American Idol + Ellen Degeneres = FAIL
Well everyone,
It was announced this week that Ellen would be the new American Idol judge replacing Paula Abdul. No matter how you feel about Paula, it is hard to even infer that Ellen has 1/10th the musical prowess of her predecessor. This coupled with the news I just received of Ellen’s utter disrespect for music and the makers of music through her show’s refusal to pay royalties on the music “featured” on her show tells me that she no more belongs on AI than I do as the King of England.
According to Digital Music News, All four majors have now filed suit demanding that royalties be paid. The show’s producers have denied royalties to the copyright owners because they “did not roll that way.” This pathetic disregard for music, music makers, and copyright law proves to me that she has no place anywhere near this industry.
Her appointment as a judge on American Idol proves to me that the show’s producers are catering to the lowest common denominator, looking for the popular vote and continuing to dumb down this show until it falls into the oblivion. Let’s face it, it has been going down ever since season 1 and with this move it will continue to do so. No offense is meant to Ellen, as I do find her funny enough however she would be better suited alongside “The Hoff” on America’s got talent… save the music judging for musicians.
Okay I’m Done. Happy Weekend Everyone.
PS: Sorry about my laziness in posting lately… my cup overfloweth.
| Print article | This entry was posted by Randall Foster on September 11, 2009 at 7:25 am, and is filed under Copyright, Major Labels, Music, Record Industry. Follow any responses to this post through RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site. |
about 12 months ago
Just a little friendly rebuttal…
Re: Paula. Have you watched the past two seasons? Other than being overtly nice to contestants, what “musical prowess” has she shown? The performance of her awful single a couple of years ago? If anything has been “going down since season 1,” it’s her ability to accurately communicate anything relevant, musically.
Re: Idol falling into oblivion. Recent examples of why that’s not happening: Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson and Chris Daughtry. Daughtry was the fastest selling rock record in history. Jennifer Hudson won an Oscar. Carrie Underwood has been the face of Country Music since her first album. These are some MAJOR milestones in the industry that would not have existed had Idol been canceled after the first or second season.
Re: Ellen. Your extreme bias aside, the lawsuit has little to do with this show. Idol isn’t about the music industry anymore. It’s about talent exposure. Make the live shows, and you have the ability to be a star. All you have to do is put out the right project (which doesn’t necessarily even have to be a record). It’s why Daughtry has been so huge, why Hudson has been successful, and why Adam Lambert will be a MUCH bigger star than whats-his-name that won. Exposure.
Here’s why I like the addition of Ellen: She’s a fan. Why do we need 4 judges that are all music professionals? We have a star-power judge (Simon), two music-ability and industry vets (Randy, Kara), and now we have someone who can speak for the rest of us. Someone who can be a fan of contestants just because they are, not just because they hit all the notes correctly. This is a better representation of the everyman than anything they’ve had in the past.
I say better this than trying to resurrect the career of yet another 80′s superstar. A judge doesn’t have to be in the music elite to have an opinion. I say bravo to the producers for picking someone who is more likely to represent the majority of laypersons’ opinions with their own.
At least now I won’t be fast forwarding my DVR through judge number 3′s commentary for fear of a headache while trying to follow along.
about 7 months ago
I heard that Elle Degeneres would be the next judge in American Idol. Oh well, i love to watch Ellen in any show. Her own show is already super good.
about 2 months ago
Watching American Idol gave me the perspective that ther are really lots of talented people out there.-`~