Results will be posted live as they become available.

Jason Yeager is the first person to be sent home.

Alexandrea Lushington is the first girl to go.

Alaina Whitaker is the next one out. Of the three, this is the first to surprise me.

Robbie Carrico is the last person to leave tonight. He should have stuck to being a boy bander. Nobody bought the whole rock thing from him.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episode 17, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on Fox.

Michael Johns was one of the standout performances from American Idol 7 Episode 11 (there weren’t a lot). He wants us to know he’s a bit of a jock (tennis) and sings Go Your Own Way.

Randy-Started slow but kinda got into it.
Paula-Got the whole crowd working for you.
Simon-Okay. By far your weakest performance of the whole competition for you. Weak choice of song.

Jason Castro also had a good week. During his interview, he tells us he hates interviews. He’s back with his guitar again, singing I Just Want to Be Your Everything.

Randy-Cool as an act with the guitar, but the vocals are really just okay.
Paula-Not as bad as Randy heard it to be.
Simon-Horrible song. Didn’t suit his voice. Weak vocals.

Luke Menard is part of an a cappella group. He sings Killer Queen, a fairly forgettable performance.

Randy-Pretty good.
Paula-Glad this week was a great week for him.
Simon-Mistake. The original had charisma and personality, but Luke didn’t. Verging on whiny.

Robbie Carrico tells us that Simon’s wrong because there are a lot of different levels of rock. He drag races cars, loving the sound of fuel and burnt tires. Robbie sings Hot Blooded. Sounds good, but I’m still not getting a rock vibe.

Randy-Agrees with Simon. Don’t know if the rock thing is really his thing.
Paula-How does anyone know who you are but you? Played it safe.
Simon-Don’t have to get so defensive about it. Okay vocal tonight.

Danny Noriega believed he was good last week. He tells us the story about how he was in a punk rock band that sucked when he was younger. Sure, the punk rock part was a surprise, but I don’t think the sucking part’s a stretch. He sings Superstar, a song he can’t possibly make work.

Randy-Some problems, too much thinking.
Paula-Can’t overthink it. Just perform.
Simon-Better than last week’s disaster, but at least he stands out in a crowd.

David Hernandez was in gymnastics as a little kid. He sings Papa Was a Rolling Stone in a performance that should help him stand out more from the rest.

Randy-This is the David Hernandez we fell in love with.
Paula-Pure, piercing voice. Perfect.
Simon-Best vocal of the night so far.

Jason Yeager plays guitar, piano, and drums, though he isn’t playing any instruments in the competition just yet, as he sings Long Train Running.

Randy-Wasn’t like a singer’s kind of song, pitchy, karaoke.
Paula-Didn’t show his vocal range.
Simon-Last week was boring. This week was awkward and ordinary. Like he was drunk at a party or something.

Chikezie (formerly known as Chikezie Eze) has a misprounounced Nigerian name, which has just stuck with him because people kept mispronouncing it since elementary school. He sings I Believe, and he gives a good show, something he really needed after last week’s close call.

Randy-Chikezie is back. In it to win it.
Paula-Brilliant. Fun.
Simon-Looked better. Sounded better. Clever choice of song.

David Cook is a word nerd and demonstrates it by talking like he’s on Dawson’s Creek. He sings All Right Now while playing guitar. This is the type of song that’s hard to screw up because it’s so fun and everybody knows it.

Randy-Real rocker from the boys this year.
Paula-The real deal.
Simon-Solid. Believeable. Story was boring, though, and he doesn’t have a lot of charisma. David snaps back at him, which is a bad idea. Justin Guarini learned this the hard way in season 1, yet 6 years later, David Cook is relearning it.

David Archuleta gets the pimp spot, not surpising considering he’s growing more and more as the favorite as the weeks go by. He tells a story about how he met and sang for the American Idol 1 finalists when he was 11 (check out the video in the American Idol 7 Episode 3 post). He sings Imagine and lives up to expectations. One of these weeks he’ll probably have an unexpected off night, but not this night.

Randy-One of the best vocals ever on this show. Maturity way beyond his years.
Paula-Ridiculous. She wants to dangle his decapitated head from her rear view mirror or something. One of the most moving performances ever. Destined for superstardom.
Simon-Very risky, but it worked. The one to beat.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episodes 15 and 16.

The top 12 boys performed in American Idol 7 Episode 11. Now the top 12 girls get their chance, some of which have had the flu, but the show must go on.

In reference to last night’s show and people like Danny Noriega, Simon tells Ryan that if the contestants disagree, which he claims is rare, he likes that they tell him what they think.

Kristy Lee Cook sold her horse to be able to pay for her trip to the auditions and hopes to be able to earn enough money to buy him back. She’s one of the ones who is sick and sings Rescue Me. Okay performance and at least it’s fairly fun.

Randy-Not your best performance.
Paula-Don’t want to let anyone see you’re having a little bit of a tough time.
Simon-Complete wrong choice of song. Bronchitis. Flu. Whatever.

Joanne Borgella got the last spot for the girls against Cardin McKinney. She sings I Say a Little Prayer and does okay.

Randy-Pretty good towards the end. Shaky/unsure voice.
Paula-Liked it but didn’t love it.
Simon-Didn’t like it at all. Cabaret. Substandard.

Alaina Whitaker, this season’s youngest contestant, is hoping her 17th birthday the next day is a good one. She sings More Today than Yesterday and shows she’s got the whole package to make it far in this competition.

Randy-It was like going on.
Paula-Feel good song. Nailed it.
Simon-Very good. Didn’t see any nerves. Hated the song. Will be great when she’s got a decent song. Sailing through.

Amanda Overmyer has stood out as a strong singer but with a lingering question of whether she will sound the same every week. She takes Simon’s advice and stops with the Joplin, instead opting to sing Baby Please Don’t Go Lyrics. I guess if you’re into rocker chicks, this probably works.

Randy-Liked the performance/pants.
Paula-Loves everything she does.
Simon-Authentic. Stands out in the crowd. Not the best performance. Didn’t realize the scatting was intentional because it was… scatting.

Amy Davis didn’t feel confident that they would pick her over all the other people there. She sings Where the Boys Are, apparently the slowest song known to man.

Randy-A lot of pitch problems.
Paula-The camera loves her. Not a good thing to hear from Paula. Nerves got the best of her. Lackluster.
Simon-Looks great but didn’t sound great. Boring. Cabaret. Really, really dull.

Nanny Brooke White isn’t on the dark side yet. She sings Happy Together. Very fun performance, though she may be remembered more for her banter with Simon than any singing.

Randy-Started rough but worked it out in the end.
Paula-Original. Picked the right song.
Simon-Chose the right song. Not his cup of tea. Doesn’t want her to be nice throughout the competition.

Alexandrea Lushington sings Spinning Wheel.

Randy-It was hot. It worked.
Paula-Thought about her performance from top to bottom.
Simon-Didn’t get it. Terrible 60’s musical. Vocals weren’t great.

Kady Malloy, the singer impersonator, sings Groovy Kind of Love. She sounds okay, but when will contestants learn to not pick sleepy songs?

Randy-Okay but restrained and controlled.
Paula-Kady looks really pretty tonight. The Paula kiss of death. She wants to see the fun Kady.
Simon-Like night of the living dead. Came across as 80. Really likes when she impersonates Britney. “I don’t know who could impersonate you. A pencil or something.”

Asia’h Epperson sings Piece of My Heart. I’m not sure this is necessarily the best song for her, but she does a good job with it.

Randy-A little Janis, a little Asia’h. Impressed.
Paula-Fun, some really good moments.
Simon-Favorite of the night. Fun, likeable, good voice, not taking herself too seriously.

Ramiele Malubay sings You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me. Nice voice but again way too slow of a song, although she does pull together a strong finish.

Randy-Loved how it built up and saved to the end. Almost like a pro.
Paula-Force to be reckoned with.
Simon-Didn’t like her when he first saw her, but she outsung everybody tonight.
Ryan-Those shoes are great.

Syesha Mercado’s voice is back, and she’s singing Tobacco Road. This kind of upbeat song is a perfect fit for her, and a nice change from the slow songs. She shows the same kind of power we saw in Hollywood.

Randy-Definitely can sing. Big old powerful voice.
Paula-Consistent, joyful, fun, big.
Simon-Wasn’t her best performance, but it doesn’t matter because she’s probably one of the most talented girls in the competition.

Carly Smithson has taken a lot of flack for having already released an album for a major record label. They’re not hiding it now, as she tells the story of how the record company (with which her first album sold a few hundred copies following a multi-million dollar investment) imploded, and they don’t exist any more. This is like somebody telling a story of how the college they went to got shut down. She sings Look Into My Eyes and has a good voice.

Randy-That’s what the show is all about.
Paula-Reliable. Then Paula rambles some.
Simon-Didn’t get it. Way too old fashioned. Let down with all the hype.

Wouldn’t surprise me if Simon doesn’t want to waste money on somebody whose marketability is obviously so shaky, and he also probably doesn’t like people questioning the integrity of the show, which they have been since she’s not an “undiscovered” talent (she’s been discovered by 378 album shoppers).

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episode 14, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on Fox.

Results will be posted live when they become available.

Garrett Haley is the first one eliminated. Can’t say as I’m surprised. The only real surprise here is that, 17 minutes in and with no build up, Seacrest dropped the axe.

Kristy Lee Cook is safe.

Amy Davis, however, is not, and is the first of the girls to be eliminated. Also not a surprise. It’s entirely possible she’s a better singer than she demonstrated (it’s also entirely possible she’s just trying to expand her modelling career), but the big problem is that last night she just simply put all the viewers to sleep.

Paula Abdul has a new song for some reason.

Joanne Borgella and Amanda Overmyer are revealed as not safe. Joanne Borgella is the second girl of the night to be eliminated.

Chikezie and Colton Berry are called down. Colton Berry is the last person to be eliminated this week. Simon doesn’t believe he can make a successful career out of singing.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episode 14, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on Fox.

The judges decided the top 24 in American Idol 7 Episode 10, so now it’s time for the top 12 boys to perform for America’s votes. It’s 60’s night.

David Hernandez is up first. Simon was not so sure about letting him through to this round. He sings In the Midnight Hour and has a really nice tone to his voice, with a particularly strong opening.

Randy-Liked the beginning of the song, watch the long phrasing.
Paula-Brilliant vocals, something about colors or something… hey, it’s Paula.
Simon-Better than I thought. Beginning of the song was teriffic. Loosen up a bit.

Chikezie Eze, who for the top 24 has dropped his last name, is second. He sings More Today Than Yesterday. Mostly a flat performance that’s going to have difficulty standing out from the crowd. He blames the genre.

Randy-Pretty good but old fashioned.
Paula-Loves Chikezie’s singing and thinks he looks great.
Simon-Hated the whole performance, from the hideous suit to the winking to the old fashioned/corny/cheesiness.

David Cook is still trying to figure out Simon’s vocabulary. He sings Happy Together, a sort of rock version of the song. I’m having trouble buying it.

Randy-Impressed he turned it into rock song.
Paula-A bit worthy, borrowing a word from Simon that didn’t make much sense.
Simon-Weird song but almost believable.

Jason Yeager is a singing server with an 8-year-old son. He sings Moon River, a song hard to not make sleepy, even if he has a good voice. He dedicates the song to his grandmother.

Randy-Pretty good job but lost concentration in the middle.
Paula-Agrees with Randy but did her first ballet recital to that song, for whatever that’s worth.
Simon-Wants to know how old Jason is. Reliable but not exciting.

Robbie Carrico, who is a boy bander turned rocker, or so he says, sings One Is the Loneliest Number. I don’t get it.

Randy-Very nice.
Paula-Perfect song choice. Vocals right where they should be.
Simon-Only performance of the night with any semblance of making sense because it’s the only current performance. Struggling to figure out whether he’s a rocker or a pop singer.

David Archuleta sings Shop Around. Finally we’re getting things started here. Not only is he a great performer regardless of the genre, but he’s got the kind of guy next door charm that worked so well for Kelly Clarkson.

Randy-Really brilliant, so mature for somebody who’s 17.
Paula-Brave, bold choice. Unbelievably confident, older soul.
Simon-When you got it, you got it. By a comfortable mile, best performance of the night.

Danny Noriega made it through after being cut the first day in Hollywood last year. He sings Jailhouse Rock. Seriously? Simon won’t be happy.

Randy-Knows how to have a good time. Okay vocals.
Paula-Something about colors and a safe performance. Then she starts slurring her words.
Simon-Verging on grotesque. Destroyed the song. Awful. Danny gets a bit sassy with him in response.

Carpet cleaner Luke Menard was cut in season 6 but managed to get through this season. He sings Everybody’s Talking, a song that drags and never takes off.

