THE CASE FOR ELLIOTT YAMIN
http://www.nationalledger.com/artman/publish/article_27265646.shtml
American Idol: It’s Time to Take Elliott Yamin Seriously
By Shirley Kennedy
May 9, 2006
I have some things I want to say about American Idol. Bear with me; it's long, but I believe it’s worth the read. Let’s talk about fairness. The patent response to the question of fairness is typically, “life isn’t fair.” That may be true, but when one is in a position to make life fair, he/she should do everything in his/her power to make that happen.
"Disillusioned Idol"
At the very least, one should not go out of the way to make life unfair, but that is exactly what is happening to Elliott Yamin on American Idol.
American Idol is a “singing” (yes, I use the term loosely) competition with a viewership that has grown to the point of making this show one of the most watched on television. The supposed object of this study in human psychology is to have the American public choose the show’s next superstar. When I first began watching this show in 2003, I was under the impression that the producers were searching for the best unknown, untapped talent, which they would then mold into a star. I was further under the impression that the show was designed for amateurs who had little or no entertainment experience but who possess vocal talents beyond belief. This year, that talent has materialized in the person of Elliott Yamin. I have not heard a voice this good since Luther Vandross died. Yes, he’s “green,” but isn’t that what the show is supposed to be about? Apparently, not anymore.
Many of the contestants have performed with bands for many years, and some even have CDs available for purchase (I own Taylor Hicks’s “Under the Radar,” where he sounds way better than he ever has on this show). Others have been trained in the art of voice for most of their lives or have honed their skills in beauty pageants and the like. The rules state that as long as these performers don’t have recording contracts, they are eligible to participate in the show. That seems fair enough, at least on the surface; however, when truly untrained, inexperienced contestants are chosen for the show, those contestants are constantly compared to those with more experience and are told that “you lack performance skills.” Interestingly, though Elliott is often accused of “lacking performance skills,” I fail to see the difference between his and Chris Daughtry’s “performance skills.” Chris typically stands in one spot—just like Elliott—except he cocks his head from side to side; I guess that more qualifies as “performing.” At this point, the “singing competition” is apparently no longer about the voice but about superficial issues, especially looks, which seems to be the sole focus of Simon Cowell.
When the season began this year, I tuned in because of Mandisa Hundley, to whom I have a personal connection. I was really impressed with Mandisa and began voting for her. When she was prematurely eliminated following “country night,” I had just about decided not to watch anymore. However, a friend of mine encouraged me to watch “Queen night” for the comic value, as she believed that none of the contestants save Mandisa could pull off a Queen song. She was wrong; that was the night I totally realized the talents of Elliott Yamin, and I have been rabidly voting for him ever since. This kid has yet to sing a note out of tune, he always chooses the hardest songs from the show’s lists (and performs them really well), and he attacks each song with such enthusiasm that you can’t help but pull for him. Each week, however, I sit in awe as the judges give him lukewarm receptions, even after Simon declared him “possibly the best male vocalist we have had in five years” upon his first appearance in the top 24 (pssst–Simon, he’s the best vocalist you’ve ever had, period).
From the time the show began this year, Simon has been quoted as saying that, “either Taylor, Chris, or Kellie will win this year.” Now that Kellie has been eliminated, it is now “either Taylor or Chris” who will win, “with Katharine a close third.” I hate to tell Simon, but there are still four contestants in this competition. He appeared on Good Morning America on Thursday morning following eliminations and spoke of Taylor, Chris, and Katharine as if they are the only remaining contestants in the running. Perhaps, in his mind, they are. Prior to Simon’s blatant disregard of Elliott Yamin, Nigel Lythgoe, the show’s executive producer, appeared on a radio talk show on elimination day, apparently, to do no more than to denigrate Elliott Yamin and Paris Bennett, while praising Katharine McPhee, who was woefully off-key on her first song. By the way, Simon was right the first time about Katharine’s performance of “I Have Nothing;” Vonzell Solomon, who was also ignored by this show last year, did a much better version. While Nigel had no problem saying on the radio that Elliott did a “poor” job of “On Broadway” and that “Scotty Savol did a better version last year,” notice that he never mentioned Vonzell’s better version of Katharine’s song.
Meanwhile, Randy was heard on the Ellen DeGeneres show, singing the praises of Chris Daughtry (or “pimping Chris," as the show’s fans are wont to say), and when Ellen inquired about Elliott, Randy’s response was, “He’ll never win.” To get to my point, American Idol is supposed to be a show in which the American public chooses the next pop superstar, but I’m driven to ask how America can choose when the very people who created the show go out into the public arena with the purpose of manipulating the public into voting for who they want? Why not just take the public out of the mix and choose for themselves? I’m beginning to totally miss the point of the American public’s votes.
