Australian Idol - General Discussion

[Door County Cherry]

Australian Idol is an Australian singing competition, which ran for 7 seasons.  The series will return in 2023 for an 8th after Seven Network announced they will be picking up the show.

Harry Connick Jr., Meghan Trainer, Amy Shark and Kyle Sandilands have been announced as judges.

[purist]

Well, here are we are again! The original Australian Idol thread on TWoP is how I found TWoP in the first place. That discovery ended up giving me lifelong friends in Australia and around the world via Australian Idol and other topics (notably Hottest Olympians 2004 and American Idol season 8, 2009, aka the season when Adam Lambert broke American Idol), many of whom I have met in person over the years.

Anyhow, here is an article from Mediaweek about the new judges (Harry Connick Jr., Meghan Trainer, Amy Shark and Kyle Sandilands) and new hosts (Ricki-Lee and Scott Tweedie). How very diverse! (Kidding: the whiteness is blinding.) Fucking Vyle Randypants! I did enjoy Harry Connick Jr when he was a judge on American Idol in season 13 (2013) - the banter between him and fellow judge Keith Urban was highly entertaining. No idea what Meghan Trainor and Amy Shark will be like.

I don't hold out any great hopes for this reboot. The past few seasons of the 'refreshed' American Idol have been pretty bad, especially because the show is now much more about the 'superstar' judges than about the contestants. Ah well, the Idol format is still a winner, and I'll definitely be watching the new Australian series.

[purist]

Apparently Marcia Hines will be back as a guest judge.

[katisha]

Urgh, that's not great, @purist, but as long as creepy Holden stays away I think I can stand it!

[purist]

God yes. I used to quite enjoy Mark Holden on the original Idol, but he became very weird and creepy when he was on Dancing with the Stars.

[purist]

Dog save me but I love this show so much! I laughed at the frequent mentions of 'This is the only show that makes genuine stars', but it's actually true. Apart from Dami Im, who was on The Voice Australia (I think?), I can't recall any other Australian singing-show contestants who have become household names in the way that Guy Sebastian, Jessica Mauboy, Crystal Callea and so many others from the original run of Australian Idol have. I mean, it was the first and biggest in the new era of TV talent shows (The Voice and Australia's Got Talent being mere poor imitations), but there's something about the format of Idol that pulls me in and keeps me watching. Even with Vyle Randypants on the judging panel.

Speaking of whom, I feel dirty because he actually made me laugh a few times during the premiere. I've forgotten which contestant it was, but Vyle's facial expression during one of the bad auditions was so exactly the expression I was making that I burst out laughing. He's horrible in general, though. The other judges? Meghan is A LOT, but she plays pretty well off Vyle, and I like that Amy Shark is much more low-key in comparison. Also, Meghan's wardrobe is on point - that sparkly silver suit was to die for. She's going to have to stop with the attempts at an Australian accent - that got old very quickly. I adore Harry Connick Jr and he will definitely be my favourite judge. It was very cool when he played piano for the last contestant.

The contestants ... I think my favourite tonight was the second one, Sharin (sp?). Great voice, great vibe. The guy who sang Matt Corby's 'Brother' was pretty good but IMO didn't deserve the tongue bath the judges gave him. The country dude who did 'Pub with no Beer' was very average indeed, and it pissed me off that he was characterised as 'quintessentially Australian'. In the 1950s, maybe!

I'm a tad worried that two out of the four judges are American and as such will possess little knowledge of Australian popular music. Neither Harry nor Meghan (heh, Harry and Meghan) would have heard 'Brother' before, which is probably one of the reasons they were so blown away by the guy who sang it. It's an amazing song, no doubt, but if they had had prior knowledge of it, they would have realised that the dude was singing it almost exactly the way Matt Corby does. I want to know what dude sounds like when he's not mimicking someone else.

