‘American Idol’ review: Lazaro Arbos, Papa Peachez, Frankie Ford vs. Hollywood Week
Ready for some Hollywood Week twists? There were two on “American Idol” tonight, beginning with the news that the boys were all forced to take on the competition without any ladies around. Then, they also learned that for the first time ever, Nigel Lythgoe and the powers-that-be were actually going to pick their groups. This led to a few funny groupings (including some country boys stuck with a man with a love for all things glittery and theatrical), and also some other ones that were thoroughly entertaining.
From a reviewing standpoint, this is the hardest round of the competition to keep track of, mostly because there are hundreds of contestants to keep track of. That’s almost impossible, so what we’re going to do instead is point out some of the notable singers who moved on to the final round of Hollywood Week, and who was sent packing.
Advancing artists
Gabe Brown and Matheus Fernandes – These two were our favorite odd couple of the competition, as it was the largest man in the entire competition (at least when you factor in with hair paired with the smallest. These two were a part of our favorite Hollywood Week performance, which was a rousing sequence where everyone seemed to be actually having a very good time.
Cortez Shaw – The guy’s ego is still crazy and out of control, but if he dials it back a few notches he could end up being rather good.
Lazaro Arbos – Lazaro was an interesting case this week, mostly for reasons not due to his singing (even if he did have a pretty incredible voice). Rather, what was most notable here was that during the group round, most of the other performances chose to really treat him like he was chopped liver; and even after he made it through over one of them (thanks more to his stellar tone rather than his retention of the lyrics), they still could must a full-on congratulations to Lazaro without citing themselves as a reason for his success.
David Leathers Jr. – We’re super-thrilled that David has dropped his whole ladies’ man shtick from last year, and it serving him very well. The guy actually sings much better now that his voice has dropped a little bit.
Curtis Finch Jr. and Charlie Askew – We’re pairing these two together thanks to their rocking rendition of “The Lazy Song” by Bruno Mars during the group round.. This is how you be original in Hollywood Week!
Gurpreet a.k.a. the Turbinator – The Turbinator was really a part of a pretty disastrous group, but his personality alone helped him to make it through.
Papa Peachez – Nicki seems to be losing her patience with the guy, who she really just thinks is along for the ride. Think of this as the odd-beat guy’s last chance.
Eliminated before group round
Karl Skinner – Despite being the show’s best advertisement yet for Coca-Cola (and caffeine in general), this does not a good performance make.
Dr. Calvin Peters – Back to being a doctor! Well, that’s not so bad.
Brian Rittenberry – The first “emotional story” to go home, but it did feel like the right choice. His performance was a little breathy, and there was nothing else that was fully memorable.
Kayden Stephenson – The biggest tear-jerker of the episode, as the young man with cystic fibrosis struggled
Frankie Ford – The guy had talent, but this failure was just his emotions getting the best of him at the end of the day.
What was your favorite part of this week’s episode? If you want to see who got a golden ticket but failed to even make it to Hollywood Week, be sure to follow the link here.
Photo: Fox