I definitely agree with The Voice. I originally watched the show because Christina Aguilera was on the initial season, but I quickly realized it was all about the coaches, not the contestants. The auditions are all about picking a COACH. At the end of the season it's about the coach WINNING. The next season the coach brags about winning. Nothing about the contestants.
The Voice will just leave the contestant standing there while the coaches are all squabbling. I bet you most people couldn't even name a single person who's ever won that show, because they couldn't possibly care any less about promoting them. It really is just a "karaoke competition" and that's why I stopped watching it years ago.
There was NOTHING like Idol back in the day!! It felt like the entire country was watching. I remember calling my friends on the commercials and hanging up the second it came back on. You could not miss a second. Randy, Simon, Paula are the holy trinity.
I think it might be fun to see the 3 of them back, even if they just did it for a season. It would be cool to see the ratings for that. I thought Paula was so fun!
Yes plus we didn’t have all the tech and social media we do now so TV shows were big events. Or like people would gather to watch certain shows or movies or awards. Such a better time. We have to much media and information coming at us these days that nothing is special anymore.
The ratings reflect it. The ratings tend to go down on the Voice. after the blinds. Also the lives have been cut down to a couple days which leaves room for pitch correction.
@orlock20 I honestly don't know anyone who watches it past the blinds. I don't watch it all because of how insanely staged it is. Clay is absolutely right. It's not a competition, it's the View from the 00s with music performances. I betcha hard money a real battle of the bands format would go off right now. People crave authentic experiences.
see i think its the opposite, i think its a competition first and reality show 2nd. watch the early seasons of idol an you will see lots of influence of survivor/the real world that centers on drama/conflict/personalities...whereas now its more so about the singing
@@junkerinhistrunkerwell, it's always been a competition second. You have to remember, to get in the competition portion/stage you have to go through the reality TV horse and pony show w/auditions first. That airs for weeks before the actual people who can sing have been weeded out before finally switching to the performances/voting portion of the show.
@@junkerinhistrunker No, that's already been exposed for years now, as well as a list of winners who all went No where, Only the first few American idol seasons had people that got so huge we forgot they came from Idol, later seasons 3rd and 2nd place got careers and first place didn't get ahead We can even go back to jordan sparks and that's around the times as well that people on the show would get a bump and a label but fallen off, Now even people just in the audition and talked down to by simon like tory kelly, she got her own fame seperate from idol. The exposing shows that Idol and X factor etc is actually a show about The JUDGES first
He's a nut job.....he claims that he lost 50% of his fans when he came out, but the reality is, MOST people that were "popular" on American Idol become LESS popular when the show is over.....Rueben Studdard went into gospel and lost 99% of any fans he might have had on AI, and I am pretty sure it has nothing to do with sexual orientation....
American Idol did it because it was backed by a major label. Most TV singing contests aren't like that. People still have to market themselves after the show. Star Search winner Beth Hart got her big break busking after she won in 1993.
@@MsJubjubbird I don't agree, at all !!! Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson, of The Voice, for instance, are huge stars!!! Reba just completed a sold-out tour, in '22, which included The Hollywood Bowl, and Madison Square Garden, She had just finished a Las Vegas residency, before that. Her book (her third) was on the NYT bestsellers list, and she just filmed a new sitcom (her third). Blake had, at least, 17 number one hits, in a row, has about 7 bars, with people waiting in-line, and just landed a Las Vegas residency. Kelly has her highly rated talkshow, and dropped a phenomenally successful album, recently. These people are SOOOOO far past "15 minutes"!!! They, in no way, needed the show, for them to be successful !!!
That's funny, because.... -- Christina Grimme was on tour, when she got killed!!! -- Morgan Wallen has won 20+ awards, including 2 recent ACMs---AND, he just won "Entertainer of The Year", at the CMAs!! He has had a no.1 album, and his most recent no.1 single just beat Taylor Swift's record of longest, at no.1 !!! When Morgan "released his third studio album, 'One Thing at a Time.' All 36 songs on the album charted on the Billboard 100 simultaneously during the album's first week of release. This set the record for most songs on the chart at one time". -- Danielle Bradbury has put-out 3 albums---and Kelly Clarkson covered one of her songs!!! -- Jordan Smith has put-out 3 albums!! -- Sundance Head opened for the Zac Brown Band, dropped 2 albums, and is currently on tour!!! -- Chevele Shepherd has released several originals, including one she co-wrote with Kasey Musgraves, and has dropped 2 albums!! -- Cam Anthony has given a nearly endless stream of performances, continues to release covers, has 60K subscribers, and released an original, last year!!! -- Gina Miles released an EP, dropped a single, and opened for Jewel !!! -- RaeLynn had good success, before she got pregnant, 2 minutes after she got married!! She released several originals, and did videos for them. She was featured on one of Blake's songs, and he did one of her songs, with her. -- Katie Kadan dropped an album, this past Christmas!! Also, she just dropped a single, "Without You" that is BEYOND fabulous---very bluesy/soulful !!! Just dropped another original, with full video, October 25th: "Unless I Fall in Love"!!! I'm so excited for her, I don't know what to do with myself!!! I NEED AN ALBUM, IMMEDIATELY!!!!!! Katie just dropped a new, original Christmas song!!! -- Bryce Leatherwood is shooting-up the charts, as we speak!! -- Huntley performed the national anthem, and the half-time show, for the Buffalo Bills, did a music festival, with other The Voice contestants, including Jake Hoot, at one of Blake Shelton's bars (Nashville), and is getting ready to drop his first single!!! Huntley is playing a festival, and Jacquie Roar is opening for him!!! -- Lila Forde just recorded/released James Taylor's "Fire and Rain"!!! -- Asher HaVon just dropped an original song, "Thank You", that he wrote to honor Reba McEntire, and he dedicated it to her, and she said it made her cry!!! He called her his momma on the show, and said "You are truly my angel, on earth"!!! He posted the song, on his RUclips account !!! -- Tae Lewis has sung with Jake Hoot, dropped an original, at the end of August, and did a video for it; one, mid-September, and did a video, for it: "Stone Cold Soul Heartbreaker"---and it's really good (one of the lines is "Even the devil was an angel, at first" - FABULOUS!!)---and has recorded another original, and did a visualizer for it, that is set for release, mid-October!!! Tae sang at The Grand Ole Opry!! He also has a boot line, and has sold hundreds of pairs!!!! -- Ruby Leigh just got invited to the Grand Ole Opry, for her debut!! She's headlining at a County Fair!!! She's also already sellin'-out tickets to her New Year's Eve show, where she'll be joined by Al Boogie, and Katie Hatch!!! Ruby is headlining, and she just dropped her first original !!! Ruby just got invited to the Opry, for her second appearance!!! The show includes Trace Adkins, The Gatlin Brothers, and Linda Davis (sang duet with Reba McEntire: "Does He Love You")!!! Ruby performed at Dollywood, in September!! -- Jordan Rainier just did a tour, and Kristen Brown joined her, on a few gigs!! Jordan also just dropped an original, and got a product endorsement!! Also, she was recently nominated for Female Artist of the Year, by The Texas Country Music Association!!! -- Jacquie Roar dropped an original, and got a huge billboard in Nashville, promoting it---and she just filmed/released the video!! She just dropped another original, and sang it, live, on the radio!! She sang a cover, in the Cherry Blossom Parade, in D.C. She's also been invited to a huge Country music festival, with several Country music stars, and attended Lainey Wilson's induction into the Opry!! She and Huntley are going to do an event. Also, she, Bias, and Nini Iris filled several venues, recently!! Recently, Jacquie did a show with Huntley, and none other than JELLY ROLL, with whom she got to sing her Battles duet: "Need a Favor"!!!!! ....and I just know I'm forgetting some!!! Just because you haven't heard about contestants' success, doesn't mean they haven't had any!! Plus, Reba and Blake stay in contact with their contestants, after the show, and continue to help them---and, Kelly has had several of them, on her talkshow. While most of these are not winners of the show, they certainly have had some success!!! Some have a net worth of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a couple are worth millions!!!!
Such a smart interview. Clay has a real but still respectful understanding of the industry then and the industry now. Glad to hear someone talk about those differences so matter-of-factly without talking down on any of it
He is making a comeback! Clay just released a new Christmas album, "Christmas Bells Are Ringing". It is a beautiful album of classic Christmas songs. Available on Amazon & streaming platforms. He hopes to tour next Christmas.
Simon Cowell once made a comment that he was tough, but the entertainment industry is tougher. Simon was sometimes harsh, but he was usually on target.
Simon made the entertainment industry worse. He has an inflated sense of his own influence and ability to “discover” talent. Huge ego but not a lot of actual talent himself. Anyone can see why the singers that Simon selected as his protégés would most likely succeed.
Sounds like Clay needs to be a judge and take on that roll. Something tells me that he can let someone know they're doing "not that great" in an unimpeachably pleasant yet absolutely devastating way lol
The only point I somewhat contend with is audiences not wanting to see something mean. Mostly people came to understand that people on the show were screened or had auditioned for a spot. So a lot of people that weren't good were put there bt producers to be ridiculed. That to me was the gross nature of the first run of American Idol.
@@catwhisperer9489 I don't think you understand my point. Audiences drifted away from that stuff. Springer was really only relevant in the late 90s. Current day viewers aren't clamoring for Jerry Springer.
@@codydavis3100 Oh, but they are!!! There have been reruns of The Jerry Springer Show, for decades---I don't know if it's ever been off the air!!! There are others, too, where people fight, all the time: "Big Brother", "Love and Hip-Hop", and the Desperate Housewives franchise, and on and on!!! I don't get it---I've never watched any of these shows---the best I can figure, is that people like to see someone's life, who's worse than their own, I guess!!!
The bad auditions in American idol were my favorite but it wouldn’t work now bc of social media. Ppl would do it just to become influencers which completely ruins it. People might’ve done it for attention back then too, but there wasn’t the reward that there would be now which is getting to quit your job and become an influencer. That’s why a lot of ppl go on reality tvz it’s now a direct pipeline to becoming an influencer.
He totally hit the nail on the head with judges. The judges just blow smoke up the contestants, and never give them any advice besides telling them how great they already are. Giving everyone a standing ovation just makes it all the worse.
Yeah or just pusing someone forward because (American Idol is built this way now) their story is relevant. Its such a fake show now its hard not to cringe.
@@CallmeShadowyn That's exactly why I mute the TV when they show people's stories: So I'm not influenced by them!! I get so sick of hearin' "Somebody ran over my dog", or "My mother ran-off with the milkman"!!! That's how they get on the show---just like a newscast "If it bleeds, it leads"!!!
@CallmeShadowyn That's exactly why I mute the TV when they show people's stories: So I'm not influenced by them!! I get so sick of hearin' "Somebody ran over my dog", or "My mother ran-off with the milkman"!!! That's how they get on the show---just like a newscast "If it blêēds, it leads"!!!
I watched American Idol years and years ago. Simon was a big part of why we watched. He was great. We loved to hate him, but we really loved him. We need more Simons from back in the day.
Nowadays they’d be trying to cancel him and call him a bigot supremacist if he dared to insult certain contestants. Today he’d be forced to sign William Hung so he wouldn’t offend the snowflakes 😂😂😂
@@tula1433 You're the snowflake. Nobody would be forcing Simon to sign someone, and obviously you picked a minority contestant to run your mouth about to start drama, M*GA. Simon wanted the most marketable contestant with talent, and if that was a white guy with a guitar, that was the fault of America, specifically the middle-aged wyt women who statistically voted Tr*mp in big numbers. Nice try making up a way to attack the left.
I used to watch the voice because of Christina Aguilera, but stopped watching after she left. She has said in some interviews that the show isn't really about finding a new 'star', but focusing on the coaches like others have mentioned.
All of this is making sense. When X Factor debut around 2011, the winner wasn’t on tv, wasn’t getting promotions, no radio or singles. It’s like they moved on to the next season and she preformed on that season and that was the last we heard from her.
It has nothing to do with singing anymore. Its about the entire person theyre trying to market. Someone could have the perfect voice, but if they dont come with a cute positive attitude or a big sob story, theyre not gonna invest in them to move forward. I miss when it was about if they could sing. It was so much more real & in the moment. Social media changed EVERYTHING.
What's worse is the voice now has so few episodes that you don't even really get to know a contestant before the show is over. I might give it one more season. Maybe
I agree with Clay's point more than this. The music industry has always been about the whole package. Now these shows just don't have a vested interest in the musicians after the show. It doesn't matter if you advance or not.
Oh, I don't think he's passive-aggressive, at all. Yes, honest, in the Southern way, but, to me being honest means open.... How can someone be open, and hiding (passive-aggressive), at the same time? An example of what I feel is PA, is: my aunt would ask my uncle how he liked the meal, she cooked, and he would say "It'd be alright if I had something to wash it down, with"!!! LOL If he would have been honest, he woulda just asked for a beverage.
Look at Benson Boone. He auditioned for Idol and got a golden ticket but then backed out because he realized that it wasn't a good opportunity. He has worked hard since then to create his own career and is doing better than any recent Idol winner.
I’m not discounting his talent or effort, but he still leveraged his audition and participation in Idol as a launching point for his career. It would be interesting to know if he had never been on idol, if he would have been able to get the exposure, record deal, fan base, etc.
@@anonnyanonymous4800 What participation? He auditioned. He never went back after the audition. So he had about 5 minutes of screen time. That's not much exposure. And most of the contestants who have made it through Hollywood week have been forgotten, with much more exposure and participation.
@@mattbosley3531he’s video was/is still up and has millions of views. yes, he went on to do his own thing, but no one would’ve ever known him if not for idol, so it still gave him his start.
@@mattbosley3531Benson was one of the most watched auditions that season. This was before Hollywood week was shown and people knew he quit. Also, there's articles that he got interest from a label due to his stuff going viral. He was signed pretty quickly after his audition aired. It's possible his Idol audition was watched by industry people. Sometimes even recent Idol auditions have 1 million+ views on YT before auditions are through.
When Idol got started, a huge appeal and reason why some contestants became famous is because the show was built around creating a weekly connection between the singer & audience. Each week, the audience feels closer to and builds a greater vested interest in "their" candidate. It created loyalty over many months! Then, even when a contestant was voted off, or the show ended, the public still felt a connection, a relationship, to the artist. And with relationship & loyalty comes stardom! It's an incredible recipe for success! The Voice has never done that hence no superstars, that I know of.
Idol created "superstars"? I wouldn`t consider any of the idol stars, superstars..ask outside the US about any of the "superstars" you are thinking about and get ready for a LOT of blank looks.
@@berain-vo9ur Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Adam Lambert are superstars. From rival franchises, One Direction members and Little Mix members, Jackie Evancho was a star in her day and Paul Potts.
Regarding The Voice: That's funny, because.... -- Christina Grimme was on tour, when she got killed!!! -- Morgan Wallen has won 20+ awards, including 2 recent ACMs---AND, he just won "Entertainer of The Year", at the CMAs!! He has had a no.1 album, and his most recent no.1 single just beat Taylor Swift's record of longest, at no.1 !!! When Morgan "released his third studio album, 'One Thing at a Time.' All 36 songs on the album charted on the Billboard 100 simultaneously during the album's first week of release. This set the record for most songs on the chart at one time". -- Danielle Bradbury has put-out 3 albums---and Kelly Clarkson covered one of her songs!!! -- Jordan Smith has put-out 3 albums!! -- Sundance Head opened for the Zac Brown Band, dropped 2 albums, and is currently on tour!!! -- Chevele Shepherd has released several originals, including one she co-wrote with Kasey Musgraves, and has dropped 2 albums!! -- Cam Anthony has given a nearly endless stream of performances, continues to release covers, has 60K subscribers, and released an original, last year!!! -- Gina Miles released an EP, dropped a single, and opened for Jewel !!! -- RaeLynn had good success, before she got pregnant, 2 minutes after she got married!! She released several originals, and did videos for them. She was featured on one of Blake's songs, and he did one of her songs, with her. -- Katie Kadan dropped an album, this past Christmas!! Also, she just dropped a single, "Without You" that is BEYOND fabulous---very bluesy/soulful !!! Just dropped another original, with full video, October 25th: "Unless I Fall in Love"!!! I'm so excited for her, I don't know what to do with myself!!! I NEED AN ALBUM, IMMEDIATELY!!!!!! Katie just dropped a new, original Christmas song!!! -- Bryce Leatherwood is shooting-up the charts, as we speak!! -- Huntley performed the national anthem, and the half-time show, for the Buffalo Bills, did a music festival, with other The Voice contestants, including Jake Hoot, at one of Blake Shelton's bars (Nashville), and is getting ready to drop his first single!!! Huntley is playing a festival, and Jacquie Roar is opening for him!!! -- Lila Forde just recorded/released James Taylor's "Fire and Rain"!!! -- Asher HaVon just dropped an original song, "Thank You", that he wrote to honor Reba McEntire, and he dedicated it to her, and she said it made her cry!!! He called her his momma on the show, and said "You are truly my angel, on earth"!!! He posted the song, on his RUclips account !!! -- Tae Lewis has sung with Jake Hoot, dropped an original, at the end of August, and did a video for it; one, mid-September, and did a video, for it: "Stone Cold Soul Heartbreaker"---and it's really good (one of the lines is "Even the devil was an angel, at first" - FABULOUS!!)---and has recorded another original, and did a visualizer for it, that is set for release, mid-October!!! Tae sang at The Grand Ole Opry!! He also has a boot line, and has sold hundreds of pairs!!!! -- Ruby Leigh just got invited to the Grand Ole Opry, for her debut!! She's headlining at a County Fair!!! She's also already sellin'-out tickets to her New Year's Eve show, where she'll be joined by Al Boogie, and Katie Hatch!!! Ruby is headlining, and she just dropped her first original !!! Ruby just got invited to the Opry, for her second appearance!!! The show includes Trace Adkins, The Gatlin Brothers, and Linda Davis (sang duet with Reba McEntire: "Does He Love You")!!! Ruby performed at Dollywood, in September!! -- Jordan Rainier just did a tour, and Kristen Brown joined her, on a few gigs!! Jordan also just dropped an original, and got a product endorsement!! Also, she was recently nominated for Female Artist of the Year, by The Texas Country Music Association!!! -- Jacquie Roar dropped an original, and got a huge billboard in Nashville, promoting it---and she just filmed/released the video!! She just dropped another original, and sang it, live, on the radio!! She sang a cover, in the Cherry Blossom Parade, in D.C. She's also been invited to a huge Country music festival, with several Country music stars, and attended Lainey Wilson's induction into the Opry!! She and Huntley are going to do an event. Also, she, Bias, and Nini Iris filled several venues, recently!! Recently, Jacquie did a show with Huntley, and none other than JELLY ROLL, with whom she got to sing her Battles duet: "Need a Favor"!!!!! ....and I just know I'm forgetting some!!! Just because you haven't heard about contestants' success, doesn't mean they haven't had any!! Plus, Reba and Blake stay in contact with their contestants, after the show, and continue to help them---and, Kelly has had several of them, on her talkshow. While most of these are not winners of the show, they certainly have had some success!!! Some have a net worth of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a couple, are worth millions!!!!
