The last man standing leaves the showEvery season of "Idol" has a controversial contestant whose cockroach-like tenacity and inexplicable ability to outlast more talented singers stirs the outrage of the "Idol"-viewing public. For instance, Season 3 had John Stevens, Season 7 had Kristy Lee Cook…and of course, who could ever forget Season 6's Sanjaya Malakar? And Season 12 had Lazaro Arbos, who practically made those former "Idol" villains seem like Adam Lambert. But please note my use of the past-tense word, "had." Because after outstaying his welcome for several weeks and gradually transforming from America's sweetheart to "American Idol's" punching bag, Lazaro finally went home in sixth place this Thursday.

So now, in an unprecedented and historical (or herstorical) "Idol" development, the top five are ALL FEMALE. Finally the show's honchos got that "girls' season" they'd been wanting for years. And now it's a given that Season 12's champ will be a girl, the first female "Idol" winner since 2007--accomplishing what poor Jessica Sanchez, Lauren Alaina, and Crystal Bowersox could not. How fitting that this all went down on a night when the most awesome "Idol" girl ever, Kelly Clarkson, performed on the results show and was as adorable as ever.

(Phil McIntyre/SYCO, Ken Bunt/Disney, Beatrice Miller, Simon Cowell, Mio Vukovic/Disney)Beatrice Miller didn't go nearly as far on "The X Factor" Season 2 as she should have, mainly due to her misguided mentor Britney Spears's penchant for dressing her in hobo rags and making her sing some of the most depressing, age-inappropriate song choices in "X Factor" history. But now the precocious, impossibly awesome New Jersey teen has found a label that ought to understand her: Hollywood Records, home to teen-pop sensations Bridgit Mendler, Selena Gomez, and returning "X Factor" judge Demi Lovato.

It was excitingly announced Thursday that, in a new partnership with Simon Cowell's Syco Records, 14-year-old Beatrice has signed with Disney's Hollywood label. This is the first signing via the Hollywood/Syco Records collaborative arrangement, which implies that there will be other joint signings in the future. (Might I suggest Lyric 145, Jennel Garcia, or recent "X Factor U.K." winner James Arthur?) But Beatrice seems like the perfect launch artist for this new venture. "We are

On Monday, "The Voice" Season 4 Blind Auditions wrapped up, and the coaches' four teams (of a dozen each) were at long last complete. Now, let the Battles begin!

Today my "The Day After" cohost Matt Whitfield and I discuss the last four contestants to make it through, and we also assess where all the teams stand so far. Which team do you think is the strongest going into next week's Battle Rounds? Feel free to leave your own thoughts in the comments section below.

Luke Edgemon stands out during the final Blind AuditionsThe final night of "The Voice" Season 4 Blind Auditions aired Tuesday, and with the coaches having only one vacant spot each on their respective teams, they had to be very picky. Now was not the time for them to gush over any singer with a decent set of pipes and a pulse (like that Melissa McCarthy "SNL" skit parodying "The Voice" last weekend). So among the passed-over auditioners were Mark Lennon, longtime frontman of L.A. local heroes Venice (despite host Carson Daly's unabashed fanboying) and a cute indie nerd-boy named Dustin Hatzenbuhler. But by the end of the hour, four contestants made it through, and the teams were at long last complete. And it was game on.

Here are the final four singers who advanced to next week's Battle Rounds: