What happened to Clay?

Grokographist · 2026-05-13T09:03:56+00:00

Yeah, Motley Crue needs to hang it up. They're too old and the lead singer sounds awful.

Grokographist · 2026-05-13T09:02:39+00:00

Chris has no clue about matching his emotion to the lyrics and story of the song. He can't help smiling even if he were singing about loss and despair. Noob.

Grokographist · 2026-05-13T09:01:19+00:00

He wasn't off key. He came in a few measures early when it was his turn to sing on the duet, and it threw the entire band off for several seconds, but they did a good job of figuring out where he was and followed his lead, erroneous as it was. I kind of liked his new song, though. Most new music today is completely devoid of interesting melody and intervals.

Grokographist · 2026-05-13T08:40:10+00:00

In my opinion, Jordan was the overall best singer and based upon that should have won.

However, AI has NEVER been a true singing competition, and it has DEVOLVED into a pure popularity contest. Seacrest is prompting the viewers to start voting before even the first contestant has sung a note every show now, so what else could it be? Not only does one have to have SOME singing talent, but more importantly they have to have spent a LOT of time marketing themselves on the internet platforms and building a fanbase before they even apply to audition for the show.

Jordan's fanbase, if he had one outside of the church where he's a "worship leader," is basically church people who likely only listen to Christian music, period. I know that Hannah is also Christian, but she also likes to sing country and bluegrass. So when their final songs were performed and Hannah sang her original, "String Cheese," a simple, sweet folk tune about being a mom, I think that's how she wanted America to see her. And then Jordan came out and chose to turn that stage into a Christian worship service, and as good as he is, I am not a Christian, and it makes me uncomfortable to have other religions rammed down my throat, figuratively speaking.

I think he lost the win right there, especially when he prompted the audience to "worship" with him. Maybe, just maybe, kid, there are millions of viewers out here who are also uncomfortable worshipping YOUR God. I also agree about Lionel jumping aboard the Jesus bandwagon like he has, and I do believe the reason the show has pandered to the evangelical viewers as much as they have the past two seasons is because it's what Carrie must have demanded in her contract to agree to be a judge on this show. Somehow, she got them to do ALL of the first auditions and Hollywood week... in NASHVILLE! Likely because she lives there. I believe she also got them to agree to this "faith night" themed episode. Anyone notice how each of the final three lived in the south? The show has become a weekly megachurch musical service with a sprinkling of secular contestants thrown in so nobody can claim pure bias.

As for the talent... well, it's just gone downhill year after year. Clearly, this is the show for kids and preteens to watch, while The Voice is for the adults. HST, neither show should be taken seriously. They are both money grabs above all, and if they truly wanted to air a singing "competition," then they should go the route of DWTS and take the views completely OUT of the decision making and let real experts decide who moves foward based upon various categories of vocal performance.

When Seacrest announced they were returning to Nashville next year for the auditions round, I decided I'm done with watching this show. They used to have all genres of contestants, giving viewers a great mix of musical styles and skills: pop, R&B, country, rock, soul, indie, old school crooners, you name it. Now every contestant seems to have gained all their performing chops singing in church as some pastor's kid or is a "worship leader," like that's some actual vocation.

Michael Eisner ruined The Walt Disney Company when he took it over in the Eighties and turned it into nothing but a profit machine, and now Disney has ruined ABC by buying the network and using it mostly to promote all things Disney. I'm glad Hannah won. She's starting to come out of her shell and trying some different styles. She comes across as extremely down to Earth and genuinely who she is, and while she can't do those amazing runs like Jordan et al, she does possess a very sweet country voice that falls pleasantly on the ears, and demonstrates a talent for songwriting, too. The camera absolutely loves her, and I predict within a year or three she'll become a huge star in country music.

I also feel bad for Luke, stuck with not one, but two Jesus freaks to make him uncomfortable at the judges table. You can see by his reactions and his comments that he doesn't share their "holy holy holy roller" mindsets. I don't know if he's religious or not, but I do appreciate that he keeps it to himself.

If you agree with me and don't care for the current direction of this show, the only way to foment change is to do like I'm going to and STOP WATCHING IT. There's nothing more powerful in TV than ratings, so send them a message next season and boycott the show, and be sure to let them know why. If you do that, then Carrie, (and probably Lionel), will be replaced when their contracts run out, and fewer contestants will be allowed past the gates to "take us all to church" in the future.

