By Dan Cloutier
I have problems with American Idol and programming like it. I believe that this TV show tells the lie that the average person has no part in modern music. Simply put, American Idol is the search for human perfection in pop music. The people who do well on the show are individuals who are trying to have the best voice, style, look, and who want to be perfect. The obvious problem is that perfection in pop, or rock, or country, or folk, or even classical music is just not possible. Let us first take a look at the best examples of perfection in music from all human history. This conversation has to start with the likes of Mozart and Beethoven. These composers are the cream of the crop of human music. Being a musician myself, their music is so far beyond my skill that it is laughable to compare anyone I know to them. They wrote music that has stood for hundreds of years, and have moved masses to tears and great deeds, but the thing I find most striking about them is how difficult their lives were. Mozart died of illness and in poverty at the age of of just 35, and Beethoven wrote some of his best music after he had gone both deaf and blind. Neither of them would have won some grand popularity contest. They were far from perfect physical and vocal specimens, but they both did have an enormous grasp on what it meant to be human, and that is what made them great.
I am tired of the general public putting the pop stars and their vocal abilities on American Idol on such a high pedestal. The simple truth is that all humans can sing and should sing. That is the reason pop, rock, country, and folk music exists. This is the music of the common people who sing with common voices. Who in the end is the real Judge that says one person is better than another at music or singing? Can you claim this yourself? Does just hitting a note well make you a world changer or a bringer of good?
I think most will agree that music is not just for the elite. Music is a gift that has been given for all to enjoy, but more importantly, for all to partake in. Too many people these days listen to their tens of thousands of songs on their iPods, but do nothing with music themselves. They have just become music consumers, and by doing so have become passive observers of music and art. They have stopped creating music, or more importantly, they have stopped being part of a musical community. Shows like American Idol are partially to blame for this. This specific show even has a segment where they make fun of people who they feel cannot sing well. They crush people’s very real dreams in front of millions of viewers with judgmental and crass comments. How dehumanizing is that? Would you want your children holding such morals or being so quick to judge a fellow human being? Or more simply, would you want millions of people laughing at you because you sing off key?
Human history and civilization are based on cultures of people singing common songs. This has been in churches, synagogues, mosques, schools, political events, around campfires, and in the home. This is also happening less and less these days in America. How many modern parents actually sit after dinner and sing songs with their children and family? How many modern Americans are members of their church choir? The truth is that for thousands and thousands of years of human civilization, people did just that. That was their entertainment, and it was all about being part of a community of people working together to create art. It had nothing to do with just sitting on your sofa staring at a screen. American Idol and programs like it are making people think that you have to be the perfect individual to sing, but that is nothing more than a lie. All humans can sing and they should sing together. Anything less is an antihuman falsehood.
Let’s pose the question, “Who do you consider the most important musical act from the last century?” Would you say Bob Dylan, the Beatles, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon, Led Zeppelin, or someone else? Now, ask yourself this question: “Would any of these brilliant and human acts win American Idol?” Of course they would not. Can you imagine John Lennon jumping through hoops for these television programs? Great music comes from being human, not from trying to be perfect and loved by all. American Idol, and programs like it, hurts real music. It stops locals from singing, and is less about creating community and more about creating individual superstars. In the end it just creates recycled, unoriginal, and less human music. So, next time American Idol or a show like it comes on, why not just head down to a local open mike near your own hometown and experience real human emotion and real human relationships?
I can promise you that it will change your life, and the world around you. Isn’t that what music is supposed to do anyway?
Awesome post, I’ve felt the same way for years.
Listening to, playing in and being a part of a music community changed my life, it actually saved me from a very dark place. My sole purpose as a songwriter is to write songs in the hopes to inspire, connect, or change anybody; in any way possible for the better. Music gave to me something I didn’t have for a long time: hope. I will pay it forward ten fold. People deserve substance and meaning in music, not just what sounds perfect. Art is a reflection of our humanity. Compassion, understanding, and community is being bred out of us every day. Art is one thing that helps keep it alive. Pop stardom is a very selfish career path if obtained for the wrong reasons. I think John Lennon had it in check, but not Lady Gaga so much….
