Syesha's Scrapbook: Deggans Tries His Hand at Photojournalism

The Pulitzer committee doesn't need to be alerted just yet. But I had more fun -- and success-- than I expected shooting pictures of American Idol contestant Syesha Mercado's visit to the Tampa Bay area Friday.

Tracking the visit itself was like walking the Bataan Death March -- cruising to Tampa at 7 a.m., Sarasota by lunchtime, then back to St. Petersburg in rush hour traffic to hassle with the crowd at Tropicana Field so I could watch Syesha nail a national anthem she's sung at baseball games since she was 9 years old.

A few things did stick out while I was shadowing the Last Woman Standing in TV's most popular singing contest:

-- Syesha pretty much admitted that she doesn't listen to the judges, telling reporters her vocal coaches have more impact on her creative decisions in the competition.

-- Syesha's dad Jose said he didn't mind the barbs directed his way by idol judge Simon Cowell because most of his criticisms are just a shtick, anyway.

-- Idol is still a phenomenon, and huge draw locally for WTVT-Ch. 13. Still, it was a little surprising to see the amount of news resources the station devoted to covering her visit, including two remote trucks and their helicopter.

-- Sarasota's 70-year-old mayor, Lou Ann Palmer, reportedly did three handstands last Tuesday, during a massive Idol party hosted by an area radio station at Mattison's restaurant.

-- When Palmer failed to hold a handstand on her first try during Mercado's visit to the Ringling Museum, the mayor cracked "I pulled a Brooke," in referenced to ejected Idol Brooke White, who had two false starts while competing on the show.

-- Reality was rarely good enough for idol's camera crew; Mercado had to redo her entrance at WTVT twice and redo her departure from the stations three times before they got the footage the producer wanted. Palmer had to say the name of the song Randy Jackson picked for Syesha to sing Tuesday four times before she got it right. 

Here's a host of photos from my time Friday. Click on any photo to see an enlarged, more detailed display.

Another American Idol Surprise: Sarasota-Bred Finalist Syesha Mercado is a Playful, Poised Star-in-the-Making

TAMPA -- This was not the Syesha Mercado I've seen tackling the big songs each week on American Idol.

That woman, appearing on my TV each week belting out classic diva tunes despite all advice to the contrary, is by turns intensely serious and emotional -- focused on nailing the increasingly showy tunes she picks each week for America's biggest talent competition.

But the Syesha who emerged during the start of her daylong local publicity tour of the Tampa Bay area this morning was so much more appealing. Funny. Humble. Given to playful teasing and spot-on impressions -- she cracked up the crew on WFLZ-FM's morning show with a dead-on impersonation of Idol judge Paula Abdul -- Mercado seems born to bask in the attention afforded a major singing star.

So why does so little of this superstar charisma make it onto the Idol stage during the competition?

"American Idol kind of put me in a stage fright mode," said Mercado, speaking backstage at the studios of Tampa Fox affiliate WTVT-Ch. 13, where the station had assembled a phalanx of media to document the return of a local hero. "I've learned to loosen up a bit and go with the flow."

By 8 a.m. this morning, Mercado was deep into a day of media appearances and public performances that would challenge the most experienced performer. As her gigantic stretch limousine pulled up before WTVT's Kennedy Blvd. headquarters, she had already knocked off two radio interviews, singing snatches of the National Anthem she would recreate tonight at the Rays baseball game in St. Petersburg and firing off a dead-on impersonation of Tina Turner.

At WTVT, a small knot of fans culled from the station's staff waved signs before a makeshift red carpet, providing the kind of celebratory greeting that will look good for Idol's cameras.

Inside the Fox affiliate, reporters from People magazine, Sarasota magazine, Orlando's fox affiliate and host of area newspapers jockeyed for good photos while the station's Idol correspondent Charlie Belcher goofed around with Mercado. And because cameras were on hand filming this for Idol's Welcome Home show next week, reality wasn't quite good enough: Mercado stepped out of her limo twice and re-enacted leaving the station three times, to catch the perfect shots.

Ask Mercado whether consistent criticism from the judges has ever affected her -- she is, after all, the only contestant this season to land in the Bottom Three of audience votes multiple times and survive to stand among the Top Three contenders -- and you learn that she pays far more attention to what her vocal coaches advise than what Abdul Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell offer.

"The judges say stuff to me, and it doesn't affect me...I never take it to heart," she says, expertly directing her attention to each member of the media crowded around her while speaking. "Paula is really cool -- she came backstage and told me the other day 'Simon liked your performance, he just didn't have anything else to say.' I'm like, why didn't he just say that he liked it on national television?"

Mercado even let a bit of showbiz dish drop, inadvertently; admitting that she can't get permission to sing a version of Beyonce's Listen because Cowell remains in a tiff with the singer. Back in 2005, he criticized Beyonce's figure and singing ability in an interview for Esquire magazine, promoting the singer's dad to challenge Cowell to a competition to develop the most successful singing group.

"That last show, he kind of...(nixed the song)," said Mercado. "Simon doesn't like to apologize to people, so..."

Mercado blamed her early, ice queen image on an illness early in the competition which forced her to conserve her voice, communicating with people mostly through rudimentary hand signals and written notes. Her turning point came during a performance of Andrew Lloyd Weber's One Rock N Roll Too Many, which allowed her to be a little flirty and theatrical -- separating herself from the experience by playing a bit of a role.

"Being on vocal rest kind of dampened who I am," she said. "It kinda made me silent -- you can only hold up note cards (to communicate) for so long. But slowly and surely, I came into my own."

