Move over Brenden, Sonke is proving his vocal mettle and solidifying his popularity among Idols season 9 viewers. Top 9 performances review
Brenden has become comfortable and knows his great looks charm the opposite sex. If Brenden doesn’t wake up, he will be out of the competition before he knows it. Though this is a talent competition, popularity is extremely crucial. Voters are no longer lame and no longer vote for looks but for deserving talent, hard work and determination. In last night’s episode of Idols, Sonke with his rendition of local sensation Zonke Dikana had everyone tweeting about how he moved on stage and how mature his voice is. Zonke joined in on the twitter frenzy: “WOW!! Sonke just gave me goose bumps singing JIK'IZINTO, love his calm voice and spirit... and that voice! #IdolsSA :-),” she tweeted.
Sonke was so awesome last night such that he was my best performance for the night. Randall said: "You’ve been developing through this competition, and as a matter of opinion, amongst the guys, I think you are the one to beat." This will ring true more especially for Brenden who performed Her Heart by Anthony Hamilton. I love Anthony and Her Heart is my favourite track by him. Last night Brenden slacked off a bit. Though his performance was good, it wasn’t good enough to earn him more votes. Viewers will only vote for him out of a sense of loyalty and nothing else.
Musa brought a lot of energy to Ndiyagodola by Ringo Madlingozi. He enthused the audience and he had Gareth eating from the palm of his hand: "I really liked that and I really like you, and I’ll tell you why, you are very authentic and that song is very right, and it speaks to me. It's very real," said Gareth. His performance faired way much better than Brenden’s. Musa may just be an underdog that everyone has been overlooking.
If Sonke wanna stay number one, he needs to up his ante and be very careful of Musa and Brenden amongst the guys. As for Musa, I see him going far in the competition. Brenden needs to pull up his socks and review his game plan. He cannot slack off, especially at this crucial stage of the competition where one mistake will see viewers punish you for it.
Crystalene, who opened the show with the original American Idol, Kelly Clarkson, interpreting the hit “Stronger” was just average. Her vocals were really excellent hence she is in the top 9. However, the same cannot be said about her ability to captivate an audience. Yes she did sing but she did not perform. She wore some really nice pants and I could not help but notice her legs are very stubborn. With that powerful song, she needed to move which would have had viewers spellbound with her performance. I have said it before and I will say it again, at this stage of the competition, everything an idol does or neglects to do, it will cost them dearly. This isn’t the time to rest on your laurels. The same goes for Brenden.
Christina did a Pink song called Try. Her inability to interpret the song or rather to bring an African accent to it saw Unathi seething, like she always does with all the fake American accents: “I was distracted with the pronunciation of some of the words. You are our Pink from PE, so I need to see a PE Pink,” said Unathi. Other than that, Christina did well and she should get more votes than Benjamin.
Speaking of Benjamin, I still do not understand why he is still in the competition. In fact, each time he and Christina perform, I am reminded of Carle. There was something so real about Carle. South Africa did a great injustice to her. I would swap Christina or Benjamin any day for Carle. Benjy did The Scientist” by British idols Coldplay. Gareth thought all the elements fitted him like a glove. Unathi likened him to a howling wolf, and Randall called for a reality check, because it is Idols and not True Blood. "I think you will make it through by virtue of choice of song," he continued.
Innocent Mabushe, most arguably the most versatile singer in this season, did a pop song proving he is an artist that’s to be reckoned with. The Phalaborwa Idol is never the one to celebrate yesterday’s achievements and most definitely enjoys challenging himself. Innocent never goes for easy songs. Though this shows how he enjoys a great challenge, viewers might not see it that way. His strength might be his possible downfall. He needs to start choosing easy and popular songs because he really is good. If he went for easy songs, Brenden and Sonke wouldn’t even be competition for him
Standing on a piano, Zoe sang a heartfelt rendition of “Love The Way You Lie” from Rihanna. Gareth thought: "I think your performance was the best, it was very striking and alluring. You're on a roll!". I don’t know if I am a pervert or what. But each time I watch Zoe sing, I seems never to concentrate on her singing. All I do is stare at her beauty as she mesmerises the audience. Zoe is a gorgeous singer.
Bunny, wow wow wow, that lady is one hell of a talent. Among the ladies, she is the one to beat and most arguably the most versatile. Forget Randall hitting on her live on the show, Bunny can get any man any time. She exudes great beauty and embodies all things beautiful. Her trademark hairstyle is distinctively unforgettable and the same can be said about her rendition of Tina Turner "Proud Mary". "It is such an honour to sit here and watch you each week," Unathi said. Randall is so in love with Bunny he can no longer hide his feelings. The only comment from him about Bunny’s performance was a Tina Turner hit "What's Love Got to Do With It."
The competition has just tightened up and every Idol needs to up their ante. There is no room for average anymore. Viewers have come to expect not just great performances but extremely entertaining performances. That’s the only way to make it to the top, “entertaining”.