Will Kris Allen's upset mean another Emmy humiliation for 'American Idol'?
Throughout this season of "American Idol," Adam Lambert was widely proclaimed to be the front-runner, even by the notoriously fickle Simon Cowell, who called him a brilliant artist, showman and "worldwide star." Victory by Kris Allen is such a blatant rejection of industry and critical opinion, we must wonder: Does it diminish the credibility of the show?
For Jon Caramanica of the New York Times, "At best, Mr. Allen is a harmless singer — he makes Kenny Loggins look tough. At worst, he’s indefensible, utterly lacking in texture and range and interpretive imagination. His awww-shucks demeanor spills over to his performances, in which his chin jerks violently to the right every time he’s aiming for a big note, as if his mouth is struggling to deliver what his brain is asking for."
However, as Whitney Pastorek of Entertainment Weekly explained, "Adam Lambert was never going to win this show, but I don't think it had anything to do with platform boots or flaming bombast or some vast red state/Mormon/hillbilly/Miss California conspiracy. I think it had more to do with the fact that the sort of people who would be inclined to like Adam Lambert are not as inclined to watch this show as the sort of people who would be inclined to like Kris Allen."
And as Ann Powers of the Los Angeles Times pointed out, "Allen has his undeniable strong points. In terms of the music industry, he cuts a more contemporary figure than Lambert: Many stars now (specifically rock-oriented, male ones) tend to do better when they draw themselves to scale, offering songs that make fans feel warm and connected, not blown away."
Though the public may have preferred the soft rock of Kris Allen, Adam Lambert's hard edge certainly made for better TV. And the ultimate judges of that aspect of "American Idol" will be the Emmy voters. Over its first seven seasons, "American Idol" has struck out repeatedly at the Emmy Awards, winning only two of its 34 bids. And neither of those wins came in the top race of best reality competition program. Indeed, since that category was introduced in 2003, "The Amazing Race" has won all six years.
Although "American Idol" has slipped somewhat in the ratings this season, it is still the top-rated show on TV. The addition of the fourth judge — Kara DioGuardi — was seen as a plus. And by focusing on the personal stories of viable contestants rather than on the delusions of certain would-be singers, "American Idol" had reestablished itself as a showcase for up-and-coming talent.
The defeat of the critical favorite — Adam Lambert — by the people's choice of Kris Allen may not make a difference in how many awards either of them wins over their careers. However, it could keep the show that launched them from finally convincing Emmy voters of its merit.
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Note to person who said Jamie Foxx is not a muscian obviously does not know that Jamie is a classicaly trained pianist and also played learn to play a two string violin in his latest movie and he also sings so he more than just an actor.
Posted by: Ronnie | June 01, 2009 at 11:56 AM
The critics and the vast majority of people in the music industry were very impressed by Adam. Kris - not so much.
There may be a few people in the industry who will want to work with Kris - mainly because mediocrity often does sell.
Jamie Fox is NOT a musician. He is an actor.
Posted by: Jane Kat | May 31, 2009 at 11:36 AM
The person who said that the type of person who likes Adam is not the type of person who watches American Idol.
I pretty much always thought this show was a joke and never watched it before Adam. I will go back to not watching it again unless there is another singer of Adam's caliber. Quite frankly, I don't have time to listen to mediocre performers.
The masses didn't appreciate Mozart in his time either. They liked Salieri better - a vastly inferior composer. People like what's "safe" and familiar. Adam is somone who pushes the button - he is not safe. He will, however, eventually take the music world in a different direction.
Posted by: Jane Kat | May 31, 2009 at 11:31 AM
The show is decided by little girls. Just ask Richard Rushfield. Therefore, it should not win anything.
Posted by: AEvangelista | May 25, 2009 at 11:30 PM
I think America did well voting Kris Allen as the new American Idol. He is a decent, modest, likable role model. Both Adam and Kris will do well and answer different tastes in music. With Allison, Danny,Anoop, and Matt.the weekly shows were very entertaining and the finale was great too.
Posted by: Rebecca | May 25, 2009 at 10:36 PM
Are you saying that the show can't win an Emmy unless the person approved by the Emmy committee is the winner? Then why not just have the Emmy committee chose the winner. Just get rid of those great unwashed viewers who don't realize that they really want to hear music they hate. They really want a winner whose CD they wouldn't take for free. Thatnks for clearing that up.
Posted by: Vada | May 24, 2009 at 05:52 PM
I did not like Kara. Does Kadius know of redial. Much faster than just dialing again. Jamie Foxx was on Ellen's show and said he wants to make a recording with Kris. Ellen said she would like to hear it. He said he was going to look into getting it done. This was before Kris had won. Foxx thinks Kris is great.. I tried voting I couldn't get in at all. So that every 4.8 times didn't work for me. Others say they don't listen to what is said ,soon as the phone is picked up the name is mentioned who was voted for they hang up, so that cuts time down also ..I like both singers..
Posted by: Barb | May 23, 2009 at 06:18 AM
Common...At&t already denied the information about the votes from Arkansas... and don't tell the all the Glambert fans only vote for him once, yeah right... Please understand that are people in this world that like Kris more than Adam...and if you don't belive me please check the itunes charts...and you can see that Kris have even more songs that Adam in the top 100.
Posted by: Paola | May 22, 2009 at 10:48 PM
Yes, American Idol will suffer in their credibility as well as how the voting practices are done. Most media, people in the music business and fans across the country recognize Adam as the true talent and Idol. The realization that American Idol has become a voting and home state contest and not an assessment of singing talent was made clear by AT & T’s statistic disclosure Thursday morning.
AT & T CONFIRMED FROM THEIR DATA THAT 38 MILLION VOTES CAME FROM ARKANSAS. THE POPULATION OF ARKANSAS IS ABOUT 2.8 MILLION.
ARKANSAS FANS WERE USING GIZMO AND DIAL IDOL SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY.
One Arkansas church group of 105 people said they got in 436,655 votes using the software and their texts. This is not American Idol as voted by millions, this is a few hundred thousand people trained in one state skewing the results (plus the Gokey fans).
AI IS NO LONGER A TALENT/SINGING CONTEST, THIS IS A REGIONAL VOTING AND TECHNOLOGY CONTEST.
Any good singer who organizes his fans and home state can create a 38 million vote count if they need to.
Kris admitted “Adam deserved this” He heard afterwards about the voting and technology training in Arkansas. He did not want to win that way.
Kris fans complained about the judges giving Adam too many compliments and accolades...DUH, that's why they are judges. They have seem many good (Kris...Danny)and average singers...Adam wowed them ! Every time he performed was an event...Paula with tears in her eyes...Kara told him "Each week I look forward to seeing what you'll do next"
...Simon's standing ovation and saying "you will be a world-wide star" These are professionals in the music business...Kris got NONE of these compliments.
The reason Simon did not stand clapping with the other judges when Kris won is because he knew America made a mistake and the voting had gotten skewed.
And last, remember that Elvis lost a talent contest in Mississippi before he became a recording artist. Adam is our American Idol, Kris is an Arkansas Idol.
Posted by: The Legend | May 22, 2009 at 05:51 PM
All i have to say about this win is:only in America....seriously.But yeah it is called Amertican Idol for a reason.Simon knows Adam is the one with world-vide appeal.Im happy for Kris but even he said in an interview fot mtv that Adam is the most talented the show has ever seen...
Posted by: time | May 22, 2009 at 12:11 PM
Critical favorite? Please show me the so-called avalanche of critics who a) even watch Idol, and b) soundly called it for Adam over Kris.
And online fangirls/Simon Cowell don't count.
Kris' style of music is fresh, current and relevant. Please give a little more credit to the public for choosing the overall music and performer they liked better rather than voting for who had a larger vocal range.
Posted by: Carrie | May 22, 2009 at 11:17 AM
Mr. O'Neil, would you mind sending me a DVD of the season you just watched? It wasn't anything like the one that my Fox affiliate aired the past few months, and I'd like to have a look at yours to see if it was better. Here in my apparently parallel universe, these were the facts:
* Kris and Adam, though different in style, were both outstanding.
* Adam was not overwhelmingly the critical favorite - he had legions of both fans and detractors, and it was that love-or-hate aspect, coupled with his mad natural skills, that made him so fun to watch.
* Kris was about as lacking in imagination as a bird was lacking in feathers. It was his mad interpretative skills that allowed him to catch up to and surpass superior vocalists like Adam.
* The addition of Kara was seen as a plus by perhaps three people worldwide. Tell the other two I said hi.
* The focus on the contestants backstories was the only bigger disaster this season than Kara. It led to some of the weakest finalists in the show's history while some amazing Top 36 singers were home early.
* Finally, in what universe does anyone believe that an Idol season is ultimately judged by how many Emmys it wins? Please tell me you meant that as tongue-in-cheek because the alternative is something I'd rather not think about. Even though your blog is about awards, that's no excuse for mistaking those highly politicized institutions for critical authorities.
I think you would be better served if next season you stopped reading and regurgitating industry press releases and spent more time on the good AI websites where the real opinions of the people can be heard. Do the letters EW, MJBB, IDF, WNTS, TWOP, JPB, VFTW, IC, etc. mean anything to you? No? Guess that's why your season looked so much different than mine.
Posted by: avi | May 22, 2009 at 08:38 AM
100 million votes, 38 million of them from Arkansas. Some redneck figured out gang-voting! Word was AI 's technology people knew how to prevent this. NOT!!
Posted by: shannyl | May 22, 2009 at 07:55 AM
Am I the only one who thought that Adam's constant screaming was flat out anoying. Musical maybe? Chris is OK. Danny by far had the best all around voice. He can sing anything. I would buy his CD.
Posted by: Confused | May 22, 2009 at 07:55 AM
The people who vote for this show are women. If being gay hurt Adam it's because they couldn't have fantasize about being with him? It's not homophobic it's alienating your audience. What's Ricky Martin up to? I think Simon told Kris he let the public know he was married way to early for that same reason. It's the reason Gokey was so popular. He was ok but no where near as good as a lot of the other people. He did appeal to just about every single women out there. He was married, was faithful to the end and is not afraid of commitment. I am sure there are still a million dreamy single women from 20 to 50 that have Gokey dreams.
