American Idol, Week 2: Results Show

The votes are in, and "It's a New Day" indeed for 4 of our contestants.

Eliminated this evening: Nick Pedro, Alaina Alexander, AJ Tabaldo and Leslie Hunt.


NICK PEDRO


Nick's departure wasn't much of a shock. His performance was bland and uninspired, and I knew he was in trouble when they gave the drummer more camera time than him. Wonder if he'll try out again next year? Third time's the charm??


ALAINA ALEXANDER


Alaina's ouster was more a mercy killing than anything else, but I give the girl credit for FINALLY demonstrating why it's so ill-conceived to have the just-booted contestants sing one last time. Poor Alaina couldn't get the words out to her song, and had to plead with the other contestants to come out on stage with her for a group hug and some half-hearted backup singing to get through it. It was embarrassing and pitiful, and I felt sorry for her. Back to obscurity for Alaina!

LESLIE HUNT


Both AJ and Leslie chose to sing Nina Simone's "Feeling Good" (It's a New Day) this week, and now that BOTH of them got the boot, I think it's safe to assume this song will NEVER again be chosen by another Idol contestant. Talk about unlucky mojo! Leslie's eventual departure was an inevitability, given her considerable singing limitations, but at least she showed some sense of humor as she sang her way out, posing the question, "Why did I scat? America hates jazz singing..."

AJ TABALDO


Out of the 4 contestants that left the competition tonight, AJ is the one with the most to complain about. His performance on Tuesday was one of the best of the night, and he put forth another solid effort during his swan song tonight. It's not fair that he got sent home, while tone-deaf Sanjaya and screaming Sundance are around for another week.

Such are the pitfalls of a competition like American Idol. Once the choice is in America's hands, it ceases to be a singing competition, and becomes a popularity contest.