In regards to the Plants in this season of X-Factor, I’d be totally fine with it. I’d prefer more polished acts on X-Factor. That could be their niche. If a contestant already has a youtube following, more the better.

Let Idol keep putting up the charade of plucking bartenders, paint salesmen, pawn shop workers, worship leaders, and grocery baggers out of nowhere to win the hearts of millions for five to eight months. 

Sorry, I’m feeling salty towards Idol lately.

Karise Eden from team Seal won The Voice Australia. Not only is she female, she has TOP 3 singles on this week’s ARIA’s singles chart. Did The Voice finally find someone that will sell?

http://www.ariacharts.com.au/pages/charts_display_singles.asp?chart=1U50

http://www.kariseeden.com.au/

I just love following someones journey and watching them improve every week with their raw natural talent. Carrie Underwood just started as a farm girl trying to finish college. Look where she is now. Fantasia was a single teen mom trying to make a living. Lauren Alaina was just a High School cheerleader and now she is on a major label, opening for big names and about to release a new single to country radio.

Underwood had sung at several OK events and was nearly signed by Capitol Records while in high school (management changed).  She stayed active on the pageant circuit in college.  Barrino was part of a musical family that performed regionally and released an album.  Alaina won a local talent competition and performed regionally.

My point is that very few of the contestants are really the untouched, raw, natural talents the the producers sell to audiences.  Most of them have been performing for some time and/or releasing albums.

And as long as the prize from this show is a record deal and associated performances, I’d much rather see people cast on the show who do have experience.  At the very least, if one occasionally sneaks through, I’d like the producers to respect my intelligence enough not to pretend otherwise.

“I do agree with the overall sentiment of genres and timing affecting if Idols are successful or not.”

That’s why I like him, because he gets the mentality of modern music. He is certainly not always correct, and I do get annoyed with some of his opinions, but I think he critics all shows in explaining their flaw in finding a “star” out of these shows. I think he bugs some people because he is brutally honest about the viewing audience that watches talent shows in a way that can be offensive.

Some people on this blog seem to know who this guy is, I just stumbled upon those blog posts while looking for X-Factor spoilers. So I don’t know his overall opinions past what I read.

 
Don’t agree with a lot of things he said, but I get his idea of “piggybacking” off what’s popular. I just wouldn’t use that word, lol. You either need to release music that’s currently popular or fuse your own style with what is popular now. It’s why The Wanted and One Direction have found success. Current pop music mixed with boybandness. :-)

And as long as the prize from this show is a record deal and associated performances, I’d much rather see people cast on the show who do have experience. At the very least, if one occasionally sneaks through, I’d like the producers to respect my intelligence enough not to pretend otherwise.

I think so too, because the climb from being on the show to releasing an album is too fast for someone with no experience to be able to get through effectively. The most successful afterwards have been the more experienced ones.  Within 6 months after the show, the winner and probably the runner up have to record and promote their own album, and possibly tour after that.

The ones that worked at other jobs were for the most part working in music too, and as you said some even had put out their own albums before being on the show.   Which is usually how it is when you’re trying to make it in music.