Posted by: Meat Head | May 22, 2009 at 07:50 AM
Who cares the fate of a show that would pimp a drama queen to make money for an industry that hypes pain, sickness and death in a bottle?
Go to any children's cancer ward to get a good dose of this reality, and then get back home and take a good look at the man you see in the mirror.
At least we were spared the endless, what should be illegal, prescription pharmaceutical commercials, but only because the ' targeted to minors' hook for them was pushed in our face every conceivable chance, in a seemingly innocuous fun drink..
So the hype failed this time? It won't stop the endless migration of people with identity issues that will buy plastic pocketbooks with garish emblems all over them for hundreds of dollars more than they cost to produce.
Scary huh? that with all the frankenfood, fake clouds, stimulants and media hype that America still produces families with brains and morals that can tolerate a low key performance and find it entertaining ?
So the industry went out of their way to push one of their own and backed a horse that came in second instead of first place.
More a testament to a flawed voting system that rewards pro dialers, than anything else.
If Lambert or Gokey lost, it is the fault of the rule makers that allow blocked numbers and multiple voting just so they can hyper inflate the numbers to read off to sponsors; which then came back to bite them in the u know where, when it was time to recoup all the money spent in hyping this kid, who, by the way, had every advantage in training, experience and exposure, including living right next to one of the two major entertainment cities in the world, and still didn't make it pre idol. Another nail in the coffin of gay rights issues? Not to worry there are so many other avenues for expression going on. We don't need to see frantic productions of rotund clown faced senior men jumping around a stage and sticking their tongues out like overheated dogs. Is this a singing competition? or a production competition? If a production competition than why wasn't the same advantage given to an Allen or Gokey? Not that Allen needed it, as we can see. Even in the face of all the scripted encouragement that the judges gave to influence the vote.
Let's get real here.
Posted by: BetYouWontPostThis | May 22, 2009 at 07:43 AM
How come u didn't print my article.?Thanks for confirming my belief about the media and who of the two ulitmate rulers of the world own them.
Posted by: Bets | May 22, 2009 at 07:39 AM
Adam's great, and extremely talented, but he's not current. KISS and Queen and Aerosmith aren't exactly topping the charts - they're tottering off to their rocking chairs. Adam was more vocally talented, but Kris is more relevant. He took every song he was given and made it sound like something that would be on the radio today. You may not LIKE what's on the radio today, but that isn't the point. Kris is in touch with what is popular. And Kris does have talent - he outsang Keith Urban (admittedly not saying much there), has mad arranging skills, and a keen ear for how to change up some simply dreadful tunes. Making She Works Hard for the Money current? Pretty good skills.
I liked both contestants, but there's little doubt in my mind which contestant will have a radio career, and which will release a less radio friendly album and then go on to have a solid career on Broadway.
Posted by: Sue | May 22, 2009 at 07:35 AM
Adam is very talented and could sing, but the HIGH notes on every song was really irritating. Kris Allen I could imagine doing Pop, light rock and maybe some R&B. Kris Allen is the true winner. Great job Adam and Kris.
Posted by: Janine | May 22, 2009 at 07:32 AM
Kris didn't beat Adam as much as Kris' fans beat Adam's fans. Who cares who will have the biggest career or win the the most awards? Just sit back and enjoy all the good music that will come of this. It's all about entertainment, after all.
Posted by: Joe_Baby | May 22, 2009 at 07:27 AM
Adam will become a big hit on the Vegas strip ... as a female impersonator. I can't recall the number of times when, during his performances, I could close my eyes and hear Tina Turner.
Maybe he can take Perez Hilton along as a background singer.
Posted by: Howard Beale | May 22, 2009 at 07:26 AM
a reply to: (Posted by: dave | May 22, 2009 at 06:31 AM )
dave, it should be "too often" and not "to often"
Posted by: sean ikon | May 22, 2009 at 07:25 AM
this is in reality just a debate on what type of music interests you. If your in to slower stuff like Mraz or Mayer your going to go for Kris. If your into high pitched 80's hair rock, your going to whine and pout about adam
Posted by: TJ | May 22, 2009 at 07:21 AM
I think it all worked out for the best. Now Adam won't have to record that horrible song with American Idol producers. He can get on to making the kind of album he wants to. I think it's actually better this way.
Posted by: Roxxie | May 22, 2009 at 07:14 AM
A few points to think about.....I do not believe there is an underlying "homophobia" issue here. For any votes that Kris got due to "homophobia", there were probably as many votes for Adam from "homocentric" voters.
Next as to the issue of talent....Adam was clearly the better singer, however in an all around perspective Kris was at least equally as talented. Anybody that can take the stage in that venue, and sing solo to his own guitar or piano accompaniment....come on folks,..let's be fair...that takes serious musical talent. I'd bet that the vast majority of musicians out there that voted gave Kris the nod on that score.
Congrats to both of them....fun season,...now let's get on with our lives.
Posted by: JKP | May 22, 2009 at 07:09 AM