Author’s Note: If you are a Sanjaya Malakar fan then I suggest you stop reading now and go here instead. There have been a number of Sanjaya fans who, despite wishing to hear no more descriptions of his failings, have chosen to read an article named “Sanjaya Malakar Won’t Be Missed” and have become entangled in their despair of his loss. I wish no further harm to come to the weakened spirits of all 6 fans out there.
After many weeks of torturous performances and mangled song deliveries, Sanjaya Malakar was finally, finally voted off of American Idol Season 6. While Sanjaya provided for a heavenly supply of fodder and humor his effect on this season of American Idol was anything but positive. Yes, he brought additional attention and press for the show, but only as a freakshow did for the olden day’s circus. His continued existence each week took a chip away of the show’s credibility as more talented performers where sent home while the androgynous singer croaked away.
Many groups were clamoring to claim responsibility for his persistence as a feather in their cap. The always meddling “Vote For the Worst” rode a strong front on this claim, but not far behind was Howard Stern’s radio campaign as well. Stern took great enjoyment in the everlasting pain of Sanjaya’s stay. Do I believe either of these groups had the influence to cause this alone? No. But I do believe that enough of these groups acting independently but collectively were enough to keep Sanjaya beaming his creepy little way into our homes each week. The other funny side to these groups was a suspicious rumor citing the large population of India to be behind Sanjaya’s continued existence. This was humorously refuted with news stories quoting Indian citizens replying, “Who?”, to questioning on Sanjaya’s overseas popularity. India is actually relieved to finally have him off the airwaves: Indians say good riddance to Sanjaya.
Every week I wrote my American Idol Results Show Predictions and while I would often note Sanjaya as the worst performer I would then go on to make my guess of who would actually leave. So when Sanjaya Malakar was finally voted off this week I was somewhat surprised. Looking over the situation I realized I had adopted the “it won’t happen to me” attitude. Everyone knows bad things happen in the world, but we often take the approach of not expecting it to ever happen to us. This was how I looked at the Sanjaya situation. I knew that eventually he would go home, but it was shifted to the back of my mind each week as I doubted it would actually happen.
So now that the pain has ended and we’re facing an American Idol Season 6 Top 6 I think the show is ready to move on and focus on finding the most talented performer (Melinda Doolittle), as Simon Cowell noted earlier. I’ll almost miss the painfully funny attempts at singing and stage performances that Sanjaya delivered each week. Almost.
Watching his farewell address and recap video (see video below) at the end we saw Sanjaya Malakar began to really cry and paw at his tears. It was then I remembered that he’s still just a kid at 17 years of age. A much younger 17 years then his co-contestant Jordin Sparks, but still a kid all the same. He came a long way, especially considering his level of talent. So kudos to Sanjaya for his accomplishment. Unfortunately, we paid the price. Hopefully America, and the rest of the world, has had its fill of him and his 15 minutes are over. Please Sanjaya, go the way of William Hung and dinosaurs. You won’t be missed.
Check out the rest of our American Idol coverage.
Posted on: Friday, April 20, 2007
23 Responses to “American Idol: Sanjaya Malakar Won’t Be Missed”
Leave a Reply
Pingbacks & Trackbacks:
-
The Apprentice: Finale Show Recap | Wild Bluff Media : Entertainment Examined
April 22nd, 2007 at 11:04 pm[...] gallery (fired applicants). The ladies are pushing for Stefani to be hired while Sirya thinks Sanjaya Malakar is the man for the job. Nice way to keep your theme of useless going there Sirya. So the lights [...]
-
April Site Statistics | Wild Bluff Media : Entertainment Examined
May 1st, 2007 at 10:00 am[...] have been great and I’ve enjoyed getting to exchange notes back and forth, even when the comments were drastically in the opposite direction of my [...]
-
American Idol: Top 4 Vote Off Prediction - May 9, 2007 | Wild Bluff Media : Entertainment Examined
May 9th, 2007 at 9:41 am[...] the turning point was back when she was sure she was leaving but instead the heavens opened and Sanjaya Malakar was sent packing. She never seemed to recover from that night and those expectations. As a result it’s deeply [...]
-
American Idol: Top 10 Events of Season 6 - Part 2 | Wild Bluff Media : Entertainment Examined
May 18th, 2007 at 9:01 am[...] each week. While his singing was depressingly bad and, despite all his fans’ initial protest, his 15 minutes are definitely up so all we have left now is his gallery of hairstyles. Heck, there were even Make Your Own Sanjaya [...]
-
American Idol: Has The 2008 Season’s Top 50 Been Spoiled? | Wild Bluff Media : Entertainment Examined
December 17th, 2007 at 5:20 pm[...] talk of spoilers. Each year we get weeks and weeks of hilarious auditions full of folks of like Sanjaya, but thankfully most of them don’t make it as far as he did. So after all the weeks of [...]
April 20th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
I am so tired of people being as rude as they are and your article is no different. You had a small bit of compassion when you had the realization that he is “just a kid”. I agree he was not the most talented, but the judges put him there and people voted - not Sanjayas fault. I truly hope he is mature enough to let all this crap bounce off of him and move on with his life.
