American Idol does not equal instant fame! February 14, 2008

 

I have been watching American idol since day one, i mean literally day 1 season 1.Every year you see the select few who come on the show saying i want to be the next idol and that if they are eliminated they dont know what they will do with their lives. Over the years you have seen many people become celebrities due to their new idol fame, and some people who become 15 minute stars. But what about those who go on and expect instant fame and never achieve it. What about all those people who you say that person will definitely make it after leaving idol. Well i have seen it time after time. For instance, Taylor hicks, the winner of American idol 2 seasons ago. He couldn’t sing and some people said he had good stage presence. I didn’t think that, but he had a good loyal fan base that voted for him thousands of times to keep him out of elimination and ultimately making him and idol. You would think with such a fan base that you would be famous and drive a Bentley! No that was not the case. If anyone has noticed, Taylor hicks couldn’t sing and he wasn’t marketable. At 20 something years old he had gray hair he wasn’t in shape and he wasn’t attractive, so guess what he was unsuccessful. Yes people looks do mean things ,but also he didn’t make a hit record at all. His album never made it to  the billboard charts or if  he did make it, he was way on the bottom of the list. Recently Taylor, Katharine Mcphee and Ruben Studdard all got dumped from their record label, proving that just because you were on idol doesn’t mean you will become successful singers.

Katharine Mcphee everyone assumed she would be doing something with her life after idol. She was pretty, and she could hold a note. I saw her on a couple of commercials but after her 15 minutes of fame were over and her songs werent making hits on the radio and her cd’s werent selling, she became a has been. Katherine who….oh that idol girl. Many other idol contestants have all been the victims of idols 15 minutes of fame but some dont even have that much shine. Some contestants just move on with their lives after idol is over. Although idol may not always make instant fame for all, their are the small few who do make it. Jennifer hudson was a hit star of DreamGirls, outshining Beyonce. She was winning oscars, grammys, and many other countless awards for her outstanding performances. She has yet to break a cd out but hey she’s  enjoying her acting. Idol opens up serious oppurtunities that would never be available unless they had that exposure from the show. Carrie underwood is now a Country hit maker who won a country award and is doing well on the charts and radio, i dont know if her fame will last but for now she is doing well. Lakisha from last season will now be acting and singing in The Color Purple on broadway taking Fantasia’s spot for awhile. American idol has definetly given exposure and oppurtunities to people that otherwords would never have chances like these, but like i said before dont expect fame! Fame is something that does not fall into your lap regaurdless if you win a hit singing competition, you have to work for that fame. Look at beyonce, mariah carey and all those other people. They didnt have a show to put them on top. They worked for it. I feel you will never get anywhere if you dont work for it.

                              ~American idol does not equal instant fame~