American Idol Blows Into Town

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The top ten finalists from the seventh season of American Idol came to Tampa on Thursday, making their 37th stop on their nationwide tour.  The vocalists from the popular television series took turns covering the songs that brought them success on the show, counting down from the tenth place finalist to the most recently crowned Idol, David Cook.

An interesting mix of fans streamed into the St. Pete Times Forum to enjoy the concert.  The demographics ranged from five-to-ten year olds to their teenage sisters to their early-to-mid forties parents - a virtual tour of the generations in suburban America.  These are the loyalists who have given the television program its enduring success.  What these fans lacked in raw, naked Rock energy, they compensated with joyful glee with even the mention of the names of their beloved stars.

Chikezie opened the show with an upbeat performance that rallied the faithful.  He was followed by Ramiele who worked her way through the Jackson 5’s I Want You Back.  Not a strong performance, but acceptable as a warm up.  Michael Johns then took the stage turning up the volume with hits from Queen and Aerosmith.  With each falsetto that the Australian hit, he was greeted with equally high-pitched cheers.  The momentum was building and the fans were ready for each step on the countdown to number 1.

This all slowed, however, with a series of performances that left all but the most ardent Idol supporter wondering where Simon and the crew were.  The vocals got lost in the size of the Forum, and the singers looked small on an already bleak stage.  From Kristy Lee in the seventh slot to Syesha in the number three position, the fans stayed in their seats, rising in anticipation principally when the next performer was announced. 

Indeed, the middle of the concert was saved when, during intermission, a large Pop Tart appeared in the crowd.  A man (?) in a large food-suit emulating the questionably tasty breakfast toaster treat took pictures with the youngsters, while those with a sense of irony wondered if the pun was intended or not.  The greatest cheers, however, came during an Air-Guitar Showdown between Tyler and Abbie, a six year old and four year old plucked from the crowd.  While they rocked, the crowd went wild, dispelling any question as to the potential of the crowd to cheer.

In the end, let there be no doubt that while named the American Idols Live Tour 2008, it was, in fact, The David and David Show.  After wading through the middle of the line-up, even a casual observer would know that something different was about to happen when David Archuleta took the stage.  The fans rocketed to their feet and the cheers continued well into the middle of his first song, Angels by Robbie Williams.  Archuleta, despite looking agonizingly young and small on stage, was able to fill the hall with his powerful and pitch-perfect vocals.  The energy increased with his turn of the Ben E. King classic, Stand by Me.  In the end, he could do no wrong in the eyes of his fans, and he delivered a performance that suggests that he may last in the entertainment industry for a long time to come.

Then came America’s vote-getter, David Cook, who began with the Lionel Richie classic Hello.  More than the songs, Cook stood on his charisma and showmanship.  He bantered with the crowd and received ecstatic roars each time he paused, turned his head and smiled.  The pre-teen girls in the crowd rushed to the edges of the stage to touch their Idol.  By the time he closed the night with his encore performance of Billie Jean by Michael Jackson, the crowd was sated and ready to go home.  It was, after all, a school night.

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