‘American Idol’ rankings: Burnell Taylor, Lazaro Arbos among top male contenders

It’s not secret around the internet that the “American Idol” guys have not been the talk of the town this year, and in some cases, there have even been petitions to replace a few of them in the top 20 with some deserving girls who were sent home. However, we have to say that after looking through the entire top ten still left in the competition, there is some good talent here. While there are only two singers that we really consider locks to be in the top 10 at this point in a week, we actually see almost everyone on this list having a chance to advance (except for maybe #10).

The criteria that we use here, for some of you new readers out there is simple: performance quality, screen time, and likability are all thrown into the mix along with some voting patterns over the past eleven seasons.

The rankings

10. Elijah Liu – Desperately appointed the “American Idol” version of Justin Bieber. The Biebs may not be the strongest singer in show business, but he runs circles around this kid who tries a little too hard to be a heartthrob.

9. Cortez Shaw – Overhyped during his Las Vegas show, we have yet to hear a Cortez performance that has not felt overwrought and a little shaky in the upper register.

8. Curtis Finch, Jr. – Overall, Curtis is a phenomenal singer who actually has more talent than at least two or three singers ranked above him. However, we’re not sure if he comes across as likable as they do thanks to his whole Hollywood Week fiasco.

7. Paul Jolley – A likable enough guy that could advance with the help of the country vote. But does anyone else find it interesting that there are no hardcore country artists in the top 10 here? Cue “the show wants a female winner” dramatic music.

6. Charlie Askew – Everyone loves Charlie, but does Charlie also love Charlie a little too much? Cute audition and Hollywood Week performances are becomingly slightly augmented thanks to a Vegas round performance that featured the awkward singer spending too much time self-congratulating and not enough time singing.

5. Nick Boddington – A very solid singer with a likable personality, the biggest issue for Nick is going to be getting voters to actually come out and support him when there are younger and more accessible options. We don’t want to be vain, but unfortunately he is the type of singer that is often forgotten.

4. Devin Velez – You could almost say the same thing about Devin. His singing pops off of the screen, but the personality does not.He could also benefit from styling helping him look like he is around his own age.

3. Vincent Powell – Vincent faces a similar challenge to Devin and Nick, but he is helped in two ways: he is probably the best singer out of all of the guys left, and R&B music is something traditionally embraced by a pretty wide audience. He should find a way to survive.

2. Burnell Taylor – Burnell’s assisted by having a great voice, a ton of screentime, and even a nice Las Vegas story with how he lost all of that weight to get himself in singing shape for the live rounds.

1. Lazaro Arbos – We told you that if America had the opportunity to get into the top ten, he was going to very hard to get out of the competition. Buckle in, America: you’ll be seeing this guy until at least the top 7, even if his voice falls really within the middle of the pack here.

Who do you think will advance to the next round, and do you think someone has virtually no shot at all of advancing? If you want to read our last “American Idol” review from Vegas week, you can do so by heading over to the link here.

Photo: Fox