do better but once again, it was a case of not hitting the deep emotion behind the song.

Cee Lo sang with his group Goody Mob.

For Team Adam- Tony Lucca sang "Hit me baby one more time" by Britney Spears as a response to Xtina's criticism last week. That was ingenious as Xtina couldn't say anything negative without it coming off like a slam towards Britney. Either way there wasn't much that could be said because it was a very cool version. I really liked it!

For Team Cee Lo- Cheesa sang "I have nothing" by Whitney. She was great!!

For Team Adam- Pip sang "Somewhere only we know" by Keen. Nice performance but rather obscure song so that may have hurt him.

Team Adam sang "Instant Karma".

For Team Cee Lo- Juliet Simms sang "Cryin'" by Aerosmith.

Decision time! Cee Lo eliminated James Massone which was mildly surprising considering the crowd reaction he was getting. I think it was a good decision though considering the other members of his team.
Adam eliminated Pip which was also mildly surprising since I thought Mathai faltered pretty badly tonight.

Overall though, Cee Lo and Adam had a tough choice tonight. It wasn't as clear cut as what Blake and Xtina decisions should've been. Good show tonight.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

American Idol - another goes home

The show opened with the group singing "Dancing in the streets".

Hollie & Joshua were called up first.
Iovine felt Joshua did good last night. Felt Hollie did good but will be in the bottom 3. Thinks she has a long way to go to get to the finale but that Joshua just needs to keep doing what he is doing.
Hollie was in the bottom 3

Taylor Hicks was on the show. He helped introduce Kris Allen who performed his new single "Vision of love". Very good!

Skylar & Elise were called up next.
Iovine felt Skylar did a great job but that Elise failed and will be in the bottom or even go home tonight. Said Skylar is the best performer on the show. Feels Elise needs to pick the best rock songs she can pick. I totally agree with Iovine's comments on Skylar and Elise. I really love how much energy Skylar brings to her performances. I also think that Elise needs to pick better rock songs that suit her voice better.
Once again, Iovine was right tonight and Elise was in bottom 3.

They did a longer Dick Clark tribute & retrospective on his career and all he did for music and television which was more than substantial. Very well done.

LMFAO performed "Sorry for party rocking".

Phillip, Colton & Jessica were called up last.
Iovine felt Jessica needs to do younger songs more appropriate for her age to get to the finale. Felt Phillip did a really good job with his first song. Felt Colton was all wrong on his first song. Feels Phillip should be in the finale. Feels Colton needs to pick better songs if he wants to get to the finale.
Ryan told Jessica she was safe. Colton was in the bottom 3 for the first time.

Ryan told Elise she was safe. It was down to Hollie and Colton. Colton eliminated! Shocking elimination but I can see why it happened after two so-so performances last night. I really like Colton and admire his devotion and passion for Christian music so I will definitely be looking forward to hearing his music in the future.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

American Idol sings Then & now

The show began with a tribute to the recently passed TV legend Dick Clark. I follow Ryan Seacrest on Twitter and know that Dick Clark was his role model and mentor so it was nice for Ryan to be able to do this. I know it must've meant a lot for him to be able to do.

Tonight's theme was a Song from now and then a secondsong being a soul song from the past. No mentor was mentioned for the night. I wonder why?

Hollie started off the show and sang "Rolling in the deep" by Adele. Great arrangement. She sounded great. Her best performance so far!.

Colton sang "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga in a rock version. Good idea in theory but I don't think it worked well.

Elise sang "No one" by Alicia Keys. She looked awesome and sounded really good.

Phillip sang "You got it bad" by Usher. Sounded good, it was a really cool interpretation.

Jessica sang "Fallin'" by Alicia Keys. Sounded really good but I didn't think it was her best performance.

Skylar sang a country version of "Born this way" by Lady Gaga. Sounded good.

Joshua sang "I believe" by Fantasia. Very passionate. Very good.

After round 1, I think Hollie won Round 1.

Hollie sang "Son of a preacher man" by Dusty Springfield. Was solid but not her best.

Colton sang "September" by Earth Wind and Fire. I wasn't crazy about the arrangement or his vocals.

Elise sang "Let's get it on" by Marvin Gaye. Not very good. :(

Phillip sang "In the midnight hour" by Wilson Pickett. He sang it without a guitar but he still had plenty of awkward moves! LOL! However, he was very good although the song didn't allow for much singing.

Jessica sang "Try a little tenderness" by Otis Redding. A little too much but very good.

Skylar sang "I heard it through the grapevine" by Marvin Gaye. Sounded good.

Joshua sang "A change is going to come" by Sam Cooke. Sounded really good.

I think that Joshua easily won Round 2.

The first round was good but the second round saw a lot of the Idols stumble a bit so the bottom 3 should be interesting tomorrow. However, if I had to pick a bottom 3 I would say that Colton, Elise and Hollie will be in the bottom 3. :(

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

The Voice results night

The show began with last night's eliminations and the judges thoughts regarding their decisions. I still don't agree with their decisions even after hearing their explanations but the show goes on.

The Wanted performed.

Team Xtina up - Chris, Ashley and Lindsey were up to find out America's vote. Xtina once again defended her decision to vote off Jessie Campbell. Boo! America saved Chris Mann which was great to see. Ashley and Lindsey had to perform later to see who Xtina would save tonight.

Team Blake up- Jermaine, Erin and RaeLynn were up to find out America's vote. America saved Jermaine. Good vote by America. RaeLynn and Erin had to perform later for Blake's vote/save.

