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Following the kinder (and bland) version of the revamped American Idol a few months ago, Simon Cowell predicts that the US version of “The X Factor” will easily outshine its other rival singing competitors as it debuts on Fox in September 2011. The former ruthless judge of the American Idol is set to return as the same unmerciful judge in The X Factor which reunites him with previous AI judge, Paula Abdul.

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As predicted, Lee Dewyze wins the title as American Idol for 2010 garnering more votes than contender Crystal Bowersox. Despite pitch problems, Lee still managed to get the votes from teenyboppers and older women. Apparently, he got most of Casey James’ fans on his side.
Though there are those who believe his talent would be wasted with the win, the AI crown is still no easy feat. This could also be the last credible AI competition being Simon Cowell’s last. Of all AI winners, very few have really made it far. David Cook and Kris Allen’s career seem to be going no where while that of Taylor Hicks is almost non-existent. On the other hand, those who exited early are flourishing in every way possible — Chris Daughtry and Jennifer Hudson are currently at the top of their game. It wont be such a surprise if Casey James’ career soars even higher than both finalists — his duet with Axl Rose tonight was pretty cool.

With Lee taking the title, it appears that America is still as predictable as ever.  In the end, the screaming and giggling prevails and it becomes difficult to hear the music beyond the din.

With just one day before the finals of American Idol 2010, there is only one question in my mind. Can the talent of Crystal Bowersox be enough to garner more votes than the shy Lee Dewyze? For the past years, American Idol has been dominated by male winners, leaving the female contestants hardly any chance to even make it to the finals. This year, Crystal’s talent was enough to make it to the finals. Despite the following that Casey James earned over the weeks, her musical prowess cannot be denied. But will it be enough?
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Simon Cowell expressed embarrassment over his initial reaction to Susan Boyle during her audition in Britain”s Got Talent.  He wasn’t expecting someone who looked like her to be able to sing the way she did.  However, he warned that she still had work to do before winning, despite her increasing popularity.  With all the stories about the hair, the eyebrows, and her unmarried life, it may stray the 47-year old from winning the competition.

Boyle has 4 weeks to prepare for the biggest night of her life.  Cowell suggests that Boyle prepare for the semi-finals and focus on her song and come back stronger singing as the person she is, not the person people want her to be.

I’ve been looking around for something to entertain my readers today and luckily opened an email sent by my cousin. It was a video of a 47-year old woman singing in Britain’s Got Talent. After watching it, Susan Boyle did make my day. Watch it first before I give my opinion.

What were you thinking before she opened her mouth to sing? Shame on you. Actually, shame on all of us. That was another one of life’s lessons I will never forget. There should be nothing to keep us from dreaming. Way to go Susan!

Yesterday, American Idol 2009 has filtered the top 9 among the 36 that advanced from auditions and the Hollywood showdowns. Most of them were expected. Still, there were worthy performers eliminated during the 3 shows because only 3 could advance from each group. Nevertheless, American Idol remedied this problem by creating a final wild card round. In this round, judges chose 8 singers from those eliminated to compete in the final round. The final 3 that will be chosen from the wild card showdown will complete the top 12 competitors.

Here is the list of the top 9 who secured a slot for the final rounds.
1. Danny Gokey
2. Alexis Grace
3. Michael Sarver
4. Allison Iraheta
5. Kris Allen
6. Adam Lambert
7. Lil Rounds
8. Scott MacIntyre
9. Jorge Nunez

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Paul Potts is not good looking. He has bad teeth and seems overweight with a pot belly. He claims that he has constantly been bullied and you can imagine why that it by just looking at him. When he speaks, he seems close to stuttering and sputtering. The first time I saw his video, his downcast eyes revealed how minimal his self-confidence was. It has been over a year since his name has become a byword in the UK.

There are a lot of things that Paul knows he is not. But there is absolutely one truth that is unwavering — he wants to be an opera singer. And despite the low self-esteem, the bullying, and the mishaps in his life, he found solace in his voice.

