American Idol Sings Its Way Back To TV
JaMonet Rice
JaMonet Rice
After two years of hiatus, the ABC network has decided to throw its hat in the ring and bring back American Idol. After months of tweaking and improving, American Idol premiered Sunday night. Known for its outrageous talent, sarcastic judges (looking at you, Simon Cowell), and overall underdog story, American Idol was a favorite among TV lovers when it The show originally ran from 2002 to 2016, hosted by Ryan Seacrest, and in that time it helped jump start the careers of many well known artists including Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson, Clay Aiken, Jordin Sparks, Kelly Clarkson, and Fantasia Barrino.
Since the show was under the FOX network, when ABC took control of the reins they made some changes. A major one includes the judges. The seats that once held Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell, now hold Grammy Award winner Lionel Richie, American Music Award winner Katy Perry, and Country music superstar Luke Bryan. Sunday marks the debut of the show and while some things have changed, the talent that appears has not. Notable favorites include Alyssa Raghu, who blew the judges away with her rendition of “Almost Is Never Enough,” Michelle Sussets, who got the judges dancing to “Techo Cumbia,” Trevor Holmes who wowed the judges, (particularly Katy Perry) with “In Case You Didn't Know” and finally David Francisco, who brought the judges to tears with the Stevie Wonder hit, “Isn't She Lovely.”
However, despite the overwhelming talent, American Idol viewership wasn't as high as people anticipated, hitting only 10.3 viewers and compared to the average past seasons, which averaged 11.2 to 12.6, it’s a little low. Luckily, it’s only the first episode, but the show has a long way to go. Although if Katy Perry keeps kissing contestants, viewership may go up sooner than later. Tune in next Sunday to see who lasts on American Idol.
Since the show was under the FOX network, when ABC took control of the reins they made some changes. A major one includes the judges. The seats that once held Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell, now hold Grammy Award winner Lionel Richie, American Music Award winner Katy Perry, and Country music superstar Luke Bryan. Sunday marks the debut of the show and while some things have changed, the talent that appears has not. Notable favorites include Alyssa Raghu, who blew the judges away with her rendition of “Almost Is Never Enough,” Michelle Sussets, who got the judges dancing to “Techo Cumbia,” Trevor Holmes who wowed the judges, (particularly Katy Perry) with “In Case You Didn't Know” and finally David Francisco, who brought the judges to tears with the Stevie Wonder hit, “Isn't She Lovely.”
However, despite the overwhelming talent, American Idol viewership wasn't as high as people anticipated, hitting only 10.3 viewers and compared to the average past seasons, which averaged 11.2 to 12.6, it’s a little low. Luckily, it’s only the first episode, but the show has a long way to go. Although if Katy Perry keeps kissing contestants, viewership may go up sooner than later. Tune in next Sunday to see who lasts on American Idol.