Top 11: Song Predictions

Last week, we saw Lacey Brown sing her swan song and take her rightful place in the spectators position. She simply wasn't original, talented, or interesting enough to inspire the masses to vote for her. I will miss her pretty eyes, but that's about it.

This week, the Top 11 were supposed to be singing songs from Teen Idols, but that was changed to Billboard #1 Hits. I'm torn between this, for a couple of reasons. Teen Idols week would have been awesome because it would have been sooooo bad. It would have been hilarious. This was also a sure plan by the producers to have Justin Bieber on the show to complete Ryan's fantasy. He has mentioned the kid 3 times already this season. Man crushes are in, Ryan, but boy crushes will always and forever be wrong. One thing that will remain the same from this theme is that Miley Cyrus will be the mentor. Are you kidding me. Two episodes in a row are going to feature the two least talented performers in America, Ke$ha and Miley Cyrus. At this point, I think it is safe to say that Idol is mocking the contestants. Maybe this will boost their confidence. "Hey, I'm better than Miley, maybe I'm really good!" We can only hope...

I do think the switch will allow the contestants to pick from (mostly) quality songs. I'm interested to see if anyone thinks they are good enough to go for a Mariah/Whitney type song. Maybe if they completely rearrange it, but probably not. Considering that there have only been 4 #1 singles this year so far, including the fodder-icious "Tik Tok" by Ke$ha, "Imma Be" by Black Eyed Peas, "Break Your Heart" by Taio Cruz, and the overly explicit "Rude Boy" by Rihanna, don't expect any recent hits to be sung.

This will be a hard week to pick songs. I'm not sure if the contestants are only limited to the Billboard Hot 100 Chart, or if they are allowed to take #1 hits from individual genre charts. I am limiting myself to the Hot 100, since I don't have the time, nor energy, to go searching through countless genre lists. I looked through about 50 years of #1 hits, so we'll see if I can get anywhere remotely close! I think we will be seeing a lot of hits from the mid 80's to late 90's. The #1 hits from the 2000's have been packed with rap and overly produced, unsingable pop. If the contestants are smart, they will pick this range of songs for two reasons. There are still singable melodies to choose from and the majority of the voting demographic will remember songs during this time, depending on how popular the hit was.

On to the picks!

Aaron Kelly

Lonestar "Amazed" or Savage Garden "Truly, Madly, Deeply"

Aaron Kelly is getting phantom votes right now. Either that or grandmas all over the nation really, REALLY like him. Aaron has already sang "I'm Already There" by Lonestar a few weeks ago. This style of music is the best fit for his voice. It has the right amount of twang and an easy enough melody so that he can try and throw a slew of forced riffs in there. If he thinks that it would be a bad idea to do two songs by the same artist (which it probably is), he could probably do a serviceable version of "Truly, Madly, Deeply." I don't see him moving from the mid-tempo/ballady songs anytime soon. That's all he's done so far. If he came out with "Love in This Club," I might become a fan, but since that will never happen, my loathing will commence.

Andrew Garcia

Santana "Maria, Maria" or Blackstreet "No Diggity"

I think that either of these two songs can serve Andrew well. "Maria, Maria" is a nice up-beat R&B jam that has some acoustic undertones and a distinct Latino vibe. If he could get his vocals around the runs and trills, it would sound pretty good, I think. But if he went and did an acoustic cover of "No Diggity," it would kill! It has that laid back groove that he loves and has room to be converted to fit his style. Everyone knows and loves that song and I think that it would sound awesome with his voice on it. I can see it in my mind, so let's hope that he can see the same thing. What is crazy is that I heard the aforementioned Taio Cruz song the other day and thought it sounded like Andrew. It's not wise to do a song so popular right now because you draw an obvious comparison, but it could be an option. Another option would be to just do "Straight Up" again, since the judges can't seem to get over it!

Casey James

Santana ft. Rob Thomas "Smooth"

#2 on the All-Time Hot 100 list, as stated by Billboard itself. One of the best guitarists of all-time. One does not have to be a rocket scientist to see that this has all the workings of a song that Casey could kill. It's got energy, passion, and shows off his skill as a guitarist. The vocals won't suffer either. Rob Thomas is not the greatest singer in the world, but he uses what he has best in this song, and I think that Casey would do the same. I think that if Casey picked this song, he could have a "moment." It would be a fun change of pace for him and allow him to "just be a star" like Simon told him last week. I guess Simon thinks that that is an easy achievement!

Crystal Bowersox

Toni Braxton "Unbreak My Heart"

I'll be honest, I don't know what Crystal is going to do. None of the artists in her usual bag of tricks are available this week, so I had to get creative and think about what I'd like her to do. I would like to see her step away from her guitar this week and belt out a powerful ballad. I think that she'd be able to do a good job with this pick. It'd be different enough for her that she would be breaking the mold that she's made for herself and probably pick up a few new fans. She'd show versatility and vulnerability at the same time. Again, she will probably not pick this, but it'd be nice if she did.