April 20th, 2007 at 1:41 pm
American Idol is a talent show. Sanjaya Malakar has no talent. He had no business being there. He doesn’t deserve pity just because he was young or stunk at it.
I never said it was his fault, just that he didn’t belong and he won’t be missed because of that. I certainly don’t think that’s rude.
April 20th, 2007 at 2:15 pm
I so agree with being sick of all the horrible ,hateful things about this young kid.He has proved to be nothing but gracious and kind.The other point that really rankles me is that I LIKED his voice.He had perfect pitch,however no strong projection.I am tired of my opinion being disrespected.You are not the be -all and end-all of talent scouts.Stop disrespecting him and the fans who actually like his singing.An opinion is different than a tirade.Look up differences BEFORE you write a meanspirited piece.It doesn’t make you look smart,just spiteful.
April 20th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
P.S. I will miss him,but of course,to you,that doesn’t matter.Nice!
April 20th, 2007 at 2:26 pm
I’m sorry to hear you liked him. I also find it hard to believe that you thought he was good at this.
I like how you said you were tired of having your opinion disrespected and then attacked mine. I certainly didn’t put down the fans of Sanjaya.
Talent scout, eh? Well thanks, but I think you’re giving me more credit than I deserve.
April 20th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
P.S. I think your spacebar is broken.
Also, I won’t miss him, but of course, to you, that doesn’t matter. Awesome!
April 20th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
I didn’t attack you opinion at all!! What are you talking about?
April 20th, 2007 at 3:45 pm
“You are not the be -all and end-all of talent scouts.Stop disrespecting him and the fans who actually like his singing.An opinion is different than a tirade.Look up differences BEFORE you write a meanspirited piece.It doesn’t make you look smart,just spiteful.”
If you’re tired of hearing all these things about Sanjaya why would you possibly choose to read an article entitled “Sanjaya Malakar Won’t Be Missed”?
P.S. Congratulations on the return of your spacebar.
April 20th, 2007 at 6:02 pm
Although he was far from my favorite, I have to give him Kudos for all the press surrounding him. It takes guts to get up there every day in front of millions of viewers, and ‘keep on’ when you know what people are saying about you. He’ll definitely be remembered that’s for sure. Yes, he was young but he, himself, knew he was no competition for the rest of those singers on the show. I gotta give him credit for that.
April 20th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
He was definitely brave and handled it very well up there, you’re right.
April 21st, 2007 at 1:21 am
Its amazing to me how you and everyone else can totally disrespect his fans that voted for him everyweek. He may not have been the best singer in the bunch but he HAD A DEVOTED fanbase that voted for him every single week because WE LOVED HIS VOICE. We loved how he entertained us on the stage everyweek, We loved how he brought some life into this DREADFUL BORING ASS Season, and that is more I can say for this sorry sack of boring performers we have this year…I am sorry but I wouldn’t purchase or pay a dime to see any of them cause i would fall asleep from BOREDOM! Your opinions is that an OPINION Just like my opinion is that I think Chris Richardson sounds like a CAT IN HEAT wit his whiny nasally singing trying to be like a justin timberalke wannabe.
Sanjaya is the only reason I watched and voted this year be cause his voice is soft and soothing and his fans loved the tone of his voice and all this about him not being able to sing, HELL Britney Spears, Ashley simpson, Aaaron Carter, Ciara, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Lindey Lohan all are CRAPPY LIVE SINGERS but they have decent RECORDED voices and have sold MILLIONS of CD’s and SOLD OUT concert tickets yet they arenn’t Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey. Sanjaya has a very good recording voice and for that he will get a record deal, so the William Hung Comment was totally offbase. And trust me you haven’t seen the last of him seeing that has a boatload of endoresments lined up according to several publication. And if sanjaya was such a JOKE and people didn’t like him he would have been voted off weeks ago so apparently people loved his voice.
April 21st, 2007 at 1:31 am
Its amazing to me how you and everyone else can totally disrespect his fans that voted for him everyweek. He may not have been the best singer in the bunch but he HAD A DEVOTED fanbase that voted for him every single week because WE LOVED HIS VOICE. We loved how he entertained us on the stage everyweek, We loved how he brought some life into this DREADFUL BORING ASS Season, and that is more I can say for this sorry sack of boring performers we have this year…I am sorry but I wouldn’t purchase or pay a dime to see any of them cause i would fall asleep from BOREDOM! Your opinions is that an OPINION Just like my opinion is that I think Chris Richardson sounds like a CAT IN HEAT wit his whiny nasally singing trying to be like a justin timberalke wannabe. Just like my opinion is that melinda looks like my grandmother on stage singing and I wouldn’t pay a dime to go see her or lakisha in concert cause again I would fall asleep. Phil looks like somebody’s dad and not a superstar. The only ones that may have a shot at having a decent career is Blake because he is DIFFERENT and Jordin because she is only 17 but can sing very well. But they weren’t my favorites b/c I didn’t have a connection to them like I did sanjaya. Sorry if you can’t comprehend that he had fans but he did.
