Last cut

Well, they're running out of time and another guy has to go, so let's get to it...

Chris Sligh.... is safe.
Phil Stacey.... is safe.
Jared "JL" Cotter.... is safe. (nice - hope he caught some people's attention)
A.J. Tabaldo.... is safe.

So, it's down to Sanjaya Malakar and Rudy Cardenas. I'll be sad either way, but given that Ryan says one of them is in the top four and the other is going home, I'm thinking it's Rudy's time to say goodbye. Sanjaya is just so lovable - hard to believe that Rudy would be in the top four above Sanjaya.

And it is, indeed, Rudy's time to go...

Second girl out

I'm skipping over Fantasia's performance because she annoys me and I'm hoping that the less play she gets, the faster she'll go away. It was better than I expected though - enough said.

Back to the votes...

Haley Scarnato.... is safe. (and crying... are you kidding me?)
Lakisha Jones.... is, of course, safe.
Gina Glocksen.... is safe.

It's down to Nicole Tranquillo and Alaina Alexander. Can't say I'd be sadto see either of them go...

Alaina Alexander.... is safe.

Nicole Tranquillo is the second girl to go. I was totally off in my guesses - well, there's always next week.

And now for the girls

Well Antonella is in the row that Ryan calls up first, and she's in the last spot, so my bets are on her - she was awful. Although Leslie Hunt, my other pick is in there too. Looks like only one of my girl picks will go.

Jordin Sparks.... is safe.
Stephanie Edwards.... is safe.
Sabrina Sloan.... is safe.
Leslie Hunt.... is safe. (huh... maybe next week)
Melinda Doolittle.... is, of course, safe.

WHAT?!?!?!?!? Has America completely lost its collective mind? Antonella Barba is safe and that must mean that the world has flipped completely upside down.

Instead, Amy Krebs is the first girl voted off the show. I can't say I'm sorry to see her go, but it should have been Antonella. I'm a little bitter.

First cut

Ha ha ha... Looks like Chris Sligh is realizing that his comment toward Simon was not a good idea. They actually dedicated a few minutes to his little speech of remorse. He says that he's nervous because he thinks America may have taken the banter as disrespect. He's right. Even though I thought it was funny, I also thought it was inappropriate given that it was his first live performance and he should have been more humble - should have just taken the criticism. The joke came off as mean and defensive. But his speech seems sincere, so let's see if America gives him another shot.

Now to the first cut...

Brandon Rogers.... is safe.
Sundance Head.... is safe. (I'm stunned)
Chris Richardson.... is safe.
Nick Pedro.... is safe. (YES!!!!!)
Blake Lewis.... is safe.

Paul Kim is the first to go home. I can't believe it. America has gotten it totally wrong. All I can say is that Votefortheworst.com must really have an influence because they had chosen Sundance as the worst this week and he's around another week. Unbelievable.

And why do they make the cut contestants sing again right after being booted? So mean.

Group song, or should I say lullaby?

The first group song of the season is "Seeds of Love" by Tears for Fears. It's OK, but what really caught my eye was Jordin Sparks' dress - so cute. Wonder where she got it.

The choreography was pretty lame - I really wish they didn't do these group songs. "So You Think You Can Dance" does something similar but it's so much more entertaining to watch a group of people dance than it is to watch a group sing. It reminds me of the yearly winter concert my high school used to put on with the chorus and bands. My parents went every year to show their support, but I can only imagine how excruciating it must have been for them, because just these few minutes are putting me to sleep.

Star power

The first episode of filler begins with a little bit of interesting news. Ryan Seacrest announes some of the stars that are schedules to appear once the group gets down to twelve.

Among the celebrities to appear are Diana Ross, Jon Bon Jovi, Jennifer Lopez, Gwen Stefani, Tony Bennett, Martina McBride, Lulu and Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits and Barry Gibb.

Not bad. I'm actually impressed by the star power they were able to lure on to the show. Not sure what Jennifer Lopez is going to be able to offer - after all, she's an actress first, but I'm sure it'll still be exciting for the contestants to meet her and work with her.

Critic Picks: Who we think is going home tonight

Yea, we know you all want to hear who WE think is going home tonight, right? Do read on and check out our picks.

After much thought, consideration and debate, here you have it, our picks for worst 'Idols' -- who we want to go home, can't wait to see booed off the stage and generally dislike.

