Monday, June 30, 2014

Editorial: "Rising Star" Week 2: What Was With The Hesitations?

Hi, I'm the Whatsoever Critic. I review just about anything.

That's right! I tuned into Rising Star for the second Sunday in a row!

How did this one far? Well, I had mixed emotions about last night's (6/29/14) performances. What I noticed was that in this time around, many people hesitated in the voting process. Even our music experts Brad Paisley, Kesha, and Ludacris posed the same threat.
For this editorial, I'm going to point out all the moments where hesitation was dominant. Now, let me inform you that part of this is based on opinion, and part of this is based on what happened last night. In fact, I'm going to also make this a Top 5 list of where most of the hesitation came from and how it decided the fate of the performers.

5. the Adam Jaymes performance

With an average score of 87%, Adam stole many people's hearts with not only his singing, but also with his inspiring story of how he and his father had a special bond; and that after his father's death, he wanted to sing just for him.
So where was the hesitation here? Well, I'll admit: people had to get comfortable before they had to choose "Yes" or "No," but you had that sense that people hesitated at some point- the hesitation was there somehow.

4. the Rye Davis performance

I'll admit: this performance was debatable. Rye Davis, when he sung, sounded kinda like Alan Jackson. Even one of the experts, Brad Paisley, pointed that out to him. Yeah, there was going to be some hesitation there, leaving him with an average of 46%.
-Enough said.

3. the Megan Tibbits performance

There's not much to say about this one. I mean, Megan playing the harp as she sung was pretty impressive. I'm not sure how some people (especially the people that voted "No") didn't catch onto this.
She was in tune; she was passionate in her voice...
-So WTH happened that she got eliminated?
In fact, it took at least 30 seconds for votes to start coming in. That's where the hesitation is. And she only made it to an average of 68%.
-Why not be curious about this performer?
Well, Megan put on a good show as the last performer of the night, and I hope she makes a comeback someday.

2. the Deedra Ervin performance

Now I know what you're thinking: Shouldn't I have put this performance on the top of my list? Well, no. Why? Well, one: Deedra tried her hardest in her performance. Two; there wasn't much hesitation, because the majority of the viewers voted "No" (She made an average of 26%). And three, her story about serving the military and overcoming a home tragedy was so inspiring that one, Josh Groban said to her that they would do everything they can to get her and her family back on their feet (So she didn't walk away empty-handed); and two, this segment deserved mentioning.
-So think of this as an "Honorable Mention."

1. the Shameia Crawford performance

This had to be one of the most disappointing moments on the show in Week 2 of the series. Shameia was at least one point away from that 70% mark that would've raised the wall.
-What the hell happened?

Well, it was reported that the East Coast gave her a 69%, while the West Coast gave her a 71%, but they had to disappoint her on live TV. However, on Rising Star's Facebook page, they released a video hours later saying that the 71% of the West Coast had actually saved her from elimination, so she gets to go to the next round, which was pretty awesome, because she, in my opinion, sung so well, that she should've never been put down like that to begin with.

This was also reported on Good Morning America, who basically said the same thing: that she was saved by West Coast viewers.
-Now, to be honest, I was shocked that the East Coast had to give her the 69%. It just didn't seem right.
-And just wanted to point out (I WAS JUST TOLD THIS A MOMENT AGO) that Megan Tibbits was also saved by the West Coast (this was also reported on GMA). That was awesome.
Anyway, Shameia's performance was great, and I can't wait to hear her perform again in the future.

Now, seeing the examples of hesitation, how would this fair? My answer is: hesitation was the enemy, but it still seemed needed. When you hear and see the performance, you as the viewers have to make a choice on whether or not you want to see that performer advance to the next round. And there's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes we need to think before we jump into things without a second thought. That's understandable. However, when you know that a performance is really good and that you're pretty confident about this performer, then you have to respond. Don't let that person go through embarrassment, just because viewers didn't vote enough to keep them from elimination (the Shameia Crawford performance is a perfect example of this), because that's what making the coast (in this case: the East Coast) look and feel bad to the other coast.
Maybe I'm reading too deeply into Week 2 of Rising Star, but I'd thought I point out what happened that made want to take to the Internet and social media.

Whatsoever Critic
Source: Rising Star (ABC)

Courtesy: Ken Warwick & Nicole Yaron/Keshet DCP

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