Nothing special here

Jared Cotter is up next and he's wearing quite the interesting outfit. All you Newsday readers will know what I mean tomorrow morning. Kevin Covais, Levittown's own Chicken Little and an "Idol" finalist last year, wore almost the exact outfit while singing out and about on Long Island sometime last year, and we happen to be running his photo in that outfit in tomorrow's paper. Just a strange coincidence, I guess.

Anyway, moving right along, Jared reveals to America that he played college basketball, Division 2, and that he was pretty good. Realizing he probably wouldn't make the NBA, he quit to do music.

He takes on Stevie Wonder tonight and sings, "If You Really Love Me." It starts off not so great - a bit shaky and uncertain. But he works it out and by the end of the song, it's good, although not fantastic.

I still think he's a little forgettable, but I'm rooting for him - it would be great to see him in the finals.

Randy says he gave a solid performance - that it was good. Paula says she thinks he needs to work on coloring up the way he sings - she says she thinks he sometimes shouts his way through a song... ouch...especially coming from Paula. Simon says it wasn't very original and that he's disappointed in general tonight, because he's not hearing the 'wow' factor.


The thing we don't know about Brandon Rogers is that he's a classical piano player. He says he started playing when he was 9, first by ear and then he learned to read music. He says he's a little rusty, but he still loves to play.

He sings "I Just Want to Celebrate" by Rare Earth, and it's way better than last week. He still has a couple of out of tune spots, but for the most part, he seems more confident, more comfortable. I'm still not crazy about him - he's come off as a bit full of himself at times, but he's redeemed himself a bit tonight with this performance, I think.

Randy says it was solid, but that he wasn't jumping up and down. Paula says it was pretty phenomenal. Simon says he doesn't think he represented himself well. he says that he had high hopes for Brandon because he is one of the better singers. He says Brandon should have chosen a more memorable song - that it didn't have enough of a hook.