Hip-hop

Let’s go back for a second. 2006, American Idol’s Season Five. The final three were Katherine McPhee, Taylor Hicks, and Elliott Yamin. Taylor Hicks took top honors that year, beating out Katherine, who still received the coveted runner-up position. But the young, Richmond, Virginia-native, Elliott, was left with nothing but lots of publicity and a chip on his shoulder from thinking he should have won. With a substantial fan base (considering the amount of votes he had on the show: about 15 million), Elliott was destined to still release an album. Taylor and Katherine both had a buzz from their releases. Where was Elliott, we asked. Rumors leaked saying he was getting vocal lessons, that he was in jail, and even that he got braces or dental work. The latter is evident. But I think Elliott took his time to brew an exceptional CD that is now his self-titled entrance. I don’t know if we’d consider him “blue eyed soul””, à la Tom Jones, but the man can sing.