Ashley sang "You and I". Loved her look. Very good performance, she sounded good.

Lindsey sang "Please don't go". Looked great. Really liked this performance.

Justin Bieber was on the show to world premiere a clip from his new video. For all the hype I was expecting the whole video, not just some teaser clip. the clip was cool but still, the whole video would've been better to see.

Elimination time. Ashley and Lindsey came up to hear Xtina's decision. Xtina eliminated Ashley. I really liked Ashley so I wasn't happy to see her go but she's still learning in a lot of ways and Lindsey really stepped it up. I hope to hear lots more from Ashley in the near future.

Erin sang "Proud Mary". Sounded good.

RaeLynn sang "If I die young". Sounded good but her voice was too affected for the song which is what the some of the coaches said and I agreed with.

Elimination time. Erin and RaeLynn came up to hear Blake's decision. Although I felt Eric did much better, I thought Blake would stick with the country girl RaeLynn that he had been championing throughout the show. But I was pleasantly surprised that Blake made the proper decision based on how they sang tonight and eliminated RaeLynn. She's made a lot of fans with country music's elite so I expect to hear lots more from her in the future.

Good decisions from the coaches tonight! They redeemed themselves tonight. Good show!

Monday, April 16, 2012

The Voice Quarter finals

Carson told us and the judges that there would be a new twist for the judges, they would have to eliminate a contestant off their team tonight! Tonight it would be members from Team Xtina and Team Blake singing.

For Team Blake- RaeLynn sang "She's country" by Jason Aldean. She was very good.

For Team Xtina- Jesse Campbell sang "Halo" by Beyonce. We saw a sad story of him dedicating this for his daughter. While he sang we saw photos of her in the background. I thought that gave the performance a very emotional punch.

For Team Blake- Jordis Unga sang "Stronger" by Sara Evans. Good song choice theme wise but vocally I don't think it showed enough for her voice.

We saw that Xtina and her team went to Crenshaw HS choir and invited them to the show. They performed Stronger together. Very cool.

For Team Xtina- Ashley De La Rosa sang "Foolish games" by Jewel. I loved the rock arrangement. She was very good.

Maroon 5 performed their new single "Pay phone".

For Team Blake- Erin Willet sang "Set fire to the rain" by Adele. She was good.

For Team Xtina- Lindsey Pavao sang "Part of me" by Katy Perry. I thought that while she looked pretty similar makeup-wise, her performance and vocals were only ok.

Team Blake sang "Heartache tonight". It was pretty good.

For Team Blake- Jermaine Paul sang "Against all odds" by Phil Collins. We saw how he was doing it all for his family. That is something I could totally relate to. Hearing this made me like him even more. He was very good.

For Team Xtina- Chris Mann sang "Viva la vida" by Coldplay. He was very good.

Moment of truth time! Xtina eliminated Jesse Campbell?! What? That was a very bad decision IMO. Blake eliminated Jordis Unga! Another decision I don't agree with, especially with the reason he gave.

I think a really good night of singing was ruined by the coaches' decisions tonight. Smh.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

American Idol results night

The show opened with a group song. They sang "Raise your glass" by Pink.

Hollie and Jessica were called up first
Iovine felt Hollie has bad habits while Jessica grew up with good habits.
Hollie was put in one group while Jessica was put in a seperate group.

James Durbin performed his new single.

Phillip and Elise were called up next
Iovine felt that they are both character singer-songwriters. Felt Phillip will be in the bottom. Elise too.
Phillip joins Hollie. Elise joins Jessica.

Jennifer Hudson performed with Ne-yo.

Colton and Joshua were called up next.
Iovine felt that they both did well. Felt that Colton convinced him last night.
Colton joined Hollie and Phillip. Joshua joined Jessica and Elise.

Skylar was called up by herself as the last contestant.
Iovine felt that she was in danger of being left behind somehow even though he thinks she's great.
She was told she was safe! Ryan told her to pick the group she thought was safe as well. She refused. He put her with a group - Colton, Hollie and Phillip were all safe.

The judges were shocked, as was the audience. Jessica and Joshua, along with Elise in the bottom 3?! Ryan then announced that Joshua and Elise were safe, meaning Jessica had to sing to be saved??!! Jessica began to sing for the judges' save but the judges interrupted her and saved her before she even finished the song.

I can't believe what I saw tonight. I can't believe that Jessica was actually in the bottom 3, let alone the very bottom. I can't believe that America would not vote for her. I hope I'm wrong but this just seemed like a ratings moment more than anything else. If Jessica would've been sent home, I think I would've been done with the show.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

American Idol - The top 7 sing

The show began with us seeing Deandre's hometown watching him go last week. That was a weird way to begin the show.

This week's theme was Songs from 2010-2012 and the mentor for this week was Akon.

Skylar went first and sang "Didn't you know much I loved you" by Kellie Pickler. She wanted to use a guitar but Iovine felt that might limit her. She used the guitar anyway. She sounded very good.

Colton was next and sang "Love the way you lie" by Skylar Grey. Iovine told him he has to be better than Phillip. I thought he gave a very professional performance, meaning that he sounded like he's been doing this for years. His best performance to date.

Elise and Phillip sang "Somebody that I used to know" by Gotye.

Jessica sang "Stuttering" by Jasmine Sullivan. Iovine and Akon were wowed by her. She was very good as usual.

Joshua sang "Runaway baby" by Bruno Mars. Just on a side note, I'm a BIG Bruno Mars fan! This song was very different for him. He was very good.

