Canadian Idol Fans Watching American Idol

ross 1

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American Idol starts in three weeks. I've been a fan of Canadian Idol for a while, but since the show will be off the air for the 2009 season (and maybe indefinitely), I'm going to try watching AI, which I've never really watched much before. I think it'll be interesting to compare the two shows and to look at AI from the point of view of a CI viewer.
 

Liberalman

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Mar 18, 2007
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You will see a vast difference between Canadian Idol and American Idol.

Canadian Idol judges don’t have any idea of what good is.

Most Canadian Idol winners need more singing lessons

CTV decided to shelve Canadian Idol for 2009 because of diminishing advertising revenue but they still paid the royalties to hang on to the show so it will be back in 2010.

If CTV is smart they should get rid of the judges and get ones that know what good is.
 

ross 1

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Dec 21, 2008
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There's going to be an additional judge on AI this year. Don't know if they got this idea from CI but I wouldn't be surprised, as CI was the first show to allow contestants to play intruments and AI has followed suit, I believe.
 

ross 1

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Since you've made 601 posts on this forum, maybe you're the one who needs to get a life.
 

SleepinIn

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There were a few I liked so far. I can't really remember any names - it's too early for me just yet. I had a laugh at Jason Castro's brother though.. he was good. And not lacking in confidence at all. Which is something you need in the music business. I hope he makes it past Hollywood. I missed the intruments though. Did they have them on AI last year during the audition rounds? I can't remember.
 

ross 1

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Dec 21, 2008
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There were a few I liked so far. I can't really remember any names - it's too early for me just yet. I had a laugh at Jason Castro's brother though.. he was good. And not lacking in confidence at all. Which is something you need in the music business. I hope he makes it past Hollywood. I missed the intruments though. Did they have them on AI last year during the audition rounds? I can't remember.

Hi, SleepinIn! It's tough for me to process two two-hour shows' worth of auditions, I don't remember any names, either. Of those two guys who were best friends, the second one who auditioned (the one who unfortunately lost his wife recently) had a voice and style I liked. Also the blind (?) auditioner near the end. And I really liked Castro's brother's voice--though I thought it was hilarious when he (w/ pink hair, etc.) said Jason was "girly." He has confidence to spare--bordering on arrogance?--but he's right for TV and I would be surprised if he didn't go pretty far. Several girls were good, too, but I can't remember anyone else in detail at this point. Dark-haired 16 year old girl on the first night stood out for me.

I didn't even miss the instruments until you mentioned them! Good point.

I'm used to a fourth judge, from watching CI, but I wonder how AI fans are liking Kara. I didn't understand one thing: how many votes does it take to get the ticket? On CI, it seems I remember Jacob only getting two votes (Sass and Farley) and going through--is it two or three (out of four) on AI?
 

In Between Man

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American Idol starts in three weeks. I've been a fan of Canadian Idol for a while, but since the show will be off the air for the 2009 season (and maybe indefinitely), I'm going to try watching AI, which I've never really watched much before. I think it'll be interesting to compare the two shows and to look at AI from the point of view of a CI viewer.

AI's first two episodes this season were nothing more than pure magic! Absolute genius how those guys edit the content!

Best season opener ever, by any show, on any channel, ever done throughout history! I was laffing my ass off! Not to mention totally intrigued looking and listening to random people. Wow. People certainly are weird, and are most definitely trapped in their own little worlds. At least the contestants they show -- what freaks. But then there are the good ones, the ones you take a shining to, and decide to root for. Bring a tear to me eye.
 

missaddicted

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Jan 16, 2009
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Hi, SleepinIn! It's tough for me to process two two-hour shows' worth of auditions, I don't remember any names, either. Of those two guys who were best friends, the second one who auditioned (the one who unfortunately lost his wife recently) had a voice and style I liked. Also the blind (?) auditioner near the end. And I really liked Castro's brother's voice--though I thought it was hilarious when he (w/ pink hair, etc.) said Jason was "girly." He has confidence to spare--bordering on arrogance?--but he's right for TV and I would be surprised if he didn't go pretty far. Several girls were good, too, but I can't remember anyone else in detail at this point. Dark-haired 16 year old girl on the first night stood out for me.

I didn't even miss the instruments until you mentioned them! Good point.

I'm used to a fourth judge, from watching CI, but I wonder how AI fans are liking Kara. I didn't understand one thing: how many votes does it take to get the ticket? On CI, it seems I remember Jacob only getting two votes (Sass and Farley) and going through--is it two or three (out of four) on AI?

