It took us a couple weeks, but there were finally some cuts. While Naimia and Thia weren’t going to win the whole shebang, it was still a little sad to see them go. Naima was probably the most creative of the contestants and it just shows that while the judges want you to make things your own and branch out and go left, the voters don’t always like it. As for Thia, she’s probably a year or two too young and it showed. While she didn’t seem nervous, she never had an A+ performance. You can have a great voice, but if you don’t have that stage presence, it looks phony. She looked phony.

Let’s get to the hotlist.

Hotlist
1. Jacob Lusk – Let them hate homey.
2. Lauren Alaina – She’s starting to show consistency.
3. James Durbin – He’s going a little goofy on us with the wrestling stuff, but come time to performance, he brings it.
4. Pia Toscano – She’s bordering boring.
5. Casey Abrams – He’s starting to show his chops again.
6. Scotty McCreery – He’s starting to bore me too.
7. Stefano Langone – This is not the time to be shaky Stefano.
8. Paul McDonald – He hasn’t had that great vocal performance yet.
9. Haley Reinhart – Hot mess.

The Defeated
1. Poor Young Ashthon Jones
2. Poor Karen Rodriguez
3. Poor Naima Adedapo
4. Poor Thia Megia

Finally, we’re down to 90 minute shows. It’s Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame night.

J. Lo Booty Alert
They didn’t even show the judges walk on stage.

For whatever reason, will.i.am is coaching the gang on rock ‘n roll night. Coaching them at what, I’m not exactly sure. Jacob Lusk is up first with Man In The Mirror. He tried to get preachy in his intro. Not good Jacob. Don’t do that stuff! If Michael Jackson was about 75 pounds heavier with a deeper voice, he would sing the song this way. Jacob added some hip grinds and some skipping to his performance which weren’t all that necessary. He did a fine job and vocals were on point as usual, though his performance was way quirky. Siedah Garrett sang with Jacob. She co-wrote the song. Steven says every time he sings, he shows another piece of himself. J. Lo says he can do anything in this world and it was perfect. Randall says it was hot.

mrbjorke says:

This is the first time I’ve liked Jacob in weeks. Good song choice. #idol10

Haley Reinhart is singing Janis Joplin’s Piece Of My Heart. It’s a very spirited performance, but I have no idea why the judges want to hear her growl. She has a very solid singing voice and her growls seem very forced now. J. Lo says she’s a contender. Randall says welcome back. Steven says he couldn’t find nothin’ wrong with that.

jflorez says:

Haley could be good if she was…more serious? Older? #idol10 #idol

dysfashional says:

Is #RandyJackson in black patent leather/vinyl a display of how obsessed he was with being on the Jackson’s Victory Tour circa 1984 #Idol10

Casey Abrams is doing a little CCR with Have You Ever Seen the Rain. Ok, I don’t think he’s in the bottom three this week. He was very reminiscent of his early performances which were full of charm and character. It’s not the most recognizable song in the world, so I hope that doesn’t hurt him. Randall says Casey was revolutionary by making the upright base work in pop music. Steven says he’s a full musician. J. Lo says she’s paying top dollar to be in the front row to watch Casey play bass.

mikewoolfolk says:

Casey’s upright bass is back along with his signature sound. #Idol #Idol10 #AI

slaubr says:

Credence Clearwater? Seriously? I haven’t had this good of time since forever! #Idol10

Lauren Alaina is singing Aretha’s Natural Woman which is super interesting to me. She can show off a bit of soul. Even though she looks like a glamour child thanks to Gwen Stefani’s horrendous L.A.M.B. clothing line. Lauren goes fairly low key with the vocals and it sounds really nice. Not as memorable as I would’ve thought though. And for whatever reason, Christian Slater was clapping her on. Steven says she came in an immature girl and today she’s a natural woman. J. Lo says she’s amazing. Randall says she took a difficult song and did a good job.

mamayuen says:

@AmericanIdol Lauren sang #naturalWoman technically fine but don’t think she connected w/ the song Kelly Clarkson still the best on idol.

James Durbin is next with While My Guitar Gently Weeps. This is a bit of a change of pace for him and it might be his first miss of the competition for me. He’s all energy and there wasn’t much energy here. J. Lo says he showed another dimension and it was a great choice. Randall says he loved seeing the emotional side. Steven says it should’ve been a proud moment for him.

tati1120 says:

James sounds good when he holds back, and doesn’t shout. #idol

Scotty McCreery is singing Elvis’ That’s All Right. It was corny as all hell, but also the most fun I’ve had watching him perform in a little while. Actually makes me want go put on the original and listen to it. A bunch of young girls ran onto the stage. One of them looked like a 12-year old Rudy Huxtable. Randall says he’s in it to win it. Steven says he did it well. J. Lo says he’s fun. Scotty pulls of that aw shucks move better than anyone on the show. That’s taking him far.

cake_gal says:

I’m so over Scotty. Thinkin his days are very numbered. #Idol10

Pia Toscano is singing River Deep – Mountain High and it’s her first uptempo track. I wanted to see her sing something different than just a ballad because I wanted to see a little vulnerability. Now I know she’s not going to win this competition. While Haley forces the sexuality a bit, at least she tries. Pia is a pretty gal, but she comes off less than sexy. And she seems to either dress oddly, or someone is dressing her oddly. Steven says she killed it. J. Lo in a very super positive way says that she needs to work on her performance. Randall tells her to work on the movements. I hope she doesn’t study Mariah Carey’s running man in the Someday video.

mlsoliman says:

Randy says, “Scotty’s in it to win it.” Now “Pia’s in it to win it.” Someone needs to write Randy some new lines. #idol10

Stefano Langone is singing When A Man Loves A Woman. Uh oh, lots of falsetto for Stefano. I liked it. He did his best Elliott Yamin impersonation here. And to me, that’s a good thing. J. Lo says it was beautiful and amazing. Randall says he liked it but he wasn’t jumping up and down. Steven says to keep playing with his range and he nailed it.

stresscase says:

JLo needs to stop blowing smoke up Stefano’s ass, get a room & send him packing. I’m over it. #Idol

Paul McDonald is singing Folsom Prison Blues. His Taylor Hicks is coming out strong. I don’t know if I liked his vocals all that much, but the performance was fun and goofy. Randall says he loved it. Steven says he’s a perfect imperfect boy and he loved it. J. Lo says it was a perfect way to end the show.

aerocat says:

I can’t stand Paul doing Johnny Cash. I CAN’T STAND IT. this is not an upbeat, happy tune. #AmericanIdol

This is tough because there were a couple who did solidly, but I’m not sure anyone really killed it. If I have to pick a bottom three, I think Pia could be in trouble, along with Paul and Haley. Stefano could be in trouble too. I think Paul or Haley goes home. Seacrest out!

Photo credit goes to Michael Becker from FOX.