Idol Out : Charles

Bye Bye Charlie :(

"Its okay, to have made it to Top 4, its been amazing."

Humble to a fault and the sweetest, most thoughtful person I've ever met, Charles is really such a gentleman. He went round thanking everybody, including Judge Ken Lim, after the show. Uncle Ken gave a him pat on the back and reassured him that he's a talented guy. This, for me, was the best reassurance Charles could have gotten after weeks of onstage scrutiny by the judges. Perhaps his talent is just not suitable for singing competitions, but really there is no doubt that Charles is musically talented. Perhaps his performances are more suited for 'intimate' environments? But seriously, to have gotten this far, Top 4 out of 4000, is a huge achievement.

Last week's non-elimination gave me a false sense of insulation. Week after week, an idol hopeful has been sent home and its been sad to see them go, but last week it was like Happy Camp, no one was sent home and it was so sool to see all four for another week.

When the Results show started last night, I suddenly wanted it to stay Top 4 forever.Malaque, seated one seat away, felt the same. I mean, Top 4 all the way to Finals lah, then just 'crown' one lor - caaaan la...

Oh well, thats not how the Idol cookie crumbles. And we're now left with 3.

In typical Charlie fashion, here's his exit performance, beatboxing! :), followed by the exit interview.

Thank you Charles for sharing your Idol journey with us, and with me. You are a truly talented and wonderful person - Sherry's a lucky girl and your parents raised you right. Stick to your guns and your dreams and don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.

xoxo, s.

ps. Charlie's a man of many talents... ages ago, in one of my earlier interviews Charles said he used to love to draw. Check out this cute lil sketch Charlie did of Sezairi - its SO Sezairi :) Pretty good right! It was on the envelope of a note that he wrote to his 'bro' Sezairi.

Idol out : Faizal Isa

Unbelievable.

Are you surprised? I was still surprised after half an hour. I believed Faizal to be invincible. Seriously. I thought he'd go all the way to Final 2 judging from the amount of support he gets wherever he goes. His fans are rabid (and I say that in the most positive kowtow way possible).

The scream-o-meter always hits RED whenever he makes an entrance, be it at a mall, on stage, or even off a bus. I did not expect him to go home tonight.

Plus, I thought he did okay considering he was quite ill - lost his voice, couldn't hit the notes he wanted to - the song was a good choice and in typical Faizal fashion - a hit with his fans. I enjoyed it too, although I could see that his energy level wasn't his usual, probably owing to him being sick.

Here's his exit song and his exit interview with Idol TV (unedited version, think of my cam as the b-roll...all NGs included!).

Kudos to Faizal for making it this far. He's just 17. Top 5 is a great achievement. Imo, he's grown so much as a performer too from the time we saw him at auditions to now. Yes he needs some work on his diction, but I think he's got everything else going for him. A few more years of training and who knows where he'll be :) He went from Mummy's boy to Singapore Idol's resident heartthrob.

I also give him major props for being so focused, eyes on the prize, amidst the negative comments from the Judges week after week, especially recently. He has also never failed to take care of his family, friends and fans with many kind words and that great megawatt smile.

I'm gonna miss Faizal and that smile, I love his smile, it has a way of making you feel important. Definitely not the last we'll see of this sweet boy.

We love ya Faizal Isa! The Idol family will always continue to be the 'wings behind your back' too! ;)

Btw, Faizal's Idol journey may have ended,but we'll still be seeing him next week! Yay! Faizal will be back for the group performances on Spectacular 10's results show with Nurul, Amira, Farhan, Duane and Malaque. Justin and Mae are in US and Australia respectively and won't be able to make it :(

xoxo, s.

ps. Thanks to Ash for the great pics. Check out Ash's pics on the SI Facebook page.

Idol out : Duane Ho

Bye Bye Mr. Pussycat Doll :(

As I was walking to the Tv Theatre today, I wondered if tonight's votes would be the same as it has been for the past 4 weeks - that Singapore would be sending home yet another talented female contestant.

Looks like Mae's exit last week has given voters a wake-up call, the person packing their bags this week is Duane. The youngest contestant at 16, Duane has NEVER been in the bottom 3 much less the bottom 2. Tonight he was both, and finally, surprisingly, got the boot.

Duane went from a judges' pet to weekly ridicule and I give him props for taking all that in, especially at just 16. Its not easy standing there and being judged. Despite the judges' lack of support, Duane got support, and apparently in spades as he coasted through week after week - safe from being in the bottom.

I wonder what happened - either his fans decided he was getting slammed too much they decided to not prolong his torture (doubtful) or the fans of the other idols and previously eliminated contestants have rallied together to pool their votes to change the voting pattern.

Well, whatever it is, its still sad to see Duane go. He's such a sweet kid and we've all come to know and love him. Those closest to him took it the hardest - Tabby and Faizal, who together with him and Farhan made up the 'Awesome Foursome'.

Here's Duane's exit song and exit interview.

Haven't watched his performance on tv yet, but what I saw/heard at the theatre LIVE wasn't too bad. In fact, I thought he was rather refreshing, a nice combo of piano playing and stage presence.

Anyway, Duane, the Idol journey may be over, but you made it to Top 6! Thats an achievement and you know you'll always always be a part of the Idol family! Keep dreaming big my dear! Love ya Duane!

xoxo, s.