Eileen Fredes
Men: Sundance Head & Chris Richardson
Women: Antonella Barba & Leslie Hunt

Jonathan McCarthy
Men: Sundance Head & Nicholas Pedro
Women: Antonella Barba & Alaina Alexander

Jamshid Mousavinezhad
Men: Paul Kim & Nicholas Pedro
Women: Alaina Alexander & Amy Krebs

Anne Machalinski
Men: Sundance Head & Chris Richardson
Women: Antonella Barba & Alaina Alexander

I did a little simple arithmatic, and best bets (if we are representative of the voting public), the following WILL go home:

Men Sundance Head (75%)
Women Antonella Barba (75%) and Alaina Alexander (75%)

Who's gonna get da boot?

Oh, the excitement for tonight is intense! Who'll be the first four kicked off 'Idol'? Only time will tell...

We closed the last poll and the results are in (at right). You, our lovely readers, think that New Jersey's finest (raunchiest?), Antonella Barba is most likely to head home. Close competition though. And the best turnout yet, with 2,646 votes!

And now, what you've all been waiting for... We've posted a new poll!

'What do you think was the greatest 'American Idol' performance ever ?'

Your choices are:

Season 1: Tamyra Gray, 'A House Is Not a Home'
Season 2: Clay Aiken, 'Solitaire'
Season 3: Fantasia, 'Summertime'
Season 3: Jennifer Hudson, 'Circle of Life'
Season 4 : Bo Bice, 'In a Dream'
Season 4: Carrie Underwood, 'Alone'
Season 5: Katharine McPhee, 'Over the Rainbow'

And of course there's an 'Other' category as well, but when we write 'Other,' we really mean click that comment button and tell us what you think.

Show stopper!!!

Lakisha Jones sings the song that may win Jennifer Hudson an Oscar this weekend. She sings "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" from "Dreamgirls" and even though I haven't yet seen the movie, I can't imagine that Jennifer Hudson sang it any better than Lakisha did tonight.

What else is there to say? Randy said it best... "Jennifer Hudson, watch out! Yeah! Yeah!"

Alaina's not all that special...sorry

Alaina Alexander is very pretty, has the look that might sell records, and in my opinion, that's the only thing that would do it - because her voice is nothing impressive. She sings "Brass in Pocket (I'm Special)" by the Pretenders and it's really out of tune most of the way through. She was out of breath in some spots and it just sounded very choppy.

Simon said it perfectly I think. He tells her, "Well, the irony was, you kept singing that line 'I'm special' and it wasn't." He tells her it was a mess, which it was, and says that she'll be relying on her looks right now, not her voice. I have a feeling she'll be crying backstage after this performance.

Gina Glocksen, another risk-taker, sings Celine Dion's "All By Myself" and I actually like it. She's got a pretty deep voice and it sounds all husky - definitely different from the other girls. Then she hits the high note and just blows it away. YEAH!! I have to say, I'm totally shocked by her. I just never saw it coming. Her auditions before were good, but I never thought she could take a song like this and really make it her own. She was terrific.

Randy says he's surprised by her voice, too. Paula says nothing really, and Simon says she didn't hit the right note, comparing her to Celine Dion. I knew that would happen - it's just inevitable to be found lacking when singing a Celine Dion song. But I thought she was great and I liked that she has some spunk. After being told that she didn't hit the high note, she says she feels way more confident now because even if she didn't hit it perfect, she knows she hit it. Good for her.

No more background for Melinda

Haley Scarnato starts out really good, then goes a little sharp, but why, oh why, is she singing Celine Dion??? I don't think the judges have ever praised anyone who attempted to sing Celine Dion - she just can't be outsung. Anyway, Haley takes on "It's All Coming Back to Me" and it's OK - certainly not at Celine's level, though. It's kind of ironic, given that Haley is a wedding singer, but that's what she sounds like - a wedding singer. Not disgusted, not impressed.

Randy says it was just OK, that she didn't do anything special with it. Paula says she was hoping she'd pick a different song since Haley sang it during Hollywood week - finally, someone is called out for using the same song - it's such a cop-out to repeat a song, but whatever, I've already said my piece on that. Simon says she sounded 40 - that everything about her tonight was old. Blah, blah, blah...