Didi Benami

U2 "With or Without You"

Didi, I can tell, is going to be the hardest to pick every week. Since she really only sounds great in her niche, she will have to find ways to work other songs into that style. She did well this past week, even though she slipped up a few times. She showed a little versatility and the combo of dark music and her sweet voice was nice. This week, I think she should go back to the acoustic with a toned down version of this U2 smash. Everyone on the planet knows this song, and if it's done right, she can do it in an endearing and memorable way. Give her the pimp lighting and a string quartet and she'll be good to go.

Katie Stevens

Christina Aguilera "Come on Over" or Phil Collins "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)"

I mentioned that Katie should sing a Christina song a few weeks ago, so I'm going to hold to that. Do I think that she is vocally as good as Christina, heck no. This song is relatively easy from Christina's discography and is up-beat and fun, something that she has yet to find. I need to see a spark from her sometime soon if she's going to prove to me that she deserves to be there. Vocally, I think she's one of the best girls, but when it comes to song choice and delivery, she is sinking fast. Last week she got back on the horse (hehe) and hopefully she can ride that to more confident performances. If she chooses to stay with the melodramatic songs, she could do "Against All Odds," opting to pull from Mariah Carey's version. I think that would be well sung, but easily forgettable. But with her track record for songs, she would probably pick a song that fits that description to a T.

Lee Dewyze

Nickelback "How You Remind Me" or Vertical Horizon "Everything You Want"

Lee does not have many options this week. I bet he's wishing that he had saved his version of "Fireflies" for this week. Regardless, I think that he could do a very good version of Vertical Horizon's "Everything You Want." It's in a good range for him, has a raspy tone to it, but not overly rock, and is overall likable. The same can not be said for Nickelback, who I can not tolerate, but is popular with the general public. Chad Kroeger is the new "standard" for what rock guys should sound like, sadly, and he could try and add his gruff to this overly played song. It will be pitchy, but fit the part of the song nicely. I think he should go the Vertical Horizon route. He can show that he can really sing on this one more than the Nickelback one and it might up the number of votes he gets from the ladies!

Michael Lynche

Marvin Gaye "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" or Seal "Kiss From A Rose"

Ok, so I really, really wanted to put Justin Timberlake's "Sexy Back" as an option, but the song doesn't have enough actual singing. If he picks it though, I still get credit! I think that no matter what Mike does this week, he will do it well. He can go more modern with an Usher song, but I think he will keep it older with one of these two. He could do a great version of "Grapevine." That'd be the action packed performance of the night, without a doubt. Pulling Marvin Gaye off is always a struggle, but he'd be ok with it. Seal would be if he chooses to go the tender route. He can still ride his Maxwell ballad out for a little longer if he wants, but "Kiss From a Rose" is a very recognizable song that would serve him well. I think it would be a bit safe for him, but it wouldn't matter.

Paige Miles

Roberta Flack "Killing Me Softly" or Lipps Inc "Funkytown"

If Paige did "Killing Me Softly," but in the style of the Fugee's, she could potentially turn her fortunes around. Last week she was in the bottom 2, and I don't see that changing unless she picks a song that absolutely everyone knows and loves, and kills it. Surprisingly, I could see her doing well with Lauryn Hill. The song has a lot of runs, but she might be able to do them. I still don't know the full extent of her voice. She has had a tendency to opt toward older songs, however, so "Funkytown" could be another option. I think after her scare with "Smile," she will try to keep it relatively up-beat for a bit. Hey, "You Are Not Alone" was also another #1 hit. MJ is calling, again, Paige!

Siobhan Magnus

Eurythmics "Sweet Dreams" or Simon and Garfunkel "Sound of Silence"

I won't even try to defend these picks. There is no way to predict what Siobhan could pull from her hat this week. She's gone from Chris Isaak to Aretha Franklin, so anything is possible. I think she needs to pick a song that she can change up a bit and completely remake to fit her own, unique style. Either of these songs are possibilities, but so are a great many others. I'll go ahead and take a loss on this one. But if she did sing "Sound of Silence," could they just play the scene in Old School where Will Ferrell gets shot with the dart gun and is sinking in the pool? That'd be amazing.

Tim Urban

The Eagles "Hotel California" or James Blunt "You're Beautiful"

Tim was part of the bottom 3 last week and finds himself in an interesting spot. The #1 charts don't really favor to his skill set, but there are a few songs that he could pull out. "Hotel California" is a classic song that every one knows and it has tons of harmonies. This would help him, in allowing the background singers to mask some of his mediocrity. If he did "You're Beautiful," it would be ok, but boring. Tim has stood center stage every single performance this season. He needs to drop the guitar and PERFORM a song. This is definitely NOT his strength, but he needs to try something to make people vote for more than his looks. He is VFTWs current pick, and they will be trying their hardest to get him on the tour (top 10). If he wants to go and pick something completely obvious, there is always "Hey There Delilah" by the Plain White T's.

Those are my picks, folks. With a theme as broad as this one, I don't expect to get many picks correct, but if the judges mention a song that I suggested, that counts as a correct pick! Enjoy the show tonight, guys, and I will be back tomorrow for the performance reviews!

Your American Idol Junkie,

Billy