S20.E01: 501 (Auditions)

[helenamonster]

Original airdate: 2/27/22

[seasons]

Wow. Turning down Aretha's granddaughter. I saw Katie's point about giving her a chance, but her voice was weak and she needed more time and training. Sending back the southern girl who sang the red neck woman song kind of surprised me, but granddaughter just wasn't ready yet imo. Especially at 15.

[Annber03]

1 minute ago, seasons said:

Wow. Turning down Aretha's granddaughter. I saw Katie's point about giving her a chance, but her voice was weak and she needed more time and training. 

Agreed. She's definitely got a lot of potential and a good voice, so I'm all for her returning in a year or two if she so wishes, and I hope she does. But yeah, she just needs a little more time to build up a bit more confidence and command in her singing, is all. 

Quote

Sending back the southern girl who sang the red neck woman song kind of surprised me

I wasn't surprised. She wasn't bad, but she did kinda run her words together and didn't enunciate much, and that whole thing with her and her mom and the judges was...a lot. Mind, some of that was on the judges, too, for getting so silly, but still... Enthusiasm and excitement is great, but sometimes it's a little much. 

I'm still trying to figure out that girl from earlier with the little girl-ish voice who suddenly sang all deep when she did "Proud Mary". Talk about unexpected!

[SnarkAttack]

Spending too much time with each contestant.  I'd rather they move it along.

Wish there were some non- stereotypical country singers.  

 

[Annber03]

1 minute ago, SnarkAttack said:

Wish there were some non- stereotypical country singers.  

Seriously. It's been some time since I've listened to a country station, but from what I have heard, these contestants don't sound al that different from the artists that get a lot of airplay now. 

[TheGreenKnight]

Noah's win is sealed for sure. He's another one of those WGWGs in the same lane as Laine Hardy or Kris Allen where, if even I like them, I know there's no chance for anyone else. At least we know to give up hope for anything else early this time, lol.

I liked Nicolina, too. I love Sara Bareilles anyway, add her vocals on top of the song choice and I'm already a fan. I'm not sure if I buy Normandy's voice gimmick thing, but she was alright, I guess?

[Annber03]

Wow, this song by Taylor. Damn. That got me. 

[pezgirl7]

44 minutes ago, TheGreenKnight said:

Noah's win is sealed for sure. He's another one of those WGWGs in the same lane as Laine Hardy or Kris Allen where, if even I like them, I know there's no chance for anyone else.

I don’t know about that. I wasn’t that impressed with him. But then, I’m not a country fan. I loved Chayce last season, but I didn’t really consider him to be country. They seemed to have a lot of country contestants this episode, which is fine but I just wish they would enunciate! It was a bit ridiculous.

My favorite so far is Cole. I loved his voice and the inflections.

[Ms Blue Jay]

1 hour ago, Annber03 said:

Seriously. It's been some time since I've listened to a country station, but from what I have heard, these contestants don't sound al that different from the artists that get a lot of airplay now. 

Luke has so much influence on the show.  I complain about it every season.  The way he absolutely loses his shit when a young white girl can sing country.  It's always yes to them and no to everyone else.  This episode didn't seem that much weighed in that favour, until of course he gave that girl her own fucking concert as his own fucking bar and the platinum card of course.

So funny that they played the theme to "Big Little Lies" at the end of the show.  hahahahhahahaha.  There's no way any of us can hear that song without seeing Nicole and Reese driving down the highway.

My PVR shut itself off right at Taylor's performance.   At least it's online

 

Edited February 28, 2022 by Ms Blue Jay

[peachmangosteen]

I liked Huntergirl but I don't really think she deserved a platinum ticket. Are there only 3 audition shows? Ryan said there were 3 platinum tickets and Katy said there was one for each city.

Normandy gave me the willies. I didn't buy anything about her. I liked her singing voice though.

The girl who sang She Used to Be Mine was great. I also liked the guy with the sister, because I am a cliche and love a WGWG. 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Nicolina Bozzo sand “She Used to be Mine” and was amazing.  Loved her range and passion!  Found out she lives in my town so will be rooting for her!

FF’d all the sob stories and filming of almost everything except actual singing and judges feedback.  They give more feedback now than when they are actually competing!  Hope the judges do better this year than previous but doubt it.  

[MissPriss]

I suppose I’m getting old and cynical but Luke seems like the only one NOT playing to the cameras. Everything Katy and Lionel say or do is for the cameras. I really am over them. And IMHO Katy (Katie?) needs to find a look and stick with it. 🙄

I guess I need more caffeine this morning. ☕️ 

Edited February 28, 2022 by MissPriss
Sp

[sempervivum]

Pretty much typical for the first night of this show- very little to get excited about for a 2-hour viewer commitment. Niccolina was the only one I paid attention to. Aretha's grandchild is very pretty. The idiot with the carrot purse was a waste of time, although I did appreciate her chirpy 'no weapons!' comment.

