So Long, Chikezie; American Idol You Are Not

After Tuesday's performance of Luther Vandross' "If Only For One Night," I had him picked as the next Idol contestant to go. It's getting hard to determine who will leave each week, because this season's singers really are all quite good. If any of the Idols want to stay in the game, they'll need to choose their songs carefully.

Chikezie is very talented, there's no doubt about it. He has a great voice, and when he picks the right song, he's sensational. He has personality that shines. Is Chikezie American Idol material? I think so, once he has someone choosing the right songs for him. However, what Simon Cowell says is true: he picked a song that was old fashioned, and he kept it sounding old fashioned. He sang it well, but it was boring.

When I listen to the Idols sing and decide where to cast my votes, I ask myself, "Would I buy this single? If it came on the radio, would I listen or change the station?" Even if the song is a fairly decent cover of the original, if it doesn't offer anything new or modernizes it, I'm not likely to want to listen to it, and I think many of the American Idol viewers feel the same way.

Had Chikezie stuck to songs the likes of "I Believe to My Soul," he would probably have been around a while longer. He's certainly better than past winners Taylor Hicks and Ruben Studdard. This season, however, there were too many talented people for him to keep up with his continued bad choices in songs.

Although Ramiele Malubay (my early favorite) is fast fading in popularity, she has had enough solid performances to keep her in the running for just a little longer. Kristy Lee Cook has struggled, again mostly because she picks the wrong songs. However, this week she picked a winner with "I'm Proud to be an American" by Lee Greenwood and nailed it. Both of these ladies have wonderful voices, but don't seem to be up to the task of the actual performance, which is a vital part of the make-up of an American Idol.