Flashback: Kelly Clarkson's "A Moment Like This"

As we look ahead to Wednesday's grand finale for Idol's ninth season, it only makes sense to revisit the finale that gave this show a reason to continue. Kelly Clarkson was never the front runner to take the title on the first season of the show until her main rival, Tamyra Gray, was sent home in the first shocker of the series during Top 4 results night.

Kelly proved she had exactly what it took to become the American Idol, and her crowning moment and performance of "A Moment Like This" were extremely memorable. Relive the moment below:

This moment still gives me chills. Kelly's quips of excitement throughout the performance showed just why she won, because she won over America with not only her outstanding vocals but her personality and stage presence as well. No matter who wins on Wednesday, this will always be the most moving winning moment in Idol history.

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Poll of the week: Arch is the #1 No. 2

Keeping with the theme of Season 7's domination, David Archuleta's fans propelled him to a victory in IDOL LIVE's poll of the week champion series for the runner-up portion of the competition.

In fact, "competition" is not the right word to describe this week's voting round, as Arch netted 421 votes, or 89% of all votes cast in the poll. This figure was a little unexpected, and puts the 22 measly votes (4%) Adam Lambert received in the "whimpy" category.

No other contestant deserves a mention in looking at the results, as three took in 1% each and three failed to garner more than four votes. It is worth mentioning, however, that Arch will make one more appearance in the champion poll series of 2009, as he will be back in the finals beginning next Wednesday when we decide who will be the champion of all Idol finalists for the year.

In the last week before the final round of the champion series poll begins, the next installment asks readers which winner is their favorite of all eight seasons. Voting will be open for exactly one week.

Justin Guarini 3 (0%)
Clay Aiken 5 (1%)
Diana DeGarmo 3 (0%)
Bo Bice 4 (0%)
Katharine McPhee 9 (1%)
Blake Lewis 6 (1%)
David Archuleta 421 (89%)
Adam Lambert 22 (4%)

Total votes: 473

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IDOL LIVE Blog: Season 8 Finale (5/20/09)

After last night's exhilarating performances, it's all down to the results. Who did American voters decide was worthy of the title of winner of Idol's eighth season? You'll have to tune in tonight at 8 p.m. ET for the special two-hour finale in what promises to deliver huge surprises. Also, be forewarned that comments will only be published during commercial breaks to provide for the most enjoyable live blog experience possible.

Once again, tonight's blogcast will feature music from Adam Lambert and Kris Allen.

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IDOL LIVE predix: Season 8 Winner

After this long, hard slog through the murky waters that were Idol's eighth season, we have finally reached the finish line. And might I add, it could not have come soon enough.

What we are left with are two very different contestants, one that has delivered much talked about performances consistently week after week and one that has grown a little bit as a performer and has evolved into an artist over the course of the past few months. Picking a champion between these two is like placing your hand into a bag with one purple rock and one yellow rock, and whichever one you pull out is victorious. It's 50/50, and really either of them could come away with the title tonight.

But I'm going to be as brave as the next guy and put my two cents in for whom I think will walk away as the next American Idol. Here it goes:

Winner
>Kris

There, that's over with. What makes me think that Kris will defy all logic and swipe the title from Adam is pretty simple thinking, and maybe it would only work in an ideal world, but it's worth a shot. I think Kris represents the original intention of Idol, going back to the days of a small town waitress from Burleson, Tex., named Kelly Clarkson. This show is about finding undiscovered talent and watching an individual transform and step into shoes of a more seasoned performer over the course of the show, and that is exactly what Kris is the embodiment of.

Adam is an undeniably talented performer, and has a command of the stage that might possibly be unprecedented on this show. But he finished the season just as he started it, and never really grew at all. That said, it would not be a problem if Adam wins and he would probably do a good job representing the Idol brand, but he would be better off in the long run if he did not have the Idol tag joined to his hip for the rest of his career.

Kris also seems like more of the traditional winning type, and has broad appeal. His style of music is in at the moment and is more marketable than Adam is, which is probably running through the minds of TPTB and even the judges. Plus, if one of the two finalists had to be stuck with Kara's awful "No Boundaries," Kris might as well take on the duty since his vocals are better suited for it.

