"American Idol": Scotty McCreery tops Lauren Alaina to win "Idol" title
Scotty McCreery learns that he is the next "American Idol" during the Season 10 finale on May 25, 2011, in Los Angeles.
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FOX
(CBS) America voted with its heart. The heart of a six-year old.
Scotty McCreery is the new "American Idol," following a path recently laid (to rest) by the likes of Kris Allen and Lee DeWyze, two splendidly anonymous names in the annals of American music or even the annals of American ka-ching.
Once we move past the feelings of those who believe that McCreery is the second coming of their first date, let us consider what mathematicians might make of this result. The Tuesday evening performance face-off was the lowest-rated "American Idol" finale in the 18 to 49 "adult" demographic in the show's history, although it was competing against a "Dancing with the Stars" finale.
Yet 122 million votes were allegedly cast by those who simply had to exercise their democratic right to decide between one teenage country singer and another teenage country singer. And, you didn't need to be 18 to vote in this election.
What would America have decided at the last election if everyone had the opportunity to cast up to 50 votes online?
In order to mask the essential skewing and narrowing of the voting public, the Idol producers decided, as usual, to persuade some musical greats to give it the credibility that the two sweet teeny finalists could not.
After the obligatory (and obligatorily disastrous) group number featuring the 13 finalists doing something to a Lady Gaga song that had never been done before, we had the privilege of quickly witnessing such greats as Judas Priest, Gladys Knight and, um, Jack Black.
Black was there to add some humor (as if it was needed) to accompany the great (but slightly wayward) talent of Casey Abrams through a rendition of "Fat-Bottomed Girls." How different the finale might have been if Abrams had somehow managed to squeak through the nonsensical voting regulations to replace, say, McCreery.
Suddenly, there was Beyonce singing backup for Pia Toscano and the rest of the girl finalists, all of whose names you might not have remembered. No, wait, Beyonce took the lead, something the audience seemed truly to appreciate.
Soon we had Haley Reinhart performing with her dad. No, that wasn't her dad. She'd already performed with him. This was her granddad - Tony Bennett. And what fun the two of them had. Did Ryan Seacrest have to point out that Bennett is 85? Of course he did.
McCreery offered a duet with Tim McGraw, one that existed to give him some of the country credibility that he is currently lacking. At the end of the performance, Steven Tyler tapped his heart, perhaps to check that he really was still alive.
Then it was Marc Anthony time. What a pulsating time it was. This was what music is supposed to do - move you to somewhere just a little different, somewhere where you have to check your heart for the right reasons. Anthony is such an amusing and confident performer, so much so that not even his wife storming on to the stage to demand he come home could move him away from lifting the theater to something above the entirely soporific.
As an interlude, might I just inform you that Tom Jones is still very much alive? Thank you. Sadly, in order to get some supper, he was forced to sing with all of the boy finalists.
Before we could catch our breath or our swiftly-escaping sanity, there was Lady Gaga. Her Ladyship showed her neutrality with respect to the two finalists by wearing a skimpy little bikini and a very large crucifix. She was supported by one of the great sax players of all time - Clarence Clemons. She sang something about being on the edge. This was entirely understandable. This show was scheduled to last 2 hours and 7 minutes.
Lauren Alaina got to sing with her avowed idol - former "Idol" winner Carrie Underwood. They sang about their cheating lover. Alaina wasn't overawed. If only she'd showed this much confidence through the rest of the competition.
Confidence is something that a theatrical show called "Spider Man: Turn off the Dark" has severely lacked. So here was Bono - yes, the world's substitute Pope, HERE! TONIGHT! ON "AMERICAN IDOL"! - singing away in an attempt to revive support for a show in which he appears to have a great creative and financial interest.
Bono and Scotty McCreery on the same stage. Is this what music has come to? Let us pause for a moment's silence to celebrate. Bono wasn't even given top billing. That went to the ultimate symbol of the new "American Idol": Steven Tyler.
Tyler has hammed his way through being a judge on this series. It was as if he was being played by Russell Brand, offering the occasional swear word, the frequent leer at lady contestants and a level of criticism beneath which no human could limbo.
Finally, finally, it was time for the results. They tried to make it seem terribly official, as if a million accountants and election officials had poured over these numbers. Who could have believed it? Scotty McCreery is the new American Idol. He bowed in shock. He can't have been all that surprised, can he? He's a phenomenon - like the Rubik's Cube, but slightly less sophisticated.
With an inevitability that smacked of last week's Rapture-believers, McCreery thanked the Lord. He spoke of how he and Alaina would be together forever. What? Together forever. These two are dating? But please don't let them sing together - Alaina overpowers him every time.
McCreery then proceeded to croon his way through his new and very colorful hit "I Love You This Big," while hugging everyone in as big a manner as he could.
