Chart Watch: Lee Flops, Idol Runs Out of Steam

     You might not know it from the Hot 100, but American Idol is still the top show on television.  Although it has been slipping in the ratings and will no doubt suffer next year without Simon Cowell, Idol has been No. 1 for six years now according to A.C. Nielsen ratings.  That's unheard of (All In The Family and The Cosby Show did it for five).  If only this season's winner was as successful.

     Season 9 champ Lee DeWyze made his Hot 100 debut this week with a cover of U2's "Beautiful Day", coming in at a pathetic No. 24.  Assuming the single fails to climb any higher, DeWyze will set the record for the lowest charting debut single from an Idol winner.  After the jump are the peak positions of each winner's first single.

Simon Hopes Last Season of Idol Creates Lasting Star

    American Idol might be around for years to come, but let's not kid ourselves, this is its last season.  With Paula Abdul already gone and Simon Cowell leaving next season to start X Factor, Idol is destined to lose its relevance.  Sure it will probably continue to be a juggernaut in the ratings, but its popularity and importance will wane and Idol will become a relic of the 00s, a reminder of a simpler time.  Still, Cowell is hoping that the ninth season will produce some lasting musicians.

   "You want somebody who represents what is going on at the moment," Cowell said last week in a conference call with members of the media.  "I'd love to find a Taylor Swift, somebody who's relevant, rather than just a contest winner."

   Could that be a dig at Kris Allen, last year's winner, whose album only reached as high as No. 11 on the Billboard album chart?  Yes.  But it's also a dig at most of the people who have ever won Idol.  In the show's eight years of existence, only two bona fide stars have really emerged, the inaugural idol Kelly Clarkson, and season four winner Carrie Underwood.  Underwood leads in sales having shifted over 10,539,000 albums, but Clarkson is right behind her selling over 10,428,000 to date.

   Other than those two, only a handful of Idol contestants have made much of a dent in popular music.  Chris Daughtry, a fourth place finisher, is actually the third best seller of any Idol alum.  Season six winner Jordin Sparks has sent half of her singles into the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100 (that's three out of six).  Obviously, Cowell would like the show to create more lasting and relevant stars.

   The story of the "final" season of American Idol has yet to be told, and maybe this is the season that makes the next Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood.  Or maybe we'll just have to wait for X Factor to gives us our next true reality show pop star.

   Angela Martin, a contestant who has tried out three times but has failed to make it due to various personal difficulties agrees.

   "I tell anyone I meet I am going to go on the X Factor," Martin told People.com

Chart Watch: Taylor's "Fairytale" Contiues

    Country star Taylor Swift scored her third top three hit this week with the record breaking "Today Was A Fairytale", giving her yet another reason to celebrate.

    Swift, who has been nominated eight times at this week's Grammy awards, debuted at No. 2 with "Fairytale", from the soundtrack to Valentine's Day.  With digital sales of 325,000, Swift broke the record for best first week sales by a female artist.  The previous record holder was Britney Spears who sold 286,000 downloads of "Womanizer" in October 2008.

     Even with a stellar week in sales, radio airplay for "Fairytale" is non-existent, giving Ke$ha her sixth week at No. 1.  It does beg the question though, will Taylor Swift ever get a No. 1 single?

American Idol: Season 9 Kicks Off

As American Idol gears up to launch its ninth season, it begs the question: will it live up to past seasons? Sure, the glory days of Idol have long since passed-- days when its ratings rivaled that of the Oscars and the World Series...on a weekly basis-- but to say it has lost its mojo is debatable. Last season introduced a new judge, showcased the most talented top five since season 4, gave us the most polarizing contestant in its eight season history (sorry, Sanjaya) aptly nicknamed 'Glambert,' and concluded with arguably the biggest upset in Idol history, making for some great television.

With that said, the show has also recieved an onset of backlash over the past few seasons, and although the votes are still churning in by the billions and trillions, record sales for Idol alum aren't reaching the platinum statuses they used to. Reigning champ, Kris Allen, for instance, has seen tepid numbers with his self-titled debut (although, his first single has recently seen new chart life and has so far climbed to #30, more than Glambert can say). Aside from Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, most winners of American Idol have failed to make much of an impression on the music biz.

Season 9 proves to be an equally interesting season; with Paula out and Ellen in, it could make for some much needed humor and charm on the show. Ellen may not being a musician, but who are we kidding? Paula Abdul isn't either.

