Ranking of the Every Idol Finalist!, Brought to You By Elena Options

[Elenaa]

Hey ! Since I haven't really made much of a name for myself around here, and we are in between seasons, I thought it would be interesting to put my opinions out in the open. It was sort of unfortunate that my ranking will work simultaneously with Ben's exact other ranking, I planned this out before I saw that. But that actually may be a positive thing since it seems like some of our opinions completely differ and could complement each other. I hope he has no concerns about this. I really hope you all enjoy!

I can almost ensure this ranking will indeed reach an end since I have my entire ranking basically figured out and have enough free time in order to post regularly! So I know you guys won't have to worry about that.

I have to warn you about this ranking, I'm an easily biased person. The personalities, pre-idol fame, post-idol fame, and their fanbases will definitely affect my opinion of them and could lead to worse singers making it further than amazing ones.

Despite my naturally stubborn personality, I would love to hear all of your opinions on this ranking. Some of my opinions may only appeal to certain people, so others could absolutely hate my opinions. Feel free to critique me in any way you like. I would be so disappointed if you all agree with me because I'd love to hear some different opinions.

I've seen every season, but obviously, since this show was on for so many years, some of the finalists have completely left my mind and have unavailable videos on YouTube or any other video site. When I went through the entire list of contestants, there were a select 13 that I knew I just couldn't rank because I have nothing positive or negative to say about them. Below is my tribute to those thirteen.

*~*Lacey Brown | Brandon Rogers | Jim Verraros | A.J. Gil | Rickey Smith | Charles Grigsby | Amy Adams | Michael Sarver | Matthew Rogers | Nikko Smith | Kevin Covais | Jorge Nunez | E.J. Day *~*

Those immediate eliminations leave us to the even number of 120 contestants to rank! Enjoy!

This will ranking also include a ranking of my top 10 favorite semi-finalists. This ranking will run simultaneously with the finalist ranking once I get down to only 10 finalists. Enjoy!

So without further or do, here are the hints to the first few eliminees:
~~~~~ Pro Wrestler Fan
~~~~~ VFTW Hall of Fame
~~~~~ He's on a roll
~~~~~ Sob story
~~~~~ Who?
~~~~~ Disqualified
~~~~~ Our first winner

And yes, not a vagina in the bunch.

FINALISTS:
120-114
113-110
109-105
104-101
100-96
95-92
91-86
85-81
80-76
75-71
70-66
65-61
60-56
55-51
50-46
45-41
40-36
35-31
30-26
25-21
20-19
18-17
16-15
14-13
12-11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1

SEMI-FINALISTS:
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1

This post has been edited by Elenaa: Mar 25th 2013, 10:39 PM

[Carrie&BlakeFan]

~~~~~ Pro Wrestler Fan
~~~~~ VFTW Hall of Fame
~~~~~ He's on a roll
~~~~~ Sob story
~~~~~ Who?
~~~~~ Disqualified
~~~~~ Our first winner

And yes, not a vagina in the bunch.

- ???
- Sanjaya Malakar?
- Stefano Langone?
- So many contestants have had sob stories, so I don't know.
- ???
- Corey Clark?
- Lee DeWyze?

[sublymonal]

