FYI:  AI Contacted me and made me take down the live east coast feed.  Go to the CHATBOX and ask someone to post a link for you.  They will be happy to help. 

We start off this evening by getting a dramatic recap of last nights events…and we get the Judges entrance…then Ryan enters.

Ryan welcomes us and reminds us that tonight 7 will become 6.  The top 7 make an entrance…

Over 52 million votes.  Wow!

Katie Perry and David Cook will be performing for us later in the show.  (I am a HUGE Cook fan).

Ryan asks the judges what they think will happen with the results.  JLo says she hopes it isn’t a girl.  Mark Anthony though the kiss was cute.

Steven says he is going to give the editor something to worry about (meaning he will be cussin – keeping the editors on their toes)

I am loving the first group song.  Haley, Lauren Jacob and Stefano sing this one. Lots of pointy poses – which MJ sure loves.

After the break, the Ford music video is up.

Then a performance of Coldplay’s Viva La Vida with Casey, Scott and James . » Read more: Live Blogging the American Idol Top 7 Results Show

Last night was all theatrics, including kissing, roasting and marching

Michael Becker / FOX

Because the pursuit of fame isn’t cruel enough, the contestants were tasked with insulting one another in video montages last night that revolved around agreed-upon quirks. There were a few softballs (“Casey Has a Beard!!!”), but mostly they were surprisingly spot-on. For instance, Scotty’s quirk was basically, “looks weird on stage.” So true! First: Scotty holds his microphone like a flute. “I think he was a flautist in a past life,” Haley offered. This is an untestable theory, but at least Haley’s working toward a solution.

Mystery Part Two: Scotty leans to one side. No theory suggested here, but to bring the point home, the producers flashed a series of pictures in which Scotty’s face looks affected by a strong easterly wind. Soon Scotty sang what in the Idol universe is known as “LeAnn Rimes’ Swingin’” (LeAnn was probably John Anderson in a past life.) He performed as always: bent over, microphone-as-flute, eyebrows and mouth flaring. It called to mind the insult session so recently concluded, and the judges did not like it. For the first time, they called Scotty “boring” and “safe.” All his friends gathered around him in the green room afterward, and he was maybe regretting going so hard at his flute-hands to please some heartless Idol producer. » Read more: ‘American Idol’ Recap: A Real Show

It’s “Songs From The 21^st Century” night at American Idol! This will be the first night where the contestants can show us, if they’d like, what kind of artist they intend to be if they were to win this competition. What genre will they choose? What mold will they lie themselves into? Which producer’s will they sleep with to get ahead? It’s a magical time for these contestants, and to help them with their choice, the judges returned to American Idol tonight after their six-week long hiatus. That’s right! The judges did their job tonight… well, not Steven, unless you think cursing on live television is his job (hint: it is).

The producers started the evening’s episode off with a mini-reunion as the eliminated contestants took the stage to remind the voters how right they were to kick them off the show in the first place. Poor Pia. I can’t believe she had to sing with that group… “You just made America think twice about their decision!” Yeah, Steven, let me tell you how that thought process went… “Who the hell are these people? Oh, right, didn’t I kick them off the island already? Why is Naima doing karate kicks off the stage? Who is that random chick singing in a baby voice? Why is that one chick singing terribly off key and wearing a Johnny Cash suit?” Pia Toscano was the collateral damage of this group. She was the “friendly fire” casualty. It reminded me of a time when my friends and I were on our way to a concert, and we were driving these three random girls we’d never met before because they didn’t have a car. Well, an hour into the trip we realized that two of these girls are actually pure evil and bent on our destruction, while the other one was really sweet. Long story short… we stopped to get gas and when they went in to buy snacks we got in the car and drove away. It was a shame we had to leave the nice girl behind, but decisions had to be made. » Read more: The NGH Report – American Idol 10’s Top 7: “Kiss”

Here’s my rating for tonight’s Top Seven performances on American Idol.  What are yours?

