Unlike in  past years, when the final showdown was all but predetermined -- Adam Lambert vs. Kris Allen, Carrie Underwood vs. Bo Bice, Scotty McCreery vs. Lauren Alaina – next week’s Season 11 finale could have featured any combination of the top three. Such was the extraordinary talent exhibited by Joshua Ledet, Phillip Phillips, and Jessica Sanchez. However, somebody had to go home.

Before that could happen, though, we fans had to sit through a very long, drawn-out hour of Idol. Then, finally, 90 million votes later, following performances by Lisa Marie Presley (doing her best lounge-y Lana Del Ray impersonation) and the sublime Adam Lambert  -- sporting an Elvis Presley look as he sang "Never Close Our Eyes" from his new CD,  Trespassing  – Ryan Seacrest made the big reveal: Ledet, the 20-year-old Steven Tyler declared one of the “top two Idols of all time,” the recipient of 16 (!!!) standing ovations, was sent packing.

Left standing were phoxy Phillips, 21, Leesburg, Georgia’s favorite son, and Sanchez, 16, the wunderkind from Chula Vista, Calif., to compete for the title on Tuesday's performance finale. Phillips, who won the show's ceremonial coin toss, chose to perform second on next week's show. According to Jimmy Iovine, Phillips all but locked up the finale with his commanding, dark and sexy performance of Bob Seger’s “We’ve Got Tonight,” and Sanchez deserves a spot singing on the Grammy Awards.

Unfortunately, that made Ledet the odd man out. “Joshua had a good night last night -- not his best night, but very good,” said the music industry veteran. All three judges looked shocked, even mournful, as Ledet stood center-stage and brought down the house  -- earning ANOTHER standing ovation -- with a reprise of James Brown’s “It’s a Man’s Man’s World.” Tyler and Jennifer Lopez were in tears as Ledet laid it all out on the stage one last time with his mother by his side.

Many had predicted Ledet could be the winner. So, what did him in? Iovine, who said the Louisiana gospel belter “100 percent” belonged in the finale, believed it was song choice. “There was something missing, and I know it was the material,” he said. Iovine also called out all three judges for being overgenerous in their praise of Ledet on Wednesday night. This may have turned off Idol voters in the most critical weeks of the competition. In particular, Iovine harshly criticized the judges’ standing ovation after Ledet’s take on Etta James’  “I’d Rather Go Blind.”“I was lying down at the time!” he quipped, adding “[The song] showed me nothing about where Joshua could go in his career.”

We agree. What was Randy Jackson thinking giving Ledet such an old-school song on one of the most important nights of the contest? Ledet needed something modern. He is so capable of doing it – think back to when he did “Runaway Baby” by Bruno Mars. Ledet was dynamic that week. Surely Jackson could have come up with something to excite the teen fan base?

And Ledet didn’t do himself any favors with his choice of John Lennon’s “Imagine.”
“I actually believe that Joshua is the most exciting showman we have in the contest right now,” Iovine said. “But [“Imagine”] has a simple melody, and he overcompensated with riffs and runs...It was like having a Ferrari on a racetrack and leaving it in first gear.”

Iovine claimed responsibility for failing Ledet with Mary J. Blige’s “No More Drama.” Interesting critique, since most Idol bloggers felt it was Ledet’s best performance of the season.  “That song didn’t have enough melody. Joshua needs a melody,” he said. Lesson learned. Hopefully Iovine will take his own advice and find Ledet melodic songs for his debut CD. Until then, we look forward to Ledet on this summer’s tour and next week’s finale. Will Mantasia duet with Season 3 champion, Fantasia Barrino? That would be something!  In other Idol news, auditions for Season 12 will be held in Los Angeles, June 7, New Jersey, June 23 and Chicago, July 12.

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Finally, the producers find a way to fill time that’s actually worth mentioning. Traditionally, we’ve saved the big homecoming clip packages for the final three results show, but with two hours to fill (instead of the typical 90 minutes) the producers shrewdly moved those fun packages to the performance show.