:_: Sarver. His music is so awesome.
I'm guessing we're going to disagree on a lot, so I'll fill this in with people I like

~~~~~ Pro Wrestler Fan: James Durbin
~~~~~ VFTW Hall of Fame: Sanjaya Malakar
~~~~~ He's on a roll: Stefano Langone
~~~~~ Sob story: Danny Gokey
~~~~~ Who?: AJ Gil/EJ Day?
~~~~~ Disqualified: Corey Clark
~~~~~ Our first winner: Lee DeWyze

[Elenaa]

#120:
JAMES DURBIN
Season Ten
Place: 4/13
Age: 22
Hometown: Santa Cruz, California

Performances:
You've Got Another Thing Comin'
Maybe I'm Amazed
I'll Be There For You
Livin' For the City
Saturday Nights Alright for Fighting
While My Guitar Gently Weeps
Heavy Metal
Uprising
Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
I'm Into Something Good (Duet with Jacob Lusk)
Closer to the Edge
Without You
Don't Stop Believing (Eliminated)
Love Potion No. 9 (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
N/A

Everything about this man absolutely repulses me. I despise his singing, his attitude, his style, his entire sense of being. A lot of my hatred for this man originates from his fans. They acted as if he were the best thing to come into rock music and that he was one of the best idols ever. Gross. It also was impossible for me to find a best performance because I find them all dreadful, corny, and monstrously overrated. He's very lucky Cowell was off Idol by that point or he would have been ripped to shreds. If only...

#119:
SANJAYA MALAKAR
Season Five
Place: 7/12
Age: 17
Hometown: Federal Way, Washington

Performances:
Knocks Me Off My Feat
Steppin' Out With My Baby
Waiting on the World to Change
Ain't No Mountain High Enough (Bottom 2)
You Really Got Me Now
Bathwater
Cheek to Cheek
Besame Mucho
Something to Talk About (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
You Really Got Me

Oh man, Sanjaya. God I hated him. I don't even know how to explain myself here, but he was just so horrible. I applaud the fact that he managed to make it so far while being hated by so much of the voters, but by the time he reached the final 10 I was so sick of it . "Bathwater" may have been the worst performance ever on Idol and he should have been kicked off the show right after we were subjected to that filth. Simon's constant and justified critiques were quite funny and definitely made S6 a legendary and memorable season, but there was a point where it got old. I can't really place him further than this.

#118:
STEFANO LANGONE
Season Ten
Place: 7/13
Age: 21
Hometown: Kent, Washington

Performances:
Just the Way You Are
I Need You Now
Lately
If You Don't Know Me by Now
Hello (Bottom 3)
Tiny Dancer
When a Man Loves a Woman (Bottom 3)
End of the Road (Bottom 3)
Closer (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
I Need You Know

Like James' little partner in crime. It was no secret the two of them were really close during their season, and it doesn't surprising me. Both seemed to be cocky and arrogant and really think they were some hot crap. I hated the way Stefano performed, I hated his songs choices, and I hated his voice. Whenever he went for a high note he'd fail so miserably and get no crap for it. Also his Closer was like, the worst performance ever, and they actually complimented him for it. He should have been devoured by the judges. Also, the fact he finds it necessary to strip his clothes off on tour really shows how little talent he has. He disgusts me.

#117:
DANNY GOKEY
Season Eight
Place: 4/13
Age: 28
Hometown: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Performances:
Hero
PYT
Jesus, Take the Wheel
Get Ready
What Hurts the Most
Stand By Me
Endless Love
September
Come Rain or Come Shine
Renegade (Duet)
Dream On
Dance Little Sister Eliminated)
You Are So Beautiful (Eliminated)


Best Performance:
N/A



Another person I find repulsive. Danny Gokey's success is based solely on something that never should have been as big as it was, his wife's death. This sob story of his brought him all the way to the top 3 despite many average performances, and some awful ones. The exploitation of his wife I found to be horrible to a point where I felt he knew he was riding that the entire time. Without that unfortunate incident, he never would have had much facetime pre-finales, and would have probably not made the top 13, or at least not make it far into the top 13. I never understood his fanbase, and hated, like everyone else, Dream On.

#116:
COREY CLARK
Season Two
Place: 9/12
Age: 22
Hometown: Nashville, Tenessee

Performances:
Foolish Heart
This Old Heart of Mine
Against All Odds (Bottom 2)
Drift Away (Safe; Later Disqualified)


Best Performance:
Foolish Heart