OK - I'm ready to be knocked off my chair... I've been waiting almost two hours for this - Melinda Doolittle is up. I'm a little disappointed that this is now the third Aretha Franklin song we've heard tonight - how about some variety?? But she sings "Since You've Been Gone" and as expected, is wonderful.

Her voice is just so huge - it's like she didn't even need the microphone. There's just so much talent in her body and I think we've only just begun to see it - I mean, if this is her first performance, imagine what she will sound like in another two months. For me, she was the best one tonight - and I don't even have to listen to the rest of the girls to know that I'll still feel the same way at the end of the show. Perfection.

I have no opinion

Nicole Tranquillo is a strange one. She sings Chaka Khan's "Stay" and she starts off really, really bad, in my opinion. Her voice is in her nose - very nasal, very odd. I was just getting ready to pause the TiVo and start writing about how I thought she may be worse than Antonella Barba when she hit some crazy high note and it was kind of cool and funky. So I decided to keep listening before writing anything at all.

I don't know - the song isn't my favorite - that could be it. But I think she was just a little too all over the place. It's like she couldn't decide what octave to sing in - she was high, then low, then high again and it just sounded odd. But again, it had a weird vibe to it that I didn't totally dislike.

I think I'm going to hold off on her - not give any opinion just yet. I think I need to hear her sing something else first, I wouldn't put her in the bottom two just yet - especially when Leslie Hunt and Antonella fill those spots so perfectly - but I can't say I'm a fan either... what do the judges think?

Randy seems kind of torn too - tells her he doesn't think this song was really her vibe. Paula - who by the way is she wearing a wig? - talks about that crazy high note that caught my attention. Yeah, see... it's confusing. Still don't know what to say about it. Simon says it was indulgent, aggressive, unnatural, fake, and all kinds of other things. What do you think? Does she have a future or did she blow it with her song choice?

Jordin's got my vote

Antonella Barba, the New Jersey girl whose pictures have been all over the Internet this past week, decides to sing Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing."

Not good. Don't really know what to say about it - it was just not good - she couldn't keep her voice in tune and she tried to get all fancy with runs and stuff and it was just embarrassing, really. Ugh... and I can't believe she tried to use her nerves as a crutch - they're all nervous - just admit it was horrible. I think we'd all appreciate th honesty.

You know it's bad when Randy asks, "What do you think I'm going to say about that?" And you know it's worse when all Paula can think to say is, "You're an amazingly beautiful girl." But you've really hit rock bottom when Simon says the song has seriously, seriously damaged your chances of remaining another week...

Jordin Sparks is still cute. And she can still sing. I really can't stand the song she chose - Tracy Chapman's "Give Me One Reason" - but I tell you what... it wasn't so bad the way she did it - she sped it up and made it fun and fresh.

I'm not really sure why she's wearing a dress over a pair of pants, but that's neither here nor there. The thing I like about her is that she's so young and fresh-faced, and she doesn't try to be anything else. She's sweet and likable and she made me like a song I've hated for a long time, so just for that, she's got my vote tonight.

Sabrina sets the bar

Sabrina Sloan is the next one to take on Aretha Franklin - she sings "I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You."

Incredible.

It was fantastic, really awesome - great choice of song for her voice, and a great risk that, in my opinion, totally paid off. She worked the runs and really got into the song. What was really great about her is that she went out there and just gave it her all - she was all confidence. Her voice didn't crack or shake and she was on pitch from beginning to end. This girl is in it to win it, and based on this performance, she could totally do it.

Randy says she put it down and predicts that she's the one to beat. Paula gives her another standing ovation and Simon says her perforamnce was the best one so far out of everything they've seen.

Again, just incredible.

Couple of cases of the blahs

Amy Krebs sings Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me" and all I can say is that she didn't. Her voice was real nasal and she managed to make a great song pretty dull. I'll cut her some slack, simply because it's her first night out there singing live, but for me, it wasn't great. I mean it wasn't terrible, but really, it was just blah.

Glad to see the judges feel the same way. Randy said it was boring and too safe. Paula agrees and Simon tells her again that he can't remember her - tells her she has a personality of a candle... and it's sad to say, but I agree. She was just OK, but even in her interview, there was nothing about her that jumped out - nothing America can really associate with her. Simon, of course, is just a smidgen too mean, but what he's saying is true, so what can you really say about it?

Leslie Hunt is up next and the little I do remember about her, I don't like. I didn't like her voice at all - it was too masculine and didn't fit her appearance at all. But I'm trying to open-minded about her.

