I must first say that it is harder than anyone watching the show might think. (Not to say that sitting on your butt for several hours and collecting several million dollars for it is more difficult than digging a long ditch...but...) What I mean is when you are glued to a seat where you must listen to good, bad, and ugly all in random succession, it wears on the mental and emotional parts of you.

I owned a company that hosted talent searches and seminars for up-and-coming singers for several years. We would schedule singers for two solid days. We would sit for the whole day, listening intently, writing constructive feedback to the singers.

Like on American Idol, there was a wide range of talent - from very high to very low. So here is my take on one of TV's most popular shows. 

THE GOOD 

#1--American Idol is one of the most entertaining shows on TV right now. It draws you in, whether you are a singer or just a listener. The show's producers do a great job of creating a drama that gets you involved in the hopes and dreams of the contestants. 

#2--Simon serves as a great "bad guy." Just think about how we all love to hate him. In the drama, he's the accuser, the abuser. He makes sure to express his disapproval of even the most talented contestants at some point in each season. It is part of why we get so emotionally involved. Sooner or later, he will insult OUR favorite. How will they take it?

#3--The judges one-and-all, serve as a tiny substitute for both "the music industry" and "the American public." What do I mean? They express what might be a typical audience's impatience. Just think about it...when you are not thinking like a singer...just a music LISTENER...you don't have any interest in excuses. You just want someone to do what they do well enough for you to enjoy it.

If you stop and think about it...we, as listeners to music, treat our musical tastes much like our food tastes. We don't give any thought to the cook's personal problems or feelings. WE ONLY WANT TO KNOW IF WE WILL LIKE HIS FOOD.

And we would consider a cook completely neurotic if he became offended when we chose to like one of his dishes but not another of his dishes. If we saw a chef standing at the window of his restaurant, complaining about how many people are passing by without stopping in, we'd consider him pathetic.

THE AMERICAN IDOL JUDGES remind us that if you want to be a musical "chef," you must realize that your audience will always show up with their own tastes, expecting musical food, and won't care if you have a good reason for not meeting their expectations.

THE BAD

#1--Simon seems to be a sincere jerk! If he's just acting, he's TOO good at it. After watching, I'd swear that he has a cruel streak that truly runs deep. His wording sometimes seems to be for the purpose of causing hurt. I don't have a problem with his brutal honesty, per se. But I can't get to the place where I enjoy cruelty.

#2--There is an UN-reality to the situation. Think about a regular concert. You have 2 parties present...the performers...and the audience. They are in a conversation that is somewhat natural. It goes like this..."Hi, I will sing you a song." "Cool, let's hear it." "Here you go...(and they sing)"..."Wow! I enjoyed that. Let me show you by clapping. Do it again."

But on American Idol there is a THIRD PARTY! (Or 3 THIRD PARTIES). The conversation gets more muddled and complicated..."Hi! Oh, hello there. Now WHO am I singing for again? Oh, and you're going to be JUDGING me in front of millions? What fun!" It's a wonder that we find ANY reality in the conversation, because right there between the performer and audience is what amounts to a noisy intruder--the Judges. That stacks the deck against any singer.

#3--The show has nothing to offer the singer but A CHANCE--Like a lottery ticket. No help with improvement. No direction. Little advice. No encouragement.

I picture that scene from "Gladiator" where the Emperor sits among the coloseum crowd, with his thumb sticking out. Everyone waits...he finally turns his thumb downward, evidently sealing the fate of the poor singer...I mean gladiator.

The show does NOT have as one of it's purposes to see people get better. As a person involved with helping people improve, I find this endlessly frustrating. I hear a singer with a beautiful tone on the show, but who hits the end of their limited vocal range and I think "Oh, if I could spend 30 minutes teaching them this exercise and that exercise, they'd fly right through..."

Meanwhile, Simon sez, "That was the wuhst thing I've evah huhd. There ah dying cows who've made more beautiful sounds than that. Get this guhl some raizah blades so she can do us oohl a faivah." 

A LITTLE HELP PLEASE

Our purpose as a company has always been to help as many singers as possible. Standards are high. Audiences (who are made up of you and me), really ARE expecting a lot these days. But rather than just "thumbs up" or "thumbs down," we get to actually see vast improvements every day.

People get closer to their dreams, enjoy their own voices more, and make better connections with their audiences as a result of what we have the privilege to do. Sometimes I watch the auditions on Idol and wonder, "How many of these people will just give up singing now?"

Long before American Idol, I remember going to my first music seminar. I JUST WANTED TO GET SOME HONEST FEEDBACK ON MY SONGS AND MY SINGING.

It turned out to be one of the most important weekends of my life! I met industry people that I still keep in touch with today (and that was over 20 years ago). I met other artists who knew my dreams and my struggles. I still communicate with some of them to this day.

I also JUST WANTED TO KNOW HOW A PERSON COULD DO THIS AS A CAREER.

In that way, I learned the "rules of engagement" for this peculiar business called the "Music Industry." I learned things that first weekend, that saved me years and years of spinning my wheels.

For instance, I found out how "royalties" work. I found out the difference between a promoter, a publisher, a producer, and a host of other characters. You may already know these things, but I didn't.

I also found out that the music business wasn't "magic." I found out that there is a "back office" aspect to the music business that nothing more than buying and selling things to real people. That's when I learned that if I could connect with real people from the stage, I could write my own ticket...It didn't matter whether some "Simon" gave me the thumbs up or not.

Eventually, the music industry came looking for ME. All because I was effectively reaching a crowd of people who loved my music.