Rising Star - Week 3 - Live Blog and Recap

Welcome to the live blog and recap of Rising Star Week 3! Last week's episode advanced five more singers during the live show, and featured West Coast saves for two more vocalists who were just on the bring of reaching that coveted 70% total.

But who will be the ones to advance this week? It's the final night of live auditions! Could the winner of the entire shebang be in tonight's group? Also, expert Brad Paisley performs! It's going to be a packed show, so keep it locked right here, as Rickey will be adding videos as the night rolls on, and I'll be updating with my running commentary!

Let's do this!

Credit: ABC

RECAP

-We kick things off by seeing a recap of last week's show, with some of the heartbreakers that failed to raise the wall, and the celebration of Megan Tibbits and Shameia Crawford getting rescued by the West Coast. Josh Groban announces that this is the final night of live auditions, and the Duels begin next week. Because The Voice is slowly taking over Earth. Josh asks if Brad will be twerking tonight for his performance, but all Brad wants to know is whether the Wall will be down or up during his performance. "I think you've already been voted through," Josh assures him. Yet, throughout all this, I find myself wondering if The Night's Watch is guarding this Wall.

DANA WILLIAMS opens the show!

-Her father was a guitarist for Michael Jackson, and taught her to play guitar. However, her father tragically had a stroke several years ago, followed by a heart attack, which claimed his life. She talks about how music was something they did together, and that she wants to succeed for him ("I think he'll be really happy for me...and proud for himself."). She'll be singing "Stay" by Rihanna, which sounds like a pretty good fit for her voice, although we don't get enough from her rehearsal clip with Josh to know one way or the other.

-Dana kicks things off with the chorus, which seems like a weird choice. Also a weird choice, the decision to forego the guitar after talking it up so much in her VT. Her performance is solid but unspectacular. She can certainly sing, but there's not that much memorable about her. She's up to 45%. Now 50%. And now Kesha and Ludacris have given her an upvote. And now Brad Paisley, and she's in.

DANA WILLIAMS RAISES THE WALL!

-Ludacris talks about enjoying the performance and tells her to "keep it going" in the next rounds. Kesha, meanwhile, feels Dana can win this competition. "You're beautiful, your spirit is beautiful, and your story is really sad." Um...weird comment. But she does offer her condolences for Dana's loss, and tells her how proud her father would be. Brad says he admires that Dana has an attitude that suggests she won't let anything get in her way.

VIDEO: Dana Williams, "Stay"

UNSELFISH is up next!

-AJ, Antwan, Kevin and Brandon are the four-man group known as Unselfish. They met through a dance company and have been together ever since. And I mean "together." They live together, eat together, work together, sing together, and basically spend nearly every waking moment together. This helps them blend more as a group, although Josh is a wee bit worried about their vocals, particularly their enunciation. I think their harmonies sound pretty tight, although I don't disagree with Josh about their enunciation. They'll be singing "Some Nights" by Fun, and I really wish we could declare a moratorium on Fun songs. Although I'm all about more fun songs. (Somebody do "This Is How We Do It"! Come on, you know you sort of want to, random person who hasn't gone yet!)

-So here's the thing. It was a decent performance, and these guys can definitely sing. But it just didn't have anything really memorable about it. I just couldn't really get behind it. The harmonies are a bit off and the guys just don't have as much stage presence as their pre-performance video suggested. I'm kind of disappointed, and the rest of America must be too since they aren't getting the necessary votes. They've pretty much plateaued near 40% before Kesha adds her vote. But it's not enough, and Unselfish does not raise the Wall, which means yet another group fails to make it through.

-Kesha praises their energy and calls them "the cutest," but states that the harmonies were a bit off. However, she's still a believer. Ludacris notes that the harmonies weren't just off, they were "all the way off," but states that he knows firsthand that people from Atlanta are resilient. Brad believes they have talent, but he just couldn't vote for them this time around. Ultimately, I'd argue he made the right call. I like these guys, but I just didn't like their performance.

