Idol on FOX

 
    I had originally written this article when Idol was ending on FOX. Now it's an back on ABC. It's season 3 or 18 depending on whom you ask. Season 1 made me smile; but, the talent was just good, nothing special. Season 2, was much better it had some awesome talent. Now season 3 is phenomenal . This top 20 is possibly the best yet. The three judges and in house mentor Bobby Bones are amazing. They are giving some great feedback. I can't wait to see how it progresses.
(Below is the original article!)


    In Summer 2002, almost 10 million people tuned in to watch as America went on a “search for a superstar.” Enter Kelly Clarkson an unknown from Texas with a bubbly personality and a soulful voice. She sang to three judges. Producers Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and class triple threat singer/dancer/choreographer Paula Abdul. There were two hosts, again unknowns, Ryan Seacrest and Brian Dunkleman.  Kelly fought her way along with 120 other people to get that golden ticket and was sent to Hollywood on what would become the biggest talent show in history. (No! I am not a fan of The Voice. When this show produces a Carrie or Kelly, maybe I'll pay attention!)

    The show came to a close in April, after 14 years and 15 seasons. It is sad; but, everything runs it course. The show has had it's time in the sun. While I have watched non-stop since season 2. It's time for it to retire. (But things can always un-retire). The show this year is starting off great. It has a lot of potential for great artist. I have watched the auditions in amazement. Hollywood week always is terrible, in my opinion. The live shows got me hooked again. This top 10 were amazing. It is now down to 3 and I'm really into it. I think any of them could pull out a win. Avalon was my favorite this season! Harry Connick Jr, Keith Urban and Jennifer Lopez are the best combination of judges ever. They work well together. They laugh and have fun. They give good advice that helps them improve, without being harsh. This is season 15. We have had this same judging panel since season 13 but the talent the last two years have been mediocre. Let's give some credit  to the runner ups of seasons 13 and 14 (Jena and Clark) are extremely talented! I also really liked Tyanna from season 14. (I got Twitter to send her coupons to Krispy Kreme once!)

   Now let's walk through the history of the show seasons 2-12. After the first season, the overnight success of Kelly Clarkson helped the show generate talk. The second season started off small and climbed to be all people were talking about. Clay vs Ruben polar opposites were vying for the crown. The country was in an uproar. I was for Ruben all the way.

   Season 3 was when I became fully invested. I was all for LaToya Jasmine and Diana (who?) they ended up in 4th 3rd and 2nd place. LaToya could sing! Jasmine and Diana were cute. This season Fantasia became the Idol. I was devastated. I remember thinking I have a 75% chance of my top 3 winning when they had all reached the top 4. So close. There was this spark in the show. While the talent was probably mediocre, there were some great performances. I remember there were extra specials this season and lots of merchandise. This show was huge.

   I remember still being sour about the results of last season but decided to watch again. That's when Carrie Underwood walked into my life. I knew instantly she was a star, and the competition was over. There was already speculation that Bo Bice of Alabama was going to be the runner-up. So the real competition was for 3rd place which ended up being that cute Vonzell from Florida. So it may not have been the most exciting season; however, watching Carrie rise to stardom was enough reason to continue watching. When she sang Heart’s “Alone” Simon predicted she would be bigger than Kelly. In many ways he was correct. But I still say that race is too close to call.

   Season 5 was the biggest overall season for Idol. This season brought us Chris Daughtry and Kellie Pickler. (Neither one were winners.) Chris Daughtry has the 3rd highest album sales behind Carrie and Kelly of alum. Kellie Pickler won DWTS and got her own reality show! This season we saw what I still think is the most touching Top 3 Homecoming visit Elliot Yamin. His mom's reaction still makes me smile when I think of it. Season 6 was a terrible season but brought us Jordin Sparks, so it's okay. Season 7 gave us David Cook, I have seen him in concert 4 times and wish to see him again! I think he is the most creative winner to date. He took songs like Mariah Carey’s “Always Be My Baby” and Michael Jackson's “Billie Jean” and completely dismantled them and made them into something new. This season had life back because the top 10 was a stellar group.

    Season 8 had a shakeup we went to 4 judges. We added songwriter Kara Diogaurdi. She wasn't received well and the show suffered. With four judges it took time away from the contestants. Kris Allen won over Adam Lambert. This season Kris Allen started under the radar but ended up winning! Everyone likes an underdog story. (Another reason this show has been successful!) The next season Paula was gone and Ellen DeGeneres joined the table.  Ellen was out of her comfort zone, it showed. This season was terrible except the final 2. Crystal and Lee were talented and I had hope they would both be successful but it didn't work. Crystal and Lee both gave some awesome performances; but it wasn't enough to make a career. The show was fizzling fast.

      Season 10 there was another huge shakeup Kara, Ellen and Simon left. JLo and Steven Tyler entered as the new judges. The show felt fresh for the first time since season 7 (and season 7 was only fresh because of the talent)! The talent was good; possibly the best top 10 ever. Proof of that is James a Durbin his stage presence is unmatched. Pia's voice puts anyone else on the shows history to shame. Haley, Casey and Paul were throwback vibes but still made things modern. Lauren and Scotty were classic country with a modern vibe. The judges were fun. They changed a few things here and there. It felt like a brand new show. I Loved it!

    The problem was season 11 nothing changed. They became complacent and this is where the show started to really slip and that was sad because the talent was decent. It created Phillip Phillips he has been pretty successful.  At the end of this season JLo took a one year hiatus and Steven Tyler left. They went back to a four judge panel (mistake #1 I mean we tried this in season 8/9 and it didn't work. Why will it work for season 12?) We got three new judges Keith Urban (good choice.) Nicki Manaj (comments were similar to Simon Cowell, but she didn't take things seriously.) and lastly Mariah Carey (the worst judge ever!) she was so self centered and made no sense. The focus was on the judges and not the talent; which again is a shame, because the top 3 were stellar!

       You may ask why I love this show so much? It's very relatable to life. Sometimes you fall flat on your face and have to pick yourself up and try something else. That's fine! Other times you start off under the radar and end up winning! That's awesome! I like witnessing the growth in the contestants.
 Sometimes the hailed front runner from auditions and Hollywood week fizzles fast because they have no growth. Sometimes you know who the winner is gonna be from Hollywood week. Sometimes a person you never guessed winds up in the top 2 because they have tremendous amounts of growth.

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