The Great American Idol Shopping War: Which Contestant Will Sell The Most?

【来源：Yahoo】

 

    We may be in the middle of a recession, but quite a few American Idols are nonetheless banking on a lucrative shopping season this Christmas. No less than eight Idol -associated albums are coming out this fall in time for the holidays, including the much-anticipated "Kradison" triple-threat--i.e., the new discs by Kris Allen, Adam Lambert, and Allison Iraheta. (And another top four contestant from season 8, Danny Gokey, just officially signed to 19/RCA Nashville this week, so don't count him out either--he will get a single out before 2009's end.)

    At a time when many shoppers are strapped for cash , it's certainly a risk for so many Idol alums to release records in such a short space of time--surely Idol fans can't buy them ALL...

    Or CAN they? All of the Idols putting out records this fall have diehard（ 顽固分子 ） (and somewhat overlapping（ 重叠, 重复 ） ) followings, particularly Kradison, so it's possible that fans will indeed splurge（ 重叠, 重复 ） on multiple AmIdol albums. Maybe this rush of fourth-quarter Idol releases will in fact give the music industry a much-needed boost in a difficult year.

That being said, here's what on the AmIdol release schedule in the next couple of months:

 

Kris Allen, Nov. 17 - At first there were rumors that the season 8 champ would release his debut（ 首次露面; 初次进入社交界; 初次登台 ） album the same day as runner-up Adam Lambert, which of course would have stolen much of Kris's thunder (let's face it, he's had to battle to get out from under Adam's glittery（ 闪光的,闪烁的 ） shadow practically since he's won, at least in terms of media attention), and would have set up a jillion "rematch"-themed news stories as the two Idols competed against each other once again, this time in the marketplace. But thankfully, it turns out Kris will get his own release date, a full week before Adam's. (That's a different scenario from last year, when season 7 runner-up David Archuleta's album was oddly released before actual winner David Cook's.) Kris's yet-untitled album will feature contributions from the likes of Joe King of the Fray, singer-songwriter Mat Kearney, fellow Idol Chris Daughtry, and Semisonic's Dan Wilson (the latter of whom worked magic on the last Grammy-sweeping Dixie Chicks record). This indicates it will be a heartland-soft-rocking affair with tons of commercial appeal, but with a little bit of folksy edge. With so many cooks in Kris's proverbial kitchen, I personally hope this album isn't some overproduced opus and that Kris gets to do some stripped-down ballads, a la his "Falling Slowly" and "Heartless" covers--because I think Kris Allen shines best alone, when it's just him and his acoustic six-string.

Adam Lambert, Nov. 24 - Much ado has been made in the blogosphere about the fact that Adam's as-yet-untitled album comes out on the anniversary of Queen star Freddie Mercury's death--that somehow Adam is Freddie reincarnated, the second coming of Freddie, etc. I'm pretty sure that is a coincidence--I suspect that his street date was chosen not for Mercury-related reasons, but because it's the same week as the massive holiday shopping day known as Black Friday (or, as I shall rechristen it this season, Black Nail Polish Friday). But still, the Freddie theory indicates that many fans out there are desperately hungering for a new ROCK STAR, and they see Adam as the one to satisfy that need. The hype surrounding Adam's album is indeed huge; one Glambert has even created an online countdown to midnight 11/24/09 . And with outside-the-box collaborators like Lady Gaga producer RedOne, Australian electro sensation Sam Sparro, and glam-pop troubadour Ferras--along with Midas-touched hitmakers like Linda Perry, Ryan Tedder, and Max Martin--this is a record (described by Adam himself as a "rock-pop-electronic-dance thing") that I'm personally pretty much gagging to hear, with my own internal countdown clock ticking away at full force. (I'm certainly more excited to hear Adam's "official" debut than I am to hear On With The Show , an unauthorized collection of pre-Idol Adam recordings apparently being rush-released by Hi Fi Recordings to capitalize on the runner-up's runaway fame.) Adam's CD will presumably be preceded by a song he recorded for the 2012 movie soundtrack--a song that, interestingly, was recently glowingly praised by the late Freddie Mercury's Queen-mate Brian May, who described it as "truly sensational" and "obviously a number-one smash."

