Kris Allen won “American Idol” tonight. Good for him. If you want all the details, check the AP story.
It seems likely that a lot of third-place finisher Danny Gokey’s votes went to Allen. They have similar styles and both are Christians who work in their respective churches. That could have been enough to give Allen the win over season-long favorite, Adam Lambert.
AP, however, carefully avoids mentioning what might have been a big part of the story. Lambert is gay. During the entire Idol season, pictures of him posing in full makeup and kissing another man have circulated on the Internet.
It was never mentioned on the show. Privacy concerns, no doubt, but the people who brought you Carrie Underwood and David Cook probably weren’t too happy about it. Simon Cowell didn’t get stupid rich without knowing a lot about marketing that show.
Lambert is a great performer. He’s got the arrangements, the screams, the theatrics. He arrived at Idol looking like a professional on tour, albeit an overweight one.
Allen came out of the pack, almost overlooked until a few weeks ago. His strength is the quieter, bluesy ballad sort of thing that requires actual singing. To that he adds keyboard and guitar skills and aw-shucks cuteness.
By the time the final voting began, it looked like anyone’s game. A record number of votes poured in. And Allen won.
Did anti-gay sentiment defeat Lambert? We’ll probably never know.
____________
Previously on Pied Type:
How did this happen people? I thought Adam had this in the bag….Oh….my heart hurts!
___________
Maybe that was the problem; too many of his supporters thought he had it in the bag and didn’t vote, or didn’t vote enough.
PT, I didn’t get to watch the ‘effing finale! My huz records it and when I went to watch it Thurs morning after work- it had malfunctioned. GAH! I’m serious. I’m seriously sad about it. Anywho. I thought of the two, Adam definitely was (wayyyy) more talented. Personally, I think he didn’t win because he is gay; which again, is extremely sad. On Tues. final performance show- Adam was right on key; he blew my doors down, his voice perfect and so powerful. Kris Allen, well, on his last song he was a hot mess- totally off key and even the judges said, “Kris, I hope people don’t judge you on this performance” (HELLO, what else are we suppose to judge him on?) – I know that they have two totally different singing/performing styles but my gut is that it’s not so much that people preferred Kris’s style – so much as they didn’t approve of Adam’s lifestyle. Which is bullshit! Because, to me- Adam is simply more talented. He’s going to be this generations Freddie Mercury – whatever he puts out is going to be awesome! Kris’s will be great too, just not nearly as great as Adam’s record! Just my own opinion.
__________
Awww, you didn’t get to see it!!??? I know you’re a huge fan. I only watched the very end to see who won. Didn’t want to sit through two hours of other people singing, charity fundraising, extra long ads, etc.
I think there’s a good chance being gay cost him, especially with a big Christian coalition supporting the other side. Queen is my all-time favorite group, but Freddie Mercury was their heart and soul and as far as I’m concerned, the group died with Freddie. Adam has that potential, maybe (can anyone hit and hold those high notes/screams as long as he can?). I think Kris will be forgotten a week from now.