American Idol

American Idol has been one of my very favorite shows since it first premiered. I have done reports on it, given speeches, been to the concerts, the tapings of the live show and met many of the contestants. It's kind of my thing. My area of expertise, if you will. I mean, I even talked to "crier girl" when I met her at Carrie Underwood's holiday special taping, and to some extent we bonded over the fact that we're both known as the "American Idol girl" at school. Though, she might be a bit more extreme.

Coming off of the high from last season, where I was able to talk with and get to know some of the contestants throughout the competition through Twitter and in-person, I was looking forward to having that same bond again this time with a new group. That's what the show is all about, it connects you to dreamers like yourself.  

Moving forward--I was SO excited about this season's premiere. 

First off, it's the "13th" season, which is my favorite number, so it had that going by default. Secondly, I LOVED the idea of the new judges, even though I wasn't too happy with J.Lo and was glad she left when she did. I was just SO over Nicki and Mariah that it felt like this would be a good change. They got rid of Nigel (THANK GOODNESS) and a whole lot of the other crew. It was like they were starting from scratch and completely revamping it into what it used to be. The reason that people fell in love with it.

I thought the auditions were pretty good! I found several people that I was rooting for, and I loved that they didn't showcase any of the bad auditions, just for the sake of good television. But, what I liked most was the camaraderie with the judges messing with one another; Harry's charm and wit, Keith's use of big words and being so expressive, along with J.Lo's beauty and tenderness towards the contestants. Each of them had something different to offer.

And then Hollywood week came. Suddenly, they were knocking out quite a few people that I liked. Shocker! But, there were still a couple that I was going to be rooting for. However, it seemed that the further we got into the week, the worse the contestants were. Like, what were they thinking?! Did they just get lucky with a good day?

Then came the top 13. Normally, by that point, you have this incredible group that is so talented and they just continue to get better. But, so far they haven't. My mom had gotten tickets for one of the first live shows, and we had seriously considered going, but I had a lot of work to do that day. Plus, we just thought we'd go another time when we really had a chance to get into the groove of the show. But, as it progressed it wasn't getting much better or more exciting. It was just kind of blah…And then, Emily, the ONE person I was really rooting for went home last week. BOOO! Although, with this one, I only have myself to blame, because for one of the first times in history…I didn't vote *GASP* That never happens. I usually vote as long as the phone lines are open. She had such a beautiful voice and nice control over it, too, and she actually seemed to have personality, which most of the contestants seem to lack. Sure, most of them can carry a tune, but they aren't strong like the judges go on and on about. I just feel like they're missing a lot of energy.

This is also the first time in awhile that I honestly don't care if I go to a live taping, because I'm just not that into it. It seems that I'm not the only one who felt that way either, because every week, a few hours before the taping, I get an e-mail saying that tickets are still available. Don't get me wrong, I know I'd still have fun, but it just wouldn't be the same. I'd really only be going for the judges, which stinks, because this season you can take your phones inside the studio and take pictures. Hmmm…There's always the finale. That's one thing I DON'T want to miss.

We'll see if the group gets any better to comment on later.

That's all for now,

Shelby :)