Image Credit: Michael Becker/Fox
It would appear that EW.com is all Haley Reinhart, all the time today. But can you blame us? The impression left from the past two weeks is that pretty much everyone on American Idol not named Steven Tyler would like to see Lauren Alaina, James Durbin, and Scotty McCreery get their heroic home visits, and there’s one tenacious blonde growler standing in their way.
Not so fast: If Idol history tells us anything, it’s that voters can flock to the contestant who weathered the most unfair negative criticism, and a quick scan of Idol-related message boards this morning makes clear that Haley’s fans are riled up but good and activated to vote.
So who else could possibly be in danger? None of the other three had a killer second song: Scotty went into eyebrow overdrive; Lauren’s mouth kept telling us she was evil while her eyes screamed “No I’m really not!“; and James made a quixotic song choice that wasn’t really helped by his awkward drawn-out final pauses. If I were to guess (and I’m about to, watch out), I suspect the Durbs may find himself at risk for the first time.
But what about you? Who do you think is in the bottom two and will be sent home? Vote in the polls below!
Read more:
‘American Idol’ behind the scenes: ‘Idol’ coaches talk the Top 4 — EXCLUSIVE
‘American Idol’: Randy tears into Haley, and Rupert Murdoch is there to see it, on the scene of Top 4 performance night
Annie Barrett’s ‘American Idol’ recap
‘American Idol’: 30 best performances ever!
If history is any indication, the judges’ negative comments will cause the viewers to vote FOR Haley… (unfortunately)
I agree. Haley really needs to go…EW seems to have the same problem the judges are having: sticking to the same script.
She should’ve been forced to sing as a wildcard two and a half months ago. I do find it hilarious that she outlasted other front runners though. wooo tv
Great point. This anti-judge thing (with which I TOTALLY agree) is gonna hurt the other contestants. I fear for James.
And I miss the hell out of Slezak. He loved Alison but he still liked Adam and Kris. Hello, this isn’t the Haley Show!
Slezak is on tvline.com and he is just as all about Haley as EW.com is! With good reason–the judges are morons. I don’t think Haley’s the greatest singer ever, but the other 3 are nowhere near as good as the judges want everyone to think.
If anything, it’s the Haley love fest over at Tvline. Love it!
All the “LOVE” for Haley has little to do with her voice and everything to do with her body. Obvious from comments all over and the weird number of creepy men all of a sudden Idol fans.
Oh Debbie you are so jealous….grow up!!
@ Megan Because I am stating the obvious I am jealous? Get over yourself, nothing to be jealous about. If I don’t sing Haley’s praises, it’s okay to attack and name call? You grow up.
Debbie, for you to say that Haley is only getting votes for her looks is completely irrelevant. She is a very beautiful girl.. but The people ARE absolutely talking about her voice. She’s not the best singer in the world.. but she most certainly is the most talented in the competition at this point. She deserves all of the love she is getting. and most of it is talking about how great her 2nd performance was last night and how the judges are always on her back about the little things she does, and do NOT criticize any of the other 3 no matter how flawed they are.. (I like them all so don’t say that I’m hating on any of them.) I have not seen more then 2 comments on how she looks since the week of top 9. She wasn’t attacking you for not singing haley’s praise.. she was criticizing you for being completely wrong.
@Debbie – really any why was Adam Lambert defending her on twitter then? Melinda Doolittle? Heck even our own current Lauren last night? Why did K. Clarkson say good stuff about her?
They are hot for her???
Debbie….lol So your man fell for Haley too huh? Jealous and self conscious of your own body.
I agree Haley should have gone, but hopefully she will next week.
We have wanted the last 2 to be Scotty & Lauren since the begining
I fond it funny that there is so much hatred thrown at the best singer in a SINGING competition. People keep going on and on about Idol not being JUST a singing competition, but guess what – when it becomes a popularity contest based on cuteness or sweetness you get winners like Kris and Lee who don’t sell CD’s. Let’s be real clear – this show NEEDS a true vocal talent to win in order to keep the franchise alive. True, Scotty and Lauren may have successful COUNTRY careers where vocal ability has ZERO to do with success (Taylor Swift anyone?), but unless they change the show title to Country Idol people are going to have to start actually LISTENING to the singers and voting rather than buying into the “package” that the producers are trying to sell you.
I didn’t read all that, but I like your name. “I do NOT need to see that!”
Haley is far from the best if you are referring to her. Lauren actually has a better voice and she doesn’t screech, scream, or growl! And you may not like Taylor Swift, but I find her voice refreshing and genuine.
You know, I love Lauren’s voice, but maybe she *can’t* scream or growl. Controlled growling is actually very difficult to do when singing. I also wonder if Lauren can yodel perfectly like Haley showed on “Blue.” Bottom line is, Haley is much more versatile than Lauren and even though they are both not-fantastic performers (yet), I would much prefer to watch Haley who at least doesn’t seem like a deer stuck in headlights.
What do you mean in country music vocal ability has ZERO to do with success. I give you Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Garth Brooks, Brad Paisley, ect. They are all vocally talented. I think you meant pop (Ke$ha) or hip hop (Nicki Minaj or Jay Z). There are vocally talented performers in every genre, dont hate on country and not call everyone else out as well.
you obviously know nothing about country music.
One can hope!
It also helps Haley that she’s the only one in the competition with any real talent.
Huh?
Haley is the only one with real talent. What drugs are you on?
All you people commenting on Haley must not understand jazz/blues is yes still singing. You may not like it but us that do, and who still like rock/country, but not screaming rock or country wannabes want to see someone who has something other than that win. Go Haley.
Go Haley! I hope Durbs – on my nerves goes home!
If it can’t be Casey, I want it to be Haley.
I don’t get the people voting for a contestant because they’re mad at what the judges said thing. This is the kind of mentality that keeps contestants like Tim Urban on the show longer than necessary.
Please, oh please, oh please, let it be Lauren. Look at her eyes while she sings and you can see that all she does is stare down at the judges for approval. “Am I doing OK?” She’s a sweet girl, I’m sure, but not a star.
Yes please let it be Miley Cyrus to go home.
Haley go home, only because I can stand her fanatical fans! After that, James gotta go!
Lauren sucks. She’s insecure and too conservative for her own good. Same with Scotty.
Her whole “but I don’t want to be evil!” bit last night was so obnoxious. I think she has a good voice, but the girl is so vanilla. If you’re so terrified of being sent to hell for saying the word evil during a performance, then pick a different song.
And whenever she says “thank you” after a performance or to the judges, she sounds like a 4-year-old girl who just performed on Star Search.
Completely agree with you. The girl’s got a good voice, but she hasn’t shown any improvement over the season. I think her best performance was still her initial audition. She can definitely have a career as a country singer, but she’s not as much of a star as the others.
“If you’re so terrified of being sent to hell for saying the word evil during a performance, then pick a different song.” I’d say if you’re so terrified of singing a song with the line “I’m evil,” maybe you need to go home, grow up a bit, and THEN return to the music business if you want to become a recording star. Otherwise, you can go sing backup on some Raffi albums if you need unquestionably pure and innocent music.
she cries even if she is not at the bottom 3..I noticed that in the past. I think she has a long way to do before she makes it out there. She needs to mature a bit more. I don’t think she can handle that type of stress.
Is there going to be a bottom two tonight?
Probably not. Remember last time? The results were in random order.
I try hard to not remember anything about last season. Ghastly.
Last week they had a bottom 2.
Who are we kidding? Scotty should be gone. He has the least talent and is only hanging around due to the teenies. It’s supposed to be a singing contest, but we know that like all the other competition shows, it is popularity. James should still be here, but be honest people, Haley and James have the talent and Haley has the best voice and is more current.
Haley made it into the top 10. This alone make American Idol a joke. But she has improved. She went from bad to nearly tolerable. Sadly, I think she is safe tonight and Lauren is going home. Lauren has been suffering from a lack of confidence in recent weeks. While her singing is ok, she acts like a deer caught in headlights. Not a very endearing trait for voters, I fear.
You’re crazy, she’s the best one left. To each his own I guess. Lauren is boring…
And I have to end up muting Haley when she starts the screeching…UGH
I’m sorry…but those of you Haley bashing really have no concept of what’s talent. I can agree that Haley’s tone and style is not for everybody, but in terms of pure vocal ability, technical skill, range, and style…she has all of those in spades. Scotty may be more appealing as may Lauren…and James may got that sorta rock thing going on, but from a purely objective point of view…Haley has the most talent vocally…by far….it’s not even close….start the hate.
@Sam, no matter how many technical terms you throw out there trying to make it sound like you “know” talent, you cancel it all out by stating Haley is the most talented vocally. She isn’t, she has a looooonnnnnngggg way to go. Lauren actually has a better voice and neither are my choice.
I notice that you only commented on the females. Interesting…
I think Haley is a spoiled brat! She cant even take constructive criticism with out talking back or rolling her eyes. Someone should fill her in on the fact that she trying to become famous and the judges have already became famous!!! Everyone in our family voted to Lauren. We did this, not because she is the best, but her and Haley had the worst performance. Also it is refreshing to see someone have morals and not think no one is better then them.
