American Idol 2006--Live Thread I

FOX ^ | 1-16-06

[Wolfstar]

You're welcome. Yep, Josh is a good guy. What I especially like about him is that he's building a career without the AI machine. He finished his service to our country, then went to Nashville and began building his career the old fashioned way, through talent, grit, hard work and determination.

The tour with Trace Adkins is the next big step up in Josh's career.

[mystery-ak]

Thanks Wolfie for the info on Josh......I'm very proud of him...and I wish him the best of luck with his new career.

[Wolfstar]

Thanks Wolfie for the info on Josh...

You're welcome, mystery. Josh is a real antidote to all those gay pansies we've seen on the show this year. That aspect of the show is getting real old for me.

[silent_jonny]

For everyone on the AI thread who is sick of all the gay guys on the show this year:

Josh certainly is a breath of fresh (straight) air. I admire the way he's clawed his way up the charts, not only without the help of AI, but also while maintaining his dignity and the dignity of the Marines.

I'll be glad when the freak show auditions are over and the few gay guys that were given tickets to Hollywood (along with false hope) will be sent home.

And thank you for the mail, Wolfstar--much appreciated :)

[Wolfstar]

And thank you for the mail, Wolfstar--much appreciated

You're welcome, Jonny. I'll be glad when the freak show is over, too.

[EmilyGeiger]

wonderful. I should go buy one of his cds. :)

[kevkrom]

It's getting so we need a math degree to figure this show out. ;-)

Well, it gets a little easier as it gets closer. My TiVo has a two-week "to-do" window, and it lists "Auditions 5" and "Auditions 6" this week for AI, and "Auditions 7" and "Holloywood 1" for next week.

[Wolfstar]

wonderful. I should go buy one of his cds.

I'm not a huge fan of country music, but I bought his CD just to show my support Josh. It's a quality first effort for him. There are two #1 country songs on it.

It's also worth noting that Josh is the only AI non-winner or runner-up who has put out a successful CD. So the man does have talent.

[EmilyGeiger]

We have the CD for the movie Herbie Fully Loaded. Josh has a song on it and we love it. I don't know why i haven't thought to get one. I need to get Kelly Clarkson's as well . These will probably go into some easter baskets. :) By the way I have a Click five CD that someone gave me. They were one of the groups to play at the WH's christmas show. They are ok, do your kids listen to them and like them?

[silent_jonny]

Paris Bennett, Will She Live Up To The Hype? ( Has American Idol already found the winner ?)

Paris Bennett is only 17 years old and is from Fayetteville, Georgia. Paris is the granddaughter of Ann Nesby, who was the lead singer for Sounds of Blackness, a group that won three Grammy Awards.

...

Another thing that could hurt Paris Bennett is that many viewers are likely to question if she really needs American Idol. She is a very talented and attractive young girl with a Grammy winning grandmother, who likely has numerous connections in the music industry. Paris could probably get a record deal without American Idol. In fact, she could probably negotiate a more lucrative deal for herself by not limiting herself to being bound to the American Idol contract.

Hmm, already predicting Paris the winner? That could also work against her.

[Wolfstar]

Hmm, already predicting Paris the winner? That could also work against her.

This is a hot discussion around the music boards. Some articles say she has an unfair advantage because of her connections. Some say the opposite.

Kellie Pickler's legitimacy is also being questioned. I found this on a board today:

kellie pickler not so innocent and naive?

geocities.com/missusamagicj/ncarolina2004.html
and coldheartedtruth.com/?blog=7
She is a beauty pageant queen...meaning she has been in front of a lot of people and not so sheltered as the show makes it seem.

mjsbigblog.com/photos/2006/01/04/kellipickler3.jpg
Kellie singing in a singing competition called Gimme the Mike

www.wsoctv.com/gimmethemike2005/index.html
North Carolina news station says Kellie was a finalist on Gimme the Mike

images.ibsys.com/2005/0720/4746027_120X90.jpg
and here is Kellie again singing in the contest

You can also go to kelliefans.com to see her fansite, which has the pageant pictures, etc...so its not fabricated.

