Rachel Hubbard

New crop of talent! Again, she sounds ordinary to me... but she's okay and a little bit more.

Thaddeus Johnson

Very soulful. He's rocking it. Randy calls him the best 16-year-old he's ever seen.

Genesis Moore

For a moment I thought I saw Beyonce. She does have chops. Kara applauds her vocals. And that concludes Ryan's lesson on the 16-year-olds auditioning for the first time, but before the ads, a reminder of what's ahead. A "man flower". Go figure.

So far I'm thinking this episode is really pointless. All those unused footage from unused back stories...

Adrian Chandtchi

He's 17. He's tall. Six-foot-eight, in fact. But he's a horrible jumper. He swims. He's nicknamed "the big Kahuna". He doesn't want to be called that. He calls himself a "beautiful man flower". He wants to prove that he can do it despite his height. Some back story. He sings Elvis' "Can't Help But Falling In Love With You", and what comes out is just odd. You see, he's got a really small voice, and he sings like a nervous six-year-old forced to sing during the holidays. He gets three nos, and he leaves, but not after saying, "you have my number, you can just call me."

Not exactly a train wreck. Just... not right.

Michael Lynche

So this is the guy who was supposedly disqualified? He's got bad ass arms. Now, I know some fans have this thing called "arm porn"... what about this one? Does this count? Anyway, his looks defy expectations: he's got a very soulful voice, a bit like James Ingram or Peabo Bryson (I'm not sure if I have my comparisons correct, so forgive me). Kara calls him a "singing teddy bear". He gets four yeses and, with it, a golden ticket .

Didi Benami

She's auditioning in memory of her best friend Rebecca, who died four years ago. Okay. Emo sequence with Death Cab for Cutie in the background. I understand since they're really close BFFs. She tries to battle her emotions, perhaps affected her song choice: "Hey Jude", which she does in a slightly jazzy, more upbeat way. Obvious comparison: Megan Joy. That linger in her voice, only more marketable. I like her! I really like her! She starts crying after, overcome by her emotions--guess she'll cry more when she gets four yeses. Sure, Simon's yes wasn't so certain, but it's still a yes.

(Right now I'm saying, "please be in the top 12, please be in the top 12...")

Ryan talks about "facing the odds" and I know I should stay away. But, alas, I can't.

Aaron Kelly

Dad can't keep a job, moved around to many places, social services threatened to take the family away, uncle eventually adopted them. Obviously, with this set-up, he gets it, right? He does "The Climb" and... I can't really put my finger around it. It's decent, reminds me of someone whose name is at the tip of my tongue, only mixed with cute-boy charms. They did see him as a cute 16-year-old. Four yeses later, I'm guessing he'll be a bit of a David Archuleta.

Kimberly Bishop

"I'll be the next pop singer because I have a really good heart," she says. Imagine a goth girl doing stuff Madonna or Angelina Jolie do. She does "I Kissed A Girl" and I automatically see a Glee reference. Tina sang this song on her audition, too! Only this one was a bit awkward. There are the seductive gestures. That works. But she struggled with the song, a bit slurry, seemingly out of breath. She gets two nos and a yes--from Simon. And then she asks before leaving, "can I be excused?"

Shaddaii Harris

Another sob story: her mom came along. Mom says she saw a vision of her singing when she was still carrying her. She does an Alicia Keys song and... it sounds odd. After a bad start, she gets her bearings later, but it sounds pretty bad. Imagine the sound of you singing in the shower, surrounded by metal plates. No, it's just bad. It's just a no. Okay, it's not a sob story. But what's next is "a story of hope". Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Hope Johnson

It literally is the story of Hope. She didn't know they were poor when she was young. She talks about bringing home food for her little brother, sneaked from her lunch trays in school. And then she cries. I try so hard not to be annoyed at this overplay. Well, she hopes people see her and say she's a star. Could be: she's got this soft, sweet voice, a bit like Colbie Caillat, breathy and cool. Also helps that she looks pretty: this 15-year-old's got the complete package. Four yeses later, she freaks out. "This is ridiculous!" she blurts out.

Genius, producers: Snow Patrol's "Just Say Yes" in the background!

And finally, one last look at the past three weeks. 181 people through to Hollywood, out of 100,000 or so.

What did you think, kids? Do we have a winner? Was this episode pointless, or did it help lots? Next week, we're on to Hollywood, with Ellen DeGeneres taking on Paula Abdul's old seat for good, talking about dullness and leopards. And finally, the search for our Top 24 begins. Be patient, young ones. We're getting there.







(Image courtesy of Fox)