Sometimes a little Big Dumb Fun is what we need. From the Washington Post, “What you missed on ‘American Song Contest,’ our country’s chaotic new take on Eurovision”:
If you didn’t catch Monday night’s series premiere of NBC’s “American Song Contest,” hosted by Kelly Clarkson and Snoop Dogg, we have three words to sum up what you missed: “New Boot Goofin’.”
It’s true: Depending on how things go on “American Song Contest” — the U.S. version of the Eurovision Song Contest — in which contestants from each state compete to win the prize for best original hit, Wyoming’s entry “New Boot Goofin’” could be the song of the summer…
“American Song Contest” will have 56 performers, with one artist from each state, as well as five U.S. territories and the District of Columbia. Eleven of them performed Monday— here’s what to know from the mildly chaotic two-hour premiere:
Audiences and a professional ‘jury’ will vote for the winners…
During the premiere, the first act sent to the semifinals by the jury was Hueston, an indie-alternative singer from Rhode Island who described himself as a mix of Chris Stapleton and Adele and “Sons of Anarchy” (“but in a good way”) and delivered a very emotional backstory about growing up in poverty before offering up a ballad called “Held on Too Long.”…There’s a mix of very famous and non-famous names
Like Eurovision, the competitors range from stars with inescapable hits (Jewel, Sisqó, Macy Gray) to names you would recognize only if you watched “The Voice” (Jordan Smith) to lesser-known local acts…Breakout K-pop singer AleXa also captivated the audience with an elaborate set covered in ribbons for “Wonderland.” She acknowledged that because she came from Oklahoma (her mother is from South Korea and her father is from New York, and they met in Tulsa), people probably expected her to break out a guitar and sing a country ballad. While she does enjoy country music, she said, she discovered K-pop in high school and started releasing music several years ago –— she now performs to big crowds in South Korea.
“K-pop is my guilty pleasure!” Snoop Dogg exclaimed after AleXa’s performance. “That was amazing.”
The show wants to feature many genres
Minnesota’s Yam Haus was a pop boy-band; Mississippi’s Keyone Starr mixed blues and rock; Arkansas’s Kelsey Lamb was country; Indiana’s UG Skywalkin was a rapper; Wisconsin’s Jake’O went “Nuvo-Retro”; Iowa’s Alisabeth Von Presley described herself as what would happen if Lady Gaga and Pat Benatar collided and then exploded into glitter…At least one artist will be primed to go viral every week
So, back to “New Boot Goofin’,” a country-rap situation courtesy of Wyoming’s Ryan Charles. Though that phrase may sound familiar thanks to “Reno 911!,” Charles explained that the song is based on “the confidence you have getting a new pair of boots” — because in Wyoming, boots bring your whole outfit together. The track sounded ready-made for TikTok, judging by the reaction from viewers on social media who had no idea what to make of the neon spectacle.
Carlo Graziani on the War in Ukraine: Get Real
schrodingers_cat
My Zen offering for the respite thread.
randy khan
I have to say that America needs its own version of Eurovision, so I am totally in favor of this.
Omnes Omnibus
@randy khan: No one needs another version of Eurovision. No one.
SiubhanDuinne
@schrodingers_cat:
Lovely, SC. Looks like you’re having fun with your new toys :-)
Amir Khalid
@Omnes Omnibus:
Dozens of songs, maybe hundreds, are entered in the Eurovision Song Contest every year. Has any pop music of lasting significance ever come out of it? I can think of maybe two songs: Cliff Richard’s Congratulations and ABBA’s Waterloo.
MomSense
A couple weeks ago I convinced my kid to watch the Will Farrell Eurovision movie and then I had to prove that Eurovision is a real thing so we went down the Eurovision YouTube rabbit hole. Now we are both following the current contest. So far Norway’s entry is the best and by best I mean ridiculous. My son and I were laughing so hard we were crying.
Frankensteinbeck
I wonder if there’s some deliberate Hatsune Miku in that look, if it’s simultaneous creation, or if long blue pigtails are already popular in K-Pop, which would not surprise me. A quick Google search isn’t showing them, for what little that’s worth.
marcopolo
Bread and Circuses
also, boy am I old…
MomSense
Oh I’m the spirit of not letting the GQP steal my joy, the fiber community is ecstatic that KBJ is a knitter and apparently has an entire basement full of yarn. We are all begging Joyce White Vance to check out her legendary stash and report back.