Oh this guy, what a hot mess. From his awful performances to his crimes to his supposed romance with Paula Abdul. This really is something that I think of when I think of American Idol through its first seasons. I honestly never understood how this guy made it as far as he did, which leads to me to believe he really did have something with Paula. All of these different dramatic experiences that struck Corey Clark causes him to fall at the bottom of almost everybody's list of finalists, and this is so exception.

#115:
R.J. HELTON
Season Ten
Place: 5/10
Age: 21
Hometown: Cunning, Georgia

Performances:
I'll Be There
Lately
I Can't Help Myself
Under the Boardwalk
Superstition
I Won't Dance (Bottom 2)
Arthur's Theme (Eliminated)


Best Performance:
Lately

Okay, I really don't know how controversial or not this decision is. When I went through the people I should eliminate right off the bat, R.J. was a candidate. What kept him in was the fact he did reach top 5, which is an accomplishment and I felt he should be included. When I went back and saw some of his old performances, I learned that he was actually okay. But the fact I had no recollection of him at all, and previously grouped him together with the awful Jim Verraros and E.J. Day meant he had to go early. Like I said, this list would be pretty biased. Sorry R.J.

#114:
SCOTTY MCCRERRY
Season Two
Place: 1/13
Age: 17
Hometown: Garner, North Carolina

Performances:
Letters From Home
The River
Can I Trust You With My Heart
For Once In My Life
Country Comfort
That's All Right
I Cross My Heart
Swingin'
You've Got a Friend
Up on the Roof (Duet with Lauren Alaina)
Gone
Always On My Mind
Where Were You
Young Blood
Amazed
Are You Gotta Kiss Me Or Not
She Believes In Me
Gone (Reprise; Winner)
Check Yes Or No (Winner)
I Love You This Big (Winner)

Best Performance:
N/A

This may be a pretty controversial choice. Scotty is EASILY my least favorite winner ever. I'm not a country music fan, and I'm also not a fan of one-trick ponies. He did the same thing every week, and what he did every week was miserably boring. He had no business making it to the final 13 and absolutely no business outlasted talents like Haley Reinhart or Pia Toscano. For those country music fans, I apologize, but I really can't stand this guy. I also can't decide which performance is my favorite, since they all sound the same to me.

Next Four Eliminees:
~~~~~ Had a stage name
~~~~~ Fifth placer
~~~~~ Against All Odds
~~~~~ Shocking boot

This post has been edited by Elenaa: May 27th 2012, 12:21 AM

[TerminallyChill]

James Durbin: I'm strangely attracted to him but aside from that, I dislike everything about his voice.

Sanjaya Malakar: A ton of fun but what a waste of a Top 24 spot. Even at his best (audition) he's just mediocre.

Stefano Langone: meh, nothing good or bad to say about him.

Danny Gokey: Danny was a pretty good singer at times but he just rubbed me the wrong way.

Scotty McCreery: Like you, I'm not a fan of Country. I don't hate it by any means but it's definitely at the bottom of music I listen to. Even then, I would put Scotty as second best of the WGWG winners. I have a to admit, his audition was pretty impressive the first time hearing it. I don't want to say he didn't deserve to be there because I think Scotty is strong singer I just wish he didn't win the whole damn thing. lol

My guesses for the next batch:
Ryan Starr
?
Jessica Sierra
LaToya London?

This post has been edited by TerminallyChill: May 26th 2012, 8:52 PM

[TwoJacks]

I gotta say I love/agree with your list so far, keep it coming, I'll be watching.

[Carrie&BlakeFan]

120: Yeah, I didn't like James either.
119: Sanjaya is arguably the worst finalist ever. But it was hilarious when the audience scream-cheered when he was finally eliminated.
118: Didn't care for Stefano either. But I don't think I would rank him this low, though.
117: I loathe Danny Gokey. Probably my least favorite finalist ever.
116: Corey Clark was terrible. I don't think anyone likes him.
115: I don't remember much about R.J.
114: Really? I can understand not being a fan of country music, but I don't agree with Scotty being this low.

For the next set,

- ???
- Jacob Lusk?
- Scott Savol?
- Colton Dixon?

This post has been edited by Carrie&BlakeFan: May 26th 2012, 10:19 PM

[Elenaa]

Yeah i felt that you wouldn't agree much with that placement. I'll reply to the rest later, and also, the shocking boot refers to the fact that they're eliminated this early in the ranking, not their elimination in American Idol....but....it could be arguably used both ways.

[Niki]

Our lists would def be way different, as I love James and Stefano. I would have Scotty much higher although he's not one of my top faves.

I do dislike Sanjaya, Corey and RJ though.. Danny was good at first then got annoying, but I'd put him a bit higher.

[sublymonal]

lol, I love James, Fano and Gokey.
Not a fan of Scotty, Corey or Sanjaya though, so I agree with half of those.

[Elenaa]

#113:
LEAH LABELLE (VLADOWSKI)
Season Three
Place: 12/12
Age: 17
Hometown: Seattle, Washington

Performances:
I Have Nothing
Let's Stay Together (Wild Card)
You Keep Me Hangin' On (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
Let's Stay Together

Leah...I'm sort of frustrated about Leah. It took until about 5 minutes ago for me to find out this girl became a YouTube sensation and that she even has an album called "Sexify." That info alone would have put her up much higher, since other YouTube sensation Idols *cough*Camile*cough* benefited from that fame. But sadly at that point I didn't care enough to change all of my rankings, so she still stays here. I remember thinking her voice wasn't nearly as strong as the other women that season, and after going back, I still think the same. As much as I think there were worse people who performed that night, Leah did deserve her boot and I'm still grateful she went over Jennifer Hudson, the other bottom 2 dweller that week. Sorry Leah.

#112:
JACOB LUSK
Season Ten
Place: 5/13
Age: 23
Hometown: Compton, California

Performances:
A House is Not a Home
I Believe I Can Fly
Alone
You're All I Need To Get By
Sorry Seems to Be The Hardest Word
Man In the Mirror (Bottom 3)
Bridge over Troubled Water (Bottom 3)
Dance with My Father
Oh No Not My Baby
I'm Into the Something Good (Duet w/ James Durbin)
No Air (Eliminated)
Love Hurts (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
A House Is Not a Home

It took Jacob exactly two weeks to go from one of the best singers in the competition to one of the worst. His first performance, AHINAH, was great. I'm not that into Gospel singers in Idol, but I couldn't deny how good that was. Then he comes back the next week, wailing through IBICF, and quickly turned into all the other failed gospel singers on Idol. He continued down that road, absolutely slaughtering "Alone," then subsequently destroying many more songs. I'm happy he ended on "No Air, because he deserves nothing more than to end on a horrible note. Fourth season 10 singer to go in 9 eliminations. Wow.

#111:
PAIGE MILES
Season Nine
Place: 12/12
Age: 17
Hometown: Seattle, Washington

Performances:
All Right Now
Walk Away
Smile
Honky Tonk Woman (Bottom 3)
Against All Odds (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
Honky Tonk Woman

Paige was easily one of the least talented singers to ever grace the top 12. For one, I forgot about each of her performances except for Against All Odds, which is one of the worst of the season. Also, once I looked back at all of her previous performances, I found out that she never had a strong performance. She did have guts to take on songs of that caliber, but she fell flat each and every time. It was miracle this girl made it to the top 12, especially beating out Katelyn and Lilly. Even her best performance, HTW, deserved to get her eliminated. Just a bad singer.

#110:
CHRIS DAUGHTRY
Season Five
Place: 4/12
Age: 26
Hometown: McLeansville, North Carolina

Performances:
Wanted Dead or Alive
Hemorrhage
Broken
Higher Ground
I Walk to Line
What If
Making Memories Of Us
Innuendo
What a Wonderful World (Bottom 2)
Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?
Renegade
I Dare You
Suspicious Minds (Eliminated)
A Little Less Conversation (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
Hemorrhage

Shocked? I don't really know how big certain fanbases are around here, but I apologize to the Daughtry fans. I can't deny that Chris had a pretty good voice and was a good inclusion to American Idol, but other factors certainly resulted in this low placement. One: He was very overrated. He was definitely good, but the astounding amount of fans and judging pimpage really made me hate him. There were times when I felt he didn't deserve criticism, but he didn't deserve insane praise. Two: I hate his post-Idol stuff. He makes music that is completely undifferentiatable to other artists and yet his fanbase is still pretty active. Three: I think he's an $^^@*(!. He seems to just have this very arrogant way about him and it really just annoys me. How dare anybody say they're shocked themselves to find out they're eliminated at the FINAL FOUR. He really thought there was no chance that he wasn't gonna win. Disgusting.

Next Five Eliminees:
~~~~~ REALLY should have never made the Top 24
~~~~~ Carried based on a Semi-Final performance
~~~~~ Not eliminated in the traditional way
~~~~~ Same clue as the first clue
~~~~~ Wild Carder

