American Idol 13 Wrap-Up: 25 Best Performances

To the obligatory count: 6 months. 39 episodes. 165 live performances. 14 elimination rounds. 197 Jennifer Lopez closeups. 0 Mariah Carey. Haha. That's right, another season in the history books and like old tradition I compiled a list of the most memorable live performances up to the Finale.

Season 13 was quiet a ride. It's not the best season EVER, but the kids this season managed to deliver outstanding performances, which made this a little hard to rank. But yes, I did my very best!

Anyway, just like many other lists or countdowns, this one is extremely biased. It's based on personal preferences. There will probably be some performances that are nowhere to be found on your list that may be as high as 10 or something on here - actually I guarantee it. But please respond maturely, flames don't make me particularly happy.

SEASON 9 Best Performances 
SEASON 10 Best Performances
SEASON 11 Best Performances
SEASON 12 Best Performances

Now, we pay tribute to the LIVE performances that made this season worth watching - and reviewing!:

Honorable Mentions!

The Long and Winding Road

Malaya Watson

Top 9

Can't You See

CJ Harris

Top 11

Sting Me

Caleb Johnson

Top 6

Lucky Man

Dexter Roberts

Top 12

Jolene

Jessica Meuse

Top 6

Here are the TOP 25 Best Live Performances of Season 13:

American Idol 13: Finale!

That’s a wrap! We’ve concluded another season of American Idol! It’s time to pass the torch from the soaring voice of Candice Glover to the other power vocalist that is Caleb Johnson.

Jena Irene? You had an outstanding and impressive run! I was hoping for you to pull an upset, but I guess, the demo was just too strong for you to overcome. Pick your chin up and get into the recording studio. Your story was a fun one to root for, and you've managed to create moments on a season when it's almost lacking.

But Caleb?

He auditioned three times, and like Candice last season, never gave up. I'm not entirely a fan, but I can't deny that he's probably one of the most consistent power vocalists on this show. So yes, there's really nothing to complain other than his potential to be a successful winner and someone who carries the brand moving forward.

But I digress. After all, how many Finale’s actually have the two best vocalists compete against one another? It’s a rarity. However, except for last season, I’ve had a problem with how easy it’s been for a lot of the male winners since Season 7 to practically scoot by while better vocalists practically begged for votes.

Anyway, I'll get back with my comments later on!

American Idol 13: Final Thoughts and Prediction

Before anything else, I'd like to say something. American Idol has been plagued with bad news cycles this season. Everyone pounced on the program once more like a hungry shark that smelled blood in the water. A lot of people kept on saying “The worst season ever?” and “Is Idol over?”, and it only furthered this media pile-on until it became something close to common wisdom.

Yes, the ratings shrank throughout the season. Why? What can explain that? The same phenomenon that explains why people like to back a winning horse and jump off a sinking ship. When something becomes “media common sense” we react in the worst of ways. Besides, American Idol is 13-year old show!

American Idol is not over.

If you ever loved this show, fight for it even when they have a bad season because that is going to happen! Talent was not as strong this year as prior seasons, but that's in no way a statement on the talent of next year's group of contestants. But, what you should never do is join a mob mentality that only spreads like wildfire and creates expectations that are drastically unrealistic.

After all… it’s #$@&ING REALITY TELEVISION!

Anyway, let me get with my prediction. The Nokia theater shined and Jena Irene and Caleb Johnson stood on that stage to go three rounds and leave it all on the stage. By my count, Jena took the last two rounds and Caleb took the first. It's almost a split decision that favors Jena Irene. As much as I'd like to think that the momentum is clearly in Jena's court, I have a funny feeling that Caleb's doing his own damage with the voters.

Truth be told, I'm not as confident as how I predicted say Scotty McCreery's win during his season, but I'm taking on a HUGE limb here and say that Jena Irene will take the title and go on to become the thirteenth American Idol and she will be the first wildcard winner. And yes, I've been wrong the past two seasons! Haha. 

American Idol 13: Top 2

Another year, another season.

We’ve gone from so many to so few and finally have arrived at a showdown between Jena Irene and Caleb Johnson. They're completely different artists, but they both have an undeniable stage presence and strong vocal chops. Indeed, I really enjoyed the Finale and probably one of the most memorable Final performance episodes. The contestants seem like great people and I hope, whoever takes the title, goes on to great success.

Anyway, without further nonsense, I'll get to the rankings..

American Idol 13: Top 2 Head-to-Head Match Up!

Since Season 10, I'd like to post a quick rundown of how the rest of the season went and who outperformed who in my Season 13 reviews. So once again, I've taken the trouble of going back through all my reviews this season and snagging the grades I gave both Caleb and Jena on each of their performances.

Below, a head-to-head comparison, just to see which finalist ''won'' the overall season in my book, and to refresh your own memories so you can do your own seasonal audit.

Season 12: Head-to-Head Match Up! (Candice vs Kree)
Season 11: Head-to-Head Match Up! (Phillip vs Jessica)
Season 10: Head-to-Head Match Up! (Scotty vs Lauren)

Head-to-Head Match Up after the jump!