Oh no!!!!!!! We voted in flocks last night, my team pulled in around 16,000 votes!!! Not including our west coast partners!!
I say James in a shocker.
I think you may be right. None of his performances were particularly outstanding and/or memorable to me.
I agree. I have always thought James could win, but the last two weeks have not been good. Also, Scotty’s second performance was horrible!
oh my god i hope so, i think it should come down to the two girls
Agree..james had two bad weeks in a row. he has lost his touch…
Wow EW really has it in for Durbin, they are as bad as the Judges who seem to have it in for Haley, I like both!..I think this was Lauren’s Swan song!
I like both as well. Just a gut feeling.
Fine. The writer’s at EW don’t like Durbin. They are not being paid to be judges on IDOL! The judges have simply not judged this entire season. Steven Tyler may be mildly entertaining, but JLo is an egotistical mess and Randy is, well…
right on!
“If Idol history tells us anything, it’s that voters can flock to the contestant who weathered the most unfair negative criticism”.
So only EW.com knows this – please! The judges/producers also know this and most definitely are setting Haley up each week for the redemption arc as well as the finales. I’m sure they think she is relevant but I’ll bet a whole box of Omaha steaks that none of these top four ever become a Carrie, Kelly, Daughtry or even a Clay. good luck Idol staying in the game with lame judges, mediocre talent and last years format. When does X Factor start?
Completely agree – Haley thinks she is ‘all that’ and she WAS screaming her first song last night – she sucked
yes. and if you have any knowledge of the original song you’ll understand that it’s SUPPOSED to be screamed in that part. She did the song, and MJ, justice. Listen to MJ sing it (it’s on youtube) and you’ll have load more respect for what Haley did. I thought it was beautiful and very intense and exciting!
Listen to the original. She sang it EXACTLY like Michael did. If you were informed, you’d sound less stupid when you post. You’re welcome.
Don & Skye – She ATTEMPTED to sing it like MJ, but she didn’t nail it. She tried, but needs to work on her tone because the screaming comes off like nails on a chalkboard. MJ doesn’t SCREAM the song anywhere through it.
He sings it forcefully, but not grating….there is a difference.
@G-MA did you hear his live in Munich? He did out and out harsh tone scream parts of it.
Mmmmm….steaks…
I hope it is James he is creepy!!!!!
Creepy?!?!?! What is the matter with you???? Do you not understand Turette’s Syndrome? He is just a terrific kid who had a lot against him but has managed to rise above it. You should be ashamed!
I agree he is creepy and it’s not the Tourrettes. he’s just a creepy guy and his ego is bigger than his ears.
Geez… maybe chatty thinking he’s creepy has nothing to do with his Tourette’s. You should be ashamed for telling someone they should be ashamed. I happen to like James, but that is not *because* he has overcome such obstacles as Tourette’s and Asperger’s. If you are voting for him precisely for those reasons, then you are still singling him out and judging him based on those things. His afflictions never enter my mind when I’m watching him perform. I judge him based on his vocals and entertainment value; not because of, or despite his syndromes.
His creepiness has nothing to do with his disability.
I don’t like Haley’s attitude. Like somebody said above, she does not take criticism at all to help her out. But I must say, I am not impress at all by the judges this year.
How would you take criticism if those around you performed worse but only received praise? Would you bend over and grab your ankles and ask for more abuse? She’s proven to be a great singer, great performer, and a strong young woman. I love that about her.
Man Haley is a great singer ..U can tell all the FAT girls remarks neg comments..Fat girl –LOL FAT butts
Well, Nicole we’ll just never know how the other contestants would respond to the type of unfair criticism Haley’s received. Although I believe once, the judges looked cross-eyed at Lauren once and she cried. Haley has been commendable in her restraint. And she was still holding back last night. But there comes a time when if reflects more poorly on you if you continue to just stand there and take it like a lobotomized doormat.
And to EzE… isn’t your friend Beavis calling you?
How can anyone say that Haley doesn’t take criticism well????? That child has taken it repeatedly, almost every showing…JLo in particular, seldom ever has anything positive to say for her. And Randy follows in right behind her. If anyone takes criticism well,it IS Haley! What I love about her is how well she does take it…it just makes her better and better!You GO,Haley!!!
I’d like it to be Scotty but I doubt that. His performances are always fine but rarely anything special. He’s consistently average (average for a talented singer not for the regular person off the street).
even if Scotty does not win, I truly believe he will make it out there without any problem. i like his attitude. He was consistent all the way and knows what direction he wants to be.