This post has been edited by Elenaa: May 28th 2012, 8:44 PM

[Carrie&BlakeFan]

- I'm indifferent about Leah. I don't like her, but I don't hate her either.
- I couldn't stand Jacob Lusk either. He was horrible.
- Paige did not deserve to make Top 12. It should've been Katelyn.
- Seriously? I guess Chris did come across as cocky, but there are a lot of other finalists worse than him.


For the guesses:

- I don't know. This could be a lot of people.
- Tim Urban?
- Jermaine Jones?
- Which clue?
- DeAndre Brackensick?

[McPhever224]

I just have to say I absolutely love Lacey and Amy. I don't know how you can be indifferent to Amy, especially with performances like Sin Wagon and The Power Of Love! I'll go back and comment on the rest later.

[McPhever224]

-Absolutely can not stand James. So cocky for no reason.
-I don't hate Sanjay that much. I just think of him as such a joke.
-Aw I like Stefano, and really like his new single!
-Danny's my least favorite contestant of all time.
-I actually like some of Cory's performances but he disgusts me as a person.
-I'm so mehhhh on R.J.
-Scotty is my all time favorite guy to be on Idol...

-I really love Leah. And her youtube vids are great.
-HATE Jacob.
-Paige is actually a really talented singer. She just picked terrible songs...
-Daughtry is super talented.

[Elenaa]

I just have to say I absolutely love Lacey and Amy. I don't know how you can be indifferent to Amy, especially with performances like Sin Wagon and The Power Of Love! I'll go back and comment on the rest later.

I had a lot of trouble grouping Amy into that group. But I knew that I barely remember her and couldn't find a performance of hers online for the life of me. Had I kept her in she would have been around probably 100 and her write-up would have just been me babbling about the fact I don't remember her can't make her go further but the vague memories of her being alright got her this high. Sorry

ETA: And it wasn't that I was indifferent towards Amy, it was that I really couldn't get a legitimate opinion on her and I wouldn't be able to explain why she placed where she would have placed.

This post has been edited by Elenaa: May 28th 2012, 9:19 PM

[rememberwhen]

~~~~~ REALLY should have never made the Top 24 TIM URBAN
~~~~~ Carried based on a Semi-Final performance
~~~~~ Not eliminated in the traditional way MAKALAH GORDON
~~~~~ Same clue as the first clue
~~~~~ Wild Carder JEREMY ROSADO

[TerminallyChill]

Leah LaBelle - I liked her first 2 performances but she was one of the weakest finalists.
Jacob Lusk - His voice is just too much for me.
Paige Miles - Any other season she would've been one of the first 2 girls eliminated.
Chris Daughtry - He was great but I don't really go for this type of artist.

