AI...

I'm obviously not doing a very good job keeping up with American Idol this season, but luckily most of my friends are. They tell me when I've missed something amazing, something hideous, or something that's a combination of both... Kim filled me in on last night's show, during which the Idols got ready for tonight's show, Idol Gives Back, by singing their favorite inspirational songs. I would be super good at this week because during my senior year of high school my English teacher had each student give an "Inspiration Friday" speech and present a favorite uplifting song. Hahaha.

Anyhow, Kim gushed to me, "OMG did you see Jason Castro last night?" Well, no, I didn't, but I saw him on YouTube today. His version of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" is spot-on; this song has been performed by many Idols in the past, including Kimberley Locke and Katharine McPhee; their renditions are among my favorite Idol performances EVER. And Jason tore it up! He is soooo cute and his voice is just beautiful. I'll admit that I wasn't his biggest fan at the beginning of the season, but he's so consistently good that it's hard to not like him. Anyhow, yeah, I'll agree with Kim in saying that his was the best performance of the night.

Second best performance of the night, without question: David Archuleta singing "Angels." Like Simon, I think that this is one of the best pop songs ever, and David's at-the-piano rendition was really good. There's something about his voice that just makes me melt; not to mention that ADORABLE smile that comes across his face when he's talking to Ryan. Ugh, he's so cute.

Other notable performances include Michael Johns' "Dream On," a song that I think was a little ambitious for him, as well as Syesha's rendition of Fantasia's "I Believe," in which she shows us her whistle tones (ouch). Non-notable performances: David Cook, Carly Smithson, Kristy Lee Cook.

UPDATE: Click Here to donate to Idol Gives Back! They supports lots of worthwhile causes. :)