1.  Casey

2. Haley

3. James

4. Lauren

5. Scotty

6. Stefano

7. Jacob

Bottom 3 will be: Stefano, Jacob and Haley

Going home: Stefano

He’s doing her, and now … she’s doing his show — TMZ has learned, Pia Toscano will be performing on “Dancing with the Stars” next week … and get this, her new BF Mark Ballas will dance to her music.

It’s been in the works for a while — and an hour ago, the deal was sealed.

Pia’s performance signifies a borderline incestuous cross-pollination between the two biggest shows on TV … “American Idol” and “Dancing.”

And if that’s not enough — Pia will be back on “Idol” tomorrow for a special cast-off reunion.

Man! Nailed it! Was it just me or did it feel fantastic to have a night with very little drama? The episode had some great vocal performances and ended with both girls landing in the safety net, while my predicted bootee gracefully said good-bye. There was no shock, but plenty of awww. Thank God for these results because I have been exhausted ever since last week, and with a group of contestants this solid there are no sure things anymore. We saw that with Pia’s exit. But, let’s also not forget that American Idol is a game of politics and a game of attrition. You don’t have to receive the most votes to continue. You just have to receive one more vote than the person with the least amount of votes. Stefano Langone has become an expert of this strategy, as he has dodged more bullets than every action star combined. So, let’s talk about what happened with Paul.

Paul McDonald – Paul has certainly been a contestant that you either loved or couldn’t stand. That’s usually how it is for vocalists who have a very unique tone, and Paul certainly was unique. If you heard his voice on the radio you would immediately know it was him. The problem was that Paul only felt comfortable when he was playing an up-tempo song on his guitar. “Folsom Prison Blues” was electric! But, take the guitar away, and he’s forced to awkwardly move about. He isn’t used to it, and why should he be? Combine that with last night’s performance order and you have a recipe for disaster. Paul McDonald is meant to be in a rock band. I wish him luck when he returns to his current band and they use their current fifteen minutes of fame to build an even more impressive following. I’m glad that Paul didn’t overstay his welcome, because he was very likeable and a whole lot of fun to watch. » Read more: The NGH Report – Thoughts on American Idol 10’s Top 8 Results

This will be an extra special article because I didn’t just watch this episode on my television, wrapped up in a snuggie, and holding a Pia Toscano blow-up doll crying and drinking myself into an alcoholic rage. No, in fact, I decided it was time to stop being depressed and take a shower; finally! After putting on my trendiest clothes (note to self… no one wears turtlenecks anymore) I decided to get off the bench, get in the game and stroll down to watch American Idol in person! So, yes, I attended this episode and had quite the view (second row!) I waited in line for a couple of hours in order to get my really good seats and I talked to quite a few Idol super fans, and by super fans, I of course mean crazy people. Seriously, the people in line when I first showed up were absolutely out of this world. One woman I spoke to had an incredibly intimidating sequin to skin ratio. I couldn’t tell if she had dressed for the occasion or if she was starring in a 70s space opera. Honestly, I was too scared to find out. Luckily, I talked to a few normal people when I was finally let in to the studio lot! It made me feel a bit more hopeful about the state of our country.

There have been a lot of requests for some of the tidbits I noticed when the cameras weren’t rolling and so I thought I’d share a few of the more revealing pieces of information…

» Read more: The NGH Report – American Idol 10’s Top 8: “Heavy Metal!”

We’re in recovery mode. We’ve all suffered the great loss of Pia Toscano, and been sent into a whirlwind of media attention on Idol. You’ve got Nigel spinning that Pia was NEVER a frontrunner, the leaked TMZ story that Scotty is dominating in the votes (we all knew that), and some girl who is desperate for attention and claiming that Idol told her she was too fat. Even her own friend, who was with her, is saying that it’s a lie. Please stop covering that story.

