American Idol-ism

In case you're wondering if the title of this post is a metaphor for something, sorry, it's not. This post has nothing to do with kids or education. It really has to do with American Idol.

Two reasons: 1) I have nothing to say about on kids or education this week 2) I'm a big fan of American Idol. Linked to reason no.2 is that I have a lot of opinions about this season (every season actually) and if you know me by now, you will know I cannot keep these opinions to myself.

I don't have a clear favourite yet - I think this is one of those seasons where my preference will change as it progresses. Part of the reason for this is that there are so many great singers this season. I believe this is the best lineup they've had for a long time and I credit the new judges for this (although they've been way too nice and unconstructive since the contestants hit the big stage). In the past, I've felt that Simon strong armed his way to get certain contestants who he feel are "marketable" and that often means young and blonde, voice was secondary (*ahem Kellie Pickler*). With JLo and Steve Tyler, it's quite clear they picked based on vocal ability so kudos to them.

At the moment, my bugbear is how everyone seems to be fawning over Pia. I disliked this girl the moment she massacred "I'll Stand By You" last week. The song is a tender message from one to another, declaring she'll stand by her friend/loved one. The way Pia screeched it, the friend would have completely drowned in Pia's pool of self-absorption. Apart from the original singer Chrissie Hyndes, Carrie Underwood nailed it as an example of how the song should be sung.



And then this week, Pia did it again. Wrung all the emotion out of that Celine Dion song by shrieking it to high heaven. Man, she's annoying. Almost as annoying as Lauren calling Ryan Seacrest "Peaches". In one of the earlier seasons, Latoya London sang the heck out of "All By Myself". Also a diva with a big voice but with all the emotion.



For now, I like Casey, Paul (not so much this week) and James. What they have in common is they all have big personalities and they seem very comfortable in their own skins. We'll see what happens along the way.

And just for fun, Lilian and I had such a laugh matching the contestants, some of whom didn't make the top 13, to their look-a-likes. Ashthon = Beyonce, Casey = Will Ferrell, Jacob = Bubba (from Forrest Gump), Scotty = Alfred E. Neuman (from Mad Magazine), Stefano = Joey Tribiani (from Friends), Brett = Simply Red guy, Robbie = Adrien Brody, Jaycee = Fat Bieber. Who knew there were so many lost relations!

Who out there watches the show too? Share your favourites and dislikes with me!