AI8: Finale Moments

The Adam Show
It is common opinion that the show's producers and judges pimped Adam Lambert to no end throughout the entire season. Some would say it isn't unmerited, but some would also agree it went overboard. The finale results show was no exception.

• The coronation song "No Boundaries" was written for Adam's range, and even he suffered from the high pitch. Though I think they lowered the pitch for the results show because Kris didn't struggle much with the high notes then.
• Adam got to perform with Kiss, and Kris got to perform with Keith Urban. Isang malaking NGEK.
• The final two got to sing with Queen, which is right up Adam's alley, what with online opinion calling him the next Freddy Mercury.
  

Nitpicking much? :P

I read in an online forum that Adam was offered to fill in Freddie Mercury's spot in Queen. If it's true, then way to go Lambert! Take the gig!

Favorite Moments
Anyway, here are my favorite moments from the final results show:

• Norman Gentle/Nick Mitchell rocks AI once again!
• Kara DioGuardi's nice tummy trumps Bikini Girl's new boobs!
• Kris's winning moment. Kris fumbled with words and blurted out that he himself was expecting Adam to win. And I swear, I heard him say to Ryan, "Are you freakin' serious?!"
• Kris's moment with his wifey. Prior to that he was channeling shock and disbelief, but I guess the happiness only sunk in when he could share it with his wife.

One thing to like about Kris
I liked this commentary on Kris's victory: Kris Allen gives American Idol back its heart
(Note: this is not an anti-Adam article, as the excerpt may seem; read the whole thing)

Excerpt:

But while the public gaped in awe at Lambert’s virtuosity, one quiet young man, week after week kept delivering performances that were a quiet way solid at worst, and often intensely beautiful. We never saw his audition video. We never saw his Green Mile sing-off. Nothing cued us to expect anything of Kris Allen. Indeed, every week he seemed almost to expect to be eliminated. But he stayed and little by little, while others' virtuosity flowered, Kris Allen slowly came to embody the "American Idol" dream – the idea that a kid from the outskirts of nowhere could line up to sing a song, a few months later, if he stays true to who he is and where he came from – a world beyond his wildest dreams could be his.

That was never Adam’s story. One always had the slight sense that Adam understood that Idol was just a step in his career. That while others thought they had reached the pinnacle of the known universe, Adam understood there were in fact, higher peaks waiting ahead for him. An understandable sentiment from anyone with a bit of exposure to the entertainment business, but not one that brought tears to people’s eyes when they thought of his journey.

I first talked to Kris at the party after the Top 13 announcement. I found him standing alone while other contestants were being mobbed, and I asked him if he was prepared for his life to change completely. He seemed taken aback by the question, focused on how thrilled he was just to be there that week, and it seemed, with little expectation of anything more being handed to him – let alone his “life being changed.”

AI8: All this Kris vs Adam brouhaha

Just like last year, I stand corrected.

Last year, I said TCO David Archuleta would win over David Cook. Last week, I said TCO Adam Lambert would no doubt win this over Kris Allen.

On both instances, I was proven wrong.

I've gone through pages and pages of post-AI8 opinions and I have so much going on in my mind right now about this season. So to prevent myself from rambling on about it all, I'll confine my post to bullet points (actually it's just an excuse because I can't make a coherent blog post about this hehe).

• I am truly, genuinely happy that Kris Allen won this year. I'm happy for Adam Lambert, too, because he showed how much of a friend and sport he is - he seemed really happy for Kris, too (whether it was a just a front doesn't matter - he appeared every bit of a gentleman when results were announced).
  
  
• I think Kris is this season's Elliott Yamin - just some kid from nowhere, no prior experience, no prior exposure, whose humility is so heartwarming and admirable. Maybe that's why the voters could relate to him - he's just like us, they'd say. Did I hear it right, he actually asked Ryan Seacrest, "Are you freakin' serious?!" Ewan, parang narinig ko yun when I watched the replay last night. Love how he was SPEECHLESS about the whole thing, much like how David Archuleta was amazed with all the attention he was getting last season.
  
  
• It's quite sad that a good lot of online opinion tends toward Kris winning not because of his own merit but because of anti-Adam sentiments. Kris won because Adam was gay. Kris won because Danny Gokey's fans voted for him. Kris won because people thought he could use the title more than Adam needed it. Di ba pwedeng Kris won because a good part of the voters had the same taste in music as Kris and actually liked his performances over Adam's?
  