I like the little dress she's wearing - but again, her voice just doesn't fit. She sings Aretha Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" and it's really not very good. She's off key here and there, and she doesn't have the depth needed to sing the song the way it should be sung. The song is just way too big for her - it actually made her voice seem smaller to me, flatter. I mean, if you're going to take on an Aretha Franklin song, you have to really deliver, and in my opinion, she just didn't - she didn't put any feeling into it - she just kind of sang the words, without thinking about the meaning behind them. But that's just my opinion.

Randy nails it and says the songs was too big for her...exactly!!! Paula, of course, tells her it was great and then adds on that she needs to choose the song wisely. Simon's criticism was a little out there, something about walking her dog and looking embarrassed and whatever. I think he's trying to say that she seemed uncomfortable, which is true. I just didn't like her - so far, she's in my bottom two.

All I can say is WOW!!!

I have to start by saying that the only woman I have been really impressed with so far is Melinda Doolittle, so I'm kind of watching tonight with no expectations. Many of these women blend into one in my head - none is incredibly memorable. Most of my early favorites didn't make it to the semifinals, so while I know we've seen the auditions of most of these girls, I can't remember any of them, really.

Stephanie Edwards is up first and she's crying before she even starts to sing. What's that about? I guess it's nice that her parents supported her and everything, but do you really want to be known as the cry baby so early on?

Anyway, she chooses to sing "How Come You Don't Call Me," an Alicia Keys song, which has proven disastrous for some in the past. Even if you're not a fan of Keys, which I am not, you have to acknowledge that her voice is amazing and very difficult to duplicate, let alone surpass. But Stephanie seems to be holding her own.

The tone of her voice is really clear and soulful and she really gets into the song. I have to say... just this first performance is way better than all the guys were last night... If this is any indication of what the rest of the show is going to be like tonight, then all I can say is WOW!!!

Randy is impressed with her and Paula calls her a star. Simon tells her that she chose a great song and that it was best performance so far. Not a bad start for Stephanie

Was the best saved for last?

A.J. Tabaldo has tried out five times? Why didn't the judges at some point tell him to give up? I'm kind of glad they didn't though. I thought he was pretty good - there's a sweetness to his voice that I rally enjoyed. He sang Luther Vandross' "Never Too Much." He's likable and I think he did enough to stay out of the bottom two.

Phil Stacey ends the night with Edwin McCain's "These Are the Moments." Before he starts singing, I have to admit, I'm not really crazy about him - he's just kind of whatever to me. I mean, it's not like I think he's bad or anything, but I don't know, there are just too many other people to like.

But he's singing now and I may have to change my mind. He started off a bit shaky, but once he hit the chorus, it was like he'd been born on stage - gone was the nervousness, gone was the pitchiness. It was really good. He may be growing on me.

Randy gives him the best vocal prize of the night. Paula agrees with me - says that once he hit the chorus, it was awesome.


After tonight, my vote for the bottom two would be Sundance Head and Chris Richardson. What do you all think?

Cotter's first shot to woo America

Here's my take on Jared Cotter. He needs to kill it tonight. He's had maybe 30 seconds of air time and this is the first time America is seeing him perform. His song choice needs to be on point and his voice needs to be perfection.

Well, he chooses Brian McKnight's "Back to One." I'm not crazy about the song - not a real Brian McKnight fan. But, I will say this. Jared's voice is by far, the best one tonight. I'm not just saying that because he's a Long Island boy. I'm saying it because he was on key the entire time - not one glitch. He was confident and took risks with his voice that the other guys didn't. I think he showed a maturity not seen in the others. Maybe all that means is that he can hide his nerves better than everyone else. Whatever it is, I think he succeeded in catching America's attention.

And just this once, I don't even care what the judges say, because I know I'm right.
(but for the record... they disagreed - they said it was just OK).

Who's more sly than Sligh?

Sanjaya Malakar's so cute, I just want to squeeze him. But he couldn't have picked a more boring song. He sings "Knocks Me Off My Feet" by Stevie Wonder and while I'm sure it's a great song, it's so dated and sounds so odd coming from a 17-year-old kid. I think Sanjaya needs to stop listening to his sister - after all, she didn't make it to the semifinals. Why would she suggest this song for him? Is she trying to sabotage him? Ugh... luckily for him, he's cute enough to last another week, but he should definitely never allow his sister to choose his song again.