When I first watched his audition video and saw him walking up the stage, I didn’t know what to expect. I guess I had the same look that Simon Cowell had — “ok, let’s get on with it.” A guy looking like Paul didn’t seem to have anything to offer that I would be interested in. As he started to sing “Nessun Dorma,” my eyes opened wide and I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I didn’t know why my eyes stung while he was finishing the final notes of the song. Maybe it was shame. Or maybe it was envy. Why do we judge people by their looks? And why do we judge ourselves by the way people look at us?

Paul Potts went on to win the first series of Britain’s Got Talent and in July 2007, his debut album “One Chance” claimed the number 1 spot in the UK Album Charts 6 days after its release. He now continues to do what he loves most and has already completed his own concert series. He may not be very popular in the US or other countries, but there is no doubt in his talent. I am not a fan of opera, but I am a fan of anyone who pursues his dreams regardless of the hurdles and the challenges that come his way.

It is done. David and David sing their final songs before the audience decide who wins the crown. Both contenders will battle it out in 3 rounds. The first round were songs chosen by music legend, Clive Davis. In the second, the contenders were made to choose songs from the top 10 American Idol Song Writer Finalists while the last round gives them the freedom to choose the best song that would prove they deserve the title.

Clive Davis chose U2′s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” for Cook and Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me” for Archuleta. The judges found both performances satisfactory, but Simon, as expected, responsibly provided the needed edge that Randy and Paula could not deliver, by declaring that the round belonged to Archuleta. Cook chose a fast song entitled “Dream Big” while Archuleta went for “In This Moment.” Judges hinted that Cook’s choice wasn’t the best, though his performance made up for the wrong choice. Again, Simon declared the second round in favor of Archuleta.

The final round gave both contenders the choice to sing the best song they have ever performed, including any song they might have already performed during the competition.  Cook was in character when he chose to take a risk and performed a new song, The World I Know.  The song obviously meant something to Cook when he concluded the song in tears.  Randy and Paula gave kind reviews.  In contrast, Simon told him it was the wrong choice despite the tears.  He even suggested that a repeat performance of Billie Jean would have been the better alternative.

Playing it safe, the young Archuleta opted to repeat his best performance and sung Imagine.  His repeat performance got raves from the judges, almost as if declaring him the winner regardless of the final tally on the votes tomorrow.  Tomorrow, we will find out how much clout the judges’ opinion will have on the voting audience.

 

As American Idol 2008 rounds up to the finals, David Cook outshines the young David Archuleta and the lone surviving female, Syesha Mercado, last May 13, 2008. The last 3 contenders in this season’s American Idol sang 3 songs each to prove their mettle and fight their way to the final round. The first song was chosen by the judges where Cook shone brighter than Archuleta and Mercado singing Roberta Flack’s “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.” The song was chosen by Simon which had the hard-to-please judge declaring, “Round 1 goes to Cook and Cowell.” Archuleta sang Billy Joel’s “And So It Goes” which was chosen by Paula Abdul while Mercado sang “If I Ain’t Got You” chosen by Randy Jackson. Both performers did not make any blunder but did a mediocre performance compared to Cook.

In the second round, the contenders sang songs of their choice where Archuleta sang With You, Mercado sang Fever, and Cook sang Dare You to Move.  None of the contenders scored in that round with all 3 getting bad reviews from the judges.

The final round, songs chosen by the producers,  was a bust for Mercado who sang Hit Me Up.  Meanwhile, Archuleta got an ok from all the judges for Fogelberg’s Longer but Cook got better reviews with his version of I Don’t Want to Miss A Thing.  Personally, it seemed like the producers were setting up the finals into a David versus David contest.  Although I initially favored Archuleta, I think Cook has a better chance of clinching the title for the seventh season.  He showed more creativity and versatility while the 17-year old’s talent was limited to performing ballads.

With American Idol, we don’t really know which end is up.  Still, both contestants deserve to be in the finals.  May the best singer win, rather than the one with the most votes.