Castro breaks into Idol Top 10

Tue, May 13 2008

— By David Wilfong
Herald-Banner Staff

Torrential rains ripped through Rockwall County on Tuesday night, but a faithful group of more than 100 still braved the elements to gather at Pier 419 at Lake Pointe Church for another round of Castro-gazing as Jason Castro made the attempt to break into the Top 10 on the American Idol stage in Hollywood.
Castro’s rendition of “Michelle” on “Beatles Night” was trimmed with a humorous grin as unfamiliar french phrases rolled off the tongue and his hometown congregation alternated between chuckles and cheers.
Simon Cowell, recognized as the toughest judge on the program, remarked that Castro was fortunate to be competing on a television competition and not a radio version, “... because your face sold that,” he said.
Cowell also commented that it was not a night for great performances overall.
“This is a very weird show tonight,” Cowell said. “And I’m not sure it was such a good idea doing Beatles again ...”
But the performance was apparently good enough to secure Castro a “safe” spot on the following night’s program and propel him into the Top 10 finalists.
The step is significant because it qualifies Castro to perform on the American Idol tour that follows the completion of the televised singing competition.
Details have not been released yet for the Idol tour, but last year’s schedule included 56 concert dates between July and September.
The agenda included a stop in Toronto for Canadian fans. Local fans may have to hit the road as Dallas was not included on the schedule for the last tour.
The concert schedule for the 2007 tour was released on May 10.
Castro joins, Brooke White, David Archuleta, David Cook, Micheal Johns, Ramiele Malubay, Syesha Mercado, Carly Smithson, Kristy Lee Cook and the singularly-named Chikezie.
Amanda Overmyer, a southern-rock styled singer from Indiana was the last contestant eliminated before the touring group was established.
On the home front, friends of Castro are planning a special party to celebrate his 21st birthday, which he will spend performing on the Idol stage next Tuesday night.
Via e-mail and word of mouth, yet another Castro-gazing party has been organized for next week’s event at a church in Mesquite to celebrate the event.
And of course, the campaign to secure votes for Castro in his “home district” continues to rival the tenacity of even the best grassroots political organizations.