On Sway and Ace

Ace Young is the complete packaging of an American Idol, has the most (as Simon defines it) "likeability factor" among the guys and he can sing. But when it comes to voice , I think Fil-Am Jose "Sway" Penala has the edge over him. Ace Young's rendition of Daniel Beddingfield's "If You're Not the One" was horrendous but he received "mild" criticisms from the judges. He didn't nailed the false part of the song leaving the the audience shortchanged. On the other hand, Sway's rendition of Stevie Wonder's "Overjoyed" was alright. A little lack of confidence but i think he nailed it. Like what the judges said, it wasn't the right song to sing at this moment because you can't help but being compared to the original when doing a song by icons like Stevie Wonder. Same thing happened with Heather Cox by choosing a Mariah Carey piece, remember? She was compared to Mariah.

But i think the result would have been different if Jose "Sway" Penala did the Daniel Beddingfield song instead of Ace. I think Sway can hit the false part of the song and own the song unlike Ace regardless of how he looks. Sway was booted out because of an underrated performance but i certainly think it's not bottom 5 performance of the night. Sway was judged 70% of his looks and only 30% of his talent. I thought they're rooting for talents this season but i guess it has to be total packaging still. Looks + Talent = American Idol packaging. And Sway is lowest in the "looks" category.

Nevertheless, a big congratulations to Sway for making this far as Top 20. I guess he's no. 17 since he was the last to be booted out. Randy Jackson was even shocked on his inclusion in the bottom 3. But hey, this is a reality competition and it's beyond our control. Sway's out. At least it has been a good exposure for him to land a record deal. Good luck Sway. Thanks for making us Filipinos proud. Mabuhay Ka!