Thanks for the kind words Jon. Music dramatically changed my life for the good too, and the friends I have made through the local Boston music scene are worth more than gold. I run an open mike at the Amazing Things Arts Center and I have literally seen lives changed through song. I hope more and more people can turn off their TVs and electronic devices and take part in the community we love.
I agree, I am glad to see people involved in a music scene like yourself who genuinly care. What we do with our time is so preciouse, I’d rather leave a positive mark on the world weather the world knows I did or not lol. So all I got to say to the producers of those shows about dumping on people is… What a great way to spend you time on the planet, I’ll be over here nurturing creativity and watching it grow in my local music scene.
Some choose to ignore things like American Idol and direct their energy elsewhere.
The some are not the problem here. It is the majority that does not ignore that is problematic.
This rocks!!!
I agree. Great post Dan!
Thanks Ashley! Let us know if you ever want to write another blog for us in the future too. We love what you do for the local music scene.
Well said…I would add that more than music being a gift, it was THE way that community was created. Just the other day I spoke to a man who recently moved here from The Ivory Coast, and he was telling me how their tribe used drums to send the word to the village that someone has passed on. Villagers would move toward the drums to pay respects.
I did not get involved much with participating music until I was 22. I didn’t think I was much of a singer, and 20 years later, I can see I was correct in the respect that few if any would pay to hear me sing, but I have learned skills that have enabled me to receive token payments for me to share my music, and have even been given the honor of singing National Anthems at many sporting events including The Boston Celtics…a unexpected dream come true. I say unexpected because I don’t recall eer dreaming of it.
All of this, I attribute to having joined the Barbershop Harmony Society. We are attempting to address the participation issue. We I ask people to join us, they say something like, “You don’t want me to sing”, to which I enthusiastically reply…”Yes, I assure you that we DO!”
That said, as I write this, I am at the tail end of our International convention, which includes contests where the elite singers of our art form come to get judged and earn medals for their performance. The interesting this is that like most subjective competitions (like ice skating), the audience spends a bit of time debating the judges decisions. For example, there was a group that came in 11th, that was the only group that was able to get a spontaneous and unanimous standing ovation from the audience of 5600. To your point, they were NOT musically perfect, but they were sharing their humanity with us in a way that it stirred our spirits. Quartets that are singing at a musical level that I can not yet dream of accomplishing are flying home with disappointment because they were not awarded a medal.
Also to your point, our organization has so many groups that go around and sing at nursing homes, sing at benefits and fundraisers, and go home to families with more patience, caring , and love because they sing on a regular basis and practice making harmony. These are average people, most who started at a place called. “oh, you don’t want ME to sing.” Yes, I would love your help in spreading the word that we have chapters worldwide we offer a place for all levels of musicians to come and grow, and PARTICIPATE in music, rather than consuming. But I mostly write this to commend you on your insight.
Your readers that like your opinion, may also like this keynote address by Dr. Jim Henry.
He speaks of the way that music helps people irrespective of the “quality” of the result.
There are some inside jokes to members of the barbershop harmony community at the beginning, but I think will have some value to others once he gets past the introductory stage of the speech.
Gold Medal Moments:
http://youtu.be/efcIwtuOKo0
Thanks to all of you who make my world more beautiful with your music
This is a beautiful reply Michael. You should work the thoughts in this piece into a blog for us. We would love to post it. Thanks too for your kind words.
I am so glad someone put this into words. I’m so tired of people ripping others apart and calling it entertainment. And we wonder why adult and childhood bullying is endemic. If you take a look around one realizes our culture glorifies this behavior as survival of the fittest. I think sometimes our society is losing its center. It seems more and more like every man for himself is our mantra. Less and less is there any sense of owing anything (like a basic level of respect) to our fellow community members.
Thanks for your lovely comment Katey. It is sad when the world pushes towards survival of the fittest, but it is our job as artists to push back.
I read this as we drove toward a distant gig, after leaving a wonderful afternoon open mike where many friends performed. Thanks, Dan, for putting in words what I’ve been spending a great deal of time thinking about lately.
We turned off our TV two years ago, gave it away, and haven’t looked back. The hours spent in front of it are lost, but there’s no need to perpetuate that. I find this trend toward toward turning everything in life into a contest troubling at best. I find it sad to see people belittle others and call it entertainment for the masses. The result, as so eloquently put by Dan is an artificial ideal and an environment where nearly everyone thinks they’re a failure. It’s not unlike kids aspiring to (or being pushed toward) professional sports rather than enjoying a game of basketball at the local park.
