lakisha and chris stumble

4. LaKisha
Song: "Jesus, Take the Wheel"
Me: I knew this would be a rough week for LaKisha, and her nervousness is evident from the song's onset. First, it's always a slightly bad idea to choose a song by a former Idol. Flash back to when that curly-haired chick sang Kelly Clarkson's "Because of You" and got eliminated last season. Anyway, this performance is off from the get-go, and LaKisha seems to be in some weird nervous/awkward mode. She attempts to redeem things by entering Whitney Houston mode at the song's conclusion, but just sounds even more off.
Randy: "This had some pitch problems in the beginning."
Paula: "I'm going to have to agree with what Randy's saying."
Simon: "It's like eating a hamburger for breakfast...it doesn't go well together."
Score: 5/10

5. Chris
Song: "Mayberry"
Me: Chris, as I predicted, seems strangely comfortable with the country genre. He's had some critics in recent weeks, but I think this performance is ahead of what LaKisha offered just minutes ago. But I wish he would have picked a better known song, and ditched the J-Tim for at least one night. I don't know why he didn't opt for another slow Keith Urban song like the one he did so well with in the semifinals. Sadly, I'd choose Phil as the leading male contestant at this point.
Randy: "I just didn't feel any sense of connection, any emotion from you."
Paula: "The joy and the love that you have on stage didn't come through."
Simon: "What I heard was a very nondescript, nasaly, tinny vocal."
*Chris, in response, gives a quick comeback: "Nasaly is a form of singing, if you don't know." Then, after realizing he overstepped his tact boundaries, he attempted to recover with a quick, "My heart goes out to everyone at Virginia Tech." Um, yeah. You are now the leading candidate to go home, dude.
Score: 6/10