Top 10 American Idol

Inspired by my friend and fellow American Idol fanatic, Mallory, I've decided to make my list of top 10 American Idol performances. I am qualified to do this since I have been watching since season 1. I am including YouTube videos of all the performances in case you would like to relive them (just as I have done for a good portion of my evening). Enjoy!

10. Anoop Desai, "Always on My Mind", Season 8 I know some may not agree this belongs here, but I am a huge NoopDawg fan and I could listen to his smooth voice all day.



9. Nikko Smith, "Let's Get it On", Season 4 Many of you probably have no recollection of Nikko, but I am telling you, he was probably one of the most under appreciated contestants in the history of the show. This video proves it.



8. Jason Castro, "Hallelujah", Season 7, I love this song and I love his version of it even more.



7. Kelly Clarkson, "A Moment Like This", Season 1, Even though I was one of about 4 people who were cheering for Justin to win season 1 (he's from Doylestown, PA! I had to cheer for him!), I can't leave this one out of the top 10. She really can sing, even though she is sort of crying for part of this performance.



6. Clay Aiken, "A Bridge Over Troubled Waters", Season 2, I was a freshman in college when this finale happened. I will admit I was a HUGE Clay fan. I mean huge. I actually cried when he came in second (by the way, you will notice Ruben Studdard, the "winner" of season 2 did not even make my list. What a disappointment!).



5. Blake Lewis, "You Give Love a Bad Name", Season 6, I think I watched Blake Lewis's performance on YouTube in my office the next day somewhere between 15 and 20 times. He is such a great performer!



4. David Cook, "Always Be My Baby", Season 7, Always Be My Baby by Mariah Carey is my all time favorite song. I usually don't like it when someone redoes a great song, but I couldn't be disappointed with this remake.



3. Carrie Underwood, "Alone", Season 4 I was a big fan of Carrie all of that season, but this was definitely my favorite performance of hers.



2. Kris Allen, "Heartless", Season 8, As Randy said, his version was even better than Kanye's. And he's a nicer guy than Kanye too. This video is different because YouTube wouldn't let me embed the live performance into my blog.



And drumroll for number 1 please..........

1. David Archuleta, "Imagine, Season 7, I love David A and this is, for me, the most memorable performance of all the seasons. I had goosebumps when it was over.



And here's a few honorable mention (without videos):
-Adam Lambert, "Tracks of My Tears", Season 8
-Elliott Yamin, "A Song for You", Season 5
-Jordin Sparks, "Broken Wing", Season 6