Colton and Skylar sang "Don't you wanna stay" by Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson. Very good.

Hollie sang "Perfect" by Pink. Iovine and Akon told her that all she's missing is that experience that'll give her that professional touch. She sounded great. Randy was the only one to show that he liked her performance though?!

Phillip sang "Give a little more" by Maroon 5. Pretty good performance.

Joshua, Hollie and Jessica sang "Stronger" by Kelly Clarkson.

Elise closed the show and sang "You and I" by Lady Gaga. She wanted to play drums but Iovine rightfully told her to just sing great. She sounded very good.

I thought everyone was really good tonight but if I had to pick a bottom 3 I would say Joshua, Phillip and Elise with Elise going home and I base that on past bottom 3s.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

The Voice - Results night for Team Adam & Team CeeLo

Jessie J. opened the show with her hit single "Domino". I like this song a lot but thought that live it wasn't as good. The sound production sounded a bit off.

For Team Adam- America saved Mathai, Tony Lucca and Pip.
Kim Yarbrough, Katrina Parker and Karla Davis must sing for Adam's lone save.

For Team Cee Lo- America saved Juliet Simms, Jamar Rogers and James Massone.
Cheesa, Tony Vincent and Erin Martin must sing for Cee Lo's lone vote.

Team Adam members sang for their save.
Kim Yarbrough sang "Spotlight". Sounded good but she probably should've done a ballad to show off her vocals better.

Karla Davis sang "I can't make you love me". Another of my all-time favorite songs. If you really want to hear a great version of this song, you should check out George Michael's version. She was better than last night but still didn't show a big range.

Katrina Parker sang "Don't speak". Not very good.

Blake liked Katrina. Xtina liked Katrina. Cee Lo liked Katrina. Adam saved Katrina.

Next up were Team CeeLo members singing for their save.
Tony Vincent sang "Sweet Dreams". It was a weird hybrid Manson-Lennox version. Didn't convince me.

Cheesa sang "All by myself". Very good song choice. Went for it and reached it! Great!

Erin Martin sang "Your song". I love this song. She looked great but her voice is just too quirky for my tastes.

Adam ranted about them finally doing well, he liked Cheesa. Blake liked Cheesa. Xtina liked Cheesa. Cee Lo saved Cheesa.

I think the save choices for Adam and CeeLo were pretty obvious. Good show.

Monday, April 9, 2012

The Voice - live week 2

The Voice's live week 2! Tonight it was members from Team Adam and Team CeeLo showing their vocal and performing chops for America's votes.

Team Adam's Katrina Parker sang "Tonight" by The Smashing Pumpkins. Interesting song choice by it totally worked for her. I liked it.

Team Cee Lo's Cheesa sang "Don't leave this way" by Thelma Houston. She showed her strong vocals but a better song would've helped her more.

Team Adam's Tony Lucca sang "In your eyes" by Peter Gabriel. It was solid but just ok. He got harsh critique by Xtina. That was pretty uncalled for. Not cool.

Team Adam's Kim Yarbrough sang "Rolling in the deep" by Adele. It was good but I was expecting it to be much better. For some reason, it didn't get to where I thought it would.

Team Cee Lo's James Massone sang "Don't know why" by Norah Jones. Interesting song choice but it was solid for his voice.

Team Cee Lo's Juliet Simms sang "Roxanne" by The Police. She totally showed rock star attitude. The song started a little pitchy but then she really tore it up.

Team Adam's Mathai sang "Ordinary People" by John Legend. It was pretty good but she didn't seem to connect emotionally enough to the song to take it to another level. She has the voice and charisma, she just needs to connect better to the songs.

Team Cee Lo's Tony Vincent sang "Everybody wants to rule the world" by Tears for Fears. One of my all-time favorite songs. I just didn't believe the performance though.

Team Adam's Karla Davis sang "Airplanes" by B.o.B. It was a solid yet unspectacular performance.

Team Cee Lo's Erin Martin sang "Walk like an Egyptian" by The Bangles. Weird song choice for a vocal show. I didn't like it or her voice with this song. Just trying too hard and too cutesy.

Team Adam's Pip sang "When you were young" by The Killers. He did a pretty good job with this song.

Team Cee Lo's Jamar Rogers sang "Are you gonna go my way" by Lenny Kravitz. He was pretty good.

All in all, there were some really good performances tonight.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

American Idol results - another goes home

The show began with Ryan telling us that Joshua was feeling pretty sick which sucks but as they say the show must go on. I was just hoping we wouldn't see him pass out as he didn't look well at all.

We were shown a JLo video.

Jessica & Joshua were called up first
Iovine thought Joshua was perfect all around last night. He felt Jessica didn't have a big enough song.
Both were rightfully safe.

The Wanted performed.

Skylar & Colton were called up next.
Iovine felt Skylar proved that she could be a power singer. Felt that if she could continue progressing she can win it all. Felt Colton was just mid-pack again.

Ryan called Hollie & Deandre over.
Iovine felt Hollie will be in bottom and could be battling Deandre on who goes home tonight. Felt Deandre hasn't progressed fast enough.
Deandre & Hollie wound up in the bottom 3.

Kellie Pickler performed. She looked and sounded great.