I actually had a Voice contestant come into work one day and made a deal about them being a celebrity. He shut it down pretty quickly and honestly wanted to know about ME. Pretty cool interaction.
Clay's so great- he's always been one of my faves. And he's right about Idol. They were never able to replace Simon in the sense that *because* he was tough, that made his praise even more valuable. I remember contestants politely thanking the other judges for good comments...and then everyone would hold their breath when it got to Simon, and then explode in cheers when he gave praise too. He also strategically used good comments for mid to poor performances to help with contestants' confidence if he felt there was something in them. Like with Tim Urban in s9- he was panned by the others, then was so stunned when Simon disagreed with them. Tim wowed them the next week, and gave credit to Simon for his comments.
I also agree with Clay - so many of these judges say “you’re a star” and none have actually reached that status past Carrie Underwood on Idol…never on the Voice.
It’s so true, you can tell the exact point the switch happened on Idol; when the show started to be about only the judges, and the winner won nothing, could become nothing. Also crazy that The Voice never produced a true “Clarkson”-level household name. Aiken is a great interview, he completely gets it.
@DualityUnlimited no her songs recently are flops. Even diehard lambs don't support her new songs, just her old catalogue. I'm a vanilla lamb, but i like some of her recent songs, not just a lot because it's very antiquated lyrically and production wise
Great conversation. It's a very different landscape compared to 20 years ago. The music industry and just how we discover music. Social Media/tik tok basically distorted the flow of how Artists become known. It is what it is.
I was literally just having this same conversation, especially about The Voice. Honestly, I cannot name a single person who has won The Voice, and I watched the first 10 seasons religiously and have casually followed a few others since. It also feels like every singer gets a standing ovation these days-especially in the 2020s.
Excellent point about The Voice. The "coaches" are still actively singing and trying to sell tickets and they don't want to tick anybody off. If they allowed Simon to come back or a judge to actually judge, the show would be better for the casual viewers
I like the raw honesty Clay! And he is right. The first seasons of Idol, Simon was blunt and ruthless but was willing to call out junk singers or not good enough. But now, you can tell the judges are concerned with saying something offensive and then getting backlash. Iam Tongi was great but that has not translated into an incredible recording career. It is too bad he wasn’t pushed to do some uptempo or take chances to mix it up
The reality about singing shows is anyone immensely talented at a young age get signed up to a record deal early. So you are looking for a diamond in the rough which occasionally you find but most seasons that person doesn’t exist. Sadly that’s why most the people once the season is over you never hear from them again
that todays is... but was are we have Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia (Barrino), Adam Lambert, former One Direction(s) Harry Styles, Zayn, Niall Horan, the Little Mix like Perrie, Jade & Leigh-Ann & Camila Cabillo from Fifth Harmony
I would say now record deals usually go to whoever's breaking on TikTok etc. So that's where the potential big stars of tomorrow focus. These shows mostly get people who are good live performers but aren't quite able to break through online.
@@Nissl61 and that's get me pissing me off... the actually/the real singers should be get those recording contract deals that's it should be.. not the online creators for me are attention grabbers
American idol fell off when they ONLY SHOWED GOOD people and GOOD critizism, it doesn't feel real and not all about the sob storry but man it was so much more real and raw when it was bad auditions
Hold on. She signed with both Simon and Clive Davis right after winning the idol. Breakaway is the 2nd album that Clive Davis also was the executive producer. 19 studio also involved in the "Breakaway" production. So I don't think Breakaway being successful is because it wasn't produced by Simon and his company. Truth to be told, her debut album was also massively successful as well. The 1st single from that album was "Miss Independent" was a smash hit.
Clay is right. I loved him on the show. With Simon gone now they tell everyone they are great. Idol has had some big stars. The voice has failed in producing big stars.
Like he said, the early Idol was backed by a major label which put the money down. How much? During the top of Beyonce's career, $3 million per album and $1 million per single was spent just on publicity. When Idol sold off there was no commitment to spend that kind of money on the winners. The Voice was never backed by a major label.
These showrunners just happened to realize that more people watch for feel good moments rather than for the botched auditions. It's not really about the artists, it's about the audience.
This is why the X Factor contestant go on to have careers, because Simon Cowell has his on production company and has a vested interest in whomever wins.
I enjoy Clay. I need him to get a podcast or teach a math class or invite me over for dinner so we can just talk about random stuff in the south he’s lovely.
I’ve been wondering what has happened for years now, this made so much sense, people went from going on these shows and having songs on the radio, to now basically people just get more Instagram followers and it’s fun to go on the show. But nothing happens culture wise
I agree with Clay. Old school American Idol was a phenonium and not just a show. I do like the other music competition shows today, but there has definitely been a shift. It's not just with shows, but the world is less willing to take criticism as a whole. Everyone is afraid of being "canceled" SMH.
SUCH A GREAT QUESTION AND A INFORMATIVE ANSWER. PEOPLE WATCH BUT NOONE REMEMBERS THE "WINNER." THE NETWORK IS ABOUT THE COACHES FANDOM DEFINITELY. CLAY SHOULD BE A JUDGE, HE TELLS IT LIKE IT IS AND SHOULD BE. THE CURRENT JUDGES ARE TOO DISNEY. EVERYONE IS GREAT AND THE BEST EVERRRRRRRR. WE ALL MISS THE WILLIAM HUNGS 😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢.
I like how he is very in touch with the current trends - gamification of the shows and cancel culture. Hardly anyone can recall who are the winners of these shows.
Yep. I made it to the last audition of hollywood week season 14. I quickly learned, while on stage, that the producers are the ones who decided everything, not the celebrity judges. And they truly do not care about their contestants. Idol is just a regular exploitative reality tv show. & it was quite a traumatizing experience for me…but that’s another story lol. I think the rise of social media has made it more easier for artists to blow up, so they don’t really need a show like American Idol or the Voice. And the shows invest in their celebrity stars than actually making one. I’m sure over the years people who have gone through the experience have also told others it’s not worth it. I’m surprised that it is still airing and people are still auditioning for it.
When I auditioned in Philadelphia for season 7 back in 2007, I only noticed the "Rejects" getting golden tickets to move forward to the main judges. The bad singers that you see on TV advanced through two or three rounds of auditions to get there.
American Idol was extremely fortunate that in its first year they found arguably the greatest singer of the last 25 years. Nothing was going to stop her from being a star. A voice and singer like that comes around once in a generation. Ironically, she is not a showy singer. The great singers don't show off. They just sing. The Voice was never about finding the next big star. The big singing successes of AI were all the same. Daughtry, Underwood, just sing. Aiken and Studdard were just riding Kelly''s wave.
@@KingKissanagreed. She's obviously quite talented but OP is comparing her to Whitney Houston (a once in a generation talent). Clarkson isn't a Whitney Houston. She's more of a Dua Lipa: solid, very cute, catchy songs. Not the BE ALL END ALL of singing.
Clay is accurate. The Voice is about the judges turning. It's like a karaoke competition. I can't name the winners let alone the contestants. I can remember most of the Idol winners and even non winners
Agreed with his Iam Tongi take. Although Tongi was absolutely amazing, it definitely would’ve been nice to hear more range or hear him try attacking an unfamiliar genre to him.
Very smart and interesting. Everything he said makes sense. A lot of times you ask a question like this and the person will say something dismissing the current talent of today.
I think it may have the first 2 or 3 seasons b/c there was no social media and it was a major major deal, but so many years later it doesn't make stars. Kelly Clarkson, Clay, Carrie yes from years ago, now not so much.
Exactly, social media has overwhelmed the creative process with criticism forcing the hand of producers with making sure their show is a success for their own sake vs the content they intended to provide.
Very insightful. It is interesting how 'who owns the show' determines the investment in the artists. also how its become more about the production and the judges than the actual contestants.
Finally, someone who isn't trying to be politically correct and is just honest about reality. I love the way he speaks and doesn't care who gets upset.
I had a substitute teacher back in 2003-2004 who said she went to prom with him. I was in the 7th or 8th grade at the time. It seemed like everybody in the world knew he was gay, even back then. So, one of my classmates piped up saying “but, isn’t he gay?” getting nods from the other children. She seemed shocked by the thought and went on for a while firmly denying it, listing many reasons why he couldn’t possibly be gay. I’m still close friends with one of my classmates from that day and when we saw the headline about him “coming out” years later, my friend says “Wait till Ms. So-and-so hears about this.” Now every time I see him(Clay) or hear about him, I think of her, arguing against the seemingly obvious to a room full of children who had never even met the guy. I don’t mean anything by this and it’s probably not even worth sharing but, here it is.
There's a reason why it's near exclusively wealthy, famous, public facing people, ect that make claims about some "unique times not being allowed to criticize ect". The only actual difference is no longer having the unique privilege of never having to hear about it.
I super agree with Clay, everything he said here is spot on!! I miss the constructive criticisms that former judges used to give, even JLo have some good constructive feedback before! Because we as the audience also learn from it.
It's just cool to see Clay doing well. I remember voting for him waay back when I was young. It's never going to be the same, but the memories were great. It was a community event for sure.
My voice teacher told me that when auditioning for the voice, she told me "no matter what happens it's just a show." and she told me, "it's not about you, it's about the judges. it' s about the ratings." I'm glad I listened to her and understood. So my shift became to if I made it on the voice, I don't want to win, I want the exposure to get the access. The best one to do it on the show who was a effective and smart was Melanie Martinez.
Clay hit the nail on the head! I quit watching Idol years and the Voice is 99.9% about the coaches. It's not just the music shows either, AGT has become a love fest.