  
• Also, we can't condemn people because they prefer pop rock over glam rock, could we? Minsan kasi sa forum na binabasa ko, some people think their musical taste is so much superior than others, and get so riled up at Kris fans because Kris's music is laid back and simple and background music at best (according to them). Of course everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but hopefully not at the expense of demeaning others. I admit I've felt the same before, and voiced out my opinion, too. But now I realize: too each his own. So now I say down with the holier-than-thou attitude!
  
  
• MY opinion is this: I'm a big rock fan - I'm open to all kinds of rock (and most kinds of music, actually), though I prefer the noisier ones, the more angsty ones. But somehow, I choose Kris's pop over Adam's glam. And it's not the subgenre that affects my decision, but the singers' delivery. Kris keeps it cool, changes things up a bit, and I love the way he moves with his guitar (the facial expressions don't bother me much). Adam's always exciting, but for me it's mostly over-the-top. I like screaming in rock songs, a la Steven Tyler (Aerosmith), but Adam's high notes for me are just like Regine Velasquez's or Celine Dion's or Charice Pempengco's birit. And there's too much of it. If you string together his performances, it's just like one long song; I can't imagine myself sitting through a concert full of those high notes (though I admit an Adam Lambert show would be interesting to watch).
  
  
• On a personal level, I (and maybe Kris's voters) can relate more to Kris Allen's humility. What I mean is that I've never had Adam's FTW ambition. I'd rather stay low-key, and if people appreciate what I do, then good. I hate that in competitions, there has to be a loser. I guess I was never trained to be competitive, hehe. I also understand that others would prize Adam's ambition, and I recognize that that is actually Adam's best asset. He believes in himself, he knows what he wants, and he knows how to get it. I just hope that each of these singers' strengths would serve them well as they build up their careers hereafter.
  
  
• Speaking of their careers, predictions abound that Adam will outsell Kris, like Chris Daughtry did Taylor Hicks, or Jennifer Hudson compared to Fantasia. And maybe I'm saying this because I prefer Kris's performances than Adam's, but I hope people would stop wishing ill on Kris just to say I-told-you-so. Maybe for some, it's just an honest, no-malice prediction, but for other posts I've seen, the comment reeks with bitterness, hehe.
  

Well, so much for NOT rambling :D But anyway, I, like most bloggers, just wanted to say my piece.

Bottomline is, I just hope people would be happy for Kris and Adam. Heck, they themselves and their families seem happy for each other! I think the fans need to move on :P

AI8: What are the chances that Kris Allen will be the next American Idol?

Close to zero.

He'll only snag the title if:
- Adam really really really (to infinity) messes up his finale performances, so much so that even his own fans won't vote for him (asa pa diba)
- all of Adam's phone and text lines jam up such that no votes at all can come through, but then of course that would be an invalid win for Kris
- a good (big!) portion of Danny's fans will pledge their support for Kris instead of Adam (this is the most likely possibility among the three, though I doubt if it's gonna work)

I think the last time the Finale was as skewed as this was when Diana de Garmo went up against Fantasia. The difference is, I liked Fantasia over Diana back then.

Now I think I know how Taylor-haters felt when Taylor snagged the title in Season 5. The difference is that it's actually still debatable if Taylor's talent does trump Katherine McPhee's (my opinion is that it's irrelevant to compare them; they're from different genres). For this season, Adam's talent is way out of league, that anyone who goes up against him is at such a disadvantage.

So why will there still be a finale next week? All for entertainment purposes and making money. Adam had the title in the bag as soon as the judges started pimping him at the start of the season. And I've had all season to try to like him, but unfortunately, he's just not my cup of tea.

BUT...

if Kris Allen wins, I will be sooo totally happy, not because Adam lost, but because I actually like and appreciate Kris.

He first caught my attention when he did MJ's "Man in the Mirror". Prior to that he hardly had any exposure, and throughout the season he wasn't really considered one of the TCOs (the chosen ones), so he really is the darkhorse in this competition, which makes his inclusion in the finale such a sweet one :)

As for the homecomings shown tonight, Danny's was nice because he got to spend time with his best bud Jamar. Up until now, I CANNOT COMPREHEND why Jamar didn't make it to the semifinals :(

Kris's dad was sooo adorable, wearing his heart out on his sleeve.

Adam's kid fans were so cute. It was particularly funny when some guy asked who does Adam's hair :P

Lastly, Danny's swan song was wonderful. His performance tonight was even better than yesterday's, and maybe even better than Taylor Hicks's from Season 5.

If Danny puts out an album, I'm not sure I'm gonna buy it, because gospel is just not my genre. But if Ayala Malls brings him here, I'll do everything in my power to get meet and greets :D