Casey James | featured news

To nobody’s surprise, and to the relief of the “American Idol” executives, it will be Crystal Bowersox and Lee Dewyze singing in the finale next week. It’s hard to argue with the results. Bowersox has been strong all season long, and Dewyze has emerged over the past month to join her as a favorite. The contrast between the indie coffeehouse artist and the paint-store rocker — and believe me, you’ll hear that story line a zillion times this week — will be fun to watch.

Of the three remaining “American Idol” finalists, two have been sure bets. And then there’s Casey James. He’s been in the bottom three in back-to-back weeks, so why is he still here?

Adam Lambert has pooh-poohed our "American Idol" fave Siobhan Magnus.Adam, who spent a week as guest mentor on "Idol" says he thinks the contest will come down to Siobhan's four big rivals."There's some amazing voices this year. I think Crystal [Bowersox], Casey [James], Lee [Dewyze] and Michael [Lynche], for me, those four really stand out as authentic, pure, amazing vocals," he said.