So I finally got to see Lil Rounds in action today, and just like the judges, I have to say that I like very much what I saw. But before I talk about her actual audition, let me go a little bit into her backstory. First off, I found out that Lil Rounds is a mother. She has three kids (Was it three? I'm not sure all of a sudden.). And she talks about how that incident which galvanized her, making her decide to try out for American Idol was when a tornado hit, forcing her and her family to live out of a rented room. So she says that by joining American Idol, and hopefully going far, she hopes to lift her entire family up. Now I like that of course. For her, American Idol isn't just about her, and celebrity, and future stardom, but also about her family, especially her three (Was it three?) children. And it's pretty straightforward to understand how she as a mother must feel about this opportunity to potentially make life better for her little ones. That said, it's not a hugely compelling backstory. I mean, it is, but clearly she will have to do more than rely on her story for her to make it through to the later rounds of American Idol. That said, it's pretty clear though that Lil Rounds has much, much more going for her than her story.
So on to her audition. I'm trying to remember the song that Lil Rounds sang, but the title evades me at the moment. I have to say though that her performance was brilliant. I like that there was power in her voice, yet at the same time there was character and personality as well. I'm pretty tired of singers who think they're going to be the next diva, who try to power their way through to yet another high note. It can be pretty tiring to listen to, especially in the American Idol format where what seems like an exciting singer at first can become boring, repetitive, monotonous after yet another episode of listening to her belt out yet again. I don't feel like I have that worry though with Lil Rounds because there was something to her voice that sounds interesting. Again, it has a certain sound and character, so that even if she's singing something pretty quietly, it still sounds really good to listen to.
So Lil Rounds made it through to the next round, and rightly so, in my opinion. I wonder though how she will do in the Hollywood round, where she will have to deal with other contestants with very different approaches to the competition (It looks like there'll be group performances this year.). But I do hope she does move on through past that to even later rounds. Lil Rounds, the next American Idol?
