It was probably one of the best final showdown in American Idol history. Last night, two men battled it out in Fox's world-wide hit singing contest to be worthy of the title American Idol. Both contestants were consistent through out the entire competition. Both were never in the bottom three, always gave very good performances, made good song choices, wowed the judges. And both have the same name.
David Archuleta and David Cook were both frontrunner's of the singing contest so it was no surprise that they were the last men standing to vie for the most coveted title in the music industry. During the deciding night, both men sang three songs: one picked by record producer Clive Davies, one from the list of song entries from composers and one personally picked by the two Davids.
Cook received well critiques from judges Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell, especially with his rendition of a U2 hit. But it seemed like Archuleta had the night in his palms when he got raving praises from all three judges. Cowell even said that “what they witnessed was a knockout,” and that was after Archuleta sang the Beatles' classic “Imagine” which earned him very good comments during the earlier part of the contest. Fans were ecstatic all throughout the evening and it is a hard choice between the two performers.
David Cook
Ever since the start of the season, this 25-year old bartender was already one of the ones to beat. His rockstar quality and charm had the ladies going gaga over him. Plus the fact that the guy can sing. He was consistent all throughout the competition and when he comes out on stage with that guitar in his hand, expect nothing less but greatness. Some of his memorable performances that impressed the judges were Lionel Richie's “Hello”, Chris Cornell's cover of “Billie Jean”, Mariah Carey's “Always Be My Baby”, and the most recent victory for him, Aerosmith's “I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing”.
This guy was never on the bottom three and always had impressive performances. However, David comes off as another Chris Daughtry. All of his performances, though given a personal touch, still seems like an imitation of Daughtry's previous numbers. Daughtry was remembered as the first Idol rocker to really hit it big despite finishing at third. All his performances were deemed original as he transformed songs and fitted them to his personality. To me, David is just like a Daughtry-wannabe, though he is very, very good.
He can win the whole thing based on his appeal to fans and his rocker appeal. And he maybe the very first rocker to win American Idol.
David Archuleta
But little David Cook is not giving up that easily. This young guy has given Cook a run for his money. Like Cook, Archuleta was a consistent frontrunner the entire competition. His performances has earned him great praise from the judges and has enchanted the ladies with his boyish charm. The guy can “sing the phonebook” as Jackson frequently says of him, and he has some powerhouse voice. Each week, Archuleta lets out a performance worthy of each praise given to him by the judges and despite his young age, which was the issue with past contestants like Diana De Garmo, he sounds like a different person every time he opens his mouth to sing and the judges are very much in awe of him. This David also has his own fan base that seems to be growing bigger each time. He was always safe from the boot and fans wouldn't stop screaming every after performance.
So who wins American Idol?
Everybody expected a David vs. David final two. It was also expected that the two will deliver excellent song numbers in their final bout and after watching the finals, the two contenders did not fail. However, based on the performances, it seems like Archuleta has the competition in the bag after belting out the songs in his list. Not only that, the judges were very impressed and both Jackson and Cowell hinted that he was the best that night. Cook did well but he seemed to have lost his magic on the night that mattered the most. He could still win because based on his track record, Cook proved to be the right guy for the title and that he is already a star. His fans will also support him all the way.
It is still really a toss-up between the two and it's anybody's game. We have seen some shockers this past season and we may get one on the finale. Anyway, whoever wins deserve it because both has proven their worth as the next American Idol.
One thing is for sure though, the winner is going to be a David.
