Summary "American Idol" - Top Ten Female Semifinalists - March 3, 2010

Ryan asks Crystal how she's doing, she says she's a tough cookie and she's ready to compete.

Randy says the guys were hot last night and that the girls hopefully will be tonight. Ellen says song choice is everything. Kara and Simon banter uncomfortably. Simon says this week is more important than last.

Continued Theme: Billboard Hits

Contestant #1:Crystal Bowersox Her personal tidbit is that she has a twin brother, Carl, who is kind of a square. She carries a small purse with trinkets in it from various periods of her life. She hopes to prove that Simon would stop and hear her play in the subway.

Song:"Long as I Can See the Light," Credence Clearwater Revival

Performance:She starts slow with thick organ backing up her state gospel intentions. It's laid back but her vocals are heartfelt and strong.

Randy: He says truth is reality and she is truth and not trying to be anybody else. He thinks she's hot.

Ellen: She calls it pure, raw, natural talent with nothing forced. She asks her to please stay healthy.

Kara: Says she completely recovered from last week's version of "You Oughta Know" - it was actually "Hand in My Pocket," Ryan corrects this- and that this is more who she is, in the Americana lane. She thought she hit a new level.

Simon: Says he knows she was really ill and he loves that she didn't play the sympathy card but just came out and sang well. He says he "misunderestimated" her, the vocal was incredible and that this performance was like the moment they realized Kelly Clarkson was a serious artist.



Contestant #2:Haeley Vaughn In Ryan red room chat she says it's fun singing young songs and her choice tonight is personal for her. Her personal tidbit is she likes to make headbands and hair accessories. Michael Lynche models one. She tries to make a "mean face" but fails since she doesn't know how to not smile.

Song:"The Climb," Miley Cyrus

Performance:She starts a little shaky but it gets better as it goes along. She sounds mostly fine, hitting a few flat notes, but can't stop smiling.

Randy: Calls it excruciating, pitchy, and she had no connection to the song but knows she can sing.

Ellen: Tells her to not stop smiling but agrees she didn't feel her connecting with the song's powerful message.

Kara: She says she has an Alex Lambert-factor in that people are rooting for her. She thinks she's open and real and a good performer but she says she needs about a year of strengthening of her vocal cords but she does have talent.

Simon: Doesn't want to make it worse than it is but calls it a complete in utter mess. He says in theory it should've worked. He says ironic she sang about climbing but she fell off.



Contestant #3:Lacey BrownIn Ryan red room chat Lacey says the extra day worked out fine because it gave the girls a little more time and she felt bad for the boys. Her personal tidbit is that she really likes refurbishing antique furniture. Right before she sings she tells herself she was made to do this, which is something her mom tells her. She things nerves derailed her first performance.

Song:"Kiss Me," Sixpence None the Richer (which was Kara's suggestion)

Performance: She slows it down a bit but it's very similar to the original vocally. You can already hear Simon moaning about "copycat" performing. It's light and she's cute but there's not much to hold on to. In a karaoke bar? Excellent. Here, just fine.

Randy: Liked the choice and that it would've worked but he was looking for the words to flash across the screen karaoke-style and she didn't do anything special.

Ellen: She thought it was adorable and it was a good choice.

Kara: Says last week she felt like they were losing what was special about Lacey and this week the beginning of this song was good but she has to step it up vocally, but now they're back on the playing field.

Simon: Thinks it was marginally better but feels like she's taking part in a competition but not showcasing herself. She will do what's she told but not fight for originality.

She points out that she wanted to do that song before Kara suggested it.



Contestant #4:Katie Stevens In Ryan red room chat she says her high school friends are having viewing parties and are psyched she's on the show. She says she understood that she should be doing a more youthful song. Her personal tidbit is she can save "give me a kiss" in six languages. She's embarrassed for herself that she can do this. Her pre-show ritual is jumping up and down and screaming affirmations into the mirror.

Song:"Put Your Records On," Corinne Bailey Rae

Performance: She looks assured and she sounds strong even on the low bits. A nice, sweet performance that didn't bring much new spice to the song but pretty good vocally - except one glaring bum note - overall.

Randy: Says there were bright moments especially in her upper register. He wants her to tackle things more difficult melodically. He says it was really pitchy which I really didn't hear.

Ellen: Thinks she has a great voice and she still can't believe she's 17 and she wants to see her younger somehow. She says she doesn't want to hear something she'd hear in her dentist's office.

Kara: Agrees and is frustrated. She says she knows it's confusing that they tell her different things week to week and that the end was great and she should do more interesting stuff like she did there. She says sometimes songs that sound good on the radio don't have enough impact live. She's pulling for her.

Simon: Also frustrated in that she's not telling them what kind of artist she should be. But he thinks she'll stick around because people like her. He tells her to do research on better songs.

Kara advises her to find a song that relates to her life and Randy says an artist that's closer to her age.



Contestant #5:Didi Benami In Ryan red room chat she talks about rooting for the guys and feeling a little nervous about her song choice. Her personal tidbit is she was the school mascot in middle school. She was also a cheerleader. Before she hits the stage she prays and "meows" to open up her vocal cords. She didn't understand Simon's criticism of being "indulgent" so she looked it up. This week she's doing a soul thang to help bring up her "star meter."

Song: "Lean on Me," Bill Withers

Performance: On the stool she starts slow and low and as she hits the chorus she gets up, goes higher in her register, and gesticulates earnestly. It's a little sleepaway camp hippie-ish but fine and ends really nicely.

Randy: Thought a soul song was a bad choice since it shows imperfections instead of heightening what she does well.

Ellen: Loves her voice and her presence and Bill Withers but thought it was the wrong song.

Kara: Says it wasn't good. She wants her to be consistent and do a singer-songwriter version of the song instead of trying to switch it up. She's still a fan.

Simon: He says it was screechy and a bad choice. Again, he's frustrated that she blew this opportunity by doing something generic.

She's upset enough she can't speak.



Contestant #6:Michelle Delamor In Ryan red room chat he asks about the contradictory judge advice, she says she thinks the judges input is important and she wants to balance what they say with doing what she wants. Her personal tidbit is that she's a children's choir director. Before the show she prays, meditates, and visualizes good things. She wants to give Simon a "wow."

Song: "With Arms Wide Open," Creed

Performance: She starts high and seems to struggle a bit pitchwise. The whole thing feels a lot more precarious and whiny than last week.

Randy: Says there were a couple of pitch problems but he loves the outfit. Feels like a broken record: she didn't do enough with it, and it fell flat.

Ellen: Agrees she looks fabulous and thought she did do a lot with the song and for a few moments she forgot it was a rock song. She thought it almost worked.

Kara: Calls it her favorite performance ever from Michelle. It may not have been technically perfect but she took a risk and she has a good attitude and she did something different and she believed in what Michelle was saying.

Simon: He's with Kara. He thought the first half was stronger than the second. He admits they give contradictory advice but he likes that she took the notes and ran with them and got 80 percent of it right.



Contestant #7:Lilly Scott In Ryan red room chat he asks about her stage presence. She says she worked with the vocal coaches about opening her eyes and playing to the cameras. Her personal tidbit is she plays a lot of different instruments. She wants to be unpredictable. Before she goes on stage she uses throat spray.

Song: "A Change is Gonna Come," Sam Cooke

Performance: Another slow one and another person who isn't inherently soulful attempting a classic soul song. She's still keeping her eyes closed a lot. And the vocal is kind of hiccup-y and hitching in a song that should have nice long lines.

Randy: He calls it the season of the most unique contestants and he loved the performance, thought it was the best of the night.

Ellen: Says she's got the proverbial "it." Forgot she was at a singing competition, was just a fan.

Kara: Said she just had her first moment. She was riveted. She's so glad she's a mismatch for the competition and will inspire other offbeat people to do it.

Simon: Says she makes the point of using the show as a showcase. He thought it was good not amazing and oversung in places.



Contestant #8:Katelyn Epperly In Ryan red room chat she says it's been intense in the room listening to the other contestants' feedback. She's doing something intimate tonight. Her personal tidbit is she was studying to be a recording engineer and she'd like to open her own studio. Before the show she likes to goof off. She says she wasn't thinking Kara was a bitch last week when the judge told her she didn't like her makeover. She hopes to move people.

Song: "The Scientist," Coldplay

Performance: It's a piano ballad and she plays the piano herself. She sounds fine but the song starts out kind of snoozy. Her huge earrings are kind of distracting. Her pitch is great but it wasn't very exciting.

Randy: He really liked it but thought it was way slow. He thought it fell off pitch at the end.

Ellen: Liked that she was playing guitar, oops, she means piano. She thought it was too slow.

Kara: She understands what Randy and Ellen are saying but she loves her. She think she has an incredible instrument but is all over the place. Tells her she needs to figure out who she is real quick.

Simon: Wonders if she's heard the Natasha Bedingfield version. (She hasn't). He thought it was a smart choice but she seemed corny as a performer. He thought it was a million times better than last week and she's back in the hunt.



Contestant #9:Paige Miles In Ryan red room chat she says she feels awesome but she needs a drink of water. Her personal tidbit is she likes to color with crayons and markers, inside the lines. And that's her pre-show ritual. She had a lot of fun last week.

Song:"Walk Away," Kelly Clarkson (which, incidentally Kara co-wrote)

Performance: Yay, tempo! She switches up the vocal rhythms a bit. She sounds great but it would be nice if she moved a bit. She kills the bridge. You can see her confidence build as the song builds.

Randy: Asks if she knows who wrote the song, she does. He liked it, wasn't over the top in love with it because it had so many words. He wants to hear her hit big notes and long melodies.

Ellen: Totally disagrees, she loved it and everything that she did with it and that she had fun.

Kara: Can see her having a hit with that song. She understands the having fun thing but that the song was angry and she hoped she would've felt that a bit more. She liked it though.

Simon: He agrees with Randy and thinks that she's failed two weeks in a row to pick a good song and the songs are overtaking her. He's frustrated again and thought it was forgettable and thinks she needs to put her marker down.



Contestant #10:Siobhan Magnus In Ryan red room chat she says her focus is going to be on singing her heart out. Her personal tidbit is that she once had a mohawk. Her pre-show ritual includes lip-trills. She demonstrates. She agrees with Simon that she's unpredictable.

Song:"Think," Aretha Franklin

Performance: Tempo again, nice. She starts great, hits a rough spot, and reels it back in. She's got nice stage attitude. She tosses off a serious caterwaul that starts good and veers off a bit but is fun.

Randy: Loves that she's bold and fearless and he thought it was dope.

Ellen: Is all fired up and loves that she took on a big song.

Kara: She can't get over the note and was impressed.

Simon: Thinks she's strange but he means it as a compliment and he loved her video package. He thought parts of the song were terrible but the note was incredible. He calls her interesting and very talented.

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