I think this worked a lot better because there’s always some sadness, some trepidation, some fear on the results show since somebody is about to get voted off. It’s hard to get in the full celebratory mode of these packages. They just work better on the fun performance show where everybody is having a good time.

So kudos to the producers for making me break my intro-writing strike with some solid homecoming packages this year. Random Thoughts Waiting for the Actual Show to Start: Yes, kids. Programming note. With the shift in show air dates for sweeps weeks, this column will appear on Wednesday and Thursday mornings next week. Adjust your surfing accordingly.

Has any year of a competition show not had the “closest race ever”? Wouldn’t you just love to hear a host say one time, “This race is a total blowout. Watching and voting is kind of useless at this point.” Like it is this year since Phillip Phillips is going to win.

And…on with the show!

Joshua Ledet’s First Song: “I’d Rather Be Blind” by Etta James

Steven Said: Out of 70,000, there’s only one American Idol. And you sang like that one tonight.

J-Lo Said: You always bring down the house.

Randy Said: Another amazing performance.

The Verdict:

Joshua’s suffering from a little bit of a problem here. It’s not his fault. It’s the fault of the show’s going on too long.

That problem is that he’s so good. So reliable. So consistent that we already know exactly how he’s going to sing this song, when he’s going to create moments and when he’s going to make that transcendent Joshua connects.

He does it all here again and it’s really great, but I’ve just seen it so many times. Again, not his fault, but we’ve just seen it all before.

Grade: B+

Joshua Ledet’s Second Song: “Imagine” by John Lennon

Steven Said: Another “Thank you, God” moment.

J-Lo Said: You have an incredible instrument and the performance quality you bring to it is what makes you very special.

Randy Said: Every time you sing, people feel what you do.

The Verdict:

And just when I’m saying Joshua keeps delivering similar performances, he gives us…this.

Joshua made such a smart song choice here. This melody is so simple that it allowed him to do whatever he wanted to in order to make it fit his voice. Here he went with some stripped-down soul and gave an almost casual rendition of this classic with a more flavor that we’ve ever heard applied to it before.

And, in signature Joshua fashion, he saved some great moments for the ends. Big runs. Big emotion. Big voice.

Joshua needed to mix it up here and he did it very well.

Grade: A-

Joshua Ledet’s Third Song: “No More Drama” by Mary J. Blige

Steven Said: I watched you and I felt the last 40 years of the music business.

J-Lo Said: You have this perfect marriage of knowing exactly what you’re doing and letting go at the same time.

Randy Said: You just deliver on every song.

The Verdict:

We got to see all three sides of Joshua tonight. First it was his typical old-school soul, then it was his ability to put his own spin on any song, and now we finally see how Joshua can be current with a newer R & B song.

The great thing here is that despite his singing a more current song, he didn’t lose that 70s swagger or style at any point in the performance. He still had that unreal tone, the unique delivery and the passion.

Then he broke out. He threw his jacket off. He went on the craziest run we’ve ever seen. And outdid that by bringing the house down with a shout out to the audience.

The former contestants in the audience were stupefied and with good reason. He’s just better than everybody else.

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American Idol is down to three contenders. And while the shine is off what was, not so long ago, TV's most-watched if not always idolized talent competition, the word on the inside is that this year's final three are, indeed, talented, and deserve to be there.

Tonight's expanded, two-hour outing features the annual "hometown visit," a cheerful, uptempo reminder that, in small- and medium-sized communities across the United States, Idol is still a big deal for some. Watching towns throw a parade in honour of someone who, four months ago, was a complete unknown is a reminder of what Canada lost when Canadian Idol was put on indefinite hiatus.

Idol's remaining trio have all earned front-runner status, at one point or another, over the past six weeks. Given fickle public tastes, it's hard to know whether that's a blessing or a burden.

It would be foolish, for example, to read too much into last week's win by Alicia Keys backup singer and R&B gospel artist Jermaine Paul on The Voice, even if American Idol's sole remaining R&B artist Joshua Ledet did perform a standing-o-worthy take on James Brown in last week's Idol performance show. Ledet has consistently placed at or near the top of the polls in the Los Angeles Times' weekly interactive poll "Idol vs. The Voice." (www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-idol-vs-the-voice-interactive-week8,0,7926761.htmlstory)

If recent Idol history proves anything, it's that Idol voters favour country over R&B and other music genres.

The most country-like vibe among the remaining Idol contestants probably belongs to the aptly named Phillip Phillips, who went Irish folk rock last week with a quirky take on County Kildare singer-songwriter Damien Rice's Volcano. "OMG!" a fan squeaked on iTunes Canada's customer-reviews message board. "More like that!"

The most lauded of Idol's finalists — at least, judging by Interscope chair Jimmy Iovine's post-performance comments last week — is also the youngest: 16-year-old Jessica Sanchez, a Chula Vista, Calif. native of Mexican and Filipino descent.

Iovine suggested that Sanchez's rendition of the Dreamgirls torch song And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going sealed the deal for the Idol win. Iovine's opinion doesn't really matter, though, as far as the viewers at home are concerned — though it probably hints at who's poised to have the best post-Idol career, regardless of how the final TV vote turns out.

Idol's final performance show of the season is Tuesday, May 22, with the big reveal the following night. Wouldn't it be ironic if, after Iovine's seal of approval — and, yes, Sanchez's And I Am Telling You was really quite good — she doesn't even make it to the final two?

Hey, it's American Idol. These things happen. (CTV, Fox, 8 p.m.)

Three to See

CSI: Miami may have been cancelled, but not so for the similarly themed Criminal Minds. The popular crime procedural closes the book on its seventh season with a two-hour finale, in which a Behavioral Analysis Unit team member is taken hostage during a bank heist negotiation. It's funny how often these things seem to happen in TV crime shows. And, yes, Criminal Minds will be back for an eighth season in the fall — with or without the unfortunate person in question. (CTV Two, CBS, 9 p.m.)

Suburgatory, one of the better TV comedies you're not watching, ends its freshman season with a celebration of Mother's Day that leaves teen Tessa (Jane Levy) feeling a little wistful, as her own mother has been absent for most of her life. Suburgatory may have the last laugh: Parent network ABC renewed it for a sophomore year, and it will be back in the fall. (Citytv, ABC, 8:30 p.m.)

Vancouver native Taylor Kitsch, late of Friday Night Lights, the soon-to-open summer popcorn movie Battleship and a certain movie That-Must-Not-Be-Named from earlier in the year, joins Jimmy Fallon for a little Late Night conversation, along with Veep's Tony Hale and musical guest, jazz guitarist Pat Martino. (CTV Two, NBC, 12:35 a.m.)

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American Idol arrived in the area of Lake Charles Saturday for the homecoming concert of Top 3 finalist Josh Ledet.

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“The Voice” ended its run this week, crowning Jermaine Paul the winner of Season 2. Over at "American Idol," Hollie Cavanagh got the boot, leaving finalists Jessica Sanchez, Phillip Phillips and Joshua Ledet  to do their hometown visits and vie for the big prize.

Although “The Voice” is over, our "Idol" vs. "Voice" rankings continue, taking the singers from both shows and putting them head to head each week. I'm still choosing my top five performers from among the two shows, along with Times music writers Todd Martens and Chris Barton, and you can cast your votes too, at the bottom of this post.

1. Jessica Sanchez, "American Idol"

Jimmy Iovine predicted that Sanchez's performance of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" from "Dreamgirls" could seal the "Idol" win for her, and if Phillip Phillips and Joshua Ledet hadn't also had strong performances this week, it likely would have done so. Sanchez funneled into the song all the fury and frustration she felt after her near-elimination earlier this season and solidly, passionately landed every note, every word, every nuance. It felt cathartic. And when she sang "And you, and you, and you, and you … You're gonna love me," she left viewers no choice but to surrender.

