Crisis On Hand: An American Idol Finalists Ranking List

[Bk1234]

1 minute ago, Crisis said:

 

This is not what I had in mind when creating this thread. I just wanted to bring back an old school IDF pastime of listing favorite American Idol contestants because it was something I really enjoyed reading. The main thing I worried about was whether or not I would be flamed or ridiculed for having an opinion that wasn't similar enough to other posters. I never expected to have to worry about race or ethnicity being an issue, especially when there are no grounds for it. I don't want to go any further on this subject, plus I don't want this thread to be suspended or locked, so I'm going to ask not to escalate this any more here. I hope that's not too much to ask for.

 

To try to bring this back to normal, I have some homework to do tonight. However, should I get done with it quickly, I'll try to post the next set. If not, I will definitely have it up tomorrow.

Thank you! I agree with all your points. I never thought I would have to bring up race in something as trivial as American Idol discussion. I'm looking forward to the next set!

[Crisis]

135. Aaron Kelly: Season 9 (5th Place)

To start off this set, we're going back to S9. Aaron is another finalist I have no idea how I let get this far. I don’t really dislike him, but I don’t like him enough to rank him this high. There are some contestants I ranked below him who I like more. Oh well, I’m not going to go back and change anything, so might as well list him now. Aaron appeared to be a nice kid who was often thought to be a country version of David Archuleta, though I wouldn’t go that far. He wasn’t as strong of a singer and didn’t have much of a stage presence. In addition, his song choices weren’t the most inspiring, the absolute worst being I Believe I Can Fly. With that said, Aaron did have his moments on the show. I remember liking his performances of Angie and You’ve Got A Way, and there were a couple of others I didn’t mind such as Here Comes Goodbye and Ain’t No Sunshine. Regardless, he resonated with the voting public most of the time as he made it all the way to fifth place. Outside of this, I don’t really have much to say about Aaron (this may be the shortest write-up I’ve done for a contestant thus far).

 

Clue: A fifth place finisher from the same season as one of the finalists in the upcoming set (the other finalist will be listed below)

 

134. Vanessa Olivarez: Season 2 (12th Place)

 

Vanessa was an interesting case. She was this outgoing, flamboyant singer who I thought was a lot of fun and wouldn’t have minded if she stuck around longer than she did. She was a member of Group 3 in the semifinals where she sang Out Her On Our Own. I thought it was one of the better performances of the episode, and the voters obviously agreed because she was voted through into the finals. There, she gave what would be her only performance in the finals with You Keep Me Hangin’ On. All things considered, I didn’t think it was that bad; sure, there were a few pitch problems, but nothing too terrible. Nevertheless, Vanessa was eliminated the following night. However, there was some controversy surrounding this elimination. After her performance, Ryan interviewed Vanessa where she read a script saying something along the lines of her being a real artist and not a performing monkey like Ryan. It was thought that moment may have greatly contributed to her elimination. Either way, the way the show acknowledged (or in this case didn’t acknowledge) Vanessa afterwards was disgraceful. For starters, she didn’t get to go on tour despite there being an opening. Charles was invited on after Corey was disqualified. In addition, Josh couldn’t participate in the tour because he was on active duty, so you’d think Vanessa would be invited to take this place, right? Wrong. Furthermore, Vanessa was the only finalist who didn’t record a track on the compilation album, yet Corey was able to do so. The whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth and I thought Vanessa deserved better.

 

Clue: Was told could lose a few pounds by Simon (Vanessa was one of two finalists from that season Simon said this to. Vanessa responded by shaking her butt in his face, which I thought was hilarious )

 

133. Paul McDonald: Season 10 (8th Place)

Paul was certainly a unique character. He was like a combination of the worst traits of Diana DeGarmo (come on y'all) and Taylor Hicks (drunken dancing), yet he made it work for him. Outside of this, he was known for his flashy suits and teeth bright enough to light up caves. As for his voice, it was certainly unique; it was definitely an acquired taste. The thing with Paul is because his voice was so unique, it really didn’t lend itself to covering other people’s songs, which is why I don’t think Idol was the most ideal environment for him. Regardless, Paul had his moments during his Idol run. He started off by singing Maggie May in the semis. It was a nice, pleasant performance, definitely a highlight in what was otherwise a lackluster night. It was enough for him to get voted into the finals. There he began by singing Come Pick Me Up by Ryan Adams, both a song and artist I was not familiar with prior to his performance, which I thought was pretty cool. After listening to the original, I don’t think Paul really did this song justice. The tempo was too fast, and he didn’t capture the mood the song required. Plus, he looked completely drunk. The following week wasn’t much better with I Guess Why They Call It The Blues. He rebounded the next week with Tracks of My Tears, which was my favorite finals performance of his. Rocket Man was OK, nothing special. The subsequent week Paul had his most polarizing performance with Folsom Prison Blues. It was certainly a love or hate performance. Originally, it was the latter for me; however, it has actually grown on me over the years. Unfortunately, the following week Paul had his worst showing with Old Time Rock And Roll. It was evident his voice was shot; he was practically whispering the song. Unsurprisingly, he was eliminated the following night, which may have been for the better. One thing I remember was the following week when the eliminated contestants came back and performed So What. Paul looked and sounded completely out of it; it was a fun trainwreck to watch. Nonetheless, Paul was certainly one of the most unique contestants to ever appear on Idol.

