‘American Idol’ Recap: The Boys Sing for Their Lives in Las Vegas Sudden Death Round

On tonight's (Feb. 21) episode of 'American Idol,' 10 male contestants had to perform, vocally duking it out for five spots in the sudden death round in Las Vegas. The girls did it last night and the raw talent was off the chain, so the men really had to step it up this evening.

We'd like to just point out that Randy Jackson wore a navy blue blazer with a varsity "R" on it.

Nicki Minaj is obsessed with all of them and wanted to marry Charlie Watson's vibrato, have babies with Elijah Liu and cradle Charlie Askew in her arms. She was on the prowl and ready to pounce. Rawr!

Mariah Carey said they let of performers and kept singers, but we think the opposite is true. They kept performers and let go of singers.

Here's how the 10 boys fared. The remaining five will sing for your votes next week.

Paul Jolly: Happy Boy (we had to) sang Keith Urban's touching ballad 'Tonight I Wanna Cry,' which the crowd loved. The Urb was flattered that Jolly chose his song. Nicki Minaj felt he was using his eyes too much while Randy Jackson compared him to Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox. Carey disagreed with "other people on the panel" -- the subtext there screamed "NICKI!" -- and said it was an intimate side of the Jolly one. (STILL ALIVE)

Johnny Keyser: Keyser, who was booted last season, is a model-handsome gent who turned in a pretty version of Jason Mraz's 'I Won't Give Up.' He blossomed when the backing choir came in. He was a bit of a roller coaster, showing his nerves, according to Keith Urban, but he loved how he was melting into the song at some points. Minaj disagreed, probably because she wants to bone him. He doesn't have the best voice, but he has the sparkle in his eye and is sexy, so girls will like him. (ELIMINATED)

JDA: The fabulous and flamboyant singer turned up the heat by singing Adele's retro soul jam 'Rumor Has It,' which he did while laying on his side and with lots of glitter in his hair. We'll give him this -- if you are going to attempt an Adele song, you better do something different and make it your own and that's just what he did. Randy 'Dawg' Jackson said he saw these moves 20 times before. Maybe, but to Adele's song? No way, Randall. (ELIMINATED)

Kevin Harris: Mr. Harris' voice is smooth like butter melting on a hot biscuit. He turned in a dreamy rendition of Bryan Adams' '(Everything I Do) I Do It for You.' He had great range, and like most 'Idol' singers, he waited until the end of the song to let 'er rip. Minaj called it "perfection," since he was relaxed and sweet to the ear. The Jacksonator said it was boring and karaoke. Mimi wanted something more dramatic. It was like Nicki and Randy heard two different songs. (ELIMINATED)

Chris Watson: The waiter from Dover, Delaware wants to be leaving big tips, as opposed to receiving them. He was flashy in a sparkly black jumpsuit as he sang a faster-paced, more upbeat version of '(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay.' It was a more rock 'n' roll version, and Watson let his hips do some of the work. Minaj wanted to "marry" his vibrato. Everyone felt the song choice was wrong, since it didn't show his muster. (ELIMINATED)

Devin Velez: The 18-year-old sang Beyonce's 'Listen' in both English and Spanish, so it was Spanglish. He was a bilingual and bold belter. His performance and his voice projected a warmth. It was the first performance that varsity R-wearing Randy loved so far this evening. (STILL ALIVE)

Eljiah Liu: The Mexican and Chinese singer crooned a dreamy version of Bruno Mars' 'Talking to the Moon' that was off key. It was shaky and imperfect, vocally. But the judges felt he had control and that he has a terrific, incredibly current look. But his nerves were omnipresent in his performance and in his voice. (STILL ALIVE)

Charlie Askew: Chuck embraces and glorifies weirdness, and it works for him. He delivered Elton John's 'Rocket Man' in Askewed fashion. He is super unpredictable and goes places you can never guess in advance of him singing. Nicki said she wants to cradle him in her arms. (STILL ALIVE)

Jimmy Smith: Another Keith Urban song, this time "Raining on Sunday," which was sung by an aspiring country singer with equally memorable hair a la Robert Plant. Urban was appreciative of contestants doing his tracks. Minaj was bored, so was Randy. Mimi thinks there is more of him that America needs to see. (ELIMINATED)

Curtis Finch, Jr.:  The St. Louis native did him some Luther Vandross, singing 'Don't You Remember,' which is such a wedding'y song. He oversang it a little, but it was also really powerful and he had so much range. He is in his 20s, so he needs to relax it a little and be young, since he is. Mimi gushed, so did Nicki. (STILL ALIVE)

Watch Curtis Finch, Jr. Perform 'Superstar' on 'American Idol'

Watch Jimmy Smith Perform 'Raining on Sunday' on 'American Idol'

Watch Charlie Askew Perform 'Rocket Man' on 'American Idol'

Watch Johnny Keyser Perform 'I Won't Give Up' on 'American Idol'

Watch Elijah Liu Perform 'Talking to the Moon' on 'American Idol'