A Dose of Reality: American Idol 6: Women's Week 1
by The Trades Staff
Published: February 22, 2007
After a lackluster performance by the men, it's the ladies' turn. The top 12 women get their chance to show "American Idol" fans what they are made of. With the men picking many safe (and just plain bad) songs, will the women branch out?
Andrea Maclam, Chad Maddux, and Molly Bishop are the contributors for this episode. Have a comment about our comments? Use the Contact Us link at the bottom of the page to send us your thoughts.
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Stephanie Edwards
"How Come You Don't Call Me"
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Andrea writes: What a great tune to start the night off with - she sang
with confidence and conviction (I had that written BEFORE Randy said it,
just for the record). I thought the performance was a little over the top,
but she had a great vocal. I found her a little flat on her end run, but
overall, a great start to the night.
Chad writes: Now THAT is the way to start a show. Her performance was very sultry and a little bit jazzy. If this is any indication, we may have a female winner this year.
Molly writes: Stephanie started off a little rocky, but fortunately for her, she was
following last night's loser performances from the guys. Fortunately for us,
she gained her stride, and by the end of the song she was sounding like a
star.
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Amy Krebs
"I Can't Make You Love Me"
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Andrea writes: No one EVER gets that first low note right (you know, turn down
the BED), and since Constantine did it in Season Four, no one has been able
to do a better rendition. I thought she was all over the place, attempting
to make it her own, and she failed miserably. She was pitchy, and I have to
agree with Simon - forgetable.
Chad writes: Well, one good, one bad. They can't all be good. This was a very boring performance, much like the guys' performances last night. Plus, it didn't sound that great at certain points.
Molly writes: Well, not everyone can be a star, I guess. Amy did a good job, but compared
to Stephanie, she really fell short.
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Leslie Hunt
"(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman"
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Andrea writes: I really like this girl. She sounded really good to me. It
sounded like she sang at one level, which was fine, but she is capable of
better. However, since Kelly Clarkson KILLED this in Season One, everyone
else has been a pale comparison. I was glad that she hit that big note at
the end. Next week, I hope she does something a little more upbeat, which
really shows off her chops.
Chad writes: Was that supposed to be dancing or was she having a seizure? It was very jerky and awkward. She also picked a worn out song. She has the voice type that could be very good but it was not appealing to me.
Molly writes: Leslie's a bit of an odd duck. We didn't see a lot of her during the
audition process. She has an interesting voice, but zero stage presence. I
give her credit for giving it the good ol' college try, but I have a real
hard time picturing her in a stadium setting.
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Sabrina Sloan
"I Never Loved A Man The Way That I Love You"
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Andrea writes: This girl is GOOD. Bluesy, seductive, very comfortable on
stage. She OWNED it. Simon was right - she came to win.
Chad writes: Sabrina has a very powerful voice which is very enjoyable to hear. It was an excellent start for a girl that I otherwise don't remember.
Molly writes: Sabrina's style isn't my preference. I wouldn't buy a CD of hers. But I
give her credit, that was a powerful performance.
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Antonella Barba
"Don't Want To Miss A Thing"
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Andrea writes: WHY does everyone choose this damn song? That being said,
I had to agree with the judges. Although she tried to make it her own (and
I did like her vocal arrangement), she got swallowed up. If she sticks
around, I hope she takes the judges' advice and picks a song that suits her
vocal range.
Chad writes: Something was off. Was she ahead of the music? I think she was. Her voice was very shaky, and it certainly didn't sound good. I was glad she made it to the top 24 but not so much anymore. She can go.
Molly writes: Antonella is a talented novice, but that's it. She doesn't have the
craftsmanship to do a great performance, and I can't figure why she's here.
I would have chosen Marisa over her in a heartbeat. Perhaps she's cannon
fodder?
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Jordin Sparks
"Give Me One Reason"
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Andrea writes: Good tune, sounded a little out of key at first, but she
warmed up and got back on track for the second verse. Another one who came
to win, she gave one of the best vocals of the competition so far. She had
fun up there, and the camera just loves her. Great natural talent. I think
she's going to go far.
Chad writes: I actually like the Tracy Chapman version of this song but she sang it much better. I enjoyed it. She may be overshadowed down the road by some of the other performers but she did a great job tonight.
