Finale!! Lewis vs. Sparks

So here it is, the final showdown between Blake Lewis, the beatboxer, versus Jordin Sparks, the 17 year old vocal phenom. This is actually the finale that I was hoping for since around the Top 7 or so. I didnt think that Melinda would actually get knocked off so I had no hope of actually seeing this finale happen. But then last week was a huge shock and here we are. I think tonite will be very interesting because we have style vs substance. Blake is a good singer, but not a great singer. He's made a name for himself because of his unusual song choices, great stage performance, and of course the beat boxing and song arrangements. Jordin is obviously a brilliant singer that has really grown throughout the competition. So who wins? We'll find out tonite, and I think it's going to come down to the Idol single. Whoever performs it better will be your winner. Having listened to the song choice on the American Idol website I have to say, I'm not really happy with it. The song is pure cheese and it's designed to be a "singers" song; meaning that someone with vocal chops should do well with it. It will be interesting to see what Blake does with it. If he puts his own spin on it that could make all the difference.

Blake - You Give Love a Bad Name. I'm glad he chose to do this song again. This was easily the best and most talked about performance of the season. He really made it his own. He starts the song off well (didn't miss his cue this time) and carries it throughout the whole performance. He looks so comfortable on stage and is moving around and having fun. He's engaging the audience. This is an arena type song and he's doing his best to make it sound like one. His beatboxing totally works for this song. Overall it was an excellent way to start the final night. Good for him! Grade A

Jordin - Fighter. Whoa I'm really surprised that Jordin is going for a Christina song. She's got the voice but doesn't really have the soul that Christina does. Fighter is kind of a tough song as well. It'll be interesting to see how she does. Well, vocally she's handling it pretty well. She does sound good but it's hard to hear this without hearing Christina sing it. Also, Jordin needs to do more with the song. She just walks up to the front of the stage and sings. The song is about being a fighter, being a strong woman, being tough. She should show that in the performance. She should move around and try to engage the audience. Instead, she's just standing there in the middle of the stage, as if she was singing a soft ballad. Vocally it was good but performance-wise she could have done so much more. Grade A-

Blake - She Will Be Loved. Well he seems to have found his comfort zone in Maroon5 and I can't blame him. This is the type of music that his voice works well with. He starts off alright, no major problems. The song does fit his voice quite nicely. When he goes for the falsetto notes in the chorus we finally hear him strain a little. I'm not sure if he can't sing falsetto or if the note is just a little too high for him but he never hits it. He falls just under that note every single time. Otherwise it would be a good performance. Singing the song straight shows off his nice voice but not being able to showcase the falsetto really shows how weak of a singer he is when compared to Jordin. Grade A-

Jordin - Broken Wing. This was a good song choice for Jordin. After I Who Have Nothing I think this was my 2nd favorite performance of hers. She starts off the song quietly and tells the story of the song while quietly building a crescendo. When the chorus finally comes she's in total control of her voice and everything sounds so effortless. However once again she's just standing at the front of the stage and singing the song. Although this song doesn't really call for much stage performance it would have been nice to see something different. She did really, really well with this one. I think it was one of her best performances. Grade A

Blake - This Is My Now. Well, with a title like that you can't really expect a good song out of it. We'll see if Blake did something new or just sings it straight through. And it looks like he opted to just sing. Right off the bat you can tell that he doesn't like the song. It's not his style and doesn't fit his voice at all. He seems completely uncomfortable with it. He's bopping around and interacting with the audience in the 2nd verse but he seems to have just given up. This song just doesn't work for him at all. That was really bad. I feel sad for him and he looks so defeated. Grade D

Jordin - This Is My Now. Interesting that the producers made both of them sing the same song as their last. It's like they wanted to make sure everyone knew that Jordin is the better singer and are putting the two next to each other for comparison. We'll see if she can make this craptastic song sound any better. Well right off the bat you can tell that this is loads better than what Blake did. Since it's a singers song, Jordin is able to use the different emotions in her voice and make the song come alive. This song suddenly doesn't sound so bad after all. The "tears" at the end look so fake though. She's breaking down like she's crying but there are no tears at all. It looks like she's trying to play the emotional card to get some votes. However, she doesn't need them. She blew Blake out of the water on this song. Grade A.

So there you have it. The competition is officially over this year and all that's left is to count up the votes. We'll find out tomorrow who the new American Idol is going to be. Going into tonite's show I was rooting for Blake to win. All along I have said that he's the first true male pop star to be on Idol and I think he would be unique enough to do well after the show. However, after tonite I think that Jordin will be your winner. She is definitely the better singer of the two and deserves to win based on tonite's performances. Hands down she had the better night tonite and that's most likely what America will be voting on. I will be very surprised if Blake pulls off an upset victory and takes the title tomorrow. Either way, I think both will have a deal with a record label and will be successful in their own rights.

Congratulations Jordin Sparks, American Idol 2007!