American Idol auditions #5 took place in Galveston, TX. We were reminded that this was Idol’s 9th visit to Texas in 11 seasons, and where Kelly Clarkson was discovered.
Things are bigger and better in Texas, and the viewers were treated to more fails than we’ve seen thus far.
Leading off the night was Phong Vu, 25, who became quite verklempt at the idea of even auditioning. He said he likes to sing female vocalists’ music. I suspect that somewhere dogs were howling at his performance. Steven kindly told him that he had passion, but no voice. Next!
Cameron Dobbins, 22 and Lamounte Hall, 18 were trotted out, followed by 2 unnamed contestants. This is what we’ve been missing!
Skylar Laine, 17, will be one to watch! The deer-huntin’ teenager had a nice country twang, and her 19-yr old friend got a hug from Steven. Nice back story on the family business, too.
Baylie Brown, 21, auditioned in San Antonio 5 years ago, and made it to Hollywood, but was sent home after she forgot the lyrics during group week. She has obviously developed her talent since then, displaying a beautiful, clear voice.
Kristin Osolio, 28, won over the judges with her natural voice. This soon-to-be single mother of 3 used her divorce lawyer money to buy her plane ticket to the audition.
Then: DRAMA! Jennifer vs The Boys! Rack ‘em up, knock ‘em down. J-Lo said yes to Rachael Turner, 20, and Reagan Wilson, 21, and Cheyenne James, 17…and the guys nixed all 3 of them. Linda Williams, 24, got a resounding “no” from Ms. Lopez, but Randy and Steven put her through, maybe because she was ” ’bout to pee [her]self.” Says Lopez, “They are sending the good singers home and letting the bad singers through.” That’s OK, Hollywood week sorts these things out!
The judges were unified once more when they saw and heard the audition of Alejandro Cazares, 26. He stated that the Revolution is here, and he is the Revolution! He also shared that his supposed girlfriend wouldn’t support him in his desire to audition. Smart woman! He was TERRIBLE! We got to see the classic Idol begging to stay, complete with Randy saying “Never”, and security escorting him out. Ahhhh. Finally, an end to the “too nice” auditions!
Cortez Shaw, 20, performed an Adele song that was recognizable to the judges (apparently a first!). His mom is a single parent and they were homeless at times, but he believes in hard work, determination and passion to achieve your dream. Nice voice, too!
Julie Schuman, 28, wore leather pants that were as loud as her screechy voice, and her gyrations inspired Steven to comment that “I’ll bet you are crazy in – on the dance floor.” Vanessa Hernandez, 18, lost the melody to her song, and Erin “Nire” Kettl, 19, inspired tears from the judges. Tears of laughter, that is.
Ramiro Garcia, 28, said he “wasn’t born normal.” He was born without ears, and only after surgery to create ear canals was it discovered that he had an ear drum. Doctors predicted that he would never speak or hear, but Tyler said that he was a “powerful example and you can sing.” Lopez said they were taking a leap of faith with him that day.
54 golden tickets were awarded, and Ryan was punched in the eye by an overly-enthusiastic supporter of one of the ticket holders. Ah, Texas!
