American Idol pares to 12 finalists

'American Idol' pares to 12 finalists:
LOS ANGELES - Teen power won on "American Idol" Stevens and Katie a place in the top 12, while a more experienced singer got the ax requested. Stevens, 17, earned viewer support despite the judges of the show earlier this week were disappointed by her performance of "Breakaway" which Randy Jackson compared to karaoke. Scott Lilly, despite earning praise for her artistry on "I Fall to Pieces" was one of the four participants dropped Thursday. They include Alex Lambert of North Richland Hills, Texas; Todrick Hall of Arlington, Texas, and Katelyn Epperly of West Des Moines, Iowa. Scott, who was warned by Simon Cowell that her version of the standard land can be risky, stood on stage next to Stevens to hear which of them would be home. Scott appeared stunned when her name was announced. "I thought I did very well. I put my heart into every performance," says Scott, 20, of Littleton, Colorado "I know there is an audience there for me." Judge Kara DioGuardi, comparing the two, admitted that Stevens of Middlebury, Conn., had the advantage of a more contemporary sound, but not even know themselves as a performer, while Scott did. It was no surprise that the favorite of the court of last week, Michael "Big Mike" Lynch, made the cut. Lynch, 26, of Astoria, NY, especially dazzled the panel Wednesday with his performance of "the work of this woman," which brought tears DioGuardi. The other finalists are Crystal Bowersox, 24, of Toledo, Ohio, Siobhan Magnus, 20, of Marstons Mills, Mass., Lacey Brown, 24, of Amarillo, Texas, Paige Miles, 24, of Houston, Designat Didi, 23, and Los Angeles, Andrew Garcia, 24, Moreno Valley, California, Casey James, 27, of Fort Worth, Texas, Tim Urban, 20, of Duncanville, Texas, Aaron Kelley, 16, of Sonestown, Pa., and Lee Dewyze, 23, of Mount Prospect, Ill. Lambert, 19, who had difficulty overcoming his shyness on stage, looked beaten down and tears when he learned his fate. "There is a lot of things America has not seen me yet," he said, adding, "I wish I could just broken out of my shell. " Judge Ellen DeGeneres gave him a verbal pat on the back. "You're so good. Do not ever stop believing in yourself, "she said. Hall, however, looked on the bright side. "This is a great experience. I came here to prove that I'm not just a dancer, can I sing. I think I've done that," he said, deserve encouragement of Jackson. "Great, man, "said the judge told him. DioGuardi Epperly was criticized for "going through the motions" on her version of "I Feel the Earth Move" earlier this week. Cowell's performance in comparison to evening in a restaurant application, but added that he, like her full , curly locks evoked composer of the song, Carole King. "I'm not stopping now. It's just really a push for me. I do more things, "Epperly said Thursday.