On Tuesday, September 16th, Ryan Malcolm, 24 and of Kingston, Ontario became the first winner of our Idol show, beating out Gary Beals, 20 of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. Nielsen Media Research confirmed that with an overall average audience of 2.06 million viewers, CTV’s Canadian Idol finished as the most watched Canadian produced series ever (1). In addition to this fact, the Idol final results show had a reported 2.65 million viewers and 3.3 million viewers cast their vote (2).
To Ryan Malcolm’s partial credit, the single which was officially released in record stores on September 30th, “Something More”, is actually a good song. But isn’t it interesting that once again I have to use the word "actually" as a precursor to any statement about an Idol song?
It seems we are living in a time in music history when the days of artists earning their dues for years until their “big break” (thanks to all that hard work) are gone. The Canadian Idol compilation, “Canadian Idol Moments”, which was released on August 26th by BMG Canada Inc./ViK.recordings, immediately achieved Gold status in Canada (3) without any of the artists (well, contestants in this case) even breaking a sweat. What kind of a message does that send to the public about the music industry? Can any intensively-marketed person now release an album of cover songs that we’ve all heard before and become a top-selling recording artist?
Let’s face it--the effortless success of such albums should be attributed less to the artists and more so to the strategic planning of the television network that produced our Idol show and the ones before it. The truth of the matter is that major network television has a much bigger pull than any radio or cable outfit. Why wouldn’t an Idol show be a success when the first connection is during the summer – a known period in television when most regular shows are on hiatus – and for a show which you don’t even need cable to watch?
What really surprised me about the success of Canadian Idol was the fact that, unlike for the Americans, this was not our first reality music show since the 1980s. Does anyone remember Popstars? Why did that show not reach the level of success Canadian Idol has?
Clearly, one of the reasons rests with the fact that as Canadians we (and perhaps even more so, our industries, including the media) have a serious bias against Canadian produced shows. I can’t quote statistics on the matter – although I would be interested in seeing exactly what the figures are – but as a nation, we seem to be more inclined to tune in to an American program than a Canadian one. It’s as though we are continually stuck in this realm of mediocrity. That is, until Britain or the United States develop a new concept that becomes a success. We then, in typical Canadian fashion, ride on their coattails while presenting the phenomenon to the viewing public as though it were an original Canadian concept.
To be fair, when comparing our Idol to the 1st and 2nd season of American Idol, there is little doubt that our top eleven were more talented and musically diverse; however, on the other hand, what difference does a comment like this really make? Whenever music is relegated to shows the likes of Survivor or Big Brother it cheapens the art form. While Ryan Malcolm is a good singer, at the end of the day what makes him any different than American pop culture icons Joe Millionaire or The Bachelor?
Regardless of whether we (the viewing public) see the Idol phenomenon as a good or bad thing, when it comes to big commercial markets, the only bottom line is monetary success. Ryan Malcolm has already recorded a track for the upcoming AIdol Christmas CD, entitled “The Great Holiday Classics,” and will appear on an Idol Christmas special this November 4. For all intents and purposes, Malcolm and the other Idols are stars.
Ultimately, I think the most salient legacy of Canadian Idol won't be the viewing or the voting records but the part this show will play in the continual Americanization of our Canadian cultural identity. Yes, we can now justifiably say, “See, we’re just as good as you (Americans), we have an Idol too!” But must we always play a cultural second fiddle to the U.S.?
Sources:
http://www20.brinkster.com/niese/MiniSites/CanadianIdol/
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Cheryl Thompson is an aspiring writer/journalist living in Toronto, Canada. She has a B.A. in Criminology and is pursuing an M.A. in Media and Communication through Ryerson University. Cheryl believes that part of our survival as human beings is being able to express ourselves, and hopes to be able to influence those who have the power to bring about change through her writing. Her column on race, ethnicity, pop culture and Canadian identity appears once a month on Vive.
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