As for music? I have no doubt it saved my life and my sanity. These days I co-host one open mike and help with sound at others. One of the truly great joys in hosting is to see someone perform for the first time, nerves and all, and get through it and come back again. Reaching out with encouragement, and watching people grow over time is unbeatable, and it’s how we pay forward the kindness showed to each of us when we first stepped up to play.
So what about the iPod? Ours is loaded with the music of our local musician friends and connected to the car stereo. When we are on long drives, we put the iPod on shuffle, and bring our community with us. I wrote a song about that, and it pays tribute to many friends and their wonderful music. And yes, we do sing along with their songs as we drive.
Great reply Dan my friend. I think you should make this into your own blog. The world needs to hear why turing off your TV is a good thing, and how music saved your life.
Well said Dan, though there is definitely a place for well run competition. It can encourage us to our best work, and can sometimes be responsible for us to grow in ways that we might not otherwise. Even better, positive competition can encourage community in its own way as competitors gain respect for each other and learn to appreciate their differences as an opportunity to learn and grow. But I agree that as a nation our balance is way off as the major media outlets have taken competition to destructive places. That is the bottom line. If it destroys community, or self-esteem then it is bad – bad for both contestants and for those who are using it for entertainment.
Big applause for “We Support Local Music”, and your part in changing the balance for the better.
Thanks for the kind words Tom. I once would have said that I was completely against competition in art and music. It was attending Tom Bianchi’s Lizard Lounge Open Mike Throw Down that made me second guess. Tom is able to run a competition that really does build community, and that is mainly because he is gracious and supportive. This is no Gong Show. He is also one of the best musicians around too, and that makes his complements more meaningful. This is a subject that is still forming in my head, but I also totally agree that any program or event that rips down people’s self-esteem or destroys community is wrong. Musicians need to be more outspoken about it.
Oh Dan, that was perfect! So many times I’ve had people come up to me after gigs or open mikes and say, “Wow, I could never do that!”, where “that” is one of (a) perform on stage, (b) sing in public or (c) write songs. And I immediately point out to them that, 5 years ago, I’d have said the exact same thing, that all of what I do (indeed, what -we- do) up there is stuff we’ve only started doing recently. A rare few take encouragement from that, mostly folks who are just starting down that road for themselves, and I do everything I can to get them pointed at local open mikes, good teachers, good venues, etc. But most get that deer-in-the-headlights look, the look that I’ve taken to interpreting as, “I don’t think I could face failure in public, and I know I would fail.” And I’m reminded of something I said to my teacher back in fourth grade.
She had asked us to write a short story about any subject. And as she walked around the room, she came across me madly scribbling away on the paper she had handed out — as I sat there copying the first chapter of “Black Beauty”, word for word, from the book by Anna Sewell. She stopped me and gave me a new word for my vocabulary, “plagiarism”. She told me what it meant, and why it was not a good thing. And then she told me she wanted MY story, one written by me and me alone. I still remember my response: “Okay, but it won’t be nearly as good.” To this day, I do not know why I believed that. But I do know that I hated writing as much as I loved reading, and that lasted well past school. And that teacher did nothing to show me why I should love it. Only in recent years have I decided that I should write anyways. I’m still no Anna Sewell, but I have some stories and poems that I’m happy with, and that I enjoy telling in public. And writing is no longer a hated exercise, but an integral part of my life.
I think our goal, as musicians, should be to encourage everyone to take part. Bring friends and relatives to local music concerts! Drag ‘em if you have to…
Show up at the open mikes, and cheer for the newbies with the panicked looks on their faces as they muff chords and sing off-key! (once they get past the nervousness, I often find they’re wonderful singers underneath — stress does evil things to the voice! I purposely seek out the newbies afterwards and encourage them to come back, check out other open mikes in the area, investigate good teachers and camps, etc.) Write songs with simple, singable choruses and/or refrains, and encourage people to sing along! Have a jam session at your house and invite some non-musician friends with potential! Show ‘em how much fun social music can be… Host a house concert! Start an unplugged open mike once a month or once every other month at your local library/school/church/pub/other public location, etc., as you’ll never know who in your neighborhood is a closet musician who’s just looking for a friendly opportunity to try something different (who knew our head library trustee was an amazing honky-tonk piano player who’d never played outside his own basement??)… And if you end up with a Simon Cowell in the crowd, pull them aside and quietly ask them to either stop criticizing/bullying/belittling/judging people, or to please leave, their choice. Nothing will drive people away from music faster than to be knocked down when they’re trying to step up. And that’s the part about American Idol that I hate the most — the criticism. There are a great many ways to tell someone they have areas that need improvement that don’t involve knocking them down. And it’s that fear, I think, that keeps a lot of people away from music today.