~~~~~ REALLY should have never made the Top 24: Tim Urban
~~~~~ Wild Carder: John Peter Lewis

[Elenaa]

#109:
JERMAINE JONES
Season Ten
Place: 12/13
Age: 25
Hometown: Pine Hill, New Jersey

Performances:
Dance With My Father
Knocks Me Off My Feet (Bottom 3 Guys; Later Disqualified)

Best Performance:
Dance With My Father

I don't understand how this was the guy they decide to bring back. It was obvious from the first time we saw him that he'd just be a one trick pony who could only sing one type of music. When I actually heard him sing DWMF, I actually thought it was horrible. His voice, although recognizable, actually isn't strong at all. He didn't carry the notes nearly as well as Jessica did later on. His disqualification really didn't effect the show because it was obvious he would have been one of the next two to go. He was no loss to the show.

#108:
ANDREW GARCIA
Season Nine
Place: 9/12
Age: 24
Hometown: Moreno Valley, California

Performances:
Sugar We're Going Down
You Give Me Something
Genie In A Bottle
Gimme Shelter
I Heard It Through the Grapevine
Forever
Can't Buy Me Love (Bottom 3)
Hound Dog (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
Sugar We're Going Down

Had Andrew not got all that pre-finals exposure, he never would have lasted as long as he did. I felt as if he were trying to recreate the success of "Straight Up" during Hollywood and just failed every time. His first performance was probably his only decent one. Also, his version of GIAB was so creepy and I don't understand how he didn't realize how flat that would fall. I don't know, he never should have made the tour.

#107:
JEREMY ROSADO
Season Eleven
Place: 13/13
Age: 19
Hometown: Valrico, Florida

Performances:
Gravity
I Know You Won't (Wild Card)
Ribbon in the Sky (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
N/A

Jeremy was just such fodder. Had this season been years ago he definitely would have been grouped in with those first 13 eliminees. He's just so forgettable and it was obvious that he wouldn't last past the top 13. He was just unable to perform and his ballads were not up to par compared to the other singers that season. Judging by how its probable that Elise would have gotten the least amount of votes that night, it's amazing they decided to change the rules for that one week. Season Eleven wouldn't be a season without Elise.

#106:
TIM URBAN
Season Nine
Place: 7/12
Age: 20
Hometown: Duncanville, Texas

Performances:
Apologize
Come On Get Higher
Hallelujah
Under My Thumb (Bottom 3)
Crazy Little Thing Called Love (Bottom 3)
Sweet Love (Bottom 3)
All My Loving
Can't Help Fall In Love
Better Days (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
Hallelujah

I felt as if Tim were like a Sanjaya redux. He was a weak singer that everyone knew had no business being in the finals and overstayed his welcome. I never really got his appeal, and didn't think he was actually that cute. I guess I like my men without the femininity...but anyway, he just didn't deserve to make the tour over others and it did annoy me that he did get to take part in the perks of making it far on AI while more talented contestants failed. I don't know, don't like Tim.

#105:
JASMINE MURRAY
Season Eight
Place: 12/13
Age: 16
Hometown: Starkville, Mississippi

Performances:
Love Song
Reflection (Wild Card)
I'll Be There (Eliminated)

Best Performance:
Reflection

I sort of regret eliminating Jasmine here rather than before Leah. I mean, going back and looking at the performances, I realized that I actually like Leah much better. Despite that, I still group them together as average girls who really had no shot at winning. I mean, I don't have much to say about her other than that. She was nothing special.

Next Four:
~~~~~ 16 years old
~~~~~ With disability
~~~~~ Not a traditional name
~~~~~ Winner...kinda

This post has been edited by Elenaa: May 29th 2012, 5:57 PM

[TerminallyChill]

Not big on this batch, sorry. Andrew was one I really wanted to do well because I heard of him way before Idol but.. yeah.
I kind of like Jasmine I just wish she sounded as good as she looked.

~~~~~ With disability: Scott MacIntyre?
~~~~~ Not a traditional name: Naima Adedapo?

[rememberwhen]

Thia M
Scott M
Syesha M
Lee D