The Ten Most Shocking Results in American Idol History

Over the years, American Idol has supplied us with many shocking results. Here are my picks for the most surprising.

1. Tamyra Gray's elimination (Season 1)
We didn't even know shocking results were possible at this point in Season 1 -- we just assumed the two best singers (Kelly and Tamyra) would make it to the finals. Boy, were we wrong! I wish I had a photo of my face when the results were announced -- my jaw was literally on the floor.

2. Three Divas/Jennifer Hudson's elimination (Season 3)
No more needs be said about this one -- the looks on the faces of Latoya, Fantasia, and Jennifer said it all.

3. Latoya London's elimination (Season 3)
Jasmine instead of Latoya? Simply insane.

4. Chris Daughtry's elimination (Season 5)
Slightly less surprising than Tamyra and Latoya's ousters, simply because at this point in the show's run we knew surprising results were possible. Also contributing to the exit -- Elliott, who was presumed to be the most vulnerable, came out firing, and Chris suffered from dreaded voter compacency.

5. Ruben Studdard's first Bottom 2 appearance (Season 2)
Ruben's trip to the Bottom 2 caused Oprah to call her friend Gayle and proclaim "Girl, we need to start voting!" When Oprah is shocked, you know it's big.

6. Constantine Maroulis' elimination (Season 4)
Even though he was considered a favorite, his lackluster Nickleback cover made it less than mind boggling why the rocker got the boot.

7. Ruben Studdard winning over Clay Aiken (Season 2)
After "Bridge Over Troubled Water" I thought Clay had it in the bag. I still think if busy signals hadn't been a factor Clay would have been Season 2's champ.

8. Sabrina Sloan not making it into Top 12 (Season 6)
I'm still sore about this one -- the girl could sing! It only make it hurts more that she lost out on a spot due to Haley Scarnato.

9. Jim Verraros making it into Top 10 (Season 1)
Again, we didn't know what to expect back in Season 1, and Jim making into the Top 10 was just the first of several surprises.

10. Vanessa Olivarez' elimination (Season 2)
Vanessa was definitely not the worst during the Top 12 in Season 2 (I'd give that honor to Charles Grigsby or Julia DeMato), so her early ouster was nearly impossible to predict.

What do you think are the most shocking results in Idol history?

Top 20 Performances of the Season

With only three weeks remaining until our new winner is crowned, I thought it might be a good time to revisit my list of the 20 Best Performances of the Season.

Jordin Sparks and Melinda Doolittle lead all contestants with four performances each, with Jordin grabbing three of the Top 10 spots. Interestingly, while three of Jordin's performances came from the Top 12, only one of Melinda's has been since the boys and girls merged on the bigger stage. In fact, Melinda's highest ranked performance in the Top 12 comes from "inspirational songs" night two weeks ago (at #15).

Blake Lewis, meanwhile, has two songs in the top 5, with a third just outside of the top 10, while LaKisha Jones has two in the Top 10 and third at #14. Recently eliminated contestants Phil Stacey and Chris Richardson have two and one entries on the chart, respectively.

Another interesting note -- nine of the top 20 come from Semifinals performances, while seven of the Top 20 occurred in the past three weeks. That means only four of the Top 20 songs occurred between the Top 12 and the Top 7.

Here's the list...how does it differ from your Top 20?

1	Jordin Sparks	I Who Have Nothing	Top 11
2	Blake Lewis	You Give Love a Bad Name	Top 6/5
3	Melinda Doolittle	My Funny Valentine	SF #2
4	LaKisha Jones	And I Am Telling You	SF #1
5	Blake Lewis	Time of the Seasons	Top 11
6	Jordin Sparks	Broken Wing	Top 7
7	Melinda Doolittle	Woman	SF #3
8	Jordin Sparks	You'll Never Walk Alone	Top 6
9	LaKisha Jones	God Bless The Child	Top 12
10	Gina Glocksen	I'll Stand By You	Top 10
11	Sabrina Sloan	Never Loved a Man	SF #1
12	Chris Richardson	Geek in the Pink	SF #2
13	Blake Lewis	Somewhere Only We Know	SF #1
14	LaKisha Jones	Ain't A Love Song	Top 6/5
15	Melinda Doolittle	There Will Come A Day	Top 6
16	Phil Stacey	Where the Black Top Ends	Top 7
17	Melinda Doolittle	Since You Been Gone	SF #1
18	Chris Sligh	Trouble	SF #2
19	Jordin Sparks	Heartbreaker	SF #3
20	Phil Stacey	Blaze of Glory	Top 6/5

Nearly 100 Performances In: Top 15 Performances of the Season

When the 7th performer takes the stage tomorrow evening, we will have arrived at the 100th performance of this season of American Idol. In honor of reaching this milestone, I have compiled my list of the Top 15 performances of the season so far. I will check back in each week to see which of these performances hold up, and which new performances get added.

A few interesting notes about this list:

-9 of the 15 entries are from the Semifinals -- a remarkable 60%! Does this mean that the contestants started out the competition strongly but have lost a bit of steam? How many of these semifinal performances will remain on the list as we get deeper into the competition?

-3 of these performances are from contestants who have now been eliminated. How long will they hold up?

-Melinda Doolittle dominates this list at the moment, with 4 of the Top 15 entires. LaKisha Jones and Blake Lewis are the only other 2 contestants to have more than one entry on the list.

TW	Name	Song	Round
1	Melinda Doolittle	My Funny Valentine	SF #2
2	LaKisha Jones	And I Am Telling You	SF #1
3	Jordin Sparks	I Who Have Nothing	Top 11
4	Blake Lewis	Time of the Seasons	Top 11
5	Melinda Doolittle	Woman	SF #3
6	LaKisha Jones	God Bless The Child	Top 12
7	Gina Glocksen	I'll Stand By You	Top 10
8	Sabrina Sloan	Never Loved a Man	SF #1
9	Chris Richardson	Geek in the Pink	SF #2
10	Blake Lewis	Somewhere Only We Know	SF #1
11	Phil Stacey	Every Breath You Take	Top 10
12	Chris Sligh	Trouble	SF #2
13	Melinda Doolittle	Since You Been Gone	SF #1
14	Melinda Doolittle	Heaven Knows	Top 10
15	Stephanie Edwards	Dangerously in Love 2	SF #3