After a night packed full of show-stopping performances by several contestants, which included a standing ovation for Adam Lambert by Simon Cowell, there was little doubt that Scott MacIntyre and Lil Rounds would be in the bottom three for tonight’s elimination. Scott and Lil gave performances that were highly criticized by all four judges and seemed to have given some breathing room to the likes of Anoop Desai and Matt Giraud, who had been losing momentum over the past couple of weeks.
The evening was highlighted with performances by Frankie Avalon, Flo Rida and Season 5 finalist Kellie Pickler. The contestants rounded the performances out with a group effort of “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” by Kylie Minogue.
Joining Scott and Lil in the bottom three is Anoop Desai. And at the end of the night, losing by only 30,000 votes, Scott MacIntyre is announced as the latest elimination from American Idol Season 8. After nerve-racking deliberation, the judges opt not to save him.
Scott is the 23-year-old crooner who is known for his piano skills and his triumph over his visual impairment. He is from Scottsdale, Ariz.
22 Comments
Can we stop the group songs…they get worse every week. First they lip synch them, and that didn’t work. So they try to tape it, and that didn’t work. So they go live and that just made it worse. So save us all, and just end the group songs.
Well, the highlight of my night was seeing Frankie Avalon sing. And, I started crying when Scott sang his last song. I’m blaming that on Paula’s tears (and the wine in my hand). I know, he wasn’t a great singer and most people didn’t like him and some people on various forums have been quite mean-spirited about him getting special treatment because he is blind and making fun of his hair and clothes (like he can SEE what he looks like and WATCHES music videos to see what is the hottest look).
I’m not a rap fan and cannot even remember that guys name now (Flo Bandy?) . Kelly Pickler sings that song better on the video and I hate it when women contestants oome back and make over Simon but its nice to see her having success. Right now I’m mad at Simon anyway. Don’t know why he had to take one more shot at Megan. Let that dog die, Simon, neither of you came out well on that little tit for tat last week.
The rumor is that next week’s theme is Disney songs. Has Mary J. Blige sung Disney? If not, I foresee Lil in the bottom 3 again.
I’m happy Scott got voted off. It was his time.
Idol got it right tonight by ousting Scott, but I did want to say that when he sang the song tonight he sang it much better than last night! Still it was his time to go, though I will venture a guess that he will make it in the music industry somehow, somewhere. I really didn’t think there was any preferential treatment of Scott by A.I. But someone is always going to complain about something! That is one of the reasons I stopped reading the A.I. official website a couple of years ago, mainly because of all the hateful things people said about the contestants.
I would like to add a comment about how in the heck could Anoop been one of the bottom 3 this week? He did really well. Surely he must be getting even more frustrated than Lil.
I kind of wanted Lil to go before Scott, but that’s okay. Poor Lil took such a beating by the judges this week that she might have secretly wished her time was up too.
At this point every contestant who gets eliminated will be very talented and hard to say good-bye to.
And I want to make a comment about Adam. What, really, is he doing on American Idol? Why did he choose to do this competition? He didn’t need it. Don’t you really think he could have a huge career without this show? He’s so polished and professional. He doesn’t seem to care when he’s “safe” another week, like “oh, yeah, I expected that”. No humility or really, any emotion beyond a smug smile. Kind of plastic. While the other contestants are clinging to the hope that they’ll make it another week, he just doesn’t seem to care. Kind of makes me wonder how he’ll react when he wins. Because, you know, he will win. And I guess that’s okay, he really is the best talent in the competition.
Monica, you weren’t the only one with tears last night (and wine)! I thought Paula’s remarks were very kind and heartfelt. Sounded sincere anyway.
It was definately past time for Scott to go. My fav is still Matt, with Allison coming in second. I know most of you like Adam, but I just don’t think he is that great, and detest his attitude and smugness. I don’t care for rap so was happy to FF through that performance, and unfortunately I thought Kellie Pickler was out of tune through about half of that song. I wonder was her monitor working and if she could even hear herself. It was not good…. I’m ready for next week….where I assume Lil will probably go. It will no longer be easy to pick who will go each week, as all that remain are very good in their own way. Now is when it truly gets interesting.
Oh, and yes, I agree – the group songs can go away too.
Scott leaving was exactly what should have happened last night – I completely agree the judges should not have used the save. The save should be used on someone who actually has a shot at winning the whole thing.
While I don’t think special consideration was given to him, it was certainly more work — for the choreographers and other contestants. I give props to them for the assistance – a well-placed hand on the back or elbow that was hardly noticeable but which enabled Scott to participate in the choreography. When Idols go on tour, there will certainly be more work involved when considering the special needs.
I’m hoping the remaining contestants pick up their game — great singing is what I’m in this for, regardless of who wins.
