It is the end of an era- American Idol is coming to an end. Season 15, also called the Farewell Season, premiered on January 6. Like many people, I have not watched American Idol in a long time. I actually had to Google when this season started!
American Idol premiered in 2002, and immediately took over the country. Once a night weekly, our eyes would be glued to the television, rooting for our favorite upcoming-stars, and laughing at the antics of the judges-Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and the ever-famous Simon Cowell.
We followed the contestants through their journey, and celebrated with them to the end, whether they won or not. In 2006, the show had its highest ratings, thanks to its devoted weekly viewers like us. This season was the most successful season of them all.
Millions of people tuned in weekly to watch, and millions also voted for their favorite contestants. American Idol was dominating television. But, after that season, American Idol’s ratings went down every year, to the season last year, which was their record lowest. How could a television show so popular and so dominating suddenly be on a steep downfall to cancellation, after just 5 seasons?
Our favorite judges, who were secretly our favorite part of the show, began to change drastically. Paula Abdul left the show after season 8, but we still watched because Ellen DeGeneres joined. But then, the following season, Simon Cowell left the show.
Without Simon Cowell’s rude remarks and drama, the judges were no longer the best part of the show. Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez did not have the same chemistry with Randy Jackson that we were used to. After the 12th season, the last piece of the original trio, Randy Jackson, announced he was leaving the show.
We were left with Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban, and Harry Connick, Jr, who are the final three hosts for the Farewell Season. So maybe we stopped watching American Idol because of the constantly-changing judges, who were the cornerstone of the show. Once Simon Cowell left and took his certain type of entertainment with him, I personally felt no reason to continue watching.
The judges always amused me more than the contestants, and were the reason why I watched the show. That is why, in 2013, when Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj were announced to be judges, I became a semi-faithful weekly viewer again. They brought drama, fighting with each other every week.
Now, we are left with J-Lo, Harry, and Keith, who do not bring the special connection that Paula, Randy, and Simon did. We watched eight straight seasons of the original trio, but once Paula Abdul left, every season the judges changed, and we could not keep up.
But, why was I still only a semi-faithful viewer during season 12, when the judges finally brought my interest back after a couple of years? And why were the judges the best part of the show, when the contestants obviously should have been? The contestants were even more rapidly-changing than the judges. Some kept my interest, some did not.
The winners were promised to be famous and have a big, successful career after winning the show, yet I cannot name more than five Idol winners. I watched, season after season, as contestants rose to the top of the show, then drop off the face of the earth soon after winning.
Sure, Carrie Underwood and Kris Allen are still pretty popular, but when was the last time we heard anything about Ruben Studdard or Candice Glover? If these contestants would have opened their eyes and realized that their chance to stardom was little, maybe this show would have never prospered. They join a show, sing other artists’ songs, and expect to be famous.
Where is the hard work? Many of these stars failed to prosper after winning the show because the reality of record labels and having to actually write your own songs finally hit them. Suddenly, quitting their job, broadcasting their sob story, and joining a show did not seem like the smartest move to make.
In 2011, The Voice, a show much like American Idol debuted, stealing many of Idol’s viewers. But, why? The Voice is the same concept! I can bet that The Voice will eventually have the same sad downfall as American Idol, no matter how dominating or promising of a show it seems to be.
American Idol offered a huge opportunity to many people across the country, but the reward was not as great as we all expected it to be. Season after season, we went through the same cycle of changing judges and contestants, rooting for one until the end. If they never ended up making it in the real world, we forgot about them, and tuned in to the new season of Idol, with fresh judges and fresh contestants.
This is what we grew up with, going through the cycle for fifteen years. But now it is finally time to say farewell.
Jill Augustine
Viewpoints Editor