So, now Chris Sligh is up and I'm excited to hear him sing - excited to hear what he song he chooses. But first, I just need to note one more time - this guy is hilarious. He's just so funny, you can't help but love him.

I have never heard of Mute Math, so I had never heard "Typical" before. But it was a really good song, or maybe it's just that Chris can sing anything. I think Chris is unstoppable!! A little risky that he insulted Simon with his Il Divo remark, but it was so funny, I'd say it was worth it.

Look out for Blake Lewis

How dreamy should one man be allowed to be? Nick Pedro has it all - the looks, the voice, the charm, even the cute little dimple.

He sings "Now and Forever" by Richard Marx, and you can hear the shakiness in his voice. But that's just nerves - that can be fixed. He carried the tune and pretty well, I thought. No major screw-ups, nothing to cringe at. It could be that I was distracted by how hot he is, but I thought he was pretty good.

I'm a little shocked by Randy's complete bashing. He tells Nick it wasnt good and Paula actually agrees. Randy said it was boring and pitchy. I'll give him the boring thing - as mentioned earlier, I think ballads are dangerous because of how boring they can be - but I really didn't think he was pitchy. But thank goodness, Simon is right on once again!!! He says that Nick was obviously nervous and that while he lost a little of his spark from his original audition, it was still pretty good and he'll be back next week. Agreed.


Blake Lewis, the beatboxer, is endearing in his originality. And holy cow, he's got a voice on him. I feel like throughout the auditions, we haven't really heard him sing all that much - he was afarid of being pigeonholed with the beatboxing, and I think he was a little, but there was ever a break-out performance on "Idol," I'd say it was this one. He sings "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane, and it's just crystal clear - the tone of his voice is so pure. I think, for me, this is the performance of the night so far, simply because I'm taken aback by his talent - I kind of thought he was a one-trick pony and I couldn't have been more wrong.

Simon agrees with me too - says it's the best performance of the night...

Somebody please step up

Paul Kim's awesome - he's definitely in my top three - has been from the beginning. I love that he seems to enjoy the same cheesy, sappy songs that I adore - the ones no one else admits to loving. This week he sings George Michael's "Careless Whisper" and it's not his best performance. I'm a little disappointed - I really thought he'd be perfection, but you know? He was still better than the other guys so far.

I think the judges were incredibly hard on him - a lot meaner than they were to the other guys - could be that they expected more from him. I'm not worried - he'll kill it next week.

Chris Richardson is a cutie, but I have to set the record straight - he does not look like Justin Timberlake!! He picks a super risky song - Gavin DeGraw's "I Don't Want to Be." It's funny, too, because I don't think it's risky because DeGraw is so amazing that it'll be a tough comparison. I think Chris runs the risk of being compared to Bo Bice, who sang the song two seasons ago. The fact that I remember that performance says it all - I remember that night - I remember I replayed Bice's performace like four times because it was so good. Chris is really going to have to do something special to avoid being compared - and found lacking.

Oooh... not good... at least in my opinion. Based on who's gone so far, I think he'll be joining Sundance in the bottom two. Let's see what the judges say.

Are you serious? Randy thinks the show started here with his performance - he liked it - tells him not be scared. I'm scared. It was bad. Glad to see Simon's got his head screwed on right tonight. He says the vocals were not great - at least a little sanity amid the craziness.

Sundance's rocky start

I'm so easy to win over - such a pushover. At the end of last week, I was ready to see Sundance Head go home. I felt like he had had one good audition and then a week of garbage. But, all it took to turn it around for me was his interview tonight. A little humility goes a long way in my book and I loved how he admitted that he went into Hollywood thinking it would be a piece of cake and I loved how he talked about being embarrassed and wanting to be pulled off the stage. It takes a lot to own up to one's shortcomings and just for that, I'm hoping he nails his song tonight.

But it's not meant to be. He sings "Nights in White Satin" by the Moody Blues, which I'm not really familiar with, so I can't say I'm totally into it. The song's a bit too slow, a little uninteresting, and just way too hard to go off key, which he does - a lot.

I think it's always a mistake to sing a ballad - at least on your first performance. It's risky - slow songs are too easy to be boring and you don't want people's first impression of you to be a bad one. Sundance may have sung himself into the bottom two with his choice of song and inability to knock it out of the park. It's too bad - I was hoping he'd pull it off.