Sadly, it was Scott’s turn to go and if Lil doesn’t get her act together by next week, she may be the next one going Home Sweet Home. Oh my – Frankie Avalon was a huge surprise. I remember the Beach Party days.
Agree on the seemingly universal desire to see the group songs go. Reminds me of the Brady Bunch episode when they sang “Sunshine Day”! Cheeesy!
And yeah, it was Scott’s time to go. I really liked him, but the truth is that this competition wasn’t really the right place for him. He’s a talented guy who could have a following just by sitting behind the piano and singing, everything else he did seemed contrived, forced and uncomfortable.
Sometimes I don’t get it when the judges say that one of the contestants isn’t being “true to themselves”, but I sure get it when they talk about Lil. She was so cool in the beginning, talented, excited, sassy and real. Now, she seems like she’s just trying so hard to please that it makes me squirm. I guess when you’re up against someone like Adam, you feel like you have to blow it out of the water, but she’s fallen flat each and every time. I think she needs to go next week or else she’ll have dug herself too deep a hole to be able to establish any kind of identity post-Idol. She’ll lose the rep of being genuine.
Matt is doing OK, but he’s so nervous, got the too eager puppy thing going, and I always think he’s about to cry or run every time they critique him.
Danny hasn’t seemed to have grown any during this competition, just more of the same, he’s good and he was my early favorite, but he’s kind of plateaued out.He’s got to do something different to show, as Kara puts it , his “artistry”.
Kris is the real surprise of the season, quietly moving up in the pack, and the real reason for that is because he’s doing just what he needs to do, be himself. He’s a shy, self deprecating low key talented guy, and he’s not trying to be this dynamic
high energy performer.
Anoop did his best this past week. It was a good choice and he didn’t do the forced high energy thing either. He just looks goofy when he tries to be “cool”. He’s a preppy college student. Go with the image Anoop, and leave the dance moves to Timberlake.
Loving me some Allison! I disagree with Simon (and I usually don’t!) when he said she needed to show more of her personality to the public. I think she’s being herself, she’s 16, full of spunk, and yet so polished and talented. Got a voice that can do anything. She’s destined for a great career regardless of the outcome of this competition.
And Adam. Oh Adam. The pro of the bunch. So comfortable with who he is, and it shows. Reminds me of Freddie Mercury or an early Bowie. I wasn’t a full fledged Adam fan until this week, his performance was almost hypnotic. I read that he wants a career in musical theater, pretty sure he’s got that baby in the bag! It was amazing how he could sit still, so still, and be so mesmerizing that I couldn’t take my eyes off of him.
I predict next week will be Lil (unless she gets her act together quickly) or Anoop.
hawkmama, it is sad that American Idol is so much bigger than a reality show. It is a juggernaut in the music industry and there really aren’t many vehicles for artists to get noticed anymore. Last week Andrew Lloyd Weber addressed the House of Commons about the music industry and stated the Beatles wouldn’t have a shot at getting noticed today. There is fantastic music out there but we really have to look for it.
Swim Mom, Ben Folds was fantastic as always! He’s playing 5/28 in Tulsa and 5/30 in KC and I hope you can make one of his shows, you won’t regret it!
It was Scott’s turn. C’est la vie.
Kelly Pickler was awful…she sings worse than any singer I’ve seen on the show this season…she was SO off key. I can’t wait to see ANOOP leave – which I hope is next week – his true colors came out last week – and honestly – even though megan was rude last week, too — I thought he was worse. Scott isn’t the best of the group, but I still was sad to see him go…Lil or Anoop should be gone next week.
Wow !! I love the fact we all can have our opinions. Here’s mine.. I’m an Idol Fan to the Core, have been since the day it started 7 years ago. Anyhoo… The group songs are the best, they give me tears.. AS for Scott he is a wonderful singer and since they are all in the top 10 they all will go far in their musical careers as long as they so desire and are dedicated.. It only gets better each year and the show has some of the best contestants yet.. Flo Rider Rocked the House last nite.. That’s all Folks.. !!!
I saw a bit of Idol Extra on the net. If they ever mentioned this, I forgot it. Scott started college at age 14 and graduated at age 19 before studying under a Fulbright Scholarship in London for 2 years. His training was classical. He’s written dozens of songs. If anyone has the work ethic and passion to make it in this business he does.
I’m hoping this opens the door to his songwriting career even if he doesn’t make it as a recording artist.
