'American Idol' takes its final bow
'American Idol' dominated the pop culture landscape in the early 2000s and discovered such successful singers as Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood. Now the program's final season will debut on Jan. 6.
The original 'American Idol' judges (l. to r.) Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson.
Kevork Djansezian/AP/File
A TV phenomenon听has reached its final verse. 鈥淎merican Idol,鈥� the singing competition that debuted on Fox in 2002, dominated the pop culture landscape, and once held the longest winning streak in the Nielsen annual television ratings, is airing its 15th and final season.
The show discovered and mentored successful singers such as Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Chris Daughtry. The original judges 鈥� Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Paula Abdul 鈥� reached new heights by earning fans among new generations of viewers. During its successful early seasons, 鈥淎merican Idol鈥� regularly attracted a huge number of viewers, with the second season finale, starring Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard, ranking as the most watched episode.
鈥淚t certainly has had a major impact on television and pop culture,鈥� says Ken Zambello, who teaches vocal ensembles and the history of rock music at Berklee College of Music in Boston. An important ingredient to its success was viewer participation 鈥� with fans at home casting votes for who should stay in the competition. Mr. Zambello says he remembers family members becoming heavily invested in the show, watching the program and calling friends to discuss it.听
Success can often be measured by imitation, however, and spinoffs of the show could explain why ratings for 鈥淎merican Idol鈥� have plummeted. This past spring, the season finale of 鈥淎merican Idol鈥� was its lowest rated ever.
In addition, there haven鈥檛 been any recent winners whose success compares with that of Ms. Underwood and Ms. Clarkson; Mr. Cowell, Mr. Jackson, and Ms. Abdul have also long since moved on to other projects.
As a result, Zambello says, aspiring vocalists have come to realize the show is no longer their golden ticket to fame. 鈥淸I]t鈥檚 not an automatic steppingstone toward stardom,鈥� he says.听
But its legacy seems secure, with 鈥淭he X Factor鈥� and 鈥淭he Voice鈥� still going strong. While 鈥淚dol鈥� will be gone, Zambello says, singing competition reality shows aren鈥檛 going anywhere.
鈥溾�楾he Voice鈥� has pretty much taken over,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 ready to ... take the mantle.鈥