Youngsters Tim Urban, Aaron Kelly, and Alex Lambert Show Potential on American Idol Top 10 Boys

Tuesday night, the American Idol Top 10 Boys performed Billboard Hits. While Michael Lynche and Lee DeWyze gave the most professional performances, youngsters Tim Urban, Aaron Kelly, and Alex Lambert showed their potential.

Tim Urban, Aaron Kelly, and Alex Lambert are still rough around the edges, but they are the boys who could potentially grow the most on American Idol.

Tim Urban on American Idol Top 10 Boys

To be sure, Tim Urban is not a great singer (yet), but there's something very likable and appealing about him, especially on stage. Last night, Tim Urban performed Come On Get Higher. It was vocally uninspiring, causing Randy Jackson to call it "karaoke."

Ellen DeGeneres and Kara DioGuardi liked him but not the performance. Ellen suggested that he take up acting and sing as a secondary profession. Kara said it was a better song choice than last week, but that he wasn't all there yet.

Interestingly enough, the judging panel was split with Simon Cowell giving his stamp of approval. Even with three judges disagreeing, Simon's approval goes a long way on American Idol. Simon praised his work ethic, positive attitude, and ability to learn from the judges' criticisms. He also liked that Tim had picked a "younger" song this week.

Hopefully Tim Urban will continue to show improvements every week and to step it up in the vocal department. He does have a likable personality and commercial appeal. Hopefully he can use American Idol to gain stage experience and to hone his skills.

Aaron Kelly on American Idol Top 10 Boys

Last night, Aaron Kelly performed My Girl. it was a strange performance, and I couldn't figure out exactly what kind of spin he was trying to put on the song. Still, he had improved from last week and was showing more confidence on stage.

The judging panel was split on Aaron Kelly. Kara liked his artistic consistency, his tone, and his country twang, but Simon thought the performance was too old-fashioned and that he hadn't shown America who he is as an artist.

Still, I see potential in Aaron Kelly. While it was probably not the right song choice, I could see that he was trying to create shapes and phrases with the music. As for demographic appeal, I actually prefer Aaron over the Jonas Brothers in terms of look, voice, and charm.

Alex Lambert on American Idol Top 10 Boys

Like Aaron Kelly, Alex Lambert struggled to overcome nerves and stage fright. Of the three youngsters, Alex Lambert was the most successful this week. Last night, he performed Everybody Knows. It was smooth, sweet, and not overdone. The last note was a bit suspect, but the rest was quite lovely.

Last week, Ellen had compared him to an unripe banana, suggesting that he had a lot of unrealized potential. This week, she said that someone must have put the banana in a paper bag (causing it to ripen). Simon called his performance a "million times better than last week" but told him to develop "killer instinct," a driven desire to win.

As MTV's Eric Ditzian observed, "Nothing's better on reality TV than the rise of the underdog, and that's exactly what happened to Lambert during his performance of John Legend's 'Everybody Knows.'"

Alex Lambert is certainly on the right track. If he can acquire more of that "self-belief" and drive to succeed, he'll be well on his way on American Idol. Maybe he should roll tapes of Mary Powers' comments as motivation. If he goes on to win the competition, she'll be eating crow.

Sources:

'American Idol' Top 10 Men's Report Card, MTV