American Idol is an amateur singer’s seventh heaven, is it not? All a hopeful has to do is learn a song, sing it well enough to pass the audition and then he or she gets to sing it on TV; maybe win the series and then become a multi-millionaire with the guaranteed singing contract prize. What could be easier than learning a song and then singing it?
However, it is exactly because people think that it is that simple that it is not. Thousands, tens of thousands of people from all over the country go to the auditions and some of them have been singing in competitions for years.
The dividends for success in American Idol are so immense that numerous contestants leave nothing to luck. Some contestants have advisors and coaches and managers and practice for at least a year before putting their name down for an audition.
The first aspect of American Idol that rank amateurs notice is fatigue. Practiced amateurs, semi-professionals and those who have sung in competitions before are well aware of the hanging about that is part and parcel of all competitions and TV shows in general. Filming is well-known for keeping actors and other participants waiting for hours.
The experienced will get all the sleep they are able to and will look after their throats and voices. The inexpert will sit around talking or even drinking beer. The experienced will have a more powerful larynx anyway, but they will also be aware of the importance of looking after it. This gives them a huge advantage over the other hopefuls.
The freedom of choice of songs is limited. Not many people know this. You could rehearse your favourite song for months, turn up at the rehearsal and then be told that you may not sing it for copyright reasons.
The company producing the show have financial arrangements in position with many singer-song writers and publishers of music, but not all. So it is better to check well in advance to avoid disappointment
Contracts are another surprise awaiting those who do not have an agent who is au fe with recording contracts. A contestant is not permitted by contract to sign up with a record label at any time during the competition whether he or she is winning or eliminated. The company putting on the show has the first option on the contestants under all circumstances for a certain length of time.
Random luck plays a immense part in the outcome of the programme. The papers and the message boards may predict for weeks that a particular singer will win, but nothing can be decided until the very last day of voting. There have been several broken hearts, because the newspapers claimed that someone was a sure-fire winner, only for it not to be thus on the day.
Wherever there is so much money to be earned and the stakes are so high, the rank amateur has little chance of breaking in. It is always best to give yourself every chance of winning before even entering and to realise that you have little opportunity of being successful.
Owen Jones, the writer of this article, writes on numerous subjects, but is currently involved with singing enthusiastically. If you are interested in enthusiasm, go to our web site Enthusiastically now.