Certainly, she looked born to the role this morning, fielding every question with enthusiasm and sass, jousting a bit with Belcher on WTVT and basking in the chorus of camera shutters set off every time she moved to a new position on WTVT's set (she even graciously handled WTVT's request that she read an endless list of on air promos, sure to fill their airwaves leading to the Idol finale).

Later today, she'll head for her old high school, Booker High School in Sarasota, headline a short performance at the Ringling Museum (rumors are, some folks are leaving work early to check it out) and angle back to St. Petersburg for the Rays game.

Something tells me, this woman who has been angling for a showbiz career since she was 9 years old -- singing the National Anthem at spring training games for the Pittsburgh Pirates -- will be just as energetic at 7 p.m. as she was at 7 a.m., well aware that she's living her dreams in a way few performers ever achieve.

"People tell me to smile more...but YOU stand up here and try to smile," said Mercado, noting how hard its been to show her true performing personality on Idol's super-visible stage. "This experience is so amazing, I just don't want to go home. sometimes I don't smile...because its just so nerve wracking."

Apologies for the low-quality photos...but I was forced to shoot pictures myself. Click on any one to enlarge.    

Evil Jason Explains His Performance: Castro Swears He Didn't Sandbag American Idol

In his obligatory exit interview Thursday, fallen American Idol contestant Jason Castro told reporters he didn't intentionally sabotage his performance Tuesday night -- despite forgetting the words to a classic Bob Dylan song and online rumors he mouthed the words "don't vote" during the show.

"Yesterday, I wanted to win and the day before," Castro told journalists during a telephone press conference Thursday. "What it came down to is just my inexperience...Once we doubled up on songs, I wasn't really being able to focus. And both my songs we just -- my mind was split, and I just couldn't deliver either/or, and so I think that's what it came down to."

Castro admitted that when he auditioned for Idol, he had only performed live in something like five shows, none lasting longer than 30 minutes. That's a marked difference from the resume of competitors such as Sarasota native Syesha Mercado, who has been singing publicly since she was a child and even appeared on a previous reality TV talent competition, ABC-TV's short-lived The One.

"I'd never even learned a song all the way through, and now trying to learn two in a week has been tough," said Castro, who some critics -- okay, me -- dubbed The New Sanjaya for his obvious lack of vocal skill and performing ability. Still, the singer said he actually told viewers to "Vote" twice during the show, and it just looked like he said "Don't vote."

And he also admitted one other thing: When host Ryan Seacrest noted he looked relieved to be leaving the show Wednesday night, he had a good point.

"I was really starting to fear the week ahead, if I made it," he said. "How was I going to do three songs? I can't even do two right, and with the hometown visit, it was just going to be a lot of work, even though it would have been so much fun....My natural reaction, I just really felt relieved, like the pressure was off."

So the question remains: does it help Idol's reputation that such an inexperienced performer washed out before the final three, or hurt the show that he made it far as he did?

A Bonus From Evil Jason's Departure From American Idol: Syesha Comes Home to the Tampa Bay Area Friday

Now it can be told: In addition to finally ridding the show of its Dead Singer Walking, Jason Castro's departure tonight from American Idol brings another bit of good tidings.

Syesha Mercado is coming home to the Tampa Bay area on Friday.

Longtime Idol fans will recall that the show always films a segment close to the show's end where the finalists head home for a burst of adulation from their hometown crowds, collecting keys to the city, adoring speeches from former teachers and lots of good wishes from adoring crowds.

Because the closest Fox affiliate to Mercado's Sarasota hometown is Tampa's WTVT-Ch. 13, she'll spend a fair amount of time in Tampa, stopping by WFLZ-FM's MJ Morning Show Friday at 7 a.m., heading over to WTVT's Good Day Tampa Bay morning show by 8 a.m. and stopping by her alma mater, Booker High School in Sarasota by 12:30 p.m. for a mini-parade and private concert.

By 2:45 p.m. she's scheduled to hop aboard WTVT's SkyFox helicopter for a ride to the Ringling Museum where she'll present another short concert for the public. By 6:30 p.m., she'll be in St. Petersburg to sing the National Anthem for the Tampa Bay Rays game at Tropicana Field.

I'm assuming that she'll be in a coma in a hotel room bed somewhere by 8 p.m.

No wonder Castro was so glad to be hitting the road tonight, and the remaining contestants look so tired. It seems the life of a potential Idol leaves little room for small things. Like sleep. And more than an hour spent in any one location.

6:45 a.m.: In-studio appearances on WFLZ-FM 93.3’s MJ Morning Show and WMTX-FM 100.7’s Nancy and Chris show.

8 a.m.: WTVT's Good Day Tampa Bay.

10:30 a.m.: Downtown Bradenton appearance between City Hall and the Manatee River.

11:15 a.m.: Autograph session at the AT&T store at 4708 Cortez Road, Bradenton.

12:30 p.m. or thereabouts: At her alma mater, Booker High School in Sarasota, for a mini-parade and private concert.

2:45 p.m.: She's scheduled to hop aboard WTVT's SkyFox helicopter for a ride to the Ringling Museum where she'll present another short concert for the public.

6:57 p.m.: She'll sing the National Anthem at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg before the Rays game against the Los Angeles Angels. The game starts at 7:10 p.m. and tickets start at $9 at 1-888-326-7297. raysbaseball.com.

