The final premiere week of American Idol showcased some really strong talent. Michelle Marie, Shelby Z., Melanie Tierce, Olivia Rox, Malie Delgado were some of the standouts, with Sonika Vaid and Tristan McIntosh as my singers to watch.
But when Idol traveled to Philadelphia to kick off week two of auditions for season 15, things weren’t looking too bright. We’ll see some more Philly auditions later on mixed in with other cities, so maybe there will be some bright spots then, but as of right now, this might end up being the weakest city this season.
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That doesn’t mean viewers didn’t get to see some talented singers that have the potential to go far — if they can get past Hollywood Week without crumbling, that is. The main downside, though, is that with some of the contestants, there were other factors that overshadowed their auditions (like a famous mother, a “ladies’ man” grandpa, etc). And for one singer in particular, a very unique voice and a quirky personality might be her undoing if she has even one bad performance.
One of the better singers from this episode was Jenn Blosil. She wasn’t perfect — there was at least one moment during the song when she went off track. But I’m not surprised by that rawness because when a singer has that kind of a voice, it’s never going to sound crystal-clear. That’s her thing, though; her talent is strong but very different-sounding.
Something else that helped her performance of “Radioactive” was sitting down at the piano. It set the mood and created a different feel from the original version by Imagine Dragons.
And that’s all fine and good. However, despite delivering one of the better auditions of the night (in an episode that wasn’t really that strong overall), could she be derailed along the way in this competition?
We’ve seen quirky singers make it through to the later rounds before. A recent example is Joey Cook from season 14. However, Joey could have easily been eliminated before the finals if she messed up big enough. I say that not just because that could happen to any singer on Idol, but because her very niche style and unique voice don’t fit a broad array of songs — meaning, one wrong move (like a bad song choice) could be the end. Joey did have some bumps along the way and she was fortunate enough to place where she did. Also, what if viewers (or the judges) got tired of her quirkiness? That could have derailed her as well.
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On the flip side, does anyone remember Lilly Scott from season 9? She was a niche performer as well. Coming into the semifinals, she was safe at first. But she fell short in the third week and failed to make it to the Top 12.
And that’s where Jenn Blosil comes in. As good as her audition was (and, yes, we’ve only seen one performance so far, I get that), Jenn is in a very interesting position. I can already tell that her unique voice is not going to fit with a lot of songs. If she picks the right material, she might pull a Joey Cook and make it into the finals. But if she can’t live up to what the judges or viewers thought of her from the auditions, she might not get that opportunity.
And it’s not just Jenn’s voice that could be an issue. There’s her quirky personality as well. Before she even entered the audition room, I’m sure there were many viewers who were expecting her to be a joke contestant. She was so off-the-wall and weird. Will anybody find that too distracting? Fortunately, her voice was enough to send her through to Hollywood, which you can watch below:
But like with some of the other singers in Philly, there was something that at least partially overshadowed Jenn: her quirkiness. During Hollywood Week (and beyond if she makes it), will she be able to tone down that side of her so it’s mainly her voice that shines through? That doesn’t mean she has to change who she is. I would never say that. But it might get distracting after a while. Will the judges continue loving her for that? Will voters?
Like I said, Jenn Blosil was one of the better singers who auditioned on night three, and I can’t take that away from her. But with her unique voice and her bizarre personality, she has to be careful because one wrong move might end her journey.
What do you think? Will her niche musical style and quirky personality help or hurt her in the long run? Did her personality overshadow her voice? Should we just wait and see how her next performance goes before judging too much?
American Idol airs Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8pm on FOX.
(Image and video courtesy of FOX)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
Jeff Dodge, a graduate of Western Washington University, has been a TV news editor for many years and has had the chance to interview multiple reality show stars, including Randy Jackson, Nick Cannon, Heidi Klum, Mel B and John Cena.
