Candice Glover gave two amazing performances tonight on “American Idol.” (Photo by Michael Becker / FOX)
By: Jacob Elyachar
Tonight, American Idol: Season 12’s Final Four duke it out once more!
The stakes have been raised tonight since no one went home last week and their votes will be transferred over into this week’s total.
Who rose to the challenge and knocked it out of the park tonight? Who crumbled from the pressure? Your American Idol recap starts…right now!
Round one saw the ladies perform songs from the 2010s and the second round saw them perform classics from the Great American Songbook. To help the ladies out this week, crooner and fan-favorite mentor Harry Connick, Jr. returned to offer his insight.
Massachusetts’ favorite daughter, Angie Miller, tackled an acoustic version of Rihanna’s “Diamonds.” While Harry was hesitant about the idea, he gave her his seal of approval after their rehearsal. This was a bold risk but unfortunately, it did not pay off. Keith did not the arrangement of the song and Nicki thought it was bland. C+
East Texas’s Amber Holcomb performed a solo rendition of P!nk and fun’s Nate Ruess’ “Give Me A Reason.” It was one of her weaker performances on the Idol but she managed to remember the words and hit only a couple of high notes. Amber had a long way to go in order to redeem herself tonight. D+
After two abysmal performances, Candice Glover officially started the competition of the night with Bruno Mars’s “When I Was Your Man.” Candice showed off her vocal range with three different vocal runs that sprinkled throughout the show. Randy stated that it was amazing, while Mariah complemented Candice on her musicality. Nicki ended the commentary by leading Randy and Keith in a three-judge standing ovation. A
Kree Harrison closed the round with a cover of Carrie Underwood’s “See You Again.” Harry Connick, Jr. personally stated during their mentor session that he would help her when it came to recording an album. While Kree (finally) established a connection with the song, it was small improvement but she bored me. B-
Angie kicked off the Standards Round with a cover on “Someone to Watch Over Me.” During her rehearsal with Harry, the movie star-crooner told her to “Don’t sing notes that do not belong in the chord.” Angie followed his advice but her performance was too pageantry to my taste. Despite being safe last week, she could be in jeopardy tomorrow night. C-
You know that you are in trouble when the mentor confronts you about not knowing the true meaning of a song. That’s what happened when Harry honestly asked Amber about the history of “My Funny Valentine.” This was Amber’s worst performance on the show because it was too cabaret. The judges were wrong in giving her a four-judge standing ovation! D
Candice is the V.I.P. of the night after she delivered a robust cover of Billie Holliday’s “You’ve Changed.” It was not only the best vocal of the night, but it was possibly the best song in the two weeks of Top 4. Mariah gave her no critique but stated that she would download the track ASAP. Hopefully, Candice will be safe tomorrow night! A+
Kree ended the round with her cover of Lena Horne’s signature song: “Stormy Weather.” Harry advised her not to the licks and runs because he deemed them unnecessary. Unfortunately, it bored audience to tears and it lead into a heated debate between Randy and Harry Connick, Jr. C-
Tomorrow night, David Cook, will.i.am and Harry Connick, Jr. take the Idol stage and someone will be sent home!