 

Clue: Twilight (Paul was married to Nikki Reed, who was in the Twilight saga, for a few years)

 

132. Paige Miles: Season 9 (11th Place)

Paige was a S9 finalist who I thought was slightly underrated. She wasn’t the most consistent contestant, but she had her moments. She started off with All Right Now, which was meh at best. Despite this, she went on to the next round where she gave her best semifinals performance with Walk Away. At that point, she was one of the few contestants to do justice to a Kelly Clarkson song. Unfortunately, the following week she gave what was her worst performance in the semis with Smile. In spite of this, she was voted into the finals. I think a lot of it had to do with the S9 female cast had too many singer-songwriter types, which meant some of them were bound to fall through. Paige was completely different from them which helped her stand out and establish a mini voting bloc to herself. Regardless, Paige had a solid start in the finals with Honky Tonk Women. Unfortunately, the next week was easily Paige’s worst with the disaster that was Against All Odds. It is widely considered to be the worst version of the song on Idol (though as mentioned earlier, I disagree. I still think Corey’s version was worse). The judges really let her have it afterwards. To no one’s surprise she was eliminated the following night. It was later discovered Paige had laryngitis during the finals. Learning that, I commend Paige for even getting on stage and singing. Some of Paige’s potential was on display during the finale where she did her thing during the Christina Aguilera medley. It made me think what could’ve been had she not been sick. Oh well.

 

Clue: Laryngitis ain't no joke

 

131. Nick Fradiani: Season 14 (1st Place)

Closing out this set is Nick Fradiani. Nick is the first winner to show up in this ranking, making him my least favorite winner. With that said, I don’t dislike Nick. He appeared to be a good guy as well as a capable musician and singer. It's just that when I think of Idol winners, they either have a portfolio of strong performances, show glimpses of potential showing they are capable of more, or have something unique about them to help them stand out from the rest of the field. The issue with Nick was he had neither of these things going for him. He was the living embodiment of the adage “slow and steady wins the race”. In a season full of big and eccentric personalities, Nick was the most normal person there. This may have benefited him as the other contestants were too polarizing or fell off at some point. As for his run on Idol, it got off to a weird start where both he and his girlfriend at the time auditioned together. He received a Golden Ticket, but she didn’t.

 

As for the rest of his run, he was steady if not spectacular, almost to the point of boring mediocrity. He never really had any bad performances (though Danger Zone and Catch My Breath came close). Some of his performances I liked were Thinking Out Loud, American Girl, Only The Good Die Young, Back Home, and his coronation song Beautiful Life. Speaking of which, outside of Beautiful Life, I thought Clark outperformed him that night (not to mention throughout most of the season), yet Nick managed to get more votes and take the S14 crown. Personally, he wouldn’t have been my choice to win, but what can you do? Apparently, he wasn’t most of IDF’s either as the site crashed for a month after he was crowned the winner. With that said, I felt Nick would be looked at in a more favorable light had he not won. As it is, he is one of the biggest punching bags as far as Idol winners go.

 

Clue: Haters can hate...(though the song isn't bad, I can't take a near 30 year old man at the time singing these words seriously )

 

135. Aaron Kelly

134. Vanessa Olivarez

133. Paul McDonald

132. Paige Miles

131. Nick Fradiani

 

Coming up:

• Like sands through the hourglass...
• "Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care"
• Red
• Went on to win a different reality TV contest
• Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...

Edited June 20, 2020 by Crisis

[CarmenSandiego]

I didn’t know that Paige had laryngitis!  That might explain why her rendition of “Against All Odds” was so terrible.  Poor girl.  

 

Nick and Lee DeWyze are probably my least favorite winners ever.  Nick was very consistent.  Unfortunately, he was consistently boring and good at best, mediocre at worst.  But he was more consistent and less polarizing than everyone else, and I think that’s why he won that season.  It just wasn’t satisfying.

[Bk1234]

7 hours ago, Crisis said:

135. Aaron Kelly

134. Vanessa Olivarez

133. Paul McDonald

132. Paige Miles

131. Nick Fradiani

 

Coming up:

• Like sands through the hourglass...
• "Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care"
• Red
• Went on to win a different reality TV contest
• Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...

I don't have any issues with these rankings.

 

Aaron Kelly- No comment.

Vanessa Olivarez- No comment.

Paul McDonald- Definitely an acquired taste. I was not a fan. It looked like he was drunk during some of his performances and his voice was too weird for me...

Paige Miles- Poor girl... ☹

Nick Fradiani- I was wondering when the first winner would come. S14 was a very lackluster season in my opinion. I thought Clark was the most consistent. At the time, I liked Nick's voice better than Clark's. However, now, I agree that Clark should have definitely won!

