When he’s not obsessing over rappers Lil’ Wayne or Killer Mike, Tom Breihan, one of my favorite music bloggers, will not shut up about “American Idol.” In fact, nearly everyone will not shut up about it.
It’s no secret that “American Idol” is a juggernaut. The media has already covered that more than accurately. The show is about to finish its seventh season, and has had the top Nielsen ratings for the past four years running. It has created several celebrity personalities, famous and infamous, lauded and maligned. It is practically an institution.
But why?
The show’s format has essentially stayed the same. Then again, most popular reality shows’ formats never change. Viewers just like to see different people yell at each other. The revolving door of contestants with different personalities and voices keep people coming back.
I’m not a fan already and as is the responsibility of all non-fans of anything, we are charged with the task of discerning the appeal. This is actually one of my favorite pastimes and one which I’ve had great success with before while analyzing “Umbrella” by Rihanna (appeal: accented first beat, idiot-proof, chantable chorus).
In my studies of this venerable program, I’ve divined that the appeal and longevity of “American Idol” derives from its ability to appeal to the MCD, or middle common denominator. I don’t want to use the term lowest common denominator, because that’s demeaning, and because it isn’t fully representative of what’s at work over at Fox. In other words, there’s something for everyone.
This theory has obviously been broached before, in magazines, newspapers, and even college classes. But the sheer amount of tightrope walking in terms of the production decisions of “American Idol” is staggering. The three categories, or three axioms, that “American Idol” manages so well are as follows:
1.Black and White
“American Idol” is quite possibly one of the most colorblind things in current American society. The show quite self-consciously blends black and white culture in nearly all aspects. There’s one white judge, one black judge, and one Syrian judge. The contestants are pretty evenly mixed ethnically, with, at this point, two black winners, three white winners, and one biracial winner. The themes and songs chosen are a smattering of black and white touchstones, from Neil Diamond week, to Bee Gees week, to Stevie Wonder. Underneath it all is the colorblind dream of fame. Talent shows are just plain American, not black or white.
2. Gay and Straight
Again, in “American Idol’s” swipes at cultural hegemony, they narrowly walk the line between appealing to the most stoic of red-state America, while still featuring several elements of (ok stereotypical) gay culture. One week could be the Temptations week, next week could be Barry Manilow, well known as a gay icon. Show tunes week stands next to vocal cord shredding outdated grunge yowling courtesy of the token 28-year-old white guy on the show.
3. Young and Old
Remember that Frank Sinatra crooner kid from a season or two ago? He got picked for your grandparents. Jordin Sparks was for the kids, or the ones that buy the records. The winners have to have insane mass appeal in order to win, but the other contestants that everyone knows aren’t going all the way are picked to keep everyone happy. Grunge guy for the dads, crooners for the oldsters, eight-octave iron-throated divas for the moms, and lighter-than-air popsters for the kids. The theme shows are pretty much for the parents, with throwbacks to stuff that kids don’t even know exist, let alone remember.
“American Idol” doesn’t show any facultative signs of stopping, with their fairly consistent ratings dominance in the last four years. The show seems to keep everyone happy, regardless of how transparent their pandering is.
If you want a Tiny Tim week on American Idol, then e-mail Ayres at jayres@media.ucla.edu.