Only time will tell whether American Idol can maintain its firm grip on the hearts (and remotes) of America and if it can re-secure its position as the most powerful show on television. With 7 Grammys, 1 Oscar, and over 27 million records sold, the show has all but proven it can discover talent. The question standing, however, is "Can it continue to do so?" Tune in Tuesday and Wednesday nights from now until the end of May and see for yourselves.

Underwood Plays On

Carrie Underwood's third studio album, Play On, debuted at the top of the Billbaord 200 last Tuesday and moved 320,000 copies in its first week, becoming her second #1 album. This marks the highest first week sales of a female artist in 2009.

The first single, "Cowboy Casanova", has reached the top of the Country Hot 100 in record time, becoming the Oklahoma native's 11th #1 single. Underwood is no dummy; she's mastered a fail-proof formula that has brought her incredible success, and her third album strays very little from this formula.

It wasn't long after being crowned the fourth America Idol in 2005 that Underwood established herself as a powerful force in the music industry and quickly became the most decorated new-comer in the business. Her list of awards to date is astounding: 7 AMAs, 5 CMAs, 8 ACMAs, 14 Billboard Awards, 4 Grammys, and the most prestigious of all honors for country music stars, becoming an inductee into the Grand Ole Opry.

Album sales reflected this surge in popularity; her debut album, Some Hearts, has been certified 7x platinum, making it the highest selling female country artist debut ever, and her follow-up, Carnival Ride, has sold nearly 3 million records in the U.S. alone. With ten #1 singles under her belt, two critically-acclaimed blockbuster albums, and countless honors and awards, Underwood's third effort came with some pretty high expectations.

Whether you're a country music fan or not, there's no denying Underwood's incredible talent. Each of her albums have been polished, sparkly productions, with impeccable, near flawless vocals from Underwood. And that's where this effort falls a little flat -- it's too neat. It's too much of the same.

Play On has all the staples: The treacly love songs with lines like, "Life is short, love is sweet"? Check. The kiss-off anthem complete with sass and growl? Check, check and check. The tear-jerker about a starving child, a leaving lover, or a old man on his death bed? Of course. The title track brimming with inspirational messages? To be sure! As an artist, Underwood could really benefit from taking a few risks and stretching herself artistically.

Then again, Country music hasn't really changed since...ever. If you were to look up the term "old-fashioned" in a dictionary, you just might find yourself looking at a picture of a Country singer. So if Underwood isn't looking to broaden her fan base, general appeal, or musicality, she deserves all the accolades the country music world so liberally gives.

The 50th Annual Grammy Awards

Maynard James Keenan of Tool once said of the Grammys, "I think the Grammys are nothing more than some gigantic promotional machine for the music industry. They cater to a low intellect and they feed the masses. They don't honor the arts or the artist for what he created. It's the music business celebrating itself. That's basically what it's all about."

This year, being the fiftieth anniversary seemed no exception. There was plenty of celebration, plenty of mixing the old and new. Alicia Keys opened up with Frank Sinatra for instance. He was still black and white. Kid Rock performed with Keely Smith. She was still black and white...but she she was still alive. Beyonce teamed up with Tina Turner after proclaiming her a queen. Aretha had a problem with that.

It was such a stark contrast having the vetran performers and the young guns perform beside each other. It was so blatently evident what years of experience can do by watching John Fogerty, Little Richard, and Jerry Lee Lewis perform as compared with Rihanna, Carrie Underwood, or even just watching Miss Miley/Hannah Montana/Mini Hilary Duff present an award. Fogerty, Richard, and Lewis didn't even use synthesizers.

Highlights of the night include Carrie Underwood singing "Before He Cheats" with a troupe of backup dancers, Amy Winehouse's performance live via satelitte in London, and Kanye rapping both "Stronger" and "Hey Mama". West took home four more Grammys bringing his grand total to 10. During his acceptance speach, the "wrap it up" music started playing but he promptly put his foot down, especially when he talked about his late mother. His "Hey Mama" performance really said it all though.



Herbie Hancock won album of the year. Winehouse won record of the year, song of the year, and best new artist. "Umbrella" was awarded best rap/sung collaberation which is kind of funny seeing that Jay-Z's rap contribution to the song was limited and tacted onto the front for good measure. Oh well, that song deserved to win something didn't it? For a complete listing of the year's winners, see:

http://www.rockonthenet.com/archive/2008/grammys.htm