American Idol 2014

[kaypea]

It was a beautiful duet with Christina and Sheeran and I agree with your assessment of her.One of my problems with The Voice is that it too often seems to lend itself to belting too much.

As for Idol it seems that the overall quality has been going down each year since season 10 ended.I think some of it must be the judges and their selection process.Other that that I don't know.

[mercfan3]

I think Adam's preference is Diva belts. I know Christina does.

Blake doesn't like it at all. Usher..has taste about it. And I have no clue what Shakira or Cee Lo likes but I'd say somewhere in the middle.

Just glad she wasn't on Aguilera's team.

[Tusk]

I think S11 was a good year also, the precipitous over all talent drop occurred after that

[My Alter Ego]

I think S11 was a good year also, the precipitous over all talent drop occurred after that

Yes, no, sort of.... There was talent in Season 11 -- the winner wasn't indicative of said talent. There was also an amazing amount of talent in Season 12 -- it just happened to be clustered among a group of women.

[mercfan3]

I agree. I think it was really young talent, and one of the least talented singers won..but that whole cast could sing. (Well, and Heejun)

Steven Tyler's season's had overall the most talent..so I have to wonder if it was partially him.

I thought the girls were fantastic in season 12..but the guys were horrible. Season 11..I mean..Jessica, Joshua, Holly, Skylar, Elise, Colton (although..I wasn't the biggest fan), DeAndre, Erika...all very talented people. Even Phillip was significantly better than any of the guys in season 12.

[Tusk]

Yes, no, sort of.... There was talent in Season 11 -- the winner wasn't indicative of said talent. There was also an amazing amount of talent in Season 12 -- it just happened to be clustered among a group of women.

I agree. I think it was really young talent, and one of the least talented singers won..but that whole cast could sing. (Well, and Heejun)

..... Even Phillip was significantly better than any of the guys in season 12.

I wasn't a fan of P2, but since then, he's a natural performer for big crowds, while keeping an 'artistic'/genuine sensibility, from what I've seen, IMO that's undeniable and I will admit I didn't think he had it, but he does

I don't listen to him, but when I do see him perform, I can see why tens of thousands of people will pay money to see him live at a large venue. I would even go as far to say, his performance energy reminds me of Bruce Springsteen in his hey day, than Dave Mathews

[My Alter Ego]

I agree. I think it was really young talent, and one of the least talented singers won..but that whole cast could sing. (Well, and Heejun)

Steven Tyler's season's had overall the most talent..so I have to wonder if it was partially him.

I thought the girls were fantastic in season 12..but the guys were horrible. Season 11..I mean..Jessica, Joshua, Holly, Skylar, Elise, Colton (although..I wasn't the biggest fan), DeAndre, Erika...all very talented people. Even Phillip was significantly better than any of the guys in season 12.

Nonsense! Phillip wasn't significantly better than anyone during the season after, before, or any other time. He's just cute. His musical skills are basic. He lucked out that the U.S. Womens' Gymnastics Team latched on to his "coronation song" as it's anthem, for whatever reason. He now performs with an energy, that, during his Idol run, wasn't present, but he's still not good.

Jessica and Holly have extraordinary voices, but neither is good at picking new songs that people seem to want to hear/buy. Joshua's in a league of his own, but I don't know that he's ever going to get the kind of new material that can help him produce an album -- and a good share of his performance is what he does when performing live. A CD will never capture that.

I believe that Elise has released something -- Elise has the ability to write and arrange, but she has a limited audience, unfortunately. Erika and DeAndre, as good as both are, will also struggle with that audience recognition, I fear.

During Season 12, Devin, Paul, and Burnell could have uprooted the presumed "let's get rid of the guys" ethos. Specifically, I was surprised that Devin didn't. Of course, Candice, Kree, Amber, Angie, and Janell all had "moments", some more than others.

I know, I know ... there were those "bored" by all the ballads. To those, just know that it takes a great deal more skill to make a ballad be "great" than it does anything else.

[mercfan3]

I think there are a lot of people who aren't the best singers but are good performers. Phillip has great songs (does he write them) but he wasn't one of the best singers that season. Just in a technical way..

I'll give you Delvin, but the rest of the guys were not good.

