Judges Don't Pick the American Idol -- We do

We should have known it was going to be one of those years when on the first performance night of the guys, the judges ripped ‘70s rocker Tyler Grady – for singing like a 70’s rocker. Two weeks later they told Broadway performer Todrick Hall to stop being so “dramatic” and complained that he was too much a Broadway singer rather than a recording artist. The only compliment Simon gave him was that at least he performed – as opposed to the rest of the guys who just sat on a stool and sang which, apparently, is not performing. Someone should tell James Taylor he’s been taking money under false pretenses for decades.

But I digress. The topic for today is the whipsaw. The dictionary defines this as “to cause to move or alternate rapidly in contrasting directions.” It is the perfect description of how the judges have dealt with top-four-finalist Casey James since his first audition in Denver. I understand that there are much worse things to deal with than negative criticism, that’s not the point. The point is that when the judges’ critiques are given so much weight, they should at least have a modicum of sense and consistency to them. When they don’t, they confuse the artists, confound the audience, and make a mockery of the concept of the show which was to find and help launch undiscovered talent – not build up and destroy someone alternating weeks to see how long they can handle the abuse.

Casey has received more than his share of mixed messages, contradictory critiques, and inconsistent feedback. It would be enough to make anyone go a little crazy and lose their confidence. But that’s the power of the whipsaw. He was picked for the show for his great bluesy vibe, and then dismissed as being predictable for playing a bluesy song. His country take on “You’ll Think of Me” was met with a tepid response not because of the vocals, but because it was “safe.” Then weeks later, a similarly brilliant country performance was raved as the second coming. He was told he was channeling Hendrix by one judge, and then another mocked him for “trying to play the guitar.” He was ridiculed as “trying to be a rock star,” then a week later told he was a rock star. His voice was compared to dirt, he was called a bleating farm animal. Yet in the same moment he was being chastised for playing it safe, he was also told how consistent he is, always good, great voice, great tone, loved your vocals.

This has been a crazy year where it seemed not that the performances changed from week to week, but the judges did. One week, Simon complained about Casey “just”standing still playing his guitar, another week he raved about it. Randy was most consistent, praising Casey for his Stevie Ray Vaughn vibe three weeks in a row. But that’s where the consistency ended. Ellen and Kara loved it then hated it; Simon hated it then loved it. But let’s not get carried away with praise for Randy, who was the only one, not just on the judging panel, but within earshot of the performance, who didn’t unquestionably love “Jealous Guy,” alluding to some vague pitch problems in the moody, tender, and flawless vocals.

While all this is going on, there was the spectacle of Kara the Cougar hanging around objectifying Casey and indirectly belittling his years of hard work, his talent, and his drive. “The cougar is a fan.” “Did he not return your calls, darling?” “When Kara says show it all, she means…” These running jokes were a distraction at best, and, at worst, may have detracted from Casey’s performances. We’ve had attractive contestants in the past, but none has been treated like raw meat to the extent that Casey has. The ongoing joke isn’t funny anymore. Neither are the judges’ unpredictable hot-and-cold running critiques which haven’t been fair to him or to a number of the contestants this year.

The judges have been a mess this year in their efforts to evaluate the contestants' performances. They could never articulate to Katie or Siobhan what it was about their beautiful and unique voices that they didn’t like, yet the same judges consistently fail to mention Lee’s obvious pitch problems. Their idea of providing feedback to Didi Benami was to tell her that she had “changed” and lost her way – not exactly razor-sharp criticism designed to help the contestant. The judges are long on complaining, short on explaining. But then, they apparently have an agenda. We’ll see if America agrees with their agenda.

Because agenda aside, the judges are not the final say on American Idol. We are. While the judges will do their best to try and manipulate, they don’t have a vote in who wins. We do. Casey fans need to speak in a unified and consistent manner, something the judges have failed to do. They need mobilize their efforts on Tuesday to make sure the right contestant makes it to the end.