The judges pushing the contestants to try new things makes them into better artists. Clay’s hit single was uptempo pop/rock and audiences had seen him try that successfully on the show.
Packaged and pitch corrected. Beth Hart, winner of Star Search, is still doing well for herself and she wasn't a Mariah Carey singer. This year she had two projects with Slash and sang on stage with John Oates from Hall and Oates. There are videos of her on Star Search and she was aggressive then and more aggressive than any singer on Idol or the Voice. Most singers on these shows don't leave their mark for starters.
So true. There are of course good music these days, as in any era, but I was in a coffee shop recently and the music are all trendy, middling type and I felt like I was braindead for how boring the vocals were. I remember thinking, does no one belt anymore?
According to Star Search winner Beth Hart, singers felt it was a disgrace to go on a TV singing contest. She did it on a bet and said the show never helped her career. She did win $100,000 in 1993 which happens to be the same amount on these shows.
@@orlock20Greta point! These shows have been around for ages and are have had a hand in shaking far more pop starts over the years than many people realize.
One glaring omission about the critiques of the reality competition singing shows is that the most popular genres of music these days are country and hip-hop/rap. The voices heard on these shows are undeniably great, however, radio rarely plays soaring ballads with extended notes held and key changes. In addition, with all the streaming services available, people don’t listen to the radio that much to get new songs to be interested in. When was the last time you heard a hard-core hip-hop artist on either American Idol or The Voice? The flyover states inhabitants do the most voting and tend to choose the most, let’s say, “vanilla” contestants.
I agree - there is just such a different content landscape now with social media. It is easier now to break into the industry by building your own brand on TikTok or other platforms.
When Idol first started, the bad auditions were all my co-workers would talk about for the first two weeks or so. Then we would adorn our desks with out favs throughout the season. Bet on winner's. It was sooo freeking fun!!!! Also watching, Simon, Paula & Randy laugh at bad contestants was priceless!!!
Stars are not being created because of the Internet/social media. There's no need for a star due to easy-breezy accessibility. Stars were exclusive. Stars had a mystique about them. That does not exist no more. Anybody can do music. Anybody can go viral for anything. We're living in a viral, microwave society. When everybody wasn't doing music, we had better music. Nah, think about today's attention span. Are consumers really able to focus on an artist(s) like they did decades ago? Absolutely not. Today's music has a lifespan of about a month and then it's forgotten. It never used to be like that. Hell, we don't even have one-hit wonders no more. Snow's _Informer_ just randomly came to mind. All you know is _Informer,_ decades later. Songs, overall, do not stick & sink into the hearts & minds of today's consumers like they did decades ago. The mystique of a star is a thing of the past. Look around, media is focused on Puffy and Jay-Z. 25 years ago, media would've been focused on they music. It's simply not about music no more. I'm almost 40 years old so I can speak candidly about that 25 year differential. But yeah man, corporate ain't making no stars. For what? They not finna invest hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars on nobody only for the sh¡t to fizzle out in a month. As Clay stated, these competition shows want viral moments for social media. They're not invest in making the next "star."
He so right about these current seasons of AI or the voice. I think AI went down after Simon Cowell left. As Clay said he's the one who was mean, but he was willing to give criticism on what it takes to be a star. It's not just about the singing voice, there are other factors.
I recently started watching Idol again after many years and noticed the difference in production. I miss the wacky auditions. To me, it was a reason to watch and it made the outstanding talent standout even more, in my opinion. The whole thing about not saying anything mean, I think it's because controversy goes viral and someone could claim you damaged their reputation or caused them to miss out on opportunities for being portrayed in a bad light.
Truth is these shows like American idol, the voice etc arent necessary anymore. Social media is where people display their talent. Back in the day, we needed shows like american idol to find new talented singers. Which is why basically the whole country watched. I remember growing up, American idol was a HUGE deal. Television is dying in favor of online. Record labels now arent looking at television shows to find new artists, they're looking on TikTok and IG.
Super interesting look at the back end, these are conversations you really dont think about. I really think a competitor could pop up to challenge the TV shows that brings cultural relevance back to the show pretty easily. Like seriously, don't over produce it, get a label back behind it, integrate it on twitch with immediate audience feedback and encourage people in the top whatever to use their own social platforms, you can be way more mean on that platform with that younger audience, you can rotate judges instead of getting image obsessed people to lead the ratings, like frankly media is better set up now for an OG idol type show than ever, it just probably can't be on television. Which does suck, some charm would be gone as would the older audience, but like... Half of the modern concerns are solved by just going online. Some of the most popular figures to the twitch generation have already made a game out if roasting the absolute crap out of random people on their platforms lol
Also now, you don't know the level of anyone's real talent because of all the pitch correction and auto tuning that is done even during live performances. The cream cannot rise to the top because they make everybody sound the same.
They also don't tend to focus on their writing skills especially when there are no longer people that are good enough to just write good songs. The artists now have to be able to write good songs.
To be fair, the original American Idol was HUGELY about the judges as well. Simon became a worldwide superstar as well, and Paula and Randy are still famous for that show. The judges are always gonna be a huge part of shows like that, but I agree with what Clay is saying as well. I also agree with the guy who said that the success of the artists on the show would draw bigger ratings for the coming seasons. Clay kind of hand-waved that away and said it would take too long and the show shouldn't care about that or at least doesn't care about that. I think this is huge though. Those shows all feel so watered down now and generic. If I truly felt that one of those shows were pumping out superstars, I might still watch, but there have just been too many now for anyone to care
I definitely agree with The Voice. I originally watched the show because Christina Aguilera was on the initial season, but I quickly realized it was all about the coaches, not the contestants. The auditions are all about picking a COACH. At the end of the season it's about the coach WINNING. The next season the coach brags about winning. Nothing about the contestants.
The Voice will just leave the contestant standing there while the coaches are all squabbling.
I bet you most people couldn't even name a single person who's ever won that show, because they couldn't possibly care any less about promoting them. It really is just a "karaoke competition" and that's why I stopped watching it years ago.
Isn’t that why Christina Aguilera leave as well?
they should call it, The COACH lol
@@Hadouken9000 The one I remember didn't win, Christina Grimmie.
Same, I watched it because of Christina
There was NOTHING like Idol back in the day!! It felt like the entire country was watching. I remember calling my friends on the commercials and hanging up the second it came back on. You could not miss a second. Randy, Simon, Paula are the holy trinity.
I think it might be fun to see the 3 of them back, even if they just did it for a season. It would be cool to see the ratings for that. I thought Paula was so fun!
Yes! I was so invested in Kelly and Adam’s seasons, now I have absolutely no interest in watching it.
@@crabbycake8770I doubt that the judges from the new season of Idol are too concerned with what YOU think.
@@Lifeonrandom2 The ratings would barely budge for that. There are way too many options for entertainment now (even though most are crap).
Yes plus we didn’t have all the tech and social media we do now so TV shows were big events. Or like people would gather to watch certain shows or movies or awards. Such a better time. We have to much media and information coming at us these days that nothing is special anymore.
"It's about the chair!!! It's about the chair spinning!"
Spot on. Hes exactly right.
The ratings reflect it. The ratings tend to go down on the Voice. after the blinds. Also the lives have been cut down to a couple days which leaves room for pitch correction.
@orlock20 I honestly don't know anyone who watches it past the blinds. I don't watch it all because of how insanely staged it is. Clay is absolutely right. It's not a competition, it's the View from the 00s with music performances.
I betcha hard money a real battle of the bands format would go off right now. People crave authentic experiences.
@orlock20 on the pitch correction, I can hear the auto tune. It's pretty obvious sometimes.
The shows are now reality tv show first and then a competition second. Every thing Clay said is spot on!
I think contestants now know singing shows aren't the way they used to be -- but they are just hoping for the exposure.
see i think its the opposite, i think its a competition first and reality show 2nd. watch the early seasons of idol an you will see lots of influence of survivor/the real world that centers on drama/conflict/personalities...whereas now its more so about the singing
@@junkerinhistrunkerwell, it's always been a competition second. You have to remember, to get in the competition portion/stage you have to go through the reality TV horse and pony show w/auditions first. That airs for weeks before the actual people who can sing have been weeded out before finally switching to the performances/voting portion of the show.
@@junkerinhistrunker No, that's already been exposed for years now, as well as a list of winners who all went No where, Only the first few
American idol seasons had people that got so huge we forgot they came from Idol, later seasons 3rd and 2nd place got careers and first place didn't get ahead
We can even go back to jordan sparks and that's around the times as well that people on the show would get a bump and a label but fallen off, Now even people just
in the audition and talked down to by simon like tory kelly, she got her own fame seperate from idol.
The exposing shows that Idol and X factor etc is actually a show about The JUDGES first
He's a nut job.....he claims that he lost 50% of his fans when he came out, but the reality is, MOST people that were "popular" on American Idol become LESS popular when the show is over.....Rueben Studdard went into gospel and lost 99% of any fans he might have had on AI, and I am pretty sure it has nothing to do with sexual orientation....
The voice exists to keep the judges relevant, not the create stars
American Idol did it because it was backed by a major label. Most TV singing contests aren't like that. People still have to market themselves after the show. Star Search winner Beth Hart got her big break busking after she won in 1993.
Amen. If you're a judge on a talent show it reeks of trying to stretch out your 15 minutes
@@MsJubjubbird
I don't agree, at all !!!
Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson, of The Voice, for instance, are huge stars!!! Reba just completed a sold-out tour, in '22, which included The Hollywood Bowl, and Madison Square Garden, She had just finished a Las Vegas residency, before that. Her book (her third) was on the NYT bestsellers list, and she just filmed a new sitcom (her third).
