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Post by lurleene on May 20, 2020 20:09:12 GMT -5
1St LGBTQ winner of American Idol! YaY.The first LGBTQ “Idol” champ, whose real name is Samantha Diaz, was raised by her grandmother in Manhattan’s Frederick Douglass Houses, where residents held a viewing party for the show’s finale. Now, she reigns as the the first LGBTQ champion of “American Idol.” “I am a child of God, so that’s always gonna be first. That’s actually the only label that I ever want to have,” she says. “But I like what I like, and that’s just that, you know? And it’s not men. Like, at all.” nypost.com/2020/05/19/american-idol-winner-just-sam-on-the-best-and-worst-train-lines/Good for her!! I had a feeling that she was not straight as she once vaguely hinted at it during the competition, but I think it should not be an obligation anyways for her or anybody else to out themselves, unless they really want to whenever it feels right. Sam is very talented but she was not my first choice. Now in hindsight though I find it really cool that she IS the new American Idol. Her journey should be inspiring to many who feel left out and not seen or even hated on. For Sam being black, gay, and growing up underprivileged, the odds at success in life were strongly against her and her win should be a message of hope, especially during times when we experience flare ups across the country toward marginalized groups. (As a little side note....I think the way they set up the voting system and her being from NYC may have helped her a bit. It was live voting during the show, which started at 8pm East Coast Time and continued for a 3 hour window, and by the time they showed the finale on the West Coast voting was already closed. So from my perspective, the three contestants from the West Coast were lacking the votes that they would have normally gotten. Just saying. For some reason, I can't get too upset about it either) I think it would have been nice if the article had mentioned Adam in this context. He was not an Idol "winner", but indirectly he was. To this day he has established himself to be a highly successful runner-up. I'm not sorry they did not mention Adam. This was her win and her time to shine at least for a bit. His name will likely show up later, lol. But I am very happy that she competed without talking about her sexuality. She was out before the show, just like Adam, but tried to let her talent be the focus. The good thing about that is we are unlikely to see those awful comparisons that she was bold and out on the show. Those articles made me so angry when Ada Vox was competing. When Ada Vox was on the show, some of the articles spoke of how bold and out he was unlike Adam Lambert (after the fact as if they didn't remember all they put Adam thru). Well excuse me. Ada was a big man dressed like a woman when he competed so there was nothing that could be hidden even if he wanted to. But Adam was not on the show as a Drag Queen. And there was hardly anyone who did not know Adam was gay on the show. He wasn't hiding anything nor was he in the closet. The press and discussion about it were everywhere. And he should not have been punished because he wanted to win based on his talent. And it was his enormous talent that made the winner and many other winners look like a non-winners, lol.
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Post by pi on May 20, 2020 20:28:41 GMT -5
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Post by sizzling63 on May 20, 2020 20:52:20 GMT -5
@lurleene, I can't remember that there were comparisons of Adam with Ada Vox, may be because my interest in Idol is largely confined to watching the show only. I see two very different artists of course. Wouldn't it be lovely to not pin people against each other and instead celebrate their individual journeys, at least on Idol? Well, that's an ideal world. I honestly didn't even think about Just Sam's sexuality anymore until you posted the above article. Good for her that she focused on her talent and let her voice shine. I'm happy for her.
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Post by girldrummer on May 20, 2020 21:46:42 GMT -5
"The 80s are back. I'm hungry like the wolf" pic gives me a kind of Red Riding Hood vibe. Adam's wearing the red jacket and the haze around his head is kind of a hood thing. And then there is the wolf comment. Just musing. LOL As for Samantha, I wish her the best of luck. She is indeed the first OPENLY gay winner on Idol. I do not watch the show but my sisters do and they liked her very much this season. I listened to her sing on a video the day after the finale.
The thing is, all the big finalists on Idol and The Voice are very good singers, each in their own way. But it seems like these shows are not producing big stars. The Voice has never produced one at all. The producers and the judges from The Voice have said they are puzzled by that fact. Idol's last BIG star was Adam. Yes, they have had a few since Adam who are doing pretty well (PP, for ex. I guess, but I don't put him in the major star category.) I can't think of anyone else. Maybe I am making an incorrect assumption because I don't follow any of them. My fault, I guess. It's one thing to VOTE for a contestant that you like. That's easy. It's another thing to KEEP SUPPORTING THAT ARTIST long after the show is over. Most viewers do not do that. Adam has been very lucky. His fans have been very loyal for the long haul.
Bottom line on these shows is that it's very difficult to "break through" even if you are the winner. The buzz of the show fades pretty darn quick. And the music business in brutal. Maybe Samantha will be one of the lucky ones.