Elise & Phillip were called up last.
Iovine feels Phillip just needs to be himself. Felt it was a safe song and that he needs to be pushed or he will be passed by some of the others. Felt Elise choked on stage, felt she was better in rehearsals.
Elise was in the bottom 3. Hollie was sent back to the couch as she was safe.
Elise was also safe. Deandre was in danger, he sang for save. Not saved. :(

I was sorry to see Deandre go but if he keeps progressing and can get the right songs, I think he can have a really nice career. I'll be looking forward to seeing what he does.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

American Idol takes on the 80s

Last night AI took on the 80s and since I feel the 80s had the best music of any era, I was looking forward to hearing some good music, hopefully done well! For the most part, I got my wish.

No Doubt's Gwen Stefani and Tony Kanal were the mentors for this week. They did an ok job with the mentoring. Not as good as some of the other mentors this season so far but still good.

Deandre went first and sang "I like it" by Debarge. I think that was a real good song choice for him. Gwen and Iovine felt he needed to be more confident in his voice and performance. I was happy to see that he used all his voice instead of just his falsetto which is something I've been wanting to hear from him. He was very good!

Elise was next, she was going to sing "Hallelujah" but Iovine asked for her alternate song which was a Foreigner song. Gwen and Tony loved it and told her she should do this song, Iovine also thought it was a good song choice. She listened to their advice and sang Foreigner's "I want to know what love is". Gwen, Tony and Iovine were wrong. I was not crazy about the note choices she made in the song. I agree with the judges that although she sounded strong, she also sounded pitchy and off throughout the song. It was a bad song choice, she should've trusted her gut. I think she would've done a great job with her original song choice.

Colton and Skylar sang "Islands in the stream". Skylar sounded real good. Colton sounded good.

Phillip sang "That's all" by Genesis. He was admittedly very rough in rehearsal but they were all confident he would hammer it out by last night. I guess he did but my issue with Phillip now is that he is becoming very one-dimensional and not showing enough coloring or the proper emotions for the song. He sang with way too much angst for this song. The Judges loved it and I think they are so enamored with him that they are overlooking things he can improve. With just a little constructive criticism, I think he can be even better than he is.

Deandre and Hollie sang "I'm so excited". They both sounded good and had fun with the song which was good to see, especially for Hollie.

Joshua sang "If you don't know me by now" by Simply Red. Gwen told him to hold back a bit. He sounded good but he also is becoming a bit one-dimensional and I think he could've really slayed it if he had concentrated more on the emotion of the song than on singing to impress. As with Phillip, the Judges loved it and aren't offering him any critique to help him progress into an even better performer.

Jessica sang "How will I know" by Whitney. Very good performance and great vocals. She is definitely the front-runner.

Phillip and Elise did "Stop dragging my heart around". It was pretty good. Good to see Phillip without his guitar.

Hollie sang "What a feeling" from Flashdance. Iovine told her to give it the right emotion. She rushed a little bit through it and tried to do too much. It was as the judges said, she was trying to take all the advice she's gotten and put it all into effect while she's trying to sing. She's definitely got the voice. Now she just needs to let the music take her and let her perform from that standpoint.

Joshua and Jessica did "I knew you were waiting". Sounded good together.

Colton sang "Time after time" by Cyndi Lauper. Gwen sang harmony with him in rehearsal and they sounded great together. He sounded really good, I really loved the note choices and the arrangement of the song. It was very cool that he gave credit where credit was due on the arrangement being from another group he's heard do this song. That's more than some artists in past seasons have done. Kudos to him on his honesty.

Skylar sang "Wind beneath my wings" by Bette Midler. Wow. She touched me with her vocals and performance. She was definitely worthy of her show closing slot and definitely had her "moment" last night.

So, who goes home tonight? The remaining contestants are all doing very well so it's not an easy task to guess the bottom 3 but if I had to guess I would try to base it on past bottom 3s and say that Deandre, Elise and Hollie will be in the bottom 3 with Hollie going home. :(

Thank you for the video plays! :)

Hola sonadores! Que tal? Te deseo un dia muy bueno! Gracias a todos que han visto mi video musical en mi canal de Youtube!! Casi 3 mil vistas desde este fin de semana que paso! Gracias por todo tu apoyo! Lo agradezco mucho! No olvides que pueden comprar "Que sera" en iTunes, Rhapsody, Napster, Amazon, CD Baby y tambien en el sitio de mi sello discografico.

Hi dreamers! What's going on? Wishing you a nice day. Thanks to all of you who have seen my music video on my Youtube channel!! Almost 3000 views since this past weekend! Thanks for all your support, it's greatly appreciated! Don't forget that you can buy "Que sera" on iTunes, Rhapsody, Napster, Amazon, CD Baby & on my label's site.

http://www.worldconquestrecords.com/

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

The Voice - Results night 1

The show began by telling us how the voting works and what to expect tonight. America has 3 save votes. Coach can only save 1 out of the remaining 3.

Gym Class Heroes performed.

We saw that Blake took his team to a radio show.

For Team Blake- America's saves = Erin Willet was saved. Jermaine Paul was saved. Raelynn was the last save. Charlotte, Jordis and Naia had to sing for Blake's vote.

We saw that Xtina took her team to meet and be on Jay Leno's Tonight Show.

For Team Xtina- America's saves = Jessie Campbell was saved. Lindsey Pavao was saved. Chris Mann was saved. Ashley, Sera and Moses had to sing for Xtina's vote.

Team Blake members went first.
Naia sang "If I were a boy". Was good. Blake wished she did something reggae, she said she wanted to but didn't.

Charlotte sang "Iris". That is one of my favorite songs. I felt that she didn't get the song. I thought it was not good.

Jordis sang "Wild Horses". Ok performance, I expected her to do more with it.

The coaches all felt Jordis should be saved. Blake saved Jordis.

