Okay, that makes sense. I definitely know the genre, just not the name somehow. And how does that translate into dance, stylistically?

I also kinda wondered about that with the pop category. Pop seems pretty broad. Is it just the triangular formation, lots of upper body movement stuff?

New Jack Swing comin at ya!

Hey! I can repeat a joke I haven't used since the '90s: More like Know Jack about Swing.

Sorry, the "movement" was pretty much a litany of the worst music the '90s had to offer. Blech.

Can't believe I missed the New Jack Swing conversation. I was just listening to "If I Had No Loot" on my ipod the other day and when I told a good friend of mine how much fun I was having she asked me what song I was talking about. We almost had to break up. Anywho, I also received a Best of Guy mixed CD for my birthday last year. Good times!

And on to this night's AI so far:

What fresh hell is this? Paula is wearing black latex fingerless gloves.

Ramiele – Alone

Cutest baby ever!! Cutest parents ever!! True fact – You will never do this song on this stage better than Ms. Carrie Underwood, so leave it alone. And you are off pitch from the jump. Y’all, her voice is really not that big. She’s not even doing it as well as Carly. Wow, she is just screaming at this point. Was there anything actually in tune? That was bad. Bad bad. And the high-waisted camo shorts? Bad idea. Bad song choice poorly delivered. Why are the judges trying to give her an out due to illness? Stop making excuses. She was decidedly not good.

Jason Castro – Fragile

Cutest baby ever!! Again! Baby in a ten gallon hat! Beautiful blue eyed baby! I can’t wait until we get to the contestant with the tore up baby pictures. We’ll have some fun then. Interesting song choice. And interesting arrangement. Just different enough from Sting’s version to not be copycat. It’s certainly right in his Starbucks CD wheelhouse, but he sounds really good. And he’s much better with the guitar. Oooh, breaking out the rock en espanol! I approve! Work it out. Very nicely done. Paula and Randy making sense? The hell you say. But really, he’s not going to be any other than who he is. Simon is totally right. I just don’t know how much this kid cares about winning this show. And he’s pretty, so he’ll be fine for quite a while to come.

Syesha Mercado – If I Were Your Woman

She is annoying. And she needs to stop letting them straighten her hair because it makes her look like a nobody. How the hell does this song qualify as being from 1987? Very liberal interpretation of the theme. She’s doing a very nice rendition of it, though. I don’t know when she learned to show a little restraint, but it is greatly appreciated. Dang, I love this song. She’s going a little bit over the top here at the end and maybe a few more glory notes than I’d like, but overall very well done. I think it’s my favorite performance of hers ever. Agree with Randy again. Well, maybe not stellar, but definitely her best to date by far. Wow, Paula is really lucid tonight. Maybe it’s the gloves. As usual, Simon is right. The end was over the top.

I can't believe she was born in 1987. That's the year I graduated from high school.

I feel like an old lady. damn.

BTW, I never knew the title of that Sting song. Dang. I need my Sting card revoked.

I love me some Guy. I know that dates me, but oh well.

God, me too! And I cannot say this too many times: the prom committee cheated me out of "Let's Chill" being our prom song.

okay, I am demanding a New Jack set at the F2F. I will provide the CDs.

I gotta say, no one has really stood out tonight, for me. Syesha came the closest, a little shrill at the end, but she did the best at conveying the emotions of the song. Jason Castro can go home. He's pretty, he'll do great in smaller venues and bars, but he'll never be a stage or recording star. Chikezie wasted another chance to shine. He's got an okay voice for ballads, but that's not where he does it best. He needs the songs that make him and the audience move. Ramielle bit off more than she could chew and, dude, lose the shorts. But we still have a few more to go, someone might surprise me.

Let's Chill would've been an awesome prom song.

One of my favorite New Jack Swing moments is Cube and his "You can New Jack Swing on my nuts" (hence the Toni!Tone!Tony! love song) although that might've been the death knell, really.

Chikezie – If Only For One Night

More cute parents. And another cute baby. Baby in a tux. Awwwww! He came off very well there. Well, the beginning was already off but he got it back fairly quickly. This is a really hard song to sing. Very rangy. I guess he’s doing an ok job with it, but I am completely bored. I will not have any recollection of what he sang come tomorrow morning. It’s like some college talent show with the one Kappa who can really sing and all the girls swoon, but it’s just talent show good . . . not good good. Paula is really on fire tonight. I disagree with her, but her points were cogent. Agree with Simon again. Some more. As usual. And he’s talking back to the judges again which is unattractive and takes me back to the pumpkin pimp moment. Way to erase all the good will built up from your exceedingly cute intro package.

Aaaaand Brooke White is tonight’s designated unfortunate looking baby. Alrighty then.

Brooke White – Every Breath You Take

So does she not read music? Huh? That’s kind of awesome. Wow, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a contestant do that. Just start and then think better of it and then start again. Huh, again. But she sounds phenomenal. And again, so much better with a piano or a guitar. This song really has no range – it’s so flat. It’s not really doing anything to show her off as a singer. I mean, she’s doing very nicely with it, but the song in and of itself is actually kind of boring, so . . . there’s that. Agreed with Simon and Randy that the first half was better than the last.

I'm way bored tonight. I'm also sort of freaked that I seem to have graduated high school TWO years before most of them were born.