Are you ready for the return of the original? The real deal? American Idol, which has more competition than ever these days for people's interest, enjoyed its 11th season premiere tonight—but did you enjoy it?
There was the usual mixture of promising talent, such as 17-year-old David Leathers Jr., who blew the judges away right off the bat on the first day of auditions in Savannah, Ga., with his crystal-clear pipes, and 24-year-old Amy Brumfield, who's unemployed and lives in a tent in the woods of Tennessee—but can also sing!
But then...there were the others. The others, like Jessica Whitely, who threatened promised to see the judges again at auditions in Texas. Like dapper Shaun Kraisman, who, though certainly cute, couldn't sing a lick. Or like Joshua Chavis, who strutted in claiming to sound like Brad Paisley but, um...didn't.
Mawuena Kodjo, of Togo, West Africa, via Nashville, tried his hand at Rascal Flatts, but his thick accent (and inability to carry a tune) gave him a bigger shot at being the next William Hung. "Prove me wrong, dawg!" Randy offered when Mawuena told the judges that, in fact, he could sing. (Spoiler alert: Sweet guy, but he didn't prove Randy wrong.)
And too bad Erica Nowak, the future ex-Mrs. Steven Tyler who went right for his rump when she scored a hug from the Aerosmith frontman, couldn't sing to the judges' satisfaction, because she was fun!
"I didn't get a golden ticket, but I got some of Steven Tyler's ass, and you can't ask for more than that," she joked outside. "By the way, he has an amazing behind."But back to the ones who charmed with their voices. Maybe Steven would have been more inclined to propose if Brittany Kerr—who he jokingly put through before she started singing—had wanted to be his future ex-wife.