Over the years, that crown has occasionally been tainted. Think Ruben (what's his last name?). Think Kris Allen. Think about the people who got robbed, like Jennifer Hudson (actually, she's probably not crying in her beer), Clay Aiken, and even Adam Lambert. And, think about Brian Dunkleman.
All right, I'll tell you who Brian Dunkleman is. Brian Dunkleman was Ryan Seacrest's co-host the first season. According to Wikipedia, Dunkleman "stated his departure was due to the terrible way they treated the young contestants on the show, staging the fights between the judges and reshooting contestants with producer-provided, glycerin tears in their eyes. He went on to say that leaving the show was a mistake." Whoops! His bad. I'll bet his wife is really mad at him.
Given that the whole concept is probably rigged and obviously, Simon prefers the pretty girls (think Bikini Girl), why do I continue to watch nine seasons later? It's because I care. These people still have to sing in front of an audience of millions. They are young men and women (and sometimes little kids who are barely out of middle school) who give it all up for the chance. How many of us do that in our lives? Where have we settled? How many of us are brave enough to (metaphorically speaking) stand on a stage, sing unaccompanied, and risk Simon's caustic comments?
We love Idol because hope springs eternal and we love the underdog. We love Season 4's Carrie Underwood, the American Idol winner who has become the biggest thing in country music yet can still sell out two nights at Ravinia, the summer home of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. I went to see her at Ravinia and so did a lot of my 50-something friends, and she was fabulous. She's America's sweetheart and she can sing the heck out of the Star Spangled Banner at Superbowl XLIV and win our hearts.
That's why I cry for the contestants on American Idol. It's reality T.V. that's actually real.
4 comments:
We stopped watching Idol after Taylor Hicks won. It was just too much. REALLY?
I hesitated to list Taylor Hicks because at least he has had some success in musical theater as a result of his win. Certainly, despite his grey hair, he was not MY American Idol.
YES TAYLOR HICKS EXACTLY!!! That's when I stopped even part-time watching too. And although I did DVR the episode where Posh was a guest judge, I haven't even watched it yet.
You're going to laugh. Posh was a lot more interested in the contestants' clothes than she was in how they sing. She really focused on the "total package." That being said, she was usually right.
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