VIDEO: Unselfish, "Some Nights"

-Back from break with Josh interviewing the people who've already advanced over the last two weeks. Josh then jokes that the duels aren't about singing, but actually feature "old-timey muskets." Kinda loving Josh, honestly. He notes that they'll explain how the duels will work later.

CLIFF CODY is up next!

-Cliff is a good ole boy with two goats named Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. I like him already. He notes how he's a nurse because this is the best way for him to provide for his family; however, he's on the road a lot trying to make it for his wife and daughter. They won't let him give up, and they're his biggest fans. This is kind of adorable, and I'm already rooting for him. Here's hoping he's good.

-Cliff is singing "I'm Gonna Be Somebody" by Travis Tritt, and...eh, it's just okay. And that's so unfortunate, because I really wanted this to be good. Granted, it's not bad either, but he has pitch issues not unlike CJ Harris of American Idol XIII. He's up to 20%. 24%. None of the experts have voted yet, and the song is already half-over. Eh, he's getting slightly better as the song gets into the chorus and the bridge. He does have a very nice country voice once the pitch and tone issues are ironed out. Could just be nerves. Now he's in the mid-30s. Kesha has voted no while Brad Paisley has voted yes. That's the only judge he gets, peaking at 48%. Cliff does not raise the Wall.

-Brad says he voted yes, knowing that it wasn't going to go his way. His rationale is that Cliff just needed to pick a better song, because when he finds the right note, he "has it." Kesha agrees that Cliff nails it when he reaches the right note, and states that she really respects Cliff's integrity. Ludacris, meanwhile, states he was rooting for Cliff. He says he feels that Cliff really wanted it, but didn't give it his all. This is another classic case of "likable guy/iffy performance." Again, I didn't think it was bad, necessarily, but it just wasn't up to snuff, even though it did get better as it went along. Which brings me to...

-You know, I haven't actually voted on Rising Star before since I'm doing this live blog and have to keep track of everything in real time. But I imagine if I were to vote, I'd inevitably end up changing my mind half-way through. And from what I know about the app, once you vote, your vote is locked in (please correct me in the comments if I'm wrong on this. No, really. Please do). That's kind of the risk of a show like this. Do you vote early on your first impression, or do you hold back and wait it out, and run the risk of not getting your vote in on time? I get the feeling that Cliff could have changed my mind with a different song, but I would have voted no. Still, I'd have been questioning myself about halfway through, and that's significant in that no other voting format on reality TV works this way, since you're not voting during a live performance. That's why I find this show interesting and worthwhile, even while it doesn't exactly set my world on fire.

VIDEO: Cliff Cody, "I'm Gonna Be Somebody"

-Back from break with Josh asking Kesha some twitter questions about how to join her "Cat Cult," and it apparently has to do with pretending to be a cat. "I had a tail! No, really, that's real." This...yeah, I've got nothing to say about this.

-Josh wants us all to go to twitter and hashtag #TellRisingStar to offer song suggestions for the duels. Now's my chance to get "This Is How We Do It" on the song list!

AUDREY KATE GEIGER is up next!

-Audrey talks about her father being a musician, and instilling his love of music in her. She says she's inherited his musical talent, in addition to his passion, which is something with which her mother will not disagree. She also talks about being a hippie chick for some time, having refused to wear shoes for something like two years. However, Audrey notes that you can't go barefoot in NYC, which is where she moved to pursue her dream. Much like our first singer tonight, she wants to make her father proud.

-Audrey sings "Stay With Me" by Sam Smith, and her voice is certainly unique. Sounds like a weird cross between Macy Gray and early Amy Winehouse. I can't really explain it. She's far from the best we've heard so far in this competition, but I really like her. She spends the majority of the song hovering between the 40s and 50s before Brad and Ludacris at their approvals. Kesha voting for her brings her right to the brink, before America takes her the rest of the way with 84%.

AUDREY KATE GEIGER RAISES THE WALL!

-Audrey fights tears as the wall comes up. Ludacris says Audrey has something no one else has, adding that "unique" is a word that will get you places on a show like this. Josh agrees. As does Brad, who thinks maybe her soulfulness comes from surfing. OH MY GOD, he picked up on the Macy Gray connection too! WE ARE ONE MIND. IT HAS BEGUN. Brad finishes by calling her a "free spirit," and Kesha talks about her wildness and encourages her to be herself, and only herself, no matter what.

