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Idols: The heat is on!
12/10/2003 20:17 - (SA)
Anthea Jonathan
Cape Town - Sunday night was a bumper Idols show with the remaining three contestants each singing three songs. Songs were chosen by the judges, the public and the Idols.
This must be one of the toughest weeks of the competition yet. The three remaining contestants are fighting for a place in the final, and this week was make or break. But some cracks are beginning to show in some of their performances.
Anke was first in line with Madonna's Like A Prayer. A very powerful performance, once again from Anke. And a bonus was that we saw a lot more movement from her on stage, but the only problem was that the song was a bit too slow.
Her second choice was True Colours by Cindi Lauper. This was the performance which really impressed me. Anke usually sings songs which require a lot of vocal range and high notes, and this was not one of those. It was a simple ballad, and it was very nice to hear something different from Anke.
Anke's third song was Aerosmith's Don't Wanna Miss A Thing. A very big song for Anke, and she did well, but something was missing. The problem with Anke is that she sounds the same with every single song she sings. She always sings ballads and this was no different. Her voice is starting to bore me, because I know exactly what to expect from her. However, she's still a wonderful singer, I just wish she'd be more adventurous.
The judges however, sing a different tune to mine. Dave thinks she has a unique and distinctive voice, which in years to come will be her trademark. People will listen to a song and immediately know it's her. Gareth thought she opened and closed the show beautifully and that she has a strong chance of taking the competition.
Randall predicts that the final next week is going to be a grand slam, and he has no doubt that Anke will be there so she better get ready for it. But Mara was not as impressed as the rest. She thinks Anke is a fantastic singer, but her problem is that Anke sounds too much like the original artists. She's struggling to find her in the song.
Next in line was Jacques and his first song was More Than Words by Extreme. And I have to say, he did a very good job with one of my favourite songs. A very sweet and flawless performance from him, the only problem was that he seemed to have forgotten some of the words again.
His second song was Arthur's Theme by Christopher Cross. A fairly easy song to do, and Jacques did it beautifully. He gave a clear and easy performance, and it seems this type of music brings out the best in him. But once again, Jacques memory failed him and he forgot his words. But we've got to give credit where credit is due, he hid it very well and made sure his tracks were covered.
Jacques last song for the evening was Amazed by Lonestar. Now this is not a song I particularly like, and it's not very exciting. But Jacques did a good job and sang it without fault, and without forgetting his words. It would have been nice to see some sort of excitement and something new from him though.
And the judges, well the judges didn't all agree. Gareth thought the first song was Jacques best performance in the competition so far and also the most powerful, while Dave thought that the idea to place Jacques on a stool on stage, was a genius one. Mara said that she had never doubted his talent, and that he was one of the most fantastic voices this country had heard in a long time.
However, Mr Mean, Randall didn't feel the same way. His problem with Jacques is that there is not much he can sing. He thinks Jacques does ballads beautifully and he has a good voice, but he doesn't think it's an Idols voice. The Idol needs to be able to sing a wide range of music, and he doesn't think Jacques can do that. Jacques did not think so and told Randall that he would have to "strongly disagree". You tell him Jacques!
Last, but certainly not least, it was Poseletso's turn. Her first song was George Michael's hit, Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me. Wow. Fantastic, fabulous, amazing, there's nothing else I can add to describe her performance. It was a very good song choice for the young lady, and an unbelievable performance. And after this performance Randall told her that she's more than just a contender. Dave said he could see when most of the Idols contestants road was going to come to an end, but hers is never going to end.
Her second song was the Vanessa Williams hit, Save The Best For Last. It's a very simple ballad, which Poseletso did beautifully and with ease. One thing about thins singer is that she doesn't have to show off her voice range to make a song sound fantastic.
Poseletso's choice of song was a big surprise, I don't think anybody expected her to choose a song like this. The third song, and her own choice, was Dido's Thank You, and I think many people thanked Poseletso for singing it so beautifully. I would never have expected her to be able to pull it off, but she did. She also seems to be exuding an amazing amount of confidence on stage, a vast difference from the Poseletso we saw at the beginning of the competition. She was definitely Sunday night's star performer.
And the judges all agree. Randall said he would never have expected her to choose that song, and he was surprised at the way she handled it. She has amazed him with her consistently convincing performances. Dave predicts that it won't be too long before she starts breaking album sale records, just like Dido, while Mara said that she'll be the first to buy her record. Gareth said he'd be so proud to have her go into the international music arena with that voice, so that she could show the world what South Africans can do.
And that was it, a very good show all in all. But the drama begins now. One contestant will be eliminated on Monday night, and only two will remain to battle it out in next week's final. Don't forget to catch the live results show on M-Net Open Time at 18:30 on Monday.
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