 2. Phillip Phillips, "American Idol"

This take on Damien Rice's "Volcano" was perfect, pure Phillip Phillips: intimate, contained, intense, with so much hot emotion roiling beneath the surface of his pebbly voice. He showed a range, melodic command and vocal ease he had not before and brought the song a lava-like sizzle that was also … cool. No herky-jerky moves, no jimmying legs, you could barely see Phillips' profile in chiaroscuro. Steven Tyler was spot-on when he said it was the kind of song he could imagine listening to on headphones over and over and over again. I'm ready to replay it –- yet again -– right now.

 3. Jermaine Paul, "The Voice"

Paul tucked the "Voice" win under his wing and lifted off as a solo artist with R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly." He sang with soul and style, passion and power, emotion and elegance. Now he'll be able to crow about a win (though he seems so humble, it's hard to see him doing that), feather his nest with $100,000 and sing like a bird on his own record. May he soar high and go far.

 4. Joshua Ledet, "American Idol"

Ledet went all in on James Brown's textured "It's a Man's Man's Man's World." At points, he seemed to be attacking the song through gritted teeth. And how could you not love that stage full of female musicians? Though it didn't pack quite the emotional punch and the added irony of Juliet Simms' triumphantly furious recent take on it on "The Voice," it had standing-o-worthy soul to spare (that "ahhh-hooo" moment especially). If Ledet keeps this up, who knows? It may be a Man's Man's Man's "Idol" again this year.

5. Juliet Simms, "The Voice"

Though she was apparently ill, Simms carried off Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" like the rock star she's poised to become. She's a bird we don't want to change –- and it will be interesting to see how she launches from her second-place perch. The incredible Erte-esque costume –- that fiery red dress with the filmy cape that at one point shot up in the air like a flame –- didn't hurt either. Lighters aloft to that!

"American Idol" vs. "The Voice"

Each week our experts and readers rank the best of the best between the two blockbuster singing competitions. Last week, readers put "American Idol's" Jessica Sanchez just slightly ahead of "The Voice's" Juliet Simms on top. Who will be the favorite this week? 

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It's Joshua Ledet's Ledet's Ledet's World. The "American Idol" frontrunner soared higher than ever while Hollie Cavanagh may have sealed her fate on Wednesday's (May 9) performance episode, which saw the contestants battling for the hometown visits that await the top three finalists.

The evening saw the final four taking on two songs apiece — one with ties to the state of California and one song the contestants wished they'd written themselves. (The categories were some of the loosest in "Idol" history, but hey, they can't all be winners.)

Joshua Ledet stepped out with Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up" (his California song — Grobes hails from L.A.) and James Brown's "It's a Man's Man's Man's World," the latter of which earned Ledet his latest in a long line of standing ovations and had the judges singing his praises, saying Ledet was second coming of the Godfather of Soul himself.

"Neither a man nor a woman has ever sang that good with that much compassion on this show ever!" Steven Tyler said following the performance. "I can go home right now. I never heard anything like that in my life!"

Jennifer Lopez said, "I think people at home maybe thought, like I did, that they had seen everything you had to give and how you can interpret a song. We hadn't." She then started speaking in Spanish. "You're making me speak different languages now!" she said, calling his song "sickening."

Randy Jackson put the cherry on top, calling it "one of the best performances in the history of any singing show, including ours, any show, any show, yo!" Yo indeed, Randy.

Jessica Sanchez was no slouch herself, turning in a "crazy, crazy, crazy" (per J. Lo) rendition of Etta James' "Steal Away," washing it down with a stunning "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," the "Dreamgirls" staple that she delivered with the fierceness of Jennifer Hudson. The performance earned her the night's other standing O from the judges. "It was a real moment," Lopez told her, while Jackson complimented her by telling her, "Dude, you are phenomenal." (It's always extra special when Jackson refers to females as "dudes.")

Phillip Phillips, who's been living in his own personal version of "Contagion" all season long, managed to fight his sickness enough to deliver a strong version of John Fogerty's "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" (making two Fogerty songs in two weeks for "Idol") and a splendid version of Damien Rice's "Volcano." Continuing with the hyperbole that has been tossed around like a Frisbee on the judge's panel the last several weeks, Lopez said after "Volcano," "After watching the show for many, many years and now being here for two years, it was one of the most beautiful, poignant moments a contestant has ever had." Jackson followed by saying, "So yo, that's wassup right there!" and calling it one of the best performances of the season.

