The New Reality Game Show Philosophy of Losing to Gain More Stardom

There used to be a time when the prospect of winning a TV reality game/talent show was the ultimate attainment of a burgeoning entertainer's goals. Ever since the recent era started of gaining a recording contract when one wins "American Idol" or "America's (and Britain's) Got Talent", the lines for more candidates in the ensuing season kept growing longer and longer. But those more astute to the details (and who weren't even competing) found out that the contracts awarded there weren't exactly a road to every dream coming true. Considering Simon Cowell is the one who started this in the 21^st century, those who've had inside peeks into the "American Idol" contract have put a bug in many an ear that the contract is designed to benefit the producer(s) more than the artist--plus complete control over the artist for more years than it should be.

That hasn't necessarily stopped the audition lines from stretching all the way to the farthest regions of the planet each season. Yet something else happened to the candidates that's proven they were privy to those suspicious contract provisions or being much more astute to entertainment industry trends than they initially let on.

Before word can get out about how a certain system can be used in your own favor, there always has to be the process of the sacrificial lamb that learns the hard way. Perhaps the first artist on "American Idol" to realize that the contract given to the winner is far from perfect was first-year winner Kelly Clarkson who successfully managed to sue 19 Entertainment later to get out of it early. Because it's fairly clear now that Cowell's 19 Entertainment forces the winner to stay under their power for over seven years, it shouldn't be any surprise why every artist thus far winning "Idol" has managed to wrestle their way out of the long-term contract. Once that happens, they frequently soar in other endeavors...if also disappearing into the world of Broadway musical road tours just to survive.

Let's keep in mind that the latter scenario is for those artists who won or became runners-up on "Idol" based on a quasi mass hypnotic, temporary fad and not any basis as a true artist. Most of the singers you could call a true artist didn't even win the crown and ultimately went in better directions anyway. Jennifer Hudson doesn't have to be mentioned (or another bad impersonation of her singing "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going") nor Katharine McPhee as just two--or future examples yet to be told. Despite this, those previous two wanted to win "Idol" very badly, initially.

It's a good argument that their careers would have been stalled by now had they won. This frame of mind has finally been digested by many "Idol" wannabes just in the last couple of years. And they're starting to use this strategy now in thinking that if they can just make the Top Ten, there isn't any reason to care if they win or not. In fact, the time is already here when "American Idol" will have most of the candidates trying to avoid a win rather than have to be under the gun of a forceful contract when other offers could be more lucrative and less intrusive.

Enter (or let's say Exit) Susan Boyle who just lost "Britain's Got Talent" at the time this article is heading into the queue. With her loss came one of the most pronounced sighs of relief any reality game show talent has ever exhaled.
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The immediate argument will be that Susan Boyle just showed relief that she wouldn't have to endure as much of the hellbent paparazzi any longer just being the runner up to a younger dance troupe who can probably hack intrusive press easier. Well, I wager to guess that isn't what she's thinking at all. The truth is that she'll probably still be followed by the press--with perhaps a slight bit less intensity than it was. Even so, she still has the prospects of being signed to a record contract through the pen of Simon Cowell. He stands to benefit more than anything by signing Susan Boyle to his label, and you know Boyle knows it.

Anybody astute enough could tell from the beginning that Boyle had a lot of wheels turning in her head the minute she was introduced to the world through Youtube. If perhaps she missed her opportunities to stardom 20 years ago when no one would have given a cursory look at her as being unattractive, there isn't a doubt she realizes that signing with Cowell could be like signing on the dotted line with the devil himself. She also likely knows that the publicity she received was the best thing that could happen so she could field a million other offers.

When Boyle threatened to quit "Britain's Got Talent", the worry by the producers was palpable that they could lose her and potentially lose out on making untold millions off of her inevitable international #1 album. Despite becoming the runner up on "Britain's Got Talent", the chances of her having a worldwide smash album are still great. Her voice, when not stressed, still moves people like few other vocal artists, which means that she has a good chance of finding an even better offer from someone else other than Cowell.

Yet that deep inhale and exhale from her might also be a wish that she finished much lower than second. She certainly didn't have to finish second by any means. She could have gone home right after the Youtube superstardom and been able to remove herself completely from the "Britain's Got Talent" spectacle while enjoying a lucrative recording deal elsewhere. If she decides to do that as runner up, she'll set a new precedent for future British contestants who will realize they don't even need to win the show to get ahead. The publicity of Youtube coupled with dozens of other media avenues and the show itself is enough to catapult them to whatever they want if they have talent that's undeniable and not hyped.

Yes, it's quite odd those in Britain haven't caught onto that quite yet as contestants in America for "Idol" have. It all poses a major problem for these types of shows in the future when the dynamic could be permanently changed. Now the producers of these shows will have to use reverse psychology to keep major talent around before they do everything they can to lose so they can move on to better things. Don't be surprised to see a Top Ten "Idol" contestant quit midstream in future seasons just to avoid the unnecessary pressure imposed on that show and the prospects of starting their music career sooner.

As for Susan Boyle, she's now the new emblem of how great talent can be discovered on a diffuse scale through the net just as much or more than through television. We'll hope she's also the new emblem of keeping her principles intact when too much success falls into your lap all at once and you think you don't need anybody to stay on top of the world...

Source:

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-boyle31-2009may31,0,6053577.story