Guess who made Idol’s top 36!

by Cate Cropp

Isn’t it strange that for people who supposedly hate American Idol, Vote For The Worst has some of the most comprehensive information on its contestants? I would argue that they actually love the show in their own way. They can be pretty mean, but then again, so are the judges!

Anyway VFTW, along with Idol blog Joe’s Place, have put together a list, through various tips they received, of season eight’s top 36. So, here I’m going to share with you some of the contestants that I’ll be watching for once we reach the voting rounds. Do I need to say it? Spoilers, spoilers, spoilers! If you don’t want to know, stop reading now!

Von Smith

Von was at the Kansas City auditions. He sang “Over the Rainbow” and he has an enormous voice. You may have also seen him sing “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from Dreamgirls on The View. I never know what to think when I hear a guy sing that song. He was an early favorite of mine, but he totally wrecked one of my favorite James Morrison songs on the first day of Hollywood week, so I’m really interested to see if I love him or hate him as time goes on.

Tatiana Del Toro

Crazy psycho drama queen! I had thought that bikini girl Katrina was going to be this year’s Antonella Barba, but since she’s gone, maybe Tatiana will step in. I’m sure she’ll be more than happy to oblige. This girl is cukoo for Cocoa Puffs.

Jessica Langseth

I have no memory of this girl from any of the shows I’ve seen this year, but she’s Jonny Lang’s sister! For that reason alone, I’m curious as to what she can do. Also, kudos to her for trying to make it on her own because it’s not like her big brother couldn’t hook her up with a record deal.

Anoop Desai

Anoop Dog! Another one of my early favorites from the Kansas City auditions. He is (was?) a member of the UNC Clef Hangers, an all-male a capella group that you need to go check out on YouTube right now, because they’re pretty freaking awesome. They sing everything from Nelly to System of a Down, all while wearing vests so chock full of flair that Mike Judge would well up with pride if he saw them. Here’s a good one, featuring Anoop, but if you want to see the flair you’ll have to look at some of the others too. And finally….

Nick Mitchell aka Normund Gentle!!!

I almost don’t believe it, its just too good to be true. I simply cannot wait to see what he comes up with next. Nick/Normund is pure entertainment, and every time he’s on camera, I’m laughing. I wonder if they’re going to make him lose the shiny shirt and the headband … I’m sure he’ll come up with something else completely fabulous if they do. Obviously there’s no way he’ll win, but I look forward to any screen time he gets.

So what do you think? That’s obviously just a few of the 36, and really, you never know, some of them could be wrong. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for Normund Gentle! If you want to check out the full list with pictures, go to Joe’s Place, and if you want an added dose of snark, check out VFTW. But be forewarned, if you get angry and send them a nasty email, you should know they really enjoy that sort of thing, and they’ll show your typos to everyone so they can all laugh at you. I’m just sayin’.