American Idol: Season in Review

So Season 9 of American Idol is down to its final two contestants: Lee DeWyze and Crystal Bowersox. And after four months, thirteen results shows, over one hundred performances, and even more disgusted grimaces from Simon Cowell, I can safely say that not a single person is surprised. Now, this sentiment leads to two juxtaposed conclusions. On the one hand, we can look forward to a tense finale between two incredibly talented performers and competitors who unquestionably deserve to be there. We are lucky that, this season, America didn't pull a royal pooch-screw a la Chris Daughtry or Latoya London or Jennifer Hudson or Allison Iraheta.

On the other hand, the fact that everyone knew Lee and Crystal would be the finalists since the very beginning directly speaks to how mediocre the other 10 finalists were. Take last season for example: while everyone knew Adam Lambert was a front-runner from the very beginning, anyone from Danny Gokey to the aforementioned Iraheta and even underdog Matt Giraud could have made it to the big show in the place of Kris Allen (even though Allen ended up winning). However, I would be hard pressed to find a single person with a compelling argument for why Casey James or Mike Lynche or Aaron Kelley should be in the final two instead of Lee and Crystal. Put simply, it was clear from the very beginning that these two finalists were leagues ahead of the competition.

As such, it would be a fair assessment to say that Season 9 of American Idol has been pretty disappointing. And now, with only one night of performances left, it seems like an appropriate time to reflect on the reasons why this season seemed to fall short of expectations, as well as the few pieces of the puzzle that actually fell into place.

What Didn't Work


The first part of this season I took issue with is the job Cowell and his cohorts did selecting the Top 24. Now, I am not strictly talking about the actual talent of the contestants who made the final judge's cut, though that was part of the problem--I mean, how in the millions of people who auditioned was there no body better than the awful Paige Miles and the one-note Lacey Brown. My bigger concern, however, lies within the type of contestant that they chose. There was simply an overwhelming amount of "singer/songwriter," instrument-playing contestants this season. And while being able to play and instrument and have a good voice definitely speaks to a contestant's musical abilities, to me, these guitar playing, folky-folksters don't really embody the true spirit of American Idol. When I think about who should be the American Idol, my mind immediately shoots to post-show success stories like Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken, Jennifer Hudson, and Adam Lambert. All of these musicians have incredibly powerful voices with great ears and the show-stopping ability to belt the big notes alongside some of the best vocalists in the industry. And while DeWyze and Bowersox undoubtedly have great voices, other instrument-playing contestants of this season were, too me, total snoozefests, placing too much emphasis on their pick-work and not enough on hitting the right notes and making the songs interesting. Idol is about vocals first and foremost, and the judges failed at picking contestants that recognized and respected this golden rule.


Second, the weekly themes this season were, in the words of Mr. Cowell, just terrible, and did the sub-par contestants zero favors. Don't get me wrong, Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra were iconic musicians who defined their respective genres and generations. But their music is in no way relevant to the industry today, and is extremely limiting as far as the variety of their repertoire. So forcing the contestants to pick songs strictly from these musician's songbooks is just a bad call that ended up leaving both the judges and America thoroughly unimpressed. Furthermore, a theme like "Inspirational Songs" tends towards the cliche, so it is no surprise that the judges' most frequent criticism that week was that the performances were very cheesy and old-fashioned. The show needs to stick to simple, genre-related themes like R&B week, Classic Rock week, and Country week. This way, it still forces the contestants to show different sides of them, while allowing them enough freedom to pick a song that does the best at showcasing their unique talents and style. And this season, the themes were way too narrow, and really bizarre.

Finally, as the weeks wore on, I quickly lost patients for the judging system in general, and Kara DioGuardi in particular. I found that the four judge panel was too cramped, leaving too little time for any one of them to say anything of value, especially given that Simon is last in the lineup, and often provides the most lucid and valuable criticisms. And if I could cut one, it would most assuredly be Kara, not newcomer Ellen, who was an utter delight. Ellen filled Paula Abdul's vacancy nicely, offering up similarly candy-coated critiques but in a much funnier, much clearer manner. However, Kara was simply intolerable. First of all, she used her allotted comment time to spout off every high-level musical term she could (vibrato, falsetto, timbre, tone-color) instead of trimming the fat down to a criticism that is helpful. Second, she was often hypocritical, one week telling a contestant they didn't have a "moment," and the next advising that they focus more on "connecting" with the meaning of the song instead of belting out the big notes. And finally, she made a bad habit of butting in and silencing Simon when he would say something that she disagreed with. YOU GOT YOUR TURN, KARA! NOW ZIP THE LIP!


What Worked

If there was one thing that really made this season worth watching, it was the observable growth of the contestants, and their individual stories. Many of the top 12 performers began as timid, reserved singers who shied away from taking risks. Take Aaron Kelly for example. After the top 24 were announced, I was convinced this 17 year old crooner would be gone well before the top 12. Safe, cheesy performances like "My Girl" and "Already There" solidified this belief. However, Aaron took his criticisms in stride, and come the Top 11 week, he simply blew me away with his rendition of "Don't Wanna Miss a Thing." Aaron was able to ride this momentum through a number of memorable performances all the way to the Top 5. The same can be said of finalists Casey James and Lee DeWyze, both of who were truly forgettable at the beginning of the top 12 rounds, but utilized the judges' comments to make vast improvements. Heck, even perennial punching-bag Tim Urban showed marked improvement as the weeks wore on, surprisingly stretching his stay into the top 7. This season more than ever, the contestants needed a lot of advice, and many of them listened diligently. It was interesting to watch who truly improved and grew as the weeks wore on.

Also, many of the contestants this season had heartwarming and encouraging back-stories, making them easy to root for. This is especially true when considering the top 3. Casey James, a construction worker from Texas, was in a terrible motorcycle accident. Doctor's told him he would never play the guitar again. However, he recovered and took the AI stage with by far the best guitar-playing chops of any contestant in the history of the show. Lee DeWyze never finished high school, and passed his days working in a paint store, never dreaming of the stardom that AI provides. And before Idol, Crystal Bowersox, a single mother, found herself struggling to make it as a musician, living off gratuities she made from playing at train stations and on the streets of Chicago. And I think these points hit upon precisely why I've stuck with Idol this season. I truly believed in these contestants, and in my heart I felt for them and wanted them to succeed. They were, for the most part, all underdogs in my eyes, be it because of their questionable abilities, lack of self confidence, or difficult history.

Will Crystal and Lee have long, successful careers and remain in the public eye for a long time to come? Maybe. But regardless, I will have a very difficult time choosing which one to root for come Wednesday night, as I deeply want both of these talented artists to win. So good luck, Lee and Crystal. You have made the most of a sub-par season for yourselves and for the American viewers. I will be watching very closely this Tuesday. Please throw caution to the wind and blow me away.