First off, the singers for the most part sucked.
Secondly (and the thing I'm most upset with) is the ignorance they propagate on the show. I'm not a 'sky is falling' type of guy (Kevin reference) but I turned off my DVR in disgust after tonight's show.
Here's what has me fumin' mad.
Mandisa's performance.
Up until her song, the show was pathetic. The audience clearly had a 180 degree turn around during Mandisa's performance. She performed the song "Shackles" by Mary Mary. I grew up in Baltimore, MD and listened to Rap all my life. When I started listening to Christian music, this cd was one of only maybe 3 that I felt were comparable in quality to the secular world. There is NO REASON in my mind that this song should have gotten looked down upon. Not to mention the fact that the crowd went nuts. Do you know what each of the judges said?
Randy: "It didn't do it for me."
Paula: "You now have a new religion called the church of Mandisa."
Simon: "I didn't get it."
Even Seacrest added "It's a personal song."
No! It wasn't a "personal song". It was a great vocal performance for her. This song showed the most of her personality of ANY song she's done on this show. It was obvious that she was pumped! I thought this show was about singing ability and connecting with the audience. She did both of these things 1,000 times better than anyone else on the show tonight. It was a sorry show and she shined. Instead of acknowleding this they can't seem to get past the message behind the song. I bet if her shirt were lower and she tried to talk about giving her body away the judges would have said "go girl".
Also, can someone please tell Simon Cowell that last year's winner has a song out right now that is one of her most popular. It's not called 'rely on myself' (see Katharine's song below) but rather it's a song called "Jesus, take the wheel". I firmly believe that the world is open to the gospel... they are just sometimes turned off by the packaging. Mandisa did a great job and Carrie Underwood is doing the same thing.
Okay... then to top it off I observed the next few singers.
- Chris: Good but boring. I actually agreed with Simon. Last week I told my wife that Chris is nice for what he does but he's starting to tick me off by making every song sound the same. Yes it's cute and yes he can do that but even rock stars sing different ways. Most every great rocker I can think of has great hits of various speeds, moods, etc. Chris to me is turning into a one trick pony.
- Katharine: She sings a song (horribly I may add) by Christina Agulara talking about 'believe in yourself' and the judges drewl over her. The song stunk and it was rather boring. I still have her going to the final 2. To me the judges seem to know who they want in the final (Chris and Katharine) so they do favor them on off nights (today was an off night for Katharine).
- Paris: Okay... Thanks Simon for what should have been pointed out by everyone and not applauded. She came off to me as a tramp. Again... she's applauded. Mandisa is told "I don't get it" when she sings a positive upbeat song about freedom. Paris is celebrated by acting like a hoochie in a club. Her mom was in the crowd celebrating her singing a song saying "A brotha got to work it." What in the world?
Anyway... My frustration only fuels my passion to provide an alternative to this world. For far too long we've done a terrible job presenting the gospel as the answer. People are filling themselves with temporary highs and celebrating debauchery at unprecedented levels. All the while their Savior stands at the door and knocks.
On a positive note I was very excited for Mandisa. I think she solidified her Christian audience tonight if she ever goes that route. A few former Idols have made the cross over into the "Christian" market. She'd do very well. No matter what I applaud her for seizing her moment. She may never again have the opportunity to speak so boldly to so many people. She made it known to the world that she's not ashamed!
Thanks for letting me vent. I feel better already.
2 comments:
See, I thought Taylor was awesome! To me the best performance... and maybe one of the only decent performances of the night.
Did you hear the judges say they didn't get it? That is scary. Please pray for them! As for Jesus take the wheel, my husband was traveling in tampa on the road and lost so I told him I'd pray, "Jesus take the wheel." He called me back ten minutes later to tell me he got a speeding ticket!!
Did anyone catch Catherine saying that she accepted whatever God had for her. People clapped and Simon buried his head.
You can't keep God's people from shining!!
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