Brad's Tiny World

Is American Idol Rigged?

Posted on 19. Mar, 2009 by Brad in American Idol | Twitter: @bradhart |

After last night’s surprise elimination of Alexis Grace most critics have shut up about the report that the top four for this season and previous seasons were predetermined.  I am still not convinced the results are ever real.  Too often the people the show pimps hard are the one who are still standing, even without having good performances.  So what happened with Alexis Grace since they were pimping her so hard?

I see three possible answers here.  This was not her best performance granted, but they have said several times they thought she had what it took to win the competition.  That said not saving her has an air of suspicion that the rumor was true.  She was named as one of the predetermined top four, so did they get rid of her as a sacrificial lamb to cover their asses?  Did they get rid of her only so next week they could say “Guess what, immediately after they show we reconsidered sending her home and thought that was the wrong decision here she is again.”  Idol needs a little drama since as often as not they screw up any sense of anticipation we have in announcing who is going home.  Could it be they were just talking out their asses with all the praise they were showing her.  I am going with one of the first two notions, but not sure which.

In the end, does it matter if the show is rigged, fixed, or manipulate?  The answer is yes and no in my opinion.  First there is a huge legal issue if it is ever determined that the show is fixed.  Too many people send in text messages to vote and that in my book would constitute consumer fraud to the tunes of tens of millions of dollars.  I am sure there are those who would be personally offended and hurt if the show was rigged, but I don’t think any contestant could ever claim to be hurt professionally by a fixed vote.  By the time you hit the American Idol Top 12 you have been seen often enough by enough people to have made a name that will get you into the business if you have what it takes.

For me personally I am not emotionally invested in the show and could care less who wins.  Oh sure I have my favorites and I like to see them do well, but for me the show is about new artists.  A year or three from now when I am listening to the likes of Brooke White, Alexis Grace, and some of the others who got their initial exposure on Idol, I won’t give a damn whether they made it out of Hollywood week or won the damn thing.  What I will care about is if they have a great song.  Sure I will be able to say I remember them when they were on American Idol, and be able to point to a post, but in the end it is the music not the hype that matters to me.  I wish Alexis well and can’t wait to see what sort of album she puts out.  I expect it will be among the first released from this seasons contestants, and probably one of the best.

Tags: Age, album, alexis, Alexis Grace, America, American, American Idol, american idol top twelve, anticipation, Art, artist, asses, book, Brooke, Brooke White, consumer fraud, Forman, Fraud, hollywood, home, idol, Music, notion, notions, performance, pimps, sacrificial lamb, screw, song, surprise, suspicion, text messages, times, tunes, wrong decision