'American Idol' is turning to faith music, creating new stars and building a new audience.
s 23rd season, the reality singing competition did something it had never done before. It aired a three-hour special on Easter Sunday, themed around “Songs of Faith” and featuring worship songs performed by not just the 20 remaining contestants, but all three judges as well:, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie.
If you had a hankering for seeing Underwood, the fourth-season winner, belt out the Christian hymn “How Great Thou Art” in wailing communion with a“It was a discussion that started at a dinner with the judges, some people from ABC, and myself,” sayss showrunner and executive producer, Megan Michaels Wolflick. “We watch myriad Christmas specials. We don’t ever see a faith-based spring Easter-style show. So we kind of embraced that. It was a special show, and people loved it; the ratings were pretty amazing.”incubated household names like Kelly Clarkson and Adam Lambert, the special might have seemed jarring. But since the show’s revival landed on ABC in 2018,has leaned into a faith-based sensibility and become a potent launching pad for tomorrow’s praise-music stars.judge Richie, who described him as “divinely guided.” In November, his collaboration with Jonathan McReynolds, “Still ,” a megachurch-y anthem about God’s love, earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Gospel Performance/Song, making him the firstshe traveled the country with her husband, performing in churches. Because she spoke openly on the show about being a stay-at-home mom and sang faith-based songs like Underwood’s “Jesus, Take the Wheel” and Lauren Daigle’s “You Say,” Nix has attracted praise from conservative organizations like Focus on the Family. During the finale, she duetted with, a Jesus-haired star of the contemporary Christian music circuit, who has topped the Hot Christian Songs chart with singles like “Gratitude” and “That’s Who I Praise,” along with his collab with Jelly Roll, “Hard Fought Hallelujah.”s first non-country winner in three years. Other moments from the show have found a second life on YouTube. When gospel veteran CeCe Winans sang “Goodness of God” with a contestant, Roman Collins — who wailed out “hallelujah” several times at the climax — it became one of the most-vieweds come-to-Jesus moment? “When we open our floodgates for auditions every spring, we don’t know what’s coming,” says Wolflick. “We follow the lead of who comes through our doors. What is happening in music today? And that, organically, in the last couple years, has been more and more faith-based music. Not intentional, but it was resonating with the public.”reject) and Lake have tapped into a ravenous appetite for modern worship music. In a world of secular pop stars, they broadcast their faith proudly and explicitly and create family-friendly music videos. Their stardom exists in a parallel pop sphere of Christian awards shows and Christian album charts. Though the music isn’t necessarily political, the singers are often right-coded; Lake led worship at Charlie Kirk’s memorial service, andMan Charged with Murdering 'American Idol' Exec and Husband Declared Mentally IncompetentSimon Cowell Judges Himself: ‘I am the Same Person On and Off Camera’“It seems like country and praise music is really becoming a big thing, much bigger than I ever remember it being,” says Joey Arbagey, head of music for 19 Entertainment, the production company behind theRecently, the faith-based sensibility has trickled into other segments of the entertainment world. In November, Fox News announced the launch of a religious-themed vertical, Fox Faith, including a 52-episode podcast series about the life of Jesus. In December, ABC aired a Christmas special hosted by Kevin Costner. alumni, like country singer Gabby Barrett, a 16th-season finalist, have embraced Christian music as their chosen genre. With songs like “Jesus on a Train,” Barrett’s second album, 2024’s , seems fit for a youth retreat playlist. She follows in the footsteps of Underwood, whose recent albums — including 2020’s — have made her faith a central concern. Earlier this month, Underwood made a surprise appearance at Rolling Hills Community Church outside Nashville to perform at the church’s Christmas service.has always been a family-friendly staple in the reality-TV world, equally amenable to grandparents and children, but its days as part of the pop-zeitgeist machine are long gone. “We’re not in the Kelly Clarkson era, where someone’s going to launch into massive superstardom in the same way,” Wolflick, who has worked at the show for two decades, says.The World’s Hardest ‘The Simpsons’ Quiz In Wolflick’s view, that’s because pop culture has gotten more fractured and decentralized. “Think about it like a For You page,” the showrunner says. “You don’t have one person crossing all genres. We are all being fed what’s in our algorithm.” As a result,“takes the wins differently than we would have taken them in Carrie Underwood’s year” — for instance, Roberts’ Grammy nomination, or Tongi recording a song for thes pivot into faith-based territory, coinciding as it does with the shock and awe of Trump’s return to power, could be interpreted as a political play — an attempt to win over conservative viewers and churchgoing types. Wolflick calls this “silly” and denies any such agenda. “We’re a show about talent,” Wolflick says. “We’re a show about people who organically walk through our doors. We’re not asking people their political affiliation. For me,'SNL' Shocker: Bowen Yang to Exit Cast After Saturday's EpisodeKeith Urban Is Reportedly Questioning Whether Divorce From Nicole Kidman Was a 'Huge Mistake'
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
December Individual Idol Brand Reputation Rankings AnnouncedThe Korean Business Research Institute has revealed this month’s brand reputation rankings for individual idols! The rankings were determined through an
Read more »
'American Idol' singer from Idaho Falls proposed to after singing national anthem at Jazz gameLocal musician and former 'American Idol' contestant Paige Anne is used to being in the spotlight, but recently all eyes were on her for something other than music — this time, it was a marriage proposal.
Read more »
Lakers’ Austin Reaves returns from calf injury, comes off bench against SunsReaves had missed the Lakers’ previous three games. Luka Doncic (lower left leg contusion), Rui Hachimura (right groin soreness) and Gabe Vincent (lumbar back strain) remained sidelined Tuesday.
Read more »
Robbery attempt leads to Fairbanks Safeway shooting; arrest comes a week laterInvestigators say a confrontation during an attempted robbery led to the shooting
Read more »
An Orange County mega-church comes to LA's skid rowYour morning catch up: An OC church comes to skid row, a deadly winter storm hits the state and more big stories.
Read more »
In Trump's Economy, Santa Claus Only Comes for the BillionairesThom Hartmann is a talk-show host and the author of 'The Hidden History of Monopolies: How Big Business Destroyed the American Dream' (2020); 'The Hidden History of the Supreme Court and the Betrayal of America' (2019); and more than 25 other books in print.
Read more »