That direction is boring. He can sing one octave and one octave only. I guarantee you he will be bomb as a recording artist.
About time Haley spoke up for herself, only Steven Tyler had anything positive and constructive to say to her. Go Haley!!! The judges reaction to James Durbin getting voted off was reprehensible. Did anybody notice Jlo and Randy’s response when Haley was declared safe?
Who cares?
DialIdol has Durbin and Haley in the bottom. I hope it’s not Durbin, he’s a hometown boy!
DialIdol lies.
Dialidol has been wrong all season thanks to web-based voting.
Its the increased use in text that allows each person to put in 5k-8k per hour and iphone apps at 2-8k per hour.
James is the most talented with the best voice but really there are no standouts in this years group since Tia was voted off several weeks ago. That girl could sing! The young country singer is just that, a country singer but no idol. His “purity” act last night with Lady Gaga was stupid and appeared to be staged. The two girls are very good singers who occasionally hit a strong song. Haley has a very hard time accepting any criticism which is very strange considering she was a complete nobody until Idol put her on television. Haley, you’re not a star yet and you might never be one. Get off your high horse! Steven Tyler is her biggest fan but should help her with some constructive criticism. James reminds me of Adam Lambert but not as good looking. But boy can he hit the notes! All 4 appear to have become “Hollywood” even though none may ever hit the top. I wish they would remember who they were before this ride began and realize they could become unknown just as easily. None of them are great talents (yet) so accept the criticism and get off your high horses (especially Haley!).
I respect your opinion but seriously, James has the best voice? He literally DOES NOT hit most of the notes in a song. Not just once, not twice but he is consistently out of tune. The other half of the time he is screaming or just stops singing completely so he can tell the audience to clap for him.
As for Haley, I don’t know about you but i think it would be hard for anyone to accept criticism when NO ONE ELSE has received any even though they committed the same mistakes or worse than you. The concept is fairness and perhaps that is a bit naive of me. But for the judges to lay it into her for screaming (when that’s all James does), or for choosing a non-popular song (when they have in the past complained when she chose too popular of a song.. ahem Adele), then I think any reasonable person would be at the end of their tether also.
Yep, she’s human, and just because you are a performer, doesn’t mean you are immune from human feelings. Haley has weathered the constant criticism (that is no longer even constructive) much better than anyone I know would have.
Haley has been treated unfairly…but it’s a show…and they have to get us going…James is a performer..NOT a singer
I agree with Michelle regarding James. I am not impress at all by him. Out of tune very very often.
I agree Haley accepts criticism very well, but I’m glad she finally stood up for herself. I would have told Jlo and Randy to go suck an egg!!!
maybe you wouldn’t complain so much if Haley started crying when she receives criticism? That seems to work for Lauren and her little attempt at getting sympathy votes. Or maybe Haley should do what James and Scotty do when they receive criticism? oh wait, she can’t because those two guys never have received any.
Thank you, Sam!
@Sam: Best post of the day!!
thank you! Thats what so many are failing to see. Its not that Haley can’t take criticism , its just hard to hear when the person who sang before didn’t sound very good and gets nothing but praise. James was not very good last week either but was judged as if he were perfect. Haley was never my favorite, but she’s become an underdog since the producer’s clearly dont like her. I sometimes think Im listening to a different show then the judges.
AMEN Sam!
I’m sorry, but James does not have the best voice. He is seriously pitchy, and doesn’t have near the control of his seriously high notes as Adam Lambert (whom I don’t care for either, BTW). He’s consistently out of tune, and Simon would have called Don’t Stop Believing karaoke last night- he did nothing different.
I am tired of the judges criticizing Haley- who I really don’t like- for being different and giving the others props for doing nothing out of their comfort zone. I give Haley credit for not being cookie-cutter and doing different things and not bowing to the “expertise” of J-Lo, who is not known for her singing talent and Randy Jackson who couldn’t find a competent critique this season with both hands. Who isn’t in it to win it on this stupid show? Sheesh.
james does not have the best voice out of the 4 of them, he has been out of tune almost every week
I think Pia was probably one of the best on the show,was shocked when she was voted off even the judges . i also liked Casey. But im sure both will have a great career ahead of them.
If we’re being completely honest here, it should be Scotty. He actually should have been gone a long time ago. Unfortunately, it’ll be Haley.
I agree. I don’t understand how he has such a big fanbase. I don’t find anything appealing about him or the way he sings/performs. He looked like a clown during his second performance last night.