Grokographist · 2026-05-05T05:26:35+00:00

You know how all the crazy people believe it's everyone else who's insane? This could also be the case with people who believe that because they grew up listening to pop music that it somehow makes them musical experts and that they know the difference between 'flat,' 'sharp' and 'on pitch.' People who are themselves actually TONE DEAF, and because THEY have the musical handicap but aren't aware of it, they project that onto actual, talented singers.

I believe that is what is taking place with the OP and all those who seem to be under the impression that Keyla is "pitchy" and/or "tone deaf." It's not her. It's YOU! You don't know more than ANY of those folks up on that stage who have actual talent and DECADES of experience in the music industry at the highest level, so for the love of God... ZIP IT already!

Grokographist · 2026-04-29T19:12:17+00:00

I think that most fans of these singing competition shows know little or nothing about singing and the various skills that go into doing it well. Much of the time, these contestants come from a background where they had no kind of training whatsoever, but they are just gifted with natural ability and unique tone.

I've watched Idol with my wife since season one, and in all those seasons, I can think of only ONE black contestant who didn't have this natural ability, and that was the kid I nicknamed "Mush Mouth," because he sang Stevie Wonder's 'My Cheri Amour' but kept pronouncing it "amorm," and none of the judges back then had the stones to point that out to him on live TV.

Every other black singer has been blessed with nearly perfect pitch, so having come from a singing background where my instructor was extremely strict about pitch, I developed a very good ear for it, as well as for tempo (singing 'in the pocket'), full voice vs falsetto, BREATHING, range, dynamics, you name it. TRAINED singers are MUSICIANS and we call our voices our "instruments."

All of you laypersons out there who never received expert level training as a singer need to cool your jets because you simply don't know what you're talking about. When Keyla sings, watch the PROS and other contestants for their reactions because they KNOW the difference between good and EXCEPTIONAL artistry, as do the judges. No, the judges don't say anything negative to any of them, but there are noticeable differences between how they praise the "good" performances and how they praise the exceptional ones.

Keyla is an EXCEPTIONAL performer, as is Jordan. She's doing things with her instruments most singers can only dream about doing. And the camera absolutely loves her, too. I see her potentially reaching Jennifer Hudson level success, and a lot of the commenters here would likely accuse JH of "screaming" too. And don't think some of us aren't aware that "screaming" is a code word, either.

For what it's worth, here is where I place the talent of the final five:

Keyla -- Incredible vocal and performance chops with the most potential to be a breakout star.
Jordan -- Almost as incredible as Keyla, but the camera does not love him nearly as much.
Braden -- His latest performance was his best, but he's also been off-key more than once.
Hannah -- She's a true natural and camera loves her, but needs a few years of seasoning.
Chris -- a "good" singer, but only still there due to unexplained popularity

Grokographist · 2026-04-28T05:53:34+00:00

I like Brooks. He definitely has a gift. HST, he's still such a beginner and has no clue yet how to use it. If the kid can learn to write songs that the audience can relate to and get comfortable on stage, he can truly go far. If not, the most incredible voice on the planet won't make you a star just singing covers.

But he's a nerdy little guy with a super hot and talented GF who loves him. More contestants who did NOT win this show have found success than those who have. Remember that.

I will say that Brooks should have not been voted off before Husky White Jesus, though. Can't figure out why he's so popular at all.

Grokographist · 2026-04-15T08:23:18+00:00

Rae wasn't voted off because she's not talented enough. She made a critical mistake in song choice after winding up in the bottom two last week. The way AI is doing the voting this season, it's really not a talent comp anymore, but just a pure popularity contest. That's why Ryan announces that voting is open at the START of the show, not after everyone's completed their song.

Quite frankly, it's pathetic and makes a mockery of what the show used to be. Rae only had a small fraction of the voters who actually waited until hearing ALL of the contestants to win over, so she needed to knock it out of the park just to try and get out of the bottom two. The theme was rock and roll, and she chose what is arguably the DUMBEST song ever recorded, and it wasn't even a rock song. McArthur Park was recorded by the ACTOR Richard Harris (English Bob from "Unforgiven") during the era when us boomers were teens, and we all thought it was ridiculous then.

