It ain't eze to say goodbye to Chikezie

As Ryan said those final words - "Syesha, you're safe" - Chikezie Eze knew his time on the nation's most-watched television program had come to a sudden end. The 22-year-old from Inglewood, Calif., sang the Luther Vandross song "If Only For One Night" one last time before leaving the stage.

Minutes before the results were read, Simon said the reason Chikezie was in the bottom three in the first place was because he picked the wrong song. Simon was right.

America had fallen in love with Chikezie's two Beatles tunes in the past two weeks, but his reversion to the soulful ballad this week reminded the voting public of the boring performances he was known for in the semifinals.

Aside from Chikezie, audiences were treated to Kimberley Locke's return, as she performed her new single "Fall" off her sophomore album Based on a True Story. The Season 2 third-place finalist looked stunning and sounded as good as ever.

Earlier in the show, Ryan once again took calls from America in the "Idol Live" segment of the show. Most were boring with the exception of a call from Vanessa, who asked Simon if he considered himself the most attractive person on the show.

"It's not what I say, it's what other people say," he replied, prompting Paula and Randy to shake their heads and laugh. Paula said she had now heard it all from Simon.

As for the two other finalists that found themselves in the bottom 3, one deserved it while the other did not. Syesha Mercado was one of the better vocalists on Tuesday, and she most definitely did not belong in the bottom 2. In her place should have been Ramiele Malubay, who was probably the weakest female this week. Jason Castro's placement was right on the money and he merited his spot based on his boring delivery of Sting's "Fragile."

This week, Kristy Lee Cook managed to deliver in a big way on a powerful song, which she absolutely needed to do in order to stay in the competition. With Dolly Parton mentoring next week, it looks like she might be around for a while.