For weeks, thousands of fans around the country watching Adam Lambert on "American Idol" have been reminded of Axl Rose. And while Rose may not be appearing on the show, his former Guns N' Roses bandmate, Slash, is, and the guitarist has given Lambert the thumbs up.
"Those 'AI' kids can sing their asses off, especially Adam," Slash, who is mentoring "Idol's" contestants on rock week, wrote in a post on his Twitter page over the weekend.
While he didn't offer any hints about the material the final four - Lambert, Danny Gokey, Kris Allen and Allison Iraheta - will be singing, Slash said he approves of their yet unnamed song choices.
"The contestants from 'AI' picked some really cool songs for next week, thank God!" Slash tweeted.
Late last week, Slash confirmed he had been asked to mentor the four finalists, and he accepted the gig on his own terms.
"As you may or may not know, the producers for 'American Idol' have asked me to be the mentor for 'Rock Week' next week. I was reluctant at (first), but they offered me the freedom to do it however I wanted," he wrote on his official MySpace page.
Slash, who is known for his guitar playing more than his vocal chords, said he took on the mentor job in a way the show has never seen before.
"The approach I'm taking is different than usual on the show, and I'm going to make this as rock 'n roll an 'American Idol' as possible," he wrote. "Wish me luck."
Slash, who has worked with many of the rock world's vocalists, said he was digging what's been coming out of the final four.
"There are a few singers this year who are really impressive," he wrote. "It's the first time any 'AI' line-up has really caught my attention."
