It is pretty clear, merits of tonight's performances aside, that the judges were trying very hard to push this competition to the brink of competitiveness. Lauren Alaina did a very solid job tonight and her moving (well, okay, it was fairly contrived as well) version of Kristy Lee Cook's "Like My Mother Does" could end up being the song that upends season long frontrunner Scotty McCreery for the crown.
Alaina, who outside of a couple performances here and there, has never truly lived up to her promising Nashville, Tennessee audition but tonight could have represented a full circle bookmarking of "The One" as described by an increasingly creepy Steven Tyler. It pains me to talk so disparagingly of one of the all-time gods of music and a personal music hero of mine, but at the same time he has clearly been in the corner of Lauren all season long. Well, okay, he's pretty much been in everyone's corner all season long but especially Lauren's.
Scotty McCreery was typically solid but we have become so accustomed to his dominating performances week in and week out that perhaps being very good will not do him any good when it matters most. The judges predictably called it a draw, with each round going to each singer after the first two rounds (and mercifully after no judge feedback whatsoever following the first round) but the inevitable "evening out" hype of Lauren was also much deserved as well. Lauren saved one of her best, and definitely her most dramatic performance of the competition, for last.
The cynic in me can't help but be more than slightly suspicious of the sudden drama playing out where Lauren reportedly had laryngitis and was almost forced to bow out, which would have given the competition a much welcomed jolt of Hayley Reinhart who would have been reinstated into the competition and apparently would have encored three Hayley staples and was reportedly rehearsing with the band while press was filing in. Nobody has won me over more and more as the season has progressed as Hayley Reinhart. The 20 year-old Wheeling, Illinois crooner would have given the competition a much need contrast; even if the end result would have ended up being Scotty's to win by a large margin. The margin almost doesn't matter when the result is being played out live. The aftermath of the vote differential is a much more introspectively important exercise.
So the question remains - is this still Scotty's title to win or lose? The answer is probably a very tentative "probably" but Lauren's game-changing momentum grabber at the end could also have a very ironic side effect and end up motivating the tween-cougar voting block Scotty has had all season long. And remember, Lauren has been in the Bottom 3 once where as Scotty hasn't at all. Will it be enough?
Finally, it is the finale and so no matter how hardened your opinion, or even how surefooted you are in your prediction, some last minute doubt always creeps into your mind so we will all find out in about 24 hours just how true or misleading it all is. And it is still a ploy, even if it happens to be true, by the people at FOX and American Idol as they obviously know that the perception is that Scotty has this to win or lose. In the end, it really doesn't matter who wins. They will each have good careers. Right now I'd only predict Scotty to have a great career but it is still so early on in the game for them, and that given their genre, unlike some of the other more fortunate few Idols who have enjoyed post-FOX success, to guess to what extent this will hold true.
Whoever wins tomorrow night will shift a change in direction for the show in a couple senses. One, is that the younger contestants will now be heralded as a breathe of fresh air (even more so than already which is almost literally impossible to fathom), and that the country genre is undoubtedly tops right now in the world of music. The two finalists come from fairly conservative and religious Southern families and they have very loyally powerful demographical fan bases. It could also be the beginning of the end of American Idol as we know it. If this trend continues, it could just trend itself to its own demise. Those less than impressed and frustrated with the lack of true non-country firepower will bolt to The Voice and The X Factor in even greater numbers without just watching a combination of the shows, or even all of them.
When it comes down to it, the real result will truly be realized once Season 11 builds its momentum and starts to gain steam as it reaches its own Top 24 live rounds and beyond. And on that note, we will see what lies ahead in tomorrow's results show.
No comments:
Post a Comment