MTV broke it, we bought it

I officially signed up for Script Frenzy after posting the blog on it. I have 0 pages written so far. I'm not freaked out yet, though. Still learning the formatting thing.

So last night I watched American Idol. Right off the bat, don't tell me to try out, I would if I could but I've missed their age cut off. YES they have an age cut off. I'm cool with it, be cool with it too.

It was my first time watching this year. I refuse to watch the first episodes where they make fun of people. You know why those people who can't sing look so surprised when Simon tells them they suck? Because the producers tell them they're great and that Simon will love them. Because the producers hype them up and approve them going to the real tryout room with Randy, Simon and Paula so that they'll be upset and make great TV. That's just mean. I don't like that part. I wait until we're in the top 8 or so and then start watching.

Don't get me wrong, I watched almost every episode the first season it came out (excluding the making fun of tryouts) and loved it. I love Simon. I've learned tons from him. And he knows what he's talking about. He understands what it takes to make a rockstar. His business is selling CDs and he knows which acts will do that and the best ways to guide artists to that. I respect his knowledge.

Anyway, I decided today that American Idol is helping to fix what MTV broke. Since the advent of MTV, rockstars have not been judged on their chops or songwriting. They've been judged on their looks, image, style. You can list me hundreds of artists before the 80's (and right on the brink there) who would never have made it if they had to look good in a video. Admit it. But they had great songs and performances. Conversely, Milli Vanilli had a great look. They didn't even sing. And they're not the only ones. Hey I love and respect the performers of the last couple of decades who couldn't really sing but worked their image and/or dancing skills to have huge careers. They worked hard for their success. Absolutely. But, who did you miss out on hearing because they didn't fit on MTV? You don't even know.

I find it cool that, while none of the American Idol winners or finalists are ugly, many of them are not cover-of-a-magazine-hot either. They are there because of their voices. All that matters is - can you deliver the goods? Can you knock people's socks off week after week with your voice?

Hopefully this along with things like itunes (for another day) will help to change the music industry back to what matters. It's not a mystery why music companies are struggling. They've spent too much time and money promoting an image when all people want is good music performed well. What a crazy idea.