Chikezie Receives Mixed Messages from American Idol Judges

After two weeks of shaking the crowd with upbeat melodies, altering tempos and wild spontaneity, Chikezie has disappointingly returned to the cheesy, old school, cabaret style that nearly ended his Idol career before it even began.

Chikezie, probably American Idol's least consistent performer, seems to have trouble finding his niche. Tuesday night's performance of "If Only for One Night" was virtually flawless, but showcasing the grown-up, softer side of Chikezie introduces the hazard of generating more yawns than votes.

What happened to the Chikezie who stunned fans with his high-energy rendition of "She's a Woman," during the top 12 week? Fans were treated to Chikezie's unique mosaic approach that resembled a variety show all packed into one song - and it worked. Chikezie easily secured himself a spot for the next week, with fans wondering what he'd do next. So, the question is, if that's the formula that works for Chikezie, why has he slipped back into vocal monotony?

Mixed Messages from The Judges

Last week's performance of another Beatles song "I've Just Seen a Face," followed Chikizie's same mosaic formula, but this time the judges weren't so impressed. Chikezie's metamorphosis into several different personas throughout the performance, plus a sketchy harmonica bit failed to make an impact on Randy or Simon, who argued the performance was gimmicky and strange.

The judges' comments impacted Chikezie enough for him to steer away from the high-energy performance that fans seem to love, but it will most likely place him in the bottom three. If Chikezie wants to pave his road to the finale, he's got to give the fans what they want - and that's the unpredictable, multi-personality Chikezie with the grinding vocals, and blinding attire.

If Chikezie can keep it memorable, he'll keep coming back.