It's Official: American Idol Is Now an Endurance Test -- For the Singers AND the Viewers

It's awfully hard to write about a singing competition that isn't a singing competition any more.

But you only had to look at the worn faces of Jason Castro and David Cook to see the toll life at the center of American Idol's white-hot pop culture flame has taken on contestants this year.

And just like classic disaster movies always showed heroes rising to deal with danger (or not), the unique pressure cooker inside the Idol showbiz juggernaut has brought surprising reactions from all involved. In the final weeks, Syesha Mercado has emerged as the Hillary Clinton of the bunch -- refusing to take the long walk despite landing in the bottom three more than any contestant left and taking a load of crap from Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell no contestant with her voice should endure.

Indeed, it doesn't matter how many unfair criticisms Jackson and Cowell lob her way -- bravo to Syesha for breaking into tears just after Jackson's inexplicably harsh assessment of her second song, literally forcing Cowell to paste on a smile and compliment her (the Bratty Brit seems very wary of kicking contestants when they are already down). Syesha has found her groove and seems to be loving her success, like a condemned man who keeps snagging last-minute stays of execution.

David Archuleta, who still looks like he might hyperventilate himself into a coma after every performance, clocked the best vocals of the night, managing to wrap his white-boy soul around two of the most-covered tunes in rock music -- Stand By Me and Love Me Tender -- in a way that surely had Simon Cowell scurrying offstage to check on the rights for the youngster's post-Idol debut album.

David Cook seemed to sleepwalk through his songs, Hungry Like the Wolf and Teenage Wasteland, too drained to even bother ripping off new arrangements from iTunes. As Cowell noted and he seemed to realize, he did well enough to get past this week -- so why bust a gut actually, you know, performing?

And there's Jason. Castro seemed to be begging the audience to send him home, lurching through a wedding band version of I Shot the Sheriff and committing a cardinal Idol sin during Mr. Tambourine Man: forgetting his words. If Entertainment Weekly's piece last week on the show is to be believed, Castro has one foot out the door, already.

I'm begging America to help him the rest of the way. He wants it. Really.

EXTRA NOTE: A buddy who does PR for Luna Guitars, a Tampa company which makes guitars designed by a local artist who switched from work in stained glass, says the company provided all the Idols with custom-made guitars for tonight's show. Yes, that cool-looking guitar Jason used to scratch out his awful version of the Bob Marley classic was made by a company based right here in the Tampa Bay area.

I hear they're whipping up a left-handed one for rocker boy David Cook as you read this. Check out a recent feature on Luna Guitars in the Times here, and keep your eye out for Cook's model next week.   

American Idol Crowns Two New Sanjayas -- Jason Castro and Brooke White

You know American Idol is headed into new territory when the singers who gave the two best performances of the week land in the bottom of the voting.

It's not that I didn't expect Carly Smithson to eventually get bounced from the competition -- she suffered from Phil Stacey syndrome, where she never really figured out what kind of artist she wanted to be until it was too late. Still, her version of Jesus Christ Superstar was easily one of the best performances of Tuesday night -- highlighted as such by none other than the snippy Brit, Simon Cowell himself. She hardly deserved to leave the show tonight.

Instead, Cowell was left to make lame excuses for why viewers voted for Jason Castro, whose take on Memory he said reminded him of a child forced to sing at a wedding, and Brooke White, who screwed up her song onstage for the second time. (Ialso love how he made Carly's ejection about himself, noting that he complimented her on the week se was ejected).

Syesha Mercado gets my Hillary Clinton award for making more comebacks than any singer this season, landing in the bottom two or three multiple times, only to evade ejection in the last moments.

These results are a bit unfortunate, because American Idol is so clearly not a singing competition anymore. And unlike last year, when Sanjaya Malakar was squeaking ahead of singers only marginally better than he was, White and Castro are besting some people who could have gone the distance, particularly if voters were choosing contestants who could actually sing.

It will be interesting to see if this dynamic busts up the two Davids, Archuleta and Cook, now still heavily favored to land in the top two. Because, if Idol voters aren't really picking the best singers, then what do the contestants do to stay in the game?

Decide for yourself -- compare Carly's performance and Jason's below

American Idol's Big Question: Can Brooke White Survive Her Second Onstage Flub?

Earnest bohemian Brooke White looks more like a flower wilting in the sunlight every week.

Much as I like her fresh-faced sincerity, White seems to be taking way too much of the madness to heart as American Idol gets down to the final stretches, and it's killing her performances.

Last week, only residual revulsion from Kristy Lee Cook's early missteps kept White from taking the long walk. And this week, she committed the cardinal sin of stopping mid-way through the intro of a song -- the second time now that she's restarted a tune in the competition. Before long, something that originally looked like a cool coffehouse flub is beginning to come off like a serious case of stage jitters.

If Idol voters were casting ballots solely on vocal style, however, Jason Castro's halting, game stab at Memory would earn him the one way ticket to Ejectionville. As usual, judge Simon Cowell came up with the night's best line, noting "I suspect I felt, like you, that that was the longest two minutes of your life."

It's a curious turn, given how stage-managed American Idol really is. The New York Times weighed in today, offering a behind the scenes look at Idol which boiled down to a few revelations you could have guessed already: a) they recruit all the pretty young girls at the stage front; b) they coach them on how to act during performances; c) every performer on the show has a bodyguard to make sure no fan actually touches them offscreen.