[Bk1234]

34 minutes ago, Bk1234 said:

• Like sands through the hourglass...
• "Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care"
• Red
• Went on to win a different reality TV contest
• Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...

Here's my take on the clues:

 

~Like sands through the hourglass...- I think this is Thia Megia. I believe she was on a soap opera that had an hourglass as a symbol, or something like that? (Was it called Days of Our Lives?) In terms of Thia, I'd be fine with this ranking. Unpopular opinion (?), but I found her Top 12 Girls performance of "Out Here On My Own" very boring and too short to have a proper escalation.

 

~"Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care"- I'm 99% sure this is Colton Dixon. I'm pretty sure he said this after a performance. (And I'm pretty sure he got eliminated right after! ) I actually didn't find his elimination that surprising. Being a "heartthrob" can only get you so far... Even though he wasn't my favorite of the season, if it is him, I think you ranked him too low...

 

~Red

 

~Went on to win a different reality TV contest- Is this Kellie Pickler? I think she won Dancing With The Stars. 

 

~Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...

 

***I'll update this post later if I can solve more of these clues!***

Edited June 20, 2020 by Bk1234

[Crisis]

9 hours ago, CarmenSandiego said:

I didn’t know that Paige had laryngitis!  That might explain why her rendition of “Against All Odds” was so terrible.  Poor girl.  

 

Nick and Lee DeWyze are probably my least favorite winners ever.  Nick was very consistent.  Unfortunately, he was consistently boring and good at best, mediocre at worst.  But he was more consistent and less polarizing than everyone else, and I think that’s why he won that season.  It just wasn’t satisfying.

 

Yeah, which is why I give her some slack on that performance. Mind you, it was still awful, but at least there was a valid reason.

 

I pretty much agree with everything said about Nick.

 

2 hours ago, Bk1234 said:

I don't have any issues with these rankings.

 

Aaron Kelly- No comment.

Vanessa Olivarez- No comment.

Paul McDonald- Definitely an acquired taste. I was not a fan. It looked like he was drunk during some of his performances and his voice was too weird for me...

Paige Miles- Poor girl... ☹

Nick Fradiani- I was wondering when the first winner would come. S14 was a very lackluster season in my opinion. I thought Clark was the most consistent. At the time, I liked Nick's voice better than Clark's. However, now, I agree that Clark should have definitely won!

 

Good to see!

 

Paul - it's completely understandable to feel that way about him. He wasn't the most conventional contestant, that's for sure 

Paige - poor girl indeed 

Nick - understandable about Nick. Clark was pretty consistent in his own right, with the exception of a couple of rough spots during the last few weeks.

 

2 hours ago, Bk1234 said:

Here's my take on the clues:

 

~Like sands through the hourglass...- I think this is Thia Megia. I believe she was on a soap opera that had an hourglass as a symbol, or something like that? (Was it called Days of Our Lives?) In terms of Thia, I'd be fine with this ranking. Unpopular opinion (?), but I found her Top 12 Girls performance of "Out Here On My Own" very boring and too short to have a proper escalation.

 

~"Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care"- I'm 99% sure this is Colton Dixon. I'm pretty sure he said this after a performance. (And I'm pretty sure he got eliminated right after! ) I actually didn't find his elimination that surprising. Being a "heartthrob" can only get you so far... Even though he wasn't my favorite of the season, if it is him, I think you ranked him too low...

 

~Red

 

~Went on to win a different reality TV contest- Is this Kellie Pickler? I think she won Dancing With The Stars. 

 

~Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...

 

***I'll update this post later if I can solve more of these clues!***

 

Good guesses. We'll find out if they're true or not.

 

Speaking of which, since it's the weekend and I don't have much to do, I'll try (emphasis on the word try) to have one set up some time today and another one tomorrow.

[Bk1234]

2 minutes ago, Crisis said:

 

Yeah, which is why I give her some slack on that performance. Mind you, it was still awful, but at least there was a valid reason.

 

I pretty much agree with everything said about Nick.

 

 

Good to see!

 

Paul - it's completely understandable to feel that way about him. He wasn't the most conventional contestant, that's for sure 

Paige - poor girl indeed 

Nick - understandable about Nick. Clark was pretty consistent in his own right, with the exception of a couple of rough spots during the last few weeks.

 

 

Good guesses. We'll find out if they're true or not.

 

Speaking of which, since it's the weekend and I don't have much to do, I'll try (emphasis on the word try) to have one set up some time today and another one tomorrow.

Ooh ok! I'm looking forward to the next set! I think I did a good job on my guesses.

[CarmenSandiego]

3 hours ago, Crisis said:

 

Yeah, which is why I give her some slack on that performance. Mind you, it was still awful, but at least there was a valid reason.

 

Speaking of which, since it's the weekend and I don't have much to do, I'll try (emphasis on the word try) to have one set up some time today and another one tomorrow.

Laryngitis is a valid reason for a singing performance to be awful, so I too would cut Paige some slack.

