Hollywood week has officially begun at American Idol. Not only are we able to enjoy a bit of comedic relief with new judge Ellen Degeneres, but we also have been able to see a few of the standout contestants move forward another day.

A few of those who stood out for me are:

Michael Lynche “Big Mike” whose wife went into labor during Hollywood week. Mike has a smooth groove in his voice and is definitely charming. I hope he continues to do well.

Casey James. Casey brought his guitar and played a blues song. Really stood out for me as someone to watch.

Andrew Garcia played a unique rendition of Paula Abdul’s “Straight Up” some. I liked the version as it seemed like it he made it his own. I like him, but the preview for tomorrow’s show made it seem that he might not make the next round.

Didi Benami – I loved her version of Kara’s “Terrified”. This waitress certainly has talent. Her voice was pure and reminded me a little bit of Taylor Swift. I could see her going far and even potentially becoming the next American Idol.

Crystal Bowersox did a great version of “Natural Woman” with her guitar. She seemed to be liked quite well by other contestants and the judges. She comes across as being down-to-earth and “real”. I think if she continues on, it will be interesting to see if she gets a makeover or comes up with more of a “style” or “look” for herself.

I also liked Lilly Scott with her Ella Fitzgerald song. Her voice was clear and nice but I was a little distracted by her white/grayish hair.

Tim Urban reminded me a little bit of a teen idol or one of the Jonas brothers – I think he’d get a lot of young girl fans. I didn’t love his song, but he was cute and pretty good.

Kind of sad about our Utah voice teacher, Justin Williams (cancer survivor). He was eliminated from the competition. I didn’t actually like his song – it was too much in the high ranges for me rather than pleasing, and he came across as a little bit too confident rather than feeling “real” and connecting with the audience. He’s talented and some of my friends know him, so I was cheering for him, but he didn’t stand out as much as some of the others.

Looking forward to the group round tomorrow night at American Idol … but also feel bad for those who end up with groups that can’t work together or have tons of conflict. Their destiny ends up being influenced by their group rather than their own talent – but it certainly does showcase personality traits and if they would be difficult to work with.

Good luck to all!

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