My question is...why show a girl and make her look like a little farm girl who never saw the world and only takes care of her grandpa...im not hating on her, but it just seems so fake...Also in the audition she was asked whether she had experience singing in front of a lot of people and she said no, hardly. Hello your on TV!! Not nationally, but still TV. Also beauty pageants are usually strong females who are smart, usually college educated, confident, and know how to speak. But when she walked in the audition she seemed shy, yet cheerful and naive, with of course frizzy hair...I just don't buy it..But hey if you love her you love her..i'm not telling people to not like her...just found it interesting.

Same thing for Carrie Underwood...they made it look like she was a farm girl feeding chickens and pigs...That she has talent but never saw the world. Then she mentions her city population and made the audience feel that she is in the middle of nowhere. But then they didn't mention she has been singing her entire life, she made 2 albums, a couple of demos, traveled around on country fairs performing with her band, and moved to Nashville to actively pursue singing.

I just hate how the profiles are editted to manipulate the audience's view of the person.

The person who posted the above goes by the handle: jayd4sheezie. All I can say is jayd4 has way too much time on his or her hands.

Oh, and on one of the links provided by jayd4, guess who makes an appearance.

[conservativebabe]

Personally, even if she did have an unfair advantage because of family connections in the music industry, she clearly is trying it on her own, or else she wouldn't be putting herself out there on AI.

Also, connections or no, you can't fake a good voice, either you have it, or you don't. She seemed to have it in her try-out. Time will tell.

I don't care who her grandma is, don't care where she is from, who she knows, what I want to know is, can she sing?

[conservativebabe]

My response was meant to be in reference to Paris. I forget who Kellie is. Gonna have to look her up.

[silent_jonny]

Evening, Wolfstar :)

I think Paris--with her voice and background--could get a contract without AI, but she probably wouldn't get the exposure that the show provides, at least not immediately. Her pro pedigree could alienate her from the voters, not to mention her child-like speaking voice. I don't how much of that I could stand.

About Kellie Pickler ... I don't know. If she's pretending to be something she's not, then I probably think that's her doing, not Idol's. If video turns up of her sounding totally different than her "poor country girl" audition, she's finished.

[silent_jonny]

Kellie was the blond girl from NC--she sang a Kelly Clarkson in the audition (and not to sound too cynical, but she also had the traumatic backstory that Idol producers love--"my dad's been in and out of prison!")

[conservativebabe]

That's right. Thanks for the memory refresher. Can't wait for tomorrow night!

[Wolfstar]

My response was meant to be in reference to Paris.

Thanks, I understood your post, and agree with you. It's interesting, though, how seriously some folks -- mostly kids, I'm sure -- take all this stuff.

[Wolfstar]

I don't like Paris' speaking voice, either. It's gonna be tough to deal with that for a couple of months, assuming she makes it into the top 12. I'm willing to give her a chance on her own merits, though, unless the judges show obvious favoritism toward her.

The real issue with Paris is we'll have Elton John and the usual suspects yell "racism" if the kid doesn't go all the way. I'm not looking forward to that.

As for Kellie Pickler, if she has been in other talent shows and not won, that would make me wonder how far she could go on AI. As I told you when we first saw her, she's going to be compared constantly to Carrie. I think that will kill any chance she has to win no matter if she's talented or not.

After we saw Kellie, that pretty brunette with a voice coach mom turned up. I think she's potentially spectacular.

So far anyway, the guys seem really weak this year. Maybe we haven't seen the best yet.

[Wolfstar]

Oh, I almost forgot. What's this?! No comment about Constantine? Personally, I hope that disembodied hand we see on his shoulder is the long arm of the law. ;-)

[conservativebabe]

It sure is. Luckily for us, we just like to make fun of people. lol