Posted on 03/25/2008 5:58:52 AM PDT by silent_jonny
My point in writing the post was to tell the folks on the dinosaur media threads, a fairly regular media bias hating group (I'm a regular), that there is at least one reasonably bright spot on network TV. It is a badge of honor among some of my FRiends there to watch no TV.
It is an enormous effort by Fox and must be the envy of the industry for its success both in viewers and as a financial venture. It has drawn and held mega advertisers who would flee if they don't get their money's worth.
I'm not really aware of vaudeville, but clearly remember Arthur Godfrey and the Major Boles hour. Idol is similar but on a million times larger scale.
I just don't like her at all. I don't like her look or her voice.
A further indicator of its success is this: AI has also spawned many, many imitators.
.....AI has also spawned many, many imitators....
Yes. you are right on
The imitators are mostly veneer, surface coloration or embellishment. The imitators are ginned up by TV types and lack the organizational depth that make AI successful.
I notice vftw doesn’t mention David Cook, and their bit on Castro is that he was on a television show, not singing I would guess. Their main beef and mine would be Carly.
Mine too. It would be different if she was really good, but she isn't.
I was suprised to see that Kristy Lee Cook has had a recording contract.
Okay - a LOT late. Was bowling night, ya know...
I kind of saw it coming, but Carlton Banks got 
It all comes down to song choice. I knew that Chikezie should have done the redneck jug-band version of One Night in Bangkok.
Well, Carlton - Sad to see you go...
YOU'RE HANGING WITH DUNKLEMAN...
bummer... :<
[rant]
I don’t mean to go on a rant here, but you’re hitting on the main reason why this season is sucking so bad.
Americans love an underdog - we want to see the kid that never got a shot finally overcome the odds. For the first five seasons of AI, we got exactly that. We got Kelly, Carrie, Daughtry, Bo, Clay... just to name a few. The system was working just fine - peaking in seasons 4 & 5.
Now, season 3 was diasppointing, but it did give us Jennifer Hudson. Season 6, however, was a disaster - and his name was Sanjaya.
So what does Idol do for season 7? A major overcorrection is what they did. They stacked the field with ringers to once again make it a “Serious Singing Competition.”
What we got instead is the Weakest. Field. Ever.
Instead of giving us quality undiscovered talent, we got a group of record company rejects (Kristy, Carly, Michael), reality tv personalities (Monchichi, Syesha, Jason) and a gay stripper.
Now, as for Kristy and Michael - they definitely haven’t lived up to expectations. Given the hype - not even close.
As you guys have mentioned, Carly is the worst of a bad bunch. No one in this show’s history has been pimped to Carly’s level, and not yet (including auditions) has she put on a breakout performance. All we have heard from her are a long line of excuses.
Now, I don’t have much of a problem with the TV people - they just have a little more experience with the system. I’d bet they had connections that gave them a substantial advantage over your average Joe/Jane waiting in line.
Monchichi, however, is an original case. Sure, he’s a former Star Search winner - no biggie there. He’s a talented enough singer to earn his spot in the finals. My issue is with Dadchichi. He’s had his son on Idol’s radar since season 1, five-and-a-half years ago - and a major a-hole.
Sure, I crack on Monchichi pretty hard, but he’s got some fantastic pipes. However, he shouldn’t be on this show yet. The kid’s got no identity, and for this I blame his father.
I have to judge the kid on his merits, however. Given what he’s done so far, would anyone really buy his albums? No, unless you’re looking for something to cure insomnia. Easy listening for aging hippies will sell as much as Carly’s ‘Ultimate High.’ In a few months, he’ll be less recognizable than Melinda Whatsherface...
What really chafes me the most is that three weeks into the finals, we’ve lost 2 of the most original contestants in Amanda and Chikezie. I wish them the best - and hope they do well.
Yeah, we lost the aforementioned “pizza parlor” worker too - but I won’t complain about that.
For me, this season is down to Brooke and David Cook. Funny, the two best kids on the show are considered to be underdogs.
That’s why I love this country.
AI auditioned 100,000 people for this season - this is the result. They need to get back to what made this show work in the first place. In fact, the only thing that keeps me remotely interested is that I get to talk smack with you guys (and girls).
