American Idol-atry

MANILA, Philippines - A lot of people are saying that American Idol is on its way out, what with its many fans defecting to the fresher formats of The Voice, and even The Glee Project. If that’s true, well, we can’t say that the show that’s kept a worldwide audience hooked for nearly a decade isn’t going down without a fight. Apart from tweaking a weary format and adding J.Lo and Steven Tyler to the judging panel, the franchise also decided this year to send their top 11 finalists on a tour, not just within the United States, but all over Asia. Of course, they had to make the Philippines a stop on their tour, especially since one of the finalists Thia Megia is a Fil-Am herself (this is a fact that rabid Pinoy AI fans can never let go).

Joining Thia in their concert last Sept. 20 and 21 at the Araneta Coliseum were fellow finalists Casey Abrams, Haley Reinhart, Jacob Lusk, James Durbin, Lauren Alaina, Naima Adedapo, Paul McDonald, Pia Toscano, Stefano Langone, and the season 10 American Idol himself, Scotty McCreery, who didn’t seem to mind sharing the spotlight at all. Many of our own local celebrities made it to the show, and raved incessantly about the energy that the performers brought on stage. If it is true that American Idol’s glory days are over, then it’s something that the top 11 finalists refused to accept, and just as well, because we got two great shows out of it.