‘American Idol XIII’ top 12 rankings: Jessica Meuse battles Sam Woolf, Alex Preston for #1

When we were at this point last week trying to figure out our “American Idol” top 13 rankings, we did so feeling pretty strongly that the first artist eliminated was going to be Kristen O’Connor. It was no real offense to her, but she was ignored mostly by the editors, and her performances were not strong enough to make up for that.

Now that we’re at the top 12, things get a little more interesting. There was nothing about the bottom three this past week that made us feel like the other two singers were necessarily going to be there again next week, and that makes ranking so much harder this time around.

We’re still considering past results one of our main factors for the rankings, along with performance quality and edit (which does become a little less important as things go on).

12. Malaya Watson (last week: 6) – A big drop for Malaya here, mostly because we assumed that her huge personality / hair was going to make her instantly appealing to America. That didn’t happen, and since that is a big part of her performance style, we don’t see it being easy on her to recover.

11. CJ Harris (11) – A very likable guy, but we’ve yet to be fully blown away by him like we want to be. His song choices need to be a little bolder, and so he can show off more of that heart. He’s also been in danger before.

10. Dexter Roberts (5) – We feel his hardcore-country audience will probably still back him for a few more weeks, but he’s gotta do better than how he opened this past show. There’s some more here than a guy just performing very generic country songs like karaoke, and it needs to come out.

9. MK Nobilette (4) – The biggest surprise for us on this end about MK was seeing her in the bottom. She didn’t have the best performance ever, but there was a sweetness and a subtlety to it. We worry about the show’s fanbase connecting with her, and also that they only want to hear people with huge voices.

8. Emily Piriz (12) – Emily had an okay week this past time, but she still feels like the sort of contestant who is going to give a good performance any random week and find herself going home. Then, Jennifer Lopez will claim that she wanted to save her when she is going out the door.

7. Ben Briley (10) – There were problems with his “Folsom Prison Blues,” but Ben at least figured out what some of them were as he went through it, and was at least bold enough to do something a little different with the song. When he finds smething that he can turn into a moment, watch out.

6. Jena Irene (9) – Jena’s great. The only reason she’s not higher is because of having to sing again during Rush Week. A good comparison to us right now is Haley Reinhart, who no one really paid attention to at first, but became a force to be reckoned with by the end of the season.

5. Caleb Johnson (8) – The guy has one of the biggest rock voices that we’ve ever seen. Does he only have one gear? We’re a little worried about that, but clearly voters and fans of the show are responding to what he is bringing to the table so far.

4. Jessica Meuse (7) – Her “The Crow and the Butterfly” was one of the two best performances of this past show, and there’s never going to be a question to us of her not knowing who she is. Her obstacle will instead be finding the right songs, and then making sure that they are something she can get America to vote for.

3. Majesty Rose (2) – Majesty overall is still the most consistent singer of the ladies, and on talent alone would be in the top 2. Unfortunately for her, it is starting to feel like this will be a year for the guys … especially two that have quite a few in common.

2. Sam Woolf (3) – His “Unwell” was a little safe, but the reaction from the crowd told us almost everything we need to know. Sam is who teenage girls are going to obsess over, and the fact that he is legitimately talented to go along with it is scary to everyone.

1. Alex Preston (1) – But, we’re keeping Alex at #1 just because he feels the most like the total package. He has artistry and talent, and also humor and a connection to the audience. There’s nothing missing, and there has never been a bad performance.

Who is at the top of your ranking going into “Home” week? Share some of your thoughts in the poll below, and be sure to click here if you do want to read some more news related to “American Idol.”

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Photo: Fox