Posted on 05/08/2006 4:22:13 AM PDT by silent_jonny
that was my exact thought. That Prince was sitting in a limo waiting his turn. He can't be tarnished by the masses you know. But, yeah, I thought the actual announcement seemed off and lacking something.
FYI..for those wondering about the pairing of the Idols with established stars last night; well, according to today's NY TIMES, Cowell has a new show on Fox this fall called "Duets" which does just that, pairs an unknown singer with an established star...and most definitely gives us the basis for a NEW thread..
Yeah, what a hog.
Then the interviewer asked her what she has changed about herself since she has got this contract. She said, "Not a damn thing."
No, didn't get a chance. Music is quite possibly the most personal of the arts. I think Taylor's voice is an acquired taste, and your husband's point of view is as valid as anyone else's. What I like best about Taylor above all else is that he is a true entertainer in -- as you said -- the old style. He really puts his heart and soul into letting his audience feel what he feels about the music.
So many of today's music "artists" are plastic and empty. They go through the motions and let all sorts of pyrotechnics do the entertaining for them. Taylor so cuts against the grain of that plastic trend, that I can't help but love him. (So does Kelly Clarkson, BTW, which is why she's been my favorite Idol so far. Taylor and Elliott are rapidly joining Kelly among my personal favorites.)
For some reason I picture Prince to be a bit like Howard Hughes in his later year. Kleenex boxes on the feet. Guys walking in front of him and behind him shooing away the germs with rolled up newspapers.
LOL! I think you're right. He is VERY weird.
The thing that scares me about that show is that is sounds all too much like Skating with the Stars. I picture the celeb singers to be people like Tiffany and Jordan Knight from New Kids on the Block.
Why should it "scare" you? I can't wait for your commentary..It will be, as they say in the military, a "target-rich" environment, f'sure..
But, we're talking Rocky Horror Picture Show here. What will be lost to this generation next? Toga parties? Food fights?
Civilization is doomed, for sure.
<^..^>
I totally agree. I would much rather have had the big celebration for Taylor than the performance by Prince. I don't like him at all.
The show ran over the hour here and trust me there was mucho mucho mucho confetti.....tons of it. It was awesome!
It lacked two things: moving the runner up out of the way so the winner could have his moment, and all the hoopla surrounding the announcement of the winner. They always used to do confetti and make a big deal. Last night the announcement of the winner seemed like an afterthought.
Yup...Cowell pimping his next venture.
American Idol 5: Why Taylor Won
by David Bloomberg -- 05/25/2006
FOXES ON IDOL
“Wooooo! Soul Patrol!” Are these just exclamations from American Idol winner Taylor Hicks? Or do they actually help explain how he got his new title? It seemed to be a foregone conclusion, but we’ve seen those end up wrong before. Why did Taylor win?
And so it’s over. We hit the climax after months of auditions and songs and performances, and then about an hour and 59 minutes of finale. Taylor Hicks is the fifth American Idol.
Of course, things are really just beginning for Taylor. First there is the Idols Live Tour, and then the album many fans have been waiting for.
But before we get to that point, we have to do for Taylor what we did for all the people he beat since the semi-finals. Just as we examined the reasons they all lost, we will also use What ‘American Idol 5’ Contestants Need to Know to figure out exactly why Taylor won.
The first rule holds a key piece of information. It says you have to have singing and performing talent. There’s no doubt that Taylor has both in abundance. With that said, there were a couple of better pure singers on the show. However, they did not meet all of the criteria of the first rule. It specifically says, “Pure vocals are not enough, you need to perform the song.”
Taylor performed almost every single song he did. Often he could be seen dancing around the stage (or into the audience), showing personality and pretty much emanating fun. On those songs where he stayed center-stage, he put his whole voice into it and still managed to perform it well without bouncing around. Taylor was undoubtedly the best performer of the season.
Taylor also excelled at picking his songs. He knew what he liked, he knew what the audience liked, and he made the two match (unlike some previous Idols, who focused on what they liked and forgot about the audience). Taylor even managed to find a loophole on the night when people were supposed to perform songs from the current Billboard charts. He found a Beatles song! It really was a great move, because singing current songs is probably one of the most dangerous things an Idol can do – it’s too easy to compare the contestant to the current singer, and the contestant usually loses.