This week made me think, why is Jimmy Iovine on the show? Literally, the three best performances were the three performances he nixed. He looks like an idiot now. Are you trying to get these kids eliminated? By the way, I purposefully don’t check the chat, or the boards, until after my article is done, because I don’t want to just be jumping on bandwagons.

I’m not giving grades this week, I’m just ranking.

1) James Durbin
I can’t believe I’m putting this guy at the top, but that was tremendous. He pretty much told Jimmy to STFU, and he even got Zack Wylde on board. Even I know who he is, and I don’t listen to metal. It was a great performance, it was a huge risk, and I appreciate James for doing that. James, as Randy said, did “James”.And, by the way, James was right. You can’t always tell what a song is gonna sound like when it’s played with just piano… especially a heavy metal song that doesn’t even feature piano. Jimmy Iovine is a hack. Can we vote him off?

2) Casey Abrams
Oh, what an awesome risk. I mean, I think America won’t “get” his performance, but J. Lo was right this week, in that what makes Casey special is his prowess in Jazz, not in Rock, or fucking (sorry) PHIL COLLINS??? Do you WANT Casey to go home, Jimmy? What a god awful suggestion. I’m so happy Casey didn’t sing that. It would have sent him home. I loved this performance. This is the Casey that I vote for. (I’m not voting for James, because overall I don’t like him, but I am voting for Casey this week).

3) Scotty McCreery
OK, so I’m getting a bit less excited here. I wasn’t familiar with the song at all, but it didn’t give Scotty the opportunity to have a moment. It was just a nice song, and he sang it really well. And, it was made better by the fact that it was country, and Scotty ultimately sounds better doing country songs, instead of trying to make other songs sound country. This song was perfect for Scotty’s fanbase. I have no idea why Jimmy didn’t like the song.

4) Haley Reinhart
I don’t know why the judges decided to give Haley the sole “bad review” of the week. I enjoyed her performance. I’m concerned that she’s gone from being a jazzy Alicia Keys type to a rocker girl, but she’s really in the zone these past couple weeks. Jennifer mentioned that she’s afraid to give the girls bad critiques… well how about being honest with some of the guys, because they weren’t all amazing this week.

5) Lauren Alaina
OK. So, when she said she was singing “The Climb”, I immediately went… oh no. Not this stupid song again. Aren’t we done with it? Can’t it just go away? It’s the mainstream version of Friday, for me. I could go the rest of my life without hearing The Climb again and be just fine. But, it was also a smart move, because pretty much anyone can sing better than Miley Cyrus. So, Lauren’s version actually ended up being better than the original, which is a smart move. I don’t know if it really pushed Lauren forward much in the competition, but it likely did enough to keep her going. The tween fanbase probably loved it too, which is good, since they keep voting the girls off.

6) Jacob Lusk
Really, there’s a gap for me between Lauren and Jacob. I’m giving Jacob an edge over the other guys, because I loved how Jacob looked like someone just killed his puppy. I think he realized the comment last week wasn’t a good move, and now he’s trying to seem humble. They even dressed him down this week and made him wear brown. This is like “new Jacob”. That being said… Bridge Over Troubled Water? Talk about pandering to the gospel crowd. I’m gonna get technical tonight and say, his diction was weak. He fumbled through the words and it became a bit of a mess, but the judges still called it perfect… which makes them idiots. I mean, YES, OK, Jacob Lusk has a crazy range. And YES he stayed on pitch. But for a song that is all about the lyrics, he didn’t deliver. And, he actually left some out… “my lord”.

7) Stefano Langone
I mean… really? Of all the songs, you sing this? For real? Stefano struggles with being forgettable every week, and for me, he was forgettable again. And then the judges called it his best performance to date. Uh… no. It wasn’t. You must hate Stefano. I think he MIGHT survive another week, just based on an uptick in voting from being in the bottom 3 last week. But I think he’ll be staying in the bottom this week, and the judges will just act perplexed.