Blake had, at least, 17 number one hits, in a row, has about 7 bars, with people waiting in-line, and just landed a Las Vegas residency.
Kelly has her highly rated talkshow, and dropped a phenomenally successful album, recently.
These people are SOOOOO far past "15 minutes"!!! They, in no way, needed the show, for them to be successful !!!
That's funny, because....
-- Christina Grimme was on tour, when she got killed!!!
-- Morgan Wallen has won 20+ awards, including 2 recent ACMs---AND, he just won "Entertainer of The Year", at the CMAs!! He has had a no.1 album, and his most recent no.1 single just beat Taylor Swift's record of longest, at no.1 !!! When Morgan "released his third studio album, 'One Thing at a Time.' All 36 songs on the album charted on the Billboard 100 simultaneously during the album's first week of release. This set the record for most songs on the chart at one time".
-- Danielle Bradbury has put-out 3 albums---and Kelly Clarkson covered one of her songs!!!
-- Jordan Smith has put-out 3 albums!!
-- Sundance Head opened for the Zac Brown Band, dropped 2 albums, and is currently on tour!!!
-- Chevele Shepherd has released several originals, including one she co-wrote with Kasey Musgraves, and has dropped 2 albums!!
-- Cam Anthony has given a nearly endless stream of performances, continues to release covers, has 60K subscribers, and released an original, last year!!!
-- Gina Miles released an EP, dropped a single, and opened for Jewel !!!
-- RaeLynn had good success, before she got pregnant, 2 minutes after she got married!! She released several originals, and did videos for them. She was featured on one of Blake's songs, and he did one of her songs, with her.
-- Katie Kadan dropped an album, this past Christmas!! Also, she just dropped a single, "Without You" that is BEYOND fabulous---very bluesy/soulful !!! Just dropped another original, with full video, October 25th: "Unless I Fall in Love"!!! I'm so excited for her, I don't know what to do with myself!!! I NEED AN ALBUM, IMMEDIATELY!!!!!! Katie just dropped a new, original Christmas song!!!
-- Bryce Leatherwood is shooting-up the charts, as we speak!!
-- Huntley performed the national anthem, and the half-time show, for the Buffalo Bills, did a music festival, with other The Voice contestants, including Jake Hoot, at one of Blake Shelton's bars (Nashville), and is getting ready to drop his first single!!! Huntley is playing a festival, and Jacquie Roar is opening for him!!!
-- Lila Forde just recorded/released James Taylor's "Fire and Rain"!!!
-- Asher HaVon just dropped an original song, "Thank You", that he wrote to honor Reba McEntire, and he dedicated it to her, and she said it made her cry!!! He called her his momma on the show, and said "You are truly my angel, on earth"!!! He posted the song, on his RUclips account !!!
-- Tae Lewis has sung with Jake Hoot, dropped an original, at the end of August, and did a video for it; one, mid-September, and did a video, for it: "Stone Cold Soul Heartbreaker"---and it's really good (one of the lines is "Even the devil was an angel, at first" - FABULOUS!!)---and has recorded another original, and did a visualizer for it, that is set for release, mid-October!!! Tae sang at The Grand Ole Opry!! He also has a boot line, and has sold hundreds of pairs!!!!
-- Ruby Leigh just got invited to the Grand Ole Opry, for her debut!! She's headlining at a County Fair!!! She's also already sellin'-out tickets to her New Year's Eve show, where she'll be joined by Al Boogie, and Katie Hatch!!! Ruby is headlining, and she just dropped her first original !!! Ruby just got invited to the Opry, for her second appearance!!! The show includes Trace Adkins, The Gatlin Brothers, and Linda Davis (sang duet with Reba McEntire: "Does He Love You")!!! Ruby performed at Dollywood, in September!!
-- Jordan Rainier just did a tour, and Kristen Brown joined her, on a few gigs!! Jordan also just dropped an original, and got a product endorsement!! Also, she was recently nominated for Female Artist of the Year, by The Texas Country Music Association!!!
-- Jacquie Roar dropped an original, and got a huge billboard in Nashville, promoting it---and she just filmed/released the video!! She just dropped another original, and sang it, live, on the radio!! She sang a cover, in the Cherry Blossom Parade, in D.C. She's also been invited to a huge Country music festival, with several Country music stars, and attended Lainey Wilson's induction into the Opry!! She and Huntley are going to do an event. Also, she, Bias, and Nini Iris filled several venues, recently!! Recently, Jacquie did a show with Huntley, and none other than JELLY ROLL, with whom she got to sing her Battles duet: "Need a Favor"!!!!!
....and I just know I'm forgetting some!!!
Just because you haven't heard about contestants' success, doesn't mean they haven't had any!!
Plus, Reba and Blake stay in contact with their contestants, after the show, and continue to help them---and, Kelly has had several of them, on her talkshow.
While most of these are not winners of the show, they certainly have had some success!!! Some have a net worth of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a couple are worth millions!!!!
@@MsJubjubbirdif you’re a judge on these shows you’ve already reached icon status. They don’t need to stretch anything.
Such a smart interview. Clay has a real but still respectful understanding of the industry then and the industry now. Glad to hear someone talk about those differences so matter-of-factly without talking down on any of it
I was looking for this comment! I didn't realize Clay was so in-tune with these elements.
What is he doing now?
He is making a comeback! Clay just released a new Christmas album, "Christmas Bells Are Ringing". It is a beautiful album of classic Christmas songs. Available on Amazon & streaming platforms. He hopes to tour next Christmas.
He is right on the money in his analysis. He really understands the machinery of singing competitions.
Simon Cowell once made a comment that he was tough, but the entertainment industry is tougher. Simon was sometimes harsh, but he was usually on target.
Simon made the entertainment industry worse. He has an inflated sense of his own influence and ability to “discover” talent. Huge ego but not a lot of actual talent himself. Anyone can see why the singers that Simon selected as his protégés would most likely succeed.
I feel like there wasn't a true star (which is different from singer) once he left the show. But
Except for Tori Kelly. I'm still salty lol.
Jennifer Hudson begs to differ.
Sounds like Clay needs to be a judge and take on that roll.
Something tells me that he can let someone know they're doing "not that great" in an unimpeachably pleasant yet absolutely devastating way lol
Wow, Clay really hit it on the nose with each of his points! He's so right on every one!
agreed! Wish he'd made it in his political run.. .the kind of people we need, however glad for him he doesn't have to deal with it.🤔
The only point I somewhat contend with is audiences not wanting to see something mean. Mostly people came to understand that people on the show were screened or had auditioned for a spot. So a lot of people that weren't good were put there bt producers to be ridiculed. That to me was the gross nature of the first run of American Idol.
@@codydavis3100
Yeah, if audiences did not want to see something mean, Jerry Springer would've never stayed on the air, for as long as it did.
@@catwhisperer9489 I don't think you understand my point. Audiences drifted away from that stuff. Springer was really only relevant in the late 90s. Current day viewers aren't clamoring for Jerry Springer.
@@codydavis3100
Oh, but they are!!! There have been reruns of The Jerry Springer Show, for decades---I don't know if it's ever been off the air!!! There are others, too, where people fight, all the time: "Big Brother", "Love and Hip-Hop", and the Desperate Housewives franchise, and on and on!!! I don't get it---I've never watched any of these shows---the best I can figure, is that people like to see someone's life, who's worse than their own, I guess!!!
The bad auditions in American idol were my favorite but it wouldn’t work now bc of social media. Ppl would do it just to become influencers which completely ruins it. People might’ve done it for attention back then too, but there wasn’t the reward that there would be now which is getting to quit your job and become an influencer. That’s why a lot of ppl go on reality tvz it’s now a direct pipeline to becoming an influencer.
Exactly, the social media curse. As long as there is a SM presence connected to something - its all about views and likes and zero substance.
He totally hit the nail on the head with judges. The judges just blow smoke up the contestants, and never give them any advice besides telling them how great they already are. Giving everyone a standing ovation just makes it all the worse.
Yeah or just pusing someone forward because (American Idol is built this way now) their story is relevant. Its such a fake show now its hard not to cringe.
@@CallmeShadowyn
That's exactly why I mute the TV when they show people's stories: So I'm not influenced by them!! I get so sick of hearin' "Somebody ran over my dog", or "My mother ran-off with the milkman"!!! That's how they get on the show---just like a newscast "If it bleeds, it leads"!!!
@CallmeShadowyn
That's exactly why I mute the TV when they show people's stories: So I'm not influenced by them!! I get so sick of hearin' "Somebody ran over my dog", or "My mother ran-off with the milkman"!!! That's how they get on the show---just like a newscast "If it blêēds, it leads"!!!
wow clay is so well spoken, it’s a gift.
He also ran and held a public office, I think. Very unexpected but I guess it’s good that he took a different route.
He has a quick wit and is very intelligent.
Clay is really intelligent. You can tell the way he speaks and the way he explain everything. He is very insightful, a little candor and grounded
I watched American Idol years and years ago. Simon was a big part of why we watched. He was great. We loved to hate him, but we really loved him. We need more Simons from back in the day.
Agreed. He was honest and sometimes mean but the show wasn't the same without him.
Nowadays they’d be trying to cancel him and call him a bigot supremacist if he dared to insult certain contestants. Today he’d be forced to sign William Hung so he wouldn’t offend the snowflakes 😂😂😂
@@tula1433 You're the snowflake. Nobody would be forcing Simon to sign someone, and obviously you picked a minority contestant to run your mouth about to start drama, M*GA. Simon wanted the most marketable contestant with talent, and if that was a white guy with a guitar, that was the fault of America, specifically the middle-aged wyt women who statistically voted Tr*mp in big numbers. Nice try making up a way to attack the left.