Hm, the hosts. Looks like Ricki-Lee will be good, but to me Scott Tweedie is just one more in the long line of bland white male hosts that the commercial TV channels love to foist on us. Who is he, anyway? I know his name but I have no idea why he's famous. Naturally I miss Osher and James Mathison, aka the best Idol hosts ever.

Anyway, welcome back, Australian Idol. Who else is watching this instead of Australian Survivor or MAFS?

Edited January 30, 2023 by purist

[katisha]

17 minutes ago, purist said:

Anyway, welcome back, Australian Idol. Who else is watching this instead of Australian Survivor or MAFS?

 

You would have to tie me down and hold a gun to my head to make me watch MAFS. I hate it, as we used to say, with the power of a thousand fiery nuns and even the ads make me break out in hives. As for Survivor, I am really over shows which celebrate mean-spirited behaviour and backstabbing so it's not a show I have watched for many years. It's weird but the reason most love those shows is the thing that turns me off them!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SnideAsides]

17 hours ago, purist said:

I laughed at the frequent mentions of 'This is the only show that makes genuine stars', but it's actually true. Apart from Dami Im, who was on The Voice Australia (I think?), I can't recall any other Australian singing-show contestants who have become household names in the way that Guy Sebastian, Jessica Mauboy, Crystal Callea and so many others from the original run of Australian Idol have.

Hm, the hosts. Looks like Ricki-Lee will be good, but to me Scott Tweedie is just one more in the long line of bland white male hosts that the commercial TV channels love to foist on us. Who is he, anyway? I know his name but I have no idea why he's famous.

X-Factor had a fair few. None quite as big as the biggest Idol people, but Samantha Jade, Johnny Ruffo, and Isaiah Firebrace were all from there. Sheldon Riley was a Voice winner. Jack Vidgen was an AGT winner. Idol is definitely the big one though.

Scott Tweedie used to host kids shows on ABC3 about ten years ago until 11 (now 10Peach) poached him to host their replacement for Video Hits. Mostly works for E! in the US now, but also guest hosted DWTS when Grant Denyer was sick one week and Amazing Race Australia for like five episodes when a dude who doesn't understand physical boundaries predictably managed to catch Covid like four days into filming. He's got the cred for a show like this but good lord the gravitas is lacking.

Are we doing obtuse TWOP-sryle nicknames for people this season? That was one of my favourite things about OG Idol.

[purist]

3 hours ago, SnideAsides said:

X-Factor had a fair few.

I completely forgot about The X Factor. Thanks for the reminder!

 

3 hours ago, SnideAsides said:

Are we doing obtuse TWOP-sryle nicknames for people this season? That was one of my favourite things about OG Idol.

I hope so! Maybe once the herd is thinned down a bit?

[purist]

It was very nice to have Marcia back on tonight's episode. She looked a million bucks in that pink outfit, and I loved her telling Vyle to STFU at one point. I wonder if some of the younger contestants even knew who she was?

There's some pretty good talent in the top 32. I'm liking all the curly-haired girls - Sharin, Maya, and that other one whose name I forget - and I love the gay Aboriginal guy, Royston (I think they showed his partner in his audition episode). And Piper and Sash are both right up my alley in terms of acoustic artists. I've actually played Piper on my radio show - she put out a great song called 'Before the Thunder' in 2021.

I can't believe the winner will be decided in only six weeks. Not enough time!

[retrograde]

I have been watching. Thoughts so far:

• I am enjoying Harry, Amy and Meghan as judges, and Kyle is... not as bad as he could be and has been. I am glad they are all willing to be blunt when a performance sucks (a quality not found on American Idol anymore or The Voice ever) and also offer genuinely constructive criticism.
• All that said: Bring back Marcia!
• Jasey and Maya were far from the worst, but I also understand that their appeal was probably a little niche. Jasey was very Broadway and the judges were 100% right that dance pop just never works on these singing shows (though they might have let Maya know that a little earlier? I suppose she did The Voice previously and should know how these games play out).
• The number of very young teens is tiresome, even though some have genuinely very good voices. There was all this concern about them not being able to connect emotionally to the songs but yeah, no shit. Don't recruit kids if you want life experience. 
• Favourite currently: Roysten
• Least favourite: Ben
• Who I think will win: One of the children because Australia votes like that 

[purist]

I am in Sydney for WorldPride and haven't been able to watch for the last couple of weeks, but am looking forward to catching up next week!

