Livelier Times

Currently Listening To: Anna Kendrick - Cups (Pitch Perfect's When I'm Gone)

Apart from a few questionable song choices and terrible execution of said songs, this was actually a pretty good night for Season 13. I see improvement from most of the contestants this week. They're beginning to make riskier song selections and trying to put their own touch to it. 

From the worst to the best:

Majesty - Shake It Out by Florence and the Machine
I'm afraid I'll have to rank her at the very bottom this week. Initially I thought it was gonna be awesome, but Majesty unfortunately got steadily worse as the song progressed on, and the end was just disastrous. She can't sing high notes and yet she keeps choosing big songs! I don't understand. Where did that Majesty who sang Violet Hill go?? 0/10

CJ - If It Hadn't Been for Love by The Steel Drivers
What a great song choice, I'm inspired to listen to it again. Now if only CJ had sang it in tune, I would have given him a better grade.  He has a big problem with pitch. What's the point of having good tone and good range, if you can't utilize it to sing in tune? I don't think CJ has a good ear, Harry. It's been weeks, he should have at least improved a little! 2/10.

Dexter - Boondocks by Little Big Town
I guess he's trying to take the Scotty McCreery route with his steady choice of country songs, but he does not have the good looks nor the charm of the Season 10 champ. So what does that spell for Dexter? Probably bottom 3 each week until he gets eliminated. Why is that so? Because although he sings well, his song choices are pretty much snoozefests, and that will not encourage the public to vote for him. Consistent but boring. 3/10

Sam - Hey There Delilah by Plain White T's
To quote Keith, Sam's voice is like butter. Unfortunately, it is unsalted butter. So it's not entirely appealing to the masses. I mean seriously, the kid sings with this blank, empty look on his face. Even J.Lo was commenting on his lack of connection with the song. And it's true, there is nothing. Nothing on his face, nothing in his voice, nothing in his delivery that would make people FEEL for him. There was no emotion when he was standing there listening to the judges' feedback either. In conclusion, Sam is an emotionless robot and I don't know if that's gonna work out for him. 5/10

Malaya - Long and Winding Road by The Beatles
Honestly she has improved so much since the disastrous Top 13, but her high notes still needs a looooot of work. All in all I thought that was a pretty decent performance for Malaya, minus the caterwauling high notes. Will she get votes? Most probably since AI is determined to promote her anyways. 6/10

Jessica - Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac
I really love the song Rhiannon, but I can't say I liked Jessica's rendition that much. I think Didi Benami and Haley Reinhart sang it better. However, it was still a good and solid performance from Jessica as the song fits her so well and unlike Sam, she seems to be learning to connect with the audience better. 6.5/10

Alex - Don't Speak by No Doubt
Now that was an interesting performance. An unexpected song choice from Alex as well. I liked his jazzy take on the No Doubt tune, though it seemed to take away a bit of the anguished emotions from the song. This performance felt like it belonged to Season 8 or 9 instead, and that's a good thing. 7/10

Jena - Bring Me to Life by Evanescence
Although there were a couple of bum notes, Jena as a whole gave a very convincing, impressive performance with Bring Me to Life. She really brought the stage to life, something that is sorely needed this season. On top of that she looked great and what better way to end the night than with a gorgeous young girl singing beautifully! 8/10

Caleb - Dazed and Confused by Led Zeppelin
OMG he totally gave me goosies! That was a fantastic performance from the resident Season 13 rocker, incredible vocals and excellent song choice (Led Zeppelin FTW!). And yes, hats off to Ricky Minor and his band for that awesome performance! 9/10

Bottom 3? MAJESTY, CJ, Dexter

Who should go home? MAJESTY. 

It has become a travesty to keep Majesty in the competition based on her performances so far and compared to the others. So disappointing.

Edit with Results:
For the third week in a row, I made the correct prediction - Majesty is gone.

As horrible as her exit performance was, I think she still sang more notes in tune than CJ.

I can't help but feel sad about it though, she had seemed so promising during her audition and the Hollywood rounds. It's such a shame to see her lose herself in the live shows and departed with barely a whimper. All the best to her Majesty.