Not really rockin' with me

Brandon Rogers, the backup singer, got on my nerves a litle bit last week - he seemed to be getting a little too cocky a little too soon. But I loved his voice so much, I erased it from my mind and went into tonight fully expecting to be blown away - fully expecting to excuse the cockiness because he has the talent to back it up. And while I still believe he does have the talent, and while I'm sure he's safe for next week, I wasn't blown away like I expected to be.

For starters, "Rock With You" by Michael Jackson was maybe not the greatest choice for him. His vocal range, I think, is a bit too low for that song and he was off key just a little in some parts. Plus, the beginning of the song was kind of dull, for me. He pulled it together toward the end, but I was left feeling like there should have been more.

And Randy agrees - says it wasn't Brandon's best performance. Paula actually throws in a bit of criticism, which is fairly early on for her. Simon actually blames the song, which is interesting, but ends on a good note and tells him he's better than this perforance. I guess we'll see how true that is.

Free ride... but to where?

So, due to some technical difficulties here at the office, I tuned in tonight about 10 minutes late. I got to a TV just as Rudy Cardenas came on the screen.

He's adorable... I'm sure I've said that before and I have no doubt I'll say it again. His interview was candid and honest - I think he's pretty likable. Plus he sings a really upbeat song, "Free Ride" by the Edgar Winter Group.

His rendition of the song was pretty good - not fantastic, his words were kind of slurred and hard to understand. But he was in tune, which can be tough - especially when you're the first one up.

Huh??? Randy says it was corny. Not sure why - it's a terrific song, but whatever. Paula, of course, makes her usual kind remarks and while Simon makes a few good points about the song being dated and his voice being just OK, I think he's being a bit harsh by saying he wasn't original.

Barba in Blogland: Scandalous photos revealed

Seems that the 'Idol' controversy begins just in time to see the semifinalists perform.

New Jersey native Antonella Barba, pictured at right, has some scandalous photos circulating the blog world. Check them out on a LiveJournal post HERE.

Photos show Barba topless, on the toilet and drinking while underage. Enough to get her booted from 'Idol'? We shall see.

Do these people ever learn? The Internet is a powerful tool! Word to the wise (or at least those who crave the spotlight) -- no scandalous pics/videos/blog posts. They will almost certainly be found!

Catching fire

One way of seeing who's building a fan base is checking out FOX's American Idol message boards, which now have a special section for each of the 24 semifinalists.

At the moment, here are the contestants with the most posts in their section:

-4,373: Blake Lewis, aka beat box boy
-2,863: Chris Sligh, aka comedian
-1,959: Antonella Barba, aka Jersey chick
-1,579: Sundance Head, aka beard guy
-1,394: Gina Glocksen, aka G-force
-1,199: Melinda Doolittle, aka backup singer
-1,162: Sanjaya Malakar, aka Indian American brother

Now, just because people are posting about you doesn't mean it's all good news (right, Antonella and Sundance?!)

But for the most part, it bodes well to have fans coming up with nicknames for themselves (Blake BeatBoxers, Fanjayas, Fro Patrol), trading trivia and even making up cheers (Gina, Gina she's our girl/If she can't do it/it's the end of our world!).

Boy, what did people do with all their creative energies before the Internet?

Favorite Guys?

Who are your top five guys, heading into the semi-final round? Here are the ones who I like so far--it's a bit unfair how some of the guys have gotten no face time, so this list is totally subject to change.

-Sanjaya Malakar, Indian American brother
-Nicolas Pedro, who quit last year
-Paul Kim, asian american guy
-Sundance Head, beard guy
-Brandon Rogers, 'Elvin from the Cosby Show'

I also am beginning to like Blake Lewis (beat box boy) and Chris Sligh (curly-haired comedian). And maybe Jared "JL" Cotter....

Heck, at this point I don't think there are any guys I really dislike--but I guarantee that'll change after Tuesday!

Jared's 'secret' plan

Newsday talks to local talent Jared 'JL' Cotter via telephone from Hollywood, where he's getting ready to sing in Tuesday's first seminfinal round.

In the interview, he lays out his 'secret plan' to win AI... a plan that sounds a lot like what Constantine and Ace Young used the last couple of years to make the finals.

Jared Cotter photo from americanidol.com