Poor Hollie Cavanagh, who has barely avoided elimination the last few weeks, may have met her end following her versions of Journey's "Faithfully" and Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me." Her first song received good marks — both J. Lo and Steven Tyler called it "beautiful" (but when don't they say that?) — but her Raitt song was slammed for being distant. "I thought it fell a little short," said Tyler, and Lopez said the emotions of the song — or the emotions she thought she had to deliver with the song — got the better of her. Jackson was even harsher. "It gave you nowhere to go," he said. "There were no moments for me. For me, it was the wrong choice at the wrong time."

The two-hour episode was padded with bonus performances, including duets between Phillips and Ledet (Maroon 5's "This Love"), Cavanagh and Sanchez (the Bangles' "Eternal Flame") and a performance of Foreigner's "Waiting for a Girl Like You" tied to the upcoming "Rock of Ages," which gobbled up a healthy amount of promotional time during the show.

One of the four singers will be eliminated on Thursday's episode, which is also set to feature performances by David Cook and — hey, would you look at that? — Jennifer Lopez. How'd she manage that gig?

Who do you think is getting eliminated from "Idol" on Thursday? Let us know in the comments! Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions.

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This season of American Idol has brought a lot of ups and downs for me, some shocking moments and some moments where I ask myself, what were they thinking? Last night was one of those moments...how can Hollie Cavanagh be in the bottom two for three weeks straight and still move on to the Top 4? It happened and unfortunately, we had to say goodbye to my girl, Skylar Laine. Today, she talked to RealityWanted and other reporters in a conference call about her time on Idol, the summer tour and much more.
 
Q. Todd, RealityWanted: What are you looking forward to the most for the upcoming summer tour with the Top 10?
A. Skylar: I'm looking forward to meeting the fans on the summer tour because they're the ones that got me this far and they're the ones still supporting me now, even though I'm not on the show anymore. I'm just looking forward to meeting them and seeing all the places tat we are going and finally feeling like I've made it by being on a stage, giving a concert...you feel like you finally made it.
 
Q. Todd, RealityWanted: What advice did you receive while you were on the show that you're going to carry with you?
A. Skylar: The advice to just be myself...don't let anyone try and change me as an artist. I'm not a pop-country singer...I never will be and don't let anyone try and make me one. I need to just sing the kind of country music that I want to sing and that comes out when I write.
 
Q. As you look back, is there anything you wish you could have shown to America, whether it is a song or your personality, that you wish you could have done?
A. Skylar: I really think I showed everything that I could. I showed ballads, I showed upbeat songs, I showed passion, I showed anger in my songs...I really think I showed a lot of stuff and I wouldn't change a thing that I did on the show.
 
Q. If you could choose a night on the town with any of the judges, who would it be and why?
A. Skylar: I'd probably pick Steven to go out on a night on the town, because you know he's crazy and fun.
 
Q. Why did you decide to audition for American Idol and why now?
A. Skylar: Actually, I wanted to audition for two years and always had something else going on that I couldn't, so this year I finally got the chance and I was like you know, I'm going to go out for it and I probably won't get past the first round, but I did and now I am Top 5...it's incredible. It's unbelievable to think that I made it this far.
 
Q. On the show, you said you were a country girl and you loved the support of your country fans. Was that a conscious decision to promote yourself in only that way or do you feel that shoehorned you into a box and alienated you from support of your non-country fans?
A. Skylar: It's definitely a conscious decision. I pretty much know...I've accepted the fact that if I get to make an album and I get to have singles out that they probably will only get played on country radio because that's just the way it is and that's the way my songs are going to sound and I've pretty much accepted that. I want to make real country music, honky-tonk songs...the good ol' country stuff...that's what makes me happy and that's what comes out when I write.
 
