I'm the first to say, as a musician/singer, I was appalled at the idea of a show like this. It makes a mockery of the whole entertainment business. But my feelings have calmed down and I'm starting to see what American Idol really was after all; A T.V. Show.
But Lets forget the fact that the Producers stick the old ball & chain on the winners; Feeding them the (do you wanna?) Golden Parachute.
Lets forget the fact they they are whoring singers like pretentious musical pimps they are.
Lets talk about 3 things: Talent, Ratings, and Sales.
Now I know it's a cliche to say that Kelly Clarkson was the only successful person to come out of the series, but its the truth. Additionally the more she distanced herself from the show the more successful she became. The success she had is even more amazing compared to how the other Idols have been.
American idol was viewed by 18.69 million people throughout season one and her first album Thankful sold 2,500,000.
Her success didn't stop though, her sophomore album, which ran away from the idol mystique, Breakaway sold 5,700,000. She still stands as the only Idol who's had a plus success rate after their freshman album.
Rumor has it that she is also skilled with a pen as well as a voice; Beginning to write her own pop hits, but i digress.
Lets move on to good old ,Kentucky friend Chicken, eating Ruben, his first album, with the atrocious single Sorry 2004,Soulful was successful selling 1,780,823., His second sold I Need An Angel, sold 437,114, His third, The Return,Sold 220,359
Moving on...
Fantasia...
First album ,Free Yourself, Sold 1,687,346, Second, Fantasia (which sold at Walmart for 9.99) Sold 372,583
Taylor Hicks
premier album sold 646,500

The only people who reached Clarksons success were Carrie Underwood, whose freshman album Some Hearts, sold 5,434,502, And Clay Aiken, but he's starting to meet a similar fate look at the trend of his albums:
1.Measure of a Man 2.8 Million 2.Merry Christmas with Love 1.4 Million 3.A Thousand Different Ways 511,000 4. All is Well 50,000

But i'll give Clay some slack the last one was an EP
but still... these are extremely poor sales for a show who's ratings have peaked at 37.7 million viewers.

Now when it comes to talent, I'm not going to lie, they all have it.
So, somethings wrong here.
America's Idols aren't getting the Idol Numbers...
Talk amongst yourselves...

Does Winning/Being on, American Idol mean anything?




no.

ascenderx said:

I'm satisfied with that...
lock it up mods!

if you look just at album sales--it's hit or miss. but there are lots of ways to measure success:

Jennifer Hudson--golden globe, Oscar
Fantasia, Tamyra Gray, Latoya Hudson, Diana DeGarmo--all on Broadway
Josh Gracin, Kelly Pickler--gold country cd's
Chris Daughtry, Elliott Yamin, Bucky Covington--top 10 album debuts


soooo...considerng that most of these people were struggling singers, i'd say it meant something to them

10: joash gracin
Even though he was a fourth-place finalist during season two, the former Marine's debut country album was certified gold, and there's talk he'll replace the lead singer of the country group Lonestar.

9. Tamyra Gray
post-'Idol' road wasn't an easy one. Her debut album was a commercial flop, but she's had better luck on Broadway, playing the lead role in 'Bombay Dreams' and now starring in 'Rent.'
amyra Gray

8.kimberly caldwell

After getting the boot during season two, Caldwell was smart to leave the singing alone and cash in on her good looks and big mouth. She's now a TV personality, hosting 'Reality Chat' and 'Idol Tonight' for the TV Guide Channel.

7. kimberly locke
She was the best female singer in season two and her single, '8th World Wonder,' proved it. The singer-turned-plus-size-model was a spokesperson for Lane Bryant but can now be seen on VH1's 'Celebrity Fit Club.'

6. katherine mcphee
After America chose Taylor Hicks, she did the talk show circuit, went public about her battle with bulimia and scored a hair care endorsement in the process. McPhee's self-titled debut album hit No. 2 on the Billboard charts.

5. Elliott Yamin

After America chose Taylor Hicks, she did the talk show circuit, went public about her battle with bulimia and scored a hair care endorsement in the process. McPhee's self-titled debut album hit No. 2 on the Billboard charts.

4.kellie pickler

She capitalized on calamari and cashed in on her down-home country charm. Pickler has since co-hosted 'The View,' toured with Brad Paisely and released an album, which was certified gold.


3. jennifer hudson
Who would've ever thought a once-forgotten 'Idol' castoff would win an Oscar?! Leave it to J. Hud to steal the 'Dreamgirls' spotlight from Beyonce. She's got a slew of movies in the works and an upcoming album.

2. clay aiken

Aiken's boyish charm and awful hair had millions of little girls swooning. Though scandals about his lovelife and a run-in with Kelly Ripa have dimmed his starpower, he's still the top-selling non-'Idol' (for now at least).


