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Unfortunately, the person who should go home based on performance doesn't always. I fear the east coast vote that put Rex into the finals last year may do the same for Craig whether he deserves it or not. Somebody on another board made a good point, that people shouldn't forget to vote for Eva. There might be such a battle between Tyler and Craig for second spot that Eva might miss out even though she should be at the top.Originally Posted by IdolCanadien
Here I go correcting again. Jacob does NOT have a far larger international following. You would be surprised at how much Kalan has even though he hasn't been promoted outside of Canada and Jacob has.
His cd is nowhere near Kalan's in sales. Kalan sold 200,000 in a month and continues to sell. Jacob has sold 100,000 in several months. Yes, he may sell a bunch when it's released in the States, but so far the reviews have not been very good.
Runner up Rex sold a big bunch of cd's at first, mainly to Atlantic Canada. He was #1 on the St John's NL chart but didn't make the Top 20 sales chart in any other place in Canada. Melissa did, in quite a number of cities, and continues to sell. Her cd remained on the sales charts for something like nine months and total sales are fairly close to Rex's now. If Rex had been treated like most runner ups and not been signed and promoted immediately after CI and all it's attendant publicity, it's highly unlikely he'd have done as well.
Regardless, the success that CI brings virtually everyone who appears on the show is amazing. I wish them all well.
I really enjoyed tonight. I may have rose coloured glasses on but this final three is close to Season 2. Eva-Jacob (destroys all genre's..rock, r&B, swing), Craig-Kalan (fantastic voice, learning stage craft), Tyler-Theresa (country/rock specialists, very endearing)
Picks of the evening:
Eva: 1st song: God Bless the Child - didn't want to hear this song again on an idol show but...my favourite version on Idol. 2nd Song: Excellent but doesn't have the following of the first song.
Craig: 1st song: I thought he did great. Surprized by judges lack of enthusiasm. 2 song: Fantastic. I really want this kid to compete with Eva for final two. Outstanding pipes...he can learn stage craft.
Tyler: Would have won season 3. He should be number 3 this season but I think he has a following to be Eva's runner-up. Did great this evening but I still find him limited.
Eva did the best tonight. I thought that Tyler and Craig were both OK, I have the feeling that Craig will be the one to get eliminated.
Yeah, I'm voting a bit tonight for the first time. Voted for Tyler for the first hour and first half hour was busy more times than not and second half hour, not as bad but still fair share of busy signals. Second hour tried voting for Eva and got a fair number of calls in but now, nearing deadline, can't get through for her much at all. Maybe other people were thinking like me and want to get some votes in for her to make sure she doesn't get lost in the battle for second place between the two guys.
Depends on your definition of success. CI winners have a history of being tossed aside by Sony-BMG when the next one is crowned. Kalan's official site hasn't been updated in forever. Is that any way to treat arguably Canada's best CI winner to date?
Here are a couple of interesting viewpoints:
*FA EDIT*
Kalan has sold more than Jacob (Hedley) but he also had almost a year's head start and the huge hype and marketing machinery of CI/Sony-BMG behind him. I would hope he'd sell a lot more. However, two years after his debut, where's the info on his follow-up CD? Why hasn't there been any word on introducing him to the American or overseas audiences, especially if his international following is as large as you say it is?
Actually, neither of us knows for sure who has the larger international following, but if you Google "kalan porter" and "hedley music", as well as search for "kalan porter" and "hedley" on that popular personal video upload site, you might get an idea.
As for reviews not being good, neither Kalan nor Jacob (or any CI alumnus for that matter) has received all that much praise for their respective CDs. Oddly though, the initial reviews of Hedley in the U.S. are more positive than initial reviews were in Canada. Success apparently influences reviewers' opinions.
I'm not debating who is better, merely pointing out that winning CI isn't all it's cracked up to be. Your statement about Rex vs Melissa merely re-inforces the fundamental problem with the current CI setup - the record company is in it for the quick buck, which is why it promoted Rex so much more than Melissa initially.
The tongue baths the judges gave the final 3 in tonight's snoozefest also reveal how out of touch these Idol shows are with reality. Yeah, so they sang quite well but unless Sony-BMG is intent on making albums of standards with these kids, it's all so meaningless.
Last edited by Leo; 09-05-2006 at 06:59 AM. Reason: Removed link to fansites.
^Well said. I agree, the show makes it look like winning will guarantee huge fame and success, when it's (most of the time) not true. A certain winner (*cough* Ryan Malcolm *cough*) has faded into obscurity and I haven't heard anything about him for about 2 years. Even though I do vote, in the end it could be better for a contestant to not win. JMO.
I think the entire CI phenomenon is solely for a quick buck. CTV carries and heavily promotes AI during the regular TV broadcast season. Come summer when viewership is down and most of the schedule is reruns, CTV produces and carries CI. During the summer AI has a huge tour featuring the TOP 10. Arenas and stadiums across the US sell out for a chance to see the Top 10. In the early fall, CI ends and the winner is shuttled from one interview to the next while the other 9 are almost ignored (the runnerup gets a few interviews but unless BMG signs them [like they did with Rex] they'll be relegated to the formerly useful pile).
The winner's single (which is usually dreck) is rushed out on release and from the hype of the summer CI season and the interviews usually sells well. The CD album comes out just before Christmas and usually has disappointing sales because most of the CD is also dreck.
A tour is then arranged for the winter and early spring and has been the case (with the exception of most of Kalan's concerts) ticket sales are usually disappointing to poor and many venues get cancelled or play to half filled houses.
The self-fulfilling prophecy then comes true. BMG backs away from the current CI winner knowing that in a few months a new winner will take it's place.
If CTV was as proud of CI as they claim, they'd have it air during the fall and early winter (September to December) and let the ratings fall as they may. Then there should be a Top 10 tour across the country that could be promoted during commercial breaks on AI.
I don't believe this will ever happen though because CTV sees it as a way to make a quick buck during the summer without resorting to rerunning Corner Gas episodes. BMG spends little to rake in the cash they can from the winner and then discards them before the next CI is crowned.
This year ratings are down. They're dramatically down in Toronto and Vancouver as people are realizing the show isn't really looking for a new superstar at all. If the show was about finding a new superstar, Kalan would be one of the most featured celebs in the country. He'd have a new CD out by now and would be singing the national anthem at hockey games, baseball games, basketball games and football games right across the country. He'd have had at least one more tour maybe only to the larger cities but one would have been held by now if BMG truly believed the hype around him after he won.
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