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Friday, April 13, 2012

Jessica Sanchez: Is America Ready for an Asian Idol Winner?


America showed that it was ready to elect an African American President in 2008. Is America ready to vote for an Asian American Idol?



Apparently, not yet. Despite being one of the best singers in American Idol Season 11, Jessica Sanchez received the lowest voting turn out this week. She was in the middle of "singing for her life" when all the judges stood from their seats and went on stage to use their only save of the season. Randy Jackson mentioned that America got it wrong and that voters should choose the best singer in America. That is what the competition is all about. To quote Wikipedia:

Sanchez has received five unanimous standing ovations for her competitive performances from the judges, three from solo performances, one for group performance, and one for a duet.


Sanchez singing talent is a cross between Beyoncé Knowles and Whitney Houston. Admittedly, she doesn't have the looks, at least not yet. But image is something that can be worked on. Extraordinary talent is something someone is born with. If she is "crazy-good", why is she being ousted this early in the competition. Are the other contestants way better than her?

Perhaps we are over-reacting. Perhaps voters thought that Jessica Sanchez would get most of the votes and they would cast their vote for someone else this week. This is one way of rationalizing what happened.

But another reason could be the "like-ability" of the contestant. Fans of the show have proven in the past that the contestant ending up as the winner isn't always the one with the best talent, but one with the best fan-base.

There have been a lot of "best singers" being ousted in past AI seasons. But this usually happens near the finale, usually when contestants are vying for the top 4 or top 3 spots. But Jessica Sanchez' case is different. AI still has 7 people vying for the top spot, and she now gets the lowest vote.

Was this week a fluke? Or is America telling the judges what they really want. Perhaps the audience is still not ready for an Asian Idol. The competition is named American Idol after all. Let's see what happens in the coming weeks.

April 27, 2012 Update
Elise has been voted out, leaving 5 contestants in Joshua, Holly, Philip, Skylar, and Jessica.

May 11, 2012 Update
Holly has been voted out, leaving 3 contestants: Joshua, Philip, and Jessica

May 18, 2012 Update
Joshua has been voted out, leaving 2 finalists: Philip and Jessica


May 24, 2012 Update
Philip Phillips is 2012's American Idol


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