Sanjaya is the only reason I watched and voted this year be cause his voice is soft and soothing and his fans loved the tone of his voice and all this about him not being able to sing, HELL Britney Spears, Ashley simpson, Aaaron Carter, Ciara, Janet Jackson, Madonna, Lindey Lohan all are CRAPPY LIVE SINGERS but they have decent RECORDED voices and have sold MILLIONS of CD’s and SOLD OUT concert tickets yet they arenn’t Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey. Sanjaya has a very good recording voice and for that he will get a record deal, so the William Hung Comment was totally offbase. And trust me you haven’t seen the last of him seeing that has a boatload of endoresments lined up according to several publication. And if sanjaya was such a JOKE and people didn’t like him he would have been voted off weeks ago so apparently people loved his voice.
April 21st, 2007 at 9:19 am
Discussing Sanjaya’s lack of talent is not disrespecting his fans. Yes, he brought lots of entertainment to the show, but not musically. He had a terrible voice.
I agree, Chris Richardson is not a very good singer.
“His voice is soft and soothing.” Oh man that’s funny.
Being able to sound good after having your voice manipulated by software does not make you a good singer. It’s like those videos where they pour makeup on an unattractive person and she comes out looking beautiful. That still doesn’t make her a naturally beautiful person. If you can’t sing live because you have a bad voice, then post-recording editing doesn’t qualify you as a good singer.
The William Hung comment is very appropriate. Hung had a terrible voice, but lots of enthusiasm and really enjoyed performing (dancing and swinging). Now take “Hung” out of that last sentence and replace it with “Sanjaya”.
April 21st, 2007 at 9:28 am
You could have just edited your previous comment, but that’s okay.
“Melinda looks like my grandmother”? “Phil looks like somebody’s dad”? “Jordin because she is only 17″? I get the feeling that you’re a teeny-bopper that thinks 25 is “ollllddd”. Perhaps you’d be more interested in shows like “Disney on Ice”?
If you’re going to decide who is good based on age alone you’re going to have a tough time in life. There are many young people that are very talented, but with age can come practice and experience which are very valuable. I imagine that in just another few years Jordin Sparks will be exponentially better, and she’s already fantastic.
I suspected Sanjaya was getting a lot of the young, young viewer votes because he was the closest to their age. I’ll have to assume that’s the “connection” you have with Sanjaya. Don’t worry, in time you’ll feel better. Good luck w/ that.
April 21st, 2007 at 2:32 pm
I agree with the poster about sanjaya. I find it so funny how people think he didn’t have fans and that he got thru each week thru Osmosis. Sanjaya is the only person that people remember from this season because he stood apart from the others. Despite what everyone thinks of him he was the STAR of AI6. No other idol has even been mentioned in any media magazines or television. I just read a 2 page spread in intouch magazine that sanjaya has already WON AI despite him being voted off because he has received million dollars in endorsements and offers so he will have the last laugh all the way to the bank. He had plenty of fans as it is shown on the various message boards and fan websites. Even on EBAy he has a boatload of merchandise being sold so Sanjaya is a goldmine to a company right now. And as far as him being able to sing, Sanjaya proved that he could sing when he sang during latin week. I agree that Sanjaya wasn’t the strongest vocalist compared to the others but he did have a nice tone to his voice when he selected the right song and we heard that when he sang Besame Mucho 2 weeks ago. That is the type of CD/Songs that he should sing on his CD because his light voice was perfect for that song.
April 21st, 2007 at 4:38 pm
InTouch says he’s the winner? Well then, I stand corrected and am retracting everything I said about him being a no-talent hack.
As far as no other idol being mentioned by media, check out these listings of articles for each of the other contestants:
sirlinksalot.net/blakelewis.html <- USA Today
sirlinksalot.net/chrisrichardson.html <- TMZ (part of AOL)
sirlinksalot.net/chrissligh.html <- FOX News, though I’d agree that FOX News barely counts as media
sirlinksalot.net/philstacey.html <- USA Today
sirlinksalot.net/ginaglocksen.html <- LA Time, Chicago Sun-Times
sirlinksalot.net/haleyscarnato.html <- MTV
sirlinksalot.net/jordinsparks.html <- NY Post
sirlinksalot.net/lakishajones.html <- ABC
sirlinksalot.net/melindadoolittle.html <- Washington Post
Latin week was good for Sanjaya. It was the only week I didn’t pick him as the worst performer.
April 22nd, 2007 at 10:22 am
Listen to Sanjaya’s last interview with Ryan Seacrest. Just Log On!!! http://www.kiisfm.com/main.html
June 14th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
I was in the entertainment industry for years,and until Sanjaya…I was disturbed with the quality of talent we are bombarded with.Suddenly there is this child with a giant aura,and a voice so special that the famous greats like Tony Bennett,J.LO,Peter Noone, Diane Ross, were all enamoured with.They all saw the exciting potential of sanjaya too!!! Its fun too watch and wait for sanjaya to evolve into the superstar he is meant to be….