American Idol 2008 discussion - ***possible spoilers***

A few cute blondes this year. That's my favorite part of the show. Once they are all let go, I tend to lose interest.

I did find the tryouts tedious this year and only watched a little. I'm ready to rate the talent. I say the little guy will go all the way. Unfortunately, he's not one of the ones I want to look at each week. Dig?

 

I think Josiah's problem also is that he's a bit unbalanced in a major way. I got a sense of that by looking at him. Eccentric is one thing, but it's a bit beyond that and he's a kid so AI doesn't have time to "mentor" him. Also that performance of "Stand By Me" was just a shambles.

 

Oh yeah, there's a "controversy" about Carly Smithson, seems she's recorded before and had CD's on a major label...

http://new.music.yahoo.com/blogs/realityrocks/13980/irish-idol-smithsons-secret-past

 

Wow. I wonder if that is one of the reasons why there is no more MCA?

I had no idea that majors still threw that kind of money at a relative unknown.
Then again, that was 2001/2002.


Dan

 

What artist is mentally stable? Comes with the territory.

 

Woops!

 

I wonder if she thinks it will be different this time?

 

That's true LOL

 

Probably so. Strange thing is, I kind of remember her, barely. If they give her the boot, there's room for that crying machine Josiah.

 

They'll replace her with one of the countless other faceless, interchangeable, pretty girls who can sing.

 

I'm not a fan of Carly especially finding out she had a MCA contract.

She will have to win me over.

 

12 male/12 female, it would be the blonde that should have stayed of the last two.

 

Wow, I read him much differently than you did. I don't think his "English" accent was phony per se - not any more than when the Beatles "dropped" their accent when they sang. I think the kid just listened to so much British emo music that he picked it up naturally; I don't think it was an affectation. As for "firing" the band, I read that differently as well. The kid was terribly insecure (not cocky like Simon and others have said), and simply didn't know how to work with a band when the only accompaniment in the past was problably himself. He was scarred and unsure, didn't like how it was going with the band, and so felt it best to fall back on what he knew best: doing it himself.

Sorry to see him go; I thought him a breath of fresh air. But at the same time, this is a singing competition and he's more of a singer/musician/artist type. In the end, he simply wouldn't have been able to compete on the strength of his vocals alone.

 

An interesting, gossipy article, but this part makes no sense:

"It makes me wonder if Carly is a pre-arranged plant, someone whose relationship with 19 Management and Simon Cowell and Clive Davis dates back all the way to 2001. I even wonder if the whole Idol competition is fixed this season, to ensure that a real seasoned pro prevails and no Taylor Hickses or Sanjaya Malakars make it through."

Why would the powers that be at AI want to annoint Carly as a "real seasoned pro" if her previous album only managed to sell a few hundred copies? Clearly it would make more sense to manipulate the contest on the behalf of someone who hasn't already tried and failed so miserably if, in fact, they are manipulating anything. (Of course at this point in the competition there really isn't a way to manipulate or "fix" the competition -- it's been all up to the judges anyway, and no one else is privvy to all of the reasons why certain people are in and others are out.)

 

Wow, I can't believe I care enough about these people to be talking about them on a Friday night! Oh well, its all good fun.
I think Carly is amazing despite her past. Josiah was very intereting, but TOO interesting for AI. He will most definitely find a deal after that exposure, possibly pick up a drug habit, and the like within the next two years.
The young smiley dark haired 16 year old boy is tailor maded for this contest and will star in some Disney movie next year, despite not winning AI.
There's a goof crop, but like the other years, it wont be that interesting until the last few rounds. Theres a lot of fluff, as usual.

 

Criminy, just noticed my spelling errors, please forgive me! One two many dirty martinis will do that! Crap! i almost did it again! "one TOO many..."

 

Yeah...but you gotta admit they featured a TON of footage with her - we literally saw every step of her arrival to the Top 24, even her "dog allergy" thing. Kinda makes ya think....

 

I have trouble with that theory too but there's always some way to tilt the effects, starting with the selecting process. They've been actually good at judging this year, I've got few complaints.

Carly's back story is certainly more extensive than her work Visa deal in 2005. In 2001 she was signed to a major label, appeared on the Universal site and laid a brick. Didn't even sell 500 copies. So having her here as a "long-suffering" novice and not a label vet is a bit manipulative. There hasn't been too many AI acts with major label experience.

 

Asia'h Epperson is from my town. I have heard her sing a few times and she is very good. She used to play on the same softball team as my daughter and I work with her grandmother. Very nice people. I spoke with Asia'h about 3 weeks ago wishing her well on AI. She is who I will be rooting for. It has been tough for her since her dad was killed in the auto accident. Go Asia'h.

 

She's cute, she'll hopefully go far on the show.

 

Okay, now that we got to see the women perform last night, I can't wait to see the guys tonight! Hardy har har. Really, quite the collection of dudes. There will be no surprises when they have to cut two on Thursday.

 

Jailhouse Rock on 60s night

 

oh man, no doubt! These were the cream of the crop? Goodbye Chekezie, Daniel, Colton, the Leif Garrett clone( that was freaky!) I thought Robbie was good, he's the Bo Bice of this season

 

In terms of the guys, I didn't think anyone was downright terrible but there are really only a few who seem worthy of being there. I thought the judges were kind in their comments to some of them. I know that I was cringing at some bad notes during performances that got praise from all three judges, leading me to suspect that, just as in years before, the judges cannot hear the vocals as well as we can on TV.

My early favorites among the guys: David Archuleta and Michael Johns (even though his performance this week was much worse than any of his auditions). I also like David Hernandez, but unless he gets more comfortable on stage he's not going to last long.

 

I think Colton's vocals were decent. Chekezie and the Leif Garrett clone (ironically named Garrett), on the other hand, were pretty terrible. Danny's voice is pretty good, but he really did butcher "Jailhouse Rock" -- not a good song choice for him at all. Still, I thought he sang at least as well as most of the guys. As for Robbie, he desperately needs some grooming assistance though I thought his performance of "One" was decent.