February 08, 2006

American Idol - Season 5

Tonight's episode showed the beginning of Hollywood week for the 160 or so contestants who made it to Hollywood. The auditions continued. Each of the contestants sang one of 12 songs to see who would move even further into the competition.

Boy. Those producers sure know how to get to me. There is this one contestant whose story really pulls my heart strings. Kelly Pickler. Her voice has a lot of polish so I doubt she's been singing to only chickens all her life. She's a sweet young woman who has been raised by her grandfather because her mother bailed on her when she was little and her father's in jail. Naturally, she's a small town girl with a big, big heart. And when the judges told her after her initial audition that she was going to Hollywood, I cried right along with her. Well, tonight she did really well and she's moving on to the next round.

Then there is Taylor Hicks. There is something original and interesting about him. He's an older guy - well older by the competition's standard. He's in his late 20's and went grey as a teenager. I googled him and was somewhat surprised to see that he's already got a website and a little bit of a singing career going already; not that it matters. All you need to know is that his voice is fantastic. It's deep and raspy and soulful and when he sings, he exudes quiet confidence. I really hope he makes it through to the competition because he's a pleasure to listen to.

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