I didn’t watch the first season of American Idol. Somehow the hype failed to catch my attention, and I was crazy busy with work that year. The following year there was enough buzz that it was very hard to ignore it.
So for Season two, back in 2003, we finally gave the show a try, and I had to admit it was entertaining. I especially enjoyed the early auditions. How some people could honestly convince themselves that they could sing was beyond me. And I’m not just talking about those that were a little off tune. I’m talking about the auditions that would send our cat fleeing the room in terror. And while Simon Cowell’s critic of these bad auditions was often hilarious, brutally honest, down-right mean, or all-of-the above – I couldn’t help but often agree with him 95% of the time.
Now for those that watched season two, do you remember the first audition from Clay Aiken? Here’s this scrawny nerdy guy who you almost couldn’t help but instantly judge as a bad singer before he even opened his mouth. And the show did a masterful job of making the viewer go there mentally – which is both sad and brilliant because when Clay began to sing both my wife and I were blown away. We looked at each other with shock and surprise on our faces – this guy could really sing! We’re taught as kids to not judge by appearances, but it’s easy to do, especially when a TV show sets you up for it.
Anyway, as season two progressed we’d tune in to see who was eliminated and who continued. When Clay Aiken was initially cut I was surprised, but I pretty much chalked it up to his image more than his singing. I felt (and still do) that if this was a radio only contest that the results would be wildly different. It was great to see him make it back into the show as a wild card, and from that point forward he simply dominated (in my opinion), and while there was certainly talented singers around him, I felt he shined far above them all. And it seemed that America felt the same way as Clay made it all the way to the finale – Clay Aiken vs Ruben Studdard. Now Ruben was certainly very good, but Clay was even better – again, my opinion.
Alas the results came in and Clay lost – but barely. And it sparked a large controversy when one of the shows Executive Producers admitted that Clay had led the competition every week until the final round, where he lost by 134,000 votes out of 24 million. Despite the outcome, I still felt that Clay was the best, and that my personal ability to judge vocal talent was pretty much in sync with America.
The following season this seemed to change and I found myself questioning my skills as a judge. Especially when some of the best candidates such as LaToya London and Jennifer Hudson were cut ahead of what I considered to be weaker singers/performers. And my wife felt (mostly) the same way. By the season finale I was pretty shocked at how disconnected I was from America, and I began to question if the show was rigged for ratings (pretty sure it is). Neither of the finalists were my choice, and while I was ok with Fantasia Barrino winning out of the two, it still was an overall let down on the season.
Come the following year, and for the next 3 seasons (4, 5, 6), we found other forms of entertainment. Didn’t tune in to Idol even once. Ironically some of our favorite singers of today come from that period of time. Carrie Underwood actually won season 4, and has gone on to be a huge star in country music. Probably one of the (if not the) most successful Idol winners ever. We have all her albums. And Chris Daughtry, eliminated in the top 4 of season 5, has gone on to be the most successful artist of that year and is also another of my favorites. Maybe Idol still had hope.
I decided to give it another chance come season 7 – plus my kids were actually into it which added more fun to the experience. Overall I was pleased with the results of season 7. The two finalists, David Cook & David Archuleta, were incredibly talented and I felt both deserved to win. America got it right no matter what that year. Come season 8 things got a little wilder with the likes of Adam Lambert, and while I wasn’t a fan of his music I couldn’t honestly deny his talent as a singer/performer. I was actually surprised he didn’t win. And last year (season 9), the last with Simon Cowell, was another “just ok” season and I felt America mostly got it right with Lee DeWyze, though I was still partial to Michael Lynche.
Now we come to this year, season 10. One of my daughters absolutely loves this show now and has dreams of maybe one day auditioning for it (that’s 6 years away, so we’ll see). Each week, usually on the weekend, we watch that week’s previously recorded episodes. And each week I find myself once again questioning my hearing and judging abilities as it seems I am a tad off the mark from the rest of America. Maybe I’m getting too old and don’t hear things the way those 8 - 10+ years younger than me do? I haven’t tried polling many in my age peer group to see, and it could be some other factor beyond age. But when Pia Toscano was eliminated I was simply blown away. Was that a reflection of America’s actual view, or did everyone do (as speculated) and assume she was a sure win and not vote? I don’t know. I never watch the show live, and therefore never vote, so I fully admit I’m part of the problem.
I wonder how many others are in my boat that never watch it live? Could we have made a difference? It would sure be interesting to see some analysis done on the Idol viewing demographic and see what different factors wildly impact each weeks results.
This year some incredible talent has been found - no doubt. But in my humble opinion some of the best have already been let go and there are only a few candidates (and my daughter) that are keeping me somewhat interested. It’s going to be hard to finish the season at this rate and I’m not optimistic at a great outcome.
That said, here’s my top 10 picks for this season. Those in red are already eliminated, which is 3 of my top 5! Note that this list does not match my daughter’s list, which is why I suspect I’m simply too old for this show now days. :)
- Pia Toscano – Hands down the best vocally. Reminds me so much of Celine Dion and Whitney Houston. Struggled with stage presence at times, but her final performance was awesome.
- Haley Reinhart – Something about her voice is very appealing. She’s great on stage and seems very comfortable. Her version of “Bennie and the Jets” was awesome. I also liked her version of “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele. That is probably the type of music she could be best at making.
- James Durbin – Possibly the best overall performer. Very talented guy. Not my personal favorite, but undeniably one of the top candidates. He has a great future ahead of him and I could easily see him making records and doing very well.
- Casey Abrams – Talk about raw musical talent. Very entertaining performer. Not sure I would have saved him like the judges did, simply because I couldn’t see him actually winning, but it’s hard to deny his ability and I expect he’ll do well in his career.
- Stephano Langone – Another excellent performer with a great voice. Also struggled with finding his niche, but I felt was far better than many others.
- Lauren Alaina – This young 16 year old has an incredible voice, but she clearly lacks confidence in herself and it shows during her performances. She has an infectious smile and you can’t help but like her. She just needs a bit more experience to really hit her groove. She still might pull it off.
- Jacob Lusk – Not my cup of tea as he has a very gospel music vibe to everything he does, but I won’t deny the guy has serious vocal talent. Very passionate singer/performer with a lot of potential. Just don’t see him selling millions of records just yet. Maybe.
- Scotty McCreery – His deep voice instantly reminds me of Josh Turner – which he has clearly tried hard to mimic at times. The problem with Scotty is his age and inexperience. He has the voice, but he doesn’t perform well and while he sounds like Josh, he doesn’t have the full power and presence of Josh. I’m shocked he’s made so far considering the other talent around him. With more experience he could do well, but he’d need to find something unique because right now Josh has that sound and style locked in my book. I suspect there are simply a lot of women out there in love with that voice keeping him alive. Am I jealous? Maybe.
- Thia Megia – Another incredible voice, yet also very young and just missing that “stage presence” that I think could have saved her. Super potential here. Was surprised to learn she made it to the quarter finals on the “America’s Got Talent” show when she was 14. She certainly went a lot further on American Idol which shows tremendous growth. I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of her.
- Naima Adedap – She had her moments, but overall just never clicked for me. I think she tried too hard to mix the dance and reggae vibe to her music. I do question if we’ve seen/heard the last of her.