{"id":2914,"date":"2020-09-30T01:00:52","date_gmt":"2020-09-30T06:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/read.streamapse.com\/?p=2914"},"modified":"2020-09-30T01:00:52","modified_gmt":"2020-09-30T06:00:52","slug":"the-most-american-pop-culture-phenomenon-of-them-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/streamapse.com\/Magazine\/?p=2914","title":{"rendered":"The Most American Pop Culture Phenomenon Of Them All"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cAmerican Idol\u201d was \u201cborn\u201d exactly nine months after 9\/11. The timing was significant, because since its premiere on June 11, 2002, the show has become an integral part of the country\u2019s coping strategy \u2013 a kind of guidebook for our difficult entry into the 21st century.<\/p>\n

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By RadioFan at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/w\/index.php?curid=10483626
https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\/<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By carefully curating a distinctly American mix tape of music, personal narratives and cultural doctrine, \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d has painted a portrait of who we think we are, especially in the aftermath of tragedy, war and economic turmoil.<\/p>\n

As the show concludes after 15 seasons, it\u2019s worth looking at how the past and present collided to create a cultural phenomenon \u2013 and how we\u2019re seeing shades of the show\u2019s influence in today\u2019s chaotic presidential race.<\/p>\n

All our myths bundled into one<\/h2>\n

\u201cAmerican Idol\u201d\u2018s premise \u2013 the idea that an ordinary person might be recognized as extraordinary \u2013 is firmly rooted in a national myth of meritocracy.<\/p>\n

This national narrative includes the dime-novel, rags-to-riches fairy tales<\/a> of Horatio Alger, which were intended to uplift Americans struggling to get by after the Civil War. Then there was the American Dream<\/a> catchphrase \u2013 first coined in 1931 by James Truslow Adams in his book The Epic of America<\/em> \u2013 that promoted an ideal of economic mobility during the hopeless years of the Depression.<\/p>\n

Indeed, decades before host Ryan Seacrest handed out his first golden ticket to the first golden-throated farm girl waiting tables while waiting to be \u201cdiscovered,\u201d we\u2019d been going to Hollywood in our dreams and on screen<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The show has shown us archetypes of immigrant narratives<\/a>, like when Season Three contestant Leah Labelle spoke of her Bulgarian family\u2019s defection to North America during Communist rule. It has demonstrated how to rely on faith in the face of hardship, exemplified by Fantasia Barrino\u2019s victory song, \u201cI Believe,\u201d<\/a> performed with a gospel choir. Meanwhile, it served as a stage for patriotic passion<\/a>, broadcasting two performances of Lee Greenwood\u2019s \u201cGod Bless the U.S.A.\u201d when the United States entered Iraq in 2003. Meanwhile, the many \u201cIdol Gives Back\u201d specials remind us of American philanthropic values.<\/p>\n

The show has celebrated failure as both a necessary stumbling block and a launchpad to fame. Many singers needed to audition year after year before they earned their chance to compete. For others, such as William Hung<\/a>, their televised rejection brought fame and opportunity anyway.<\/p>\n