Paul McDonald
Uh oh. They took his guitar away… drunky Paul is back. I can’t take the stumbling. I really can’t. It’s so awkward. And, like Jacob, Paul’s diction was all over the place tonight. It was a bizarre performance that seems destined to get him voted off this week. Not only was he safe last week, but he went first this week with a rather poor interpretation of a classic song.

I think your bottom 3 this week will consist of Paul, Stefano, and Haley. I think Paul’s getting the axe though.

What do you think? Do you think Jimmy is as big of a waste of time as I do? Sound off in the comments!

Pia Toscano never had a chance of winning “American Idol” — this according to well-placed sources connected with the production.

We’re told before Pia was booted, America’s votes put her in the murky middle — she was never near the top of the heap.  As one “A.I.” spy put it, “It was only a matter of time before Pia was kicked off.  She was never going to win.” » Read more: TMZ: Pia Never Stood A Chance of Winning ‘American Idol’

This night will go down in history as the most shocking Idol elimination in ten seasons. It’s absolutely ridiculous, heart breaking, and proves once and for all that this show is not rigged, because what happened on that stage was a producer’s nightmare. We have lost five females in a row, and whether or not that was by coincidence or demographics, it will create a media firestorm. The momentum of this season was going strong and this will be hard to overcome, especially if Haley or Lauren leaves next week. Let’s pray that the ship rights itself and Pia Toscano becomes the clarion call that awakens Idol viewers to the plight of the female contestant this season.

Pia Toscano – So what did Pia do to deserve elimination? Well, absolutely nothing, to be honest. She was the best technical singer on the program and had the ability to be an amazing champion. So why was she eliminated? Hell, I don’t know. When contestants are this strong it becomes very difficult to predict what the @#$% is going to happen! It could have been that her voters got complacent. It could have been that people found her a little boring and stiff. It could be hundreds of different things, but the result is the same, Pia is gone. I don’t think I’ve been this put off by an elimination before in all my years watching this program. It just FEELS implausible. I’m half expecting there to be a press conference tomorrow explaining that there was a mistake. Sure, I can buy that she might be put in the bottom three, but eliminated right out of the gate?! It’s hard to take. Good luck, Pia. You didn’t deserve this.

Now, it’s time to make some snide comments and observations about the rest of the episode… » Read more: The NGH Report – Thoughts on American Idol 10’s Top 11 Results

I wonder who will be leaving us tonight.

I hear that Iggy Pop will be performing tonight.  Random, no?

Ryan tells us that in addition to Iggy Pop performing tonight, previous Idol finalist, Constantine Maroulis will be performing.

Could be a “Shocking Result”, Ryan tells us.

The top 9 then perform a “Rock Medley”.   Sounds ok.  I love the music!

We get to then watch the FORD music video.  Fun.  Pia a spy…Casey a janitor…

Russell Brand came this week to help out the contestants….We get to watch what happened.

DIM THE LIGHTS

Casey Stefano and Lauren to center stage. We go over their performances last night.

Casey is SAFE (YAY CASEY!!!)

Lauren is SAFE

Stefano is the first person in the BOTTOM THREE

After the break, Constantine will be singing.

Constantine is singing “Unchained Melody”.  Is this the first time he has been back to the Idol Stage?  I was always a HUGE Constantine fan.

Then we see that Gwen Stefani worked with the contestants on their wardrobe.

DIM THE LIGHTS

Paul, Pia and Scotty to Center Stage. We go over their performances last night.

Scotty is SAFE

Paul is SAFE (As he should be after that great performance last night)

Pia is in the bottom three for the first time this season

» Read more: Live Blogging the American Idol Top 9 Results Show

So it’s time to review the studio recordings again. Coming off of last week’s Elton John night, I said that I was not expecting the recordings to be that consistently excellent. Indeed, this week’s recordings aren’t as good as last week’s taken as a group; there are a couple of genuine stand-outs, but there are quite a few more clunkers, and the middle tier recordings generally aren’t as good as the ones from last week. Still, I’m overall impressed by the continual output of these kids, and overall I’d say the trend is definitely for better studio recordings. Whereas the standard was pretty mediocre at best for the studio versions of years past, I’d say these ones are generally pretty good.