You should think of turing what you just wrote into your own blog. I loved the story about Black Beauty and you learning to write for yourself. Do it!!! We’ll totally post it. You are one of the best Faith.
Dan, Excellent points! I will continue to pursue the perfectly imperfect! Keep up the great work.
Thanks brother Tom! I will continue to try to be perfectly imperfect too.
Obviously, you’ve struck a chord here, Mr. C. One of the greatest musicians of the 20th century once said to me “Music is not a competition. Anything you create is unique to who you are, not some form of brinkmanship.” American Idol, The Voice, America’s Got Talent, and others are very much lowest common denominator forms of entertainment designed to sell commercial products. The times I’ve viewed these shows, the real artists usually end up losing to some animal act or something. Talk about apples and oranges. I watched several episodes of Platinum Hit and was amazed at how arrogant the judges were and how vindictive and negative the songwriters treated one another as the stakes got higher. These programs, like pop music itself today and much of the business world, have this need to clone whatever’s successful, forgetting that innovation, not copies, is what inspires and refreshes. Television and pop music are about money, not art, and they’ll sell whatever makes the most money, not the most sense. No wonder Dylan called it $uckce$$.
Try to be a $uck$e$$
Please her, please him, buy gifts
Don’t steal, don’t lift
Twenty years of schoolin’
And they put you on the day shift
Look out kid
They keep it all hid
Better jump down a manhole
Light yourself a candle
Don’t wear sandals
Try to avoid the scandals
Don’t wanna be a bum
You better chew gum
The pump don’t work
’Cause the vandals took the handles
Amen Bob
Open Mics have been a godsend to me. I started about 3 summers ago, and was nervous as hell.
Between the OMs, and the supportive people I’ve met there, I’m now somewhat comfortable performing in front of people.
My playing is not the best, nor is my singing, but I have fun.
And for me that’s what it’s all about.
Hey Rick,
I run the open mike at the Amazing Things Arts Center in Framingham MA. It’d be good to see you there some night if you live in the area. Open mikes have changed my life too.
I’m afraid I can’t be part of the love fest. I think that to imply that we all can and should sing does a disservice to those with talent. On a very basic level you may have a point but American Idol (while I hate the format) isn’t looking for that nice voice in the church choir, they are looking for potential pop stars. I don’t think there is any implication to the contrary. As a working professional in photography your position is one I fight on a daily basis. The illusion that because technology has made taking pictures easier, photography is no longer a service to be paid for. Frankly if there is any thing that hinders the growth of local music it’s the lack of cooperation between those that profess to be supporters. I produce a cable access show that is also streamed live online and get little to no support or mention from many local “supporters” of local music. I’ve had greater success in Europe, The Middle East, Australia than here in MA.
Dan this is so right on and exactly how I feel about American Idol. I will be posting this to my Facebook page for my business. I teach a wonderful early childhood music program called Music Together which was partly founded on the premise that people are not sitting around the piano at night making music with their families anymore and the fact that we’ve become a consumer society instead of a music making society. It is research based to help children gain basic music competence (ability to sing in key and hold a beat), but the materials that go home with the families encourage them to actively make music with their children every day. It’s teaching the parents to sing and dance with their children instead of plop them in front of a TV, which in turn will hopefully create a new generation of people who enjoy taking part in the music of their culture and not just listening to the “perfect” ones on the radio. People who are not self concious about the way they sound, but get great joy from being a part of music making. There are Music Together centers all over the world making music MAKERS one family at a time!
This is my contribution, as well as playing in a band myself and frequenting open mics and live music venues often. It’s all we can do right?