Many people will wonder why I care; after all, it is “only a TV show.” That may be true, but I am supposed to be able to cast my votes for whomever I choose, preferably, without the judges and producers attempting to send me subliminal messages about whom to choose. I resent the manipulations that go on behind this show, and I resent it even more when an extremely talented young man is being pushed to the background because the powers that be at this show for some reason do not desire to see him succeed. I am frankly appalled at the behavior of these so-called professionals. Because of early negative discussions about Elliott's looks (which I see absolutely nothing wrong with), I believe the producers and judges of American Idol fail to see Elliott’s marketability. What a negative message to give to the world: "Only the beautiful need apply." Where does that leave the rest of us? However, I digress. Let’s just examine how marketable Elliott Yamin might possibly be in the real world.
I am a huge music fan, owning in excess of 300 fairly current CDs; I buy at least one CD every other week or so. I love music, but most of all, I love good music. I have downloaded every one of Elliott’s performances to my MP3 and have burned a CD for myself, hoping that will hold me until he makes a real one. The night that Elliott sang “A Song For You,” he shared with the audience that he would like nothing more than to “bring Donny Hathaway’s music back to the forefront.” That night, Donny Hathaway’s greatest hits languished in position number 4,205 on Amazon.com. Today, the CD is at #523, down from #460 yesterday and, reportedly, went as high as #5. These numbers are no coincidence. The reviews by purchasers heartwarmingly thank Elliott for introducing them to Donny Hathaway's music. Everyone with whom I work who watches this show and who used to vote for various other contestants now all vote for Elliott Yamin. Personally, I believe Elliott to be extremely marketable in the R&B/soul, jazz, and pop genres, but the problem for the producers and judges of this show is that he doesn’t hit their coveted demographic of 18 to 25 year olds, whom they believe to hold the purchasing power in music. I beg to differ. I work with a woman, who is in her early 40s, who refuses to buy music today because the emphasis has been taken from singing ability to looks; she also now owns an Elliott Yamin “homemade” CD. He’s not marketable? Again, I beg to differ.
Bottom line, regardless of who the producers and judges want to win this thing, they should allow the contest to fairly proceed. Going on television and radio to denigrate or ignore one of the contestants is not only childish and mean, it is downright ugly. I give props to Paula for being the only person from this show who does not engage in such mean-spirited, unprofessional behavior. This behavior is inappropriate, and it needs to stop. For me, this will be my last season watching this show or contributing to its growth. Each year that I have watched this show, I have attended the concerts, bought memorabilia at the concerts, and bought the compilation CDs. Not this year. Thank God for downloading; I will be purchasing via download Mandisa’s and Elliott’s songs from the compilation CD, but no way would I purchase the whole thing now. I’m willing to give Idol $1.80, but that’s about it. No concert, no souvenirs, no nothing. I am sick to death of the behavior of this show’s executive producer and two of its judges; they make me literally ill. I am so sure the producers could care less about one person refusing to watch them purposely hurt people on live television, but they should consider that, perhaps, I am not the only one who feels this way. Following the year that Ruben Studdard won the title, conspiracy theories and claims of rigging could be found just about anywhere on the Internet. I chose not to buy into such talk, as I found the very thought ridiculous. Now, however, I am starting to change my mind, given the behavior of Idol’s executive producer and Simon’s apparent psychic abilities of predicting who will win and why. If Elliott Yamin is eliminated next Wednesday, I will be a full-fledged believer in rigging and conspiracy theories at this show. After all, Simon has predicted it to be so.
In the final analysis, AI needs to check itself. Their treatment of Elliott Yamin this year is an embarrassment. I thought they treated Clay Aiken–who went on to outsell AI’s winner–badly, but compared to the show’s treatment of Elliott this year, they treated Clay like a king. My hope and prayer is that Elliott lands in the right hands, and when he outsells the AI cookie-cutter winner this year, AI’s executive producer will take a step back and look at his, Randy Jackson, and Simon Cowell’s behavior and how that behavior affects others. It’s one thing to make money; it’s another to purposely hurt people to make money. Shame on all of them. My further hope and prayer is that talented singers such as Elliott Yamin, Mandisa Hundley, and Paris Bennett find a better, more fair outlet for their talent, and I can, once again, enjoy seeing new talent discovered on television.
Shirley has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, with an emphasis on Creative Writing, from Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia. She is currently pursuing her Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Phoenix