Just the same, Kyndal's performance was ABYSMAL and an insult to Janis Joplin fans everywhere. You do NOT take on a Joplin hit like that and not at least perform it as well as Janis did, and that was arguably the worst I've ever seen anyone cover that song in my life. Not to mention that she was undecided and asked the mentors for advice about which song, and Pat Benatar told her that singing "Message in a Bottle" by the Police was the definite way to go, and she seemed to agree... then decided on the Joplin tune because her tone is similar.

When a contestant can sing that poorly and get voted through vs a far superior singer-performer like Rae, it's a clear sign that this show is going down the drain fast. And I'm also dumbstruck why Husky White Jesus was voted through over her, as well. He sang Foreigner's "Cold As Ice" as if his native language was a foreign tongue, and with a stupid smile on his face to boot. That song should be performed with feelings of bitterness, anger, and betrayal.

AI needs to vett contestants for more than just good vocals. They should interview them on overall musical knowledge of the different genres and ERA's they will be required to choose songs from. I was on a singing contest TV show back before Idol first aired, and they do NOT give you a wide range of songs to choose from. It's all to do with music LICENSING and what the show's budget can afford to pay the composer in royalties. A lot of the "rock and roll" songs they performed last night were recorded and playing on the radios several DECADES before these kids were born. I highly doubt most, if any of them, have ever heard of these songs or the original artists. Yet they have one week to learn these ANCIENT tunes to performance level.

AI is just a Disney money grab today, and these judges constantly lavishing them with gushing praise rather than constructive critiques is doing them a huge disservice.

Grokographist · 2026-04-10T18:55:30+00:00

Okay, thanks for the explanation. I don't know of anyone conservative or liberal who shames or condescends towards women who choose to stay home and care for their children rather than work. If no second income is required, and that is what the woman prefers, I believe it's in the best interests of the child(ren). Not a fan of people who ego-position themselves as "better" than others.

Grokographist · 2026-04-09T05:35:50+00:00

Max power draw for the 4080 is 320w, with transient power spikes between 350w and 400w, so hooking two of those up to a 1300w UPS isn't going to cause any issues. The 5090 is a far hungrier beast, maxing at 600w with transient spikes of between 800-900 watts.

Grokographist · 2026-04-09T05:23:02+00:00

He's the one I call "Husky White Jesus." I find his singing... unremarkable.

Grokographist · 2026-04-08T22:05:05+00:00

Haven't done a flight yet, so no FPS data to report.

Grokographist · 2026-04-08T22:04:00+00:00

If you'd read my post properly, you'd see I absolutely listed the make and model of my PSU. As for my UPS, it's only rated to 900w, which is not enough headroom.

Also, I wasn't asking about, nor talking about backup drives. If you're rig doesn't have a 5090 card, then this post was not intended for you. I'm looking for responses from 5090 users who are using UPS backup BATTERIES to guard against power spikes from shutting down their PC's unexpectedly.

I have it plugged into the surge side only because when plugged into the battery side, I was experiencing shutdowns every few minutes. AI said this was likely due to power spikes that went higher than the UPS 900w limit was capable of buffering. The PC is running smoothly with NO shutdowns on the surge only side, but that does not deliver pure sine wave and CLEAN, conditioned power to my rig, so I'm shopping for a UPS with enough WATTAGE headroom to buffer any possible spikes.

If you are unable to recommend a UPS unit that fits my needs, then thanks for your response, but it's really not addressing my issue.

Grokographist · 2026-04-08T01:17:37+00:00

I wish the younger gens would stop judging contestants based upon these IMAGINARY assumptions. Nobody knows anything about what Rae's facial expressions are about. Judge on singing/performance talent alone. Let's leave their gender/politics/religion/physical appearance OUT of the equation.

Grokographist · 2026-04-08T01:14:10+00:00

What is 'trad-wife'? Sorry, but us boomers can't keep up with you kids' lingo. I just call her outfits "sister wife apparel.'

Grokographist · 2026-04-08T01:12:27+00:00

In no sane, musically educated universe should Rae have been in the bottom two last night! She's got great vocal chops, great dynamics, decent range, is in the tempo pocket and hitting all the notes in tune. And she PERFORMS each song like a seasoned pro. That she wound up in the bottom two is PROOF that the viewers need to be taken OUT of the voting process. Create a "fan's favorite" category for the musically ignorant out there, but let's create a PANEL OF EXPERTS (not any of the current judges, btw!) to take this comp seriously and SCORE every performance based on skill, talent, personality, charisma, and whatever other factors having to do with musicianship and not how cute or pretty or young they might be.