I wonder if they might think of changing the voting rules for next year. I wonder if they might change the judges. I wonder if the ratings will keep on going down.
Chris Matyszczyk is an award-winning creative director who advises major corporations on content creation and marketing. He brings an irreverent, sarcastic, and sometimes ironic voice to the tech world.
I try to be civil in my comments but this time, sorry can't be done.
Are you on drugs or just stupid? Scotty McCreery is awesome and you sound a tad bit jealous. Just saying!!!!
Chris, Why did you write this? Was it to enlighten, educate, inform, or sell an idea or opinion? You did not do any of these. Chris, if you hate the resullts of 122M votes, and cannot be objective about the subject, shut up and go home. With all of those wonderful credits you claim, surely one of them can find something for you to write a decent article.
Scotty is young and will surely get better with age. Chris, you were probably a rude, arrogant, ignorant, and narrow minded pig when you were his age. It appears you will never get any better. You cannot understand anyone who does not have the same opinion as yours, and you are incapaple of selling your ideas to anyone else. I feel sorry for you, but you need to stop writing articles that waste readers' time. You must have a miserable life.
Absolutely agree....Chris, evidently thinks he knows more than the majority of 122M people. He sounds like he is just jealous he cannot get 1000 people to read his stories.
by j-Fen1 May 27, 2011 7:49 PM EDT ....Chris, evidently thinks he knows more than the majority of 122M people.
It was 122M VOTES, not 122M people. That's the problem. If everyone was allowed one vote each, then you would have a FAIR vote. It isn't fair when there are kids voting a zillion times each.
O.K. I don't care to pick a fight with an educated journalist, but I'm afraid I completely and totally disagree with Chris (male/female?)
I'm not young, but I'm not all that old yet. Still, I recall something that Chris may not know, and definitely may not remember. Television of old use to have something called a variety show. I won't explain, everyone should look it up, and maybe learn something. Ed Sullivan, Beatles... please make the effort. So Idol puts on an entire year of variety... as does, God forbid, 'Dances With the Stars'... what is so wrong with that? Singing, dancing, humor. Is your normal life as entertaining for you?
Chris is debunking Idol based on what I can only assume is his/her own narrow perception of entertainment, probably biased by his/her (I really don't care which gender, because I feel he/she doesn't know who they are anyway) music tastes. Why not just see if you can listen, watch, and enjoy, versus what ever else you might have going on in your life? I'm 55. I thought Steven Tyler was long gone. I was wrong. Jennifer, well I rooted for Ben during the BenJen, or whatever times. I was wrong then. And yes, Randy is definitely entertaining and solid. The judges for this year, even if giving a lot of 'hall passes', were spot on in trying to improve the talent of the 'kids'. And Idol hired some pretty important people to actually help train the young ones on their presentation, as well as what songs were right for them. That was an incredible move on the show's part. Maybe, and I'm sure it will be true with the kids this year; they will produce some real stars. It will most likely go deeper than just 1st or 2nd place.
I was thoroughly entertained by this years show. The final 13 / or 10 contestants, however you wish to count it, were very talented kids. It was a knock out year, period. And I think, if you put that to a vote in America, you will find yourself on the losing end. But if you get joy out of being a contrarian, to dispute what is simply the facts... mainly that Scotty has a voice that no one has heard in a long, long time - and Lauren can sing her heart out, and eclipse almost anyone else, just shy of Scotty so it seems - then what the hell are you squawking about?
I don't have your supposed education, nor your apparent audience, but I just don't see why you can not accept something very simple this year - it was entertaining, and the two people with incredible talent came down to the wire against each other. It was an overall sweet experience to watch them. However, it was a bummer to read this column. I'm not sure where your talent lies, but I'm pretty sure you would be voted off.
Sorry Chris, I read your Bio. I guess I should have tried to learn that fact, as you maybe should try to learn the fact of entertianment today. I believe Idol to have produced their best season ever this year. Scotty will most likely make it, and Lauren. But if you don't like oountry, I understand. But the show was fantastic. Sorry, you don't feel that way.
by k9sjose May 27, 2011 5:08 AM EDT Scotty will most likely make it...
I love country music. I like Scotty. But will he make it? I'm not so sure. Why? Because he sounds EXACTLY like someone else. No one wants to hear someone that sings exactly like someone else!
I'm thinking the author is not a country music fan. As far as the show is concerned, despite it's 'low ratings, this is the first year I've watched it. I figured I'd watch it until Scotty was voted off and that never happened. And thru the magic of redial, I voted for Scotty about 40 times on Tuesday night.
Yes, all the finalists were talented and I enjoyed many of the performances, but I stayed for Scotty and Lauren.
