bill bodkin looks at the end of this season’s american idol
Color me shocked…
In our previous blog I pegged Lee DeWyze to emerge victorious from what would no doubt be a highly competitive finale. However, after watching Tuesday’s show, I felt I had backed the wrong horse. The goateed guitarist seemed nervous — his volume and bravado evaporated the moment he started his version of “The Boxer.” Conversely, the recently complacent Crystal Bowersox hit the stage with gusto — belting songs with a passion that we had not seen in quite some time. Her song choices were excellent and the night was hers. It seemed even Lee knew this as his body language was that of a beaten man during his performance of U2’s “Beautiful Day.”
Yet somehow and someway, Lee DeWyze emerged victorious. It was close, a 5% difference between the two and the paint salesman from Chicago emerged victorious.
So what caused the win? Was it Lee’s sudden “dream boat” status that brought the female vote to his side? Was it the Idol audience’s rejection of Crystal Bowersox’s honesty when she said she wanted to win Idol to provide a better life for her son, not because it was her dream? Or was it a case of short-term memory — people enjoying Lee’s recent dynamic performances instead of Crystal’s solid but safe performances?
This will be answer I don’t think we’ll ever find out. However, both were deserving — talented as hell, these two performers should have long careers.
Lee, with the right grooming and marketing, could be quite successful. He’s got the rock chops and booming voice to make commercially accessible music. I’d slot him under Daughtry and David Cook, with a definite chance to overtake Cook, as the second best male Idol. I can’t see him selling out stadiums, but definitely playing the major clubs, churning out hit singles year after year and being the opening act (at least for now) for major league touring bands.
As for Crystal, after the Idol tour, I can see her being on more roots rock festivals like Bonnaroo or touring with the new Lillith Fair festival. She’s got the talent to be a performer with a long career — that is if she wants it. One can easily see her calling it quits after a few years to be a mom or step out of the limelight.
American Idol Season 9 is in the books and for the third straight year, we’re presented a guy with a guitar, who’s got a world of potential. Will Lee DeWyze be able to capitalize on his opportunity like David Cook or will he underwhelm us like Kris Allen? Only time can tell.
A Side Note about Idol’s Future….
The once unstoppable Idol juggernaut is in serious trouble. Did anyone notice how Tuesday’s finale, one of the most important Idol shows of the year, was completely rushed? Usually there’s a lot more time dedicated on this show to video packages on the performers and some celebrity performances, but this year, it seemed like FOX really wanted to get the Tuesday show over so they could air the Lady Gaga-inspired episode of Glee. Then they followed up this rush job with a season finale that was more focused on random celebrity “surprise” performances (Christian Aguilera and Janet Jackson were absolutely terrible) and the final show for Simon Cowell than who was going to become the next American Idol. And when Lee finally found out he won, his final song was cut off for the ten o’clock news.
To me, that speaks volumes.
When we posted our “American Idol: A Frustrating Season” blog we saw a lot of negative feedback on the show, many ending with “I’m not watching the show anymore.” It seems the tried and true Idol formula is becoming tired to viewers. Another complaint was that the show has lost its poker face — it seems they are very blatant about who they want to win, especially in the early rounds. This resulted in the ratings, while still strong, were lower than most previous Idol seasons.
And to top it off, the departure of Simon Cowell is a devastating blow. The spot-on yet acidic Brit was the face of Idol. A cult of personality, Cowell was the sarcastic voice of musical reason, givimg insightful musical criticisms while the other judges made fluffy statements about being “pitchy” and being a ripe banana. Without Cowell a black hole of charisma sits at the end of the judges table and it’s going to be a very weak next season unless they can find someone who just oozes charisma like a Neil Patrick Harris, because the Randy/Ellen/Kara trio is just not going to cut it.
I guess we will have to wait til next year to find out how Idol will fare.
I don’t know how she lost, she should not have. I occassionally see exerpts of the show and I have seen her perform as well as the others. SHe was and is the best of the lot.