 

5 hours ago, Bk1234 said:

Here's my take on the clues:

 

~Like sands through the hourglass...- I think this is Thia Megia. I believe she was on a soap opera that had an hourglass as a symbol, or something like that? (Was it called Days of Our Lives?) In terms of Thia, I'd be fine with this ranking. Unpopular opinion (?), but I found her Top 12 Girls performance of "Out Here On My Own" very boring and too short to have a proper escalation.

 

~"Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care"- I'm 99% sure this is Colton Dixon. I'm pretty sure he said this after a performance. (And I'm pretty sure he got eliminated right after! ) I actually didn't find his elimination that surprising. Being a "heartthrob" can only get you so far... Even though he wasn't my favorite of the season, if it is him, I think you ranked him too low...

 

~Red

 

~Went on to win a different reality TV contest- Is this Kellie Pickler? I think she won Dancing With The Stars. 

 

~Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...

 

***I'll update this post later if I can solve more of these clues!***

 

Don’t know about the first, third or fifth clues but the second clue might well refer to Colton, which might explain why he was eliminated.  It’s a bad idea come off as cocky!  You need to at least seem humble in order for voters to want to vote for you.  One reason why Just Sam won is because she not only appeared humble, she really was humble!

 

You might be right in thinking that Kellie is the one who won a different reality TV show.  Kellie was the winner of Dancing With the Stars, with Derek Hough, one of the best pro partners on the show, if not the best partner!

[Bk1234]

55 minutes ago, CarmenSandiego said:

Laryngitis is a valid reason for a singing performance to be awful, so I too would cut Paige some slack.

 

 

Don’t know about the first, third or fifth clues but the second clue might well refer to Colton, which might explain why he was eliminated.  It’s a bad idea come off as cocky!  You need to at least seem humble in order for voters to want to vote for you.  One reason why Just Sam won is because she not only appeared humble, she really was humble!

 

You might be right in thinking that Kellie is the one who won a different reality TV show.  Kellie was the winner of Dancing With the Stars, with Derek Hough, one of the best pro partners on the show, if not the best partner!

Right. Just Sam gave so many reasons for viewers to love her. She was humble and grateful for the experience. The clue that I think references Colton is something he actually said on the show. I believe he said it to the judges, which as you said before never works out for contestants. 

[Crisis]

I'm putting the finishing touches on the next set. However, I'll wait before posting it because I want to give others who may want to comment on the recent set a chance.

[psterina]

I have zero complaints on these rankings

[Elliott]

135. Aaron Kelly - I wasn't really a fan of him at the start, but he grew on me as the season progressed and I really enjoyed his last 2 or 3 performances. He was also really good on tour, and was the biggest surprise to me after Katie. All in all, my third favourite from his season.

134. Vanessa Olivarez - The show did her dirty with that Ryan shtick, and then not inviting her back on tour to fill in for Joshua while Charles got to go on tour for Corey was unfortunate.

133. Paul McDonald - Another one of my all-time favourites. I loved his vibe and his original music is great.

132. Paige Miles - I kind of liked her in a guilty pleasure way (and HTW was one of my favourites of that season), but her performance of Against All Odds is easily one of the all-time worst performances.

131. Nick Fradiani - Ugh. Least favourite winner by a mile. Him winning over Clark was a travesty.

[KelseyW]

Just here to agree with the Nick F. dislike... lol

 

Seriously. How can one be MORE bland than Lee Dewyze and still win?  At least Lee makes good music...

[~Tom~]

135. Aaron Kelly - I liked Angie but can remember pretty much nothing else he did. One of the most forgettable finalists ever as you said.

134. Vanessa Olivarez - I might have her higher for Out Here On My Own alone. I'd consider her robbed; she should've lasted a few more weeks in season 2 at least.

133. Paul McDonald - Blah, he pre-Idol stuff was good but I wasn't here for his drunken dancing or karaoke performances on the show. 

132. Paige Miles - One of the contestants I wanted to like more than I did. Walk Away and Honky Tonk Woman were decent enough, but her two epic fails with Smile and Against All Odds more than justified her elimination. 

131. Nick Fradiani - He and Lee are the two winners who didn't deserve it by any stretch. He proved you can be increasingly safe and bland every week and still get pimped to the high heavens and beat many more deserving people.

[Crisis]

3 hours ago, psterina said:

I have zero complaints on these rankings

 

 

3 hours ago, Elliott said:

135. Aaron Kelly - I wasn't really a fan of him at the start, but he grew on me as the season progressed and I really enjoyed his last 2 or 3 performances. He was also really good on tour, and was the biggest surprise to me after Katie. All in all, my third favourite from his season.

134. Vanessa Olivarez - The show did her dirty with that Ryan shtick, and then not inviting her back on tour to fill in for Joshua while Charles got to go on tour for Corey was unfortunate.

133. Paul McDonald - Another one of my all-time favourites. I loved his vibe and his original music is great.

132. Paige Miles - I kind of liked her in a guilty pleasure way (and HTW was one of my favourites of that season), but her performance of Against All Odds is easily one of the all-time worst performances.

