Joshua Ledet, the 20-year-old black soul singer from Westlake, La., was voted off American Idol this week, despite the judges who overwhelmed him with standing ovations throughout the competition, and hailed his uncanny ability to channel James Brown and other greats. Ledet's exit was depressingly predictable for some, who note that Idol voters haven't crowned a non-white (or female) winner since 2007. The demographic makeup of Idol's largely tween fan base almost ensures that "humble Caucasian heartthrobs" — or white guys with guitars (WGWGs) — will prevail, says Derrik Lang at The Associated Press, and even a superior talent like Ledet was always handicapped against Phillip Phillips, the archetypal WGWG who's the favorite going into next week's final. Was Ledet robbed?
Yes. Ledet is far and away a better singer: Ledet is a "powerhouse singer" with "far more stage dynamism" than the "vocally limited" Phillips and the other finalist, Jessica Sanchez, says Misha Berson at The Seattle Times. Ledet's main disadvantage is that Phillips has the "market cornered" on the "legion of pre-teen viewers who vote for their crushes rather than the singer with the most vocal prowess." But Ledet also faced the prejudice that old-school soul has no place in contemporary American music. It's telling that Adele got her start in her native England, musically a more open-minded country.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
US won its war on 'murder hornets,' officials saySpeed Read The announcement comes five years after the hornets were first spotted in the US
-
California declares bird flu emergencySpeed Read The emergency came hours after the nation's first person with severe bird flu infection was hospitalized
-
Trump, Musk sink spending bill, teeing up shutdownSpeed Read House Republicans abandoned the bill at the behest of the two men
