The granddaddy of the most overdone genre on television is back for another season. The judges’ revolving door continues to turn with three new judges after two of the old useless ones (Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler) left. Replacing them are Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, and Keith Urban. Among them, Mariah’s kind of a big deal, as one of the biggest pop sensations of a century ago (unlike J-Lo, she got famous because of her voice), though that does not necessarily translate to being a good judge. Apparently unable to find a job elsewhere, Randy Jackson rounds out the panel as the fourth judge, which worked out so well last time they tried it.
We start off with some footage for Phillip Phillips, in case someone remembers him. The first audition city is New York.
Are Mariah and Nicki going to bicker all night? As they get into their own thing, Michael Buonopane comes in and gets the show started with singing in as many genres as he knows. None of them are good enough for a vote.
Tenna Torres last got to sing for Mariah when she was 13 at Camp Mariah. Now 28, she sings You’ve Got a Friend by Carol King, easily making it through to the next round.
James Bae wants to be the next Justin Bieber. In his own words, it will be a miracle if he were to get a yes. Yes, yes it would. He informs us he’s singing a Bieber song. Perhaps he is. Everybody tries to be kind. Finally, Randy tells him he can’t sing.
Christina “Isabelle” lost 50 pounds so she could pursue a career as a singer. She’d like to bring back the great music she listened to growing up, like Mariah. Nicki thinks she’s going far in this competition.
Evan Ruggiero tells us he’s been dancing since he was a child. But this is American Idol. When he was 19, he learned he had bone cancer, which eventually led to his leg being amputated. In addition to singing, he’s brought his guitar with him. His Bon Jovi is a lot better than his Jason Mraz, but it’s not quite enough, though the judges tell him to come back next year.
When Jessica Kartalis is asked what kind of artist she’ll be, she says she doesn’t want to label herself. That’s not a good sign. The judges suggest she come back when she figures that out.
Shira Gavrielov is from Israel, where she released a CD when she was 17. I don’t get it, but the judges love her.
Day 1 in New York ends with Frankie Ford sings on the train to make ends meet. Despite a shaky start, he pulls it together and is headed to Hollywood.
Benjamin Gaisey is an awful singer with a bad wig and whose clothes make noise when he moves. I’d like to move on, but the judges encourage him to sing another song. After we watch that waste of time, we get to go to another 5 minute commercial break. It would be nice if they added some show to this promotional effort.
Rozanna Shindelman usually doesn’t sing in front of people. She may wish to continue that trend.
Sarah Restuccio is from New Jersey, the blueberry capital of the world. A country singer is not what you’d expect from Jersey, but it makes sense seeing as she lives on a farm. After she does the Carrie Underwood song quite well, she switches it up and sings Nicki Minaj’s Super Bass.
Albert Chang has no idea who these judges are, but to be fair I don’t know half of them either. His really dull performance of Phantom of the Opera kicks it up a notch with terrible high pitch.
Angela Miller has partial hearing loss, but it doesn’t affect her singing any. The judges say she brought something they haven’t heard today.
Brett Holt has auditioned 7 times. Next.
Gurpreet Singh Sarin always matches his turban with the rest of his outfit. His decent voice is sufficient to gather 3 votes.
Ashlee Feliciano is the biological daughter of a family that adopts medically complex children. She sings Put Your Records On to finish the night and receives glowing praise from the judges.
Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of American Idol Season 12 Episode 2, which airs Thursday at 8/7c on Fox.