131. Nick Fradiani - Ugh. Least favourite winner by a mile. Him winning over Clark was a travesty.

 

135. Nice to see he grew on you and that he was really good on tour

134. 100% agreed

133. I've heard his original music was good. He was someone who I always thought would be better with his own material than covering other artist's songs

132. Yeah, I can see how she can be a guilty pleasure. Her Against All Odds was unfortunate

131. Can't say I disagree with this

 

47 minutes ago, KelseyW said:

Just here to agree with the Nick F. dislike... lol

 

Seriously. How can one be MORE bland than Lee Dewyze and still win?  At least Lee makes good music...

 

 

33 minutes ago, ~Tom~ said:

135. Aaron Kelly - I liked Angie but can remember pretty much nothing else he did. One of the most forgettable finalists ever as you said.

134. Vanessa Olivarez - I might have her higher for Out Here On My Own alone. I'd consider her robbed; she should've lasted a few more weeks in season 2 at least.

133. Paul McDonald - Blah, he pre-Idol stuff was good but I wasn't here for his drunken dancing or karaoke performances on the show. 

132. Paige Miles - One of the contestants I wanted to like more than I did. Walk Away and Honky Tonk Woman were decent enough, but her two epic fails with Smile and Against All Odds more than justified her elimination. 

131. Nick Fradiani - He and Lee are the two winners who didn't deserve it by any stretch. He proved you can be increasingly safe and bland every week and still get pimped to the high heavens and beat many more deserving people.

 

135. I don't have much to say except pretty much agreed

134. Fair enough. Considering that season's cast, I wouldn't have minded her lasting longer than she did

133. I liked a couple of performances; however, I understand this point of view

132. Fair enough

131. I won't say he (or Lee) were undeserving. You get the votes, you are deserving. However, he was no where my pick to win and wouldn't have minded seeing others with the title instead

 

Barring anything else happening, my next post will be the new set.

[blackfield]

Paul Mcdonald was one of my fav contestants and love his original music. but during idol he seemed that he doesn't really belong there and just "accidently" ended himself there.. he always looked like a fish outside the water on the idol stage. I can understand that his stage antics and vocals is an acquired taste. love or hate thing. it didn't seem he took the competition that seriously and coasted along until he was voted off. but at least he lasted longer than pia.. 

[Crisis]

With the exception of maybe a few finalists I let slip through the cracks, or some I don't necessarily care for but ranked them this high for other reasons, I can pretty much say I like everyone remaining in some form or another. With that said, here's the next batch of finalists.

 

130. Devin Velez: Season 12 (8th Place)

Time to start another set with yet another S12 male finalist. I realize this is the 4th time I started a set with a S12 male (watch out Burnell, lol). On to Devin. Devin had a nice voice. The issue with him was he seemed to focus too much on hitting the notes correctly and as a result, he never really connected to anything he sang. The most evident case was Temporary Home, in which while sung well, lacked any kind of emotion. The rest of his performances were of a similar vein, though I did like a couple such as Listen and Somos Novios (It’s Impossible). The main thing Devin may be known for is being a part of the I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch) disaster. He was the one trying to keep everything together after Lazaro botched his parts. Unfortunately, he could only do so much. More unfortunate for Devin was he was the one eliminated the following night. I know there was some thought he should’ve been saved; however, the problem was even before the train wreck, he was in the B3 every round of the finals, so the save would’ve most likely have been a waste. Besides, there was Nicki being petty because Curtis wasn’t saved. I do remember in an exit interview where he said something along the lines of memorizing and rehearsing all of ICHM (SPHB), including Lazaro and Burnell’s parts because he knew Lazaro had a history of being lazy and messing up his parts in group performances, so he wanted to be prepared. It’s unfortunate he had to think that way. Also, I remembered he and Nicki feuded over Twitter after his elimination.  Either way, Devin was someone who I felt would’ve had a better chance had he connected more to what he was singing as well as being in another season.

 

Clue: Tried to keep a sinking ship afloat. Unfortunately, it didn't pay off...(should be obvious)

 

129. John Stevens: Season 3 (6th Place)

It’s time to bring some standards into this ranking, musically and maybe literally.  I have quite a bit of a soft spot for John. I thought it was really cool to see someone as young as he was have a genuine love of the standards/big band style of music. He was really good when he was in his element, and if he were able to perform his preferred style of music throughout the competition, he would’ve definitely fared better. However, American Idol doesn’t really allow that to happen; therefore, John had to navigate through the different themes. To say the themes exposed his limitations would be the understatement of the year. I do think John genuinely tried to do well, but it was obvious he struggled mightily. With that said, he had a few bright spots, such as She’s Always A Woman, King Of The Road, and Mandy. The rest of his performances, however, were hard to watch. Of course, I wouldn’t be able to look in the mirror and call myself an Idol fan if I did not mention what may be the most infamous performance of all time with Crocodile Rock. It’s a performance anyone who calls themselves an Idol fan has to watch at least once. I’ll post the vid below:

I would go into great detail about the performance, but the video speaks for itself. Whenever I’m not in the best of moods, there are two Idol related videos I know I can watch that will make me feel better: the Archie fangirls melting down after his loss and Crocodile Rock. Unfortunately, things weren’t all as well for John. I believe he had it the worst when it came to negative criticism from Idol fans. I know contestants such as Sanjaya, Lazaro, and Daniel, just to name a few got their fair share of hate; however, I doubt any of them allegedly received death threats (or at least I hope that’s not the case). Yes, you read that right. Some “fans” sent a then 16 year old kid death threats because he had the gall to receive enough votes to stay in a TV competition. It wasn’t all that serious!  I’m sorry; I just found the whole thing nauseating. Anyway, John eventually bowed out in sixth place. The one thing I found interesting was him being eliminated the week before Big Band Night, where I’m sure he would’ve shined. As it is, I didn’t mind John’s presence on the show.

 

Clue: Red (referring to his hair color and a name of his album)

 

128. Thia Megia: Season 10 (10th/11th Place)

Well, she definitely grew to be a stunner! Anyway, during her season Thia was the youngest contestant to appear on Idol, as S10 was the first season in which the new minimum age limit of 15 was set. As a contestant, Thia had a very nice tone to her voice; however, she wasn’t exactly the most compelling performer. I did like her semifinals performance of Out Here On Our Own, though I agree with what @Bk1234 said up-thread about it not having time for a proper build up. Regardless, she went on the finals where she stated Michael Jackson was her biggest Idol, yet she chose Smile because he covered it on his HIStory album. It was certainly an odd choice considering Michael Jackson’s massive catalog. The performance itself was OK, though I liked it when the up-tempo part kicked in. She next sang Colors Of The Wind, which was my favorite version done on the show (I don’t know if this qualifies as an unpopular opinion or not). The following week she went up-tempo by singing Heat Wave, a song that has never been done well on Idol (considering the contestants who have done this song, that says a lot). Well, at least she gave it her all. She ended up in the B3, but survived to sing another week, in which she easily gave her most underrated performance with Daniel. This was the most connected she felt to a song in the competition. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough as she was eliminated with Naima in a double elimination the following night due to Casey being saved the week before. After Idol, Thia did a couple of songs with Postmodern Jukebox and took up acting. Her most well known role is Haley Chen in the longtime soap opera Days Of Our Lives. I was visiting my mother, who is a huge Days Of Our Lives fan, one day and out of the corner of my eye I saw someone vaguely familiar on the TV. I decided to look and thought to myself “that couldn’t be her, right”. I looked it up afterwards, lo and behold it was Thia! I have no idea if she’s still on the show, but it was good to see her do something for herself post-Idol. I do wonder if she is still singing, however.

 

Clue: Like sands through the hourglass...(the tagline for Days Of Our Lives)

 

127. Kellie Pickler: Season 5 (6th Place)

It's been a while since a S5 finalist has been posted, so I'll post another one now. Kellie appears to be pretty popular around these parts, so for some, I may have Kellie too low. However, she has actually grown on me over the years because I absolutely could not stand her during her season, so she would’ve been even lower than this had I ranked the contestants a few years prior. Kellie was this bubbly, outgoing, and presumably naïve country girl who was experiencing life in a big city for the first time. As far as her singing went, I felt she was one of the weaker singers in her season. With that said, she did well on her up-tempo performances such as Walkin’ After Midnight and Fancy. There was also Bohemian Rhapsody, which out of all the Queen songs I didn’t expect her to pick that one. Honestly, I expected it to be a complete and total train wreck; however, she did better on the song that I thought. She certainly held nothing back and gave it her all, which I absolutely appreciate in a contestant. However, her biggest weakness was ballads, for they clearly showed her vocal limitations. I did not enjoy a single ballad she did. How Far and Blame It On The Sun were both painfully boring. However, her absolute worst showings were during her final two weeks on the show. Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered was just painful to sit through (she butchered it!); I was certainly bewitched, bothered, and bewildered after that. The best part was Simon lowering his head on the table.  Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, Kellie told everyone to hold her beer (though she wasn’t at the legal drinking age at the time) and did Unchained Melody the following week. That is an insanely difficult song to sing, especially with all of the notes that needed to be held throughout it. Kellie wasn’t the best at holding notes, so it was easy to see this would be a disaster. I don’t know why she didn’t pick an easier country song to sing. Either way, she was eliminated the following night, which I was fine with because I felt she was the weakest one remaining at the time. Regardless, Kellie did really well for herself post-Idol. She’s released a few albums which spawned a few hits. Furthermore, she’s appeared on a few TV shows such as Are You Smarter Than A 5^th Grader and Family Feud, not to mention have her own reality TV show. Then there’s her winning S16 of Dancing With The Stars. As mentioned earlier, Kellie went from someone who I didn’t like at all to someone who I have come to gradually appreciate over time.

