Antonella Barba

Antonella just about got on my nerves by committing the most heinous act known to American Idol — singing Celine Dion's "Because You Loved Me" for her brother. Is she begging to be kicked off the show?

Alaina Alexander

Alaina Alexander looked lovely, as usual, and dedicated The Dixie Chicks's "Not Ready to Make Nice" to her mom. While my boyfriend commented that it sounded recordable, I couldn't hear her very well. Randy thought it was a mess, while Paula thought it was pitchy. Simon felt that she simply ran out of steam halfway through.

Stephanie Edwards

Stephanie Edwards belted out a little Beyonce to her mom and dad. I thought it wasn't bad, as did Simon and Paula. Randy considered it "Beyonce Lite" and of course, couldn't resist mentioning that he had worked with her.

Leslie Hunt

Leslie Hunt dedicated her performance to her late grandfather. It was very good and rather sultry, but kind of forgettable — until she did some scooby-dee-doo-de-doo-doo-wah jazz scatting and gave Blake Lewis a run for his money. Still, Simon wasn't impressed and felt that Leslie was getting lost among the singers with big voices.

Jordin Sparks

Jordin Sparks was rather teary this week, as she dedicated her song to her brother. My boyfriend wondered at one point if he was dead or something, but I could have sworn I saw him last week. Jordin sang Christina Aguilera's "Reflections," and while I'd normally chastise a contestant for picking a song by a well-known singer, I thought that Jordin made it her own. Randy and Simon said that it wasn't her best performance, but still better than some of the others.

Melinda Doolittle

Melinda Doolittle maintained her self-deprecating demeanor and dedicated her performance to her vocal coach and stylist. She did a stirring rendition of "My Funny Valentine," which was way better than Constantine Maroulis's version. Oh, calm down Constantine fans- don't be getting Claymate on me now. There, now I've offended two massive fanbases ;). Simon once again rambled on about how he loves that Melinda is all talent and no ego, unlike most people in the music industry.

LaKisha Jones

LaKisha Jones sang "Midnight Train to Georgia" for her grandmother. The woman really owns the stage, and has a great voice. Simon felt that she was holding back. He commented that she wasn't as good as last week and that she should accept that she's a phenomenal singer and start acting like a big star. Way to inflate LaKisha's ego there.

Gina Glocksen

Gina Glocksen kicked off the evening with Heart's "Alone," dedicated to her boyfriend. I thought she was better than last week, though I enjoyed her then as well. Randy said it was a good song choice, while Simon remarked that the vocals were a little forced near the end.

American Idol

Get ready for the new season of American Idol. It is going to be the best season of American Idol yet. I am sure they are going to put some twists in the show that is going to make it very exciting.

Ruben Studdard

Second-season "American Idol" champ Ruben Studdard has made his return -- "The Return," in fact -- to the CD racks.
The R&B singer said he hopes that "The Return," his third album, shows greater maturity than its predecessors.
"I just wanted people to see the growth in my voice," said Studdard, whose smooth vocals earned him the nickname "the velvet teddy bear" during his "Idol" run. "We picked the 15 best songs for people to really hear the real Ruben.

Kellie Pickler Red High Heels

American Idol finalist Kellie Pickler has released her new single “Red High Heels” off her highly anticipated debut album ‘Small Town Girl’ scheduled to hit store shelves on October 31st. The single debuted on the country charts at #48 and has been quickly moving up the charts.
Pickler captured America’s heart early on in the American Idol competition with her quirky sense of humor and southern charm.
She was considered one of Simon Cowell’s favorites and the idol with the most personality.
The North Carolina native came from the small town, Albemarle, population 15,000. Pickler overcame many obstacles early on in life and used her stunning smile and bubbly personality to win Miss Stanly County and compete for Miss North Carolina 2004.

Mario Vasquez Album

Season four "American Idol" contender Mario Vasquez will on Sept. 26 release his self-titled Arista debut. The disc boasts collaborations with Daddy Yankee, Scott Storch and Ne-Yo, among others.Lead single "Gallery," co-written by Ne-Yo, is currently No. 32 on the Billboard Pop 100. Describing the album as "a great collage of music," Vasquez tells Billboard.com, "It's everything I love -- a bit of R&B, hip-hop, reggaeton and pop ballads. I feel like people know me as kind of a crooner [or] a soft singer so I wanted to just remind them [of that]. Ne-Yo wrote a beautiful song -- [he] gave me a golden ticket."

Taylor Hicks

Taylor Hicks is the most unlikely "American Idol" winner yet. Not only that, he's one of the most popular, too.
The Birmingham, Ala., native was the third champion — after Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood — never to hit the bottom three on the show, which earned record-high ratings with Hicks.
After spending years toiling on the wedding/coffeehouse/bar circuit, Hicks has graduated to headlining status on the American Idols Live tour, which stops Tuesday in St. Paul.

McPhee Joins American Idol

"American Idol" runner-up Katharine McPhee finally joined the Idol tour in Washington after missing nearly a month due to laryngitis.
McPhee was originally scheduled to rejoin the tour in Pittsburgh last Thursday but bad weather prevented her from arriving on time, the New York Post reports.
Earlier that day, she had been a co-host on the morning talk show "The View" in New York.
At Saturday night's Washington appearance, McPhee told the audience she was under doctor's orders to limit her singing so she did not participate in any of the group numbers with the other Idol finalists.
However, she did sing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and KT Tunstall's "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree."