The wait is over and American Idol season 10 has begun. I’m going to go out on a limb and predict that this will be one of the most watched seasons of American Idol ever. Sure, a lot of people are mourning the loss of Simon Cowell’s singular presence on the show. For all the hate pointed at Cowell by fans of the various contestants that struggled under his often caustic critique, Simon brought a certain flavor to the show. He was the bad guy you loved to hate, and his plentiful face turns made him curiously … um … likeable? Regardless, he is gone and Paula is now even further in the rear view mirror; failed experiment Ellen has wisely been returned to her talk show digs, and Kara has been surprisingly given the heave-ho.
On the other hand, there is a new line up of judges that critics are claiming may be the most dynamic combination yet. I’ve watched an hour of footage for American Idol season 10 so far, and I can tell you without any doubt that this is absolutely true. Steven Tyler of Aerosmith is not the wild and crazy guy you might expect, instead he is intelligent, sensitive, and surprisingly direct when needed. He’s difficult to peg, to be sure, but his colorful persona was made for Idol. When I first heard he was joining I didn’t know what to think, now that I’ve seen him in action it is easy to tell he was meant to do this. Who cares what Joe Perry thinks, I can watch Tyler judge is still take my collection of Aerosmith vinyl seriously. The idea that being on American Idol would somehow mock Tyler’s stature is simply not true, if anything Tyler legitimizes American Idol in a way few could.
J. Lo, on the other hand – also a very pleasant surprise. I expected her to be the heel, the female Simon, with good reason. Jennifer has a legendary ego. That said, in the bit of footage I’ve watched there is no sign of the rumored diva possessing J. Lo’s soul. She offers thoughtful commentary, and connects with the human factor each and every time. There is tremendous humility on display in this version of Lopez, with a sheen of business and artistic fluency that plants her on firmer ground than some of the shows former female judges.
Randy, you’ll be pleased to know, is still Randy. He’s in the Simon seat, but this seems to be symbolic of nothing more than seniority. At times I thought he may be acting a little ‘tougher,’ but I’ll need to see a little more to be sure.
All around it’s a new American Idol experience. There was a lot of talk about who was going to be the new who (Tyler a male Paula, J. Lo the new Kara, etc.), but the team is clearly dedicated to offering a whole new experience and have thus far succeeded. So strap in, the moment of truth is here. Refresh often as we live recap the premiere of American Idol Season 10.
RECAP Begins …
The episode starts off with a montage of the press during Judge-gate. Funny how they focus on how wrong people were about J. Lo. First they said she was coming to Idol, then she wasn’t, then she wound up showing up. Regardless, they aren’t wasting the energy that was generated during the judge-less days. Seacrest says winning Idol is the biggest prize in music. Wow.
They are talking to Steven Tyler about why he wants to do it. They had to censor him. Promising. 150 Million Records out there for Tyler.
J. Lo is giving her Idol philosophy. She’ll be compassionate, and is not in the business of crushing spirits. 55 Million albums for Jennifer.
Randy is looking forward to working with his new co-horts. “It’s hot, let’s go baby.” No album count for Randy.
Factoid: More people auditioned for this season of American Idol then ever before. From the highlight reel, it looks like there were approximately 30% more whack jobs too.
We get an intro on Jimmy Iovine. This year’s winner will be signed to Interscope under Jimmy. I like this idea because the development of whoever wins begins now. Seriously. As the contestants are filtered out, Ivine will be putting more and more thought into how to package the potential winners. American Idol seriously struggles in this department. Some of the biggest stars to emerge from Idol weren’t even in the top-three, so there has been a question of legitimacy dogging the show; is it good TV, or good music?
New Jersey Auditions
Rachel Zevita is back. This was the opera babe from Season 6 who made it to Hollywood but got bounced in week one. She does Hallelujah in her own way. Not Jeff Buckley, not Leonard Cohen by a long shot. She gets three yes’s. Will she make it past week one this year? Let’s see.
