When Kris Allen was asked by the “American Idol” judges at his first audition if he thought he was the best singer in the competition, he replied by saying ‘You know, there’s probably people out there who are better than me.”
That was true in Louisville, where he first performed for Simon Cowell and company. It was true in Hollywood, when he advanced to the semifinals. It was true in his semifinal heat, when both Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta earned more praise and he tagged along as the third singer to earn the assigned spot among the 13 finalists.
But gradually, as the season progressed and Kris found his rhythm, the list of people better than he was grew smaller and smaller, and on Wednesday night he found out that according the “Idol” voters, nobody did it better.
The college student from Conway, Ark. was crowned the season eight winner, beating Adam in the finale. Along with the title, he wins a million-dollar record contract, a trophy shaped like a microphone, and the obligation to work with songwriter Kara DioGuardi to try and turn “No Boundaries” into something that doesn’t cause listeners to frantically change the station when it comes on the radio.
“Are you serious?” Kris asked after hearing his name announced as the winner. “I’m sorry, I don’t even know what to feel right now. This is crazy!”
Simplicity beat showmanship
He may have been the most shocked person on the stage, which would fit with his personality. But that belied the confidence that seemed to grow as he performed each week, to the point when anyone who thought Adam was a lock to win on Wednesday wasn’t paying attention.
That was true in Louisville, where he first performed for Simon Cowell and company. It was true in Hollywood, when he advanced to the semifinals. It was true in his semifinal heat, when both Adam Lambert and Allison Iraheta earned more praise and he tagged along as the third singer to earn the assigned spot among the 13 finalists.
But gradually, as the season progressed and Kris found his rhythm, the list of people better than he was grew smaller and smaller, and on Wednesday night he found out that according the “Idol” voters, nobody did it better.
The college student from Conway, Ark. was crowned the season eight winner, beating Adam in the finale. Along with the title, he wins a million-dollar record contract, a trophy shaped like a microphone, and the obligation to work with songwriter Kara DioGuardi to try and turn “No Boundaries” into something that doesn’t cause listeners to frantically change the station when it comes on the radio.
“Are you serious?” Kris asked after hearing his name announced as the winner. “I’m sorry, I don’t even know what to feel right now. This is crazy!”
Simplicity beat showmanship
He may have been the most shocked person on the stage, which would fit with his personality. But that belied the confidence that seemed to grow as he performed each week, to the point when anyone who thought Adam was a lock to win on Wednesday wasn’t paying attention.
No comments:
Post a Comment