Christian Faves Keep their Place on 'American Idol'
Christian fans following the sixth season of American Idol can relax this week now that Wednesday's vote-off show has aired, leaving all three of Gospel Music Association-favored artists to sing another week.
As revealed by host Ryan Seacrest, 22-year-old Gina Glocksen was the next contestant booted from American's No. 1 show, leaving Jordin Sparks, Melinda Doolittle, and Phil Stacey among the eight finalists.
Still on the edge of elimination is Stacey, 29, however, as he was yet again among the bottom vote-getters this week alongside San Antonio native Haley Scarnato, 24. This was the third time this season that Stacey, a minister of music at First Coast Christian in Jacksonville, Fla., was among the lowest vote tallies.
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Idol's most abrasive judge, Simon Cowell, commented on the minister's performance, in which he sang "Night and Day," as being "utterly gloomy and slightly dark." This is after Cowell, in the previous week, had applauded Stacey's presentation.
Guest judge Tony Bennett, one of America's most renowned vocalists of all time, encouraged the Floridian, however, saying that he was one of the best singers that he had ever heard.
The judges have not been so kind to Scarnato in the past weeks, so it seems she may be the next to depart in next week's show.
Two other GMA-supported soloists continued to have dominant performances this week as Melinda Doolittle, 29, and Jordin Sparks, 17, sang "I've Got Rhythm" and "On a Clear Day," respectively. Both competitors have been continually put among the top performers by newspapers, magazines, and other periodicals.
In response to Doolittle's performance, Cowell had remarked, "I don't think we're ever going to be able to criticize you... this is a problem."
Other judge Randy Jackson responded to Sparks presentation saying, "Jordin listen, that was the bomb again, very controlled. I mean you're like a pro and you're 17 and I'm like, 'What?'"
This week's show had the most votes cast for this season of American Idol, having just under 33 million people voicing their opinion. The shows ratings have in between 26 million to 37 million viewers per telecast.
The competition will continue next week with the vocal performance show on Tuesday followed by the live vote-off program on Wednesday night as usual.
