As it currently stands, Kelly Clarkson holds two unrecognized places in pop culture: she is the most underrated pop star today and is one of the few memories we have left of the original American Idol. Clarkson and Carrie Underwood represent the original principles behind one of the 2000’s most prominent TV shows. As their fame has become more prominent since winning the competition, the principles that once embodied the show have been lost over the past 5 years.
Over that time period, AI has shape-shifted into a more cartoony version of itself. At some point as the show was becoming really popular, you knew that people would start doing just about everything to get on TV. So, they decided to start dressing up in ridiculous costumes just to get their 60 seconds of fame. The problem with this approach is that it actually works. The auditions have a circus where the contestants who show up are trying to see who can get the biggest rile out of the judges, not who can sing the best. By giving these clowns a good chunk of airtime, American Idol has lost a lot of its integrity over the years and has forgotten its roots. The days where average folks with a good voice and try to make it big have gone by the wayside. Singing is still a major part of the show, but that has taken backseat to all the fanfare that the show creates. Voting has become more skewed towards the personalities of the singers rather than their talent. What once was an innovative show has now become the mean product of the times on television: a show that cares only about promoting the contestant’s character before their talent.
American Idol had to face the tough reality of losing their musical integrity when Simon Cowell left the show. Without him, they would lose a lot of the know-how about how a music star is created so they opted for a path that would try to keep a lot of the eyeballs attached to the show now that their biggest star had left. The criticism aspect of the show seems like an accessory now that Simon (who was their only credible judge) has left. The trio of Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez, and Randy Jackson only seem to be there now to massage each contestant’s confidence after each performance. Randy has become the most famous hype man on TV and has become the face of everything that American Idol currently is: a loud, entertaining singing competition where the winners have now impact on pop culture after they leave because they hadn’t received any constructive criticism while they were on the show.
By sticking with (relatively) the same format, the show has left the minds of many viewers who are turning to shows like The Voice that have fresher, more appealing approaches to singing competitions. Remnants of the glory days of American Idol still exist across the music spectrum and its Roman Coliseum is Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson.
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Since her victory on Idol, Clarkson has become the most successful contestant from the show, selling millions upon millions of albums. Her popularity is overshadowed, though, by her competition. Stars like Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, and Ke$ha have become larger-than-life personalities. Their dress and various looks have been burned into the public’s mind and their ability to change it up and grab headlines have kept them there for years. That is the way pop culture is trending now, towards the flare and showmanship of its stars. Kelly Clarkson is nothing like that at all. She is an introverted Texan that makes music because she loves to do it.
Not to say that Perry, Gaga, and Ke$ha are in the music business for the wrong reasons because they are certainly not and I enjoy their music a lot but I see Kelly Clarkson more relatable than the others. As a fellow introvert, I find her more appealing than the other big names of today because of that and she has definitely recognized this.
In her music video for “Stronger”, Clarkson sings inside of a control room while pushing buttons and playing multiple videos of fans dancing along to the song. Eventually, the song ends with her dancing with a flash mob that consists of a random group of people. The only thing missing was her shaking everybody’s hand and taking pictures with them.
For the video for “Dark Side”, Clarkson makes a bigger statement by not wearing any makeup whatsoever. All she wants is to connect to the average person and make them feel encouraged that it is okay to embrace the good AND the bad of everybody.
All the traits that once personified what it meant to be an American Idol: natural talent, good soul, and smart head on your shoulders still live inside of Kelly Clarkson. She is only figuring out now how to spread it out to the world.
Over that time period, AI has shape-shifted into a more cartoony version of itself. At some point as the show was becoming really popular, you knew that people would start doing just about everything to get on TV. So, they decided to start dressing up in ridiculous costumes just to get their 60 seconds of fame. The problem with this approach is that it actually works. The auditions have a circus where the contestants who show up are trying to see who can get the biggest rile out of the judges, not who can sing the best. By giving these clowns a good chunk of airtime, American Idol has lost a lot of its integrity over the years and has forgotten its roots. The days where average folks with a good voice and try to make it big have gone by the wayside. Singing is still a major part of the show, but that has taken backseat to all the fanfare that the show creates. Voting has become more skewed towards the personalities of the singers rather than their talent. What once was an innovative show has now become the mean product of the times on television: a show that cares only about promoting the contestant’s character before their talent.
American Idol had to face the tough reality of losing their musical integrity when Simon Cowell left the show. Without him, they would lose a lot of the know-how about how a music star is created so they opted for a path that would try to keep a lot of the eyeballs attached to the show now that their biggest star had left. The criticism aspect of the show seems like an accessory now that Simon (who was their only credible judge) has left. The trio of Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez, and Randy Jackson only seem to be there now to massage each contestant’s confidence after each performance. Randy has become the most famous hype man on TV and has become the face of everything that American Idol currently is: a loud, entertaining singing competition where the winners have now impact on pop culture after they leave because they hadn’t received any constructive criticism while they were on the show.
By sticking with (relatively) the same format, the show has left the minds of many viewers who are turning to shows like The Voice that have fresher, more appealing approaches to singing competitions. Remnants of the glory days of American Idol still exist across the music spectrum and its Roman Coliseum is Season 1 winner Kelly Clarkson.
_____________________________________
Since her victory on Idol, Clarkson has become the most successful contestant from the show, selling millions upon millions of albums. Her popularity is overshadowed, though, by her competition. Stars like Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, and Ke$ha have become larger-than-life personalities. Their dress and various looks have been burned into the public’s mind and their ability to change it up and grab headlines have kept them there for years. That is the way pop culture is trending now, towards the flare and showmanship of its stars. Kelly Clarkson is nothing like that at all. She is an introverted Texan that makes music because she loves to do it.
Not to say that Perry, Gaga, and Ke$ha are in the music business for the wrong reasons because they are certainly not and I enjoy their music a lot but I see Kelly Clarkson more relatable than the others. As a fellow introvert, I find her more appealing than the other big names of today because of that and she has definitely recognized this.
In her music video for “Stronger”, Clarkson sings inside of a control room while pushing buttons and playing multiple videos of fans dancing along to the song. Eventually, the song ends with her dancing with a flash mob that consists of a random group of people. The only thing missing was her shaking everybody’s hand and taking pictures with them.
For the video for “Dark Side”, Clarkson makes a bigger statement by not wearing any makeup whatsoever. All she wants is to connect to the average person and make them feel encouraged that it is okay to embrace the good AND the bad of everybody.
All the traits that once personified what it meant to be an American Idol: natural talent, good soul, and smart head on your shoulders still live inside of Kelly Clarkson. She is only figuring out now how to spread it out to the world.