I still don't get the platinum ticket thing- there are only 3 being given, so that means there are only 3 audition cities? That seems very limited, even allowing for Covid restrictions. And the ones who get this ticket don't have to compete for the first day in Hollywood? Isn't that the infamous day when they form groups, etc., which is actually one of my favorite parts of this dumb show? 

[peachmangosteen]

4 hours ago, sempervivum said:

And the ones who get this ticket don't have to compete for the first day in Hollywood? Isn't that the infamous day when they form groups, etc., which is actually one of my favorite parts of this dumb show? 

I think last season they sang a song in their chosen genre for the first round. But I could be misremembering.

[ruffy666]

21 hours ago, sempervivum said:

Pretty much typical for the first night of this show- very little to get excited about for a 2-hour viewer commitment. Niccolina was the only one I paid attention to. Aretha's grandchild is very pretty. The idiot with the carrot purse was a waste of time, although I did appreciate her chirpy 'no weapons!' comment.

I couldn't believe Luke with his "oh life must've been very difficult for you..."  Everything about her is 100% artificial for her "fans," who are probably all 50 year old men slumped on dirty couches in their basement getting turned on by her fake baby voice.

[sempervivum]

18 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

I think last season they sang a song in their chosen genre for the first round. But I could be misremembering.

I think you're right- but I assumed they didn't do the groups because of distancing at the time. (I hope they bring it back this year),

[twilightzone]

On 2/27/2022 at 6:48 PM, TheGreenKnight said:

Noah's win is sealed for sure. He's another one of those WGWGs in the same lane as Laine Hardy or Kris Allen where, if even I like them, I know there's no chance for anyone else. At least we know to give up hope for anything else early this time, lol.

I liked Nicolina, too. I love Sara Bareilles anyway, add her vocals on top of the song choice and I'm already a fan. I'm not sure if I buy Normandy's voice gimmick thing, but she was alright, I guess?

It's either Noah (this year's Caleb Kennedy) or Cole.   We all know how Idol voters roll by now.  We already have Chayce, Party with Hardy Laine.   Unfortunately, Nicolina could be prime bait for a shock boot. 

[twilightzone]

The Idol Alum wall - Some surprises in who made it - and who got snubbed.

Winners - Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia, Carrie, Jordin, David C, Kris, Scotty, Phillip, Laine, Chayce.

Snubbed - Taylor, Lee, Candice, Caleb, Nick, Trent, Maddie, Sam

Non-winners - Clay, J-Hud, Kat, Adam, Lauren, Gabby, Catie T.

Snubbed - Daughtry, Archie, Haley R, Kellie P, Alejandro (among others).

 

Edited March 1, 2022 by twilightzone

[peachmangosteen]

5 hours ago, sempervivum said:

I think you're right- but I assumed they didn't do the groups because of distancing at the time. (I hope they bring it back this year),

I figure they won’t do again this season due to Covid.

[ichbin]

Wow.  Two days later and only 12 comments after the show aired.  I still remember the glory days.  I don't have any hope the show and interest in it will ever return to that level.  

[Ms Blue Jay]

The glory days were Simon and the bad auditions.  Almost nothing on TV was as funny or as exciting as that.

It'll never be that again, but I'm okay with the way the show is now.  I never watch all the way to the end though.  Every year I try.

[peachmangosteen]

Simon and the bad auditions became tedious and unwatchable to me. That was a large part of why I stopped watching.

[ForReal]

On 2/27/2022 at 7:37 PM, pezgirl7 said:

I don’t know about that. I wasn’t that impressed with him. But then, I’m not a country fan. I loved Chayce last season, but I didn’t really consider him to be country. They seemed to have a lot of country contestants this episode, which is fine but I just wish they would enunciate! It was a bit ridiculous.

My favorite so far is Cole. I loved his voice and the inflections.

I felt the same way about Noah, I couldn't understand him most of the time and he sounded like lots of other country singers that I don't listen to -- not a fan, either.

18 hours ago, ichbin said:

Wow.  Two days later and only 12 comments after the show aired.  I still remember the glory days.  I don't have any hope the show and interest in it will ever return to that level.  

I kept comparing it to the old show as well. Back then it felt like we were watching true auditions and the judges were as surprised as we were by the performances. Now it's all too clear that the contestants have been chosen and packaged beforehand, so there are no surprises and little excitement. Sometimes the judges appear to act like they have never seen the contestant before and know nothing about them, but then they know to ask them to invite in family members, so clearly they know how it's all going down. It's not the same show, and I guess that's okay, but I can't help comparing it every year to the past.

