From News.com.au:
A FORMER contestant on hit US television show American Idol has been found dead outside the Los Angeles home of Paula Abdul, the singer who stars as a judge on the series.
US news sites have reported the body of a woman discovered in a car parked near Abdul’s home in Sherman Oaks yesterday was Paula Goodspeed, who had appeared on American Idol, one of the highest rated shows on US television, in 2006.
Goodspeed, who was apparently infatuated with Abdul, had been mocked by the TV show’s judges when she performed Proud Mary in her audition.
It is difficult for many Australians to appreciate what an institution American Idol is, especially since the local variant Australian Idol is not celebrated quite as fanatically. For something as seemingly innocuous as a singing contest it seems to have been plagued recently by more than its fair share of tragedy. In addition to the breaking news of Paula Goodspeed, an apparently deeply troubled woman with an unhealthy interest in Idol judge Paula Abdul, there have also been other troubling developments.
Former Idol runner up Nikki McKibbin while still in the limelight now appears for very different reasons. She forms part of a celebrity ensemble for a show called ‘Celebrity Rehab.’ According to The Star-Ledger she cites Idol judge Simon Cowell’s criticisms as a contributing factor to a lifestyle marked by addiction and depression:
“I think I had my first solo in school when I was 5, and I got more as I got older: That’s the biggest compliment in choir. I had never been told I wasn’t good enough. Having to hear it for so many weeks from Simon Cowell killed me inside … It drove me deeper into my depression.”
Jennifer Hudson had great professional success after Idol, winning an Academy Award for her performance in Dreamgirls. However her personal life took a devastating turn as her mother, brother and nephew (who was only seven years old) were murdered.
It is not my intention to propose or progress an American Idol conspiracy theory. Nor (despite the word play inherent in the subject of this entry) am I suggesting that there might be some divine consequence for making false ‘idols’ of these contestants.
I make two observations.
Firstly, that the whole phenomena is a pressure cooker of expectation, aspiration and attention. Passions run high. Media exposure is at saturation levels. Contestants, caught up in the rhetoric and the show’s own marketing, are encouraged to believe their one last chance is riding on their success in a single competition. There is no delineation between being the most popular performer among the viewing-voting public and creating a successful subsequent musical career.
Crowded House drummer Paul Hester, whom himself sadly committed suicide after a prolonged battle with depression, once remarked of the Australian equivalent of the show:
“I think Australian Idol is a terrible effort from Network Ten. It’s tragic and cruel… the kids are going to figure out in a couple of years that it was all about the judges.”
Certainly Nikki McKibbin might agree.
Secondly these people who are featured in the news are featured because of their association with the show. Their participation in the American Idol process has made them newsworthy. It is infinitely possible that Nikki McKibbin may have become addicted even without the influence of Simon Cowell. However without the influence of Simon Cowell we would likely have never been made aware of it. Similarly one has to wonder if the coverage of the tragedy befalling The Hudson family would’ve been different had we not first identified so intimately with Jennifer from her musical and acting successes.
Perhaps there is an opportunity here to coach contestants on mental health in the same way they are coached on vocal performance, appearance and song choice.
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