In truth, Andrew Lloyd Webber night turned out much easier on the ears than I'd imagined. Like Mariah Carey before him, Webber's image as a celebrity has become such a caricature that it's easy to forget what a brilliant songwriter he is. And watching both Syesha Mercado and Carly Smithson breathe new life into their performances by tackling some of his gutsiest tunes (One Rock & Roll Too Many and Jesus Christ Superstar, respectively) was well worth the time.

Unfortunately, White is looking more pained by the week -- a malady Idol voters usually reward with rejection. Hey, if the pressure's too much for her to handle, America should do us all a favor and stop the madness. Right now.

The Journey of Flavor Flav: From Public Enemy to Public Buffoon

(As Flavor Flav makes his sitcom debut tonight, I cooked up a column for Floridian lamenting the slide of a brother who once stood for something. Here's the column reposted on the blog)

We were never supposed to see something like this.

When Flavor Flav burst on the scene with seminal rap group Public Enemy, he was never the main attraction. Flav brought the noise as the ultimate "hype man," a comic foil to help ease the brutally Afro-centric, often militant messages of rap's first successful group to base its image on a political stance.

While lead M.C. Chuck D. urged fans to Bring the Noise or Fight the Power, Flav provided a break from the seriousness, highlighting the slow response of emergency crews in America's ghettos with 911 Is a Joke before warning listeners on the followup album that you Can't Truss It, especially when left-wing politicians in Little Rock feed you a line.

In his prime, William Drayton was the best rap sidekick in the game. Mouth packed with gold caps and a gigantic clock wrapped around his neck, Flav helped turn the hype man into a hallowed institution in hip-hop while contributing to some of the most legendary rap hits in history.

So how did this image of excess and hedonism, originally presented as a counterweight to the austere black nationalist vibe of Public Enemy's core message, become the group's most visible surviving legacy?

Here's how: In the last few years, reality TV shows have transformed the sidekick clown into the star.

The odyssey started with Flav's debut as a housemate in the series that crammed dysfunctional celebrities in a house, The Surreal Life. It progressed to his goof of a "romance" with Brigitte Nielsen in Strange Love (she reportedly was engaged to someone else during the production) and VH1's ghetto-style version of The Bachelor, Flavor of Love. (That's three No. 1 cable series, if you're counting.)

Flavor of Love in particular has proven a ratings bonanza. The show's first-season finale drew the most viewers in VH1's then-21 years, and its second-season debut drew the channel's biggest premiere audience ever. Small wonder VH1 okayed two spinoffs and a third season.

Now 49, Flav is set to star in a half-hour sitcom, Under One Roof, debuting tonight on low-rated MyNetworkTV. He plays an ex-convict living with his straitlaced brother, and the series is so good, MyNetworkTV didn't send me a review copy (a publicist for the show insists that happened because they are editing the show down to the last minute).

A cynic might assume that fans — black and white — are giddily consuming the buffoonish black-hustler stereotype Flavor Flav offers with little regard to the social consequences.

In the process, the man who once rhymed about black folks being "Divided and sold/For liquor and the gold/Smacked in the back/For the other man to mack" is now lording over women who insult each other over their herpes bumps and one who even relieved herself on the floor. (The punch line: She wasn't eliminated from Flavor of Love for that. Really.)

By now, it's a cliche to complain about how Flav's worn playa shtick has become a license to print money for reality TV producers. It's just the latest in a long line of contradictions from an artist who can boast of skills as a classically trained pianist and arrests for carrying an unlicensed gun and crack cocaine.

Without seeing an episode, it's a safe bet that Under One Roof continues that legacy, mining stereotypes about black folks minus the godly messages you get in a Tyler Perry script.

This Public Enemy fan is left to wonder about the irony: One of rap's most militantly pro-black groups has produced one of TV's biggest black buffoons. The voice of the hype man, in the end, is the loudest left from the rap band that was socially conscious before the industry had a name for it.

Looks like someone decided that fighting the power wasn't as profitable as joining it.

And we all may be the worse for his choice.

American Idol's Latest Cause: The Search for a New Rock God

David Cook looked like he couldn't believe his ears.

He had some problems with the start of his performance on Tuesday's American Idol, fumbling with the lower register of Mariah Carey's Always Be My Baby. Like last week, he saved the performance with a strong, stylish finish; still, last time he tried something like that, judge Simon Cowell tore him a new one.

But Tuesday ended differently. Randy Jackson said Cook was ready to make a record tomorrow and Cowell feinted with a crack about karaoke hell before delivering one of the best compliments he's ever given idol's last remaining rocker.

That's the shape of things on Idol, circa P.J. -- or, post-Johns.  With dreamy-looking rocker Michael Johns ejected last week, Idol's last hope of seeing a Daughtry-style rocker crowned king now rests on Cook's slender shoulders. So Cook should get used to a level of love he hasn't yet seen from the judges, who seem willing to do just about anything to get a rock star to the top. (It also didn't hurt that David's cancer-stricken brother was in the audience, causing him to tear up after the judging session; even Cowell knew better than to diss a guy whose dying brother is in the house)

Once again, that's bad news for Syesha Mercado, who turned in the second best vocal performance of the night -- though you'd never know it from the judges comments. Even Cowell had to admit Mercado's take on Carey's Vanishing was "technically perfect" though he criticized her for singing a lesser=-known song.

But didn't he harp on and on last week about her tackling a song that was too well known by the audience, inviting inevitable comparisons? Doesn't it make sense that she would tackle a Carey song not so many people knew to avoid those selfsame comparisons?