I totally agree. He looked quite creepy. I don’t get it. And the whole performance was cheesy, including the song selection. The judges seem like they are reading from a script. the fact that not one of them questioned the selection of his second song last night is unbelievable. Oh how I miss Simon. He would have said, “That was pleasant, but I can’t help thinking… So what? I will not rememeber this performance later.” I can’t wait to get a dose of him on the X Factor.
Little pink voters who haven’t started to bleed yet.
Send home James because all he does is scream and I can’t stand it. Haley has the whole package. She can sing, looks hot and will appeal to the public. Please get James off my TV
I have been a big fan of James until last 2 weeks. Based upon last nights performances, he and Scotty should be in the bottom two, with James going home.
Pete seriously thats exactly what Haley does, scream, although it sounds like screeching to me. Plus shes got a bad attitude.
She’s got a great attitude. Rather than take abuse, she shrugs it off and gives some back. If everyone was being judged equally, you’d have a point. They’re not. All the criticism goes to Haley and Haley alone. James hasn’t sung on key for weeks, but have you heard the judges mention it? Nope. Haley is told to take risks and then is bashed for it. Scotty is encouraged to never take risks, and is then praised for not taking any. Sound fair to you? Use your brain a little and perhaps you’ll comprehend why Haley is finally fighting back.
So now your a voice expert?…lol
Haley Rocks!!!
Agreed. That awful tone deaf screaming is truly the best their is. Never mind he walks around as if he owns the world. Forget that my ear drums are forever ruptured from his high pitched whining… Like the Judges have drilled into our minds for the past 10 weeks, James is IN IT TO WIN IT!
I was not a fan of Haley’s but after her show of attitude last night I am definitely never going to be a fan of hers – ever!
Maybe it’s just the 24 year old rebellious woman in me, but I like some attitude when the people dishing out criticism deserve it. There’s no reason to smile and nod forever and ever if you don’t always agree with what someone is saying. Sometimes, a little WTF eye is totally appropriate.
Yes – much better to just take that crap they call critical enhancement for all the milktoast fans out there to appreciate – BU$$SH$T
Agreed! When Randy said who did the best so fare and didn’t say haley she made a very disrespectful noise. She should know that the judges have there comments and not everyone is going to like her!
It’s “their comments,” not “there comments.”
It’s absolutely clear that none of the judges other than Steven Tyler likes Haley.
Do you buy music based on the personality of the singer or their music? Sorry, but all of these comments about Haley’s personality are ridiculous. None of us knows her personally — for all we know she could be a nice person. And after all of the unbalanced criticism that the judges have been dishing out over the past weeks, I wonder how many of us would be able to keep our cool if we were in Haley’s shoes.
If you don’t like her voice, fine. But it seems silly to me to say that you won’t buy her music because of her personality.
As long as we are talking about personality, let me point out that every one of the contestants have perceived flaws. James is an overly dramatic weeper, Scotty seems a bit closed mind and he has creepy eyebrow movements (“I better kiss my cross because Gaga is here.” – gag -) and Lauren is immature and bland. Haley may not take criticism well, but the truth is that we have no idea whether the other three have this same problem because they are not criticized AT ALL! GO Haley!
Haley is a sweet girl from a humble background – not an attitude bone in her body. A versatile musician, she is familiar with many styles of music – and loves singing all of them. Friends have been selling shirts and pins to finance her parents’ flights to LA. She is very talented – received standing ovations in Italy and Switzerland when performing with her HS jazz band. She doesn’t deserve to be the victim of such manipulation on this integrity-less (??) show.
Go Haley, you rock!
Yeah, doesnt she know that its a woman’s place to sit there and just take the abuse?! She needs to learn what a women should and shouldn’t do, right? She should just stand by while the judges praise the other awful performances but rip hers. You’re right. How dare she stand up for herself.
And it’s mostly females here who are finding her “attitude” so distasteful. Unbelievable.
sharon obviously you think being ripped on every performance (abused) is OK it is not especially when the other so called talent gets praised for their crap perfomances, so proud Haley finally spoke up. It was not disrespectful to the judges, they are so biased, and as my late mother used to say, do not ever let anyone make you feel bad about yourself because they feel they are above you, we all put our pants on the same way, one leg at a time and anyone who thinks they are above that gets no respect from me, especially when they are so hypocritical. Go Haley
Haleys probably loving all this fame she’s getting. She can enjoy her 15 minutes of fame
15 minutes of fame?, how long has she been on this show, a lot longer than 15 minutes. Go Haley!!
Better for her to cry like Lauren