Simon Cowell: friend or foe?

[martini]

Simon Cowell likes to berate performers.
Is this acceptable/non-acceptable? Give
your reason(s).

Reason:

1. It's painful for the performers.

Martini

 

[DaveC]

1. It's painful for the performers.

So is that a reason for or against?

 

[melon]

Simon Cowell's behavior is acceptable, because music industry professionals are equally blunt and cruel. If you want to be a professional musician, you have to be able to take extremely frank criticism.

Melon

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

Why in hell is this in FYM?

 

[unosdostres14]

Posts: 4

That's why.

 

[Angela Harlem]

Can we spend this thread discussing the pustule that is reality tv?

 

[Moonlit_Angel]

Simon Cowell's behavior is acceptable, because music industry professionals are equally blunt and cruel. If you want to be a professional musician, you have to be able to take extremely frank criticism.

Melon

Exactly. It's brutal honesty, is all it is.

Angela

 

[DeadMansParty]

I wish that he did our Karaoke night at my bar, I always want to get on the mic and say " that was the most horrible thing I have ever heard".

 

[joyfulgirl]

Simon Cowell's behavior is acceptable, because music industry professionals are equally blunt and cruel. If you want to be a professional musician, you have to be able to take extremely frank criticism.

Melon

It's also acceptable because he's right most of the time.

 

[Bonochick]

I Simon.

He is there to judge talent, and he tells it like it is. He is actually doing them a favor by giving them an honest, straight-forward critique. I mean, I'm sure that the reason so many people think that they can sing is that none of their friends and family have the heart to tell them that they suck.

 

[Palace_Hero]

I think I tell it how it is, I'm right all of the time and I'm brutally honest.. but I get chastised for it. Simon Cowell is much, much worse. Yet I still like him.

 

[pepokiss]

HE's the only reason people LOVE to watch the first episodes of AI... later you get people actually singing...

 

[corianderstem]

I have a crush on Simon Cowell.

 

[Laura M]

Watching his antics makes for good tv, at least.

 

[U2democrat]

Simon

 

[Bono's shades]

I don't care if he rags on people for lack of talent, but I read somewhere that in the first season he told one of the contestants she would never make it in music because she was too heavy. I've never seen the show so I don't know if this is true or not, but if it is he's a scumbag.

 

[corianderstem]

I'm not comfortable with what he says to the heavier girls as well, but you know what? He's right.

Heavier men could make it in the music industry, but a heavier woman? Nope. It's awful, but true. I don't expect that double-standard to change any time soon, sad as it is.

Edited to add:

There are always exceptions, of course. Frenchie Davis was heavier, but she had the talent to make it that far. Most of the heavier girls on Idol don't make it that far because, frankly, they're not that good, like most of the others you see during the audition process.

That's not to say a heavier woman couldn't have a singing career ... but if you want a career in the kind of music they're pimping on American Idol ... not going to happen.

Pop music is all about image, and being overweight seems to be the last "acceptable" way to discriminate.

 

[Palace_Hero]

I honestly don't want to see a fat person on my TV. Cowell is right. The only way ugly/fat people can make it is if they have exceptional talent. Thats the way it is, and the way I like it.

 

[Angela Harlem]

It's be much nicer if people could only make it with exceptional talent, but then we'd leave out the entire braindead section of the community who lap this constipated garbage right up.

 

[corianderstem]

I enjoy it for its entertainment value and am not braindead, thankyouverymuch.

But to be fair, I understand that it's crap. I like TV and have a high tolerance for garbage, though.

 

[Aardvark747]

Simon -

 

[RavenBlue]

I respect Simon because he tells it as it is. He doesn't sugarcoat anything, you know he's going to be honest with you.

 

[Angela Harlem]

I enjoy it for its entertainment value and am not braindead, thankyouverymuch.

But to be fair, I understand that it's crap. I like TV and have a high tolerance for garbage, though.

I see absolutely no entertainment value in everyday people pretending to be something exceptional, but that is where taste is subjective. That is not my beef. My beef is, and the comment about being braindead, was directed to whatever portion of viewers treat these shows as something terribly important - the kind who spend a great deal of money voting for whomever on expensive text messages or electronic voting, who scour the websites of these shows, who attend performances, who form fan clubs or join fan clubs, those who study these very ordinary people and performers as though they are something of extreme interest. We're not all interested in greek mythology as a hobby, but to live in a plastic bubble I do think is braindead and I stand by that. I'm going to guess you are not one of these types of viewers and whether you are or not, is not the point. I wasn't addressing anyone on here specifically, so I do hope you weren't offended. But if you are one of those who are utterly obssessed, then yeah I'm going to stand by it and think you probably need help

 

[corianderstem]

Nah, I wasn't offended. I do have a bit of shame for liking a few cheesy reality shows, like this one.

I'm proud to say, however, that I don't bother with anything surrounding them other than watching them and then yakking about them on the internet.