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Post by lurleene on May 20, 2020 22:48:43 GMT -5
"The 80s are back. I'm hungry like the wolf" pic gives me a kind of Red Riding Hood vibe. Adam's wearing the red jacket and the haze around his head is kind of a hood thing. And then there is the wolf comment. Just musing. LOL As for Samantha, I wish her the best of luck. She is indeed the first OPENLY gay winner on Idol. I do not watch the show but my sisters do and they liked her very much this season. I listened to her sing on a video the day after the finale. The thing is, all the big finalists on Idol and The Voice are very good singers, each in their own way. But it seems like these shows are not producing big stars. The Voice has never produced one at all. The producers and the judges from The Voice have said they are puzzled by that fact. Idol's last BIG star was Adam. Yes, they have had a few since Adam who are doing pretty well (PP, for ex. I guess, but I don't put him in the major star category.) I can't think of anyone else. Maybe I am making an incorrect assumption because I don't follow any of them. My fault, I guess. It's one thing to VOTE for a contestant that you like. That's easy . It's another thing to KEEP SUPPORTING THAT ARTIST long after the show is over. Most viewers do not do that. Adam has been very lucky. His fans have been very loyal for the long haul.
Bottom line on these shows is that it's very difficult to "break through" even if you are the winner. The buzz of the show fades pretty darn quick. And the music business in brutal. Maybe Samantha will be one of the lucky ones. Very true. No delusions about Samantha becoming a star. Adam had a lot of buzz and everything else surrounding him from the press, his fans, general public and internationally, that have never been matched again. But there were about three that I liked (as much as I could like anyone, lol) and Samantha was one so wish her well. Hopefully she will do better than the last two winners on the re-boot. But the one who has done the best so far is Gabby the third place finisher from the 1st ABC season. She recently had a #1 song on the country charts and her single went platinum. The funny thing about her is she recently married a religious zealot and former contestant with her. He was not happy that Adam was receiving a lot of attention from Idol for his Grammy performance and the Show Most Go On documentary. He wanted to know why they were not recognizing Kris Allen cause he won. Now I wonder why he was so bothered? lol. Kris was not involved in any of what Idol was crushing on Adam about. He is not going to get attention for Adam's accomplishments, Christian or not. HA! And her dad is a homophobic nut case. So it is all the more surprising that when Idols picked their favorites her season, Adam was one of her choices. I hope she can keep an open mind while surrounded by that crowd.
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Post by bamafan on May 20, 2020 22:55:41 GMT -5
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kryptoman68
Member
"One day the world will understand!" Nile Rodgers
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Post by kryptoman68 on May 21, 2020 1:11:39 GMT -5
"The 80s are back. I'm hungry like the wolf" pic gives me a kind of Red Riding Hood vibe. Adam's wearing the red jacket and the haze around his head is kind of a hood thing. And then there is the wolf comment. Just to provide some context: youtu.be/oJL-lCzEXgI
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Post by girldrummer on May 21, 2020 8:59:11 GMT -5
Interesting reply, lurleene. I didn't know about Gabby, but I've heard her name. She sure is surrounded with some unusual family members, to say the least. Nice that she has done well in Country. The fact remains that Idol watchers love to vote but don't seem interested in buying and supporting the music of the artist that voted for and claim to love so much. People watch Idol and The Voice for different reasons. Some just enjoy the music and walk away at the end of the season with no intention of getting invested in a contestant for the long term. Others, like Glamberts, get totally committed to someone and continue to support them. Thank God Adam got that support.
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Post by Jablea on May 21, 2020 11:22:39 GMT -5
Cool new art. I don't think I've seen this style/artist before. Adam is great at inspiring drawings.
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Post by lurleene on May 21, 2020 12:02:37 GMT -5
Interesting reply, lurleene. I didn't know about Gabby, but I've heard her name. She sure is surrounded with some unusual family members, to say the least. Nice that she has done well in Country. The fact remains that Idol watchers love to vote but don't seem interested in buying and supporting the music of the artist that voted for and claim to love so much. People watch Idol and The Voice for different reasons. Some just enjoy the music and walk away at the end of the season with no intention of getting invested in a contestant for the long term. Others, like Glamberts, get totally committed to someone and continue to support them. Thank God Adam got that support. Gabby lucked out. She had a more sexy and confident persona that is not generally an asset on Idol. There was so much glee when she lost to the more humble and wholesome female type. Lol. Sound familiar? Idol's label (Hollywood Records) did not sign her and didn't do much for the winner they did sign either. Like you said, the winners voters seemed to go away after the vote. Gabby put her work out independently then she caught the interest of Warner and they signed her and so far she is doing well. Will be interesting to see if the marriage changes how she presents herself.
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