Regardless of what happens, it has been an interesting ride this season. This finale was not my favorite by a mile, and neither was the season, but I will leave that commentary until after a winner is crowned tonight.

As for my prediction history, I originally had Danny taking the top prize in my pre-Top 13 predictions, which I admit was a good guess, but not good enough.

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About tonight: Kara's song the sabotager!

Tonight's finale was set to be a one-sided wipe-out, and although it may not have been as clear cut as expectations had us all believe, it was still a wipe-out based on the judges' comments. The three songs per finalists thing must have not really been a big hit with Adam and Kris, as it seemed like the two of them ran out of gas near the end of the show.

But who can be blamed for that? No one but Ms. Kara DioGuardi. Her co-penned coronation cheese-fest "No Boundaries" was set in a key so foreign to the two contenders that each of their takes on it came off sounding like two amateurs were attempting to sing something they just overheard someone playing in a cheap bar.

Adam took on the song first, which would have showed he was pretty brave had he not been required to do the duty before Kris. The result was something that was not very pretty. Adam was off pitch a couple of times, just as Randy noted, and his theatrical style just sounded all wrong on the poppy track about mountains and hurricanes and whatnot. In fact, it would probably be best for him not to win if only for the sake of his credibility not being damaged. But on the other hand, David Cook survived the blunderful "magic rainbow" line in "The Time of My Life," so anything can happen.

Kris took the same approach, as they were barred from playing instruments during the final performance. This left him virtually naked and a little uncomfortable, as he had to grapple with the high key and used the mic as his crutch to prevent any nervousness from seeping out. That did not really work, though, and in addition to slipping up on the lyrics for a half-second, his voice just sounded like it was giving out at times. Still, this faltering was nothing compared to Blake Lewis' surrendering back on Season 6 when he was given "This Is My Now" as his final song. As the judges noted, "No Boundaries" was probably fit more for Kris' vocal style, but he may or may not be able to call the song his own depending on how tomorrow's results go.

The judges were easy on the song itself, with even Simon stating that he would ignore the song and focus just on the individuals as vocalists during the show. This was all to spare Kara any embarrassment that is usually directed toward the writer(s) of the coronation tracks. But even Kara said something in a "yea yeah" sarcastic tone when Simon mentioned the "mountains" part of the lyrics, so she must agree that it did not work all that well on the two of them.

I will go into detail with my thoughts on the song following this post, so be sure to look for it (I promise I won't disappoint).

As for the two thirds of the show that didn't suck, it was pretty evenly split. Adam opened the show with a bang when he re-did "Mad World" in Broadway garb that would make any character from the Great White Way proud. The fog machine (or dry ice? as Adam said following his performance) was probably the thing that sent the performance over the edge into the category of ridiculousness, as Simon made sure he got in a word about. Vocally, it was strong, perhaps on par with his version back on Top 8 night but must likely not equally matched.

Simon Fuller's choice, on the other hand, was the most awkward, unfit song for Adam to sing that it sucked out any momentum that he gained from the first round, no matter what Simon said about him being "a million times better" than Kris in the second round. Although Adam sang the song well, the fact that he was tasked with finding a more soulful sound deep within the layers of his signature style kind of resulted in an odd final product. Still, the judges loved what he came up with, as Kara applauded him for finding his own interpretation of the song and Paula went as far to say that it was the best she had ever heard him sing on the show.

Kris, on the other hand, had the best performance of the night with his reprise of "Ain't No Sunshine." It's just too bad, as Simon pointed out at the end of the show, that Kris had to waste his best showing at the beginning of the night. The fact that he tried it out on the piano showed that he really is a true artist and is very versatile with playing instruments while performing. He was able to show his softest side on "Sunshine" and won praise from the judges,hearing everything from "awakening spirits in all of us" courtesy of Paula to "creating an intimate bond with the audience" from Kara. Simon was more effective in his turnaround in which he said Kris deserved to be in the finals after the performance.