 

Clue: Went on to win a different reality TV contest

 

126. Colton Dixon: Season 11 (7th Place)

Colton is another contestant who some may feel is too low. For me, Colton is someone who I thought was slightly overrated. To be honest, I wasn’t the biggest fan of his voice, especially when he went into his upper register, where it gets really tinny and whiny. With that said, I did enjoy some of his performances on the show. Colton was first introduced to us when he auditioned during S10. He may it all the way to the Final Judgment before being cut. He even got to perform on Ellen after he was cut, so I'm sure that helped him build a following. He resurfaced during S11 where he was initially there to support his sister Schyler. However, the judges talked him into auditioning again in which once again he received a Golden Ticket. Predictably, Colton reaches the semis whereas Schyler was cut. As for his Idol run, some of the performances I enjoyed for the most part was Decode, Broken Heart, Time After Time, and Love The Way You Lie, ignoring when he goes high of course. One performance I never got into was Piano Man. I thought it was his most overrated performance of the competition. His other performances I didn’t care for, especially his last two. Bad Romance didn’t suit him well, and I absolutely despised what he did to September. He took the heart and soul completely out of the song and replaced it with some emo feelings. I thought it was just terrible. America must have felt the same because he was eliminated that week. His elimination was considered to be a shock; the beginning of the show mentioned there would be a shock elimination. Once Colton was in the B3, it was easy to see what would happen. One thing I did feel bad for him was he never got that standing ovation he chased, despite the judges handing them out like candy canes that season (even Heejun got one for crying out loud). Regardless, he did pretty well for himself post-Idol. I even heard some of his songs on the radio. One thing I noticed was his upper register has definitely improved. Overall, I feel this is a good spot for him, considering I never really cared for him that much despite enjoying a few performances of his.

 

Clue: "Honestly, I'm not trying to sound cocky, but I don't care" (which is what he said after being panned for his Top 7 redux performances. He said it backstage, but it wasn't aired until the Results Show; hence, I doubt this had any effect on his elimination)

 

130. Devin Velez

129. John Stevens

128. Thia Megia

127. Kellie Pickler

126. Colton Dixon

 

For the upcoming set:

• Not everyone had Disco Fever
• Was said to have hair similar to a pop star
• Sang the same song on the same night as an Idol winner
• Sang songs by the same artist within four weeks of each other
• Was the first contestant to use an instrument on the show

26 minutes ago, blackfield said:

Paul Mcdonald was one of my fav contestants and love his original music. but during idol he seemed that he doesn't really belong there and just "accidently" ended himself there.. he always looked like a fish outside the water on the idol stage. I can understand that his stage antics and vocals is an acquired taste. love or hate thing. it didn't seem he took the competition that seriously and coasted along until he was voted off. but at least he lasted longer than pia.. 

 

You may be right about Paul not taking the competition seriously. Either way, he had his moments, both good and bad, on the show.

[Bk1234]

8 hours ago, Crisis said:

130. Devin Velez

129. John Stevens

128. Thia Megia

127. Kellie Pickler

126. Colton Dixon

 

For the upcoming set:

• Not everyone had Disco Fever
• Was said to have hair similar to a pop star
• Sang the same song on the same night as an Idol winner
• Sang songs by the same artist within four weeks of each other
• Was the first contestant to use an instrument on the show

I guessed Thia, Kellie, and Colton!

 

130. Devin Velez- No comment. 

 

129. John Stevens- The death threat thing makes me sad...

 

128. Thia Megia- I agree with you on everything.

Vocally, "Out Here On My Own" was good, but like I said before, I think it needed more build-up/escalation. 

 

127. Kellie Pickler- While I'm fine with her being ranked here, I'm genuinely surprised she was ranked this low. 

 

126. Colton Dixon- Aah, one of my temporary favorites until Skylar Laine sang "Wind Beneath My Wings." I did not like his arrangement of "September," and what really disappointed me was the fact that JLo said it was going to be so good before he performed. I did not find his elimination shocking at all. I was just praying Hollie edged out over him. (Also, maybe you ranked him too low?) 

Edited June 21, 2020 by Bk1234

[Bk1234]

In terms of the clues...

 

~Not everyone has Disco Fever- I'm going to guess Anoop Desai. I'm probably wrong, but I feel that he did terrible during Season 8's Disco Fever night. 

 

~Was said to have hair similar to a pop star

 

~Sang the same song on the same night as an Idol winner

 

~Sang songs by the same artist within four weeks of each other

 

~Was the first contestant to use an instrument on the show

 

**Will update later, if I can solve more clues!**

[mytake1]

Colton Dixon is one more successful alums.  He is a GMA DOVE winner who has made a name for himself in CCM.  One of the few Idols that has gone from one major label to another.

 

I am willing to bet that belters Jessica Sanchez and Josh Ledet will rank very high here.  But both also had careers that TANKED after the show. 

 

If we're going to pimp people when they were on the show, it's important to look at why some of them bomb when it came to launching a career. 

[sydneysam]

9 minutes ago, mytake1 said:

Colton Dixon is one more successful alums.  He is a GMA DOVE winner who has made a name for himself in CCM.  One of the few Idols that has gone from one major label to another.

 

I am willing to bet that belters Jessica Sanchez and Josh Ledet will rank very high here.  But both also had careers that TANKED after the show. 