Team Xtina members went next
Ashley sang "Paris oo lala". Vocals sounded better than yesterday. Performance still needs work.

Sera sang "Vision of love". BIG song to try to take on. It was rough in certain parts, I also found it missing the big notes.

Moses sang "Breakeven". Not an easy song to sing, let alone for someone who came onto the show as a rapper. But he worked it out and did good.

Cee Lo liked Sera. Adam liked Ashley. Blake liked Ashley. Xtina saved Ashley.

That was intense! Good saves by America and the coaches tonight.

Monday, April 2, 2012

The Voice goes live - week 1

After weeks of blind auditions and the battle rounds, it's finally time for some live singing! Today's performances would be by Team Blake and Team Xtina members.

Team Blake's Jermaine Paul went first and he sang "Living on a prayer" by Bon Jovi. It was only ok. The song's notes, especially in the chorus seemed too big for his voice.

Team Xtina's Chris Mann sang "Bridge over troubled water" by Simon & Garfunkel. Totally amazing performance.

Team Blake's Raelynn sang "Wakeup call" by Maroon 5. I didn't think her voice fit the song well.

Team Xtina's Moses Stone sang "Stronger" and "Power" by Kanye West. I found it pretty cool.

Team Blake's Naia Kete sang "Turning tables" by Adele. It was pretty good.

Team Xtina's Lindsey Pavao sang "Somebody that I used to know" by Gotye. I really didn't like it, I don't think it was a good song choice tp show off her vocals.

Team Blake's Jordis Unga sang "Alone" by Heart. I thought she was really good.

Team Xtina's Sera Hill sang "Find your love" by Drake. She was really solid with her performance.

Team Blake's Erin Willet sang "Living for the city" by Stevie Wonder. She sounded really good.

Team Xtina's Ashley de la Rosa sang "Right through you" by Alanis Morissette. It was pretty good. She seemed a bit tentative.

Team Blake's Charlotte Sometimes sang "Misery Business" by Paramore. She was pretty good although she comes off as over-confident.

Team Xtina's Jessie Campbell sang "What a wonderful world" by Louis Armstrong. It was very good as I expected it to be.

With so many different voices to choose from, it will be interesting to see who America votes for and who moves on to the next round.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

American Idol - Results night, down to 8!

As the show began, Eric Benet came out to meet Deandre which was a really cool moment.

We also got a glimpse of the Idols getting to go to the Idol mega-mansion. Now that was a mansion!!

Elise, Phillip, Hollie were called up first
Iovine felt Elise had it all together with her looks, style and voice. Felt she's coming into her own. Felt Phillip is a big star. If Stevie likes something she's rarely wrong. Felt Hollie lacks experience and emotion. Something that puts her behind everyone else.
Hollie wound up in the bottom 3.

Nicki Minaj performed.

Heejun, Joshua, Colton were called up next
Iovine felt Colton didn't keep his emotions in check. Felt Joshua's emotions hurt him too. Felt Heejun got the message last week but isn't as good as everyone that is left.
Heejun was in the bottom 3.

Scotty McCreery performed. Iovine presented him with a platinum record which was really cool and let the Idol contestants see how much their lives can change in 1 year.

Skylar, Deandre, Jessica were called up next
Iovine didn't think Skylar's song had enough melody in it. Felt Deandre still has something missing. Feels his falsetto can be off putting, which I agree with. He has to mix it up more. Feels Jessica is doing some amazing things.
Skylar wound up in the bottom 3 which surprised me.

Skylar was safe. Heejun sang for the save. No save used on Heejun.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

American Idol - The Top 9 sing

The show began with Hilfiger giving the Idol contestants a style lesson. Some seem to take this seriously, while others aren't which I find rather disrespectful. I don't know how Mr. Hilfiger must be feeling about this.

Stevie Nicks was this week's mentor which was very cool. I think Stevie Nicks just exudes cool. The theme of this week was Songs of the contestants Idols which is a pretty darn cool theme of the week.

Colton was up first. Stevie knew him which he was wowed about. I like when you can tell that the mentors actually watch the show. Colton picked the song "Everything" by Lifehouse because he said its his favorite worship song. I like that Colton doesn't shy away from showing his Christian roots with his music. It was a good performance.

Skylar was next. She choose to do "Gunpowder & lead" by Miranda Lambert which was a rather mature and interesting song choice to do on Idol. Jimmy felt she needed to really bring it this week. Well, she brought it. I thought she sang and performed it really well.

Next up was a trio performance by Colton, Elise and Phillip. They sang a Stevie Nicks medley. Colton and Phillip sounded great. Elise sounded good.

Heejun was next. He wanted to show more seriousness so he chose "For you" by Donny Hathaway. Jimmy was impressed with his song choice and openness with the song. Felt he made a huge stride forward. He did really good. It seems he took last week's wakeup call seriously but the question is will the audience buy it or are they fed up with his antics up to this point?

Hollie went next and her song choice was "Jesus take the wheel" by Carrie Underwood. She got great advice from Stevie about bringing believability to a song. Stevie spoke about her mom's passing 2 months ago which I could totally relate to. :( Hollie felt honored that Stevie shared that deeply personal thought with her. It got pretty emotional. It helped as Hollie was really good.

Deandre was next. He choose the song "Sometimes I cry" by Eric Benet. Stevie gave him good advice on pulling back and playing more to the camera. He gave a very nice performance with some crazy notes.