Splitting Image
Is this being produced because Iowa is losing its “first in the nation” status and the small red states need a new place to be over-represented?
(Seriously, as long as they show the diversity of music within each state it’s a good thing. New York isn’t all about rap and Oklahoma isn’t all about country.)
Abnormal Hiker
@Amir Khalid: Volare 1958!
SpaceUnit
Okay I just listened to 40 seconds of “New Boots Goofin'”.
Kill me.
ETA: Icepick, chainsaw, flamethrower, whatever you got.
Gin & Tonic
@Amir Khalid: I don’t know about lasting significance pop-song-wise, but the Ukrainian artist Ruslana, who won the 2004 Eurovision contest with “Wild Dances” went on, later that year, to be the public face of the Orange Revolution in support of eventual President Viktor Yushchenko.
Another Scott
New TV show about singing songs. Yay?
Meanwhile, …
(via Popehat)
Cheers,
Scott.
oatler
@Amir Khalid:
“Bing Tiddle Tiddle Bong”.
Villago Delenda Est
This thing, and “America’s Got Talent”, “The Voice”, “Dancing with the Stars” and all similar dreck is a sure sign on the decline of the American Empire. CRT and LBGT rights won’t do much to arrest this deterioration.
MomSense
@SpaceUnit:
Twerking and cowboy boots.
Ayeeee
Rokka
This show is spectacle driven BS with most of the songs being the usual retread cliches. Michael Bolton?
<a href="http://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRUSbbQynOdEPtzsW7WnDMQDd0XMV_TiM"
dexwood
@SpaceUnit:
Someone is asking for a three day ban. /s
Kalakal
@randy khan: What the world needs is one less Eurovision
Kalakal
@SpaceUnit: You lasted longer than I did
SpaceUnit
@dexwood:
Actually, subjecting prisoners of war to this crap would constitute a war crime.
Rokka
I can’t get this comment thing to work. The text for the link is
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRUSbbQynOdEPtzsW7WnDMQDd0XMV_TiM
dexwood
@SpaceUnit: Will take your word for it having not seen either show.
zhena gogolia
@Kalakal: My husband liked the cowgirls but even he turned away after a few seconds.
Kalakal
Makes me want to watch the Father Ted ‘Song for Europe’ episode again
SpaceUnit
@MomSense:
I’m sort of curious as to how most Wyoming residents will feel about being ‘represented’ in this way.
I suspect they’re forming a posse as we speak.
Another Scott
@Villago Delenda Est: They’re cheap. TV production companies are cheap. Therefore, we’ll keep getting more of them.
Pretty soon we’ll have “Watching Paint Dry With the Stars!!” (Sponsored by Behr).
:-/
Cheers,
Scott.
Another Scott
@Rokka: Linkified for you:
Highlights of the First week | NBC’s American Song Contest – 11 videos
HTH!
Cheers,
Scott.
Kalakal
@Another Scott: Judging by the boots song I’ll wait for the International Trappist Song Contest
NotMax
One more thing regarding which to pay no attention whatsoever.
JAFD
I’ve had a few pairs of boots for heavy weather and rough terrain, and in October I ought start looking for another, but only once have I thought of getting high-fashion boots. Three decades or so ago …
Wandering around Great American Outlet Mall, saw store full of cowboy boots. So on whim, went in and asked them yf they had pair in 10 EEEE (I have oddsize feet). Turns out they had one pair, I tried them on, fit pretty well. added about two inches to my 6’1″. In three colors – maroon, pink and lavender. Couldn’t think of anywhere I’d wear them, so passed on the deal …
Splitting Image
Counter-programming for the Eurovision non-fans: the lead track from “Henry the Human Fly”.
Roll Over Vaughan Williams
SpaceUnit
@Villago Delenda Est:
Actually AGT and The Voice occasionally showcase some impressive talent, but the formatting of those programs is absolutely insufferable. I could never sit through a show. I’ll catch a clip on Youtube now and then.
But you’re right. Our nation is mostly just hemorrhaging IQ points as a result of this drivel.
theturtlemoves
One of the fellows in the band for the South Dakota entry is my Godparents’ grandson. So, I’ll have to check it out for that, if nothing else.
NotMax
@marcopolo
It’s the 21st century; get with the program.