Randy-Pitchy throughout.
Paula-Not the best song choice. She’s happy she heard him sing before, but the problem is the audience hasn’t.
Simon-Forgettable.

Colton Berry, who believes he looks like Ellen Degeneres and sings the Teletubbies theme song in his head whenever he’s nervous, sings I Love You Too Much. It’s just okay.

Randy-Started rough but pretty good overall. Agrees with Simon it was a bit karaoke.
Paula-Nice to see a different side. Not his best performance.
Simon-Okay. Not quite as bad as the other Elvis song. Got nothing from the performance. Might have a career in musical theater.

Garrett Haley sings Don’t Take Your Love Away from Me. This is the type of performance we expect from someone this age, which is probably why a lot of people were initially shying away from David Archuleta.

Randy-Didn’t do anything with it to make it his own. Kinda boring.
Paula-Needed to make it his own.
Simon-Boring, whiny, looks terrified and haunted.

Jason Castro grew up playing drums and will be the first person in this round to play an instrument, the guitar, while singing Daydream. Without the guitar, I’m not sure how well this would have worked, but he sounds good.

Randy-It was alright.
Paula-Was blown away.
Simon-In the top two performances of the night.

Michael Johns gets the final performance of the night. We’ve seen quite a bit of him this season. He sings Light My Fire, and he obviously knows what he’s doing up on that stage.

Randy-Like a true legend rock performer.
Paula-Set everyone on fire.
Simon-Most consistent contestant but didn’t like it as much as Bohemian Rhapsody.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episodes 12 and 13.

The judges narrowed it down to 50 in American Idol 7 Episode 9. Now that Hollywood round is over, it’s time to narrow it down even further to the top 24.

Ronald Hodge, who we haven’t seen yet, is up first. He’s eliminated. Multiple others we haven’t seen proceed to be eliminated as well.

Carly Smithson, whose first album sold 378 copies with the backing of $2.2 million from MCA, is next. She’s the first one to make the top 24. Maybe if she wins Idol, her next album will sell 379 copies.

David Cook, who Simon said he wasn’t so sure about without a guitar, also makes it through.

The judges were concerned that every time Amanda Overmyer sings it will sound the same, but she was obviously going to get through.

Simon tries to scare David Archuleta, but we all know he’s going to be in the top 24.

Kristy Lee Cook has stood out each time she’s sung Amazing Grace. So what more is there to her? She gets through.

Brooke White says she was nervous the whole time she was on the stage. It didn’t come across that way when we saw it the first time. She’s already crying on the elevator ride up. She makes the top 24.

Danny Noriega, Jason Castro, Luke Menard, and Alexandrea Lushington are the next to get through, as does Ramiele Malubay.

Michael Johns shined in Hollywood, and that momentum carries him through this.

Syesha Mercado had a difficult Hollywood week and lost her voice, but she managed to get it together enough to be able to go forward.

Robbie Carrico also goes through to the top 24.

Garrett Haley, Kady Malloy, Chikezie Eze, Amy Davis, Alaina Whitaker, and Jason Yeager get through.

Asia’h Epperson, who recently lost her father, also makes it to the next round.

David Hernandez makes it through, but it’s not unanimous. Simon said no.

Josiah Leming, who also had a tough week in Hollywood, gets the boot, based largely on his final performance keeping a bad lingering vibe. He tells them he got overconfident, interestingly enough. Despite the rejection, he’s the first success story of the season, as he’s been getting quite a bit of attention and selling his songs on his Myspace page. Of all the people eliminated, this is the one that makes the least sense.

The final spot for the guys is between Colton Berry and Kyle Ensley. It’s no surprise that Colton, whoever he is, makes it through. Simon says he disagrees with the decision and that Kyle should have been given a chance.

For the girls, it comes down to Joanne Borgella and Cardin McKinney. Joanne, who says she’s had problems in the industry because she’s overweight, is the last person to make the top 24.

The top 24 contestants of American Idol season 7, who will move on to compete for America’s votes, are:

Alaina Whitaker
Alexandrea Lushington
Amanda Overmyer
Amy Davis
Asia’h Epperson
Brooke White
Carly Smithson
Chikezie Eze
Colton Berry
Danny Noriega
David Archuleta
David Cook
David Hernandez
Garrett Haley
Jason Castro
Jason Yeager
Joanne Borgella
Kady Malloy
Kristy Lee Cook
Luke Menard
Michael Johns
Ramiele Malubay
Robbie Carrico
Syesha Mercado

Half of these people we either don’t know or barely know, which is one of the things I’m not thrilled about with the start of American Idol. They spend so much time on disasters that they can’t give most of the more deserving people enough attention.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episode 11, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on Fox.

After eight episodes of auditions, some good, some… whatever… it’s time now for the Hollywood round.

Ryan Seacrest starts off the show by promising us a brand new Hollywood week. Simon has his own warning for the contestants. Only 50 are going through, and about 110 of them are going to have a really bad time.

Brooke White was on episode 1. She’s the sweet nanny who Simon hoped to bring over to the dark side. This year, they’re allowed to play instruments (a silly twist since they won’t be able to use them after this), and she decides to play the keyboard while singing Beautiful. Very good performer. All three judges are impressed, giving her a pass to the final day.

Lorena Pinot is not as lucky, nor is Amy Flynn (the abstinence supporter from episode 4). Leo Marlowe, who was promising in episode 5, can’t even remember the words.

After a montage of people bombing with instruments, Jake Mellema decides to play the drums anyway. Decent voice overpowered by bad drums. Simon finds the only redeeming thing to be that they stopped it early.

David Hernandez had a good audition in the earlier rounds, and he shows why he got through in Hollywood as well. He’s obviously an already established performer.

Rocker Amanda Overmyer from episode 7 was in a car accident a week before Hollywood round. She sings a song from The Doors. Good, but as before, can she do anything else?

Ghaleb from episode 6 is back again. Not sure why. Disaster.

Josiah Leming, who we met living in his car in episode 7, will play the keyboard. I like him better than the audition round. Simon says he’ll remember him the most out of all the auditions.

Danny Noriega, Ramiele Malubay, Carly Smithson, and Michael Johns get lumped together in a good performances montage, but at least they get a little camera time.

David Cook sings Everything I Do while playing the guitar, and he’s the first guy to actually make the song work for him. Simon’s worried what will happen without the guitar and says no, but the other two say yes.

Kyle Ensley, the guy from episode 2 who seriously needs a makeover but anyway just wants to be governor, gets a room with two most likely hot chicks. Simon calls him abysmal, which is accurate. Paula talks about amazing spirit blah blah blah.

48 of the 164 have gotten a free pass to the final day, but 116 others were rejected and have to try again on day two. They will sing a capella for a few seconds and will be cut right then and there if the judges don’t think they’re good enough.

Suzanne Toon and Perrie Cataldo are in the first group. Both are cut. David Swope and Paul Anthony Daniels, whover they are, get through.

Amy Catherine Flynn is in the next group. Her voice coach made it to Hollywood in season 4 and is there with her. She sings Love Will Bring You Back at the suggestion of her vocal coach even though she’s never heard it before. She’s eliminated. Given a few more years, she’s got potential.

Kristy Lee Cook sings the same song she sang for her audition (Amazing Grace). Jeffrey Lampkin’s as annoyingly over the top as he was at his audition and is in Kristy’s group (his sister Michelle was eliminated earlier). Single mom Angela Martin is also in this group and just recently lost her father. Of the three, Angela is the one who does not get through.

The final day is singing with a band and three backup singers, essentially the same setup as the top 24.

David Arculeta is one of the more obvious finalists ever, despite his young age. He sings Heaven by Bryan Adams and impresses as much as he has previously. Randy says he’s the best since they’ve been there. He’s got the looks, voice, and personality to win this thing. Unlike the previous 16-year-old guys we’ve seen, this kid’s no joke.

Kyle Ensley sings You Raise Me Up. And he’s actually good. Not only that, but Simon apologizes for walking out on him the day before.

Jeffrey Lampkin is cut, followed by Joey Catalano.

Despite almost losing her voice earlier in the week, Syesha Mercado gives a strong performance and gets through.

Australian Michael Johns sings Bohemian Rhapsody, an interesting choice. Simon tells him it’s the best audition of the day.

Carly Smithson, whose visa has now cleared, is allergic to her dog but hopes she’s better now thanks to the mask she’s been wearing. The judges are impressed by how much she’s improved over the audition.

Asia’h Epperson really impresses Simon and is through.

Miss South Florida Fair Brooke Helvie gets a yes from Simon but a no from the other two, apparently based on one sour note.