[Ms Blue Jay]

2 hours ago, ForReal said:

I kept comparing it to the old show as well. Back then it felt like we were watching true auditions and the judges were as surprised as we were by the performances. Now it's all too clear that the contestants have been chosen and packaged beforehand, so there are no surprises and little excitement. Sometimes the judges appear to act like they have never seen the contestant before and know nothing about them, but then they know to ask them to invite in family members, so clearly they know how it's all going down. It's not the same show, and I guess that's okay, but I can't help comparing it every year to the past.

So true!

[ichbin]

3 hours ago, ForReal said:

I kept comparing it to the old show as well. Back then it felt like we were watching true auditions and the judges were as surprised as we were by the performances. Now it's all too clear that the contestants have been chosen and packaged beforehand, so there are no surprises and little excitement.

I think there was a legitimate hope and expectation of discovering a true singing star in the earlier years...and they actually did do just that! Several times. At some point that was pushed aside in favor of "entertainment" and optics.  In the years since its return, I can't think of one person who has gone on to become popular and marketable in the mainstream.  If anything more recent years have turned into something more akin to Queen for a Day with people seeming to be competing more for who has the greatest hard luck story rather than singing talent.

[twilightzone]

Idol's spiral started in Season 9 - one of the worse ever.

But the show rebounded with Seasons 10 & 11.  It had 2 of their biggest winners - Scotty McCreery, Phillip Phillips.  And their biggest selling song with Home.

But it finally "jump the shark" starting in Season 12 - and never really recovered after that.  I don't think the general public could name any winner from Seasons 12 - 19.

 

 

Edited March 3, 2022 by twilightzone

[silverspoons]

35 minutes ago, twilightzone said:

Idol's spiral started in Season 9 - one of the worse ever.

But the show rebounded with Seasons 10 & 11.  It had 2 of their biggest winners - Scotty McCreery, Phillip Phillips.  And their biggest selling song with Home.

But it finally "jump the shark" starting in Season 12 - and never really recovered after that.  I don't think the general public could name any winner from Seasons 12 - 19.

 

 

My husband and I did not watch seasons 12-17. I said to him last night, we could watch and not be spoiled because I do not know who won. So crazy considering during the early seasons I could not go to work, school, or talk to family without hearing, who did you vote for? 

I think Idol peaked for me season 7. We went to see the tour and , everyone was great. 

Every year I have hope. I think the way they have the voting on ABC verison, both cutting more than 1 person a week and then the live vote finale, sucked the last bit of fun out of the show. Does not give me the boost to pick a favorite a root for them. 

[Vermicious Knid]

So sick of country. There's a campaign to get Katy fired for making everything about her, but I think there's one every year. She could be replaced easily.

Nicolina had a great voice but I couldn't believe she would show up for an audition looking like a complete schlub. Wacky girl with the different speaking and signing voices is ripping off Michel'le. Her speaking is as affected as Elizabeth Holmes. I don't actually remember anyone else's name. Which shows you how not-exciting they were.

[LexieLily]

On 3/1/2022 at 2:45 PM, twilightzone said:

The Idol Alum wall - Some surprises in who made it - and who got snubbed.

Winners - Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia, Carrie, Jordin, David C, Kris, Scotty, Phillip, Laine, Chayce.

Snubbed - Taylor, Lee, Candice, Caleb, Nick, Trent, Maddie, Sam

Non-winners - Clay, J-Hud, Kat, Adam, Lauren, Gabby, Catie T.

Snubbed - Daughtry, Archie, Haley R, Kellie P, Alejandro (among others).

 

The delineation between the alums that made the wall and those that got snubbed doesn't surprise me. (Except Daughtry. AND CLAY. Fourteen-year-old-me loved him!) I've not watched the ABC years so couldn't tell you who Laine and Chayce are but I presume they've achieved some semblance of fame. Kelly and Carrie are obvious and the other winners have (various levels) of success so naturally Idol would want to claim them. TPTB never wanted Taylor, Lee was mediocre at best (there's a reason his fan-thread on TWOP was the lyric what would you do if I sang out of tune? :p) and I doubt anyone but an Idol superfan could name a winner from Candice on. Maybe Candice just because that was season 12 of Nicki Minaj/Mariah Carey and TPTB's total desperation and manipulation to get a female winner.

Gabby is the only one from the ABC years I've heard of, without watching the show. She's done well for herself and I do like her songs.

 

[Ms Blue Jay]

2 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

So sick of country. There's a campaign to get Katy fired for making everything about her, but I think there's one every year. She could be replaced easily.

When you put these two sentences together I thought you were going to say Luke.  Because for me Luke makes the whole show about how he wants to find another Carrie Underwood.

At least Katy and Lionel will like different genres.

I think it's a bit ridiculous that a genre gets an entire JUDGE dedicated to it.  That makes it a guarantee that country will be overrepresented in the finalists.

