As an artist development platform, we've proven that all the work done behind the scenes at American Idol, along with surviving the rigors of the intense live shows, can properly prepare a winner for a real-world music career opportunity.
I recognise a lot of myself in these kids who enter shows like Pop Idol. It's very hard to get into the music industry and you have to take every opportunity that you can. Something like Pop Idol is a great opportunity but unfortunately, I think it's tainted by the people that make these shows.
I paint mostly from real life. It has to start with that. Real people, real street scenes, behind the curtain scenes, live models, paintings, photographs, staged setups, architecture, grids, graphic design. Whatever it takes to make it work.
Winning 'American Idol' really anoints you the opportunity to have a great career; it does not anoint you a career.
I think one of the most important things we can do for people is to expand opportunity - whether it's the opportunity to live a life free of discrimination or the opportunity to get a good job that provides a gateway to the middle class. I've dedicated my career to expanding opportunity, and it's proven incredibly rewarding.
'American Idol' is sometimes lumped with reality shows and it has that element - folks-next-door battling it out in a contest. But instead of fighting leeches, bugs, parasites and each other, as on CBS's 'Survivor' and other shows that imitate it, the 'American Idol' contestants, of course, sing.
I think that American women are further along than any other women in the world. But you can't have peace in a world in which some women or some men or some nations are at different stages of development. There is so much work to be done.
'American Idol,' for me, is fizzling out. They can't package me, man... I'm an artist that's created this concept but used the 'American Idol' machine as a marketing tool.
I like that I stand for something like American Idol which helps musicians and artists get out there. It's important to have shows like Idol because it's so hard to get into the music industry nowadays - nearly impossible.
When I'm working, I don't wake up and say, 'OK, time to go be intense.' I just look at whatever scenes we're working on that day and break them down - just real intense everyday work.
I've worked with a lot of 'American Idols' over there and I've worked with the 'German Idol' winner and had songs on 'Australian Idol.' It's a place for songs. 'The X Factor' U.K. is the holy grail.
Just because you're a star on television doesn't mean that you can be a music phenomenon or an artist. You have to have the material to back it, and it's all about hit songs. I can name you every 'Idol' winner and why they didn't go on to have success - their songs. The ones who have - their songs.
Just because you're a star on television doesn't mean that you can be a music phenomenon or an artist. You have to have the material to back it, and it's all about hit songs. I can name you every "Idol" winner and why they didn't go on to have success - their songs. The ones who have - their songs.
What I have noticed which I'm not nuts about that the trend that a lot of shows are hiring the American Idol type of talent without real training and real technique and I think that audiences are smart and sometimes seeing that things are not as high caliber as they were before.
There are those photographers who have made a whole career doing commercial work but have never had a museum show, and then there are others who've only had museum shows but couldn't survive for five seconds in the real world of photography. But I've done absolutely everything.
Carrie Underwood was just a small-town Oklahoma girl with big dreams in 2005 when she competed on the fourth season of 'American Idol.' She is one of the few true 'American Idol' success stories and went on to have incredible career success.
Reality shows are the perfect platform to boost one's career and the only way new singers can get work.