Tamyra Gray News

'Idol' kicked off tonight's results show with the top five singing a Frank Sinatra medley consisting of The Lady is a Tramp, It Was a Very Good Year, and Night and Day. The group sounded tight as usual. I was a big fan of the way the guys began the medley, bringing out Crystal Bowersox to sing the second verse of The Lady is a Tramp. Casey James sounded a million times better tonight than he did last night; perhaps he would have done better with a different song? The group sounded great and the solos seem to get better each week.

The contestants stepped out of their comfort zone tonight on a week featuring pure crooning, something surprisingly lacking from 'Idol' this season. Stage and screen star Harry Connick, Jr. mentored the contestants on the songs of Frank Sinatra, even going so far as to create the arrangements and orchestrations for each song, as well as joining the singers on stage as the pianist. It's nice to see a mentor who put such dedication into his work on 'Idol,' though it is not the least bit surprising that this dedication came from Connick, Jr., always the consummate musician as well as performer.

According to a recent Tweet from pop star Lady Gaga, the singer will appear on the hit television show 'American Idol' on May 5th. The tweet read 'See you on American Idol. May 5th, Little Monsters.'

When 'Idol' gets down to the top six, each week is a shocker. With so few contestants left, it is nearly impossible to predict who will head home each week and, at this point in the competition, it really feels as though it's anyone's game. Tonight featured a slew of performances and was the first real reminder of how close we are to finding a winner of 'American Idol' season nine.

Tonight, 'Idol' saw the return of Shania Twain, who joined the audition process in Chicago, as the contestants sang from her vast catalog of songs. Twain is primarily a country artist, which resulted in a marked change for some of the contestants. The majority of the themes thus far have fit nicely into the pop genre and, while Twain's songs are definitely pop, the country influence allowed us to see the versatility of the performers as they tackled a new challenge.

Tonight, 'American Idol' presented a special episode, benefitting 'Idol Gives Back,' the historic Emmy Award-winning television event and music celebration, that has raised more than $140 million to benefit charities around the world and across the United States. Tonight, 'Idol' saluted a number of charities, including Feeding America, Save the Children, the United Nations Foundation, the Elton John Aids Foundation, and Idol Aid.

The top seven contestants of 'American Idol' kicked off the week with a set of inspirational songs led by the incomparable Alicia Keys. Keys was brought in due to her talent as well as her charity involvement, specifically working with families suffering from HIV and AIDS, as the show celebrates 'Idol Gives Back' this week. Some of the performances were perfect for the theme, while other lacked inspiration and felt as though they could have been performed any other week. As the competition heats up, the contestants will have to give standout performances weekly, and some of them failed to grow this week, while others had fantastic showings.

According to a recent tweet from pop star Christina Aguilera, the singer will appear on season finale of hit television show 'American Idol' on May 26th.

According to a recent Tweet from pop star Lady Gaga, the singer will appear on the hit television show 'American Idol' on May 5th. The tweet read 'See you on American Idol. May 5th, Little Monsters.'

"Idol" lost two of its contestants tonight, a consequence of Michael Lynche receiving the judges save last week. After receiving more than 34 million votes, two contestants were voted off, bringing the number down to seven. It was a tough night, as some of the audience favorites went home, but, the remaining contestants are a very solid group that is chock full of talent.

Tonight, 'Idol' saluted one of the greatest performers of all time, Elvis Presley. Tonight separated out the true performers, as Elvis is the epitome of stage presence. Thankfully, many of the performers were able to live up to his legacy and give great performances. Last season's runner up, Adam Lambert, was aptly chosen to coach this week and, out of all the coaches so far, seemed to have the most constructive criticisms for the contestants. He was almost always spot on with his suggestions and really helped up the ante for tonight's performances.

In a shocking turn of events, tonight featured the first of the top six gentlemen to head home. Each of the three ladies were called up first, eventually learning that they were each safe on the night. After that, the night was a complete shocker, ending on a sad note for one of the contestants.

Tonight, the 'Idol' contestants were given the task of taking on the rather extensive Lennon/McCartney songbook. Given the sheer number of tunes to select from and the vast differences in types of songs, it would seem each contestant should have been able to find a song that would suit both their voice and personality. Many of the contestants, thankfully, did so, giving one of the best shows so far this year. As the competition heats up, it's interesting to see the bar set to a new level each week , although, each week it also becomes all the more clear who doesn't belong.

Tonight's results show was the first real shocker of the season. The bottom three consisted of Katie Stevens, Didi Benami, and Tim Urban and, on a night where Urban was the expected candidate to head home, this he received a stay of execution. Performing on tonight's results show was "Idol" winner Ruben Studdard, Usher, and Diddy alongside Dirty Money and each their songs was done quite well. The night was the first really unexpected results show, but it is often these kinds of results that keep "Idol" audiences on their toes.

On Wednesday, March 31, AMERICAN IDOL welcomed guest appearances by superstars Usher, Diddy, wil.i.am, and IDOL seaseon 2 winner Reuben Studdard. Check out the pictures below - including photos from Tuesday's performance show.

It was R&B night tonight on "Idol," a theme that benefited some singers over others, but it was actually a night of overall solid performances from the contestants. It is the first week where there hasn't really been a shockingly bad performance by any of the contestants and it featured a number of really excellent showings, including several comeback performances by performers who had a tough time in recent weeks. R&B/pop superstar Usher coached the contestants, giving spot on criticism to the group. It was clear Usher knew what he was talking about and he was the perfect choice to mentor this week.

'Idol' is down to 10. Tonight was by far one of the most important nights of 'Idol;' those who make it through tonight earn a spot on the summer tour and (presumably) the opportunity to sell a ton of records. On such an important night, there as at least one surprise, with the bottom three consisting of Paige Miles, Tim Urban, and, shockingly, Katie Stevens. Stevens wasn't bad last night, and it's a bit of a surprise to see her among this group.

'American Idol' featured the teen sensation Miley Cryus as the contestant's coach on their songs for this week. Cyrus was surprisingly helpful in her comments to the top 11 and it was clear she had done her homework, knowing each person's strengths and weaknesses. Several singers gave strong performances this week, while the weaker contestants missed the mark again. The theme was back to number one Billboard hits and, even though it seems like it should be easy to make a good song choice out of the thousands of possibilities, it was still a struggle for many of the singers.

It is now down to 11 'American Idol' hopefuls as another contestant, Lacey Brown, was eliminated during the results show that aired last night, Wednesday, March 17th. American Idol season 7 winner David Cook made an appearance and sang the Rolling Stones hit 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' and guest performer Ke$sha took to the stage to sing her hit 'Blah Blah Blah'.

Tonight, 'Idol' was forced to let go of the first of the top 12. After a night of good performances, it's tough to see the performers go home, but it's clear that some deserve it more than others. The bottom three on the night were Lacey Brown, Paige Miles, and Tim Urban, the three performers who had the weakest performances. The drama was high tonight, as 'Idol' as we found out who would be the first to go.