I’m not sure if people are reacting to what I said about Scott on yesterday’s blog, but perhaps in my egocentrism, I’m thinking that comment was aimed at my post. I’d like to clarify, and I think I may have a finger on the pulse of others who felt the same way. The judges, save for Simon on occasion, had a really time being honest with Scott about his performances. Yes, Scott has denied his visual disability from controlling what he does. This is very admirable, but it doesn’t justify his making it this far into the competition when other singers possibly have more talent. I found it discriminatory, albeit subtle and not mean-spirited, that due to Scott’s visual impairment, the judges took it easy on him. Perhaps it was due to the fact that he’s just a really, really nice guy, but his disability kept coming up, even when Paula said he was so good that his visual impairment wasn’t noticed…which means exactly the opposite. Last thought. Scott does have an incredibly inspiring personal story, but I can’t imagine buying his record over the contestants that are there now. I think we sometimes get caught up in the visual entertainment of the show (which is important..don’t get me wrong) over the actual auditory entertainment that the contestants’ singing provides.
Why does AI keep bringing Kelly Pickler back?? That performance embarrassed me for her. She’s cute and has a good personality, I guess, but that doesn’t make her a good singer or entertainer. I thought the singer who had the duet with Flo Rida was bad, but then Pickler made her sound like she had perfect pitch.
AMEN all you sistas and bruthas about ditching the group song. It’s painful, corny, and poorly done. It’s like having to sit with Grandma watching old Laurence Welk variety shows on PBS, but at least that was somewhat current for that time period. Awkward! I actually FF through the group song and Ford commercial stuff.
This brings me to my final point. How can the judges continue to tell contestants to be themselves and current when most weeks have a limited song choice, and they are forced to do these ridiculous group songs. Phil…can I get a witness? I think you’ve mentioned this before, but wasn’t the group song painful for you?
I hope they ditch the judges save next season. It is painful to watch the contestants singing while the judges are right in front of them debating their fate. So far, it looks like they blew it in not using the save for Alexis Grace. She deserved to be in the top 10. She had far more talent than Megan. I just never got what was so great about her warbling. I don’t see them using the save for Anoop or Lil and they are the next two to go.
I know Scott wasn’t going to win the whole shabang…but I was in tears at his performance last night because it WAS actually better than the previous nights because it was without the guitar. He isn’t the greatest singer, but he can sing and he sings from the heart which is more than most vocalists do. Lil is really tiring me out because there is not anything special about her voice…she is a great karaoke singer.
Scott best wishes to you, you sing from the heart and put your heart in to your singing.
Jerry,
I have to disagree with you on this statement “there really aren’t many vehicles for artists to get noticed anymore”. Right now, with the advantages of the internet, there’s never been a BETTER time to be an aspiring musician. My kids have heard so many new songs/singers/bands through the internet grapevine. Myspace, youtube, IMs to name just a few. CD’s cost pennies to burn, there are more shows being done in smaller, all age venues, singers can sell their own CD’s without going through a label. Studio rental fees are a lot more reasonable than back in the day. And as for marketing, there are bands that tour, stay in fan’s houses, and have locals distribute flyers and put the word out on Facebook or Myspace that they’re coming to town. It’s just a different venue, but getting the word out is a lot easier than it was even 15 years ago.
Shelly,
While I agree with your post, we are talking 2 distinct levels of exposure. The exposure you speak of is to a limited audience (see David Cook, Daughtry prior to Idol, Rascal Flatts) and not mainstream. Mainstream exposure is pretty rare these days, which is why you see more and more artists trying to hook up with television (Grey’s Anatomy, Chuck, etc), movies and commericials to get their message out. If and when they do get that mainstream exposure everyone bootlegs the copies and the monies don’t end up with the artists. Groups don’t grow to a bigger audience and hence Wichita is sitting here without concerts. There should be decent concerts here weekly under your scenario.
Idol controls a large portion of mainstream, way too much in my opinion. Which is why it’s bigger than just a reality show.
Jerry,
I understand your point, and American Idol is definitely a monster when it comes to exposure. But when I really think about how I got to know singers/bands/musicians “back in the day”, the exposure was through radio play, SNL, MTV, and lastly local word of mouth. I’m from New Jersey, and the shore locales were a hotbed of great bands, but with the exception of Springsteen and to a lesser extent Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, most didn’t get exposure past the Mid-Atlantic.
I know Colby Calais is only one singer who made it mega big through Myspace. There is a great website, http://www.aurgasm.com (sounds kinky, but it’s not!) that showcases really great indie singers.My kids have downloaded tons of music from that site. Also Pandora.com is a personalized radio station that gives you an opportunity to hear music customized to your tastes.
I agree with you that AI may have too much influence in some ways, but I see it as more of a musical Super Bowl than a true indicator of who will succeed in the business. While a number of talented people have gotten their start from Idol, so many haven’t taken advantage of their opportunity. With the plethora of opportunities to hear new music, at least for the internet savvy, I think traditional means will go the way of network TV soon. Less influence, fewer customers.
Guess I’m just rambling now!
Anyway, I enjoy your perspective.
And I certainly enjoy your perspective as well!