On the Fuller choice of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On," however, he lost a little bit of his luster. The vocal was raw and very Jason Mraz-y, which was good, but Randy and Simon had a point when they said it was a little "light" for the finale. Acoustic is great, and works extremely well on the much smaller Idol studio stage, but in the Nokia Theatre it gets a little lost in the air. And once again, Simon was right on the money when he compared it to something that could be heard in a bedroom with three friends just playing around on the guitar (where does he come up with these comparisons?).

Fortunately for us, Carrie Underwood was there to sing us out in what was probably the most exciting (and best) performance of the night when she took on this season's goodbye song "Home Sweet Home." She looked as good as ever and sounded pretty strong.

And for a few bragging rights, Adam and Kris did take my advice into consideration by picking "Mad World" and "Ain't No Sunshine" for their encores, respectively, so that was good to know.

So when all was said and done, this finale performance episode definitely ranks among the lower rungs of the finales when compared with the past seven seasons, as the excitement factor just did not live up to expectations. Still, whoever wins tomorrow night will have a lot to live up to and he better get to making "No Boundaries" work with his voice, because the song is not going away.

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IDOL LIVE Blog: Top 2 Perform (5/19/09)

Tonight we document the three rounds of Adam's and Kris' big sing-off for the eighth title of American Idol. The stage is set for a light vs. dark, good vs. evil, country boy vs. broadway star face-off, and the producers surely know how to plan every single event in a way that will result in heightened drama. Add to this the fact that Carrie Underwood will perform "Home Sweet Home" at the end of the night, and we have us a show. As usual, the blogcast will begin at 8 p.m. ET and will last one hour. Voting will last four hours, so get ready to pull an all-nighter!

Tonight's blogcast will feature music from none other than Adam Lambert and Kris Allen.

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Flashback: David Cook's "The World I Know"

Last year's lopsided finale results were very unexpected based on the way the previous night's performances went. Both David Cook and David Archuleta were competitive and sang for their lives, with Simon famously declaring Arch to have delivered "a knockout" by night's end. This left an impression on many viewers that "the chosen one" would in fact be named the winner the next name.

But it was Cook who delivered the most sentimental performance of the night in Collective Soul's "The World I Know," which allowed him to strike an emotional chord with voters. Watch the moment below:

This performance was the ideal way to close out Cook's competitive performances on the show, as it substituted his usual rock edge for a softer, more meaningful tone, and it resulted in a beautiful and memorable moment. Even though he did not end the show, it was already decided in voters' minds that Cook would be crowned the seventh season's victor just 25 hours later.

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Kris wins coin toss, chooses to perform second

We could be in for a huge Cinderella story if history repeats itself. It was revealed that Kris won the coin toss, and elected to perform in the "coveted and historically friendly to eventual winners" second spot. People.com's TV Watch blog broke the story:

After the broadcast, a coin toss determined the order of performances for next week’s finale. Kris won the toss — and Adam will sing first.

The performance order for the past seven seasons has been:

Season 1: Justin, Kelly
Season 2: Ruben, Clay
Season 3: Diana, Fantasia
Season 4: Bo, Carrie
Season 5: Katharine, Taylor
Season 6: Blake, Jordin
Season 7: David C., David A.

Now, it's not like this is a huge deciding factor, but it could be the straw that breaks the camel's back in favor of Kris.

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No surprises: finale recap and analysis

Although it seems the entire press was shocked upon hearing the revelation that David Cook had defeated David Archuleta at last night's Season 7 finale, I try not to sound cocky when I say I had it right all along. What needs to be acknowledged here is that this competition is a marathon, not a sprint.

First, let's analyze the results.

Although the online fanbases do not always reflect the general public's demographics, the online polls at various outlets all seemed to be going in Cook's favor throughout the duration of the Top 12, and an even better indicator was how he was able to sell his downloads. Remember back to "Billie Jean"? Despite the fact that none of the Idol studio versions were allowed to show up on the official iTunes charts, the popularity bars in comparison to the then-#1 song, Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body," were astoundingly higher when viewed through the loophole iTunes had.

