Well, we oopsied. We weren’t home to watch the show last night, and we didn’t realize it was a two-hour show and only recorded an hour of it. But, since the second hour was just the announcement of 7 people who made it to the top 24, we didn’t miss much.
 
71 contestants remain, and in this episode they’ll be taking the stage for a final time before their fates are sealed. During this round they perform with a full band, but they receive no feedback from the judges.
 
At 8 PM, the judges are making their final decisions, and the entire group is split into three separate groups and sent to wait in three different rooms. Room 1 includes Casey James, Tim Urban, Tyler Grady, Andrew Garcia and Todrick Hall. Room 2 includes Khia Johnson, Mary Powers, Lloyd Thomas, Hope Johnson and Christian Spear. And room 3 includes Shelby Dressel, Haeley Vaughn, Jessica Furney and Angela Martin.
 
In all three rooms, the contestants are nervous and quiet. Angela Martin was confident earlier today, but is faltering now.
 
Also among the nervous contestants is Casey James, who struggled on group day but got help from his groupmates (including Jermaine Purifory) and made it through. Both Casey and Jermaine took risks for their final audition: Casey sang “Bubbly” and Jermaine sang “Brick House.” They both perform pretty well, but now they’re in different rooms: Casey in room 1, Jermaine in room 2.
 
Time for some highlights from the final round of auditions. Jermaine Sellers performs “Man In The Mirror” and it’s WAY too slow and shrieky for our taste. The judges don’t seem impressed either, especially when he throws the band under the bus and says they played it wrong. Simon says they’ve heard enough to make their decision.
 
Siobahn Magnus is worried about the judges’ initial impression of her- but she has taken Ellen’s advice and chooses a more fun, upbeat song for her final performance. She still basically just screams and bellows and tries way too hard and we’re still not fans.
 
Crystal Bowersox ends on a high note with her performance of “If It Makes You Happy.” We like her low, raspy voice, although it’s a bit shaky from time to time. She shows a lot of promise.
 
Alex Lambert played the ukelele in his first audition this week and struggled with it, and then he had a lot of drama in his group (which, not surprisingly, included Mary Powers). However, for his last performance, he takes up the ukelele again and sings “I’m Yours,” and it’s much better than what we saw earlier.
 
Michael Lynche and Todrick Hall also perform “I’m Yours,” but they do their own versions of the song. We’re not impressed with either of them, but Todrick’s in particular. It’s all over the place, and scat singing is really only impressive when you can do it incredibly well, which Todrick cannot.
 
Thaddeus Johnson’s mother has been with him this week, and she’s there to support him on this last day when he has a breakdown. He’s recovered by the time he performs, and it goes well- except the fact that the band starts playing the wrong song. It doesn’t shake him, though, and he actually jokes with the judges about it and shakes it off. He performs “Man In The Mirror” and we sit up and take notice for the first time this episode. He’s good. We like him.
 
Charity Vance’s final audition is good. She has a very professional, confident air about her, and the song is really pretty. We’re rooting for her.
 
Mary Powers, of course, is convinced she’s God’s gift and has done enough to make the top 24. She’s cocky and overconfident and we’d kind of like to see her get knocked down a peg or several. Not to mention, her performance of “Hot N Cold” isn’t even very good. Blah.
 
Lloyd Thomas says he’s kept calm and focused today by thinking about his family, but it doesn’t show during his performance of “Man In The Mirror.” He seems very nervous and unsure of himself.
 
Hope Johnson sings “Home” for her last audition and it’s terrible. In fact, it’s probably the worst rendition of this song we’ve ever heard. This makes us wonder how she got this far, and we’re pretty sure she’s blown it.
 
Shelby Dressel was having a hard time remembering the lyrics to her song earlier in the day, which led to a meltdown. However, by the time she performs, she’s recovered, and sings the song really well. “More Than a Feeling” is a great song choice for her and our fingers are crossed for her.
 
Aaron Kelly did not fare so well during his final audition. He forgot the lyrics, and even when he does recover, it’s not a very good rendition of “Angel.” We’re not impressed.
 
Ashley Rodriguez sings “Battlefield,” and we’re pretty sure we’ve changed our minds about her being our early favorite. This is just not very good. It’s off key and she comes across as desperate. We’re disappointed.
 
Lee Dewyze, Joe Munos and Haeley Vaughn are all unimpressive. There’s a lot of yelling and desperation, but not much good singing.
 
Janell Wheeler has been having trouble with her voice all week, and it doesn’t help that she chooses to sing “Love Story” for her last audition. It’s a bad song choice for her, and the whole thing is all over the place. Her nerves show, but it’s still not as terrible as some of the other performances we’ve seen.
 
Thus far, 110 people have been cut in Hollywood. The remaining 71 are still weighing their odds and hoping for the best. And the misery is about to end- the judges enter room 1 to deliver their results. Ellen reminds the group it’s not just about singing, but about the entire package… and then tells them they’re through. In this group who still have a chance at the top 24 are Lilly Scott, Siobahn Magnus, Tyler Grady, Thaddeus Johnson, Michael Lynche and Katie Stevens.
 
Time to learn the fate of room 2. Simon tells everyone that almost all of them were better than the judges expected them to be. It’s a backhanded compliment, but maybe it’s some consolation when the entire room gets cut. This means it’s the end of the road for Mary Powers (THANK GOD!!!), Hope Johnson, Charity Vance, Brian Walker, Christian Spear and Lloyd Thomas.
 
After a long-winded spiel about how there are good days and bad days for all performers, it’s good news for room 3. They’re all still in the running for a spot in the top 24. This includes Janell Wheeler, Ashley Rodriguez, John Park, Angela Martin, Jessica Furney and Shelby Dressel.
 
In the second hour of the show, which we missed, the first seven contestants making up the top 24 were announced. They are as follows:
 
Michael Lynche
Didi Benami
Katelyn Epperly
Casey James
Aaron Kelly
Lee Dewyze
Todrick Hall
 
In the next episode, the rest of the top 24 is revealed.