via Routed
It’s no surprise that Simon Cowell is leaving American Idol. It was announced a VERY long time ago that he was eventually going to bow out of his creation.
So when the news broke that the Spring 2010 season was going to be his last (on Monday January 11, 2010), I couldn’t help but feel rather stunned by people pouring over the news as if it was some sort of tremendous earth-shattering quake come to kill us all.
Seriously, folks?
Back in August 2009, I said that Idol would fail without Paula Abdul. While, people would still tune it, it wouldn’t be the same. Heck, there would be no Saula! And you can’t have Ameican Idol without any Saula.
It’s blasphemous!
via TV Guide
Well, somewhere out there, Simon Cowell got his birds in a row (no pun intended), got the ball rolling for the American version of The X-Factor and hired my favourite Forever Your Girl.
Paula Abdul has allegedly inked a $4.5 million contract to bring her loopy commentary to the judges panel on an American version of Simon’s hit UK talent show, The X Factor. That’s interesting, considering the star walked away from her post at American Idol because she failed to secure the $10 million-a-year payday she was vying for. (source)
Are you surprised?
I’m not.
Plus, it’s smart business and very smart publicity:-
Neil Fox, Nicki Chapman, Simon Cowell and Pete Waterman via Telegraph UK
- The failing of Pop Idol (minus Will Young and Gareth Gates, sort of)
The British show called Pop Idol is the original of the Idol series. Debuting in 2001, it lasted two seasons before it stopped being renewed. Around that time, Simon-Squared and Nigel (as I like to call the Fuller & Cowell superhero duo with a little Nigel Lythgoe) debuted American Idol here in the States and it did rather well. But across the pond they started working on two little bits called The X-Factor (2004) and Britain’s Got Talent (2007).
So let’s talk realistically for a moment here — Pop Idol was never renewed because The X-Factor was born and it had more potential.
I’m actually surprised it took them this long to bring The X-Factor to the United States. It’s not like American Idol has been producing any type of major superstars on a regular basis.
Let’s face it, with the exception of Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, none of the other winners have done miraculously well and some of the runners-up have done far better. Alumni (non-winners) like Jennifer Hudson, Clay Aiken, Chris Daughtry, Kellie Pickler etc.
Britain's Got Talent & The X-Factor in 'action'
- Leona Lewis & Susan Boyle
From I Dreamed a Dream to Bleeding Love apparently opening the floodgates to different ages and types of talent is where it’s at.
I don’t think the world has seen anything quite like the Susan Boyle story in quite sometime. Heck, she beat out Spirit by Leona Lewis (who held the record until then) for the fastest-selling album in UK history, is the best-selling album in pre-sales ever on Amazon.com and has the best opening week in over a decade with three-quarter of a million records being sold in the United States. Boyle’s album, I Dream a Dream, is the best-selling global debut of a female artist and was released on November 17, 2009. By the first week of December when the industry was tallying the numbers for Album of the Year, guess who it was? Susan.
She basically out sold the top five albums of 2009 combined.
There is something magical about watching something real and not manufactured.
And that’s the difference with the Idol series and things like The X-Factor and the Got Talent series. You really aren’t quite sure what you’re going to get and that’s the direction musical reality television is taking.
Something else you should know is that there is no maximum age on The X-Factor, 28-years old is the max age you can enter on American Idol.
via TV Guide
- Kara, Randy and … Ellen? You’re joking right?
No, really. Sure, Kara DioGuardi and Randy Jackson have a musical background — but Ellen DeGeneres? I love Ellen, but she’s better as talk show host and comedian than an Idol judge.
That’s like having have Jessica Simpson, the Chicken of the Sea queen herself, be a guest judge on Iron Chef.
via Mirror.co.uk
- It’s Simon Cowell … he does what he wants… maybe Piers and the Tweedy-Cole will show up too…
We’re talking about the guy who hired Piers Morgan … to be a regular on his shows and act as his replacement because of his Idol contact in the States.
He’s the guy who pushed Westlife into supreme stardom (40+ million records sold worldwide, btw and are third behind with the Beatles and Elvis for 14 number-one singles in the UK), created Il Divo, mentored Cheryl Cole and gave Dannii Minogue something else to do than live in Kylie’s shadow.
So yes, the American version of The X-Factor should be pretty amazing to look forward too.
Paula Abdul image from Paula-Online.
- Saula!
It’s the return of Snarky Ken and Dancing Barbie.
Seriously, what’s not to love? It’s entertaining and I, for one, find them amusing.
They should just marry, have sex and lots and lots of babies already and get it over with.
When Paula Abdul quit, I saw this coming — did you?
The end of American Idol is near and the emergence of The X-Factor is upon us, so get ready.
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Sasha Muradali runs the ‘Little Pink Book’ . She holds a B.S. in Public Relations from the University of Florida with a minor in Dance (’07) and an M.A. in International Administration from the University of Miami(’08). She loves Twitter and all things social media, so you should find her @SashaHalima or get a copy of the ‘Little Pink Book’ delivered to your Kindle.
Copyright © 2009-2010 Sasha H. Muradali. All Rights Reserved.