 

If we're going to pimp people when they were on the show, it's important to look at why some of them bomb when it came to launching a career. 

Woah there, wait. This list is actually for the ones that Crisis opinions DURING THEIR RUN ON AMERICAN IDOL. Whatever their career right now or after the show doesn't matter. Colton DID improve a lot, as Crisis said. But don't you attack Josh and Jessica because they were really MILES BETTER than Colton DURING the show, let me repeat that again, DURING. THEIR RUN. ON. THE. SHOW. Colton was just a mediocre artist that season, Josh and Jessica had bombastic and stellar performances, not because of their ability to belt, but their ability to SING and show much passion into their singing.

 

Just sayin' 

[Elliott]

130. Devin Velez - Probably the best guy in the S12 finals, but again... that doesn't say much. Shame that he was the victim of that trio performance and not Lazaro, though.

129. John Stevens - Another contestant I liked in a guilty pleasure kind of way. He shouldn't have lasted as long as he did, but Crocodile Rock was legendary.

128. Thia Megia - Meh.

127. Kellie Pickler - Hated her on Idol and while she was okay on Dancing With the Stars, them blatantly rigging the finale to make her the winner (they suddenly had an "issue" with all of the voting methods - that benefitted Zendaya - except calling in your vote the old fashioned way) has left a sour taste in my mouth. Not that it's her fault, but it was hard to enjoy her run. All things considered, I'd probably put her around here, too.

126. Colton Dixon - In my Top 10.  I actually think his Top 7 performances were really underrated - I liked his rendition of Bad Romance, and thought September was great. But it was clear the show wanted him to be a shock boot after they'd saved Jessica.

[Bk1234]

These rankings haven't been too bad. Only one of my Top 10 has been ranked (MacKenzie Bourg ).

Edited June 21, 2020 by Bk1234

[Crisis]

3 hours ago, Bk1234 said:

I guessed Thia, Kellie, and Colton!

 

130. Devin Velez- No comment. 

 

129. John Stevens- The death threat thing makes me sad...

 

128. Thia Megia- I agree with you on everything.

Vocally, "Out Here On My Own" was good, but like I said before, I think it needed more build-up/escalation. 

 

127. Kellie Pickler- While I'm fine with her being ranked here, I'm genuinely surprised she was ranked this low. 

 

126. Colton Dixon- Aah, one of my temporary favorites until Skylar Laine sang "Wind Beneath My Wings." I did not like his arrangement of "September," and what really disappointed me was the fact that JLo said it was going to be so good before he performed. I did not find his elimination shocking at all. I was just praying Hollie edged out over him. (Also, maybe you ranked him too low?) 

 

129. It makes me sad as well (as well as disgusted)

128. 

127. Fair enough

126. I may have ranked him too low. However, as with Kellie, if this were a few years ago, he would've been even lower

 

3 hours ago, Bk1234 said:

In terms of the clues...

 

~Not everyone has Disco Fever- I'm going to guess Anoop Desai. I'm probably wrong, but I feel that he did terrible during Season 8's Disco Fever night. 

 

~Was said to have hair similar to a pop star

 

~Sang the same song on the same night as an Idol winner

 

~Sang songs by the same artist within four weeks of each other

 

~Was the first contestant to use an instrument on the show

 

**Will update later, if I can solve more clues!**

 

This may be a tough one because 4 of the 5 were prior to S8. We'll see if that guess is right, however.

 

1 hour ago, Elliott said:

130. Devin Velez - Probably the best guy in the S12 finals, but again... that doesn't say much. Shame that he was the victim of that trio performance and not Lazaro, though.

129. John Stevens - Another contestant I liked in a guilty pleasure kind of way. He shouldn't have lasted as long as he did, but Crocodile Rock was legendary.

128. Thia Megia - Meh.

127. Kellie Pickler - Hated her on Idol and while she was okay on Dancing With the Stars, them blatantly rigging the finale to make her the winner (they suddenly had an "issue" with all of the voting methods - that benefitted Zendaya - except calling in your vote the old fashioned way) has left a sour taste in my mouth. Not that it's her fault, but it was hard to enjoy her run. All things considered, I'd probably put her around here, too.

126. Colton Dixon - In my Top 10.  I actually think his Top 7 performances were really underrated - I liked his rendition of Bad Romance, and thought September was great. But it was clear the show wanted him to be a shock boot after they'd saved Jessica.

 

130. Pretty much agree

129. Crocodile Rock was indeed legendary 

128. It's easy to see why people would feel this way about her

127. I had no idea that season might have blatantly been rigged to make her the winner (I've only watched a few seasons of DwtS, and her season wasn't one). If so, that's not good. Pretty much agree with everything else

126. Sorry.  There's probably a chance you won't like some of my all time favorites 

Edited June 21, 2020 by Crisis

[Bk1234]

Actually you ranked two of them! You ranked Gabby Barrett and MacKenzie. I guess you technically ranked Makayla Phillips already (very high too ), so you ranked three. 

Edited June 21, 2020 by Bk1234