It’s our first evening of Idol Gives Back, and the AI kids are singing songs of love and compassion. Uh…ok. What on earth are we in store for tonight? Let’s take a gander…

Apparently we’re not watching American Idol tonight, we’re watching Idol Gives Back, a new reality program from FOX wherein your votes save lives AND contestants. It’s new, it’s fresh, it’s exciting. Ryan promises us that it’s going to be exciting – and with that sexy 5 o’clock shadow, who wouldn’t believe him?

Montage of Simon and Ryan in Africa again – they go visit some very poor places in Africa, see children in schools, sewage in the streets, trash all across the land, children whose parents are dead, shanty-towns, etc. I do understand the value of this – many American’s never even leave the country and would never see how many other people live without this sort of “expose”.

But back to the show…

Chris Richardson – “Change the World” – Chris has been taking advantage of bringing a player out on stage with him for the last couple of weeks. I like this because it makes him seem a bit closer to the audience. However, vocals for the last few weeks have been mediocre, and this hurts me. The first issue here is that I do not like song. The second issue is that Chris was pitchy in a few spots. He looked fierce as usual, but as we all know – singing, not fashion. I did like the power-end, however, and so did the judges who raved.

Melinda Doolittle – “There Will Come a Day” – Isn’t she just beautiful in every way? Love the trumpet intro and I love that she’s wearing her hair straight and down. For some reason I got chills watching her pull the mic away from her mouth as she belted out those notes. Love, Love, Love me some Melinda. I don’t like the religious undertones of the lyrics, but what can ya do. Simon described it as a “vocal masterclass“.

Blake Lewis – “Imagine” – Viewer question: “What’s the biggest sacrifice you’ve had to make since becoming a contestant?” Answer: Missing family and friends back home. Blake was in the bottom three last week, and with this song he might be again. I can not STAND this song. Of course the judges will absolutely adore whatever Blake does at this point – he’s become the Chris Daughtery of the season and can do no wrong (Randy actually didn’t like it, Paula did, Simon thought it was ok). I did not like the performance at all. I didn’t like the look, the hair, the singing, the angry face, nothing.

LaKisha Jones – “I Believe” – This song inspired LaKisha…did it inspire you? It’s tough singing a song that is so current, and by a previous Idol. LaKisha looked the part in a very subtle and sophisticated dress, but the song was shaky for me. When she went into the chorus her power voice came out, but it’s the softer bits that really need focus, and the judges have mentioned this to her before. Loved the power notes – but the orchestra overrode her a few times. Aside from the very beginning of the song, I loved it. Randy called out the pitchy parts, Paula called her a powerhouse, Simon thought she was shouting.

Phil Stacey – “The Change” – Viewer question: “What do you miss most about home?” Answer: His two babies. Gosh I hate seeing his scalp, and I hate the preaching to us about getting involved. Please put on a hat Phil. I will say, however, his genre does indeed appear to be country music. Good song choice, aside from the sappy lyrics, and he sang it very well. Randy really liked it, Paula did too, Simon did too but wants Phil to bring more country to his voice. He’s really making a come back isn’t he? Don’t flash me the I Love You sign Phil.

Jordin Sparks – “You’ll Never Walk Alone” – I just love me some Jordin, and will be very disappointed if she’s not in the Top 3 of the show. I did not get the dejected miming at the beginning, but I assume she was coached to act out the song. Her voice was superb as always, regardless of her young age. She had one shaky moment that I recall, and although the song was a bit slow and boring, the vocals were there. The audience didn’t stop clapping through the last part of the song because they are required to clap on every big note, apparently. Gosh she’s cute. Randy thought it was the best vocal of any contestant in all 6 seasons – what was he thinking? Paula loved it. Simon thought it was fantastic.

Can I just say, I almost miss Sanjaya.

Bottom two for me this week…LaKisha and Blake, with LaKisha going home.