IDOL LIVE: angela martin

Thursday, May 27, 2010

American Idol: 2002-2010

The title pretty much says it all. Tonight is the night that American Idol died.

I was thinking about how I would recap Idol's ninth season, and I decided instead of duplicating last season's marathon rant about how horrible the season was, I will keep it short and sweet.

Following last season's finale I was on the verge of not coming back to continue this blog for Season 9. I wanted to quit so many times, but my enjoyment of following the careers of alums from seasons past kept me motivated to continue blogging. By the time January rolled around, I was about to announce I would not be live blogging the season, but something made me decide to give it another try in case the season ended up being good. Sadly, that did not come to be.

Season 9 is the black sheep/ugly duckling/bastard child of the Idol franchise, not only for its lack of talent (save for a few contestants), horrible production, self-absorbed judges, addition of Ellen DeGeneres as a judge, focus on guest performers rather than contestants, awkward Ryan Seacrest drunk hosting performances, appallingly bad 'Idol Gives Back' special, poor auditions, horrible mentors (Miley Cyrus? Adam Lambert?), pants on the ground (okay, that was actually pretty good...at first...before Brett Favre killed it with his "spoof"), boring Ford commercials, boring themes, old themes, tired themes, messy camera angles, dazed and confused audiences, more Ryan being drunk or stoned or just flirting with Simon, Randy's "dudes," Kara's nonsense, Simon's departure, lack of Paula's antics, Miley Cyrus's results show "performance," rejection of Angela Martin, Joe Jonas as a guest judge, basically all the guest judges, lack of a cheesy coronation single, the judges' save, Dane Cook at the finale, or its result, but for the sheer fact that it took up a minimum of two hours of FOX's prime time each week for five-and-a-half months.

In short, Season 9 basically killed what little love I had for this show after Season 8 left it dangling by a thread. I will still always have the memories of actual good seasons and their finalists. But as for the show in its current form, it's finished as far as I'm concerned.

(p.s. I realize how many times I used the words "I" and "me" in this post and would like to apologize. I'm not as self-centered as I might sound...oops there are two more "I"s!)

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Saturday, January 10, 2009

A few names to know for Season 8 (Spoilers)

IDOL LIVE has shied away from talking about the upcoming season in order to keep the focus on the news and activities of those that have transitioned from the show to actual careers in music because once the seasons starts that coverage will certainly take a hit. So I have saved all the pre-season spoiler stuff for now.

As you are all probably well aware, JoesPlace of JoesPlaceBlog.com is the place to go when you're looking for spoilers for all things Idol. With that, here are a few of the names you should get acquainted with before the auditions start so that you will be able to differentiate the fodder from the plants from the true talents:

Felicia Barton
Felicia Barton seems like a nice girl with a little experience with the music world. With a singing style (and looks) similar to Nelly Furtado, Felicia might have a hard time standing out from the crowd and could be placed into the "fodder" folder if she makes it through to the Top 36, but her version of Alicia Keys' "No One" is very good.

Terrence "T.K." Hash
Terrence "T.K." Hash made it to Hollywood last season. He's from Charlotte, N.C.

Ryan Paul August Johnson
Ryan "P.A." Johnson fronts a Christian rock band called instereo from Hamilton, Ohio. The band has toured many churches and youth groups nationwide among other concert events. Ryan, who is a father and railroad worker, recently appeared on Cincinnati's FOX 19 News to perform. He previously auditioned for the show four years ago.

Adam Lambert
A flamboyant theatrical stage performer and part time goth rocker, Adam Lambert will surely light up the screen on Idol. Some of his ventures have been a little less conventional than what most Idol fans are used to, so he might have a hard time finding a sturdy footing, not to mention the strong probability that Simon will hate him (think Danny Noriega on steroids). Look for him to have a lot of buzz (and major VFTW support).

Angela Martin
Angela Martin previously auditioned for Idol last season, when she sang "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" by Stevie Wonder and was unanimously sent through to Hollywood. The 27-year-old single mother with a daughter that has cerebral palsy certainly has a story, but her voice is another matter. Knowing that she makes the Top 50 gives her a good chance at going further this time around.

Joanna Pacitti
Joanna Pacitti has not yet been confirmed as a member of the Top 50 but it would be a huge surprise if she did not make it. Coming into the season with the most extensive resume and "plantiness," Joanna has previously released an album courtesy of Geffen Records called This Crazy Life.

The 24-year-old has also had songs featured on soundtracks like "Watch Me Shine" on the Legally Blonde soundtrack and "Out From Under" on the Bratz: The Motion Picture soundtrack, the latter of which was covered by Britney Spears for her latest album Circus. Before recording career, Joanna starred as Annie in the 20th anniversary of the musical Annie on a national tour but was replaced when the show opened on Broadway, which caused a national controversy in the mid-1990s.

Justin Williams
Justin Williams has experience in the recording studio and seems like he'd be a good bet for the Top 36, but Top 50 will have to do for now. There's video of him singing "The Prayer," the original "Adore You" and "The Star-Spangled Banner" at an Arizona Cardinals game on YouTube. He has a Josh Groban-esque voice.

Other potential contenders rumored to have made the Top 50 include Taylor Vaifanua, Brent Keith Smith and Lil Rounds. Others with familiar names that are rumored to have been cut before the Top 50 include Michael Castro (Jason's little brother), Sharon Wilbur, Alisha Dixon and Colton Swon.