Gluten-free organic artisanal sugarless bread and no animals, no peanuts, vegan-friendly circuses.
“Is the soy-based cotton candy fresh?”
//
Rokka
@JAFD:
You woulda bought them if the Saddle Rack was still open.
Peale
Pretty bummed this afternoon to read about the death of the Thai actor, Papangkorn Lerkchaleampote (aka “Beam”) at the age of 25. Apparently Beam went to bed and didn’t wake up this morning. Not the biggest star, but one who I’ve been seeing popping up for the past 6 or 7 years. He’s has a couple of series on Netflix – the Stranded, where he has the lead as the “scholarship student” stuck on a post apocalyptic island with a bunch of rich students. And “Project S: Spike” where he played a supporting role as a setter on a high school volleyball team. He was set to play the coach in Netflix’s series about the Tham Luang cave rescue that was supposed to be released this year. He’s gotten better every time he’s popped up.
anyway, I don’t expect he’s a blog hold name. But I wanted to note his death somewhere.
Omnes Omnibus
@Amir Khalid: I have heard much about Måneskin over the past year. And the movie with Will Ferrell was quite sweet.
Omnes Omnibus
@MomSense: The wolf banana song? It might be the greatest thing ever.
gene108
From the videos of “Wonderland” and “New Boots Goofin”, the stage productions were too elaborate. It took the focus off the artists and the music.
”Wonderland” is pretty good for a modern pop song, but the odds the artist wasn’t lip syncing while trying to keep up with all that choreography are pretty low.
”New Boots Goofin” took itself too seriously with a title like that.
NotMax
Phone scam of the day, courtesy of the answering machine I use to screen calls.
“We’re calling from Publishers Clearing House about a prize you’ve won and require some more information regarding delivery. Please call us at (XXX) YYY-ZZZZ.”
Have never conducted any business of any kind with PCH.
gene108
@Frankensteinbeck:
Boots are also similar to Hatsune Miku, too.
I think long blue pigtails maybe just the influence of anime, since it’s a common look for female characters, on both Miku and AleXa.
Served
The most important parts of Eurovision are earnestness and chaos. The first episode of the American version certainly captured those elements, but it lacked the technical precision Eurovision has. (Commercials are also a detriment to the format.)
AleXa representing Oklahoma is genius, and seeing artists who go against the grain of what we’d expect of a state is really charming.
Yes it’s loud and dumb, but a lot sucks right now and its heart is in the rightish place.
Villago Delenda Est
@Another Scott: Cheap production, high profit. So, the usual.
NotMax
@Served
And sequins. Can’t forget about the sequins.
//
randy khan
@NotMax:
That’s the spirit!
Martin Schafer
Alexa is an amazing artist. She’s one of the strongest dancers in the whole K-pop scene. Check out some of her music video’s. My favorite is Revolution. Most of her videos are part of an overarching story where she is an AI fighting against the company that created her.
MomSense
@Omnes Omnibus:
Yes! wolf banana is awesome.
Tony Jay
Eurovision style bonkers stage-production (quality over quantity, please) and 110% commitment to whatever lunacy you think best represents your country/state’s brightest future = Yes.
Generic ‘talent’ show sob-stories about how “Mah Gran-Gran always told me I was her stardust, and I wrote this song for her while she was on her deathbed after being mauled to death by a grizzly bear while protecting a family of orphaned chipmunks. The doctors said she couldn’t hear me, but I know I saw her smile before God took her up to Heaven. This one’s for you, Gran-Gran. Ohhhhhhh, bitches be lovin’ my big banana, I be edgin’ ’em, sledgin’ ’em, Instagram me Frenchin’ ’em…” = No
It’s a fine balance, to be sure.
Just One More Canuck
@SpaceUnit:very late to the thread but back when way over the top variety shows were a thing, Donny and Marie did a show opening number of Reelin in the Years supported by a bunch (gaggle? Murfreesboro?) of singing ice skaters all dressed in orange. Oh dear god the orange.
google it at your oeril
JustRuss
@SpaceUnit: @SpaceUnit:
Yeah. Ryan’s got tons of charisma, but do not get the love for that song. Also, I am old.
Alexa sounds like vintage Britney Spears to these old ears. Not a bad thing, perfectly cromulent as pop goes.
Gravie
If AleXa is actually singing and not lip-synching, I am seriously impressed with her vocal control while bending backward, stomping out dance moves, etc.