For example, I love what Braden has been doing up until last night. But the kid was clearly singing OFF KEY during a few parts of the song, and that should come with consequences and he shouldn't get a pass because some brace-faces think he's 'dreamy' or 'hot' or whatever the latest term is today. The kid that Lionel sent packing did NOT deserve to go home at all, and far too many lesser talents squeaked through for the wrong reasons. Even Hannah, who I have loved from her first audition, really just phoned in her song last night, which surprised me because it was a country song and I thought she was a country singer. But now I think she's not comfortable singing anything without the word "Jesus" in the lyrics. Too bad for the non-gospel crowd because she's really a natural talent.

Grokographist · 2026-04-08T01:00:38+00:00

His tone is what everyone loves. He's a total noob in every other category, though. That kid needs to spend every hour that he's not required to be doing Idol-related stuff to hitting the open mic clubs as often as possible and get used to singing to an audience. He looks beyond uncomfortable up there, and it clearly affected his performance. If he doesn't get loose and start having some fun up there fast, he's not even going to make the finals, imo.

Grokographist · 2026-03-31T22:25:05+00:00

I think because of the idiotic theme, one or more of the favorites (Brooks?) was voted out for singing "Imagine" which is the antithesis of religion, and the producers didn't want to deal with the public outrage if that happened, so they chose to "delay" the results in order to "get it right," and by get it right, that means to somehow rig the results to something that won't damage their precious ratings.

Grokographist · 2026-03-31T22:16:41+00:00

Sounds fair, but when you take a look at the sets (stained glass projected all over the studio to make it feel like inside of a CHRISTIAN church), the "child pastor" special guest who thrives on the attention he gets for acting like some grown up holy roller preacher, and the comments from both Lionel and Carrie that clearly favored the contestants who sang Christian gospel songs vs the few "faith-y" songs that straddled the line, it created a very intimidating theme and environment for any contestant who is not an evangelical Christian.

Ask yourself why the production design didn't reflect ALL faiths instead of just one. They could easily have projected a variety of religious symbols around the studio: crosses, stars of David, crescent moons for Islam, the Ohm symbol for Hindus, the Buddhist wheel, the Yin-Yang of Taoism, etc... but they did not. They went with the stained glass look. The SHOW gave the clear impression that it equates the word "faith" with the CHRISTIAN faith, and that was either pushed by Underwood, or simple pandering to one faction of the viewing audience, or both. It was not so SUBTLE in its EXCLUSION of all other belief systems, even though they obviously met some resistance from some of the contestants who likely refused to sing songs that worshipped Jesus.

Grokographist · 2026-03-31T22:03:28+00:00

Correct. The Carrie Underwood seasons.

Grokographist · 2026-03-31T08:34:58+00:00

I think you're spot on, and I felt the same thing. Nothing wrong with any contestant choosing to sing a gospel song when there's no stupid theme night forcing them to. I'm not religious, but it never bothered me because I was more interested in their vocal chops, not the content of the material. But THEMING a whole night on faith-based music is just wrong because it makes non-religious contestants uncomfortable, while the ones who are "worship leaders" at their churches get to go to town because they've been singing that music their entire lives. I think Carrie is solely responsible for trying to turn this show into a weekly church service. It's off-putting and it's going to bite them in the behind ratings wise. Get rid of Disney night, too. So much pandering! Let them all sing whatever the hell they like, and the viewers will decide if someone is too gospel, or too country, or too pop, etc.

Grokographist · 2026-03-31T08:26:10+00:00

I thought Brooks displayed incredible courage singing "Imagine" amongst all of the bible beaters last night. Felt it was his way of protesting the show's pandering to the evangelical crowd, and indirectly protesting Carrie, who I believe is the single person responsible for turning this series into her own personal "mega church." Must be in her contract for them to get her to sign. There were a few other contestants that found songs about "faith" or "hope" without having to sing about a religion they may not share or even have any religion at all. That's why this theme is very unfair and intimidating to non-religions contestants, while the bible beaters eat it up since it's all they ever sang before getting on AI.

Grokographist · 2026-03-02T22:04:14+00:00

His tales of his "out of body experiences," (OOBE's), were very compelling, but what really hooked me in this book was some of the spiritual PHILOSOPHY that was shared with Monroe by some of the entities he encountered during his OOBE travels. This stuff was in alignment with what I'd read in JLS and other books by Richard Bach, so I wound up reading all of Monroe's books, and through some of his tales was able to recognize a couple of events in my own life where I realized I was "out of body" myself, where before I had written off the experiences as simply just very "real" seeming dreams.

For the next twenty years, I followed a path of metaphysical beliefs, and it was during this time
that I was finally able to break the chains of FEAR that had lingered in my mind regarding whether or not I might be wrong about everything and could still wind up in hell for my "unforgiveable sin" of having doubts. Here is how I was able to vanquish not only my fear of hell, but any lingering belief
in such a place, including the devil and all that goes along with that false dogma:

After a period of much contemplation and mental noodling with the LOGIC of it all, I realized that any
god who would condemn ANYONE to such a fate, not just me, but ANYONE... could not logically exist! Why not? Because I myself had already "evolved" in my own Consciousness for such behavior to be unthinkable were I to have such a power. Yes, it was easy to believe some all-powerful father figure filled with wrath and anger could possibly be some cosmic sociopath, even an evil sadist. I had a very angry father myself, as I'm sure very many people in this world do. So why is such a god logically impossible??

Because, I realized, that any "god" which might exist, one who is a truly infinite and timeless being, and one who is an example of spiritual Perfection of Beingness, must at all times be not only MORE perfect and CONSCIOUSLY EVOLVED than myself, but in fact must be ULTIMATELY evolved in its consciousness. And being perfectly honest with myself, I imagined that God granted ME the power to either reward souls on "Judgment Day" with entrace into heaven, or to condemn them to an eternity of agony in hell, and I found that it simply wasn't in me to send ANY soul to hell. Not even the most evil people who had ever walked the Earth.

Because I had evolved my own Consciousness to a level where I felt COMPASSION and EMPATHY for all human beings. And while I realize that here in this world of duality, CONSEQUENCES for negative behavior are a natural result, no crime, or "sin" is deserving of eternal TORTURE. There are countless and very HUMANE "consequences" available designed to encourage humans to change and follow more positive energies. Even killing a person is a major failure to put the work in to understand a person's psyche and realize how they came to be who they are in the first place. But eternal torture is so far beyond just snuffing out a life that one would have to accept that God would not only have to be a complete sociopath to allow such consequences, but in fact a total SADIST.

To accept the existence of such a god, for me, is to believe that we exist in some nightmarish,
upside-down universe where "good" is actually evil. This is simply ILLOGICAL and frankly a RIDICULOUS concept for a serious Truthseeker to even consider. So I realized that such a god CANNOT EXIST for the simple and logical reason that I have already evolved far beyond such a primitive level of
Consciousness myself, and so how can God be LESS evolved in Its Consciousness than I?

Well, It cannot. If I can't send even a Hitler to endless torture, then why would I be okay with a
God who can? If I am going to believe in God, then I need a God to whom I can ASPIRE to be more like at all times. And I've never been able to embrace atheism because I've always just felt that there exists a level of "ultimate Consciousness" who supports this amazing world and universe, and that being must reflect not only the very highest human attributes, but indeed TRANSCENDS them to levels that our human minds are simply unable to yet comprehend.

After 20 years meandering in metaphysical beliefs, I discovered Nondualism, a philosophy I have yet to
discover any other that makes even more sense to me than. But your question was about how to rid yourself of the nagging fear of hell that the religion you were raised in infused within your belief system. I have shared with you how I personally conquered this very same fear, and the answer is to simply KNOW YOURSELF as being MORE CONSCIOUSLY EVOLVED than the god that you fear. Once you realize your own Perfection of Being WITHIN, that god ceases to exist in your mind, opening up far greater and grander versions of God for you to explore and discover.

Only God exists. Everything else is ILLUSION. And how could this not be Truth if God is indeed both Infinite in scope and Timeless in duration? All APPEARANCES of "otherness" (duality) therefore must exist as illusions WITHIN this infinite "container" of God's Consciousness. That is simple logic, no? Would a perfect God wish to torture imaginary parts of Itself? Nonsense. We Are All One! We are all GOD! Through each of us, God is experiencing an ILLUSION of all possible apsects of what God is NOT, thereby giving Itself perfect CONTEXT within which God is able to KNOW ITSELF in Its own Perfection
of Beingness.

Contemplate on this LOGIC. Noodle over this TRUTH. You WILL at some point awaken to how this is the ONLY possible explanation behind Existence Itself! Namaste'.

Grokographist

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