As far as my music taste (or lack of) is concerned, I had never heard of Steven Tyler until watching AI this year and I really didn't know JoLo was a singer. I thought she was just another Paris Hilton or Lindsay Lohan type - never doing much but always in the gossip show news. Guess I'm more into Jimmy Buffett, James Taylor or John Denver.
Guess I'll go grab a bottle of Land Shark beer and drink a toast to Scotty.
That show is so lame. It's shows what a bunch of idiots live in this country when 122 million vote for a contestant. How about voting in the elections where it really matters.
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Are you on drugs or just stupid? Scotty McCreery is awesome and you sound a tad bit jealous. Just saying!!!!
Chris, if you hate the resullts of 122M votes, and cannot be objective about the subject, shut up and go home. With all of those wonderful credits you claim, surely one of them can find something for you to write a decent article.
Scotty is young and will surely get better with age. Chris, you were probably a rude, arrogant, ignorant, and narrow minded pig when you were his age. It appears you will never get any better. You cannot understand anyone who does not have the same opinion as yours, and you are incapaple of selling your ideas to anyone else.
I feel sorry for you, but you need to stop writing articles that waste readers' time. You must have a miserable life.
....Chris, evidently thinks he knows more than the majority of 122M people.
It was 122M VOTES, not 122M people. That's the problem. If everyone was allowed one vote each, then you would have a FAIR vote. It isn't fair when there are kids voting a zillion times each.
I'm not young, but I'm not all that old yet. Still, I recall something that Chris may not know, and definitely may not remember. Television of old use to have something called a variety show. I won't explain, everyone should look it up, and maybe learn something. Ed Sullivan, Beatles... please make the effort. So Idol puts on an entire year of variety... as does, God forbid, 'Dances With the Stars'... what is so wrong with that? Singing, dancing, humor. Is your normal life as entertaining for you?
Chris is debunking Idol based on what I can only assume is his/her own narrow perception of entertainment, probably biased by his/her (I really don't care which gender, because I feel he/she doesn't know who they are anyway) music tastes. Why not just see if you can listen, watch, and enjoy, versus what ever else you might have going on in your life? I'm 55. I thought Steven Tyler was long gone. I was wrong. Jennifer, well I rooted for Ben during the BenJen, or whatever times. I was wrong then. And yes, Randy is definitely entertaining and solid. The judges for this year, even if giving a lot of 'hall passes', were spot on in trying to improve the talent of the 'kids'. And Idol hired some pretty important people to actually help train the young ones on their presentation, as well as what songs were right for them. That was an incredible move on the show's part. Maybe, and I'm sure it will be true with the kids this year; they will produce some real stars. It will most likely go deeper than just 1st or 2nd place.
I was thoroughly entertained by this years show. The final 13 / or 10 contestants, however you wish to count it, were very talented kids. It was a knock out year, period. And I think, if you put that to a vote in America, you will find yourself on the losing end. But if you get joy out of being a contrarian, to dispute what is simply the facts... mainly that Scotty has a voice that no one has heard in a long, long time - and Lauren can sing her heart out, and eclipse almost anyone else, just shy of Scotty so it seems - then what the hell are you squawking about?
I don't have your supposed education, nor your apparent audience, but I just don't see why you can not accept something very simple this year - it was entertaining, and the two people with incredible talent came down to the wire against each other. It was an overall sweet experience to watch them. However, it was a bummer to read this column. I'm not sure where your talent lies, but I'm pretty sure you would be voted off.
k9sjose
Scotty will most likely make it...
I love country music. I like Scotty. But will he make it? I'm not so sure. Why? Because he sounds EXACTLY like someone else. No one wants to hear someone that sings exactly like someone else!
I agree. On the scale of overall importance or impact to our lives, this is just entertainment - nothing more, nothing less.
I just hope Scotty and Lauren have enough on the ball to finish high school and go to college, but I doubt it.
Yes, all the finalists were talented and I enjoyed many of the performances, but I stayed for Scotty and Lauren.
As far as my music taste (or lack of) is concerned, I had never heard of Steven Tyler until watching AI this year and I really didn't know JoLo was a singer. I thought she was just another Paris Hilton or Lindsay Lohan type - never doing much but always in the gossip show news. Guess I'm more into Jimmy Buffett, James Taylor or John Denver.
Guess I'll go grab a bottle of Land Shark beer and drink a toast to Scotty.
Later, Stage Coach Driver
though i must admit
same could be said about american politics too
....but it's so bad, it's not worth one
This season was their best, like the new judges and hope they return.
Most of the singers had a chance of winning and several will now get their shot at a career, as that is what AI is all about.
The finale was one of the best that I have seen since I do not watch consistently.
I hope posters do not go crazy with cheap shots or somehow make this politcal as they are well-deserved of success and decent kids.