‘American Idol’: Fearless Forecasts

Now that American Idol has whittled its contestants down to six, it’s easier to make a fearless forecast of the winners. I write “winners” because the last two standing always have a go at a career. Second-placers, like Bo Bice,  have also made their mark. Some, like Clay Aiken and Katherine McPhee, have even surpassed the success of the first-placers. I’m quite sure we’ll see more of last year’s Blake Lewis, who debuted his single last month on American Idol.

All the remaining contestants are very talented, but not all of them have enough star quality. This is where it gets tricky. Then again, I just mentioned Clay Aiken, who is so not in the mold of entertainment stars. And need I mention Taylor Hicks?

On my personal top three wish list are David Archuleta, David Cook, and Brooke White. The first David, because he’s really, undeniably, one gifted kid. That trumps talent anytime. The second David, primarily because his kind, the rocker-type, has never won American Idol before, despite the immense success of also-ran Chris Daughtry. And lastly, Brooke, because she has a very refreshing free spirit.

My predicted top three, however, are David Archuleta, David Cook, and Carly Smithson. Carly is more of a buzz-maker, which will surely earn more votes for her.

Now, who do I think will win? I think David Archuleta still has a strong chance—he’s been pretty consistent. Every time he performs, you already get the impression that you are watching a star. But there is such a thing as too consistent. He’s so good, it has become predictable; thus, just a tad bit boring. Then again, Carrie Underwood was pretty consistent, and the only thing that made her season exciting was rooting for any of the dark horses to win (I was praying it would be Bo Bice).

Who do I hope would win? It’s a toss-up between David Cook and Brooke White. If forced to choose, however, I’d say David Cook, for the same reason I mentioned above, with last week’s incredible rendition of Mariah Carey’s “Always Be My Baby” as the cherry on top. That’s one single I wouldn’t mind buying.

I hope none of my bets get eliminated tonight, after last night’s Andrew Lloyd Webber songs. You’d think it would be so easy to sing Broadway!

Palanca Awards deadline

To all writers out there, the usual midnight of April 30 deadline of submission for this year’s Palanca Awards is just around the corner. Remember, you can now submit entries by email. Just make sure you have the complete requirements.

The competition includes the following categories: Short Story, Short Story for Children, Essay, Poetry, One-act Play, and Full-length Play in Filipino and English divisions; Screenplay in Filipino division; and Short Story in Cebuano, Hiligaynon and Iluko regional languages.

Entries may be submitted (in person, by mail or courier service) to Carlos Palanca Foundation, 6th Floor, CPJ Building., 105 C. Palanca Jr. St., Legaspi Village, Makati City. Entries may also be submitted through e-mail (in Rich Text Format or in Microsoft Word Document as an attachment), together with the author’s resume, official entry form and original copy of the notarized authorization form.

You can get the complete contest rules and official entry forms from the Carlos Palanca Foundation office. You may also ask for it via e-mail to [email protected] or [email protected]. They are also available for download in this link from Butch Dalisay’s blog: http://www.savefile.com/files/1477137.

Good luck!

Email your comments to [email protected]. You can also visit my personal blog at http://althearicardo.blogspot.com.