American Idol 13: We Are One - Jena Irene

Listen to Jena Irene's debut single, We Are One. For American Idol to release the "supposed" winner's debut song ahead of the actual Finale is unprecedented and an interesting development. Let's see if this will have an effect on the actual outcome next week.

Sure, We Are One has the same anthemic song structure just like most of the pop songs out there, but this one has an extremely rousing melody with a big, rushing chorus, a pulsating beat of effects-laden percussion and vocal fireworks galore. It has that perfect mix of cheese and dangerous exuberant with a chant that begs anyone to sing along. It's overloaded with layers of intricate production, but I'm not mad about it.

Listen to the track after the jump!

American Idol 13: As Long As You Love Me - Caleb Johnson

Listen to Caleb Johnson's debut single, As Long As You Love Me. For American Idol to release the "supposed" winner's debut song ahead of the actual Finale is unprecedented and an interesting development. Let's see if this will have an effect on the actual outcome next week.

I have to admit, throughout the season, I didn't think I will consider Caleb as a viable contemporary rock artist, but while As Long As You Love Me has that kind of 80's sound, the melody is terrific, his vocal sounds fantastic, and it has a catchy hook. With an insistent pounding drum beat and driving electric guitar accents, this is probably the last thing I expected from a coronation song - and that's a GOOD thing! Good job!

Listen to the track after the jump!

American Idol 13: Top 3 Results Show

Alex Preston. Argh. This was a tough one. Alex deserved to be in the Finale. He had certainly proven it more than once, but I guess somebody had to take the fall. I thought he had a strong night last night, and it's a shame that he left when he actually delivered the best last night. But I digress. He should be incredibly proud of his bronze medal and the several great performances he added to this show’s history. He was creative, thoughtful, measured, and I have no doubt he’ll be signed rather quickly. After all, he joins fellow third place finishers Vonzell, Elliott, Melinda, Syesha, Haley, Joshua, and Angie and that’s not a bad group to belong to!

Results after the jump!

American Idol 13: Top 3

This week, the contestants sang three songs over three themes: Randy Jackson’s Choice, Judges' Choice, and Reprises. That’s right. There is no free choice this round, so the Idol contestants had very little control. That's also probably why Top 3 night has always been constantly disappointing. There have been rare exceptions, but for the most part, it's underwhelming.

Oh, and in this episode we get to see a sneak peek of the Top 3's homecoming celebration. They're pretty much glorified propaganda, but there's a certain truth to the situations we witnessed. But that's more for tomorrow.

On to the rankings!

American Idol 13: Top 4 Studio Versions

Who's genius idea was it for the Idols to record just ONE song when they all performed three? Why didn't we get an iTunes version of Jena Irene's Can't Help Falling In Love? Why? It's annoying and frustrating. They've been doing this for the past few years and I don't know why they suddenly dropped recording all performances.

But enough of that, here's where Idols peaked against other songs available on iTunes:

#202 Too Close - Alex Preston
#240 Yoü and I - Jessica Meuse
#242 Travellin' Band - Caleb Johnson
#407 Heartbreaker - Jena Irene

As for me, I enjoyed Jessica Meuse' recording of the Lady Gaga tune. There's intensity, grit and character in her vocals that I've never heard before. Good job!

American Idol 13: Top 4 Results Show

Jessica Meuse. This is the first week of American Idol Season 13 where I felt sad. Heck, Jessica was sobbing and it was clear that she's broken up about this. Possibly the hardest elimination of the season. But she was eliminated for one simple fact: song choice. It's pretty hard to rally behind someone who didn't catch during the rehearsals that her song choices will send her home. And yes, during this stage of the competition you better have a seriously powerful fan base, and unfortunately, she came up tonight's big loser. In my opinion, she would have made a tremendous finalist and has the talent to stick around for a long time. She should be incredibly proud of her accomplishments because the editing she got during Hollywood week was horrendous, and she got very little credit from the judges. I love myself some Jessica Meuse, and it's hard to watch her go.

Results after the jump!

American Idol 13: Top 4

It was Top 4 night (Wow. The season rushed by!) and the entire aura of this episode was off. I mean, everyone delivered, at least, one stellar performance, and yet, they also had performances that were annoyingly mediocre or just plain bad. It's just a bit perplexing how these remaining contestants could be incredibly inconsistent! Haha.

Oh, and a couple of observations. Ryan's selfie obsession was irritating to watch, Randy is the most useless mentor in the history of any competition show, Caleb looked fatter tonight, and Ryan's facial hair oddly looked good on him. Haha.

On with the rankings!

American Idol 13: Top 5 Studio Versions

Sorry for the late post. I've been quite busy the past few days. Anyway, here are the recorded versions of the Top 5 songs - one each - and some of them sounded great.