Let’s quickly review the scoring system. $$ means, unless you absolutely hate the performer or the genre, I’d suggest downloading this recording right away, because it’s surprisingly worthwhile. $ means that I might consider purchasing it if I’d won a bet worth a single dollar with a friend and didn’t really want to keep around the spare change, but wouldn’t exactly go rushing to recommend to a friend. An X means that it’s a song suitable for torturing prisoners in dark rooms, with or without the repeat function. No score whatsoever means I wouldn’t bother purchasing it under any circumstance, but it would take some work to actively drive someone insane with it. (A pity)

Casey Abrams-”Have You Ever Seen The Rain?”

Casey’s studios have in the past have enjoyable though predictable affairs, coming off somewhat retro yet fresh, with the exception of the embarrassing “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. This week, he takes his patented growl and pairs it with an arrangement that takes CCR to Jimmy Buffett, delivering a studio that marks both a sharp departure from the work he’s done in the past. His vocal here is at once forceful and nuanced, thoroughly masculine, and yet fitting with an environment that is so low-key by design. I’m not sure I want Casey to stay in musical territory that might be described as tropical, but taken on its own this is certainly an enjoyable recording. $
» Read more: MarkC’s iTunes Studio Review, Top 9 Week

It’s “Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame” week on American Idol and the verdict is in…what a night! I’m still absolutely flabbergasted at how solid this season has become! We went from one of the worst seasons (if not the worst) in Idol history to one of the best (in my humble opinion). Each and every contestant delivered some great moments on that stage and created one of the best performance shows in Idol history, and what’s more, they appear to be having a damn good time. Wasn’t it wonderful to see those kids dancing at the end of the show as they decided to just have a blast? The chemistry is brilliant.

Now, let’s talk a bit about some of the show’s weirder moments…

The opening with Steven Tyler was clearly well thought out; after all, having Steven Tyler talk about rock history seemed like a clear choice. And yet? I couldn’t help but feel like I was watching Steven pimp a new NOW music collection. It almost felt like those Will Ferrell-Robert Goulet sketches! We’ve all now learned that a scripted Steven Tyler is and awkward Steven Tyler.

» Read more: The NGH Report – American Idol 10’s Top 9: “When a-!”

Wow. I’m slowly beginning to think that Season 10 is definitely in one of the “best seasons ever” category, like Season 5 or 7. The talent seem to be at the top of their game. Even though I put someone at the bottom, it still feels like that person didn’t really give an elimination worthy performance.

THE A-LIST:

1) Pia Toscano
I mean, come on. How can you hate THAT? Her vocals are superb. She proved that she could carry her own on a ballad, and showed how ready she is to be performing as a recording artist right now. I think she’s the one to beat right now, and it will likely come down to her vs Scotty in the finale.

2) Haley Reinhart
I never thought… in a million years… I’d be putting Haley in the A-List. But that was one of the best performances of the night, and her best performance to date. It got buried a bit in the beginning of the show, but when the recap reminded me how much I loved it I got that much more excited. Haley is making quite a comeback. I don’t think she’ll be around when we reach the top 5, but she’s definitely making it easy to send a few guys home before her.

THE B-LIST:

3) Casey Abrams
What a great song to showcase Casey’s voice, and allow him to bring out the bass again. It wasn’t quite up to the emotional impact of last week’s “Your Song”, but it was still really good. I wish he could refrain from the odd faces though. I feel like, in the end, they’re losing him more votes than they are gaining him.

» Read more: The Mac Show: Top 9

A poster on Twitter, The Masked Scheduler, has been posting some sort of spoilers.  Here’s what he says for tonights Idol.