1. chris daughtryDaughtry's season five ouster was the biggest upset of the season, but he turned the loss into a win by forming his own band and releasing an album, which sold a whopping 304,000 units its first week.
[Edited 5/22/07 8:05am]

Exposure is EVERYTHING in this business.

Winning/being on that show only means that you are a boring dead ass motherfucker like everyone else on that show and in today's music scene.
.
.
[Edited 5/22/07 8:24am]

meltwithu said:

she just released an album few weeks back it opened at number 160 sold like 5-6k

asg said:

hell i can't tell you WON the last 10 miss america pagaents, let alone who fished 3rd...idol makes millions of people care about you for 5 months--what happens after that is really up to how you market yourself

Katharine McPhee who placed second behind that Jay Leno looking guy, may have sold 300,000+ of her debut, but her endorsement deals are 7 figure deals, so in the end it didnt really matter she had good voice.

I think if you finish in the top 4, but don't win, you've got a better chance of future success. Sure, winning gives you that big promo push from the producers, management, etc. But if they end up in the top 4 without winning, they usually seem to have a little more leeway to do what they want and follow their own instincts, plus people still remember their names and obviously a lot of people are interested in them, or they wouldn't have gotten that far.

Most of these Idol contestants won't have long term careers because no one believes in them. So you're pretty and you can (sort of) sing, so what? I think it's a good springboard to a career, but unless they distinguish themselves in some way, they're all just disposable pop singers in most peoples' eyes.

Of course it does. It's huge exposure. The average musician is not going to sell 100 copies of an album, let alone 100,000 copies...
[Edited 5/22/07 12:38pm]

Graycap23 said:

Exactly.

my problem with such shows is that the winner's first bunch of albums are commercial to death because the lable wants to milk them dry to death.

so it's too early to judge any of those winner, not untill they ripen and become more in charge of their careers then we'll see their choices.

as for rejects, Jen Hudson must be so powerful now after her Oscar win, so i can see her having a say in her upcoming album.
[Edited 5/22/07 13:09pm]

Winning and being on American idol does mean something. Most, if not all would not have gotten record deals if it wasn't for the show. We base it on sales, well if they did it on their own they would be selling their cd's out of their trunk in some parking lot.

They have yet to produce one single artist but yes it means something.

It means they sing well enough to pass test after test, first from the judges, then from the public. They perform week after week under incredible pressure and have to put everything into a single song in front of 30 million people. They have to sing genres that aren't necessarily their favorites. They have to stand there and smile as three judges tell them they blew it.

Doing well on AI means they're ready willing & able to be bland professional pop singers.

NDRU said:

I wouldn't go that far, but the ones who are true artists are the ones who don't get much commercial success. Tamyra turned her back on a Clive Davis contract because she wanted to write her own songs (like her idol, some skinny mofo with a high voice ). It didn't translate into sales, but I'm glad she went her own way.

AlexdeParis said:

I guess to be more accurate I should say that they haven't made any real artistic impact, only a commercial one.

NDRU said:

Thats totally right, i remember last year when they asked Jon Bon Jovi about the show and he said he really hadnt seen it, he understood why it was popular BUT he said " the show wasnt really turning out artists more than Karoake/lounge singers" he said the proof would be in 15 years or so who was still working at the craft, not just selling records.
[Edited 5/22/07 17:48pm]

AlexdeParis said:

!!

NDRU said:

True, true. I'd say the nature of the show precludes making an immediate artistic impact... particularly for the winners.

Exposure, ok...
they got exposure...
but they have not done anything with it...
and i mean MUSICALLY
i don't care if they won an oscar, are on regis weekly

These are Americas so called greatest, correct?
what have they done musically?
nothing
American Idol is a program for the advantageous efforts of singers, correct?
So?
What have they done?
nothing
so i ascertain American Idol is nothing more than a television program,

I actually had high hopes for alot of the contestants...
but they all come out with shite
might not be there fault...
but i'd rather scrap it out doing it the hard way
Because this is proving that the faster you come up, the faster you fall,
Superstars are built, not chosen...

Winning/being on American Idol (or any country's version) means that said "singer" has sold out before even becoming famous, and therefore will be boycotted by the likes of me.

Moonbeam said:

How is it any different than getting a record deal because you're the cute girl on a soap opera?

BlaqueKnight said:

do you mean singing songs that are already popular? because lots of singers have become stars singing other peoples' music

NDRU said:

...
Michael Buble?

EmbattledWarrior said:

Never heard him but his name makes me laugh.

Raze said:

At least a cute girl from a soap opera is already famous.

Moonbeam said:

But not for her singing talent. These people at least have to be able to sing before they become famous singers.
[Edited 5/23/07 17:47pm]