Orlando brought us Jermaine Purifoy and Matt Lawrence in American Idol Season 9 Episode 4. Tonight we head to Los Angeles, so basically everybody who showed up there is already going to Hollywood. The guest judges are Avril Lavigne and then Katy Perry.
Neil Goldstein tells us he’s got an IQ of 168. So he’s probably smart enough to know that he sucks at singing. He sings Rock & Roll Dreams Come Through by Meat Loaf, and it goes about as badly as expected.
Jim Ranger sings a song he wrote called Drive. Simon thinks his voice is authentic. Avril thinks he’s got a good voice, but warns him that being in this business means travelling, which may be a problem with a wife and three kids and being a pastor.
Damien Lefavor has been trying to hit that one note for years. He sings You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling by the Righteous Brothers. At least he acknowledges that he sucks, and he just walks out.
Mary Powers’ daughter predicts she will be in the top 14 or something. She sings Love Is a Battlefield by Pat Benatar. Simon thinks she’s got a really good voice but is cliched.
AJ Mendoza wants to be Adam Lambert. He sings Cult of Personality by Living Colour. Simon felt it was as if he just got back from the dentist.
Katy’s first bit of judgment is to say that the other judges are ridiculous for arriving by helicopter.
Austin Fullmer is more in love wih himself than Simon is. Simon suggests he stick to just cleaning water. Katy wants to know if these people are frisked before entering.
Andrew Garcia wants an improvement over his life, having been raised by parents who were in gangs. Simon calls him a genuinely really good singer. Randy says he’s got mad vocals.
Tasha Layton is a personal assistant/minister. She sings Baby Baby Baby by Joss Stone and gets through to Hollywood.
Jason Greene believes in magic. He also believes he’s hot, which in itself would require magic, and he sings I Touch Myself by the Divinyls. Creepy. Katy feels dirty. Simon didn’t like being hit on, although Ryan ends up getting the phone number.
Chris Golightly has bounced around in the foster care system since he was a baby. He sings Stand by Me. Kara calls him one of her favorites of the day. Simon thought he was nice but old fashioned. Katy and Simon give him limited support but still yes, but Kara and Randy are big fans.
Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of American Idol 9 Episode 6, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on Fox.