The girls on the other hand..were some of the best the show has had. It's too bad country is so hard to break into, because after seeing clips of the tour and seeing her sing "done" she actually has something special about her, IMO.

Candice is the real shame. To have that voice and have interscope treat her the way they did..

And I still think it's a shame about DeAndre. I wish he had waited (or gone for The Voice, where he would have had a lot of help.) But I actually do think he could be current and marketable. His voice is one of the best the show has seen, IMO..even if he wasn't ready to be on the stage.

[My Alter Ego]

I think there are a lot of people who aren't the best singers but are good performers. Phillip has great songs (does he write them) but he wasn't one of the best singers that season. Just in a technical way..

I'll give you Delvin, but the rest of the guys were not good.

The girls on the other hand..were some of the best the show has had. It's too bad country is so hard to break into, because after seeing clips of the tour and seeing her sing "done" she actually has something special about her, IMO.

Candice is the real shame. To have that voice and have interscope treat her the way they did..

And I still think it's a shame about DeAndre. I wish he had waited (or gone for The Voice, where he would have had a lot of help.) But I actually do think he could be current and marketable. His voice is one of the best the show has seen, IMO..even if he wasn't ready to be on the stage.

mercfan, we are going to have to "agree that we disagree" about Phillip. I know that he was in extraordinary pain while on the show (I have a good friend who suffers from chronic kidney stones -- I get that it hurts a great deal) and that showed. Phillip is somewhat better, but I still can't listen to his "supposed" music, because it's not remotely close to what I consider to be "music." (But it's true -- I have high standards.)

Devin was/is good, and frankly, until he was gone, I truly thought that he might pull out a win, despite all efforts to have the guys gone. (Paul also had a nice voice, although his lack of confidence hurt him a great deal. And although I wasn't on the Burnell train, there were those -- including Melinda Doolittle -- who seemed to think he was the cat's meow.)

And I will agree with you about DeAndre. I don't use the term "awesome" flippantly nor do I overuse like those of a couple generations do. In fact, as a result of the word's overuse, I try to -- and usually do -- avoid it. But DeAndre's voice truly is awesome! His range is mind boggling and his falsetto divine. When on AI, he was young and in need of truly good guidance. Hopefully, when he's really grown into knowing who/what he should be as a performer, The Voice will be place where he can/will succeed.

I think you were speaking of Janell in regards to "done." I didn't realize it was hard to break into country. Given the saturation, I would have thought it was relatively easy. Janell did do a great job in her performance with the Band Perry. I do hope things will work out for her.

You're right -- what happened to Candice is an unspeakable shame. (I've been re-listening to, specifically, her duet with Jennifer Hudson for the last two weeks. That is as close to magnificent as I need to hear!) Hopefully, once she can extricate herself from Interscope, someone like Aretha or Gladys will swoop in and make certain that she has a home (management, label, etc.) that will take care of her and give her the kind of songs that her extraordinary voice deserves. That kind of voice isn't an every day thing, and she really does need someone who will truly nurture her/it.

[mercfan3]

Yea. I think the disagreement just lies in what I think of AI12 guys. I don't think Phillip Phillips is a very good singer, and I'll leave it at that.

Yes, I was talking about Janelle. Country seems to be very hard to break into if you are a girl right now. If you aren't Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, or Miranda Lambert your song will have a really tough time charting. Cassadee Pope and Danielle Bradberry have done decent for a new artist..but their peak is about all a female is able to do currently, and with that being the case, I'd imagine it makes it hard to get signed if you are a female country singer.

The best thing about Idol (and the other shows) is the talent display. The worst part is watching talent getting squandered. There are people on these shows that I think are some of the best I've ever heard, and Candice is certainly one of them. It's too bad we've sort of seen the death of the divas, because her voice fits right in. (although, with Ariana Grande's recent popularity, and Demi's semi popularity.. I'm hoping real singers make a comeback.) Her voice is just exquisite.

And I'm glad someone agrees with me about DeAndre.(Although Haley and Casey also did.) His range is unreal. And the crazy thing about that is his control is almost on par with Haley's. He doesn't miss a note. Falsetto strong, and the tone of his chest voice is just like velvet. He just needed some guidance. I'd love to see what Usher could do with him.