American Idol Top 5 live blog: The Nicki Minaj-Mariah Carey battle round continues

"American Idol" is under way on Fox. Each of the five singers will perform two songs tonight. The first theme is "the year you were born" and the second theme is "divas." Here's what's happened so far.

Yikes, Nicki Minaj is popping out of her dress tonight. Round No. 1 is "the year you were born."

Candice Glover kicks off the night with Paula Abdul's "Straight Up." She changes the arrangement and makes a cool, jazzy version of the 1988 song. She gets points for creativity and versatility. But is it a crime to say I wanted more? Yes, it's a sweet throwback tune. However, simply changing a song's pace does not make you the best singer ever. The arrangement doesn't allow Candice to deliver the big notes that really separate her from the rest of the pack. This isn't on the level of Candice's performances from last week. In a post-performance interview, Jimmy Iovine agrees with me. Yippee!

Keith: "That was so good...That was such a great version of that song."

Nicki: "Once again you showed that you're a boss...I liked that you put your own spin on it."

Randy: "I thought it made the song even more current."

Mariah: "Genius. Nobody can do what you do."

Janelle Arthur covers "When I Call Your Name," a 1989 tune by Vince Gill. She takes the stage with her guitar and delivers an old-school country music vibe. From the opening moments, I can tell some people will think this performance is boring. It's hard to entirely disagree. Janelle hits some nice notes, but it's not completely memorable. That said, I don't hate it entirely. The good news? Janelle stays away from the excessive perkiness that's rubbed me the wrong way in previous weeks. She's not perfect, but she seems slightly more genuine. In a post-performance interview, Jimmy Iovine says, "She just wasn't strong enough."

Nicki: "When you have your guitar, you're so much more comfortable."

Randy: "I think you did a really great job...Janelle's back where she belongs! ."

Mariah: "I believed you."

Keith: "I didn't feel it."

Kree Harrison sings "She Talks to Angels," a 1990 tune by The Black Crowes. In a pre-performance interview, Kree says people might be surprised she chose this song. I'm not sure I agree. Sure, it's a little more upbeat than what we've seen in previous weeks, but it's not the big jaw-dropping moment I've been begging her to deliver. I'd describe the performance as "good." It's not spectacular. In fact, it seems like Kree strains her voice on some of the high notes. Kree still hasn't blown me away. "This song just wasn't strong enough for Kree's vocal," Jimmy Iovine says in a post-performance interview.

Randy: "I love you...What I love about you is all the naturalness in your spirit and in your voice."

Mariah: "You can sing anything and I love to hear you sing."

Keith: "Your voice is so fine and beautiful."

Nicki: "That was the best performance of the night, absolutely, by far."

The critiques inspire a slight fight between Nicki and Mariah. Nicki says she disagrees with Mariah, who apparently disagrees with the notion of Nicki's disagreement. Confused? Me too. Nicki tries to resolve things by telling Mariah, "Simmer down, sir."

Angie Miller sings "I'll Stand by You," a 1994 tune by The Pretenders. She sits at the piano and and begins the performance with a dedication: "This is for my home, Boston." It's a pretty good performance, and I agree that Angie is most in her element when she sits at the piano. However, I can't get past how Broadway this rendition feels. I'm getting a serious "Glee" vibe, and I don't like it. Three of the four judges give her a standing ovation -- everybody except Nicki. In a post-performance interview, Jimmy Iovine says, "She did a fabulous job."

Mariah: "It was perfect, especially tonight in terms of your hometown."

Keith: "I love you at the piano."

Nicki: "You know we are all obsessed when you are on that piano...Congr! atulation! s on a great performance."

Randy: Says these five singers are some of the top singers ever on "Idol." I disagree.

Amber Holcomb performs Mariah Carey's cover of "Without You," which was released in 1994. I'm a little upset that Amber is back in ballad mode. But her attempt at uptempo material landed her in the bottom two last week, so I understand her point of view. Arguably, this is the most challenging song of the first round. So Amber gets points for that. However, I'm not entirely feeling her emotional connection with the song. Three of the four judges give her a standing ovation -- once again, everyone except Nicki. After the performance, Jimmy Iovine says he'd rank her as the second-best of the night.

Keith: "We've got an Amber Alert going on." Really, Keith?!?

Nicki: "I feel you were really stoic...there was no feeling in the beginning." Nicki compares it to Mariah's version and kind of/sort of compliments Mariah. I'm shocked.

Randy: "It wasn't perfect...I think you did a damn good job."

Mariah: "I loved a lot of the choices you made."

Time for the second round: "divas."

Candice Glover sings "When You Believe" by Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston. Sorry, folks...I'm not really feeling Candice's song choices this week. This one just seems a little too predictable. It takes me a while to get into the song, but I enjoy the end, which gets full gospel treatment. I'm pretty sure that all the judges got on their feet except Nicki. Overall, it's a fine performance. My biggest complaint is the song choice. I wanted more creativity.

Nicki: "That is how you do a Mariah Carey-Whitney Houston song...That kind of collaboration has never happened since Mariah and Whitney."

Randy: "That's the best vocal of the night...You are so in the zone."

Mariah: "I am so proud of you."

Keith: "I love your voice because it stops me in my tracks."