Entertainment Weekly scoured the last seven seasons of American Idol to compile a list of the Top Ten Most Ghastly Performances in the talent competition’s history. First up, Season Four’s Mikalah Gordon who screehed her way through a painful performance of Taylor Dane’s ”Love Will Lead You Back.”

EW says: Bad enough that the spunky Las Vegas teenager inexplicably turned Taylor Dayne’s big ballad into a funeral dirge, but even worse, her voice kept cracking like Humpty Dumpty hitting the sidewalk. By the time poor Mikalah grabbed the mic off its stand and began to approach the audience, it almost felt like a threat.

Next up, Entertainment Weekly rips a new one for Season One’s “Little Contestant That Couldn’t” Nikki McKibbin. Nikki sparked Idol’s first race scandal when she beat out solid contender Tamyra Gray to land amongst Justin Guarini and Kelly Clarkson in the Final Three.

It almost seems too easy to take another swing at season 1’s perennial punching bag, but listen to the non-existent lower register, the shrieking high notes of Nikki’s Naked Eyes cover, and you’ll hear how far Idol has come over seven seasons. This is what once passed as a top-three contestant

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