Q. The judges had commented on how comfortable you have gotten on stage, not just with your singing, but your performance as well. What growth do you see in yourself on stage from your initially audition to today?
A. Skylar: I definitely got more confident each week. I've always been confident on stage, rockin' out, but I've gotten more confident each week. I'm just happy to have made it this far...Top 5...this place is good with me.
 
Q. Your inspiration is Miranda Lambert...any chance of doing a duet with her in the future? Maybe some song writing?
A. Skylar: It would be my dream to write with Miranda and do a duet. Justin Moore is another inspiration...Miranda and Justin are my idols and I would love to do a duet with both of them and write with both of them, so hopefully one day I will be able to.
 
Q. Who were you closest with on the show? Do you have a moment or inside joke you'd like to share?
A. Skylar: I was closest with Josh and Hollie. We just had a bunch of funny stuff that we always used to say. I would wake her up with a duck call sometimes (laughs), so that was pretty funny.
 
Q. The judges always gave you really great encouragement throughout the weeks, so was it a surprise for you to go home this week?
A. Skylar: It's never a surprise on Thursdays...you never know what's going to happen. This season really has been unpredictable and it's going to keep being that way now and I was just happy to make it as far as I had.
 
American Idol airs Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8/7c on FOX.

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The finish line is in sight for both "The Voice" and "American Idol," with just a handful of performers still standing. On "The Voice," Jamar Rogers, Lindsey Pavao, Katrina Parker and Erin Willett were eliminated, leaving behind a final four of Tony Lucca, Chris Mann, Jermaine Paul and Juliet Simms. Over at "American Idol," Skyler Laine went home, leaving behind Jessica Sanchez, Phillip Phillips, Joshua Ledet and Hollie Cavanagh.

As the final four on each show move forward, so do our "Idol" vs. "Voice" rankings, which take the singers from both shows and put them head to head each week. I'm choosing my top five performers from among the two shows, along with Times music writers Todd Martens and Chris Barton —and you can cast your votes too, at the bottom of this post.

1. Juliet Simms, "The Voice"

This performance of "It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World" wasn't just a deeply visceral take on the James Brown classic and one of the best performances we've seen on either "The Voice" or "Idol" all season long. It also was a rallying cry, a raised fist against the male favoritism Simms has come up against in the music industry. "My performance tonight is for women everywhere. Mothers, sisters, daughters, aunts, and grandmothers," she tweeted. "You're amazing and beautiful. <3 you all." It feels both ironic and inevitable that it helped secure Simms' spot as the sole surviving female contestant on "The Voice" going into next week's finals, an especially impressive accomplishment given that she had to beat out perceived front-runner Jamar Rogers to get there.

2. Jessica Sanchez, "American Idol"

Shunning the stage commotion after her too-much, too-soon take on Tina Turner, Sanchez kicked off her high heels and offering up a soul-baring moment with "You Are So Beautiful" that was magnified by its intimacy. She'd worried before taking the stage that she might end up sounding lounge-y. But her voice came through as pure and honest and just … so beautiful. The stillness and simplicity of the staging (nothing onstage apart from a few fog-ensconced flickering candles) allowed us to zoom in on Sanchez's pure voice — its clarity and vibrato, its breadth and tone — and appreciate every detail.

3. Jamar Rogers, "The Voice"

Despite the song title ("If You Don't Know Me by Now") and the fact that we've been watching and listening to Rogers all these weeks, we learned a few things about him we didn't know. He showed us his vision for the sort of musician he'd like to become and revealed a heretofore-unheard resonant lower register that somehow felt like a deep surprise. On results night, he seemed as shocked as the rest of us by his elimination. But we know him well enough by now to predict that — as long as he keeps his newly adopted "victor's mentality" — the comeback kid will bounce back just fine.

4. Lindsey Pavao, "The Voice"

Katrina Parker, also eliminated this week, was a near miss for this slot. But Pavao, with her quirky lyrical pronunciation, asymmetrical 'do, beautiful tone and shy smile, pulled ahead, capturing my attention anew in her final performance of "Skinny Love." Those haunting, breathy, half-swallowed "my my mys" were particularly arresting. Had Christina Aguilera not been so irritatingly aggressive an advocate, my love for Pavao, slender at times though never emaciated, might have been much beefier.

