Yesterday, we heard the guys. My quick thoughts - this may be the strongest male group in the history of the show. I'll give you my picks at the bottom of the article.

Today, we are going to listen to the ladies. Ryan says that we will be listening to the best undiscovered talent this year, and he could be right. We get the introduction of the ladies (as they all...dance?) and we get right to the action. The women with the two lowest votes will be leaving faster than 'a strudel in Randy Jackson's dressing room' (that's said by Ryan, and objected to by Randy). After a quick intro to the judges, we start with...

Singer #1 - Vonzell Solomon, who sings "Heat Wave". She started out strong, but then got very pitchy. She can make love to the camera, but I don't like her pitch and I am not happy with the performance. Randy thought it was pitchy, but he thought he was having fun (as he got woofs from his dawg pound), Paula thought she had fun, while Simon thought that although she over sang the song, he thought she could do very well. I didn't like it as much as they did...

Will I like it as much as Singer #2 - Amanda Avila? Joe Van Ginkel is in love with her, but I am not in love with her vocals at all. Her "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" is ok, but it's pitchy all over the place. She redeems herself later in the song and is better than Vonzell, but not by much. Randy thought is was alright, while Paula thought it was good, but not her best. Simon thinks that he's heard this performance before, and wants something different, but adds, "when I come back in a second life, I want to come back as your microphone." Well, that about sums it up as to why she won't be in the bottom now, won't it?

Singer #3 - Janay Castine. She sings "I Want To Love You Forever". Well, she loves the camera forever, but it's only a half-hearted effort and we have our third shaky performance. Randy didn't like the song, Paula likes the performance, and Simon actually agrees with the judges, adding that the song is too old and that she's not 50.... which apparently Paula is, as she slugs Simon.

Singer #4 - Carrie Underwood. She sings "Could Have Been" - yes, the Tiffany song. She sings it in a country twang, and this is what I'm talking about. She makes this song her own and she belts it out there. This sounds nice, and if she's the only person doing country, she will be going VERY far in this competition. Randy calls her a breath of fresh air and the song brilliant, Paula calls her vocals beautiful and Simon calls her one of the favorites to win this competition. I have to agree with him.

Singer #5 - Sarah Mather - She did not get a lot of exposure, and she needs to bring it tonight to get people to vote for her. She sort of brought it, as she sounded better than the first 3 singers, but she didn't belt it emotionally and she sounded just OK. Just OK is not going to be good enough. Randy called it fun, but not her best. Paula didn't think that it was a good song choice, adding that it was a 5 note range. Simon says that this song was not a good first impression. I have to agree with the judges, and as someone who did not get much exposure in the show, that spells trouble.

Singer #6 - Melinda Lira - She also didn't get much exposure, and she is going to need a Latoya London performance to get out. She invokes images of Latoya.... Jackson, as she brutalizes "The Power of Love", coming up consistently sharp and off. OUCH!. At least she belts it, but it doesn't do you much good if you belt it out of tune. Randy agrees and calls it sharp, but calls her one of the best voices. Paula also calls it a bad choice of song while Simon is looking for a role model - and not finding it here. I agree, and unfortunately, this is the worst performance so far.

Singer #7 - Nadia Turner - she was one of my favorites, and I hope it continues. I am not disappointed, as she brings it tonight to "(There's A) Power of Love". She gets a well-deserved standing ovation. Randy loved her rocking in jeans while Paula said that she did a great job. Simon? "You are the antidote of Karaoke Hell, which is what I've had to listen to some of tonight... You decided not to play it safe. You came out, you threw the gauntlet down saying 'I'm original and I'm here to win', congratulations, you did a great job." Here, here.

Singer #8 - Celena Rae - She sings "I Will Love Again", and we're back in Karaoke Hell. She redeems herself at the end, but what's up with the band in the song? Yuck. She may have escaped with the fact that she brought it as well, but this is not a song I would have used to start out with. Randy called it safe and boring, Paula was wondering if she was nervous and didn't like the song, and Simon wants to know what Celena is all about. Who is Celena?

Singer #9 - Mikalah Gordon - I am not nuts about either her song ("Young Hearts Run Free") or pitch (all over the place), and SHE flubs a line, but she does add some panache to the performance and I think she has enough of a following to get her past this one (ah, the benefit of camera time). She looks like she's having fun and Randy calls her on the personality. She does a Fran Dresher/Mae West accent and Paula calls her lovable and goofy, but Simon brings her down to Earth. "I think half of the audience will find you amusing and good, and the other half will find you annoying." I find her amusing, but Simon has a point...

Singer #10 - Lindsey Cardinale - She sings "Standing Right Next To Me", which is ok, but she was perfect on the pitch, and based on the other efforts tonight, OK should be good enough to get her to the next round. Randy didn't like the song choice and tells her to take chances, Paula says that the song was not a good showcase and Simon pleads with her to take a risk and avoid the boring song. Still, it's better to do a boring song perfectly than screw up a good song. Remind that to the crooners...

Singer #11 - Jessica Sierra - She sings "Against All Odds". Another safe song. That's nice, and it won't get you eliminated - but it won't get you fans and in the early part of the competition, it's crucial to get fane who will vote for you. She's twangy and nice, but she doesn't blow me away like Nadia or Carrie did. Randy liked it, as did Paula, adding that she commanded the stage. Simon agrees with me and says that it wasn't her best effort. I agree, but this effort should keep her in.

Finally, it's.... Singer #12 - Aloha Mischeaux. She gets the crowd going as she sings "Work It Out" Well, it's a crowd pleaser, but.... it doesn't do anything for me. She does have presence though, and she is certainly one of the better performers of the evening. Randy loved it, but warns her to make the song her own and not be Beyonce. Paula loved it and Simon says that this was one of the performances that he will remember. I will too, but...

...The men clearly out-performed the women this week. The men had some great efforts, while only 2 women showed me that they wanted to win this. Even the guys that crash and burned at least tried to do stuff and not be safe, and they get kudos for that.

As for my picks?

Excellent - Anwar, Carrie, Mario, Nadia, Nikko, Scott
Good - Aloha, Anthony, Bo, Jessica, Lindsey, Mikalah
Not Wonderful, but Safe - Amanda, David, Constantine, Vonzell
Trouble - Celena, Janay, Jared, Joseph, Judd, Sarah, Travis Tucker

Chico's Choices:

So far, so good: Aloha, Anwar, Bo, Carrie, Mario, Nadia (officially got the Chico vote), Nikko
So far, so what?: Angela, Constantine, David, Joseph, Lindsey, Sarah, Scott, Travis, Vonzell
Karaoke Hell: Celena, Judd, Mikalah
Fat lady, you're on in five: Anthony, Janay, Jared, Jessica, Melinda

The lines are open for 2 hours. Go out and vote!

We'll be back tomorrow for our first forum of the season as we decide who the first four people to go bye-bye will be. Join us in 24 hours for the laughs, analysis and...drama.