Here's where Idols peaked against other songs available on iTunes:

#44 Say Something - Alex Preston
#148 Summertime Sadness - Jessica Meuse
#165 How To Save A Life - Sam Woolf
#283 I Don't Want To Miss A Thing - Caleb Johnson
#347 My Body - Jena Irene

Personally though, I enjoyed Alex and Jessica's studio recordings, although Alex's sounded a little hollow without the back up singer. Jena also delivered a pretty solid number. That is all.

American Idol 13: Top 5 Results Show

American Idol has officially jump the shark. What was up with the "big twist"? While I did like the simple fact that the producers still care about the show - giving it some much needed shock - but it was a dumb one. Why would they ask the contestants to vote if they want someone eliminated or not? This is not Survivor where the competition is THAT cutthroat. It's funny though how the whole thing backfired on them when two people voted NO. Haha. 

Sam Woolf. Well, the "cat with nine lives" has finally been put to sleep. I’ve always enjoyed Sam's crystal clear tone and fantastic pitch and to this day I maintain the belief that Sam would have been a very marketable winner. We'll see if a label will pick him up and allow him to make a record. The kids fatal flaw was never truly gaining a much needed connection with all of his materials. Every week he showed America that you didn’t have to be the best week after week; you had to just be better than one person week after week. This strategy took him to fifth place, which is not a bad showing for someone with very little main stage experience. Kudos.

American Idol 13: Top 5

Here’s what I got out of this episode: One, Randy is really fighting for screentime! The struggle is real, people! Haha. Two, this show gets cheesier and cheesier. And lastly, Jessica Meuse is the new Haley Reinhart - or a milder version of some sorts. Ha!

This week, it's all about people tweeting the show and suggesting song choices. It's a first and other than Caleb's Asteroid song, I'm mostly okay with the picks. The performances, on the other hand, is a totally different story. A couple of them delivered, but it was a mixed bag entirely. Yes, they just can't please me . Haha.

On with the rankings!

American Idol 13: Top 6 Studio Versions

This week, the remaining six finalists tackled Country and Rock songs, but unfortunately, they've only recorded one song this week. Not sure how the production - or the contestants - decided which one to record, but I digress.

Here's how Idols peaked against other songs available on iTunes:

#201 You're Still The One - Sam Woolf
#488 Sting Me - Caleb Johnson
#560 Barracuda - Jena Irene
#656 Jolene - Jessica Meuse
#723 Animal - Alex Preston

CJ Harris' recording didn't chart in the Top 1500 songs. Sad. Anyway, I'm enjoying Jena Irene and Caleb Johnson's recordings. That some real rock and roll recordings.

American Idol 13: Top 6 Results Show

CJ Harris. This was no surprise. We’ve been guessing CJ Harris would run out of luck for weeks now. He should be proud to finish in 6th place for somehow who's been spectacularly off key most of the time. CJ does know how to connect to almost every material he's been given, he lacks the technical ability to deliver something in tune. Harry Connick Jr. lectured him for most of his stay in the competition, and we've seen minimal improvement from him. Anyway, we wish him luck in what he does, but I’m glad he’s off to start his career. American Idol wasn’t in the cards.

Results after the jump!

American Idol 13: Top 6

It's Country and Rock week as the Top 6 took on an array of classics - or something to that effect - and managed to deliver yet another night where almost all of the contestants were in fine form. I genuinely didn't expect much from them, but it was actually a relatively strong night. As usual, there were lights flashing, cheering fans, and, as of recently, the obligatory close up shot of Jennifer Lopez's stank face. Haha. But yeah, that happened.

Anyway, Let us take a look at what the top 6 had in store for us tonight and who ended up on top and who might be leaving us this week!

On to the rankings!

American Idol 13: Top 7 Studio Versions

It's an interesting theme: Competitor's Pick. Of course, no one really sabotaged anyone, but a couple of people really stood out. One actually made a huge impression that she could very well be leading the pack now.

Here's how they ranked and peaked against other songs available on iTunes:

#31 Creep - Jena Irene
#121 A Team - Alex Preston
#162 Sail Away - Sam Woolf
#217 Family Tree - Caleb Johnson
#520 Gravity - CJ Harris
#1107 Gunpowder & Lead - Jessica Meuse
#1289 Muckalee Creek Water - Dexter Roberts

As for my favorites, Jena Irene sounded fantastic and I also enjoyed Caleb's and Sam's. That is all.

American Idol 13: Top 7 Results Show

Dexter Roberts. Well, this wasn’t much of a surprise. Dexter has been turning in mediocre performances from the beginning of the competition with only a precious few standouts and he should be extremely proud for ending as this season's 7th place finisher. He should have tried a little harder to lock up the country vote, but he never seemed to truly do so. There is a possibility that he could be a marketable artist after a lot of work, but right now, he’ll have to settle on a national tour and the money that goes along with it. 

As for Jessica, I just couldn't help myself but root for her. The judges are being hard on her "performing" when they don't even ask Alex to move around. Why can't they get the same "artist" edit? It's a bit frustrating to see them bus Jessica when she's clearly better than CJ. Ugh. She needs to nail her performances next week or she could be in some serious trouble.

Results after the jump!