VIDEO: Top Ten Picked On American Idol -- And (Surprise) THREE Wild Cards!
Posted on Mar 04, 2011 @ 07:20AM - 1 comment
On Thursday's American Idol, the 24 remaining contestants were whittled down to ten finalists by more than 40 million viewer votes, and in a surprising move, judges Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez each got to save someone with a wild card pick, leaving 13 young talents competing for this season's crown. Earlier, everyone thought there would be just two wild cards.
PHOTOS: American Idol Top 13 Out Partying
The top ten contestants, as determined by voters, included boys Scotty McCreery, James Durbin, Jacob Lusk, Casey Abrams and Paul McDonald; and girls Pia Toscano, Lauren Alaina, Karen Rodriguez, Thia Megia and Haley Reinhart.
That brought us to the real suspense of the night, as three lucky contestants would be selected by the judges to get another shot at following in the footsteps of past winners such as Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood.
VIDEO: 'Standout' Pia Toscano No Pretender On American Idol
Posted on Mar 03, 2011 @ 05:45AM - 2 comments
On Wednesday's American Idol, the second of three episodes airing this week, judges Randy Jackson, Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez checked out the dozen remaining girls, and Pia Toscano stole the show with a jarring rendition of The Pretenders' I'll Stand By You, radiating the same kind of star power Kelly Clarkson did in the show's inaugural season.
After her performance, the entire audience -- including the judges -- stood up and gave Toscano, a 22-year-old New Yorker, a standing ovation for her power ballad.
