Idol 28 - David Hernandez

28. David Hernandez

Season 7, 12th Place

28, 27, 26 and 25 were very hard to rank for me, and I have switched those four around so many times, but last night I just went with my gut and I'm sticking with it. Haha. Unfortunately, David Hernandez drew the short end of the stick.

Anyway, when spoilers were leaking about the Top 24 of Season 7, I was trying to get a sneak peak from the contestants I haven't heard of yet. Someone figured out who David Hernandez was from MySpace and then someone found some YouTube videos of him and a friend singing. I watched them, and I instantly loved David.

He became one of my favorites, even though he hadn't been shown on any episode at that point. He had a smooth voice, lots of soul and great control - just what I like in a singer. So, I was elated when they showed him in Hollywood and he did a terrific version of Love The One You're With. That secured his spot as one of my favorites.

Then, came the semifinals and his first few performances were definitely among the strongest of the guys. I loved that David kind of came out of nowhere and set himself up as a contender to do well. However, that whole time, I still wasn't terribly optimistic about his chances. People like David - who didn't have their audition aired - have a HUGE uphill battle on the show. Unfortunately, he took a few missteps with his last two performances and it was enough to send him packing early in the competition.

Now, some people maybe very surprised that David was this high for me, but to be honest, I think he had potential to be ridiculously good. I mean, we only got four live performances from the guy, and I have very little doubt that he had greatness in him that we never got to see. Man, I was very disappointed that he left - especially over Kristy Lee Cook. But, I saw it coming from a mile away. I predicted that he was toast before the Top 12 show had even ended. Well, he did enough to become my favorite 12th Placer! Haha.

I can definitely appreciate someone who can deliver a good melisma, and that was David's specialty. I really don't think the average Idol viewer realizes how difficult it is to sing a well controlled run - most people can't do it.

That said, I certainly didn't love everything about David's voice. He did tend to sound affected - even a bit cabaret. Also, he would often over-do his performances with some annoying growls. But really, his soulful vibe and great tone made up for those other flaws. I think Mr. Hernandez is the only one of his kind to be on the show. No one has sounded quite like him, and you got to respect that.

Now, as far as his stripper controversy goes, that definitely didn't affect the way I viewed David. Ha! If anything, it just added to his character. But for me, it was all about the singing, and he excelled at it. Season 7 definitely could've used more of Hernandez. People talk about Michael Johns and Carly Smithson being robbed, but I'd say Hernandez was the third person that was severely robbed on that season. What a waste.

Favorite performance(s): Like I said, I looved David's Hollywood performance of Love the One You're With. He displayed great control and a smooth voice. Plus, the performance seemed like it could be quite a bit relevant to today's music scene. However, it was easily Papa Was a Rolling Stone as my favorite Hernandez performance. I saw many facets to his voice in this performance and it was brilliant. In the Midnight Hour was very underrated. I loved the whole gospel vibe of the song. He exuded soul and kicked off the live performances with a bang.

Love The One You're With

Papa Was A Rolling Stone

In The Midnight Hour

#27 - A female Adam Lambert - wait, is that redundant? Haha.