@@tula1433 ??? Simon was a jerk, but he wasn't a racist. Not sure what you're implying
@@tula1433Stop trying to shoehorn in your agenda.
Simon was critical of everyone, and wasn’t accused of being racist.
I used to watch the voice because of Christina Aguilera, but stopped watching after she left. She has said in some interviews that the show isn't really about finding a new 'star', but focusing on the coaches like others have mentioned.
All of this is making sense. When X Factor debut around 2011, the winner wasn’t on tv, wasn’t getting promotions, no radio or singles. It’s like they moved on to the next season and she preformed on that season and that was the last we heard from her.
It has nothing to do with singing anymore. Its about the entire person theyre trying to market. Someone could have the perfect voice, but if they dont come with a cute positive attitude or a big sob story, theyre not gonna invest in them to move forward. I miss when it was about if they could sing. It was so much more real & in the moment. Social media changed EVERYTHING.
What's worse is the voice now has so few episodes that you don't even really get to know a contestant before the show is over. I might give it one more season. Maybe
It never was about singing in the first place.
I agree with Clay's point more than this. The music industry has always been about the whole package. Now these shows just don't have a vested interest in the musicians after the show. It doesn't matter if you advance or not.
Wow, Clay was able to articulate and explain every complaint I’ve had with the modern iteration of these shows.
Clay is a great guest. Candid, honest and Southern, in that polite/passive-aggressive way Canadians are...
The southernness is great
He is very political and annoying also. 😊
Oh, I don't think he's passive-aggressive, at all. Yes, honest, in the Southern way, but, to me being honest means open.... How can someone be open, and hiding (passive-aggressive), at the same time?
An example of what I feel is PA, is: my aunt would ask my uncle how he liked the meal, she cooked, and he would say "It'd be alright if I had something to wash it down, with"!!! LOL If he would have been honest, he woulda just asked for a beverage.
As a canadian kid of a parent from the south, you're so right and I've never connected the two before 😂
Look at Benson Boone. He auditioned for Idol and got a golden ticket but then backed out because he realized that it wasn't a good opportunity. He has worked hard since then to create his own career and is doing better than any recent Idol winner.
Didnt he suck a fart out of a guy's ass?
I’m not discounting his talent or effort, but he still leveraged his audition and participation in Idol as a launching point for his career.
It would be interesting to know if he had never been on idol, if he would have been able to get the exposure, record deal, fan base, etc.
@@anonnyanonymous4800 What participation? He auditioned. He never went back after the audition. So he had about 5 minutes of screen time. That's not much exposure. And most of the contestants who have made it through Hollywood week have been forgotten, with much more exposure and participation.
@@mattbosley3531he’s video was/is still up and has millions of views. yes, he went on to do his own thing, but no one would’ve ever known him if not for idol, so it still gave him his start.
@@mattbosley3531Benson was one of the most watched auditions that season. This was before Hollywood week was shown and people knew he quit. Also, there's articles that he got interest from a label due to his stuff going viral. He was signed pretty quickly after his audition aired. It's possible his Idol audition was watched by industry people. Sometimes even recent Idol auditions have 1 million+ views on YT before auditions are through.
When Idol got started, a huge appeal and reason why some contestants became famous is because the show was built around creating a weekly connection between the singer & audience. Each week, the audience feels closer to and builds a greater vested interest in "their" candidate. It created loyalty over many months! Then, even when a contestant was voted off, or the show ended, the public still felt a connection, a relationship, to the artist. And with relationship & loyalty comes stardom! It's an incredible recipe for success! The Voice has never done that hence no superstars, that I know of.
It was interesting that, initially, the runner up would do better than the winner
Idol created "superstars"? I wouldn`t consider any of the idol stars, superstars..ask outside the US about any of the "superstars" you are thinking about and get ready for a LOT of blank looks.
@@berain-vo9ur Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and Adam Lambert are superstars. From rival franchises, One Direction members and Little Mix members, Jackie Evancho was a star in her day and Paul Potts.
@@berain-vo9urKelly Clarkson, Fantasia, Carrie Underwood easily come to mind as contestants that won and are still relevant to this day.
Regarding The Voice:
That's funny, because....
-- Christina Grimme was on tour, when she got killed!!!
-- Morgan Wallen has won 20+ awards, including 2 recent ACMs---AND, he just won "Entertainer of The Year", at the CMAs!! He has had a no.1 album, and his most recent no.1 single just beat Taylor Swift's record of longest, at no.1 !!! When Morgan "released his third studio album, 'One Thing at a Time.' All 36 songs on the album charted on the Billboard 100 simultaneously during the album's first week of release. This set the record for most songs on the chart at one time".
-- Danielle Bradbury has put-out 3 albums---and Kelly Clarkson covered one of her songs!!!
-- Jordan Smith has put-out 3 albums!!
-- Sundance Head opened for the Zac Brown Band, dropped 2 albums, and is currently on tour!!!
-- Chevele Shepherd has released several originals, including one she co-wrote with Kasey Musgraves, and has dropped 2 albums!!
-- Cam Anthony has given a nearly endless stream of performances, continues to release covers, has 60K subscribers, and released an original, last year!!!
-- Gina Miles released an EP, dropped a single, and opened for Jewel !!!
-- RaeLynn had good success, before she got pregnant, 2 minutes after she got married!! She released several originals, and did videos for them. She was featured on one of Blake's songs, and he did one of her songs, with her.
-- Katie Kadan dropped an album, this past Christmas!! Also, she just dropped a single, "Without You" that is BEYOND fabulous---very bluesy/soulful !!! Just dropped another original, with full video, October 25th: "Unless I Fall in Love"!!! I'm so excited for her, I don't know what to do with myself!!! I NEED AN ALBUM, IMMEDIATELY!!!!!! Katie just dropped a new, original Christmas song!!!
-- Bryce Leatherwood is shooting-up the charts, as we speak!!
-- Huntley performed the national anthem, and the half-time show, for the Buffalo Bills, did a music festival, with other The Voice contestants, including Jake Hoot, at one of Blake Shelton's bars (Nashville), and is getting ready to drop his first single!!! Huntley is playing a festival, and Jacquie Roar is opening for him!!!
-- Lila Forde just recorded/released James Taylor's "Fire and Rain"!!!
-- Asher HaVon just dropped an original song, "Thank You", that he wrote to honor Reba McEntire, and he dedicated it to her, and she said it made her cry!!! He called her his momma on the show, and said "You are truly my angel, on earth"!!! He posted the song, on his RUclips account !!!
-- Tae Lewis has sung with Jake Hoot, dropped an original, at the end of August, and did a video for it; one, mid-September, and did a video, for it: "Stone Cold Soul Heartbreaker"---and it's really good (one of the lines is "Even the devil was an angel, at first" - FABULOUS!!)---and has recorded another original, and did a visualizer for it, that is set for release, mid-October!!! Tae sang at The Grand Ole Opry!! He also has a boot line, and has sold hundreds of pairs!!!!
-- Ruby Leigh just got invited to the Grand Ole Opry, for her debut!! She's headlining at a County Fair!!! She's also already sellin'-out tickets to her New Year's Eve show, where she'll be joined by Al Boogie, and Katie Hatch!!! Ruby is headlining, and she just dropped her first original !!! Ruby just got invited to the Opry, for her second appearance!!! The show includes Trace Adkins, The Gatlin Brothers, and Linda Davis (sang duet with Reba McEntire: "Does He Love You")!!! Ruby performed at Dollywood, in September!!
-- Jordan Rainier just did a tour, and Kristen Brown joined her, on a few gigs!! Jordan also just dropped an original, and got a product endorsement!! Also, she was recently nominated for Female Artist of the Year, by The Texas Country Music Association!!!
-- Jacquie Roar dropped an original, and got a huge billboard in Nashville, promoting it---and she just filmed/released the video!! She just dropped another original, and sang it, live, on the radio!! She sang a cover, in the Cherry Blossom Parade, in D.C. She's also been invited to a huge Country music festival, with several Country music stars, and attended Lainey Wilson's induction into the Opry!! She and Huntley are going to do an event. Also, she, Bias, and Nini Iris filled several venues, recently!! Recently, Jacquie did a show with Huntley, and none other than JELLY ROLL, with whom she got to sing her Battles duet: "Need a Favor"!!!!!
....and I just know I'm forgetting some!!!
Just because you haven't heard about contestants' success, doesn't mean they haven't had any!!
Plus, Reba and Blake stay in contact with their contestants, after the show, and continue to help them---and, Kelly has had several of them, on her talkshow.
While most of these are not winners of the show, they certainly have had some success!!! Some have a net worth of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and a couple, are worth millions!!!!
I totally agree! You never hear anything from The Voice winners
It's about the chair 😊😊😊
I actually had a Voice contestant come into work one day and made a deal about them being a celebrity. He shut it down pretty quickly and honestly wanted to know about ME. Pretty cool interaction.
Closest they got was Cassadee Pope.
There have been some non winners who were very successful though, like Morgan Wallen.
@@inalltheirgorgeouscolors8091No thanks to the show though. I'm certain a majority of his listeners don't know he competed on the show.
Clay's so great- he's always been one of my faves. And he's right about Idol. They were never able to replace Simon in the sense that *because* he was tough, that made his praise even more valuable. I remember contestants politely thanking the other judges for good comments...and then everyone would hold their breath when it got to Simon, and then explode in cheers when he gave praise too. He also strategically used good comments for mid to poor performances to help with contestants' confidence if he felt there was something in them. Like with Tim Urban in s9- he was panned by the others, then was so stunned when Simon disagreed with them. Tim wowed them the next week, and gave credit to Simon for his comments.