I don't think there were any instruments during the auditions last year either. They'll probably bring them out during Hollywood week.

I really really liked Kara (well, for now) and I think she adds professionalism to the panel. I finished watching last season with a strong dislike for Randy-Paula-Simon, so I hope that Kara brings a new dynamic to the judging table. From what I read, Simon has the deciding vote. If, for example, Randy and Kara vote no, and if Paula votes yes, Simon can decide to vote yes and send the person to Hollywood. So it can be two out of four, but Simon has to give you one of those two votes.

I didn't really like Michael Castro, though I thought he had an ok voice. But I didn't really like Jason to begin with, so I'm not that excited to see his brother. Anyway, I don't think they'll put him through the top 36, considering how they just wanted to get rid of Jason last year after a certain point.

My favorites from the two nights were all pretty much from KC. There was Danny (the guy who lost his wife), he had a great voice and I really enjoyed him just like you ross. And also Anoop(Dawg?), who I wasn't sure about during the audition, but there are plenty of videos of him on youtube singing with his a capella group from college and he very much impressed me. I liked some others, but it's too early to say. The judges pimped Lil Rounds and Scott (the blind guy) big time, but I'm not convinced.

Funniest moment: I could've done without Bikini Girl, but her awkward kiss to Ryan on "I Kissed A Girl" was definitely a very amusing moment.

My favorite part from the auditions was all the pimping of David Cook (nice montage at the beginning of the first show with his song playing, the "random" meeting of his mom and stepdad, images from his homecoming visit). Heh. I'm still stuck in season 7.
 

ross 1

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Dec 21, 2008
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I didn't really like Michael Castro, though I thought he had an ok voice. But I didn't really like Jason to begin with, so I'm not that excited to see his brother. Anyway, I don't think they'll put him through the top 36, considering how they just wanted to get rid of Jason last year after a certain point.
I listened to his audition again last night on YouTube and I have to agree with you,
missaddicted. I think I had low expectations of him the first time I heard him--especially when he said he had only started singing something like twenty days earlier--so the fact that he could sing at all surprised me. When I gave him another listen, though, he didn't impress me much at all.

Lil Rounds: She had a big voice but I didn't get the love, either. I haven't watched a lot of AI, but the few episodes I've randomly watched over the past couple of years always seem to feature one of these proficient girl singers who I just find generic-sounding. It seems to be what Simon and Co. like. I think such a singer would probably also do well on CI, to some extent, but they're really looking for unique artists on CI and I think so am I.
 

ross 1

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Missed the show tonight (San Francisco) but have caught up somewhat by scouting down some videos. I found them by consulting Tatiana's friend, "one of the world's most powerful psychics." Okay, in reality I just looked at mj's blog, where some of the performances can be found. And I also found MySpaces for a few of the contestants.

Nobody blew me away. I guess if I have to pick anybody I liked best it would be Kai "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" Kalama. I didn't see enough of Adam Lambert (who sang Queen) to agree or disagree with Paula ("brilliant"). I thought he was slick. Supposedly he has some good videos on YouTube. Jesus V. sang nicely, but what's with Kara's reason for giving him a yes?--"I don't want to disappoint your kids."

These are MySpace Music pages for bands featuring Raquel Houghton (who auditioned with "Son Of A Preacher Man"), and Kai Kalama (I'm not sure if it's Kai doing the vocals on this one, though).

Funny, even though this was San Francisco, the gold ticket winners were all from LA and Southern California. None of the NoCal/Bay Area people they showed made it.
 

In Between Man

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Sep 11, 2008
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Tonite's episode was all right I guess. They kinda sapped it up a bit at times, but showcased some pretty interesting talent.

During these audition episodes I mainly like to see the freaks. Really, really weird/eccentric/interesting people.
 

ross 1

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From what I understand, they're showing fewer auditions this year and empasizing the weird/eccentric people a lot less.
 

missaddicted

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From what I understand, they're showing fewer auditions this year and empasizing the weird/eccentric people a lot less.

Actually, it was supposed to be the contrary! But, the audition show from San Franscisco definitely didn't show us that! But with only 12 people making it, I bet they didn't want to show us all 12. We saw 7 of them actually, including the incredibly annoying Tatiana and the mediocre Jesus.

