America picks Ruben as its idol

It started out with tens of thousands of contestants, auditioning to be the next American Idol, and now, Ruben Studdard has won that title. But just in case you haven’t heard about the show, the most talked-about show in America, let me give you an overview of the whole thing.

American Idol is a reality show aimed to discover America’s new music superstar. The search begins with auditions in cities all over the country, everywhere from New York to Los Angeles. The three judges: record producer Randy Jackson, Grammy-winning singer Paula Abdul and, of course, the most ruthless of them all, record producer Simon Cowell, critique the contestants and out of the thousands who auditioned, narrow the field to just 32 semi-finalists. It is now in the hands of the American viewing public to vote via the telephone for their favorite. Every week, two of the semi-finalists will move on to the finals, leaving the other untalented contestants to return to where they came from, wallowing in their self-pity. But remember, I said untalented. The other vocally-gifted contestants that were eliminated will still have a chance as one of the judge’s wild-card picks, which would allow them to continue to the finals. Then, the 12 finalists will be eliminated one by one every week, depending on who would have the lowest votes for that week, until one still stands as the true American Idol. But the semi-finals was when the first of many of this season’s controversies started. Frenchie Davis, one of the 32 and a contestant who definitely had a big chance of winning, was eliminated from the contest when producers found out that she once posed for a porn website. Many fans were outraged by the decision, but the producers say that they will do as much as they can to help Frenchie in her singing career.

Kelly Clarkson, the first American Idol winner has already achieved much success, despite what skeptics of the show have said. Her certified platinum first album, "Thankful" (which everyone should buy), shot straight to the No.1 spot in its first week, selling 300,000 copies and is still going strong. Those would be very difficult shoes to fill, but that was what the 12 finalists were supposed to do. And then America asked itself the most important question: What are the makings of a true American Idol? Could it be the voice (Ruben Studdard, Clay Aiken, Kimberly Locke)? Or their looks (Kimberly Caldwell, Carmen Rasmusen, Julia DeMato)? Or maybe style (Charles Grigsby, Trenyce, Corey Clark)? Or perhaps personality (Vanessa Olivarez, Rickey Smith)? Or, in a time of war and crisis, patriotism, which is something US Marine Joshua Gracin definitely has. That was the criteria that would determine who the country would vote for, who would win the title and the record deal.

At the start of the finals, we said goodbye early to Vanessa Olivarez and her hot pink hairdo, the first of the 12 to be eliminated. Then came more controversy, this time with Corey Clark when producers found out that he had been charged for allegedly assaulting his sister. This discovery led to Corey being disqualified from the competition, which followed with even more scandals. This time, Trenyce (her real name is Lashundra Cobbins) was discovered to have once been caught shoplifting. But since this was just a minor incident, the show let it pass.

So then, one by one, the finalists got the boot. Then came the final four: Joshua, Kimberly Locke, Ruben and Clay. The one I was rooting for, Joshua, got eliminated. Then Kimberly Locke, the last woman in the group, got the boot the next week. So the final two was set: The finale would be a battle between "the velvet teddy bear" Ruben and "the geek-to-chic" Clay. And being in New York, I got to watch the exciting American Idol finale. The first of the three-part finale that aired on May 19, Monday, gave us a more personal look into the lives of Clay and Ruben. They interviewed their friends and families and visited each of their hometowns, Raleigh, North Carolina and Birmingham, Alabama, respectively.

The second part, on May 20, Tuesday, was when the two sang their hearts out for the last time. Each sang three songs: Ruben’s best song was his haunting rendition of Flying Without Wings, while Clay’s best was his amazing performance of Simon & Garfunkel’s classic Bridge Over Troubled Water. Clay really won my vote with his performance, when he flaunted the abilities of his killer pipes. So after the show, I frantically dialed 1-866-IDOLS-02 to vote for Clay. I was able to vote for just about five times, as the huge mass of voters made it difficult to come through.

The last and final part, the two-hour finale and the announcement of the new American Idol, aired on May 21, Wednesday. The show had a look back at memorable moments of the show’s second season, and then 12 finalists sang a medley of the different themes they had every week on the show: disco, country, movie theme songs, Motown, Billy Joel and the Bee Gees, to name a few. But then came the moment of truth, when host Ryan Seacrest was going to announce the winner. First, he declared that only a few thousand votes separated the two, then I held my breath. "And the new American Idol is...Ruben Studdard!!!" The whole place shook with the cheers from Ruben fans, while Clay fans like me just sat there quietly. I was devastated as I saw signs and posters that read "Ruuu-ben!" go up and ones that said "Clay All The Way!" go down. But even though I was disappointed, I was still glad that he made it all this way.

It has been a great season for American Idol, and I am truly looking forward to the third one starting in January.

To Do List

Movies

• Watch Frida. Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, one of the most fascinating women of our time, lived a very provocative and controversial life. This incredible film shows the world through her perspective, from her tumultuous affairs and to her beautiful paintings. It stars Salma Hayek in her Oscar-nominated performance.

• Watch Bruce Almighty. For those who want a lighter treat, this hilarious movie stars Jim Carrey as a man who gets God’s powers for one week. It also co-stars Jennifer Aniston and Morgan Freeman.

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For comments, questions and suggestions, e-mail me at lanzl@info.com.ph.