Molly writes: I'm torn on this performance. I don't much care for this song (although I
usually love Tracy Chapman). On the other hand, Jordan didn't do a
cookie-cutter performance; she put her own twist to it. On yet another
hand, I didn't care much for that twist either. I had expected both bigger
and better from her.
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Nicole Tranquillo
"Stay"
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Andrea writes: Great set of pipes on this girl. It sounded a little
messy to me, like she wasn't sure what key she wanted to be in. But hey!
She's the vocal major - what do I know? I just didn't think that it was her
best. She hit some great notes, but what good is that if the rest of the
song isn't in key? I hope she does better next week.
Chad writes: In the history of American Idol, this must be one of the all-time worst performances at this level. It was abysmally bad. What were those voices she was using? There was like 8 different voices during that performance...and none were good.
Molly writes: Wow. We see a sweet little audition, we hear she's a voice major, she talks
about hard work and giving good performances -- and then Nicole comes out
with something that sounds like the cat threw it up. That just seemed like
a big mess to me. Paula talked about Nicole hitting the notes, but it
didn't sound to me like she hit them, but beat them to bloody pulps.
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Haley Scarnato
"It's All Coming Back To Me Now"
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Andrea writes: I rolled my eyes when I heard that she was going to be
doing a Celine Dion song, because every season someone does one of hers, and
inevitably butchers it. I was pleasantly surprised to hear her hit some
amazing notes in that. BUT, it's her first time in front of a live
audience, and I think she should have chosen something that would have
brought us to our feet. Nice and safe equals boring.
Chad writes: When her performance first started, I thought she looked exactly like Katharine McPhee. The song wasn't the best choice but anything would sound good compared to the crapfest by Nicole. It was a safe performance with nothing impressive.
Molly writes: I liked her. She seemed to have a litle trouble with her breathing, but she
hit her notes and put a lot of emotion into the song. I don't think that
was an Idol-worthy performance, but it should be good for another week, and
I think she has the potential to surprise us.
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Melinda Doolittle
"Since You've Been Gone"
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Andrea writes: She chose a good song for her vocal style and range.
She blew the roof off of the place. She was confident and secure on stage.
She owned it. This one is going to be one to watch.
Chad writes: Now, it's a competition! That was awesome! Of all of the girls, she may have the most powerful voice and she knows how to use it. It was a great song choice and an excellent performance.
Molly writes: Melinda has the whole Cinderella story going for her -- background singer
becomes belle of the ball. But I don't know, every time I hear her I think
she sounds okay, but just nothing special. I wish her well, but she
wouldn't get my vote.
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Alaina Alexander
"Brass in Pocket"
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Andrea writes: I like the song choice, but she couldn't quite pull it
off. She was pitchy and off key in most of it, and not as strong as she
needed to be. If she makes it through this round, she needs to be more
confident in her vocal abilities and be smarter about her song choice.
Chad writes: Alaina was just mediocre. It didn't sound right for some reason, and it was not a good song choice for her. She couldn't sing it the way it is supposed to be sung.
Molly writes: "I'm special. So special." No, Alaina, you're not. Or at least that
wasn't. It was adequate, but not really sparkling.
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Gina Glocksen
"All By Myself"
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Andrea writes: Another repeat Idol auditioner to make it through to the Top
24. Her song choice, in my opinion was amazing. Yes, I hate ballads during
this process, but she powered through this one. She showed off her range
and her strength, and I think that she hit it right on the head. I can't
wait to see her next week.
Chad writes: She looked very dark and disturbed, which I didn't really like. I'm also extremely tired of hearing this song. In fact, I hate this song. Maybe that's why I didn't really like her performance. It was just boring.
Molly writes: Gina did a good job. She's done better, and will have to do better in the
future to keep going, but this was more than adequate to get her to the next
round.
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Lakisha Jones
"And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going"
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Andrea writes: WOW....um.....yeah. WOW. I have no critique of this. She
was as close to perfect as anyone was going to get tonight. She reminds me
of Mandisa from last season, only ten times better. She beat them all out.
Good on ya, girl.
Chad writes: It was a very good performance but I didn't think it was the best of the night. She has a very powerful voice and seems very comfortable on stage. It was a very nice way to end a pretty good show.
Molly writes: Lakisha is The Star. Period. I hate this song, and I still think this was
the performance of the night. What a voice! What instincts!
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Previous Episodes:
Week 1: Men's Night
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