Clay is incredibly insightful
What a great interview and conversation. I power voted for Clay, because I loved his talent, but also found him incredibly relatable and engaging.
I also agree with Clay - so many of these judges say “you’re a star” and none have actually reached that status past Carrie Underwood on Idol…never on the Voice.
I agree. After Carrie Underwood most winners have faded into oblivion. Some were successful on their later years then went off the radar.
It’s so true, you can tell the exact point the switch happened on Idol; when the show started to be about only the judges, and the winner won nothing, could become nothing.
Also crazy that The Voice never produced a true “Clarkson”-level household name. Aiken is a great interview, he completely gets it.
I agree clay . also people don't buy music , labels do not invest. if Mariah started now I dont know if she would make it. imagine that
Ecxept marrying Tommy Mottola also had alot to do w it
@@radar5464All the big singers had to have their Svengali back in the day!
You lost me at the Mariah part. Mariah would absolutely make it today. Mariah Whitney, MJ and Prince are undeniable talents.
@DualityUnlimited no her songs recently are flops. Even diehard lambs don't support her new songs, just her old catalogue. I'm a vanilla lamb, but i like some of her recent songs, not just a lot because it's very antiquated lyrically and production wise
@@jrtg1990 You don’t know what you are talking about. Research the topic more respectfully!
Great conversation.
It's a very different landscape compared to 20 years ago. The music industry and just how we discover music. Social Media/tik tok basically distorted the flow of how Artists become known.
It is what it is.
I was literally just having this same conversation, especially about The Voice. Honestly, I cannot name a single person who has won The Voice, and I watched the first 10 seasons religiously and have casually followed a few others since. It also feels like every singer gets a standing ovation these days-especially in the 2020s.
chris mann and javier colon because they went through the industry already
Excellent point about The Voice. The "coaches" are still actively singing and trying to sell tickets and they don't want to tick anybody off. If they allowed Simon to come back or a judge to actually judge, the show would be better for the casual viewers
Idol used to be everywhere. Everyone watched it and knew what was going on and that’s just not the case anymore.
I like the raw honesty Clay! And he is right. The first seasons of Idol, Simon was blunt and ruthless but was willing to call out junk singers or not good enough. But now, you can tell the judges are concerned with saying something offensive and then getting backlash. Iam Tongi was great but that has not translated into an incredible recording career. It is too bad he wasn’t pushed to do some uptempo or take chances to mix it up
The reality about singing shows is anyone immensely talented at a young age get signed up to a record deal early. So you are looking for a diamond in the rough which occasionally you find but most seasons that person doesn’t exist. Sadly that’s why most the people once the season is over you never hear from them again
that todays is... but was are we have Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia (Barrino), Adam Lambert, former One Direction(s) Harry Styles, Zayn, Niall Horan, the Little Mix like Perrie, Jade & Leigh-Ann & Camila Cabillo from Fifth Harmony
I would say now record deals usually go to whoever's breaking on TikTok etc. So that's where the potential big stars of tomorrow focus. These shows mostly get people who are good live performers but aren't quite able to break through online.
@@Nissl61 and that's get me pissing me off... the actually/the real singers should be get those recording contract deals that's it should be.. not the online creators for me are attention grabbers
Clay was my mother's favorite singer. And she wasn't a huge music buff, just found in him a voice she adored.
American idol fell off when they ONLY SHOWED GOOD people and GOOD critizism, it doesn't feel real and not all about the sob storry
but man it was so much more real and raw when it was bad auditions
Kelly Clarksons breakaway wasn't produced by idols production company. That's why it was successful
Oh wow!
She was also signed to 19 recordings like Carrie, Fantasia and Clay
@@MRLONG758 There was a big public fight about Kelly's contract with 19.
@orlock20 I believe the dispute was with RCA/SONY not 19. And basically all her albums up until 2017 came out through 19.
Hold on. She signed with both Simon and Clive Davis right after winning the idol. Breakaway is the 2nd album that Clive Davis also was the executive producer. 19 studio also involved in the "Breakaway" production. So I don't think Breakaway being successful is because it wasn't produced by Simon and his company. Truth to be told, her debut album was also massively successful as well. The 1st single from that album was "Miss Independent" was a smash hit.
Clay is so right on so many points.
But obviously wrong in morality
Clay is right. I loved him on the show. With Simon gone now they tell everyone they are great. Idol has had some big stars. The voice has failed in producing big stars.
Like he said, the early Idol was backed by a major label which put the money down. How much? During the top of Beyonce's career, $3 million per album and $1 million per single was spent just on publicity. When Idol sold off there was no commitment to spend that kind of money on the winners. The Voice was never backed by a major label.
These showrunners just happened to realize that more people watch for feel good moments rather than for the botched auditions. It's not really about the artists, it's about the audience.
This is why the X Factor contestant go on to have careers, because Simon Cowell has his on production company and has a vested interest in whomever wins.
Some ppl has things confused here the Simon is Simon FULLER ( XIX Manager) and Sinon Cowell. (Idol Judge)
Good insight. Clay is still a class act. It fascinates me that people still watch these shows. The format is so redundant and stale.
Nobody is forcing you to watch any of those shows you know.
I enjoy Clay. I need him to get a podcast or teach a math class or invite me over for dinner so we can just talk about random stuff in the south he’s lovely.
I’ve been wondering what has happened for years now, this made so much sense, people went from going on these shows and having songs on the radio, to now basically people just get more Instagram followers and it’s fun to go on the show. But nothing happens culture wise
I agree with Clay. Old school American Idol was a phenonium and not just a show. I do like the other music competition shows today, but there has definitely been a shift. It's not just with shows, but the world is less willing to take criticism as a whole. Everyone is afraid of being "canceled" SMH.
SUCH A GREAT QUESTION AND A INFORMATIVE ANSWER. PEOPLE WATCH BUT NOONE REMEMBERS THE "WINNER." THE NETWORK IS ABOUT THE COACHES FANDOM DEFINITELY.
CLAY SHOULD BE A JUDGE, HE TELLS IT LIKE IT IS AND SHOULD BE. THE CURRENT JUDGES ARE TOO DISNEY. EVERYONE IS GREAT AND THE BEST EVERRRRRRRR.
WE ALL MISS THE WILLIAM HUNGS 😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢.
He is correct I don't know who won theses show today, you really have to look to see who these people are
I like how he is very in touch with the current trends - gamification of the shows and cancel culture. Hardly anyone can recall who are the winners of these shows.
I had the privilege of seeing Clay in concert 2x. He is unbelievably talented.
Yep. I made it to the last audition of hollywood week season 14. I quickly learned, while on stage, that the producers are the ones who decided everything, not the celebrity judges. And they truly do not care about their contestants. Idol is just a regular exploitative reality tv show. & it was quite a traumatizing experience for me…but that’s another story lol. I think the rise of social media has made it more easier for artists to blow up, so they don’t really need a show like American Idol or the Voice. And the shows invest in their celebrity stars than actually making one. I’m sure over the years people who have gone through the experience have also told others it’s not worth it. I’m surprised that it is still airing and people are still auditioning for it.
Damn Clay didn’t hold back at all here haha I agree 100%
When I auditioned in Philadelphia for season 7 back in 2007, I only noticed the "Rejects" getting golden tickets to move forward to the main judges. The bad singers that you see on TV advanced through two or three rounds of auditions to get there.
Back then the horrible, funny looking, emotionally unstable and completely delusional were laughed at and mocked and they got ratings for it.
We need more Clay!
American Idol was extremely fortunate that in its first year they found arguably the greatest singer of the last 25 years. Nothing was going to stop her from being a star. A voice and singer like that comes around once in a generation. Ironically, she is not a showy singer. The great singers don't show off. They just sing. The Voice was never about finding the next big star. The big singing successes of AI were all the same. Daughtry, Underwood, just sing. Aiken and Studdard were just riding Kelly''s wave.
Oh no you don't. Kelly had only 9 million viewers. Clay/Ruben had 40 million. Clearly the real beginning of the wave.
The greatest singer of the last 25 years is a stretch
@@buddymary3399 And yet...Kelly is the household name.
@@jenniferhiemstra5228 Say Kelly did it and you'll get Kelly Who? Say Clay did it and you'll get OMG Clay Aiken.
@@KingKissanagreed. She's obviously quite talented but OP is comparing her to Whitney Houston (a once in a generation talent). Clarkson isn't a Whitney Houston. She's more of a Dua Lipa: solid, very cute, catchy songs. Not the BE ALL END ALL of singing.
Kelly absolutely hated her Idol Label because they forced her to work w/Dr. Luke
Clay is accurate. The Voice is about the judges turning. It's like a karaoke competition. I can't name the winners let alone the contestants. I can remember most of the Idol winners and even non winners
Agreed with his Iam Tongi take. Although Tongi was absolutely amazing, it definitely would’ve been nice to hear more range or hear him try attacking an unfamiliar genre to him.
Very smart and interesting. Everything he said makes sense. A lot of times you ask a question like this and the person will say something dismissing the current talent of today.
Times have changed… it was live in the moment is what mattered most.
he is so smart.
I think it may have the first 2 or 3 seasons b/c there was no social media and it was a major major deal, but so many years later it doesn't make stars. Kelly Clarkson, Clay, Carrie yes from years ago, now not so much.
Exactly, social media has overwhelmed the creative process with criticism forcing the hand of producers with making sure their show is a success for their own sake vs the content they intended to provide.
Clay Aiken would make a great judge on American Idol.