Jessica was next and she chose the song "Sweet dreams" by Beyonce. Stevie loved that she made the song into a ballad. Gave her an ending to try but left it to her to decide to use or not. She loved it. Great performance and execution.

Deandre, Heejun and Joshua did an MJ medley. It was ok.

Phillip went next and chose "Still raining" by Johnnie Lang. Stevie said that he would've been asked to join Fleetwood Mac. Says he's a star. He was very good. It was definitely his style and felt like a song I would expect in his concert.

Joshua was next and he chose "Without you" by Mariah Carey which I felt was a rather odd song choice. Jimmy says the difficulty level on this song is Top 5 but feels he can pull it off. It was good but nowhere near the original. He got emotional during his performance.

Hollie, Skylar and Jessica did a Madonna medley. Very good!

Elise closed the show and did it in style! She chose the song "Whole lotta love" by Led Zeppelin which I felt was an excellent choice for her since this is the type of songs she does with her bands at clubs. Finally a rock song up her alley! Stevie likes her and sang with her in rehearsal which Elise felt honored by. Good song choice. She totally rocked it! It was her best performance to date IMO!

My bottom 3 would be Heejun, Deandre and Joshua with Heejun going home.

Monday, March 26, 2012

The Voice - Battle rounds 4

Night 4 of the Battle rounds! The last night of the battles!

Cee Lo picked Wade to go against James Massone. He gave them "True Colors" by Cyndi Lauper to sing.
Wade was mentored by Babyface.
James Massone was mentored by Ne-yo. Was very nervous & lacking confidence because he didn't know the song?! How can you not know such an iconic song by Cyndi Lauper? It just goes to show that if you want to be a singer then you should listen to all forms of music and not limit yourself to one specific genre.
Cee Lo was moved by their performance in final rehearsal which was cool to see.
Even though he didn't know the song initially, my vote was for James in this battle. Cee Lo picked James.

Adam picked Nicolle Galyon to go against Mathai. He gave them "Love song" by Sara Bareiles to sing.
Nicolle Galyon's mentor was Robin Thicke. She was going to sing with a piano but it wasn't working so Adam took away the piano from her performance in final rehearsal which I thought was a real good call.
Mathai's mentor was Alanis. She gave her excellent advice to honor the song. I found her on-stage charisma off the charts.
My vote was for Mathai. Adam picked Mathai.

Xtina picked Moses Stone to go against The Line. She gave them "Satisfaction" by the Rolling Stones. A very interesting song choice by Xtina for the non-rockers to sing.
Moses Stone's mentor was Lionel Richie. They made him sing it which was cool because it showed that not only could Moses rap but that he also had a good singing voice. In battle, Moses showed off some good vocals.
The Line was menotred by Jewel. She told them that she D
didn't want it to be so happy sounding. In final rehearsal, Xtina told The Line to be more aggressive. In battle though, they were still overshadowed by Moses.
My vote- Moses.  Xtina picked Moses.

Adam picked Karla Davis to against Orlando Napier. He gave them "Rich girl" by Hall & Oates to sing but upon hearing some run throughs in rehearsal he felt it wasn't working and changed it to "Easy" by The Commodores.
Karla Davis was mentored by Alanis who told her that she needs to find that big voice within.
Orlando Napier was mentored by Robin Thicke who gave him great advice on getting the vowels right and clear in the songs. It's very basic thing but something that some singers don't get, especially when it comes to performing in this type of format and even more so when recording.
My vote- I agreed with Blake that it was only an ok battle. But I gave the edge for unique tone to Karla. Adam picked Karla.

Blake picked Naia Kete to go against Jordan Rager. He picked "I'm yours" by Jason Mraz for them to sing.
Naia Kete was mentored by Kelly Clarkson. The bar was set higher for Naia since the song is up her alley style-wise. That meant she would have to bring it which she did in battle.
Jordan Rager was mentored by Miranda Lambert. She had no confidence in the song and it wound up her undoing.
My vote- Naia. Blake picked Naia.

Cee Lo Tony Vincent to go against Justin Hopkins. He gave them one of my all-time favorite songs to do, "Faithfully" by Journey.
Tony Vincent was mentored by Babyface.
Justin Hopkins was mentored by Ne-yo.
My vote- Justin. Cee Lo however picked Tony.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

American Idol results night

Results night after a lackluster Billy Joel theme night. Should be interesting.

The group sang "The longest time". Pretty good.

Hollie, Skylar, Elise were called up first
Iovine felt Hollie might be in trouble after last night. Felt Skylar didn't do her best last night, is better than that. Feels that she needs to show growth, she's too good for that. Felt Elise transformed and did great. All were safe.

Lana Del Rey performed

Joe Perry surprised Steve with playing Happy Birthday for him on guitar as the audience sang. Very cool to see.

Deandre, Jessica, Joshua were called up next
Iovine thought Deandre didn't connect to the lyrics. Said he told him to have fun not to frolic. LOL!! Good description though. Lol. Felt Joshua didn't connect with the song and needs to figure out how to progress. Felt Jessica did great.
Deandre was in the bottom 3.

Haley Reinhart performed her new single. She looked great. The song was cool.

Colton, Phillip, Erika, Heejun were called up last
Iovine thought Colton did a great job. Felt Phillip needs to accept the advice given. Felt Erika deserves to be in the top this week. Felt Heejun is disrespecting the system. I totally agree with all that he said except for Erika being in the top.
Erika & Heejun were in the bottom 3.

