This season I found myself more intensely drawn to American Idol than any other, and being the overly analytical woman that I am, it has gotten me thinking on a deeper level about what this attraction is all about and what it all means in terms of my perspective on life. On the surface, this season was filled with some of the best talent I have seen in years, which I found in the likes of Adam Lambert, Danny Gokey and Allison Iraheta, each of them gifted, unique, talented and memorable on different levels, and most importantly tremendously enjoyable to watch.
However, it has been Adam Lambert who has deeply touched me this season. He appeals to me on so many levels because he is insanely talented, hugely theatrical, larger than life, has an astounding range of styles and octaves, and in my opinion has the appeal of an iconic Superstar like David Bowie or Michael Jackosn. Every one of his performances took me on a journey and touched my soul because they were all unique, different and kept me on the edge of my seat wondering, “what will Adam do next?” Adam is such a gifted performer and has such an innate sense of what works both musically and performance wise that when he takes the stage magic happens. His performances gave me chills and replayed in my head throughout the week making me marvel at, in my humble opinion, what is by far the best talent ever to grace the American Idol stage.
On the other hand, Kris Allen, the likeable boy next door who mastered the guitar and gentle ballads was barely a blip on my radar. He did not stand out to me, I can barely remember most his performances and while he is a good singer he just did not capture my attention–and I must be in the minority because he captured the hearts of America and won the AI title.
Upon deeper examination, I ask myself what does this all mean? More importantly I wonder, why was I so drawn to Adam and not all to Kris? And suddenly it hits me, Adam reasonates with me–an outgoing, bold, curvaceous, charismatic, statement kind of a girl, who likes to reinvent herself and try new things, is unpredictable, and definitely likes to be the center of attention. And Kris on the other hand is safe, sweet, soft, familiar, predictable, and not a standout in the crowd kind of guy–and not at all relatable to me.
So which American Idol finalist is most relatable to you? Who reasonates with you? Which one captured your attention? Are you more of an Adam Glam Rock bold-take-chances kind of a person? Or are you more of a traditional, sweet, subdued, conservative play-it-safe kind person?
Let’s get a dialogue going on this blog and discuss who you relate to and why, and whether you agree or disagree with my analysis and perspective–I think we could have some interesting discussions about this one.
Romy
Diva of the Blogosphere
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Girl, you are so right. That Adam made it to spot number 2 is a statement of excitement, progress and change we can believe in. That regular aw-shucks guy Kris took the top spot from him … well that's OK too. Because when you are truly feelin it, going your own way, blazin a trail and being everything you can be, you should expect pushback from the Git Along Gang.
They're all like "get over yourself," "who do you think you are?" "what makes you so special?" "what is wrong with you?" "calm down," "quiet down," "pipe down" … as the Japanese say, the nail that sticks up the farthest is the most likely to get hammered down. So sometimes getting hammered is part of the gig.
I prefer to think of it more like being at Disneyland in the rain. Everyone is streaming for the exits and you're like but its so pretty in the rain and I want one last ride on Dumbo soaking wet and everyone is like are you insane? Turn around, be sensible and leave like the rest of us. Don't you have the sense to come in out of the rain??
But you have to keep walking against the crowd, the opposite way, even if you're getting bumped and pushed and ridiculed. And that last is the key point – you can't be afraid to be ridiculed. After all, everyone lives in fear of being ridiculous. Well here's a news flash people – everyone is ridiculous — either in their own way or as a sad reflection of everyone else's ridiculousity. Hiding in a crowd doesn't make you less of a freak, just a freak in hiding.
So we needn't be ashamed to let that freak flag fly. Shame is the weapon of the masses to try and keep the few down who instinctively feel that there is more to life than trying to blend in and not make waves. In fact, the opposite is true if you want your existence to matter. Which artists, scientists, inventors, philosophers, authors and other visionaries have made a bigger impact on our world — the ones who blended in and were like everyone else or the ones who stood apart from the crowd, usually risking at least isolation and ridicule, if not physical persecution?
Romy, you made the case perfectly and essentially: would you rather be more likable or more memorable? Which is not to say you can't be both to some extent but, let's face it, one does tend to be a limiting factor on the other and so you have to make that choice.
And yes, you're in the minority because most of us live in fear — we tend to think it's fear of what others will think but it's really just fear of being what and who we really are. To paraphrase FDR: the only thing we have to fear is, fear ourselves.
But there is change in the air. After all, this time someone like Adam made it all the way to #2 completely on his own terms. Next time, who knows?