Josiah Leming has been up all night and is unable to get along with the band, and he eventually breaks down at 3:30 in the morning. He performs with less than two hours of sleep, unrehearsed. When he gets on stage, he asks for the band to leave. If I hadn’t seen him before, I’d say to get rid of him. Simon suggests he’s way overconfident, obviously missing the mark. Regardless, he gets through.

It’s here we get the first listen to the goodbye song for season 7, Hollywood is not America by Ferras.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another recap of American Idol 7 episode 9.

The auditions wrapped up with a stop in Atlanta last night in American Idol 7 Episode 7. We were treated to perky Miss South Florida Fair Brooke Helvie and 16-year-old Alexandrea Lushington. Fairly uneventful, but still one of the better showings we’ve seen recently.

Tonight it’s a mix of auditions from all the cities, before we head to Hollywood next week. They’ve saved some of the best and probably about 45 minutes worth of the worst.

Amy Davis grew up lower than lower middle class, which I’m not sure exactly what that means. She sings Blue Bayou. Decent voice. The judges think she can learn to get better once she gets over her nerves.

Ryan Seacrest tells us Tiffany McCambell has a voice that’s a gift from God. He didn’t say which one, though. Simon wants to know if he has a return policy.

Twins Cory and Chris Lang say they have pretty much the same girlfriend, Ashley Lawing, a blonde with a purse dog. She believes she knows which one she’s in love with. They, meanwhile, believe they’re hiphop artists. Then it’s her turn to audition with her pomeranian Panda. I bet the dog’s the most talented one of the four. The dog gets through to Hollywood.

Carden Lee McKinney sings One Night Only. Good voice, but Simon’s afraid she’s too theatrical. She gets two yes votes (as usual, not Simon).

Plus size model JoAnne Borgella sang the national anthem at the college basketball championships at Madison Square Garden, so the judges expect her to be a good singer, and she delivers, if not overly convincingly (Simon says no, though the other two put her through).

Alesha has been singing since she was 8, and she sounds the same now as she did then. They dismiss her so she can go learn Dolly Parton and come back. She learns Islands in the Stream. Actually, she does sound okay with this song. Simon refuses to vote, but the other two let her through. This is the first time they’ve sent someone off to learn a new song that it actually worked out.

Jay Smoove (seriously?) thinks he’s an R&B recording artist. He sings an original song, Beautiful Lady. After hearing his nickname, I wasn’t expecting much, but he’s surprisingly actually not bad. Not quite good enough, though.

Chikezie Eze was cut last year. Not real clear why. Unlike the people who get rejected for having no talent at all who just can’t take the hint, this guy’s got a good voice.

Danny Noriega is another returning reject. He sings Proud Mary. He’s one of those guys with a voice that doesn’t sound like it’s actually coming from him. I was surprised that he sounds good.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of American Idol 7 episode 9, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on Fox.

Miami was better than Omaha, but not much happened there in American Idol 7 Episode 6 either. We got a glimpse of a boy bander who thinks he’s a rocker (Robbie Carrico), single mom Suzanne Toon, and excessively perky Syesha Mercado. For some portion of the evening, the judges were all sipping out of Paula’s cup.

Tonight’s stop is Atlanta. Clay Aiken, Jennifer Hudson, and Fantasia Barrino auditioned here. Ryan Seacrest’s parents show up, but they’re not there to audition.

Josh Jones is in love with glass. He sings Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen. He’s decent, but Simon again fears he’s found a demon. They make him sing with his back to them. For some unknown reason, Simon doesn’t think someone who has to perform not facing the audience could win. He gets two yes votes (not Simon).

JP Tjelmelano auditioned two people ahead of Carrie Underwood. Yet another one of those people who can’t take the hint. At least this will be the last we see of him, though, as he’s gotten some camera time. Simon gives him a no. Randy gives him a no. Paula gives him, well, I can’t really tell, which leads to a montage about how nobody can understand what Paula’s actual vote is since she doesn’t have one half the time.

Asia’h Epperson lost her father two days before the audition, as she got a phone call about a car accident half an hour after talking to her dad to inform him she was making the trip to Atlanta. She sings How Do I Live as a dedication for her father. She’s a good singer with a unique voice, making it enough of the way through the song before crying to impress the judges.

Brooke Helvie is Miss South Florida Fair (yeah, that’s apparently a real thing). She sings Who’s Loving You by the Jackson Five. In addition to being really perky, she’s got one of the better voices we’ve heard. Also, she gets her wish and hugs Simon, who calls her possibly the most annoying person he’s ever seen.

The introduction for Eva Miller tells us she’s got a lot of attitude. Don’t even let her sing. We know this is a waste of time already. Despite the belief that it’s all an act, the judges just let her keep singing on and on, something they don’t allow some borderline singers to do.

Alexandrea Lushington sings My Funny Valentine after Ryan gets done hitting on her great grandmother. It only takes a couple lines before the judges stop her and let her through. I don’t remember this girl, but she got beat out by David Archuleta (who we saw in episode 3) about midway through Star Search in 2003.

16-year old 9th grader (I don’t want to know how often he’s stayed back) Nathan Hite plans to show the judges his wit, which means he suspects that he sucks and is just doing this so he can yell at Simon. Simon gives him a choice whether he wants to listen or be a smartass. He pretends to listen before going into smartass. Mildly amusing but not worth showing.

Nurse/biker chick Amanda Overmyer sings Janis Joplin’s Mean Woman. Simon’s got the same concern I do: how much variety is this girl going to be able to deal with? She’s definitely good enough to go through, though.

Josiah Leming quit school and has been living in his car for nearly a year, which he says he loves. He sings a song he wrote called To Run. Simon thinks he’s picked up an English accent when he sings. He’s iffy but good enough to go to Hollywood.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of American Idol 7 episode 8, which airs Wednesday at 8/7c on Fox.

Omaha, Nebraska turned out to be as uneventful as could be expected in American Idol 7 Episode 5. Aside from the last audition of the night, Leo Marlowe, there wasn’t much worth discussing, unless you were looking for freaks and weirdos, which, granted, is half the appeal of American Idol.

Tonight we head to Miami, a city that presumably has more promise than the last two did, for the first time since season two.

Accomplished belcher Shannon McGough has won a lot of made up local Idol competitions. She sings Crybaby by Janis Joplin. Simon tells her it was like the Hungarian Janis Joplin and that most people don’t know what they’re talking about, which is why it’s good she’s come to see him.

Robbie Carrico is a former boy bander turned rocker, or so he says. I’m not seeing any rock in this performance, but he’s got a good voice.

Venezuelan Ghaleb thinks he’s Marc Anthony. For some reason, Paula thinks he’s good, and so does Randy. I don’t get it. Just as I was wondering what’s in Paula’s Coke cup, Simon lifted it up and asked for someone to check, thus perpetuating the stereotype that she’s a drunk (oh, like it’s not true).

Best friends Corliss Smith and Brittany Wescott audition together. Corliss wants Randy, while Brittany loves Ryan and/or Simon. Both sing older songs and sound good, and both go through to Hollywood.

Single mom Suzanne Toon hasn’t sung in three years since she got pregnant. She sings I Can’t Make You Love Me, and she does well.

Ramiele Malubay is a Filipino-American looking to follow in Jasmine Trias’ footsteps, who has had a lot of success, particularly in the Philippines. She sings A Natural Woman. Now Simon’s sipping out of Paula’s cup and says no, but the other two say yes.

Syesha Mercado thinks happy thoughts, despite a difficult childhood with her father, who’s recently recovered from drugs and alcohol. She sings Aretha Franklin’s Think. A bit over the top but wow.

While rejecting one of the contestants, Simon says he’s tempted to tell him to come back in a dress. Uh oh. Somebody’s gonna blow that all out of proportion.

Julie Dubela, 16, was in the top 20 in American Juniors (apparently another failed Idol spinoff). Never heard of it, but it suggests she’s talented. Or so I thought anyway. Not bad but not ready either. Simon asks if she’s been called precocious, which doesn’t matter since she doesn’t know what it means. They don’t offer her any constructive criticism, but that’s arguably because with her attitude she couldn’t accept it anyway. I think she was better at age 12.

The very last contestant, Brandon Black, obviously can’t sing. His “unique” entrance doesn’t impress the judges any. He sings I’ll Make Love to You and tries to act sexy. Better off trying to make them laugh instead. Then he sings an original song, I Am the Next American Idol. He follows this with some tricks with his hat and another attempt at being funny. The judges hate him and walk out of the room.

Stay tuned to dingoRUE for another live recap of American Idol 7 episode 7, which airs Tuesday at 8/7c on Fox.