Deandre and Heejun safe. Erika would have to sing for the save.
Erika sang for the save but was not saved. Erika went home.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

American Idol takes on Billy Joel

Tonight was Billy Joel theme night. I'm a big Billy Joel fan so I was looking forward to seeing how the Idols handled his songs and what songs they chose. Steve Tyler made a comment that if you can't sing a Billy Joel then you can't sing... would that be an omen I wondered.

Tonight's mentor was Diddy. I was happy to see Diddy (I really respect what he has created for himself with his businesses). He had really good advice to give.

Deandre went first and did one of my favorite Billy Joel songs "Only the good die young". Diddy & Iovine said if he doesn't have fun with the song he will be DOA on stage. He took the advice too literally and was a little too bouncy all over the stage. I don't think the advice helped. He was just ok.

Erika sang "NY state of mind". Diddy told her to think like a NYer to sing this song. Hilfiger had her get a short punk cut and dyed her hair black. She looked very different. I'm not sure if I like it though. She sounded solid.

Joshua sang "She's got a way". Hilfiger told him to dress up more, I agree that he should. Diddy told him to pull back on the screaming which I definitely agree with. Joshua can definitely sing but I can only take so much once he begins his screaming. Joshua wasn't confidant since he didn't know the song. Why pick it then? Diddy told him to be present in the song and connect. Great advice. His lack of confidence in his song choice showed as he was pitchy & all over the place.

Skylar sang "Shameless". She was starstruck with Diddy. They told her to not force the song. Hilfiger tried to dress her like a country star. She did it the way Garth Brooks did it and it was solid and good.

Elise sang "Vienna". Diddy was worried she's doing a song no one knows. I don't even know this song! Definitely a risky choice. She felt it was the right song though. Hilfiger told her to stop the layered look. She was right and did a nice job.

Phillip sang "I'm moving out". Hilfiger said he needs help with his look. Said his style is all wrong, doesn't look like a star. I agree but Phillip seems resistant to looking more like a star. He may not like it but image is important in this business. Diddy took away his guitar & took him out of his comfort zone. He was resistant to that too. I thought the song had a really bad arrangement. He's really beginning to get one-dimensional with his look and performances. He should show more progress before the others leave him behind.

Hollie sang "Honesty". Hilfiger agrees with Iovine that she has been dressed too old. Diddy and Iovine helped her connect to the song. She was good but there were a few pitchy moments. Judges felt that she was over-thinking. I agree.

Heejun sang "My life". Told Diddy he was upset with last week's criticism. Got good advice about learnign to be thick-skinned. Diddy commented that he's having a hard time believing him since he doesn't seem to take things seriously. I agree, if he doesn't show he's serious then why would anyone want to take him seriously? He needs to get with the program. Hilfiger also felt he wasn't taking things seriously. He had an interesting start to the song but I liked it, it worked. I found him very good this week.

Jessica sang "Everybody has a dream". Told Hilfiger she likes to wear a dress. Diddy told her to pull back so he can believe her. To stop the tricks and respect the song. She took everything Diddy said and brought it.

Colton sang "Piano man". Told Hilfiger he wants his own style but wants it to be edgy. Hilfiger told him to work on his hair after he's picked his outfit which was sound advice but Colton mentioned feeling as if his hair was discredited?! Really?! Diddy loved it. He did a real good job.

Who do I think will be in the bottom 3? Deandre, Erika and Joshua. I think Erika goes home.

Monday, March 19, 2012

The Voice - Battle rounds 3

Another night of battle rounds on The Voice! Love the battle rounds, they're always interesting!

Adam picked Pip to go against Nathan Parrett. He picked "You know I'm no good" by Amy Winehouse for them to battle with.
In rehearsals, Pip felt Adam favored Nathan. Alanis Morissette was his mentor. In battle, Pip showed a lot of style and performed really well.
In rehearsals, Nathan Parrett was worried going up against Pip. Robin Thicke was his mentor. I really like the advice Robin gives, he's a really good mentor. He told Nathan to be more confident. In battle, he was good and showed a strong voice.
My vote- Pip. Adam picked Pip.

Cee Lo was up next and he picked Erin Martin to go up against the Shields Brothers in a weird clash of styles. He picked "What's love got to do with it" by Tina Turner which was a rather interesting choice to have the Shields brothers do.
In rehearsals, Erin was mentored by Ne-yo. She was confused by advice given to her by Cee Lo and Ne-yo. She just couldn't understand why they were telling her that this was a grown woman song and not about trying to be sexy. That's not a good sign when a singer can't understand about getting into the character of a song. In battle, I just did not think she was good at all. Her voice is just not my cup of tea.
In rehearsals, the Shields Brothers were mentored by Babyface. He told them to pull back and they took the advice and did a good job with it. In battle, they did what they could with the song which wasn't much since they only had a few spots to shine.
My vote- Shields Brothers. Cee Lo picked Erin.

Xtina went next and picked Jonathas to go against Ashley De La Rosa. She picked "No air" by Jordin Sparks & Chris Brown for them to sing. I think that was a really good song choice for these two.
In rehearsals, Jonathas was mentored by Lionel Richie. He seemed overconfident. Xtina gave him great advice on how to sing a duet with a woman. In battle, I thought he was just ok.
In rehearsals, Ashley De La Rosa was mentored by Jewel. She was worried by the high notes in the song. They told her she needs to be more extroverted which she agreed with. In battle, she started shaky but got it together.
My vote- Ashley by a little. I really like her so I hope she gets more extroverted and confident. Xtina picked Ashley.

