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| Will Idol Deliver? |
1. Judges' Chemistry: I know that the judges don't make the show, but if you look at rival singing shows like The Voice, you'll notice that one thing more impressive than the contestants' talent is the judges themselves. Everytime Adam Levine and Blake Shelton engage in friendly rivalry, Christina Aguilera and Levine flirt with each other and Cee Lo Green refers to something as juvenile as a fart joke, you can literally feel the electricity between the four coaches. Idol had that too, well, for the first seven seasons at least. Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson had unbeatable chemistry that lent the show a certain magic. Although we saw some of that magic return in Season 10, with Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler, it wasn't the same. I'm sure you can't get back the lost charm, but what I want is to see the new judges panel- Keith Urban, Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and ol' veteran Randy Jackson- bring back some of that spark to the show. It's not that important, but it really elevates the show. As someone who is familiar with Nicki Minaj and her "Minajisms" (can we call it that?) I can predict that she's going to be a very interesting judge.
2. More Power to the Judges: I'm afraid this is the only way to prevent popularity votes. We already have the Judges' Save, but a few new tweaks like the judges deciding who goes home will make the show a little more interesting. Although I think it shouldn't be that way till the end, maybe only till the Top 6 or so. From there onwards, full power to the people.
3. Newer and More Relevant Theme Weeks: We've had 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's. Pop classics, Rat Pack Standards, Rock and Roll, even Disco. Then themes related to stars like Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, The Beatles and more. But what about current music? There's a big bag of unexplored songs out there right now that would sound amazing on the show. This is another factor that's causing The Voice to grow in popularity- relevance. What's the point in making a 15 year old sing songs from a time when their parents were kids? Where's the Gaga, the Gotye, the Fun, the Taylor Swift? Instead we have to put up with songs by people who kids haven't even heard of. Keeping Idol young and relevant will hopefully improve it's increasingly aging audience.
4. More Amazing Talent: One thing that stood out in the past two seasons is the talent. Despite the shrinking audience size, bland judges and repetitive format, we've seen some outstanding talent. Season 11's Top 7 was one of the strongest I've ever seen, and anyone could have taken the title. I hope Season 12 continues providing us with amazing talent, which, I believe, is the backbone of the show.
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| Jimmy Iovine/Photo Credit: LA Times |
5. More Jimmy Iovine: Even though the Season 11 judging panel was boring, Interscope Chairman Jimmy Iovine's results show critiques were spot-on and hard hitting. I hope they continue that this season as well. It gives the show a little more confidence and a strong voice.
6. A GIRL to Win (Please): The past three seasons, I've rooted for girls to win (Siobhan Magnus, Pia Toscano, Lauren Alaina, Skylar Laine, Hollie Cavanagh, Jessica Sanchez) But apparently America disagrees with me. All past five winners have been guitar playing white guys (in case you're unaware, the fandom refers to them as White Guys With Guitars, even using the Twitter hashtag #WGWG5 last season). So my biggest wish for this season is for a girl to win. It doesn't matter whether she's a balladeer, a belter, a rocker or a pop star, I just want a girl to succeed 2007's Jordin Sparks. The four female Idol winners have done better than all seven male winners combined, I'm sure a female winner will be a welcome change, and also commercially successful.
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| Is Jordin the Last Female Winner? |
What would YOU like to see in the upcoming season? Sound off in the comments!
American Idol premieres January 16 and 17, 2013 on FOX.