Thinking  about some discussions on various threads in the last days about AI erosion, WGWG, RCA-Idols sophomore albums drastic drops, idol-acceptance  in the music industry…, I start to agree with some of the posters here that at this point of/on the show after 11 years of showing “unexperienced contenders” “aiming to turn stars” under people’s eyes maybe it’s time to change with more experienced contenders for more of “it” factor, better stage presence, more quality-artist and ultimately maybe better show in entertainment-department than voice/age wonder connections or playing the sympathy-viewership cards with personal/family aspects or blaming on the instruments/WGWG. Promoting the contenders during their runs on the show primarily for their musical goals, willing to be good/better musicians and trying to make a living from(some reasons why they are competing there), focusing more on talents, their musicianship   than showing them like struggling musicians as bartenders, paint-sellers, cheerleaders, nannies would be better for the viewers(and participants), potentially gaining younger demo, the critics maybe would talk in a more positive way about AI and its credibility as a source of introducing new musicians into the music business. Coming from a show as an “instant star”, after 4 months of competition when others like Katy Perry have changed/refused by-maybe 3 labels by now, many don’t see with “good eyes” the show’s franchise as a source of good musicians. There are some exceptions of course, but even thinking of JH for example, the Oscar winner and lately the “star” receiver, she is the typical “being in the right place at the right time” lucky situation with the help of a good management next to her talent(I don’t have anything bad to say about her except that she is a one lucky lady), when other talented actresses stay for decades to have a star on the sidewalk, or even  smaller award-wins.  Even thinking of Daughtry,  how many rock acts were “happy”  with Daughtry-band back in 2006 or 2007? Some guy from a reality show sold 4M in a year and got Grammy nominations when others were(and still are) touring like crazy for some money with maybe good material also  but no management/label at all…Sure the band had had good, “appropriate” songs back then to fit some formats , but there was also the buzz as 4th finisher while many fans had seen in him the future winner and the rock-star of AI and bought their 1M album in 2 months I think; also DC’s 1M sold in 3 months, or Scotty in the country genre, how many acts saw(had seen) them or the show as good source of instant-stars/potential competitors for/in the industry? I’m not trying to say that the “success” has been a bad thing coming from AI/idols, I’m trying explain to/for myself and share what I think that maybe the music-business acceptance has been affected  as well because of the “wonder” factor/vibe coming from the show along with:  find the next door-artist vibe, the WGWG issue-to blame on instruments and male/cuteness-connection, AI-music that doesn’t fit the radio formats anymore because the music business has changed, not so much the show or its  artists’ styles to fit the industry’s new artist-wave…

What I’ve tried to say is-maybe it’s time to change the rule of no high-level musical experience/contract to a more polished show in talent, more artistic contestants, a simple show (no dancers or other distracting effects) shining in more quality factors along with good voices. Maybe they would not change a thing because they are interested in the show’s message- “from nobody to somebody”- to keep their already formed-audience, but they might gain some younger demo also if they show less soap family stories(not really a young-audience way to attract; I remember once there was shown almost a live birth-given by a contender’s wife), more current music, eventually leaving some originals (songs) too at one point in the competition, make that “somebody” message to work better and keep the show’s name up as an influential factor in the industry, considering more “new cards” to keep the “show as appealing” to many and not “getting tired of” by many already of the same rule, finding a voice using the same collection of cleared songs 11 years ago with a slim selection of extras and to a softer “wonder” effect/point of view(the way I see it); it’s about talent as a whole package exuded in less than 2 min. from the contender, the “wonder”-voices should be on AGT like Jackie Evencho, not necessarily a great talent comes from being only a good singer.

ETA1: “What a deal, just pluck off the big UK acts, spin, success for all.”-Ali Goria

The US-music “problems”, idols’ music problems, etc… are not because of some new, trendy now, UK-acts are “as a bone stuck in the throat”-way for others, the talent in US is plenty; it’s about the business factor maybe more implanted and as a successful artist you should keep the standards of the industry, the template is given already by some musical acts/bands, just “been there done that”. Today’s the UK-wave, tomorrow-who knows?! The idols’ music post show doesn’t have that fresh feeling, it seems to me stuck in the past, not necessarily bad, but no “something else/it” in it, the issues/factors (that idol-music sounds like this) were discussed here many times.

ETA2: “I agree they should focus on the music, and less on trying to create a story for them. “-Karen C

Exactly, they have been there for/in a music competition and TPTB has presented them as the most regular people while trying to find their singing talents/abilities live, when maybe many have made a living from or many have had albums on their owns, or other kinds of success. TPTB has played safe with them from the start, trying to make them the AI brand “comfortable” stars. They are (were) “comfortable” contenders while they are seen on TV from the couch, on the music scene amongst the business-”sharks” they are like little fish ready to be eaten, pretty unprepared for the reality of the real music-life. Show them like normal musicians, start to blend them as anybody out there in the business and not to emphasize the “sensational” factor for the sake of good live-television. TPTB is pretty happy when an idol is successful, I think they should change something in the strategy, allow more diverse people, even more bold contestants in order to reach younger demo audience, to face easily the today’s standards of the music-scene…Endless discussion here, heh…

They have had contestants with many years of experience, some even had prior record deals, or else they put out albums independantly. I do think the past 2 seasons, there were more contestants that were younger and less experienced. 

I agree they should focus on the music, and less on trying to create a story for them.