A blog reader (thanks, Justene!) asked if I had heard anything about Simon Cowell's reaction to Melinda Doolittle being voted off the show this week. Well, I surely found some reaction and I'm here to tell y'all...
In this Orlando Sentinel article, Simon voiced his disappointment with the voting, yet optimism for the upcoming winner. When asked if he thought Melinda lost due to her looks, he said, "I hope not," he says. "I think her age may have played a factor, not her looks. We have a lot of teenage voters." Cowell thinks the teenaged voters voted for Jordin rather than Melinda.
As for his thoughts on Blake, he called him a "brilliant entertainer, but not a fantastic singer." He thinks the opposite is true of Jordin -- "She is a great singer. On a negative, she hasn't done one performance I can remember as a wow."
Both contestants will have to sing a ballad this week, which could very well be a bit rough on Blake. Cowell stated in the article that he hopes that Blake will also do a Bon Jovi song. After all, one of his best performances to date was "You Give Love a Bad Name."
In other Idol News, the New York Daily News has an interview with the finalists, Jordin and Blake. They're both in it to win it. After last week's "old" comment from Simon, Jordin vows that she'll sing something more "youthful" this week.
They'll be singing three songs each this week -- one from the ongoing songwriting competition, one of their own choosing, and one they've sang on the show before. (Heh... can we say "shot through the heart and it's too late...?")
Another article which caught my interest came from PostStar.com - Melinda probably deserved better. Yeah, she probably did, I say. The article's written by a Los Angeles Times columnist and provides some insight into what we didn't see on Wednesday night as we either cussed our TV sets or jumped with joy. Should the voting system for the show be changed? Hmmm...
One quote in particular within the article linked above is perfect to close this entry: "But as we know now, 'Idol' has gotten too big to produce just one superstar a season. Melinda Doolittle belongs to the world now."
And, for me, that makes the world a bit better place.
10 comments:
I think something needs to be done about the voting procedure or it will always remain a "popularity" contest instead of a "talent" contest. I still say the formula used by DWTS might work better. Why even have those judges if their opinions count for nothing??And as much as I detest the way he goes about it,Simon is usually the voice of reason about most of the performances. Randy can be objective,but sometimes I don't know where he's coming from and they need a new third judge because Paula is useless,I guess she's the Bruno on the show.And they need to limit the number of times you can vote,like DWTS,too. They really get off on their 60 million plus votes,and Lord knows,somebody is raking in the money,but it cheapens the contest and allows Sanjaya to remain long after he was due to go.
I agree Jackie...Melinda will go far as a great singer. She has been the best singer throughout and deserves the best for her future.
Blake is good at what he does but if it is a true singing competition then between he and Jordin, it has to come down to Jordin as the winner.
Here's hoping anyway.
The idea that American Idol is a talent competition, and not a popularity contest could only be true if it was only talent they were showcasing. They start the season showcasing crazy people that think they can sing, and we only see a small percentage of the talent. And just like in any election, when you ask the public to vote you have to live with the results.
Sadly any election is a popularity contest.
The voting process is a bit bad, but with that being said, I don't think that the final results on any show are bad. Some good singers go before their time, but not everybody can win.
Simon Cowell hit the nail on the head. Saying that Blake isnt a fantastic singer(he didnt say bad),but a performer. Where Jordin is a great singer, but nothing pops out as "Wow!" He is basically saying that in looking back, that most of her performances blend and nothing is too memorable. Where Blake may not be the best singer, he is definitely the performer you remember. Now from a Music producer or Record label perspective, who do you think they will want to sign? The one people remember... Plain and simple. Simon knows what he is talking about and that is why he is succesful with what he does aside from AI.
"American Idol" isnt just a singing competition, or they would call it American Singer. They are looking for someone with the complete package. Blake is the one who embodies that, hopefully he wins...
GO BLAKE!
Like last year...Katherine McFee brought it on in the end, but Taylor won because he had stage presence. When she sang "Over the Rainbow it wowed one and all, but that was basically it for her. Blake has stage presence and Jordin has the voice. We will see. Unfortunately to sell records today you have to tour successfully. Jordin can be taught, but look at someone like Brittney S and her stage presence. She had something from the start and used it, not sure it is in Jordin! Blake does have it.
Seems like they would sell a whole lot more albums for any of the top 3 if they got them out to the public sooner. I was a big fan of Bo Bice back in the day, but never did buy his album. You build up all this energy and interest in the singers, but you have to wait a year or more for the album release.
I know they make a lot of money from the tour, but I'm not sure it does the singers a whole lot of good in their independent careers after the show.
I want to get a CD of all of Melinda's idol performances since the top 24. Any idea where I could get one? Also, I can't wait for Melinda to do a solo tour--maybe cabaret style--I can listen to her singing for hours and hours. There's a positive surprise and goose bumps every time.
At this point in American Idol's run, it really doesn't matter who wins. In fact, it might be better not to win at this point. People expect too much from the winner, while they are surprised and excited to see those who didn't win put out records. Melinda will do well if she chooses Contemporary Christian music. The thing I find most interesting is that American Idol contestants actually do better live than most of the established stars who perform live. Imagine what the judges would have said to Stefani, Lopez, Maroon 5, etc., if they would have been voted on their live performances, which were not good at all. Hats off to the final three. They will all put out records and do well.
ANON-2:21 I too was noticing that all the stars they bring in to perform are not sounding as good as they usually do. Not just the ones you listed, but all the stars just do not sound that great on AI. Im thinking they must have a bound sound system or something. Maroon 5 was on SNL this week singing the same song they did on AI and they sounded so much better. Makes u wonder how good the Idols sound in another forum. With all the money AI has generated, u would think they would have a decent sound system, but Ive always thought it lacked something...
Wow, voted Melinda off? It was sad, America. But now Melinda Doolittle belongs to the World. She is the Lady, as Billie, Ella, Dinah, Sarah...and she sings everything, from blues to rock, the oldies and the contemporary. Blake is seasonal, bah, and Jordin is a goog singer but there are many like her...Melinda is Unique, she is a real talent.
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