VIDEO: Audrey Kate Geiger, "Stay With Me"

OhMG is up next!

-Yes, "OhMG" with an "h." Gabby and Michael met randomly at a house party through a mutual friend, and began jamming together regularly. Gabby grew up without knowing her biological father, and flew to the Philippines to look for him. One day, a man walked into her uncle's house, and she knew it was him. When they finally met, Gabby realized she got her love of and aptitude for music from her father, which has me wishing they'd just rename this damn show I Got My Love of Music From My Dad and get it over with already. Josh praises their passion but says their vocals need serious work. Josh, bringing the realness.

-They sing "Lights" by Ellie Goulding, and it's not good. Gabby has potential as a solo, but I think this is really forced as a duo act. For much of the performance, they're stuck in the teens, reaching 17% before getting a brief surge following Kesha's upvote. But Brad and Ludacris vote no, and they just can't get that Wall up.

-Kesha explains she voted yes because she likes Gabby's voice (much more than Michael's), and thinks it could be even better with work. But she went for some runs that she didn't exactly get, so it was rough. Brad notes that no groups have gotten through, and it's a bit of a double challenge, since you have to get the blend right. Josh agrees wholeheartedly. Ludacris adds that a group or duo is only as strong as its weakest link, which is not to say that Michael was bad, but simply that he couldn't hold a candle to Gabby. I dig the more blunt, straightforward honesty of the panel tonight.

VIDEO: OhMG, "Lights"

-Back from break, and apparently #KeshasCatCult is trending on Twitter. Yeah, I got nothin'.

GABRIELLE NICOLE is up next!

-She talks about singing since she was three, beginning in church. She started out being forced to sing, since there were ten major families in the church, and hers was one of them. So, naturally, expectations built and she found herself singing in front of everyone, even though she was a shy person. When she first sang at age 3, she could only get two notes out before running off the stage. But she's grown to love singing, and hey, they must have done something right, since she's here now. Let's hope she's good, so that she wasn't traumatized at childhood for nothing.

-Gabrielle sings "My Man" from the classic musical Funny Girl, and...well, looks like her family made the right call. Best of the night so far by a very wide margin. All three experts swipe in her favor, and it's not long before America follows suit. Her "diva" power raises the Wall in record time, it seems like. and if I were the voting type, I'd have given her an upvote. It's just refreshing to hear someone about whom there's no question. She's fantastic. Gabrielle Nicole ultimately advances with a whopping 90% of the vote.

GABRIELLE NICOLE RAISES THE WALL!

-The experts gush over her performance, with Ludacris standing on his chair. Josh says Barbara Streisand would have been proud of that performance, and Ludacris adding that if every performer were like Gabrielle, he wouldn't be such a tough judge. He says she's earned the right to be called a diva. Meanwhile, Brad vows that this is a performance he's never going to forget, with Kesha adding that her vocal ability is simply amazing. I can't say I disagree with any of them on that one. But maybe this performance just speaks to me as a theater nerd.

VIDEO: Gabrielle Nicole, "My Man"

-Back from break with an expert taking the stage with his new single...

BRAD PAISLEY performs "River Bank"

-I've never made it a secret that modern country doesn't do a whole lot for me, but I thoroughly enjoyed this. Maybe not as much as a Keith Urban tune, since his seem to have a bit more of a Southern rock vibe to them, but this was perfectly enjoyable. I fully expect for him to appear on Nashville this upcoming season at some point. I have no idea why I think that other than the fact that he's appeared before, and it wouldn't surprise me in the least to have a crossover with Rising Star. Lord knows, Rayna James would probably be a better judge (or "expert") than Kesha. In fact, somebody get Connie Britton in on this!

KAREN HORNSBY is up next!

