Pia Toscano's elimination last season on American Idol was the shows greatest injustice since Jennifer Hudson was booted off the show. Toscano's elimination was a result of the judges using their save TOO EARLY - (FOX - photo )

17-year-old Scott McCreery WON THE AMERICAN TITLE joining Jordin Sparks as the youngest winners of the contest - Fox photo   American Idol's youngest ever finalist 16-year-old Lauren Alaina finished 2nd in the competition - Fox photo   Haley Reinhart was eliminated @ # 3 - Fox photo   James Durbin was eliminated @ # 4 - Fox photo   Jacob Lusk was eliminated @ # 5 - Fox photo   Casey Abrams was saved by the American Idol judges in the 11th position and eliminated in the 6th position - Fox photo   Stefano Langone was eliminated @ # 7 - Fox photo   Paul McDonald was eliminated @ # 8 - Fox photo   Pia Toscano took the American Idol judges advice to sing an up tempo song, did and was eliminated @ # 9 - Fox photo   Thia Megia was eliminated in the double elimination 11-10 positions with Naima Adedapo - Fox photo   Naima Adedapo was eliminated in the double elimination 11-10 positions with Thia Megia - Fox photo   Casey Abrams was saved by the American Idol judges in the 11th position - Fox photo   Karen Rodriguez voted off @ 12 - Fox photo   Ashthon Jones voted off @ 13 - Fox photo

Video Beat SPECIAL - Part 1 - AMERICAN IDOL ROCKS AGAIN WITH PIA TOSCANO & CASEY ABRAMS REPLAYED

James Loving - National Radio Text Service

Without a doubt last season American Idol had their best group of talent ever. The shows creator Simon Fuller signed six of the Top 11 contestants to his Entertainment 19 management company and NONE were minorities - Recommended TV Listings

Thursday January 12, 2012

WHO CAN FORGET THE PIA TOSCANO CASEY ABRAMS EPISODES?

For sure last season American Idol had the best array of talent in their history. We can't recall a final two being as strong as Scott McCreery and Lauren Alaina both off to strong careers. The strength of the talents is evidenced in that of the 11 contestants that went on tour this past summer six have been signed to the Idol show's creator Simon Fullers 19 Entertainment management company. Listen up… first there was Schindler's List and now this is Fuller's List.

That list includes McCreery, Alaina as well as Haley Reinhardt and James Durbin who finished 3rd and 4th respectively. Fuller also went deep into the tour group of 11 in selecting the most controversial duo of last season Casey Abrams 6th and Pia Toscano 9th.

What is NOT on the list is a minority. Of the FIVE minorities that made the Top 13 NONE was selected to be managed by Fuller and the 19 Entertainment group. Jacob Lusk was the highest ranking minority finisher in the contest in reaching the 5th position before he was voted off the show. Is Fuller celebrating the Martin Luther King holiday season of I had a dream in his selection process or does it beg the question does the minority talent lack the quality required resulting in his choice of talent?

The other minorities that were left off the 19 Entertainment ship were Naima Adedapo who with Thia Megia were eliminated double elimination 10th and 11th positions after Casey Abrams was saved. Prior to their departure were Ashthon Jones 13th and Karen Rodriguez 12th.

Paul McDonald 8th and Stefano Langone 7th were the only non minorities not to make Fullers list.

The irony is hat the judges saving of Abrams in the elimination on the 11th position to reach the Top 10 final contestants that would go on the tour was the worst judging decision ever made in American Idol history. It tops the elimination of Jennifer Hudson who was told by then judge Simon Cowell that she was out of her depth in the contest implying that she was lacking talent. She went on to become a Grammy Award winner as a recording artist and an Academy Award for acting in the film Dream Girls.

When Abrams was saved we wrote that it was a bad decision and questioned what would happen when a talent with a better voice than Abrams was in the spot to be eliminated and couldn't be saved since the judges foolishly wasted the save SO EARLY. It happened two weeks later when Toscano was on the chopping block and sent packing.

After Abrams was informed that he receive the lowest amount of votes from the viewing public there was a dramatic turnaround. As Abrams was singing to be saved he was interrupted before he was singing halfway into the song "I Put a Spell on You" Randy Jackson asked him to stop and said, "Listen we know who you are Casey we don't need to hear you sing anymore more."

"Yea this is crazy we decided to keep you on," added Stephen Tyler.

"Are you kidding," Abrams asked. "I can't believe it," he repeatedly said. He was shocked since he recognized the quality of voices and talent on the show. With common sense he realized that with the save being used so early that someone with a better voice than he would be eliminated.

Jennifer Lopez gave Abrams some reassurance of how much the judges were behind him, "When we heard the result we said what's going on. We want you to get back to where you belong. You deserve to be here."

Ryan Seacrest then stated, "Two people will go home next week. We determined before the performance that something like this would happen and all 11 will go out on the tour."

It would become a nightmare two weeks later when Pia Toscano was the result elimination of the judge's stupid decision. That set up the double elimination follow-up show to the saving Abrams episode in which 15 year-old Megia and Adedapo were shown the door.

On that double elimination performance show when Abrams came out to sing the judges each voiced how proud they were in making their decision to save him. "I slept like a baby," said Jennifer Lopez who also kept addressing Abrams with the adjective baby.

The night Toscano was eliminated she made a bad decision to listen to judge Randy Jackson's bad advice for her to sing an up tempo song and stop singing ballads and as he suggested "TO SWITCH UP GEARS." She did as he suggested and sang Ike & Tina Turner's "River Deep - Mountain High."

When it was announced on the results show that Toscano received the lowest votes and was voted off the show shocked looks were on everyone's faces and the reality of the judges poor decision started to sink in.

Prior to the result it was generally thought that given her great voice that Toscano would never receive the lowest number of votes. The fault was blamed on the public when Seascrest pointed out that as voters they can never be certain of who they thought would be safe thus they would vote for their second choice. Reality played out that way.

How fitting that TONIGHT in East Asia the replay of the Pia Toscano elimination episode will air at 8 PM and midnight in the Hong Kong/Singapore time zones and 7 PM in the Thailand/Indonesia time zones on the Star World channel. It will repeat tomorrow in East Asia from 12 noon to 12:05 PM and 1 PM to 1:05 PM in the Hong Kong/Singapore time zones. Star World is notorious for changing their schedule and not being on time.

Following her elimination Toscano 23 landed on her feet. Her mental maturity helped pull her through. The shows in house mentor Jimmy Iovine said at the time of her elimination that he would sign her to a record deal. He lived up to his promise and did.

Toscano has the voice and talent to have won it but was denied that opportunity. She has since recorded a duet of "The Christmas Song" with II Volo for their EP Christmas Favorites, which was released on November 21, 2011 and has a single out titled "This Time" that reached 104 on the Billboard charts.

Toscano also had a fling of the Hollyweird glamour scene by having a relationship with one of the dancers in the hit TV show Dancing With the Stars. There is no information if that relationship continues.

Part 2 - WILL AMERICAN IDOL JUDGES SUFFER THE SOPHOMORE JINX?

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