American Idol

Back in the days of yore...and that would be summer of 2002, a little ditty of a show called American Idol premiered. I love things that cause a flurry of interest in pop culture. I need to be aware of it. I need to know so that I can address it in my frequent pop culture related conversations and sound knowledgeable. And to be truthful, it was kind of exciting. I felt strongly that Tamyra Grey was going to win. She was gorgeous and had a set of diva pipes that were UH-MAZING. but she wasn't my favorite. i was totally rooting for the goofy white girl named kelly clarkson who just astonished me every time. my favorite kelly performance from the show is below. i loved her. AND SHE WON! this was exciting. american idol was officially a phenomenon. proms across the nation were named after the kelly's first single ("a moment like this" for those out of the loop). i'm pretty sure that was actually the theme of my senior prom in 2003. how sad for us.



ANYWAY! and then the show came back and i was having none of it. i just couldn't devote myself to the 6 hours a week it now required of its viewers. i turned my nose up at it and declared it a mecca for mothers, old people, tweens, and generally all of middle america who didn't have better things to do with their evenings. ah, to be 18 and retarded again...but i digress. and i avoided it for 8 years, only reading the winner's interviews in EW when they were finally crowned so i could stay current.

AND THE DAMN SHOW HAS SUCKED ME BACK IN! i don't know if i'll make it all the way through to the end...but i know who contestants are...i have favorites already. And two things have struck me about this new season. one, ellen was the best decision they ever made. i love her. she's sweet and encouraging, but she's not all cracked out crazy like paula was. she really seems to enjoy the whole show/premise and seems to have genuine affection for some of the contestants. and two...i really feel like these contestants should be better. like, it's 2010, shouldn't the caliber of these performers just be sky high? there are SO MANY people who want to do this, shouldn't they all be amazing? I know for a fact that there are amazing people who don't even get in front of simon. mercedes from glee auditioned and didn't get through past producers. how does that makes sense? and a friend from college who sounds like a female jason mraz (it's just gorgeous) didn't even make it past the giant field o' tents that begins every season. really? she could blow at least 2 of the current girls out of the water. i don't understand it really, but suffice it to say, i was kind of disappointed by the top 24 performances. so was simon. hopefully they get better or i'm outta here...maybe. but you know what i hate most about american idol? when they make me cry. fuckers.

anyway, here's my favorite performance of the season so far. perhaps you've seen it, the internetz has embraced it: