Comments on: Putting the American Back in Idol http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2010/04/01/putting-the-american-back-in-idol/ Responses to Media and Culture Fri, 12 Feb 2016 19:35:04 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.5 By: mrkuple http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2010/04/01/putting-the-american-back-in-idol/comment-page-1/#comment-23855 Mon, 02 Aug 2010 21:11:49 +0000 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/?p=2794#comment-23855 Sad to see her go, but American Idol shouldn’t cancelled next year,i hope the show returned to the first motif of creation.

]]> By: Kelli Marshall http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2010/04/01/putting-the-american-back-in-idol/comment-page-1/#comment-2391 Thu, 01 Apr 2010 23:33:17 +0000 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/?p=2794#comment-2391 Indeed, Miles, IDOL has been “most problematic this year” but NOT only “in terms of sending mixed messages to the performers,” right? With the exception of Bowersox (and maybe Magnus, whose singing I personally don’t care for), there is virtually no stand-out talent, no charisma, no originality, no consistency in performance. Moreover, as Ryan Seacrest stated on OPRAH earlier this week, most contestants nowadays (post-Carrie Underwood) come in to IDOL understanding “the game” with a sense of entitlement that can be rather off-putting. Perhaps this — along with Simon’s exit and the judges’ problematic advising — is why the show is rumored to be cancelled next year.

]]> By: Myles McNutt http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/2010/04/01/putting-the-american-back-in-idol/comment-page-1/#comment-2385 Thu, 01 Apr 2010 20:08:13 +0000 http://blog.commarts.wisc.edu/?p=2794#comment-2385 I think you rightly point out that Siobhan is showing distinct signs of individuality on a show that often caters towards the bland or the “typical,” but I think it’s important to note that the show has perhaps been at its most problematic this year in terms of sending mixed messages to the performers on the judgment side of things. In one breath the judges are pushing the contestants to be more individual, and in the next they’re pushing them to be more relevant as a recording artist; at one point this week, they even argued amongst themselves what the 16-year old Katie Stevens’ genre should be, without really consulting her own opinion. They want people to fit inside certain boxes but they also want them to push the boundaries, and that sort of mixed messaging has caused a lot of contestants some headaches and further complicated their individuality (or the role of that individuality) in the competition.

Siobhan, like Adam Lambert before her, is sort of using Idol as her own lab, experimenting with her musical style and the clash of personalities on/off stage. The question is whether that experimentation is part of her personality or a sign that she is changing her personality, and whether it could be considered “performance” to the level of Lambert’s ever-changing persona last season; either way, based on the low standards this year, she’s certainly got a chance of going quite far, but I wonder if her experimental nature will place her in the same position as Lambert. She might be able to win fans, but she might not be able to win the general public who ultimately decide the competition once things get to the Final Two. She might be helped, though, if she remains considered the “underdog” to Crystal’s frontrunner – Lambert fell because Kris Allen had all the momentum, but if Siobhan can keep moving I’d say there’s a chance she could take it…although there’s just as much chance that she goes out early (and get saved by the judges) for the same qualities that make her worthy of this article’s attention.

Ah, the joys of reality competition democracy.

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