Despite these separate street dates, the near-simultaneous releases of Kris and Adam's albums will still undoubtedly generate a whole new media campaign of "guy-next-door vs. guyliner" showdown hype, with fans, detractors, and label bean-counters all closely scrutinizing their respective competing sales figures by November's end. So, who will sell more? If I were to judge by the sheer level of media frenzy, my guess would be Adam by a landslide--but then again, that was the same reason I predicted Adam would also win on American Idol , and yet he lost despite getting much more media attention throughout Idol season 8. The fact is, there are a lot more people out there purchasing records by artists like Jason Mraz, Jack Johnson, the Fray--i.e., artists sonically similar to Kris Allen--than by the obscure electro acts Adam Lambert has championed (Zoot Woman, LCD Soundsystem) or other glammy types releasing music these days (Mika, Patrick Wolf, Marilyn Manson). So it's quite possible that Kris's sound will appeal to a wider audience, particularly to prospective record-buyers who don't watch Idol (yes, there are some people who don't watch it) and are basing their shopping decisions solely on, say, radio play. But if Brian May's assessment of Adam's 2012 track is accurate, the Glamerican Idol may pull a Clay Aiken-style stunt and outsell the actual winner. Or who knows, maybe the "Kradam" fanbase will mobilize and ensure that both Idols top the charts.

But as I mentioned earlier, Kradam are not the only Idols pumping out product in time for the holidays. Here are the other Idol releases competing for fans' holiday dollars this fall:

Allison Iraheta, Nov. 10 (tentative) - Season 8's adorable and incorrigible flamed-haired fourth-placer has until recently been uncharacterically tight-lipped about her debut album details, but now she's reportedly told fans at various meet-and-greet events that her record will hit stores November 10. Interestingly, this would mean she'd have music out before either Kris or Adam. And with a thankfully anti-Miley-style sound (this rebellious teen is working with Kevin "Let It Rock" Rudolf, among others), the little rocker chick--whose "Slow Ride" duet has been an Idol highlight this year, both on TV and on the tour--may even upstage this season's top two Idol boys, just a bit.

Blake Lewis, Oct. 6 - The season 6 runner-up's post-show debut, Audio Daydream , was one of the edgier Idol releases, so of course it was also one of the most under-appreciated and under-promoted. But now the beatboxer is back on the perfect label for what he does, Tommy Boy, and is set to release his clubby, funky-fresh sophomore CD, Heartbreak On Vinyl . It's the album that might finally give him the indie cred he's so long strived for (and so definitely deserves).

Katharine McPhee, Oct. 6 - This other first runner-up returns next month with Unbroken --perhaps a message that the Idol powers-that-be, who dropped her after one major-label release, have not crushed her spirit? Most of the hype surrounding Kat's sophomore release has centered on her shockingly short new blonde 'do, which she recently told People was representative of an edgy new musical direction. But the album's first single, "Had It All," has a surprisingly mainstream country vibe to it.

David Archuleta, Oct. 13 - Following in the sensibly-shod footsteps of his logical squeaky-clean predecessor, Clay Aiken, Archie is also releasing a holiday album, Christmas From The Heart , this October. It will reportedly feature mostly classic Xmas fare, like "O Come All Ye Faithful," "The First Noel," and "Joy To The World." So if Adam Lambert's racy persona seems too out-there for the more conservative loved ones on your Christmas list, this is probably the Idol album to buy for Grandma or your 3-year-old niece.

Carrie Underwood, Nov. 3 - One of the most successful stars in country music and one of American Idol 's all-time top-selling alums, Carrie's third album Play On will certainly be a hot seller; its recently leaked lead single, "Cowboy Casanova," is already generating considerable buzz. Kradison ought to be relieved they're not going up against Carrie in the same sales week.

Jason Castro, Nov. 17 - Speaking of going up against other Idols, Atlantic Records has made the questionable decision to release season 7 contestant Jason's still-untitled debut album on the same day as Kris Allen's. Of all the Idols releasing albums in November, Jason has the most in common musically with Kris--they both do the acoustic guitar thing, that is. But Kris is the one who's gotten all the attention lately, while Jason, who was passed over by BMG/19, has laid relatively low for the past year. Jason now finally has a major label behind him and is working with industry powerhouses like Jonas Brothers producer John Fields and Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, but that still may not be nearly enough for him to compete with Kris.

So, let the shopping--or Amazon and iTunes pre-ordering--begin! It's going to be an all-out Idol consumerism war this fall.