I follow American Idol and I admit I miss Simon Cowell. Thankfully Aerosmith frontmen Steve Tyler adds his own unique twist to the show and is a welcome addition to the show. Funny as she may have been, Ellen is gone and the somewhat “snobbish and aloof” Kara is a thing of the past. J Lo adds sensibility and an eye for talent which suddenly makes the show a talent contest once more.
There have been cruel cuts on the show. Some painful stories were not enough to carry some contestents through as the judges cut contestants in search of real talent. Chris Medina, Paris Tassin and James Durbin who is still in the competition were stories of heartache and personal triumph.
For me the best story was that of Jaycee Badeaux discovered in the New Orleans audition. He started out as a very unassuming 15 year old who showed enough talent to earn a trip to Hollywood. It was his sincerity that caught my attention. Then he got cut and it was fair as he had to show exceptional talent to compete with the top 13. But I suddenly realize I am no longer watching the show all because Jaycee was no longer on Idol.
The American public fell in love with him, thanks to social networking – Facebook, Twitter he was an early fan favorite. However, we can never know to what extent the public adored him because he was cut right before Idol began its live shows for public voting. We may still get a chance to see Jaycee again after he revealed on the Ellen Show that he may consider auditioning again for Season 11. I hope he does and by then his musical acumen may have matured to allow him to develop the competitive instincts he clearly lacks.
I saw a simple kid with dreams who took a chance and stayed true to himself. He showed maturity beyond his years when dumped by his group on Group Week in Hollywood then showed real raw emotions when the judges saved him a few hours later. He never clamoured for attention, never became dramatic for 15 seconds of fame. He was simply there to do what he always wanted to do, sing and hopefully impress the judges and make it through.
At the end of the day, his talent was simply no match for the competition and in defeat he earned more respect and admiration then anyone else on the show. If I should remember Season 10 of American Idol, it was not only because of the talent, Steve Tyler and J Lo but more so because of Jaycee Badeaux. His story is a pleasant inspiration, being gracious in the sight of rejection and humble in defeat is what makes him worthy of American Idol.