Very insightful. It is interesting how 'who owns the show' determines the investment in the artists. also how its become more about the production and the judges than the actual contestants.
Finally, someone who isn't trying to be politically correct and is just honest about reality. I love the way he speaks and doesn't care who gets upset.
I had a substitute teacher back in 2003-2004 who said she went to prom with him. I was in the 7th or 8th grade at the time. It seemed like everybody in the world knew he was gay, even back then. So, one of my classmates piped up saying “but, isn’t he gay?” getting nods from the other children. She seemed shocked by the thought and went on for a while firmly denying it, listing many reasons why he couldn’t possibly be gay. I’m still close friends with one of my classmates from that day and when we saw the headline about him “coming out” years later, my friend says “Wait till Ms. So-and-so hears about this.” Now every time I see him(Clay) or hear about him, I think of her, arguing against the seemingly obvious to a room full of children who had never even met the guy.
I don’t mean anything by this and it’s probably not even worth sharing but, here it is.
lol a lot of the “Claymates” were in denial about it. It ruined their fantasy 😂
This makes so much sense....great interview!!!
I definitely remember voting EVERY WEEK. I felt like I won when Fantasia won lol
There's a reason why it's near exclusively wealthy, famous, public facing people, ect that make claims about some "unique times not being allowed to criticize ect". The only actual difference is no longer having the unique privilege of never having to hear about it.
I super agree with Clay, everything he said here is spot on!! I miss the constructive criticisms that former judges used to give, even JLo have some good constructive feedback before! Because we as the audience also learn from it.
It's just cool to see Clay doing well. I remember voting for him waay back when I was young.
It's never going to be the same, but the memories were great. It was a community event for sure.
My voice teacher told me that when auditioning for the voice, she told me "no matter what happens it's just a show." and she told me, "it's not about you, it's about the judges. it' s about the ratings." I'm glad I listened to her and understood. So my shift became to if I made it on the voice, I don't want to win, I want the exposure to get the access. The best one to do it on the show who was a effective and smart was Melanie Martinez.
Clay hit the nail on the head! I quit watching Idol years and the Voice is 99.9% about the coaches. It's not just the music shows either, AGT has become a love fest.
The judges pushing the contestants to try new things makes them into better artists. Clay’s hit single was uptempo pop/rock and audiences had seen him try that successfully on the show.
invisible by clay aiken was one of the best songs ever, that pop/rock song was amazing hit top 37 on billboard top 100 songs in the country.
Randomly clicked on this, very interesting to hear his perspective
simple answer the music has changed. No one belts anymore with that star quality. Everyone sounds quaint these days.
Packaged and pitch corrected. Beth Hart, winner of Star Search, is still doing well for herself and she wasn't a Mariah Carey singer. This year she had two projects with Slash and sang on stage with John Oates from Hall and Oates. There are videos of her on Star Search and she was aggressive then and more aggressive than any singer on Idol or the Voice. Most singers on these shows don't leave their mark for starters.
They whisper now and no one sounds unique.
So true. There are of course good music these days, as in any era, but I was in a coffee shop recently and the music are all trendy, middling type and I felt like I was braindead for how boring the vocals were. I remember thinking, does no one belt anymore?
Great interview love clay
I feel anyone going on Idol, they have to realize that they’re never going to be as big as past winners.
According to Star Search winner Beth Hart, singers felt it was a disgrace to go on a TV singing contest. She did it on a bet and said the show never helped her career. She did win $100,000 in 1993 which happens to be the same amount on these shows.
Not as many people watch these shows now as they did in the early 2000s
@@orlock20Greta point! These shows have been around for ages and are have had a hand in shaking far more pop starts over the years than many people realize.
One glaring omission about the critiques of the reality competition singing shows is that the most popular genres of music these days are country and hip-hop/rap. The voices heard on these shows are undeniably great, however, radio rarely plays soaring ballads with extended notes held and key changes. In addition, with all the streaming services available, people don’t listen to the radio that much to get new songs to be interested in. When was the last time you heard a hard-core hip-hop artist on either American Idol or The Voice? The flyover states inhabitants do the most voting and tend to choose the most, let’s say, “vanilla” contestants.
Clay’s very likable
No wonder he's had such a long run as "Jamie" in the Progressive ads.
He's got a lot of excuses and not of them are accurate....he has a certain lack of awareness that isn't very likable....
@@robjohnson9270 Clay's right you're wrong that's the end of it.
@@NickScholl sad stale joke.
@buddymary3399 yes, clay Aiken is a sad stale joke...
I voted for you, Clay. To me, you are the real American Idol, Clay. Your voice is so devine!!!
I watched for the auditions because it's a capella. Can't hide behind a band, backing track, or pitch adjustment.
Season 12 voice alum here. Everything he saying is absolutely true. I could talk about this shit for days.
I agree - there is just such a different content landscape now with social media. It is easier now to break into the industry by building your own brand on TikTok or other platforms.
I forgot Clay studied to be an educator and I feel he’d be a great professor in music business.
When Idol first started, the bad auditions were all my co-workers would talk about for the first two weeks or so. Then we would adorn our desks with out favs throughout the season. Bet on winner's. It was sooo freeking fun!!!! Also watching, Simon, Paula & Randy laugh at bad contestants was priceless!!!
Stars are not being created because of the Internet/social media. There's no need for a star due to easy-breezy accessibility. Stars were exclusive. Stars had a mystique about them. That does not exist no more. Anybody can do music. Anybody can go viral for anything. We're living in a viral, microwave society. When everybody wasn't doing music, we had better music. Nah, think about today's attention span. Are consumers really able to focus on an artist(s) like they did decades ago? Absolutely not. Today's music has a lifespan of about a month and then it's forgotten. It never used to be like that. Hell, we don't even have one-hit wonders no more. Snow's _Informer_ just randomly came to mind. All you know is _Informer,_ decades later. Songs, overall, do not stick & sink into the hearts & minds of today's consumers like they did decades ago. The mystique of a star is a thing of the past. Look around, media is focused on Puffy and Jay-Z. 25 years ago, media would've been focused on they music. It's simply not about music no more. I'm almost 40 years old so I can speak candidly about that 25 year differential. But yeah man, corporate ain't making no stars. For what? They not finna invest hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars on nobody only for the sh¡t to fizzle out in a month. As Clay stated, these competition shows want viral moments for social media. They're not invest in making the next "star."
Clay is wonderful in this interview and I sooo wanted him to win Idol back in the day.
He so right about these current seasons of AI or the voice. I think AI went down after Simon Cowell left. As Clay said he's the one who was mean, but he was willing to give criticism on what it takes to be a star. It's not just about the singing voice, there are other factors.
I recently started watching Idol again after many years and noticed the difference in production. I miss the wacky auditions. To me, it was a reason to watch and it made the outstanding talent standout even more, in my opinion. The whole thing about not saying anything mean, I think it's because controversy goes viral and someone could claim you damaged their reputation or caused them to miss out on opportunities for being portrayed in a bad light.
I loved Clay back then and I love him now!!!
The best thing you can get from winning The Voice is the prize money. Career? Hell no.
Awesome interview
Truth is these shows like American idol, the voice etc arent necessary anymore. Social media is where people display their talent. Back in the day, we needed shows like american idol to find new talented singers. Which is why basically the whole country watched. I remember growing up, American idol was a HUGE deal. Television is dying in favor of online. Record labels now arent looking at television shows to find new artists, they're looking on TikTok and IG.
Super interesting look at the back end, these are conversations you really dont think about. I really think a competitor could pop up to challenge the TV shows that brings cultural relevance back to the show pretty easily. Like seriously, don't over produce it, get a label back behind it, integrate it on twitch with immediate audience feedback and encourage people in the top whatever to use their own social platforms, you can be way more mean on that platform with that younger audience, you can rotate judges instead of getting image obsessed people to lead the ratings, like frankly media is better set up now for an OG idol type show than ever, it just probably can't be on television. Which does suck, some charm would be gone as would the older audience, but like... Half of the modern concerns are solved by just going online. Some of the most popular figures to the twitch generation have already made a game out if roasting the absolute crap out of random people on their platforms lol
Blind auditions are the best part of the voice.
Boy that brown sugar twang in his voice is addictive. I could listen to Clay talk all day.
Holy crap. He is 100% correct.
Also now, you don't know the level of anyone's real talent because of all the pitch correction and auto tuning that is done even during live performances. The cream cannot rise to the top because they make everybody sound the same.
They also don't tend to focus on their writing skills especially when there are no longer people that are good enough to just write good songs. The artists now have to be able to write good songs.
great commentary Clay! 👏👏👏👏👏 And so talented!
Can’t these shows anymore. I think it’s more about the judges reactions on the performance than the the talent . Just like he said.
Wow, he looks a bit like Martin Short.
Yes he does.
You're right. They need to get him on Only Murders In The Building, playing Oliver's younger brother!❤
Stop it. He looks like Clay.
Oh my gosh. I will never unsee this now😂
I LOVE CLAY. Always have, always will. Search "Solitaire" by him. If you don't know it already. It's what made me fall in love with him as a singer!
To be fair, the original American Idol was HUGELY about the judges as well. Simon became a worldwide superstar as well, and Paula and Randy are still famous for that show. The judges are always gonna be a huge part of shows like that, but I agree with what Clay is saying as well. I also agree with the guy who said that the success of the artists on the show would draw bigger ratings for the coming seasons. Clay kind of hand-waved that away and said it would take too long and the show shouldn't care about that or at least doesn't care about that. I think this is huge though. Those shows all feel so watered down now and generic. If I truly felt that one of those shows were pumping out superstars, I might still watch, but there have just been too many now for anyone to care