And, once again, Haley delivers! Though I have to be honest — it was not my favorite performance of hers. But I’ve been impressed with her song choices lately. I like this song (Beautiful by Carole King) and Haley did it justice, but I couldn’t help but recall Brooke White’s beautiful take on this song in Season 7’s hollywood week. I wish Haley had stripped it down a little bit, if only to let her voice shine through more.

At the start of the season I would have never pegged her to be in the top six, much less one of the last two girls standing. But what I love about her is that she’s probably the most improved of the remaining contestants. Plus, she has a can-do attitude that’s quite refreshing. Yes, she’ll probably be in the bottom three — again — but I like that she’s taking it one week at a time. That’s what LaToya London, Vonzell Solomon, and Syesha Mercado did, and they all made it pretty far (top three, except for LaToya who placed fourth). I don’t think Haley is going to win, not with Scotty and Lauren around, who both have a huge fanbase. But I hope she makes at least top three.