For a song to be selling that much, you know the people buying it are invested fans, and voting is free, while buying the song on iTunes is not. So you do the math.

And then, of course, Simon and his infamous "subtle wink" at Cook after giving him a rather harsh criticism of his third performance sealed the deal. At the finale last night, Simon apologized to Cook for "verging on being disrespectful" with his comments, and on the red carpet minutes before the broadcast began last night, Simon had taken back his declaration that Arch delivered "a knockout."

Regardless of what he'll admit to, Simon was more likely than not using his signature reverse psychology with Cook to rile up his fans and give him the surefire victory. But by 12 million out of 97.5 million votes? A 56-44% split? That seems a bit of a landslide, which no one would have expected. One good thing to know is that DialIdol.com was more accurate than ever at this finale, as the two Davids were separated by 12 points in their results, too.

As for his reaction to hearing the good news, Cook was overwhelmed with emotion and had to walk it off, but he recovered very nicely and was spot on in his performance of "The Time of My Life." I'll admit, it was hard to keep a straight face hearing him sing about "magic rainbows," but he gets all the slack cut in the world because Idol fans know the coronation songs are about nothing but sugar and cheese. It was great to see everyone surrounding him and supporting him at the end, and even Arch seemed all smiles.

As for the show itself, it was better than last year's, but not as good as some of the finales from seasons past. The performances that stood out for me were the duet of "The Letter" by Michael Johns and Carly Smithson, Arch's duet on "Apologize" with OneRepublic and Carrie Underwood's performance of "Last Name."

With Michael and Carly, the two of them had so much chemistry during the performance, and the way they acted it out, it made it even more special. I had picked them to be the Top 2 at the beginning of the season and they sure looked like a Top 2 last night. With Arch and OneRepublic, I thought Arch outsang lead singer Ryan Tedder by a mile and a half, and I kind of wish he had performed it on Top 3 night rather than "With You." And then Carrie's performance was (in the words of one Randy Jackson) blazin', molten hot! She looked beautiful in her short white dress and sounded better than she ever has on that song.

Some other good performances were Cook's duet of "Sharp Dressed Man" with ZZ Top, during which he showed his true rocker cred, and Brooke White's duet with Graham Nash on "Teach Your Children," which was touching to say the least. Jason Castro's reprise of "Hallelujah" was another treat, though it lacked the magic that his first performance had. And George Michael's performance of "Praying For Time," although a little too long, was very moving considering the atmosphere of the ominous, dimly-lit Nokia Theatre.

Some letdowns were the Jonas Brothers (big surprise), the hologram performance of Gladys Knight singing "Midnight Train to Georgia" with Ben Stiller, Jack Black and Iron Man himself - Robert Downey, Jr. and (as much as I love her) even Jordin Sparks' performance of her new single, "One Step At a Time." I also thought Syesha Mercado would have been better off singing "Waiting For You" without Seal, but that would have taken away the cool factor, so it is what it is. And then the Top 6/12 numbers with Bryan Adams and Donna Summer were kind of nice, but nothing special. It was great to see all 12 of them on stage together again, though.

And like all finales, it would not have been the same without a visit down memory lane to look at the trash that were bad auditions, taken out long ago and forgotten about until now. The "let my peebul gohhhhh" guy and the "frosty mountain" guy were classic, but of course it was Renaldo Lapuz who finally got a golden ticket to Hollywood, albeit not the one he was expecting, and landed a prime performing spot at the finale. He belted out "We're Brothers Forever" accompanied by a marching band and cheerleading squad (I knew we would be seeing more of him for the finale as soon as his audition aired). And surprisingly, there was no sign of Josiah Lemming, the famous British-sounding, car-inhabiting 18-year-old who just missed out on a spot in the Top 24.

So all in all, this was a pretty good finale to end an above average season, but there are still many problems that need to be worked out. This season will be remembered for many things, among them the issue of having "plants" as contestants, the legitimacy of the judges' comments thanks to Paulagate, and a continuing slide in the ratings. Yes, there were many great moments that came out of this season, including memorable performances from many of the contestants ("Billie Jean," "Angels," "It's All Wrong, But It's All Right," "Here You Come Again," "Hallelujah," "Imagine," "Always be My Baby," the list goes on...), Simon's "WTF face" during Fantasia's performance and the many great Idol alums' performances.