Indeed, Cowell's taste-o-meter -- often brutally accurate in ways only the British can muster -- seemed a bit off tonight, as he praised Jason Castro for delivering the night's weakest vocal, while dinging Kristy Lee Cook after she delivered a take on Carey's Forever that was near her personal best.

It's hard to tell who's in danger this week, because weak singers like Castro are liked by the audience and judges, while contestants on the outs with the judges gave some of the strongest performances. I'd say, trusting the Idol voters to place a lot of weight on the performances, that Brooke White, Castro and Carly Smithson are in the most danger, though Syesha may suffer most, simply because Idol so clearly wants her gone.

Still, my prediction: Brooke White hits the bricks tomorrow.   

American Idol's Traditional Ejection Surprise: Michael Johns Hits the Bricks

I've said it before: Idol always surprises us midway through the competition.

It happened to Chris Daughtry. It happened to Jennifer Hudson. It happened to Tamyra Gray. And now, it's happened to Michael Johns.

As much as I've complained about the judges overlooking the way Johns simply mimics every artist he covers, I was totally surprised by his ejection tonight. And, as usual, a little suspicious.

Simon Cowell can make all the noises he wants about Johns picking the wrong song; anyone who watched Tuesday's show knows he handled his cover of Aerosmith's Dream On powerfully and stylishly. Indeed, this ejection fit none of the things I usually cite after someone leaves the show: Johns sang well Tuesday, was rarely if ever in the bottom three before, seemed to be handling the pressure of the competition well and had a huge fan base inside the studio audience.

The only reason this ejection makes sense, is that Idol needed a surprise to shake up the contest. Which makes me even more suspicious.

Johns' departure makes me even more certain that this contest will wind up a fight between the two Davids; disheveled rocker creativity versus almost-too-earnest teenybopper appeal. But, given the way this Bizzaro Idol week has unfolded, anything seems possible.

So maybe Kristy really should start thinking about what she'll record on her debut album.   

Here's Where American Idol Gets Good: Favorites Falter While the Also-Rans Bring It

So who put the grumpy juice in Randy Jackson's Coca Cola cup?

I ask because judge Jackson seemed intent on dinging the early performers on Tuesday's American Idol, regardless of how well they actually sang -- criticizing Michael Johns, Syesha Mercado and Kristy Lee Cook after they gave some of the best performances of the night.

This week's performances -- already a bit topsy turvy because of the Idol Gives Back charity extravaganza airing tonight -- was seriously skewed tonight as one-time front runners David Cook and Carly Smithson faltered under the weight of some seriously questionable song choices (stung by allegations he's taking credit for obscure rockified arrangements of well-known hits, Cook instead chose an Our Lady Peace song sure to confuse Idol's teenybopper voters)

It felt a bit like Bizarro Idol Tuesday, as singers like Jason Castro and Kristy Lee Cook. who seemed poised for ejection just a few weeks ago, delivered some of their best performances in recent memory. Johns keeps working the hunk factor for all it's worth, taking serious props for essentially regurgitating popular rock songs. Who knows what kind of artist he might turn out to be if he actually wins this thing -- he looks good in tight pants and can hit all the notes on some challenging classics.

David Cook, Smithson and Brooke White all have the same problem; they peaked a bit early and are each struggling to deal with the mounting pressure. Here is the hidden factor that shapes the Idol contest: whether contestants can handle the strain. Shows like Idol love performers who flower before the camera's eye; falling to pieces under the pressure, as an increasingly frazzled White seems to be doing each week, isn't nearly as appealing.

Strange as it sounds, those are also the three singers most in danger of leaving this week. Idol often has a surprise ejection midway through the competition, and these three wound up offering the least impressive performances on a show where nearly everyone else raised their game.

With Ramiele Gone, Can Idol Work on the Mentors?

Now I know how Simon feels.

I didn't necessarily want to be right -- predicting the ejection of South Florida moppet Ramiele Malubay from last night's American Idol -- but her loss proves that, except for teen heartthrobs like Jason Castro and David Archuleta, survival is all about the performances.

One thing that gives me hope about Idol is that voters seems to really suss out who performed best each week in the voting, and Ramiele had the misfortune to pick a listless song to go with her listless stage personality.

One unwelcome trend which returned on last night's Idol: the mentor performance sucked.

I still remember watching Dolly Parton tear it up on the old Tonight Show, picking out a powerful tune on her guitar, inch-thick nails no problem, while Johnny Carson looked on like he was seeing the second Coming. So it was doubly disappointing to watch Parton reveal a dog of a song -- Jesus and Gravity? Really? -- with vocals shakier than her Botox work.

By now, I'm growing convinced Idol producers make these people sound bad on purpose.

Dancing and American Idol: Guttenberg's Gone and Ramiele Should Be,Too

Tuesdays are turning out to be watershed nights for reality TV fans.

On ABC, celebs are getting the boot every Tuesday on Dancing with the Stars, while the performance drama on American Idol plays out across the dial on Fox. Of course, Idol is killing ABC's hoofers contest in ratings and pure entertainment -- and last night was no exception.

Predictions are always dangerous in Idol land. But last night's tribute to Dolly Parton proved a few things: much as people like to slag off Parton, she is the world's most underrated songwriter and vocalist, offering a surprising bounty of quality tunes for the Idols. And the field is quickly collapsing to two tiers -- with David Cook, David Archuleta, Carly Smithson, Brooke White and Michael Johns on one tier, and everybody else below.