Caleb Hawley is up next. This guy was on the select auditions released to the press. He’s a soulful rocker with a 90’s grunge look. He looses pitch a couple of times and surprisingly Randy doesn’t comment on it. He goes to Hollywood easily. “High voice, character, something new.” Tyler says. J. Lo thinks he’s “Cute.”
Musical Theater student Kenzie Palmer, age 15, is up next. Great voice, typical back of vibrato and arpeggiated runs. It’s all skills earned from hours of practice with a voice couch, Tyler is the only one who seems to sniff out the lack of soul – but he is talked into a yes. Jennifer Lopez is showing her appreciation for mold-able pop-star clay.
A montage of gold ticket winners is next – we hear NONE of them sing. Then we are treated to a thick accented young lady from the Ivory Coast. Across the board no’s. I’m reminded of Vote For the Worst’s expose on how these people really pre-audition and are passed on to TV even if they are awful. Makes the humiliation seem … mean.
In other news: I Am Number Four trailer. Kick. Ass. Back to American Idol.
New Jersey Auditions
Seacrest is saying everything but ‘Jersey Shore’ in describing the local culture. We get Jersey Girl style tips from Tiffany Rios, who is wearing a bikini top with star shaped pasties. Turns out she is a J. Lo fan in a big way and breaks out in tears. She sings an original. Frankly with the prop assists I expected her to be awful, but she’s not bad. She gets to sing two songs, the second – a more ’emotional’ piece by her definition – is a much better attempt than the first, which wasn’t at all awful. She gets three yes’s with the advice to drop the props and take herself seriously.
He did it! Seacrest said “Jersey Shore.” And he used it to kick off a montage of incredibly awful auditions. I’m loving the subtext here, Seacrest.
Steven Tyler is having no problem rejecting people, but Jennifer has a really hard time saying ‘no.’ She quickly redeems herself with a particularly awful audition, and it looks like Jenny from the block might be toughening up.
Robbie Rosen’s mom has told him all his life he is going to be a singer. Is this one of those setups? American Idol always has at least one back-story reel that just feels like a solid yes in the making, and turns out to be a dog. Indeed Robbie performs a solid version of Yesterday by The Beetles, and is put through. This is not the annual Idol fake-out.
“Did you eat a lot of paint chips as a child?” Think Steven Tyler can’t be mean? He said that. Yes he did. To a human being. But he’s so cool otherwise, we’ll forgive him – especially since we haven’t heard the audition yet.
Groupies Galore
Steven Tyler is enjoying the lovely ladies just a little too much, but he is a rock star after all. To his defense, the girls seem to be swooning over the aging rock-star. Buy stock in Viagra, now.
Authentic Eagle Scout Chris Cordeiro is up next. This 18 year old says there is no doubt he’s going to be the next Idol. Here it is! This is the fake out I was talking about earlier. Idol wasted five minutes convincing me this guy was the real deal, and he’s not. He slaughters Sinatra’s “My Way.” Unfortunately, he did not do it Sinatra’s way. In fact, he didn’t do it any ‘musical’ way at all. Chris is incredulous. It’s painful. He can’t find the exit. J. Lo is still having trouble with the emotional baggage of saying no.
Back from commercial break. We learn that the judges are doing better at saying no, then somehow we get a burping montage. Amusing. Here comes Michael with a tone-deaf version of Proud Mary. There is the paint chip comment. Tyler is tired, maybe? It just seems mean. They give him a second chance, and it’s no better. Maybe if Michael belched it out. Jennifer says he sounds like he is trying to imitate a woman, at lower pitch. Apparently, no-one has told him he sucks. Ever. This surprises me.
