American Idol‘s Top 12 was announced on Thursday!!
Get used to these 12 faces, as you will be saturated with them for the next 3 months or so. Want to know what Andrew Garcia‘s favorite breakfast food is? I hope so, because there is guaranteed to be a People magazine special edition issue dedicating to riveting facts like this regarding the Top 12.
Well, let’s take that back. The Top 10. ‘American Idol’ has made a very strange arrangement where they make the Top 12 the most coveted, yet only take the Top 10 on tour. That means of these 12 people, only 10 are going to make some real money, while the other two fade into the same obscurity as, say, John Park… (who?!)
Thursday had some shocking results, as we said goodbye to the jazzy-voiced Lilly and the poodle-haired Katelyn.
We also saw the demise of Alex “Mullet” Lambert and my beloved Toddy Hall. Frankly, all the guys did well on Wednesday, and none of them deserved to go home…what a change from last week! I couldn’t stand to see little Alex cry when it was announced he was going home.
So who did make it? Let’s take a look…
Katie Stevens:
Who she is: Little girl with the big voice. Has as much personality as a bag of mulch.
Compare to: Diana DiGarmo of Season 3, who was trounced by Fantasia in the finals.
“Big” Michael Lynche:
Who he is: Cockiest guy on the red couch. Has an insatiable urge to flex at inappropriate moments. Part soul, part rock and part gospel.
Compare to: Ruben Studdard, winner of Season 2.
Didi Benami
Who she is: Pretty hippie chick with an interesting voice. Has good hair, but bad taste in vests.
Compare to: Brooke White of Season 7. Unique voices, blonde hair, likability and the chance of a barefooted performance.
Andrew Garcia
Who he is: Soulful guy who likes to sing songs originally released by female artists and talking about his family.
Compare to: Chris Sligh of Season 7. (It’s a stretch, I know.) Both have soulful voices and crazy glasses. That’s pretty much where the similarities end though.
Paige Miles
Who she is: The easily girl in the group. Has a good voice, but will always be the last one you remember when thinking back to the night’s performances.
Compare to: Melinda Doolittle of Season 7. Paige has more confidence but both are better backup singers than headlining stars.
Aaron Kelly
Who he is: The huggable token 16-year-old. Good voice and just oozing wholesome values and late-1990s boy band qualities.
Compare to: Season 7 runner up David Archeleta. Lil’ Archie had a baby face that the grandmas loved and the Tiger Beat-esque looks the young girls loved.
Crystal Bowersox
Who she is: The hard and gritty street performer who is admittedly in the competition for the money. So what she’s missing a few teeth..how important is dental hygiene when you have a voice that rivals Janis Joplin and Melissa Etheridge?
Compare to: Crystal is the first of her kind on Idol.
Casey James
Who he is: He looks like Brad Pitt and sounds like Brad Paisley. Scruffy beard, shaggy ponytail and enough plaid button-ups to last any Nashville star a lifetime. An early favorite who pulls at Kara’s heartstrings (and they never fail to mention that!)
Compare to: Bucky Covington of Season 5, only with better teeth and a better voice. (Well, better everything.)
Lacey Brown
Who she is: Came back after being cut right before the Top 24, in favor of Megan Joy. Sings happy songs with an interesting tone and is easy on the eyes.
Compare to: Megan Joy. Both are pretty and have a voice that you either really like or really hate.
Lee Dewyze
Who he is: Average-looking dude with an awesome rock voice. Knows what he’s doing on stage and is not afraid to pick a song that’s not typical of his voice.
Compare to: Season 7 winner David Cook. The girls won’t swoon until he has that big ol’ recording contract, but is a natural performer with a great voice.
Siobhan Magnus
Who she is: A dark horse who came out of nowhere to stand next to Crystal as the leader of the girl pack.
Compare to: Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson. A unique girl with a unique voice.
Tim “Cabbage Patch” Urban
Who he is: Everyone’s favorite freckled kid, Tim is an all-American guy who was smart enough to pick a song about religion to get him into the Top 12.
Compare to: John Peter Lewis of Season 3. Good ol’ fashioned guy who you’d likely see sitting around a church group bonfire, strumming a guitar.