-Karen has been married for fifteen years, and they have a young daughter named Gabby. Unfortunately, in June 2005, they got the news that Gabby had brain cancer. After countless rounds of chemotherapy and other treatments, she's been left blind and unable to speak. My god, that's awful. She says there's nobody on Earth stronger than Gabby, and states that she sings for her, since her voice is one of the few sounds she recognizes and responds to. Gabby even stands up and starts clapping when she hears her mother. Oh Lord, I'm getting misty-eyed just watching this. I'm not even kidding. Ugh, it's a nightmare trying to write through misty eyes.

-She sings "To Love You More" by Celine Dion, and while I don't like the song, and while I can admit that Karen's vocal has a few pitch issues, this is absolutely STUNNING. Maybe it's partially because of the backstory, but I got chills listening to this. Goosebumps in my SOUL. Before she's even halfway through the song, she's up to 50%, and the experts add their votes to the total, with Brad voting last. And that's enough to practically get her the rest of the way, until America adds its votes to get her above 80%. Much like Gabrielle Nicole, Karen raises the Wall, and the crowd is giving her a standing ovation before the song is even over.

KAREN HORNSBY RAISES THE WALL!

-Josh tells Karen that what she means to her little girl is the real "championship" here, and that he wants her to make that little girl her #1 fan "for always." Um, okay? Brad notes that he was the last to vote yes, and admits that there were elements that weren't perfect, but he couldn't deny that she has something. Kesha breaks down into tears, standing up for her and noting that while her voice is fantastic, she's such a great mom that it really moved her. Ludacris states that he could feel how badly she wanted this, and had no problem voting yes. I wouldn't have had any problem voting yes either, even recognizing that the backstory would have been a big reason for having done it (at least on my end). Seriously, this is probably the one time where I've been unashamedly moved by a backstory to where I have absolutely no regrets in being engaged by it. But I did love Karen's voice, even without all the story, and even with its imperfections. Just lovely.

VIDEO: Karen Hornsby, "To Love You More"

TX3 is up next!

-Lance, Miles, and Jordan are grown triplets from Illinois who've always been singing and dancing together, from high school choir to dance groups. They moved from small-town Illinois out to California, and made money by doing "Troubendaling," which is a combination of troubador and chippendale. Basically, they sang on the streets of Hollywood Boulevard in chippendale outfits...which is to say, hardly any clothes at all. Well, at the very least, they have the physiques for it. Maybe they'll have the voices to raise the Wall.

-Or not. They sing "Keep Your Head Up" by Andy Grammer, and this may be the worst live audition on a major music talent show I've seen this year. Just awful, from the terrible harmonies to the nonexistent individual voices. They have a little stage presence, but that's about the best I can say for them. I have no idea how they even made it to this audition. Brad and Ludacris vote no, but Kesha votes yes to get them out of the teens, because of course she does. They land at 22%, which seems mostly a yes for being cute. But who knows?

-Turns out that was exactly the reason, as Kesha states that she voted yes with the hope that they'd take off their shirts. Ludacris insists Kesha can't do this, not on live TV. He then turns his attention to the guys and says he has no idea what's happening here. They have absolutely no stage presence, and their harmonies need serious work. Brad is with Ludacris, saying he just didn't get it, and that it wasn't for him. However, he notes that the boys got the only vote that mattered on this panel. Still, I get the feeling they'd have gotten Kesha's vote anyway, as long as they weren't mute. And maybe even then. This was just so insurmountably awful that I just don't know who put them through to the audition or why. We haven't had an outright TERRIBLE auditions before like on American Idol, so why start now?

VIDEO: TX3, "Keep Your Head Up"

-Back from break with an awkward segment, as Josh asks the contestants through to the duels who they're most scared of facing off against. Karen Hornsby says "ALL OF THEM!" and notes that everyone is incredible. Gabrielle Nicole, meanwhile, potentially loses a whole bunch of votes by saying everyone should be more concerned about who has to go against her. Granted, I have no problem with confidence whatsoever, but I imagine some will.

SKYE GRIFFIN is up next!