Now we go from burping to watching a contestant emerge from a port-a-potty. Curious. Ashley Sullivan is next. She carries a picture of Britney Spears in her pocket for luck. Holy crap, she’s a loon that can sing. It’s kind of show-tune time, but the pitch and projection is decent. J Lo agrees with me, Ashley belongs on the stage not American Idol. She gets down on her knees and begs for a ticket. Maybe tears will work. Yup, they work. Randy thinks J. Lo and Steven are insane, but Ashley is going to Hollywood. Steven says he is going to personally work her into something good. I think that goes a little beyond the Judge’s duties.
Plucky 16 year old Victoria Huggins could have easily played Mattie Ross, but can she sing? She vlogged her journey to the auditions so let’s hope. Win! She can sing! Steven Tyler says she is showing just enough with her skirt. Uh, Steven? Randy declares Victoria has the most personality ever displayed on Idol. She’s going to Hollywood.
Next up, 16 year old Kosovian war refugee Melinda. So far this is the best life story, her folks entered the USA green-card lottery as Kosovo was falling apart, and settled in the US. She’s humble, she’s pretty, and she can sing. It’s an easy Gold Ticket.
While we’re on commercial, did I mention that ABC’s Off The Map will feature an Anaconda tonight? The same night J. Lo debuts on American Idol? Coincidence? I think not.
Devyn Rush, singing waitress, is up. She has a wonderfully seasoned voice. Nice to hear a technically polished voice with a little bit of phrasing sprinkled in. Definitely one of the best girls in the past ninety minutes. She is through.
A couple of no’s, and more Steven Tyler censorship. Standards and practices at FOX are going crazy with this guy.
Bruce Lee! Not really, it’s actually Yoji Asano. This guy apparently doesn’t even have a story, when they ask for his history he goes all deer-in-the-headlights. He claims he has been imitating Michael Jackson since before he was born, but refuses to do Michael. Instead he’ll be doing Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the USA.” After slaughtering it, we are treated to a montage of various would-be contestants doing their versions of Party in the USA. Yoji is out. Sorry Yoji.
Useless information: One American Idol commercial break is time enough to get a big bowl of Spaghetti.
Oh no. The auditions have gotten worse! These guys need a gong. Even Steven’s spirits are dwindling when16 year old Briell Von Hugel walks in. Her father was a singer as well, and he recently beat throat cancer. Briell increases the teenage quotient for season 10 of American Idol. Knowing her story, the judges have her bring dad in to here the good news: his daughter is going to Hollywood.
News Flash: AWESOME Fringe Promo – All American Idol Fans Must Stay Home Friday and Watch it … at 9:00pm … on FOX
Here we go. The final audition, Travis Orlando … 16 years old. Hmmm, a lot of teenagers on this episode. As a guy who enjoys earthy, experience driven vibes … I’m a little underwhelmed. There is definitely a difference between natural talent, and seasoned talent. Then Travis is talking about their time in a homeless shelter – now I can’t wait to hear this kid. Eleanor Rigby is his first shot. It doesn’t work for the simple reason that David Cook rocked this. Doesn’t matter though, because he bangs it out with his second attempt – the more contemporary Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours.” Three yes’s.
Summary
Without question the new judging panel is awesome. Very entertaining. I liked how they tried to create this narrative out of Steven and J. Lo finding their Idol sea-legs, but it lacked Randy as the Obi Wan figure. Repeat: Randy is not being positioned as the elder statesman of Idol, even though he is. In fact, it looks like there is no attempt to lay down a pecking order at all.
Lack of Simon-ness
There was some brutality – see Tyler’s “paint chips” comment – but no brutal honest. The lack of Simon Cowell is palpable, but it is too early to consider it ‘missed.’ The new panel has a vibe all its own, and it is going to take a few more viewings to know whether the loss of Simon is a drag on the show. For now, I give a tentative no. It appears that American Idol is going to do just fine in the hands of Steven Tyler, Jessica Lopez, and Randy Jackson. In fact, this may turn out to be the best Idol line-up to date. Come back tomorrow for more American Idol premiere week coverage!
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