Mandisa more than ‘Every Woman’ in field

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Sound off on latest singers, events, Simon comments

Paris Bennett led things off with “Conga,” by Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine. It was one of those performances that will cause her fans to praise for “making it her own,” and her detractors to sniff it seemed to have a lot more shouting that the original. She has more fans than detractors, though, and is a strong favorite to win the competition, so the odds of her getting the boot are minuscule.

The judges love Bennett, but also seem determined to drive her crazy. Simon suggested she sing a “younger” song this week, and she did. Randy and Paula didn’t love the choice. Randy suggested she sing a ballad next week, while Paula voted for something up-tempo. Bennett thought she left high school behind to audition for the show, but the peer pressure and mixed messages must seem awfully familiar.

Lisa Tucker tried to make Paula happy with a ballad, “Here’s Where I Stand” by Tiffany Taylor. However, if there’s one thing guaranteed to make the judges cringe, it’s a young person singing a song that makes them sound like they’re from another generation, and Tucker was just average on this one. But Simon told her not to worry — she would sail through.

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Ayla Brown may be the one in the most interesting situation. Brown sang Natasha Bedingfield’s “Unwritten,” and did a nice job on a song that’s not that challenging. She also has a basketball scholarship waiting for her at Boston College this fall.

When she auditioned in Boston, the judges asked her if she’d pick playing basketball over touring with the Idol winners. Perhaps using skills from her politician father, she punted, saying she liked both and didn’t want to decide right then. That was good enough for Paula and Randy, who passed her onward over Simon’s objections, and Brown’s even won over the acerbic Brit since.

However, Brown’s going to have to make that choice very soon.

If she gets voted through to the final 12, which is very likely, she’ll get the chance to tour with the “Idol” contestants. But it will be impossible for her to do that and play college basketball as well; even if she’s back for the fall semester, she would miss all the summer workouts and the preparation she would need to play as a freshman. Other singers are competing for their future, while Brown is still trying to decide what she wants that future to be.

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