[/rant]
“In a few months, he’ll be less recognizable than Melinda Whatsherface...”
~ <> ~
Melinda DOOLITTLE.
She made AI worth watching every single week. No one this season can touch her excellence. Simon contrasted her to the “precocious little monsters” of last season who habitually over-estimated their abilities.
She’s sorely missed.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNAxnwYDrAM
TOP 9 FINALISTS WILL PERFORM DOLLY PARTON SONGS TUESDAY, APRIL 1, ON FOX
http://www.celebrityspider.com/news/march08/article032708-13.html
n Tuesday, April 1 (8:00-9:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed), the Top 9 finalists (Brooke White, Carly Smithson, David Archuleta, David Cook, Jason Castro, Kristy Lee Cook, Michael Johns, Ramiele Malubay and Syesha Mercado) will return to the Idol stage and perform songs by Dolly Parton. Special guest artist Parton will also coach the contestants as they prepare for the performance show.
Tune in the following night Wednesday, April 2 (9:00-10:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) to the results show to see Parton perform “Jesus & Gravity,” the second single from her new album “Backwoods Barbie,” and to find out who receives enough votes to stay in the competition and who must go home. The Clark Brothers, the Bluegrass/Country band that won THE NEXT GREAT AMERICAN BAND competition, will also perform live on the results show.
Dolly Parton’s new album, “Backwoods Barbie” (Dolly Records), entered the Billboard pop albums chart at No. 17, marking her highest debut ever on that chart, and at No. 2 on both the country and indie album charts. The iconic singer, songwriter, film star and entrepreneur has penned such classic songs as “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors,” and her mega-hit “I Will Always Love You.” With 1977’s crossover hit “Here You Come Again,” Parton successfully erased the line between country and pop music without noticeably altering either her music or her image.
In 2006, Parton earned her second Oscar nomination for “Travelin’ Thru,” which she wrote for the film “Transamerica.” She has garnered seven Grammys, 10 CMAs, five ACMs and three AMAs; she is one of only five female artists to win the CMA Entertainer of the Year Award. Beyond a world tour in support of “Backwoods Barbie,” Parton is currently putting finishing touches on the music and lyrics for the upcoming Broadway musical version of “9 to 5.” Parton starred in the 1980 film and earned an Oscar nomination for writing the title tune, along with two Grammy Awards.
They're terrific.
I knew her name. Melinda easliy makes my shortlist of best AI finalists. Despite her talent, she hasn’t been heard from much since last season. I know she has an album coming out in June, and I hope it does well.
The point I was aiming at was that if you ask a group of tweens who Melinda Doolittle is - you’ll get mostly blank stares, and a few that will say “Dr. Doolittle’s wife.”
Pop culture has a very short memory.
Interesting, huh?. She doesn't seem as polished as some of the others, so I took her for a genuine amateur.
Superb rant, lobsta. Started my day off right with a big laugh. It isn't even 8:30am here in LaLaLand, less than 15 miles, as the crow flies, from where the AI judges and contestants are perhaps just now awakening.
Dadchichi, ROFLMAO!!
The AI POB overreacted to Sanjaya, but also to the comparative lack of success of whatshername, last year's winner, on top of the failure of Taylor Hicks. Jordin Sparks' album is currently languishing in #33 on Hits Daily Double's sales chart, with a platry 23,114 units sold last week. It peaked at #10 on Billboard before falling rapidly.
With a strong push from the record company and the help of current R&B star, Chris Brown, her first single is sitting at #5 in radio airplay and #6 on Billboard. It's a duet with Brown, so Sparks is not even standing on her own as a vocalist. Brown's own latest solo single is currently #1 in radio airplay and #4 on Billboard. So it's quite reasonable to wonder if it's really Sparks who got the single into the top 10, or Brown.
Thus, 2008 is the Year of the Recycled, Repackaged Forever Wannabes.
Dolly will surely liven things up next week. And I bet she’ll be real good at mentoring the kids.
I like them, too.
I started laughing one night when they captioned “Carly’s family and friends,” and they were all in the shadows!
I know. That was a hoot. They especially had the hubby in deep, dark shadows and far, far away from the stage. Not close to the front and center like the other families.
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