‘American Idol’ The Boys’ Live Performance Recap: America Gets the Chance to Vote

Tonight's (Feb. 28) episode of 'American Idol' featured the first live performances of Season 11. Woo hoo! Only the crop of boys performed, and we have to say there is quite a bit of variety this season. We enjoyed a neo-jazz scatter, a White Chocolate soul singer, an indie alt rock pianist and more. Jermaine Jones was brought back to compete, too.

Sadly, half of the talents will be eliminated this week. The girls will perform tomorrow, as well.

Good luck, America. This voting process ain't easy. Here's PopCrush's recap to serve as your cheat sheet for when you go to vote.

Reed Grimm: The scatter turned in a slow, sexy, jazzy version of 'Moves Like Jagger.' He picked up the sticks and played drums too. It didn't even sound like the pop hit featuring coaches from that other reality singing show. In fact, until he sang the title lyric, we were wondering what the hell he was singing.

Adam Brock: The soul singer who refers to himself as "White Chocolate" sang 'Think' by Aretha and he turned in a solid performance from start to end, with a major finish.

Deandre Brackensick: He turned in a '70s-inspired, falsetto rendition of 'Seasons' by Earth, Wind and Fire. He had hips swaying and hit notes that reached the heavens.

Colton Dixon: The Dixon name remains in the running, even though his sister got cut. The well-coiffed Colton took his seat behind the piano to perform 'Decode' by Paramore. We like his vibrato and "indie alt rock" vibe.

Jeremy Rosado: Sara Bareilles? Really? Really. He sang the tender ballad 'Gravity' and hit all the right notes, proving that you don't need to be dramatic and show-stopping to make just as huge of an impact.

Aaron Marcellus: The J Lo fave sang the Jackson 5's 'Never Can Say Goodbye.' He hit an impeccable run of notes at the end.

Chase Likens: The country boy issued a 'Storm Warning' and his mainstream country vibe (think Keith Urban) and good looks set hearts aflutter.

Creighton Fraker: His version of Cyndi Lauper's 'True Colors' shone. It was absolutely beautiful and dreamy. Unique, too.

Phillip Phillips: Phillip (squared) took Phil Collins' 'In the Air Tonight' and gave it an almost countrified twang. He also upped the tension on an already taut song. That final not? Whoa. Nice work, P to the P. The judges say they think of him like they thought of last year's terrific twosome (McCreery and Alaina!)

Eben Franckewitz: He is the youngest performer of the season and he acted like a seasoned veteran, singing Adele's 'Set Fire to the Rain.' It was imperfect, but it was still good. His cuteness and youth are likely enough to send him further into the competition.

Heejun Han: Aiming to prove that Asians have heart and aren't just able to get high SAT scores –those were his words, not ours- he turned in a sweet performance of 'Angels.' The judges didn't think it was the right song for his silky voice. Heejun (said in the melody of 'Hey Jude), take a good pop song, and make it better ... next time!

Joshua Ledet: Christened "Mantasia," in homage to Season 3 winner Fantasia Barrino, Ledet got a standing ovation from the judges for his soulful, richly toned rendition of 'You Pulled Me Through.' He has a voice from God and can do R&B or Gospel. "He takes people places," Tyler said. His voice is like GPS. He gets you from here to there.

Jermaine Jones: He got the call back – yay, we love the gentle giant! - and he sang 'Dance With My Father' by Luther Vandross. He has such a booming, baritone voice, which is why the judges brought him back. But when he tamed it at the end, with a silky sweet note, our knees weakened. The judges were smart to exercise their executive power to bring him back.