Taylor used his brains when picking songs, and in a way he helped show why we even have columns like this one. If it were all simply about who sang the best, there would be no need to examine why people lost or won. But strategy is a part of American Idol, and Taylor seemed to understand that.
The third rule says to be consistent and have the ability to sing different genres. I would say Taylor was probably the most consistent of the Idols this season. Katharine, as discussed in Why Katharine Lost suffered from nerves occasionally and did not hit it out of the ballpark every time. Taylor was not perfect, but he missed less often than the others.
Taylor also did well in moving from genre to genre. As noted above, he was smart in picking which songs best suited him, and that was the case each week, no matter what type of song he had to perform.
For the fourth rule, Taylor absolutely nailed it. It says to be unique. Mind you, we have to credit genetics for a large part of it, but there was no way anybody would forget the gray-haired guy once he gave his first audition. Add to that the “Wooo!”s and shouts of “Soul Patrol,” and Taylor gave us somebody who could not ever be confused with anyone else. He also had a style and personality all his own, which further set him apart from the others. He stood out, and this gave him the opportunity to earn fans early in the competition – an enviable place to be.
Similarly, Taylor was certainly memorable. In fact, he may well have been the most memorable from the get-go. There were others, of course, from Paris to Kellie to Chris, but Taylor had the ability to stand out. There was no way anybody would ever forget him.
The sixth rule was a non-issue, as Taylor followed it and did not argue with the judges. But few people did this season. Contestants may finally be getting smart!
Seventh is the reminder to contestants that they are a package. Taylor certainly understood this, again showing how strategy and brains can come into play even in a singing competition. In fact, Taylor created such a recognizable package that he was mimicked on Saturday Night Live. Perhaps it should have been at that point that we realized he was destined to be the American Idol (then again, they did a skit on William Hung back in his day, so perhaps it’s not an automatic indicator).
The whole Taylor package helped to create his fan base. People began joining this group as soon as his initial audition aired, and the base only got bigger. Again, Taylor helped to get his fan base galvanized. Do you think all the shout-outs to the Soul Patrol were just Taylor shouting random things? Heck, no. What better way to get people to vote than to make them feel like he was talking directly to them? It was nothing short of brilliant. While Clay never really acknowledged Clay Nation while he was in the competition, Taylor lifted up the Soul Patrol and made them a household name. This, in turn, encouraged more people to join them and vote for Taylor.
Indeed, his fan base is what made it so clear Taylor would win. When it became apparent that there would be enough phone capacity and time (with a four-hour voting window), that pretty much sealed the deal. Without the extra time, there was the chance for a statistical tie, but adding that in meant Katharine’s fans would have be as dedicated as the Soul Patrol, and that simply was not going to happen.
Indeed, before the finale aired, Foxes On Idol Associate Editor Betsy Wasser mentioned to me that she predicted Ryan Seacrest would not talk about how close the vote was, as he often has done. She was dead-on. And why wouldn’t he talk about it? Likely because it wasn’t close and there was no point in highlighting that fact.
In order to gather that fan base, Taylor had to do quite a bit of work. He brought a unique look, style, and personality to Idol, and that attracted people from the very beginning. He continued by showing amazing performance skills and quite a bit of consistency, and he wasn’t afraid to use his brain, not just his vocal cords. Put all these things together, and there is no way Katharine could really compete with him. That is why Taylor won.
Although the show actually takes place here in Los Angeles, we never see it live. It did not run overtime here, so I guess they cut off the celebration here. Very irritating. I still could have done without Prince. Would much rather have seen the whole celebration for Taylor.
Seems everyone was really rooting for Tay Tay.
I wish I could get a copy of the whole show and watch it again. I was so nervous I could hardly concentrate.
Began at 7:30 pm Eastern and went on after 10 pm
Could someone please explain to me WHY this show is SO popular?
I think if he heard the tracks linked with the interview he wouldn't even know it was Taylor. In AI you have to sing those songs that are not obscure so the audience connects with you.
I didn't pay too much attention to Kelly, but I love Elliott, too.
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