So no matter what, this season will be remembered infinitely more than Season 6. Now the question is, will this season's batch of finalists be able to hold onto solid careers, or will they suffer "flash in the pan"-itis? It's way too early to tell, but it looks like David Cook will for sure be a bona fide star. Thanks America, for getting it right.

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IDOL LIVE Blog - Season 7 Finale (5/21/08)

At long last, the end is here. Tonight we blog during the seventh season's two-hour grand finale at 8 p.m. ET, which will be held at the Nokia Theatre and will feature countless special guest performers, Idol alumni and surprise collaborations. Which David will win? There's only one way to find out, so please follow along!



David Cook, "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Cook, "Eleanor Rigby (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Cook, "The Music of the Night (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Cook, "Innocent (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Archuleta, "Smoky Mountain Memories (Studio Version) - download on iTunes
David Archuleta, "Longer (Studio Version) - download on iTunes
David Archuleta, "Sweet Caroline (Studio Version) - download on iTunes
David Archuleta, "Think of Me (Studio Version) - download on iTunes

Top 2 Week Poll Results - Favorite Remaining Finalists

David Archuleta - 167 (40%)
David Cook - 245 (59%)

Total votes: 412

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Both Davids impress with final performances

In an epic battle of the ages, 17-year-old David Archuleta and 25-year-old David Cook took to the Nokia Theatre stage and delivered stunning performances. Going into the night it was anyone's game, but there were certain events that took place during the broadcast that swayed the momentum in one person's favor.

Just an aside: the theatre was too big and there was no excitement compared to past finales. It was too dark and dull, plus the stage was overwhelming.

Beginning with the cheesy and childish mock boxing introduction complete with Michael Buffer serving as the emcee, we knew the show was off to a rocky start. Especially when Arch was introduced as weighing "100 lbs. when soaking wet." Yes it was a joke, but please.

Once all the seriousness began, things seemed to get back on the ground. Clive Davis the crypt keeper was there in all his glory, despite being demoted over at Sony BMG earlier this year. And Andrew Lloyd Webber made an appearance, seeming that he cannot get enough of this show. The two helped coach the Davids in their song choices, which amounted to just fluff. If they do not know how to perform by now, they are not fit to be the next idol.

So after a long, drawn-out montage we finally get something noteworthy, as Cook kicks off the show with Clive's choice for him, U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." Although upon hearing he would be doing this song days ago it sounded like a sure thing and would fit his voice perfectly, it did not sound special at all. It was virtually a straight-up rock cover of the song, which Cook is not always amazing at. Randy seemed pretty impressed, and said it was a "great way to start off this duel of 2007." He brought up the fact that they were competing for the "King of the Nokia" for the first time of the night, but definitely not the last. Right. Paula was a little more creative, even though her "You may not have found what you're looking for but we sure have" comment was scripted to the core. She said Cook had arrived and said "Amen" three times. And then Simon even cut him some slack when he said the performance was "phenomenal" despite the fact that he was tense.

But as soon as Cook left the stage, Arch took to it and belted out Clive's choice of "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me." The much overdone song sounded great coming from him, and is completely the right genre of music for him to be pursuing. Suddenly Clive's crazy song choice seems alright. Aside from the vocals, Arch incorporated his annoying arm-stretching, but it did not take away too much from the overall performance. Randy went above and beyond with his syrupy praise of Arch, calling the performance "molten hot" and his vocals "crazy" among other things. He was so blown away, in fact, that he kept repeating "crazy" even as Paula was giving her own critique, which was another unoriginal "The sun is never gonna go down on you' kind of thing. She did say she got chills, though, so that probably was not in the script. Simon declared Arch the winner of round one, saying the performance was his best so far.

So after getting Clive's songs out of the way, Cook retook the stage and delivered a rocked up version of Emily Shackleton's "Dream Big," which he chose from the top 10 vote-getters in the AI songwriting competition. The song completely fit his style, but the cheesy as ever lyrics anchored it down. It also did not feel like a "winning" performance. Randy let everyone know that the song was "just ok" but Cook "sang his face off." Paula was just mesmerized and sat in awe of him, and Simon gave the performance a "6.5 out of 10," using the boxing analogy to say it was "a bit of a lightweight" and "didn't sound like a winning moment."

When it was Arch's turn, he took on "In This Moment," which was even cheesier than Cook's choice, but to his credit it actually sounded like an Idol song. He was able to hit the high note while the song;s lyrics were fairly inspirational and sugary. Randy again was not crazy about the song but pulled out one of his five usual compliments in telling him he could "sing the phone book" and that he was "in the zone." Paula told him some more bland statements in saying the performance had "magic" and that was why he was in the final two. Simon again said Arch was in fact the winner of round two, claiming he chose the better song and it fit the night better, and saying he liked the "egotistical lyrics.' You would, Simon.

As for the contestants' choices in round three, Cook finished out his performances with Collective Soul's "The World I Know," which everyone could see had some meaningful connection to him. It started off acoustic but then the band came in and he even showed off some of his rare falsetto. Upon finishing, Cook started to tear up, which added even more fuel to the audience's fire of applause and cheering. Paula gave him a standing ovation. Randy said he did a very nice job and that this was the kind of record he could see him releasing. Paula again stood and applauded him, saying he was "standing in his truth" and that he delivered performances "with integrity and originality." Simon started his comments off by calling Cook one of the nicest, most genuine contestants they had ever had on the show, but brought spirits down when he told him he should have sung "Billie Jean" again and that his choice was "completely and utterly the wrong one."

So then Arch came out and took on his most memorable performance in "Imagine," again starting at the second verse and not changing the arrangement up from hi earlier performance. His vocals were no better than either of his two prior performances that night, but the mood seemed perfect, and that he had a "winner's moment" with the song. Randy said the best singer of Season 7 was "standing right there!" and that he was what this show is all about. Paula basically echoed Randy's comment, adding that he "left her speechless." And Simon, who had been praising Cook on every show he was on promoting the finale (mainly Leno and Ellen), said that Arch came out to win, and that the audience had witnessed "a knockout," and once again declared that round three in fact went to him. Arch did his best to hold back tears, and definitely seemed like he realized he had just won.

Following the final performance, Ruben Studdard moseyed out to sing this season's "Bad Day" and "Home" in "Celebrate Me Home," set to a montage of some of this season's most memorable moments.

Despite what would seem to be an unequivocal blowout in an Arch's favor, this is far from the case. Simon's one mistake in trying not to cover up his "grand plan" was giving Cook a "secret wink" after he gave his final critique. Translation: Simon was being extra hard on Cook because he knew it would stir up the fans and get them to vote even harder. All week the odds were heavily in favor of Cook winning, and in order to keep the stars aligned, this was his weapon of choice. So now no one should be surprised when Cook is crowned the winner tonight, but legions of casual viewers will surely be shocked. Either way, they both should be fine no matter what, but Cook's emotions and Simon's technique were enough to give him the win.

Now off to tonight's supersized finale, which will hopefully not (but most likely will) feature hologram duets with dead singers. At least Carrie will be there to save the show.

Prediction:
Winner: David C.

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IDOL LIVE Blog - Top 2 Perform (5/20/08)

Tonight we blog during the final performance show of the season when the Top 2 perform a coronation song selected from the Top 10 vote-getters from the songwriting competition, a new song/reprise, and a song selected by Clive Davis. Who will strike a chord with viewers? Which David will steal the show? There's only one way to find out, so be sure to spread the word that IDOL LIVE is the best place to get a live play-by-play of tonight's action!



David Archuleta, "Angels (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Archuleta, "When You Believe (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Cook, "Billie Jean (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
David Cook, "Always Be My Baby (Studio Version)" - download on iTunes
Ruben Studdard, "Celebrate Me Home" - download on iTunes

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