By MAUREEN MARIE BELMONTE
Jessica was dubbed ‘swaggernaut’ or an ‘out of space swagger’ by her mentor this week, will.i.am from Black Eyed Peas
MANILA, Philippines - Filipina-Mexican Jessica Sanchez failed to wow the “American Idol” judges with her essay of the Gloria Estefan hit “Turn the Beat Around” on performance night held Mar. 14.
Saying that the “rhythm was a little shady,” rock icon Steven Tyler initiated the string of unsatisfactory comments about Sanchez with, “I don’t think you should stray too far from what you do the best, which are ballads.”
Pop diva Jennifer Lopez candidly admitted that though Sanchez did a “good job,” she nevertheless said that it's “not her favorite” performance of the young singer.
She noted that Sanchez’s “strong vibrato,” or the musical effect consisted of pulsating change of pitch, worked to her disadvantage in the song.
“Your voice has such a strong vibrato, which is so beautiful on certain songs but on a song like this, it’s really where you have to be syncopated and on that beat and it lagged a little bit behind so it lost a little bit of the energy,” Lopez pointed out.
She also advised her that it doesn’t have to be about “sounding great” all the time, but “it’s about just having the rhythm" in order to "kill" the song.
Third judge Randy Jackson, meanwhile, said the dance tune wasn’t a perfect fit for her.
“The problem for me was the song choice. You got a big old voice but the song didn’t allow you to show that. Not that you have to show it every time but pick something that you can really play with and make your own,” he said.
Jackson even underscored that being “one of the greatest” in this season; they have to “stir” her to the right direction by giving “constructive criticisms.”
In response, Sanchez confessed that singing the 1994 hit proved to be a “bit of challenge” for her.
“I had to work really work hard to make my voice fit this song. It was a bit of a challenge but if I stay, next time I’ll pick a better song,” she told host Ryan Seacrest after the judges’ commentary.
This week’s theme for the performances was songs from their birth year. The said song came out in 1994, the year Sanchez was born.
The critiques that Sanchez received this week from the three judges were a far cry from the ones she’s got last week while performing the Whitney Houston hit “I Will Always Love You,” where she even got a standing ovation.
Fans of Sanchez, though, will have to wait for the results night, which will air on Mar. 15 [US Time] to see if she would make it to the next round
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