By all rights, Syesha Mercado should be up there, too. but she keeps tackling these big R&B tunes that her voice isn't quite big enough to dominate. And you have to demolish those classic songs to get any love from the judges -- or viewers. Though she provided a wonderful take on I Will Always Love You, it was an expected move and it wasn't different enough from the Whitney Houston version to impress Simon & Co.

Strange as it sounds, I think Syesha's still in danger because she made the same mistake Chikezie did; going for the R&B jugular on a show which doesn't care about that style, anymore. But South Florida moppet Ramiele should be given her walking papers tonight -- she's too bland to make an impression.

The pressure is also becoming a real factor for the Idols. David Cook apparently was taken to the hospital after the live performance, suffering from high blood pressure and heart palpitations. It couldn't have helped that former Soundgarden singer Chris Cornell and his fans have been complaining that Cook got credit for an arrangement of the hit song Billie Jean that Cornell released on his 2007 record Carry On.

No wonder Cook and host Ryan Seacrest had a conversation last night where he detailed every arrangement he copped for past idol performances. (full disclosure: after listening to Cornell and Cook's versions over the past week, I still like Cook's voice better) 

Steve Gutenberg was ejected as well from Dancing with the Stars -- a bloated production suffering from the fact that they're still shaking off the also-rans. Once the Adam Carollas and Marissa Winokur's are gone, we'll have a real contest going.   

New Wild 98.7 News: Orlando Out for the Week

UPDATE: Charlie Ochs, Tampa market manager for CBS Radio, appeared on Wild 98.7's morning show  at about 8:30 a.m. to explain what's been happening. Insisting that what happened Monday was not a pre-April Fool's joke, he confirmed that DJ and program director Orlando Davis would be taking some vacation time.

Ochs explained that the company had planned to upgrade Wild's studio along with two other stations in their complex in 2007, but the worsening economy has tightened finances. He also said the company was moving ahead with plans to create HD channels for Wild, because that had been in the pipeline for years.

Earlier in the show, members of Orlando's team talked about hanging out in Las Vegas and taking meetings. But Ochs didn't address the implied threat. Seems like a long way to go for something that could have been solved in a conversation or two, but that's the radio biz.

What follows is my blog post from last night:

I reported yesterday that Ochs said Wild 98.7's star morning guy and program director, Orlando Davis, will be off the radio for the rest of the week on a mutually agreed upon bit of time away from the show.

"We mutually agreed that it was time he take a break," said Ochs, who refused to provide specifics on why Davis was gone this week or why almost everyone else in his morning crew also missed work (Tuesday) morning. The rest of the crew is expected to return tomorrow.

Ochs also says he will go on Wild to speak about what happened Monday and today, sometime between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. tomorrow morning. As my friends at TBT's The Juice reported yesterday, Davis was yanked off the air yesterday -- seemingly after a dispute over upgrading equipment in his studio led to Davis nearly revealing Ochs' home telephone number.

I realize this could put a damper on my theory that this was an April Fool's prank. I guess I was hoping CBS Radio was too smart to mess up its relationship with the best-known hip hop DJ in town. But stranger things have happened in local radio, to be sure.

American Idol's Anti-R&B Attitude Claims Chikezie

Up until Ryan Seacrest called his name, I don't think Chikezie believed he was going home tonight.

But I worried about it. Because last night he took the easy way out and sang the soul ballad he'd been dying to belt out since the show started -- placing himself square in the crosshairs of American Idol's severe anti R&B bias.

Over its history, the most successful artists to emerge from Fox's blockbuster talent show have been in country (Carrie Underwood) power pop (Kelly Clarkson) and rock (Chris Daughtry). R&B tinged winners such as Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Taylor Hicks and Jordin Sparks have had a tougher time, with quick success that fades quickly (Studdard and Hicks for example, have already lost their record deals, and Studdard was always overshadowed by the success of the guy he beat, Clay Aiken).

But R&B singers on Idol always had an edge: They were usually also the BEST singers. Not so this year. Idol's 2008 edition is the first in recent memory where R&B-influenced singers -- and, indeed, singers of color -- are not among the best singers or performers. And the show's only real judge, record label owner Simon Cowell, is clearly jonesing to work with the rockers onstage, especially Michael Johns.

So this is the first Idol where straight-up R&B singing is a clear ticket to ejection-ville. I hope Syesha takes the hint; the only way she's going to stay in the hunt is to stay away from the soul stuff and seriously re-invent herself.

Kind of odd that a competition which has two R&B and dance artists among its three judges and a host of R&B players in its backing band, is working so hard to keep an artist like that from actually winning. 

Stumbles By American Idol Frontrunners Place My Predictions in Doubt

The easiest way for me to ensure someone fails on a reality show, is to predict their victory.

At least it seems that way after last night's American Idol episode, in which the two singers I gave the best odds of winning gave the some of shakiest performances of their time on the show.

Already, you're on cheesy ground when the theme is songs from the year of your birth (does it hurt that the oldest contestant was born during my freshman year of high school -- yes it does!) And who told David Archuleta to choose a hit by some guy from Australia we've never heard of? Did Carly Smithson really think she was going to win with a Bonnie Tyler song?

And how long did it take you to figure out that David Cook was singing a Michael Jackson tune?

So far, there's Cook and then there's everybody else in this competition. Listening to his take on MJ's Billie Jean, redone as a slow, grungy rock ballad, actually brought a few goosebumps. He raises the bar every week with daring musical chances, and every week he manages a new way to top himself. Regardless of how the votes go, Simon Cowell better have a contract waiting for this dude when the dust clears.

