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Episode Recap: Take to the Stage
There is nothing I love more than watching the children of celebrities attempt to live up to their parents’ fame and fail miserably (Thanks VH1 and E! for all of those rock and Hollywood royalty specials). So imagine my excitement when MTV announced a singing competition featuring the children of rock and pop stars who want nothing more than to break out on their own and step out of their parents shadow. To help these kids make a name for themselves the show spends every possible moment reminding us who their far more famous parents are and gives the parent stars equal camera time. For some reason the judges and I have very different opinions but I’m writing the recap, so my thoughts on the performances win! Let’s not waste anymore time and get straight to the singing.
Jesse Money: Decent singer, but maybe 3 Doors Down’s “When I’m Gone” wasn’t the best song choice for her. I think a different song would showcase her good voice. I need her trainer’s number because Jesse’s arms are INSANE. I did indeed have tickets to the gun show.
Landon Brown: Landon is hot. Landon can sing. Do you really need to know more? OK, fine: Landon crooned Seal’s “Crazy,” impressing me but not the judges. Larry said Landon lacked confidence, so maybe it was nerves. As far as I’m concerned Landon definitely inherited his vocal chops so assuming he performs with more confidence, I think we’ll see a lot more from him.
Chloe Lattanzi: Chloe’s mom is none other than Olivia Newton John, but after her performance she is not the one that I want (I know, too easy). She seems to have a decent voice but for some reason it didn’t sound like she was pronouncing all of the words in “Never Tear Us Apart” by INXS. Chloe blames her poor performance on her ear piece going out. I’m all for second chances, so maybe she’ll wow me next week.
Lucy Walsh: I love this girl’s style! Those yellow pumps remind me of a pair of shoes in my own closet. Fashion aside, Lucy is a great performer. She has a good voice (maybe not the best in the competition, but definitely good) and really connects to her material. Lucy’s emotional rendition of Don Henley’s “The Heart of the Matter” reflected what she revealed about her relationship with her father better than words did. I don’t know if she is the best performer in this competition, but easily one of my favs. The judges certainly thought so, giving Lucy top scores that put her in the untouchable position.
Jesse Blaze Snider: Not surprising at all, Dee Snider’s son chose Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll.” Though he may not be a stellar singer (one thing the judges nailed him for), Jesse wants to be a rock star so he doesn’t have to be. Working a pair of leather pants, performing shirtless and non-stop energy culminating with a back flip make Jesse a strong contender to front a hard-rocking band one day.
Lil B. Sure!: Before the show I had no idea who his father (Al B. Sure!) is and based on the clip shown I don’t really care. After not quite hitting the high notes of Donny Hathaway’s “A Song for You” Larry called him a “great singer”—apparently we weren’t watching the same performance. The only thing I’m sure of is that this kid is not such a great singer and kind of unattractive.
Lara Johnston: Geez Louise, this tiny 17-year-old girl has got one big voice. She belted out Avril Lavigne’s “I’m With You” and looked super cute doing it. I don’t get why the judges didn’t dig her, I thought she was awesome. She sounded great and made an Avril song tolerable (not an easy task).
A’keiba Burrell-Hammer: This self-proclaimed daddy’s girl sang “Love You I Do” by Jennifer Hudson and knocked it out of the park. A soulful voice paired with sassy head bobs and a huge smile made for a solid performance. A’keiba is an amazing singer and definitely one to watch out for. When it comes to hitting high notes, the other kids can’t touch this (It had to be done)!
Crosby Loggins: Holy cow, this kid is a spitting image of his father (only younger and hotter, best combination as far as I’m concerned) and has a very cool name. He looks like his dad, he plays guitar like his dad and even sounds a little like his dad. But instead of being a clone of his papa Kenny, Crosby stuck me as a chill, modern, indie version of his father as he sang Elvis Costello’s “(What’s So Funny ’Bbout) Peace Love and Understanding.”
All in all I’m a little disappointed…disappointed that the singing wasn’t worse (therefore easier to make fun of). I guess we’ll just have to wait and see who breaks out and who lacks the star power their parents possess(ed—except for Olivia: the ’80s never go out of style and home girl can rock a leotard and/or pair of roller skates any time). I certainly won’t hold back when a performance isn’t up to par, but I’ll definitely give credit when and where it is due. I’m looking forward to seeing more of the singers—especially Crosby, call me!
I am positive that I managed to anger someone and that most (if not all) of you feel differently about the performances than I did. So, let’s hear it! Who liked what they saw? Who thinks I’m crazy?
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Apr 10, 2008 10:21 PM
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Ahh...that feeling of entitlement. Are all children of celebrities born with it? Some of the people might have talent, but your last name usually doesn't mean you've inherited that particular gene.
The thing that I felt while watching these first perfomances was empathy for the parents. They have to sit there and smile just like these were 5 year olds in the kindergarten talent show. Olivia Newton John should get an Oscar because Chloe was just HORRIBLE! Seriously, you could see it in some of the parent's faces that they were there to support their kids, but know that the kids have nowhere near what it takes to be great singers. They may end up being decent singers in the end, but I doubt if 7 weeks is going to allow for much improvement. The only one who has any presence...notice I didn't say singing talent....is Jesse Blaze(geesh) Snyder. Calling any of these kids "great" is a real stretch.
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Apr 11, 2008 12:19 AM
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I had this on my Tivo for a week and finally had time to watch it.
Surprisingly, it made me appreciate American Idol more.
AI is better produced, written, and yes, hosted. I can't believe I actually appreciate Ryan Seacrest's hosting after watching this lesser Ryan though, i have no choice.
I wish they would have hired Brian Dunkleman. I KNOW they have his phone number since he's on the current season of Celebrity Fit Club.
They had some odd production glitches, like mics sounding like they were being scraped, and Ryan seemed to think they were going to a commercial, they showed a promo, and then came back to him standing there looking dumb for a bit (and Jesse Money still standing next to him...you could just see the top of her head.) It looked very "local cable access" to me.
Lucy Walsh probably is the best overall talent, and I think she's been making a living as a backup singer.
Jesse Blaze would walk away with it if he could sing HALF as well as his dad. Dee really impressed me when he was on Celebrity Duets 2 years ago, and I heard he SHOULD have won Gone Country.
Loggins kid DID look EXACTLY like him. Crazy! Not a bad singer either.
I thought Hammer's daughter was bad. I thought her voice sounded odd and she had NO stage chemistry.
The others were varying stages of meh. Most of them sounded like they were nervous.
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Apr 12, 2008 9:56 PM
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