Adam has a big buzz going on for him, but I'm not convinced. He seemed like a great guy, but I didn't really like his audition. I watched some videos, but they just showed me that some of his performances are way over the top. If he cuts back on the theatrics, maybe I'll be on board, because I can't deny that he has a good voice.

Kai didn't really wow me, I thought his voice was nothing special, but maybe I need to see more. By the way, ross, if you find myspaces with music on them, it's not a good sign, since all the contestants who made the top 50 were supposedly required to take down their music at the beginning of January. It's not like that with Canadian Idol and I'm grateful that it's not.

From Louisville, I liked Joanna's voice and she was likeable enough, but I don't know if her previous experience(s) in the industry won't be a turn off for some viewers. I also liked the way-too-brief auditions of Kris Allen and Felicia Barton that were included in a montage.

The others who made it didn't really leave a mark on me, but again, it's so hard to judge after hearing so little of their singing.

Finally, the guy (Aaron?) who belted "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" thoroughly entertained me (if only for the reactions of the judges!), but mainly made me remember fondly the amazing version that was done by Mookie, Tetiana and the Pigott brothers last summer.
 

In Between Man

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Tonite's ep was pretty hilarious, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I laffed particularly hard when that "Mudd" guy made the off the cuff remark "be careful", and the judges interpreted it as a threat.

Poor guy, curse on his family name I suppose.

As for the talent, I seen a couple that stood out for me. I can't remember their names though; I'll have to post my favorites' once we get to Hollywood week.
 

ross 1

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We saw 7 of them actually, including the incredibly annoying Tatiana and the mediocre Jesus.

You got that right.​

Adam has a big buzz going on for him, but I'm not convinced. He seemed like a great guy, but I didn't really like his audition. I watched some videos, but they just showed me that some of his performances are way over the top. If he cuts back on the theatrics, maybe I'll be on board, because I can't deny that he has a good voice.

If you ever thought Simon's head would explode if he saw Jacob Hoggard perform (as someone once said on another forum), what do you think he'd make of this?


Kai didn't really wow me, I thought his voice was nothing special, but maybe I need to see more. By the way, ross, if you find myspaces with music on them, it's not a good sign, since all the contestants who made the top 50 were supposedly required to take down their music at the beginning of January. It's not like that with Canadian Idol and I'm grateful that it's not.


That's interesting, missaddicted! The MySpace with Raquel Houghton (The Valli Girls) just says (I think) "Raquel: vocals." The MySpace for the band, OffWhite, says "Kai Kalama (Former Member)."​


From Louisville, I liked Joanna's voice and she was likeable enough, but I don't know if her previous experience(s) in the industry won't be a turn off for some viewers. I also liked the way-too-brief auditions of Kris Allen and Felicia Barton that were included in a montage.


The others who made it didn't really leave a mark on me, but again, it's so hard to judge after hearing so little of their singing.


I had to miss part of tonight's episode, as well, but it did seem like some of the best people were in the short montage near the end.


Finally, the guy (Aaron?) who belted "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" thoroughly entertained me (if only for the reactions of the judges!), but mainly made me remember fondly the amazing version that was done by Mookie, Tetiana and the Pigott brothers last summer.


*tears up a bit* I miss you CI.
 

ross 1

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Dec 21, 2008
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You will see a vast difference between Canadian Idol and American Idol.

I'm kind of surprised the difference is as vast as it is. Since the basic format is the same. I can't even really compare the differences until I see more of it. My overall impression of the early audition episodes of CI is that the judges respect and like each other and seem to be enjoying the whole process. AI judges seem like they'd never hang around with each other if they weren't paid to, and seem sort of impatient to get on with it, get to Hollywood, get past this nonsense. The CI judges remind me somehow of high school teachers holding auditions for the senior show. They seem to know the kids (even though they don't) and like them or respect them. AI is much more businesslike. Just my impressions.

Tonight's show was on the dull side, to me. I'm not a huge fan of the Whitney Houston style of singing, which is maybe why I liked that kid who missed his guitar (Michael Perrelli, I think). Not that he sang great. No doubt he would have done better with the guitar. (Though why he didn't know the rules until the last minute and expected to play an instrument is weird. I'd think they must issue guidelines for auditions.) Anyhow he's the first human being I seemed to able to get interested in, and he sang the way a lot of 18 year olds who front bands these days sing. In a way I think AI is old fashioned since the style of music they're into was really hot fifteen years ago. CI dug up some people this year who were pretty much "today," and, aren't those the people who actually may go somewhere in the business and become actual idols, rather than young Whitney and Mariah clones?