And I'm still having trouble understanding the phenomenon that is Michael Johns. Chikezie does a faithful rendition of a Luther Vandross hit and he gets disrespected in the worst way; Johns basically offers a faithful version of Queen's We are the Champions, and he's the second coming of the Lizard King?

Basically, I'm assuming Paula and Simon both want to sleep with him. It's the only sensible explanation.

ON ABC's Dancing with the Stars, executives are probably just hoping somebody clicked over during Idol's commercial breaks. I was surprised to see illusionist big mouth Penn Jillete get his walking papers so early -- I must have underestimated the leverage a radio personality like Adam Carolla, who deserved the walk of shame last night, can generate (or the animosity a relentless motormouth like Jillette produces). The failure of Monica Seles, a neophyte dancer with no personality or fan base, was no surprise.

Considering that I picked footballer Jason Taylor to win, I'm expecting him to actually break a leg by next week's competition. One way or another, my predictions are going to come true....

Assessing American Idol: It's the Songs, Stupid

This is the definition of dedication: One day after getting three wisdom teeth removed, I'm keeping the blog active with a note about the little TV show that could, American Idol.

It's mostly because, even through my oxycodone-induced recovery haze, I could barely believe what I was seeing last night. How could an evening devoted to the work of pop music's best band wind up stocked with so many stinkers?

A 1.5-minute version of A Day in the Life? Chikezie playing harmonica for the first time on I Just Saw a Face? You Got to Hide Your Love Away? Michelle? One thing is obvious this year: the contestants are close enough in ability that survival comes down to two things -- choosing the perfect song and singing it well.

That's why Syesha Mercado's Yesterday stood out -- sentimental, powerful with lots of room for her amazing voice. David Archuleta scored to a lesser degree with The Long and Winding Road for the same reason. And although the judges sniped at it, I thought David Cook's squawk-box flavored version of Day Tripper was fun, creative and a welcome change from all the downer songs everyone else was picking.

Entertainment Weekly handicapped all the Idols last week, but I think they got it wrong. So here's my odds on the top contestants so far.

Carly Smithson - 2 to 1:

She's got a powerful voice, a great look and a knack for nailing every song she tries. Her biggest problem is that she hasn't yet had a transcendent moment on the show, and doesn't seem quite sure what kind of artist she is.

David Archuleta - 3 to 1:

He's cute, has a strong voice and has a charm that works on both mothers and daughters -- kinda like a Sanjaya who can sing. His biggest problem is his inconsistency; the pressure of the gig (along with rumors that he's got an overbearing stage dad who screams at him after bad performances) may force the kind of error that gets him booted off the show.

David Cook - 5 to 1:

He's obviously the most musically talented of this year's crop, with a knack for bending any song to work with his Nickelback-meets-Daughtry rock sound. But his look isn't quite Idol-ready and his onstage arrogance is even turning off the king of 'tude, Simon Cowell.

Brooke White - 8 to 1:

She's got a earnest openness that's engaging and adds impact to songs that can tap that energy. Her unspoiled bohemian approach is something new for Idol, and she's got a voice good enough to impress, when employed on the right tunes. But that earnest vibe can be a little too tentative at times. I mean, if she doesn't believe in herself, why should America?

As far as who's leaving tonight, I'm betting Chikezie is in trouble, along with Kristy Lee Cook. Though, if there's any justice, viewers will send Amanda Overmyer back to the bar band from whence she came. Even she knows shes in over her head, and it shows on her face every time she steps onstage. 

 

Highlights From Fallen American Idol David Hernandez's Exit Interview: Stripping Didn't Matter

  I normally would rather poke myself in the eye with a Donald Trump bobblehead than sit through the telephone press conferences Fox organizes with ejected Idol contestants.

Scheduled for the day after the rejection, the calls are packed with folks from such august journalism institutions as OK! magazine, Access Hollywood and Flash News. The questions are penetrating and tough: how do you cope with new found stardom? Who was your closest friend in the Idol crew? How much fun was it meeting Jim Carrey? (David's response: "It's awesome.")

So, I must admit, I wait until Fox emails the transcript of the press conference the next day to see if there's anything I care about. Surprisingly, the text of David Hernandez's interview Thursday provided several moments.

First, it only took about a quarter of the press conference for someone to ask if he thought his past as a gay, lap-dance-providing-stripper led america to vote him off this week. On camera Tuesday and Wednesday, he seemed to consider saying something public about it all, right up until the last notes of his goodbye song faded.

But by Thursday's press conference, Hernandez's agenda was plain: He's unemployed and he wants a record deal. I know this, because he said it about four times.

"I actually believe (my elimination) was based on song selection," said Hernandez, as if he was reading from a script provided by his agent. "I think America's smart enough to know y now that people's personal lives should not influence their musical career." Mmm, hmm. Tell that to Britney, Janet and Michael. Judge for yourself by watching his performance again by clicking here.

  Anyways, he offered a few more interesting facts: For Beatles week, they all picked their top three songs from a list of 25 tunes. When two people pick the same top song -- as he and Brooke did, with Let It Be -- they draw lots out of a hat to see whose preference wins.

Producers knew about his past as a stripper and decided early on they didn't care. And contestants have a lot of say over the arrangements for their songs, working out the general form with the band's piano player and a vocal arranger (so blame Kristy Lee Cook for the outrageously fast tempo of her countrified Eight Days a Week -- which might have been cool if she played it at the original tempo).

"I like to have faith in Idol...they've given me this huge platform," Hernandez said Thursday.