Blake was up and he picked Jermaine Paul to go against Alyx. He gave them the song "Get out of my dreams, get into my car" by Billy Ocean to sing. Interesting song choice.
In rehearsals, Kelly Clarkson was Jermaine's mentor. In battle, he was very good.
In rehearsals, Alyx was mentored by Miranda Lambert. She had her confidence shaken going up against Jermaine. In battle, her vocals lacked energy.
My vote- Jermaine. Blake picked Jermaine.

Adam was next and picked Angel Taylor to go against Katrina Parker. He picked "Bleeding love" by Leona Lewis for them to sing. Great song choice.
Angel was mentored by Robin Thicke.
Katrinawas mentored by Alanis.
In battle, they both sounded great.
My vote- Angel. Adam picked Katrina.

Blake ended the night by picking Erin Willet to go against Gwen Sebastian. He chose "We belong" by Pat Benatar for them to sing.
In rehearsals, Erin was mentored by Kelly. We saw that Erin's father who we had been told was suffering from Stage 4 pancreatic cancer had taken a turn for the worse. She was very emotional of course. As was I. In battle, she sounded real good and made real nice note choices.
Gwen was mentored by Miranda. In battle, she showed a real nice tone.
My vote- Erin. Blake picked Erin. After this, as the show was closing out, we saw a photo with Erin's dad and learned that he had since passed away. Very sad. I'm all for supportive parents and he was definitely a supportive parent. I'm glad he at least got to see her make it onto the show. May he rest in peace.

Friday, March 16, 2012

Detrás de las escenas de mi video musical para "Que Sera"

Hola soñadores!

¡Ya está aquí! El video musical de "Que Sera", el primer sencillo de mi album "El Camino Espiritual".

Ayer vi la edicion final y tengo que decir que fue un momento muy emocional.

Esta canción es una canción muy personal para mí en muchos sentidos. En realidad lo escribí para una ex-compañero de mi sello discografico (Darlene) y la cancion estaba selecionada para ser su segundo sencillo. Desafortunadamente, ella y el sello se separaron antes de que eso sucedio. Sentí que la canción era demasiado buena para no ser oído en una escala más grande, así que la tomé para mi propio álbum y decidi hacerla mi primer sencillo, ya que es un buen indicador de los sentimientos que muestro en mi álbum. Esta es una canción muy triste, de una pérdida profunda. Una pérdida tan profunda que se hace tu mundo y te deja sin aliento. Es una canción muy emocional y sentí que el video tenía que representar esto. Pense en muchos conceptos diferentes para el vídeo. Fue difícil reducirlo a lo que yo quería que el video da a mostrar y representar sobre mi sentidos. Al final, me decidí por hacer un video muy sencillo y tratando de centrarse en la emoción y el dolor de la canción con tan sólo una historia sencilla.

En caso de que no lo he visto todavía, no quiero dar muchos detalles - pues ve a verlo ahora en mi canal de Youtube y luego vuelve a leer el resto de esto para que pueda tener una mejor comprensión de lo que estoy hablando. A continuación, ir a verlo una y otra vez y dile a todos tus amigos pra que ellos lo puedan ver también! ;)

Quiero que todos ustedes llegen a sus propias ideas de lo que la canción y la historia del vídeo representa a usted, pero para decirte un poco - las flores representan la belleza de lo que fue y entonces usted ve la representación visual de la angustia y la pérdida en las flores. Mis escenas en el cuarto amarillo representa el personaje de la canción desnuda y mostrando su corazón y alma como en las letras. Las escenas de el cuarto oscuro representa la oscuridad y la desesperación de las emociones que se encuentran en el coro de la cancion. Dejaré el resto de la historia para que usted pueda decidir lo que sacas de las escenas. Me encantaría escuchar sus ideas sobre lo que el video junto con la canción significa para usted así que por favor, hágamelo saber por dejando un comentario en la página del vídeo y en mi página de Facebook. Espero que le guste! :)

Behind the scenes of my "Que sera" music video

Hi dreamers!

It's finally here! The music video for "Que sera", the first single off of my "El Camino Espiritual" album.

I just saw the final cut yesterday and I must say it was an emotional moment.

This song is a very personal song to me in a lot of ways. I actually wrote it for a former label-mate (Darlene) and it was supposed to be her second single. Unfortunately, she and the label parted ways before that happened. I felt that this song was too good to not be heard on a bigger scale so I took it for my own album and decided to make it my first single as it is a good indication of the feelings I show on my album. This is a very sad song about a profound loss. A loss so deep that it takes you over and leaves you without breath. It's a very deep emotional song and I felt that the video had to represent this. I went through so many different concepts for the video. It was hard to narrow it down to what I wanted the video to show and represent. In the end, I decided on keeping it simple and trying to focus on the emotion and pain of the song with just a simple story as a backdrop.

In case you haven't seen it yet, I don't want to give away the details so go see it now on my Youtube channel and then come back to read the rest of this so you can have a better understanding of what I'm talking about. Then go see it again and again and let your friends know to go see it too!! ;)

I want you all to come up with your own ideas of what the song and video's story represents to you but to tell you a little - the flowers represent the beauty of what once was and then you see the visual representation of the heartbreak and loss on the flowers. My yellow room scenes represent the character in the song naked and baring his heart & soul in the lyrics. The dark room scenes represent the darkness and despair of the emotions being sung about. I will leave the rest of the story for you to decide what you make of it. I'd love to hear your thoughts on what the video along with the song means to you so please let me know by leaving a comment on the video's page and on my Facebook page. I hope you like it!! :)