[purist]

Have finally caught up and my first thought is: Who the fuck is voting for Ben? He has all the charisma of a wet sock and I'm sick of seeing his one stage movement - the non-mic-holding arm up in the air - and REALLY sick of the judges tongue-bathing him. GTFO off my TV!

I liked Jasey and Maya and was sorry to see them go. Both of them have far more talent than a few of the ones who are left. And Harry Hayden is a gorgeous gay-gay-GAY sweetheart who I always enjoyed watching even though his vocals weren't as strong as most of the others. I'll miss him.

I hate the shortened format where we lose two singers every week. How are we supposed to get to know and love them when we see so little of them?

All that said, the top eight has some mightily talented people in it. Amali is ridiculously good and has huge confidence and assurance for a 16-year-old. I love both of the 15-year-olds and, like the judges, am always gobsmacked by Phoebe's voice and delivery. Her 'Dancing Queen' was particularly great. Off stage she's an awkward, disarmingly normal teenager, but when she opens her mouth to sing, wow.  Josh is excellent, Noora and Anya are fine, but my favourite right now is Royston. What a beautiful voice and what a beautiful soul.

Ricki-Lee is impressing me as a host, but she needs to stop with the 'I was eliminated on Idol back in the day because the viewers were too stupid to vote for me' schtick. Girl, you murdered the Beatles' 'We Can Work It Out' and the public voted accordingly. Shut up.

Scott Tweedie is ... there. He bores me.

I'm enjoying all of the judges, even Vyle. That's some good casting from TPTB.

Lastly, Adam Lambert is my favourite and he slays every time he is on a stage. I wish he could be on every week.

[retrograde]

Just caught up for this week. Cutting the top 6 in half was pretty brutal, and it seemed like the pairings were basically designed to eliminate the three contestants they'd prefer.

But I can't quibble with the top 3 -- Royston remains my favorite, Phoebe's voice and presence are undeniable, and Josh really stepped up from the middle of the pack a few weeks ago. 

I think Josh will probably win because I suspect teenage girls are the main people who vote. 

[purist]

Yeah, the top 3 works for me too, although Amali was stiff to be the one to miss out. It made sense to me when Harry said that maybe people weren't voting for her because viewers like to see a 'journey' and she hasn't had one as she's been great from the beginning (she was the very first audition they showed!) and has never had a bad week.

I saw a comment from Cosima de Vito (from season 1 of the original Australian Idol) on the Idol FB page where she said that there's been way too much focus on the judges in the reboot and it should be about the contestants, not the judges (she wasn't a fan of the Amy Shark / Sam Fischer performance, and a lot of other FB posters agreed with her - and let's not even get into Harry doing a shoey and Vyle singing 'I Would Walk 500 Miles'!). She's absolutely right, of course, but unfortunately that's how all the singing-competition shows work these days. I wonder if people who are watching it without having ever seen the original think the same?

Back in the day, when only one contestant was eliminated per week and they all lived in a house together and went out to movie premieres and the like, we really got to know and love/hate the contestants. In the reboot, the eliminated contestants don't even get a highlights package before they leave the stage. I find it disappointing that TPTB think we don't want a 16-week season (I mean, how long is a season of The Block?), especially when Idol is screening at the same time as MAFS and Australian Survivor, which a lot of people are watching instead. I wonder if Idol would have more viewers without those clashes.

It's interesting to me that the whole time Royston has been on the show, we've never heard the word 'gay'. I clocked that he was gay from the first time I saw him - he had a boyfriend or partner waiting for him outside the door after his audition, and also it's obvious to anyone with even the lowest level of gaydar. I wonder why they've chosen to have him talk about his 'difference' rather than just saying 'I'm gay'. I hate wading into the conspiracy-theory swamp, but does the network think viewers and advertisers would object if the word 'gay' was used? If so, shame on them.