So America can speculate on whether David got the boot because of his past in the gay sex industry; but he's just trying to get paid. Which is, I guess, the real spirit of America Idol. 

American Idol: Judging the Judges

American Idol may be broadcast live these days, but I never watch it that way.

And I'm not just using my TiVo-ed Idol episodes to skip commercials. More and more, I can't stand the judges.

I'm no Idol neophyte. I know Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul are mostly space-saving distractions, and Simon Cowell modulates his mostly-spot on criticism to favor the artists he wants to sign to his record label when the dust clears.

Still, watching recent editions of Idol has never felt more like watching an abusive parent take on an unlucky child. Some of these singers, looking to these fortysomething eyes like they just got out of preschool, face a black belt-level of showbiz machinations they can't possibly be ready to confront.

(According to a recent SEC filing, Idol is one of the biggest moneymaking machines in television, earning $63-million in profit last year for 19 Entertainment, the production company owned by low-key Idol producer Simon Fuller. That's not counting the money Fox-Tv makes off the show, which regularly attracts 30 percent of the people watching TV)

Was Amanda Overmyer really that impressive channeling Joan Jett singing I Hate Myself for Loving You? As a longtime musician I've always thought she has trouble making that distinctive voice fill the big songs she's always choosing, and Wednesday night she looked as if she'd rather be anywhere but on the Idol stage. Yet, all the judges patted her on the back, because they really, really seem to want a female Chris Daughtry in the running.

Was Chikezie's take on Whitney Houston's All the Man I Need really horrible? I thought he did a great job with a song originally made a hit by one of pop music's most talented singers. But he got no love from the judges because, after Ruben Studdard's stillborn career, the last thing Idol wants is another R&B singer getting anywhere near the show's top tier.

I also know from covering the kiddie version of Idol -- the travesty that was American Juniors -- that vocals inside the Idol studio sound very different than what viewers hear during the broadcast. Still, I've never wanted more to be sitting on that judges panel, just to counter some of their bone-headed observations. Here's my Idol-style take on the judges.

Randy Jackson: Dawg, those observations, like, yo, you be bringing it sometimes. But then, you know, you drown some potentially useful criticisms in, you know, mad awful ripped-from-hip hop lingo. I mean, like, dude, you don't have to remind us you played with Journey every time someone sings a Steve Perry tune. And, like, dawg, you really need to remember, yo, that nobody believes someone who once played with Journey really talks like that naturally.

(click on any photo to enlarge)

Paula Abdul: Paula, everybody remembers that crazy chick from college who was a total pain because she really wasn't that smart and was kind of odd, but you tolerated her because she was cute. That's you, baby. And the problem with girls like that, is that they always eventually get kicked to the curb. So either, really bring the crazy train to make Idol memorable, or modulate the prescriptions so you make a little more sense, week to week.

Simon Cowell: I'll be honest Simon; brutal comments which once felt like a bracing bolt of honesty in a sea of showbiz silliness now mostly come off as petulant, self-centered careerism. I would have thought you'd learned your lesson from the kinder face you showed during this year's auditions; kicking someone when they're already down isn't usually considered a virtue.      

National Public Radio Picks Up TV Theme Song Story

  Man, when a story touches a nerve, it can really touch a nerve.

A friend just emailed me a link to NPR's music home page today, which features a digested version of the interview I did last week for WNYC about TV Theme songs. They do a great job of summarizing our discussion, with links to the blog and other resources. It's very gratifying to see how long the legs on this story have become -- I can't remember the last time I wrote something which has had such a long shelf life.

Here's the text of NPR's mentions. Click here to check out the page:

"WNYC, January 23, 2008 - Sit right back and you'll hear the tale — of the long-lost television-show theme song.

If you're a TV viewer of a certain age, you can probably sing a few lines from at least a dozen theme songs, from Gilligan's Island to The Brady Bunch. But as memorable as classic TV themes seem to be, few of today's programs open with one.

Eric Deggans, media critic for the St. Petersburg Times, says that while TV themes still exist, most are no longer as memorable as themes once were. For example, he notes that the theme to Friends was a radio hit, and that many can sing along to the Gilligan's Island theme.

"You could go on and on and on naming theme songs that were either memorable because they were great songs, or memorable because they reminded you of really great shows, or memorable because they reminded you about wonderful things in your life that were going on at the time," he says.

Deggans surmises that both valuable advertising space and the growing popularity of cutting quickly to the action have caused the shift. He cites Frasier, where the theme comes in at the end of the show, and ER, where the departure of original cast members rendered the opening montage useless, as examples.

Alan and Marilyn Bergman, the legendary songwriting duo who crafted opening themes for shows like Good Times, Maude, and Alice, have a distinctive approach to songwriting within the constraints of a TV theme.

"We most of the time viewed these songs as kind of writing entrances for these characters," Marilyn Bergman says. "Maude, for example. We wrote that as an entrance for the Bea Arthur character, Maude. And why did we write it? We thought the show was terrific.

"Norman Lear called us and asked us if we would write it. We looked at a couple of the shows, the pilot, we loved them, and thought this was a great way to write a Hello Dolly for a television show that people might want to listen to week after week and not get bored hearing it."

Hanging With Jack Harris; More Talk about TV Theme Songs on WNYC in New York

I'm not sure what possessed me to spend a day hanging with good-guy radio/TV personality Jack Harris, other than my fascination with how many jobs this guy has.

When we met for lunch last month, we counted five official jobs: morning guy at WFLA-AM, afternoon commentaries for