5. Joshua Ledet, "American Idol"

Though he'd never heard the Bee Gees song "To Love Somebody" before Jimmy Iovine and this week's guest mentor, Steven Van Zandt, handed it to him in rehearsals, Ledet sang it as if it had been written for him — or by him. He got swept up in the emotion, and swept us up in it, but never lost control. Midway through, he actually seemed to be ripping whole hunks of pain off with his teeth, chewing them up and spitting them out. We may or may not know what it's like to love somebody like he does. But he sure made us love him.

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American Idol won't have a country winner this year: Mississippi girl Skylar Laine was eliminated Thursday. Hollie Cavanagh joined her in the Bottom Two but survived to sing another week.

Maybe she didn't quite connect with Creedence Clearwater Revival's Fortunate Son; maybe she brought an unnecessary bit of Las Vegas and Broadway to her rendition of Dusty Springfield's You Don't Have to Say You Love Me. "She doesn't deserve to go home because of that," record executive Jimmy Iovine said during the show, "but it was less than I know she's capable of."

Hollie Cavanagh had her best performance episode of the season on Wednesday, but it wasn't enough to keep her out of the Bottom Two, indicating that her weeks are numbered. Phillip Phillips, on the other hand, had his worst performance night but was never in any danger: Looks like smooth sailing to the finale for him, as long as his health holds up.

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Beautiful seemed to be the word of the night at American Idol, and not in a Jennifer Lopez, "You-look-so-beautiful-but-I-didn't-like-your-performance" kind of way. The top five stepped it up to prove they are in it to win it.

It's getting down to the wire in the competition and the stakes are high. It would be foolish to say the contestants aren't pulling out all the stops to garner as many votes as they can to make it to the finale. So who had their "in a relationship" status outed on national television, what did they have to say about it and what did the "dark horse" of the competition think about Randy Jackson's glowing remarks?

We got the stars to spill after the show! Is it just us, or has this season of American Idol gone by in the blink of an eye? In just a few short weeks, a new Idol will be crowned and after Wednesday night's performance show, there's no doubt that anyone could walk away with the title.

It's true that the show is all about talent, but with contestants like heartthrob Phillip Phillips, personal lives come into play with the female vote. So when Ryan Seacrest outed Phillip for having a girlfriend back home, eyebrows raised that this new tidbit could affect his standing. But when we caught up with Phillip after the show, he didn't seem too concerned.

"At first I thought Ryan was talking about his girlfriend," he told us. "Then I realized, Oh, he's talking about my girlfriend. So it was funny.  It doesn't matter. If it does then [the voters] weren't really liking the music. I'm trying to get the music out there. I'm not trying to be some boy that tries to look good or anything. I want the music to speak first. [My girlfriend] is really proud of me being out there and pursuing my dreams. She supports me all the way."

Speaking of support, dark horse Hollie Cavanagh, who has beaten the odds every week, broke out with two stellar performances, stunning the judges. She killed it with Tina Turner's "River Deep, Mountain High" and her cover of Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love" earned her five 'beautiful' comments from the judges. For once, the word wasn't used to buffer a bad performance. If anything, it brought her to the front of the pack and left her glowing.

"I was glad I got positive feedback on both songs," she spilled. "It would be horrible to come out of the night with negative feedback. I mean, now it's top five, so you have to bring it every week, and I'm just glad they're seeing that I'm learning and progressing."

And of course a night of Idol wouldn't be complete without a standing ovation for Joshua Ledet. Randy even called him one of the best singers ever to compete on American Idol. When we caught up with him after the show, he was his normal humble self, brushing his talent off like it's no big deal.

"That definitely shocked me when he said that," Joshua said. "I know there are some great singers on the show, and to hear him say that, I was completely in awe and I'm truly humbled by that. I accepted it. I took it in with all love and it really touched my heart."

It's anyone's game and the competition is tight. Who do you think will be saying good-bye to the Idol spotlight Thursday night? Do you think Hollie has what it takes to make it to the finale? Let us know in the comments!

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