April 2, 2009
Megan Joy eliminated from American Idol – her “I don’t care” to Simon
I guess quite a few people will be very critical of Megan Joy for her “I don’t care” to Simon. I wonder though how much of it is bravado that’s a result of knowing that the judges are targetting for her to go next. And of letting the judges’ sudden “hate” get to her.
Honestly, I don’t get the judges’ excessive love for Adam Lambert and Danny Gokey. I may be alone, but Adam always makes me feel like he’s “acting” when he’s singing onstage. A genius on the same level as Mick Jagger? *rolls eyes* If you put Adam next to Mick, I think Adam comes across as a “wannabe” (what they accused Allison Iraheta of this week, just because of the rather OTT rock-chick outfit she had on).
As for Danny Gokey, he has an ease about him onstage which obviously helps him sell any song he’s singing. But to me, he’s just consistently very good, not great. I don’t think he’s done that much better than Matt Giraud or Lil Rounds, yet Matt and Lil Rounds seem to be judged much more harshly, leading them to perhaps overthink their song choices???
I’m just glad that Kris Allen is still able to just do his thing. Really enjoyed his “Ain’t No Sunshine” this week. And I remember enjoying his “Man in the Mirror” in the Top 36 stage. His main weakness, for me, is that his voice is just okay for me. But, if you believe in conventional pop-music wisdom that it’s all about the song, then I can see a situation where given a good song, he’ll improve on it, and be able to release a very good record. (Also, I’ve heard a couple of his studio recordings for Idol, and I do think he sounds better recorded than live). I see him as this season’s Blake Lewis, without the beat-boxing gimmick.
Having said all that, I must say that I find myself looking forward more to the Results week for the guests, than to the performance shows. It was great to see David Cook again this week. And I loved Joss Stone last week.
One of my main thoughts this week about Idol: I think it’s a shame that the show has missed its chance to reshape pop music. Yet, with every season, they seem to be increasingly emphasising to contestants that they have to ‘fit’ into the contemporary pop world. What a waste of an opportunity. American Idol could have striven to become the Motown of this era. But so far all we’ve seen is a massively successful factory in action.
Crooked Turret 