-Skye grew up with her grandmother after being taken from her mother, who was unfit to care for her. She didn't truly meet her mother until she was 16, seeing her only intermittently throughout her childhood. She feels her relationship with her mother made her who she is, particularly since her mother has gotten herself clean and started her own organization. Skye is singing "Only Girl In the World" by Rihanna, and in her rehearsal, it just does not sound good at all. Josh notes this, saying she's adding a lot of unnecessary runs, which is exactly what she needs to hear. Let's see if the advice sticks.

-She's dressed in a short skirt, thigh high boots and a white blouse, like she's somehow decided "this is what a pop star looks like." It just feels like she's trying too hard, but at least she has the swagger to carry off the look. Reminds me a bit of Tamera Foster from The X Factor UK 2013...except without the voice. Skye's voice is way too nasally, which damages the other positives about her performance, such as look and stage presence. She remains stuck in the teens until (of course) she gets Kesha's vote. She ultimately lands at 28%. But that is far from enough to raise the Wall.

-Ludacris likes her boots, and notes that she does have presence, but says it just wasn't enough. However, he encourages her to keep at it. Kesha, meanwhile, states that this competition is about to get really serious, and that people are going to be pit against each other. This somehow ignores that Kesha actually voted yes, but I guess it's all relative at this point. Brad felt that it was just the wrong song, and that this competition is about to become the "Roman Coliseum" in how it pits people against each other. Thus, he didn't feel it was enough. And I don't disagree with that one bit.

VIDEO: Skye Griffin, "Only Girl In the World"

-Back from break with Josh announcing the twist that next week, the experts on the panel will be mentoring them during the duels. That's a twist? I just assumed from the start that this would be happening. However, Josh also mentions that the winner will get a record contract with Capitol Records, and this prompts Ludacris to go into the story of how he got his first record deal. He worked at a radio station and funded his own studio time and mastering, and went on to sell 50,000 copies of his independent record, which is kind of insane. Apparently, his name at the radio station wasn't Ludacris, but Chris LuvaLuva. Er...yeah.

MORGAN HIGGINS closes the show!

-Morgan is adorable, talking about having a bunch of "nervous bugs." She talks about being awkward at school, since she's only 17 and still in high school, leading to a cute moment in which Josh talks about being the exact same way when he was in high school (really? Noooooo...). She seems cheery, even if she isn't the most confident person we've seen tonight. She has no real backstory to speak of either, which is honestly kind of refreshing, given the overabundance of epic personal narratives in tonight's episode. I find myself rooting for her. Here's hoping her talent bears it out.

-Morgan sings "Alone" by Heart, and I kind of wish we could retire this song from singing competitions, even though I love it. This song isn't right for her, not that it matters what I think, since she proves to be very popular with America, racing up the vote totals. Ludacris and Kesha add their votes as well, and this vocal gets significantly better as the performance rolls on. I just think she needs more confidence, since it's clear she's finding her confidence now, as the performance nears its end and she can hear the roaring approval of the crowd. Morgan ultimately reaches the necessary 70% and raises the Wall, ending with 74%.

MORGAN HIGGINS RAISES THE WALL!

-Brad explains why he voted no, saying that it can't be easy all the time. However, he says Morgan is beautiful and talented and adorable and all those wonderful superlatives that leave Kesha wondering why the hell Brad voted no. For her part, Kesha states that she was a lot like Morgan in high school, and says that music was her escape. She loved Morgan's performance, and Ludacris did as well, saying that Morgan has that certain intangible quality that they're looking for. Morgan advances, and that's a wrap!

VIDEO: Morgan Higgins, "Alone"

-However, before we part, we find out the first three match-ups for next week's duels. It will be...

Jesse Kinch vs. Will Roth
Sarah Darling vs. Megan Tibbits
Lisa Punch vs. Alice Lee

Interesting match-ups, if a bit lopsided. For instance, I see no way that Alice Lee doesn't get slaughtered. But then, there have been bigger surprises on shows like these before, so who knows? Join us next week to find out who wins and who goes home, as the singers battle for America's vote!

What did you think of tonight's show? Did the right acts go through? Did the right acts go home? Will any of tonight's singers be saved by the West Coast? Sound off in the comments! Thank you for hanging out, and I'll see you next week!

GOODNIGHT!