Daily Loaf

Paula, I feel your pain.

The “nice” American Idol judge (AKA the “nutso” American Idol judge) gets lots of flak for being overly kind to even the most unlistenable contestants. But as one of three judges last night for GaYbor Karaoke Idol II, the entertaining weekly competition at Streetcar Charlie’s in Ybor, I now realize how tough it is to tell someone to his/her face that singing might not be the best career choice if you can’t carry a tune for shit.

Actually, it wasn’t that much of a problem that we were unable to tap our inner Simon Cowells (even though I know that my fellow judges, Albert the Realtor and Tara the International Woman of Mystery, definitely have some Simon in ‘em). The five contestants all showed merit, and a few were just downright good — particularly the winner, Yarrick Conners, whose awesome range and rhythmic precision suggest he should get himself to an AI audition as soon as possible (plus, he kind of looks like Taye Diggs). Silky-voiced Vanessa Rodriguez endured a technical delay and went on to sing Burt Bacharach’s classic “I Say A Little Prayer” with aplomb; though she came in second, she’s eligible to return and compete some future week. It’d be fun, too, to see an encore from the highly amusing third-place finisher Jennifer Jeffery, who really knows how to work a room.

Karaoke Idol impresario Carlos Anthony performed his master-of-ceremonies duties with an apt combination of rah-rah and razzmatazz. The competition continues through finals on July 23, culminating in a big fundraiser for HIV/AIDS vaccine research on July 30. If you’re interested in testing your karaoke chops and winning up to $5,000 in cash and prizes, show up at Charlie’s on Thursday night by 7:30 and sign up. I can’t guarantee you’ll be blessed with a panel of Paulas — I hear there’s another judge who wasn’t able to be on the panel the night I was there who can dish out damnation with a smile. But the audience gets first crack at selecting the finalists, so bring enough friends along and you may furnish yourself with a buffer, no matter how hard-ass the adjudicators.

PS: I may be in the minority on this, but I wasn’t surprised that Adam Lambert failed to snag his taken-for-granted victory in AI. I usually hate it when the judges tell contestants they’re too “cabaret” or too “Broadway,” as if those were categorically inferior qualities. But I think Adam’s background as a theater performer did stint his ability to connect with the mass audience; even when he was talking to Ryan or communing with the crowds, he seemed to be playing a role. He kept a kind of shield between himself and the camera — the smile too perfect, the confidence too contained. Kris followed in the tradition of some of the other winners in that he projected nothing more than “Hey, I’m a regular guy and look where I am. Can you believe it?” And the Lambert squeal — maybe America had just heard it one too many times.

But the question of who will have the bigger career? That’s a whole nother story. On the radio the day after the finale, I heard Kris’ rendition of the “hit” written for the AI winner by Kara DioGuardi; all it did was remind me how much better Adam had sounded on the same song.

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