I think Katy has tantrums purely on purpose for the supposed entertainment value of it.  I don't "buy" it coming from her.

When she gets emotional and cries and pushes for someone I do believe her though.  I was surprised that she was so swept up by a few stories and pushed forward Aretha's granddaughter.  Am I crazy or was she just not good? I don't understand why Katy wanted to pass her through.  Why should Idol be where they push people through who need a LOT of work?

Edited March 3, 2022 by Ms Blue Jay

[peachmangosteen]

13 hours ago, silverspoons said:

I think Idol peaked for me season 7. We went to see the tour and , everyone was great. 

I went to the Season 7 tour as well! So much fun. Seasons 7 & 8 are my all-time faves. 

10 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

Nicolina had a great voice but I couldn't believe she would show up for an audition looking like a complete schlub. 

I liked her outfit lol. It was very Gen Z.

[twilightzone]

20 hours ago, LexieLily said:

The delineation between the alums that made the wall and those that got snubbed doesn't surprise me. (Except Daughtry. AND CLAY. Fourteen-year-old-me loved him!) I've not watched the ABC years so couldn't tell you who Laine and Chayce are but I presume they've achieved some semblance of fame. Kelly and Carrie are obvious and the other winners have (various levels) of success so naturally Idol would want to claim them. TPTB never wanted Taylor, Lee was mediocre at best (there's a reason his fan-thread on TWOP was the lyric what would you do if I sang out of tune? :p) and I doubt anyone but an Idol superfan could name a winner from Candice on. Maybe Candice just because that was season 12 of Nicki Minaj/Mariah Carey and TPTB's total desperation and manipulation to get a female winner.

Gabby is the only one from the ABC years I've heard of, without watching the show. She's done well for herself and I do like her songs.

 

They threw in winners Laine and Chayce as tokens from the ABC years - but hardly any semblance of fame.   Yeah, TPTB never liked Taylor, but he would be more well known to the general public - than Laine or Chayce.  Daughtry was by far the biggest snub.

[Gemma Violet]

On 3/2/2022 at 10:54 PM, LexieLily said:

Gabby is the only one from the ABC years I've heard of, without watching the show. She's done well for herself and I do like her songs.

Yes.  I'm not a country music listener, but when her first song crossed over to the pop chart, I became aware of it.  It made it to No. 1 on Country and No. 3 on Pop.  Her second hit did well also.

Here's her first hit.  I'm sure many people will recognize it as it's been everywhere:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcCH6JpcK5w

Nicolina was my favorite.

I agree that Aretha's granddaughter was not yet ready.

Is there really a campaign to get Katy Perry replaced?  Count me in.  She makes herself ridiculous.  Going after Lionel with a chair was so stupid.  Lionel could have tripped and fallen because of her shenanigans.

[PhD-Purgatory15]

Part of me (the cynical part), wonders if Aretha herself gave AI directions to not send her 15 year granddaughter to Hollywood this season w/ a "gentleman's agreement" that she'll absolutely be guaranteed a spot in the Top 24 (or whatever number they take to the live episodes) in S21.

Noah was good, but Luke is right..he's going to have to do better with his diction & pronunciation if he wants to go a really long way this season.

The guy who did the BLM song definitely has my interested peaked. I want to hear more of his originals now as well as how he would approach certain cover songs. Not nearly impressed with the guy who lost his nephew. Without the tragic backstory, I just don't know if he has a strong enough, memorable enough voice to really compete this season. Huntergirl is 70% Sara Evans & 30% Miranda Lambert. Clearly, she's making the live shows if the judges hooked her up with an awesome live opportunity at Luke's bar in Nashville.

I've been trying to stay as spoiler free as I can, but I am curious if anyone heard how many total tickets were awarded to Hollywood this season?

[Zanzibar]

On 3/9/2022 at 11:27 AM, PhD-Purgatory15 said:

Part of me (the cynical part), wonders if Aretha herself gave AI directions to not send her 15 year granddaughter to Hollywood this season w/ a "gentleman's agreement" that she'll absolutely be guaranteed a spot in the Top 24 (or whatever number they take to the live episodes) in S21.

Aretha died in 2018, so... Probably not.

[gingerella]

On 3/2/2022 at 9:58 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

When she gets emotional and cries and pushes for someone I do believe her though.  I was surprised that she was so swept up by a few stories and pushed forward Aretha's granddaughter.  Am I crazy or was she just not good? I don't understand why Katy wanted to pass her through.  Why should Idol be where they push people through who need a LOT of work?

No, you're not crazy, Aretha's granddaughter didn't exactly inherit the vocal genes in her family. And judging by the looks of her parents, they might not have reaped the largest share of the Last Will and Testament gravy train either. They looked like they were trawling for a sympathy vote.