Anyhoo, Royston for the win!

 

[retrograde]

6 hours ago, purist said:

Yeah, the top 3 works for me too, although Amali was stiff to be the one to miss out. It made sense to me when Harry said that maybe people weren't voting for her because viewers like to see a 'journey' and she hasn't had one as she's been great from the beginning (she was the very first audition they showed!) and has never had a bad week.

Yeah I think that is right -- part of Phoebe's appeal (if we are comparing the teen girl contestants) is that she transforms from this dorky kid offstage into a compelling performer onstage every episode. Amali describes herself as just a girl who works in an ice cream shop, but really she already seems ready-to-go as a performer in every way. Which sucks for her but is just kind of the nature of these shows. I do appreciate that Harry is pretty candid about how Idol, and its voters, operate in that way. 

6 hours ago, purist said:

I saw a comment from Cosima de Vito (from season 1 of the original Australian Idol) on the Idol FB page where she said that there's been way too much focus on the judges in the reboot and it should be about the contestants, not the judges (she wasn't a fan of the Amy Shark / Sam Fischer performance, and a lot of other FB posters agreed with her - and let's not even get into Harry doing a shoey and Vyle singing 'I Would Walk 500 Miles'!). She's absolutely right, of course, but unfortunately that's how all the singing-competition shows work these days. I wonder if people who are watching it without having ever seen the original think the same?

I suspect it's the influence of The Voice, which is so much about the judges (though perhaps also a cautionary tale, as its winners almost never seem to break out after the show). The original was such a different time, when in Australia especially there really were only a handful of channels to watch (every time I go home to Australia I am still struck by how much more of a monoculture there still is than the US -- like it's far more common for there to be a show or events that most of the country watches and talks about -- but there's no doubt it has been diluted a lot by streaming and the internet), so I understand the need to promote "star power" as selling point. 

Anyway I'm not super bothered by the increased focus on the judges -- and at least these ones offer real feedback, unlike the US ones who are completely useless -- but I agree they could still tell us way more about the contestants. I wonder if it's partly the record labels preferring that the winner be more of a blank slate whose image they can shape? It may also be that it's harder these days for shows to attract performers themselves if they are going to have to do a whole bunch of personal stuff. I think people (and parents, so many of the contestants are kids) are more aware of the pitfalls of very candid reality TV, and they are also in a better position to build their own careers and craft their own images online without the help of mainstream media. I'm thinking of people like Noora who already have their own followings on social media, and may not agree to do a show like Idol if it was going to interfere with that. 

6 hours ago, purist said:

It's interesting to me that the whole time Royston has been on the show, we've never heard the word 'gay'. I clocked that he was gay from the first time I saw him - he had a boyfriend or partner waiting for him outside the door after his audition, and also it's obvious to anyone with even the lowest level of gaydar. I wonder why they've chosen to have him talk about his 'difference' rather than just saying 'I'm gay'. I hate wading into the conspiracy-theory swamp, but does the network think viewers and advertisers would object if the word 'gay' was used? If so, shame on them.

Yeah this really struck me in the latest episode, where I think he at least said "my sexuality" rather than "difference" or whatever they had said in the past, but still felt like it was dancing around. It may also just be his own preference? Courtney Act was on Idol literally 20 years ago! 

[purist]

Good result. And they finally let Royston say he is queer! I thought Phoebe's 'Your Song' was the best she's ever sung, but hey, she's only 15 (Did you know she's only 15??? She's only 15!) and has plenty of opportunities ahead of her.

We didn't see enough of the rest of the top 12 - the opening song with them all together was great. I couldn't believe it when we got a highlight reel of the JUDGES' journeys rather than the contestants'. Jeez Louise. If we needed any more evidence that the show was more about the judges than the contestants, that was it.